Crypto Chaos: Ripple’s Billion-Dollar Gamble and Binance’s Token Purge

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Ripple, the crypto company that somehow manages to stay in the news despite being perpetually embroiled in lawsuits, made headlines this week by doing something bold: spending $1.25 billion on a company called Hidden Road. Yes, you read that right—$1.25 billion. That’s enough money to buy a small country or, at the very least, a very large yacht. 🛥️

Hidden Road, for those who don’t know (and let’s be honest, who does?), is a multi-asset prime broker. Ripple’s CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, was practically giddy about the acquisition, calling it a “defining moment” for the company. Because nothing says “defining moment” like dropping a billion dollars on a brokerage firm. 💸

Meanwhile, over at Binance, the crypto exchange that’s always cleaning house, they’ve decided to delist 14 tokens. Why? Because apparently, these tokens didn’t meet Binance’s “quality thresholds.” Translation: they were either useless, sketchy, or both. Among the unlucky tokens were Badger (BADGER), Balancer (BAL), and Cream Finance (CREAM). Cream Finance? Sounds like a dessert, not a cryptocurrency. 🍨

And if that wasn’t enough drama, Binance’s former CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, has been appointed as an adviser to Pakistan’s newly formed crypto council. Yes, Pakistan. Because when you think of crypto innovation, you think of Pakistan. 🇵🇰

All of this is happening against the backdrop of a US-China trade war, which has sent crypto prices plummeting. But don’t worry, because according to a panel of industry experts, the crypto bull market hasn’t even started yet. That’s right, folks—this is just the warm-up. 🐂

Ripple’s CFO, David Schwartz, took to social media to explain why Hidden Road is such a big deal. Apparently, the brokerage has over 300 institutional customers and processes more than 50 million transactions per day. Schwartz’s vision? To get even a fraction of that activity on the XRP Ledger. Because nothing says “innovation” like moving transactions from one ledger to another. 📊

Ripple has also been dabbling in real-world assets (RWAs), launching a tokenized money market fund in partnership with crypto exchange Archax. Because why not? If you’re going to spend a billion dollars, you might as well go all in. 🎰

Pakistan, meanwhile, is trying to position itself as a crypto hub. The country’s finance ministry has appointed CZ as an adviser to its newly formed Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC). Because if there’s one thing Pakistan needs, it’s advice from a guy who just stepped down as CEO of the world’s largest crypto exchange. 🤷‍♂️

According to Bilal bin Saqib, the CEO of the PCC, Pakistan is “done sitting on the sidelines.” They want to attract international investment and build a Web3 native workforce. Because nothing says “Web3” like a country that’s still figuring out how to keep the lights on. 💡

Finally, let’s talk about the crypto bull market. According to industry experts, it hasn’t even started yet. Michael van de Poppe, founder of MN Capital, believes the bull market is “actually getting started from this point.” Because if there’s one thing crypto experts love, it’s making bold predictions that may or may not come true. 🎯

So, there you have it. Ripple is spending billions, Binance is purging tokens, Pakistan is embracing crypto, and the bull market is just around the corner. Or maybe it’s not. Who knows? In the world of crypto, the only certainty is uncertainty. 🤪

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2025-04-11 23:08