The Bitcoin restaking protocol, BounceBit, which is also supported by Binance, has announced its 2024 roadmap. The outline reveals that BounceBit will be structured around three main pillars this year: the BounceBit Portal, which will serve as the protocol's operating system; the BounceBit Chain, which will function as the project's settlement and execution layer; and the BounceClub, created to support CeDeFi as a service. Specific dates have not been disclosed.

NewsQUICK OVERVIEW The developer of Tornado Cash was sentenced to 5 years and 4 months in prison Guild of Guardians is finally available on mobile Robinhood Crypto launches Solana staking A new memecoin craze has hit the crypto world Millennium Management holds a $2 billion spot Bitcoin ETF portfolio The world’s largest securities settlement system and Chainlink conducted a joint test Fantom 2.0, Sonic, has been announced Financial Institutions and Crypto BrokersOKX, the world's third-largest crypto broker by monthly trading volume, officially launched its spot and derivative trading platform in Australia. Spot trading will be available to all Australian users, while the derivative market will be open only to verified wholesale clients. A total of 85 crypto assets and 170 crypto spot pairs will be available for trading. Robinhood’s crypto division announced a new Solana staking feature in Europe. Users can now stake their Solana directly through the app in exchange for rewards. Additionally, new customers will benefit from a bonus program, receiving a 10% bonus in USDC for their purchases during the first 30 days. Millennium Management, one of the world's largest hedge funds, revealed in its recent financial report that as of March 31, it held $1.94 billion in spot Bitcoin ETFs. This includes $844.2 million in BlackRock IBIT, $806.7 million in Fidelity FBTC, $202 million in Grayscale GBTC, $45.0 million in Ark ARKB, and $44.7 million in Bitwise BITB. These holdings represent only 3% of the hedge fund’s $64 billion in assets under management.Project InvestmentsPolymarket, the world's largest prediction market, raised $45 million in an investment round led by Founders Fund, with notable participation from Vitalik Buterin. The platform allows users to bet on the outcomes of almost any real-world event.Humanity Protocol, a web3 digital identity startup, secured $30 million in funding led by Kingsway Capital, with a valuation of $1 billion....

A survey conducted by SBI Digital Assets Holdings revealed that nearly 60% of institutional investors in Asia have gained exposure to digital assets in the past year, with almost half of these investors planning to increase their positions. Tokenization of real assets is also a priority, with nearly 62% of institutions reporting that their clients demand tokenized securities, and tokenized real estate generating particularly high interest.

The Arbitrum DAO, which governs the largest layer 2 Ethereum network, has overwhelmingly approved a vote to launch an eight-week pilot mergers and acquisitions program. With a treasury holding $3 billion in crypto assets, they have the capital to proceed. However, acquiring other entities in the decentralized finance world is challenging since the largest players are not companies but DAOs, where community votes determine the outcomes.

The bankrupt crypto lender Genesis's reorganization plan has been approved by the court, allowing the return of several billion dollars in digital assets and cash to creditors. Judge Lane dismissed the legal objection from the parent company DCG, stating that creditors have priority in repayments. According to Genesis's proposal, affected parties could recover up to 77% of their crypto assets in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

The Fantom Foundation, the organization behind the Fantom blockchain, has released details about its new layer 1 blockchain, the Sonic Network. This blockchain will connect to Ethereum via a native layer 2 cross-chain bridge. FTM token holders will have the opportunity to transfer their tokens to the Sonic Network at a 1:1 ratio, converting them to S tokens, which will be considered Fantom 2.0.

The notorious Pink Drainer, known for supporting crypto theft, announced its retirement after amassing over $75 million in stolen assets. The entity, which referred to itself as "scam-as-a-service," thanked its phishing scam clients and assured them that all data would be securely destroyed. The operator showed no remorse towards the victims, stating, "I don’t phish, I just code."

In one of the United States' states, Oklahoma, a bill has been passed to protect the residents' right to self-determination of digital assets. According to the bill, Oklahoma will prohibit the restriction or banning of digital assets, crypto wallets, or hardware wallets. Additionally, Oklahomans will be allowed to mine cryptocurrencies freely at home and industrially, provided they adhere to local noise ordinances. The law will take effect on November 1, 2024.

