Welcome to HODL FM! The weekend's almost here, so let’s wrap this week up with a nice little bow and give you the lowdown on all the crypto insights you might’ve missed.
Let’s dive in!
Previous Digest: BlackRock's Brazil ETF Launch, Nvidia's Earnings Report, and Bitcoin's Price Decline
Top Gainers and Losers of the week
Who Gained?
- Helium (HNT): HNT, the utility token for Blockchain-powered Internet of Things (IoT) network , Helium gained 18.99% versus last week surging from $7.02 to the press time $8.36, making it the top gainer of the week.
- Starknet (STRK): Starknet gained 10.04% versus last week surging from $0.3648 to press time’s $0.4100. Starknet is the utility token of permissionless, ZK-rollup, Layer 2 network, Starknet that operates on the Ethereum blockchain.
- ORDI (ORDI): ORDI jumped from $27.48 to the press time $30.1 over the last seven days, gaining 9.89% to become the third highest gainer of the week. ORDI is the utility token that powers the Ordinals Protocol that’s built on Bitcoin.
Who Lost?
- Beam (BEAM): BEAM, the utility cryptocurrency of the Beam gaming network lost 21.51% during the week, dropping from $0.01559 to $0.01200, thereby clinging to the top loser of the week.
- Akash Network (AKT): AKT, the utility token of cloud computing decentralized ecosystem Akash Network fell by 16.16% this week, dropping from $2.7028 to the press time $2.3010.
- Immutable (IMX): IMX, which is the utility token of the world’s first layer 2 scaling solution for NFTs, lost 15.66% versus last week, dropping from $1.4187 to $1.200.
Most TON Holders in the Red After CEO Arrest – Not Looking Great
The Telegram-linked cryptocurrency, which powers The Open Network (TON), is officially separate from the messaging app. Still, TON has roots with Telegram’s CEO, and it serves as the backbone for Telegram’s crypto features, such as in-app, digital wallets.
Toncoin took a nosedive below $5 on Tuesday, hitting its lowest point in four months—kind of like when you drop your ice cream cone after just one lick. The tumble happened after Telegram’s founder and CEO, Paul Durov, was arrested in France last month. Looks like Toncoin's price wasn’t the only thing that fell hard!
While the cryptocurrency might appear the "independent" cousin of Telegram that wants to separate its business from the rest, let’s be real—it’s still very much in the family. Officially, it’s separate from Telegram, but it powers The Open Network (TON) and keeps things running for Telegram’s crypto features, like in-app digital wallets. So, even though they claim they’re independent, they’re still very much in each other’s business!
More: Ton Price Prediction - What's Driving the Price?
Over the past day, its price took a 4.1% slide to $4.95, kind of like a kid going down a slip-and-slide but without the fun.
That adds up to a 26% loss in just two weeks! With a market cap now sitting at $12.4 billion, Tuesday’s dip booted Toncoin out of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap, according to CoinGecko. And yes, it hit hard like being kicked out of a football team in the finals.
While, Toncoin might be flexing with a 166% price boost over the past year, but most holders are still crying into their wallets.
billions 💸 pic.twitter.com/0NHpeu2ARA
— HodlFM Team (@Hodl_fm) September 5, 2024
According to IntoTheBlock, around 70% of people holding TON are sitting on coins they bought at a higher price—ouch. Meanwhile, a lucky 10% are grinning like they’ve found a golden ticket, with some paper profits to show off.
Fake “Wannabe” Cops Busted in Ukraine in a $250K Tether Con Game
In Ukraine on Monday, a group of wannabe cops got themselves arrested after trying to shake down a young entrepreneur for $250,000 in Tether (USDT).
Their genius plan? Pretend to be the real police and scare him with fake criminal charges. Spoiler alert: it didn’t work.
The four masterminds were busted by cyber police and the National Police’s Internal Security, and now they’re looking at up to 12 years in prison—probably wishing they’d stuck to Monopoly money instead.
Back in May, a 20-year-old online business founder told police that a group of sketchy individuals had gone full "bad cop" role play and allegedly accused him of being a Russian collaborator and threatened to lock him up for treason.
But, being the "generous" (corrupt) type of cops, they offered him a “houdini” deal: hand over $250,000 in crypto and the whole mess would magically disappear. Sounds like a bargain, right? Not so much!
Terrified of getting thrown behind bars, the entrepreneur caved in and sent over 250,000 USDT to the scammers' crypto wallet.
Turns out, these guys had zero connection to real law enforcement. With a little help from the Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office, the State Police swooped in and nabbed the fake cops in a highly coordinated takedown.
Related: Will the EU Implement a Central Registry for Wealth?
Japan’s Sakana AI Scores Nvidia Deal, with $100 Million Series A
In addition to the Nvidia partnership, the startup raised $100 million in a Series A funding round from key invevelopment to advance “nature-inspired, sustainable, and energy-efficient AI technologies.
Tokyo-based Sakana AI, the fresh-faced one-year-old startup, just teamed up with U.S. chip giant Nvidia to help build Japan’s AI community. And it’s not just any startup—this one’s got Google researchers in its corner. So, imagine a brainy AI sushi roll wrapped in cutting-edge tech and sprinkled with Google-level genius.
On top of teaming up with Nvidia, Sakana AI just scored a cool $100 million in a Series A funding round. The big bucks came from top investors like New Enterprise Associates, Khosla Ventures, and Lux Capital, with a little extra love from Nvidia too.
Announcing Our Series Ahttps://t.co/0fdYxVBj8I pic.twitter.com/OgMRQP4U4W
— Sakana AI (@SakanaAILabs) September 4, 2024
They’re planning to use the cash to hire some brainy talent and build fancy infrastructure to create AI that’s not only smart but also inspired by nature, sustainable, and energy-efficient—so basically, AI that’s as green as your morning smoothie.
This move comes just as Japan is gearing up to give its Web3 industry a major boost with some tax-friendly love for startups. The country’s financial regulator is eyeing a big tax code makeover for 2025, with plans that could make crypto asset taxes a little less painful. So, if all goes well, startups will get a tax break, and crypto holders might not have to clutch their wallets quite so tight.
Sakana AI's team-up with Nvidia isn’t just for show—it’s all about serious research, exclusive access to fancy data centers, and cooking up new tricks for building smarter, more efficient AI models. Basically, they’re aiming to make AI tech faster and more eco-friendly, all while partnering with Nvidia.
Dayo Paul
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