Morning Report | Amazon increases investment in Anthropic up to $25 billion; SEC plans to introduce an "innovation exemption" mechanism to support compliant on-chain trading of tokenized securities

整理：ChainCatcher

Important News:

• BNB Plus faces delisting risk from Nasdaq and has initiated a strategic evaluation for maximizing shareholder value
• Arbitrum Security Committee freezes 30,766 ETH from KelpDAO hacker
• Core Scientific plans to issue $3.3 billion in private debt to repay credit loans
• Claude Desktop exposed for secretly writing browser backdoor files
• SpaceX's prospectus reveals Starlink revenue reached $4.42 billion, SpaceX cash reserves exceed $22.8 billion
• Amazon increases investment in Anthropic up to $25 billion, with the latter committing to spend over $100 billion on AWS in the next decade
• US SEC Chairman: Plans to launch an "innovation exemption" mechanism to support compliant on-chain trading of tokenized securities

What important events have occurred in the past 24 hours?

AI16Z and ELIZAOS creators face class action lawsuit over false advertising and unjust enrichment claims

According to ChainCatcher, the crypto law firm Burwick Law has filed a federal class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) against AI16Z and the creators of ELIZAOS, including Walters, accusing them of violating consumer protection laws, false advertising, and unjust enrichment. Legal documents indicate that the defendants are accused of leveraging the brand reputation of Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) to package their project, which issued AI16Z tokens on Solana on October 24, 2024, later renamed ELIZAOS. The lawsuit claims that the project falsely claimed to have self-investing AI agents, which were actually operated manually, and generated no revenue during the lawsuit period.

On January 2, 2025, the token price reached an all-time high of approximately $2.47, with a market capitalization exceeding $2.6 billion, before crashing due to large holders selling off. On-chain data shows that the most profitable traders realized approximately $39 million in profits.

Core Scientific plans to issue $3.3 billion in private debt to repay credit loans

According to ChainCatcher, Bitcoin mining company Core Scientific has disclosed that its wholly-owned subsidiary Core Scientific Finance intends to privately issue $3.3 billion in senior secured notes to qualified institutional buyers, with a maturity date in 2031. The company stated that part of the net proceeds will be used to fully repay delayed draw term loans under a previous 364-day credit facility, including accrued interest and related fees.

The notes will be fully guaranteed by five subsidiaries of Core Scientific and secured by a first-priority lien on the majority of the assets of the relevant subsidiaries.

US SEC Chairman: Plans to launch an "innovation exemption" mechanism to support compliant on-chain trading of tokenized securities

According to ChainCatcher, US SEC Chairman Paul Atkins delivered a speech at the Washington Economic Club on the occasion of his first anniversary in office, stating that the SEC is advancing reforms to the digital asset regulatory framework and incorporating it into the "A - C - T" strategy, which aims to modernize regulation, clarify regulatory boundaries, and reshape the rule system.

Regarding crypto assets, the SEC has released a classification system for crypto tokens, categorizing digital assets into five types, four of which do not fall under securities. It indicated that the SEC is about to launch an "innovation exemption" mechanism to provide a limited framework for market participants to conduct compliant on-chain trading of tokenized securities and has initiated Project Crypto to adapt securities rules and regulatory systems to the trend of capital markets moving on-chain.

Additionally, the SEC signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the CFTC last month to unify key definitions, clarify regulatory jurisdictions, and coordinate joint regulatory matters, including digital assets. Paul Atkins also noted that the previous regulatory approach to crypto assets in the US has led to innovation activities moving overseas.

US food delivery platform DoorDash collaborates with Tempo to explore paying delivery personnel with stablecoins

According to ChainCatcher, as reported by Fortune, the blockchain project Tempo, supported by Stripe and Paradigm, has launched a "stablecoin consulting" service to provide support for stablecoin adoption to businesses and financial institutions, including identifying applicable scenarios and deploying engineers to assist with stablecoin integration.

