ChainCatcher news, CryptoQuant has released its user survey report, which shows that Binance is the best-performing cryptocurrency exchange across several key metrics, ranking first in multiple critical categories. Among the respondents, 53% reported that Binance is the centralized exchange they use most frequently, 48% have most of their crypto assets on Binance, and 51% have achieved their highest returns through Binance.According to the survey results from global regional market segments, Binance dominates with 52%-72% of users in the Middle East, South America, and Africa; in competitive markets like Asia and Europe, Binance also shows strong influence, with adoption rates of 50% and 51%, respectively.Additionally, more than half of the respondents believe that Binance has the best cybersecurity measures (54%), customer service (55%), and C2C trading platform (59%). Among the participants in this survey, 83% value compliance in the crypto industry, while 32% believe that Binance has the highest compliance standards, 18% higher than the second-ranked CEX.

ChainCatcher news, according to an announcement from the Southern District of the U.S. Department of Justice, the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX has been fined $100 million for violating the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). BitMEX is accused of failing to establish and implement anti-money laundering (AML) and know your customer (KYC) programs, deliberately circumventing U.S. laws for profit.Its founders and executives had previously pleaded guilty, and the company pleaded guilty in July 2024, receiving a fine and two years of probation on January 15, 2025.

ChainCatcher news, according to Nobsbitcoin, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has suddenly closed cryptocurrency exchange payment channels without prior notice, restricting citizens' use of digital assets. This move comes against the backdrop of the Iranian rial depreciating by 37% against the dollar in 2024, after many Iranians turned to digital assets like Bitcoin as a safe haven.The Central Bank of Iran is developing a "centralized cryptocurrency management system" similar to the banking system Shaparak to strengthen regulation of the crypto market. The bank's "Cryptocurrency Policy Regulatory Framework" released last month established its position as the main regulatory authority in the industry. The Human Rights Foundation pointed out that for the Iranian people, who are experiencing severe inflation and financial isolation, Bitcoin is one of the few avenues for financial freedom, and the authorities are blocking this channel.

ChainCatcher news, according to Crowdfund Insider, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced a default judgment against Mosaic Exchange Ltd. and its owner and CEO Sean Michael. The CFTC initiated enforcement action, alleging a fraudulent digital asset commodity scheme.The order is based on a lawsuit filed by the CFTC on September 26, 2023, and the default judgment holds Mosaic and Michael responsible for all violations of CFTC regulations alleged in the lawsuit, including fraudulently soliciting 18 individuals in the U.S. and other countries, claiming to provide Bitcoin and other digital asset trading services while misappropriating customer funds.The default judgment requires them to pay approximately $468,600 in restitution, $60,980 in illicit gains, and $660,000 in civil penalties.

ChainCatcher news, according to cryptocurrency analyst Maartunn on social media, the spot trading volume data for the cryptocurrency market in 2024 shows that market activity is highly concentrated among a few key players, led by Binance.The cumulative spot trading volume of Binance has reached $7.23 trillion, accounting for 46.59% of the market share. The top five exchanges collectively control about 81.24% of the cumulative spot trading volume; while medium-sized exchanges also have a certain trading volume, each exchange's market share is less than 10%; small exchanges collectively account for a negligible market share, with each exchange's share being less than 0.2%.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, due to continuous buying by institutions, Bitcoin reserves on cryptocurrency exchanges have fallen to a nearly 7-year low, and investors are paying attention to potential supply shocks.According to CryptoQuant data, as of January 13, Bitcoin reserves on cryptocurrency exchanges have dropped to 2.35 million BTC, the lowest level since June 2018, when Bitcoin was trading above $7,000.Bitwise Research Director André Dragosch stated that the decline in Bitcoin supply may be attributed to the ongoing discounted purchases by institutional participants.

ChainCatcher news, according to Coinglass data, in the past week, major cryptocurrency exchanges have seen a total outflow of 11,020 bitcoins, with Coinbase Pro experiencing an outflow of 8,272.50 bitcoins, Binance an outflow of 3,469.23 bitcoins, and Bitfinex an inflow of 1,584.71 bitcoins. Currently, the total balance of bitcoins on cryptocurrency exchanges is 2,194,300 bitcoins.

