Stable Reaches $825 Million Limit Minutes After Pre-Deposit Event Begins

Hi! In today’s edition:

• 💸 Stable hits $825M cap in minutes during pre-deposit

• 🧾 CZ walks free after Trump pardon

• 🐙 Kraken’s profits and trading volume soar

• 🏦 Spark hunts higher yields through Superstate fund

• 💼 DATs turn “locked” tokens into sky-high valuations

Stable Hits $825 Million Cap Within 30 Minutes of Pre-Deposit Launch

Stablecoin blockchain Stable, backed by Bitfinex and USDT0, officially announced the launch of its pre-deposit event at 9:10 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Phase one of the event opened with an $825 million deposit cap that was reached within 30 minutes of the Stable team’s announcement.

Onchain data shows that deposits had been enabled earlier than stated, going live at 8:48 pm ET. By the time of the official launch, significant inflows were already visible on the blockchain.

The top 10 deposit addresses contributed nearly $500 million in USDT, representing more than 60% of the total deposit volume. Among them, one address made a single deposit of 101 million USDT.

Trump Pardons Binance Founder CZ

U.S. President Donald Trump has officially pardoned Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the founder of the world’s largest crypto exchange Binance.

“Will do everything we can to help make America the Capital of Crypto and advance web3 worldwide,” said Zhao on X, while also noting that he was “deeply grateful” for the pardon.

Zhao was sentenced in April 2024 to four months in prison after pleading guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act, related to failures in Binance’s anti-money-laundering systems.

The exchange itself paid a record $4.3 billion penalty and accepted a U.S. government monitor as part of a settlement with the Department of Justice, the CFTC, and the Treasury.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the pardon reflected President Trump’s belief that Zhao had been “targeted by the Biden Administration in their war on cryptocurrency” rather than for fraudulent acts.

With this pardon, Zhao may re-engage in U.S. business operations and potentially return to a leadership role within Binance.

Kraken Q3 Revenue Grows 114% YoY to $648 Million

U.S. crypto exchange Kraken reported a major jump in its financial performance for the third quarter, with revenue growing 114% year-over-year to $648 million.

Kraken’s profit margins also expanded to 27.6% and its total trading volume rose 106% to $561.9 billion.

The company’s latest financial update comes ahead of a possible public listing, with Fortune reporting last month that Kraken had quietly raised $500 million ahead of its planned initial public offering (IPO).

The company is expected to confidentially submit its IPO registration to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by the end of 2025, aiming to list publicly in 2026.

Spark Moves $100 Million to Superstate Fund to Tap ‘Higher Crypto Yield’

Decentralized lending platform Spark has allocated $100 million of its stablecoin reserves to Superstate's Crypto Carry Fund (USCC).

“Spark, responsible for generating yield for the $9B USDS liquidity reserve, is putting collateral into USCC to capture higher crypto yield,” announced Superstate on X. 

The decision was prompted by a significant drop in U.S. Treasury yields, which slipped to about 3.976%, their lowest in six months. Spark had primarily relied on tokenized U.S. Treasury products, such as BlackRock’s BUIDL and Franklin’s FOBXX, for managing its reserves.

The USCC fund manages over $528 million in assets and generates returns utilizing spot-futures basis trading in major digital assets like bitcoin and ether. 

Over the last 30 days, USCC has reported annualized returns of about 8% to 9%, which is significantly higher than current Treasury yields.

How Digital Asset Treasuries Use Locked Tokens to Boost Valuations

By Steve Ehrlich

The rise of digital asset treasury companies (DATs) set off a rat race this year between firms trying to stockpile tokens as quickly as possible. In many cases this strategy involves nine- and ten-figure purchases of bitcoin and ether at spot prices.

However, companies also strategically use “locked” tokens, which they acquire in bulk at steep discounts, to fill their coffers. Some DATs leveraging this playbook include Sui Group (Sui), Ton Strategy Company (TON), Avalanche Treasury Company (AVAX), and StablecoinX (ENA).

But as these firms turn illiquid assets into liquid shares, are they unlocking value, or just unlocking new risks?

• 📄 MegaETH confirmed that a surfaced MiCA-compliant whitepaper is authentic, outlining its plans for a public token sale under EU rules, a rotating sequencer system to minimize latency, and a token model built to reward user activity while navigating Europe’s new crypto regulations.

• 🚫👔 Alt5 Sigma, a digital trading tech firm linked to the Trump-family-backed WLFI project, suspended CEO Peter Tassiopoulos without explanation and replaced him with CFO Jonathan Hugh just a year after hiring him to expand the company’s crypto business.

• 🔐 Trezor launched its Safe 7 hardware wallet featuring architecture built to withstand potential future quantum computer threats, saying the device is designed to protect crypto keys from both today’s hacks and tomorrow’s breakthroughs in decryption technology.

• 💾 Ledger released its new Nano Gen5 wallet, rebranding it as a “signer” to better explain its role in securing crypto keys, and featuring customizable badges designed by Apple icon creator Susan Kare to bring a touch of nostalgia and clarity to digital asset ownership.

• 💰 JPMorgan announced plans to let institutional clients use Bitcoin and Ether as loan collateral by year-end, signaling a major shift in Wall Street’s acceptance of crypto assets as mainstream financial instruments despite past skepticism from its CEO.

• 🏦🇪🇺 UK-based neobank Revolut secured a MiCA license in Cyprus, paving the wy for legal crypto services across 30 European countries and increasing speculation it may launch its own fully regulated stablecoin as early as 2026.

• 🧩🔐 Crypto infrastructure giant Fireblocks acquired wallet startup Dynamic for a reported $90 million, integrating its user-friendly tools into Fireblocks’ security-focused stack to offer a full-service platform for developers, from custody to consumer-facing crypto apps.

• 🌐 Pave Bank raised $39 million in a funding round led by Accel and backed by Tether and Wintermute to scale its licensed operations in Georgia, aiming to combine traditional banking oversight with the speed and programmability of digital finance.

• 📲 Aave Labs acquired the team behind Stable Finance, a company known for its user-friendly DeFi savings app, as part of a push to make decentralized finance more accessible to everyday users, while quietly sunsetting the original app to refocus on broader product development.

1. From Solana to the EVM: A New Path for Proprietary AMMs by “Optimus”

2. HRF: Financial Freedom Report #94

3. Bloomberg: Crypto M&A Surges 30-Fold as Niche Firms Shift to Mainstream