Cryptocurrency
Sam Bankman-Fried’s life in jail, Tornado Cash’s turmoil, and a $3B BTC whale: Hodler’s Digest, Aug. 20-26
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Top Stories This Week
Tornado Cash co-founders charged with money laundering, sanctions violations
United States officials pressed charges against the co-founders of crypto mixer Tornado Cash on Aug. 23. Roman Storm and Roman Semenov were both charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit sanctions violations and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. Storm was arrested and released on bail a few days later, while Semenov was added to the U.S. list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons. Combined, the charges carry a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison. The third Tornado Cash co-founder, Alexey Pertsev, was arrested in the Netherlands on money laundering charges in August 2022. The law enforcement actions are a continuation of a U.S. government crackdown on Tornado Cash that began last year due to its alleged role in laundering funds of the Lazarus Group, a North Korean-linked hacking collective. Tornado Cash has been implicated in several other hacks as well. All told, the mixer has laundered over $1 billion in ill-gotten gains, the U.S. Department of Justice alleges.
Sam Bankman-Fried is low on meds, living on $3 peanut butter in prison
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried appears to be having a tough time behind bars, eating only bread with peanut butter to accommodate his vegan diet while exhausting his supply of prescription medication. In the same hearing where Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty to seven fraud-related charges, his lawyers pleaded for the former FTX CEO to receive better treatment inside Brooklyn’s notorious Metropolitan Detention Center. Also this week, Bankman-Fried was granted permission to meet with his legal team outside of jail with 48 hours’ notice. Every day, he will have roughly seven hours to prepare for his upcoming trial expected to begin in October.
Mystery solved: Bitcoin wallet accruing $3B in 3 months is identified
The mysterious Bitcoin wallet that surged up the ranks to become the third-largest holder of Bitcoin in the world in just over three months, has been identified. Blockchain intelligence platform Arkham Intelligence labeled the wallet as Robinhood: Jump Trading Custody. According to data from crypto statistics platform BitInfoCharts, the wallet address first received Bitcoin on March 8. Over the course of the next three months and two weeks, the wallet had accrued a staggering 118,000 BTC — worth $3.08 billion at current prices. The current largest Bitcoin wallets in the world, according to BitInfoCharts, are reportedly owned by Binance and Bitfinex — as Bitcoin cold wallets.
Prime Trust parent company lost $8M investing in TerraUSD
The parent company of crypto custodian Prime Trust — currently involved in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings — has reported losing roughly $8 million in client and treasury funds through TerraUSD investments, presumably when the algorithmic stablecoin collapsed in May 2022. The company described the investment as well as a ramping up of spending in October and November 2022 — in the midst of FTX’s collapse — as contributing to its bankruptcy filing. Court documents show Prime Trust owed more than $85 million in fiat and $69.5 million in crypto to its clients. The collapse of the Terra ecosystem triggered a major market crash in 2022, affecting several firms including FTX, BlockFi, Celsius Network and Voyager Digital.
PEPE whale seizes dip opportunity, buys $529K worth of tokens
A Pepe holder bought 640 billion Pepe tokens for 320 Ether valued at $529,000 after the price of the frog-themed memecoin dropped by approximately 15% due to recent changes to a multisig wallet and concerns about potential developer manipulation. According to on-chain analytics platform Lookonchain, the whale purchased PEPE at an average price of $0.000001163. The value of the once-popular memecoin plunged after changes related to the amount of signatures required to sign transactions led to worries about a potential “rug pull,” which was later confirmed by one of the project’s co-founders.
Winners and Losers
At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $26,040, Ether (ETH) at $1,653 and XRP at $0.52. The total market cap is at $1.05 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Bone ShibaSwap (BONE) at 18.58%, Sui (SUI) at 12.86% and Toncoin (TON) at 11.97%.
The top three altcoin losers of the week are Pepe (PEPE) at -21.07%, XDC Network (XDC) at -9.62% and ApeCoin (APE) at -8.35%.
For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.
Read also
Most Memorable Quotations
“If history were to repeat itself, the next halving would see bitcoin rising to $35k before the halving and $148k after.”
