Morning Minute is a daily newsletter written by Tyler Warner. The views expressed are his own and do not necessarily represent those of Decrypt. Also, check out our daily news show 'FOMO HOUR' for the latest updates and market activity.
Good morning!
Here are today’s key highlights:
- Major cryptocurrencies declined between 3-5% following a selloff; Bitcoin is priced at $83.6k.
- More than $550 million in crypto long positions were liquidated, primarily in Ethereum.
- Bitcoin ETFs recorded inflows of $119 million, while Ethereum ETFs faced outflows of $202 million.
- OKX achieved a valuation of $25 billion with investments from Circle, Ripple, and others.
- Abstract has announced it will close its Layer 2 service on December 15.
💰 OKX Secures $25 Billion Valuation with Investment from Circle, Ripple, and StanChart
OKX has successfully attracted new investment from Circle, Ripple, the venture arm of Standard Chartered, and trading firm Qube Research, achieving a pre-money valuation of $25 billion. The specific amount raised remains undisclosed. This investment builds on a previous funding round from the Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange, at the same valuation.
This latest group of investors is significant for OKX. Circle is known for issuing USDC, Ripple is involved in payment solutions and issues RLUSD, and Standard Chartered manages assets linked to BlackRock’s tokenized Treasury fund in collaboration with OKX. Qube Research already partners with OKX, providing trading services. Each of these investors either competes with or collaborates with OKX in various capacities.
According to Star Xu, the exchange aims to evolve into a comprehensive financial technology platform, enabling customers to hold, spend, invest, and grow their finances in one unified space. He believes that investing in those who control essential components is more effective than building them from scratch.
The partnership with ICE is a prime example of this strategy. OKXICE has applied to offer continuous trading for tokenized shares of 63 U.S. companies on its own blockchain, using stablecoins for settlement. Recently, OKX also launched a consumer app that offers a 10% yield on dollar stablecoins, and Xu mentioned that artificial intelligence now accounts for about 95% of the company’s code, costing approximately $10 million monthly.
However, the success of tokenized stocks remains uncertain. Macquarie noted that reliable pricing would require sufficient liquidity, especially during off-hours, and the temporary nature of the SEC’s regulatory framework makes institutions hesitant to integrate their systems. Both Macquarie and TD Securities predict that initial interest will come from retail investors, as institutions already have affordable access to U.S. stocks.
What does this indicate for the market? Major exchanges are making similar investments. Kraken’s parent company is investing billions to establish financial infrastructure, while Coinbase has introduced perpetual contracts, tokenized stocks, and Bitcoin loans. It is evident that integrating tokenized stocks within crypto trading infrastructures (like perpetual contracts and 24/7 trading) will be a significant trend in this cycle, potentially increasing the market capitalization for those who successfully navigate this space.
🌎 Macro Crypto and Markets
- Major cryptocurrencies are down 3-5% following a late selloff; BTC -3% at $83.6k; ETH -5% at $2,580; SOL -3% at $117; HYPE -5% at $89; ZEC -5% at $1,310.
- Notable altcoin movers include STX (+5%) and RAY (+8%).
- Oil prices increased by 2% to $90; Gold decreased by 1% to $4,140.
- Stock futures are lower as bond prices rise; DOW down 0.5%, Nasdaq down 0.6%.
- Crypto saw over $540 million in long liquidations in the last 24 hours, with Ethereum leading the way.
- The Winklevoss twins have filed for a Zcash ETF under the ticker WINK with a 0.25% management fee; their fund indicated a nonbinding interest in acquiring up to $100 million in shares, marking the third U.S. Zcash fund after Grayscale and Bitwise.
- Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund led a $5 million token investment in Anvil alongside Pantera and Bullish, a protocol enabling businesses to secure payment commitments with crypto collateral instead of borrowing.
- Arbitrum has joined Paxos’s Global Dollar Network to earn a share of the interest on stablecoins within its network; USDG launched on Tuesday across platforms like Morpho, GMX, Fluid, and Maple, with a proposal for the DAO to allocate 100 million ARB to support it.
- Ledger has introduced Bitcoin-backed loans in its wallet application allowing users to borrow USDC or USDT without liquidating their holdings; each transaction must be approved physically on the hardware device, utilizing Morpho as the lending partner, the same behind Coinbase's product.
- FNB, South Africa's second-largest bank, has opened crypto trading to nearly 9 million customers through its existing share trading app in collaboration with local exchange VALR; customers can purchase Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana, or USDT starting at about 55 cents, although the coins cannot be transferred out of the bank's system.
Corporate Treasuries & ETFs
- Bitcoin ETFs recorded $119 million in net inflows on Tuesday, while ETH ETFs faced $202 million in outflows.
Meme Coin Tracker
- Meme coins were predominantly down; DOGE -7%, SHIB -8%, PEPE -6%, PENGU -10%, TRUMP -9%, SPX -8%, BONK -10%.
- Robinhood chain performers showed mixed results; Pons +2% at $275 million; AI +12% at $124 million; Cashcat -13% at $130 million; v4 +20% and Note +22% led the top movers.
- Notable movers on Solana included Rari +42x, Auton +117x, Tweetcraft +30x, and A1 +12x.
💰 Token, Airdrop & Protocol Tracker
- Pump led on-chain protocols in revenue with $2.74 million; Hyperliquid followed with $1.92 million, and StonkFun with $428,000.
- Pudgy Penguins’ Ethereum network Abstract will shut down on December 15 after its parent company incurred significant losses funding it; approximately $47 million remains on the chain, and users who do not withdraw their funds will lose access to them.
- Robinhood added around $25 million of Bitcoin to its balance sheet.
🚚 What is happening in NFTs?
- NFT leaders remained mostly stable; Punks held at 33 ETH, BAYC down 1% at 5.85 ETH, Pudgy up 2% at 3.12 ETH.
- Top movers included Claus (+20%) and PRTSCN (+39%).