Crypto crashed into the American political scene like a bad reality show no one asked for. And now, November 5 is about to be America’s first “crypto election,” with hundreds of millions of dollars pouring into political campaigns.

Kamala Harris, out of nowhere, is now talking about embracing “innovative technologies,” while Donald Trump—who once called Bitcoin a scam—jumped into the crypto game headfirst months ago.

He’s promising to turn America into the “crypto capital of the planet.” Really? This is what politics has come to?

American crypto voters might not be all that important

Apparently, there’s a “crypto voter” now.

According to the executive director of Stand With Crypto—a lobby group backed by Coinbase, the biggest crypto exchange in the U.S.—this mysterious group is real, bipartisan, and ready to flex some political muscle.

They even give politicians grades based on how pro-crypto they are, with Trump getting an “A,” and Kamala having a N/A.

But it’s unclear if this is really a thing. Sure a handful of dudes care about crypto regulation, but most Americans seem more worried about actual problems like paying rent, affording healthcare, or literally just keeping their heads above water.

The idea that there’s this massive group of voters who care about crypto above all else seems absurd when you look at literally any national poll.

Most people don’t actually care about crypto exchanges getting regulated or if Brian Armstrong (Coinbase’s CEO) keeps getting richer.

The whole “crypto is a national priority” angle is being pushed hard, though, with lobbyists throwing around numbers like 52 million Americans supposedly owning crypto.

There hasn’t been any concrete proof of this figure by the way.

That has not stopped Stand With Crypto from claiming these supposed crypto holders are dying to have their voices heard in the upcoming election.

They even say nearly nine out of ten Americans think the financial system needs an upgrade. But if we’re being real, this is about keeping the crypto industry’s elites’ pockets lined, not helping the average Joe.

The industry is doing just fine mind you. Bitcoin’s price has quadrupled since the last election, and the value of the entire crypto market has skyrocketed.

If anyone’s losing sleep, it’s the ones who got burned by shady exchanges like FTX.

Despite Trump’s claim that the Biden-Harris administration is “extremely hostile” to crypto, the market’s thriving, with almost a third of the world’s crypto workforce based right here in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the pro-crypto Fairshake super PAC has raised over $200 million so far.

Do the candidates actually care?

Let’s talk about Kamala Harris. Until recently, she didn’t have much to say about crypto. That changed last week when she mentioned supporting “innovative technologies” at a Wall Street fundraiser.

Stand With Crypto gave her a B for her crypto stance before later downgrading her as I mentioned previously. But get this. She hasn’t really promised anything.

Her comments were just vague enough to not upset the tech industry while keeping regulators happy. Trump, on the other hand, is milking the crypto community for all it’s worth.

He’s sold four collections of NFTs and even lets people contribute to his campaign using crypto. If you think he’s genuinely invested in the future of blockchain technology, think again. 

Recent actions blatantly show that he’s in it for himself. He showed up at the Nashville Bitcoin conference and told people to “have a good time with your Bitcoin and your crypto, and everything else that you’re playing with,” because yes, that’s how seriously he takes the industry.

Trump’s understanding of crypto is about as deep as a kiddie pool, but at least he admits it. 

During the launch of his latest venture, World Liberty Financial—yet another project with his sons—he compared learning about it to learning Chinese.

Whatever the hell World Liberty Financial is supposed to be, nobody really knows. But the majority of it is owned by him and his family, so I guess we can rule out decentralization.

Then there’s Barron Trump, the apparent “DeFi visionary.” According to Trump, his 18-year-old son has four crypto wallets and “knows this stuff.”

I mean okay. Not exactly a vote of confidence, but what else would you expect from Donald Trump?

In the end, it’s all about the money. Crypto may not matter to the average American voter, but the cash behind it sure should.

The post The absurdity of crypto’s presence in America’s political circus appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

Ripple’s native token, XRP, turns out to be the biggest gainer of the day as cryptos printed red indexes. XRP spiked by more than 6% on Sunday morning, recording a decoupling trick from the emerging selling pressure.

Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) posted a marginal decline over the last 24 hours, while the fear and greed index extends its greed sentiment among investors. The global crypto market cap dropped by 0.77% to stand at $2.29 trillion. The cumulative 24-hour trading volume saw a dump of 33% to move around $48.4 billion.

XRP gains outperform Bitcoin

XRP price trading around $0.598 registered a jump of over 6% to reclaim the $0.6 mark. The crypto went on to hit the $0.63 resistance zone before falling back to $0.62 territory. XRP is trading at an average price of $0.625, at press time. Its 24-hour trading volume skyrocketed by 70% to stand at $2.24 billion.

As per the data shared by Coinglass, over $1.56 million worth of long and short bets placed on XRP’s price action got liquidated in the last 24 hours. $1.24 million worth of liquidated bets (79%) turns out to be long positions.

