The Daily: AI agent 'accidentally' sends entire memecoin holdings to reply guy, Based raises $11.5M in Pantera-led round, and more

The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.

Happy Monday! Analysts said bitcoin's (BTC) slide below $65,000 triggered hundreds of millions of dollars in liquidations as macro shocks and fragile liquidity conditions amplified a broader risk-off move across crypto markets.

In today's newsletter, an AI crypto trading bot "accidentally" transfers its entire memecoin stash, Based raises $11.5 million in a Series A funding round led by Pantera, Bitdeer's CEO says its recently emptied bitcoin balance "will not always be zero" as the miner eyes potential land deals, and more.

Meanwhile, Michael Saylor says, "If it's not going to zero, it's going to a million," as Strategy buys another 592 BTC.

P.S. Don't forget to check out The Funding, a biweekly rundown of crypto VC trends. It's a great read — and just like The Daily, it's free to subscribe!

AI agent created by OpenAI dev 'accidentally' sends entire memecoin holdings to reply guy

"Lobstar Wilde," an automated AI crypto trading bot created by an OpenAI employee, "accidentally" sent its entire stash of its own memecoin — about 5% of the total supply — to an X user who had requested only 4 SOL.

• The recipient quickly sold the 53 million Lobstar tokens for about $40,000 due to limited liquidity, though that same amount later rose in value to more than $400,000 as attention boosted the token.
• The crypto community speculated that the mistaken transfer stemmed from the AI agent misinterpreting an API response, causing it to send millions of tokens instead of a smaller intended amount.
• Creator Nik Pash funded Lobstar Wilde with roughly $50,000 in SOL to test its ability to autonomously manage and grow crypto holdings.
• The name "Lobstar Wilde" is a clear nod to author Oscar Wilde, whose 1887 short story "The Model Millionaire" sees the protagonist give his last coin to what he believes is a poor beggar, only to discover the man is actually a wealthy baron in disguise.
• Some critics warned that as AI develops, fraudulent activity may be hidden behind the veneer of reportedly autonomous agents.

Hyperliquid 'SuperApp' Based raises $11.5 million Series A led by Pantera

Based has raised $11.5 million in a Series A round led by Pantera Capital, with Coinbase Ventures and Wintermute Ventures participating, structured as an equity investment with token warrants.

• The Hyperliquid-based web3 "SuperApp" combines perpetual trading, prediction markets, wallet services, and crypto-linked payments into a single consumer-facing platform.
• Eight months since launch, Based said it has surpassed 100,000 registered users, generated about $40 billion in cumulative trading volume, and produced nearly $14 million in revenue.
• The company plans to expand into AI-driven "agentic commerce," building autonomous financial agents capable of executing trades and facilitating crypto payments for users.

Bitdeer CEO says bitcoin balance 'will not always be zero' as miner eyes land acquisitions after liquidating entire treasury

Bitdeer has sold its remaining bitcoin holdings, including 943.1 BTC last week, leaving the miner with a zero BTC balance after fully liquidating reserves that had stood near 2,000 BTC at year-end.

• CEO Jihan Wu said the company's bitcoin balance "will not always be zero," emphasizing the move reflects a temporary liquidity decision rather than a long-term shift away from holding BTC.
• Bitdeer said Monday that it liquidated its treasury to prepare capital for potential powered land acquisition opportunities as it seeks to expand its data center capacity and pivot further toward AI and high-performance computing infrastructure.
• The selloff comes as mining economics tighten, with rising network difficulty and falling hashprice pressuring margins.

Missouri advances bitcoin reserve bill to House committee, reviving crypto treasury push

Missouri lawmakers advanced HB 2080 to the House Commerce Committee, reviving efforts to establish a state-level bitcoin strategic reserve after a similar proposal failed in 2025.

• The bill would create a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve Fund and authorize the state treasurer to receive, invest, and hold bitcoin within the state treasury.
• The legislation would also allow Missouri to accept bitcoin donations, purchase crypto using state funds, and permit government entities to accept digital assets for taxes and fees.
• Missouri's renewed push aligns with a broader national trend, as several U.S. states and the federal government explore or implement bitcoin reserve strategies.

Trump-backed World Liberty Financial says USD1 short and social media attack fails as stablecoin briefly dips

World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin dipped to around $0.997 on Monday amid what it described as a "coordinated attack" involving hacked cofounder accounts, influencer-driven FUD, and short selling.

• The company said USD1's mint-and-redeem mechanism and full 1:1 reserve backing helped stabilize the token, which quickly returned to trade back near its $1 peg.
• Market observers noted that World Liberty co-founder Eric Trump deleted several WLFI posts on X prior to the token's price drop, though the connection remains unclear.

In the next 24 hours

• It's quiet on the economic calendar front.
• U.S. FOMC member Raphael Bostic will speak at 9 a.m. ET on Tuesday. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey follows at 9:15 a.m. U.S. FOMC member Thomas Barkin will speak at 3:15 p.m. U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the nation at 9 p.m.
• Monad is among the crypto projects set for token unlocks.
• NearCon concludes in San Francisco. Bitcoin for Corporations gets underway in Las Vegas.

Never miss a beat with The Block's daily digest of the most influential events happening across the digital asset ecosystem.