Binance Allocates Another $1B for Its Crypto Recovery Fund (CoinDesk)
Crypto exchange Binance has allocated another $1 billion for its industry recovery fund, effectively increasing the size of the fund to over $2 billion. The additional allocation was announced by Binance CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao on Friday.
Yesterday, #Binance allocated ANOTHER $1 billion to the industry recover initiative. All in BUSD.
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) November 25, 2022
The size increase comes a day after CZ said that Binance is targeting $1 billion for its crypto recovery fund. Aptos Labs and Jump Crypto, along with other prominent crypto companies joined Binance's initiative and will contribute $50 million to the fund.
ConsenSys Says It Collects IP Addresses of Metamask Users via Infura (The Block)
"Ethereum-focused software company ConsenSys collects IP addresses and wallet address information of those who access Ethereum wallet MetaMask via the blockchain infrastructure service Infura. That's according to its updated privacy policy. ConsenSys owns both MetaMask and Infura. Infura runs blockchain nodes on behalf of wallets and individuals. When someone makes a blockchain transaction via their MetaMask wallet, it defaults to Infura, which broadcasts the transaction to the Ethereum blockchain. MetaMask connects to Infura through what's called a remote call procedure service (RPC)."
Ethereum Client Teams Test Staking Withdrawals on Devnet (The Block)
"Ethereum developers have released a developer network to test validator staking withdrawals, a feature currently missing on the network. Ethereum developer Marius Van Der Wijden said the devnet will help prepare Ethereum to open up validator staking withdrawals next year with a planned upgrade called Shanghai. The lack of the feature has raised some fears about centralization risks after Ethereum migrated to proof-of-stake consensus. “It's the first devnet that enabled withdrawals on all of these implementations and is a big step forward," Van Der Wijden told The Block. "It also helps other clients to test their implementations by joining the network.”"
Crypto Exchange Bybit Announces $100M Fund to Support Institutional Clients (CoinDesk)
"Crypto exchange Bybit has established a $100 million fund to support institutional clients "during this challenging period in the crypto industry," the company said Thursday. Bybit will offer up to $10 million to existing and new market makers on its platform, as well as dedicated account managers, it said in an emailed statement. Bybit, the 35th largest exchange by trading volume according to CoinMarketCap, joins Binance, the largest, in trying to turn the industry tumult of the past few weeks into an opportunity. The crypto market has lost two-thirds of its value in a year and has been roiled by the collapse of large market participants."
Binance.US to Bid for Crypto Lender Voyager, CZ Confirms (CoinDesk)
"Binance CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao has confirmed that the exchange's U.S. wing will be making a fresh bid for crypto lender Voyager now that the defunct FTX is unable to follow through with acquiring it. CoinDesk reported last week that Binance.US would be preparing a bid for the bankrupt lending platform, which Zhao confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday. "Binance.US will make another bid for Voyager now, given FTX is no longer able to follow through on that commitment," he said."
Genesis, the Troubled Crypto Lender, Hires a Restructuring Adviser (NYT)
"Genesis Global Capital, the troubled crypto lender, has hired the investment bank Moelis & Company to explore options including a potential bankruptcy, three people familiar with the situation said. The people, who requested anonymity because the process is confidential, stressed that no final decisions had been made, and that it was still possible for the company to avert a bankruptcy filing."
Binance US Steps Into National Politics With New Campaign PAC (CoinDesk)
"Withy campaign mega-donor Sam Bankman-Fried and his FTX compatriots vanished from U.S. policy circles, their absence left a void in the crypto industry’s political involvement. Part of that may be filled by the U.S. arm of rival exchange Binance. Binance.US has chosen this moment to step into the arena with its own political action committee (PAC), the Binance.US Innovation PAC. Though the company hasn’t yet detailed its intentions, the committee was formed with a filing to the Federal Elections Commission dated Monday."
Sequoia Capital Apologizes to Its Fund Investors for FTX Loss (WSJ)
"Sequoia Capital apologized to its fund investors for the $150 million it lost on crypto exchange FTX, said people familiar with the matter, a rare moment of contrition for the storied venture-capital firm. On the call, Sequoia‘s partners told the fund investors that the firm would improve its due-diligence process on future investments and that it believed it was misled by FTX based on its recent bankruptcy filing, the people said."
Curve Releases Whitepaper and Official Code for Its Stablecoin (The Block)
"The developers of decentralized exchange Curve Finance have released code and official documents for Curve's soon-to-be launched decentralized stablecoin called crvUSD. While an official announcement from Curve is still pending, the repository published on the projects’ official GitHub account shows the project is all set to finish work on its crypto-backed stablecoin that's soft-pegged to the US dollar. Per the whitepaper, authored by Curve Finance founder Michael Egorov, crvUSD will have similar functionality to MakerDAO’s stablecoin called DAI. Matching DAI, it will be overcollateralized with crypto assets."
Mango Exploiter's Funds Get Liquidated After Roiling Aave Using $20M of Borrowed Curve Tokens (CoinDesk)
A well-known crypto trader linked to last month’s $114 million Mango Markets exploit is at it again – but this time appears to have gotten hung up. The trader, identified on Twitter and tagged by blockchain analysts as Avraham Eisenberg, borrowed 40 million curve (CRV) tokens (worth $20 million at the time) using the decentralized lending platform Aave, then transferred them to the OKEx crypto exchange. But after a series of wild swings in the CRV price, Eisenberg's position appears to have gotten liquidated."
