Over one-third of the Bitcoin owed to the creditors of the defunct Mt. Gox exchange has already been distributed, yet large Bitcoin holders remain undeterred in their buying spree.
According to a July 17 X post by CryptoQuant, over 36% of the Bitcoin owed to Mt. Gox creditors has been distributed.
The analytics firm stated:
“The trustee holds 141,686 BTC, which will be distributed over time.
“With yesterday’s transaction, 36% of the Bitcoin has been moved to their former users.”
Crypto investors have expressed concern about the potential sell pressure that the Mt. Gox repayments could introduce, potentially causing a downward impact on Bitcoin’s price.
Approximately $9.4 billion worth of Bitcoin is owed to around 127,000 Mt. Gox creditors who have been waiting for over a decade to recover their funds.
Despite the potential sell pressure from Mt. Gox creditors, large Bitcoin holders, known as whales, continue to accumulate.
On July 17, a savvy whale purchased 245 BTC, valued at nearly $16 million.
This address has only traded Bitcoin twice this past year, yielding over $30 million in profit from the trades. According to a July 17 X post by Lookonchain:
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“From Aug 9 to Dec 18, 2023, he bought 718 $BTC at $29,385 and sold at $41,953, making $9M. From Feb 7 to Jun 20, 2024, he bought 1,181 $BTC at $48,822 and sold at $66,792, making $21.2M.”
Investors often monitor whale buying patterns to gauge market health and identify potential long-term investment opportunities.
Finance analyst Jacob King suggests that up to 99% of the creditors could be looking to sell their BTC from the defunct exchange.
This is partly due to Bitcoin’s value having increased by over 8,500% in the decade since Mt. Gox’s collapse.
However, popular on-chain analyst RunnerXBT believes that only the weakest Bitcoin holders will be looking to sell their tokens, causing only short-term sell pressure.
The analyst stated in a July 16 X post:
“I expect CT [Crypto Twitter] (read as the softest of the men, soyest of soy) to react to the first few 5k BTC+ transfers to CEX. Transfers on-chain (shuffle of coins within wallets) do fuck all.”
Large amounts of sell pressure can significantly impact Bitcoin’s price, which has recently recovered from an over-one-month downtrend.
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Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has reached a settlement with retirement and pension platform IRA Financial Trust, concluding a lawsuit filed in 2022.
On July 18, Judge Analisa Torres of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed the case filed by IRA Financial Trust with prejudice, following a settlement agreement between IRA Financial Trust and Gemini Trust.
The lawsuit, initially filed by IRA in June 2022, accused Gemini of misrepresenting its security protections.
IRA Financial Trust alleged that Gemini’s lack of transparency regarding its security protocols made the company liable for a February 2022 hack, during which approximately $36 million in cryptocurrency was stolen.
The platform claimed that hackers gained control of IRA’s master key, enabling them to transfer “tens of millions of dollars’ worth of Bitcoin and Ether into a single customer retirement account, and then withdrawing all such assets.”
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At the time, a Gemini spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the company rejected the allegations.
The July 18 filing did not disclose specific details of the settlement. Cointelegraph reached out to Gemini for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
The resolution of the civil case follows Gemini’s settlements with the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) and the New York Attorney General’s office concerning the Gemini Earn program.
In June, New York Attorney General Letitia James recovered approximately $50 million from Gemini, and the exchange agreed to return $1.1 billion to Earn users as part of an agreement with the NYDFS.
The conclusion of these legal matters marks a significant step for Gemini, as it continues to navigate the regulatory and legal challenges associated with its operations in the cryptocurrency space.
The details of the settlements with the NYDFS and the Attorney General’s office underline the financial implications and the importance of compliance and transparency in the rapidly evolving crypto industry.
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KPMG, a leading accounting firm, has formed a strategic alliance with Cryptio, a crypto accounting software company, to assist US crypto firms in complying with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP).
The partnership aims to implement controls within cryptocurrency firms for better accounting of their digital assets.
Brian Consolvo, KPMG’s principal of technology risk, emphasized the significance of refining digital asset accounting practices and adhering to US regulatory requirements.
He stated, “We (KPMG) understand the importance of robust accounting and reporting practices, the risks with digital assets, and the need to have strong internal controls.”
Through this collaboration, crypto enterprises and institutions can fulfill their GAAP accounting and reporting obligations using Cryptio’s software.
Antoine Scalia, Founder and CEO of Cryptio, views the alliance with KPMG as essential for the long-term sustainability of the crypto industry.
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He elaborated, “Our alliance with KPMG empowers enterprises and institutions to navigate the complexities of regulatory reporting requirements, audits, and accounting processes with confidence.
Together, we are setting the standard for regulated institutions who are adopting digital assets.”
