Hodler’s Digest, Nov. 17 – 23 – Cointelegraph Magazine

Top Stories of The Week

Solana ETF regulatory filings flood in as Gensler sets departure date

Cboe BZX Exchange submitted four 19b-4 filings for asset managers to list spot Solana exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Nov. 21 — the same day the United States Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler confirmed he would resign in January.

If approved, the Bitwise, VanEck, 21Shares and Canary Capital-issued spot Solana ETFs will be listed on the Cboe BZX Exchange.

The 19b-4s inform the SEC of a proposed rule change by a self-regulatory organization such as a financial regulatory body or stock exchange.

They differ from Form S-1 registration statements, which VanEck and 21Shares already submitted for their Solana ETFs in late June and Canary Capital filed four months later, on Oct. 30.

FTX provides timeline for creditor and client reimbursement payouts

The FTX bankruptcy estate updated its timeline for creditor and former customer reimbursements — which should be finalized in January 2025 — with initial payouts expected in March 2025.

According to a Nov. 21 announcement from the collapsed crypto exchange, FTX will arrange reimbursement payments in early December with distribution agents who will handle the payout process and manage the customer payout portal. John J. Ray III, the interim CEO presiding over the FTX bankruptcy, said:

“While we continue to take actions to maximize recoveries, we are full steam ahead to reach arrangements with our distribution agents and return proceeds to creditors and customers as quickly as possible.”

SEC Chair Gary Gensler to step down

United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler, known for his hardline stance on cryptocurrency regulation, will depart from the agency on Jan. 20, 2025, the securities regulator said in a Nov. 21 announcement.

Gensler will leave the agency on the same day crypto-friendly President-elect Donald Trump starts his second presidential term, according to the announcement.

“It has been an honor of a lifetime to serve with them on behalf of everyday Americans and ensure that our capital markets remain the best in the world,” Gensler said in a statement.

In July, Trump vowed to “fire” Gensler in a bid to woo crypto enthusiasts ahead of the Nov. 5 US presidential election.

The president has the authority to select a chair to head the SEC, but he cannot force a commissioner to leave the agency entirely, as Gensler plans to do in January.

MicroStrategy completes $3B raise to buy more Bitcoin as MSTR falls 25%

MicroStrategy has completed a $3 billion offering of 0% convertible senior notes due in December 2029, with plans to use a portion or all of the proceeds to buy more Bitcoin.

The business intelligence firm announced the completion as its shares retraced more than 25% on Nov. 21, Google Finance data shows.

The convertible senior notes came at a 55% premium with an implied strike price of around $672 — a predetermined price at which an option holder can buy or sell MicroStrategy’s class A common stock.

The 0% senior convertible note means it will not pay regular interest to bondholders. These convertibles are sold at a discount and will instead mature to face value if they are not converted prior to the maturity date.

Coinbase CEO to meet with Trump to discuss personnel appointments — WSJ

Brian Armstrong, the CEO of United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, will reportedly meet with Donald Trump as the president-elect continues to announce staff picks for his administration and the heads of government departments.

According to a Nov. 18 Wall Street Journal report, Trump intended to meet privately with Armstrong to discuss personnel appointments. The Coinbase CEO did not appear to have donated directly to the Republican’s 2024 campaign or political action committees (PACs) directly supporting him but said before the US election the crypto exchange would be prepared to work with a Trump administration.

It’s unclear whether Armstrong or a Coinbase employee could potentially have a role in the next US president’s administration.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $98,877, Ether (ETH) at $3,319 and XRP at $1.47. The total market cap is at $3.31 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Stellar (XLM) at 137.21%, Hedera (HBAR) at 108.20% and Mantra (OM) at 72.86%.

The top three altcoin losers of the week are Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT) at 35.62%, Goatseus Maximus (GOAT) at 29.96% and Popcat (SOL) (POPCAT) at 23.72%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Most Memorable Quotations

“The good thing about memecoins is that they get the people who are only in [crypto] for primarily speculative reasons and are thinking very short-term — it attracts those people.”

Jeffrey Zirlin, co-founder of Sky Mavis

“In this quickly changing crypto landscape, it cannot be overstated how important these federal judges and willing partners, are for resolutions.”

Adam Moskowitz, managing partner at The Moskowitz Law Firm

“These options were almost certainly part of the move to the new Bitcoin all-time highs today.”

James Seyffart, ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence

“I took the easy path, the cowardly path, instead of doing the right thing. I will spend the rest of my life trying to make amends.”

Gary Wang, co-founder of FTX

“As long as there is retail trader disbelief, whales can continue pumping cryptocurrencies with little resistance.”

Santiment, onchain analysis firm

“While the SEC has plausibly alleged its theory of securities violations against Kraken, only discovery will establish whether the sales, trades, and exchanges on Kraken truly met all the Howey elements.”

William Orrick, senior United States district judge for the Northern District of California

Prediction of The Week

Bitcoin back to $90K next? Traders diverge on BTC price pullback odds

Bitcoin faced a serious challenge hitting $100,000 on Nov. 22 as $300 million in sell-side liquidity blocked the way.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC price downside taking over at the Wall Street open.

FUD of The Week

South Korea’s Delio declared bankrupt with $1.75B in assets lost

South Korean virtual asset deposit platform Delio was declared bankrupt by a court in Seoul on Nov. 22, according to multiple local press reports. Delio, which owes customers 245 billion won ($1.75 billion), halted withdrawals last year.

Delio will begin liquidation proceedings. Customers can make claims through Feb. 21, 2025, and the first creditors’ meeting will be held on March 19, 2025. Reports quote a court official as saying:

“The debtor leased and entrusted the management of customer-deposit virtual assets to the management company, but a large part of it was deposited and managed in the FTX account.”

Coinbase scammer claims to earn 5 figures a week targeting crypto CEOs

Crypto phishing scammers are apparently earning five-figure weekly incomes by impersonating Coinbase support and using leaked data to target high-ranking crypto executives and software engineers.

Nick Neuman, CEO and co-founder of Bitcoin self-custody solutions provider Casa, said he was recently called by a “Coinbase support” scammer and found out more than expected after he “decided to turn the tables on him and ask him about being a scammer.”

“We make a minimum of five figures a week. We hit $35K two days ago; we do it for a reason, there is money to be made in it,” responded the scammer when asked how much they made.

US charges 5 in $11M crypto hacking scheme linked to ‘Scattered Spider’

United States prosecutors charged five people with being part of a group that hacked dozens of businesses and individuals to steal $11 million in crypto and sensitive information.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said on Nov. 20 that the defendants sent SMS phishing links or SIM-swapped individuals and employees of certain companies to steal login credentials to their work or crypto exchange accounts.

Court documents seen by Cointelegraph detailed at least 29 alleged individual crypto-theft victims. Prosecutors claimed one victim was robbed of more than $6.3 million worth of crypto after having their email and wallets breached.