Mastercard and Binance have announced the termination of their crypto card programs in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Bahrain, effective September 22, 2023. The partnership allowed users to make payments in traditional currencies using their cryptocurrency holdings on Binance. The decision will not affect Mastercard's other crypto-card partnerships.

According to court filings, bankrupt crypto exchange FTX is planning to sell, stake, and hedge its substantial crypto holdings, valued at over $3 billion, and is looking to hire Galaxy Digital as an advisor.

Investment firms ARK Invest and 21Shares are applying for approval for an Ethereum futures exchange-traded fund (ETF). This move comes on the heels of reports that the U.S. SEC may soon start approving such applications.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup:

• Mastercard and Binance Terminate Crypto Card Partnership in Four Countries
• FTX Enlists Galaxy Digital to Manage $3 Billion in Crypto Amid Bankruptcy
• ARK Invest and 21Shares Apply for Permission to Offer Ethereum Futures ETF

Mastercard and Binance Terminate Crypto Card Partnership in Four Countries

Mastercard and Binance have announced the termination of their crypto card programs in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Bahrain, effective September 22, 2023. The partnership allowed users to make payments in traditional currencies using their cryptocurrency holdings on Binance. The decision will not affect Mastercard's other crypto-card partnerships.

Binance Customer Support said on X: "The Binance Card will no longer be available to users in Latin America and the Middle East. The product, like most debit cards, has been utilized by Binance’s users to pay for basic daily expenses but in this case, the cards are funded with crypto assets. Only a tiny portion of our users (less than 1% of users in the markets mentioned) are impacted by this. Users of this product will have until September 21, 2023, when the card will no longer be available for use. 

Binance accounts around the world are not affected. Where available, users can also shop with crypto and send crypto using Binance Pay, a contactless, borderless and secure cryptocurrency payment technology designed by Binance."

A Mastercard spokesperson did not tell Reuters why the program was ending. Binance is currently facing legal challenges in the U.S., which may have influenced the decision.

Meanwhile, a Binance spokesperson has told Bloomberg that "Visa stopped issuing new co-branded cards with Binance in Europe as of July."

FTX Enlists Galaxy Digital to Manage $3 Billion in Crypto Amid Bankruptcy

According to court filings, bankrupt crypto exchange FTX is planning to sell, stake, and hedge its substantial crypto holdings, valued at over $3 billion, and is looking to hire Galaxy Digital as an advisor. FTX collapsed in November last year and aims to return funds to creditors in fiat currency rather than Bitcoin or Ether. The company hopes that careful trading strategies will prevent a decrease in the value of its crypto holdings.

FTX's lawyers stated that hedging BTC and ETH would limit potential downside risk before selling them, and staking certain digital assets would generate low-risk returns on otherwise idle assets. The interest on FTX's crypto holdings could add to the stock distributed to customers awaiting refunds. The company, now led by restructuring expert John J. Ray III, fears that selling all assets at once would cause prices to plummet, benefiting short sellers and other market participants.

Galaxy Digital, part of Novogratz's crypto conglomerate, has extensive experience in digital asset management and trading, making it a suitable choice for FTX. Galaxy Digital previously had tens of millions invested in FTX at the time of its bankruptcy, and new filings detail conflict-of-interest procedures to ensure Galaxy acts in FTX's best interests.

ARK Invest and 21Shares Apply for Permission to Offer Ethereum Futures ETF

Investment firms ARK Invest and 21Shares are applying for approval for an Ethereum futures exchange-traded fund (ETF). This move comes on the heels of reports that the U.S. SEC may soon start approving such applications.

The proposed ETFs, named "ARK 21Shares Active Ethereum Futures ETF" (ARKZ) and the "ARK 21Shares Active Bitcoin Ethereum Strategy ETF" (ARKY), were detailed in an August 24 filing with the SEC. ARKZ is set to dedicate at least 25% of its total assets to cash-settled Ethereum futures contracts, like those available on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). ARKY will encompass both Bitcoin and Ethereum futures contracts. Empowered Funds has been selected as the investment advisor for these innovative Ethereum products.

The two firms previously attempted to launch a spot Bitcoin ETF in 2021, facing rejection from the SEC in March 2022 and January. Their latest Bitcoin spot ETF application was filed in April, around the same time as BlackRock's application.

The SEC's recent labelling of many Bitcoin spot ETF applications as inadequate led ARK 21Shares and other applicants to include a surveillance-sharing agreement in their applications. The two investment firms are also awaiting decisions on other ETFs, including Ark 21Shares Active Bitcoin Futures ETF (ARKA) and Ark 21Shares Active On-Chain Bitcoin Strategy ETF (ARKC).

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