The rising interest of institutional investors in crypto is driven by factors such as increasing debt and inflation, according to Kunal Bhasin, a partner at KPMG Canada’s Digital Assets practice.
A recent KPMG survey found that nearly 40% of institutional investors had direct or indirect exposure to crypto assets in 2023, up from 31% in 2021.
The survey included 65 respondents, with 31 identified as institutional investors managing over $500 million in assets, and the remaining 34 from financial services organizations.
It also revealed that one-third of these institutional investors have allocated 10% or more of their portfolios to crypto assets, an increase from one-fifth two years ago.
The maturing market and improved custody infrastructure are key factors driving the increased client demand for crypto asset services.
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Kraken, the cryptocurrency exchange, has announced the expansion of its Kraken Custody services for institutional clients in the United Kingdom and Australia.
This move marks Kraken Custody’s first international rollout after its successful launch in the United States earlier this year.
According to an official blog post, the expansion into the UK and Australia aims to provide both new and existing institutional clients outside the US with a secure digital asset custody product.
Kraken emphasized that institutions “require a custody solution that enables them to store, manage, and scale their strategies.”
Tim Ogilvie, Kraken’s global head of institutional, elaborated on the expansion in an interview with Cointelegraph.
He noted that expanding to the UK and Australia was a “natural choice” for Kraken Custody.
He further mentioned, “We’ll be looking to expand to more locations such as the European Union, Switzerland, Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands in the near future.”
Kraken Custody is designed to facilitate the storage and management of digital assets for institutions, ensuring they adhere to regulations while entering the crypto market.
Ogilvie highlighted that “Kraken Custody is protected by protocols” developed by their “in-house cybersecurity team.”
He added, “Accounts come with MPC technology and HSMs for key storage and policy enforcements.
“This means clients have more flexibility and timely access to their assets while benefiting from secure and robust controls.”
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In addition to the expansion news, on July 16, Kraken announced a partnership with UK football club Tottenham Hotspur.
This collaboration aims to bridge the gap between sports franchises and digital asset platforms.
As part of the deal, Kraken will become Tottenham Hotspur’s first official crypto and Web3 partner, as well as the official sleeve partner for the club’s men’s and women’s teams.
Ryan Norys, the club’s chief revenue officer, explained that the partnership aims to “drive innovation” for both the team and Kraken.
Also, on July 16, Kraken informed users that it had received reimbursement funds, which would be distributed over seven to fourteen days.
According to Arkham Intelligence, a transfer of 48,641 Bitcoin worth $3.1 billion was flagged as being sent to a Kraken-associated wallet.
Kraken has worked closely with Mt. Gox trustees to ensure the recovered funds are appropriately distributed to creditors.
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Worldcoin, an eyeball-scanning human identification project, is facing allegations of price manipulation and being a scam. This comes a day after delaying the unlocking of 80% of its native token.
On July 16, Worldcoin’s developer, Tools for Humanity (TFH), announced changes to the unlock schedule for its native token, WLD. Originally, these tokens were to be unlocked over three years.
However, the new schedule extends this period to over five years, starting on July 24, with tokens being progressively unlocked until July 2028.
This change aims to prevent a significant increase in token supply that could lower the price.
Following the announcement, WLD prices surged, showing a 68% increase in just two days.
According to crypto data tracker CoinGecko, WLD rose from $1.90 on July 15 to $2.81 on July 16. The price further increased to $3.20 on July 17 before settling at $3.11.
On July 17, DeFi Squared, a decentralized finance insights account, published a detailed post on X, accusing the Worldcoin team of price manipulation and misdirection.
The post stated: “the token’s daily price moves have been on many occasions influenced by the team as they actively make changes to emissions, market maker contracts, and well-timed announcements before unlocks.”
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It also suggested that someone from the team may have used insider information to front-run buying the news before it was announced.
Crypto investigator ZachXBT also commented, labeling Worldcoin the “biggest scam” and accusing venture capitalists and team members of being complicit.
ZachXBT stated, “the biggest scam token of the bull run,” and criticized them for doing nothing to prevent it, urging them to feel ashamed.
ZachXBT also responded to a Worldcoin thread, alleging that the project allowed insiders to continue profiting off its “scam.”
Cointelegraph reached out to Worldcoin for comments but did not receive an immediate response.
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The German government aimed to sell its Bitcoin holdings quickly without focusing on minimizing market impact or maximizing profitability.
The selling pattern of the government-labeled wallet, which included large transfers to various centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEXs), indicated an intention to cash in short-term profits, according to Miguel Morel, founder of Arkham Intelligence.
Morel noted that the transfers to multiple exchanges were made to maximize Bitcoin liquidity.
