- Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) experienced significant declines, with BTC falling 3% to below $58,400 and ETH dropping 5.5%, marking its worst one-day slide since early August.
- The declines come ahead of anticipated U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts, which have historically influenced market sentiment by making borrowing cheaper and spurring growth in riskier sectors.
- U.S.-listed Bitcoin ETFs saw substantial inflows of over $263 million, the highest since July 22, while Ether ETFs saw smaller inflows of $1.5 million, indicating continued investor interest.
- Other major cryptocurrencies also saw declines: Cardano’s ADA fell 5%, Solana’s SOL lost 4%, and BNB Chain’s BNB had a smaller loss of 1.1%.
- Futures traders betting on higher prices lost over $143 million due to the sudden market drop, according to CoinGlass data.
- The BTC/ETH ratio fell to four-year lows, reflecting Ethereum's increased competition from other chains like Solana, Base, and TON, as well as Sony’s Soneium, which will offer USDC on its chain.
- **ETH Price Drop**: Ether's price fell 6% to $2,260, hitting its lowest ETH/BTC ratio since April 2021, amid market jitters and a wave of "FUD" on social media platform X.
- **Federal Reserve Anticipation**: The crypto market is on edge as traders await the Federal Reserve's rate cut announcement scheduled for Sept. 18.
- **Trump Assassination Attempt**: Market volatility was also influenced by news of a second reported assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
- **Brazil's Social Media Ban**: Brazil's Attorney General supported the Supreme Court's ban on social media platform X, despite Elon Musk's compliance with financial penalties.
- **MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Purchase**: MicroStrategy acquired 18,300 Bitcoin for $1.11 billion, bringing its total holdings to 244,800 BTC, valued at approximately $14.14 billion.
- **Circle Blacklists Lazarus Group**: Circle blacklisted over $1.5M in USD Coin (USDC) tied to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, following similar actions by Tether, Paxos, and Techteryx in April. Blockchain sleuth ZachXBT criticized Circle for the delay, noting Lazarus laundered over $200M from 25 hacks between 2020-2023.
- **Ethereum Researcher Exits**: Danny Ryan, a key Ethereum Foundation researcher, announced his departure after 7 years, citing personal reasons and a desire to explore new opportunities. Ryan played a significant role in Ethereum's transition to proof-of-stake in 2022.
- **Trump DeFi Platform Advisor**: World Liberty Finance, a DeFi platform linked to Donald Trump, appointed Sandy Peng, co-founder of Ethereum layer-2 solution Scroll, as an advisor. The platform, operated by Trump’s sons, is set to launch on Sept. 16, aiming to integrate US dollar-pegged stablecoins in DeFi.
- **Catizen Airdrop Controversy**: Telegram’s Catizen players expressed dissatisfaction over the tokenomics of the upcoming CATI token airdrop, with only 15% allocated for “Season 1.” The developers cited bot activity as the reason for the reduced community allocation, leading to backlash and the hashtag “#catizenscam.”
- **Other News**: Former President Trump was reported safe after gunshots were heard near him at a golf club in Florida. Chinese lawmakers are considering revising anti-money laundering laws to better monitor risks associated with cryptocurrencies.
- Ether (ETH) dropped 6% in 24 hours, falling from $2,425 to $2,260, amid broader crypto market jitters and a 4.5% market retreat.
- The decline is attributed to a wave of "FUD" (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) on social media, with analysts and industry observers contributing to negative sentiment.
- The ETH/BTC ratio hit its lowest level since April 2021, now at 0.038, with even Bitcoin Cash (BCH) outperforming Ether over the past year.
- The slump coincides with anticipation of a Federal Reserve rate cut, with a 41% chance of a 25 basis point cut and a 59% chance of a 50 basis point cut.
- Former President Donald Trump survived a second assassination attempt, though its impact on ETH markets remains unclear.
- Circle has partnered with Sony Block Solutions Labs to expand USDC adoption on Sony’s layer-2 blockchain, Soneium.
- The collaboration aims to integrate Circle’s Bridged USDC Standard, making USDC a primary token for value exchange on Soneium.
- Soneium, a public Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, was launched in August 2024 by Sony Block Solutions Labs, a joint venture with Sony Group Corporation and Startale Labs.
