The United States Treasury has added more Ethereum wallets to its sanctioned list. The wallets are linked to the North Korean-based Lazarus hacking group that breached the Ronin Network. Ronin powers Axie Infinity, a popular play-to-earn game.

The US treasury has discovered three additional wallets likely controlled by the hackers who siphoned 622 million US dollars from Ronin last month. It’s believed that the hacking group is on the payroll of the North Korean government.

OFAC (Office of Foreign Asset Control), a department in the US Treasury, has a list of sanctioned crypto wallets. On-chain data shows that the wallets recorded large deposits in the last seven days, with the sender being the wallet holding funds stolen from the Ronin protocol.

The move comes a few days after a leading coin mixing service, Tornado Cash, announced that it will no longer facilitate transactions from wallets on OFAC’s list. Note that a coin mixing platform mixes several transactions to hide their source and destination.

In a tweet, the Treasury Department noted that North Korea is known to use “illicit activities” as a revenue-generating method and a way to ease the sting of sanctions imposed on the country by the United States and the United Nations.

Access to Tornado Cashed Blocked, Close to Six Million USD Recovered

One among the three wallets preferred channeling funds through the transaction mixing service shortly before being identified by OFAC. Now, due to their sanctioned status, the wallets will no longer use Tornado Cash.

Last month, malicious actors breached the security of the Ronin-Ethereum bridge and pocketed over 600 million US dollars in Ethereum (ETH) and USD Coin (USDC).

Sky Mavis, Axie Infinity’s creator, disclosed that the hackers managed to take over the platform using genuine private keys stolen from their real owners. With the keys, the malicious actors were able to initiate transactions successfully.

The game developer has since disclosed that affected users will be compensated. Sky Marvis even conducted a fresh funding round that attracted 150 million users to help reimburse users.

Yesterday, Binance revealed that it had recovered close to six million US dollars from the Ronin Network hackers. According to the exchange’s CEO, Changpend Zhao (CZ), the funds were scattered in more than 86 accounts. On Friday, the original wallet holding the funds had a balance of roughly 280 million US dollars worth of crypto.

The Fidelity Stack has a Dance Floor and Lobby

Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, recently revealed that most of the funds moving out of the wallet go to centralized cryptocurrency trading platforms, decentralized trading protocols, and coin mixing services.

In January, Chainalysis disclosed that North Korean cyber criminals stole approximately 400 million US dollars worth of virtual currencies in 2021. Most of the stolen funds were in ETH and Bitcoin (BTC).

This month, the US Treasury said it’s watching Hydra and Garantex for their alleged involvement with funds from ransomware attacks. Hydra is a Russian-headquartered illicit marketplace, while Garantex is a crypto exchange.

As the US Treasury sanctions more Ethereum wallets, Fidelity has launched an 8-story building in the metaverse. The brokerage firm named it “The Fidelity Stack.” According to the firm, the new investment aims to provide basic lessons around investing. Fidelity is among the leading financial companies and has more than 11 trillion US dollars worth of assets under management.

Eight Billion Individuals in the Metaverse by 2030

The building dedicates an entire floor to educating visitors about FMET or Fidelity Metaverse. FMET is Fidelity’s wing that deals with investments in the virtual world. According to the company, the building is “built in Decentraland,” an Ethereum-based virtual world. Other features found on the Fidelity metaverse building are a dance floor and a lobby.

Users can also challenge themselves to learn about exchange-traded fund investing as they crisscross the building and collect “orbs.” The firm refers to such kind of learning as “the Invest Quest.”

Apart from Fidelity, JPMorgan, a leading investment bank, also has a lounge on Decentraland. Kathryn Condon, an executive at the brokerage firm, commented on Fidelity’s move noting that our engagement with money and “each other” is changing tremendously. The change is hastened by decentralized technology and the metaverse.

In March, Citi forecasted that the virtual world is headed towards a 13-trillion USD valuation within the next eight years. By 2030, the financial firm predicted that five billion users will be in the metaverse.

Bitcoin is currently trading around $46.5k after surviving earlier scares below $45k. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization had some mixed price swings earlier today at the start of the new month that has made bulls a little fidgety. Altcoins on the other hand also posted some losses earlier before recovering somewhat. More on that later on. 

