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The cryptocurrency market is experiencing a rebound after a significant sell-off, which was triggered by a tariff-shock and led to one of the largest single-day liquidation events in crypto history. On Friday, Bitcoin's price dropped from $121,000 to as low as $109,000 over a seven-hour period, erasing recent gains. Ethereum and Solana also saw notable dips, reaching lows of $3,686 and just above $173, respectively. This rapid decline resulted in nearly $20 billion in liquidations across all digital assets in a single day, with long positions accounting for the majority at $16.7 billion. The volatility extended beyond crypto, with major stock indices like the Nasdaq, S&P 500, and Dow also falling significantly.
The market downturn followed President Trump's announcement of a massive increase in tariffs on Chinese imports and the cancellation of a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, escalating trade tensions. This geopolitical shock, coming after Beijing moved to curb exports of rare earths, was cited as the primary catalyst for the sharp decline in both stocks and crypto. However, analysts suggest the market's reaction may have been an overreaction, pointing to a "textbook relief rally" as China appeared to soften its stance over the weekend. Following the liquidation event, prices have begun to recover, with Bitcoin up 5% to $115,100 and Ethereum surging 10.5% to $4,138, along with significant gains in major altcoins, as the market resets from what is considered a geopolitical knee-jerk rather than a structural issue. Source
The US federal government has entered its third week of a shutdown, which began on October 1st, due to a failure by Congress to pass necessary appropriations legislation for the new fiscal year, leaving key regulatory agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission operating with only essential staff. This cessation of normal government functions has placed the approval process for a significant number of crypto exchange-traded funds, including those tracking assets like Solana, XRP, Litecoin, and Dogecoin, into a state of limbo, with at least 16 ETF decisions facing deadlines in October. The delay is particularly notable because the crypto industry was anticipating a "flood" of new ETF approvals, which many analysts believe could trigger a new altcoin season by attracting more traditional investors with lower-risk exposure to various digital assets.
The political stalemate that caused the shutdown stems from deep partisan disagreements, with Republicans pushing for spending rollbacks to address the growing national debt and increase border enforcement funding, while Democrats are resisting cuts to healthcare subsidies and demanding the extension of expiring health insurance tax credits. With Congress currently recessed or not holding immediate votes on funding resolutions, there is no clear end in sight for the shutdown, which is the 11th in US history. ETF analysts are forecasting that once the government reopens, the floodgates for crypto ETF approvals will burst open, highlighting the irony that the political gridlock and fiscal debt—issues that the crypto industry often criticizes—are the very things holding up the approval of these new investment products. Government Shutdown's Impact on Crypto covers the short-term negative effects of the shutdown on the crypto market and regulatory approvals. Source
Polymarket is focused on re-entering the United States market, a goal prioritized ahead of launching its own native crypto token, which sources suggest won't happen until next year. This strategic decision follows a significant $2 billion investment from the New York Stock Exchange owner Intercontinental Exchange, which valued the prediction market at $9 billion, and comes as Polymarket seeks to regain its market position after being effectively banned by the CFTC in 2022. The company wants to establish a solid foothold in the U.S. against competitors like Kalshi before releasing a token, even as CEO Shayne Coplan has recently hinted at its existence, reigniting market speculation about its potential utility, such as rewards for loyal users.
