TLDR
- BlackRock listed its $2.18 billion tokenized Treasury fund BUIDL on Uniswap and purchased UNI tokens, marking its first formal entry into decentralized finance
- Bitcoin and Ether ETFs saw heavy outflows totaling $410 million and $113 million respectively on Thursday, despite modest 2.5% weekly price gains
- A New York federal judge dismissed Bancor’s patent lawsuit against Uniswap, ruling the patents claim abstract ideas ineligible for legal protection
- Binance completed a $1 billion Bitcoin conversion for its SAFU emergency fund, purchasing 15,000 BTC at an average cost of $67,000 per coin
- Grayscale research shows Bitcoin increasingly trades like a growth stock rather than digital gold, with strong correlation to software sector performance
Bitcoin and Ether posted modest gains this week but faced pressure from continued ETF outflows. Both cryptocurrencies rose about 2.5% but struggled to break through key price levels.
The week started with two days of Bitcoin ETF inflows before reversing sharply. Outflows reached $276 million on Wednesday and $410 million on Thursday, according to Farside Investors data.
Ether ETFs followed a similar pattern with brief inflows followed by exits. Wednesday saw $129 million leave Ether ETFs, followed by $113 million on Thursday.
Despite the outflows, Bitcoin’s drop to $59,930 may represent a critical halfway point in the current market cycle. Kaiko Research suggests markets are now at an inflection point that will test the four-year cycle theory.
Crypto investor sentiment has fallen to record lows during this period. The weak sentiment comes as both Bitcoin and Ether trade below key psychological levels.
BlackRock Makes First DeFi Move With Uniswap Listing
BlackRock announced its first formal entry into decentralized finance on Wednesday. The asset manager will list its USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund on Uniswap’s decentralized exchange.
The BUIDL fund represents tokenized US Treasury holdings worth over $2.18 billion. This makes it the largest tokenized money market fund according to RWA.xyz data.
BlackRock is also purchasing an undisclosed amount of Uniswap’s governance token UNI. The collaboration is being facilitated by tokenization company Securitize.
Trading will initially be limited to eligible institutional investors and market makers. The fund is issued across multiple blockchains including Ethereum, Solana, BNB Chain, Aptos and Avalanche.
In December, BUIDL surpassed $100 million in cumulative distributions from Treasury holdings. Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo said institutions can now trade tokenized real-world assets with self-custody for the first time.
Uniswap Wins Patent Dismissal Against Bancor
A New York federal judge dismissed a patent lawsuit filed by Bancor-affiliated entities against Uniswap. Judge John G. Koeltl ruled that the asserted patents claim abstract ideas ineligible for patent protection.
Bprotocol Foundation and LocalCoin Ltd. had filed the suit against Universal Navigation Inc. and the Uniswap Foundation. The court found the patents were directed at calculating crypto exchange rates.
The ruling marks a procedural victory for Uniswap but is not final. The case was dismissed without prejudice, giving plaintiffs 21 days to file an amended complaint.
Uniswap founder Hayden Adams responded on social media saying a lawyer told him they won. A Uniswap Labs spokesperson said the company was pleased the court recognized the lawsuit as meritless.
The company stated that building in public remains a core value of DeFi. If no amended complaint is filed, the dismissal will become final with prejudice.
Binance Completes $1 Billion Bitcoin Reserve Conversion
Binance finished converting its emergency fund to Bitcoin with a $304 million purchase on Thursday. The exchange now holds 15,000 Bitcoin worth over $1 billion in its SAFU wallet.
The coins were acquired at an average cost of $67,000 per Bitcoin. Binance stated that holding Bitcoin reinforces its belief in BTC as the premier long-term reserve asset.
The purchase came just three days after a previous $300 million acquisition on Monday. Binance first announced the conversion plan on January 30 with an initial 30-day timeline.
The exchange completed the full conversion in less than two weeks. Binance said it will rebalance the fund if volatility pushes its value below $800 million.
The SAFU fund serves as an emergency protection fund for users. Arkham data confirmed the completed transactions and current wallet holdings.
Bitcoin Trading Patterns Shift Toward Tech Stocks
Grayscale research indicates Bitcoin is behaving more like a growth stock than digital gold. The analysis found strong correlation between Bitcoin and software stocks over the past two years.
Author Zach Pandl said Bitcoin’s short-term trading patterns now resemble high-growth equities. This shift comes as institutional participation has grown through ETFs and traditional investment vehicles.
The latest downturn in software stocks has been mirrored in crypto markets. Concerns about artificial intelligence’s impact on the software sector have driven recent selling pressure.
Against this backdrop, Bitcoin’s recent pullback appears less surprising given the tracking relationship. Grayscale continues to view Bitcoin as a long-term store of value due to its fixed supply.
Binance completed its $1 billion Bitcoin conversion for the SAFU emergency fund, purchasing 15,000 BTC at an average cost of $67,000 per coin.