Crypto Lender Genesis Asks Binance and Apollo for Cash (WSJ)
"Cryptocurrency firm Genesis Global Capital is still trying to raise cash. The lender has approached crypto exchange Binance for an investment and to bid for its loan book, according to people familiar with the matter. Binance decided not to invest, fearful that some of Genesis’s business could create a conflict of interest down the line, according to one of the people familiar with the matter. The company also approached private equity giant Apollo Global Management APO 1.75% increase; green up pointing triangle for capital assistance, according to people familiar with the matter."
Crypto Brokerage Genesis Is Said to Warn of Bankruptcy Without Funding (Bloomberg)
"Digital-asset brokerage Genesis is struggling to raise fresh cash for its lending unit, and it’s warning potential investors that it may need to file for bankruptcy if its efforts fail, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Genesis has spent the past several days seeking at least $1 billion in fresh capital, said the people, who asked not to be identified because discussions are private. That included talks over a potential investment from crypto exchange Binance, they said, but funding so far has failed to materialize."
Grayscale’s GBTC Discount to Nav Hits Record Low (The Block)
"In the wake of FTX's meltdown, one of the crypto market's most popular financial products continues to feel the pressure. Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust — a product that offers bitcoin exposure through a fund structure — was trading at its lowest level below net asset value, according to data from Coinglass that show GBTC was trading at a 45.2% discount to NAV. Uncertainty looms over Grayscale's parent company, Digital Currency Group, which also owns troubled crypto lending firm Genesis Capital that is said to be seeking to line up a $1 billion "emergency loan" after the firm told clients it would suspend redemptions, according to Reuters."
Coinbase, MicroStrategy Bonds Tank as FTX Collapse Dents Institutional Confidence in Crypto (CoinDesk)
"Bonds issued by cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (COIN) and by MicroStrategy (MSTR), a business-intelligence company and investor in bitcoin, have slumped as investor confidence in the industry slid in the wake of FTX's collapse. Coinbase's bond due 2031 has dropped 15% this month to 50 U.S. cents on the dollar, according to data source Finra-Morningstar, sending the yield – which moves in the opposite direction to price – to a record high 13.5%. The decline comes after nearly three months of consolidation and marks an extension of the bearish trend seen early this year. The yield on the company's bond due in 2026 jumped to 17%."
Crypto Exchange Uniswap Says It Collects Users' Public On-Chain Data (CoinDesk)
"Uniswap Labs, the development team behind the decentralized exchange Uniswap, said in a newly released privacy policy that it collects certain on-chain data from its users to continually make improvements to its product. “We do want to make data-driven decisions that improve user experience,” Uniswap Labs said. “That includes public on-chain data and limited off-chain data like device type, browser version, etc.” Uniswap Labs said it doesn't collect personal data, such as first name, last name, street address, date of birth, email address or internet-protocol address."
Grayscale Won’t Share Proof of Reserves, Citing ‘Security Concerns’ (The Block)
"Crypto investment firm Grayscale won't show proof of reserves after bitcoin and ether products fall to new all-time lows. “Due to security concerns, we do not make such on-chain wallet information and confirmation information publicly available through a cryptographic Proof-of-Reserve, or other advanced cryptographic accounting procedure,” Grayscale said Friday afternoon on Twitter. The firm acknowledged its decision to keep its reserve information private would be a “disappointment” to some investors. Crypto firms are being pressed to show more information about their reserves after crypto behemoth FTX filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month."
FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Cashed Out $300 Million During Funding Spree (WSJ)
"When FTX raised $420 million from an array of big-name investors in October last year, the cryptocurrency exchange said the money would help grow the business, improve user experience and allow it to engage more with regulators. Left unmentioned was that nearly three-quarters of the money, $300 million, went instead to FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who sold some of his personal stake in the company, according to FTX financial records reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and people familiar with the transaction."
FTX Owes Its 50 Biggest Unsecured Creditors More Than $3 Billion (Bloomberg)
"Sam Bankman-Fried’s bankrupt crypto empire owes its 50 biggest unsecured creditors a total of $3.1 billion, new court papers show, with a pair of customers owed more than $200 million each. FTX-linked entities owe their single biggest unsecured creditor more than $226 million, according to a redacted list of top 50 creditors filed late Saturday. All of them were listed as customers and ten have claims of more than $100 million each, the filings show."
Ether Under Pressure as ‘FTX Accounts Drainer’ Cashes Out for Bitcoin (The Block)
"After consecutive days of swapping cryptocurrencies drained from FTX for ether, the so-called "FTX Accounts Drainer" is now swapping its ether stack for bitcoin — and putting downward pressure on the price of ether in the process. Earlier Sunday, the exploiter swapped about 5,000 ether for 347 renBTC — a form of wrapped bitcoin on Ethereum that can be redeemed for native bitcoin — according to blockchain tracker PeckShieldAlert. The drainer then followed with another swap of roughly the same amount for 344.53 renBTC."
Cardano Is Launching New Privacy Blockchain and Token (CoinDesk)
Input Output Global (IOG), the firm behind the Cardano blockchain, is releasing a new privacy-focused blockchain called Midnight and a token called dust to accompany the new network. Midnight, which is underpinned by zero-knowledge proof technology, is one of many side chains now being deployed around Cardano, and will go beyond previous privacy-coin projects by delivering zero-knowledge proof smart contracts, IOG CEO Charles Hoskinson said during an event at Edinburgh University in Scotland on Friday. The system will walk the line between preserving privacy and allowing regulators and auditors a backdoor into the system when permission is granted, he said."