- The Bridged USDC Standard allows USDC to be deployed on EVM-compatible blockchains, facilitating digital dollar payments on L2 chains.
- Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire and Sony Block Solutions Labs Chairman Jun Watanabe highlighted the partnership's potential to enhance the digital ecosystem and Web3 experiences.
- Circle is the second-largest stablecoin issuer with a $35.7 billion circulating supply, and USDC supply has increased 47% this year despite being down from its peak in June 2022.
- **Creator Disavows**: Dong Nguyen, the original creator of Flappy Bird, has distanced himself from a group claiming to revive the game, stating he has no relation to the project and does not support crypto.
- **Trademark Acquisition**: The Flappy Bird Foundation acquired the rights to the game from Gametech Holdings LLC, which won the trademark after Nguyen abandoned it.
- **Crypto Integration**: Hidden website pages suggest the revived game will feature crypto elements, including a token on Solana, a play-to-earn model, and potential airdrops.
- **Research Findings**: Researcher Varun Biniwale discovered references to a $FLAP token and a "flap-to-earn" event linked to the TON blockchain, indicating deeper crypto integration.
- **Project Leadership**: Michael Roberts, head of studio at crypto game developer 1208 Production, is reportedly leading the revival of Flappy Bird.
- **Community Skepticism**: There are concerns that the project aims to capitalize on the nostalgic appeal of Flappy Bird while integrating cryptocurrency and Web3 elements for profit.
- The CFTC has raised concerns about potential manipulation in prediction markets, citing incidents on platforms like Polymarket and PredictIt.
- Kalshi, a US predictions market, faced legal challenges from the CFTC, which partially lost its initial case but secured a temporary stay order to halt Kalshi's election betting.
- Despite a brief launch of its election market, Kalshi had to take it down due to another stay order from the appeals court.
- The CFTC argues that allowing election betting could cause significant public harm, while Kalshi claims the stay order would cause them financial damage.
- A key issue in the case is whether Kalshi's operations fall under the CFTC's regulatory authority as "gaming."
- The Sept. 6 ruling in favor of Kalshi was seen as a positive development for the broader crypto industry, emphasizing the importance of market participation.
- A Reddit user named "SentuBill" reported that ChatGPT initiated a conversation by asking about his first day of school, inferring this from previous interactions.
- The conversation, verified by Cointelegraph, suggests that this capability is part of a new upgrade called the ChatGPT Strawberry Upgrade.
- Launched on September 13, 2024, the upgrade allows ChatGPT to reason and conduct independent internet research, with response times of 10-20 seconds.
- Originally set for a November 2024 release, the upgrade may launch earlier, and OpenAI has revised its model naming conventions to reflect significant advancements.
- OpenAI's products have seen a surge in popularity, reaching over 1 million users and 600,000 premium subscribers as of April 2024.
- The company is considering introducing high-end subscription plans that could cost over $2,000 per month.
- World Liberty Financial, a Trump-backed crypto project, is set to launch on Monday, September 16, at 8 p.m.
- Sandy Peng, co-founder of Ethereum Layer 2 network Scroll, joins as an advisor, bringing extensive blockchain experience.
- The project will be built on Aave and the Ethereum blockchain, focusing on a "credit account system" and stablecoin adoption.
- Former President Trump emphasized the project's aim to move away from traditional banking systems.
- Trump confirmed his safety after gunshots were heard near him while golfing on Sunday.
- Bitcoin (BTC) surged back to $60,000 on Sept. 13, marking a 10% rally this week and turning September's returns positive.
- Investors are eyeing the upcoming FOMC meeting on Sept. 18, with a 50% chance of a 50-basis point rate cut, which could impact crypto markets.
- MicroStrategy acquired 18,300 BTC between Aug. 6 and Sept. 12, increasing its holdings to 244,800 BTC at an average price of $38,585.
- Fetch.ai (FET) is forming an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern, potentially signaling a new uptrend if it breaks above $1.51.
- Sui (SUI) shows signs of a trend change, with potential momentum if it breaks the $1.11 to $1.18 resistance zone.
- Aave (AAVE) and Injective (INJ) are also showing bullish signs, with AAVE targeting $160 and INJ potentially breaking out of a descending channel pattern.
- **Surprise Airdrop Changes:** Catizen players are upset after developer Pluto Studio revealed undisclosed changes to the airdrop criteria for the upcoming CATI token launch on September 20.
