Important information last night this morning (March 12-March 13)
Reprinted from panewslab
03/13/2025·1M
Bloomberg: CS2 skin investment performance surpasses cryptocurrency and S&P 500
According to Bloomberg, the ROI of CS2 skin has surpassed the S&P 500 and major crypto assets (Bitcoin and Ethereum) recently, becoming one of the best performing asset classes. Data shows that the total value of items in the CS2 game has exceeded US$4.3 billion and has shown a continuous upward trend, while Bitcoin, Ethereum and S&P 500 indexes all fell during the same period.
FTX/Alameda redeems 185,000 SOLs from pledge today, most of which flow to the exchange
According to on-link analyst Ember Monitor, FTX/Alameda redeems 185,000 SOLs (about $22.89 million) from the pledge six hours ago and then distributed them to 38 addresses, most of which eventually transferred the SOLs to Coinbase and Binance. Since November 2023, the FTX/Alameda pledged addresses have been redeemed and transferred 7.845 million SOLs (about US$1.009 billion) through similar methods, with an average transfer price of US$128. At present, the FTX/Alameda pledge address still holds 5.502 million SOLs (about 694 million US dollars) and is still in a pledge state.
Nebraska signs Bitcoin ATM Regulation Act LB609 to strengthen anti-fraud protection
According to Decrypt, Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen officially signed the LB609 Act on March 12, which aims to regulate Bitcoin ATMs and other electronic trading terminals to prevent fraud and ensure the safety of user funds. The bill is part of the Controllable Electronic Record Fraud Prevention Act, requiring Bitcoin ATM operators to clearly disclose all transaction terms to users and provide clear anti-fraud warnings. In addition, if the user reports that he has suffered a fraud within 90 days, the operator must refund him a full amount.
Coinbase to suspend FLOKI, TURBO and GIGA deals in New York State
According to Coinbase announcement, it regularly evaluates the compliance and listing standards of trading assets. According to the latest review, Coinbase will suspend transactions of FLOKI (FLOKI), Turbo (TURBO) and Gigachad (GIGA) in New York State at 14:00 ET on April 14 (02:00 ET on April 15). The adjustment only applies to New York State and transactions in other regions will not be affected. Users can still buy, sell or withdraw assets before the transaction is suspended.
U.S. stocks close: Nasdaq rose 1.2%, Tesla rose more than 7%
U.S. stocks closed on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average initially closing down 0.2%, the S&P 500 rose 0.49%, and the Nasdaq closed up 1.2%. NVDA.O rose 6.4%, Tesla (TSLA.O) rose 7.5%, Walmart (WMT.N) fell 2.6%, and Apple (AAPL.O) fell 1.7%. Among blockchain concept stocks, Strategy (MSTR.O) rose 0.75%, and Coinbase (COIN.O) rose 0.02%.
Coinbase will launch Maple Finance (SYRUP) transactions
According to Coinbase announcement, it will support Maple Finance (SYRUP) as an ERC-20 token to be launched on the Ethereum network. SYRUP recharge is now open and is suitable for areas where Coinbase and Coinbase Exchange support transactions. If the liquidity conditions are met, the SYRUP-USD trading pair is planned to be launched gradually at 0:00 am on March 14th Beijing time (9AM on March 13th PT time).
Coinbase will launch Aethir (ATH) trading, opening trading pairs on March 14
According to Coinbase's announcement, it will support Aethir (ATH) as an ERC-20 token to be launched on the Ethereum network. Users must not transfer money through other networks to avoid losing funds. ATH recharge is now open and is available in areas where Coinbase and Coinbase Exchange support transactions. If the liquidity conditions are met, the ATH-USD trading pair is planned to be launched gradually at 0:00 am on March 14th Beijing time (9AM on March 13th PT time).
Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced that Google DeepMind officially released the latest open source multimodal mockup Gemma 3, focusing on low-cost and high-performance, supporting text, visual inference and function calls. Gemma 3 has four parameter scales: 1B, 4B, 12B and 27B. The largest 27B model requires only one H100 GPU to run efficiently, while similar models require at least 10 times computing power to achieve similar performance. Gemma 3 supports 140 languages and provides 128K context windows, significantly improving long text processing capabilities. According to LMSYS ChatbotArena test, its 27B model is second only to DeepSeek R1-671B, higher than well-known open source models such as o3-mini and Llama3-405B. In addition, Google simultaneously launched ShieldGemma 2, focusing on image security detection, helping developers filter sensitive content. Gemma 3 is now available for download and can be used through platforms such as Google AI Studio, Hugging Face, Vertex AI.
