Analysis: Binance ETH open interest rises 2.27% as USDT value falls 6.58%
Binance's ETHUSDT futures open interest was 2.27% higher in ETH on Thursday, Oct. 8, over the last 48 hours. However, the USDT-denominated value fell 6.58%. The detailed comparison covers a fixed 69-hour window from Oct. 6 to Oct. 8, during which BTCUSDT open interest fell 1.45% in BTC and 5.97% in USDT value. Both contracts' coin quantities contracted on Oct. 8, with ETH exposure falling 2.85% and BTC exposure falling 3.03% from midnight to 21:00 UTC. The accounting decomposition attributes most of Bitcoin's value decline to lower valuation, but the contributions are accounting conventions rather than uniquely identified economic causes.
Bitcoin dips below $83,000 as Nadeau sees 85% probability of early bullish phase
Bitcoin dipped below $83,000, while The DeFi Report founder Michael Nadeau sees an 85% probability that Bitcoin has entered an early bullish phase. Nadeau expects a retest of the 50-week moving average near $78,000, with $83,000 remaining a key level for bullish confirmation. However, multiple weekly closes below $78,000, coupled with weakening ETF inflows, could invalidate Nadeau's outlook. Nadeau considers a drop toward $55,000 unlikely unless unexpected macroeconomic shocks emerge. Nadeau characterized the recent altcoin rally as a recovery from deeply oversold conditions rather than a full-fledged altcoin season.
American Express agrees to $350 million penalty over suspected money laundering
American Express will pay $350 million under a consent order for failing to maintain an effective Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money-laundering program. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency found that American Express National Bank processed approximately $13 billion in suspected trade-based money laundering between June 2014 and May 2025. The Federal Reserve also took enforcement action over similar compliance failures. American Express's Form 8-K said the penalty does not affect full-year 2026 guidance and is not anticipated to affect 2027 guidance.
Bitcoin News says records show Jiaming owns 100% of CryptoBilis
Bitcoin News said corporate records show that Jiaming, a Chinese national, held 100% of Malaysian hardware wallet distributor CryptoBilis as of August 3. CryptoBilis's former co-founder confirmed that the acquisition was completed in March. The ownership information emerged during an investigation into a suspected supply chain attack on Ledger hardware wallets. There is currently no conclusive evidence linking the ownership change to the compromised wallets.
Ledger warns CryptoBilis buyers not to set up wallets amid reported losses
Ledger said it is investigating reported losses of user funds involving devices bought from reseller CryptoBilis in Southeast Asia. Ledger on Friday advised customers who bought from CryptoBilis within the last 90 days not to set up their devices. Blockchain investigator Specter said more than $86 million had been lost, but Ledger did not disclose an amount. Ledger said it asked CryptoBilis to pause all sales and shipments of Ledger devices. Ledger said the incident appears isolated to this reseller in this market and that Ledger's infrastructure, systems and services were not compromised.
Coinbase Advanced now supports keyboard shortcuts for active traders. Brian Armstrong said Coinbase's new AI development tool was used to develop and deploy a feature to production. Active traders can press "?" to view the list of shortcuts.
Ledger investigates CryptoBilis amid reports of over $86 million in wallet losses
Ledger confirmed that Ledger is investigating a specific issue concerning Southeast Asia reseller CryptoBilis. Analysts Specter and Tanuki42 traced wallet addresses and estimated losses between $72 million and over $86 million. CryptoBilis has been told to pause all sales and shipments of Ledger devices. Customers who bought devices from CryptoBilis in the past 90 days were advised not to start setup or, if already completed, to move assets to a new Ledger signer. Security researcher Taylor Monahan warned that reports of drained wallets were creating panic about a zero-day vulnerability when there did not seem to be one.
Starknet token rises 20% after network says it is considering becoming an L1
Starknet's STRK token rose about 20% in 24 hours after the Ethereum scaling network said it is considering becoming a layer 1 blockchain. STRK traded near $0.073 on Friday, more than double its roughly $0.03 price in April. Starknet said the change would enable the network to become the first fully quantum-resistant network, targeting 2027. StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson said becoming a layer 1 is an option if Ethereum does not upgrade quickly enough. The change would make Starknet responsible for securing its own transactions rather than relying on Ethereum. No quantum computer can break these cryptographic systems today, and experts disagree on when one might.
Suspected Ledger reseller hacker deposits 430.2 ETH into Tornado Cash
Onchain Lens monitoring identified deposits of 430.2 ETH, worth $1.07 million, into Tornado Cash through 4 wallets by the suspected hacker behind the reported $90 million Ledger reseller incident. The suspected hacker swapped USDT for USDD after Tether froze related funds. The suspected hacker's wallet tracked by Arkham currently holds $70.6 million in assets. Onchain Lens called on Binance to investigate the transfers and freeze accounts associated with the stolen funds as soon as possible.
Blockchain.com reportedly seeks two CFTC licenses for prediction markets and derivatives
CNBC reported Friday that Blockchain.com applied for two Commodity Futures Trading Commission licenses to offer event contracts and crypto derivatives to US-based investors. The licenses would allow Blockchain.com to operate a futures exchange for event contracts and a broker for derivatives contracts. Approval would allow Blockchain.com to offer its own event-contract marketplace. US courts are considering lawsuits by state-level authorities alleging that prediction market companies violated betting laws involving sports and elections. Blockchain.com was also reportedly considering an initial public offering at a valuation of up to $6 billion, expecting to raise $500 million.
