In today’s episode of the Crypto Daily Download, we highlight several key developments in the cryptocurrency market. First, we highlight that the Senate Agriculture Committee has postponed its crypto market structure markup hearing to Thursday due to a winter storm affecting much of the U.S. This hearing will include debates and votes on proposed amendments to the bill, alongside a joint appearance by the SEC and CFTC chiefs, also rescheduled for Thursday.
We highlight Bitmine Immersion’s significant move last week, where they made their largest Ethereum purchase of the year, acquiring 40,000 Ethereum for nearly $117 million. This brings their total holdings to over 4.24 million tokens, representing about 3.5% of Ether’s total supply, with their overall crypto and cash assets now totaling $12.8 billion.
Additionally, we discuss the impact of the Arctic blast on Bitcoin mining operations in the U.S., where rising electricity costs have led some large-scale mining companies, like Riot Platforms, to shut down parts of their operations. This situation may benefit Bitcoin miners outside the U.S. due to reduced competition.
Lastly, we cover BlackRock’s recent filing of an S-1 for an iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF. This product aims to track Bitcoin’s price while generating income through options trading, which could introduce new dynamics in the BTC-linked derivatives markets. Jane King with the latest from the NYSE.