WuBlockchain Weekly: Hong Kong Opens Bitcoin Spot ETF and Top10 News

1. MicroStrategy Reacquires 14,620 Bitcoins at a Cost of USD 615.7 Million link

MicroStrategy has once again acquired 14,620 bitcoins for a total cash amount of $615.7 million, with an average price of $42,110 per bitcoin. As of December 26, 2023, MicroStrategy now possesses a total of 189,150 BTC, acquired at an approximate cost of $5.9 billion, with an average price of $31,168 per bitcoin.

2. Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong: Prepared to Entertain Applications for Approval of Virtual Asset Spot ETFs link

The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong has issued a circular, indicating its readiness to entertain applications for approval from funds involving virtual assets, including virtual asset spot trading exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Furthermore, the Commission endorses funds to directly invest in virtual asset tokens permitted for retail trading on compliant exchanges in Hong Kong and allows the trading of virtual asset futures on traditional, regulated futures exchanges.

Brian Roberts, Head of Securities Product Development at the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), expressed that the HKEX is well-prepared to seize the opportunities presented by thematic investments. It will closely collaborate with issuers and stakeholders to facilitate the smooth introduction of such new products into the Hong Kong ETF market. He welcomed the regulatory announcement from the Securities and Futures Commission, marking Hong Kong as the first market in Asia to permit the listing of virtual asset spot trading ETFs. This reinforces Hong Kong’s position as a leading digital asset hub in the region, supporting its continuous development as the preferred ETF market in Asia.

3. Grayscale Submits Revised S-3 Document; Hashdex Holds Further Discussions with SEC Regarding Bitcoin ETF link

Grayscale has submitted another revised S-3 document, aiming to convert its GBTC into a physically-backed Bitcoin ETF. Grayscale has made concessions and is currently accommodating the SEC’s requirement for cash-only creation/redemption. Additionally, Hashdex has once again engaged in discussions with the SEC regarding an ETF. Unlike previous routine meetings with the “Trading and Markets” or “Corporate Finance” divisions, this meeting took place directly in the office of SEC Chairman Gensler.

4. ARK Liquidates Entire GBTC Holdings, Invests Approximately USD 100 Million in BITO link

ARK has divested its entire remaining GBTC position, which was the largest holding in ARKW just one month ago. With approximately half of the funds, ARK has purchased BITO, likely as a liquidity transition tool. BITO is a Bitcoin futures ETF launched by ProShares in October 2021.

Cathie Wood, discussing the sale of GBTC holdings on BBTV, stated, “GBTC faces uncertainties in terms of taxation and regulation, and we don’t know who will get approval. We know that we have met the standards, but we are uncertain about others’ situations. Moreover, the discount has significantly narrowed, providing a dual benefit for us.”

5. Vitalik Reflects on Ethereum’s Vision: Building a Free and Open Societal Economic System link

Vitalik has released a blog post stating that the deeper vision behind cryptocurrency is not merely to create isolated tools and games but to comprehensively build a more liberated and open society and economy where technology, society, and economics synergize. Uncontrolled centralization and excessive financialization should not be the essence of cryptocurrency. At least a part of the Ethereum ecosystem has, in fact, evolved into the originally envisioned permissionless, decentralized, censorship-resistant, and open-source ecosystem. While many initially entered the cryptocurrency space for wealth accumulation, they later became acquainted with this ecosystem and transformed into fervent advocates seeking to establish a more open and decentralized world. The Ethereum social layer uniquely advocates for a distinctive compromise, placing emphasis on incentive mechanisms without being consumed by them.

6. Binance Releases Year-End Report for 2023link

Binance has released its year-end report for 2023, revealing that it has gained over 40 million new users, marking a nearly 30% year-over-year growth. As of the end of 2023, Binance boasts a registered user base of 170 million, offering 431 assets for trading across 1,785 trading pairs. Its P2P platform now supports 970 payment methods and 112 fiat currencies, with a transaction volume experiencing an 18% year-over-year increase. Approximately $213 million has been spent on compliance and security measures. Binance holds licenses, registrations, and authorizations in 18 jurisdictions globally.

