Gate Daily (December 12): Terraform co-founder Do Kwon pleads guilty and is sentenced to 15 years; HIVE listed on the Colombian Stock Exchange

Bitcoin (BTC) retraced its early gains, currently around $91,800 as of December 12. Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon pled guilty and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. HIVE is listed on the Colombia Stock Exchange, testing investor demand for AI-based Bitcoin infrastructure. The Norges Bank, Norway’s central bank, concluded that there is currently “no need” to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

Macro Events & Crypto Hotspots

1. Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon was sentenced to 15 years in prison after admitting to wire fraud and conspiracy fraud. During a hearing on December 11 in the Southern District of New York, Judge Paul Engelmayer ordered that the collapse of Terraform, which led to approximately $40 billion in crypto market cap evaporation in 2022, will result in time served in the U.S. and a 17-month detention credit prior to extradition.

2. HIVE Digital Technologies listed on the Colombia Stock Exchange with ticker HIVECO, becoming the first Bitcoin and AI infrastructure company publicly traded in Latin America. This marks the industry’s expansion as Bitcoin miners and high-performance computing (HPC) firms deepen their presence in global capital markets. The listing on December 11 makes HIVE accessible to investors across the Andes market system, connecting exchanges in Colombia, Peru, and Chile.

3. Norges Bank concluded that there is currently “no need” to issue a CBDC, clearly reassessing the urgency of retail and wholesale CBDCs. The bank stated that Norway’s existing payment system already provides secure, efficient, and low-cost transactions, so there is no short-term need for a digital currency. However, it remains open to issuing a CBDC in the future.

4. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released preliminary findings indicating that from 2020 to 2023, nine major U.S. banks restricted financial services to politically sensitive industries, including cryptocurrencies. The OCC noted these banks implemented policies limiting banking access or requiring higher-level reviews and approvals before providing services to certain clients. Measures against cryptocurrencies included restrictions on issuers, exchanges, or custodians, often due to concerns over financial crimes.

News Highlights

1. Following talks with U.S. senators and banking leaders, substantial progress has been made on comprehensive crypto market legislation.

2. The U.S. Senate is nearing a final vote on crypto regulation officials from the CFTC and FDIC.

3. Huang Licheng deposited nearly 300,000 USDC into Hyperliquid to increase his ETH long position.

4. FTX/Alameda reclaimed 194,800 SOL from collateral and transferred it to 26 addresses.

5. The U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) no longer views digital assets as potential risks.

6. The CFTC issued a “no action” letter to four prediction market operators, including Polymarket, regarding data rules.

7. The SEC permitted DTCC to custody and recognize tokenized stocks and other RWA assets on the blockchain.

8. Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a U.S. judge.

9. The U.S. CFTC revoked its 2020 guidance focusing on “actual delivery” of digital assets.

10. Cross-chain protocol LI.FI completed $29 million in funding, with Multicoin Capital and CoinFund leading the round.

Market Trends

1. Latest on Bitcoin: $BTC retraced early gains, currently around $91,800, with $158 million liquidated in the past 24 hours, mostly long positions.

2. The Federal Reserve’s policy stance was less hawkish than expected, boosting the S&P 500 and Dow Jones to new closing highs on December 11. However, tech-heavy NASDAQ was relatively weak, mainly due to Oracle’s earnings report prompting caution on AI investments. The Dow gained 646.26 points or 1.34%, closing at 48,704.01, surpassing the November 12 record. The S&P 500 rose 14.32 points or 0.21%, closing at 6,901.00, recovering from intraday lows and breaking the October 28 all-time high. The Nasdaq declined 60.30 points or 0.25%, ending at 23,593.86.

(Source: Gate)

3. Gate BTC/USDT liquidation map indicates that if the price drops to around $89,152, total long liquidation exceeds $704 million; if it rises to about $92,002, short liquidation exceeds $40 million. Short liquidations are significantly lower than longs, suggesting traders should manage leverage carefully to avoid large-scale liquidations during market fluctuations.

(Source: Coinglass)

4. In the past 24 hours, spot inflows totaled $2.05 billion, outflows $2.34 billion, net outflow $290 million.

(Source: Coinglass)

5. In the past 24 hours, net outflows were leading in contracts trading for $ZEC, $PIPPIN, $JELLYJELLY, $BCH, and $LIGHT , indicating trading opportunities.

Top KOL Insights

Phyrex Ni (@Phyrex_Ni): “Today’s trading was okay. After the FOMC meeting ended early morning, the market entered a temporary bullish phase. Notably, Powell’s speech and dot plot were not as dovish as investors expected. Overall risk sentiment pulled back somewhat, given upcoming data releases and Japan’s rate hike uncertainties. It’s a typical ‘sell the news’ scenario.”

“However, the Fed’s RMP will inject some liquidity, and today there was positive news stimulating the market—an official letter jointly sent by bipartisan leaders of the U.S. House Financial Services Committee to SEC Chair Paul Atkins, urging him to accelerate the process of allowing ordinary U.S. retirement investors to purchase alternative assets (including cryptocurrencies) through 401(k). This signals bipartisan support for officially including crypto assets in the U.S. retirement system. Once the SEC and Labor Department amend regulations as per the letter, spot ETFs for BTC and ETH will naturally become compliant assets within 401(k), fostering a slow but steady stream of retirement buying that could become a persistent inflow of capital.”

“Looking at Bitcoin data, turnover has decreased but remains relatively high. Short-term investors are currently debating what the Fed might say. After the Fed’s remarks, if no more dovish signals are issued, the market perceives the short-term bullish momentum as having landed, leaving the main downside risk as Japan’s rate hike. Recently, investors have been buying at around $90,000 to bottom out. From a technical perspective, the market’s stability remains strong despite multiple dips and oscillations, with long-term holders and early investors still cautious and observing.”