Euro area annual inflation was 2.4% in April 2024, unchanged compared with March 2024. A year earlier the rate was 7.0%. EU annual inflation was 2.6% in April 2024, also stable compared with March. A year earlier the rate was 8.1%. The data were published by Eurostat.

Toyota Motor was forced to shut down production at a Mexican plant several times in February and March after a shortage of local labour forced suppliers to halt production, according to people familiar with the carmaker's operations. Toyota halted production for a total of 19 days in February and March at its plant in Tijuana, Mexico, where it makes the Tacoma pick-up truck, according to two people. Technical problems at the plant also contributed to the shutdown.

The Solana-based memecoin launchpad Pump.fun fell victim to an exploit resulting in $1.9 million in damages to the protocol. Investigations revealed that the attacker was a former employee. Pump.fun has updated the contracts on the platform and is now operational again, with the contracts remaining secure.

The world's largest securities settlement system, the U.S. Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC), announced the completion of a pilot program with blockchain oracle Chainlink (LINK) and several major U.S. financial institutions aimed at accelerating the tokenization of funds. The project, named Smart NAV, tested the transfer of net asset value (NAV) data for funds to any private or public blockchain using Chainlink's CCIP interoperability protocol. Participants in the program included American Century Investments, BNY Mellon, Edward Jones, Franklin Templeton, Invesco, JPMorgan, MFS Investment Management, Mid Atlantic Trust, State Street, and U.S. Bank.

Recent data from Australia shows strong employment growth, exceeding market expectations. However, the number of full-time jobs fell while part-time employment increased. In addition, the number of unemployed has increased, raising some uncertainty about the future of the labour market.

In China, police have dismantled an illegal underground bank that used the USDT stablecoin for various currency exchanges, conducting transactions worth approximately 13.8 billion yuan ($1.9 billion). The criminal group primarily served those looking to purchase assets overseas or smuggle pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. A total of 193 suspects have been arrested in connection with the case nationwide.

Mastercard and Standard Chartered Bank Hong Kong (SCBHK) have successfully completed the first live test of the Mastercard Multi-Token Network (MTN). The card issuer launched MTN in June 2023, built on its private blockchain. This proof-of-concept pilot test tokenized carbon credits under the supervision of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Fintech department.

Millennium Management, one of the world's largest hedge funds, revealed in its latest financial report that it held $1.94 billion in spot Bitcoin ETFs as of March 31. This included $844.2 million in BlackRock's IBIT, $806.7 million in Fidelity's FBTC, $202 million in Grayscale's GBTC, $45.0 million in Ark's ARKB, and $44.7 million in Bitwise's BITB. However, the actual market value of these shares accounted for only 3% of the hedge fund's $64 billion in assets under management.

The pace of price increases in the United States showed signs of slowing last month after a series of higher-than-expected inflation figures fuelled concerns about the world's largest economy. The Labor Department said consumer prices rose 3.4% in the 12 months to April, compared with 3.5% in the previous month. Higher rents and petrol costs accounted for much of the rise in the cost of living.

Supported by Binance Labs, pSTAKE Finance, which is built on the Babylon Bitcoin staking protocol, has introduced its liquid staking protocol as the latest development in Bitcoin-native decentralized finance. The project's goal is to simplify the Bitcoin staking process and offer additional yield-generating opportunities for Bitcoin.

In France, the consumer price index (CPI) rose by 0.5% in April 2024 compared with the previous month, and by only 0.2% in March. The increase was mainly due to slight rises in the prices of services (+1.0% after 0.0% the previous month), transport (+5.6% after -0.9% the previous month), insurance services (+3.6% after -2.4% the previous month) and food (+0.1% after 0.0% the previous month). Manufacturing and tobacco remained unchanged at +1.3% and +1.4% respectively. Energy prices fell at a slower pace compared with the previous month, -0.3% after -0.7% in the previous month.

