Weekly Report | U.S. Department of Justice Authorized to Sell $6.5 Billion in Seized Bitcoin from Dark Web Silk Road; Trump "Hush Money" Case Verdict

Organizer: Luan Peng, ChainCatcher

"What Important Events Happened This Week (1.6-1.12)"

1、 Vitalik published a long article "d/acc: one year later," discussing AI safety and cryptocurrency applications

Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin published a long article "d/acc: one year later," reviewing the development of the d/acc (decentralized acceleration) concept proposed last year. The article focuses on three key issues: AI safety regulation, the role of cryptocurrency in d/acc, and public goods financing.

Vitalik proposed two major strategies for AI safety: first, establishing accountability by setting reasonable legal responsibilities for AI users, deployers, and developers; second, implementing a global "soft pause" mechanism at the industrial hardware level, which could reduce global computing power by 90-99% if necessary. Vitalik stated that d/acc has three major connections with cryptocurrency: value extension, early adopter community, and technological complementarity, particularly highlighting the contributions of the crypto community in areas like prediction markets and zero-knowledge proofs. The article also mentions innovative mechanisms including quadratic financing, retrospective public goods financing, and deep financing, emphasizing the importance of decentralized financing in promoting the development of open-source projects. Vitalik believes that despite the current challenges of rapid technological development and reduced global cooperation, new tools like AI and biotechnology provide humanity with the capability to address these challenges.

2、 Binance launches the third phase of the Megadrop project, Solv Protocol (SOLV)

Binance has launched the third phase of the Megadrop project, the Bitcoin staking protocol Solv Protocol (SOLV). Binance will list Solv Protocol (SOLV) at 18:00 Beijing time on January 17, and open trading pairs SOLV/USDT, SOLV/BNB, SOLV/FDUSD, and SOLV/TRY. Seed tags will be applied to SOLV.

3、 Michael Saylor willing to serve as cryptocurrency advisor in Trump administration

According to Bitcoin.com, MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor is willing to serve as a cryptocurrency advisor in the Trump administration, but he declined to disclose whether he has met with President Trump to discuss this issue.

When asked about the possibility of serving as a cryptocurrency advisor on the upcoming cryptocurrency advisory committee, Michael Saylor stated, "I am always willing to provide ideas for constructive digital asset policies, whether privately or publicly. If someone invites me to be a member of some digital asset advisory committee, I might do so."

Previous news reported that Trump’s son Eric Trump met with Michael Saylor at Mar-a-Lago and mentioned Bitcoin.

4、 U.S. Congress officially certifies Trump as president, Vance as vice president

According to Xinhua News Agency, U.S. Vice President Harris announced on January 6 local time during a joint session of Congress that members of both the House and Senate officially certified the electoral vote count for the 2024 U.S. presidential election, confirming that Trump received 312 electoral votes and was elected as the next president of the United States, with Vance elected as the next vice president.

5、 Nasdaq applies to raise the holding limit for BlackRock's Bitcoin spot ETF to 250,000 shares

According to a public regulatory document, Nasdaq has submitted an application to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise the holding limit for BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) from 25,000 shares to 250,000 shares. It should be noted that this application still requires SEC approval to take effect, and the holding limit refers to the maximum number of shares that a single investor or institution can hold in the ETF.

The head of Bitwise Alpha Strategies commented, "Given the ETF's increasing trading volume, it would be reasonable to raise the holding limit to at least 400,000 shares. Nasdaq and BlackRock's request is reasonable and supported by facts."

6、 Cipher Mining: 234 BTC mined in December, currently holding 1,344 BTC

According to Globenewswire, Bitcoin mining company Cipher Mining released an unaudited production and operational update report for December 2024, disclosing that its Bitcoin mining output last month was 234 BTC, having sold 271 BTC, with an end-of-month balance of approximately 1,344 BTC.

7、 Sources: Trump to announce $20 billion investment in new data centers

According to CNBC citing sources, President-elect Trump plans to announce a $20 billion investment in new data center construction. Hussain Sajwani, a billionaire real estate developer from the UAE and founder and chairman of Damac Properties, will be an investor in the new data centers proposed by President-elect Trump.

