Author: Chris Lion

The SEC contends that Ripple’s allegations do not eliminate the necessity for injunctions to prevent future violations. 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently submitted its final response to the ongoing lawsuit against Ripple Labs, a leading provider of cross-border payment and digital asset custody solutions.   

In its recent response, the SEC disputed Ripple’s claim of non-recklessness and the assertion that there shouldn’t be widespread uncertainty about XRP’s legal status. Despite the court’s prior dismissal of Ripple’s “fair notice” defense, the SEC maintains its stance, challenging Ripple’s position.  

SEC Lawsuit Against Ripple Labs. 

The SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple Labs in December 2020, claiming that the firm had conducted an unregistered securities offering by selling XRP tokens and raising over $1.3 billion. The SEC argued that XRP should be classified as a security and not a commodity. 

In response, Ripple Labs refuted the SEC’s claims, arguing that XRP is a digital asset like Bitcoin and Ethereum, not a security. They argued that XRP’s function as a medium of exchange and a bridge for cross-border payments distinguishes it from traditional securities. 

The remedies brief indicates that Ripple has attempted to minimize its liability while emphasizing cooperation with the SEC since the 2013 XRP initial coin offering. However, the SEC underscored that, legally, another breach remains possible even if Ripple has abstained from violations since 2020.   

In addition, the SEC contends that Ripple’s promises to alter its behavior after the lawsuit doesn’t warrant avoiding injunctions. They argue that Ripple’s claims on adhering to legal advice and restructuring future XRP sales based on the lawsuit’s directives are deceptive and misleading. The SEC maintains that Ripple misunderstands the order and neglects to acknowledge its compliance implications.   

Ripple Labs Denies Conducting Sales Outside the U.S. 

The reply denies Ripples’s claims regarding conducting sales outside the U.S. and to accredited investors, noting that these defenses were neglected during summary judgment.   

Furthermore, Ripple’s claims regarding contract modifications for on-demand liquidity sales are dismissed, as these contracts already lacked certain restrictions identified as violations.  

The SEC contends that Ripple’s allegations do not eliminate the necessity for injunctions to prevent future violations.  

In response to the SEC’s remedies brief, Ripple’s chief legal officer, Stuart Alderoty, stated that the SEC’s reputation continues to decline. He emphasized that international financial regulators with robust crypto licensing frameworks might be astonished by the SEC regarding its efforts as close to issuing fishing licenses. 

Lastly, Alderoty criticized the SEC’s inconsistent application of the law and expressed optimism about resolving the XRP lawsuit. Analysts expect a final judgment around September, while the crypto community eagerly awaits the outcome.

Nigeria’s SEC will introduce a new regulatory framework for crypto exchanges and custodians in the coming days.

The Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is planning to impose a ban on peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. The proposed ban aims to implement control over the country’s crypto market.  

Bloomberg reported on May 7 that the SEC is poised to introduce a new regulatory framework for crypto exchanges, custodians, and other entities in the industry in the coming days.  

The Launch of a New Regulatory Framework in a Few Days.

According to the SEC Director General Emomotimi Agama, the upcoming regulations aim to remove the naira from P2P exchanges to safeguard it against manipulation. 

“Recent concerns regarding crypto P2P traders and their perceived impact on the exchange rate of the naira has underscored the need for collective action,” he said. 

The news comes after Nigeria Banned global crypto exchange Binance and arrested its executives, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, in February 2024.   

Gambaryan is currently held at the Kuje correctional center in Abuja, the country’s capital, and will be tried on May 17 on charges of tax evasion, currency speculation, and money laundering.   

Major crypto exchange platforms such as Binance offer P2P marketplaces, which allow users to switch between centralized exchange (CEX) and P2P trading as required. However, Binance discontinued naira support on its P2P service in March 2024. Users expressed their disappointment and dissatisfaction with the news.   

Binance Executives Still in Custody.  

Despite removing the naira from its P2P service, Binance and its executives have remained under regulatory pressure in Nigeria, which has led to Gambaryan’s continued arrest. 

Binance CEO Richard Teng condemned the Nigerian government for detaining two of its employees, releasing detailed records of Gambaryan’s detention on May 7. Teng warned that Nigeria’s actions set a dangerous precedent for global companies.  

In addition, on March 13, 2024, the Nigerian government requested information on Binance’s top 100 users in Nigeria, alleging that unidentified individuals conducted around $26 billion in transactions on the platform, which purportedly contributed to the decline of the naira.  

Lastly, despite the ban, Nigerians may still be able to trade using the U.S. dollar on P2P platforms. Some industry advocates argued that banning P2P transactions altogether is challenging and potentially impossible. 

The super PAC and its two affiliates have supported crypto-focused candidates across party lines.

A political action committee dedicated to supporting candidates solely through its independent activities has raised over $100 to support crypto candidates in upcoming US elections.   

According to a Monday report from Public Citizen, the Fairshake Super PAC, and its affiliates raised over $100 million to support crypto-focused candidates in 2024, surpassing fundraising by Donald Trump’s ‘Make America Great Again’ political action committee, as reported by the nonpartisan transparency group Open Secrets.   

