According to PANews, digital bank Revolut has announced the upcoming listing of Cat in a Dogs World (MEW) token. MEW is a leading cat-themed meme token on the Solana blockchain, aiming to challenge the dominance of dog-themed meme tokens.

According to Cointelegraph, the government of Louisiana has made a significant move by accepting its first-ever cryptocurrency payment. State Treasurer John Fleming announced that residents now have the option to pay for state services using Bitcoin (BTC), the Bitcoin Lightning Network, and the US dollar-pegged stablecoin USD Coin (USDC). This development marks a new era for the state, embracing digital currencies for public transactions. The inaugural crypto payment was processed for a fine directed to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries via Bitcoin’s Lightning Network. Fleming highlighted that this initiative is a result of collaboration between the state, Bead Pay, and other integration partners. He emphasized that this move aims to reduce fraudulent transactions and modernize government systems to align with the digital age. Fleming stated, “By introducing cryptocurrency as a payment option, we’re not just innovating; we’re providing our citizens with flexibility and freedom in interacting with state services.” He also assured that the state would receive the payments in fiat currency, as the service converts crypto payments into US dollars, thus mitigating previous concerns about accepting cryptocurrency. Republican State Representative Mark Wright, who led the effort for the state to accept crypto, expressed his enthusiasm about the expanded payment options. Wright had established a digital assets working group in May 2022, which concluded that cryptocurrency would be a viable form of payment. He also spearheaded a 2021 Louisiana House resolution that recognized the contributions of Bitcoin’s anonymous inventor, Satoshi Nakamoto, to economic security. In addition to accepting crypto payments, Louisiana has also taken legislative steps regarding digital currencies. In June, the state amended its laws to ban central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and set regulations for crypto miners and node operators. The legislation prohibits the state from participating in tests for, accepting, or requiring payments using a CBDC, but it does not ban other forms of digital currency payments.

1. The Fed cut interest rates by 50BP, starting a rate cut cycle; 2. The Fed FOMC statement: Confidence in inflation has increased and is continuing to move towards 2%; 3. "Federal Reserve Megaphone": The first rate cut of 50BP marks a bold start to the rate cut cycle; 4. Fed Chairman Powell: The overall economy is strong and is committed to maintaining strong economic development; 5. CICC: The possibility of a soft landing of the US economy in the short term will further increase; 6. The high-win whale in the band sold the ETH bought last night and made a profit of US$210,000; 7. MicroStrategy transferred more than 4,922 bitcoins 8 hours ago, worth approximately US$294 million; 8. Ethena Labs has worked with domain name registrars to regain control of domain names; 9. Michelle Bond, partner of former FTX executive Ryan Salame, denied allegations of campaign fund violations; 10. Cumberland and other addresses transferred about 939 bitcoins to Fidelity Bitcoin ETF BTC; 11. Bitwise ETHW transferred approximately 932 ETH to the Nonco address.

Jamie Dimon continues to criticise Bitcoin while embracing blockchain’s utility, with JPMorgan Chase being a major user of the technology. Despite regulatory scepticism, blockchain’s role in financial services continues to grow.

Michelle Bond, the partner of former FTX co-CEO Ryan Salame, pleaded not guilty to four counts of campaign finance violations in the federal court for the Southern District of New York. The charges include conspiracy to cause illegal campaign contributions, causing and accepting excessive campaign contributions, causing and accepting illegal corporate contributions, and causing and accepting middleman contributions. The charges stem from Bond's alleged concealment of the source of funds when he ran for a Republican seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022. Salame allegedly arranged for FTX to pay $400,000 to fund her campaign, and Bond allegedly made false statements to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and congressional committees. It is worth noting that Salame had previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 90 months in prison, but after Bond was indicted, he asked the court to revoke his guilty plea, saying that the plea was based on the prosecutor's promise not to investigate his partner. Judge Lewis Kaplan said he would consider whether to revoke Salame's guilty plea. Currently, Bond is still released on $1 million bail, but is restricted from traveling within the United States. Judge George Daniels has scheduled a pre-trial conference for January 2025. In the FTX and Alameda Research criminal prosecutions, only Salame and SBF have been sentenced to prison as of September 18. Sentencing hearings for the other executives involved will take place in the coming months.

