• Over 75% of Web3 games ‘failed’ in last five years: CoinGecko
More than three-quarters of all blockchain games launched in the last five years are dead in the water, according to a recent study from CoinGecko.
Out of 2,817 games launched between 2018 and 2023, which were included in the study, only 690 of them still have a somewhat active player base.
CoinGecko defines a “failed” Web3 game as one where the 14-day moving average number of active users drops 99% or more from its peak.
While 2021 saw the highest number of blockchain games launched in a single year with 738 games, the following year — marred by major crypto collapses, saw the highest number of games to fizzle out, with 742 failing in a single year.
This puts the average failure rate of Web3 games at around 80% for any given year since 2018, according to CoinGecko.
• ‘Clear runway’ opens for all Bitcoin ETF approvals in Jan — Analysts
Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States now have a “clear runway” to potential simultaneous approvals after an advanced decision to delay the bids of Franklin Templeton and Hashdex ETFs, according to analysts.
In a Nov. 28 X (formerly Twitter) post, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) delayed its decision on the applications 34 days earlier than the Jan. 1, 2024, decision deadline.
The SEC requested comments on forms by Franklin Templeton and Hashdex that are necessary for the ETFs to eventually be listed and start trading. The comment and rebuttal period will last 35 days.
Seyffart and his colleague Eric Balchunas had placed 90% odds on sport Bitcoin ETF approvals by Jan. 10, 2024, and the twin delays “all but confirms for me that this was likely a move to line every applicant up for potential approval by the Jan 10, 2024 deadline,” Seyffart said.
• Coinbase Stock Is Soaring—What Does That Mean for Crypto?
As of this writing, COIN shares—which trade on the Nasdaq—are sitting at $128.46. That’s the highest Coinbase has seen its shares trading all year, beating the previous high of $110.15 the company set in July after a ruling in favor of Ripple spurred optimism that Coinbase would be successful in its own SEC lawsuit.
The current highs also bring the San Francisco-based crypto exchange’s shares level with prices it last saw in May 2022. But the stock is still far short of its all-time high of $342.98. Unsurprisingly, that peak was seen during the November 2021 bull run when the global crypto market cap reached $3 trillion.
• Binance CEO outlines plan for crypto exchange after CZ steps down
Richard Teng, Binance’s former global head of regional markets and now CEO, announced his intention to drive growth at the crypto exchange following Changpeng “CZ” Zhao stepping down.
In a Nov. 27 blog post, Teng said he had the support of CZ and Binance’s leadership following the former CEO’s departure as part of an agreement with United States officials. According to Teng, Binance plans to continue a user-focused approach to its business and “drive growth and the adoption of Web3,” assuring customers they will hear more from him soon.
“I am eager to jump headfirst into my new role and know there will be many more opportunities for me to share my thoughts with the community through blogs like this one, through my social media accounts — Twitter, LinkedIn — and through the many industry conferences and events around the world,” said Teng.
• FTX and Alameda Research cash out $10.8M to Binance, Coinbase, Wintermute
Wallets linked to defunct crypto trading firms FTX and Alameda Research moved $10.8 million to accounts in Binance, Coinbase and Wintermute using eight cryptocurrencies.
Blockchain analysis firm Spot On Chain spotted the movement, estimating that the defunct entities have transferred $551 million since Oct. 24 using 59 different cryptocurrency tokens.
The latest transfer of $10.8 million was spread across eight tokens: $2.58 million in StepN’s GMT, $2.41 million in Uniswap’s UNI $2.25 million in Synapse’s SYN, $1.64 million in Klaytn’s KLAY, $1.18 million in Fantom’s FTM $644,000 in Shiba Inu and small amounts of Arbitrum’s ARB and Optimism’s OP.
• Crypto thieves steal $363M in Nov, the most ‘damaging’ month this year
The cryptocurrency industry has now seen its most “damaging” month for crypto thievery, scams and exploits in 2023, with crypto criminals walking away with $363 million in November, according to a blockchain security firm.
Around $316.4 million came from exploits alone, flash loans inflicted $45.5 million in damage, and $1.1 million was lost to various exit scams, CertiK stated in a Nov. 30 X (formerly Twitter) post.
The largest exploits in November occurred on Poloniex and HTX/Heco Bridge, with losses of $131.4 million and $113.3 million, respectively.
The third largest exploit was inflicted on a single victim who lost $27 million from a phishing attack.
Meanwhile, the 45 million KyberSwap attack accounted for nearly all damage done for flash loan attacks in the month.
The latest monthly figure has surpassed an earlier record of $329 million, set in September, caused mainly by the $200 million Mixin Network attack.
Concluding Notes:
- Over 75% of Web3 games ‘failed’ in last five years
- ‘Clear runway’ opens for all Bitcoin ETF approvals in Jan
- Coinbase Stock Is Soaring
- Binance CEO outlines plan for crypto exchange
- FTX and Alameda Research cash out $10.8M
- Crypto thieves steal $363M in November
