Author: Faith Yakubu

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Bitcoin Cash witnessed a significant surge, jumping over 10% in value after the completion of its blockchain’s halving process. The digital currency has been steadily climbing since the beginning of the year, with a notable 23% increase over the past week and an impressive 43% surge in the last month, as reported by CryptoSlate.

At the time of reporting, BCH was trading at $673, marking its highest level since May 2021. Market analysts attribute this surge to various factors, including the recent halving event and the prevailing bullish market sentiment.

Bitcoin Cash Halving

Bitcoin Cash, a proof-of-work blockchain network that forked from Bitcoin in 2017, aims to facilitate faster and cheaper transactions but has seen limited adoption in the crypto community. The recent halving, occurring at block height 840,000, reduced miner rewards from 6.25 BCH to 3.125 BCH per block.

Following the halving, Bitcoin Unlimited data indicates that the network has confirmed 840,017 blocks, with approximately 17 blocks validated since the event. Moreover, OKLink data shows a spike in BCH’s network mining difficulty to its highest level since 2019 at 761,589.2, while miner rewards have decreased from an average of 0.0003 to 0.00017 at the time of reporting.

Potential Implications for Bitcoin

Market experts view Bitcoin Cash’s halving as a potential precursor to Bitcoin’s upcoming halving, scheduled for April 20. During this event, Bitcoin’s miner block rewards will be halved from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.

Notably, industry players such as asset management firm Grayscale and Hut 8 Mining CEO Asher Genoot have highlighted the significant impact this upcoming halving event may have on the broader cryptocurrency landscape.

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Google has initiated legal proceedings against a group of individuals accused of orchestrating a scheme to defraud over 100,000 people worldwide through counterfeit cryptocurrency apps distributed on its Google Play store. The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of New York on April 4, reflects Google’s commitment to combatting crypto scams and establishing legal safeguards for user protection.

The defendants, identified as Yunfeng Sun and Hongnam Cheung, allegedly operated a fraudulent operation by uploading at least 87 fake investment and crypto exchange apps on Google Play. These individuals purportedly provided false information about their identities, locations, and the nature of their apps.

Halimah DeLaine Prado, Google’s general counsel, underscored the significance of the lawsuit in addressing crypto fraud, which has inflicted significant losses in the US. Google aims to leverage its resources to safeguard users and deter fraudulent activities.

The legal action utilizes civil claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, alongside breach of contract claims. The lawsuit outlines the defendants’ methods to attract users, including text messaging campaigns, online videos, and affiliate marketing.

Despite the counterfeit apps’ appearance of legitimacy, users allegedly encountered difficulties withdrawing their funds, with some being misled into paying additional fees to access earnings. The accused scammers attempted to legitimize their apps by facilitating small initial withdrawals and publishing news releases, but users encountered obstacles when attempting to retrieve larger investments.

Google has responded to these deceptive practices by bolstering its cybersecurity measures, forming partnerships with law enforcement, and establishing a dedicated team to identify fraud. The company claims damages exceeding $75,000 due to investigative and safety enhancement costs.

Through the lawsuit, Google seeks damages and a permanent injunction barring the defendants and their affiliates from accessing Google services or creating accounts. This legal action forms part of Google’s broader strategy to protect users and uphold platform integrity amidst rising online scams and cybersecurity threats.

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The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), known as the central bank for central banks, has unveiled Project Agorá, an initiative aimed at delving deeper into blockchain technology to enhance the monetary system.

Hyun Song Shin, BIS Economic Adviser and Head of Research highlighted the potential of tokenization, stating, “Tokenization combines the record-keeping function of a traditional database with the rules and logic that govern transfers.” Project Agorá aims to leverage tokenization to improve existing capabilities and introduce new functionalities to the monetary system while upholding its core principles.

The project boasts collaboration from leading central banks including the Bank of France, Bank of Japan, Bank of Korea, Bank of Mexico, Swiss National Bank, Bank of England, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Together with a consortium of private financial firms convened by the Institute of International Finance (IIF), they will explore the seamless integration of tokenized commercial bank deposits with tokenized wholesale central bank money within a “public-private programmable core financial platform.”

The envisioned infrastructure holds promise for enhancing the monetary system and unlocking new possibilities through smart contracts and programmability. By overcoming structural inefficiencies, especially in cross-border payments, the initiative seeks to streamline operations and improve efficiency.

