Crypto pumps after Fed rate hike, Zuckerberg hopes Metaverse will gain hundreds of billions, and Tesla posts $64 million BTC gain: Hodler's Digest, July 24-30

Available every Saturday, Hodler's Digest will help you follow every major news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulatory highlights, major coins, predictions and more - a week on Cointelegraph in one link.

Top stories this week “Rising Bull Rates” – Why Crypto Has Rise in the Face of Bad News

Although the US Federal Reserve announced a 75 basis point interest rate hike on Wednesday, crypto markets rose significantly on the same day, with momentum continuing throughout the week. Quantum Economics founder and CEO Mati Greenspan jokingly called it a "bullish rate hike" and said investors clearly expected much worse. Analysts such as Swyftx's Pav Hundal have suggested the recent rally could be due to an easing of inflationary pressures around gas and commodities such as corn and wheat.

Ethereum Developer Confirms Goerli Merger Date, Latest Update Before Merger

On Thursday, Ethereum lead developer Tim Beiko revealed that the final Goerli testnet merger ahead of the long-awaited Ethereum merger and move to proof-of-stake will take place from August 6-12. In what has been a long and much delayed roadmap since late 2020, the Ethereum network is now in the final stages of completing its biggest upgrade yet. The official merge is scheduled for September 19, but could face further delays if there are any issues with Goerli's testnet.

Zuckerberg was unimpressed with the Metaverse division's loss of $2.8 billion in the second quarter

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he was unimpressed with the $2.8 billion loss to his Metaverse division in the second quarter. He pointed out that the company's Metaverse goals will take several years to unfold, but he sees a "tremendous opportunity" to earn hundreds of billions of dollars, if not trillions, over time as the industry matures. "I'm sure we'll be happy to have played an important role in this build," he said.

Cathie Wood Sells Coinbase Stock Amid Insider Trading Allegations

Cathie Wood's investment firm, Ark Investment Management, which is a major shareholder of Coinbase (COIN), reportedly sold 1.4 million COIN shares on Tuesday. The loss was made through three of Ark's exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and the sale was estimated at around $75 million. The company reportedly held nearly 9 million COIN shares at the end of June and has been steadily picking up the stock since it opened at around $350 last April. Since then, the price has fallen sharply to just below $63, and Ark probably should have shorted it when Jim Cramer called it "cheap" at $248 last August.

Tesla Announces $64 Million Profit From Bitcoin Sale

Electric vehicle maker Tesla, led by Elon Musk, posted a respectable profit of $64 million after selling 75% of its BTC holdings in the second quarter. The gains look notable given the company being sold amid a bear market; however, what is more important and exciting is that Musk finally seems to be losing interest in crypto and we won't need to hear from him again. The company reportedly still has 10,800 BTC on its books, which is approximately $255 million at the time of writing.