“Do not be embarrassed by your failure, learn from them, and start again.”
-Richard Branson

--NO TAX ON CRYPTO PROFITS!--

Another amazing day in the world of Digital Assets. Lot of topic getting good coverage so let's dive in. It appears Snowden had a hand in the launching of Zcash which is the privacy coin and the technology used by JPMorgan. Multi-billion dollar Dubai-based real estate developer DAMAC Properties has started accepting Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) payments for its luxury abodes. Deus Finance was exploited for the second time in two months, with the attacker gaining more than $13.4 million of cryptocurrency. CFTC is considering direct clearing of derivatives by FTX.US. Lastly looks like META's play on the Metaverse is more expensive and difficult than the Zuckster thought. There are a lot of great podcast today so read, watch, and LISTEN!

BREAKING

• Do Kwon Buys $125 Million Bitcoin (Trustnodes)

TOP COVERAGE

• Edward Snowden: Reveals he was one of six who helped launch Zcash (Cointelegraph | Decrypt | Coindesk | Forbes | BIC | Forbes)
• How Deus Finance Was Exploited for $13.4M on Fantom (Coindesk | EWN | CryptoPotato | TB | BIC | Bitcoinist)
• Meta’s Reality Labs posts $2.9B loss: 'I recognize it’s expensive' says Zuck (Cointelegraph | TB | Blockworks | Bitcoinist | Coindesk)
• Panama Legislature Passes Bill Regulating Crypto (Coindesk | Coindesk | Blockworks | Bitcoinist | BIC | TB | Bitcoinist)
• Telegram Adds Crypto to Messaging App, Opening Path to Payments (Coindesk | Decrypt | Cointelegraph | Bitcoinist | Blockworks | TDH)
• Goldman Debuts Bitcoin-Backed Loan (UToday | Coindesk | TB | Cointelegraph | NewsBTC)
• Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Continues to Move Higher After a 5.56% Increase (Usethebitcoin | CryptoPotato | Bitcoin Magazine | Cointelegraph)
• Colorful billionaire’s Dubai real estate firm now accepts BTC and ETH (Cointelegraph | UToday | Bitcoinist | Finbold)
• CFTC Sets May Roundtable to Weigh Ideas Sparked by FTX’s Derivatives Push (Coindesk | TB | BIC | Forbes)
• $600 million Ronin hack (TB | Cointelegraph | CryptoPotato | TDH)
• Finland Plans to Donate Seized Bitcoins to Help Ukraine: Report (Coindesk | Coindesk | CryptoPotato | Cryptoglobe)
• Michael van de Poppe: Trader flags BTC price levels to watch as Bitcoin still risks $30K 'ultimate bottom' and evaluates ApeCoin and FTM (Cointelegraph | Finbold | Finbold | TDH)
• Eric Schmidt: Ex-Google CEO Says He Owns Some Crypto, but is More Bullish on Web 3 (CryptoPotato | TB | Bitcoinist)
• McLaren Automotive enters the metaverse space with the launch of Web3 platform (Finbold | Bitcoinist | Cryptoglobe)
• Congressman introduces Digital Commodity Exchange Act to set up CFTC regime for crypto exchanges (TB | Coindesk | Decypt)
• OneFootball raises $300 million in Series D funding round (TB | Coindesk | Cointelegraph)
• Evmos launches blockchain to bring Ethereum Virtual Machine to Cosmos (Coindesk | NewsBTC | TB)
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CRYPTO MARKET WATCH

• Market Wrap: Cryptos Mixed as Bitcoin Trades Near $40K (Coindesk)
• Crypto Investments Lost an Average of $79.5 Million Each Week in April (Blockworks)