- **Disappointing Allocations:** Many players, who expected larger rewards for their efforts in the Telegram game, expressed their dissatisfaction on social media, with some receiving only single or double-digit CATI tokens.
- **Transparency Issues:** Players criticized the lack of transparency, especially after Pluto announced that only 30% of the token supply would be circulating at launch, contrary to the previously stated 43%.
- **Criteria Shift:** Pluto Studio altered the airdrop criteria to focus on genuine player activities like on-chain interactions and in-game purchases, after discovering bot accounts exploiting the original rules.
- **Community Backlash:** The changes, perceived as favoring players who spent money over those who invested time, led to the hashtag “#catizenscam” trending on Twitter.
- **Developer Response Pending:** Decrypt reached out to Pluto Studio for comments on the controversy and the decision to change the criteria instead of banning cheaters, but has yet to receive a response.
- **Hamster Kombat**: A popular Telegram game with 300 million players, set to launch a crypto token on The Open Network (TON) on September 26.
- **Daily Rewards**: Players can earn 6 million in-game coins daily through the daily combo (5 million coins) and daily cipher (1 million coins).
- **Today's Combo**: For September 15, the combo includes CEO, Consensus Explorer Pass, and Hamster Green Energy cards.
- **Today's Cipher Code**: The code is "CHARGE" in Morse code: C (— • — •), H (• • • •), A (• —), R (• — •), G (— — •), E (•).
- **Game Mechanics**: Input the cipher code via the "Daily cipher" button; dots are quick taps, dashes are press-and-hold.
- **Timing**: The daily combo refreshes at 3pm ET, and the next combo period begins at 8am ET daily.
- Former President Trump is safe following reports of gunshots "in his vicinity" at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, according to spokesperson Steven Cheung.
- The incident occurred while Trump was playing golf, leading to an immediate lockdown of the golf course.
- It remains unclear if the gunshots were related to Trump or originated from within the golf course.
- This follows a previous assassination attempt on Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024.
- Trump is set to launch the World Liberty Financial crypto platform on Sept. 16.
- Further updates will be provided by Cointelegraph as more information becomes available.
- The CFTC has filed a new motion to prevent Kalshi from offering prediction markets for the upcoming November elections, despite losing an initial case.
- District Court Judge Jia Cobb ruled that the CFTC overstepped its authority, but the agency appealed, forcing Kalshi to pause its election contracts shortly after listing them.
- The CFTC argues that allowing election gambling on U.S. futures markets poses significant harm, outweighing any financial damages Kalshi might face.
- The legal debate centers on whether election prediction markets constitute "gaming" or "gambling," with the CFTC claiming jurisdiction based on these definitions.
- Both the CFTC and Kalshi acknowledge the risk of market manipulation, citing past incidents, but Kalshi argues that unregulated markets already exist and a stay would only push trading to these platforms.
- The CFTC dismisses Kalshi's argument, emphasizing that the presence of unregulated markets does not justify allowing election gambling on regulated futures markets.
- Google is set to delete user accounts inactive for over two years, a move tech YouTuber "Mental Outlaw" suggests indicates the end of free online service models due to storage constraints.
- Early Gmail users often used the service for cloud storage, leading to significant space consumption that Google now finds costly to maintain.
- The rise of adblocking services and privacy-focused browsers like Brave has reduced revenue from data monetization, pressuring the free service model.
- Google announced the policy change in late 2023, citing security concerns as a reason for deleting dormant accounts, which are more vulnerable to security breaches.
- The policy will not affect accounts used by schools or businesses, focusing solely on individual accounts.
- Decentralized storage solutions like Functionland and Irys are emerging as alternatives, offering users more control over their data and challenging big tech's dominance.
- **Daily Rewards**: Rocky Rabbit offers 2.5 million in-game coins for solving the Enigma puzzle and 2 million coins for the correct Daily SuperSet combo.
- **Game Mechanics**: The game is a tap-to-earn platform with a bodybuilding and combat theme, planning to launch its own token, RabBitcoin, on The Open Network (TON).
- **SuperSet Combo**: For Sunday, September 15, the SuperSet combo is Technical Training, Advanced Stretching, and Punching Bag Practice. Updated daily at 4am ET.
