South Korean financial regulators are launching a probe into suspicious activity on Upbit after the ZKsync token surged by 970% over three hours on February 1. ZKsync was trading around $0.023 on Sunday morning, South Korean time, ahead of scheduled system maintenance on the Upbit crypto exchange. At 11:30 am, just before maintenance began, the price rose to $0.24, only to drop back to around $0.023 by 6:30 pm the same day, when the maintenance period ended. “We are aware that ZKsync experienced a rapi ...

Core Insights - Tidal Trust II has filed with the SEC for a Bitcoin ETF aimed at providing exposure during US market closures, amidst concerns of price manipulation and heavy outflows in the spot BTC ETF market [1][6] Group 1: ETF Filing Details - The Form N-1A proposes the addition of two ETFs: Nicholas Bitcoin and Treasuries AfterDark ETF, and Nicholas Bitcoin Tail ETF [2] - The AfterDark ETF will not hold Bitcoin directly but will gain exposure through Bitcoin futures, options, and ETFs or ETPs listed in the US [2][3] Group 2: Investment Strategy - The fund aims for long-term capital appreciation by targeting Bitcoin's overnight return profile while holding short-term US Treasuries and cash equivalents during daytime trading [3] - The fund will trade Bitcoin futures during US overnight hours and close positions shortly after the US market opens, while also utilizing Bitcoin options to establish synthetic long positions [4] Group 3: Market Context and Analyst Commentary - Bloomberg's senior ETF analyst noted that a significant portion of Bitcoin's gains occurs during after-hours trading, suggesting that the AfterDark ETF could potentially yield better returns [5] - Industry analysts have raised concerns about price manipulation during US daytime trading, with observed patterns of Bitcoin price drops around market openings [6]

Market Manipulation - Crypto spoofing involves traders placing fake buy/sell orders to manipulate prices [1] - Traders cancel fake orders once others react to the manipulated prices [1]

Market Manipulation Concerns - The industry expresses strong disapproval of market makers, alleging price suppression and manipulation [1] - The industry observes extreme volatility and unusual cycles [1]