🎢Crypto’s Biggest Upsets: Is This the End for Silvergate and SHIB? - Proof of Intel

🌞 Rise and shine, tech aficionados! It’s me, Mochi back with the latest crypto scoop from Bitcoin's wild run to banking drama at Silvergate. As we dive into this rollercoaster realm of digital currencies, get ready for some thrilling tales and unexpected twists. Mochi's got the intel, and you won't want to miss it. Strap in and enjoy today’s Proof of Intel (PoI)!

SUMMARY 📓🖋️

🟧 Bitcoin nearly doubled in value in 2023. But can it weather the storm as the Federal Reserve takes center stage?

🟧 Alex Chriss to lead PayPal; sports Crypto Hippos in his digital pocket.

🟧 Voyager Digital offloads $63 million in crypto tokens, including a mountain of $SHIB.

🟧 A triple executive exit at Silvergate Capital amidst bank shutdown.

TL;DR at the bottom.

🚀 Bitcoin's Epic Saga: Booms, Busts & the Fed! 🎢

This digital gold almost doubled in value this year. Shoutout to China's surprising crypto embrace, our favorite tech billionaire, Elon Musk's unpredictable antics, and the world's bigwigs in asset management dipping their toes into the crypto pool.

But wait, there's a plot twist! The Federal Reserve, always the unpredictable player in this game, seems poised for what many are calling the "greatest rug pull ever." If that term has your eyebrows reaching for the skies, you're not alone. Mike McGlone from Bloomberg Intelligence threw down this wild card, indicating that the depleting liquidity throughout 2023 could be a disaster for Bitcoin. Ethereum and XRP, our beloved digital sidekicks, might not escape the drama either.

With the Federal Reserve's September rendezvous around the corner, tension is mounting. There's chatter about interest rates potentially remaining at a two-decade high. Is this the thrilling climax or just a mid-episode twist? One thing's for sure: crypto enthusiasts better hold onto their virtual hats!

💼 PayPal's New Captain: From Hippo NFTs to Crypto’s Future 🦛

Remember Dan Schulman, PayPal's top dog for almost a decade? Well, come end of 2023, he's swapping his CEO chair for something a tad more leisurely. There were whispers aplenty about who'd grab the reins, especially after PayPal's slight, cough, $300 billion hiccup in valuation since 2021.

And bam! Monday gave us our answer. Enter stage right: Alex Chriss, once an exec at the financial software firm, Intuit. After the big reveal, PayPal's stock took a little slip-n-slide, dropping more than 3%.

Old mate Schulman was always raving about crypto, but what about Chriss? This lad's past roles at Intuit might not scream ‘crypto enthusiast,’ but his online trail? It's sprinkled with crypto breadcrumbs! We’re talking tweets about his Bitcoin sales on Coinbase back in 2013 and cheeky mentions of the excitement crypto brings for small businesses. And did we mention he owns two fabulous Crypto Hippos NFTs? 🦛💎

Yet, let's pump the brakes. Chriss hasn’t been overly vocal about his crypto stance. Right now, PayPal's dance with crypto isn't its main groove but a cool side-step, offering options in Bitcoin, Ether, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin. They even unveiled their own stablecoin, all casual-like. As Harshita Rawat put it, it’s not yet "core to the business."

Last but not least, PayPal has been on its toes with new players in the digital payments arena. Block, Apple, and Google are shaking up the scene, and PayPal's gotta keep up with the rhythm. With Chriss on board, there's hope for some fresh moves on PayPal's dance floor. 🕺

💸 Voyager Digital's Big Crypto Garage Sale on Coinbase 🐕

Did you hear about Voyager Digital's massive digital garage sale? Let's say it wasn’t just the typical "old lawn mower and a stack of dusty records" kinda sale. 🧐

Voyager Digital, that bankrupt crypto lender (a real "oops" moment in the world of finance, huh?), has been on a selling spree. And boy, did they have a lot to unload! They’ve chucked over 1.4 trillion Shiba Inu ($SHIB) doggies, 781 BTCs (bling-bling!), and 9,570 ETH on Coinbase, the equivalent of a crypto yard sale but on steroids. Data from the detectives at Lookonchain suggests Voyager has been cashing out around $63 million in 49 different digital tokens over the past few days. The hottest items on sale? You guessed it, our favorites BTC, ETH, and, of course, the meme king - Shiba Inu. But there's more! They also sold a cool $1.74 million in $LINK, $1.27 million in $MATIC, and a sprinkle of $1.1 million in $MANA.