He told Cointelegraph during an interview at EthCC, “The last thing I would have expected is that they would just go to five different exchanges and start market selling… The fact that they’re going to so many different exchanges just reads like they’re just trying to get as much liquidity from each order book as possible because otherwise, why wouldn’t you just use one?”
He explained that setting up accounts and transferring funds to five different exchanges is more complex than selling through a single one.
The outflows and news surrounding the German government’s Bitcoin sales exerted downward pressure on Bitcoin.
The price of Bitcoin began to recover from June’s downtrend only after the government exhausted its Bitcoin supply.
Bitcoin’s price recovery above the $60,000 psychological mark occurred on July 14, a day after the government-labeled wallet ran out of BTC.
During June, Bitcoin’s price fell over 7% but then staged an over 11% weekly recovery, trading at $64,688 as of 1:50 pm UTC, according to CoinMarketCap data.
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The decline in Bitcoin’s price was not solely due to the German government’s selling.
Other factors, such as the incoming creditor repayments from Mt. Gox and stagnating Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) flows, also contributed to the price slump.
According to Morel, the volume of Bitcoin sold by the government had less impact on the price than the market’s reaction to the news.
He explained, “It could well be that there’s $20 billion of Bitcoin volume a day, and the German government selling $60 million a day is easily absorbed.
“It could also be the case that because there’s news of the German government selling… there’s $5 billion going out the door on the retail side because they’re afraid of getting caught.”
Popular analyst RunnerXBT suggested that a real opportunity to gain long exposure for Bitcoin would come after the market has absorbed the Mt. Gox repayments, similar to the scenario following the German government’s Bitcoin sales.
The analyst wrote, “Just like with Germany transfers, eventually, they will have no price impact. That’s when I hope to long.”
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Crypto fund issuer Valour has announced the launch of an exchange-traded product (ETP) for Near Protocol’s native token, NEAR, according to a July 17 statement from Valour’s parent company, DeFi Technologies (CBOE CA: DEFI).
The new ETP will trade on Sweden’s Spotlight Stock Market, providing both retail and institutional investors with exposure to the decentralized application development platform, the announcement revealed.
Elaine Buehler, Valour’s head of product, stated that the new fund offering would allow investors to access an asset known for its “transformative impact on DeFi and NFTs,” referring to decentralized finance and non-fungible tokens.
Near Protocol is designed to overcome many challenges inherent in blockchain development, such as user onboarding and cross-chain operations.
Its native NEAR token has a market capitalization of around $6.8 billion, ranking it among the top 20 digital assets worldwide, according to CoinMarketCap data.
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Web3 projects like Burrow, a decentralized money market protocol, and Mintbase, an NFT platform, are built on Near Protocol’s technology stack.
The NEAR ETP joins Valour’s existing portfolio of alternative digital asset ETPs.
Valour operates one of the largest Solana ETPs, Valor Solana, and offers various staking products, including ETPs for Bitcoin, Ether, and Internet Computer.
On July 16, U.S. regulators reportedly granted preliminary approval to investment managers BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, and VanEck to list the first exchange-traded ETH products in the U.S. Analysts suggest that the launch of ETH ETFs may lead to a surge in crypto exchange-traded products in the U.S., including a potential Solana-based exchange-traded fund (ETF).
DeFi Technologies, Valour’s parent company, manages approximately $600 million in assets across various crypto-native strategies.
On July 16, DeFi Technologies agreed to acquire trading desk Stillman Digital in an all-stock deal, which analysts believe will transform the Canadian crypto platform into “a smaller version of Galaxy Digital.”
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Kraken, a centralized cryptocurrency exchange, announced a global brand partnership with Tottenham Hotspur football club on July 16.
This collaboration establishes Kraken as the first official crypto and Web3 partner, and the official sleeve partner for both the men’s and women’s teams.
The partnership aims to enhance the fan experience while bridging the knowledge gap between fans and the crypto world. In a Q&A with Cointelegraph, Kraken’s chief marketing officer, Mayur Gupta, highlighted the growing popularity of crypto in the United Kingdom.
He stated, “As with anything we do, this partnership is focused on our Mission – accelerating the global adoption of crypto so that everyone can achieve true financial freedom and inclusion.”
Ryan Norys, Tottenham Hotspur’s chief revenue officer, emphasized the club’s intention to “drive innovation” through this partnership, describing Kraken as “a true leader in its field.”
He added, “We look forward to bringing our fans a range of exciting events and experiences throughout the course of the partnership.”
Gupta also noted the shared passion between the club’s supporters and the crypto community. “Kraken has a vision that crypto, like football, should be accessible to everyone.
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“We’re therefore thrilled to partner with Tottenham Hotspur to bring this inclusive financial technology to a larger audience of football fans.”
Jesse Powell, Kraken’s co-founder, recently announced via an X post that he donated $1 million to former United States President Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.
