Crypto Morning Brief: South Korea's martial law sparks market volatility; Grayscale submits application for spot Solana ETF to SEC
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Crypto Morning Brief: South Korea's martial law sparks market volatility; Grayscale submits application for spot Solana ETF to SEC
The offshore yuan fell below 7.30 against the U.S. dollar, hitting its lowest level since November last year.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: TechFlow
Yesterday's Market Developments
Grayscale Submits Application for Spot Solana ETF to SEC
According to Cointelegraph, Grayscale has submitted an application for a spot Solana ETF to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). If approved, the Grayscale Solana Trust Fund would be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol GSOL. According to the filing, Coinbase Custody Trust Company, LLC would serve as custodian and BNY Mellon Asset Servicing as administrator.
Over the past year, several firms including 21Shares, VanEck, Bitwise Asset Management, and Canary Capital have been pushing for the launch of a spot Solana ETF.
Source: Trump Nominates Crypto-Supportive Paul Atkins as Next SEC Chair
Three sources familiar with the matter told Unchained Crypto that President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Paul Atkins, a crypto-supportive former regulator, to lead the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Atkins previously served as an SEC commissioner during George W. Bush’s administration and has long supported the crypto industry. One source said Trump has already contacted Atkins but is awaiting his acceptance.
Over $163 Million in USDT Flowed into Upbit Within One Hour After South Korea Announced Martial Law
Lookonchain data shows that within one hour after South Korea announced martial law, over 163 million USDT flowed into Upbit, the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange—possibly indicating whale-level buying activity.
Previously reported, the South Korean crypto market experienced severe volatility, with Bitcoin on Upbit trading at a negative premium of up to 33% compared to international prices, while major cryptocurrencies like XRP and ETH dropped more than 50% at one point.
Coinbase Adds MOG Coin (MOG) to Its Listing Roadmap
Officially announced, Coinbase has added MOG Coin (MOG) to its listing roadmap.
Analysis: MicroStrategy Would Only Become Insolvent if Bitcoin Drops to $18,826
According to Cointelegraph, Jeff Walton, a capital advisor, recently analyzed that even if Bitcoin’s price plunges by 80% below $20,000, MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin investment strategy remains solid. Walton calculated that the company would only become insolvent if Bitcoin falls to $18,826.
Charles Edwards, founder of quant fund Capriole Investments, pointed out that institutional demand for Bitcoin is experiencing explosive growth, marked by three key trends: First, MicroStrategy continues raising billions weekly to purchase Bitcoin; second, mining firm MARA is conducting a $1 billion financing round aiming to increase its Bitcoin holdings by 30%; third, institutions and ETFs now hold 13.5% of circulating Bitcoin supply—an exponentially growing share.
Edwards further predicted that current institutional adoption of Bitcoin is still in its early stages. He believes once Bitcoin surpasses the $100,000 threshold, it will trigger a much larger wave of market momentum.
Arbitrum One TVL Surpasses $20 Billion, Becoming the First L2 Network to Reach This Milestone
Arbitrum announced on X that Arbitrum One’s total value locked (TVL) has surpassed $20 billion, reaching $20.04 billion—a 14% increase week-on-week—and becoming the first Layer 2 network to achieve this scale.
The Arbitrum team stated that with Stage 2 approaching and continued ecosystem expansion across verticals, Arbitrum One will further enhance its scalability capabilities.
XRP Ledger Reduces Base Reserve Requirement by 90% to 1 XRP
As reported by Cointelegraph, the XRP Ledger has reduced its base reserve requirement from 10 XRP (approximately $25.60) to 1 XRP (around $2.56). Simultaneously, the owner reserve for each account object—including NFTs, trust lines, and signature lists—has also been lowered from 2 XRP to 0.2 XRP.
The adjustment was first disclosed by XRP validator operator Vet. Developer WietseWind noted that while lower reserves may increase ledger activity and pose infrastructure challenges, it represents a “good problem,” signaling greater user participation. The engineering team expressed confidence in handling increased network load.
