It has been a dramatic week in cryptocurrency: Bitcoin surged to $93,000, FTX filed a $1.76 billion lawsuit against Binance and former CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF reached $40 billion in assets, investors dropped their appeal in a Dogecoin lawsuit against Elon Musk, and former CFTC chair Christopher “Crypto Dad” Giancarlo denied interest in leading the SEC. Below is a concise recap of these major developments.
Bitcoin reaches $93,000
Bitcoin climbed to an all-time high near $93,000 earlier this week. While some market participants pointed to the early-November US election outcome and Donald Trump’s pro-crypto remarks as a contributing factor, industry analysts say several structural forces are in play.
Bitcoin moved past $82,000, then $84,000 and $87,000 before reaching the recent peak. Jesse Myers, co-founder of Onramp Bitcoin, noted that the market is “6+ months post-halving,” a period during which the reduced issuance of new Bitcoin gradually tightens supply. Myers described this as a “supply shock” that has accumulated and pressured prices higher as demand outpaced available supply at prevailing price levels.
Others echoed the view that attributing the rally solely to election results is simplistic. James Toldeano, COO of Unity, called it misleading to claim the election directly caused the price surge. Matthew Sigel, head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, suggested the rally is still in its early stages, reflecting broader market dynamics beyond short-term political events.
FTX sues Binance and Changpeng Zhao for $1.76 billion
FTX filed a lawsuit alleging that Binance and former CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao received at least $1.76 billion through a fraudulent transfer. The filing claims the transfer occurred in July 2021 and involved FTX’s native FTT token as well as BNB and BUSD.
The complaint describes a complex history of investments and repurchases: Binance initially acquired a stake in FTX in 2019 and later held additional shares through WRS, a U.S.-based Bankman-Fried entity. In July 2021, FTX allegedly repurchased Binance’s and certain executives’ stakes, a transaction that the filing asserts was funded by Alameda Research using FTX customer deposits while Alameda was insolvent.
Testimony cited in the complaint from Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, alleges Alameda used roughly $1 billion of FTX trading capital received from depositors to fund the repurchase, a claim that underpins the lawsuit’s allegation of fraudulent conduct.
BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF tops $40 billion
BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF reached $40 billion in net assets in just 211 days, setting a new speed record for asset accumulation among ETFs. This milestone follows a recent $30 billion mark reached in 293 days and places the fund among the top 1% of ETFs by assets in a remarkably short time.
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas noted the ETF’s rapid rise, highlighting that at about ten months old it has outpaced most ETFs launched over the past decade. According to iShares data, BlackRock’s ETF holdings equate to more than 471,000 Bitcoin at current valuations, underscoring strong institutional demand for spot Bitcoin exposure via traditional investment vehicles.
Investors withdraw Dogecoin appeal against Elon Musk
Investors who had sued Elon Musk and Tesla alleging market manipulation of Dogecoin withdrew their appeal this week. The original lawsuit accused Musk of leveraging his public platform—tweets and appearances—to artificially inflate Dogecoin’s price for personal benefit.
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein dismissed the case, concluding the plaintiffs failed to show securities fraud based solely on Musk’s public statements. The court found that Musk’s colorful remarks, such as calling Dogecoin the “future currency of Earth” or saying SpaceX could “float it to the moon,” did not meet the legal threshold for insider trading or fraud.
“Crypto Dad” denies interest in SEC chair role
Christopher Giancarlo, the former Commodity Futures Trading Commission chair often called “Crypto Dad,” publicly denied reports that he is being considered to replace Gary Gensler as chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In a social post, Giancarlo said he does not wish to return to Washington to “clean up” another regulatory mess and denied interest in Treasury Department roles tied to crypto policy.
Giancarlo served at the CFTC from 2014 to 2019, acting as chair in 2017 and later confirmed as chair through 2019. Speculation about potential successors to the SEC chairmanship has surged after statements from political leaders signaling a desire for leadership change at the agency. Other names mentioned in public discussion have included current and former SEC commissioners and other regulatory figures, though no official announcements have been made.
This week’s events highlight ongoing maturation and tension in crypto markets: soaring institutional inflows and record ETF growth on one side, and intense legal and regulatory battles on the other. As prices and adoption metrics evolve, legal outcomes and policy decisions will likely remain major drivers of market sentiment.