ChainCatcher news, according to FT, American foundations and university endowments are increasing their investments in cryptocurrencies. The University of Austin, which was established only a year ago, is raising a $5 million Bitcoin fund for its $200 million endowment, becoming the first of its kind in the United States. The university's Senior Vice President for Development, Chad Thevenot, stated that the crypto asset portfolio will be held for at least five years.The $4.8 billion Rockefeller Foundation is also considering increasing its digital asset allocation after diversifying its user base. Additionally, the number of endowment fund clients for the digital asset venture capital fund Pantera Capital has grown eightfold since 2018.

ChainCatcher message, according to an analysis by the Financial Times, over 700 types of imitation coins and junk coins have been sent to Trump's digital wallet, with the creators of these coins attempting to imply that their creations have Trump's endorsement. This move came just days after Trump and his wife Melania launched a meme coin that has no actual use and is entirely supported by speculative value, shortly after Trump returned to the White House last month.The Financial Times found that in the past three weeks, 736 different meme coins have been deposited into Trump's official wallet. Among them, nearly 200 coins, including "OFFICIAL TRUMP" and "OFFICIAL MELANIA," are named after Trump or his family members, but have no connection to the president.Trump and Melania's decision to launch their meme coins has faced fierce criticism, as these coins are more volatile than Bitcoin, attracting retail investors.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, pension funds are trying to buy Bitcoin. Pension funds in Wisconsin and Michigan have become one of the largest holders of U.S. stock market funds focused on cryptocurrency, while some pension fund management agencies in the UK and Australia have also made small allocations to Bitcoin through funds or derivatives in recent months.As of the end of September, the Wisconsin Investment Board became the 12th largest shareholder of the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF, with shares worth approximately $155 million. Michigan is the sixth largest shareholder of the Grayscale Ethereum ETF, with holdings valued at $12.9 million, and is also the 11th largest shareholder of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF.Since U.S. Election Day, the UK pension fund consultancy Mercer has received a large number of inquiries, as trustees do not want to be ignorant of popular asset classes. Most pension funds have turned to the regulated U.S. spot Bitcoin or Ethereum ETFs approved last year. In the UK, the pension consultancy Cartwright has facilitated the first Bitcoin transaction, with a small undisclosed pension plan directly investing about £1.5 million in Bitcoin, hoping to fill funding gaps through excess returns.At the same time, more than 50 individual savers wish to transfer their entire pensions into cryptocurrency. Cartwright is exploring the possibility of establishing a Bitcoin fund with two multi-employer pension funds. Australia's AMP Capital has also utilized Bitcoin to enhance returns. AMP Senior Portfolio Manager Steve Flegg stated that although cryptocurrencies are high-risk and novel, their scale and potential cannot be ignored, thus the AMP portfolio has made a moderate allocation to Bitcoin futures.However, funds allocating to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies remain in the minority within the pension industry, and most advisors are reluctant to recommend that clients venture into cryptocurrencies.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, as competition for resources intensifies, U.S. Bitcoin miners are accumulating cryptocurrency funds to help them withstand tightening profit margins. Companies including Mara Holdings, Riot Platforms, and CleanSpark have raised over $3.7 billion from investors since last November, capitalizing on the surge in Bitcoin prices, and then using those funds to purchase Bitcoin. They typically raise funds through zero-interest (or near-zero-interest) convertible bonds.Core Scientific's Chief Development Officer Russell Cann stated, "It's not as simple as everyone being happy after the Bitcoin price goes up. There are still complex challenges regarding profitability and grid access." Miners' plans also include expanding artificial intelligence capabilities, marking a sharp turnaround in the industry's prospects. The industry has been struggling for the past eight months following the Bitcoin mining reward halving. Cann also mentioned, "The demand for artificial intelligence in the U.S. will greatly impact the scale of Bitcoin mining." He predicts that in the coming years, most of Bitcoin's computing power will come from outside the United States.

