Morning News | Suspected single entity claims $10 million MET airdrop; Trump pardons Binance founder Zhao Changpeng
Overview of Important Market Events on October 23rdOrganizer: Zhou, ChainCatcher
Important News:
- Data: A suspected single entity claimed a $10 million MET airdrop, possibly the largest airdrop claim this year
- JPMorgan: Optimistic about the "dual revolution" of Stripe AI and stablecoin payments, with potential market opportunities exceeding $35 billion
- The Wall Street Journal: Trump pardons Binance founder Changpeng Zhao
- Coinbase CEO says the "Cryptocurrency Market Structure Bill" has strong bipartisan support
- Reuters: Investors in Kraken's September financing include HSG, Jane Street, and other institutions
- Meteora founder accused of manipulating crypto tokens using celebrity images
What important events happened in the past 24 hours?
According to ChainCatcher, JPMorgan stated that Stripe is strategically positioned in both AI business and digital asset infrastructure, aiming to access a market exceeding $35 billion by the end of this decade.
Stripe is expected to turn a profit in 2024, processing over $14 trillion in payments and generating net revenue of approximately $5.1 billion. It is focusing on stablecoins and programmable currency scenarios through the acquisition of Bridge and Privy and the incubation of payment-focused L1 "Tempo" (in collaboration with Paradigm, recently raising $500 million at a valuation of $5 billion). JPMorgan also highlighted risks related to corporate expansion, competitive fragmentation, and U.S. stablecoin regulation alongside European MiCA compliance.
Federal Reserve's probability of a 25 basis point rate cut in October reaches 98.3%
According to ChainCatcher, CME's "FedWatch" shows a 98.3% probability of a 25 basis point rate cut by the Federal Reserve in October, with a 1.7% chance of maintaining the current rate. Additionally, the probability of a cumulative 50 basis point cut by December is 93.4%.
Solana network's DeFi locked SOL amount reaches 62.3 million, a new high since June 2022
ChainCatcher reports that SolanaFloor stated on the X platform that the amount of SOL locked in Solana DeFi has reached 62.3 million, marking the highest level since 2022.
According to ChainCatcher, monitoring by Bubblemaps indicates that one entity claimed a $10 million MET airdrop, which may be the largest airdrop claim this year. Wallets 3vAauD and 2zVx7U claimed the MET airdrop, receiving $7 million and $2 million, respectively. These two wallets are linked through transfers of $530,000 in RAY and 1,000 USDC.
The Wall Street Journal: Trump pardons Binance founder Changpeng Zhao
According to ChainCatcher, The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump has pardoned the conviction of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao. Zhao has been working to support the cryptocurrency company under the Trump family for months.
Insiders say the president signed the pardon on Wednesday, and Trump recently expressed sympathy for the narrative of political persecution related to Zhao and others to his advisors.
ChainCatcher reports that Plasma, a blockchain company focused on stablecoin networks, announced significant business expansion in Europe to provide regulated payment services.
The company stated on Thursday that it has acquired an entity with a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license in Italy, allowing it to legally handle cryptocurrency transactions and custody assets in the region. As part of its EU expansion plan, the company will open a new office in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and has appointed a Chief Compliance Officer and an Anti-Money Laundering Reporting Officer. Plasma did not disclose the name of the acquired entity, and its spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The company also plans to apply for Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) qualifications under the EU's new Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and to obtain an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license. These initiatives will enable Plasma to exchange assets, issue cards, and hold customer funds under regulatory protection. Plasma stated that its goal is to support its stablecoin-based new bank, Plasma One, through these licenses.
Coinbase CEO says the "Cryptocurrency Market Structure Bill" has strong bipartisan support
According to ChainCatcher, CNBC reports that Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated after meeting with senators on Capitol Hill that the cryptocurrency market structure bill has received strong bipartisan support.
Reuters: Investors in Kraken's September financing include HSG, Jane Street, and other institutions
ChainCatcher reports that, according to Reuters, insiders revealed that Apollo Global Management, Oppenheimer, Jane Street, and HSG (formerly Sequoia Capital China) participated in the recent financing round for the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken.
