Crypto markets were awash in red earlier this morning after Bloomberg reported that the Justice Department planned to announce “separate but related cryptocurrency enforcement actions” in a press conference this afternoon.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other major cryptocurrencies have since recovered following subsequent reports that the enforcement actions will focus on Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by volume. Bloomberg reported yesterday that a settlement with Binance was all but official.
The U.S. Department of Justice will provide details of the charges and settlement in a press conference today scheduled for 3 p.m. ET, according to Bloomberg.
The dueling reports sent crypto assets on a wild ride this morning. Earlier today, Bitcoin and Ethereum dipped significantly. Bitcoin was last week closing in on $38,000 per coin—which would have been a yearly high—but has reversed its gains and is currently trading at around $37,000, according to CoinGecko. That’s roughly a 1% drop within the past day.
Meanwhile, Ethereum, which had initially surged above $2,000 on news that BlackRock applied to register an Ethereum ETF with the SEC, has retreated to $1,988 reflecting a decline of just under 3% over the past day period.
Yesterday an unnamed source told Bloomberg that the DOJ is seeking a $4 billion settlement with Binance in a deal that would leave the crypto exchange operational, but could result in a federal indictment being filed against CEO Changepeng Zhao and other management.
The downturn is not limited to the very top cryptocurrencies. Meme coins such as Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) have also seen significant losses of up to 7% in the past day.
Meanwhile Solana, which has been experiencing a resurgence, has taken a 7% dive as its price was pared back to $55.22 at the time of writing.
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