Let’s take a break from the news whirlwind and look back at last week’s highlights. Germany’s massive Bitcoin sale seems to have lost its shock value on the market, Crypto.com got tangled up in some dirty extortion from a former employee. CoinGecko shared eye-opening findings from their post-halving Bitcoin holder survey, and Binance celebrated its seventh anniversary.  We didn’t get invited to the party, but hey, we can still snag some bonuses.

The Great German Bitcoin Sell-Off

The German government has turned the crypto industry upside down by selling off a massive stash of Bitcoin. In case you missed it, the Federal Criminal Police Office (the BKA) seized $2.1 billion worth of Bitcoin back in January during a raid on a pirate website.

The initial, rather small, compared to what came next, sell-offs started in mid-June when the government transferred $425 million worth of Bitcoin to exchanges. This was considered a test transaction. Eventually, a total of nearly 16,000 BTC were moved.

Related: Germany’s Big Bitcoin Sale Shakes Up the Market. What to Expect?

But Germany didn’t stop there. They continued swapping digital gold for good old-fashioned dollars. Over the past week, German BKA wallets transferred $900 million in Bitcoin on Monday, another $362 million on Tuesday, and approximately $344 million on Wednesday to exchanges and over-the-counter trading platforms. According to blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence, the German law enforcement wallets now hold just over $1 billion in Bitcoin.

During this period, the sell-off drew criticism from at least one German politician and an offer from the controversial founder of Tron, Justin Sun, to buy the remaining BKA Bitcoin stash.

Analysts note that the Bitcoin market has shown that investors were less spooked by Germany’s BTC sales than when they first began. The worst of Germany’s selling spree seems to be behind us.

Crypto.com’s Compliance Officer Dark Turn

No matter how hard the crypto industry tries to operate honestly and abide by the law, there's always a bad apple that ends up involved in some crime. This time, José Luis Alonso Melchor, a former compliance officer at Crypto.com, threatened to reveal confidential information unless he received €44,000 in compensation after being fired from the Singapore-based crypto exchange.

Crypto.com immediately reported Melchor’s actions to the authorities after discovering his scheme and promptly terminated his employment. He now faces multiple charges, including extortion, money laundering, unauthorized use of computer equipment, and unauthorized disclosure of confidential data.

Melchor, who had access to sensitive information due to his position, violated a freeze order and unlawfully accessed company data. He has been hit with a €2 million ($2.2 million USD) freeze order due to concerns about his flight risk.

Currently, Crypto.com continues to cooperate with law enforcement on this matter, refraining from further comments as the legal proceedings unfold.

A cautionary tale for anyone who thinks that trying to strong-arm your former employer will end in anything other than a high-stakes legal battle and a one-way ticket to court.

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Source: Yarn

Bitcoin Post Halving: The Optimists & The Pessimists

A Bitcoin halving, which halves the reward for mining a block, typically has a positive impact on the price over time, driving it up due to the reduced issuance of coins. It's been nearly three months since the last halving, and a survey shows that nearly half of holders are feeling optimistic, despite the overall market pullback.

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Source: CoinGecko

Out of the four types of survey participants, investors showed the highest optimism towards the market: 54.1% of crypto investors expressed bullish sentiments, with only 20.7% holding bearish views. Builders were the second most optimistic group, with 47.6% expressing bullish sentiments and 31.6% feeling bearish.

In contrast, sentiments among crypto traders were largely mixed, with 39.0% expressing bullish sentiments and 33.5% bearish. This may highlight that traders with short-term assets are more likely to adjust their market outlook based on price movements, whereas investors and builders are more focused on the long-term potential of the crypto market.

Spectators were the most pessimistic about the crypto market: only 28.5% had optimistic responses, compared to 42.4% who were bearish. Given that they identified themselves as not directly involved in cryptocurrencies, these spectator respondents may reflect the views of participants who have taken profits and temporarily exited the market.

Currently, BTC prices are hovering around $59,000, representing a roughly 10% drop since the Bitcoin halving. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index points to prevailing fear. Nonetheless, some investors see this as a prime buying opportunity, believing that market fears often precede recovery and growth. 

Binance’s 2024 Bitcoin Growth

CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju reports that Binance Exchange's Bitcoin reserves have surged by 10% since the start of 2024. This news comes just as Binance celebrates its seventh anniversary.

Riding the waves of jubilation, Binance has announced a new limited-time referral promotion. When a referrer successfully invites a new Binance user, the referrer receives a token voucher for 0.01 BNB, while the new user gets a token voucher for 0.005 BNB. Eligible users will share up to 700 BNB in tokens.

Binance continues to flex its muscles as the largest cryptocurrency trading platform by trading volume in the world. In contrast, Coinbase, the largest U.S. crypto exchange by trading volume, is among the exchanges whose Bitcoin holdings have decreased.

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This is particularly intriguing given that Coinbase has a competitive edge as the custodian for most U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF issuers. The emergence of spot ETFs in the U.S. has bolstered Coinbase's position, placing the exchange at the heart of the ETF campaign. 

Here's all we wanted to share with you, dear readers. See you next week!

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