[News Brief] Apr 24, morning | BitMine stakes an additional $320 million worth of ETH in 24 hours, pushing staked share above 70% of total holdings

BitMine stakes an additional $320 million worth of ETH in 24 hours, pushing staked share above 70% of total holdings

According to Odaily, Ethereum treasury company BitMine, founded by Tom Lee, recently staked approximately $320 million worth of additional ETH over the past 24 hours, bringing the share of its total holdings that is staked to above 70%.

On-chain data shows that about 75,600 ETH was transferred to Coinbase Prime on Thursday morning for staking, following an earlier deployment of about 61,200 ETH on Wednesday. This marks the first major operational move in the past three weeks.

According to Lookonchain, BitMine’s cumulative staked amount stands at approximately 3.5 million ETH, worth about $8.1 billion, representing 70.1% of its total holdings. In addition, three newly created wallets believed to be linked to the company were seen receiving about 100,000 ETH before Thursday.

If those holdings are included, BitMine’s total ETH holdings could rise to around 5.08 million ETH. That would far exceed the roughly 869,000 ETH held by SharpLink, the industry’s second-largest holder.

BitMine currently controls more than 4.1% of Ethereum’s total supply, and the company is aiming to secure 5%. Its large-scale staking expansion is drawing market attention for its potential to reduce circulating ETH supply while generating yield.

IEA warns Middle East war and a closure of the Strait of Hormuz would be the greatest energy security threat in history

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said that a war in the Middle East and a closure of the Strait of Hormuz would represent the greatest energy security threat the world has ever faced.

According to CNBC, IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said that the Middle East conflict and any shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz have sharply intensified instability in global energy supply chains. He warned that the situation could deliver a major shock to energy markets worldwide.

The Strait of Hormuz is regarded as a critical route for global crude oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. The remarks came as concerns continue to mount over surging energy prices and supply disruptions amid rising geopolitical tensions in the region.

Israeli defense minister says preparations complete for renewed war with Iran, pending U.S. approval

Israel has completed preparations to resume war with Iran and is now only waiting for U.S. approval, according to the country’s defense minister.

According to Odaily, Defense Minister Israel Katz said after a security assessment meeting on the 23rd that Israel is ready to restart the war with Iran. He added, “Now we are only waiting for the green light from the United States.”

The remarks suggest that military tensions in the Middle East could escalate again. Expanding geopolitical risk typically weakens sentiment toward risk assets globally and may increase short-term volatility in the crypto market as well.

Riot Platforms deposits another 500 BTC to NYDIG, heightening concerns over selling pressure

Riot Platforms has reportedly deposited an additional 500 BTC to NYDIG, raising concerns about potential market selling pressure as the company has recently continued transferring bitcoin for sale-related activity.

According to PANews on the 24th, on-chain analytics account Lookonchain reported that Riot Platforms deposited another 500 BTC to NYDIG around six hours earlier. The amount was valued at approximately $38.95 million.

Lookonchain said Riot Platforms has continued selling bitcoin. The latest deposit is being closely watched by the market for its implications regarding possible additional selling.

Grayscale Ethereum Staking Mini ETF ranks No. 1 in Q1 inflows

Grayscale’s Ethereum Staking Mini ETF recorded $337 million in inflows in the first quarter, ranking first among U.S.-listed ETPs.

According to panewslab.com, Grayscale CEO Peter Mintzberg shared the update on X. He also said that the Ethereum network recorded more than 200 million on-chain transactions during the same period and that the stablecoin market on Ethereum reached $180 billion.

The announcement is being interpreted as a signal that institutional demand and Ethereum network activity are both increasing.

Morgan Stanley buys another 143.34 BTC, bringing total holdings to 1,964 BTC

Morgan Stanley purchased an additional 143.34 BTC, according to Odaily citing data compiled by Onchain Lens.

The report said the purchase was made about one hour earlier and was worth $11.17 million, bringing Morgan Stanley’s total bitcoin holdings to 1,964 BTC.

The move is being viewed as part of a broader institutional accumulation trend in bitcoin, based on on-chain activity.

TON plans to cut transaction fees to one-sixth within a week

Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, said TON network transaction fees will be reduced within a week to one-sixth of their current level.

According to PANews, Durov said TON transaction fees will be fixed at 0.00039 TON per transaction regardless of network congestion. That would be about $0.0005 per transaction.

Durov added that once the change takes effect, most transactions will become effectively free, reducing user fee burdens to near zero.

TON is a blockchain network linked to the Telegram ecosystem, and lower fees could help drive user adoption and expand on-chain activity.

Ether.fi Foundation plans to provide 5,000 ETH to cover rsETH exploit shortfall

The Ether.fi Foundation said it plans to allocate 5,000 ETH to a separate rescue mechanism in order to cover the rsETH shortfall caused by this week’s exploit and reduce the risk of bad debt spreading across the DeFi ecosystem.

According to the report, Ether.fi is working with Aave and other participants on a broader solution to address the shortfall. The measure is seen as an effort to prevent the exploit’s impact from cascading into other DeFi protocols.

Coinbase adds VIRTUAL, PROS, and KAIO to listing roadmap

Coinbase has added VIRTUAL, PROS, and KAIO to its listing roadmap. Whether and when they are actually listed will be determined later depending on conditions such as market-making support and technical infrastructure readiness.

According to PANews on the 24th, Coinbase said in an official announcement that it has added Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL), Pharos (PROS), and KAIO to its assets under consideration for listing.

Coinbase said it will provide a separate update on the specific listing timeline if the relevant requirements are met. Inclusion on the roadmap typically signals potential support for trading, but does not guarantee a final listing.

Belarus pushes crypto bank framework supporting 26 assets including BTC, ETH, and SOL

Belarus is moving forward with a “crypto bank” framework that would support about 26 crypto assets, including bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), and solana (SOL).

According to Odaily, Alexander Yegorov, deputy governor of the National Bank of Belarus, said the country is developing a crypto bank framework that would support around 26 crypto assets and 11 core business functions.

Under the proposed legal framework, crypto banks would be permitted to use major cryptocurrencies and stablecoins such as bitcoin, ether, toncoin, and solana. The scope of services would include crypto deposits, crypto lending, staking, staking mining, asset transfers, issuance of proprietary tokens, trading and exchange, and custody.

The initiative is being interpreted as part of Belarus’s effort to expand regulated financial infrastructure for digital assets.