Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Thailand’s Major Bank Seizes Control of Local Bitcoin and Crypto Exchange

Thailands Kasikorn Bank has made a substantial move in the cryptocurrency realm, acquiring a 97% stake in Satang Corporation Company Limited for 3.705 billion Thai baht ($102.8 million) through its subsidiary Unita Capital.　　The acquisition aims to fortify the banks position in the digital asset market.　　In the aftermath of the purchase, Satang Corporation is set to be rebranded as Orbix Trade Company Limited. This strategic transformation is accompanied by the establishment of three additional subsidiaries: Orbix Custodian, Orbix Invest (a digital asset fund manager), and Orbix Technology, dedicated to blockchain development.Kasikorn Bank‘s Vision for Digital Asset Domination　　While Kasikorn’s stance on Bitcoin remains ambiguous, the institution recently introduced a $100 million fund to target investments in web3, fintech, and AI. In a parallel pursuit, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) is also making significant headway in the web3 and cryptocurrency space, aligning with Thailands evolving regulatory landscape.　　SCB had earlier this year attempted a similar acquisition of a regional rival, though it was notably stalled over regulatory issues.　　Kasikorn Bank has set an ambitious goal to capture 20% of the cryptocurrency market share in Thailand by the year 2024, marking its commitment notable at a time when many global banks remain on the sectors sidelines.　　Despite challenges

2023-10-31Deep Dive

94.2% Chance Of No Change In Fed Interest Rate Decision On November 1

The Fed interest rate decision will be announce on Nov 1. 94.2% chance rates will remain unchanged. Unemployment rate for October will also be released.　　The Federal Reserve is scheduled to announce its decision on interest rates on November 1. According to CME, there is a 94.2% chance that the current interest rates will remain unchanged and not increase. The United States will also release the unemployment rate for October this week.　　BTC experienced a 14% increase in value in the week leading up to the FED interest rate decision on November 1. It is currently trading at around $34,200 after reaching a new yearly high of $35,000 but failing to break through that price level.Fed Interest Rate Decision　　On October 10, Atlanta Fed Bank President Raphael Bostic and Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari suggested that the central bank may not require further rate hikes. Meanwhile, Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan and Fed Governor Christopher Waller argued that the rise in Treasury yields has already fulfilled the Feds job, eliminating the need for an immediate rate hike, according to Reuters.　　Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated late last month that “inflation is still too high,” causing expectations that another rate hike may be possible later

2023-10-30Deep Dive

Sam Bankman-Fried Uncertain Over FTX Customer Funds’ Mysterious Transfer

Sam Bankman-Fried finds himself embroiled in a high-stakes legal battle, facing a daunting list of charges including seven counts of wire fraud and conspiracy FTX customer funds.　　His visionary creation,FTX customer funds, touted as a beacon of innovation in the crypto world, has been marred by a troubling series of allegations that have sent shockwaves throughout the industry.　　According to Sequoia Capital, FTX customer funds, Bankman-Frieds frustration with existing exchanges propelled him to establish FTX customer funds under the umbrella of his crypto trading firm, Alameda Research. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has leveled damning accusations, alleging that FTX was deceptive right from its inception.Financial Irregularities and Personal Revelations　　The superseding indictment paints a troubling picture of Bankman-Frieds alleged misappropriation and embezzlement of FTX customer deposits. Despite projecting an image of trustworthiness in the crypto sphere, Bankman-Fried is accused of orchestrating a deceptive scheme, funneling customer funds into extravagant investments, real estate acquisitions, and debt repayments for Alameda Research.　　The interconnected nature of FTX and Alameda, triggering a chain of events that culminated in FTX customer funds‘s financial downfall and Bankman-Fried’s forced resignation. Revelations about FTX‘s intertwined financial standing and the FTT token’s role further heightened scrutiny, leading former FTX customer funds

