GM. BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETFs have become the firm’s biggest moneymaker, raking in over $245M in annual fees and topping $70B in assets less than a year after launch.

Meanwhile, MegaETH will refund all pre-deposits after bridge failures, Arthur Hayes predicted Monad could crash 99%, and Upbit’s audit exposed a major wallet vulnerability.

Profits, predictions, and protocol flaws open the week. 👇

BlackRock Bitcoin ETFs Become Firm’s Top Revenue Engine

BlackRock executives said the firm’s Bitcoin ETFs have become its most profitable product line, with global allocations approaching $100 billion. Cristiano Castro described IBIT’s expansion as unexpected, noting its rapid ascent exceeded internal forecasts across multiple major markets.

IBIT reached $70 billion in assets within 341 days, becoming the fastest United States ETF to cross that threshold since records began. The BTC ETF generated more than $245 million in annual fees while accumulating over 3% of Bitcoin’s circulating supply through sustained institutional participation.

Net inflows topped $52 billion during IBIT’s first year, driven by global distribution and newly adopted regulated mandates across retail and institutional channels. Castro said recent outflows reflected typical behavior during price weakness rather than any deterioration in underlying demand.

BlackRock raised its own exposure by increasing an internal portfolio’s IBIT allocation as additional Bitcoin-linked products drew institutional support. Castro said investor appetite remained steady despite volatility, solidifying IBIT as a primary revenue engine within the firm’s ETF lineup.

MegaETH to Refund Entire Pre-Deposit Capital

MegaETH said it will refund all pre-deposit funds after outages and signature errors disrupted bridge operations. The event’s deposit cap shifted from $250 million to $1 billion amid repeated failures. A misconfigured four-of-four multisig allowed premature reopening that pushed deposits above $400 million before intervention.

Developers said an audited refund contract will finalize soon as MegaETH prepares Frontier mainnet and relaunch. The team confirmed the USDC-to-USDm conversion bridge will reopen to deepen liquidity ahead of release. MegaETH said all contributors remain eligible for future programs despite the reversal of unstable deposits.

Arthur Hayes Predicts Monad $MON Could Drop 99%

Arthur Hayes warned Monad could fall 99% due to its high FDV and limited circulating supply. He said early unlocks historically trigger severe declines when insider allocations begin entering public markets. Hayes noted Monad raised $225 million last year and launched on November 24 accompanied by a MON airdrop.

He expects Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Zcash to remain relevant while weaker networks collapse under selling pressure. Hayes argued renewed US liquidity expansion will fuel upside despite failures among high-valuation experimental layer-ones. He added Zcash recently became his second-largest position behind Bitcoin due to strengthening privacy demand.

Upbit Audit Finds Critical Wallet Signature Vulnerability

Upbit claimed its emergency audit uncovered signature weaknesses enabling reconstruction of private keys from blockchain transaction data. Executives said flawed signing logic created predictable patterns that exposed wallets to mathematical key-derivation attacks. The issue was found after irregular Solana withdrawals resulted in losses totaling roughly $30 million.

Authorities are investigating potential Lazarus involvement after similarities with the group’s 2019 breach targeting Upbit systems. The exchange confirmed losses reached 44.5 billion KRW and pledged full reimbursement from company reserves. Upbit said withdrawals will resume only after final wallet verification is completed across all infrastructure components.

Data of the day

Bitcoin difficulty is projected to increase at block 927,360 on December 11 during the next network adjustment. Estimates show difficulty rising from 149.3 trillion to around 149.8 trillion based on current blocktimes. The previous adjustment lowered difficulty from 152.2 trillion after block processing averaged 9.97 minutes.

Hashprice remains near $38 per PH/s daily, below the $40 break-even threshold for many miners. Operators face tightening margins as energy costs rise, regulations intensify, and supply chains confront geopolitical instability. Analysts warn continued weakness may pressure older machines while difficulty climbs against worsening market conditions.

More breaking news

• China’s central bank reaffirmed its crypto ban and warned that stablecoins pose money-laundering and financial-security risks following a multi-agency crackdown meeting.

• The UK confirmed new crypto reporting rules starting January 1, requiring exchanges to collect customer tax data and report it to HMRC.

• Tether will shut down its Bitcoin mining operation in Uruguay over high energy costs, laying off most of its 38 local employees.

• Amundi launched tokenized shares of a money market fund on Ethereum, calling it a milestone in Europe’s transition toward 24/7 digital fund infrastructure.

• Vitalik Buterin donated $765,000 in Ethereum to privacy messaging apps Session and SimpleX, citing encryption as vital to digital freedom and autonomy.

• Balancer proposed distributing $8 million in recovered assets to users after a $128 million exploit, rewarding six white hat hackers who intervened.

• Strategy CEO Phong Le said Bitcoin would only be sold as a last resort if capital access vanished and mNAV dropped below parity.

For the latest updates on digital asset markets, follow us on X @Datawalletcom.

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