BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF IBTC has once again surfaced on the DTCC’s website after an unexplained disappearance for several hours. The incident sparked widespread speculation and conversations among crypto enthusiasts and experts, leading many to question whether this was due to a technical glitch or a strategic maneuver.
Renowned Senior ETF Analyst at Bloomberg, Eric Balchunas, succinctly captured the sentiment of many when he remarked, “It’s baaaaack…” Joe Light, from Barron’s Online, also chimed in with his observation.
Remarkably, according to a recent Reuters report, BlackRock’s proposed spot Bitcoin ETF already found its way onto a clearing-house eligibility file in August. The official word from DTCC also clarified that appearances on their list do not presuppose any regulatory approvals. Their spokesperson emphasized that the listing is a “standard practice… in preparation for the launch of a new ETF,” thereby not an explicit indicator of any regulatory outcome.
The market mirrored the industry’s sentiment, with Bitcoin’s price experiencing significant fluctuation. Post the sudden listing of the IBTC on DTCC’s website on October 23, Bitcoin’s price climbed to a yearly high. However, its temporary removal witnessed a 3% drop, clearly indicating the market’s acute sensitivity to ETF-related events.
Major Ethereum Whale Moves 30,710 ETH to Binance
A major Ethereum ($ETH) whale has seemingly moved a total of 30,710 ETH, worth over $54.9 million at the time of writing, into leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance, presumably to sell their tokens on the market, in a move that comes after the whale withdrew over 42,311 ETH from the same platform.
The whale’s total withdrawals, which started back on September 20, totaled over $75.67 million, and came at an average price per ETH of around $1,667, showing that the whale is likely sending the funds to Binance to realize profit.
These types of large transactions often influence the market affecting Ethereum’s price and sparking chatter among traders and experts as whales have a significant influence in the space and are often seen as signals as to what’s going on.
Whether this latest whale maneuver is a harbinger of a market trend or a solitary instance of high-value asset management remains to be seen. As CryptoGlobe recently reported, Ethereum whale addresses in the so-called “billionaire tier,” meaning addresses that have at least 1 million $ETH in them, now control 32.3% of the circulating supply of the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.
Ledger Hardware Wallet Introduces Cloud-Based Private Key Recovery Solution
Hardware wallet firm Ledger is rolling out its cloud-based private key recovery solution despite facing significant criticism from the crypto community.
Ledger Recover, an ID-based private key recovery service for the Ledger hardware wallet, is launching on Oct. 24, the firm officially announced on X (formerly Twitter). The release comes in conjunction with Ledger finalizing the open-source code for the Ledger Recover on GitHub.
Provided by blockchain protection platform Coincover, Ledger’s seed phrase recovery solution is a paid subscription service allowing users to back up their Secret Recovery Phrase (SRP). SRP is a unique list of 24 words that backs up the private keys and gives users access to their crypto assets.
A Ledger representative said that a Ledger wallet encrypts a “string of random 1s and 0s” from which an SRP is computed. The encrypted string of numbers is then fragmented into three pieces used to back up an SRP.
“Each fragment on its own is a useless set of random numbers, and no single company has access to the entire backup. This ensures the highest level of security and removes a single point of failure.”