This article originally appeared in First Mover, CoinDesk’s daily newsletter putting the latest moves in crypto markets in context. Subscribe to get it in your inbox every day.

Latest Prices

Top Stories

Digital Currency Group, a crypto conglomerate that owns CoinDesk, is suspending its dividends until further notice. "In response to the current market environment, DCG has been focused on strengthening our balance sheet by reducing operating expenses and preserving liquidity. As such, we have made the decision to suspend DCG's quarterly dividend distribution until further notice,” the firm wrote in a letter to shareholders on Tuesday.

Coinbase (COIN) said it is halting its operations in Japan, citing "market conditions."  Customers have until Feb. 16 to withdraw their fiat and crypto holdings from the exchange, Coinbase announced on Wednesday. Fiat deposits will be halted on Friday. Coinbase entered the Japanese market after completing its registration with the country's Financial Services Agency in June 2021. The exchange is following in the footsteps of rival exchange Kraken, which ended its operations in Japan at the end of last year. Coinbase’s stock was down 1.6% at $53.27 in premarket trading, amid a rally in the shares, which are up 56% since the start of the year.

The market’s love affair for all things Shiba Inu is continuing, with gains in SHIB and DOGE during the last 24 hours. The Shiba Inu (SHIB) token is up over 20%, according to CoinGecko data, with Nansen reporting heavy trading on both decentralized and centralized exchanges. Nansen reports that nearly $1.1 billion in SHIB has traded hands between Tuesday and Wednesday. Traders are likely anticipating the launch of layer 2 network Shibarium, which puts a canine-themed twist on building on top of the Ethereum blockchain. A test network is expected to launch in the coming weeks. DOGE was up 2.5%.

Chart of the Day

• The chart shows number of bitcoin held in addresses owned by centralized exchanges since May 2020.
• The tally has dropped by 21% to 2.2 million in the past 12 months, reaching its lowest level in nearly five years.
• "The trend we see for bitcoin and CEXs is that holders have been taking BTC off exchanges and into self-custody – especially after the collapse of FTX," analysts at Delphi Digital said.
• "Self-custodied BTC is for holders, and could represent more of the bitcoin supply disappearing into cold storage long term," the analysts added.

– Omkar Godbole

Trending Posts

• Crypto Observers Maintain Risk On Bias as US Debt Ceiling Nears
• Ethereum Layer 2 Network Optimism Sees Bump in Transactional Activity. Here's Why it Matters
• Blockchain’s Non-Crypto Applications Take Center Stage on Davos Day 2