DIB 21 NOV 2024

BTC Daily Intelligence Bulletin (DIB)
Block: 871,344
DTG/ICOD: 1200Z 21Nov24
Precedence: Routine (RR)
Controls: Public Release
QQQQ
__________________________
BLUF: ICC Issues Arrest Warrant for Netanyahu / Russia Launches ICBM Into Ukraine / Biden Approves Landmines for Ukraine, Forgives $5B in Loans / FBI Arrests Would-Be NYSE Bomber / Laken Riley Murderer Sentenced / Shanghai Court Rules Crypto is Property / US Looks to Break Up Google-Chrome / Brazil Pushes CBDC / MicroStrategy Volumes Exceed BTC EFTs / Saylor Loses Complete Control of MSTR / BTC ETFs Now > $100B / Bitcoin Closing in on $100K / Middleschooler’s Rugpull Should Be a Meme / Scammers on the Prowl in the US / BlueSky Passes 20M Users

Market Data: Price: 1 BTC= $97,610, 36.69 oz Gold, .23 Median US House
24hr Hi: $98,342 / Lo: $93,285
Vol: $97B (Up 27%)
Mkt Cap: $1.93T (Up 4%)
HashRate: 789 EH/s
Avg Fee Rate: 23 sats/vBtye (Up 12%)
Nodes: 19,491

—Reports—
-International Events-
1. ICC issues arrest warrant for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu: The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant “for crimes against humanity and war crimes”. The move is a dramatic escalation of legal proceedings over the war in Gaza and means that ICC’s 124 member states would be obliged to arrest Netanyahu and Gallant if they were to enter their territory. (FT)

2. Russia Launches ICBM In Attack On Ukraine, Kyiv Claims: Ukraine said Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile Thursday on Dnipro, and if confirmed would be the first known use of the rocket that is capable of carrying nuclear warheads, according to reports. Ukraine’s air force said the missile was fired from Russia’s Astrakhan region near the Caspian Sea, the Associated Press reported. (AP)

3. Biden approves anti-personnel mines for Ukraine: President Joe Biden has approved provision of anti-personnel land mines to Ukraine, a U.S. official told Reuters, a step that could help slow Russian advances in its east, especially when used along with other munitions from the United States. The US expects Ukraine to use the mines in its own territory, though it has committed not to use them in areas populated with its own civilians, the official said. (Reuters)

-US Events-
1. Biden Forgives Nearly $5 Billion in Ukraine Loans Before Presidential Transition: The Biden administration announced yesterday a $4.7 billion loan forgiveness for Ukraine, utilizing authority from an April funding bill. This represents half of the $9.4 billion in forgivable loans allocated for Ukraine’s economic support. (Ground)

2. FBI Charges Florida Man Over Alleged Plot to Bomb New York Stock Exchange: A man from Coral Springs, Florida, was arrested on Nov. 20 for an alleged plot to bomb the New York Stock Exchange this week. Harun Abdul-Malik Yener, 30, was charged with attempting to use an improvised explosive device to damage or destroy a building used in interstate or foreign commerce, according to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. (EpochTimes)

3. Laken Riley Murder: Jose Ibarra Sentenced To Life Without Parole For Killing Georgia Student: A judge found Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old undocumented immigrant, guilty of murdering Laken Riley, a nursing student who was found dead on the University of Georgia’s campus in February, sentencing him to life in prison—putting an end to the murder case that became a political touch point for both parties in the national immigration debate. (Forbes)

-Regulatory and Legal-
1. Shanghai court says crypto ownership legal under China law amid bitcoin price surge: A Shanghai court has released an opinion stating that the personal ownership of cryptocurrencies is not against Chinese law, offering explicit legal clarity for crypto holders on the mainland amid a record-setting bitcoin price surge. Beijing sees cryptocurrencies as a threat to financial stability, and commercial activity related to these assets remains banned on the mainland, which has put their legal standing in doubt. (SCMP) (AC-Although this is a move in the direction of crypto freedom in China, this ruling is still not the overall law of the land.)

2. US regulators seek to break up Google, forcing Chrome sale as part of monopoly punishment: U.S. regulators asked a federal judge on Wednesday to break up Google, accusing the tech giant of abusing its monopoly in the search engine and search advertising markets for over a decade. The Department of Justice (DOJ), alongside 38 states and territories, outlined its proposed remedy in a 23-page court filing late Wednesday. The filing follows a federal court ruling that found Google unlawfully maintained its dominance through anti-competitive practices. (EpochTimes)

-Central Bank Digital Currencies/World Currencies-
1. Brazil’s Drex CBDC Pilot Aims to Revolutionize Trade Finance: The Central Bank of Brazil (BCB) has advanced its Drex Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) initiative by entering the second phase of its pilot project. This stage focuses on enhancing trade financing efficiency and optimizing supply chains, particularly for cross-border agricultural commodity transactions. Key participants in the initiative include Microsoft, Banco Inter, Chainlink, and 7Comm, signaling a collaborative effort to modernize Brazil’s financial infrastructure. (CoinTrust) (AC-The CBDC push will continue as economic control is not easily given up.)

