JOON HYOUNG LEE

Pantera Capital, With $3.5 Billion in Assets, Plans to Expand Web3 Investments in Korea

Interview With Pantera Capital Partner Nihal Maunder Launched the First U.S. Blockchain Fund Populous Investment Marks Deeper Push Into Korea "Korea's Security Token Law Is a Milestone for Web3" "We Will Give Portfolio Companies Access to a Global Ne

Pantera-Backed Four Pillars Reaches $20.9 Million Valuation, Begins Expansion Push

South Korean Web3 research firm Four Pillars has raised fresh funding from global crypto venture capital firms Pantera Capital and Further Ventures. The company said the investment will serve as a springboard for a broader business expansion. Chief E

Four Pillars Raises Series A From Pantera, Further Ventures at $21.7 Million Valuation

South Korean Web3 research firm Four Pillars has raised a Series A round from global crypto venture capital investors including Pantera Capital. Chief Executive Officer Kim Nam-woong said at a press briefing in Seoul's Seocho district on April 27 tha

Optimum Targets Ethereum Mainnet Launch Within Two Months

“Speed is money. Optimum delivers that speed to users.” “Optimum is fundamentally a high-speed network,” Kent Lin, the company’s co-founder and chief operating officer, said in an interview with Bloomingbit on April 24. He said the project can connec

White House Criticizes China Over Alleged Theft of US AI Technology, FT Reports

The White House has criticized China over the alleged theft of US artificial intelligence technology, the Financial Times reported on April 23. Citing a recent memo from Michael Kratsios, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology P

Peter Schiff Calls Strategy’s Stretch Preferred Stock a ‘Classic Ponzi Scheme’

Peter Schiff, chief economist at Euro Pacific Capital and a longtime Bitcoin skeptic, criticized Strategy’s perpetual preferred stock. On X on April 23, Schiff wrote that Stretch was "such an obvious Ponzi scheme." Stretch is a perpetual preferred st

KelpDAO Hacker Estimated to Have Laundered 76,000 Ether Using THORChain, Umbra

Most of the Ether stolen in the KelpDAO hack, about 76,000 tokens, is estimated to have already been laundered. Cointelegraph reported on April 23 that the KelpDAO hacker had laundered most of the roughly 75,700 Ether stolen last week from April 21 t

BitMine Stakes 93,600 More Ether, Bringing Total to 3.49 Million

BitMine, the world’s largest corporate Ethereum treasury company, has staked an additional $220 million worth of Ether. Lookonchain said on April 23 that BitMine staked 93,600 more ETH, valued at about $218 million at current prices. That brought Bit

Tether Freezes $344 Million of USDT at Request of US Authorities

Tether, the issuer of the dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT, said it froze $344 million of its tokens at the request of US authorities. The company said April 23 that it blocked $344 million in USDT held in two accounts after identifying them. The move w

Trump Says He Ordered Sinking of Any Vessel Laying Mines in Hormuz, Vows to Keep Strait Under Control

President Donald Trump said he had ordered the US military to sink any vessel laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Writing on Truth Social on April 23, Trump said he had instructed the US Navy to "immediately sink and kill" any ship placing mines in

US Indo-Pacific Command Says It Is Operating a Bitcoin Node, Sees 'Huge Potential'

The US Indo-Pacific Command, or INDOPACOM, is operating a Bitcoin node. CoinDesk reported on April 23 that Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of INDOPACOM, told a House Armed Services Committee hearing on April 22 that the US military is "currently ope

US Weekly Jobless Claims Rise to 214,000, Above Estimates

U.S. initial jobless claims rose above market expectations last week. The Labor Department said April 23 that initial claims for unemployment benefits totaled 214,000 last week. That was 3,000 higher than economists’ forecast of 211,000 and up 6,000

RIA Novosti Says US-Iran Talks May Reach Breakthrough Tonight or Friday

More Than 100 US Crypto Firms Urge Senate to Review CLARITY Act

More than 100 US cryptocurrency companies are urging the Senate to take up the CLARITY Act, a bill that would establish a market-structure framework for digital assets. CoinDesk reported on April 23 that the companies recently sent a letter to Senate