According to on-chain data, over one million new tokens have entered the crypto market since early April, the majority of which are memecoins. Notably, 372,642 of these new tokens were launched on the Ethereum network, with 88% created on the Base layer-2 blockchain. As a result, the total value locked (TVL) on Base has increased by approximately 630% since the beginning of 2024. Another network, Solana, has hosted over 640,000 new tokens, of which 466,914 were memecoins.

Robinhood's crypto division has announced the launch of a new Solana staking option in Europe. Users can now stake their Solana directly through the app in exchange for rewards. Additionally, a bonus program is being offered to new customers, who will receive a 10% bonus in USDC on their purchases for the first 30 days.

Sonne Finance, the first decentralized lending protocol on Optimism, announced that it suffered an attack resulting in approximately $20 million in losses. The exploit occurred due to a vulnerability in one of Sonne's Compound v2 forks. The company has suspended all markets on Optimism, while those on Base remain operational.

mmutable Games, the crypto gaming venture, has announced that its flagship mobile-based fantasy RPG, "Guild of Guardians," will be released globally on both Apple and Android devices. To celebrate and encourage engagement, they have also announced a $1 million prize in the game's GOG token. The game already has over 1 million pre-registered users.

A Dutch court has convicted the developer of Tornado Cash, 31-year-old Alexey Pertsevet, for laundering $1.2 billion worth of cryptocurrencies through the Tornado Cash mixer between July 9, 2019, and August 10, 2022. The three-judge panel sentenced Pertsevet to 64 months in prison. The platform's co-founder, Roman Storm, faces similar charges in the United States for his role in developing the controversial software.

Paxos, the stablecoin issuer, has appointed former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), J. Christopher Giancarlo, as a member of its board of directors. Giancarlo, also known as "CryptoDad," served as CFTC chairman from March 2017 to April 2019, overseeing the introduction of the first bitcoin futures products. At Paxos, he will collaborate with, among others, former U.S. Senator Bill Bradley (D-N.J.).

German investor sentiment improved more than expected in May, reaching its highest level since February 2022, according to the ZEW economic research institute. The economic sentiment index rose to 47.1 points from 42.9 points in April. "Following the stronger-than-expected growth of the German economy in the first quarter of 2024, both the perception of the current situation and economic expectations have become more positive," said Achim Wambach, President of ZEW.

Recent figures for the UK labour market show various trends in recent months. According to the latest statistics, the number of people in employment in the country fell by 5,000 between February and March, a decrease of 0.0%. However, compared to the same period last year, from March 2023 to March 2024, the number of people in employment increased by 288,000, an increase of 1.0%.

U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a new order banning a Chinese majority-owned crypto mining company from owning property near one of Wyoming's air force bases. MineOne Partners Limited purchased the property in June 2022 and converted it for mining purposes. The order mandates a change in property ownership citing concerns over national security risks.

OKX, the world's third-largest crypto broker by monthly trading volume, has officially launched its spot and derivative trading platform in Australia. Spot trading will be available to all Australian users, while the derivatives market will be open only to verified wholesale clients. A total of 85 cryptocurrencies and 170 crypto spot pairs will be tradable.

NewsA big advantage of the Gymbars Pro over dumbbells or even the gym is that Robus Athletics also provides an app for bluetooth and height grips that allows you to track your workout in detail, such as the number of reps, how high you lift the grip or what resistance band you used. The app also includes an AI-based personal trainer that uses our data to create a fully personalised training programme for us, ensuring optimal progress.The GymBars Pro consists of a sensor-equipped smart grip and connectable rubber bands and offers users a scalable home workout: the four bands of different thicknesses range in spring force from 6.8 to 79.4 kilograms, and the combination of bands can reach up to 120 kilograms of resistance, making it a long-term challenge for people of all physical abilities. According to the Estonian company, the GymBars Pro can be used for more than 100 different workouts, making it a complete replacement for dumbbells and cable machines. This solution has several advantages: the GymBars Pro takes up very little space in the home, and the handles, which are modelled on traditional dumbbells, weigh just under a kilogram each, so they're easy to take anywhere. Another positive thing about the rubber bands is that, unlike traditional dumbbells, they work your muscles gradually as you stretch them, so you need to exert more and more force.Related categories RecommendedYou may also be interested in these articles![brbl_post_grid include_categories="current" order="DESC" post_count="3" post_padding="0px|0px|0px|0px|true|true" content_padding="0px|0px|0px|0px|true|true" image_height="200px" date_spacing="0px" date_icon_size="0px" date_icon_color="RGBA(255,255,255,0)" excerpt_spacing_top="0px" author_spacing="0px" author_icon_size="0px" author_icon_color="#ffffff" column_gap_x="30px" column_gap_y="0px" show_avatar="off" thumb_size="medium" content_length="120" overlay_icon_color="RGBA(255,255,255,0)"...

