Coindesk

What does the ragtag group including a fitness equipment maker, biopharmaceutical company and producer of battery materials have in common?Bitcoin, of course.As the cryptocurrency skyrockets to unheard-of levels this month, at least 12 publicly traded companies that previously had nothing to do with crypto announced they plan to buy bitcoin (BTC), choosing it as a modern — and, lately, quite profitable — place to park spare cash. It's a path illuminated by Michael Saylor's laser eyes since 2020, when he began converting his sleepy software maker MicroStrategy into a corporate vault for bitcoin.That's turned MicroStrategy into a massive stock market success — up roughly 30 times in value since Saylor began buying bitcoin for the company, amassing a massive stockpile...

Kalshi may have tarnished its regulatory halo by slinging mud at a competitor.Late Friday, Pirate Wires, a technology and culture publication owned by Founders Fund marketing executive Mike Solana, published a bombshell of a story. It documented how Kalshi, the U.S.-regulated prediction market, paid social media influencers to disparage crypto-based, offshore rival Polymarket and its CEO Shayne Coplan after the FBI raided Coplan's home this month.Solana (no relation to the $120 billion cryptocurrency) disclosed up-front he had reasons to be biased and report what Kalshi allegedly did: Founder's Fund is an investor in Polymarket, and Pirate Wires has a paid partnership with Polymarket for ads, among other things.Nevertheless, Solana wrote, "receipts are receipts," and the screenshots in the Pirate Wires...

Cryptocurrency transactions are often anonymous, but they’re not private. In fact, they’re quite public. Anyone with the right technical know-how can see every transaction ever made on most publicly accessible blockchains.This radical transparency and traceability has made it easier (contrary to popular belief) for law enforcement to track stolen and laundered cryptocurrency across various transactions. But it has also made it easier for criminal crypto actors to trace certain transactions, and — by collecting enough data points — recognize the real-world identity of crypto users who would otherwise remain anonymous.Dramatic stories abound about violent home invasions targeting those with large cryptocurrency holdings or hackers targeting those who donate to controversial causes. More mundanely, those who accept cryptocurrency as payment for...

Michael Sonnenshein, the former CEO of Grayscale Investments, has joined Aptos Labs as an adviser alongside OpenAI's chief product officer, Kevin Weil.Aptos Labs, the developer of layer-1 blockchain Aptos, said in an email it will harness Sonnenshein's knowledge to bring more traditional financial institutions to the network.Weil, who is also a former vice president of product at Facebook owner Meta (META), will advise Aptos Labs on AI strategies for blockchain applications.Sonnenshein stepped down as Grayscale's CEO in May after 10 years with the company, during which the digital asset management company grew its flagship Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into the pre-eminent BTC investment vehicle, which subsequently became one of the first U.S.-listed bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).Read More: Payments Giant Stripe Brings...

Starting next Monday, First Mover Americas will become Crypto Daybook Americas, your new morning briefing on what happened in the crypto markets overnight and what's expected during the coming day. Publishing at 7 a.m. ET, it will kickstart your morning with comprehensive insights. You won't want to start your day without it.Latest PricesCoinDesk 20 Index: 3,433.47 +3.11%Bitcoin (BTC): $98,230.02 +0.33%Ether (ETH): $3,483 +4.89%S&P 500: 5,969.34 +0.35%Gold: $2,685.55 -1.13%Nikkei 225: 38,780.14 +1.3%Top StoriesBitcoin traded above $98,000 having dropped below $96,000 on Sunday. A pullback had been expected as traders took profits after last week's surge to nearly $100,000. XRP and DOGE led the drop, both losing more than 5%, while ETH, SOL and ADA fell between 2%-5%. They all also pared...