ChainCatcher news, the publicly listed Bitcoin mining company Hut 8 announced a revision and expansion of its Bitcoin collateralized credit line with Coinbase Credit, increasing it from the original $65 million to up to $130 million, and extending the loan term to July 16, 2026.This adjustment includes a fixed interest rate reduced to 9%, improved collateral structure, and new non-dilutive funding, which will support Hut 8's expansion plans in high-performance computing and Bitcoin mining.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cryptoslate, Elliptic released a report stating that despite the Huione Guarantee platform in Cambodia being shut down on May 13 due to its involvement in a $27 billion pig-butchering scam, dark market transactions on Telegram have not decreased.Data shows that merchants quickly shifted to the competitor platform Tudou Guarantee, in which Huione holds a 30% stake, and the USDT inflow to this platform has returned to levels seen before Huione's shutdown. On-chain data indicates that after the ban was implemented, Huione's USDT inflow dropped to nearly zero, while the number of users on Tudou Guarantee more than doubled, with inflows comparable to those before Huione's closure.

ChainCatcher message, Trump stated, "I just signed an executive order extending the deadline to shut down TikTok by 90 days (until September 17, 2025)."

ChainCatcher news, according to CryptoNews, the Krasnoyarsk Krai prosecutor's office in Russia reported the discovery of an illegal outdoor cryptocurrency mining farm covering 30,000 square meters in a state-owned industrial area in Nazarovo. The facility has a monthly output value of approximately 4.6 million rubles (about 58,700 USD), using a large number of transformers, generators, and mining machines, and illegally tapping into the municipal power grid for electricity. The company had previously ignored warnings from the prosecutor's office, and ultimately the court ordered a complete halt to its operations.

ChainCatcher news, the decentralized finance platform Synthetix announced that it will gradually phase out all of its Layer-2 deployments on the Base network on July 7, 2025, refocusing on the Ethereum mainnet, and will disable Base trading and close the LP treasury. The plan will be implemented in phases.Synthetix stated that the decision to gradually phase out its L2 deployments stems from ongoing infrastructure instability and liquidity fragmentation.

According to ChainCatcher, as reported by Cryptonews, due to the increasing kidnapping threats faced by cryptocurrency holders, the Bitcoin investor family "Taihuttu family" has revealed that they have abandoned hardware wallets and instead dispersed their cryptocurrency mnemonic phrases across four continents.Taihuttu stated that over the past eight months, they have adopted a hybrid storage system: splitting the encrypted mnemonic phrases, with some engraved on fireproof steel plates hidden across four continents, while the rest is stored using blockchain-based encryption services. Even when threatened with a gun, he can only provide a limited amount of assets from his mobile wallet.This decision stems from the rise in physical attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders. Recently, Moroccan police arrested a suspect in the kidnapping of a cryptocurrency executive; the father of a cryptocurrency millionaire in France was brutally attacked; and a tourist in New York was kidnapped and tortured for two weeks, with the kidnappers attempting to obtain his Bitcoin credentials.Currently, approximately 65% of the Taihuttu family's crypto assets are stored in cold wallets across four continents, while the remainder is kept in multi-signature wallets or decentralized exchanges for trading and daily expenses.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bitcoin.com, a joint study by Chainplay and Strorible shows that among the 1,181 crypto projects that received venture capital from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2024, nearly 45% have ceased operations, and 77% have monthly revenues of less than $1,000. Among venture capital firms, Polychain Capital has the highest failure rate, with 44% of its invested projects terminated and 76% of projects generating no effective revenue; Yzi Labs (formerly Binance Labs) has a failure rate of 72% for supported projects; top venture capital firms like Circle, Delphi Ventures, Consensys, and Andreessen Horowitz also have a significant number of supported projects that have ceased operations, with many failing at rates exceeding two-thirds.Among angel investors, former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan has the highest proportion of "zombie projects" at 57%; Arthur Hayes has 34%, Santiago Santos has 15%, and projects supported by Sandeep Nailwal and Stani Kulechov each have a 10% cessation rate. The data shows that the scale of fundraising is significantly related to the success rate. Projects that raised over $50 million have a noticeably lower failure rate, while among projects that raised less than $5 million, 33% have failed, and 20% have ceased operations.

ChainCatcher message, Bybit Wallet will shut down all services of Web3 cloud wallet and private key wallet on May 31, as well as DEX Pro platform, Swap & Bridge services, and NFT marketplace. The trading volume and active user data of Bybit Web3 wallet have not been independently counted, and its market share is negligible.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Argentine President Milei has shut down the investigation department regarding the Libra scandal.Previously, Argentine President Milei was embroiled in the Libra scandal, with 57.6% of the Argentine public losing trust in him, while only 36% still expressed support. This crisis of confidence stemmed from the Libra meme coin incident in February, where the token's market value soared to $4.6 billion after a post by Milei on social media, but plummeted 94% within hours. Although Milei argued that he was merely "spreading information" rather than promoting it, the opposition initiated impeachment proceedings.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Bitcoin mining company Hut 8 Corp. has released its financial report for the first quarter of 2025.Data shows that the company's quarterly revenue was $21.8 million, a nearly 58% year-over-year drop; net loss was $134.3 million, compared to a profit of $250.7 million in the same period last year. The company recently announced a partnership with former U.S. President Trump's son to launch a new business.

