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- 10/24/23: BlackRock Secures Ticker for Bitcoin ETF 🪨💰🤫
10/24/23: BlackRock Secures Ticker for Bitcoin ETF 🪨💰🤫
Top News
🪨 BlackRock’s ETF on DTCC website with ticker iBTC | The Block
💰 Nym’s Innovation Fund raises $300M for privacy infra | CoinDesk
🤫 Binance rumored to settle for billions of dollars | @KasperLoock

⌐◪-◪ → Congratulations to BlackRock and iShares for locking up the clean ticker, $iBTC. This move has investors wondering whether the pending Bitcoin ETFs will be approved simulteneously or one-by-one. I surely wouldn’t want to be the guy who has to explain to the public why one got approved before others. The real question is, who’s going to secure the ultimate ticker? → $HODL.
⌐◪-◪ → Crypto VC activity is picking up again, with several sizeable rounds over the last few weeks. This fund however, is on a different level, with $300M raised from top-tier firms like Andreessen Horowitz, Polychain, HashKey, KR1, and others. Its refreshing to see VC’s prioritize privacy tech - which if you know me - is the sector I’m most bullish on in crypto. The public ledger is a dystopian nightmare IMO and must be addressed before full-scale adoption.
⌐◪-◪ → While these rumors remain unconfirmed, they come in conjunction with other daming news - like Binance US halting direct dollar withdrawals or their many executive departures, including the head of Binance UK this week. But wait, there’s more…rumors also indicate that CZ may be stepping down as CEO. On the bright side, if Binance goes bust, we can buy Bitcoin at a discount!

Peripheral Vision
⛓️ Crypto & DeFi
Coinbase refutes rumors of BTC withdrawal limits | CoinDesk
North America leads the world in crypto usage, over 25% | The Block
Ethereum gas fees spike by 5x from 9 to 45 gwei | CoinDesk
Tether stablecoin hits record $84B, 70% of market | CryptoSlate
Lightspark aims to break down global payment barriers | Blockworks
DYdX open sources V4 code for upcoming Cosmos Chain | CoinDesk
PEPE memecoin burns $5.5M tokens, outpaces Bitcoin | CoinDesk
Safereum exit scam results in $1.27M loss after $600k raise | Decrypt
Bitmain announces miner built for zk-powered Aleo chain | CoinDesk
🏦 Wallstreet & VC
Ark Invest sells Coinbase & GBTC shares as Bitcoin rallies | The Block
NASD Raises $3.3M Seed Round for asset issuance | CoinDesk
Deutsche Bank completes 1st stablecoin swap on UDPN | The Block
Cube Exchange raises $9M for hybrid trading platform | CoinDesk
Archax to launch regulated exchange for tokenized assets | CoinDesk
🏛️ Legal & Regulatory
Grayscale’s victory over SEC confirmed by US courts | The Block
SEC officials are shocked by spot Bitcoin ETF delays | Decrypt
Coinbase to make final case to kill SEC accusations today | CoinDesk
Binance says CTFC is trying to police the world | CoinDesk
Fireblocks taps former NY regulator for compliance | The Block
🌎 Rest of the World
🖼️ NFTs & Metaverse
Jack Butcher has an upcoming Velocity Pass drop | @punk9059
Async Art announced decision to cease operations | LuckyTrader
FriendTech user dumps $1.5M & switches to Bitcoin dApp | CoinDesk
Film3 summit returns to LA this weekend | Decrypt

Spectacular Shoutout
Epic shoutout from @redlioneye, who does amazing reporting on all things crypto with his project @redlion.
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Remember: price is a lagging indicator.
If you’ve been reading Specs daily, today shouldn’t be a surprise.