Crypto Morning Brief: BOJ Governor hints at further rate hikes, ZKSync's parent company cuts 16% of workforce
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Crypto Morning Brief: BOJ Governor hints at further rate hikes, ZKSync's parent company cuts 16% of workforce
Nvidia's market value drops by $278.9 billion, marking its biggest single-day decline since late April.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: TechFlow
Yesterday's Market Developments
Bank of Japan governor signals further rate hikes, unwinding of yen carry trades could re-emerge
According to Coindesk, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda reiterated today that interest rates will be raised further if the economy and inflation develop as expected. In a document submitted to a government panel led by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Ueda stated that even after raising benchmark borrowing costs at the end of July, monetary conditions remain accommodative, with real interest rates still negative. Analysts note that the BOJ’s tightening stance contrasts sharply with the Federal Reserve’s potential rate cuts starting in September, which could strengthen the yen and force traders to sell risk assets to repay yen-denominated loans. Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, warned that the risk of unwinding yen carry trades may reappear unless central banks increase money supply by expanding their balance sheets.
Nvidia loses $27.89 billion in market value, its largest single-day drop since late April
Nvidia dropped over 9%, shedding $27.89 billion (approximately RMB 198.61 billion) in market value—the biggest one-day decline since late April. Antitrust scrutiny against the company is escalating, with the U.S. Department of Justice issuing subpoenas. The DOJ, gathering evidence of antitrust violations, has sent subpoenas to the chipmaker and other firms, intensifying its investigation into the tech giant dominant in AI computing.
ZKSync developer Matter Labs cuts 16% of staff, first layoffs in six years
According to BlockWorks, ZKsync developer Matter Labs announced it will lay off 16% of its workforce—24 employees in total. This marks the company’s first round of layoffs since its founding six years ago. Nana Murugesan, president of Matter Labs, said in an interview: "Organizational complexity tends to accumulate over time. We need to ensure we have the right roles and people to effectively fulfill our mission." Both Murugesan and CEO Alex Gluchowski emphasized the layoffs are not due to financial reasons. The company still plans for “strategic hiring.”
Binance plans to launch Solana staking product BNSOL by end of September
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance plans to launch its Solana staking product, BNSOL, by the end of September. The product will allow users to stake SOL tokens to earn a share of network fees and mint liquid staking tokens usable while underlying tokens are locked. Vishal Sacheendran, Binance’s regional markets lead, said unlike traditional staking, BNSOL enables users to unlock liquidity, continuously accrue rewards, and seamlessly participate across Binance and the broader DeFi ecosystem. The utility of BNSOL tokens will ultimately depend on adoption within Solana-based decentralized finance. Binance is programming a “dynamic APR” for BNSOL, adjusted based on current Solana staking yields and commission ratios tied to BNSOL’s cumulative rewards and value relative to SOL. Users will be able to redeem their tokens after a waiting period. Binance will formally announce the protocol’s launch later this month.
Report: 96% of NFT projects considered “dead,” over 43% of NFT holders in loss
According to Bitcoin.com News, a recent report by nftevening reveals that 96% of NFT projects are deemed “dead,” showing near-zero trading volume, extremely low 7-day sales, and minimal social media presence. The report analyzed over 5,000 NFT collections and 5 million transactions, finding that more than 43% of NFT holders are currently at a loss, with average return on investment down 44.5%.
DeFi protocol Penpie hacked, around $27 million in crypto assets stolen
An independent DeFi protocol built on Pendle, Penpie, was attacked early this morning. Hackers stole approximately $27 million in crypto assets, including various forms of staked ETH, Ethena’s sUSDE, and wrapped USDC stablecoin. Following the attack, Penpie (PNP) plunged 40%. Pendle (PENDLE) fell nearly 8% over the past 24 hours.
Upbit to list UXLINK trading pairs
According to an official announcement, South Korean crypto exchange Upbit will list UXLINK trading pairs at 22:00 local time on September 3, including UXLINK/KRW, UXLINK/BTC, and UXLINK/USDT.