ChainCatcher news, according to monitoring data from Arkham, about 20 hours ago, the Bhutanese government marked an address that transferred 570.001 ETH to a Binance hot wallet address, worth approximately 1.03 million USD.

ChainCatcher news, the Bhutanese government, in collaboration with Binance Pay and local digital bank DK Bank, has officially launched the world's first national-level cryptocurrency travel payment system. This innovative mechanism allows tourists with Binance accounts to enjoy a truly cashless, secure, and flexible end-to-end payment experience. Currently, over 100 local merchants have completed integration with DK Bank and Binance Pay.The system supports Binance Pay users to pay for almost all travel-related items in Bhutan using cryptocurrency, including flights to Bhutan, visa fees, and Sustainable Development Fee (SDF), hotel bookings, guide fees, attraction tickets, and local spending. The system supports over 100 types of cryptocurrencies, with payment methods covering both static and dynamic QR code scanning, ensuring instant transactions and secure fund transfers.Binance CEO Richard Teng stated, "We are excited to partner with Bhutan, which not only promotes the application of cryptocurrency in the travel sector but also sets a model for technology connecting culture and economy. This project showcases our commitment to innovation and our vision of empowering global connectivity and enriching travel experiences through digital finance."

ChainCatcher news, according to official IOTA news, the IOTA mainnet Stardust has successfully completed its decommissioning. Currently, 13 genesis validators are conducting the genesis ceremony to launch the new IOTA mainnet in a fully decentralized manner.

ChainCatcher news, Neo announced the closure of the Neo Legacy network, which has served the Neo ecosystem for over 8 years since its launch in 2016. With the launch of the next-generation blockchain Neo N3 in 2021, Neo has decided to shut down the Neo Legacy network in 2025.The Neo Legacy testnet will be closed on June 1, and the mainnet will be closed on October 31. Users must migrate their assets and smart contracts to Neo N3 before the shutdown, or they will be permanently lost.

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by Reuters, Nike Inc. (NKE.N) was sued on Friday by a group of buyers who purchased Nike-themed NFTs and other crypto assets. The buyers allege that they suffered significant losses after the company abruptly shut down the business unit responsible for creating these assets.In a proposed class action filed in the federal court in Brooklyn, a group of buyers led by Australian resident Jagdeep Cheema stated that Nike's RTFKT division was suddenly closed in December 2024, leading to a sharp decline in demand for the NFTs they held. The group claims that had they known in advance that these tokens were unregistered securities and that Nike would "suddenly withdraw," they would never have purchased these NFTs at the then-current price or any price. The lawsuit accuses Nike of violating consumer protection laws in New York, California, Florida, and Oregon, with unspecified damages exceeding $5 million.

ChainCatcher news, Gitcoin co-founder Kevin Owocki posted on social media that Gitcoin will close its main software development department, Grants Lab, and bid farewell to some outstanding team members. This is one of the hardest decisions since Gitcoin was founded.The decision is driven by changes in the ecosystem: the funding methods for public goods are evolving, the L2 ecosystem is maturing, collaborative mechanisms are continuously innovating, and new competitors are emerging. At the same time, key members of Grants Lab have left one after another, and the team currently lacks a clear and sustainable profit model, leading to financial expenditures exceeding manageable limits.Therefore, Grants Lab will no longer apply for the budget for the second half of 2025, and the remaining funds will be used to provide severance compensation for affected employees. Gitcoin stated that they will do their utmost to support the transition of departing employees in a respectful and caring manner.

ChainCatcher news, according to Reuters, two senior officials in the capital of Bhutan, Thimphu, stated that the country has earned millions of dollars in profits from investing in cryptocurrencies in recent years, and has used part of the profits to pay government employees' salaries for two years.Additionally, Ujjwal Deep Dahal, CEO of Bhutan's sovereign wealth fund Druk Holding and Investments, revealed that Bhutan will explore methods to mine and utilize green cryptocurrencies using hydropower in the future, ultimately moving away from fossil fuels for digital currency mining. Currently, the fund controls Bhutan's only power generation company and began adding cryptocurrencies to its investment portfolio in 2019.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the Federal Court of Australia has approved the application submitted by the Australian securities regulator to shut down 95 companies suspected of operating cryptocurrency trading and romance scams known as "hydra." The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has received approval for its winding-up application from the Federal Court of Australia based on principles of justice and fairness, after ASIC found that most of these companies were registered with false information.ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court stated in a statement on April 8 that many of these companies claimed to provide "real services" at the time of their establishment, but were actually suspected of defrauding victims. After reviewing 48 "misconduct reviews" of 17 companies accused of assisting romance scams, Justice Angus Stewart stated in a court ruling on April 4: "The nature of these scams appears to exhibit a common 'pig butchering' pattern." The ruling was made on March 21.