Venice airdrop ends, $100 million unreceived VVV tokens is destroyed
According to The Block, the privacy protection AI platform Venice has completed community airdrops, and about $100 million unclaimed VVV tokens were permanently destroyed on Wednesday. Since the launch of VVV tokens on the Ethereum Layer 2 Base network on January 27, more than 40,000 people have received a total of 17.4 million VVV tokens, accounting for 35% of the total community allocation. The 32.6 million VVV tokens destroyed this time account for 65% of the total community allocation, equivalent to one-third of the total Genesis supply, significantly reducing market circulation supply. Nevertheless, 14 million new VVV tokens will be added each year, with an initial inflation rate of 14%, and will be gradually reduced according to the "usage rate" of the Venice API. Venice said it did not conduct VC financing, pre-sales or over-the-counter transactions and has repurchased and destroyed the 1% Genesis Supply Tokens previously sold in response to community questions. In the future, Venice plans to launch image engines, social dynamics, mobile applications and token economy updates.
Blockchain-related terms in SEC files hit record highs in February
According to The Block, the terms involved in blockchain in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings reached an all-time high in February, with more than 5,000 related mentions recorded by the EDGAR database, showing a continued upward trend since mid-2023. This growth is consistent with a significant shift in the SEC's regulatory attitude towards the crypto industry. Since the presidential change in January, Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda took office, the SEC has terminated multiple investigations against companies such as Uniswap, Coinbase, Yuga Labs, Kraken and Gemini, marking a different adjustment from the "law enforcement and supervision" strategy during the period of former chairman Gary Gensler. In addition, Uyeda's crypto task force, led by Hester Peirce, a committee member who supports the crypto industry, plans to hold its first round table this month to explore a more collaborative regulatory model.
Hemi announces that its mainnet has officially launched
According to official news, Hemi, a modular blockchain network powered by Bitcoin and Ethereum, announced that its main network has officially launched.
Source: The lawsuit between the US SEC and Ripple is coming to an end and may end soon
Fox Business News reporter Eleanor Terrett posted on X platform that two reliable sources revealed that the lawsuit between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Ripple is nearing its end and may end soon. It is understood that the delay in reaching the agreement is that Ripple's legal team is fighting for more favorable clauses over the August federal court ruling. The ruling imposed a $125 million fine on Ripple and issued a permanent injunction that prohibits the company from selling XRP to institutional investors. Sources said Ripple's argument is that if the new SEC leadership believes that a clear regulatory framework can solve the underlying problem and therefore "clear" enforcement records for all previously targeted crypto companies, why should Ripple still be punished? If Ripple accepts Judge Torres's ruling, it means it essentially admits misconduct — but now the SEC doesn't seem sure if there is any misconduct. Since there is no precedent for such cases, this may explain why this case has been resolved longer than others. Please continue to pay attention to subsequent progress.
According to Decrypt, Socket research team found in a new attack that North Korean hacker group Lazarus was linked to six new malicious npm packages that attempted to deploy backdoors to steal user credentials. In addition, these malware can extract cryptocurrency data and steal sensitive information from Solana and Exodus encrypted wallets. The attacks mainly target Google Chrome, Brave and Firefox browser files and macOS keychain data, specifically tricking developers into installing these malware packages by accident. The six malware packages discovered this time include: is-buffer-validator, yoojae-validator, event-handle-package, array-empty-validator, react-event-dependent and auth-validator. They trick developers into installing with "typosquatting" (using misspelled names). The APT organization created and maintained a GitHub repository for five of the packages, disguised as legitimate open source projects, increasing the risk of malicious code being used by developers. These packages have been downloaded more than 330 times. Currently, the Socket team has requested the removal of these packages and reported the relevant GitHub repository and user accounts. Lazarus is the notorious North Korean hacker group, linked to the recent $1.4 billion Bybit hack, $41 million Stake hack, $27 million CoinEx hack, and countless other attacks in the crypto industry.
