✔️ Thiel-Backed Cryptography Startup Lagrange Raises $13M

🔵 Lagrange, a cryptography startup specializing in zero-knowledge proofs, has raised $13.2 million in seed funding led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. The startup will leverage EigenLayer’s novel “restaking” model on Ethereum to secure its infrastructure.

🎥 Zero-knowledge proofs enable data verification without revealing the underlying information, offering enhanced privacy and scalability benefits for blockchains. Lagrange’s key offering is an “off-chain coprover” network for executing computationally intensive zero-knowledge proofs.

This allows decentralized apps to offload complex computations cheaply and quickly while maintaining verifiability, addressing a key bottleneck for on-chain scalability.

🎥 By integrating with EigenLayer, Lagrange can tap into over $6 billion worth of restaked assets to undergird its security model. Reputable operators like Kraken will run Lagrange’s nodes, with stake slashings acting as an accountability mechanism.

👕 While still nascent, zero-knowledge proofs are seen as a critical breakthrough for privacy and scalability in Web3. High-profile backers like Thiel underscore Lagrange’s potential to drive this technology’s mainstream adoption.

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🔼🔽 Crypto Markets Under Pressure As $2B Worth of Altcoin Token Unlocks and $11B Bitcoin Distribution Loom

🌐 Crypto markets are facing selling pressure from several upcoming supply events worth billions of dollars, potentially delaying a meaningful recovery.

🔴 Over the next two months, nearly $2 billion worth of altcoin tokens such as Aptos, Starkware, and Avalanche will unlock and release into circulation. Large token unlocks tend to increase sell-side pressure.

ℹ️ Additionally, over $11 billion in BTC is set for distribution to creditors of the Gemini Earn program and the defunct Mt. Gox exchange, raising fears of sell-offs.

📌 However, the proposed $14 billion–$16 billion FTX creditor repayments could counterbalance some of this selling pressure if a portion is reinvested into crypto markets.

🕯 In the near-term, major assets such as BTC, ETH, and altcoins fell sharply on Wednesday, with the likes of Bitcoin Cash and Solana down over 7%.

📊 While supply events often weigh on prices, some analysts suggest the market may have already priced in these looming unlocks. Navigating this period will require careful risk management amid the potential for heightened volatility.

⌛️ Overall, the supply dynamics highlight the complexities of evaluating cyclical crypto market forces alongside isolated yet impactful events like token unlocks and bankruptcy repayments.

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👮‍♀️ Binance Fired Investigator Who Uncovered Market Manipulation at Client DWF Labs: WSJ

❌ Binance reportedly fired an investigator who uncovered evidence of market manipulation by client DWF Labs, a major crypto investment firm.

🔖 The exchange’s surveillance team alleged DWF engaged in pump-and-dump schemes and wash trading, contradicting Binance’s policies.

💬 However, Binance deemed the evidence insufficient before terminating the team lead. Moreover, both Binance and DWF Labs have denied tolerating market abuse.

This incident might raise questions around enforcement against manipulation by major trading firms on crypto platforms.

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💸 Bitcoin Miner Marathon Digital Misses Q1 Revenue Expectation on Operational Challenges

🌐 Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital missed Q1 revenue expectations due to operational challenges such as equipment failures and weather-related curtailments.

⌛️ However, the company reported higher earnings per share, benefiting from the recent Bitcoin price surge. Marathon maintains its 2024 hash rate guidance of 50 EH/s and expects further growth in 2025.

📊The stock dipped slightly in after-hours trading, aligning with the broader downtrend in BTC mining stocks this year.

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💸 Bull Rally Incoming As Ether Whale Stacks Over $32M in ETH Since May

💡 An Ether whale has accumulated over $32 million worth of ETH on Binance since early May, amid Ether’s 20% price dip over the past month.

👕 The 10,758-ETH purchase signals potential bullish sentiment despite Ether facing resistance around $3,200.

Prominent analyst Crypto Tony has set a $2,700 price target, aligning with the whale’s accumulation strategy.

🔵 As a cornerstone of DeFi, major Ether investments by influential players could catalyze a market rebound, though the timing remains uncertain amid ongoing volatility. Traders watch whales closely for market cues.

Disclaimer: This content should not be considered as investment advice.

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💸 Legendary Trader Peter Brandt Shorts Ether Futures, but There’s a Catch

🕯 Legendary trader Peter Brandt has shorted Ether futures, reiterating his bearish stance on the cryptocurrency. Brandt, an Ethereum critic, believes it is “always weakly held” and has projected ETH could fall to $600.