In other news, just two million more Bitcoin are now left to be mined after the Bitcoin network went above the key level. The move was heavily anticipated by the mining community and shows just how far we have come in less than 13 years of the existence of the network. More on that later on. 

The government of Indonesia has decided to tax cryptocurrencies in the country but only at a minuscule rate of 0.1%. It is also being decided just how the taxation will take place and other formalities as well. This is considerably less than what other nations are taxing at the moment. Indonesia’s neighbour India is taxing around 30% according to the latest regulatory bill while many others, especially in the Europe. The Netherlands too charges around 30% of the transaction if the user engages in day trading. This extremely low taxation amount could be potentially a way to target crypto users by getting them into the registry or it could just be a way to promote the sector. No one knows for sure. 

Major Bitcoin mining company Riot Blockchain is all set for a $500 million stock offering. This massive offering and its sheer size of it means that the stock price could see a bit of a pullback. The mining company wants this amount to finance general corporate expenses and such. 

Crypto regulatory hawk Elizabeth Warren’s move to limit the sector’s exposure to the United States has gotten somewhat of a boost due to the Russia-Ukraine war. As a result, the US Senate and House of Representatives are actively debating measures to stop the flow of money, especially to accounts related to the Russian regime or even the people. However, this might subside if the two countries reach a peace settlement soon. 

Netflix’s new documentary titled Trust No One: Hunt for the Crypto King has received reactions from the crypto community. It is based on the untimely death of Quadriga CX exchange founder who died in India, taking with him the keys to the digital currencies of users on the exchange. It settles the conspiracy theories and other issues surrounding Quadriga gate. Crypto users were thrilled to be part of such a well-thought-out media. 

Major Bitcoin investors and billionaire Michael Saylor believes that the financial markets just aren’t ready for Bitcoin bonds yet. Various countries around the world are looking to launch BTC bonds including El Salvador but have hit major roadblocks. One of the reasons behind this is the incredible price volatility of the digital asset and its sure rise. Bonds are normally for fiat currencies that depreciate over time. 

Bank of Japan is calling on all G7 countries to promulgate common crypto regulations across their jurisdictions to have a sense of clarity. The G7 consists of big democratic countries like Japan, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, USA, Italy and Canada. Kazushigi Kamayama, a top official in the Bank of Japan’s payment system believes that a consistent set of rules is absolutely necessary for the future. 

Bitcoin Steady Above $46.5k after a Day of Uncertainity

Bitcoin is currently trading above $46k after the day witnessed a considerable tussle between the bulls and the bears.

The last 24 hours started with the digital currency at around $45.8k. It traded sideways for a while before it started to drop considerably late in the night. At 3:20 AM, the index began to fall, crucially below the key $45k support level. This was important for the bulls to keep as below it would have triggered a price collapse. However, the index recovered well during the rest of the day in a slow and steady manner. At press time, it is trading well above $46k. 

Moving forward, Bitcoin’s price drop and subsequent recovery was a little unnerving for the bulls and they were all set for an assault at the $50k resistance. However, now things are a little complicated as the index is proving hard to be navigated above. The next few days will be crucial in determining whether or not the bulls have anything on them. They need to continue the rise and challenge the $50k level soon enough. 

The total market capitalization of Bitcoin was around $880 billion and its share of the proceedings was 41.80%

Altcoins Recover After Earlier Losses

Other cryptocurrencies aka altcoins posted losses during the first half as BTC faltered but recovered strongly as the day went by. Major gainers included Ethereum (ETH, 5%), Binance Coin (BNB, 4.5%), Solana (SOL, 10.8%), Avalanche (AVAX, 4.2%), Polygon (MATIC, 4%), and Near Protocol (NEAR, 8.8%) all posted sizeable gains. 

In Other News

Bitcoin Network Tops 19 Million BTC Supply

The total number of Bitcoin in circulation recently crossed above 19 million, leaving just 2 million that are remaining till the hard cap is achieved. This is a symbolic moment as not much within the network has changed recently. 

Every four years Bitcoin undergoes a price squeeze and the next one is in 2024 and the one after that is in 2028. While the 19 million BTC were mined in less than 13 years, the next 2 million will take more than 108 years to be precise, showcasing the level of price squeeze over the next halvings. 

