SEC Ends Ethereum Investigation But Continues Pursuit of Billions in Fines from Ripple: Hodler’s Digest, June 16-22

Top Stories This Week

• SEC to drop investigation into Ethereum — Consensys

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is dropping its investigation into whether Ether is a security, Ethereum developer Consensys disclosed on June 19.

• Kraken recovers $3 million from CertiK, ending bug bounty saga

Crypto exchange Kraken has recovered missing funds from CertiK following a high-profile bug bounty exploit fiasco.

• SEC shoots down Ripple’s argument for a lower penalty

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejected Ripple’s request for a lower penalty amid its legal battle with the regulatory agency.

• Ethereum price to $10K is the most ‘asymmetric bet’ in crypto — Analyst

Ether’s price reaching the $10,000 mark could be the most “asymmetric bet” in the current market conditions, according to crypto analyst Tyler.

• Bitwise amended Ethereum ETF filing says Pantera interested in $100M buy

Bitwise has updated its spot Ether exchange traded-fund (ETF) filing, revealing that Pantera Capital is interested in investing up to $100 million in the fund.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $64,010, Ether (ETH) at $3,501 and XRP at $0.48. The total market cap is at $2.34 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

• The top three altcoin gainers of the week are Ethereum Name Service (ENS) at 25.77%, Lido DAO (LDO) at 14.04% and Pendle (PENDLE) at 13.53%.
• The top three altcoin losers of the week are zkSync (ZK) at -33.93%, Chiliz (CHZ) at -30.15% and Starknet (STRK) at -24.81%.

For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Most Memorable Quotations

“Previous statements made by SEC officials about the likely classification of Ether might have been embarrassing to an agency that claims classification is ‘clear.’”

“I do believe the [Bitcoin] ETF, not from what it is, but from what it means, has had a large effect. And over the past couple of months, we’ve seen an incredible change in mentality.”

“The expanding utility of stablecoins showcases their potential to enhance economic inclusivity and reshape traditional finance.”

“The Enforcement Division of the SEC has notified us that it is closing its investigation into Ethereum 2.0.”

“Soon, not being involved in crypto and digital assets is going to be a career risk.”

“Corporate adoption is just complete utter failure. It’s amateur league against the pros.”

Prediction of the week

Bernstein analysts expect $200K Bitcoin price by 2025 due to spot BTC ETF flows

Analysts at research and brokerage firm Bernstein predict that Bitcoin could reach nearly $200,000 by the end of next year, following strong inflows into spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The analysts based this prediction on the assumption that spot Bitcoin ETFs may represent around 7% of the total circulating Bitcoin supply by the end of 2025.

“We see Bitcoin ETFs as on the cusp of approvals at major wirehouses/large private bank platforms in Q3/Q4,” Bernstein analysts Gautam Chhugani and Mahika Sapra wrote in a note to clients.

FUD of the Week

• US prosecutors oppose Ethereum dev’s motion to reduce 5-year sentence

Officials with the U.S. Justice Department have written a letter opposing former Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith’s motion to reduce his 2022 sentence for violating sanctions on North Korea.

• ‘Pharma Bro’ claims Barron Trump holds private keys to DJT token

Martin Shkreli, also known as the “Pharma Bro,” now claims Donald Trump’s 18-year-old son, Barron Trump, launched the TrumpCoin token with his father’s approval and holds the private keys to its smart contract address.

• 41% of top ZK airdrop wallets have already sold everything — Nansen

Nearly 41% of the top wallets that received the new zkSync (ZK) token in its June 17 airdrop sold their entire allocation within a day, contributing to a 34.5% drop in ZK’s price.

Top Magazine Pieces of the Week

• ‘Rock star complex’ saw Tyler Did It round trip 1K ETH: NFT Collector
• Ethereum’s recent pullback could be a gift: Dynamo DeFi, X Hall of Flame