Bitcoin may move ‘very quick’ to $150K, altseason doubts: Hodler’s Digest, Sept. 28 – Oct. 4

Wall Streets next crypto play may be IPO-ready crypto firms, not altcoins

Wall Streets growing interest in late-stage cryptocurrency firms could disrupt the traditional boom-and-bust cycle of digital assets, according to new research.

Crypto financial services firm Matrixport said Friday that more than $200 billion worth of crypto companies are preparing initial public offerings (IPOs), which may raise between $30 billion and $45 billion in new capital.

Matrixport said investor focus is rotating away from early-stage bets toward scalable, IPO‑ready companies positioned for public markets.

Continued selling by Bitcoin miners and early adopters has nearly neutralized ETF and treasury inflows, reducing volatility and dampening Bitcoin’s appeal to risk‑seeking investors, Matrixport said in a Friday X post. Wall Street, however, has every incentive to extend the bull market, with up to $226 billion in crypto IPOs waiting in the pipeline that could raise $30 – $45 billion in new capital.

Judge tosses lawsuit against Yuga Labs over failure to satisfy Howey test

A US judge has dismissed an investor lawsuit against Web3 company Yuga Labs, ruling that the case failed to show non‑fungible tokens (NFTs) meet the legal definition of securities.

Judge Fernando M. Olguin ruled the plaintiffs did not demonstrate how Bored Ape Yacht Club, ApeCoin or other NFTs sold by Yuga satisfied the three conditions of the Howey test, a standard used by the US Securities and Exchange Commission to determine whether a transaction qualifies as an investment contract. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2022.

Yuba Labs marketed its NFTs as digital collectibles with membership perks to an exclusive club, making them consumables rather than investment contracts, Olguin said.

CleanSpark sells $48.7M in Bitcoin, treasury tops 13K BTC in September

Bitcoin miner CleanSpark ended September with 13,011 BTC in its treasury after reporting year‑over‑year gains in efficiency and output.

The company said monthly production rose 27 % from September 2024, with 629 Bitcoin mined, and sold 445 BTC for roughly $48.7 million at an average price of $109,568. In its Friday update, CleanSpark said that fleet efficiency improved 26 % year over year, while its average operating hashrate for the month was 45.6 EH/s.

CleanSpark has been selling part of its monthly Bitcoin production since April as part of a push to become financially self‑sufficient. It also opened an institutional Bitcoin trading desk to facilitate sales. In August, the company generated $60.7 million from the sale of 533.5 BTC.

CleanSpark’s shares on Nasdaq rose 5.28 % following the report, gaining more than 23 % over the week, according to Yahoo Finance.

Crypto treasury bubble fears overblown: TON Strategy CEO

While a recent wave of corporate digital asset treasuries is starting to show signs of a bubble, the long‑term outlook is positive, according to TON Strategy CEO Veronika Kapustina.

I think, look, obviously, it looks like its a bubble. As in, all the indicators look like its a bubble, Kapustina told Cointelegraph during the Token2049 conference in Singapore.

Kapustina explained that they are different from other bubbles we’ve seen in crypto and TradFi because it’s a new segment of finance. DATs became the trade of the summer, and people saw it as fast money, with a lot of fast money going in, she said.

Trump nominates acting FDIC chair to officially head the agency

US President Donald Trump sent the nomination of acting chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Travis Hill, to the Senate for consideration to assume the government role for a five‑year term.

According to congressional records, Trump’s nomination of Hill as FDIC chair was sent to the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday.

Before assuming his role at the FDIC, Hill issued a statement that the department should offer additional guidance on digital assets and tokenization and spoke out against allegations of US authorities debanking companies due to their ties to crypto. He followed with a letter aimed at financial institutions in March, clarifying that banks could engage with digital assets as a permissible activity.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $122,394; Ether (ETH) at $4,498; and XRP at $2.99. The total market cap is $4.18 trillion according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are ZCash (ZEC) at 167.51 %, DoubleZero (2Z) at 82.51 % and SPX6900 (SPX) at 42.41 %.