Contributions of Major Crypto Players

Fairshake enables blockchain innovators to expand their networks and promote the growth of the open blockchain economy in the United States. 

Major crypto companies like Coinbase and Ripple have contributed to Fairshake and its affiliates for the 2024 elections, which recognize the potential influence of crypto in close races. Additionally, Republican candidate John Deaton, seen as an underdog, enjoys significant backing from the crypto community in his bid to challenge Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren.    

On September 22, 2023, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong donated $1 million to Fairshake. He also noted that other major firms are coming together to donate in a bid to increase the PAC to over $50 million. 

Interestingly, Public Citizen researcher Rick Claypool highlighted eleven primary races in 2024 featuring candidates supported by crypto interests. Afterward, the focus shifts to the general election, where slim margins create opportunities for super PAC spending to influence congressional outcomes.   

“The crypto super PACs should be expected to continue the sleight-of-hand tactic of pushing messages fine-tuned toward their intended outcome – defeating or electing candidates who will prioritize the sector’s interests – while distracting voters from their true purpose,” Claypool said.

The upcoming U.S. general election on November 5 will decide the winners for all 435 House of Representatives seats, 34 Senate seats, and the Presidency. Control of key committees in the U.S. government will significantly advance crypto-related legislation and policies. 

BitMEX’s Arthur Hayes acquired $500K on PENDLE, currently holds over $8M, and intends to buy more.

BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes has recently purchased 500K PENDLE, a permissionless yield-trading protocol where users can execute various yield-management strategies, through Wintermute, a leading global algorithmic trading firm in digital assets.   

According to data from Etherscan, Hayes currently holds approximately 1.555 million PENDLE ($8.8 million). The average cost is about $2.02 per token and a current paper gain of $4.89 million. In a blog post, Hayes said that he will acquire more Pendle.    

Things To Know About Pendle. 

Pendle is an Ethereum protocol that creates a market for the yields of supported tokens by splitting them into principal and yield tokens. It also enables liquidity pools through which these tokens can be traded.   

On June 16, 2021, Pendle launched on Ethereum. It allows users to mint YT and OT (now PT) for aUSDC and cDAI, trade, and provide liquidity to YT and OT pools paired with the underlying yield-bearing token. They could also earn yield from both tokens’ LP token pairs and single-sided stake ERC-20 PENDLE.    

Additionally, Pendle provides a market for fixed and floating rates of supported yield-bearing tokens. Users can earn fixed and long yields and provide liquidity to Pendle pools for underlying tokens.   

On November 4, 2021, Pendle expanded to Avalanche C-Chain, with pools launching on the 11 of the same month. ERC-20 PENDLE was bridged to Avalanche C-Chain as ARC-20 PENDLE via Multichain (formerly Anyswap).    

The Launch of Pendle V2 on Ethereum. 

On November 29, 2022, Pendle V2 launched on Ethereum, introducing an AMM used as of April 8, 2024. The AMM enables trading of PT and YT through a single liquidity pool pairing SY and PT of the underlying yield-bearing token.  

Pendle V2 also introduced auto-routing, which enables users to deposit other supported tokens. These tokens are then swapped via third-party DEX for the underlying yield-bearing token to complete actions on Pendle.  

Meanwhile, in March 2023, Pendle V2 launched on Arbitrum with support for GMX’s GLP token. On July 5, 2023, Pendle V2 launched on BNB Smart Chain with support for wBETH and THENA ETH-frxETH.    

According to a Medium post on February 26, 2024, the Pendle team expressed interest in collaborating to develop money markets, leverage strategies, index funds, structured products, derivatives, CDPs for PTs, and vaults and autocompounders for YT, PT, or LP positions.    

Lastly, as of April 8, 2024, Pendle has plans for a V3 launch, but specific details haven’t been disclosed yet.

The funding round aligns with BlackRock’s choice of Securitize as the transfer agent of its first tokenized funds on a public blockchain.   

Securitize, the leader in tokenizing real-world assets, has announced a significant milestone in its journey with a $47 million funding round led by BlackRock. The tragic investment also includes funding from Hamilton Lane (HLNE), ParaFi Capital, Tradeweb Markets (TW), Aptos Labs, Circle, and Paxos.

According to the announcement, the investment reinforces Securitize’s pioneering role in digitizing capital markets through blockchain. The capital infusion will drive its ongoing innovation and expansion, solidifying its digital asset securities ecosystem leadership.   

As part of the investment, Joseph Chalom, BlackRock’s Global Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships, joins Securitize’s Board of Directors.  

“We are thrilled to have the support of such distinguished investors as we continue to drive the digitization of capital markets through tokenization,” said Securitize Co-Founder and CEO Carlos Domingo. “In our view, the transformative potential of blockchain technology to reshape the future of finance in general and tokenization in particular,” he added.   

Partnership with Securitize. 

Interestingly, Hamilton Lane disclosed a longstanding partnership with Securitize since their initial collaboration in 2022, which facilitated access to the Senior Credit Opportunities Fund (SCOPE) and Equity Opportunity Fund V.  

