⚖️ Binance's CZ Faces 3-Year Prison Sentence

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The U.S. Department of Justice is requesting a 36-month prison sentence for Binance’s former CEO, Changpeng Zhou. CZ is awaiting sentencing on April 30, with prosecutors calling double the jail time requested by CZ as part of his guilty plea from November.

On-chain activity across Ethereum and its broader L2 ecosystem is booming, with both active wallets and transaction volume tagging all-time highs. Grayscale also filed for a mini spot Ethereum ETF despite the SEC pushing back the deadline on its decision regarding several applications for spot Ether exchange-traded funds.

Activity on Bitcoin is also soaring, with the launch of the Ordinals-based Runes protocol igniting a flurry of on-chain action. Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of BitMEX, is bullish on Ordinals, describing the NFT-like assets as a vehicle bringing crypto culture onto the pioneering blockchain.

Plus, the freshly-unlocked SAFE token debuted at a $1.2 billion market cap, but has since tumbled to less than $850 million.

✍️ In today’s newsletter:

• CZ could face 36 months behind bars
• Ethereum ecosystem’s tags new highs
• Grayscale files for mini Ether ETF
• Markets up as U.S. economic data looms
• Runes drive activity surge on Bitcoin
• Arthur Hayes says Ordinals are culture
• SAFE debuts at $1.2B market cap

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🚓U.S. Prosecutors Seek Three-Year Sentence For CZ

The U.S. Department of Justice has requested a three-year prison sentence for CZ, the founder of Binance, double what the exchange’s former CEO requested as part of his guilty plea in November. CZ is accused of overseeing U.S. Bank Secrecy Act violations during his tenure.

🚀Ethereum Ecosystem Activity Soars to All-Time High

Combined activity across Ethereum’s mainnet and Layer 2 ecosystem is at record highs amid sky-high adoption of Polygon and Base. Weekly active wallets pushed past 10 million for the first time, while weekly transaction count has trended above 60 million for six weeks.

🤏Grayscale Seeks SEC Nod To Introduce ‘Mini’ Ethereum ETF

Grayscale submitted an application with the SEC for a “mini” spot Ether ETF that would be seeded with shares in the Grayscale Ethereum Trust — which the firm is hoping to convert into a spot ETF as well. The news comes as the May 23 deadline for the SEC to deliver a verdict on Ethereum ETF hopefuls quickly looms, with the also SEC postponing decisions concerning multiple Ether ETF applications.

⬆️Bitcoin, Ethereum Stage Relief Rally Ahead of U.S. Economic Data

Leading digital assets posted a brief rally as the markets await U.S. economic data set for release later this week. However, the bullish momentum was short-lived, with ETH and BTC both tumbling 2% over the past 24 hours.

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✈Bitcoin’s New Runes Protocol Fuels Sky High Transaction Fees

Bitcoin’s on-chain activity remains high amid the aftermath of the Runes airdrop, with a flurry of trading driving down the floor price of Runestones by 70% in the past seven days. Despite the bearish market momentum, the top NFT marketplaces are quickly moving to support the Ordinals-based assets.

🧍Arthur Hayes Says Ordinals ‘Bring Human Culture’ To Oldest Crypto Community

Arthur Hayes is vouching for Ordinals as memecoins as a vehicle for cultural expression on-chain. Hayes is putting his money where his mouth is, with the investor recently purchasing WZRD, an Ordinals-based token, pre-empting a 7,500% gain in just 14 days.

🔒Safe Token Trades at $1.2B Market Cap After Community Votes to Unpause Transfers

SAFE, the token from the largest multisig infrastructure provider, began trading at a $1.2 billion valuation after unlocking on Tuesday. However, the token has tumbled more than 40% since, despite Safe introducing a points program rewarding users who lock up their assets.

🌍 ELSEWHERE

• Crypto Custody Firm Fireblocks Now Offers DeFi Threat Detection for Institutions (CoinDesk)
• Sam Altman's Worldcoin meets Malaysian leaders as crypto project aims to bolster government ties (The Block)
• Jack Dorsey’s payments company, Block, is building its own bitcoin mining system (CNBC)

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