Cecilia Skingsley, Head of the BIS Innovation Hub, emphasized the project’s goal of creating a common payment infrastructure that brings together various elements of the financial system for improved efficiency.

The collaborative effort will involve testing the technology within the operational, regulatory, and legal frameworks of participating currencies, along with financial companies operating in those jurisdictions. Additionally, the project aims to address challenges related to financial integrity controls, such as anti-money laundering measures and customer verification.

Project Agorá represents the BIS Innovation Hub’s experimental approach to exploring and delivering public goods to the global central banking community. Moving forward, the BIS plans to invite regulated financial institutions to join the project, aiming to include several institutions representing each of the seven participating currencies. Specific instructions and requirements for interested parties will be provided in due course.

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Amid the ongoing crypto bull market, the top crypto exchange insurance funds have seen a remarkable surge in value, exceeding $1 billion.

As of April 3, Binance’s Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU), comprising Bitcoin, BNB, Tether, and TrueUSD (TUSD) balances, has surpassed $2.03 billion, soaring from its initial balance of $1 billion in January 2022. Similarly, Bitget’s protection fund, initially set at $300 million when launched in November 2022, has now grown to $612 million due to the appreciation of its Bitcoin holdings. Over the past year, Bitcoin has witnessed a 136% surge, while BNB has seen a 79.36% increase, contributing to the growth of these insurance funds amidst the crypto bull run.

While most exchanges offer some form of insurance protection for users, only Binance and Bitget have disclosed their on-chain addresses. Huobi (now HTX) previously announced a reserve of 20,000 BTC ($1.32 billion) in an independent address in 2019, aimed at addressing extreme security incidents. However, it remains unclear if the exchange still holds this balance, especially after suffering several exploits last year resulting in significant losses.

Crypto exchange OKX operates a $700 million “Risk Shield” program for user protection, although the composition of this amount in terms of tokens, stablecoins, or fiat funds is unclear. Conversely, exchanges like Coinbase provide insurance based on customers’ geographical location and the nature of their funds, whether in fiat or crypto.

Some exchanges may choose not to disclose on-chain addresses for various reasons, including concerns about cybersecurity attacks or potential deception, as seen in the case of the defunct exchange FTX. Former FTX chief technology officer Gary Wang revealed that FTX’s claimed $100 million insurance fund in 2021 was fabricated and did not contain any FTX Token (FTT). This underscores the importance of transparency and accountability in the crypto exchange ecosystem.

While on-chain addresses provide insight into the assets held by exchanges, they do not account for off-chain liabilities. In response to such concerns, jurisdictions like Hong Kong have mandated crypto exchanges to offer insurance covering up to 50% of users’ fiat and crypto assets, ensuring greater protection for investors.

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The stablecoin supply within the layer-1 blockchain network Solana has experienced a steady rise since the start of the year, surpassing the $3 billion milestone in recent days.

Data sourced from the blockchain analytics platform Artemis reveals a 55.72% increase in stablecoin supply over the last three months, now totaling $3.12 billion on the network.

While this figure is notably lower than the balance recorded in 2022, when over $6 billion worth of assets were present on the blockchain, it marks a significant recovery from the low point of $1.4 billion during the bear market. The recent upward trend signals a resurgence in activity.

Moreover, stablecoin transfer volume on Solana has surged by an impressive 164%, reaching $1.4 trillion, underscoring the network’s robust activity levels.

USDC Dominance

A breakdown of stablecoins on Solana highlights the dominance of Circle’s USD Coin (USDC), which accounts for 73% of such assets on the network.

Recent data from Artemis shows USDC’s substantial share of stablecoin transfer volume, amounting to $63.69 billion on April 2, overshadowing USDT’s $812.41 million. EURC ranks third with a volume of less than $100,000.

The rise of USDC’s dominance on Solana correlates with Circle’s introduction of its Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) on the network on March 26.

Reasons Behind Solana’s Stablecoin Surge

Stablecoins serve as a vital bridge between traditional fiat currencies and digital assets. The increasing stablecoin supply indicates heightened liquidity and suggests a rise in capital inflow.

Market analysts attribute this surge to the influx of capital into the network, coinciding with the hype surrounding meme coins and the expanding DeFi activity within the Solana ecosystem.