BITCOIN

Bullish

• Bitcoin Whale Holdings Hit Highest Level Since September As BTC Sees A Bullish Divergence (ZyCrypto)
• Bitcoin Back Over $40K as More Countries Embrace Crypto (Coindesk)
• Quant Explains Similarities Between Current And Summer 2020 Bitcoin Markets (NewsBTC)
• Bitcoin Supply In Loss Reaches Highest Value Since COVID Crash (Bitcoinist)
• Bitcoin (BTC) On-Chain Analysis: NVT Shows Undervaluation With Lowest Reading Since 2018 (BIC)
• First Mover Americas: Bitcoin Draws Premium in Yen Markets, FX Volatility Spikes (Coindesk)
• Gas Falls, Stocks Turn Green, Bitcoin Rises (Trustnodes)
• Bitcoin (BTC) MACD Nears First Bullish Cross In April (BIC)
• ‘Buying The Dip’: Bitcoin Mega Whales Scoop Up $1.6 Billion Worth Of BTC In Just 2 Days (ZyCrypto)
• Bitcoin Bounces From $37K Support; Resistance at $40K-$43K (Coindesk)
• Bitcoin Prices Bounce Back After Falling To Lowest Since Mid-March—Here’s Why (Forbes)

Neutral

• Bitcoin Holding Support; Resistance at $43K (Coindesk)
• TA: Bitcoin Near Make-or-Break Levels, Why 100 SMA Is The Key (NewsBTC)
• Market Wrap: Bitcoin Stabilizes as Bearish Sentiment Pauses (Coindesk)
• Bitcoin set for volatile monthly close after BTC price 'checks all boxes' for major move (Cointelegraph)
• Bitcoin On-Chain Activity Turns Green, Will Price Action Follow? (Bitcoinist)

Bearish

• $27K 'max pain' Bitcoin price is ultimate buy-the-dip opportunity, says research (Cointelegraph)
• Bitcoin rejects $40K as US dollar strength hits 20-year high (Cointelegraph)
• Here's why Bitcoin bears aim to pin BTC under $39K ahead of Friday's $1.9B options expiry (Cointelegraph)
• Bitcoin Market Stays Fearful For Third Straight Week (NewsBTC)
• Bitcoin Trading Volume Continues To Remain At Unusually Low Values (Bitcoinist)
• Bitcoin Drops To $38K After Amazon Retraction On Accepting BTC Payments (NewsBTC | NewsBTC)
• Bitcoin Futures Basis Nears One-Year Lows, How Will This Affect BTC? (NewsBTC)

EVALUATING BITCOIN’S RISK-ON TENDENCIES

ALTCOINS

• Altcoin That’s Exploded 3,509% in 2022 Set for Imminent Launch on Coinbase (TDH)
• New Altcoins Severely Underperforming Bitcoin (UToday)
• Morgan Stanley Says Over 100 Crypto Assets Were Created in the Past Week, Mainly on DeFi Exchanges (Coindesk)
• Small Cap Altcoins Take April Shower, Will May Bring New Growth? (NewsBTC)
• TA: Ethereum Faces Key Challenge, Why Fresh Decline Still Possible (NewsBTC)
• Ethereum May Rally To $3k If Bulls Hold On To Long Position (NewsBTC)
• Cardano ($ADA), $XRP, and Dogecoin ($DOGE) Among South Korean Investors’ Largest Crypto Holdings (Cryptoglobe)
• 170.5 Billion SHIB Bought by These Whales in Past 2 Days: Report (UToday)
• Elon Musk’s Twitter Plans Bolster Huge Use Cases For Dogecoin As A ‘Currency’ (ZyCrypto)
• Dogecoin Whale Activity Skyrockets As Analyst Envisions An Elon Musk-Induced “Big Price Move” (ZyCrypto)
• Dogecoin Plummets As Investors’ Doubts After Musk Twitter Takeover Unfold (NewsBTC)
• Dogecoin Trading Volumes Spike Amid Whales' Utility: Details (UToday | Coindesk)
• LUNA Supply Drops to All-Time Low – But Don’t Call It Deflationary (Coindesk)
• AAVE Is up 55% Since Launch of AAVE v3 Liquidity Protocol, Here's Why (UToday)
• Litecoin (LTC) Trading Volume Crashes More Than $590 Billion in Quarterly Low (BIC)
• Apecoin (APE) Increased By 90% Within 10 Days (BIC)
• ApeCoin Becomes Largest Metaverse Token, Surpassing MANA, SAND, AXS (Decrypt)
• ApeCoin (APE) hits a new all-time high ahead of this week’s Otherside land auction (Cointelegraph)
• Optimism Announces the Much-Awaited OP Token and Airdrop (BIC | Coindesk | CryptoPotato)
• 0x (ZRX) Makes Unsuccessful Attempt at Breaking out From 374-Day Resistance (BIC)
• Synthetix (SNX) rallies in anticipation of L2 Curve Wars and Optimism airdrop announcement (Cointelegraph)
• STEPN (GMT) Reaches Yet Another All-Time High: Multi-Coin Analysis (BIC | Cointelegraph)
• The Graph (GRT) Develops Inverse Head and Shoulders Pattern (BIC)