It is reported that the US food delivery platform DoorDash is collaborating with Tempo to explore paying delivery personnel with stablecoins; Stripe, Coastal Community Bank, and ARQ are also building stablecoin infrastructure based on Tempo, while Visa, OnePay, Felix, Fifth Third Bank, and Howard Hughes Holdings are integrating payment services with Tempo.

39 institutions including Nasdaq call on the EU to separate the DLT pilot system from new legislation and expedite review to compete with the US

According to ChainCatcher, Bloomberg reports that 39 signatories, including Nasdaq, Stuttgart Stock Exchange Group, and various national fintech associations, are urging the European Commission and European Parliament to treat the distributed ledger technology (DLT) pilot system as independent legislation for rapid review and to separate it from the EU market integration and oversight scheme.

The signatories state that if the overall negotiation process takes too long, Europe may fall behind the US in DLT applications, and they demand the removal of asset class restrictions, an increase in the total trading volume cap to €150 billion, and the elimination of license time limits. The letter also mentions that the US has established a stablecoin regulatory framework through the "Genius Act," rapidly establishing a leading position in the tokenized asset field.

The European Commission is currently promoting a rapid resolution of the entire regulatory scheme, viewing it as a key part of the Capital Markets Union plan. Financial Services Commissioner Maria Luis Albuquerque has previously called for all legislative proposals to be passed in sync.

US crypto market structure legislation delayed, Senate Banking Committee unlikely to review in April

According to ChainCatcher, The Block reports that Thom Tillis, a key negotiator for the US Senate Banking Committee and a Republican senator from North Carolina, stated that the committee is unlikely to schedule a hearing to revise and vote on the crypto market structure bill in April.

The main disagreement in the legislation currently centers on how to handle rewards for stablecoin accounts, with the current draft proposing to prohibit rewards for idle stablecoin accounts while allowing earnings from trading activities; banking representatives are concerned that such earnings will attract deposits away from traditional banks, while crypto firms believe that limiting rewards will hinder innovation. Tillis suggested postponing the committee's review until May.

Previously, Senator Bernie Moreno warned that if the bill does not pass before May, "digital asset legislation will not advance in the foreseeable future."

SpaceX's prospectus reveals Starlink revenue reached $4.42 billion, SpaceX cash reserves exceed $22.8 billion

According to ChainCatcher, Reuters reports that SpaceX's prospectus shows that its Starlink business's operating revenue rose to $4.42 billion last year, a significant increase from $2 billion in 2024 and $469 million in 2023. Additionally, the document reveals that Musk and a few insiders will maintain voting control through a dual-class share structure after the IPO.

The company's cash reserves increased from approximately $11.4 billion at the end of 2024 to over $22.8 billion, with total assets of approximately $92 billion and total liabilities of about $50.8 billion as of the end of 2025. The balance sheet shows cash and cash equivalents of $24.8 billion. Meanwhile, the xAI business reported an operating loss of $6.4 billion last year.

Strategy CEO: STRC's Bitcoin purchases this year have reached 10 times the total of all ETFs
According to ChainCatcher, Phong Le, CEO of Bitcoin treasury company Strategy, shared data on the X platform showing that the amount of Bitcoin purchased by its perpetual preferred stock STRC in 2026 has reached approximately 10 times the total amount purchased by all Bitcoin ETFs during the same period, indicating a strong trend of continued corporate allocation.
Vercel: Third-party AI tool breach led to unauthorized access to internal systems, no sensitive data has been altered
According to ChainCatcher, Vercel released an analysis of a security incident, stating that some of its internal systems were accessed without authorization due to a third-party AI tool, Context.ai, used by an employee being compromised. The attacker took over the employee's Google Workspace account and accessed some environmental configuration data.

The initial impact was that a small number of environment variables not marked as "sensitive" (such as API Keys, Tokens, etc.) may have been leaked, and affected users have been notified and advised to rotate their credentials immediately. There is currently no evidence that data marked as "sensitive" or supply chains (such as npm packages) have been altered.

Vercel stated that the attacker possesses a high level of technical skill and has partnered with Mandiant and several security agencies to investigate, and has reported the incident to law enforcement. They also emphasized that platform services are still operating normally. Users are advised to enable multi-factor authentication, fully rotate potentially leaked environment variables, and check account activity logs and deployment records to prevent further risks.