Despite past controversies involving Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, the Solana blockchain ecosystem has witnessed significant growth over the past year. This growth has attracted a wave of new users and forged substantial partnerships with major global financial entities like Visa and Shopify.

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Coinbase has joined the ranks of prominent cryptocurrency trading platforms like Binance by integrating the Bitcoin Lightning Network, fulfilling promises made by CEO Brian Armstrong.

In a statement released on April 3rd, Lightspark, a lightning network-based payment infrastructure provider, announced its selection by Coinbase to facilitate the integration of the Bitcoin Lightning Network.

Through this partnership, Coinbase will utilize Lightspark’s remote-key signing implementation. This setup enables Coinbase to maintain control of the Lightning signing keys while Lightspark manages the Lightning node infrastructure. This collaborative approach ensures smooth operations without overwhelming Coinbase’s team with the management of a large-scale implementation.

Lightspark has garnered significant success in simplifying Lightning node management. Its suite of products, including SDKs, APIs, and developer tools, seamlessly integrates with the Lightning Network. Moreover, Lightspark’s AI-based smart engine, known as Lightspark Predict, dynamically optimizes liquidity needs to improve transaction success rates in real time.

Benefits of Lightning Integration

The integration provides several advantages for Coinbase, including leveraging Lightspark’s node infrastructure while allowing its team to concentrate on customer-centric initiatives.

Furthermore, the collaboration will positively impact the Bitcoin network, particularly during periods of increased transaction fees, by improving scalability and transaction efficiency. Furthermore, it sets the foundation for future applications by supplying liquidity to the Bitcoin network.

Shan Aggarwal, Coinbase’s VP of Corporate & Business Development, conveyed excitement regarding the partnership, expressing the company’s eagerness to collaborate with Lightspark to remove payment barriers and facilitate faster and more cost-effective Bitcoin transactions by supporting the Bitcoin Lightning Network.

Recently, Coinbase has faced mounting inquiries from various crypto community members regarding its delay in adopting the scaling solution, especially following the integration of the technology by major competitors like Binance.

In response, Armstrong reaffirmed Coinbase’s commitment to incorporating the Lightning Network, highlighting the company’s ongoing efforts.

This integration holds significance for Bitcoin, considering the growing demand for streamlined Bitcoin transactions amidst soaring prices.

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The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is broadening its regulatory framework for crypto service providers through amendments to the Payment Services Act, aiming to enhance user protection and safeguard financial stability.

Announced on Tuesday, the amendments will be implemented in stages, starting from April 4. The MAS emphasized that these changes will encompass custodial services for digital payment tokens (DPTs), facilitation of DPT transmission, and cross-border money transfers, even in cases where funds are not received in Singapore.

Under the amended regulations, the MAS will have the authority to impose requirements related to anti-money laundering (AML), countering the financing of terrorism (CFT), user protection, and financial stability on DPT service providers.

Transitional arrangements will be provided for entities affected by the expanded regulatory scope. However, affected entities must notify the regulator within 30 days and submit a license application within six months from April 4.

According to Angela Ang, a senior policy advisor at blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs and former MAS regulator, this expansion brings long-awaited regulatory clarity to crypto custody players in Singapore.

Kelvin Low, a law professor at the National University of Singapore, remarked that these changes were anticipated and unlikely to surprise industry players. He suggested that any decisions by crypto exchanges or firms to exit Singapore due to these changes would have been made well in advance.

In addition to regulatory amendments, the MAS released guidelines outlining consumer protection measures that DPT service providers must adhere to under the Payment Services Act. These measures include segregating customer assets, maintaining proper books and records, and ensuring the security and integrity of customer assets. The guideline is slated to come into effect on October 4.

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Crypto.com is set to introduce its digital asset trading services in South Korea by the end of this month, as announced on Tuesday. This move comes as part of Crypto.com’s acquisition of local exchange OK-BIT in 2022.

The forthcoming platform from Crypto.com will replace the operations of OK-BIT, which is gradually winding down its services. Eric Anziani, President and COO of Crypto.com, expressed excitement about entering the South Korean market, emphasizing its significance for the company’s growth and the keen interest of South Korean consumers in crypto.

