Good Morning,

Here's a quick preview of today’s content: The Fed cuts interest rates (finally), Nvidia announces a $683M investment into a new AI infrastructure company, The Ethereum Foundation is formally entering the artificial intelligence race with the launch of a new unit, the “dAI Team”, CME Group to launch options on Solana and XRP futures next month, Democrats in Congress are questioning if David Sacks is in violation of his duties, and so much more

Happy almost Friday - Let’s dive in.

Market Snapshot

Click here to learn more about the Gannon’s portfolios and subscribe to the strategies on Autopilot.*

• As most expected, the FOMC lowers the benchmark Fed funds rate by 25 bps to a range between 4% and 4.25%

  • Crypto and other assets typically benefit from rate cuts that increase financial liquidity

  • BTC hovers around $115,300, down nearly -1% over the past 24 hours

  • ETH is relatively unchanged at $4,450

  • XRP and SOL are both down -1% at $3.02 and $235, respectively, while BNB is flat at $954

  • BTC ETPs saw a net inflow of 20,685 BTC last week

• Despite institutional demand outpacing new Bitcoin supply, realized and implied volatility remain historically low

Market Predictions

• Bettors on Kalshi are predicting when will OpenSea launch a token?

• Trade your predictions on a range of events, only on Kalshi

• Sign up with code LIT and get a $20 bonus when you trade $100

Headline Roundup
^{_{The major headlines driving crypto markets}}

• A golden statue of President Trump holding a Bitcoin has been placed outside the US capital - see here

• Federal Reserve cuts interest rates for the first time this year - full breakdown here

• Kalshi partners with Solana and Base on the launch of an ecosystem hub designed “to support builders, traders, and creators” (TB)

• Michael Saylor pushes crypto narrative at Bitcoin Treasuries Unconference (BM)

• Kraken sees a handful of senior execs depart (CD)

• U.S. retail investors buy nearly twice as much BTC as ETH (TD)

• Two dormant Bitcoin whales move upwards of 2,000 BTC in the past three days (DC)

• U.S. SEC approves "accelerated basis" listing standards for crypto ETFs (TB)

• Researchers find $40M in “risk-free” profits from mispriced markets on Polymarket (DC)

• Kraken announces a partnership with Circle to expand access to USDC and launch support for Circle’s euro-backed stablecoin (BW)

• Bitwise, Defiance, Tuttle, and T-Rex file five new crypto ETFs (DC)

• Bullish secures a BitLicense from the NY State Department of Financial Services (BW)

• Forward Industries files to raise $4B through an ATM equity offering to expand its SOL holdings (DC)

• xStocks issuer, Backed, registers in Switzerland to avoid whitelisting tokenized Tesla shares (DC)

• Metaplanet establishes two subsidiaries, Bitcoin Japan Inc. and Metaplanet Income Corp. (CD)

• Japan’s SBI Shinsei Bank partners with Singapore-based Partior and Japan’s DeCurret DCP to explore multicurrency tokenized deposits (CT)

• Bybit signs an MOU with Da Nang People’s Committee to advance Vietnam's crypto future (CD)

• Ethereum Layer 2 network Mantle completes upgrade making the it the largest ZK rollup by TVL (TD)

• Flipster, a crypto perp trading platform, announces a partnership with World Liberty Financial (CD)

• Layer 2 network Taiko integrates Chainlink Data Streams to deliver reliable on-chain market data (BW)

• Hex Trust adds custody and staking of Lido’s stETH, Ethereum’s largest liquid staking token (CD)

Venture Capital

• Nvidia announces a $683M investment in Nscale, a UK-based AI infrastructure company (CT)

• Mavryk, a layer-1 blockchain, raises $10M in an investment led by MultiBank Group (CD)

• Bio Protocol raises $6.9M in a seed funding round led by Arthur Hayes’ Maelstrom Fund (TB)

M&A Announcements

• Ark Invest acquires $8.3M worth of Bullish shares (TB)

• The Ether Machine files a draft S-4 registration with the SEC for its planned IPO via merger with Dynamix (TB)

• DeFi Development Corp. acquires an additional 62,745 SOL (TB)

• Thumzup Media Corporation announces its acquisition of 7.5M Dogecoin tokens (TB)

• Culture Group to add 7,500 Bitcoin to its reserve once its acquisition of Pallas Capital is finalized (TB)

Launches

• CME Group to launch options on Solana and XRP futures next month (TB)

• The Ethereum Foundation is formally entering the artificial intelligence race with the launch of a new unit, the “dAI Team” (TD)

• REX-Osprey to launch the first U.S.-listed spot ETFs for XRP and DOGE under the tickers XRPR and DOJE (CD)

• Metaplanet launches Metaplanet Income Corp. in Miami to scale Bitcoin income and derivatives operations (TB)

• Quantexa introduces an AML solution for mid-size and community banks (DC)

• Wormhole unveils a new W 2.0 tokenomics plan, increased earning opportunities for token holders (TB)

• LMAX Group launches perpetual futures contracts for BTC and ETH (FM)

• Botanix, an EVM compatible Bitcoin sidechain, unveils its yield-bearing Bitcoin standard (TD)

• MoneyGram launches stablecoin-powered app in Colombia (BW)

• Global online CFD broker Axi launches fiat-settled crypto perpetual contracts (FM)

Regulation

• Democrats in Congress are questioning if David Sacks, the U.S. crypto czar, is violating his "special government employee" status (CD)

• Coinbase files a letter with the DOJ urging federal preemption of state crypto laws (DC)

• Members of Congress meet with figures in the crypto industry to discuss issues and potential laws related to a Bitcoin reserve (CT)

• New York regulator advises banks to consider using blockchain analytics when screening customers’ wallets (TB)

• The UK’s FCA launches another consultation on standards for crypto firms mirroring traditional finance rules (DC)

• BitGo Europe secures approval from German regulator BaFin to expand into regulated crypto trading (CD)

• OFAC has sanctioned two Iranians and multiple firms in Hong Kong and the UAE (DC)

Cybersecurity

• Marginfi patches a vulnerability in its flash loan mechanism that placed $160M in user deposits at risk (BW)

• TaskUs alleges to have concealed the scale of a breach that exposed Coinbase user data (DC)

Extra Reads

• Proponents say prediction markets can provide a real service to the world by providing it with better information about nearly everything, but only if insiders are free to participate - Let insiders trade

• The next phase of crypto investing belongs to those who treat this space as a dynamic alpha-centric market where strategy, speed, and sophistication are decisive - Now is the Time for Active Management in Digital Assets

• Stablecoins give anyone, anywhere, access to money that moves instantly, across borders, with incentives aligned to users rather than banks - Why We Need More Stablecoins

Chart of the Day

Exchange open interest turned positive for the first time since Sept 13

Meme Dump

Pls send us crypto memes to be featured in the newsletter 🤝

🐦 Follow Us: Visit our X account for daily updates on all things web3, DeFi, & crypto.

💰 Gannon’s Crypto Portfolio: Trade alongside Gannon’s crypto on Autopilot

💵 Litquidity Ventures: Accredited investors & qualified purchasers within the Litquidity community can gain access to alternative investments such as venture, late-stage growth, and private equity through Litquidity Ventures. Interested? Fill out this form.

☎️ Book a call with Lit: Want to pick Litquidity’s brain on business advice, insights, or just chat to say what’s up? Buy his time here.

📧 Launch your own newsletter: Have great content ideas and looking to launch your own publication? We highly recommend Beehiiv to get started.

*DISCLAIMER: Investment advice provided by Autopilot advisers LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Investing carries risks including the risk of the loss of principal. Performance doesn’t include fees. See more here.