Technology and software giant Microsoft will invest 4 billion euros ($4.3 billion) in France as part of its annual "Choose France" business summit, vice president and president Brad Smith told Le Figaro newspaper. Smith said that much of the investment money will be focused on the artificial intelligence (AI) sector and that Microsoft will set up a data centre in Mulhouse, France.

Amazon announced on Monday that it is investing more than 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in its French operations and creating more than 3,000 permanent jobs in the country. The French presidency said on Sunday that Amazon and other companies including GSK and Accenture will announce billions of euros in investments as part of the country's annual "Choose France" event, which starts on Monday.

MoonPay, specializing in crypto payments, has donated $1 million to the Stand With Crypto political action committee initiated by Coinbase. The bipartisan committee supports crypto-friendly politicians in Congress to promote clearer regulation of cryptocurrencies in the United States.

Kain Warwick, co-founder of Synthetix, has launched a new front-end platform called Infinex, which consolidates decentralized financial applications on a single interface, simplifying DeFi usage. The platform also provides users with an Infinex account featuring cross-chain capabilities, passkey authentication, and potentially social login options.

NewsQUICK OVERVIEW SEC targets Robinhood Revolut opens new platform in the UK US House of Representatives invalidates SEC crypto accounting requirement Colombia's largest bank launches crypto trading platform Japanese giant SBI Holdings partners with Chiliz Binance and KuCoin return to India FTX brings good news to victims RegulationsIn the United States, the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill that nullifies the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Special Accounting Bulletin 121, which requires banks to list their clients' crypto assets on their balance sheets, unlike traditional assets such as securities. It remains uncertain whether the measure will even come into effect, as President Joe Biden has announced his intention to veto it.Financial Institutions and Crypto BrokersFollowing regulatory constraints, Revolut, the fintech company, has launched a new independent crypto trading platform named Revolut X in the UK for retail customers. Users can now trade over 100 tokens on the platform with fixed 0% maker and 0.09% taker fees, regardless of trading volume. British customers can access the new platform using their existing authentication data. Bancolombia Group, one of Latin America's leading banks and Colombia's largest bank, has launched a crypto trading platform called Wenia. The bank aims to compete for market share with Latin American and Colombian crypto brokers such as Binance and Bitso by offering high-level security and introducing a stablecoin tied to the Colombian peso as part of its asset portfolio. LD Capital, a digital asset fund focusing on primary and secondary blockchain investments, has partnered with Bitmain Antalpha Ventures and Highblock asset traders to create Hong Kong's first crypto ETF liquidity fund worth 1 billion HKD (~128 million USD) to provide market-making services for Hong Kong ETFs, thus increasing liquidity and improving capital flow efficiency. BitMEX, the crypto broker, has...

OKX Ventures, the investment arm of OKX crypto broker, announced its recent funding for Void Labs' "Blade of God X" action role-playing game, which stands out for its "play ... to train" feature allowing players to control the training of artificial intelligence (AI) models through gameplay. The "play-to-train" concept not only integrates advanced AI agents with blockchain technology but also facilitates their training, potentially elevating the game, rich in action scenes, to new heights.

The spot ETH ETF jointly filed by Cathie Wood's ARK Invest and 21Shares recently underwent modifications, reportedly withdrawing the staking option from their application. According to a report, this amendment, as per Eric Balchunas, a Bloomberg ETF analyst, could indicate adjustments made to their documents based on feedback from the SEC for compliance. However, it may unfortunately signify a mere simplification of the application to reduce potential grounds for rejection.