8、 Binance adjusts leverage and margin tiers for multiple U-based perpetual contracts

Binance has updated the leverage and margin tiers for U-based perpetual contracts including ALPACAUSDT, MASKUSDT, PENGUUSDT, VIRTUALUSDT, FARTCOINUSDT, AGLDUSDT, AIXBTUSDT, and AI16ZUSDT as of January 8, 2025, at 16:30 (UTC+8).

9、 Zhao Changpeng: DeSci can help scientific research labs raise funds

Binance co-founder Zhao Changpeng responded to a community question on the X platform, "After finishing the academy for the kids, will you consider raising funds to support disease prevention? For example, donating to labs?"

Zhao Changpeng stated that DeSci can help scientific research labs raise funds.

10、 U.S. Department of Justice authorized to sell $6.5 billion in Silk Road Bitcoin

An official confirmed to DB News today that the U.S. government has been authorized to liquidate 69,000 Bitcoins ($6.5 billion) from the Silk Road. Notably, this comes less than two weeks after the new administration took office, which had vowed not to sell any.

11、 Binance Alpha adds FAI, VERTAI, VADER

According to official news, Binance Alpha has added FAI, VERTAI, and VADER.

12、 Zhao Changpeng: Binance avoided over $4 billion in losses in 2024 through enhanced security measures

Zhao Changpeng stated on social media that Binance avoided over $4 billion in losses in 2024 through enhanced security measures.

13、 Circle donates $1 million to Trump’s inauguration committee

Circle co-founder and CEO Jeremy Allaire announced on the X platform that Circle has donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration committee.

He also stated that Trump’s inauguration committee accepts USDC payments.

14、 U.S. House Financial Services Committee appoints Bryan Steil as chair of the Digital Assets Subcommittee

Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett disclosed on social media that U.S. Congressman French Hill announced that the Financial Services Committee has determined several key positions, including:

• Vice Chair of the Committee: Bill Huizenga (MI-04)
• Chair of the Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence Subcommittee: Bryan Steil (WI-01)
• Chair of the National Security and Illicit Finance Subcommittee: Warren Davidson (OH-08)

15、 ai16z co-founder: setting up grants, projects built on Polygon using Eliza can contact for connection

ai16z co-founder Shaw stated on the X platform that he finds the idea of DePIN agents quite interesting. Although still in its early stages, one can imagine how it will develop. Additionally, Shaw revealed that projects built on Polygon using Eliza can reach out for connection, and they are currently setting up some grants but would like to know who is already developing.

16、 148th Ethereum ACDC meeting: the name of the seventh CL fork or upgrade should be named after the star "Gloas"

Christine Kim, Vice President of Galaxy Research, summarized the 148th Ethereum core developer consensus (ACDC) conference call. This week, developers unanimously agreed that the name of the seventh CL (Ethereum Consensus Layer) fork or upgrade should be named after the star "Gloas"; EF engineer Parithosh Jayanthi pointed out an open issue in the CL specification that developers need to resolve before launching Pectra Devnet 5; additionally, the hive tests for EL and CL clients have been updated, with most clients performing well in these tests.

17、 Ministry of Public Security: Fraud groups are upgrading criminal methods using blockchain, virtual currency, and AI technology

According to Beijing Business Today, the Ministry of Public Security reported at a press conference on January 10 that as of the end of 2024, over 53,000 Chinese suspects involved in telecom fraud from northern Myanmar have been arrested, successfully dismantling the "four major families" crime group in northern Myanmar.

The Ministry pointed out that despite significant achievements in combating crime, the situation remains severe. Fraud groups are continuously upgrading their criminal tools using new technologies such as blockchain, virtual currency, and AI intelligence. These gangs are tightly organized and engage in illegal activities such as app development, traffic promotion, and money laundering through cross-border collaboration.

Fraudsters tailor scam scripts for different age, occupation, and education groups, resulting in a wide range of victims. Although the telecom fraud parks near the Chinese border in northern Myanmar have been cleared, there are still many fraud dens abroad disguised as "technology parks" or "development zones."

18、 Shenzhen Development and Reform Commission solicits innovative application projects, focusing on blockchain cross-border convenient payment, digital RMB business circles, etc.

According to the official website, the Shenzhen Development and Reform Commission launched a solicitation for innovative application projects on January 9. The plan is aimed at government departments, enterprises, and institutions to collect application projects for new technologies such as artificial intelligence large models, generative artificial intelligence, and blockchain.

