Hold onto your hats, crypto fans, because Friday night was a rollercoaster ride! The crypto world was buzzing with excitement, thanks to a spicy report from the Wall Street Journal. But before you could say “blockchain,” Tether's CEO swooped in to squash the rumors.
So, what happened? The WSJ stirred the pot by claiming that the US government was digging into Tether, the big kahuna of stablecoins. They alleged that the feds were on the hunt for potential anti-money laundering and sanctions breaches, with questions swirling around whether Tether's USDT was helping the bad guys dodge the rules.
Enter Paolo Ardoino, Tether's head honcho, who wasted no time in shutting down the claims. He declared, “Nope, Tether is not under investigation. This is just old gossip resurfacing,” and assured everyone that Tether regularly teams up with law enforcement to keep the baddies at bay.
But despite the denial, the crypto market was already on a wild ride. Bitcoin took a nosedive from nearly $69,000 to $65,500 in the blink of an eye, before bouncing back to around $67,000. Altcoins weren't spared either, and the liquidations went through the roof, hitting a whopping $405 million in just one day.
Altcoins took the biggest hit, losing over $100 million, while Bitcoin and Ethereum weren't far behind, each shedding around $68 million and $65 million, respectively. In total, almost 150,000 traders found themselves in over their heads, feeling the sting of the market's wild swings.
So, there you have it. In the ever-unpredictable world of crypto, one thing's for sure: there's never a dull moment!
