TL;DR

• Bitcoin recently saw a slight increase, hovering around $59,000, while Ethereum dipped slightly to $2,500.
• Bitcoin ETFs experienced a net outflow of $71.73 million yesterday, with Ethereum ETFs seeing a net outflow of $1.77 million.
• OpenSea received a Wells Notice from the SEC, alleging that NFTs are unregistered securities.
• Prediction platform Polymarket reached a new all-time high with monthly trading volumes exceeding $450 million.
• WazirX filed for a moratorium with a Singapore court to restructure its debt.
• Today, nine projects announced funding rounds, with the largest amounting to $58 million, totaling $103.3 million in raised capital.

Market Analysis

According to Gate.io, as of 4:00 AM (UTC+0) on August 30[1]:

• BTC——Bitcoin’s price increased by 0.25% in the past 24 hours, reaching approximately $59,258.03 as of 4:00 AM (UTC+0) on August 30. During this period, BTC’s highest price was $61,099, while the lowest was $58,884. After touching the 4-hour EMA100 line at $61,029, Bitcoin quickly dropped to the $59,150 - $59,500 range. The price is currently fluctuating between $57,900 and $59,500[2].
• ETH——Ethereum’s price decreased by 0.42% over the past 24 hours, standing at approximately $2,524.23 as of 4:00 AM (UTC+0) on August 30. The 24-hour high for ETH was $2,596, and the low was $2,505. After briefly surpassing $2,590, Ethereum quickly retreated to the $2,540 - $2,515 range. The price is currently oscillating between $2,430 and $2,570, with short-term support around $2,500[3].
• Top Performing Sectors——Over the past 24 hours, the top three performing sectors were RWA Protocol (+7.30%), Gaming Blockchains (+4.90%), and Liquid Restaking Tokens (+5.30%)[4].
• ETFs——Bitcoin spot ETFs saw a net outflow of $71.73 million yesterday, while Ethereum spot ETFs recorded a net outflow of $1.77 million[4].
• U.S. Stock Indices——The S&P 500 remained flat from the previous trading day, while the Nasdaq declined by 0.23% , and the Dow Jones rose by 0.59%[5].
• Fear & Greed Index——As of 4:00 AM (UTC+0) on August 30, the Fear & Greed Index stood at 29, indicating a fearful market sentiment amid continued volatility. Investors should closely monitor future market movements[6].

Top Performers

Based on Gate.io, the following tokens were among the most active over the past 24 hours as of August 30 at 4:00 AM (UTC+0):

CLOUD —— The token surged approximately 32.52% in a single day, with a circulating market cap of $40.1 million. Sanctum, a DeFi protocol designed to revolutionize the trading and usage of liquid staking tokens (LST) on Solana, offers zero-slippage trading and enhanced liquidity options. This price increase may be linked to growing interest in Solana LSTs, as multiple exchanges announced the launch of LST products on the 29th. Additionally, Solana’s re-staking protocol, Solayer, recently completed a $12 million funding round, reflecting strong enthusiasm from both investors and developers for Solana’s staking and re-staking ecosystem.

CHESS —— The token saw a daily increase of approximately 28.79%, with a circulating market cap of $33.29 million. CHESS is the native token of the Tranchess project, a crypto asset management and derivatives trading platform offering investment strategies with varying risk/reward profiles. On August 29, the CHESS/USDT perpetual contract trading pair was listed on a Tier 1 exchange, where the platform’s large user base can access leverage of up to 75x for free. This recent price surge is likely linked to the announcement of this listing.

OAS —— The token rose by approximately 28.74% in a single day, with a circulating market cap of $86.79 million. Oasys is a blockchain platform focused on gaming, integrating both public and private chain technologies to offer a gas-free, fast gaming experience. According to an August 29 post on Oasys’s social platform X, the project has secured investment from SBI Holdings, one of Japan’s largest financial groups. SBI Holdings expressed its commitment to “further expanding the application of blockchain technology” through this partnership. The recent price surge is likely driven by this investment news.

Data Highlights

U.S. Bitcoin Spot ETFs Recorded a Total Net Outflow of $71.73 Million Yesterday
According to SoSoValue data. On August 29, the total daily trading volume for these ETFs reached $1.64 billion. The cumulative net inflow to date stands at $17.78 billion, with the total value of BTC managed by ETFs now amounting to $54.36 billion, representing 4.62% of Bitcoin’s total market capitalization[7].

Ethereum Spot ETFs Recorded a Total Net Outflow of $1.77 Million Yesterday
According to SoSoValue data, U.S. Ethereum spot ETFs saw a total net outflow of $1.77 million on August 29, with a daily trading volume of $95.91 million. The cumulative net outflow now stands at $477 million, while the total value of ETH managed by these ETFs amounts to approximately $7.003 billion, accounting for 2.3% of Ethereum’s total market capitalization[8].