XRP price surge comes in when Bitcoin is hovering around the $66,000 zone. However, XRP has managed to outperform BTC in the longer frame as Ripple’s native crypto price had surged by 30% in the last 90 days, mainly due to a positive outcome in the US SEC lawsuit. On the other hand, BTC price only surged 4% during the same period.

The SEC reportedly plans to appeal Judge Torres’s July ruling that secondary sales of XRP are not securities. John Deaton, pro-crypto attorney and Massachusetts Republican primary winner believes the SEC has no valid grounds for appeal and called it a stall tactic. Deaton also argues that Judge Torres didn’t fully apply the Howey Test which is a legal standard for determining if an asset is a security. 

Ripple CTO slams complex gas token proposal

Ripple CTO, David Schwartz, expressed his opinion on a proposal that aims to bring programability to the XRP ledger (XRPL). Scott Chamberlain, co-founder of Evernode suggests allowing EvernodeXRPL to exist on mainnet. 

Chamberlain proposed Hooks for programability and Codii as a new gas token minted from locked-up XRP and burned to fund any transaction. It involves Hooks in addition to the usual transaction fee payable in XRP. He believes that this mixture brings proven programmability to the XRPL, and brings XRP to life.

I have a proposal for how to bring programmability to the XRPL @JoelKatz @RippleXDev @Ripple @msvadari
It is selfishly structured to allow @EvernodeXRPL to exist on mainnet.

It has two parts:
1. Hooks:
2. New Token to exclusively to fund Hook fees.

Hooks
We’re afraid that…

— Scott Chamberlain | (@scotty2ten) September 28, 2024

Schwartz stated that this setup looks way too overcomplicated for no benefit. He asked what advantage this would have over just burning XRP for all transaction fees. He mentioned that there is no magic fix to this and added that If a payment hits a hook, it takes more computational resources than if it doesn’t.

He stated, “Either the sender pays those fees (and some payments are expensive, some cheap), the recipient pays them (and spammers can drain recipient funds), or we don’t discriminate.”

The post XRP decouples from market dump, Trading vol spikes 70% appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder of Binance, made his first tweet after getting out of jail, but the expected crypto market rally never happened.

CZ was sentenced to four months in jail for enabling money laundering on Binance after he admitted back in April that he failed to implement proper anti-money laundering (AML) controls as required by U.S. law.

In his post, he said he was going to focus on his Giggle Academy for the next couple of years. He also said he will continue to invest in blockchain and decentralized technologies, artificial intelligence, and biotech.

Bitcoin stuck in consolidation

At the time of this writing, Bitcoin sits at $65,522, up by a negligible $35.39 (+0.05%). The price movement has been dull, staying in a tight range around $65,500, with a failed attempt to break $66,000.

This means Bitcoin is in consolidation. There’s no momentum pushing it in either direction. Looking at the technicals, the 50-period moving average is $65,786, real close to the current price.

This means the market is testing this level as support. The 200-period moving average (MA200) sits much lower at $64,172.

The on-balance volume is at 772, showing steady buying activity. Though it flattened a bit, meaning the bullish pressure is drying up.

Without more volume, neither buyers nor sellers are taking control, which is why the market is in limbo.

Ethereum is doing worse

As per usual, Ethereum’s performance is even worse, sitting at $2,641, down by $0.99 (-0.04%). The chart below shows it failing to hold onto higher prices after hitting $2,700.

Ether is testing the $2,640 support level, but with recent lower highs, bullish momentum is fading. The 50-period moving average (MA50) is sitting at $2,677, pretty bearish.

Ethereum hasn’t been able to reclaim this level as support, showing that selling pressure is stronger at the moment.

The 200-period moving average sits just below at $2,630.08, acting as a major support zone.

Ethereum’s OBV line sits at 184.868K, showing that trading volume has been dropping off. This aligns with the price decline.

Is on-chain data different?

The on-chain data for Bitcoin is mostly bullish. At the current price, 92% of holders are making money, 3% are at breakeven, and only 5% are in the red.

There were $92.07 billion in transactions more than $100K over the last week, mostly from ETFs. Also, the total exchange netflows are negative, with -391.14M BTC leaving exchanges.

This means traders are moving their Bitcoin off exchanges and into cold storage or personal wallets, planning to keep their assets long-term, expecting future price gains.

But Ethereum’s on-chain metrics are bearish. At the current price, 68% of holders are in profit, 2% are at breakeven, and 29% are in the red.

With a larger portion of holders losing money, Ethereum is more vulnerable to selling pressure if market conditions deteriorate.

Ethereum saw $29.5 billion in large transactions over the past seven days, way lower than Bitcoin’s. The total exchange netflows for Ethereum are negative, with -274.03M ETH leaving exchanges.

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Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the man behind Binance, broke his silence just seven hours after getting out of prison. He tweeted:

“Good morning, the food taste so good… And what a luxury to be able to have more than one piece of fruit per day!”

