🔱CertiK In Hot Water After Siphoning $3M From Kraken

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CertiK, a blockchain security firm, is facing severe backlash after quietly siphoning $3 million in assets from Kraken, a top U.S. centralized exchange. CertiK claims it was merely researching the extent of a vulnerability before alerting the platform, but Kraken said the firm tried to hold the $3 million “hostage” while demanding a bug bounty.

Airdrop season is well and truly in full swing. LayerZero’s ZRO token debuted at a $1.1 billion valuation, EigenLayer launched EIGEN claims for all Season 1 points holders, Blast is readying to drop a token next week, and Mitosis launched a points program for early adopters.

Plus, crypto markets bounce as the SEC winds down its investigation into Ethereum, Martin Shrekli gets outed as the Trump-themed DJT memecoin creator, and Konami taps Avalanche for a Japan-focused NFT marketplace.

✍️ In today’s newsletter:

CertiK returns $3M to Kraken
Kraken accused CertiK of holding stolen funds hostage
ZRO launches at $1.1B market
LayerZero community complains about airdrop allocations
Phase 2 EIGEN claims are live
Blast to launch token next week
Mitosis announces points campaign
Digital assets up as SEC drops ETH investigation
‘Pharma bro’ outed as DJT creator
Konami to launch Yen-based NFT marketplace

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💰Certik Returns $3 Million To Kraken Amid Controversy For Holding Funds ‘Hostage’

CertiK returned the $3 million it pilfered from Kraken while conducting “research” after facing widespread backlash from the web3 community. The incident has onlookers concocting conspiracy theories, with some community members suggesting CertiK may operate as a front for North Korean hackers.

🔫Certik Holds $3 Million ‘Hostage’ From Kraken as Exchange Threatens Employees

Kraken said it was extorted by CertiK after the security firm exploited a vulnerability on the platform to take $3 million in illegitimately obtained assets. Kraken said CertiK sought to use the funds as leverage to guarantee a bug bounty payout, without which no repayment would be made.

🚀ZRO Trades At $1.1B Market Cap After LayerZero Launches Claims

LayerZero’s long-awaited ZRO token is finally live after the project began airdropping tokens to 1.28 million wallets. ZRO is off to a strong start, with the token commanding a $1.1 billion market cap and a $4.3 billion fully diluted valuation within an hour of launching.

☹️️LayerZero Airdrop Allocations Disappoint DeFi Users

Many LayerZero users are unhappy with the project’s long-awaited airdrop, with many users complaining about the size of their allocations. One user ranking among the top 0.13% of users shared that they qualified for 39.28 tokens — equating to roughly $135 at current prices.

🪂EigenLayer Launches Claims For Second Phase Of Season 1 Airdrop

EigenLayer launched claims for the second phase of its Season 1 airdrop, allocating tokens to LRT protocol users. The project added it will soon release details regarding its upcoming Season 2 allocations.

💥Blast Readies To Airdrop Tokens Next Week

Blast urged points holders to interact with its dashboard in order to qualify for its airdrop on June 26. Blast’s token generation event will evenly split airdropped assets between developers and users.

🥅Modular Liquidity Protocol Mitosis Kicks Off Next Phase of Airdrop Campaign

Mitosis, an LRT-focused liquidity protocol on Cosmos, is also getting in on airdrop season with the announcement of a points campaign for early adopters. The protocol’s TVL has already jumped 300% in the past month to $34 million.

📈Crypto Markets Bounce after SEC Closes Ethereum 2.0 Investigation

Digital assets enjoyed bullish momentum in response to news that the SEC is abandoning its investigation into whether Ethereum is a security. The bounce came in spite of $152 million exiting spot Bitcoin ETFs.

🔎Analyst Pins Martin Shkreli as the Potential Creator of the Donald Trump Memecoin

Martin Shkreli, a convicted felon currently facing a lawsuit from PleasrDAO, has been outed as the founder of DJT — a memecoin that briefly rallied amid unsubstantiated rumors the token was connected to the Trump family. Shkreli was outed after Arkham, an on-chain intelligence firm, offered a $150,000 bounty in exchange for proof of DJT’s creator’s identity.

🎮Konami Taps Avalanche For Yen-Based NFT Marketplace 'Resella'

Konami, the popular Japanese video game developer, is launching a Yen-based NFT marketplace leveraging Avalanche’s subnet infrastructure. The marketplace won’t support web3 wallets and aims to onboard established mainstream brands from the gaming sector.

🌍 ELSEWHERE

The CFTC is probing Jump Crypto, previously one of the sector’s biggest players (Fortune)
UK Regulator FCA Arrests Two People Associated With 1B-Pound Illegal Crypto Business (CoinDesk)
MicroStrategy buys additional 11,931 bitcoin for $786 million (The Block)
Jupiter Co-Founder Meow Proposes 30% Cut to JUP Supply, Sparking 7% Gain (Unchained)