CBDCs/STABLECOINS

• The Philippines will launch pilot wholesale central bank digital currency project (Cointelegraph)
• Acting OCC comptroller calls for standards on stablecoins (Cointelegraph | Coindesk)
• Congressman Emmer preps bill to put some stablecoins under the SEC's authority (TB)
• Hong Kong watchdog warns stablecoins could undermine HKD in CBDC paper (Cointelegraph)

ANALYST'S CORNER

• Dave the Wave: $25K Target if Bitcoin Crashes, According to Analyst Who Accurately Called May 2021 Collapse (TDH)
• Glassnodes: Bitcoin is 40%+ down from its ATH, but on-chain analysts say it's ‘starting to bottom out’ (Cointelegraph)
• Santiment: Uniswap Surpassing Cardano in One Crucial Metric (TDH)
• Justin Bennett: Crypto Analyst Says Massive Correction Awaits Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), Predicts Timing of Next Bull Market (TDH)
• Coinmarketcap: Crypto community with 83% historical accuracy sets Bitcoin price for May 31, 2022 - $46,887.96 (Finbold)
• Coinmarketcap: Crypto community with 80% historical accuracy sets Ethereum price for May 31, 2022 - $3,634.39 (Finbold)
• Coinmarketcap: Crypto community with 77% historical accuracy sets XRP price for May 31, 2022 - $.8188 (Finbold)
• Coinmarketcap: Crypto community with 70% historical accuracy sets Dogecoin price for May 31, 2022 - $.1538 (Finbold)
• Coinmarketcap: Crypto community projects over 30% upside for Polkadot by May 31, 2022 - $22.88 (Finbold)
• Altcoin Sherpa: Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover Will Fuel Major Rally for $DOGE, Says Top Crypto Trader (TDH)
• Crypto Rising: 80% Of Major Investors See Bright Future For Cryptocurreny, Survey Shows (Bitcoinist)

NOTABLE VOICES

• Mishi Choudhary: US needs 'electronic tokens' with functionality of cash — Software Freedom Law Center legal director (Cointelegraph)
• Chris Giancarlo: Former CFTC chiefs critique US regulation at Bahamas crypto conference (TB | Cointelegraph)
• Him Das: FinCEN acting director says PATRIOT Act provision isn't 'right sized' for crypto enforcement (Cointelegraph)
• Jaime Rogozinski: Why WallStreetBets Took Off (Coindesk)
  
• Nayib Bukele: Here’s The Bitcoin Prediction El Salvador’s President Had To Abandon (Bitcoinist)
• Roger Ver: Here's How Bitcoin May Lose Its Key Revolutionary Property, Roger Ver Claims (UToday)
• Arthur Hayes: Extreme HODLing Could Completely Destroy Bitcoin (BTC), According to Ex-BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes (TDH)
• Anatoly Yakovenko: Solana Co-Founder Believes Bitcoin Must Switch to PoS – Here’s Why (BIC)
• Cathie Wood: ARK's CEO says 'Doesn't Make Sense' No Bitcoin Spot ETF Yet (Decrypt | TB)
• Eric Adams: 'Crypto and blockchain are here to stay' in NYC (TB | Cointelegraph | CryptoPotato | BIC)
• Sam Bankman-Fried: FTX CEO Describes Yield Farming as a Ponzi Scheme (BIC)
• Chad Knight: NFT Artist for the Wilder World (Coindesk)
• Brad Garlinghouse: Ripple CEO Says Demand for His Firm’s $XRP-Powered ODL Product Has “Skyrocketed” (Cryptoglobe | TDH)
• Tony Blair and Bill Clinton: Speak at Crypto Bahamas (Trustnodes | Trustnodes)
• Ralf Glabischnig: Crypto Valley and the Crypto Oasis (Cointelegraph)
• Fabio Panetta: European Central Bank Rep Says Satoshi Doesn’t Understand Money and Payments, Urges Global Crypto Regulation (TDH)
• Samson Mow: “DeFi is not decentralized at all,” says former Blockstream executive (Cointelegraph | Bitcoinist)