Pantera Urges UK’s Satsuma to Sell Bitcoin and Return Cash to Shareholders

Some shareholders, including U.S. crypto venture capital firm Pantera Capital, have asked UK Bitcoin digital-asset treasury company Satsuma Technology to return capital to shareholders, Bloomberg reported on April 23. The investors recently asked Sat

South Korea Regulator Withholds Approval for Insurance Institute’s Token, AI Push

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission is withholding approval for new digital-asset businesses proposed by the Korea Insurance Training Institute, including token issuance. According to government officials on April 23, the commission has yet t

OpenAI Hires Six Key Coinbase Marketing Executives Over the Past Year

OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, has hired a string of key marketing executives from US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase in recent months. CoinDesk reported on April 22 that six senior Coinbase marketing employees moved to OpenAI over the past year. Sev

South Korea Debt Workout Agencies to Review Crypto Holdings Under New Law

South Korea’s debt workout agencies will be allowed to review borrowers’ cryptocurrency holdings when assessing their ability to repay debt. The Financial Services Commission said on April 23 that the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Cred

Cardano Developer Input Output Cuts Community Budget Request by Half to $46.8 Million

Input Output, the developer behind Cardano's ADA token, has nearly halved the budget it plans to seek from the community for next year from a year earlier. CoinDesk reported on April 22 that the company submitted nine proposals on April 21 totaling $

FTX Sold Cursor Stake for $200,000; Three Years Later It’s Worth $3 Billion

FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange that collapsed in 2022, sold a stake in AI coding startup Cursor for $200,000 three years ago. That holding is now worth as much as $3 billion. CoinDesk reported on April 22 that the FTX bankruptcy estate sold a 5% st

Blockchain Capital Seeks $700 Million for Two New Funds

Blockchain Capital, a crypto venture capital firm, is seeking to raise $700 million across two new funds. Bloomberg reported on April 22 that the firm recently began raising its seventh early-stage fund and second growth-stage fund. The fundraising i

Tasnim Says Iran Has Yet to Issue Official Position on Ceasefire Extension

Iran has yet to issue an official position on the US announcement of a ceasefire extension, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency. Tasnim reported on April 22 that some media outlets had said Iran had formally agreed to the extension,

Binance.US Slashes Spot Trading Fees to Near Zero in Challenge to Coinbase

Binance.US, the US arm of global cryptocurrency exchange Binance, has cut spot trading fees to near zero. Cointelegraph reported on April 22 that Binance.US lowered maker fees to 0% and taker fees to 0.02% for all trading pairs effective that day. Th

Bitcoin Tops $79,000

SEC Nears Approval of On-Chain Tokenized Securities Trading, Chair Says

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is moving to allow trading in on-chain tokenized securities, or STOs. Cointelegraph reported on April 22 that SEC Chair Paul Atkins, speaking at an Economic Club event in Washington on April 21, said the ag

Trump Says US-Iran Talks May Bring ‘Good News’ as Early as April 24

President Donald Trump said a second round of US-Iran talks to end the conflict could yield “good news” as early as April 24. The New York Post reported on April 22 that Trump sees positive developments in the next round of talks emerging as soon as

Iran Attacks 3 Ships in Hormuz, Seizes 2; US Said Open to 3-5 Day Ceasefire Extension

Iran's military attacked three cargo ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and seized two of them. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attacked the three vessels in the strait on April 22, according to the BBC and other foreign media reports. Two o

USD.AI's CHIP Jumps 120% on Major Exchange Listings

USD.AI's CHIP token jumped about 120% from a day earlier after securing listings on major exchanges, including decentralized exchange Hyperliquid. CoinMarketCap data on April 22 showed CHIP rose more than 120% at one point during the day. As of 9:20

Coinbase Says New York Prediction-Market Suit Moved to Federal Court

A New York lawsuit over the prediction-market service offered by US crypto exchange Coinbase has been moved to federal court. Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer, wrote on X on April 22 that a suit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia

Uzbekistan Creates Crypto Mining Zone, Offers Tax Breaks Through 2034

Uzbekistan is setting up a government-backed special zone for cryptocurrency mining. Cointelegraph reported on April 22 that Uzbekistan enacted a presidential decree on April 20 to establish the Besqala Mining Valley, a special zone for cryptocurrenc