Erik Voorhees, the founder of the ShapeShift financial platform, has launched Venice, a privacy-focused artificial intelligence platform that utilizes blockchain for permissionless payments and web3 infrastructure for end-to-end encryption. Venice offers services such as generative conversation and image creation but does not store user data and aims to eliminate all forms of censorship on the platform. Venice will initially use the Morpheus decentralized AI network, and those holding MOR tokens will have access to a free Pro account.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) has designated the London-based forensic accounting and compliance advisory firm, Forensic Risk Alliance (FRA), as the external supervisor for Binance crypto broker. Over the next three years, FRA's task will be to ensure that Binance complies with the terms of the deferred prosecution agreement related to prohibited financial activities. During supervision, the firm will have access to Binance's internal records, facilities, and employees to report on the company's activities to the government.

Canada's labour market added a net 90,400 jobs in April, with the employment rate remaining unchanged at 6.1 percent, Statistics Canada said on Friday. The increase exceeded analysts' expectations, with employment growth driven by an increase in part-time employment, the federal data agency said, adding that 50,000 part-time jobs were created in April.

Binance and KuCoin crypto brokers have become the first offshore crypto asset providers to receive Anti-Money Laundering (AML) approvals in India, with both companies registered with the country's financial authority (FIU-IND). This comes after a ban was imposed last year on seven other crypto brokers from operating in the country. Currently, Huobi, Kraken, Gate.io, Bittrex, Bitstamp, MEXC Global, and Bitfinex are awaiting review for compliance with anti-money laundering guidelines.

Monthly real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have increased by 0.4% in March 2024, following an unrevised increase of 0.2% in February 2024 and 0.3% in January 2024. Real GDP is estimated to have increased by 0.6% in the three months to March 2024 compared with the three months to December 2023.

The bankrupt creditor of BlockFi has announced that affected former clients can access their crypto assets through Coinbase after the company permanently shuts down its web platform this month. Their partnership agreement with the Coinbase crypto broker ensures continued access to eligible crypto withdrawals.

The Japanese giant, SBI Holdings, has announced that it has entered into a partnership with Chiliz to jointly establish a sports and entertainment conglomerate. According to the plans, they will provide Japanese fans access to fan tokens of top clubs such as Arsenal, Barcelona, AC Milan, Manchester City, Inter Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain.

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) sets monetary policy to achieve the 2% inflation target and to support growth and employment. At its meeting ending on 8 May 2024, the MPC voted 7-2 to keep the Bank Rate at 5.25%. Two members favored lowering the Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage point to 5%. The Committee's updated forecasts for economic activity and inflation will be included in the May Monetary Policy Report, and market expectations are for the Bank Rate to fall from 5¼% to 3¾% by the end of the forecast period, down from the 3¼% end-point in February.

According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), demand for gasoline and diesel in the United States has plummeted to its lowest seasonal levels since the onset of the COVID pandemic, raising concerns about an economic slowdown. Monthly averages for the week ending May 3 show gasoline demand at 8.63 million barrels per day, a figure not seen since May 2020. Demand for distillates has also dropped to 3.6 million barrels per day, marking a seasonal low not observed since the pandemic began. The 3-2-1 crack spread, serving as a gauge for refining market sentiment, fell below $26.50 per barrel for the first time in approximately three months on Wednesday, the lowest level in three years. These numbers have sparked debate about whether economic activity is decelerating or if renewable energies are making strides in displacing fossil fuels. But taking a look on the US economic numbers, the reason of the decline is obviously the slowing economic activity.

American oil and natural gas production broke records last year, and this trend continues into this year. The average daily oil production in 2024 reached 13.12 million barrels, marking a 7.1% increase from the previous year. Natural gas production also saw an increase, with January levels up by 1.1% compared to a year ago. Currently, the price of WTI crude oil is around $85 per barrel, which is 7% higher than a year ago. This elevated price level may support further production growth, despite a slight decrease in the number of drilling rigs."

Canaan Inc., known for developing ASIC high-performance computing chips, manufacturing computing equipment, and providing software services, has launched the Avalon A15 series A 1566 product, an enhanced bitcoin mining machine featuring Canaan's most advanced technology. The new product boasts an energy efficiency ratio of 18.5 J/T and is capable of 185T hashing performance with a power consumption of 3420W.