The path back to the U.S. market has been complex, including a $1.2 million fine from the CFTC in 2022 and legal scrutiny involving the FBI raid of Coplan’s home, though subsequent investigations were closed without charges. Despite these challenges, Polymarket's valuation soared through multiple funding rounds from major investors before its recent $9 billion valuation, reflecting the massive growth in the prediction market sector, which collectively generated over $1.4 billion in trading volume recently. Polymarket has made its reentry possible through the acquisition of the CFTC-regulated exchange QCX, receiving a no-action letter from the CFTC, and self-certifying its first U.S. prediction markets for sports and elections. Source
Major policy changes worldwide are rapidly shaping the operating environment for the crypto industry, reflecting increased global adoption and governments' efforts to manage potential financial impacts. This week saw a mix of policies that both advanced and constrained the sector. In the US, the government shutdown forced the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to halt progress on decisions for crypto-focused exchange-traded funds (ETFs), a key area of industry focus. Conversely, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) lifted a 2021 ban on crypto-based exchange-traded notes (ETNs) for retail investors, stating the market is now more mature, while the Bank of England is reportedly reconsidering caps on stablecoin holdings for corporations. Simultaneously, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) confirmed it is seeking to centralize regulatory oversight of crypto exchanges across the EU, aiming for a more integrated and competitive single market.
Further bolstering institutional acceptance, the sovereign wealth fund of Luxembourg allocated 1% of its $888 million portfolio—approximately $9 million—into Bitcoin ETFs, signalling confidence in the asset's long-term potential. Meanwhile, the East African nation of Kenya advanced toward a formal regulatory framework after its parliament passed the Virtual Assets Service Provider's Bill, which aims to provide licensing and consumer protection standards for exchanges, brokers, and wallet operators, awaiting the president's signature. These combined policy shifts underscore a growing trend where regulators and lawmakers are engaging with the crypto industry with greater nuance, acknowledging its increasing visibility and the vital role it plays in the modern economy. Source
A consortium of major international banks, including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Citi, Deutsche Bank, and others, is jointly exploring the potential issuance of a digital token that would be a one-to-one reserve-backed form of digital money. The group, comprising ten banks in total, stated that the proposed product would be pegged to G7 currencies, which include the US Dollar, Euro, and Yen. While not explicitly using the term "stablecoin," the initiative aims to assess whether a new industry-wide offering leveraging public blockchain technology could enhance market competition and provide the benefits of digital assets while adhering to strict regulatory compliance and risk management practices.
Stablecoins, which are digital tokens backed by non-volatile fiat currencies, have seen their utility expand beyond their initial use by crypto traders for fast transactions, now gaining interest from major corporations and banks. Advocates for stablecoins highlight their potential for quick and low-cost international payments. The interest from this banking group comes as the regulatory landscape for stablecoins develops, such as the US GENIUS Act, and as market analysts predict that stablecoins could attract significant deposits from traditional banks in emerging markets in the coming years. Source
The synthetic dollar USDe experienced a brief depegging event on the Binance exchange, where its price plummeted from $1 to $0.65, though Ethena Labs founder Guy Young stated this was an isolated issue specific to Binance and not related to the protocol's underlying fundamentals or collateral. Young clarified that USDe minting and redeeming functioned "perfectly" during the flash crash, with over $2 billion in USDe redeemed across various exchanges with minimal price deviation. He attributed the severe price drop on Binance to the exchange referencing its own, less liquid order book for oracle data, rather than utilizing external price feeds that reflect the deeper pools of global liquidity for USDe. This localized oracle issue, coupled with deposit and withdrawal problems on the platform, prevented market makers from equilibrating the price discrepancy.
Crypto traders speculated that the depeg might have been a coordinated attack exploiting a "Unified Account" feature on Binance that allowed using assets like USDe as collateral and relied on the exchange's internal order book for pricing. According to this theory, attackers dumped up to $90 million of USDe on Binance, driving the price down to $0.65 and triggering up to $1 billion in liquidations on the platform. Concurrently, the attackers allegedly opened short positions on Bitcoin and Ether on a decentralized exchange minutes before a major news event, netting an estimated $192 million in profit as the resulting market contagion liquidated around $20 billion in leveraged positions across the crypto ecosystem. Source
Decentralized perpetual futures exchange Aster has postponed its airdrop from the original date of October 14 to October 20, citing "potential data inconsistencies" that led to miscalculated token allocations for some users. The delay was announced shortly after the 'S2 airdrop checker' went live, which immediately prompted complaints from users on social media who believed their token amounts were incorrect, despite high trading volume or other qualifying activities. Aster, which operates across multiple blockchains and is backed by YZi Labs, responded by confirming the inconsistencies in their calculation system which factored in elements like trading volume, holding duration, assets, realized profit and loss, and referral contributions.