This year, Binance’s investments have primarily focused on innovations in zero-knowledge proof cryptography, Web3 games, and DeFi. Over 2,000 startups applied to participate in Binance Labs’ 2023 incubation and acceleration program, with 36 companies receiving support.

7. OKX’s Weekly Summary

a. OKX CEO Announces Five Listing Principles link

OKX CEO Star tweeted, stating that many friends have urged him to list more BRC-20 tokens. He wishes to clarify that as an exchange, while the simplest strategy might be to list all tokens for potential quick profits, OKX aims to avoid being the most aggressively listing exchange in the industry. Over years of practice, OKX CEX has established five key principles for listing: whether the token is driven by blockchain technology and product development, its popularity in the community, the long-term commitment of project founders and investment teams, legal and compliance reviews, and selection based on their own research rather than endorsements.

b. OKX Permanently Delists a Substantial Number of Privacy Tokens link

On December 29th, OKX announced the delisting of several spot trading pairs, including: KSM-USDC, FLOW-USDC, JST-USDC, KNC-USDC, ANT-USDC, FSN-USDT, ZKS-USDT, CAPO-USDT, CVP-USDT, XMR-BTC, XMR-ETH, XMR-USDT, XMR-USDC, DASH-BTC, DASH-USDT, ZEC-BTC, ZEC-USDT, ZEC-USDC, ZEN-BTC, ZEN-USDT. It is noteworthy that OKX has delisted a significant number of privacy-focused tokens, including XMR, DASH, ZEC, ZEN, among others. Starting from December 27th, deposits for the following tokens will be temporarily suspended: FSN, ZKS, CAPO, CVP, XMR, DASH, ZEC, ZEN.

8. Tether CEO: Excess Reserves Increased by USD 4 Billion in 2023, Plans to Introduce New Products in 2024 link

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino tweeted that currently, Tether has reached a market capitalization of $91 billion, with an additional excess reserve of around $4 billion added in 2023. Tether has invested in various projects, including Holpunch, Synonym, Northern Data, and Tether Energy in the Bitcoin mining sector. The company plans to launch new products in 2024 while continuing to strengthen its existing offerings.

9. Trump Team Sells 1,075 ETH for USD 2.4 Million link

Arkham states that the team of former U.S. President Trump is selling ETH. After accumulating Trump NFT edition royalties for several months, three weeks ago, the team started sending ETH to Coinbase, reaching a peak balance of $4 million. According to the deposits, the Trump team has sold 1,075 ETH for a total of $2.4 million thus far.

10. Mt. Gox Allegedly Sends Refunds to Creditors Valued in Japanese Yen link

Mt. Gox creditors on Reddit are reporting that they have started to receive compensation from the long-closed Bitcoin exchange platform. Several posts on the Reddit page r/mtgoxinsolvency indicate that Mt. Gox is sending refunds to users via PayPal in Japanese yen, nearly a decade after these funds were locked on the trading platform.

Creditors of Mt. Gox reported that within less than a day of the repayment commencement, their PayPal accounts received double payments. The civil rehabilitation trustee of Mt. Gox stated that a system glitch caused inadvertent double transfers to some creditors. The trustee has requested creditors to check their PayPal accounts, confirm the erroneously transferred amounts, and emphasized that creditors are not entitled to retain the funds from the second transfer. They have a legal obligation to return it.

Fundraising

CESS announces the completion of an $8 million Series A financing round. link
HIVE Digital announces the completion of a $28.75 million CAD private placement financing. link
Eclipse Fi secures $1.9 million in financing, with participation from investors including Big Brain Holdings. link
Distributed ledger technology platform Grape completes a $35 million financing round. link
Bitcoin blockchain game Ordz Games completes a seed round of financing, led by Waterdrip Capital. link
TON ecosystem Launchpad platform TonUP completes a private funding round with participation from Antalpha and others. link

Learn more, check out crypto-fundraising.info.