“A new computing era has begun. Companies worldwide are transitioning from general-purpose to accelerated computing and generative AI.”
Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of NVIDIA
“Some of the people who currently think that there should not be effective law enforcement on-chain would feel differently if they got hacked, defrauded, or lost their private keys.”
Mike Kanovitz, CEO of Jurat
“You could never underestimate the damage the SEC’s lawsuit has caused – not only against Ripple – but #XRP. Three years of adoption – that’s what it’s caused.”
John Deaton, pro-XRP lawyer
“AI will never replace human creativity because it will always lack the essential spark that drives the most talented artists to do their best work, which is intention.”
Neal Mohan, CEO of YouTube
“Blockchain and AI can certainly co-exist — they’re both pillars of Web3.”
Aydin Kilic, CEO of Hive Digital Technologies
Prediction of the Week
Bitcoin ‘overconfidence reigns’ but bulls must reclaim $27.8K — Trader
Bitcoin needs to reclaim one key moving average to “regain its bullish status,” argues popular pseudonymous analyst CryptoCon, warning that bulls remained too optimistic about the $26,000 BTC price support holding.
For CryptoCon, the 20-week exponential moving average (EMA), now at $27,750, must be won back as support in order for the uptrend to be safe. “I have been covering this moving average a lot recently, but I believe it is critical for Bitcoin to regain its bullish status,” he wrote.
The analysis compared current BTC price action to its rebound from 2018 cycle lows. “It is very important that Bitcoin both rises above and retests the 20 Week EMA as support,” CryptoCon noted with a chart showing the similarities between 2019 and 2023, with the retest and subsequent successful EMA reclaim circled.
FUD of the Week
Chinese official sentenced to life in prison for Bitcoin mining, corruption
A Chinese government official has been sentenced to life in prison for illegitimate business operations related to running a 2.4 billion Chinese yuan ($329 million) Bitcoin mining enterprise and for unrelated charges of corruption. Prosecutors say Xiao Yi — a former member of the Jiangxi Provincial Political Consultative Conference Party Group — “covered up” the mining operation by instructing relevant departments to fabricate statistical reports and adjust the classification of electricity consumption. From 2017 to 2020, his facility’s electricity consumption accounted for 10% of the city of Fuzhou’s total electricity consumption.
FBI flags 6 Bitcoin wallets linked to North Korea, urges vigilance in crypto firms
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has flagged six Bitcoin wallets linked to North Korean state-backed hacking group Lazarus. The six wallets contain 1,580 BTC worth $40 million believed to be hoarded from various cryptocurrency hacks over the past year. The FBI in its investigation found that Lazarus Group moved approximately 1,580 BTC linked with several crypto exploits. The hacking group has been actively involved in multiple crypto-linked exploits over the years and are believed to have stolen nearly $2 billion in crypto since 2018.
OpenSea manager accused of insider trading sentenced to 3 months in prison, $50K fine
A federal judge has sentenced former OpenSea product manager Nathaniel Chastain to three months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering related to insider trading on the platform. He was accused of using insider information in his position at OpenSea to profit off the trading of NFTs. In his position as product manager, he had the authority to choose which NFTs would be featured on the OpenSea website. He purchased 45 NFTs prior to them being featured and then resold them.
Recursive inscriptions: Bitcoin ‘supercomputer’ and BTC DeFi coming soon
Some believe that Ordinals and recursive inscriptions could supercharge the Bitcoin network as a viable competitor to smart contract platforms. It’s not going to be easy, though.
AI Eye: Get better results being nice to ChatGPT, AI fake child porn debate, Amazon’s AI reviews
Being nice to ChatGPT gets better results, Wired’s weird child porn debate and the end of CATPCHAs.
NFT Collector: Giant Swan’s gothic VR dreamscapes… royalty nightmare on OpenSea
From crying in his car to putting the first 3D object onchain — the story of Giant Swan. Plus royalties race to the bottom accelerates due to OpenSea.
