Headlines
▌SBF will be arraigned in New York next week
FTX founder SBF will be arraigned by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York next week. Court documents determine that SBF will be arraigned on Jan 3. SBF faces two counts of wire fraud and six counts of conspiracy. SBF partners Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang have already cooperated with prosecutors in misleading investors about the nature of the relationship between FTX and related trading firm Alameda Research. The requests may have provided the court with information about SBF's activities. SBF also faces civil cases from federal regulators, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Cryptocurrency
▌MicroStrategy announces to add 2,500 BTC
MicroStrategy announced that it would increase its holdings by 2,500 BTC. As of December 27, 2022, MicroStrategy held approximately 132,500 Bitcoins, which were acquired at a total value of approximately US$4.03 billion, with an average of approximately US$30,397 per Bitcoin.
▌Solana fell below the $10 mark for the first time in nearly two years
According to coingecko data, Solana’s native token SOL has fallen below the $10 mark. At the time of writing this article, it was $9.77, a drop of 11.8% in the past 24 hours and a drop of 20.5% in the past 7 days. It fell below $10 for the first time. Historical data shows that SOL hit a high of around $260 in November 2021, which means it has lost 96% of its value. The analysis believes that the FTX bankruptcy has hit Solana more severely than other cryptocurrencies, because FTX and Alameda Research have invested heavily in SOL and Solana ecology.
▌NFT sales fell around Christmas for the second consecutive year
According to data from NFT data tracker CryptoSlam, in 2021, NFT transaction volume dropped from $80.8 million on December 22 to $64.3 million on December 25. Compared with 2021, Christmas trading volume in 2022 will drop by 80%, due to the sluggish cryptocurrency market this year. This downturn has a great impact on NFT market transactions, resulting in a continuous decline in transaction volume for the past eight months. It is worth mentioning that the bottom price of Yuga Labs' Bored Ape Yacht Club rose before the holiday.
▌China is set to launch its first regulated NFT platform on January 1, 2023
China emerged as one of the first nations to embrace the industry. This was during a time the majority of the world’s population knew very little about the crypto-verse. Now that every country seems to be moving into the sector, China has made the decision to outright ban all things cryptocurrency. The nation evidently smashed notable Bitcoin mining giants and passed a broad ban on the sector. However, the country had mixed feelings regarding the metaverse and NFTs. Recently, the Zhejiang Province of China announced its plans to construct a metaverse industry. It was estimated to be worth more than $28.7 billion by 2025.
OKX admitted to allowing illegal transactions for U.S. users, leading to over $500 million in penalties. Prosecutors say the company processed over $1 trillion in trades and even advised users on how to bypass restrictions.
WeatherlyPresident Trump is urging Elon Musk to take a more aggressive stance on government inefficiencies, praising his success with D.O.G.E. Under Musk’s implementation of Trump’s mandate, federal job cuts and increased accountability are on the horizon.
CatherineTwo young smugglers were arrested in Busan for trafficking over 7kg of drugs, including marijuana, after being recruited by a drug lord via a Telegram channel. The drug lord used cryptocurrency payments to avoid detection and instructed the smugglers through encrypted messages.
AnaisSBF tweeted from prison, commenting on layoffs and aligning with D.O.G.E. policies, referencing Trump’s worker firings. His post sparked a Crypto Twitter storm, with many questioning how he tweeted and mocking his attempt to stay relevant. Though unrelated to FTX, the tweet briefly boosted FTT’s value. Could this be SBF's bid for a pardon?
KikyoMichael Saylor proposed a Bitcoin reserve strategy to help reduce the U.S. national debt, suggesting the government acquire 20% of Bitcoin’s total supply. His plan includes regulatory changes to encourage digital asset innovation and reduce compliance costs for issuers.
WeatherlyUpbit, South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, faces a three-month suspension for regulatory violations, including failure to meet anti-money laundering and KYC standards. The suspension, affecting new users, follows an investigation that revealed over 44,000 AML breaches and poor customer verification practices.
JoyThailand has seen a histroic rise in scam calls and SMS fraud, totalling 168 million in 2024 compared to the year prior. This surge prompted authorities to intensify their crackdown on cyber fraud operations across Southeast Asia.
CatherineChainflip introduced an upgrade to block illicit funds linked to the Bybit hack, protecting its platform and liquidity providers. The protocol now uses enhanced screening tools to prevent hackers from using its services to launder stolen assets.
WeatherlyHamster Kombat launches Hamster Network, a gaming-focused Layer-2 blockchain on TON, offering scalable, low-cost Web3 gaming infrastructure. Built on TON’s secure Layer-1, it supports dApps, a wallet, bridge, and DEX. Can this expansion revive its past hype and sustain relevance?
CatherineBybit has launched a website to track wallet addresses linked to the Lazarus Group after hackers stole over $1.4 billion in crypto. The exchange is offering a 5% reward from frozen assets to users who help identify and freeze stolen funds. Will this crowdsourced effort succeed or fall short?
Kikyo
