Grayscale CEO Expects Decision On SEC Lawsuit By 2023: Oral Arguments to Begin in March

• The CEO of Grayscale Investments, Michael Sonnenshein, appeared in an interview on „What Bitcoin Did“ and discussed the lawsuit against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that was started in June 2022.
• Sonnenshein emphasized the importance of a spot Bitcoin ETF, which could help avoid a 45% discount to its net asset value. He also noted that if they lose their appeal, they may go for a re-appeal in the United States Supreme court.
• The CEO expects a decision in the lawsuit by the fall of 2023 and oral arguments for the case will begin on 7 March.

Grayscale’s Lawsuit Against SEC

Grayscale Investments CEO Michael Sonnenshein recently appeared on “What Bitcoin Did” to discuss his company’s ongoing lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This legal battle began in June 2022 when Grayscale applied to convert its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Why an ETF is Important

Sonnenshein explained why getting GBTC converted into an ETF is important; it would ensure that its share price remains close to or equal to its net asset value, avoiding the current 45% discount it often experiences. However, despite this need for an ETF conversion, Grayscale’s application was rejected by regulators mid-2022, leading them to file a lawsuit as their last resort for investors‘ protection.

Grounds for Litigation

The CEO argued that when federal agencies treat two similar issues differently, it violates U.S administrative procedures act – citing how BTC futures ETFs were approved while spot BTC ETFs were denied as evidence. In addition, he noted that over one million investor accounts all over the world own GBTC and are counting on Grayscale to do what is best for them.

Supreme Court Appeal

If their appeal fails, Sonnenshein suggested they might take up their case with the U.S Supreme Court although there was no operational reliance between his firm and Genesis – another DCG subsidiary under Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings at press time.

Expected Decision Date

In conclusion, Sonnenshein stated that he expects a decision in the lawsuit by Fall 2023 with oral arguments beginning on 7th March 2021

Binance Transfers $400 Million to Private Trading Firm Led by CEO

Overview

• Binance reportedly transferred more than $400 million from its partner exchange in the United States to a private trading firm called Merit Peak Ltd.
• Changpeng Zhao, Binance CEO, is named as the manager of Merit Peak Ltd. in the company’s documents.
• Binance U.S. CEO Catherine Coley reportedly had no knowledge of these transactions and described them as “unexpected”.

Binance Transfers Millions to Private Trading Firm

According to bank records viewed by Reuters, Binance transferred more than $400 million from Binance U.S. account in Silvergate Bank based in California to a private trading firm called Merit Peak Ltd. These transactions took place in the first three months of 2021 and began in 2020. Interestingly, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is named as the manager in the company’s documents.

Funds Received from Prime Trust LLC

Bank records further revealed that in the first quarter of 2021, Binance U.S. received $650 million from a firm named Prime Trust LLC. As per exchange terms of use at the time, Prime Trust was a custodian firm that held a portion of funds deposited by crypto exchange customers; however it remains unclear whether Merit Peak received funds from customer deposits or not .

Binace US Executives Concerned About Outflow Of Funds

As per company messages seen by Reuters, executives of Binance U.S were concerned about outflow of funds following transfers to Merit Peak Ltd.. CEO Catherine Coley reportedly had no knowledge of these massive transactions and described them as „unexpected“. Subsequently, a portion of funds were sent to Seychelles-based Key Vision Development Limited with Changpeng Zhao being its director at that time according to corporate filing from 2021 .

Binace Responds To Report By Reuters

In response to report by Reuters on these transfers, Binance U.S clarified that only employees had access to its bank accounts and further stated that activity on Merit Peak had ceased completely since 2021 .

ChatGPT Domain Sells for 139x Its Initial Price; ENS Prices Rise

• ChatGPT’s ENS domain sold for 139x of its initial sale, despite a decrease in registrations.
• The Ethereum Name Service (ENS) benefited from the rise of ChatGPT, and its token price increased by 2.15% in the last 24 hours.
• Microsoft’s actions could continue to have an effect on the crypto ecosystem due to increased AI adoption.