The SEC has taken action against Rari Capital and its co-founders for allegedly misleading investors and operating as unregistered brokers. source: https://www.cryptopolitan.com/sec-charges-rari-capital/

According to PANews, Bybit's Head of Institutional Business, Chris Aruliah, has analyzed the recent 0.5% interest rate cut announced by the Federal Reserve. Aruliah suggests that this move could lead to a shift of funds from banks to the stock market and increase investments in high-risk assets, including cryptocurrencies. The lower interest rates reduce returns on traditional investment tools, prompting investors to diversify their portfolios through cryptocurrencies. However, the global economic slowdown, weak economic indicators, and geopolitical uncertainties continue to dampen investor sentiment. While the rate cut may provide short-term benefits to the crypto market, investors are advised to remain cautious amid the current volatility.

米連邦準備制度理事会（FRB）は現地時間9月18日、ベンチマークのフェデラルファンド金利を50ベーシスポイント引き下げて4.75％～5％とし、中央銀行による最も ... The post FRBが50ベーシスポイント利下げ後、ビットコイン6万ドル付近で取引 first appeared on CoinDesk JAPAN（コインデスク・ジャパン）. source: https://www.coindeskjapan.com/252108/

CITIC Securities Research Report pointed out that the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 50bp at the September 2024 interest rate meeting, exceeding some market expectations. The statement of the interest rate meeting has changed significantly compared to the previous one, showing the Fed's confidence in cooling inflation and its support for the job market. The dot plot shows that the central target interest rate this year is 4.4%, lower than 5.1% at the June 2024 meeting, and the target interest rate level for next year has been lowered. Powell said that there is no preset path for interest rate cuts, and decisions are still made meeting by meeting. He continues to emphasize policy flexibility. At the same time, he is optimistic about the economic situation and the job market, and still depicts a "soft landing" picture. We believe that the Fed's 50bp interest rate cut this time is a preventive interest rate cut that is launched in advance, intended to maintain the current state of economic growth and the job market, while maintaining subsequent policy flexibility. It is expected that there will be two more 25bp interest rate cuts this year. After the expected rate cut in overnight trading is realized, the market is expected to return to "soft landing" trading in the short term. The downward space of US bond interest rates is limited, and US stocks may continue to be highly volatile. Sectors such as biotechnology and real estate tend to perform well in "soft landing" rate cut trading. (Jinshi)

Bitcoin mining is still growing to record levels, and is even more competitive. Starting a mining operation is a matter of calculating relatively thin profit margins, while navigating the landscape for new specialized mining equipment. source: https://www.cryptopolitan.com/how-bitcoin-mining-is-a-viable-investment/

The SEC settled charges with DeFi platform Rari Capital for unregistered securities offerings involving its Earn and Fuse pools. source: https://coincu.com/283300-defi-platform-rari-capital-is-secs-latest-purge

At this meeting, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time to start a new cycle, by 50 basis points to 4.75%-5.0%.

Google Cloud’s new Blockchain RPC service simplifies Ethereum-based DApp development, offering scalable solutions to address the growing needs of Web3 developers.

The press conference of Federal Reserve Chairman Powell sent out hawkish signals. U.S. stocks continued to rise when he spoke, but then turned around and fell when they realized that something was wrong, returning to the low point before midday. The bond market, gold and foreign exchange markets also made a 180-degree reversal.

Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve rate cut: the magnitude is unexpected. Understand it in 10 paragraphs. Golden Finance, the magnitude of this rate cut exceeds the predictions of most economists!

The Federal Reserve announced a 50 basis point rate cut, lowering the federal funds rate target range from 5.25% to 5.5% to 4.75% to 5%.

On September 18, US time, the Federal Reserve announced a 50 basis point interest rate cut at its highly anticipated September interest rate meeting, lowering the target range of the federal funds rate from 5.25% to 5.5% to 4.75% to 5%.

Trump questions the Fed’s rate cut and unveils a crypto platform promising minimal oversight, amid growing concerns about fraud.

Bitcoin's bullish trend aligns with the Fed’s aggressive rate cuts and economic optimism, though election uncertainty looms large.

Although digital currency has reshaped the economic power structure through decentralization, it is essentially still a transfer technology and has failed to solve the trilemma of traditional finance.