Read in the Digest:
- Bitcoin falls to $19-$22k range as cryptos correct ahead of interest rate hike.
- Voyager Digital rejects FTX buyout offer, calling it a “low-ball bid.”
- Hacker steals $6 million from Web 3.0 music streaming platform Audius.
- KuCoin CEO Johnny Lyu clears the air, denying recent insolvency rumors.
Bitcoin Falls Back to $19-$22k Range as Cryptos Correct Ahead of Interest Rate Hike
Bitcoin, along with the wider crypto market, has continued to correct after a week of gains that saw the world’s leading crypto top $24k for the first time in 6 weeks. Dropping by 8% over the last 3 days, Bitcoin has returned to the $19-$22k range.
The 3 day price chart for Bitcoin (BTC). Source: CoinMarketCap
The broader crypto market also suffered a sell-off, with Altcoins experiencing even steeper losses. In the last 3 days, Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Avalanche (AVA) have lost 9%, 11%, and 12% respectively.
The ongoing sell-off was largely triggered by rising fears ahead of an expected Federal Reserve interest-rate hike. The Fed is expected to increase its interest rates by 0.75 points for the second consecutive month.
The previous interest rate hikes led to significant declines in the price of Bitcoin and other cryptos. With Bitcoin continuing to move in tandem with tech stocks, the poor earnings of such stocks stand to play a pivotal role in any possible downtrend.
Flipsider:
- Regardless of the incoming interest rate hike, many analysts continue to believe that the worst of Bitcoin’s suffering is over after its 53% plunge this year.
Why You Should Care
The crypto markets are at risk of another round of sell-offs with the Fed rate hike. However, holding out above this level could mean that cryptos have finally bottomed out, as some analysts have suggested.
Voyager Digital Rejects FTX Buyout Offer, Calling It a “Low-Ball Bid.”
Legal representatives of bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital have rejected the buyout offer proposed by Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX, and Alameda, claiming it was a “low-ball bid dressed up as a white knight rescue”, further adding that it benefitted only FTX.
FTX submitted a public proposal on July 22nd, indicating its willingness to buy Voyager’s remaining digital assets and loans, excluding its $650 million exposure to Three Arrows Capital.
The proposal would allow Voyager customers to receive their claims by signing up for an FTX account. Voyager’s lawyers reacted to the proposal in documents filed to bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York on Sunday, July 24th.
The lawyers said that the firm is willing to entertain any “serious proposal” under the ‘Bidding Procedures’. They further asserted that the AlamedaFTX proposal was designed to “generate publicity”, rather than provide any value for Voyager’s customers.
Flipsider:
- In response to the court filing, FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried took to Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) to explain the firm’s fate, saying it could end up like Mt.GOX.
Why You Should Care
Voyager lawyers claim that the rescue deal would destroy the platform’s own VGX token, worth approximately $100 million at the time of writing. As a result, they believe that “no customer will be made whole” under the FTX proposal.
Hacker Steals $6 Million from Web 3.0 Music Streaming Platform Audius
Web 3.0 music streaming protocol, Audius, has suffered an exploit, with the hacker siphoning 18 million AUDIO tokens worth over $6.3 million from the platform’s decentralized governance system.
In a blog post reporting the attack, Audius wrote that the “governance, staking, and delegation contracts on the Ethereum mainnet were compromised due to a bug in the contract initialization code that allowed repeated invocations of the initialize functions.”
According to an update shared by @spreekaway, the hacker used a malicious proposal requesting the transfer of 18 million AUDIO tokens, but made themself the sole guardian of the contract, thus enabling them to transfer the funds out of the treasury account.
Audius reacted by halting all Audius smart contracts and movement of AUDIO tokens on the Ethereum blockchain to avoid further losses. Audius has since reported that the root cause of the exploit has been mitigated and cannot be re-exploited.
Flipsider:
- Although the hacker stole governance tokens worth over $6 million from the treasury, they effectively sold the 18 million AUDIO for only $1.08 million via a series of transfers.
Why You Should Care
Audius holds its community treasury fund separate from the foundation treasury, a decision which kept the remaining funds safe from exploitation.
KuCoin CEO Johnny Lyu Clears the Air, Denying Recent Insolvency Rumors
Amidst a wave of crypto firm bankruptcy filings, Johnny Lyu, the CEO of KuCoin, has dispelled rumors that the crypto exchange is going insolvent and could freeze withdrawals in days to come.
The rumors emanated from a now-deleted Twitter account named “Otteroooo” that had tweeted about developments in the Centralized Finance (CeFi) ecosystem, claiming insider information about the ongoing struggles of the exchange.
Per the whistle blowing on KuCoin on Saturday, July 23rd, Otterroooo claimed that the crypto exchange may not have sufficient funds to meet customer redemptions due to its exposure to the Terraform Labs ecosystem tokens Terra Classic (LUNC) and wrapped Luna (wLUNC).
Following the speculation, Johnny Lyu spoke out in a blog post, providing evidence of conversations between himself and Otteroooo that the only exposure that KuCoin has to the LUNA ecosystem tokens is the trading options offered for LUNC coins. The CEO further clarified that most of the funds in KuCoin’s wallets belonged to the users, not the exchange.
Flipsider:
- KuCoin announced that the exchange had raised $10 million in a new funding round to facilitate the expansion of its product lineup and prepare for “the next bull run.”
Why You Should Care
The adverse effect of Terra’s collapse on firms like Celsius Network, Voyager Digital, and Three Arrows has left investors particularly sensitive to insolvency-related news.
Barclays Acquires a Stake in $2 Billion Cryptocurrency Firm Copper
British banking giant Barclays has reportedly bought a stake in Copper, the $2 billion valued crypto firm that provides custody, prime brokerage, and settlement services for more than 450 crypto-assets across 45+ exchanges.
Barclays is said to have invested an “undisclosed amount” in Copper’s Series C funding round. The amount, which is said to run into the “millions of dollars,” will be finalized in the coming days.
Copper has former chancellor of the UK Lord Hammond as one of its advisers, and has raised funds from LocalGlobe, Dawn Capital, and MMC Ventures. Copper’s latest Series C funding round comes after an attempt to raise $500 million in November 2021.
The funding round was postponed at the time due to the expiration of Copper’s temporary regulatory registration from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Flipsider:
- The crypto market crash has dropped Copper’s valuation from its targeted $3 billion, to its current speculated value of $2 billion.
Why You Should Care
The investment from Barclays comes in the wake of the United Kingdom laying out its intention to grow its crypto sector by instituting more amenable rules.