📊 Though this hasn’t materialized yet, Brandt has recently begun trading ETH, citing chart opportunities. His latest short position eyes further downside from ETH’s April peak above $3,500. However, Brandt uses stop losses; if his trade reverses, he plans to switch to spot ETH.

⌛️ While many follow Brandt’s trades, others remain bullish on Ether’s innovative roadmap despite his skepticism.

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💸📈 Jack Dorsey Says Bitcoin’s Price Will Go Beyond $1 Million in 2030

🌐 Jack Dorsey, former Twitter CEO and crypto advocate, believes Bitcoin’s price will have surpassed $1 million by 2030. His bullish outlook aligns with ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, who predicted BTC could reach $1.5 million.

🖥 Though a stretch from current levels around $60,000, Dorsey is fascinated by Bitcoin’s ecosystem driving innovation and price appreciation.

Since leaving Twitter in 2021, he has doubled down on crypto projects like decentralized social media and his payments company Block, formerly Square.

➕The high price targets of industry leaders strongly reflect confidence in BTC’s long-term potential.

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👮‍♀️ What Is AML?

❓ In this edition of #Basics, we will cover one phrase you’ve undoubtedly seen many times in your crypto life while getting into the P2P market or just transferring crypto from one wallet to another.

🛡 Anti-Money Laundering refers to laws and regulations aimed at preventing the concealment of origins of illegally obtained money.

🌐 Crypto is usually susceptible to money laundering due to its pseudo-anonymous nature and difficulties tracing funds. All the CEXs implement AML compliance programs to monitor for suspicious behavior and report it to authorities.

⚠️ While enhancing transparency, AML measures can conflict with crypto’s core ethos of decentralization and privacy.

⌛️ Navigating this balance while upholding laws is an ongoing challenge for the industry. But robust AML protections are crucial for wider adoption.

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🐳 Old Bitcoin Whales Suddenly Awake After 10.7 Years With 49,274.2% Profit

🌐 Two Bitcoin wallets that were dormant for over a decade suddenly reawakened, transferring 1,000 BTC worth $60.9 million in a 20-minute window.

💎 The wallets, created in September 2013 when BTC was $124, now hold a 49,274% profit. While generating an annual $5.7 million return, the owners interestingly moved the funds to new wallets rather than cashing out through exchanges.

The re-emergence of such ancient whales has historically signaled bearish profit-taking, though their true motives remain uncertain, sparking speculation amid this unique resurrection.

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💸 Metaplanet Makes Bitcoin a Reserve Asset As Japan’s Debt Mountain Grows

🌐 Tokyo-listed Metaplanet has adopted Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset to hedge against Japan’s mounting debt burden and yen volatility.

🕯 With a debt-to-GDP ratio over 250%, highest among advanced economies, Japan’s fiscal issues have prevented interest rate hikes, weakening the yen 50% against the USD since 2021.

Metaplanet views Bitcoin as a non-sovereign store of value to counteract this “unsustainable monetary paradox.”

ℹ️ The firm has acquired $7.19 million in BTC, emulating MicroStrategy’s strategy, and plans to hold long-term while accumulating more through yen liabilities when feasible.

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💸📉 Bitcoin Below $60K Could Trigger ‘Panic’ Selling, Crypto Analyst Says

Traders warn Bitcoin could see “panic” selling if it closes below $60,000 after remaining range-bound between $60,000 and $70,000 since March.

©️ One analyst cited miner sell-offs and regulatory fears as potential drivers of recent declines.

🕯 Meanwhile, analytics firm Ryze Labs suggests short-term BTC holders influential in past cycles could trigger price drawdowns if macroeconomic conditions weaken institutional demand.

🌐 After periods when 94% of holders were in profit, rapid sell-offs by short-term investors historically preceded four-to-six-month BTC bear markets. The current cycle’s trajectory remains uncertain.

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💸 Is Ethereum’s Gas Crisis Over?

🌐 Vitalik Buterin has unveiled a new proposal, EIP-7706, aimed at addressing Ethereum’s persistent high gas fee issues.

🖥 It introduces a separate fee market specifically for transaction call data, with distinct base fee and block gas limits. This optimizes call data size while making it more affordable on average.

ℹ️ The proposal also unifies gas handling across types for more efficient and consistent processing. Buterin’s motivation stems from tackling inefficiencies in Ethereum’s current gas model as transaction volumes increase.

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👮‍♀️ Tornado Cash Developer Alexey Pertsev Sentenced to 64 Months in Prison by Dutch Court

🔒 Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev has been sentenced to 64 months in prison by a Dutch court for money laundering activities.