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

• Astra Protocol Appoints Another Ex-Trump Official to Key Role (BIC)
• Apollo Hires JPMorgan's Christine Moy to Lead Digital Assets Strategy (Coindesk | TB | Blockworks)

ACCEPTANCE/ADOPTION

• A Brief Overview of Crypto Payments in 5 Charts (Coindesk)
• How Human-Centered Design Can Fix Crypto Payments (Coindesk)
• Will Competitors Follow Fidelity’s Lead in 401(k) Bitcoin Offering? (Blockworks)
• Bitcoin Payments Remain in Their Infancy But There Are Green Shoots Everywhere (Coindesk)
• Bitcoin's Unfinished Business: Why Micropayments Still Matter (Coindesk)
• One-fifth of businesses in El Salvador now accept Bitcoin: NBER study (Cointelegraph)
• SHIB, DOGE Now Accepted by Global Real-Estate Company for Rent Payments: Details (UToday | Cryptoglobe)
• Are Crypto ‘Legal Tender’ Laws Even Necessary? (Coindesk)
• Bitcoin Payments: The Beginning of Something Extraordinary (Coindesk)
• Can Crypto Deliver on Private Transactions in Cashless World? (Coindesk)
• Home sweet hodl: How a Bitcoiner used BTC to buy his mom a house (Cointelegraph)
• Mexican Remittances Are the Continent’s Largest; Crypto Companies Want a Cut (Coindesk)

ACQUISITIONS/PARTNERSHIPS

• Propy partners with Abra to provide crypto-backed real estate loans (Cointelegraph | Coindesk)
• Data firm Kaiko acquires Kesitys in quantitative analytics push (TB)

LIGHTNING COMMUNITY DIAMOND HANDS PARTNERSHIP SEEKS TO FURTHER BITCOIN ADOPTION IN ASIA

ETFs/FUNDS

• BlackRock Lists Blockchain ETF Days After Similar Fidelity Launch (Blockworks | Cointelegraph | TDH)
• Crypto Funds’ Easy On-Ramp Can Be a Big Problem Without the Right Guidance (Coindesk)
• Yieldstreet Partners With Osprey for Latest Crypto Fund (Coindesk)
• Hashdex Expands Offerings to Europe With Latest Crypto ETP (Blockworks)

WEB3/GAMING

NFTS

• The NFT sector is projected to move around $800 billion over next 2 years: Report (Cointelegraph | Bitcoinist)
• NFT traders STEPN to a new groove — Is move-to-earn the future of fitness or another fad? (Cointelegraph)
• Domain Names Are Fueling the Latest NFT Craze on Ethereum—Here’s Why (Decrypt)
• FTX’s Mercedes F1 Ethereum NFTs Come With a Piece of the Actual Car (Decrypt | Bitcoinist)
• Coinbase NFT Marketplace Beta Sees Less Than 900 Transactions in Opening Week (Coindesk | Decrypt)
• Ethereum Name Service NFTs Overtake BAYC in Daily Trade Volume (Coindesk)
• NFT Subscriptions Are Better Paywalls (Coindesk)
• DeGods DAO Buys $625,000 Basketball Team In Ice Cube’s Big3 League (Decrypt | EWN | Bitcoinist)
• MoonPay's new minting-as-a-service tool bills itself as 'AWS for NFTs' (TB)
• Goldman Sachs Says It Is Exploring the Tokenization of Real Assets (Coindesk)
• Fuzzle Brings NFTs to Life Through Exciting AI Applications (Bitcoinist)
• Solana's Okay Bears Top All Ethereum NFT Projects With $18M in Sales in One Day (Decrypt | EWN)
• Ukraine launches website for donating and buying NFTs (TB | Cointelegraph)