ChatGPT’s ENS Domain Sale

The chatgpt.eth domain sold for 6 ETH on OpenSea, which represented a 139x increase from its original sale price. Despite this, registrations remain in shambles due to an increase in 24-hour trading volume. As a result of ChatGPT’s success, Ethereum Name Service (ENS) tokens have also seen tremendous value increases.

Domain Sales Spike

According to data from the NFT marketplace, “Ishmilly” was the seller of the domain and “LongDuck” was previously owned it for 0.043 ETH. At press time, the asset was worth around $10,000 when compared to Ethereum market prices. This has caused ENS‘ collection volume to rise 46% within 24 hours and become one of the top domain sales standings despite a 335% increase from another collection.

ENS Price Increase

CoinMarketCap data revealed that ENS‘ token price has picked up a 2.15% increase within 24 hours with a 20.26% trading volume increase too – meaning more tokens were transacted than the day before regardless of profit or loss accrued..

Microsoft Impact

It is possible that Microsoft’s actions may continue to affect crypto ecosystems as they are taking steps towards increasing AI adoption rates worldwide – making it easier for people to utilise AI technology across different applications and use cases..

Conclusion

ChatGPT’s success has had a positive effect on other cryptocurrencies like Fetch Ai [FET] and SingularityNET [AGIX]. Additionally ,Ethereum Name Service (ENS) tokens have seen increases in value and their token price has picked up 2%, along with an increased trading volume of 20%. It is possible that Microsoft will continue to influence crypto ecosystems as they move forward with their plans for AI adoption across different applications and use cases

Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Reaches All-Time High of 40.0T: Price and Hashrate Soar

• Bitcoin mining difficulty recently reached close to 40.0T, as price and hashrate saw a rise.
• The network difficulty adjusts itself every 2016 block to keep blocks being mined on average every 10 minutes.
• The current Bitcoin hashrate indicates an increase in computing power, with a greater Bitcoin price making mining more lucrative.

Bitcoin Network Difficulty Inches Close to 40.0T

Bitcoin mining difficulty recently reached close to 40.0T, as the price and hashrate saw a rise. The remarkable ascent of Bitcoin (BTC) has been a topic of critical importance in the broader cryptocurrency community, leading other coins and tokens to follow suit in their own respective price increases. Blockchain.com’s stats show that the difficulty had been increasing consistently over the past few weeks, reaching very close to 40.0T at the time of writing – the highest level in more than a year.

Understanding Network Difficulty

The Bitcoin network difficulty is an important metric for gauging how hard it is for miners to solve cryptographic puzzles necessary for mining new blocks on the blockchain. To ensure that blocks are mined roughly every 10 minutes despite changes in processing capacity across the network, adjustments occur every 2016 block (approximately every two weeks). As the difficulty rises, it becomes increasingly difficult for miners to mine blocks; conversely when it decreases, it becomes easier for them to do so.

Why is Difficulty On The Rise?

Adding extra computing power (or hash rate) into the Bitcoin network will lead to its difficulty increasing too – making it tougher for miners to solve puzzles needed for mining new blocks . To keep average times between each block mined at ten minutes regardless of fluctuations in hash rate, adjustments must be made accordingly – which is what has been happening lately due to higher monthly contributions from miners after December 2022’s dip followed by January 2023’s surge up above 269k TH/s at present day . This growth comes from higher incentives given by increased value of Bitcoin, luring more miners into joining the network due its relative profitability from higher prices .

Bitcoin Price Movements
As of press time , Bitcoin was trading near $22900 – down 4% from previous trading period but still up 37% since its surge began earlier this month and almost 50% at peak levels during that time period . According Relative Strength Index (RSI), market remains bullish with slight descent indicated as line forms downwards trend over past 24 hours .

Conclusion
The recent surge seen in both prices and hashrates have caused difficulties related to mining new blocks on Bitcoin blockchain reach all-time high within last year or so . With added computing power and higher prices incentives offered , many more miners are contributing towards network – thus effectively pushing these levels even further up .