The German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) transferred $24 million in Bitcoin to cryptocurrency exchanges Kraken and Coinbase, following a series of similar transactions totaling $195 million on June 19 and 20.

Brazilian digital banking giant Nubank is bringing the Bitcoin Lightning Network to its 100 million users in Latin America after forming a partnership with Lightspark, a payments platform focused on enterprise adoption of the Lightning Network.

Zodia Custody, a digital asset custody provider, has partnered with 21Shares, a leading issuer of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs), to enhance security and compliance for its physically-backed ETPs.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• German Authorities Move Part of $2.8 Billion Bitcoin Stash to Exchanges
• Brazil's Nubank Integrates Bitcoin Lightning Network for its 100 Million Users
• Zodia Custody Partners with 21Shares to Secure Cryptocurrency ETPs
• Visualizing Bitcoin’s Largest Daily Drawdowns This Year

German Authorities Move Part of $2.8 Billion Bitcoin Stash to Exchanges

The German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) transferred $24 million in Bitcoin to cryptocurrency exchanges Kraken and Coinbase, following a series of similar transactions totaling $195 million on June 19 and 20.

The BKA also moved an additional $30 million worth of BTC to a currently unidentified wallet, according to data from Arkham Intelligence, which shows that the government’s wallet still holds 46,359 BTC worth over $2.8 billion.

While the purpose of these transfers remains unclear, analysts speculate they may be a prelude to a sale. The potential impact on the market is expected to be minimal, as the $24 million figure represents a fraction of Bitcoin’s daily trading volume.

The BKA's Bitcoin holdings originated from the 2013 seizure of nearly 50,000 BTC from the operators of Movie2k.to, a now-defunct film piracy website.

Brazil's Nubank Integrates Bitcoin Lightning Network for its 100 Million Users

Brazilian digital banking giant Nubank is bringing the Bitcoin Lightning Network to its 100 million users in Latin America after forming a partnership with Lightspark, a payments platform focused on enterprise adoption of the Lightning Network.

Lightspark, co-founded by former PayPal president David Marcus in 2022, will assist Nubank with integrating the Lightning Network and the Universal Money Address (UMA) standard. UMA simplifies cryptocurrency payments by assigning users email-like addresses for sending and receiving funds.

The Lightning Network is a layer-2 scaling solution built on top of Bitcoin aiming to address the cryptocurrency’s scalability limitations. Lightspark said that the Nubank integration is a “significant milestone” that would “dramatically impact overall network usage at a time when it’s most needed.”

Nubank, a major player in Latin American finance backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, entered the cryptocurrency space in May 2022 and currently allows trading in 14 cryptocurrencies.

Notably, Nubank also allocated 1% of its net assets to Bitcoin, signaling its commitment to the digital currency. Around 92 million of its users are based in Brazil, while the remaining 8 million are mostly in Mexico and Colombia.

Zodia Custody Partners with 21Shares to Secure Cryptocurrency ETPs

Zodia Custody, a digital asset custody provider, has announced a partnership with 21Shares, a leading issuer of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs), to enhance security and compliance for its physically-backed ETPs.

The deal will see Zodia Custody provide its cold storage infrastructure and streamlined regulatory solutions to safeguard 21Shares' ETPs. According to 21Shares' head of financial product development Mandy Chiu, this ensures investors benefit from "the most advanced and diversified custodial services available."

The move comes amid surging institutional interest in cryptocurrencies as data from 21Shares shows that by the end of the first quarter of 2024, nearly 1,000 professional investors held $11 billion in U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, equivalent to around 20% of these ETFs’ total assets.

Visualizing Bitcoin’s Largest Daily Drawdowns This Year

Bitcoin experienced a 17.6% drawdown in its second-largest drop this year, falling from $63,195 to $60,273, after seeing lows at $58,444 and leading to over $100 million in liquidations.

The drop came after news of Mt. Gox creditors finally being paid out after 10 years of waiting, with some expecting some of these payouts – which can range between 65,000 and 140,000 BTC – to be sold on the market.

State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

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