Contract Liquidations, Funding Rates, and Long/Short Ratio
According to CoinGlass data[9], as of August 30 at 4:00 AM (UTC+0), the total liquidation volume across the market over the past 24 hours was approximately $118 million. Of this, long positions accounted for over $80 million, while short positions made up around $38 million. The Bitcoin buy/sell ratio stood at approximately 0.78, indicating a relatively pessimistic sentiment towards Bitcoin’s short-term price movement.

The weighted funding rate for Bitcoin positions is -0.0006%, while for Ethereum positions, it is 0.0060%.

U.S. Q2 Economic Growth Revised Up to 3%
On August 29, data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that the real GDP annualized quarter-over-quarter growth rate for Q2 was revised up to 3%, a 0.2 percentage point increase from the initial estimate of 2.8%. In Q1, the growth rate was 1.4%. The GDP deflator for Q2 was revised to 2.5%, slightly above the expected and initial values of 2.3%. Following the data release, U.S. stock index futures edged higher, Treasury yields rose briefly, with the 10-year yield climbing over 2 basis points, and the dollar index strengthened, rising 0.34% on the day. Spot gold extended its losses, dropping by $10 to $1,910.78 per ounce. The significant upward revision of GDP is seen as alleviating some market fears of a recession and further solidifying expectations for a moderate rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September[10].

Spotlight Analysis

OpenSea Receives Wells Notice from SEC
On August 28, OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer announced on X (formerly Twitter) that the company has received a Wells Notice from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), indicating the possibility of legal action. A Wells Notice typically signifies the conclusion of an SEC investigation, informing individuals or companies of potential charges. The notice alleges that NFTs traded on OpenSea are unregistered securities. The SEC usually decides within six months of issuing the notice whether to proceed with legal action. This means that OpenSea must quickly respond to and address the SEC’s inquiries during this period. Devin Finzer also stated on X that OpenSea will actively respond to the SEC and has allocated $5 million to assist creators who have received Wells Notices in covering legal expenses[11].

Historically, SEC lawsuits against companies and organizations in the crypto space have often led to significant short-term market volatility. For instance, when the SEC filed lawsuits against Coinbase and Binance, the news triggered sharp declines in the tokens associated with these platforms. According to Gate.io market data, within three hours of Devin Finzer’s post, NFT-related tokens BLUR and TNSR both plunged nearly 9%[12], though they later rebounded, narrowing the losses. As OpenSea is the platform with the largest number of NFT traders, any related lawsuits could have wide-reaching implications for numerous NFT creators and collectors. If NFTs are classified as securities, many NFT creators and holders may face compliance-related legal risks and potential back taxes. Moreover, the outcome of the OpenSea case could set a precedent for other major NFT trading platforms, making this a pivotal event for the industry. Investors should closely monitor the developments of this case. Gate Research will continue to track the situation and assess its potential impact on the market.

Polymarket Sets Record High with Monthly Trading Volume Exceeding $450 Million
According to Dune data, prediction platform Polymarket achieved a new record high in August, with trading volumes surpassing $450 million, exceeding the previous record set in July. Since May 2024, Polymarket’s trading volume has seen a significant increase, rising from around $70 million to the current $450 million. The platform’s active user base has also experienced explosive growth, surging from approximately 13,000 users in May to around 60,000 users now, greatly enhancing the platform’s ecosystem vitality. This growth has been largely driven by interest in major events like the U.S. presidential election and the Paris Olympics. As a decentralized information market platform, Polymarket allows users to predict outcomes on various controversial topics and current events, offering potential rewards for accurate predictions[13].

Web3 prediction markets emerged in 2014, with their core advantage being the seamless integration of blockchain technology, which offers superior transparency and data auditability compared to traditional betting forms. This provides Web3 prediction markets with a significant market edge. The success of Polymarket has further fueled the popularity of Web3 prediction markets. Last week, the decentralized exchange Drift on Solana announced the launch of BET (Bullish on Everything). Additionally, SEI is incubating an innovative prediction market platform called PredX, and earlier this month, the decentralized prediction market DuelNow secured $11 million in funding.

From a product perspective, these prediction platforms generally allow users to place bets on predicted outcomes, with correct predictions resulting in financial rewards. However, the technology, mechanisms, and user experiences they offer vary widely. Moreover, the level of liquidity directly impacts user experience and trading depth on decentralized prediction platforms.

WazirX Files for Moratorium in Singapore Court to Pursue Debt Restructuring
Gate Research had previously detailed the security incident involving the Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX in its July 18 daily report, and recent developments have emerged in this case.

The security breach at WazirX occurred when attackers successfully deployed an exploit contract, using the delegatecall function in a proxy pattern to transfer a large amount of token assets[14]. Following the incident, WazirX quickly took legal action.

Recently, WazirX filed a moratorium application with the Singapore High Court. The purpose of this moratorium is to ensure the smooth progress of the restructuring process and to provide Zettai with the necessary time to work with relevant stakeholders in developing a detailed restructuring plan. The moratorium will automatically begin with a 30-day period, though the date for the court hearing to decide on the approval of the application has not yet been set. This legal protection will shield WazirX from creditor actions during the moratorium period, giving the company time to implement its restructuring plan.

