‍JPMorgan to Accept Bitcoin and Ethereum as Loan Collateral JPMorgan Chase & Co. is planning to allow institutional clients to use Bitcoin and Ethereum as collateral for loans, expected to launch by the end of 2025. This initiative will leverage a third-party custodian for digital tokens. Clients can post crypto holdings, managed by an approved custodian, against credit lines. This move follows JPMorgan's earlier decision to accept crypto ETFs as collateral. Challenges remain in integrating volatile digital assets with traditional settlement systems.
‍Interpol Seizes $260 Million in Africa-Wide Crypto Crackdown Interpol and Afripol have concluded Operation Catalyst, targeting terrorist financing and cybercrime networks across Africa. The operation flagged $260 million in illicit crypto and fiat assets, leading to 83 arrests to date. Operation Catalyst investigated various criminal activities, including a $562 million Ponzi scheme defrauding over 100,000 victims and a Kenyan money laundering case linked to terrorism financing. The crackdown highlights increased collaboration between law enforcement and the crypto industry, with exchanges like Binance acting as key allies.
‍MEXC to Spearhead Blockchain Life 2025 as Diamond Sponsor in Dubai MEXC, a global cryptocurrency exchange with over 40 million users, will be a Diamond Sponsor at Blockchain Life 2025 in Dubai, October 28–29. The exchange aims to highlight its role in providing early access to emerging crypto projects. Cecilia Hsueh, Chief Strategy Officer of MEXC, will deliver a keynote on "First Stop for Every Crypto Opportunity" and participate in a panel discussing "DEX vs CEX: Evolution of Exchange and New Competition." Attendees can visit the MEXC booth for interactive experiences, games, and to learn about its zero-fee trading campaign. MEXC will also co-host an afterparty.
‍Pieverse Secures $7 Million for Compliant Web3 Payments Web3 startup Pieverse has raised $7 million in a strategic funding round co-led by Animoca Brands and UOB Ventures. The funding aims to enhance its payment and compliance infrastructure, focusing on on-chain verifiable invoices, receipts, and checks to bring traditional finance's clarity and regulatory standards to Web3. Pieverse's protocol uses smart contracts and multi-chain compatibility to create immutable, auditable records on the blockchain, addressing trust and compliance challenges in decentralized transactions. The capital will accelerate protocol expansion, bolster the global team, and advance multi-chain integrations across major ecosystems like Ethereum and Solana. This investment highlights a growing trend in Web3 infrastructure funding, particularly in payment rails and compliance tools.
‍Digitap Launches Beta App Amid Shifting Capital Flows The cryptocurrency market is experiencing a dynamic shift, with traditional assets like gold showing volatility. Digitap is introducing its beta application and crypto-fiat services, aiming to capture capital moving towards digital assets. The 'omnibank' platform integrates a Visa-based crypto card for instant conversion and settlement. Digitap's $TAP token presale has already raised over US$900,000. Recent market trends suggest a rotation into risk-based assets, with altcoins showing increased potential.
‍Solo Miner Secures $347K Bitcoin Block Reward A solo Bitcoin miner has successfully mined a block, earning a reward of approximately $347,455. The achievement at block height 920,440, utilizing a solo mining pool, highlights the principles of self-sovereignty and independence inherent in Bitcoin's design. The success of individual miners, especially with the growing availability of accessible and open-source hardware, is a positive development for network decentralization, balancing large-scale operations and reinforcing Bitcoin's resilience.
‍TECHFUND Enhances Web3 Security with AI-Powered Hi AUDIT Upgrade TECHFUND Inc. has upgraded its automated security tool, Hi AUDIT, through integration with CredShields' SolidityScan. This collaboration merges TECHFUND's expertise with SolidityScan's AI-driven security scanning. The enhanced Hi AUDIT offers improved accuracy, reduced false positives, and broader vulnerability coverage, detecting over 700 vulnerabilities with context-aware analysis adapted to different Web3 project types (DeFi, GameFi, NFTs). This hybrid approach combines AI analysis with human expertise to establish a new benchmark for smart contract security, aiming for a safer decentralized future.
‍Bitcoin's 'Dolphin' Investors Signal Potential Bull Run Amid Market Reset Despite market turbulence and significant liquidations, Bitcoin's long-term structure remains robust. Data indicates that 'dolphin' investors (holding 100-1,000 BTC) continue their accumulation, signaling potential renewed bullish momentum. CryptoQuant reports strong annual holdings growth for dolphins (907,000 BTC). Analysts, like Quinn Thompson of Lekker Capital, see current market conditions as a rare opportunity, drawing parallels to pre-2024 election periods. Historical data also shows a 75% chance of positive Bitcoin returns within three months after open interest surges of 30-40%, with a mean performance of 25.9%. Increased altcoin volume dominance suggests growing investor risk appetite, contributing to a cautiously optimistic outlook for the broader crypto market.
‍SBF Pardon Bets Surge on Polymarket Amid CZ Sentence Comparison Speculation regarding a potential pardon for former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has increased significantly on prediction market Polymarket. Following Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao’s (CZ) four-month sentence, bettors now assign a 12% chance of SBF receiving a pardon in 2025, a notable rise from 5.6% in just 12 hours. Industry experts widely contrast CZ's conviction for AML violations with SBF's fraud and conspiracy charges, which involved billions in customer funds. CZ's sentence was four months, while SBF received 25 years. Legal experts emphasize that CZ's crimes were compliance-related, not involving theft of user funds, unlike SBF's actions. Political alignment also plays a role, with Trump having commented on CZ's case. Despite rising odds, a pardon for SBF remains highly improbable according to consensus.
‍Bitcoin Bulls Assert Dominance as Options Open Interest Hits Record $63 Billion Open interest in Bitcoin options has surged to an unprecedented $63 billion, signaling strong bullish sentiment. Deribit, the leading crypto options exchange, accounts for $50 billion of this total. Traders are heavily positioning for significant upside, with substantial open interest concentrated at strike prices like $120,000, $130,000, and $140,000. This indicates robust confidence in Bitcoin's trajectory.