Collective Shift

The team discusses Bitcoin reaching $40,000 while Michael Saylor adds more Bitcoin to his balance sheet. The team further delves into the Solana ecosystem with highly anticipated airdrops from Jupiter & Jito.

Key Takeaways

• Bitcoin climbed to a 20-month high of $40,100 after confidence increased in a bitcoin ETF approval by Jan. 10, 2024.
• The cause of this increased confidence was the SEC submitting certain filings last week that effectively enables it to make a decision on all ETF applicants at once in early January.
• Michael Saylor’s MicroStrategy bought an additional 16,130 BTC for $593M in November, bringing its holdings to 174,540 BTC. It may soon raise $750M to buy more BTC.
• Airdrop season is heating up in the Solana ecosystem. Last week, Jito announced its JTO token and Jupiter shared its website for checking eligibility for its upcoming JUP airdrop.

The team discusses Binance's $4.3 billion settlement and criminal charges, alongside Kraken's SEC lawsuit over unregistered securities. They also cover the Australian Tax Office's controversial crypto tax guidance and Blur's new Blast chain launch.

Key Takeaways

• Binance settled with the U.S. Department of Justice and other federal authorities for $4.3 billion and pleaded guilty to various criminal charges.
• The SEC sued Kraken for failing to register its exchange. It also alleged 16 cryptocurrencies as being unregistered securities.
• The Australian Tax Office updated its non-binding guidance on the tax treatment of cryptocurrencies. This received backlash from several established industry participants.
• The team behind Blur announced Blast, a layer-two chain set to launch in February. This was one of the most significant project announcements of 2023 and will likely have various flow-on effects for certain altcoins.

The team discusses BlackRock and the recent ETF filing for spot Ethereum. They also discuss Disney, OKX's new Layer 2 and Tether wanting to mine Bitcoin.

Key Takeaways

• Asset management giant BlackRock filed for a spot Ethereum ETF. Don’t expect any spot ETFs for other cryptocurrencies any time soon.
• Big banks JPMorgan and Apollo pleased with results of a proof-of-concept that used Avalanche, LayerZero, Axelar, and others.
• Disney licensed its IP to Dapper Labs, the team behind the Flow blockchain, to launch Disney Pinnacle platform.
• Major exchange OKX will soon launch X1, a layer-two blockchain built with Polygon CDK. Scheduled to launch in Q1 2024.
• Tether is reportedly expanding into Bitcoin mining. Targeting South America.
• Argentina officially has a new president, Javier Milei, and he is Bitcoin-friendly!

The team covered the crypto market in the last week, citing an incredible 40% increase in Solana, Blackrock preparing for a Spot Eth ETF and news of 2 new Layer 2 networks.

Key Takeaways

1. The crypto market has continued rallying, with SOL (+40%) a notable outperformer.
2. It appears that this price growth is being driven by existing investors and increased leverage. While various popular retail metrics are starting to increase, the rate of change is nothing too notable.
3. BlackRock is seemingly preparing to apply for a spot Ethereum ETF in the U.S. If the SEC approves a spot bitcoin ETF, expect speculation over an Ethereum version to grow considerably.
4. Kraken and OKX are rumoured to be building their own layer-two networks. If true, the move would come months after Coinbase launched its own L2 chain (i.e. Base).
5. The team loved every second of Aus Crypto Con over the weekend! It was a pleasure to catch up with so many Collective.

The team discusses the largest crypto trial with SBF being found guilty on 7 counts. They also examine Solana’s Breakpoint conference and Paypal being subpoenaed by the SEC.

Key Takeaways

• Sam Bankman-Fried found guilty on all 7 counts in FTX fraud trial. Sentencing is scheduled for March 28.
• Hong Kong’s securities regulator is moving towards allowing retail investors to buy spot crypto ETFs, according to Bloomberg. Positive news, if true!
• Get our highlights from Solana’s biggest annual conference, during which the SOL token rallied strongly.
• Join us at the Australian Crypto Convention. Click here for a free ticket.

The team discuss the biggest news of the week, the fake bitcoin ETF rally. They also discuss the SEC vs ripple case & how the NYAG is suing DCG.

Key Takeaways

• BTC soared to $30,800 for the first time since July, and BTC dominance hit its highest level (52.7%) in 2.5 years.
• The CEO of BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, referred to crypto as a “flight to quality” in a TV interview. Having such an influential voice advocate for crypto is a big win.
• Fake news about a spot ETF approval caused BTC to surge before fully retracing. The price action arguably signaled that the market had not yet priced in an approval.
• Reddit dropped its blockchain-based community points system, citing regulatory concerns. Not a good look as far as blockchain adoption is concerned.
• Users who followed Matt’s post about the TIA airdrop got x3 as much as intended.

Nic and Leon cover the recent news regarding the SBF trial. They also share their favourite tools from the comprehensive list of crypto research list.

Key Takeaways

• Trial Highlights: Gary Wang, CTO of FTX, mentioned that Alameda has special privileges for trading on FTX. Meanwhile, Caroline Ellison, Alameda's CEO, revealed questionable financial practices, including the misuse of FTX customer funds.
• LastPass Security Concern: LastPass, a popular password manager, faced a significant data breach in 2023. Encrypted passwords, usernames, and other data were compromised. Exercise caution.
• Potential Bitcoin ETF: The SEC might not appeal a recent decision by the US courts, potentially paving the way for the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF in the United States.
• Blockchain Exploration by Major Financial Institutions: JPMorgan, BlackRock, and Barclays are exploring blockchain tokenization. Experiments with private blockchains continue.

Nick & Leon discuss the crypto top 25 and reveal what they think should stay and what needs to go. They also break down the latest news, including the FTX trial and more!

Key Takeaways

1. The biggest trial in Crypto; The SBF trial is now underway.
2. Ethereum Futures are live, with abysmal volume while the crypto market remains very quiet.
3. Positive Bankruptcy news from FTX & Celsius. FTX may be able to recoup 100% due to an AI startup: Anthropic
4. Nick & Leon discuss tokens they see staying in the top 25, UNI, LINK, SOL & MATIC.
5. While some tokens may not survive, SHIB, LTC, BCASH, DOT.

Nick and Leon discuss a flurry of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF news while Michael Saylor purchases more bitcoin. They also discuss the current top 10 cryptos and what they have been up to, providing some market insight.

Key Takeaways

• The US government avoids a shutdown, with a last-minute deal, while Gary Gensler gets a demanding letter to approve Bitcoin ETFs
• Good and Bad news regarding ETFs, Bitcoin spot ETF delayed, while Ethereum ETF futures approved. Bullish Eth
• MicroStrategy bought more Bitcoin ($147M). The current total is $4.68B. MSTR is up 46% YTD
• The team give you an update on the top 10 cryptocurrencies, BTC ETH Tether BNB XRP USDC Lido Eth CARDANO SOLANA DOGE. Some are more serious than others. We dive in and give you our insight.
• Bankruptcy update: FTX auditors (Preger Metis) being sued by SEC, Three Arrows Capital Founder; Su Zhu arrested in Singapore
• Reminder: Bitcoin Halving is under 200 days from now.