The security incident involved the theft of various tokens, including SHIB, ETH, MATIC, and PEPE, with a total value of $230 million. SHIB suffered the greatest loss, with approximately $100 million stolen. The restructuring plan is expected to give WazirX the necessary time to carry out the restructuring process smoothly. As one of the leading exchanges in the Indian market, this incident has driven local exchanges to further enhance their measures in fund custody, private key protection, and security protocols.

Funding News

According to RootData, on August 29, nine projects announced their funding rounds, covering sectors such as computing power, payments, and gaming. Excluding projects that did not disclose their funding amounts, the total raised amounted to $103.3 million, with the highest individual raise being $58 million. Here are details on the top three funded projects[15]:

double jump.tokyo—— On August 29, double jump.tokyo announced raising over $10 million in the first round of its Series D funding, led by SBI Investment, with participation from renowned institutions such as Sony Group. Since its founding in 2018, double jump.tokyo has been a leader in blockchain game development, launching the pioneering game “My Crypto Heroes.” This funding will drive strategic partnerships with investors, including the development of Web3 services in collaboration with the SBI Group, blockchain platform cooperation with Sony Group on Soneium, and global Web3 expansion with international cryptocurrency exchanges like Gate and BingX.

Bridge—— On August 29, Bridge announced the completion of a $58 million funding round, though the specific round was not disclosed. Bridge is a Web3 payments company specializing in stablecoin-based cross-border payments and foreign currency exchange services. The company has already partnered with Bitso to launch a stablecoin-based B2B cross-border payment solution in Latin America.

EMC—— On August 29, EMC announced it had raised $20 million, though details on the funding round were not disclosed. EMC is a blockchain-based edge computing protocol designed to connect various devices and create a decentralized computing network that provides flexible, reliable, and efficient computing resources for decentralized applications. The protocol includes smart contracts, decentralized storage, and a consensus mechanism for transaction validation, with the EMC token serving as the economic foundation for transactions and smart contract execution within the ecosystem.

Airdrop Opportunities

Every Finance
Every Finance is a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform that offers decentralized exchange-traded fund (dETF) services. The platform allows users to invest in multi-chain digital asset baskets and simplifies the DeFi experience through automated portfolio rebalancing. Every Finance is currently running a test airdrop event, where users can earn EvPoints by completing social tasks, which can later be converted into $EVERY tokens[16].

How to Participate:

1. Visit the Every Finance test event page and log in to Zealy using Discord or WalletConnect.
2. Complete social tasks on Zealy, such as following Every Finance’s X (formerly Twitter) account and joining their Discord channel, to earn EvPoints.
3. Earn additional points by completing more tasks; these points can be converted into EvPoints.
4. EvPoints will be converted into $EVERY tokens when the Every token is launched.

Mantle Network
Mantle is a high-performance Ethereum Layer 2 network built with a modular architecture to reduce transaction fees. The ongoing Methamorphosis event has allocated 250 million COOK tokens and will run for 100 days. Users can collect Powder daily by holding mETH positions, which can be converted into future governance tokens (COOK) and optionally upgraded to $cmETH[17].

How to Participate:

1. Visit the airdrop page and connect your wallet. Bind a referral code and hold or stake ETH to receive mETH.
2. Earn Powder daily, which can be converted into COOK tokens, with the option to upgrade to $cmETH.
3. Invite other users to join.

Reference：

1. Gate.io, https://www.gate.io/price
2. Gate.io, https://www.gate.io/price/bitcoin-btc
3. Gate.io, https://www.gate.io/price/ethereum-eth
4. Coingecko, https://www.coingecko.com/en/categories
5. Yahoo Finance, https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/
6. Gate.io, https://www.gate.io/zh/bigdata/homeindex
7. Sosovalue, https://sosovalue.com/assets/etf/us-btc-spot
8. Sosovalue, https://sosovalue.com/assets/etf/us-eth-spot
9. CoinGlass, https://www.coinglass.com/
10. BEA, https://www.bea.gov/news/blog/2024-08-29/gross-domestic-product-second-estimate-corporate-profits-preliminary-estimate
11. X, https://x.com/dfinzer/status/1828791832009953706
12. Gate.io, https://www.gate.io/zh/trade/BLUR_USDT, https://www.gate.io/zh/trade/TNSR_TRY
13. Dune, https://dune.com/queries/2683517/4462782
14. Wazirx, https://wazirx.com/blog/wazirx-moratorium-application-filed/
15. Rootdata, https://www.rootdata.com/Fundraising
16. Every Finance, https://zealy.io/cw/everyfinance/questboard
17. Mantle Network, https://meth.mantle.xyz/campaigns/methamorphosis/airdropsio

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Disclaimer
Investing in the cryptocurrency market involves high risk, and it is recommended that users conduct independent research and fully understand the nature of the assets and products they are purchasing before making any investment decisions. Gate.io is not responsible for any losses or damages caused by such investment decisions.