For a guy just out of jail, CZ says he is doing fine. He is relaxed, grateful for the support he received, and ready to move forward. 

He hinted that he wouldn’t answer all questions immediately, saying, “Let me chill for a bit.” His tweet went on to give updates about what’s next for him.

CZ talked about his plans, like continuing to invest in blockchain, decentralized technologies, AI, and biotech. He called himself a long-term investor who cares more about impact than returns.

He also mentioned charity and education (via his Giggle Academy) as future priorities, plus the progress of his book, which is about two-thirds done.

“Giggle Academy has been going well, and will be a big part of my life for the next few years.”

While he’s no longer in charge of Binance, CZ was happy to see that the exchange was doing well without him.

Zhao’s sentence and guilty plea

CZ’s prison sentence came after he pleaded guilty in April to charges linked to money laundering at Binance. 

This all started with a multi-year investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), which found that Binance had allowed transactions tied to illegal activities, like terrorism and child exploitation. 

The court found that the exchange processed more than 100,000 suspicious transactions without proper reporting.

Prosecutors claimed CZ put the company’s growth over following American law. His failure to put proper anti-money laundering (AML) controls in place caused Binance to become a hub for criminals.

He apparently also endangered the U.S. financial system and national security.

When he admitted to enabling money laundering, CZ was then sentenced to four months in a low-security prison in Lompoc, California. 

The prosecutors originally pushed for a three-year sentence, but CZ’s defense team managed to get the sentence down to four months.

They argued for probation, but the court didn’t agree. Along with the jail time, CZ was hit with a $50 million personal criminal fine.

Binance was slapped with $4.3 billion as a company for its violations. In addition to his $50 million criminal fine, CZ had to give another $50 million to settle with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). 

CZ’s sentencing came not long after the collapse of FTX and the 25-year prison sentence of its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, for fraud.

The SEC and CFTC have increased pressure on crypto platforms, demanding compliance with financial regulations.

After pleading guilty, CZ stepped down as CEO of Binance in November 2023. But he still holds 90% of the company. 

That ownership gives him a massive stake, even if he’s no longer involved in day-to-day operations. One condition of his plea deal prevents him from having any active role in Binance’s operations.

To keep an eye on things, external monitors have been put in place to make sure Binance is following U.S. laws going forward.

The post Binance’s CZ makes his first tweet after release from prison appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

Bitcoin (BTC) is edging closer to the $70,000 milestone after retesting $66,000 on Friday. This comes after a softer-than-expected reading from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure—the Core PCE Index (Personal Consumption Expenditures). This index tracks inflation while excluding the more volatile components of food and energy prices.

Fed’s focus shifts to the labor market, boosting BTC’s prospects

The August Core PCE index showed a 2.6% year-on-year increase, slightly below the anticipated 2.7%. The lower-than-expected inflation figure lifted market sentiment, with speculators factoring in the possibility of a 50 basis point (bps) rate cut by the Federal Reserve in November.

The lower inflation data suggests that the Fed’s next focus will be the U.S. labor market, particularly unemployment rates, which will influence the pace of future interest rate cuts. According to QCP Capital, a trading firm, labor market updates will be critical in determining the market’s direction.

In a weekend report from 28 September, QCP Capital stated:

“As we move into next week, the key focus will be on upcoming labor market indicators, including JOLTs, ADP, and the U.S. unemployment rate.”– QCP Capital

The most anticipated updates are the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTs), and the U.S. employment report, scheduled for release on 1 and 4 November, respectively. QCP Capital projected that strong labor metrics could strengthen the case for a 50bps rate cut in November, which would likely boost risk assets.

If this happens, Bitcoin could continue its upward trajectory toward $70,000, especially after reclaiming its 200-day moving average (MA).

Ethereum navigates mixed signals amid Bitcoin comparisons

When analyzing Ethereum, it is critical to first compare its performance to Bitcoin (ETH/BTC). The ETH/BTC pair has fallen below the 0.04 barrier, indicating a shift in viewpoint. Historically, when ETH/BTC falls, it tends to bottom within 8-10 weeks. 

However, market analyst Benjamin Cowen warns of conflicting signals. For example, ETH/BTC previously bottomed when the Federal Reserve shifted from quantitative tightening (QT) to quantitative easing (QE), a move that has yet to occur.

Despite these mixed signals, the market rally could also benefit Ethereum (ETH), which has outperformed Bitcoin since the Fed’s policy shift. A further macroeconomic tailwind could extend ETH’s strong recovery. Market analyst Benjamin Cowen suggests ETH could reach the $3,000 psychological level. Presently, Ethereum (ETH) is trading at $2,677 after a substantial 10% rally over the past week.

