Crypto Flipsider News – BTC & ETH Fall; Strike Raises $50M; FTX Buys Voyager; Nexo Acquires Bank Stake; OpenSea Integrates Optimism
Read in the Digest:
- Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) experience sharp declines as stocks fall.
- Strike raises $80 million to develop its Bitcoin-based payment network.
- FTX wins Voyager asset auction with $1.4 billion bid for the crypto lender.
- Nexo acquires stake in U.S. bank – Sued by eight U.S. state regulators.
- OpenSea announce integration of Ethereum Layer-2 protocol Optimism.
Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) Experience Sharp Declines as Stocks Fall
After a brief relief rally that saw the price of Bitcoin (BTC) top $20,000 for the first time in more than a week, the world’s largest cryptocurrency has fallen back into the $18-$19k range that has bound it for more than two weeks.
Bitcoin dropped in value by as much as 6.2% to fall to an interday trading low of $18,553, though a brief recovery over the last few hours has seen BTC’s price return to its current price of $19,150 at the time of writing.
The 24 hour price chart for Bitcoin (BTC). Source: CoinMarketCap
Ether (ETH) followed a similar trend to Bitcoin, tanking by more than 7% to a new weekly low of $1,267. At press time, ETH currently exchanges hands at $1,310.
The 24 hour price chart for Ethereum (ETH). Source: CoinMarketCap
The Bitcoin and Ethereum decline coincides with stocks falling lower as the bear market bites harder. The 0.2% of the S&P 500 in the last 24 hours saw it close at its lowest level in more than 2 years.
Flipsider:
- Despite the prolonged decline, LedgerPrime reports that Ether derivatives have soared above those of Bitcoin, with sentiment tilting towards buy.
Why You Should Care
Persistent interest rate hikes have put pressure on high risk assets classes, including crypto, the S&P 500, and tech-heavy Nasdaq.
Strike Raises $80 Million to Develop Its Bitcoin-Based Payment Network
Chicago-based digital payment provider Strike, which is built on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, announced that it has raised $80 million in its latest funding round. The payments company plans to use the capital infusion to integrate the “largest merchants” and to “define the future of payments”.
Strike hopes to revolutionize the means by which money is moved by merchants, marketplaces, and financial institutions globally. The fund will also be used to expand on the company’s existing partnerships, and form new deals with major retailers such as Wendy’s and Starbucks.
The Series B funding round was led by crypto-focused venture capital firm Ten31, which was joined by Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Wyoming, and other, existing investors.
The funding follows the public launch of Strike’s application programming interface (API), which leverages the Bitcoin Lightning Network to facilitate instant, global payments, providing an alternative to traditional card networks and processing fees like interchange.
Flipsider:
- The Strike CEO’s stance on not adding newer crypto tokens, blockchains, or stablecoins to the platform has been a notable hindrance to the growth of the network.
Why You Should Care
By further developing its Bitcoin-based payment network, Strike holds the lofty ambition of challenging the dominance of credit card giants Visa and Mastercard.
FTX Wins Voyager Asset Auction with $1.4 Billion Bid for the Crypto Lender
Premier crypto exchange FTX, led by crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, has been announced as the winner of the auction for the assets of bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital.
The auction, which was conducted by Moelis & Company (the investment bank of the crypto lender), and lasted for two weeks. More than 88 entities reportedly expressed interest in acquiring the assets of Voyager.
Voyager announced on Monday, September 26th, that the crypto exchange won the auction with a $1.42 billion bid. Voyager commented that the bid was fair market value for its crypto holdings.
According to the announcement, the two parties are expected to reach a purchase agreement in court on October 19th. Voyager considers FTX to be the “best alternative for stakeholders,” and will see its users move to FTX as per the agreement.
Flipsider:
- Following its successful acquisition of Voyager, FTX is reportedly preparing a new bid for the assets of the bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network.
Why You Should Care
The Voyager deal marks the beginning of the conclusion to the crypto lender’s bankruptcy filing, and the potential return of customer funds.
Nexo Acquires Stake in U.S. Bank – Sued by Eight U.S. State Regulators
Popular crypto lending platform Nexo has announced the acquisition of a stake in the Summit National Bank, a U.S. federally chartered bank based in Wyoming. The bank is regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC).
As per Nexo’s announcement, the minor stake it holds will allow it to open bank accounts with Summit National Bank, as well as to enhance its lending and card product offerings. Nexo will also be enabled to expand its presence in the U.S. via a federally regulated environment.
Flipsider:
- The announcement from Nexo comes just one day after eight U.S. states, including New York, Washington, and California, brought legal action against Nexo for the alleged offering of unregistered securities.
- Nexo stands accused of failing to register with the states’ securities and commodities brokers and dealers, as well as of misleading investors about the firm’s registration status.
Why You Should Care
Nexo’s stake in the U.S. bank will assist the crypto lender in offering its services to a broader audience, while remaining compliant with regulations.
OpenSea Announces Integration of Ethereum Layer 2 Protocol Optimism
OpenSea, the world’s largest non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace, announced on Tuesday, September 28th, that it has expanded its service offerings to include projects built on Ethereum Layer-2 scaling solution Optimism.
OpenSea now supports a total of six networks, with Optimism joining Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, Klytan, and fellow Ethereum Layer-2 scaling solution Arbitrum, which was integrated on September 21st.
Since implementing support for the blockchain on Tuesday, OpenSea has already listed over 100 Optimism-native NFT collections on its marketplace, including popular Optimism-backed projects Apetimism, Bored Town, MotorHeadz, and OptiChads.
As per the blog post, in order to set a custom creator fee for sales made on the marketplace, the authors of each collection must access their project on OpenSea. Creators can earn up to 10% on every transaction made on the platform involving their work.
Flipsider:
- NFT trading volume has fallen by more than 97% from its 2022 all-time high, as the crypto winter bites hard.
Why You Should Care
With the potential for higher trading volumes and increased visibility, the listing on the world’s largest NFT marketplace could greatly benefit Optimism NFTs.
Text source: DailyCoin.com