The top three altcoin losers of the week are MYX Finance (MYX) at 53.09 %, Plasma (XPL) at 35.48 % and MemeCore (M) at 5.03 %.

Most Memorable Quotations

For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Ethereum is effectively a gateway for money supply globally to transmit in US dollars.

McAndrew Rudisill, chairman and CEO of ETHZilla

In contrast, Bitcoin’s value is not driven by the monetary policies of individual states or any specific economy, which can reduce the overall correlation in the reserve.

Dennis Dioukarev and David Perez, members of the Sweden Democrats political party

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we went up to $150,000 in a pretty short time, like we have to break out of the $120,000 range. But that’s probably coming, potentially in the next days.”

Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments

“There’s a lot of excitement for a surge in something new. Then it peters out, and a bit of consolidation, and then the real medium‑to‑long‑term capital comes in.”

Veronika Kapustina, CEO of TON Strategy

“The whole idea that this is altseason … and everything will go up because it’s altseason, we won’t see that, and I’m very firm in that.”

Vugar Usi Zade, chief operating officer at Bitget

“My thesis is basically the ECB prints now, or they print later, and in both cases, they lose control, because in both cases, the people would rather either default, redenominate, do capital controls, print the money, have their way of life.”

Arthur Hayes, co‑founder of BitMEX

Top Prediction of The Week

Bitcoin $120K breakout will lead to very quick move to $150K: Charles Edwards

Bitcoin may surge to a new all‑time high of $150,000 before the end of 2025 as investors pile into safe‑haven assets alongside gold, according to Capriole Investments founder Charles Edwards.

Bitcoin’s recovery above the $120,000 psychological mark may lead to a very quick breakout to a $150,000 all‑time high, Edwards told Cointelegraph during an interview at Token2049 in Singapore. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we went up to $150,000 in a pretty short time, like we have to break out of the $120,000 range. But that’s probably coming, potentially in the next days.”

Bitcoin rose over 6 % in the past week, recovering above the $118,500 mark for the first time since Aug. 15, data shows.

Top FUD of The Week

Bitget exec sees no logical reason for an altcoin season this cycle

The crypto markets are unlikely to see an altcoin season where everything will go up, as many traders are now focused on narrower trends or are just focusing solely on Bitcoin, according to the operating chief of Bitget, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges.

I don’t think there will be an altseason, Vugar Usi Zade told Cointelegraph at the Token2049 conference in Singapore on Wednesday.

The whole idea that this is altseason … and everything will go up because it’s altseason, we won’t see that, and I’m very firm in that.

US Senate to hold hearing on crypto taxes as IRS offers relief on corporate tax

The US Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday on cryptocurrency taxation, a day after the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued interim guidance easing corporate crypto tax rules.

The Treasury and IRS on Tuesday issued interim guidance aimed at easing compliance under the Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax (CAMT), including for companies operating in the digital assets sector.

Signed into law under former President Joe Biden as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, CAMT imposes a 15 % minimum tax on the financial‑statement income of large corporations.

Roman Storm seeks acquittal of Tornado Cash money transmission charge

Roman Storm, co‑founder of Tornado Cash, has asked a US federal judge to acquit him of his sole conviction for unlicensed money transmission and the jury’s hung counts for money laundering and sanctions violations, arguing prosecutors failed to prove he intended to help bad actors misuse the crypto mixer.

According to legal documents filed on Sept. 30 to the US District Court for the Southern District of New York and reviewed by Cointelegraph, Storm’s defense argued prosecutors failed to prove he intended to help bad actors use Tornado Cash. This, according to the defense, would nullify the grounds for his conviction based on negligent inaction.

Storm and bad actors was a claim that he knew they were using Tornado Cash and failed to take sufficient measures to stop them. This is a negligence theory, the motion states.

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