Source: Cowen/X

Meanwhile, U.S. investors have renewed interest in top digital assets. BTC exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw $1.11 billion in inflows this week, the largest since 19 July. ETH ETFs also attracted $84.6 million, marking the highest weekly inflows since 9 August. If this trend persists, the $70,000 BTC and $3,000 ETH price targets could be within reach.

The post Bitcoin eyes $70K as fed’s softer inflation data fuels market rally appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

COD Mobile Season 9 Orbital Raiders update will mark the addition of a brand-new marksman rifle known as Type 63. It’s a semi-automatic tactical rifle that dishes out serious damage with reliable accuracy and control while firing. However, as is tradition, the weapon will be locked upon launch which is why you’ll need to unlock it first. In this article, we’ve provided a detailed breakdown of the process to unlock the Type 63 Marksman Rifle in COD Mobile.

How to get the Type 63 Marksman Rifle in COD Mobile

Image Credits: Activision

You can unlock the Type 63 marksman rifle by reaching Tier 21 in the COD Mobile Season 9 battle pass. It’s also been officially confirmed via patch notes that it will be a part of the free track, which means you don’t have to spend any real money or COD Points to unlock it.

Instead, you must rack up a ton of XP points in order to reach its respective tier and grab the Type 63 marksman rifle. The best way to do that is by completing contracts, daily and weekly challenges, and farming as many as kills you can during matches.

If grinding the battle pass isn’t for you, you can instantly unlock Type 63 by purchasing the premium variant of the Season 9 battle pass, which eventually unlocks the first few tiers.

In case Season 9 ends and you fail to unlock it, you’ll still have the opportunity to unlock the weapon through an upcoming Call of Duty Mobile event or by reaching a certain level in the game.

COD Mobile Type 63 Base Stats

Image credits: Activision

Here’s a quick overview of the Type 63 base stats in Call of Duty: Mobile:

• Damage: 80
• Fire Rate: 28
• Accuracy: 59
• Mobility: 40
• Range: 90
• Control: 34

As always, you can improve them by creating an ultimate attachment combo also known as loadout. For instance, you can equip a muzzle attachment to improve the weapon’s damage range and a suppressor to reduce overall recoil and minimize the sound it produces. If you are looking to get the premium currency for free, be sure to check out our guide on how to get free CP in COD Mobile.

The post How to unlock the Type 63 Marksman Rifle in COD Mobile appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

The BGMI Pro Series (BMPS) 2024 is entering its third day, and the talk of the town has been two teams – GodLike Esports and Team XSpark. The latter were in 11th place at the end of the first day and have staged a remarkable comeback to be on the verge of creating history.

The BMPS 2024 is an invite-only tournament with the top 128 teams in the country. After a series of rounds, only 16 remain in the Grand Finals, happening at the Adlux International Convention Center in Kochi, India from Sept. 27 to 29. Here’s everything you need to know going into the final day of the BMPS 2024.

Image Credits: Krafton

BMPS 2024: GodLike put one hand on the trophy, but XSpark looks close to deny

Last year, during the BMPS 2023 in Ahmedabad, GodLike’s Jonathan Amaral promised fans he would get the trophy next time. On day 1 of the BMPS 2024, the team managed to get two chicken dinners reaffirming that dream.

GodLike started Day 2 of the BMPS 2024 on a strong note, with a chicken dinner on Erangel. Since then, though, the storyline has been the redemption of Team XSpark. They managed to get 3 chicken dinners boosting themselves to second in the overall standings, just 1 behind GodLike Esports. If XSpark manages to win, this will be their second consecutive victory after the BGIS 2024.

Amongst the performance of both these teams, there is one other squad that could play spoilsport – Numen Forever. The team has remained consistent throughout the tournament and currently sits in third place on the overall standings. The team is headlined by Owais, a veteran in the BGMI esports scene who has been competing for more than 4 years.

What are the overall standings?

The overall standings of the BMPS 2024 so far are as follows:

• Hero Xtreme GodLike: 112 points
• Team XSpark: 111 points
• Numen Forever: 104 points
• TWOB: 89 points
• Orangutan: 72 points
• Team Limra: 68 points
• Hyderabad Hydras: 65 points
• Inferno Squad: 63 points
• Reckoning Esports: 58 points
• Silly Esports: 57 points
• Team Versatile: 56 points
• Team Bliss: 53 points
• Medal Esports: 48 points
• Phoenix Esports: 45 points
• 8Bit: 44 points
• Ignite Gaming: 24 points

Fans can tune into the Day 3 action live on the Krafton India Esports YouTube channel in multiple languages.

The post GodLike and XSpark on the verge of history at BGMI Pro Series (BMPS) 2024 appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

Call of Duty: Mobile Season 9 is right around the corner which is why Activision has given us a sneak peak of the upcoming battle pass rewards before its release. As always, it consists of two tracks, Free and Paid, comprised of several rewards including operator skins, weapon blueprints, emotes and CP. Here’s a quick look at all the Season 9 battle pass rewards in Call of Duty: Mobile.

