• Bithumb, a South Korean crypto exchange, had its offices raided on Thursday
• The raid is related to an investigation into suspected price manipulation of an unidentified coin
• The Seoul District Prosecutor’s Office stated that this investigation had nothing to do with Bithumb

On Thursday, South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb was subjected to a raid by authorities. This raid, according to a report by Yonhap, was conducted in order to investigate potential price manipulation of an unidentified coin listed on the exchange. The prosecutors stated that the investigation was related to a specific individual or entity who may have been manipulating the coin’s price in order to profit from it.

In a statement, the Seoul District Prosecutor’s Office made it clear that the investigation was not related to Bithumb, but rather focused on securing transaction details of the specific coin in question. It has not yet been revealed which coin was being investigated, however it is known that the raid was conducted on the exchange.

This latest development is yet another problem for Bithumb, which has been facing multiple legal woes in recent times. In October 2020, the exchange asked the Seoul Central District Court to freeze $48 million in funds held by its holding company, BTC Korea.com. This came after the exchange was fined $6.2 million by the South Korean Fair Trade Commission the previous month for providing unfair services to its customers.

Bithumb has also been implicated in a number of other legal troubles. In June 2020, the Seoul Central District Court ordered the exchange to pay a former employee a total of $400,000 in back wages. This followed a lawsuit that was launched by the employee in 2018 over unpaid wages. Furthermore, in April 2020, the exchange was forced to pay back taxes of $28 million after the South Korean government classified it as a “miscellaneous service provider”.

The raid on Bithumb’s offices is only the latest in a string of legal troubles for the exchange, and it remains to be seen what the outcome of the investigation will be. The exchange’s reputation has already been damaged by its multiple run-ins with the law, and this latest incident is sure to further tarnish its image. It is yet another reminder of the importance of compliance in the cryptocurrency industry, and that exchanges must adhere to the relevant laws and regulations if they are to remain operational.

• Bitcoin price has been holding steady at the $21K level despite an overbought RSI and another crypto bankruptcy.
• There are, however, some bullish indicators forming such as a solid MA crossover in new Bitcoin addresses.
• Bullish indicators such as higher daily exchange balances and a surge in Grayscale investments indicate that the BTC price rally may still continue.

The cryptocurrency market is at a critical juncture as Bitcoin holds steady at the $21K level despite an overbought RSI and another crypto bankruptcy. Investors are now looking for signs of a price bottom, with many wondering if the market is there yet, or whether bears will take the prices back down to key optical support at $20K.

Fortunately, there are some bullish indicators that suggest the BTC price rally may still continue. On-chain intelligence and insights firm Glassnode has spotted a bullish technical signal in Bitcoin addresses. The 30-day simple moving average (SMA) has charted above the 200-day SMA since the beginning of November, indicating that the long-term trend of the digital asset is still upwards.

Other bullish indicators include higher daily exchange balances and a surge in Grayscale investments. Data from Glassnode shows that balance on exchanges have been steadily rising since August, reaching new all-time highs in December. This suggests that traders are holding more BTC on exchanges, which could be a sign of bullish sentiment.

Grayscale Investments, one of the largest institutional investors in the crypto space, has also seen an increase in investments. In December, the total amount of BTC held by Grayscale increased by 18%, from 476,000 BTC to a whopping 565,000. This is the highest amount of BTC that Grayscale has held since its launch in 2013.

These bullish indicators suggest that Bitcoin’s price rally may still have some legs, despite the overbought RSI and recent crypto bankruptcy. With the daily exchange balances and Grayscale investments both rising, it appears that more investors are buying into the digital asset on a long-term basis. This indicates that the BTC price may be set to continue its upward trend in the coming months.

• Bitcoin is testing the $20k price level for the first time since early November.
• The price of Bitcoin has been rallying since Thursday, when it broke past $19,000 for the first time in months.
• Liquidations remain high, with $70 million across 45,000 crypto traders being cleared within the past hour.

The crypto market is continuing to show signs of improvement, as Bitcoin is coming up on $20,000 for the first time since early November, prior to FTX’s collapse. As of 22:28 UTC, Bitcoin traded at $19,962, up from roughly $18,800 at the start of the day. Its price climbed especially fast 21:34 UTC, when it sprang from $19,450 to $19.823 within 5 minutes.

Liquidations remain high, with $70 million across 45,000 crypto traders being cleared within the past hour, according to Coinglass. The largest liquidated trade within the past 24 hours took place on OKX, affecting a BTC-USD swap for $4 million.

The bullish sentiment began on Thursday, when Bitcoin price surged past the $19,000 mark for the first time in months. This was further strengthened by the news that PayPal was allowing customers to use cryptocurrencies to make payments. The news sent shockwaves through the crypto community and the stock market, and caused a surge in the price of Bitcoin.

The increase in Bitcoin price has been met with some resistance from skeptics, who are cautious about the sustainability of the rally. However, many optimists believe that the current price rally is just the beginning of a long-term bull run for Bitcoin.

The crypto market is also seeing a surge in DeFi tokens, as investors are looking for alternative ways to make profits. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, has seen its price increase by over 40% in the past 24 hours. This is largely due to the increased demand for decentralized finance applications that allow users to borrow, lend, and trade digital assets in a trustless environment.

It remains to be seen if the current Bitcoin rally will continue or if it will fizzle out. Investors are advised to remain cautious and to keep an eye on the news and developments in the crypto market, as this could have a major impact on the prices of digital assets.

• MetaMask – the Ethereum infrastructure provider – has launched a public beta allowing users to stake ETH directly from their wallet.
• Users can choose to stake ETH with either Lido or Rocket Pool, and receive liquid staked ETH in return.
• MetaMask’s staking beta is expected to further increase the usage of the Ethereum network.

MetaMask, the popular Ethereum infrastructure provider, has recently launched a public beta allowing users to stake their ETH directly from their wallet. This is a major development for the Ethereum network, as it is expected to encourage increased usage of the network and its associated applications.

The beta allows users to easily stake their ETH with either Lido or Rocket Pool. By confirming the amount of ETH they’d like to allocate for staking with a signed transaction on MetaMask, users will receive their liquid staking tokens directly from the staking provider. This makes the process of staking ETH much more convenient and accessible to users.

In addition to the convenience of staking ETH directly from MetaMask, users can also earn yield from staking ETH. This yield can be received in the form of various rewards, such as ETH, DAI, or other tokens. This reward system is expected to further encourage users to stake ETH on the Ethereum network.

The launch of MetaMask’s staking beta is a major step forward for the Ethereum network. It is expected to further increase the usage of the Ethereum network and its associated applications, as well as provide users with an easy and convenient way to earn yield from their ETH. This development is a significant milestone for the Ethereum network and will likely have a positive impact on the network’s growth and usage.