THIS WEEK IN CRYPTO: COINBASE EARNINGS EXPLODE

Welcome back to another thrilling episode of This Week in Crypto! It’s been an action-packed week filled with groundbreaking news, and today, we’re diving deep into the following topics:

1. Coinbase Shines in Q1: $1.2 Billion Net Income Surpasses 2023 Earnings
2. Pantera Capital Backs TON, Envisions Bright Future for Telegram
3. Ex-Binance CEO CZ Sentenced to Four Months in Prison
4. MicroStrategy Unveils Bitcoin-based Decentralized ID Solution

Coinbase Shines in Q1: $1.2 Billion Net Income Surpasses 2023 Earnings

Crypto exchange giant Coinbase has showcased a remarkable performance in the first quarter of 2024, posting a net income of $1.2 billion, which surpasses its entire earnings for the year 2023. Supported by favorable market conditions and the launch of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), Coinbase reported a total revenue of $1.6 billion for Q1, with $1 billion in Adjusted EBITDA.

The exchange attributed its robust net income to $737 million in pre-tax unrealized gains on crypto assets. With $7.1 billion in capital, including $1.1 billion in net cash raised through the sale of convertible notes, Coinbase is poised for further growth. Despite a rise in total liabilities, the exchange witnessed significant increases in revenue from both consumer and institutional transactions.

Consumer transaction revenue surged by 99% quarter-on-quarter to $935 million, while institutional transactions generated $85 million, representing a 133% increase. Trading volume on Coinbase Prime, the exchange’s institutional platform, reached $256 billion, outperforming the U.S. spot market.

The exchange’s custodial services also saw a substantial revenue increase of 64%, reaching $32 million in Q1. With assets under custody closing the quarter at $171 billion, Coinbase continues to solidify its position as a leading custodian in the cryptocurrency market.

Pantera Capital Backs TON, Envisions Bright Future for Telegram

Pantera Capital has made a strategic investment in The Open Network (TON), citing high expectations for Telegram’s future in the Web3 landscape. The crypto-focused venture capital firm views TON’s integration with Telegram as a significant opportunity to revolutionize crypto adoption, given the messaging platform’s vast user base of 900 million monthly users.

Telegram’s recent decision to incorporate TON positions the network to become one of the largest crypto networks globally, according to Pantera. TON’s architecture offers scalability and performance comparable to leading blockchains, while its integration with Telegram opens doors for innovative mini-applications.

With TON-based applications enabling seamless trading and other functionalities within Telegram’s interface, Pantera sees tremendous potential for monetization and user engagement. The collaboration between Telegram and TON marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of Web3, with Telegram becoming the only major messaging platform to incorporate crypto capabilities.

Ex-Binance CEO CZ Sentenced to Four Months in Prison

Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, widely known as CZ, has been sentenced to four months in prison for violating U.S. money laundering laws. Despite prosecutors’ recommendation of a three-year sentence, the judge handed down a shorter term, emphasizing the need to reflect the seriousness of the offense.

Zhao’s guilty plea in November to failing to maintain an effective Anti-Money Laundering (AML) program at Binance led to his conviction. The judge’s decision to impose prison time rather than probation underscores the severity of the offense and aims to deter others from engaging in similar illegal activities.

Despite the setback, Zhao remains committed to the crypto industry, having launched educational initiatives related to blockchain and crypto. The sentencing marks the culmination of legal proceedings initiated by U.S. authorities against Binance and its former CEO.

MicroStrategy Unveils Bitcoin-based Decentralized ID Solution

MicroStrategy, a prominent holder of Bitcoin, has announced the launch of MicroStrategy Orange, a decentralized identity solution built on the Bitcoin network. Leveraging Ordinal-based inscriptions, MicroStrategy Orange aims to provide trustless, tamper-proof, and long-lived decentralized identities using the public Bitcoin blockchain as a data source.

The solution offers pseudonymity through decentralized identifiers (DIDs), enabling secure and verifiable digital identities. MicroStrategy Orange comprises a suite of applications, including Orange Service, Orange SDK, and Orange Applications, designed to facilitate the issuance and management of DIDs.

MicroStrategy Orange has already rolled out applications such as “Orange For Outlook,” which integrates digital signatures into emails to ensure the authenticity of senders. With plans to expand to other messaging platforms and industries, MicroStrategy aims to drive widespread adoption of decentralized identity solutions powered by Bitcoin.