All CoD Mobile Season 9 battle pass rewards

Call of Duty: Mobile Season 9 battle pass will be based on the Orbital Raiders theme and here are the highlights of both the free and paid versions:

Free

• Type 63 Marksman Rifle
  • Semi-automatic tactical rifle
  • High damage, reliable accuracy, and control
• Flamenaut Scorestreak
  • Flamethrower equipment
  • Fire-resistant mask
  • Explosive self-destruction feature
• Weapon Blueprints
• Character Skins
• Vault Coins
• Emblems and Calling Cards
• XP Boosts

Premium Pass Rewards

• Operator Skins
  • Codename: Lazarus — Final Iteration
  • Death Angel Alice — Arch Invader
  • Thomas — Light Armored Vehemence
  • Vanguard — Faded Shadow
• Weapon Blueprints
  • Rytec AMR — Deathspore
  • PDW-57 — Razor Grown
  • Man-O-War — Venomous Shards
  • Type 63 — Deadly Botany
• Battle Pass Subscription Benefits
  • Additional monthly rewards
  • 10% boost to Player and Weapon XP
  • Discount coupons for in-game purchases
  • Limited discounts on 10x crate pulls

Ground Forces Rewards

• Constanze — Interplanetary Operator Skin
• HBRa3 — Orbit Decayed
• Backpack — Endless Drift Haversack

How much does the CoD Mobile Season 9 battle pass cost?

The official pricing of the Season 9 battle pass hasn’t been revealed yet, but it’s expected to be priced at 220 CoD Points (CP), roughly costing $3. However, if you want to purchase the premium version, you might have to spend 520 CoD Points (CP) which is equivalent to $6.

Release date

COD Mobile Season 9 battle pass will be released on October 2, 2024, at 8 PM ET according to the official announcement by Activision. If you have purchased this season’s BP, make sure to unlock all the tiers on time to avoid missing glorious rewards.

The post CoD Mobile Season 9 Battle Pass: Full list of free and paid rewards appeared first on Top Crypto Game.

Bitcoin’s volatility hasn’t scared BlackRock away. Instead, they’re embracing it. They call Bitcoin a “unique diversifier” for investors. It’s not your typical “risky” asset, they say.

Sure, Bitcoin swings all over the place in the short term, but over the long haul, it behaves differently. It doesn’t follow the rules of stocks or bonds. And for BlackRock, that’s what makes it attractive.

BlackRock said that investors keep asking them the same question. ‘Is Bitcoin “risk on” or “risk off”?’ The company doesn’t think either label works. Bitcoin isn’t built for traditional finance frameworks, and the usual models just don’t apply. BlackRock sees Bitcoin as a volatile asset. Still, the risks it faces differ from those of other “risky” assets.

It’s decentralized, non-sovereign, and global. That’s why some investors turn to it during crises, especially during geopolitically uncertain situations. Over time, they expect Bitcoin’s adoption to be shaped by global concerns like monetary and geopolitical stability, U.S. political and fiscal issues.

Bitcoin surpasses $1 trillion market cap

Amidst it all, Bitcoin has seen a surge, hitting a market cap of over $1 trillion. That’s quite something for an asset that’s only been around for 15 years. Still though, its potential as a widespread store of value or global payment method is a bit controversial.

What stands out is, Bitcoin has outperformed every major asset class in 7 out of the last 10 years. It has a 100% annualized returns over the past decade, despite also being the worst-performing asset in three of those ten years. Four of its drawdowns were greater than 50%. And still, Bitcoin keeps bouncing back, proving it can recover from huge crashes and hit new all-time highs consistently.

For instance, after the global market sell-off on August 5, Bitcoin dropped 7% in just 24 hours. But by August 8, it had already recouped its losses. BlackRock said over the long term, Bitcoin does its own thing. That makes it a great diversifier for anyone trying to avoid putting all their eggs in one basket.

Bitcoin trades 24/7, which gives it liquidity advantages over traditional assets, especially during times of market stress. But its markets are still young, and most investors are still learning the ropes. That’s part of why Bitcoin behaves so differently from the assets we’re used to. Investors can sell it fast when they need cash, even over the weekend when traditional markets are closed.

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100 Thieves had the perfect response to their shock Worlds Play-Ins loss to R7 by swatting aside SoftBank HAWKS in their next series. After the dominant win, we spoke with head coach Greyson “Goldenglue” Gilmer to get his thoughts on the victory and preview their next do-or-die matchup with PSG Talon.

Esports.net: What are your thoughts on SHG?

Lee Jones: The general consensus is that they’ve been very weak this tournament…

Goldenglue: I felt they were a bit passive in-game and I think they just gave us our comfort picks. I think we did feel pretty comfortable through both games. So I do think they didn’t bring too much fight, but they still made us really work for it at least in game one.