-Institutional Concerns-
1. MicroStrategy’s MSTR and ETFs Surpass Entire UK Stock Market’s Trading Volumes: MicroStrategy stock MSTR smashed record trading volumes on Wednesday, ending the session 10.05% high and hitting a new all-time high of $474. Additionally, the MSTR-linked ETFs have clocked huge trading volumes while single-handedly dominating the market activity in the Bitcoin industrial complex. Yesterday. MSTR was the second-most traded stock on Wall Street after Nvidia. The firm (MSTR) led the surge with an impressive $32 billion in trading volume. Meanwhile, the MicroStrategy spot ETFs, T-Rex 2X Long MSTR Daily Target ETF (MSTU) and Defiance’s 2X long ETF (MSTX), collectively accounted for $6 billion, surpassing the volume of all spot Bitcoin ETFs combined. (CoinGape)

2. Michael Saylor Loses MicroStrategy Voting Control Amid Soaring BTC Adoption: According to Matt Walsh on X as of November 20, “Michael Saylor no longer has voting control over the firm, MicroStrategy.” Primarily due to the sheer volume of shares sold under the Sales Agreements, the company earlier anticipated that Saylor, the founder, would lose voting control this month as he would no longer hold more than 50% of the aggregate voting power. Notably, this aspect is vital for any firm to qualify as a ‘controlled company’ under Nasdaq’s directions. (CoinGape) (AC-An interesting consequence of selling so many shares, which could have surprising implications for the company at some future time.)

3. Bitcoin ETFs Hit Historic $100 Billion Milestone in Net Asset Value: Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) reached a historic milestone, with a total net asset value of $100 billion across the 12 ETFs. (BitcoinCom)

-Economic Indicators-
1. Bitcoin Hits New All-Time Highs, Nears $100K: Bitcoin broke above $97,000 on Thursday, hitting fresh record highs and inching closer to the key $100,000 mark as Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House raised optimism about a more favorable US regulatory environment. (TradingEconomics)

2. US 10-Year Yield Steadies on Trump, Fed Outlook: The yield on the US 10-year Treasury note steadied around 4.4% on Thursday, supported by expectations that Trump’s policies could fuel inflation and potentially limit the Federal Reserve’s future interest rate cuts. (TradingEconomics)

3. US Stocks Fall: Stocks in the US retreated on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 down 0.7%, the Dow Jones slipping 110 points, and the Nasdaq falling 1% as traders absorbed earnings reports and monitored escalating Ukraine-Russia tensions. (TradingEconomics)

-Security Incidents and Concerns-
1. Middleschooler’s ‘rug pull’ stunt reveals the dark side of memecoins: A middle school student and his family are being targeted by angry traders after the boy pocketed $30,000 by selling a memecoin. The boy launched a token called Gen Z Quant — or Quant — on the popular memecoin platform pump.fun in the early hours of Wednesday morning. As Quant rallied, the boy — while livestreaming to hundreds of people — sold a large portion of the token he had set aside, netting him $30,000 while crashing its price. “No way, thanks for the 20 bandos” he said after selling his tokens, raising his middle fingers to the camera. (DLNews) (AC-This story should be a meme in itself.)

2. Crypto Scam Epidemic: US Founders Responsible for Nearly Half of All Scam Projects: According to a study examining more than 1,500 crypto projects, U.S. founders account for 43.4% of all identified scam crypto projects in 2024. Between January and October, the country’s share of total scam crypto projects identified easily dwarfs the combined share (19.76%) of the next four countries. (BitcoinCom) (AC-It is only going to increase in 2025.)

-Technology and Science-
1. Bluesky Hits 20 Million Users After X Subscribers’ Migration: Will It Surpass Instagram Threads?: Bluesky’s mobile application has experienced unheard-of growth. Domestic use jumped by 519% in the U.S. after the elections during mid-November. Launched to the public in February after a private phase, Bluesky has more than doubled its user base since September, from 9 million to 20 million users. (TechTimes)

-Bitcoin Community-
NSTR

-Bitcoin Sentiment-
1. Fear(0)/Greed(100) Index: 82/100 (Down 1 pts)

Analyst Comments (AC): NSTR

Follow us on NOSTR: npub1qktts9naunvjdwsktq5xjdhwh539xt4x0mqj4yxq0q9dvm03ljvs6sms0r
____________________
Analyst: BV2A
END REPORT
NNNN
*NSTR-Nothing Significant To Report