ChainCatcher message, the Financial Times of the UK publicly apologized to its readers for its negative coverage of cryptocurrencies over the past 14 years. The media stated in a declaration: "As Bitcoin's price recently surpassed $100,000, a considerable number of commentators believe we should apologize for our long-standing cynical attitude towards our readers.Therefore, we sincerely apologize for the past 14 years during which you may have decided not to purchase those items that later increased in price based on our reporting. The price increase is certainly delightful. At the same time, if you misunderstood our cynical attitude towards cryptocurrencies as support for traditional finance, we deeply apologize, as we also despise such behavior."

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) has announced the successful dismantling of a large-scale cryptocurrency money laundering network spanning London, Moscow, and Dubai. The case primarily involves two companies: Smart and TGR, which acted as financial intermediaries, providing cross-border money transfer services for cash-rich criminals and sanctioned individuals worldwide through cryptocurrency.The investigation revealed that this network provided services to criminal organizations, ransomware gangs, and Russian espionage activities, including the Kinahan drug trafficking group, from the end of 2022 to the summer of 2023. Its operation involved couriers collecting cash in the UK and elsewhere, exchanging it for cryptocurrency primarily in USDT, and then laundering the money through a network of companies, providing equivalent funds in other countries.Ekaterina Zhdanova, the 38-year-old owner of Smart, a resident of Moscow, has been accused of transferring over $100 million to an unnamed sanctioned oligarch in the UAE, and is currently under U.S. sanctions and detained in France. The money laundering network collected cash at 55 different locations across England, Scotland, Wales, and the Channel Islands in just four months, serving at least 22 criminal groups.NCA's action director Rob Jones stated that this is the agency's most significant anti-money laundering operation to date. Law enforcement has arrested 84 individuals and seized a total of £20 million in cash and cryptocurrency. The U.S. Treasury has imposed economic sanctions on five individuals and several companies involved. The operation was assisted by the U.S. FBI, DEA, as well as police forces from France and Ireland.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times: Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg seeks to play a "constructive role" in discussions with the incoming U.S. government on technology policy. (Jin Shi)

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times in the UK, cryptocurrency trading platforms are rapidly expanding into the derivatives space, hoping that stricter regulations and promises of high leveraged returns can attract cautious investors into the market.According to the latest data from CCData, cryptocurrency derivatives trading has accounted for 71% of the total trading volume of digital assets, with the total open interest surpassing $40 billion for the first time, demonstrating the dominant position of the derivatives market. Market leader CME Group has seen record trading volumes and open positions this year and is actively expanding its product line, with the newly launched Bitcoin Friday futures contracts specifically matching the New York trading cycle, further meeting the needs of institutional investors.The derivatives sector is attracting a large number of new players. The Dutch cryptocurrency derivatives exchange D2X is set to launch operations in November, while London's One Trading and GFO-X plan to open in early 2025. Additionally, Kraken has established a trading platform in Bermuda this month, directly competing with CME Group, Binance, and Bybit.Jason Urban, Global Head of Trading at Galaxy Digital, pointed out that after the collapse of crypto lending institutions like FTX, unsecured lending has essentially disappeared from the ecosystem, leading investors to turn to the derivatives market in search of leveraged opportunities.

ChainCatcher news, the Financial Times team in the UK has recently updated its forecast for the Federal Reserve's interest rate outlook, predicting that if Harris wins, the Fed may quickly cut rates next year. Analysts say that following a 50 basis point cut in September, the Fed may lower rates twice more in 2024 by 25 basis points each time. By the end of this year, the Fed will have cut rates a total of 100 basis points, bringing the funds rate down to 4.25-4.5%. This is consistent with the Fed's economic projections summary from September.If Harris wins the U.S. presidential election, the Fed will cut rates 3 more times in the first half of 2025, each by 25 basis points, bringing the policy rate down to 3.5-3.75%.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, based on data provided by Morningstar, since the beginning of this year, Bitcoin ETPs registered in Europe have seen a net outflow of $506 million, while other cryptocurrency ETPs have attracted a small net inflow of $42 million. During this period, the price of Bitcoin has increased by approximately 40%.Pierre Debru, Head of Quantitative Research and Multi-Asset Solutions at WisdomTree, stated that since the launch of Bitcoin spot ETFs in the U.S. market, the number of inquiries from clients regarding European crypto ETPs has "increased significantly," but this has not yet translated into substantial capital inflows. The low fees charged by U.S. Bitcoin ETFs have "forced European issuers to lower their fees," thereby "creating a new fee environment in Europe."

