Morning News | BitMine still holds $915 million in cash reserves; Ethereum completes the final BPO fork of the Fusaka upgrade; Anthropic plans to raise $10 billion at a valuation of $350 billion
January 8 Market Important Events Overview整理：ChainCatcher
Important News:
- Anthropic plans to raise $10 billion at a $350 billion valuation
- Ethereum completes the final BPO fork of the Fusaka upgrade, further enhancing data availability limits
- Yi Lihua: ETH still has great opportunities in 2026, will develop more in the ETH ecosystem
- BitMine still holds $915 million in cash reserves, possibly for further ETH accumulation
- Florida's new proposal: Allow 10% of public funds to invest in Bitcoin and ETFs
- U.S. SEC delays decision on whether to raise IBIT options position limits, new deadline is February 24
- South Korea requires banks to hold a majority to issue stablecoins, lawmakers oppose and propose alternatives
What important events happened in the past 24 hours?
According to ChainCatcher, the South Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) has changed its stance and supports the Bank of Korea's (BOK) regulatory proposal for stablecoins. The proposal requires that stablecoins must be issued by a bank-led consortium, with banks holding more than 50% of the shares to maintain control. Although tech companies can become the largest single shareholder, their shareholding must still be lower than the overall bank shareholding.
However, this plan faces opposition from lawmakers, including those from the ruling Democratic Party, highlighting the differences between the ruling party, financial regulators, and the central bank. The proposal also imposes stricter requirements on cryptocurrency exchanges, including higher IT stability standards, mandatory compensation for hacker losses, and fines of up to 10% of annual revenue.
Florida's new proposal: Allow 10% of public funds to invest in Bitcoin and ETFs
According to ChainCatcher, Bitcoin Magazine reports that Florida has recently proposed an innovative bill to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve. The bill will allow the state government to allocate up to 10% of critical public funds for holding Bitcoin and Bitcoin ETF products.
U.S. SEC delays decision on whether to raise IBIT options position limits, new deadline is February 24
According to ChainCatcher, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has designated a longer time frame to make a decision on a rule change proposal submitted by Nasdaq ISE.
The proposal aims to increase the position and exercise limits for iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) options from the current 250,000 contracts to 1,000,000 contracts. The SEC has extended the decision deadline to February 24, 2026, to allow sufficient time to review the market impact of significantly relaxing the limits.
According to ChainCatcher, footage of Chen Zhi's extradition back to China from the Prince Group has been exposed. On January 7, a working group from the Chinese Ministry of Public Security successfully extradited Chen Zhi (a Chinese national), the leader of a major cross-border gambling and fraud criminal group, from Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Investigations revealed that Chen Zhi's criminal group is suspected of multiple crimes, including operating casinos, fraud, illegal business operations, and concealing criminal proceeds. Chen Zhi has been subjected to compulsory measures according to the law, and related cases are under further investigation. A relevant official from the Ministry of Public Security stated that the police will soon publicly seek the first batch of key members of Chen Zhi's criminal group and will resolutely capture the fugitives.
Chen Zhi, the founder of the "Prince Group" involved in electronic fraud in Cambodia, was born on December 16, 1987, in Lianjiang County, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, China. He dropped out after completing the second year of junior high school and previously worked in internet-related jobs in China. In 2011, he went to Cambodia to invest in real estate and obtained Cambodian nationality through investment immigration in 2014 (later renouncing his Chinese nationality). In 2015, he founded Prince Holding Group, suspected of operating a large multinational fraud gang. In mid-October 2025, the U.S. and the U.K. announced lawsuits against Chen Zhi and confiscated approximately $15 billion worth of Bitcoin he held.
U.S. law firm Burwick Law accuses PumpFun and Solana of violating RICO Act
According to ChainCatcher, U.S. law firm Burwick Law announced litigation progress, stating that the plaintiff has submitted a revised complaint to the federal court, accusing multiple cryptocurrency entities of violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).
Defendants include: Baton Corp (operator of PumpFun), Solana Foundation, Solana Labs, and related executives. The complaint alleges that the defendants participated in extortion activities.
Coinbase CEO sells company stock 88 times through 10b5-1 plan, never bought
According to ChainCatcher, monitoring by CEO Watcher shows that Brian Armstrong, the CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, has never purchased $COIN stock through his 10b5-1 plan. Data shows that Armstrong has conducted 88 stock sales but has never made a purchase.
