Today in Crypto: Crypto Rally Slows After Bump Over Ethereum Upgrade; BitGo Eyes Legal Action Over Galaxy Digital Deal

Cryptocurrency values remained unchanged with the cooling of a rally in bitcoin and ether, Bloomberg wrote Monday (Aug. 15).

Bitcoin was down less than 1% to around $24,250 at around noon in New York, after hitting $25,000 over the weekend for the first time since June. Ether was down around 1% to $1,919. Ether has led the crypto market on optimism over the coming Merge, a switch from the proof-of-work to the proof-of-stake model.

BitGo, a crypto custody company, says it’s going to sue Galaxy Digital for backing out of a $1.2 billion merger agreement, Coindesk wrote Monday.

BitGo plans to seek $100 million in damages from Galaxy for reportedly failing to pay a previously promised breakup fee.

Meanwhile, shiba inu and dogecoin, both meme tokens, have gained more than 15% in the last day, with crypto markets seeing more of an appetite for risk, Coindesk wrote Monday.

SHIB rose around 30% and DOGE gained 15%, before a price reversal.

The gains might come down to “irrational exuberance” as there wasn’t any other catalyst that drove a rally for those tokens.

Elsewhere, lawmakers in multiple countries are looking at rules that could bring issuers of stablecoins under the same financial regimes as payment providers, Bloomberg wrote.

Lawmakers in the U.S., EU, U.K. and Japan want more say over the types of assets stablecoin providers can use to back their tokens, and will likely add requirements for more detailed disclosures and fully-backed reserves.

In other news, digital assets financial services company Equonex is going to close its crypto exchange, citing a need to refocus its business, a press release said.

According to the release, closing the exchange will bolster the company’s financial position, cutting down on the high costs of running the exchange. The company intends to focus more on businesses where it has more competitive strength and can make use of traditional finance expertise.

Finally, Terra inventor Do Kwon has said South Korean investigators haven’t made contact, Bloomberg wrote Monday.

Speaking with crypto media startup Coinage, Kwon said he didn’t know if he would go back to Korea. He said investigators had “never charged” the company after the collapse of the Terra system earlier this year, which caused numerous problems in the crypto world.

South Korean prosecutors wanted Kwon to notify authorities if he comes back to the country, as they look into allegations of illegal activity behind the TerraUSD coin’s collapse. Current and former members of Terraform Labs can’t leave the country either.

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