Amazon increases investment in Anthropic up to $25 billion, with the latter committing to spend over $100 billion on AWS in the next decade

According to ChainCatcher, Amazon announced that it will increase its investment in Claude's parent company Anthropic by up to $25 billion, with $5 billion available immediately and an additional $20 billion to be injected in batches based on the achievement of business milestones.

Previously, Amazon had invested a total of $8 billion in Anthropic, and after this round, the total investment will reach $33 billion. In exchange, Anthropic has committed to spending over $100 billion on Amazon Web Services (AWS) over the next decade and plans to deploy approximately 1 gigawatt of computing power through Trainium2 and Trainium3 chips by the end of the year, with a long-term goal of 5 gigawatts. Following the announcement, Amazon's stock price rose about 2.7% in after-hours trading.

Notably, Amazon announced earlier this year that it would invest up to $50 billion in OpenAI, indicating that it is simultaneously betting on multiple leading AI companies to solidify its cloud infrastructure leadership.

Claude Desktop exposed for secretly writing browser backdoor files

According to ChainCatcher, a post by SlowMist CISO @im23pads on the X platform revealed that Claude Desktop has been exposed for secretly writing browser backdoor files. When users install the Claude Desktop application, it writes a special file to all Chromium-based browsers on the computer without the user's knowledge.

This file acts as a pre-authorized backdoor, which, when used in conjunction with specific browser extensions, can gain complete control over the user's browser.

BNB Plus faces delisting risk from Nasdaq and has initiated a strategic evaluation for maximizing shareholder value

According to ChainCatcher, BNB treasury company BNB Plus disclosed that it has received a notice from Nasdaq stating that it no longer meets the continued listing standards due to its stock price falling below the minimum requirement of $1, and because it implemented a reverse stock split in the past year, it is not eligible for a regular compliance period. The company stated that it has requested a hearing, and its stock will continue to trade on Nasdaq until the outcome is determined.

Additionally, BNB Plus announced that its board of directors has approved the initiation of a strategic alternative evaluation to maximize shareholder value, with potential options including mergers, reverse mergers, asset sales, joint ventures, financing, and other transactions. Currently, the value of its crypto treasury assets is approximately $12.2 million.
MemeCore CEO Jun: The value of a project is built on trust, not short-term speculation

According to ChainCatcher, MemeCore CEO Jun tweeted that the true value of any project does not depend on short-term attention, headline valuations, or how much profit the foundation can extract, but is built on trust.

Jun pointed out that while some may question MemeCore's valuation, the project's responsibility goes beyond creating temporary hype; it is to strengthen the ecosystem around the project, contribute to a healthier market environment, and build something that can exist long-term.

He admitted that the blockchain industry has witnessed too many projects driven by speculation, short-term hype, and "pump and dump" behavior. Although MemeCore started as a meme project, a meme project can do much more than attract attention; it can also create culture, build trust, and contribute to a healthier market environment.

Previously, on-chain detective ZachXBT questioned the review process for Kraken listing Memecore (M) spot trading and pointed out that there were anomalies in the related on-chain capital flows. Data shows that last week, the market capitalization of M briefly soared to nearly $6 billion but has since fallen back to around $4.7 billion.

Arbitrum Security Committee freezes 30,766 ETH from KelpDAO hacker

According to ChainCatcher, the Arbitrum Security Committee announced that it has taken emergency action to rescue 30,766 ETH stored in an Arbitrum One address related to the KelpDAO vulnerability. With the assistance of law enforcement, the security committee identified the attacker and ensured that the safety and integrity of the Arbitrum community would not be compromised, protecting all Arbitrum users or applications.

After extensive technical investigation and deliberation, the security committee identified and executed a technical solution to transfer the funds to a secure location without affecting the state of any other chains or Arbitrum users. As of 11:26 PM Eastern Time on April 20, the funds have been successfully transferred to an intermediate frozen wallet. The address that originally held the funds can no longer access them, and only the Arbitrum governance body can take further action to transfer these funds, which will be coordinated with the relevant parties.