Binance to launch FLUX perpetual contract with up to 75x leverage
Binance Futures announced it will launch the FLUXUSDT perpetual contract on September 3, 2024, at 07:00 UTC. The contract will support up to 75x leverage.
People's Court Daily calls for standardized judicial handling of cryptocurrency; crypto crime value in China surged to RMB 430.719 billion last year
The People's Court Daily published an article emphasizing the importance of standardizing judicial handling of virtual currencies to maintain financial stability and promote healthy market development. According to statistics from SAFEIS Security Research Institute, in 2023, China investigated 428 cases involving virtual currency crimes—a decrease of 88.9% compared to 2022—but the total涉案 amount surged to RMB 430.719 billion, about 12.36 times that of 2022. The article highlights multiple challenges in handling virtual currencies, including ownership determination, valuation, and legal liquidation. To address these issues, it recommends promptly issuing comprehensive judicial guidelines to clarify their legal status, compliance requirements, asset disposal procedures, and liability frameworks. It also calls for strengthened international cooperation to jointly tackle global challenges posed by virtual currencies and lay a legal foundation for digital economy and digital finance.
Trump-affiliated crypto project World Liberty Financial to be built on Aave and Ethereum
CoinDesk reports new details about World Liberty Financial, a crypto project linked to Donald Trump. The project will be built on the decentralized finance platform Aave and the Ethereum blockchain, centered around a “credit account system.” Announced in late August (originally branded as The DeFiant Ones), Trump’s three sons—Donald Trump Jr., Eric, and 18-year-old Barron—are reportedly involved in planning. According to the whitepaper and a now-deleted GitHub repository, World Liberty Financial draws inspiration from DeFi protocol Dough Finance, though it remains unconfirmed whether it will use Dough Finance’s codebase. The team also plans to issue WLFI, a “non-transferable” governance token. Notably, Dough Finance’s co-founders Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro are listed as operations lead and data strategy head for the project. In July, Dough Finance suffered an $1.8 million flash loan attack.
TON Accelerator launches incubator program TON:Acc and ecosystem platform TON:Acc Portal
According to an official announcement, TON Accelerator has launched a new incubation program called TON:Acc to support promising startups building on the TON network. The first cohort will select five projects, each eligible for up to $2.5 million in funding. TON Ventures also plans to launch the TON:Acc Portal, an ecosystem incubation platform offering validation, acceleration programs, and mentorship opportunities for early-stage projects.
FBI warns North Korean hackers are “actively targeting” Web3 employees and crypto ETF-related entities
According to The Block, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued a report stating that North Korean hackers are “actively targeting” employees in the Web3 industry to steal corporate crypto assets. The FBI noted these hackers employ sophisticated social engineering tactics capable of deceiving even highly technical individuals. Reports indicate that North Korean hackers have been studying targets related to crypto ETFs in recent months, potentially planning malicious cyber activities against these firms. Their tactics include impersonating corporate executives, creating fake scenarios, and tricking employees into downloading malicious applications.
Electric Capital partner shares 5 key DeFi trends, spotlighting Aave, EigenLayer and others
Electric Capital partner Ken Deeter shared five major DeFi trends he is watching:
First, convergence in lending markets—platforms like Aave, Morpho Labs, Silo Finance, Euler Labs, Kamino, and Fraxlend are seeing functional overlap, with circular lending becoming ubiquitous. The focus will shift toward use cases, partnerships, and ecosystems.
Second, rebalancing vaults—projects such as Tokemak, Cove Finance, and Veda Labs are delivering higher yields for users and enabling more efficient liquidity provisioning for markets and ecosystems.
Third, term assets—veTokens, Term Labs, Pendle, Hourglass, and Frax Bonds are all building infrastructure for markets in assets with maturity dates and fixed terms.
Fourth, real-world assets (RWA)—including stablecoins, treasury bills, and reinsurance—will become foundational pillars of on-chain economic activity.
Fifth, restaking—exemplified by EigenLayer—the concept of putting any yield-bearing asset at risk to secure other protocols holds significant potential. Deeter noted that despite the bear market, teams continue building important new projects, which remains exciting.
Market Overview
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