The Block

The Block

Benzinga Contributor

Yuga Labs Hires Media Veteran Won Kim as Head of Brand Partnerships
The giant web3 brand Yuga Labs hired an experienced marketing executive as its Head of Brand Partnerships. Won Kim joined Yuga after co-founding the web3 consulting agency and NFT fund Bored Room Ventures.
Eminem Replaces Matt Damon as Crypto.com Celebrity Spokesperson
High-profile celebrities shilling for crypto making a comeback? It's probably too early to tell, but in one of the splashiest examples in recent times of a megastar promoting crypto—after the FTX debacle, taking money to be a brand ambassador for crypto companies fell drastically out of favor—Eminem has lent his voice to a new TV advertisement for Crypto.com. 
Bitcoin Miner Marathon Digital Targets its Hash Rate to Double in 2024
Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital (NASDAQ: MARA) has raised its 2024 hash rate growth target in response to Bitcoin's (CRYPTO: BTC) fourth halving event, which reduced miners' block subsidy rewards from 6.25 BTC t
Immutable Launching Crypto Gaming Rewards Program Worth $50 Million
Blockchain gaming platform Immutable announced it is launching what it calls "the largest ever web3 gaming quest and rewards program." Dubbed "The Main Quest" Immutable said it has already secured $50 million in token rewards for players.
ViaBTC's 'Epic Sat' From Fourth Bitcoin Halving Block Sells for 33.3 BTC ($2.13 Million)
An "epic sat"—an exceptionally rare satoshi, the smallest unit of bitcoin, from Bitcoin's (CRYPTO: BTC) fourth halving block—sold for over $2 million.
The Memecoin 'Casino' Undermines Crypto's Long-Term Prospects: A16z
The Chief Technical Officer at one of the biggest and most influential venture capital firms active in the crypto and blockchain space wasn't pulling any punches when he decided to publicly criticize memecoins. "Memecoins alter how the public, regulators, and entrepreneurs see crypto. At best, it looks like a risky casino.
SEC Asks for Comments on BlackRock's Amended Spot Ethereum ETF Proposal
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is asking for public comments on changes made to BlackRock's (NYSE: BLK) proposed spot Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) exchange-traded fund.
Sam Altman's Worldcoin Meets Malaysian Leaders as Crypto Project Aims to Bolster Government Ties
Main proponents of the iris-scanning Worldcoin (CRYPTO: WLD) project, Sam Altman and Alex Blania, recently talked to Malaysian leaders as the two try to improve government relations while simultaneously demonstrating they are committed to protecting users' data and privacy.
Bitcoin's Issuance Rate Drops Below Gold's After Recent Halving: Glassnode
Bitcoin's (CRYPTO: BTC) fourth halving event may have resulted in the digital asset decisively surpassing gold in terms of issuance scarcity, according to Glassnode analysts.
Ethereum Name Service Integrates Browser Compatible .Box Web Domains
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) Name Service has integrated .box domain names that can be used with internet browsers. The .box domain is recognized as an ICANN-approved top-level domain and is the first on-chain TLD included in the ENS manager app — alongside .eth.
Thailand Plans to Block Unauthorized Crypto Platforms From Local Users
Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that it plans to block local access to unauthorized cryptocurrency platforms, and has asked local investors to move out their funds from such platforms.
Crypto Funds See $206 Million in Weekly Outflows as Investors 'Fret' Over Interest Rates: CoinShares
Crypto investment products at asset managers such as Ark Invest, Bitwise, Fidelity, Grayscale, ProShares and 21Shares registered a second-consecutive week of outflows totaling $206 million globally last week, according to CoinShares' latest report.
Celo Developer cLabs Proposes Using OP Stack to Launch Ethereum Layer 2 Chain
cLabs, the core developer behind the Celo blockchain, has proposed building the anticipated Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) Layer-2 solution on the OP Stack.
Tokenization Platform Huma Finance Merges With Circle-Backed Liquidity Platform Arf
Huma Finance, a tokenization platform for real-world assets, has merged with Arf, a liquidity and settlement platform focused on cross-border payments, to improve the adoption of tokenized assets.
Kraken Launches Self-Custodial Mobile Wallet and Releases Its Open-Source Code
The crypto exchange giant Kraken released a self-custodial mobile wallet called Kraken Wallet, and it even published the app's code at launch. Kraken Wallet lets users manage their NFTs, tokens and DeFi positions across Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ethereum (CRYPTO:
TikTok Owner ByteDance's Tech Arm Collaborating with Sui Builders on Web3 Gaming, SocialFi
TikTok owner ByteDance's enterprise technology services subsidiary, BytePlus, is partnering with Mysten Labs to enhance web3 gaming and SocialFi offerings on Sui, Mysten's blockchain network, as announced in a Wednesday morning blog post by the project's foundation.
Ethereum Liquid Restaking Protocol Puffer Finance Reaches $200 Million Valuation in New Token Funding Round
Puffer Finance, an Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) liquid restaking protocol built on EigenLayer, has raised $18 million in a Series A funding round co-led by Brevan Howard Digital and Electric Capital.
Bored Apes' Floor Price Hits Lowest Point Since 2021, Down More Than 90% From All-Time High
Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs may have hit more than a rough patch as the floor price for the once-celebrated collection hit its lowest point since August 2021. As of Monday, the floor price on Bored Ape NFTs sank to 10.9 ether (about $34,000), according to NFT Price Floor data.
Current Actions of Bitcoin Holders Mirror December 2020, Suggesting Possible Growth Phase: Bitfinex Analysts
A significant decrease in the inactive supply of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) that has not moved in over a year is indicative of long-term holders either continuing to trim their holdings or moving their assets off exchange, according to this week's Bitfinex Alpha report.
April's First Two Weeks Saw More Ethereum Loans Liquidated Than Any Month Since June 2022
While crypto prices have staged a modest recovery following yesterday's sharp selloff, the volume of liquidations on Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) lending markets has already reached its highest monthly value in years—despite April hardly being half over.