IRS Files $44 Billion in Claims Against FTX, Coinbase Sparks Pepe Controversy

Market Update This morning’s initial jobless claims came in at 264k vs. 245k expected, marking the highest level since October of 2021, further supporting the notion that the Federal Reserve is seeing what they need to pause rate hikes going forward. Equity indices are mixed following this morning’s data, with the S&P 500 declining 0.23% and the Nasdaq 100 rising 0.26%. Crypto markets are underperforming compared to equities, with $BTC (-1.51%) and $ETH (-1.90%) hovering around recent lows. Crypto’s underperformance to equities has been notable over the past 30 days, with BTC falling over 10% compared to $SPX. Despite recent underperformance, it’s important to note that BTC is still up 55% YTD compared to SPX.The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has filed claims amounting to nearly $44 billion against the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and its entities. In the bankruptcy filings from April 27th and 28th, the IRS presented 45 claims against FTX companies, including West Realm Shires (FTX.US), Ledger Holdings, and Blockfolio, among others. Notably, the largest claims are $20.4 billion and $7.9 billion against Alameda Research LLC, while two claims totaling $9.5 billion are directed at Alameda Research Holdings Inc. These claims fall under the category of "Admin Priority," w