The project is adjusting the allocation numbers, which they stated should not be lower than the initially shown figures "for most users," with updated figures expected in the coming days. Despite the market-wide losses at the time, the ASTER token saw a nearly 3% rise to $1.75, giving it a market capitalization of almost $3 billion, placing it as the 54th largest cryptocurrency. The airdrop delay impacts the 153,932 wallets qualified for the token allocation, highlighting the complexity and challenges involved in accurately distributing tokens based on multi-faceted eligibility criteria in decentralized finance. Source
Markethive is presented as an inbound marketing platform and a collaborative community that empowers entrepreneurs through its innovative content distribution system called Blogcasting. This system enhances traditional blogging by simultaneously broadcasting published content—including articles, press releases, and multimedia—across a vast network of social media platforms and other integrated blogging systems, such as WordPress sites. By allowing members to link their social accounts and subscribe to each other's Markethive blogs, the platform facilitates an amplified reach that can potentially expose a user's content to millions of non-subscribers. This multi-platform sharing acts as a content multiplier, significantly increasing visibility, driving website traffic, generating backlinks, improving SEO, and fostering brand awareness by leveraging the collective network of its user base.
The article details the mechanics of Markethive's system, emphasizing features like the optional Blog Swipe that allows other members to copy, curate, or edit an article, further expanding its distribution and collaborative potential. Users can control who has permission to "swipe" their content, with options ranging from all members to only themselves. This collaborative approach fosters community, allows for content curation and proofing (editing), and enables the creation of diverse cocktail content blends for groups. In essence, Markethive is positioned as a comprehensive, integrated hub for managing one's online presence, designed to accelerate professional branding and influence by providing a full suite of tools, resources, and a supportive environment for both beginners and advanced bloggers. Source
Bitcoin Core released its significant v30 update on Saturday, introducing key changes like optional encrypted node connections for enhanced privacy, and notably, a drastic increase to the OP_RETURN data limit. This limit, which allows non-financial data to be embedded in Bitcoin transactions, has been raised from 80 bytes to 100,000 bytes. This change, alongside bug fixes and performance upgrades, has sparked considerable debate within the Bitcoin community. While proponents view the increased limit as a boon for developing more sophisticated decentralized applications on the network, 'Bitcoin purists' are concerned, arguing that Bitcoin should remain focused solely on financial transactions and that the change could lead to blockchain bloat and higher costs for running a node.
The controversy over the OP_RETURN limit echoes the 'blocksize wars' of 2017. Supporters of v30, like some industry leaders, embrace the change, seeing it as an opportunity to expand Bitcoin's functionality. Conversely, critics, including pioneer cryptographer Nick Szabo, have raised concerns about the update possibly violating Bitcoin's core principles as an electronic cash system and creating legal risks for node operators who might unknowingly host illegal data. As a result of the dispute, a significant number of node operators are choosing to use alternative node software like "Knots," which allows them to enforce the stricter 80-byte data limit, demonstrating a considerable split in the community regarding the direction of the protocol's use and its underlying engineering philosophy. Source
A new banking Trojan, dubbed Astaroth, has been identified by cybersecurity firm McAfee for its unique method of maintaining persistence by leveraging GitHub repositories. The malware, primarily targeting users in South American countries, especially Brazil, is spread through phishing emails containing a Windows .lnk file that installs the malicious software. Once on a victim's device, Astaroth operates in the background, using keylogging to steal sensitive banking and cryptocurrency credentials, which it then exfiltrates using the Ngrok reverse proxy. The distinguishing feature of this Trojan is that it doesn't host the malware on GitHub itself, but uses the platform to store a configuration file. This file allows the malware to redirect its communication to new command-and-control servers whenever the existing ones are taken offline by security firms or law enforcement, ensuring the attack's resilience and longevity.
