Here are some of the major developments from the world of crypto over the past few days
Terraform Labs, led by Do Kwon, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States. The filing, made at the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on January 21, 2024 discloses estimated assets and liabilities ranging between $100 million and $500 million.
CEO Chris Amani expressed the necessity of this action to address legal challenges, emphasising the resilience of the Terra community. Amani said that overcoming challenges is not new for the ecosystem, citing previous instances of survival and growth post-depeg, and expressed optimism about resolving outstanding legal proceedings.
The bankruptcy filing follows the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) decision to postpone Do Kwon’s fraud trial to March 25, 2024, in response to a request from Kwon’s legal team, according to Cointelegraph.
Terra Money, Kwon’s ecosystem, faced collapse in May 2022. After the implosion, Do Kwon’s whereabouts were unknown until his arrest in Montenegro in March 2023, where he was found using falsified travel documents.
The SEC had initially filed civil charges against Terraform Labs and Kwon in February 2023, alleging their involvement in a “multi-billion dollar crypto asset securities fraud” related to the tokens formerly known as UST and Terra (LUNA). Both the US and South Korea are seeking Kwon’s extradition, raising speculation about potential multiple sentences in both countries. If extradited to South Korea, Kwon could face a 40-year jail sentence for alleged crimes committed there.
The increase in Dogecoin’s value to a seven-day high at $0.08978 can be attributed to the swift rise of the newly established “XPayments” account on X (previously Twitter), gaining over 100,000 followers within a single day.
Despite a subsequent 4 per cent dip, with the current trading price at $0.08330, traders remain optimistic about Dogecoin’s outlook, fuelled by speculation surrounding its potential integration into X’s payment functions. This optimism is fuelled by Elon Musk’s intermittent mentions of DOGE and the community’s eager anticipation of his involvement in the platform.
According to Cointelegraph, traders believe that Dogecoin could play a role in this offering, given Musk’s occasional references and the history of DOGE payments being accepted on Tesla’s merchandise store. The extended anticipation among X users for Musk to integrate Dogecoin into the platform is also due to posts and bio updates from Musk himself.
Previous actions by Musk, such as allowing DOGE payments on Tesla’s store and changing Twitter’s logo to Dogecoin’s, have also contributed to the community’s optimism. Musk’s announcement in December 2023, indicating expectations for payments on X to launch by mid-2024, coupled with the company’s pursuit of money transmitter licenses in various US states, have also added to the intrigue about the potential collaboration between Dogecoin and the X platform
In January 2024, the layer-1 Solana Blockchain witnessed a remarkable surge in Stablecoin transfer volume, surpassing $300 billion and setting a new monthly record. This figure has already exceeded the December 2023 transfer volume of $297 billion, reflecting a notable uptrend in transaction activity.
Impressively, the January 2024 volume of $303 billion represents a staggering 2,520 per cent increase compared to the $11.56 billion Stablecoin transfer volume observed in January 2023. Solana’s Stablecoin market share has also experienced significant growth, currently standing at nearly 32 per cent, a substantial leap from the 1.2 per cent share it held just a year ago.
The surge in Solana’s Stablecoin activity began in October 2023, steadily increasing by 650 per cent since then. While Ethereum remains the industry leader with a Stablecoin transfer volume of $317 billion this month, representing a market share of over 33 per cent, Solana is rapidly narrowing the gap.
Notably, Paxos recently announced the launch of its regulated Stablecoin, USDP, on the Solana Blockchain on January 18, 2024. In addition to Stablecoin volumes, Solana has witnessed an upswing in decentralised finance (DeFi) activity, driving total value locked to its highest level since September 2022 at $1.36 billion, according to DefiLlama. Despite Solana’s SOL experiencing a 2 per cent decline over the weekend to trade at $93, down 25 per cent from its December 2023 high, the Blockchain's robust performance in Stablecoin transfers signals its growing influence in the crypto space.