Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao will pay a $175 million release bond and agree to return to the United States 14 days before his Feb. 23, 2024 sentencing — possibly allowing him to return to Dubai. In a Nov. 21 bond document filed in a Seattle federal court, Zhao agreed to share with the court where he would reside and that a warrant could be issued for his arrest if he fails to show up for his court date. Failure to appear in court carries a $250,000 fine and a maximum of 10 years in jail. Zhao posted $15 million in a trust account seperate from his bond and agreed to forfeit it if he fails to adhere to his bond conditions. It also lists two guarantors to respectively post $250,000 and $100,000. Zhao pleaded guilty to a violation of the Bank Secrecy Act which carries an 18-month sentence, but The New York Times on Nov. 21 that prosecutors are open to slapping him with a longer sentence. The U.S. is expected to review Zhao’s bail order. If a judge denies review of the order, it will become effective on Nov. 27 at 5 pm Washington time. If the judge grants a review before that date, Zhao must stay in the U.S. until a decision is made. A New Zealand dollar-pegged stablecoin has gone live through a partnership with New Zealand crypto exchange Easy Crypto and Australian blockchain development firm Labrys. In a Nov. 22 announcement, Labrys and Easy Crypto said the NZDD will be backed 1:1 with cash in trust and regulated by the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority. It’s initially live on Ethereum but has plans to expand to Polygon, the BNB Smart Chain, Arbitrum, Optimism and Coinbase’s Base. Easy Crypto was motivated to launch the stablecoin as it claimed it was harder for New Zealanders to maximize their profits when using U.S. dollar-pegged tokens. Easy Crypto co-founder and CEO Janine Grainger said the NZDD bridges the gap with traditional finance and claimed it would “move NZ forward as a nation, giving us a digital, programmable currency that can do everything the NZD can do.” Data from DeFiLlama reveals that during the height of the DeFi Summer, Solana achieved a Total Value Locked (TVL) of $9.9 billion from 55.1 million transactions, accomplishing this with significantly less infrastructure than it has now. The recent and anticipated airdrops from various Solana projects have shifted focus toward the platform. As more people enter the world of crypto, Solana is increasingly becoming their first choice owing to its affordability, speed, and user-friendliness, a deal sweetened by the prospect of receiving airdrops. With free tokens offered by an accessible platform, why would new users need to look elsewhere? Potential airdrops are another incentive that will attract users to Solana. While most of Ethereum’s major DApps have already conducted airdrops, only a few of Solana’s dapps have done so. While market conditions are improving daily, signaling a potential bull market on the horizon, these platforms will expand and attract more capital. This should, in turn, lead to more frequent airdrops. Consider a scenario where person A informs person B about receiving easy value from an airdrop in the crypto world. Naturally, person B will have their curiosity piqued and will likely emulate person A’s actions in the hope of benefiting from such opportunities. Such chain reactions will be easily facilitated by Solana. The chain’s infrastructure has advanced significantly, expanding the surrounding community rapidly. The success of the recent Breakpoint conference at such a critical juncture positions Solana at the forefront of these exciting developments. CoinList founder Andy Bromberg says spot crypto ETFs are "watered-down crypto" and the industry should instead focus on spurring adoption through self-custody. You can find these stories and more at the link below:
Newsletter #274
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