- **Enigma Puzzle**: The Enigma solution for September 15 is: Estate, Room, File, Manage, Enough, Fatal, Horror, Devote, Used, Slight, Receive, Slow. Updated daily at 12pm ET.
- **Bonus**: The first person to submit the correct Enigma answer daily receives an additional 2.5 TON.
- **Game Popularity**: Rocky Rabbit is gaining traction, similar to games like Notcoin and Hamster Kombat, with multiple daily opportunities to earn in-game coins.
- Despite a significant slump in the NFT market, Magic Eden is experiencing its best year ever, according to CEO Jack Lu.
- Magic Eden, which launched in September 2021, initially offered only Solana NFTs but has since adopted a multi-chain approach, supporting Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon, and Base.
- The NFT market has seen a 91% drop in trading volumes since Magic Eden's inception, yet the platform has captured a 70% share of revenue in the NFT market.
- Magic Eden's success is attributed to its focus on content and convenience, making it a one-stop shop for digital assets.
- The platform has also ventured into Bitcoin-based collectibles, including Ordinals and Runes, further diversifying its offerings.
- CEO Jack Lu emphasizes the importance of long-term thinking and adaptability to changing market trends.
- Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) announced the latest cohort for its Crypto Startup Accelerator (CSX), featuring 21 global startups focusing on AI, layer-1 solutions, and more.
- Highlighted participants include PIN AI, which raised $10M in a pre-seed round to develop a privacy-focused, on-device AI assistant, and Blocksense, which raised $4M to redefine decentralized data infrastructure using zero-knowledge cryptography.
- Other notable funding rounds: DRiP raised $8M led by NFX, IN1 secured $6M with Brainstorm as an investor, and Fountain announced a $3.5M seed round with participation from Foundation Capital and others.
- OpenEden, a real-world asset tokenization platform, received an undisclosed investment from Binance Labs.
**Bitcoin's Scaling Boom: 5 Projects Upgrading Bitcoin Without Changing Its Code**
- **BitcoinOS**: First to verify a zero-knowledge proof on Bitcoin, enabling rollups and creating an infrastructure layer for decentralized innovation without changing Bitcoin Core.
- **Brollups**: A Bitcoin-native rollup design by Burak Kecli, offering trustless smart contracts and DeFi use-cases without protocol changes, using pre-signed transactions for a native Bitcoin peg.
- **Fractal Bitcoin**: A sidechain mimicking Bitcoin’s base layer, enhancing scalability and smart contract capabilities while maintaining compatibility with existing Bitcoin infrastructure.
- **Babylon**: Introducing staking to Bitcoin, allowing BTC holders to secure multiple proof-of-stake networks and earn yield, without wrapping or bridging, enhancing security for Bitcoin L2s.
- **Nubit**: A data-availability layer secured through Bitcoin staking, optimized for storing large amounts of data and ensuring trustless, scalable data availability across multiple chains.
- Hadley Stern, former founding president of Fidelity Digital Assets, joins Solana-based staking protocol Marinade as chief commercial officer.
- Stern's extensive career includes roles at Amazon Web Services and BNY Mellon, enhancing Marinade's partnerships with custodians Copper and Zodia Custody for security and compliance.
- Marinade serves around 100,000 users with over 10 million SOL and aims to set a DeFi standard for financial services with its unique staking marketplace model.
- Bybit hires Chris Aruliah, former managing director at Wincent, to lead its institutional team, targeting sophisticated clients like hedge funds and asset managers.
- US House Reps. investigate SEC's hiring practices, questioning if political affiliations influence employment decisions, citing the hiring of Dr. Haoxiang Zhu.
- SEC spokesperson states Chair Gary Gensler will respond directly to Congress regarding the allegations.
- **Eve Frontier on Ethereum**: CCP Games rebrands Project Awakening to Eve Frontier, a survival blockchain game on Ethereum's Redstone layer-2 network, with a closed beta test starting later this month.
- **Hamster Kombat + Catizen Binance Giveaways**: Hamster Kombat announces a 100 billion token supply with a Binance Launchpool campaign from Sept 19-26. Catizen follows with a 90 million token giveaway from Sept 16-19, with tokens generated on Sept 20.
- **Deadrop Dev Layoffs**: Midnight Society, the studio behind Deadrop, lays off a significant portion of its workforce, following the termination of co-founder Dr. Disrespect due to allegations of inappropriate messaging.
