We have compiled the most important news from the crypto industry over the past two weeks.
- Media: Standard Chartered to launch a trading division for Bitcoin and Ethereum.
- Gemini to pay $50 million in a settlement with the New York Attorney General.
- Media: Bakkt considers potential sale or breakup.
- New York Attorney General challenges DCG and CEO Barry Silbert’s motion to dismiss the case.
- Worldcoin to increase investment and business expansion in Argentina.
- 1inch partners with Blockaid to introduce a “Web3 antivirus.”
Media: Standard Chartered to Launch Bitcoin and Ethereum Trading Division
One of Britain’s largest banks, Standard Chartered, is set to launch a trading division for the first and second cryptocurrencies on the spot market, according to sources cited by Bloomberg.
“We are working closely with regulators to support institutional demand for trading Bitcoin and Ethereum. The bank is implementing a strategy to support clients across the digital asset ecosystem,” responded representatives of the institution.
Standard Chartered holds stakes in Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets, which offer services from custody to over-the-counter trading. In November 2023, the company launched the Libeara tokenization platform.
In the same month, Standard Chartered and SBI Holdings agreed to allocate $100 million for investments in crypto startups.
Gemini to Pay $50 Million in Settlement with New York Attorney General
The Bitcoin exchange settled claims with the New York State Attorney General by paying $50 million.
In October 2023, the agency filed a lawsuit against Gemini, Genesis, and Digital Currency Group (DCG) and their leadership, accusing them of defrauding 230,000 investors of over $1 billion.
According to the investigation, Gemini misled users about the Earn staking program, which it implemented jointly with Genesis. The Winklevoss brothers’ company repeatedly assured investors that the product was low-risk.
The funds raised under Earn were transferred by Gemini to Genesis, which used them to issue loans to the bankrupt Three Arrows Capital and Alameda Research.
The settlement will allow “all defrauded investors to fully recover the assets they invested in the program but could not withdraw when it collapsed,” stated representatives of the Attorney General’s office.
Under the agreement, Gemini is also prohibited from conducting any cryptocurrency lending programs in the state.
In May 2024, the platform promised Earn clients to return 100% of assets worth $2.18 billion more than a year after the program’s closure. The funds will be distributed in kind, meaning in the form of the digital assets that were originally locked on the platform at the time of the withdrawal halt.
New York Attorney General Challenges DCG and CEO Barry Silbert’s Motion to Dismiss Case
The New York State Attorney General’s office challenged the motion by DCG and its CEO Barry Silbert to dismiss the lawsuit.
In February, the agency tripled the alleged fraud amount — to over $3 billion — in the case against Gemini, Genesis, and Digital Currency Group.
Initially, the lawsuit accused the companies and their leadership of defrauding 230,000 investors of $1 billion.
In May 2024, Genesis received court approval to distribute $3 billion in fiat and cryptocurrencies among its creditors.
Media: Bakkt Considers Potential Sale or Breakup
The American institutional platform Bakkt is considering a potential sale or breakup, according to sources cited by Bloomberg.
Earlier, in its Q4 2024 report to the SEC, the company expressed doubts about its ability to continue business.
“In our estimates, cash and cash equivalents will not be sufficient to fund operations over the next 12 months,” the organization explained.
Bakkt attributed this conclusion to significant uncertainty related to its expansion into new markets and revenue base growth amid a rapidly changing regulatory environment.
The current news surrounding the firm emerged amid a surge in M&A deals related to cryptocurrencies. Notably, Robinhood Markets agreed to acquire Bitstamp, while Riot Platforms initiated a hostile takeover of competitor Bitfarms.
According to sources, Bakkt is working with a financial advisor to weigh a range of strategic options.
In March 2023, the platform announced the discontinuation of its retail investor app, focusing efforts on providing crypto services and loyalty solutions to companies within a B2B2C model through SaaS and API solutions.
Worldcoin to Increase Investment and Business Expansion in Argentina
Sam Altman’s Worldcoin project will “significantly” increase investment and business expansion in Argentina. It is expected that 50 retail outlets will open across more than 10 cities in the country during the summer.
As part of the initiative, the team will add at least 50 skilled employees in positions such as developers, operations specialists, software engineers, and data analysts.
In May 2024, Altman and Argentina’s President Javier Milei discussed Worldcoin’s investments in the country.
Previously, the project released the open-source code for the main components of orb software and introduced the Personal Custody privacy feature.
Before that, the company introduced World ID 2.0, integrated with several platforms, including Telegram, Reddit, Shopify, and Minecraft, for passwordless authentication.
1inch Partners with Blockaid to Introduce “Web3 Antivirus”
The DeFi project 1inch, in partnership with Blockaid studio, announced the release of the 1inch Shield solution, focusing on enhanced protection against a wide range of potential threats.
Your security is enhanced with the #1inchShield API! ?️
Transaction simulation, scam token detection, AML compliance, and suspicious address blocklisting are now available. Built in cooperation with @blockaid_, @trmlabs, and @etherscan Pro.
Explore the new feature overview ? pic.twitter.com/4TVvMH1spb
— 1inch Network (@1inch) June 20, 2024
Each time a user connects their wallet to sign a transaction, Blockaid provides clear information about what will actually happen when the transaction is executed.
The check allows for determining whether the operation is malicious. The solution detects and flags fraudulent tokens masquerading as legitimate ones.
1inch Shield enhances user security and asset protection, contributing to the growth and mass adoption of decentralized finance, noted the project team.
In May 2024, 1inch developers activated the second version of the major Fusion update. The technology allows processing orders 35% cheaper and 75% faster thanks to professional trader-resolvers.
Key Metrics of the DeFi Segment
The total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols has dropped to $98.6 billion. Lido remains the leader with $33.7 billion. EigenLayer holds the second spot with $18.3 billion, while Aave maintains third place with $12.2 billion.
TVL in Ethereum applications fell to $60.6 billion.
Trading volume on decentralized exchanges (DEX) over the past 30 days increased to $149.4 billion.
Uniswap continues to dominate, accounting for 57.3% of total turnover (a month ago — 61.9%). The second DEX by turnover, PancakeSwap, reduced its market share from 20.4% to 16.8%. Curve took third place with 5.5%.
Also on ForkLog:
- Jump Crypto became the subject of a CFTC investigation.
- LayerZero Foundation requested a fee for claiming ZRO and conducted a token airdrop.
- MicroStrategy acquired 11,931 BTC and issued $800 million in shares.
- Consensys will continue its legal battle with the SEC.
- EigenLayer protocol opened applications for a second airdrop and faced a competitor launch backed by Lido founders.
- Coinbase to launch pre-markets for altcoins.
- Ethereum ecosystem TPS reached a historic high.
- Regulator declared Swiss FlowBank, linked to CoinShares, bankrupt.
- OKX disclosed hack details and promised compensation.
- SEC fined Terraform Labs $4.47 billion.
- The number of DEX users on Base reached a record 267,000.
- ZKsync distributed 3.6 billion ZK tokens during an airdrop.
What to Read Over the Weekend?
On June 15, Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas announced the postponement of the launch date for spot Ethereum ETFs to July 2 after issuers received comments on S-1 forms.
Subsequently, media reported that the adjustments, according to issuers, were “light.” Along with the closure of the SEC investigation regarding the possible recognition of Ethereum 2.0 as a security, this strengthened the prospects for the registration of exchange-traded funds.
Meanwhile, market participants’ attention may shift to the potential approval of a SOL-ETF. In Canada, digital asset manager 3iQ filed a corresponding application. The listing of the instrument is planned on the Toronto Stock Exchange.