Lee Jones:  Game two was especially highlighted as a significant draft win for 100T.

What did you make of their Rek’Sai top pick?

Goldenglue: I was not expecting that at all. I was expecting maybe a weird pick, that’s why we banned the Urgot later. I haven’t really seen Rek’Sai/Sejuani before. But you know, Renekton’s a really safe champion, it’s really hard to kill, so I could see that maybe in a long fight that if Rek’Sai’s even then maybe it can drain tank Renekton. But didn’t really seem to be able to do that much.

Image credit: Riot Games

Lee Jones: I saw in an interview with Travis Gafford that you described Sniper as having main character syndrome, and in an interview with Cecilia for Esports News UK after the R7 loss he seemed to still be really positive and charismatic.

How useful is it to have a player with his attitude, especially after disappointing losses like the one against R7?

I think Sniper’s energy is amazing. I think he’s feeling his best and he’s playing his best when he does kind of have that main character syndrome.

I do think even in front of the cameras he was like looking pretty positive, I think we were definitely all pretty down after the loss versus R7. But I think he did a really good job bouncing back and today and having a lot of fun. I can hear him in the background, he’s laughing right now in the interview next to me, which is kind of funny considering we’re talking about him. But yeah, I definitely think his energy is really precious and he’s done a lot to keep the whole team in good spirits.

Read also: R7 Oddie - We want to make the entire region smile

Lee Jones: Is it surprising to see him keep that up on this stage? He’s played against veterans like Evi and Summit so far but seems completely comfortable and unfazed by being at Worlds for the first time.

Do you feel like he’s built perfectly for this kind of event?

Goldenglue: I think he’s definitely doing a good job right now of turning his gaze internally to our team. You know, after our R7 match, he actually got like a tonne of hate on his Instagram. It was like hundreds of comments telling him to retire, and he took it with a good spirit, he just uninstalled and we just laughed about it as a team. So it is kind of surprising that he’s been able to take all this pressure so well as such a young kid. And it’s only gonna get better.

Lee Jones: The R7 series seemed to ignite an NA vs LATAM rivalry overnight, and tomorrow it’ll be LATAM vs BR for a Swiss spot.

Do these emerging rivalries help to feel more positive about the changes coming to the Americas next year?

Goldenglue: I definitely think it was a good showing. I feel like the Latin and CBLOL little teams are definitely showing their strength and I definitely think people in North America underestimate them, and I really think they’re formidable teams. So I’m excited that they have shown up and it will build more hype for next year. I’m pretty optimistic in general about the new format, so it should be fun and exciting.

Lee Jones: You’re guiding a relatively inexperienced team through what is a first Worlds experience for most of them, but its also your first experience on this stage as a coach.

How are you finding it trying to balance your need to guide them through that while essentially learning on the job yourself?

Goldenglue: That aspect is not very easy. A lot of times I can tell the guys are looking for me for guidance and to be that rock — and I like to think that I am that for them — but sometimes I’m definitely like: “Wow, this is also my first time being in Worlds, this is my first year as an LCS head coach”.

I think the team around us; our manager, Ryan, my assistant coach, Sam, my analyst, Nathan, they give me a lot of support which makes it a lot easier for me to stay strong for the guys while I’m also learning myself. And it feels like a great opportunity to do this.

I really don’t want us to go home in Play-Ins and I’m hoping we show up tomorrow and make the community proud, and also just make ourselves proud because I know we can do it. And yeah, I hope we show up tomorrow.

Read next: MDK Alvaro - My objective is making it to Top 8

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Blackrock’s iShares Ether ETF has accumulated over $1 billion in assets in just two months. The Ethereum ETF has seen massive inflows, even as crypto investors embrace a more positive front on ETH prices. 

Blackrock’s iShares Ethereum ETF saw impressive inflows in its first two weeks after launch

Today, Nate Geraci, president of the ETF store and host of ETFPrime, confirmed that Blackrock iShares Ether ETF had gained over $1 billion in just two months. He said:

iShares Ethereum ETF eclipses $1bil in assets…Now in top 20% of all 3,700+ ETFs.

~Nate Geraci

Very early on, the Ether ETF received significant inflows, with over $869.8 million pouring in its first 11 trading days since its launch on July 23. 

Within those 11 days, the Blackrock ETF welcomed over $117.9 million in a single day- June 30—and over $109.9 million on August 6. This inflow accumulation was enough to let it rank among the top six best-performing ETFs in 2024 then, with four out of 5 of the best performers being spot Bitcoin ETFs. 

Back then, Nate Geraci also commented on ETHA’s performance, stating that although the market fell, the cumulative ETHA flows on Aug. 5 and 6 alone put it in the top 10% of ETFs launched in 2024.

By September 16, 2024, iShares ETF had already earned about $992 million, more than double the amount of the Fidelity Ethereum fund, which had only $382 million at the time.