ChainCatcher news, Alankar Saxena, co-founder of the Indian cryptocurrency exchange Mudrex, issued a statement saying that the platform has suspended cryptocurrency withdrawals and expects to resume normal services after completing compliance upgrades on January 28.The suspension aims to strengthen compliance measures and prevent bad actors from exploiting the platform. The statement clearly indicated that INR fiat withdrawals are unaffected, user funds are completely safe, and cryptocurrency and INR deposit services are still operating normally.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, AI crypto exchange VOOX Exchange has received a $50 million investment from Pinnacle Capital. This round of financing will primarily be used for infrastructure development, enhancing security measures, and strengthening marketing efforts.In addition, Pinnacle Capital will provide strategic guidance to ensure VOOX meets key regulatory compliance requirements while optimizing its business model for sustainable growth.It is reported that VOOX Exchange was established in 2022 and is headquartered in Singapore. The platform offers a comprehensive set of features designed to enhance the trading experience for both novice and advanced traders, including spot trading, margin trading, futures trading, copy trading, and advanced AI trading strategies.

ChainCatcher News: The Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck announced that it will launch a new service called "Coincheck Staking" for Ethereum (ETH) in January 2025, allowing users to earn staking rewards on their held ETH without any special procedures.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Ripple President Monica Long expects its Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin to be listed "soon" on major cryptocurrency exchanges to continue expanding the issuance and availability of XRP on other exchanges, with an announcement forthcoming.However, when asked about the listing status of RLUSD on major platforms like Coinbase, she declined to provide specific information.

ChainCatcher news, according to Finance Magnates, Kazakhstan's regulatory body AFM RK announced that authorities have blocked over 3,500 illegally operating cryptocurrency exchanges. This action is the result of a joint effort by the National Security Committee and the Ministry of Culture and Information. Earlier in 2023, authorities also blocked access to Coinbase on the grounds of alleged violations of digital asset laws.In 2024, regulators shut down 36 illegal cryptocurrency exchanges, with a total trading volume of 60 billion Kazakhstani tenge (approximately 11.3 million USD), and froze assets worth 4.8 million USDT. Additionally, authorities uncovered two cryptocurrency pyramid schemes, returning 545,000 USDT to victims and freezing 120,000 USDT held by the platforms.AFM stated that it is working with international partners to strengthen the regulation of cryptocurrency trading, combat its use for criminal activities, and develop legal amendments to hold digital asset providers accountable for money laundering, while financial institutions' inspections of cryptocurrency trading have also been enhanced.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Trust Co., founded by the Winklevoss twins, has agreed to pay $5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The lawsuit claimed that Gemini misled derivatives regulators when attempting to launch the first U.S.-regulated Bitcoin futures contract. On Monday, documents signed by both parties disclosed this settlement agreement, thus avoiding a trial scheduled to begin on January 21 (the day after Trump's second inauguration as President of the United States). Gemini neither admitted nor denied liability in this case.In 2022, the CFTC sued Gemini in Manhattan federal court, accusing the exchange of making false and misleading statements about how to prevent Bitcoin price manipulation. On Monday, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein approved the settlement agreement. Last November, Judge Hellerstein denied Gemini's request, ruling that a jury must determine whether 32 statements made by Gemini executives to regulators were misleading.Gemini still faces a lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accuses the exchange and cryptocurrency lending company Genesis Global Capital of illegally raising billions of dollars in crypto assets from investors through the so-called Gemini Earn program. In February of this year, Gemini agreed to return at least $1.1 billion to customers as part of another settlement reached with New York regulators.

According to ChainCatcher news, in an article by Zhong Yi from the China Financial Forty Forum, titled "Cryptocurrency is 'Not What It Used to Be'", it points out that the development of cryptocurrency has now given rise to at least three different types with distinct characteristics. Based on their design mechanisms and functions, private cryptocurrencies can be mainly divided into three categories: Store of Value Cryptocurrencies, Utility Tokens, and Stablecoins.As of December 28, 2024, the CoinGecko website has recorded 16,022 types of cryptocurrencies across 1,200 exchanges worldwide, with a total market capitalization of approximately $3.43 trillion and a trading volume of about $165.3 billion in the past 24 hours. In relative terms, this market capitalization is equivalent to 5% of the total market capitalization of the U.S. stock market and 35% of the Chinese stock market. In early 2014, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies was only $10.6 billion, and over the past ten years, the cryptocurrency market has achieved more than 300 times growth.