In a not-so-cryptic move (see what I did there?), Voyager got a sweet 84.5 million USDC from Coinbase, swiftly moving it to Circle, probably to console their customers by returning around 35% of their crypto deposits. A for effort, Voyager.

But wait, there's a plot twist! Despite their epic crypto clearance sale, Voyager isn't exactly broke. Their digital piggy bank still jingles with a sweet $11.3 million, including 52.4 million VGX and a humble stash of 55 Bitcoin.

For all the crypto sleuths and rumor-mongers out there, you might recall that earlier this year, Voyager was busy sending billions of those SHIBs to Coinbase. The recent liquidations seem to be part of a trend, especially considering the 3.3 trillion SHIB tokens taken off exchanges last month. Analysts think it's due to a drop in supply. Or maybe, just maybe, they're making room for newer, shinier coins? 💰🐩

🏦 Silvergate's CEO Exits Stage Left as Crypto-Bank Waves Goodbye 👋

There's some big-time drama going on at Silvergate Capital, and Mochi's here to spill the beans. 🍿

Situated in sunny La Jolla, Silvergate Capital once basked in the glow of success. This financial hub, which used to roll out the red carpet for cryptocurrency traders, is now singing its swan song. And in a major plot twist, their leading man, CEO Alan Lane, just made his exit! This comes as part of the fallout from the bank's announcement in March about its closure, thanks to a series of unfortunate events: mammoth losses, customers saying “thank you, next,” and regulators breathing down their necks.

Mr. Lane wasn’t just a figurative captain abandoning ship - he played a dual role as the chief honcho of both Silvergate Capital and Silvergate Bank. His era at the bank was characterized by a laser focus on the crypto sector, offering everything from deposit accounts to fund transfers tailored for this digital revolution.

But when crypto winter hit (brrrr 🥶), Silvergate felt the chill. Factors like the collapse of crypto biggie FTX in November (which, by the way, was a client of Silvergate), plus mounting regulatory pressure from last year, saw the bank's fortunes nosedive. That's not all! Silvergate's Chief Legal Officer, John M. Bonino, and Chief Financial Officer, Antonio Martino, have also packed their bags.

But wait, the legal drama’s worth a mention! Silvergate and its CEO are in the spotlight of several lawsuits, with accusations flying about their involvement with FTX's alleged naughty business. Even a Texas-based church joined the litigation party, claiming Silvergate misused a whopping $25 million of its deposits in FTX's "fraudulent" ventures. Drama much?

In the absence of these top leaders, Kathleen M. Fraher, the bank's Chief Transition Officer, will be taking the reins, while the CFO's duties will shift to Andrew Surry, Silvergate’s Chief Accounting Officer.

TL;DR: 🔻💯

🟧 Bitcoin has been thriving, but the looming actions of the Federal Reserve might introduce a wild, unpredictable twist to the tale. Expect thrills, chills, and hopefully, not too many spills in the world of crypto.

🟧 Alex Chriss is the new upcoming CEO of PayPal, and with a sprinkle of crypto hints in his past, everyone's watching closely to see how he'll steer the crypto ship at the payments giant.

🟧 Bankrupt Voyager Digital is throwing a massive crypto sale on Coinbase, liquidating a plethora of tokens including a ton of Shiba Inu ($SHIB). Meanwhile, the crypto market wonders: "Is SHIB going out of style, or what?"

🟧 Silvergate Capital's CEO and two other top execs are hitting the road as the bank closes up shop. Amidst financial turbulence and a bunch of lawsuits, it's a cloudy day in Silvergate's crypto paradise. 🌧️🏦