Bubblemaps: 30% of the rankings are robots trying to use airdrops, and the cluster has been removed
On-chain data visualization platform Bubblemaps published an article on X platform about Sybil detection in BMT airdrops: "30% of the rankings are robots trying to use airdrops, which have identified and cleared through clustering analysis. The cluster of 30 associated addresses has been removed, and they rank high on the rankings and should have received a $20,000 BMT reward. However, these addresses are associated with each other through SOL transfers, and their application activity is unusually frequent, showing non-human behavior characteristics. By filtering all similar clusters, airdrop activity is ensured to be accurately distributed to real Bubblemaps users."
According to the official website of MGX, the chairman of the MGX board of directors, Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is the deputy chief of Abu Dhabi and national security adviser, and is the son of UAE founder Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. It is reported that MGX was established by the Abu Dhabi Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Technology Committee (AIATC) in March 2024. The committee was formed in January 2024 with Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan as chaired, and is responsible for the formulation and implementation of policies and strategies related to artificial intelligence and advanced technologies in the Emirates of Abu Dhabi. Previous news, Binance announced that Abu Dhabi investment institution MGX invested $2 billion in it.
BTC fell below $81,000, down 0.35% intraday
According to the Ouyi OKX market, BTC has just fallen below $81,000 and is now at $80,945.10 per coin, down 0.35% during the day.
Binance Contract will launch VICUSDT perpetual contract with a maximum leverage of 75 times
According to the official announcement, the Binance Contract will be launched at 01:00 on March 13, Beijing time, with a maximum leverage of 75 times.
Stark Bank SA, a Bezos-backed banking startup, targets Brazil's cryptocurrency business
Stark Bank SA, the Brazilian purely online bank backed by Bezos family office Bezos Expeditions, is positioning itself as the preferred banking service provider for cryptocurrency startups in the country, betting on an area that is excluded by traditional lenders will drive growth. Rafael Stark, the bank's CEO, said the bank is currently working with 52 companies focusing on digital currencies and blockchain technologies, including Mercado Bitcoin Servicos Digitalais, Transfero Swiss AG and Binance Holdings. He said U.S. President Trump’s support for cryptocurrencies is making it an increasingly attractive area. He declined to estimate how much market share the bank currently serves, but said that given that it is a "very important player" given that it is all large companies working with. Founded in 2018, Stark Bank helps nearly 800 customers process payments, bill payments and manages company credit cards and other services. Its most recent funding was in 2022, with investors including Ribbit Capital and Jeff Bezos’ venture capital vehicle valued at $250 million. Stark said the digital bank still has a lot of cash on hand and is not actively seeking to raise new funds from outside investors to increase its valuation and reach unicorn status, and any plans for an initial public offering (IPO) may take about five years.
Binance announces Abu Dhabi investment in MGX invests $2 billion in it
According to the official blog, crypto exchange Binance announced a $2 billion investment with Abu Dhabi-based investment agency MGX. The deal is Binance’s first institutional investment to date, which is also the largest single investment in crypto companies and the largest investment paid in cryptocurrencies (stablecoins). The investment is the first time MGX has entered the cryptocurrency and blockchain space, and MGX will acquire a minority stake in Binance as part of its broad strategy to support the impact of blockchain on social change.
Bolivian state-owned energy company YBFB will use cryptocurrency to pay for energy imports
According to CoinDesk's signings to Reuters, Bolivian's state-owned energy company YBFB will use cryptocurrency to pay for energy imports. YBFB hopes that the use of cryptocurrencies can directly solve the country's shortage of US dollar and foreign exchange reserves. According to reports, there have been sporadic protests in Bolivia due to the fuel crisis caused by insufficient natural gas exports, and foreign exchange shortages have exacerbated this situation. A spokesman for YBFB said: "From now on, these (cryptocurrency) transactions will take place." This is not the first time that an energy company in South America has entered the cryptocurrency field; in 2023, Argentina's YPF announced its entry into cryptocurrency mining, and in April last year, Venezuela's PDVSA revealed that it was using cryptocurrency to deal with oil sanctions imposed by the United States.
CBOE submits 19b-4 application documents to US SEC for Franklin Solana ETF
According to the US SEC application documents, Cboe BZX, a subsidiary of the Chicago Options Exchange Group, is submitting a proposed rule change (19b-4 application document) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to list and trade shares in Franklin Solana ETF.
Nillion has opened NIL token airdrop allocation query
According to official news, the privacy computing network Nillion announced that it has opened NIL token airdrop allocation query.