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Cryptocurrency
Ripple v. SEC Lawsuit Updates, Cardano (ADA) Price Predictions, and More: Bits Recap Feb 7
![](https://letizo.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/ripple-v-sec-lawsuit-updates-cardano-ada-pricepredictions-and-more-bits-recap-feb-7_67a5fd39846fc.jpeg)
TL;DR
- The legal battle between Ripple and the SEC continues, but recent changes in the regulator’s leadership may favor the company.
- Analysts predict a parabolic rally for Cardano (ADA), with strong fundamentals and rising adoption signaling a possible breakout despite recent price declines.
- Whales accumulated 750 million DOGE during the dip, and analysts see $0.17 as a potential bottom before a major price surge.
More Changes at the SEC
Over the past few years, Ripple secured some vital partial court wins that seemingly positioned the regulator as the underdog in the legal tussle. Most recently, the SEC enforced some amendments to its leadership, which could also be interpreted as good news for the company.
As CryptoPotato reported, the agency moved Jorge Tenreiro to its computer systems management department. The law expert joined the agency 11 years ago and signed the SEC’s notice of appeal in its case against Ripple.
The plea was submitted in October last year, challenging Judge Torres’ 2023 decision. At that time, she ruled that Ripple’s sales of XRP to retail investors through centralized exchanges did not violate securities regulations.
Earlier this year, the SEC’s former Chairman, Gary Gensler, stepped down. The agency had a quite hostile approach towards the cryptocurrency industry during his tenure, and somewhat expectedly, the XRP community cheered his resignation.
His role was succeeded by Mark Uyeda, who is pro-crypto and even criticized the SEC’s previous leadership for launching a war on the sector.
ADA Bull Run in the Cards?
Cardano’s native token suffered the consequences of the market decline at the start of the business week and is currently deep in the red on a 7-day scale, trading at approximately $0.71 (per CoinGecko’s data).
However, many industry participants believe a fresh resurgence could be just around the corner. Such is the case with Ali Martinez, who observed ADA’s performance in the past years and assumed that it might be “at the very beginning of a monster parabolic rally.”
The X user Lucky was also bullish, telling his over 2 million followers on the social media platform that “strong fundamentals and rising adoption make Cardano a solid bet before the next big move.”
DOGE Price Predictions
Last but not least, we will touch upon the OG meme coin – Dogecoin (DOGE). Similar to ADA, it has also sank by double digits in the past week, but some factors signal a potential reversal.
Martinez recently disclosed that whales accumulated 750 million tokens during the correction, describing the move as “a strong sign of confidence in the market.”
For their part, the X users AMCrypto and KALEO outlined predictions for the near future. The former envisioned a potential decline to as low as $0.17 before a bull run to a new all-time high.
KALEO claimed that the current price level of $0.25 is “a solid entry and practically free compared to where we’ll see it a few months from now.”
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Cryptocurrency
Berachain Community Members Show Mix Reactions Following BERA Airdrop
![](https://letizo.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/berachain-community-members-show-mix-reactions-followingbera-airdrop_67a5fd2e799c3.jpeg)
The Berachain team has finally released BERA airdrops to community members following the successful launch of the proof-of-liquidity layer-1 network.
However, the airdrops have received mixed reactions from community members, with users complaining that the allocation to certain groups was not fair.
BERA Airdrop Allocations
According to the Berachain tokenomics and airdrop overview, market participants eligible for the airdrops include testnet users, community members who deposited capital in the Boyco program, and holders of Berachain ecosystem non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Additionally, Binance Coin (BNB) holders, strategic partners, successful recipients of the Request for Broposal programs, holders of the Bong Bears NFTs who bridge their collectibles to Berachain, and users who constructively engaged with Berachain on X and Discord are eligible.
The Berachain Foundation, a non-profit organization piloting the affairs of the layer-1 network, allocated 1.65% BERA to testnet users, 2.35% BERA to Request for Broposal recipients, 2% to Boyco depositors, and 0.25% to X and Discord commentators. Holders of Berachain ecosystem NFTs received 0.25% of the amount, while the Berachain Foundation allocated 6.9% BERA to Bong Bears NFT holders. Strategic partners have been given 0.4% BERA, while BNB holders are to receive 2% BERA.