2023-10-30Deep Dive

This Week's Token Unlocking

According to Token Unlocks data, multiple projects will experience token unlocks this week:　　On October 30, at 12:00, Optimism (OP) will unlock 24.16 million tokens (approximately $34.31 million), accounting for 2.74% of the circulating supply.　　On October 31, at 08:00, Sui (SUI) will unlock 4 million tokens (approximately $221,000), accounting for 0.46% of the circulating supply.　　On October 31, at 08:00, 1inch (1INCH) will unlock 21,430 tokens (approximately $6,340).　　On October 31, at 22:00, Celestia (TIA) will unlock 267 million tokens, with 200 million allocated publicly and 67 million for research and ecosystem development.　　On October 31, at 23:00, dYdX (DYDX) will unlock 2.16 million tokens (approximately $5.39 million), accounting for 1.21% of the circulating supply.　　On November 1, at 15:00, Acala (ACA) will unlock 27.43 million tokens (approximately $142,000), accounting for 3.31% of the circulating supply.　　On November 2, at 08:00, Nym (NYM) will unlock 3.13 million tokens (approximately $39,700), accounting for 0.56% of the circulating supply.　　On November 3, at 11:06, Tornado Cash (TORN) will unlock 22,840 tokens (approximately $69,000), accounting for 0.6% of the circulating supply.　　On November 4, at 18:00, Immutable X (IMX) will unlock 18.08 million tokens (approximately $12.81 million), accounting for 1.5% of the circulating supply.　　On November 5, at 08:00, Liquity (LQTY) will

2023-10-30Deep Dive

Kraken to Share Partial User Data with IRS in November

After receiving a court order in June, Kraken will share selected user information with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the following month.　　“Kraken expects to share this information covered by the court order in early November 2023,” the exchange wrote in an email sent to affected U.S. users on Thursday. Kraken did not immediately respond to a request for comment.　　According to the June court order, Kraken is required to provide personal information and transaction history for any customer who traded more than $20,000 in any year from 2016 to 2020. This includes names, birthdates, taxpayer identification numbers, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and five years of transaction history.　　The IRS was seeking broader information, including users IP addresses, employment details, sources of income, net assets, and banking information. However, Kraken stated in the email that it had successfully persuaded the court to “significantly reduce” the number of affected customers and the amount of customer data that needs to be provided.　　The June court order revealed that the number of affected users seems to have decreased to 42,017 individuals, down from the initially sought information of 59,331 Kraken users by the IRS.　　

2023-10-30Deep Dive

South Korea's Crypto Investors Make Up 10% of the Population and Favor Altcoins

According to a report by DeSpread Research, South Koreans are active cryptocurrency traders, with local exchanges ranking high in global trading volume, and a strong preference for altcoins and local tokens.　　The report states that, based on an investigation by the South Korean Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU), the number of cryptocurrency investors in South Korea has reached approximately 6 million this year, accounting for 10% of the population. “Most of these investors primarily trade on centralized exchanges (CEX), which makes CEX highly influential in the South Korean cryptocurrency market.”　　Since March, global CEX trading volumes have declined due to Bitcoins sideways trading. However, local South Korean exchanges, including the largest one, Upbit, have bucked the trend. As of July, their trading volume growth even exceeded that of Binance. One of the contributing factors was the surge in XRPs price and volume following Ripples legal victory.　　Additionally, South Korean traders have a strong interest in altcoins and are less inclined toward mainstream coins. “Most individual investors on Upbit show a strong interest in altcoins with high profit potential and tend to accept the associated high risk. This is considered one of the reasons why the ratio of altcoin trading is high in the South

