🔴Blockchain Meets Doom | This Week in Crypto – Jan 29, 2024

Trezor issues a security alert, Chinese crypto investors are back despite the ban and a classic Video Game has been immortalized on the Dogecoin blockchain. These stories and more, this week in crypto.

Volatile Week for Bitcoin’s Price

Bitcoin experienced a significant dip, falling below $40,000 for the first time since early December, marking a 20% decline from its recent high that came with the news of US bitcoin ETF approvals. Some speculate that the FTX’s bankruptcy estate’s sale of $1 billion of Grayscale’s bitcoin ETF shares, may have been a contributing factor to the price drop. However, by week’s end, Bitcoin’s price had rebounded to the previous weekend’s levels.

Trezor Under Phishing Attack

Trezor users were met with phishing attempts with malicious emails urging users to upgrade their network by using a fake link. The hardware wallet provider identified unauthorized access to its email database as the cause. This comes after a recent breach of Trezor’s support portal. Though Trezor disabled the harmful link, users are warned against entering their recovery seed.

China’s Crypto Investors Defy Ban>

Crypto data platform Chainalysis revealed crypto-related activities in China have bounced back, and its global ranking in terms of peer-to-peer trade volume jumped to 13th place in 2023, up from 144th in 2022. Crypto trading and mining have been banned in China since 2021, therefore much of China’s crypto activity takes place through over-the-counter and informal, gray market peer-to-peer business.

OKX Users Compensated

Cryptocurrency exchange OKX will compensate users affected by a sudden 50% flash crash in its native token, OKB. On January 23 OKB crashed from $46 to $25 in 15 minutes, triggered by the liquidation of large leverage positions, which snowballed into further price triggers before a swift recovery. Occurring on the same day as the FTX bitcoin sale and Grayscale having to put some of its bitcoin on the market to satisfy redemption demand, the flash crash coincided with the day’s general market volatility.

Bitwise’s Bitcoin ETF Address

Asset management firm Bitwise has released the wallet address of its Bitcoin holdings for its spot ETF, becoming the first bitcoin ETF provider to do so in the US in a step toward increasing public transparency. The address currently has 12840 BTC worth over $500 million.

Decision on Ethereum ETFs Delayed

The U.S. SEC has delayed decisions on Grayscale and BlackRock’s applications to convert their Ethereum trusts into spot exchange-traded funds. Following the recent approval of spot bitcoin ETFs, this indicates ongoing regulatory scrutiny. Meanwhile, JPMorgan noted a slowdown in interest for spot Bitcoin ETFs, describing their performance as “disappointing,” despite their historic successful launch in terms of trading metrics.

Investors Expect BTC Drop

A recent Deutsche Bank survey shows over one-third of retail investors expect Bitcoin to fall below $20,000 by year-end. The bank surveyed 2,000 consumers in the US, UK, and Europe following the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs and the negative sentiment is linked to past events, including the FTX collapse, terraUSD debacle and US regulatory actions.

Legendary Video Game on Dogecoin

The iconic ‘90s video game,  Doom has been immortalized on the Dogecoin blockchain, showcasing the blockchain’s versatility beyond finance. This inscription transforms Dogecoin into a gaming platform, enabling users to access the game’s shareware version from the blockchain without legal restrictions. The innovative move underscores blockchains’ potential for securely managing and preserving digital content.

That’s what’s happened this week in crypto, see you next week.