Marathon Digital's Stock Gains 7% After $250M Bitcoin Buy

Bitcoin miner, Marathon Digital's MARA stock rose by over 7% on Thursday after the company confirmed a $250 million Bitcoin purchase, adding 4,144 BTC to its holdings. This move follows the company’s recent decision to raise $250 million through convertible senior notes to fund its Bitcoin acquisitions. Despite the positive market reaction, Marathon's stock has dropped nearly 34% in the past month overall.

The company’s aggressive "Full HODL" strategy, where it no longer sells mined Bitcoin, mimics Michael Saylor's MicroStrategy approach. MARA's CEO is also skeptical of the 'Crypto4Harris' initiative, stating that no Bitcoin miner in the US was contacted for discussions and that he does not expect any mention of BTC in Kamala's economic speech on August 16.

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Uniswap Offers Record $2.35M Prize Pool for v4 Security Audit

Uniswap Labs is launching a $2.35 million security competition for its upcoming v4 protocol, marking the largest prize pool in decentralized finance history. The competition aims to audit smart contracts and identify vulnerabilities before the protocol goes live. The Uniswap v4 protocol features customizable liquidity pools and reduces transaction fees.

The audit competition, running in September, invites developers to submit potential vulnerabilities, with rewards based on the severity and documentation quality. This initiative underscores Uniswap's commitment to security while stirring debate within the crypto community about open-source principles. At the time of writing this, Uniswap's UNI token is down 12.70% since the start of 2024.

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21 North Korean Crypto Devs Earn $500K Monthly: ZachXBT

Blockchain investigator ZachXBT has uncovered a network of 21 North Korean developers allegedly earning up to $500,000 monthly by working on crypto projects under fake identities. These developers have compromised over 25 projects, with one case leading to a $1.3 million theft after malicious code was inserted.

The stolen funds were traced to addresses linked to known North Korean operatives involved in supporting the country's cybercrime and weapons programs. This discovery highlights the increasing sophistication of North Korean cyber activities within the crypto industry. It also underscores the need for stronger security measures to prevent such infiltrations in the future.

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Nigeria Can't Freeze Crypto Wallets Linked to Protests

Cryptocurrency wallets linked to Nigeria's protests against the current government are reportedly still active despite a court order to freeze them, with over $37 million in transactions continuing. An investigation found discrepancies between court records and blockchain data, with some wallets showing unexpected balance changes and recent transactions.

This situation raises questions about the effectiveness of court-ordered freezes on digital assets, particularly when decentralized platforms and international exchanges are involved. The case mirrors the challenges faced during Nigeria's 2020 demonstrations, where activists turned to crypto to bypass government restrictions.

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Data of the Day

Aave's governance token surged 9% yesterday, now trading at around $105, following a sharp rebound from $90 last week. This price increase coincides with a shift in the token's futures funding rate from negative to positive, indicating growing trader optimism.

The platform also set a new record for weekly active borrowers, reaching 43,000, reflecting increased usage amid market volatility. This uptick in activity has led to a significant rise in liquidations, with $431.51 million recorded so far this month, compared to just $73 million in July. The wider DeFi lending market is also experiencing heightened liquidations, marking the highest levels since May 2021.

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More Breaking News

• Binance has resumed full operations in India after paying a $2.25 million regulatory penalty and registering as a "reporting entity".
• OKX has expanded the use of Solana's Blinks to EVM-compatible chains inside its Web3 wallet for onchain transactions via URLs & zero fees.
• The SEC has approved Defiance ETFs' first leveraged long ETF for MicroStrategy, offering 175% daily exposure to the company’s Bitcoin-heavy stock.
• Exchange Nasdaq ISE, LLC and other exchanges that proposed options trading for Bitcoin and Ethereum, have withdrawn their filings with the SEC.
• Chainlink's Data Streams and VRF services are now live on Base, Coinbase's Layer 2 blockchain, completing the Chainlink developer's product suite.
• Morgan Stanley has disclosed holding nearly $190 million in spot Bitcoin ETFs by the end of Q2, making it a top shareholder in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust.

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