MEXC Ventures announces $36 million investment in Ethena and its stablecoin USDe
According to CoinDesk, MEXC Ventures, the investment arm of crypto exchange MEXC, will invest a total of $36 million in Ethena and its USDe stablecoins. The company is making a strategic investment of $16 million in Ethena and purchasing a USD valued at $20 million USDe stablecoin to expand the application of synthetic dollars in DeFi and provide an alternative to fiat-backed stablecoins, the statement said. "As the demand for investment in Bitcoin and other digital assets continues to rise, stablecoins will attract more investment. MEXC sees Ethena as a key player in developing diversified stablecoins, which will drive the crypto industry forward, support wider adoption and provide users with more stable and efficient financial solutions."
Video sharing platform Rumble spent $17.1 million to purchase 188 BTC
According to CoinDesk, Nasdaq-listed video sharing platform Rumble has invested $17.1 million to buy Bitcoin, adding 188 BTC to its company's funds. The average purchase price per bitcoin is $91,000. The move is part of a previously disclosed plan by Rumble that will adopt a Bitcoin funding strategy and allocate up to $20 million in cash reserves to Bitcoin. Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski said the decision was part of his further entry into the crypto industry. The company added that future purchases will depend on factors such as market conditions, Bitcoin price and Rumble’s cash flow demand.
According to the official announcement, the Russian Central Bank submitted a proposal to the government for discussion on regulating cryptocurrency investment in accordance with the instructions of the Russian president. The proposal suggests that a limited group of Russian investors allow for purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies. To this end, a special experimental legal system for three years is planned. Only “specially qualified” investors can conduct cryptocurrency trading within the system. This is a new identity, and citizens expected to be able to obtain that status will meet the conditions for their securities and deposit investment of more than 100 million rubles, or their income of more than 50 million rubles last year. In addition, the proposal also recommends that companies that meet the status of qualified investors in current laws participate in the experiment. For financial institutions that want to invest in cryptocurrencies, the Russian Central Bank will set regulatory requirements based on the risk level and nature of such assets. The introduction of the above regime is intended to increase transparency in the cryptocurrency market, form service standards, and expand investment opportunities for experienced investors who are willing to take higher risks. The Russian Central Bank has repeatedly pointed out that private cryptocurrencies are not issued or guaranteed by any jurisdiction, are based on mathematical algorithms and have high volatility. Therefore, when deciding to invest in cryptocurrencies, investors should be aware of the risk of potential capital losses. The Russian Central Bank still does not regard cryptocurrencies as a means of payment, so it proposes to also prohibit residents from using cryptocurrencies for settlement transactions outside the system and hold them accountable for violations of the ban. Outside the experimental regime, the program allows all qualified investors to invest in settlement financial derivatives, securities and digital financial assets that do not involve the delivery of cryptocurrencies to investors, but whose returns are pegged to the value of cryptocurrencies.
BlockTower Capital's venture capital arm has been split into Strobe Ventures, with assets under management at the time of its establishment of $235 million and plans to raise $100 million for its second fund, The Block reported. Strobe Ventures will double its investment in early-stage cryptocurrencies with a "high belief" strategy. The spinoff follows BlockTower's announcement of a merger with Arca in November 2024, which outlines plans to unify its liquidity trading and credit underwriting divisions into one brand. However, BlockTower's venture capital division chose to remain independent and is now renamed Strobe Ventures while retaining the capital, limited partners (LP), portfolio and team of BlockTower's venture capital division.
Traders still expect Fed to resume rate cuts in June
According to Jinshi, U.S. short-term interest rate futures narrowed their earlier declines after the CPI report, and traders still expect the Fed to resume rate cuts in June.
US CPI data in February fell below expectations in a comprehensive way
According to Jinshi, the US unseasonally adjusted CPI annual rate in February was 2.8%, the lowest since November last year; the US after seasonally adjusted CPI monthly rate in February was 0.2%, the lowest since October last year. The US's unseasonally adjusted core CPI annual rate recorded 3.1% in February, a new low since April 2021; the US's after-seasonally adjusted core CPI monthly rate recorded 0.2%, a new low since December last year.