Sophon, a layer 2 zkSync hyperchain built using Matter Labs' modular, open-source framework, ZK Stack, has successfully raised $60 million through the sale of nodes. During the sale, they offered 200,000 nodes for purchase, selling 121,000 of them for a total of 20,800 wETH. Investors included Maven 11, Paper Ventures, Spartan Group, and SevenX Ventures.

BitMEX, the crypto brokerage, in collaboration with PowerTrade, has launched its options trading service with the aim of gaining significant market share from Deribit, the largest crypto options platform. Initially, it aims to attract and incentivize users and traders with zero fees and cash rewards. Other major competitors include Binance, OKX, and Bybit.

In the United States, the House of Representatives has passed a bipartisan bill that nullifies the Securities and Exchange Commission's Special Accounting Bulletin 121 (SAB 121), which requires banks to report their customers' crypto assets on their balance sheets, unlike traditional assets such as securities. It's uncertain whether the measure will even become law, as President Joe Biden has announced his intention to veto it. Interestingly, the two next US presidential candidates have differing views on cryptocurrencies, with Biden indicating support for the SEC's regulatory enforcement, while Trump stated he would cease the hostile stance towards cryptocurrencies.

AstraZeneca said on Tuesday that it had initiated a worldwide withdrawal of the COVID-19 vaccine due to a "surplus of available updated vaccines" since the pandemic. The company also said it would continue to withdraw marketing authorisations for the Vaxzevria vaccine in Europe. "Since then, as more variant COVID-19 vaccines have been developed, there is a surplus of available updated vaccines," the company said, adding that this has led to a reduction in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured and supplied.

Shell said on Wednesday that it has agreed to sell its Singapore refinery and petrochemical assets - Asia's main oil hub - to a joint venture between Indonesia's Chandra Asri Capital and Glencore Asian Holdings. The transaction will see Shell's entire stake in Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore transferred to the joint venture CAPGC, Shell said in a statement.

LD Capital, a digital asset fund focusing on primary and secondary blockchain investments, together with Bitmain Antalpha Ventures and Highblock Asset Trader, have established Hong Kong's first crypto ETF liquidity fund valued at 1 billion HKD (~$128 million USD). The aim of this fund is to provide market-making services for Hong Kong ETFs, thereby increasing liquidity and improving capital flow efficiency.

After nearly 7 years of operation, LocalMonero, the largest P2P Monero trading platform, which has been present for much of Monero's life, announced that due to a combination of internal and external factors, they have been forced to make the decision to shut down their platform. The liquidation process will last for 6 months, and users have until November 7 to withdraw their assets before the service.

After 17 months since filing for bankruptcy, the FTX crypto broker has submitted another reorganization plan to the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. It is predicted that the total value of the collected, liquidated, and distributable assets will be between $14.5 billion and $16.3 billion. If approved by the bankruptcy court, 98% of FTX's creditors will receive approximately 118% of their approved claims within 60 days of the plan's implementation.

One of Latin America's leading banks and Colombia's largest bank, Bancolombia Group, has launched a crypto trading platform called Wenia. The banking giant's newly unveiled unit aims to carve out market share from incumbents like Binance and Bitso, Latin American and Colombian crypto brokers, by offering high-level security associated with the financial group and introducing a stablecoin pegged to the Colombian peso as part of its asset portfolio.

17 May 2024 - 11:00am (GMT +1)Previous: 2.4%Becslés: 712K Source: forexfactory.com Previous data Impact on markets A general market effect that is constantly changing depending on the current economic environment. Summary - Analysis Long term trend of data: Declining Most expected effect: Forex ( EXY ), Europe Stocks If new data is higher than previous: Positive ( Forex:EXY, Commodity ), Negative ( Europe Stocks ) If new data is lower than previous: Negative ( Forex:EXY ), Neutral ( Europe Stocks ) Effect-balancing with other data: Yes More on TOTM PROConclusion Conclusions based on the new data will be included in the TOTM PRO level live stream announcements every Monday and Thursday.