In the financial sector, the focus is on application scenarios such as big data risk control for small and micro enterprises, intelligent anti-fraud, blockchain cross-border convenient payment, and digital RMB business circles. The deadline for project submissions is January 22, 2025, and selected projects will be included in the application scenario opportunity list and receive "online + offline" promotional support.

19、 Grayscale considers adding various digital assets such as KAS, APT to its investment products

According to official news, Grayscale has announced various digital assets it is considering for future investment products, including but not limited to:

$KAS, $APT, $ARB, $TIA, $HBAR, $MNT, $SEI, $S, $STRK, $TON, $TRX, $AERO, $BNB, $ENA, $INJ, $JUP, $ONDO, $PENDLE, $RUNE, $DOGE, $IMX, $AKT, $FET, $AR, $EIGEN, $HNT, $JTO, $PYTH, $WLD.

Additionally, Grayscale listed assets not included in its cryptocurrency sector as of December 31, 2024:

$HYPE, $AI16Z, $VIRTUAL, $FLOCK, $GRASS, Hyperbolic, Prime Intellect, Sentient, Space and Time, Story Protocol.

20、 Cryptocurrency exchange VOOX Exchange receives $50 million investment from Pinnacle Capital

According to Cointelegraph, AI cryptocurrency exchange VOOX Exchange has received a $50 million investment from Pinnacle Capital. This round of financing will mainly be used for infrastructure construction, enhancing security measures, and strengthening marketing efforts.

Additionally, Pinnacle Capital will provide strategic guidance to ensure VOOX meets key regulatory compliance requirements while optimizing its business model for sustainable growth.

It is reported that VOOX Exchange was established in 2022 and is headquartered in Singapore. The platform offers a comprehensive set of features aimed at enhancing the trading experience for both novice and advanced traders, including spot trading, margin trading, futures trading, copy trading, and advanced AI trading strategies.

21、 RootData releases 2024 Upbit token listing category chart: Infrastructure tokens far exceed other categories

RootData released the 2024 Upbit listing category chart, showing that among the tokens listed on Upbit in 2024, infrastructure (Infra) tokens lead with 20 tokens, far exceeding other categories, followed by decentralized finance (DeFi) tokens. This trend may indicate Upbit's strong confidence in infrastructure projects.

22、 Binance Wealth Management, One-Click Buy, Flash Exchange, and Leverage to launch AIXBT, CGPT, and COOKIE

Binance Wealth Management, One-Click Buy, Flash Exchange, and Leverage will launch AIXBT by Virtuals (AIXBT), ChainGPT (CGPT), and Cookie DAO (COOKIE).

AIXBT, CGPT, and COOKIE capital preservation earning products will be available on Binance's capital preservation earning platform for subscription starting January 10, 2025, at 21:00 (UTC+8). Binance's full warehouse and isolated margin will add AIXBT, CGPT, and COOKIE as borrowable assets at 23:30 (UTC+8) on January 10.

23、 U.S. December seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls increased by 256,000, significantly exceeding expectations

U.S. December seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls increased by 256,000, with expectations of 160,000, and the previous value revised from 227,000 to 212,000, reaching a new high since March 2024.

24、 U.S. December unemployment rate at 4.1%, expected 4.20%, previous value 4.20%

According to Jin10, the U.S. December unemployment rate is 4.1%, with expectations of 4.20% and a previous value of 4.20%.

25、 U.S. regulators plan to strengthen customer protection for cryptocurrency accounts

U.S. regulators plan to strengthen customer protection for cryptocurrency accounts.

U.S. consumer banking regulators suggest that U.S. cryptocurrency companies should be responsible for refunds when customer accounts are hacked, aligning the standards for digital wallets with those of bank accounts.

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau stated on Friday that it hopes to mandate service providers to compensate consumers who lose funds due to hacking or unauthorized transactions. This move will force digital asset companies to enhance security and reserves to address operational threats.
The CFPB is seeking to expand the scope of the Electronic Funds Transfer Act to protect customers from payment fraud. The agency hopes to broaden the term "funds" to include any assets that "act or are used like money." The proposal states that this would include stablecoins, cryptocurrency tokens similar to digital dollars, and "any other similar alternative assets that serve as a medium of exchange or a means of payment for goods or services."

26、 Trump "hush money" case verdict: 34 counts found guilty, no punishment

According to CNN, Judge Juan Merchan ordered the unconditional release of Donald Trump.