Blackrock spot Ethereum ETF options has to wait another month for SEC listing

In a filing on September 24, the US Securities and Exchange Commission detailed its rescheduling for the approval and listing of options on Blackrock and Biwise spot Ether ETFs.

The commission pushed back the approval date to November 10, following Nasdaq’s proposed rule change to approve listing and trading options for spot Ether ETFs. According to the SEC, the proposed rule changes will take a little longer to review.

Before this, the regulator had already approved and listed options trading on BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) on September 20, the first of its kind. 

Even the Head of US options at Nasdaq, Sean Feeney, expressed the company’s content with the commission approval and listing of IBIT options, stating that the listing would protect investors and offer them another low-cost risk management tool.

In a separate filing, the SEC also delayed a decision on NYSE American LLC’s proposed rule change to list and trade options on the Bitwise Ethereum ETF, the Grayscale Ethereum Trust, and the Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust. The new deadline for NYSE American has also been set for November.

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There is just one match remaining in the BLAST Fall Final 2024, with G2 and NAVI left standing as the final two teams. G2 shook off Vitality in a tough 2:1 series, while NAVI were able to best FaZe on the server in a reverse-sweep. Want more detail? Read on to find out all you need to know about the Semi-Finals of the BLAST Fall Final 2024.

NiKo draws blood as G2 shock Vitality

Credit: BLAST

Coming into this matchup, we had Vitality taking it comfortably against G2. NiKo had other ideas, coming up huge as G2 were able to win out one of the best 2:1 series of the year. The sight of NiKo bashing a hole into his table and drawing blood on his hand after failing a 1v5 clutch at the final hurdle is instantly iconic, and remarkably, he only seemed to get better after the incident. Seeing him take the broken table to the post-match interview was gold, too. Well played, BLAST.

It wasn’t all down to NiKo, though. Ultimately, malbsMd topped the scoreboard with 66 kills across the series, while Snax had some genuinely impactful kills while picking up the second AWP here. It was a bit of an off-day for m0NESY (compared to his own high standards), but you rarely see two of those in a row. Coming into the Grand Final of the BLAST Fall Final 2024, we expect to see a much better m0NESY on the server.

NAVI trade blows to beat FaZe Clan

Credit: BLAST

This was a strange performance from NAVI. The recent ESL Pro League Season 20 winners have looked brilliant of late, but looked anything but during the early periods of this series against FaZe Clan. Despite rough form lately, FaZe did well to take the Inferno opener. They even looked in control and set to take map two after a successful 8:4 half, making this a short night indeed. However, a switch flicked, and FaZe seemed to run out of energy. NAVI mounted a huge comeback on map two, before running over FaZe 13:2 on the decider, looking a lot more like themselves.

The statlines reveal what a huge team effort this was from NAVI. The player with the least kills (Aleksib) had 40 across the series, while the one with the most (w0nderful) had 47 – just a difference of seven. Comparatively, FaZe’s highest fragger was broky with 61, while the lowest was frozen with 31. You can see why they struggled to keep the momentum. For NAVI, when one player dipped in form, another stepped up. G2 tomorrow won’t be easy, but playing like this, they should hoist another trophy for their epic 2024 cabinet.

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A prominent crypto whale has lost more than $32 million worth of tokens after signing a malicious transaction, according to blockchain security service ScamSniffer. The breach targeted the victim’s wallet through Spark’s decentralized finance (DeFi) platform and resulted in the theft of 12.083 wrapped ether (spWETH) tokens.

At present prices, the stolen tokens amount to around $32.4 million. The attack was connected to a fraud-based operation called Inferno Drainer. This group has executed widespread assaults on cryptocurrency users across multiple decentralized networks.

Arkham Intelligence has identified the wallet as possibly belonging to Shixing Mao, also known as Discus Fish, one of the co-founders of F2Pool and Cobo. However, Arkham’s AI-based identification of the wallet owner has a low confidence level. Even after such a loss, Arkham data reveals that the wallet still contains cryptocurrencies valued at approximately $5.44 million.

Victim is allegedly tied to a whale named CZSamSun

Inferno Drainer operates by taking a 20% commission on stolen funds. In November 2023, the developers closed the service down, but it came back online in May 2024. The renewed scam claimed to have “new employees,” “improved assistance,” and ” updated functions,” making it more perilous than before.

Crypto sleuth ZachXBT also pointed out that the owner of the wallet has been involved in a number of large transactions with another popular account. According to ZachXBT, the wallet owner and the other entity found on the DeBank platform under the name ‘czsamsun’ moved nine-figure sums, which points to the two being related.

“Victim and czsamsun on Debank have done 9 figures in transfers with each other, so seems likely it’s the same entity.”

ZachXBT

Following the attack, a message was received in the victim’s wallet proposing a 20% reward for returning the lost funds. 