ChainCatcher previously reported that Coinbase's founder responded to the sale of COIN: I cannot keep 99.999% of my assets in one stock.
According to ChainCatcher, the Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yadong responded to questions regarding the review of Meta's acquisition of the AI platform Manus, stating that the Chinese government has consistently supported companies in conducting mutually beneficial cross-border operations and international technology cooperation in accordance with the law.
It should be noted that companies engaging in foreign investment, technology exports, data outflows, and cross-border mergers and acquisitions must comply with Chinese laws and regulations and follow legal procedures. The Ministry of Commerce will work with relevant departments to assess the consistency of this acquisition with laws and regulations related to export control, technology import and export, and foreign investment.
BitMine still holds $915 million in cash reserves, possibly for further ETH accumulation
According to ChainCatcher, Cointelegraph reports that BitMine, the largest holder of Ethereum, has spent $105 million to buy ETH in the first 8 days of 2026. Notably, it currently still holds $915 million in cash reserves, which may be used to purchase more ETH. BitMine is moving towards its strategic goal of accumulating 5% of the circulating supply of ETH.
According to StrategicEthReserve data, BitMine currently holds a total of 4.07 million ETH, valued at $12.6 billion, accounting for 3.36% of the ETH supply. A total of 908,192 ETH is staked, valued at $2.95 billion.
According to ChainCatcher, Ethereum developers have completed the second and final "Blob Parameters Only (BPO)" fork planned during the Fusaka upgrade cycle. This update increases the target number of blobs in a block from 10 to 14 and raises the limit from 15 to 21, aiming to further enhance the network's data availability capabilities.
Officials stated that the BPO mechanism allows Ethereum to independently adjust key parameters like blobs in phases without waiting for large annual upgrades, thus gradually testing and releasing network capacity in a more controlled manner. Blobs were initially introduced in the 2024 Dencun upgrade to provide low-cost data storage for Layer 2 Rollups, with such data being automatically cleared from the mainnet after approximately 18 days.
This adjustment is seen as the concluding step of the Fusaka upgrade. Developers pointed out that as the single-block blob limit gradually increases, Ethereum can provide more data space for Layer 2 networks, helping to maintain stable transaction costs for Rollups amid growing on-chain activity.
Claude Code high-risk privilege escalation vulnerability exploited by hackers to attack crypto users
According to ChainCatcher, SlowMist team's security researcher 23pds forwarded a report by researcher Adam Chester, revealing a privilege escalation and command execution vulnerability found in Anthropic's Claude Code, allowing attackers to execute commands without user authorization. The vulnerability is numbered CVE-2025-64755, and a related PoC has been made public.
This issue has been pointed out to be similar to previously disclosed vulnerabilities in the Cursor tool. 23pds stated that phishing hackers have already exploited this vulnerability to attack crypto users.
According to ChainCatcher, Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour stated on LinkedIn that Kalshi supports legislation proposed by New York State Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres, aimed at prohibiting government officials from engaging in insider trading on platforms like Kalshi.
Tarek Mansour also mentioned in the article that the recently accused insider trading incidents mainly involve unregulated offshore platforms.
Previously, it was reported that New York State Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres plans to introduce a bill named the "2026 Financial Prediction Market Public Integrity Act" this week. This bill will prohibit federally elected officials, politically appointed officials, and executive branch employees from trading on prediction markets while possessing non-public information related to transactions or potentially obtaining such information through their positions.
Yi Lihua: ETH still has great opportunities in 2026, will develop more in the ETH ecosystem
According to ChainCatcher, Yi Lihua, founder of Liquid Capital, stated on platform X that ETH performed well in 2025, with a price opportunity of over three times from $1,400 to $4,900.
His team is bullish on ETH above $1,000 and has liquidated around $4,500, with all related operations publicly recorded on-chain. Currently, they are bottom-fishing around $3,000 and believe that ETH still has great opportunities in 2026. Meanwhile, JackYi stated that there will be more developments on the ETH path.
Anthropic plans to raise $10 billion at a $350 billion valuation
According to ChainCatcher, AI startup Anthropic plans to raise $10 billion in a new round of financing, valuing the company at $350 billion before obtaining new investments. Sources say that Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC and Cotai Management are planning to lead this financing.
This round of financing is expected to be completed in the coming weeks, and the total transaction amount may vary. The company raised $13 billion from investors in a round of financing last September, when its valuation nearly tripled to $183 billion.
