From SEC's X account getting hacked AI coins gaining the second rank, here is a 2-minute breakdown of everything important that happened in crypto today.
The crypto world held its breath yesterday as the SEC's final deadline approached for approving spot Bitcoin ETF application. Prices pumped to $48K when SEC's official X account suddenly tweeted "BTC ETF approved!" But the tweet vanished minutes later, with Gensler denying any breakthrough. Turns out the account was hacked, sending prices crashing back down.
Today we aim to provide some sanity amidst the chaos with our roundup of top crypto news.
TLDR:
- SEC account hacked, BTC rollercoaster ride 🎢
- Expected ETF approval's impact 🤔
- Departed Evmos co-founder returns $7.6M 👷♂️
- AI coins on the rise 🤖
- Singapore welcomes crypto with open arms 👐
Now let's dive deeper into each headline - starting with the SEC's blunder that sent Bitcoin on a wild ride...
SEC’s Blunder 🎢
A chaos tsunami crashed over crypto Twitter yesterday when the SEC's official X account suddenly dropped a Forbidden bomb:
But the tweet vanished minutes later, plunging the community into conspiratorial chaos.
Gensler himself hopped online to deny any ETF breakthrough while raising questions about "unauthorized access." 🧐
Some speculate draft tweets were leaked by a rogue staffer or hacker browsing private folders.
Some observers believe the leaked tweet may have been scheduled by the SEC for release tomorrow but ended up being posted prematurely today by mistake.
Popular analyst Eric Balchunas from Bloomberg pointed out that the language used was very "SEC-ish" in nature, signaling it was likely an internal draft. So in his view, someone may have simply botched the calendar scheduling, resulting in hopium hitting the internet 24 hours too soon.
Either way - traders rode a violent rollercoaster on the confusion. Bitcoin pumped to $48K as buy orders flooded in. But the beast just as quickly recoiled back to $45K once clarifications killed the vibe.
So was the account really hacked? Who else agrees with Eric? Read the full story!
Expected ETF Approval’s Impact 🤔
A violent deleveraging last week may have cleared the path for smoother sailing once the SEC blesses Bitcoin spot ETFs, says K33 Research.
Perpetual funding flipped neutral and open interest bled 12% between January 2nd and 6th.
This signals the market sits on more solid ground to digest any spot ETF verdicts without cascading liquidations.
Plus institutional optimism persists near all-time highs based on CME's $6 billion open interest figure.
So no price pumps and dumps when the SEC announces its verdict? Read the full story!
And that brings us to our Word of the Day!
It’s ‘Cascading Liquidations’!
Cascading liquidations refer to a scenario in crypto trading when a series of forced liquidations of leveraged positions occur successively, triggering further liquidations. This happens when prices experience significant downside volatility.
As prices rapidly decline, leveraged long positions start becoming underwater, meaning the collateral deposited is no longer sufficient to meet the maintenance margin requirements on exchanges. This prompts exchanges to forcefully close out these positions to recoup funds.
These forced liquidations automatically trigger market sell orders that push prices even lower.
As prices continue to drop from these liquidations, more and more long positions are knocked out due to insufficient collateral, creating a cascading effect of successive liquidations being triggered.
The rapid dumping of leveraged positions creates substantial selling pressure, exacerbating price declines and volatility.
But what exactly triggers this event? Read more!
Now back to our daily stories!
It’s Time for AI Coins! 🤖
Per Binance Research, AI coins beat almost every category - second only to white-hot Ethereum layer 2 ecosystems.
When you filter noise from meme mania, AI coin gains hit 185%.
So which AI coins truly went interstellar?
Fetch.AI exploded by 659% in 2023 thanks to its decentralized machine-learning marketplace and autonomous agent network.
And SingularityNET wasn't far behind after its AI services emporium on Ethereum pumped 616%.
Clearly, AI adoption accelerated into light speed across crypto last year! Which other AI coins showed outstanding performance? Read the full story!
Evmos Co-Founder’s Good Faith 👷♂️
Departed co-founder Akash Khosla resurfaced bearing gifts of 59 million EVMOS tokens worth $7.6 million!
Khosla's peace offering aims to redistribute influence to current core contributors. Part of broader initiatives to bolster community trust and stabilize token value.
This Olive branch closure comes after Khosla's sudden departure last year over operational disagreements.
Will this token surrender help the price of EVMOS tokens? Read the full story!
Singapore’s Making Moves 🇸🇬
Major regulatory moves by leading crypto custodian BitGo this week. The platform secured preliminary approval for a payments license from Singapore's central bank.
This stamp positions BitGo's Singapore outfit for full clearance to enable crypto services within the city-state. We're talking exchange offerings, web3 remittances, institutional client asset support and beyond!
Singapore is making moves to become the haven for crypto companies. Read the full story!
That wraps up today's top crypto headlines. See you tomorrow for more updates from this rapidly evolving space!
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