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times, asset management companies including BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Invesco, and Bitwise have been advertising on Google. Google's new marketing rules allow ads for "cryptocurrency trusts" to appear next to search results when searching for keywords like "Bitcoin ETF." These regulations took effect on January 29.An Invesco spokesperson said, "We believe that Google, like other search engines, is an important part of our larger marketing strategy."Google declined to disclose any advertising spending figures for Bitcoin ETF ad placements, noting that costs are variable due to advertisers bidding for ad placements through an auction process. The search giant also allows ads for cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets, but its rules prohibit advertising for initial coin offerings and marketing activities that are deemed to "promote the purchase, sale, or trading of cryptocurrencies or related products in other ways."

According to ChainCatcher news, the Financial Times reported that British police seized nearly $1.8 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) from a Chinese investment fraud case. The Southwark Crown Court learned that the defendant Jian Wen is accused of laundering money on behalf of her former employer Yadi Zhang (real name Qian Zhiming).In 2018, British police seized four devices containing over 61,000 Bitcoins, which were valued at £1.4 billion when fully recovered in July 2021. Yadi Zhang stole approximately £5 billion from over 128,000 investors and subsequently converted it into Bitcoin. Yadi Zhang is currently at large, and Jian Wen denies the related charges; she is on trial for allegedly assisting in converting some of Yadi Zhang's Bitcoins into cash, property, jewelry, and other luxury items.

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by the Financial Times citing informed sources, the Binance trading platform has begun allowing some larger traders to store assets in independent banks, including Switzerland's Sygnum Bank and Flow Bank. Previously, Binance customers could only hold assets on the trading platform or through the custodian Ceffu.

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by the Financial Times citing documents from the High Court in London, Tether has deposited over $1 billion with the financial services group Britannia Financial Group's subsidiary.It is reported that this deposit involves a legal dispute between Britannia Financial and a company registered in the British Virgin Islands, Arbitral International. According to court documents, Tether opened an account with Britannia Financial's subsidiary in November 2021.

ChainCatcher news, news, according to the Financial Times citing informed sources, Israel has ordered the freezing of cryptocurrency accounts to prevent the flow of funds to Hamas.Since the attack by Hamas on October 7, over 100 accounts have been frozen on Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Authorities have also requested information on up to 200 additional cryptocurrency accounts, most of which are said to be operated on Binance.Sources familiar with Israeli law enforcement actions stated that approximately 150 fundraising activities linked to Hamas and other organizations have been identified since October 7. Last week, the Israeli police force posted on social media that they had frozen accounts used by Hamas for fundraising, although the exact number is unclear.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Financial Times citing informed sources, some U.S. pension funds are providing financing support to the cryptocurrency broker Hidden Road. If the hedge funds financing the prime broker suffer significant losses, the prime broker or its investors may have to bear the costs.Andrew Urquhart, a professor of finance and financial technology at Henley Business School, stated: "This is a very risky investment, and if my pension fund indicated that we would enter the cryptocurrency space, I would be very concerned."Previous report, the digital asset and forex brokerage Hidden Road Partners completed a $50 million financing round last August, with participation from Citadel Securities, FTX Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, and others.Hidden Road Partners was founded by Marc Asch in 2018 and previously collaborated with Steven Cohen's hedge fund SAC Capital and Point72 Asset Management. The company assumes counterparty risk on behalf of clients and cryptocurrency exchanges or market makers, allowing them to deposit dollars as collateral in a tripartite setup with custodians and receive profits and losses in dollars.