Yi Lihua: Bitcoin is expected to rebound to $85,000, another major correction will be the last buying opportunity

According to ChainCatcher, Yi Lihua, founder of Liquid Capital (formerly LD Capital), stated that he has been looking for a rebound rather than a reversal recently, and the key is where the rebound will reach. Initially, he expected it to be $85,000, but no one can pinpoint it accurately; the key is to manage expectations and risk for profit-taking.

From a trading and cycle perspective, there may be one more major correction, which would be an excellent last buying opportunity. Currently, the triggering factors may include a pullback in US stocks from historical highs, a collective drop in risk assets, and uncontrollable oil prices, as well as terrifying inflation data leading the Federal Reserve to abandon interest rate cuts and even consider raising rates. He is optimistic about the medium to long term in investments but emphasizes managing risks in the short term.

Meme Popularity Rankings

According to meme token tracking and analysis platform GMGN market data, as of April 22, 09:00,

The top five popular ETH tokens in the past 24 hours are: LINK, PEPE, UNI, Mog, SPX

The top five popular Solana tokens in the past 24 hours are: TROLL, Punch, Ani, neet, LOL

The top five popular Base tokens in the past 24 hours are: SKITTEN, PEPE, BASED, B3, SKYA

What are some interesting articles worth reading in the past 24 hours?

Global Survey of Consumer Crypto: Users, Revenue, and Track Distribution

The crypto industry often claims it lacks users, but the data tells a different story. The active users of consumer-grade crypto have long reached tens of millions, just not in the view of Silicon Valley and New York. These users in Manila, Lagos, Buenos Aires, and Hanoi are using Coins.ph (18 million users), MiniPay (4.2 million weekly active users), and Lemon Cash (Argentina's top app), but English media has hardly reported on them. Conversely, the protocols that Western VCs discuss daily have daily active volumes that don't even match an hour's volume on the Tron shadow clearing network.

Seven core conclusions: The user issue in crypto is essentially a geographical issue; Tron is the most important consumer-grade public chain, but no one talks about it in NYC and SF; on-chain e-commerce basically does not exist; the largest prediction market is centralized; revenue and user numbers often move in opposite directions; the perpetual DEX war has already ended; there are indeed consumer-grade crypto companies that make real profits—just not ones that look like DeFi.

a16z Crypto: Why AI Agents Must Combine with Blockchain

AI agents have rapidly transformed from "co-pilots" to economic participants, even outpacing the surrounding infrastructure.

While agents can now perform tasks and conduct transactions, they lack standardized methods to prove their identity, authority, and reward mechanisms across environments. Identity information cannot be shared across platforms, payment methods have not yet achieved default programmability, and coordination work is conducted independently.

Blockchain addresses this issue at the infrastructure layer. Public ledgers provide receipts for every transaction, allowing anyone to audit. Wallets provide users with portable identity information. Stablecoins offer an alternative settlement method. These are not distant future technologies; they can be deployed now and help users operate like true economic entities without permission.

DeFi is caught in the most dangerous prisoner's dilemma in history

Over 40 hours after the theft, the chain reaction triggered by Kelp DAO continues to ferment, involving more and more well-known projects like Aave, LayerZero, and Arbitrum, even reaching the point where some popular narratives are facing a death sentence.

Notable KOL Feng Wu Xiang stated on the X platform that only ETH is safe now, and ARB has also authorized freezing the transfer of customer assets. No L2 is truly a L2 anymore. L2 thrived on Arbitrum but also perished there.

Another well-known KOL, Blue Fox, remarked that the biggest losses from the Kelp incident were not Aave or Kelp, but LayerZero, which was too shortsighted to see the essence of the entire event. The essence of this incident is not to disprove L2 (even if it's a false L2), but to disprove cross-chain bridges.

More and more intense opinions are emerging in the public discourse, with parties involved in the incident holding different views and blaming each other, making the Kelp DAO theft incident a typical window for observing the division of responsibility in security incidents and the conflict between pragmatism and technical fundamentalism.