Metaverse

• What is The Sandbox? The Ethereum NFT Metaverse Game (Decrypt)
• Crypto Index Tracker – Metaverse Fares Worst in Crypto Sell-Off (TDH)
• PSA to crypto world: Lock in some gains before going Metaverse (Cointelegraph)
• Asian Billionaires’ Hotel Groups Build Virtual Lands In Decentraland And The Sandbox’s Metaverse (Forbes)
• Next Earth is unstoppable: 12.5M USD strategic investment in Limitless, plans the largest Metaverse Fund (Bitcoinist)

DAOs

• What Is Moloch DAO? Funding Public Goods in the Ethereum Ecosystem (Decrypt)
• Bright Moments DAO Brings Crypto to Life at NFT Art Berlin (Decrypt)

Games

• 'Magic: The Gathering' Creator to Design New Game Mode for 'Blockchain Brawlers' (Decrypt)
• Minecraft devs draw up a pledge for studios to engage responsibly with crypto (Finbold | Cointelegraph)

DEFI/CEFI

• DeFi Trading Platform Hashflow Introduces Bridgeless Cross-Chain Swaps (Coindesk)
• Here Is How to Improve DeFi Governance Using Ideas from Computational Voting Theory (Coindesk)
• U.S. Platforms Remain Hesitant to Further Interest-Bearing Crypto Offerings Without Regulatory Clarity (BIC)
• How Wrapped Bitcoin And TradFi Products Muddy On-Chain Analysis (Bitcoinist)

EXCHANGES

• Following Insider Trading Accusations, Coinbase Moves to More Stringent Review System (Blockworks)
• The Crypto Company Aiding El Salvador’s Bitcoin Adoption (Coindesk)
• Bybit expands into Brazil after Senate backing of cryptocurrency regulation (TB | Coindesk)
• BlockQuake™ Announces Zero Fees Trading (Bitcoinist)
• PayPal CEO says firm to 'double down' on digital wallet efforts (TB)
• First Mover Asia: Trading on Indian Crypto Exchange Continues to Slump Following New Tax Laws; Cryptos Higher (Coindesk)

BLOCKCHAINS

• Ethereum strives to migrate into a brighter future: Report (Cointelegraph)
• 'Hyper-deflationary' network launches mainnet amid rising inflation (Cointelegraph)
• Seven infrastructure firms add support for Pyth oracle network on Solana (TB)
• Solana DAOs can now bug you to vote with phone calls and texts (Cointelegraph)
• Solana (SOL) Now Base Currency on Bitrue: Details (UToday)
• Welly to Join Shiba Inu Burning Bandwagon (UToday | Cryptoglobe)
• Iota Fears EU Could Stifle Growth of Internet-of-Things Technologies (UToday)
• What are ERC-20 Tokens, Gas and Ether? Ethereum's Architecture Explained (Decrypt)
• What Are Smart Contracts and How Do They Work? (Decrypt)
• How Crypto Payments Shift Revenue to Creators, Not Platforms (Coindesk)

WEIGHING THE OPTIONS OF BITCOIN PRIVATE KEY MANAGEMENT

MINING

• Bitcoin Miner Argo Raises Hashrate Guidance Thanks to Intel Mining Chips (Coindesk | Coindesk)
• Bitcoin miner Argo saw a 291% revenue increase in 2021 (TB)
• Bitcoin miner Riot announces massive 1 gigawatt expansion plan in Texas (TB | Coindesk)
• Battered Bitcoin Miners Increasingly Turn to Debt Financing (Coindesk)

