The market value of stable coins has exceeded $138 billion in total

Cryptocurrency markets soared with the release of the FOMC minutes. Bitcoin formed stronger ground above $16.5k as the assessment was prepared, after posting a 1% gain in the last 24 hours. Ethereum surpassed Bitcoin with a 3.6% jump over the same period and is now changing hands above the $1,200 level. Mid-to-large-volume altcoins saw mixed performances, with SOL holding the lead with a double-digit percentage over a similar time frame. The top-earning LTC has slashed its recent gains, but still managed to hit a 32.5% gain last week, eight months before the network's third mining rewards halved.

The market value of stable coins has exceeded $138 billion in total

 Amid the collapse of FTX over the past few weeks, the total market cap of stablecoins briefly surpassed that of Ethereum. The four largest stablecoins in the market, namely USDT, USDC, BUSD and DAI, totaled over $138 billion at a time marked by high unrealized losses and strong stablecoin purchasing power.

 DeFi management platforms Llama and Gauntlet have submitted a governance proposal at Aave to pay off $1.6 million in bad debt caused by a short-lived initiative made public on Tuesday. The short CRV token initiative was linked to Mango Markets exploiter Avraham Eisenberg, who borrowed 92 million CRVs from the DeFi lending platform and continued to sell them on a centralized exchange, causing the first drop in the CRV price. However, the short seller experienced some pressure after the CRV surged above $0.60 and was eventually liquidated, leaving a $1.6 million gap in the DeFi protocol. The proposal requires the use of Gauntlet's bankruptcy fund and Aave Treasury to settle bad debt, as the debt recovery process can help optimize the Aave DAO treasury. The community will discuss the proposal in the coming days and more details will be released on how the process will proceed if the DAO supports the proposal.