Securitize highlighted its commitment to making the private markets accessible to a broader group of investors.   

The firm acknowledged that it has developed a cutting-edge infrastructure that allows traditional assets to function on high-speed, modern blockchain rails, which enables greater transparency, immediate settlement, reduced counterparty risk, and heightened programmability.  

Additionally, Tradeweb’s chief product officer, Chris Bruner, mentioned that tokenization has the capacity to drive greater efficiency and accessibility across financial markets.  

The funding round aligns with the debut of BlackRock’s first tokenized fund issued on Ethereum (ETH), the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL), accessible to investors through subscription through Securitize.  

The Purpose of BUIDL.  

The primary objective of BUIDL is to maintain a stable token value of $1 and distribute daily accrued dividends directly to investors’ wallets in the form of new tokens monthly.  

The Fund allocates 100% of its assets to cash, U.S. Treasury bills, and repurchase agreements, enabling investors to earn yields while holding the token on the blockchain. Investors can transfer their assets to other pre-approved investors. 

Lastly, BUIDL holders can use Circle’s smart contract feature to transfer their shares to USDC. Fund participants will enjoy flexible custody choices when holding their tokens.

Hong Kong’s newly launched spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs saw minimal engagement upon debut.   

Hong Kong’s six new spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) debuted with a trading volume of HK$87.5 million ($11.2 million), notably lower than the $4.6 billion achieved by 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs during their inaugural trading in the U.S.  

The launch of the ETFs provides investors with a well-regulated and convenient vehicle to gain exposure to the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capital.    

Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s price dropped below $57,000, showing a 6% decline within the last 24 hours and a 12% decrease over the past week.  

Hong Kong’s ETFs Witnessed Low Trading Volume

According to Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) data, interest in the six Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, managed by China Asset Management, Harvest Global, Bosera, and HashKey, was relatively low following their debut in Hong Kong today.  

Additionally, on its debut day, the Bosera HashKey Bitcoin ETF registered a trading volume of HK$249,000 ($31804.706), while the Bosera HashKey Ether ETF closed with a trading volume of HK$99,000 ($12647.146).   

Exchange operators, including Livio Weng, CEO of HashKey Exchange, a Licenced Virtual Asset Exchange in Hong Kong, are contacting regulators about potential rewards for ETF stakers. However, deployment of these incentives has been delayed due to risk assessment procedures, though the staking mechanism promises returns for investors.  

Bitcoin Crashes Below $57,000

Despite the launch of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs in Hong Kong, the crypto market sentiment remains bearish. BTC reacted poorly and dropped below $57,000 for the first time in over a month.  

Bitcoin kicked off last week with a brief surge, surpassing $67,000. However, it could maintain momentum and started to decline. At the time of writing, the crypto exchange was trading at $56,924. Despite the crash. BTC is still trading 100% higher on its year-to-year chart. 

Speaking on the market post-event,  Justin d’Anethan, head of APAC Business Development at Keyrock, noted that pre-listing trading volumes might significantly decrease compared to U.S. stock markets, but they still reflect increasing acceptance of these products among Hong Kong investors. The reception was noteworthy, especially since many participants are investors from mainland China.

The trader cashed out a $6.28 million trading BONK, $9.51 million trading WIF, and $7.04 million from BODEN.  

A trader has made a substantial profit of $23 million on Solana memecoins. 

Solana (SOL) is a blockchain platform that provides smart contract functionality through a proof-of-stake mechanism. The Solana network is also validated by thousands of nodes that operate independently of each other, ensuring that data remains secure.   

On April 26, blockchain analysis firm Lookonchain identified a trader operating under the Solana Name Service account “paulo.sol.” The individual generated profits by trading meme tokens such as Dogwifhat (WIF), Joe Boden (BODEN), and Bonk (BONK).      

How the Memecoin Trader Started

The trader first entered the BONK market on November 11, 2023. The individual recognized the upward movement of the memecoin and invested. After investing, the trader performed a swing trade strategy, which resulted in buying at a low price and selling at a high price, accumulating approximately $6.28 million in profits from trading BONK.   

At the same time, the individual also observed WIF and BODEN. Despite the token’s availability, the trader waited and refrained from immediate investment in these memecoins.   

Interestingly, they started heavy purchases when they observed the first signs of upward movement. The trader immediately acquired WIF on December 4, 2023, and commenced trading BODEN on March 6. The individual saw a total profit of $9.51 million from WIF trades and $7.04 million from BODEN.   

Trader Not Lucky

In addition to these memecoin investments, the trader has ventured into other meme tokens. The crypto wallet began purchasing Pup (PUPS) and Popcat (POPCAT) tokens. The trader invested $1.77 million in POPCAT and roughly $6 million in PUPS.  

According to X posts, some community members congratulated for a remarkable move. A particular X user stated that the trader was not lucky but had “more conviction” than others. He also told other people to do research, while another user said the trade has a “diamond hand” to make so much profit on Solana.   

Meanwhile, on December 29, a trader made $2 million by investing just $62 on a Solana-based meme token. On April 3, another trader turned $13,000 into $2 million in one hour.