ChainCatcher news, according to on-chain analyst Ali's monitoring, the estimated leverage ratio of all cryptocurrency exchanges has risen to 0.26, the highest level in two years.

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by Wall Street Watch, Asian stock markets have shown mixed performance this year against the backdrop of a strong dollar. Some have achieved a bull market in local currency at the cost of currency depreciation, while others have sacrificed part of their stock market gains for relatively stable exchange rates, with South Korea being an exception.In terms of the Korean won, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) has fallen by 10.0% this year. Considering the depreciation of the won, the KOSPI has dropped by 18.9% when measured in dollars, making it the weakest in Asia. From the perspective of capital flow, since the second half of this year, only institutional investors in South Korea have maintained a net buying scale in the stock market, while the resident sector has been continuously reducing purchases.Analysis suggests that a significant portion of the money that South Korean residents have withdrawn from the stock market has been used for "crypto trading." Data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) shows that as of November, the number of domestic cryptocurrency investors in South Korea has reached 15.59 million, an increase of 610,000 from the previous month. Currently, among the 51 million South Koreans, 30% are involved in crypto trading.The daily trading volume of South Korea's five major cryptocurrency exchanges—UPbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, and GOPAX—has surged from 34 trillion won in October to 149 trillion won in November, more than quadrupling. South Koreans have always been keen on investing in cryptocurrencies. During the first wave of the cryptocurrency bull market in 2017, about 5% of the population participated; in the second bull market in 2021, 10% participated; and now this proportion has expanded to 30%. However, historically, the South Korean stock index has shown a positive correlation with Bitcoin prices, which was completely broken in October of this year.

ChainCatcher news, according to Solid Intel, Japan has implemented stricter regulations to strengthen oversight of unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges.

ChainCatcher news, according to Coinpost, SBI Holdings' cryptocurrency exchange SBI VC Trade announced that it has signed an agreement with DMM Bitcoin regarding the transfer of customer accounts and custody assets. The transfer is scheduled to take place on March 8, 2025, at which point all customers of DMM Bitcoin will be integrated into SBI VC Trade.During the transfer process, customers will not need to go through new account opening procedures, as SBI VC Trade will handle everything uniformly. The transfer will involve all customers who had accounts opened at DMM Bitcoin as of March 4, along with their Japanese yen and spot cryptocurrency assets.

ChainCatcher news, according to CrowdFund Insider, Latin America's leading cryptocurrency exchange Bitso has announced the launch of the stablecoin RLUSD issued by Ripple. This stablecoin is pegged to the US dollar at a 1:1 ratio and is fully backed by equivalent US dollars and cash equivalents, primarily aimed at cross-border payment scenarios.Bitso CEO Daniel Vogel stated that the company's long-term partnership with Ripple has facilitated multiple innovative application scenarios, including cross-border payments. RLUSD will be offered through the RLUSD/MXN trading pair on the Bitso Alpha platform, allowing users to deposit and withdraw in the form of Ethereum ERC-20 tokens.

According to ChainCatcher, the recent "2024 New Transaction Support Virtual Asset Status Analysis Report" released by AppiLab, South Korean local exchanges have launched a total of 266 cryptocurrencies so far this year. Among them, overseas cryptocurrencies account for 88%, totaling 233, while local cryptocurrencies number 33, making up only 12%.Specifically, the exchanges with the highest number of overseas cryptocurrencies launched are Bithumb and Coinone, each launching 79. Gopax has launched 35, which is less than half of Bithumb and Coinone.On the other hand, Gopax is the exchange with the highest number of local cryptocurrencies launched, totaling 24. Bithumb has launched 4, Korbit has launched 3, Coinone has launched 2, while Upbit has not launched any local cryptocurrencies so far this year.