Ethereum Completes Shapella Upgrade, $7.3 Billion in FTX Assets Recovered

Market Update March's Producer Price Index (PPI) data showed a downside surprise this morning, coming in at -0.5% MoM versus 0.0% expected and Core PPI at -0.1% MoM versus +0.2% expected. Traditional markets are rallying as the combination of CPI and PPI data has helped ease fears of inflation reaccelerating. The $SPY and $QQQ have risen 0.83% and 1.49%, respectively, while the $DXY (-0.61%) is approaching its 2023 lows. Crypto markets are benefitting from the economic data and the successful completion of Ethereum’s Shapella upgrade, enabling withdrawals for ETH stakers and marking the completion of Ethereum’s shift to proof-of-stake. $ETH (+4.20%) eclipsed $2,000 in Thursday trading, and $BTC (+1.40%) is holding above $30,400. Ethereum’s successful upgrade may spark a rise in ETH/BTC (+2.84%) as it alleviates an Ethereum-specific risk, and thus far, selling pressure from stakers appears to be less dramatic than some were forecasting. In a substantial update regarding the bankruptcy of crypto exchange FTX, the Sullivan & Cromwell legal team, led by Andy Dietderich, announced that they have recovered $7.3 billion in liquid assets and cash. This is a significant increase from the roughly $2 billion which was communicated in January. Dietderich commented that a cash distrib