The ultimate goal of the Astaroth campaign is to facilitate theft, allowing attackers to transfer funds from victims' bank accounts or steal their cryptocurrency. While the extent of the financial damage is not quantified, the malware is noted to be highly prevalent, particularly in Brazil, and has been engineered to specifically target a wide range of South American territories. It is also capable of targeting Portugal and Italy, but its code prevents it from being uploaded to systems in the United States or other English-speaking countries. The malware is designed to monitor for visits to specific Brazilian banking domains and key crypto-related sites such as etherscan.io and binance.com, triggering its credential-stealing functions. McAfee advises users to exercise caution with email attachments and links, and to maintain updated antivirus software and two-factor authentication to mitigate the threat. Source
A major crypto derivatives speculator, known by the wallet address 0xb317 on the Hyperliquid decentralized exchange, has recently opened another substantial bearish position, shorting Bitcoin with a $163 million 10x leveraged perpetual contract. This follows the trader's previous, highly profitable short position that was placed just 30 minutes before a major market-moving tariff announcement from Trump on Friday, which netted the entity $192 million. The uncanny timing of these trades has led the crypto community to label the individual an "insider whale," with some theories suggesting this trader may have actively contributed to a massive leverage flush that caused a significant crypto market slump over the weekend. The current short position would be liquidated if Bitcoin reaches $125,500.
In the aftermath of the market turbulence, some observers have highlighted concerns about insider trading and corruption in unregulated crypto markets, noting that over 250 wallets lost millionaire status on Hyperliquid since Friday's crash. Furthermore, speculation arose regarding the role of the Binance exchange in the meltdown, with reports of order book failures, unexecuted stop-losses, and mass liquidations. Binance, however, denied its platform caused the crash, claiming a "display issue" and stating that its core trading engines remained operational, though it offered approximately $283 million in compensation to traders who were liquidated while holding specific assets as collateral. Source
The European Banking Authority (EBA) has issued a report highlighting risks posed by crypto firms that were approved before the new Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation and continue to operate during the transitional period, which ends in July 2026. The EBA claims some crypto entities are attempting to bypass the unified rules established by MiCA and its extended anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) framework, which could adversely affect the integrity of the EU's financial system. One specific risk identified is "forum shopping," where companies seek regulatory approval in an EU country perceived to have less stringent approval mechanisms, allowing them to then "passport" those operations across the entire EU bloc. The report detailed an instance where an unnamed entity applied for registration in multiple countries, withdrew from those that challenged or questioned its application, and began operations in the country that approved it without issue, suggesting entities with weak AML/CFT controls have already entered the EU market by selecting jurisdictions with lighter supervisory practices.
Furthermore, the EBA report noted that firms that have been previously licensed but have not met the authorization conditions under MiCA may continue to operate while appealing their case, creating another risk during the transition window. Lawyer Dr. Hendrik Müller-Lankow confirmed that supervisory arbitrage is occurring across the EU but believes it is a phenomenon that must be accepted to realize a single market while preserving some degree of supervisory powers for member states. He suggested a solution could be centralizing both the EU's laws and their supervisory authorities. The EBA also expressed concern over crypto firms attempting to set up in the EU without clear beneficial ownership and governance structures, which can obscure accountability. The report cited an example of a virtual asset service provider (VASP) applying for a license that was found to be jointly run by over 20 distinct entities established largely outside the EU and regulatory oversight, potentially enabling the misuse of front or shell companies to channel illicit funds. Source
Steak ‘n Shake faced immediate backlash from the Bitcoin community after asking its social media followers in a poll if the fast-food chain should expand its cryptocurrency payment options to include Ether. The company had begun accepting Bitcoin in May across its permitted locations and had seen a reported rise in same-store sales, which it partially credited to support from Bitcoiners. Despite the poll showing 53 percent of nearly 49,000 votes favoring the acceptance of Ether, Steak ‘n Shake suspended the poll within about four hours, stating, "Our allegiance is with Bitcoiners. You have spoken." This swift reversal came as prominent Bitcoin advocates threatened to boycott the chain and criticized the mere consideration of any crypto asset beyond Bitcoin, highlighting the ongoing "tribalism" within the crypto space where many maximalists view only Bitcoin as a viable form of money.