Bitcoin is currently still hovering around $46k as the index further consolidated around current levels. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization had a slow last 24 hours overall as the index delayed any further increments once again. Altcoins on the other hand had some mixed gains overall. More on that later on.

In other news, Elon Musk has recently bought a big chunk of Twitter’s stock (almost 9.2% of its total amount) worth more than $3 billion. This huge splurge has resulted in Musk becoming the largest stakeholder of the social media network and gets a place on its board of governors. As a result of this purchase, Dogecoin soared more than 25% immediately and maybe in for even bigger gains. More on that later on. 

Major crypto hardware wallet company Ledger has announced a new NFT hardware wallet. This is the sixth major wallet product from the company since it entered the market back in 2015. The new wallet is being called Ledger Nano S Plus and has been designed with NFT collectors’ need in mind. NFTs started to enter more and more mainstream in 2021 and are now turning over billions of dollars worth of volume on a weekly basis. Many NFTs are also worth a lot and it makes sense to consider a hardware wallet. However, Ledger and other hardware wallets have had some security issues so users need to beware. 

Speaking of Ledger hardware wallet company, Shopify is under the microscope once again for its alleged role in compromising the security of the Nano wallets. A number of Ledger users have filed a class action lawsuit against Shopify for failing security protocols and presumed failure to protect user identities. 

According to an analyst, crypto Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) has surpassed 2017 levels but the price index is currently moving at a snail’s pace. Despite the considerable activity on the cryptocurrency network according to William Clemente of Blockware, the crypto is still stuck under lower supports below $50k. 

As the US struggles to turn Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) into a reality, Canadian ones are witnessing new all time highs. Inflows are now at record levels and these exchange traded funds have increased their holdings by 6,594 BTC since January. The net amount held by them is around 35,000 BTC now. 

According to a research conducted by pWc firm, around 80% of all central banks in the world are now interested in studying and possibly launching a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). According to the research, retail CBDCs have already improved considerably with countries like China, Nigeria, and others leading the way. 

An intergovernmental panel of the UN has described the rising Co2 emissions from the crypto sector as a matter of concern. The IPCC has named crypto as the technology that might require more and more energy in the near future. 

Bitcoin Stuck at $46k

Bitcoin continues to remain stuck at $46k at press time. The cryptocurrency had a slow, grinding session for much of the day and it hasn’t changed much.

The last 24 hours started with Bitcoin at around $45.3k. It steadily rose to around $46.5k within the next few hours before flatlining around there for a long time. It made a half hearted attempt to get to $47k but that move didn’t last long. At press time, it is now back to almost $46k. 

Going forward, Bitcoin is now stuck in a narrow trading range just above the key $45k resistance-turned-support level. The index’s surprise consolidation could be a positive thing for the bulls as it might end up in a full blown move upwards. However, the bears are still playing and might end up spoiling the party themselves. Either way, the bulls need to move above to $50k and the bears need to scale down to $45k. 

The total market capitalization of Bitcoin was around $876 billion and its share of the proceedings was 41.6%. 

Altcoins Post Mixed Gains

Other cryptocurrencies aka altcoins posted some small, mixed gains overall. The biggest exception was Dogecoin that rose a massive 21% to go above $0.17. Other gainers were largely subdued including Terra (LUNA, 4%), Shiba Inu (SHIB, 6.5%), Near Protocol (NEAR, 4.3%). 

In Other News….

Elon Musk Twitter Investment Sends DOGE Soaring

Elon Musk recently bought a huge chunk of Twitter shares (around 9.2%) for northwards of $3 billion. As a result, he is now the biggest single shareholder of the network considering its ex CEO Jack Dorsey only has 2% and the next biggest stakeholder has less than 7%. 

Musk has been active on Twitter about crypto for a long time. He loves the platform but has also criticized its censorship practices.

Now Musk is looking to use his stakes in the social media company to make some changes to help what he calls free speech on the platform. On the other side of his influence is Dogecoin. It is fair to say that DOGE has reached this high because of Musk’s own influence to a certain extent. Now Musk may look to use DOGE on Twitter itself. Who knows. However, Musk will likely find it hard to completely control it as other stakeholders are still stronger together while Musk is the wildcard there. 