According to Jin10 , a New York State Supreme Court judge ruled on the "hush money" case involving President-elect Trump, finding him guilty on 34 counts in this case, but due to his important position during the presidential transition process, he was released unconditionally with no punishment.

27、 Pump.fun founder: Dune analysis data is inaccurate, many addresses in total are bots and AI agents

The founder of Pump.fun responded to the previous claim that "only 0.408% of Pump.fun traders achieved profits over $10,000," stating that there are many issues with the analysis data.

1. It did not account for token purchases that have been bound to Raydium. Most profits were generated after the token binding.
2. It did not consider unrealized profits.
3. Among the over 13 million traders counted in the data, many are actually bots and AI agents. About 30% of wallets have only conducted one transaction, which cannot be real people.

The founder of Pump.fun told the data publisher that they should create what people want rather than destroy a platform with millions of users on-chain. For others, the founder of Pump.fun stated that trading tokens carries risks, and if one chooses to trade, they should consider the potential losses.

ChainCatcher previously reported that according to Dune data, most Pump.fun traders have not realized profits exceeding $10,000, with only about 55,296 addresses (0.408%) out of a total of 13,547,736 Pump.fun wallet addresses achieving profits over $10,000.

28、 After USD0++ decouples, Usual plans to activate revenue switch function and launch 1:1 early unstaking to stabilize the ecosystem

RWA stablecoin issuer Usual announced on the X platform that it has realized the significant community reaction to its staked stablecoin USD0++ decoupling from $1, and will launch a series of measures to address user concerns and stabilize the ecosystem.

It is reported that the "Revenue Switch" function is planned to be launched on January 13, allowing Usual Protocol to share its earnings from real-world assets and protocol operations with the community. The team expects monthly revenue of about $5 million, with an annual return rate exceeding 50% under current conditions, and these distributions will occur weekly to consolidate the actual value of USUAL, balance its economic model, and the income generated by the protocol. (The revenue switch function will officially activate when more than 50% of USUAL tokens are staked as USUAL x. If the requirement is not met, it will automatically activate on February 1, 2025. Once activated, 100% of the revenue (up to $5 million per month) will flow to USUALx stakers in the form of USD0.)

Additionally, the Usual Protocol team stated that it will launch the "1:1 early unstaking" function next week, allowing users to exchange USD0++ at a rate of $1, but requiring them to forfeit part of their accumulated rewards as a penalty.

29、 Kenya's cryptocurrency legislation draft will publicly solicit public opinion before January 24

According to Cointelegraph, Kenya's Treasury Secretary John Mbadi stated that the government is working to establish a legal and regulatory framework for cryptocurrency and has drafted a proposal for the "National Policy on Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers." The draft aims to create a fair, competitive, and stable market for cryptocurrencies while addressing risks such as money laundering, terrorist financing, and consumer protection.

The draft proposes to build a comprehensive legal and regulatory framework to manage virtual asset activities and their service providers (VASP), and to establish relevant standards and procedures. Its goal is to promote the healthy development of Kenya's virtual asset market.

The proposal will accept public feedback before January 24. If approved, Kenya will join the ranks of countries like South Africa and Nigeria that have implemented cryptocurrency regulations.

30、 Vitalik: Creating funding structures, sustainably incentivizing open source, open standards, and security are truly important

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin responded to a community user stating, "Everyone in the tech world underestimates the importance of efficient capital formation for building the future," saying, "For me, what is truly important is creating funding structures that sustainably incentivize open source, open standards, and security, suppress closed mindsets and extractive practices, and universally promote becoming positive-sum participants in a broader ecosystem."

"What Great Articles Are Worth Reading This Week (1.6-1.12)"

1、 What possibilities are AI Agents bringing to the metaverse and Web3 games?

From open-source tools to persistent AI-driven environments, we are witnessing a rapid evolution of the virtual world in terms of construction, experience, and monetization.

2、 The next Dogecoin and SHIB? A brief discussion on Murad's calls for SPX and GIGA

Have you seen this person?

With a muscular build, a wide and plump chin, and a toothy grin showcasing a mysterious smile.

Yes, this is the kind of thing that may not fit your definition of a "handsome man," but in today's online world, his hardware conditions define what a "handsome man" is; he is "Gigachad."

