Crypto lender BlockFi filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, days after suspending withdrawals amid the ongoing fallout from exchange FTX's bankruptcy filing, Coindesk reports.

The company said it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, indicating it hoped to restructure, continuing operations in the meantime. BlockFi has about $257 million in cash on hand. A Bermuda-based affiliate is also filing for liquidation, a similar process.

According to the company's petition, BlockFi's executives estimate the company has more than 100,000 creditors, and checked off the ranges. Executives estimate the company has between $1 billion and $10 billion in both assets and liabilities.

The company's largest creditors include West Realm Shires Inc., the legal name for FTX US, which has a $275 million unsecured claim, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which has a $30 million unsecured claim. The majority of the other top 50 creditors' names were not shared.

BlockFi's largest creditor is Ankura Trust Company, which the lender appears to have hired in February and now has a $730 million unsecured claim.

itcoin price saw a sudden sell-off on November 28 after a consolidative weekend, FXStreet reports. This bearish outlook comes as major protests erupt in China due to Covid restrictions. As a result of the growing unrest in the east, investors seem to be heading into a risk-off mode, pushing safe-haven assets like the US Dollar, bonds, and Yen higher.

Bitcoin price crashed 7% between November 19 and 21, which formed the second bottom at $15,443. After this move, BTC saw a 9% upswing that pushed it to $16,800, creating the fourth lower high.

After four days of consolidation, Bitcoin price finally broke down and tagged $16,120, the midpoint of the $15,443 to $16,797 range. As long as BTC remains above this level, there is a high chance that BTC will likely retest the previous Monday’s high at $17,188 and June lows at $17,593.

From a short-to-mid-term perspective, a flip of the $17,593 hurdle could open the path for Bitcoin price to retest the $19,011, the highest volume traded over the last 11 months. Additionally, the Relative Strength Index shows that the overall momentum is still bullish as it continues to produce higher lows since November 9.

On the other hand, if Bitcoin price fails to hold above the $15,700 support level, it will be the first sign of weakness. A breakdown of this level, followed by a four-hour candlestick close below $15,443 without a quick recovery, will invalidate the bullish thesis.

In such a case, Bitcoin price could explore the possibility of revisiting the high timeframe support level at $13,575.

Source: FXStreet 

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance on Thursday announced new details about its industry recovery fund, which aims to prop up struggling players in the wake of FTX’s calamitous bankruptcy, CNBC reports.

Binance said it will devote $1 billion in initial commitments to the recovery fund. It may increase that amount to $2 billion at a point in time in the future “if the need arises,” the company added.

It has also received $50 million in commitments from crypto-native investment firms including Jump Crypto, Polygon Ventures, and Animoca Brands.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao shared the public wallet address showing its initial commitment and said: “We do this transparently.” Public blockchain data reviewed by CNBC showed a balance of around $1 billion in Binance’s own BUSD stablecoin.

Billionaire investor and hedge fund manager Bill Ackman says he remains bullish about cryptocurrencies, despite the recent collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and the market turmoil that has followed it, Cointelegraph reports.

In a Nov. 20 Twitter thread, the CEO and founder of hedge fund management firm Pershing Square Capital Management said he believes that “crypto is here to stay” despite recent challenges, though there’s a need to increase oversight and remove “fraudulent actors” in the space.

Bill Ackman is a billionaire American investor who most recently called for the removal of regulatory barriers and easing of regulations in New York in order to make the city a crypto hub. He is also a direct investor in a number of cryptocurrency projects.

“I think crypto is here to stay and with proper oversight and regulation, it has the potential to greatly benefit society and grow the global economy,” he said.

Recent market turmoil has given the Financial Stability Board (FSB) “all the more reason” to develop a globally consistent regulatory framework, an official said on Thursday, Coindesk reports.

The international body monitors and recommends standards for the global financial system, and is made up of major economies and institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Steven Maijoor, chair of the Financial Stability Board’s crypto working group, said:

Rapid growth of crypto markets in the presence of structural vulnerabilities and incomplete regulations and supervision means that they will soon reach a point where they represent a threat to the stability of the global financial system

The international body monitors and recommends standards for the global financial system, and is made up of major economies and institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Read full article on Coindesk.

22 year old Ahmad Abu Daher, based in Lebanon, and his team of more than 40 Lebanese and Syrian employees, earn $20,000 by working around the clock to man thousands of Bitcoin mining machines across the country, CNBC reports.

“We can’t sleep. We can’t have any break,” Abu Daher told CNBC. “All of my team are still awake. They don’t sleep. Our shift is working 16 hours per day, and sometimes, up to 18 or 19 hours.”

According to CNBC, the local currency has lost more than 95% of its value since 2019, the minimum wage has plunged to $17 a month, pensions are virtually worthless, and bank account balances are just numbers on paper. Banks close without warning and ATMs are often either out of cash or entirely offline from nationwide blackouts. When locals are able to gain access to their accounts, many tell CNBC that they have grown accustomed to withdrawing money at 15% of its original worth.

Against this backdrop, Abu Daher jumped into the crypto mining business a little over two years ago. He and a friend began with three machines running on hydroelectric power in Zaarouriyeh, a town 30 miles south of Beirut in the Chouf Mountains.

“When we started, it was our great idea to make money while sleeping or eating,” said Abu Daher. Nowadays, Abu Daher says he is online 20 hours a day.