🛡 The court stated Tornado Cash “does not pose any barrier” for laundering criminal assets.

Pertsev was first jailed in August 2022 after Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the U.S. for alleged use by North Korean hackers.

🔖 This verdict could impact future trials of other Tornado Cash developers like Roman Storm and Roman Semenov, who face similar allegations of facilitating money laundering through the crypto mixer.

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💸 State of Wisconsin Buys Nearly $100M Worth of BlackRock Spot Bitcoin ETF

💵The U.S. state of Wisconsin has purchased nearly $100 million worth of shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in Q1 2024, acquiring 94,562 shares.

🌐 This makes Wisconsin the first state to publicly disclose buying shares of a spot BTC ETF. The state’s investment board also purchased around $64 million of Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). The significant investments from the $156-billion fund are seen as an encouraging sign of institutional adoption.

ℹ️ As deadlines for disclosing Q1 holdings approach, more large funds’ crypto exposure may be revealed.

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📉 Bitcoin Fee Crash Could Lead to Faster Miner Selling, Analysts Say

🔽 Bitcoin’s average transaction fees have plummeted from their post-halving spike driven by activity on the Runes protocol.

🔴 Analysts warn this fee crash, coupled with a stalled BTC price rally, could squeeze miners’ revenues and lead to increased selling pressure as they look to cover operational costs.

ℹ️ The halving reduced block rewards, making fees and price appreciation crucial for miner profitability.

⚠️ Some predict miners may need to liquidate around $5 billion in BTC holdings in the coming months if prices don’t recover. Options strategies like bear call spreads are being considered to navigate potential miner-driven BTC drawdowns.

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❓ What Is Device Fingerprinting?

In this edition of #Basics, we'll cover the one and only rival of all the drophunters and anonymous crypto users.

🔖 Device fingerprinting identifies individual devices or users through data collection, even when IP addresses are hidden or browsers change. It combines device information like operating system, browser, plugins, timezone, and settings into a unique identifier.

🖥 Passive fingerprinting gathers data sent by the device, while active methods use scripts to probe for more details like screen resolution and fonts.

🔗 Advertisers use fingerprinting to track consumer behavior across browsers. Banks deploy it to detect fraud from previously flagged devices. Websites prevent duplicate accounts and search engines identify suspicious activity. This type of usage is very popular with crypto projects that are about to release an airdrop.

💬 While helpful for security, fingerprinting raises privacy concerns by creating persistent identifiers, sometimes undetectably.

ℹ️ By enabling rich device tracking—yet infringing on user privacy—device fingerprinting represents a delicate balance that the technology industry continues to navigate. Disclosure and consent remain critical for its acceptable use.

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💸 Bitcoin Traders Expect Prices to Hit $74K Highs As Selling Pressure Eases

📈 Bitcoin traders expect prices could hit $74,000 highs in the coming weeks, fueled by softer U.S. inflation data and growing institutional demand for riskier assets like Bitcoin ETFs.

🔴 Major funds like Millennium and Schonfeld have invested, signaling rising interest. Meanwhile, on-chain data suggests easing selling pressure from short-term holders. QCP Capital has seen buyers targeting $100,000–$120,000 call options for December 2024 amid the bullish momentum.

ℹ️ The previous $74,000 record from March is now back in traders’ sights as market catalysts align.

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💸 Ether Could Surprise to the Upside in the Coming Months, Coinbase Says

🔗 Coinbase says Ether (ETH) could surprise to the upside in the coming months, citing lack of major supply overhangs like token unlocks or miner selling pressure.

🕯 The exchange believes ETH is unlikely to be displaced as the center of decentralized finance due to widespread Ethereum Virtual Machine and layer-2 adoption. Additionally, Coinbase thinks the market may be underestimating the potential approval timing and odds of a U.S. spot Ether ETF, leaving room for upside surprises.

📈 Overall, the exchange remains bullish on Ether’s fundamentals and technological innovations within its ecosystem.

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💸 Bitcoin Whales Almost Disappear From Network: Here’s Why

💸 Data from Santiment shows Bitcoin whale activity has dropped to 2024 lows, with 15,907 wallets holding 100+ BTC currently totaling 11.79 million BTC.

🕯 While reduced whale trading could mean less volatility. The lack of demand from these large holders raises concerns about potential selling pressure if Bitcoin remains rangebound.

Conversely, the inactivity may signal whales are content holding long-term, reflecting bullish sentiment.

⌛️ Though concerning, the implications depend on whales’ motivations—either presaging sell-offs or consolidation before the next move higher. Market dynamics remain nuanced.

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