2023-10-30Deep Dive

$3 Billion Worth Of Bitcoin Options To Expire On October 27th

$3 Billion Worth Of Bitcoin Options are about to expire. Put Call Ratio at 0.88, max pain point $29k. BTC reached $36k, increased volatility. Selling activity from a large whale may impact market trend. 880k ETH options also expiring.　　According to Greeks.live, the Bitcoin options market is experiencing significant activity as 87,000 BTC options are about to expire. The Put Call Ratio stands at 0.88, indicating a slightly higher number of put options compared to call options.　　The max pain point is set at $29,000, which suggests that the market may gravitate towards this price. The notional value of these options is a staggering $2.98 billion.　　BTC has been the driving force in the market, reaching a new high for the year at $36,000 on October 24th. This surge in price has led to increased volatility, as reflected in the rising full-term implied volatility (IV).Bitcoin Options To Expire　　However, despite the positive market sentiment, there has been notable selling activity from a large whale in the second half of the week, potentially impacting the continuation of the markets upward trend.　　Additionally, 880,000 ETH options are about to expire with a Put Call Ratio of 0.47, a max pain point of $1,650 and a notional value

2023-10-27Deep Dive

Shiba Inu Community Tracks Down Founder’s Wallet, You Won’t Believe How Much It Holds

Recent reports about Shiba Inu‘s pseudonymous founder Ryoshi by the Shiba Inu community after tracking the founder’s wallet have sparked controversy within the Shiba Inu ecosystem.Shibburn Claims Ryoshi Holds $1 Billion In Shiba Inu　　According to an X (formerly Twitter) post by Shibburn, the Shiba Inu community-driven burn tracker, the burn tracker has claimed that Ryoshi holds a significant $1 billion worth of SHIB tokens amounting to over 10% of the token total supply. The claims basically contradict the previous belief about Ryoshi that he had no SHIB holdings.　　The foundation of the trackers claims can be traced back to the historical data from Bubble Maps, a renowned on-chain analytical platform. In January 2023, it showed that a considerable amount of the SHIB supply was under the control of a group of wallets purportedly linked to Ryoshi.　　In addition, the data asserts that these wallets already started to collect SHIB tokens as of August 2020. This was performed with the native wallet, identified as 0x1406, which for a small initial deposit of 38 ETH, or $10,000 at the time, accumulated an astounding 103 trillion SHIB tokens.　　The wallet reportedly held over $5 billion in assets as Shiba Inus market capitalization surged to $40 billion

2023-10-27Deep Dive

Binance CEO Wealth Dips Amidst Regulatory Challenges

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index has made a significant adjustment, reducing its revenue estimate for cryptocurrency exchange Binance by 38% due to a noticeable decline in the firms trading volumes this year.Binance CEO Wealth Takes a Hit as Bloomberg Billionaires Index Slashes Revenue Estimate　　According to Bloomberg, this adjustment had a substantial impact on Binance CEO wealth, reducing it to $17.2 billion after a $11.9 billion drop.　　This year, Changpeng Zhao, commonly known as CZ, played a part in events that led to Sam Bankman-Fried‘s legal troubles. In November, CZ announced the liquidation of a token connected to FTX, following a report that revealed Bankman-Fried’s hedge fund, Alameda Research, held a significant position in it.　　The announcement prompted a rush by some FTX customers to withdraw their funds, overwhelming the exchange, which subsequently declared bankruptcy, wiping out Bankman-Frieds fortune that had peaked at $26 billion in March last year.Regulatory Challenges and Market Trends Impact Binance　　Binance had a substantial market share earlier this year, reaching 62% of total on-exchange crypto trades in the first quarter, partly due to a zero-fee promotion for popular trading pairs. However, this share dropped to 51% by the end of the third quarter, according to research firm CCData, as the

2023-10-27Deep Dive

Ethereum Core Developers Confirm Dencun Upgrade Will Not Be Implemented Before Year-End

Ethereum client developers confirmed on Thursday that the anticipated Dencun upgrade will not be implemented in a network hard fork until the end of 2023.　　Last month, with the Ethereum Holesky testnet launching later than planned, it was widely believed that completing the Dencun upgrade before December was unlikely.　　An anonymous Prysm developer, Potuz, confirmed during the latest core developer call that a mainnet fork in 2023 is not feasible. He noted that over the past few months, the 10 developer networks (devnets) that were launched for testing the upgrade have consistently experienced consensus issues, with “none of them going smoothly.”　　

2023-10-27Deep Dive

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