Cool Cats Goes to Hollywood

Good morning. It was a great weekend for crypto investors and let's hope the momentum carries into the new week! Today in the CT5 we've got NFT projects securing Hollywood agents, Coinbase making moves in Brazil, and more!

Market Update (as of 8:22am ET):

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Top 5:

1. EU to vote on revised regulation targeting crypto transfers. On Thursday, the European Parliament is expected to vote on revised anti-money laundering (AML) legislation that would require crypto exchanges to disclose details of their customer’s anonymous transactions. From Coinbase's Chief Legal Advisor:

Among the worst of the proposed provisions are new obligations on exchanges to collect, verify and report information on non-customers using self-hosted wallets. For instance, one provision requires exchanges to not only collect personal data about wallet users who are not their customers, but to also verify the data’s accuracy before allowing a transfer to one of their customers.

2. Cool Cats Ethereum NFT project signs with CAA for media, licensing push. In the drive to push their project as an "experience" the creators behind the Cool Cats NFTs have signed with talent firm Creative Artists Agency (CAA). The partnership will see Cool Cats explore licensing, content creation, and publishing opportunities. Current holders of Cool Cats NFTs have non-exclusive rights to use their NFTs for commercial purposes while the creators of the project retain the rights to the intellectual property overall. Other projects like CryptoPunks have also partnered with talent agencies to expand their brand into other mediums.

3. Coinbase near deal to buy owner of Brazil’s largest crypto exchange. The US based firm is currently in talks to purchase 2TM, the firm behind Mercado Bitcoin, Brazil's largest crypto exchange. In 2021, Mercado Bitcoin reached 3.2 million users and saw $7.2 billion in trading volume. This potential acquisition parallel's moves in Brazil by competitor Binance and may be driven by upcoming legislation that would require crypto exchanges to be licensed in order to operate in the country.

4. Avalanche launches $100 million creator fund with Grimes and web3 platform Op3n. The fund, called the Culture Catalyst initiative, is set to incentivize creators to build projects on the Avalanche network and will fund projects with the blockchain's native token (AVAX). Projects will be exclusively available on Op3n, a web3 social media platform, with the hopes of growing the platforms' profiles with non-crypto users. Musician Grimes will be the first recipient of AVAX tokens and plans to create an "intergalactic children's metaverse book." I have no idea what that means.

5. Israel’s Bank Leumi plans to offer crypto services to retail clients. The Israeli bank announced on Friday that they would begin offering crypto trading for clients and will partner with Paxos to provide the service. The initially offering will allow clients to buy and sell bitcoin and ethereum. Bank Leumi joins a handful of other banks that have begun to offer similar services in counties like Singapore, Switzerland, and Australia.

Updates and other stories:
- Verified Twitter account scam, steals $1M in fake ApeCoin airdrop...Read More
- Greenidge plans to triple US bitcoin mining capacity after funding...Read More
- WonderFi announces closing of Bitbuy acquisition...Read More

Top Sharers of the Crypto Top 5:
1. Donna Y. - Nashville, TN
2. Jake Y. - Greenville, SC
3. Forrest H. - Evansville, IN

External Resources:
1. Cryptopedia from Gemini - if you see a word, acronym, or phrase in this newsletter that you don't understand, there's a good chance you can find an explanation here
2. Crypto Explainer+ - intro level courses on Bitcoin, Ethereum, decentralized finance, NFTs, and more
3. Crypto Jobs! - looking for a new job? Check out this page from Anthony Pompliano with hundreds, if not thousands of listings

Disclaimer: The information contained in this newsletter shall not be understood or construed as financial advice. I am not an attorney, accountant, or financial advisor, nor am I holding myself out to be, and the information provided is not a substitute for financial advice from a professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.