This financing round valued Kraken at $15 billion. Fortune magazine reported last month that Kraken completed a $500 million financing, but Reuters was the first to disclose the identities of these major investors and financial industry participants. One insider stated that Qube Research & Technologies, Kraken's co-CEO Arjun Sethi, and the venture capital firm Tribe Capital, co-founded by Sethi, also participated in this round of financing, paving the way for Kraken's IPO in the coming months.
Kraken is expected to confidentially submit its IPO registration statement to the U.S. SEC by the end of the year and plans to go public in the first quarter of next year. However, one insider added that it is currently unclear how a potential U.S. government shutdown might affect this timeline.
According to ChainCatcher, Decrypt reports that Paxos CEO Charles Cascarilla stated on Wednesday at the Federal Reserve's cryptocurrency roundtable that the company accidentally minted $300 trillion worth of PayPal stablecoin (PYUSD) due to an internal technical error and destroyed it all within 24 minutes. This amount exceeds twice the global GDP.
Cascarilla attempted to redefine this incident as an example of blockchain transparency, stating that it actually demonstrates the immediate transparency that blockchain can provide.
Former Executive Eiichi Maeda: The Bank of Japan may raise interest rates in December or January
According to ChainCatcher, Jin10 reports that Eiichi Maeda, Executive Director of the Bank of Japan, stated that the Bank of Japan may raise interest rates in December or January.
Meteora founder accused of manipulating crypto tokens using celebrity images
According to ChainCatcher, Decrypt reports that a class-action lawsuit accuses Meteora founder Benjamin Chow of being the core architect of a cryptocurrency scam, illegally using the images of former U.S. First Lady Melania Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei as promotional props for "fraud tokens." The involved MELANIA and LIBRA tokens surged in value shortly after their launch, only to plummet afterward. Legal documents cite Telegram screenshots showing that Chow collaborated with Hayden Davis and Kelsier Ventures to manipulate at least 15 tokens using a "pump and dump" strategy. Although the court is skeptical about the lawsuit's prospects, it has unblocked $57.6 million in USDC related to the LIBRA token.
Meme Popularity Rankings
According to the meme token tracking and analysis platform GMGN, as of October 24, 08:50,
The top five popular ETH tokens in the past 24 hours are: sUSDe, USDe, MAXI, HYPER, LINK
The top five popular Solana tokens in the past 24 hours are: MET, Coin, TRUMP, CSGROUS, SYN
The top five popular Base tokens in the past 24 hours are: TOSHI, ZORA, MOON, EURC, CLANKER
What are some interesting articles worth reading in the past 24 hours?
a16z Annual Report: The Current State, Challenges, and Future of Cryptocurrency in 2025
This year, the world has begun to go on-chain.
When we released our first report on the state of cryptocurrency, the industry was still in its "teenage years." At that time, the total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency market was about half of what it is today, with slower blockchain speeds, higher costs, and lower reliability.
Over the past three years, cryptocurrency builders have experienced severe market downturns and political uncertainties—yet they continue to make significant infrastructure improvements and other technological breakthroughs. These efforts have brought us to today, a moment when cryptocurrency is becoming an important part of the modern economy.
Vitalik's Full Speech at the Wanxiang Summit: New Developments in Ethereum and Future Applications
The 2025 Shanghai Blockchain International Week and the 11th Global Blockchain Summit were held today, where Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin delivered a speech titled "New Developments in Ethereum and Future Applications." Vitalik stated that blockchain and cryptographic technologies have made significant progress over the past decade, and the next five to ten years will usher in a phase of "truly usable, scalable, and low-cost" solutions.
Is Binance Evil? Data Tells an Unexpected Story
All long-term profitable individuals know that making decisions without bias or emotion is key to sustaining a trading career. You must break free from entrenched thinking patterns and continually reassess the risk-reward ratio and the likelihood of adverse choices. For this reason, a well-structured research process is crucial for every successful trader.
But why am I speaking to you this way—and why did I title this article "Is Binance Evil?"
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