The South Korean trading platform Crypto.com will adhere to strict regulations set by local authorities for crypto exchanges. Operating under the name Crypto.com App, the platform will enable South Korean retail investors to engage in cryptocurrency and non-fungible token (NFT) trading. However, institutional clients will not be served, as South Korean-based institutions are restricted from direct crypto investments.

Furthermore, South Korea mandates that local crypto exchanges establish banking partnerships to offer fiat-to-crypto trading services, aiming to mitigate risks related to money laundering and market manipulation. While Crypto.com’s initial services will focus on crypto-to-crypto exchange, the company aims to secure a local bank partnership to provide a comprehensive trading experience, according to South Korean news agency News1.

In a parallel development, Binance made its entry into the South Korean market last year by acquiring a majority stake in local exchange Gopax. However, regulatory concerns surrounding Binance’s legal issues in the U.S. have led to delays in approving structural changes to Gopax. Binance has been actively seeking to address compliance issues by reducing its shares in Gopax and engaging in discussions with financial regulators in South Korea.

South Korea boasts one of the world’s largest and most active cryptocurrency markets, with its five fully licensed exchanges—Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and Gopax—processing nearly $3 billion worth of crypto transactions in the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data. During the peak of Bitcoin’s price surge earlier this year, South Korea’s crypto trade volume briefly surpassed that of its stock market.

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Volatility in the cryptocurrency market has triggered liquidations surpassing $400 million in the past 24 hours. Bitcoin positions alone accounted for $130 million in liquidations, predominantly affecting long positions.

The recent volatility in the crypto market led to a surge in liquidations on centralized exchanges, coinciding with Bitcoin’s decline below the $67,000 mark, followed by a broader downturn across the crypto space.

According to data from CoinGlass, liquidations totaling over $427 million were recorded across various centralized crypto exchanges in the past day, with the majority, approximately $342 million, stemming from long positions.

Bitcoin bore the brunt of the liquidations, with over $130 million in liquidations within the same period, of which $90 million represented long positions.

Liquidations occur when a trader’s position is forcibly closed due to insufficient funds to cover losses, typically resulting from adverse market movements depleting initial margin or collateral.

The cascade of liquidations coincided with Bitcoin’s drop below $67,000, having traded above $71,000 the previous day. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization has seen a decrease of over 4.2% in the last 24 hours, currently hovering around $66,500.

Meanwhile, the GMCI 30 index, reflecting the top 30 cryptocurrencies, experienced a 6.8% decline to 143.40 over the past day, with the second-largest cryptocurrency, ether, plunging by 6.5% to $3,319.

Following the market downturn, analysts at crypto trading firm QCP Capital highlighted signals from the options market, indicating the liquidation spree led by large retail-heavy exchanges.

QCP analysts noted, “Once again, the options market provided an early signal to a sharp downside move, particularly the downside skew in risk reversals.” They further emphasized the rapidity of the downturn, attributing it to significant liquidations on retail-heavy platforms like Binance, resulting in flat perp funding rates after reaching as high as 77%.

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Ethena has initiated the claim process for its governance token (ENA) airdrop, allocating 750 million tokens, equivalent to 5% of its total supply of 15 billion, to eligible participants. The project has announced that the token will commence trading on various centralized exchanges, starting at 4:00 a.m. EST.

This airdrop follows the “shard campaign,” a reward initiative aimed at early adopters, allowing user engagement through referral links and rewarding them with shards (or points). The number of tokens allocated to each user is determined by the total shards accumulated by April 1.

Ethena Labs, the development firm behind the synthetic dollar project Ethena, also known as USDe, has been supportive of the stablecoin, referred to as an “Internet Bond” and a “synthetic dollar.” In February, Ethena Labs secured $14 million in a strategic funding round, valuing the project at $300 million. The funding round was co-led by Dragonfly and Maelstrom, the family office of BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes.

Unlike traditional stablecoins, USDe implements a distinctive mechanism that doesn’t rely on direct fiat or asset backing. Instead, it employs strategies such as hedging derivative positions against collateral held by the protocol and an arbitrage system for minting and redeeming USDe, aimed at maintaining its peg to the US dollar.

In essence, USDe utilizes methods like shorting ether futures and earning yield through staking with Ethereum validators to generate a protocol yield, which is then shared with stablecoin holders.

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