🚀 Bitcoins best week in 4 years

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As traditional banking experiences turmoil, investors are flocking to digital assets, causing Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market value, to trade near nine-month highs. On Sunday, it reached a peak of $28,474, its highest level since June 12.

Former Coinbase CTO, Balaji Srinivasan, placed a bet that Bitcoin's price will skyrocket to $1 million by June 17, leveraging the rapid devaluation of the US dollar expected within the next three months. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's efforts to become a Web3 hub are paying off, with over 80 virtual asset-related firms from mainland China and other countries expressing interest in establishing a presence in the city.

Markets

Bitcoin near 9-month high as bank turmoil sparks rally (1 minute read)Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market value, is trading near nine-month highs as investors seek refuge in digital assets amidst turmoil in traditional banking. On Sunday, it hit a peak of $28,474, the highest since June 12, but fell 1.8% to $27,549 during Asian trading hours on Monday. The past week has been Bitcoin's best in four years, surging 26%, and it has risen over 35% in the last ten days due to the banking sector's recent turmoil. Silicon Valley Bank's collapse was just the beginning, with UBS taking over Credit Suisse at a discounted price over the weekend. 

How Realistic Is Former Coinbase CTO’s $2 Million Bitcoin Wager on US Hyperinflation? (3 minute read)On Friday, Balaji Srinivasan, the former CTO of Coinbase, made a wager that Bitcoin's price will surge to $1 million by June 17, benefiting from a swift devaluation of the U.S. dollar within the next three months. He entered into a bet with two individuals, offering $1 million each to James Medlock and an unnamed person if Bitcoin fails to achieve this feat. Srinivasan believes that the global economy is on the brink of rapid change, which he calls "hyperbitcoinization." He predicts that the U.S. dollar will experience hyperinflation, causing the global economy to shift to Bitcoin as digital gold.

Almost $20b in cryptos hit exchanges last week (2 minute read)Glassnode, a blockchain data provider, reports that approximately $19.5 billion of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT was brought to exchanges last week, with Bitcoin leading the inflow at $9.6 billion and USDT close behind at $9.5 billion. This increase in inflow occurred as the cryptocurrency markets began to recover from the recent collapse of US banks. Ethereum had an inflow of $5.4 billion during the same period, while USDT's net flow was negative, with $349.2 million out of exchanges. Ethereum saw a positive net flow of $127.6 million. 

Tech

Internal war breaks out at DefiLlama as 'rogue' employees reject token plan (2 minute read)An anonymous DefiLlama employee, 0xngmi, has created a forked version of the blockchain data platform after accusing its founders of launching a token without the support of the team. On Twitter, 0xngmi stated that the company was attempting to launch a token that did not represent the team's values and that they did not wish to be associated with it. DefiLlama had hinted at a token airdrop on Twitter after the platform's aggregator hit $5 billion in volume, but the decision to launch the token went against the wishes of most of the team, according to two DefiLlama contributors on Twitter. 0xngmi further alleged that the person pushing for the token had control over the website and Twitter account.

Solana-Based NFT Collection DeGods Unleashes Its First NFT Collection On Bitcoin (2 minute read)Bitcoin Ordinals are gaining widespread adoption among non-fungible token (NFT) projects. DeGods, a renowned project known for its Solana-based digital collectibles, has recently joined the Bitcoin Ordinal hype by launching its first-of-a-kind NFT collection on the Bitcoin blockchain. The DeGods team plans to mint 500 DeGods initially, followed by auctioning off the remaining 34 Bitcoin NFTs using the $DUST token one day later. The team will mint new ordinal NFTs on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Misc

Over 80 crypto firms eyeing presence in Hong Kong: Financial SecretaryHong Kong's efforts to become a leading Web3 hub are yielding positive results, with more than 80 virtual asset-related firms across mainland China and foreign nations expressing interest in establishing a presence in the city. Christian Hui, the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, revealed in a speech on March 20 in Hong Kong that the city has been attracting interest from various crypto firms worldwide since October 2022. He stated that since the Hong Kong government released its policy statement on Virtual Asset Development in October 2022, over 80 virtual asset-related companies have expressed interest in establishing their presence in Hong Kong by the end of February 2023.

FDIC sells Signature Bank deposits to Flagstar, crypto not included (2 minute read)Signature Bank's non-crypto deposits and loans, worth $38.4 billion and $12.9 billion respectively, will be sold to Flagstar Bank, a subsidiary of New York Community Bancorp, just a week after the former's collapse. The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation announced the "purchase and assumption agreement" on March 19. Flagstar Bank will take over Signature Bank's 40 branches from March 20 and all deposits will continue to be insured up to the $250,000 limit. However, the deal will not include crypto-related deposits.

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