The incident underscored the deep divide between the Bitcoin and wider crypto communities, a stance famously articulated by Michael Saylor, who said there is "no second-best crypto asset." However, not all reactions were negative, as Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin surprisingly praised the company's decision to pivot back to a focus on Bitcoin. Buterin suggested that businesses adopting crypto should align themselves with one "tribe" and demonstrate a strong belief in their chosen cause rather than trying to appeal to everyone. To further solidify its commitment to the Bitcoin community, Steak 'n Shake also announced plans to launch a "Bitcoin Steakburger" to celebrate its initial adoption of the currency. Source
The sci-fi survival game Eve Frontier, a spinoff of Eve Online, is transitioning from the Ethereum-based Redstone gaming network to the layer-one blockchain Sui. Developer CCP Games stated that this significant shift was not motivated by a financial grant but rather by a "deep philosophical direction" that aligns with the game's vision and the future of virtual worlds. Over the next few months, the game will be ported to Sui, though no player assets need migration since it is currently only running on a testnet. CCP Games emphasized that the move does not change the game's existing roadmap but is essential to unlock a long-term plan for *Eve Frontier* to become a "forever game," citing benefits such as better user experience, enhanced scalability through aligned architecture, and security-enforced moddability and composability.
CCP Games founder and CEO Hilmar Veigar Pétursson explained that the studio’s mission is to create virtual worlds more meaningful than real life, and Eve Frontier is designed to be a player-moddable universe bound by its own digital physics. He highlighted that Sui provided a unique combination of architecture, security, and user experience necessary to build a world that can truly stand the test of time. Furthermore, CCP Games and Mysten Labs are investigating bringing the game to the SuiPlay0X1 handheld console, which is a high-end mobile PC gaming device designed to natively support crypto games. The initial focus of the collaboration will utilize core Sui features like zkLogin, programmable transaction blocks, and sponsored transactions, with plans to integrate the entire Sui stack in the future. Source
Bitcoin miner MARA Holdings acquired 400 BTC valued at $46.29 million from FalconX, an institutional crypto liquidity provider. This significant purchase suggests that institutional investors are viewing the recent historic market crash as a prime buying opportunity rather than a sign of lasting weakness. The acquisition, which was conducted shortly after a massive liquidation event in the crypto market, brings MARA's total Bitcoin holdings to over 53,000 BTC, securing its spot as the second-largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, only trailing behind Strategy. The firm's move comes as Bitcoin has seen a rebound, recovering to over $114,700 following the crash where the coin had dropped from above $121,000 to under $106,000 after President Donald Trump's threats of tariffs against China triggered the liquidation of over $19 billion in crypto positions.
The market stabilized over the weekend after President Trump softened his rhetoric regarding China. Analysts suggest that MARA's decision indicates a strong conviction that Bitcoin is poised for further gains. One analyst specifically noted that MARA appears to be "taking a call" on Bitcoin's continued growth, considering the current geo-economic landscape and the potential for additional global monetary easing, especially as inflation forecasts face pressure from both falling oil prices and decreased demand. Despite the confidence shown by the Bitcoin acquisition, MARA's stock itself closed lower at $18.64 on October 10, reflecting broader market weakness. Source
Disclaimer: These articles are provided for informational purposes only. They are not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other advice.
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