We all know that "Meme theologian" Murad became famous for SPX, and the similarly named Memecoin GIGA is also one of Murad's favored Memecoins. Recently, Murad stated on his social media that "#SPX6900 and GIGA will become the DOGE and SHIB of this cycle."

In the past week, SPX and GIGA have performed well. According to Coingecko data, SPX currently has a market cap of about $1.4 billion, ranking among the top 10 Memecoins, with an increase of over 80% in the past week, leading the gains, even surpassing the currently popular ai16z. The performance of $GIGA is slightly weaker, with a current market cap of about $800 million, ranking as the 15th largest Memecoin, with an increase of about 40% in the past week.

3、 Final thoughts on Crypto + Agent: Necessity, convergence points, and stages of development

Without crypto, AI agents and other intelligent entities as "silicon-based life" would lack independent identities, asset accounts, and commercial interaction capabilities. Agents would be isolated individuals, unable to truly cooperate, exchange ideas, or develop higher wisdom. Without crypto, a true AI economy or even an AI "nation" cannot form.

4、 Dialogue with DeFiance Capital founder: Cold reflections behind the bull market frenzy

This dialogue revolves around the current bull market frenzy, the cyclical characteristics of the crypto industry, new narratives, and investment strategies.

5、 Lies, deception, incentives: The USD0++ decoupling incident

Usual's USD0++ is currently trading below one dollar, yet it is said that this has always been part of the plan. Before the decoupling incident, I was writing an article about Usual, as it has recently gained widespread attention. It is one of the fastest-growing stablecoin protocols, recently collaborating with Ethena and earning significant profits for many YT miners on Pendle. However, if you ask people what Usual does, you often get a variety of answers. "It provides you with yields based on RWA (real-world assets)." So the natural question is: how is this different from Ondo? "Oh, it decentralizes RWA yields," well, isn't Maker or Sky doing that too? And so on. If you look closely, @usualmoney's product is a token, not any actual product. Essentially, if the risk-free rate that users receive is above 4%, then the source of the yield is the users themselves. But how did we get here? Why did a protocol with over a billion dollars in TVL suddenly collapse? What is the operational mechanism of Usual?

6、 Disaster turns into a betting game? Polymarket stirs controversy again with "California Wildfire Prediction Market"

If you are truly affected by wildfires, it is more reliable to rely on news agencies reporting events rather than crypto prediction websites.

7、 "How credible is the news that the U.S. Department of Justice approved the sale of Silk Road Bitcoin?

On the morning of January 9, as the market declined, major crypto media outlets reported a bearish news item that "the U.S. Department of Justice approved the sale of $6.5 billion in seized Silk Road Bitcoin." Upon hearing this news, Bitcoin promptly fell below $94,000.

As if it were raining on a leaky roof, the crypto community was in despair. However, after verifying this news, Golden Finance found that the credibility of the source was low, and the reporter could not find official confirmation from the U.S. Department of Justice. Even if the news were true, based on past procedures for the Department of Justice selling confiscated Bitcoin, the department would not be able to sell these Bitcoins in the short term, especially before Trump takes office, as Trump has promised that the U.S. will not sell any Bitcoin during his presidency.

In summary, the U.S. Department of Justice is not currently going to sell coins, and it will not bring selling pressure to the market.

8、 New hot token $LLM overview: Behind the 4-hour 55M trading volume, "Fat Girl" conquers the crypto market

$LLM is not just a token; it is more like an experiment that exists in a self-deprecating manner, inviting everyone to join in the laughter.

9、 Making $40,000 from trading requires paying $130,000 in taxes; this is the American tax law that Musk mocked

On January 3, Musk posted on his social media: "A customer bought $7,000 worth of cumrocket and staked it for 3 months to earn 6900% returns. Then they sold and withdrew profits to invest in NFTitties, but the developer rug-pulled the project, and they only managed to liquidate 10% of the funds. Can the customer deduct the gas fees for minting to balance short-term capital gains tax?"

10、 From AI agents to AI L1: Virtuals, ai16z, and zerebro dance together

AI agents are far beyond simple chatbots. Especially at the intersection of Crypto and AI, a brand new narrative—AI Layer 1 (AI L1 for short)—is quietly emerging.

Here, "Layer 1" does not refer to a public chain but to the foundational layer of AI technology, encompassing the foundational tech stack and framework of AI agents, and even including AI agent token launch platforms like pump.fun, which can capture enormous value for their tokens.