Notably, the airdrop makes up 15.75% of Berachain’s 500 million total supply. Although 107.48 million tokens are currently in circulation, the remaining will be released according to a linear vesting schedule over the next three years.
Mixed Reaction From Community
Berachain community members on X are complaining that the airdrop allocations are not fair. Some insist it is not right for testnet users, who have engaged with the network for years, to receive way fewer tokens than Bong Bears NFT holders. Some users revealed that they received substantial allocations, while others said they got none despite consistently interacting with the protocol over time.
Although pseudonymous Berachain co-founder Smokey the Bera explained that it is nearly impossible to target people perfectly during airdrops, community members are still voicing their grievances in the comment section. The pseudonymous crypto trader Jarzombek asserted that Smokey and the Berachain team members “rugged the most loyal community” by allocating 0.25% to holders of ecosystem NFTs.
Amid this chaos, the price of BERA has corrected a bit after rallying 1,346% to $14.46 after launch. Data from CoinMarketCap shows the token changing hands at $7.36 at the time of writing.
Meanwhile, the Berachain ecosystem has three main tokens: BERA, BGT, and HONEY. BERA is the native gas and staking token of the network, BGT is for governance and economic incentives, while HONEY is the chain’s native stablecoin.
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Cryptocurrency
3 Reasons That Ripple (XRP) Is Preparing for a Major Rally
![](https://letizo.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/3-reasons-that-ripple-xrp-is-preparing-for-a-majorrally_67a5fd2882392.jpeg)
TL;DR
- Spot XRP ETF filings from well-known financial players could boost institutional and retail investment in the asset if approved.
- Whales accumulated millions of tokens during the dip, and the RSI briefly dropped below 30, suggesting a potential price rebound.
The Potential Catalysts
Ripple’s XRP did not start the business week on the right foot, briefly tanking below $2 during the market correction witnessed on February 3. In the following days, the bulls reclaimed some lost ground, but the price remains deep in the red on a weekly scale, currently trading at around $2.37 (per CoinGecko’s data).
Despite the bearish environment, some essential factors hint that a move to the upside could be incoming. On February 6, Cboe BZX Exchange lodged 19b-4 filings on behalf of Canary Capital, WisdomTree, 21Shares, and Bitwise. The well-known asset managers seek to list the first spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the USA.
The filings represent a formal request submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The agency must approve or reject the application, often within 240 days.
A potential green light would grant American investors additional options to gain exposure to Ripple’s native token, which could create upward pressure on its price.
The whales’ activity is another factor worth observing. The popular X user Ali Martinez revealed that large investors had accumulated 520 million XRP (worth over $1.2 billion at current rates) during the latest dip.
Whales seized the opportunity during the recent dip, buying 520 million $XRP! pic.twitter.com/v2Lu4uBMgm
— Ali (@ali_charts) February 6, 2025
Such actions reduce the circulating supply of the asset, possibly setting the stage for a rally (should demand keep its level or rise).
Last but not least, we will focus on XRP’s Relative Strength Index (RSI), which measures the speed and change of price movements. The technical analysis tool varies from 0 to 100, with readings below 30 indicating oversold conditions and a potential for a bounce. Earlier this week, the ratio plunged below the bullish mark, currently set at around 35.
Bonus: Garlinghouse and Trump
The president of the USA, Donald Trump, started his second term at the White House with a bang, signing numerous executive orders and doubling down on his focus on the cryptocurrency industry. He reportedly plans to establish a crypto advisory council that may be comprised of some well-known names.
One of the people who could find a place there is Ripple’s CEO, Brad Garlinghouse. The advisors’ main role will be to design a comprehensive regulatory framework for the sector and work closely with Trump and David Sacks (whom the president tapped to serve as cryptocurrency and AI “czar”).
Garlinghouse’s possible connection with the White House could have a significant impact on Ripple’s native token. He might advocate for clearer regulations surrounding the asset, which has faced scrutiny from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for years.
Ripple’s CEO and the American president have shown a close connection to each other, having a dinner meeting at the Mar-a-Lago estate earlier this year.
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