Bitcoin ETF Inflows Remain Strong, Nigeria Drops Charges, Stripe Embraces Stablecoins

• Bitcoin ETFs recorded over $1 billion in cumulative daily net inflows this past week
• Nigeria dropped money laundering charges against Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan
• Fintech giant Stripe is set to acquire crypto startup Bridge

Crypto markets took a breather, yet bitcoin ETF inflows remained steady

The crypto market rally took a breather this week, with the total market cap just below $2.3 trillion and bitcoin dominance hovering above 57.5%. Among the blue chips, bitcoin edged down 1.7% from the previous week, and ether dropped 3.9%. In the US-listed spot ETF space, ether ETFs saw cumulative daily net inflows of $42.6 million over the past five trading days, while bitcoin ETFs posted strong inflows of $1.15 billion, led by BlackRock. Since the launch of US-listed spot bitcoin ETFs, BlackRock has accumulated $23.5 billion in inflows, Fidelity has drawn $10.9 billion, while Grayscale has faced a net outflow of $20 billion during the same period.

Among layer 1s, Solana led the pack with a 10.8% weekly gain. Solayer, the restaking protocol on the Solana network, announced BGSOL, a liquid restaking token (LRT) developed in collaboration with Bitget Exchange and Solayer Labs. BGSOL introduced a fresh approach to staking on Solana, blending user rewards with direct integration into Bitget’s suite of services. BGSOL differs from other liquid staking tokens due to its integration with Bitget’s platform, benefiting both individual users and the exchange. As users convert their SOL to BGSOL, they earn staking rewards while supporting Bitget’s operations through automatic delegation to its Autonomous Validation System (AVS). This launch builds on the earlier success of BNSOL and bbSOL, two liquid restaking tokens introduced by Binance and Bybit in partnership with Solayer. These tokens have showcased the benefits of exchange-backed LRTs, allowing users to earn rewards while taking advantage of faster transaction speeds on Solana.

DOGE continued its strong performance against BTC for another week, with a gain of 10.1% over the past week. In a recent tweet, the Dogecoin Foundation announced that Dogebox 0.3.0 will be released later this week. Dogebox serves as the decentralized and grassroots platform for the Dogecoin ecosystem, designed to be self-hosted and tailored to the needs of the community. This Linux server distribution includes custom server software aimed at facilitating the development, distribution, and self-hosting of software known as PUPs. The update introduces several changes, including support for SPV Nodes – integral to PUPs. Installation improvements will also allow users to choose where to install the software and where to store the blockchain data. Additionally, the SPV Node will be available for testing through Dogebox, offering a lightweight option for transacting DOGE on devices with limited resources. In a recent tweet, a Dogecoin Foundation developer revealed that their decentralization project, Dogebox, aims to establish 10,000 additional nodes running in homes and shops by the end of 2025.

Nigeria drops charges against Gambaryan, Stripe embraces stablecoin future

After more than seven months, Nigeria has decided to drop the charges against Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive. Initially, the Nigerian government accused Gambaryan and Binance of money laundering, though the spotlight was primarily on the exchange, which firmly denied the allegations. 

On the same day the charges were dropped, the US announced a new partnership with Nigeria focused on addressing crypto-related issues and illicit finance. According to Bloomberg, the decision to dismiss the money laundering case was influenced by Gambaryan’s health problems, especially after a court had recently denied him bail despite his ongoing medical concerns. Gambaryan's health has significantly declined during his time in Kuje prison, where he has been held since the Spring. He suffers from a herniated disk and has previously dealt with pneumonia. Before his tenure at Binance, Gambaryan gained recognition as a prominent IRS agent who led significant investigations into individuals connected to the Silk Road.

Payments company Stripe is poised to acquire the stablecoin platform Bridge in a move aimed at enhancing the adoption and utility of tokenized dollars. According to a blog post from Bridge that was published on Monday, the deal is pending regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the coming months. According to TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington, the acquisition is valued at $1.1 billion.

Stripe CEO Patrick Collison shared on X that the company aims to create "the world's best stablecoin infrastructure". This acquisition would mark Stripe's largest to date. Headquartered in San Francisco and Dublin, Stripe was valued at $70 billion as of July 2024. The platform enables businesses to accept credit and debit card payments and other online transactions.

In March, Stripe reported surpassing a remarkable $1 trillion in total payment volume for 2023, with the transactions of businesses using its services representing about 1% of global GDP. This announcement follows just six months after co-founder John Collison indicated that the company would start supporting global stablecoin payments "this Summer". Additionally, less than two weeks ago, Stripe integrated Circle USD (USDC) stablecoin into its main payment user interface to facilitate stablecoin payments.

Bridge, founded in 2022 by former Coinbase executives Zach Abrams and Sean Yu, aims to compete with the SWIFT network and traditional credit card systems. It provides businesses the ability to create, store, send, and accept stablecoins, positioning itself as the Web3 equivalent of Stripe. This year, Bridge secured $58 million in funding from prominent investors including Sequoia, Ribbit, and Index.

Macro pulse 

Among the TradFi assets, the 10-year US Treasury yield climbed 23 bps, reaching a three-month high this week, as strong economic data and the upcoming presidential election led investors to rethink the Fed’s rate-cut prospects. US equities slipped 0.8% week-over-week, with rising Treasury yields weighing on megacap stocks and dampening confidence in significant Fed rate cuts. The US Dollar Index strengthened by 0.8%, supported by a weaker yen and higher Treasury yields. Meanwhile, the Gold and Silver Index surged 6.4% over the week. Oil futures rose 0.8%, with tensions between Israel and Iran keeping concerns alive over potential disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz.

^{*Note: Weekly (7 calendar day) performance figures are as of 8am SGT on October 24, 2024} 

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