Image Source: Coin Culture

Bitcoin is currently trading around $48k at press time after recording a slow and steady price gain for much of the day. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization is looking increasingly bullish after overcoming the long-held $45k resistance but progress has been slow till now. Altcoins on the other hand also rose earlier today but their rise was mixed overall. More on that later on.

A latest analysis shows that Bitcoin could soon return to its all time high level of $69k in the near future as long as the $46k support level stands. The prediction was made by popular analyst Rekt Capital. More on that later on.

Russian government officials are supporting Bitcoin mining in the country and are requesting to make it legal as soon as possible. The country is under much flak from the rest of the world due its aggression in Ukraine and now it is looking at other avenues of wealth generation. The war has also weakened the Russian economy considerably and the extensive Western sanctions on it means that it can’t basically trade with most countries of the world. However, the extent to which the digital currency sector is helping the Russian survival and war effort is still disputed, despite alarmists raising voice. 

A new bill introduced in the US House of Representatives aims to create a totally digital currency that will eventually replace cash completely. The legislation is called the Electronic Currency and Hardware Act and it could start a whole new direction for the USA and possibly even challenge Bitcoin’s dominance. However, it doesn’t have the kind of support it needs to pass right now with the House divided over means to regulate existing digital currencies, let alone creating one from scratch that is not tied to the USD.

The Japanese government has decided to tighten cryptocurrency trading in the country further as it looks to enforce sanctions of Russia and Belarus. The East Asian country has had a firm stance against Russian aggression in the West and that is shared by a number of pro-Western countries in the Pacific. However, the same intent is not held by other countries in Asia including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Malaysia. 

Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson gave a keynote speech at the recent Binance Blockchain week in the United Arab Emirates. Hoskinson touched on a number of important topics including Web3 and how blockchain is helping building a better future. He believes that the crypto community needs to learn to focus its attention on digital assets other than Bitcoin itself for progress. 

The Gold industry is looking to make use of blockchain technology for supply chain management and prevention of fraud. According to LBMA CEO Ruth Crowell, the technology can help improve accountability in the Gold sector and promote confidence. 

Bitcoin Rises to $48k

Bitcoin is steadily rising and has reached levels slightly above $48k just before press time. The cryptocurrency is on the move and is looking to challenge the $50k level soon enough. 

The last 24 hours started with Bitcoin at around $46k, fresh from the scaling the $45k resistance. For much of the day, the digital asset was on a steady incline with minor hiccups in between that never really bothered the bulls. It recorded a massive $48.1k level minutes before press time.

Going forward, Bitcoin is now trading well above levels bears are comfortable with and therefore, the bulls are going increasingly confident of challenging the $50k resistance in the near future. This move has been in the works for quite a while and has steadily built up over time. Now, the index is on its way to recovery. Will this result in a revival of the long-term bull run? It remains to be seen. 

The total market capitalization of Bitcoin was around $912 billion and its share of the proceedings was 42.83%.

Altcoins Post Mixed Gains

Other cryptocurrencies aka altcoins reported some mixed gains through the last 24 hours. Cardano (ADA, 7.5%), Solana (SOL, 8.6%), Terra (LUNA, 8.3%), Avalanche (AVAX, 8.4%), Polkadot (DOT, 8%) and Shiba Inu (SHIB, 14.5%) all posted bigger gains than Bitcoin itself. The rest of the market fared below Bitcoin overall. 

In Other News…..

Bitcoin poised to Reach All-time High Levels if $46k Stands True

Bitcoin is currently looking to test the $50k resistance in the near future. It suffered a bad crash since the end of 2021 and went to as low as $33k in the process. However now, the cryptocurrency is back in business. But, is the long-term bull run back into play?

According to one analyst, it can be. According to Rekt Capital, a popular analyst on Twitter, the index is likely to experience macro re-accumulation phase above $46k and a big move above it will certainly open the buyer floodgates. This would eventually result in the rekindling of the long-term bull run and bring the index to all time highs near $69k. 

However, it remains to be seen whether the buying sentiment is as strong as in early and late 2021.