Offshore Yuan Falls Below 7.30 Against the Dollar, Hitting Lowest Level Since Last November
The offshore yuan weakened past the 7.30 level against the U.S. dollar, currently trading at 7.3010, down nearly 200 basis points on the day. Onshore yuan approached the 7.29 mark, hitting a low of 7.2890—the weakest since November last year.
South Korean Media: Surge in Elderly Crypto Investment—Over-60 Accounts Reach 775,700
According to Pioneer Economy, on major South Korean exchanges Upbit and Bithumb, users aged 60 and above held 775,700 accounts as of end-September, up 30.4% since the end of 2021. This age group collectively holds 6.7609 trillion KRW in crypto assets, averaging about 8.72 million KRW per person—the highest among all age groups. Meanwhile, demand deposit balances at South Korea’s five major banks fell to 592.67 trillion KRW, down 26.95 trillion KRW from June, marking the lowest since January this year.
Data: Exchange Bitcoin Balances Continue Declining, Down 315,000 BTC Year-to-Date
On December 4, HODL15Capital data showed that major crypto exchanges collectively held 2.312 million BTC, down 116,000 BTC over the past 30 days and 315,000 BTC (a 12.8% decrease) since the beginning of the year. Among them:
Coinbase holds the most, with 783,000 BTC—down 38,000 BTC in 30 days and 281,000 BTC year-to-date
Binance ranks second with 579,000 BTC—down 29,000 BTC in 30 days and 6,860 BTC year-to-date
Bitfinex ranks third with 378,000 BTC—down 12,000 BTC in 30 days and 3,316 BTC year-to-date
Notably, a few exchanges such as OKX, Bitflyer, and Kucoin saw net inflows this year, with OKX adding 33,000 BTC—the largest gain among all exchanges.
Market Data
Suggested Reading
Decoding South Korea’s Martial Law: A Political Feud Tearing National Consensus Apart
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung have long been deeply opposed. Yoon cited defending constitutional order as justification for imposing martial law abruptly, accusing Lee and others of being pro-North, anti-state forces.
Although Lee lost the presidential election, he gained massive support due to perceived political persecution, while Yoon’s approval rating hit record lows. This political confrontation reflects fundamental divisions between conservatives and progressives in South Korea, deepening societal polarization.
Vitalik Buterin outlined his vision for an ideal Ethereum wallet, covering improvements in cross-chain transactions, privacy protection, account security, and fraud prevention. He also explored future directions, such as integrating artificial intelligence and brain-computer interfaces.
From 10 SOL to 1,000 SOL in Two Months: My Practical Meme Trading Insights
This article shares the author’s hands-on experience trading meme coins over the past two months. The author summarizes two main trading strategies: 1) profiting from emerging hype sentiment; and 2) capturing breakout gains from undervalued projects with strong narratives. Each approach involves different considerations regarding asset selection, entry timing, and exit points. The article also recommends several influential KOLs in the meme trading space.
Cyber Capital Founder: Ripple Is Fully Centralized—Stay Alert
The founder of Cyber Capital argues that Ripple operates as a fully centralized cryptocurrency network and cannot be considered a true cryptocurrency.
Sui made significant progress during Q2 and Q3 of 2024. Optimizations greatly enhanced performance, with the Mysticeti consensus mechanism reducing latency by 80%. At the same time, the Sui ecosystem expanded rapidly—DeFi total value locked (TVL) grew 42% to reach $1 billion. Projects built on Sui raised $16.3 million in funding during these two quarters, a 41.7% increase from the previous period. Additionally, Sui attracted increasing interest from institutional investors and actively advanced its core technology and ecosystem development.
Crypto Market Outlook for December: AI Agents With Novel Output Formats Will Gain Popularity
This article analyzes the crypto market outlook for December, focusing on AI agent development trends, Ethereum’s future trajectory, and the ongoing battle among public blockchains.
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