The donation, mostly in Ether, was made due to Powell’s support for Trump’s pro-crypto policies and his status as “the only pro-crypto major party candidate.”
Despite a recent assassination attempt on July 13, Trump plans to attend and speak at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee.
On May 29, Cristiano Ronaldo continued his expansion into Web3 by launching a new non-fungible token (NFT) collection with Binance.
The “Forever Worldwide: The Road to Saudi Arabia” collection commemorates his career highlights, from his humble beginnings to his football fame.
The shift toward crypto in the football industry is accelerating, with clubs increasingly utilizing cryptocurrencies and NFTs to boost fan interaction.
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A Web3 executive believes that the recent data breach at multinational telecommunications company AT&T could have been avoided if the data were stored on the blockchain.
On July 12, AT&T disclosed in a filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that an investigation revealed a breach compromising customer data.
The attackers accessed and copied call logs stored with a third-party cloud provider. The data included records of calls, texts, and phone numbers.
Although the content of communications was not compromised, the company fears that hackers could use tools to link phone numbers to customer identities.
Tim Kravchunovsky, founder and CEO of the decentralized telecommunications network Chirp, highlighted the vulnerabilities in the networks people rely on most.
He emphasized that this was the second breach report, suggesting such incidents are “becoming the rule, rather than the exception.”
He also noted the delay in reporting the breach. Kravchunovsky said:
“It’s also concerning that it takes more than two years to report these breaches, so there is no guarantee something similar isn’t happening right now.”
He warned that millions of customers could be at risk as hackers might identify their homes, workplaces, and connections, making them more susceptible to fraud.
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Kravchunovsky argued that current technological solutions are insufficient and new ones are necessary.
He believes the odds of a breach would be “much slimmer” if AT&T’s data were on the blockchain. Kravchunovsky stated that blockchain technology and AI can create more secure databases.
“Storing the data on an immutable ledger and tracking threats in real-time allows for a rapid response before a breach occurs,” he added.
Kravchunovsky explained that decentralized solutions, such as physical infrastructure networks (DePIN), routinely protect large data streams from cyber threats.
While Web3 technology cannot guarantee the prevention of all breaches, he believes it significantly reduces the risk. He explained:
“Of course, there’s never a guarantee that a breach like the one reported by AT&T couldn’t happen if the data were stored on the blockchain, but the odds are much slimmer.
Plus, blockchain is transparent, so it’s impossible to hide such breaches for two years.”
Kravchunovsky concludes that with today’s technology, such breaches are “inexcusable.”
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In just three hours on July 16, Mt. Gox moved over 140,000 Bitcoin, valued at nearly $9 billion, to a known cold wallet and two unknown addresses.
According to Arkham Intelligence data, Mt. Gox’s main wallet still holds 138,985 Bitcoin (BTC), worth around $8.7 billion.
This marks the first time in two weeks that funds have been mobilized.
Two major transactions occurred: nearly 96,000 BTC, worth over $6 billion, were transferred to two unknown wallets, while an initial 44,527 BTC was sent to a known Mt. Gox cold wallet.
Arkham Intelligence reported over 140,000 BTC moved in just three hours.
The total volume of Mt. Gox’s BTC transactions on July 16 reached almost 190,000 BTC, equating to over $12 billion in value.
One unknown address, ending in “BHDct9b,” received 42,587 BTC, valued at $2.69 billion. The remaining 4,641.24 BTC, worth $293.94 million, was transferred to “Mt. Gox: Cold Wallet (1Jbez).”
The “BHDct9b” address has yet to transfer the 42,587 BTC, causing market fear and a decline in Bitcoin’s value as sentiment turned negative.
Shortly afterward, another 48,641 BTC, valued at $3.07 billion, was sent to a different unknown address, further depleting the main Mt. Gox wallet.
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The BTC price reached nearly $65,000 earlier on July 16 but dropped to $63,000 within hours, a decline of over 3%.
This ripple effect also led to more than a 5% dip in altcoins like Uniswap, Polkadot, and Bitcoin Cash.
Market sentiment became bearish as BTC’s price began to fall an hour before the first Mt. Gox transaction on July 16, continuing to decline as more outflows hit unknown wallets.
On July 5, Mt. Gox announced it would begin repaying its BTC and BCH debts to creditors, stating that the repayments would be made via designated crypto exchanges.
The announcement identified Mt. Gox Co. Ltd. as the Rehabilitation Debtor and Nobuaki Kobayashi as the Rehabilitation Trustee.
The statement indicated that the remaining rehabilitation creditors would receive funds “promptly” after fulfilling prerequisite conditions.
With over $9 billion in BTC outflows on July 16, the promise of prompt repayments might be realized before August.
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