According to Jinshi, the US did not adjust its core CPI annual rate in February by 3.1%, expected to be 3.20%, and the previous value was 3.30%. The monthly rate of core CPI in the United States was 0.2% in February, expected to be 0.30%, and the previous value was 0.40%. The United States had an annualized CPI rate of 2.8% in February, with an expected 2.90% and a previous value of 3.00%. The monthly rate of CPI in the United States was 0.2% in February, expected to be 0.30%, and the previous value was 0.50%.
Market News: Russia's Central Bank allows investors to buy cryptocurrencies for a limited amount
According to Tree News' signings to Bloomberg, the Russian central bank allows investors to purchase cryptocurrencies for a limited amount.
According to Binance official announcement, Binance Alpha has implemented a comprehensive token review framework and regularly reviewed selected tokens. Given the inherent volatility and rapid development of the cryptocurrency industry, the review process facilitates dynamic adjustments to ensure that all projects on Binance Alpha continue to meet market-driven evaluation criteria. All tokens in the Binance Alpha section are evaluated within this framework: Quantitative indicators: volume stability, liquidity depth, on-chain transaction frequency, token holder distribution, and other related indicators. Qualitative criteria: project team credibility, regulatory compliance, ecosystem synergy, community visibility, and other related factors. Tokens that do not meet these criteria will be removed from Binance Alpha. According to a recent comprehensive review, the following tokens do not meet the standards of Binance Wallet and will be removed from Binance Alpha: FAI, METAV, MLG, MONKY, PSTAKE, WHALES, GEL, VISTA, EVAN, MIRA, COCO, TAOCAT, FLOCK, OPUS, FREYA, AIXCB, VERTAI, STRDY, SEKOIA, VADER, ELIZA.
Analysis: Bitcoin forms a bullish RSI divergence just before the release of the US CPI
According to CoinDesk, a technical analysis pattern appeared on the daily chart of Bitcoin that hints at a bull market reversal as market participants expect Wednesday's U.S. inflation data to support risky assets. Bitcoin has recently suffered a heavy blow from a few factors, including risk aversion on Wall Street, concerns about Trump’s tariffs and fears of the U.S. recession, falling below $80,000 this week. In addition, the lack of new Bitcoin purchases under Trump's strategic reserve plan has also been disappointing, exacerbating the downward momentum. However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) did not confirm the decline when prices fell to a few months lows below $80,000 on Tuesday. The indicator forms higher lows, contradicting the lower lows on the price chart, confirming the so-called bullish RSI divergence. This shows that while prices are falling, the momentum of selling pressure is weakening, which may indicate an imminent bull market reversal. This pattern is at a very interesting moment, as the U.S. February CPI, released tonight, is expected to show progress; BTC's bullish RSI divergence means that the market is ready to respond positively to potential moderate data.
Hyperliquid posted on the X platform: "Comments and questions about long positions of Ethereum for 0xf3f4 users, hereby clarify that no protocol exploitation or hacking has occurred. The user has unrealized profit and loss (PNL), and subsequently withdrawn, resulting in a drop in margin and the final position was forced to close. Its final profit and loss was approximately US$1.8 million. In the past 24 hours, HLP lost approximately US$4 million. HLP's historical total profit and loss remained at approximately US$60 million. It should be noted that HLP is not a risk-free strategy. We will update the maximum leverage of Bitcoin and Ethereum to 40 times and 25 times respectively to increase the maintenance margin requirements for large positions. This will provide a better buffer for backup forced liquidation of large positions."
South Korea's financial regulator announced on Wednesday that it plans to release comprehensive guidelines for institutional cryptocurrency investment in the third quarter, The Block reported. The Financial Services Commission made this announcement in a meeting with local crypto industry experts. While investment guidelines for listed companies and professional investors are expected to be released in the third quarter, the Financial Services Commission said it aims to launch investment guidelines for nonprofits and cryptocurrency exchanges in advance in April. The Financial Services Commission first announced in January that it would gradually lift the fact-based ban on institutional investors from investing in cryptocurrencies. Last month, the regulator revealed it intends to allow charities and universities to sell their cryptocurrency assets first in the second quarter. The upcoming detailed guide further consolidates South Korea's shift in cryptocurrency stance and no longer strictly opposes crypto assets entering traditional financial markets. Meanwhile, the Financial Services Commission has also begun to formulate a second set of rules for a two-part cryptocurrency regulatory framework, the first set of rules was launched last year. The second part of the cryptocurrency law will focus on stablecoins and regulatory cryptocurrency business owners.
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