- **ICYMI Highlights**: TON developers warn of potential network disruptions from Hamster Kombat and Catizen token launches. Ethereum mech shooter MetalCore enters open beta on Epic Games Store. Solana NFT collection Claynosaurz collaborates with Gameloft for a mobile game.
- **Additional Game Launches**: Magic Muffins on Telegram, Rocky Rabbit's battle mode, Castile on Aptos, and X Empire's pre-market trading via NFT. PancakeSwap introduces a BNB price prediction bot on Telegram.
- **New Initiatives**: CARV launches a $50 million accelerator, Ronin introduces Waypoint for Ethereum gaming, and Treasure considers moving from Arbitrum to ZKsync. Saga launches gas-free infrastructure, and Super Champs announces a layer-3 network on Base.
- **X Empire Overview**: X Empire, a popular Elon Musk-themed Telegram tap-to-earn crypto game, is gearing up for a token launch on The Open Network (TON) with an airdrop for players.
- **Gameplay Mechanics**: Players tap a cartoonish Elon Musk to earn in-game cash, upgrade attributes, and engage in stock market bets, although the game no longer uses Musk's name officially.
- **Daily Combo**: For Sunday, September 15, the daily combo for stock market bets includes Blockchain Projects, Electric Vehicle Manufacturers, and Real Estate in Nigeria.
- **Daily Riddle**: The riddle solution for the same day is "Ledger," which players can use to earn quick in-game cash.
- **Updates and Timing**: Stock Exchange picks rotate daily at 5am ET, and the Riddle of the Day updates late in the evening, typically around 8pm ET or later.
- **Rapid Growth**: Tap-to-earn games on Telegram have quickly gained popularity, engaging over 300 million users from Telegram's 950 million monthly active users.
- **Successful Examples**: Games like Catizen and Notcoin have seen significant success, with Catizen earning $27 million from in-app purchases and Notcoin conducting a major airdrop after gaining 35 million players.
- **Accessibility vs. Retention**: These games attract users with simple, intuitive gameplay and low entry barriers but struggle with long-term user retention due to their lack of depth and complexity.
- **Market Saturation**: The market for tap-to-earn games is becoming saturated, leading to diminished novelty and user interest.
- **Need for Evolution**: To sustain engagement, developers must focus on creating deeper, more immersive gameplay experiences that go beyond instant rewards.
- **Web3 Potential**: Effective onboarding and engaging game design are crucial for broadening adoption and ensuring the long-term success of Web3 gaming technologies.
- Binance blacklists attacker addresses linked to Clipper malware to prevent fraudulent transactions.
- Users are advised to double-check wallet addresses before sending crypto to avoid altered withdrawal addresses.
- Clipper malware, a type of stealer malware, targets crypto transactions and wallet data, causing financial losses.
- Binance has implemented countermeasures, including a notification system to alert users about potential malware risks and advising them to scan for suspicious software.
- Affected users are encouraged to report incidents to help identify and neutralize malicious programs.
- ANY.RUN’s Q2 2024 Malware Trends Report noted a 379% increase in detections of RedLine, a stealer malware targeting sensitive information like login credentials and crypto wallet data.
- **Record Attendance**: Korea Blockchain Week in Seoul saw a record turnout with 17,000 attendees and 300 speakers, including high-profile figures like Vitalik Buterin and Richard Teng of Binance.
- **Scalability Solutions**: Layer-2 blockchains have addressed scalability issues, but there's a need for more practical applications to drive mainstream adoption, as highlighted by Simon Kim of Hashed.
- **Real-World Applications**: Companies like Story and Sony Block Solutions Labs are pioneering blockchain use in IP content tracking, while Neoclassic Capital focuses on consumer and financial services applications.
- **Enterprise Adoption**: Traditional enterprises are integrating blockchain, with notable examples including California DMV and JP Morgan using Avalanche, and PayPal launching a stablecoin.
- **Regional Dynamics**: Cryptocurrency adoption is spreading evenly across rich and poor countries, with significant growth in regions like Singapore and Indonesia, driven by institutional backing and merchant services.
- **Regulatory Concerns**: Regulation remains a major concern, with calls for clearer guidelines to foster innovation and institutional adoption, especially in light of upcoming U.S. elections.