Phishing schemes surge in cryptocurrency space

This event has triggered alerts in the DeFi space and encourages users to be cautious with transactions they do not recognize. Blockchain analytics firm LookOnChain issued a warning on X about phishing scams and how not to be a target.

“To avoid being phished, please do not click on any unknown links and do not sign any unknown signatures,” LookOnChain stated.

The Inferno Drainer scam is part of a rise in phishing schemes that prey on DeFi participants. In May 2023, Pink Drainer, another phishing-as-a-service platform, shut its services after obtaining $75 million in crypto from almost 20,000 victims.

According to ScamSniffer, losses from phishing scams in cryptocurrency reached over $173 million in Q1 2024 alone. The FBI also highlighted the rising danger and revealed that losses from phishing totaled more than $9.6 million in 2023. 

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Mark Cuban once thought he’d retire by 35. Now he’s 66 and shows no sign of slowing down. “I’m just getting started,” he said recently.

He’s selling his stake in the Dallas Mavericks and leaving “Shark Tank” next year, but that doesn’t mean he’s done. Instead, he’s focused on Cost Plus Drugs, his online pharmacy.

In 2018, Alex Oshmyansky pitched him the idea for Cost Plus Drugs, and Cuban jumped in with $250,000. Since then, he’s poured in more cash and now owns the whole company.

Their model is straightforward. Buy or make drugs, add a 15% markup, and sell them at a fraction of the usual cost. It’s making money, but Cuban has promised that he is more interested in breaking the system.

He says he wants people to afford their meds without breaking the bank. 

“I want people to say, ‘That guy f—ed up healthcare, so now no one’s scared of the price tag on their pills.’”

Cuban wants Gensler out

But Cuban’s a new target: Gary Gensler, the SEC Chair. Cuban isn’t happy with how Gensler’s handling things. He’s been vocal, blunt, and ready to take action.

“Head of the SEC, that’s the job I would take,” he told Fox News. Gensler’s been cracking down on crypto for four years, treating it like it’s all stocks and bonds. Cuban and a lot of others in the industry don’t agree.

Gensler’s month hasn’t been great. First, Representative Ritchie Torres from New York called him out for lumping NFTs and crypto in with traditional securities.

Then Cuban came swinging, saying he could do a better job. “You leaving is worth a point in GDP growth,” he said to Gensler on X.

The SEC has gone after Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, Consensys, and more, accusing them of breaking laws that go back almost a century.

Gensler insists crypto needs to play by his nonexistent rules. Anthony Scaramucci, another pro-crypto person who’s backing Kamala Harris, is also fed up with the SEC’s current direction.

Those supporting Donald Trump have long been over Gensler. Trump himself promised to fire Gensler on his very first day back.

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FTX creditors are waiting for a possible 10-25% crypto recovery, according to Sunil Kavuri, an activist representing their interests. However, the exchange’s decision to set aside around $230 million for its shareholders—about 18% of its available funds—has alarmed customers and crypto enthusiasts, with some terming it ‘criminal’.

FTX could return at least 10% of creditors’ crypto

In an X post, FTX creditor activist Sunil Kavuri estimated that customers and investors could get about 10-25% of their crypto back. 

However, the recent disclosure that the exchange would distribute roughly $230 million to its equity holders, which equates to about 18% of its available funds, has invited multiple commentaries, with some openly showing disapproval. 

FTX Creditor and Bitcoin maximalist Crypto Notte commented:

Venture funds that bought equity in the business are getting money back, and the money is being taken away from the creditors, e.g., customers who got their money stolen. You thought bankruptcy could not get more criminal, yet there it is.

~Crypto Notte

Notte then called out the US bankruptcy system, describing it as a ‘joke’. In another post, he remarked that the $230 million being handed to shareholders seemed like a big fraction.

With the conversation around crypto recovery still at its peak, FTX continues to wait for the court hearing concerning its reorganization plan on October 7. The plan primarily constitutes the exchange’s liquidation structure that will allow for repayments to its creditors.

According to FTX, over 95% of creditors who voted on the amended plan supported it. However, some of FTX’s creditors, including Sunil Kavuri, have filed an objection to the wind-down plan.

Some have argued that the plan will only exacerbate customers’ pain, subjecting them to taxation on the assets they receive—taxes that could have been avoided if the exchange had included in-kind provisions.

FTX agreed to pay $12.7 billion to its customers

In August 2024, FTX and Alameda Research consented to a repayment order, requiring them to pay $12.7 billion to its customers. 

The repayment order was part of a settlement between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the bankrupt crypto exchange. At the time, the exchange shared its desire to pay back 100% of all customers’ funds.

The agreement it made with the CFTC allowed for a waiver period for the exchange, during which the commission agreed not to collect any payments until all customers were repaid, with interest. However, FTX will still have to pay $8.7 billion in restitution and $4 billion in disgorgement.

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