Table of Contents
While our news feed covers the top stories and market trends of the week, here's a summary of other developments in the crypto sphere that deserve our attention.
FTX's Shortfall
FTX has a "massive shortfall" in assets, according to a press release on Thursday which detailed a presentation laid out during the now-defunct crypto exchange's Chapter 11 case.
At the time of writing, US$2.2 billion of total assets have been identified in the wallets of the accounts associated with FTX.com (using current spot prices), of which US$694 million are classified as the most liquid “Category A Assets” that include stablecoins, fiat, BTC, and ETH.
According to the press release, other assets include US$385 million of customer receivables, as well as significant claims against FTX's sister company Alameda Research and related parties.
Related: SBF: Intrigue Finally Coming Into View
It was also revealed that Alameda borrowed US$9.3 billion from FTX wallets and accounts.
“The exchanges' assets were highly commingled, and their books and records are incomplete and, in many cases, totally absent,” John J. Ray III, the CEO and chief restructuring officer of the FTX Debtors, said in the press release.
“For these reasons, it is important to emphasize that this information is still preliminary and subject to change," he added.
FTX filed for bankruptcy in November.
Huawei Partners With Web3 Leaders
Chinese smartphone giant Huawei has partnered with some of the Web 3 industry's key players, including Polygon, Morpheus Lab, Deepbrain Chain, and Blockchain Solutions.
Announcing the partnership at its Asia-Pacific partner summit last week in Bali, Indonesia, Huawei said that it is planning to integrate blockchain technology through the partnership.
Huawei launched its blockchain services in 2018. In April last year, the company airdropped its first batch of NFTs.
DCG Losses Climb to $1.1 Billion
DCG reported a whopping loss of $1.1 billion in 2022. In its Q4 2022 investor report, the crypto conglomerate attributed the majority of losses to its exposure to Three Arrows Capital (3AC) and Alameda Research.
“In addition to the negative impact of [bitcoin] and crypto asset price declines, last year’s results reflect the impact of the Three Arrows Capital (TAC) default upon Genesis,” DCG said in its fourth-quarter investor report.
DCG’s consolidated 2022 revenue came in at $719 million. Total assets came in at $5.3 billion with cash and liquid holdings of $262 million and investment assets of just $670 million.
Nonetheless, DCG said it “had hit a milestone regarding the restructuring of Genesis, pointing to a nonbinding term sheet agreement involving some of the main creditors.”
DCG filed for bankruptcy in January 2023.
Silvergate Tanks as Clients Flee
Crypto-friendly Silvergate Bank is facing mass client exits after it announced that it would need to review its books with auditors and accounting firms, and that it would delay filing its annual 10-K filing. The bank warned of headwinds and the possibility of inquiries from regulators and the Department of Justice, and warned its ability to "continue as a going concern" over the next year may be affected.
Coinbase, Circle, Paxos, Crypto.com, Bitstamp, Cboe Digital Markets, Galaxy Digital, and Gemini all suspended Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers and other business operations with the bank, days after LedgerX announced the same.
The news follows widespread layoffs at the bank - 40% of its staff, or 200 employees, were recently let go. Silvergate's share price has fallen by over 57%, to an all-time low of US$5.72, on the day's trading. Blockhead recently wrote about Susquehanna and Citadel's acquisitions of stakes in the bank, despite the troubles Silvergate is facing .
Related: Silvergate Bank: What the Market is Telling Us
Metaverse & NFT News
Yuga Labs to Launch Bitcoin NFT Collection
BAYC creator Yuga Labs is set to launch a new NFT collection on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Previously, Yuga's collections were mostly stored on Ethereum. Recent developments have allowed creators to mint NFTs on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Known as Bitcoin Ordinals, the NFT development allows creators to store all the data to a Bitcoin NFT such as full songs, videos and apps up to the full size of a Bitcoin block.
Bitcoin NFTs have divided the Bitcoin community, as some argue that the concept goes against Satoshi's original plan.
Related: Bitcoin Ordinals Are Disrupting NFTs But Here's Why Bitcoin Maxis Hate It
Nonetheless, Yuga Labs is exploring Bitcoin NFTs with its new collection called TwelveFold - a generative 300-piece collection. Yuga Labs cofounder Greg Solano described the it as a collection that “explores the relationship between time, mathematics, and variability.”
TwelveFold's 300 pieces will be sold at auction later this week but no specific date has been provided. Bids will be made in Bitcoin.
The move reaffirms that Bitcoin NFTs are here to stay. Sorry maxis.
Binance Launches AI NFT Generator, Hits 10K Mints in 2.5 Hours
Binance has launched and NFT generator powered by artificial intelligence, known as Bicasso.
On Wednesday, Binance announced the new feature in beta and hit 10,000 NFT mints in just 2.5 hours after its introduction.
Here’s a fun new #Binance AI product called #Bicasso 🎨," Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao tweeted. "You can turn your creative visions into NFTs with AI. Give it a try and show me what you make with it."
Here’s a fun new #Binance AI product called #Bicasso 🎨
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) March 1, 2023
You can turn your creative visions into NFTs with AI. Give it a try and show me what you make with it.
Beta version live now, limited to 10k mints.
➡️ https://t.co/QeQS7oh9uH pic.twitter.com/22Dllhg2sP
The AI system works in a similar way to other AI-art platforms including DALL-E and Midjourney in which users upload an image or inputs for AI to create a brand new image. Users can mint these images as NFTs on Binance's BNBchain.
As the generator is still in beta, Binance tweeted that issues are still being ironed out.
Related: Binance CEO: Forbes Does "Not Understand Exchange Basics"
“Our team is currently working to increase the server abilities to reduce errors and to make the minting process smoother," the tweet stated. "Though our beta quota of 10k NFTs is running out, you can still sign up to the waitlist for the full version."
Looks like you're all enjoying #Bicasso!
— Binance (@binance) March 1, 2023
Our team is currently working to increase the server abilities to reduce errors and to make the minting process smoother.
Though our beta quota of 10k NFTs is running out, you can still sign up to the waitlist for the full version. https://t.co/rgOozrTedG
The world of Web3 can be quite a whirlwind. Here at Blockhead, we understand how busy crypto is keeping you, so we kindly send out two newsletters each week: BlockBeat for a wrap-up of the week’s news and Blockhead Brief for weekend happenings as well as what to look forward to in the week ahead. To avoid FOMO and access member-only features, click here to subscribe.