DWF-linked companies sue BitGo for $141 million over alleged early token sales
DWF Maas and Falcon Digital sued BitGo in London's High Court in a $141 million dispute over alleged early sales of locked-up tokens. The Financial Times reported Friday that the companies accuse BitGo of breaching a private, over-the-counter deal involving Falcon Finance (FF) and ESPORTS tokens. DWF argues that the sales depressed prices and eroded the value of tokens DWF still held. BitGo declined to comment, according to the Financial Times, and the allegations have not been tested in court.
New York AG secures industry ban and up to $35 million from Alex Mashinsky
New York Attorney General Letitia James secured a permanent industry ban and conditional payments of up to $35 million from former Celsius Network CEO Alex Mashinsky, James's office announced Friday. The ban covers the securities, commodities and crypto industries. Mashinsky must pay New York $25 million if Mashinsky fails to forfeit a further $10 million to the federal government under Mashinsky's plea agreement. Mashinsky must pay New York $10 million if Mashinsky does not serve the full prison sentence. Mashinsky is serving 12 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud and has asked a court to vacate the sentence.
Blockchain.com seeks CFTC licenses for prediction markets and derivatives, CNBC reports
Blockchain.com has applied for two U.S. licenses to offer prediction markets and crypto derivatives, CNBC reported Friday. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversees approval of a designated contract market license and registration as a futures commission merchant. Approval would allow Blockchain.com to offer products currently available only to non-U.S. customers through Polymarket and Hyperliquid. Blockchain.com confidentially filed for an IPO in May. Bloomberg reported last week that Blockchain.com was seeking roughly $500 million at a valuation between $4 billion and $6 billion, targeting a listing before the end of 2026.
Karpelès warning may have triggered coordinated wallet fund transfers
Bitcoin News monitoring suggests former Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpelès may have inadvertently triggered coordinated fund transfers across multiple wallets by publicly disclosing physical tampering with Ledger devices. Karpelès warned on October 8 that counterfeit or tampered Ledger devices containing hidden SIM cards capable of transmitting stolen seed phrases were being sold. The devices could allegedly still pass Ledger's official genuine product verification because the original secure element remained intact. The connection between the warning and subsequent wallet fund transfers remains unconfirmed. A compromised hardware supply chain is the suspected attack path, rather than a vulnerability in cryptographic algorithms.
OpenAI, Google and Meta compete for AI domains as crypto firms seek naming rights
OpenAI, Google and Meta are competing for AI-related internet domains, while cryptocurrency firms are pursuing .bitcoin and .wallet. ICANN revealed 1,615 applications on Oct. 7 in the first application round for new generic top-level domains since 2012. Each standard application carries a $227,000 evaluation fee, and contested names could eventually require auctions. Approval of a crypto-related domain would not automatically enable blockchain transactions or wallet functionality. None of the contested domains has been awarded.
CFTC chair Selig outlines new crypto rules despite Congress not passing CLARITY Act
CFTC Chairman Mike Selig said on Thursday that federal regulators are advancing new crypto trading rules despite Congress failing to pass the CLARITY Act. The CFTC proposal would allow crypto exchanges to register voluntarily under federal oversight and offer margin trading to retail investors. Registered platforms would face stricter investor protection and trading surveillance requirements. The CFTC has opened a 60-day public comment period before advancing more detailed rules. Selig said the CFTC does not intend to regulate individuals simply holding Bitcoin in private wallets or conducting transactions outside the agency's jurisdiction.
Ledger-linked wallet drain becomes largest breach, losses estimated near $90 million
Third-party security firms estimate losses approaching $90 million from a wallet drain incident involving Ledger devices sold through authorized distributor CryptoBilis. Ledger is investigating the incident, which occurred on October 9, 2026, and represents the largest security breach involving Ledger. Ledger requested that the Southeast Asian distributor suspend sales and shipments. Ledger advised users who purchased devices through this channel within the past 90 days to exercise caution or transfer assets. The cause remains undetermined, with a supply chain attack or device tampering suspected.
Roundup: Wealthy investors hold crypto and OKX raises funding at $25 billion valuation
This is a roundup of crypto business developments. A CoinShares survey found that a majority of affluent investors across seven major economies hold digital assets, averaging about 10% of portfolios. In five countries, at least 85% of existing crypto investors planned to increase exposure in 2026. OKX raised an undisclosed amount at a $25 billion valuation, extending a round that received $200 million from Intercontinental Exchange in March. Strategy spent $176.3 million on STRC share buybacks last week, more than six times the $28.7 million spent buying Bitcoin. Delphi Digital warned that Treasury yields above 5% could make extending Bitcoin's rally difficult.
Coinbase shares rise 4.70% as Bitcoin rebounds and analysts revise price forecasts
Benzinga Pro data showed Coinbase Global shares gained 4.70% to $180.08 on Friday at the time of publication. Bitcoin climbed 1.52% over the past 24 hours to $82,935.14. Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Cyprys maintained an Equal-Weight rating and raised his Coinbase price forecast from $250 to $258 on Friday. However, Citizens analyst Devin Ryan maintained a Market Outperform rating and lowered his price forecast from $325 to $280. Coinbase shares have fallen 53.11% over the past year, despite signs of improving momentum.
Bitcoin is trading about one-third below its all-time high one year after reaching the record. Bitcoin reached that high of more than $126,000 in October 2025.