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  • 2/3/25: A Crypto Bloodbath šŸ©øšŸ¦„šŸ‡¬šŸ‡§

2/3/25: A Crypto Bloodbath šŸ©øšŸ¦„šŸ‡¬šŸ‡§

Today’s issue is brought to you by Safe — the world’s leading smart account provider on EVM, securing $100B+ in assets (including Vitalik’s).

Top News

  1. Crypto market rocked by $2B liquidation bloodbath in 24 hours

  2. Uniswap launches v4 ā€œhooksā€ upgrade

  3. Coinbase secures UK approval: Expanding crypto services globally

Specs’ Insights

1. Crypto market rocked by $2B liquidation bloodbath in 24 hours

āŒā—Ŗ-ā—Ŗ → This weekend was a bloodbath!

The crypto market just experienced its single worst liquidation event in history, wiping out over $2 billion—with estimates suggesting the real number could be as high as $8-10 billion, according to BYBIT CEO Ben Zhou.

For context, this liquidation event was bigger than LUNA, bigger than COVID, bigger than the FTX collapse—an absolutely brutal reset for overleveraged traders.

Bitcoin is currently sitting below $95K, a level that tells you everything you need to know about market sentiment. But the real damage? Alts got absolutely wrecked. Ethereum took a massive hit, with ETH/BTC now sitting at 2020 lows—just when we thought things couldn’t get worse for ETH.

Zooming out, the hysteria on the timeline makes it seem like the sky is falling, but let’s put things into perspective: Bitcoin is still at $95K, a price most people could only dream of just last year.

Days like this separate the diamond hands from the weak hands. Volatility is part of the game—don’t let it shake you. If your long-term conviction hasn’t changed, neither should your strategy.

2. Uniswap launches v4 ā€œhooksā€ upgrade

āŒā—Ŗ-ā—Ŗ → Uniswap v4 is here!

Uniswap just dropped its biggest upgrade yet, and it’s already rolling out across the ecosystem.

v4’s key upgrades:

  • Hooks: Customizable smart contract modules, enabling limit orders, custom oracles, dynamic fees, and more.

  • Singleton structure: Consolidates all pools into one contract, reducing deployment costs by ~99%.

  • Flash accounting: Cuts gas fees significantly by minimizing redundant transfers.

Adoption is happening fast—v4 is already live on 10 chains, including Ethereum, BNB, and Polygon, with Base leading the charge, slowly displacing v3.

Shoutout to @haydenzadams and the Uniswap team for pushing the space forward. If you want to dive deeper, check out the full whitepaper here.

3. Coinbase secures UK approval: Expanding crypto services globally

āŒā—Ŗ-ā—Ŗ → Coinbase is taking over the UK!

Coinbase just secured full regulatory approval from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)—making it the largest exchange to legally operate in the UK.

For context, only 14% of FCA applicants get approved, making this a huge milestone for Coinbase.

This approval means:

  • UK users get access to new products, including staking services, stablecoin integrations, and more.

  • Coinbase can directly engage with UK regulators to shape the future of crypto policy.

  • A major expansion of Coinbase’s dominance, now leading in both the U.S. and U.K. markets.

Coinbase keeps proving itself as one of the most powerful forces in crypto adoption—and this latest win cements its global presence even further.

Everything Else

šŸ“ˆ Market Snapshot

  • Bitcoin → $95,777.87 ā–¼ 3.46% (24h)

  • Ethereum → $2,594.83 ā–¼ 15.98% (24h)

  • XRP → $2.35 ā–¼ 17.01% (24h)

  • Solana → $196.12 ā–¼ 8.06% (24h)

  • BNB → $571.35 ā–¼ 12.18% (24h)

  • ETH/BTC ratio sinks to 2020 levels

  • BTC dominance nears 4-year high

  • THORChain's RUNE plummets 45% to lowest since 2020

  • Ben Zhou estimates $8-10B in liquidations

ā›“ļø Crypto & DeFi

  • Raydium overtakes Uniswap in DEX volume

  • Bitcoin mempools clear as transaction count hits 11-month low

  • Sky Protocol stablecoin pivot gains traction

  • Bitcoin slips below $100K as Trudeau retaliates

  • Kraken sees $1.5B in revenue for 2024

  • Tether reports $13B in net profits for 2024

šŸ¦ Wall Street

šŸš€ Venture Capital

šŸ›ļø Legal & Regulatory

šŸŒŽ Rest Of The World

šŸ–¼ļø NFTs & Metaverse

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