REGULATIONS/LEGISLATIONS

• IRS And Foreign Tax Enforcers Warn NFTs Pose Growing Money Laundering Risks (Forbes)
• Congresspeople grill US AML watchdog over approach to crypto self-custody (TB)
• Ripple's Fight Against the SEC: How the Case Is Going and How it Might End (Decrypt | ZyCrypto | BIC)
• New York Prosecutors Present Clear Legal Framework Related To Crypto Crimes (Bitcoinist)
• Oklahoma lawmakers advance bitcoin mining legislation (TB)
• How Western Sanctions on Russia Could Make Crypto an International Reserve Currency (Coindesk)
• EU Crypto Laundering Plans Could Overwhelm Authorities, Bank Regulator Says (Coindesk)
• India to Give Clarity on Tax Provision Within Two Months: Sources (Coindesk | BIC)
• India’s Legislative Crypto Decisions Will Impact Nepal; Regulator Restricts Apps & Websites (BIC)
• Are Crypto Sanctions Working in Europe? (Blockworks)
• The UK's FCA Says It Has Been Focused on the More Negative Side of the Crypto Debate (Coindesk)
• Nigeria Rethinks Crypto Ban, Stakeholders Hold Talks (Bitcoinist)
• Russian security agency wants exchanges to share data with crime investigators (Cointelegraph)

MISC

• NYDFS encourages crypto firms to use blockchain analytics services (TB)
• Miami Startup Offering ‘Zero Down’ Mortgages; Crypto as Collateral (BIC)
• First non-crypto company issues 'pre-IPO' equity tokens on European Digital Assets Exchange (TB)
• US Congressman Madison Cawthorn Could Face Charges for Promoting a Crypto Pump and Dump Scheme (CryptoPotato)
• Crypto Users Spill Their Deepest Secrets – From Triumphant to Tragic (BIC)
• Cashing out Bitcoin to save a dog’s life from cancer is 'the moon for us' (Cointelegraph)
• On Freedom Day, Bitcoin gives South Africans a stake in their financial future (Cointelegraph)
• Bahamas Poised to Become Global Digital Asset Hub With Crypto Conference (BIC)

FOLLOW DAT MONEY

• Three Arrows Capital to Move Headquarters to Dubai, Raise External Capital (Coindesk | BIC | TB)
• John Legend's Our Happy Company Raises $7.5 Million for NFT Music Platform (Decrypt | Coindesk)
• Peter Thiel's Founders Fund co-leads $20 million Series A for Ondo Finance (TB | Coindesk)
• Blockchain Provider Venly Nabs $22M in Series A to Build Web3 Products (Blockworks)
• Crypto wallet firm Venly raises $23 million in Series A funding (TB)
• Argent Raises $40M to Make Crypto Wallets Easier to Use (Coindesk | TB)
• FTX Announces $1 Billion Charity Fund and First Print Ad Campaign Starring Gisele Bundchen (Decrypt)

ATTACKS/HACKS/SCAMS

• Cloudflare Mitigates Largest HTTPS DDoS Attack Aimed At A Crypto Company (Bitcoinist)
• Illegal Crypto Exchange Busted. The List Of Seized Assets Is Incredible (Bitcoinist)
• Here's Exactly How Hacker Stole $13.4 Million from This DeFi Platform (UToday)
• Blockchain and crypto can be a boon for tracking financial crimes (Cointelegraph)
• Why The CEO Of This Crypto Exchange Was Arrested For Leaking Secrets To North Korea (Bitcoinist | CryptoPotato | UToday)

PODCASTS

• The Breakdown: It’s Official: A Second Country Has Made Bitcoin Legal Tender
• The Crypto Conversation: Pool - Enabling users to monetize and share their data
• Stephan Livera Podcast: SLP369 Daniel Frumkin - Calculating Bitcoin Mining Profitability
• The Wolf of All Streets: Why 3rd Richest Man In Mexico Invests In Bitcoin And Plays Golf | Ricardo Salinas
• Untold Stories: Cooking Up Crypto Cashflow with Dr. Julian Hosp
• Bitcoin Magazine: Governments Will Make Bitcoin Adoption Difficult w/ Jay Gould
• On The Brink: Bruce Fenton on running for Senate in New Hampshire
• Decrypt Daily: April 27: LGB Coin Class Action, Armstrong on Musk, NY BTC Mining Law