According to ChainCatcher, Caixin has disclosed details of Chen Zhi's assets in China, reporting that he holds a 17.78% stake in Xiamen Jueshi Wushen Interactive Technology Co., Ltd., which specializes in mobile game development, and a 70% stake in Chongqing QuSu Infinite Equity Investment Fund Management Co., Ltd., which has invested in several interactive entertainment technology companies. Chen Zhi was also the controlling shareholder of Jiangmen Dacheng Medical Equipment Co., Ltd., which operates medical devices, holding more than 56% of the shares.
In addition, Chen Zhi is the controlling shareholder of two listed companies in Hong Kong, as well as several insurance brokerage companies, securities companies, wealth management companies, and shell companies with unclear business. In December 2018, Chen Zhi took control of Zhidao Da, directly serving as the company's chairman and executive director after acquiring 54.79% of its shares, until resigning from all positions in July 2025. In 2023, Chen Zhi took over all shares sold by the former major shareholder of Kun Group, gaining 55% absolute control but did not serve as an executive director. Currently, these two listed companies have not suspended trading and have stated that sanctions will not have any significant adverse impact on the group's business operations.
Glassnode co-founder: The key level Bitcoin needs to break is $94,700
According to ChainCatcher, Glassnode co-founder Negentropic stated on platform X that the key level Bitcoin needs to break is $94,700. If the daily closing price reaches this level, the probability of retesting the historical high will significantly increase.
Market volatility is expected this Friday, as the probability of tariffs being deemed unconstitutional exceeds 70%, with the key being the details of the degree of unconstitutionality.
Meme Popularity Rankings
According to the meme token tracking and analysis platform GMGN, as of January 9, 09:00,
The top five popular tokens on ETH in the past 24 hours are: SHIB, LINK, PEPE, UNI, ONDO
The top five popular tokens on Solana in the past 24 hours are: TRUMP, PENGU, MELANIA, Fartcoin, ME
The top five popular tokens on Base in the past 24 hours are: PEPE, BASED, SKYA, B3, NATO
What are some interesting articles worth reading in the past 24 hours?
Goodbye to "air" investments: Use these 6 indicators to help you pick winning projects
In the past, analysis of crypto assets mostly revolved around charts, hype cycles, and narratives. However, as the industry matures, actual performance is more important than empty promises. You need a filter to help you extract truly valuable signals from the clutter of information.
Fortunately, this filter already exists, known as Onchain Fundamentals.
Onchain Fundamentals provide structural advantages for DeFi (decentralized finance) compared to traditional finance (TradFi). This is not only one of the many reasons why "DeFi will prevail," but also a core understanding that everyone looking to invest in this industry must grasp.
Stablecoins reconstruct traditional payments, from issuance boom to integration victory
Stablecoins are undeniably permeating traditional finance in a patchy yet undeniable manner.
Klarna has just launched KlarnaUSD on Stripe's first-layer network Tempo, built specifically for payments; PayPal's PYUSD, issued on Ethereum, has doubled in market value within three months, with stablecoin market share surpassing 1% and supply nearing $4 billion; Stripe has now begun using USDC to pay merchants; Cash App has expanded its services from Bitcoin to stablecoins in early 2026, allowing its 58 million users to seamlessly send and receive stablecoins in their fiat balances.
Although each company approaches from different angles, they all respond to the same trend: stablecoins make the flow of funds extremely simple.
Opinion: In the post-Crypto Twitter era, nonlinear returns have ended
Welcome to the "post-Crypto Twitter" era.
The term "Crypto Twitter" (CT) refers to crypto Twitter as a market discovery and capital allocation engine, rather than the entire crypto community on Twitter.
"Post-CT" does not mean the disappearance of discussions, but rather that crypto Twitter, as a mechanism for coordination through discourse, is gradually losing its ability to repeatedly create significant market events.
A single culture cannot continue to attract the next wave of new participants if it can no longer produce a sufficient number of significant winners.
Why can't on-chain fixed-rate lending take off?
The demand for fixed rates mainly comes from institutional borrowers and cyclical strategies, while broader credit expansion is imminent. Due to the high emphasis on the flexibility of capital withdrawal among on-chain participants, fixed-rate lending should be realized by building an interest rate swap layer above the current money market—rather than locking lenders into term loans.
Risk warning
