ETF Store head: bitcoin-based US crypto funds control over 900,000 BTC

-- Nate Geraci demonstrated how spot bitcoin ETFs have accumulated the first cryptocurrency on their balance sheet.
-- According to the head of ETF Store, U.S. crypto funds control over 900,000 BTC, which is valued at around $60 billion.
-- The entrepreneur pointed to net inflows from outside the industry of more than $17 billion since January 2024.

Nate Geraci, head of ETF Store Investment Company, said that bitcoin-based US spot crypto funds have amassed over 900,000 BTC. He said the size of assets under management (AUM) of exchange-traded products has almost reached $60 billion.

Geraci notes that spot bitcoin-ETFs in total control 4.3% of the first cryptocurrency's total supply. Net capital inflows into this asset class from outside the industry have exceeded $17 billion since launching in January 2024, according to the entrepreneur's statement.

The firm's executive attached a video to a post on social networking site X (formerly Twitter) that shows the changes in the spot bitcoin-ETF over the past seven months. Specifically, the video shows how a crypto fund from BlackRock under the ticker IBIT has outperformed a convertible investment product from Grayscale Investments in terms of AUM.

According to the SoSo Value platform, the gap between the two cryptocurrency ETFs continues to grow. As of July 19, 2024, IBIT has $21.97 billion in assets under management, while the size of the funds under the control of the exchange-traded fund from Grayscale (GBTC) is $18.29 billion.

Читать полностью…

Media: Meta will cut the budget of the meta-universe division by 20%

Meta will cut by 20% the funding of the Reality Labs division, responsible for the development of hardware and software meta-universe corporation. This is stated in the material of The Information.

According to the sources of the publication, the budget of the division will be reduced in the period from 2024 to 2026, with most of the reduction will fall on the coming months.

This does not mean the cessation of developments in the field of virtual and augmented reality. Meta plans to release new Quest VR headsets and Ray-Ban AR glasses within the next three years, journalists said.

Analysts at Bank of America believe the cost-cutting measures will save the company about $3 billion.

In April, Meta reported revenue of $36.5 billion for the first quarter of 2024. That's up 27% from $28.6 billion a year earlier. Reality Labs, however, lost about $3.8 billion on revenue of $440 million during the same period.

During a speech on the first three months of the year, the corporation's CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that “an increasing portion of Reality Labs' strength is being directed toward services in artificial intelligence.”

Despite the difficult situation, the division managed to reduce losses by 17% in the last three months of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. In total, Reality Labs has lost about $55 billion since its founding in 2019.

Meta's plans for AI and meta-universe will likely become clearer after the company's second-quarter earnings report, which is scheduled to be published on July 31.

Earlier, the corporation posted a job opening for integrating AI into VR and AR games. Meta plans to bring more generative artificial intelligence technology to entertainment projects.

Recall that in June, Meta announced the integration of AI characters in Instagram.

Читать полностью…

Ilon Musk sparked the rise of Trump's cryptocurrency MAGA

The MAGA (TRUMP) token meme, dedicated to former U.S. President Donald Trump, has gone up in value, most likely thanks to billionaire Ilon Musk.

On July 20, Musk wrote on social network X, which is banned in Russia, “Let's bring America back to its former glory” [abbreviated MAGA]. Ilon attached a picture to the post, which shows people with different IQs, including both smart and stupid Trump supporters.

After Ilon left that message, the MAGA exchange rate went up and was up 8% by the morning of July 21. However, the uptrend that emerged on Saturday does not compare in power to the bullish trend that started after the assassination attempt on The Donald. The failed attempt to assassinate the politician caused a 53% jump in the TRUMP token.

Simultaneously with the increase in the value of MAGA, the probability of Trump winning the election reached an all-time high. On the Polymarket betting platform, Donald's chance of winning is estimated at 65%.

Few people believe in the re-election of Joe Biden, so the probability of this outcome is only 7%. In case of Trump's triumph, an incredible bullish trend may emerge on the MAGA market, which will take the asset rate to unprecedented heights.

Читать полностью…

Punk6529 talked about the public's skepticism of the NFT

A well-known collector under the pseudonym punk6529 spoke on his social network X page about the attitude towards non-fungible tokens (NFT). He tried to emphasize that this technology is extremely underrated. The expert told the story of how Andy Warhol's painting “Little Ragged Campbell's (Pepper Pot) Soup Can” was to be sold at Christie's auction.

According to the specialist, this “masterpiece” belonged to art dealer Irving Bloom, who first gave Warhol a solo exhibition, and also owned the famous set of 32 “Soup Can” paintings. Auction house Christie's was able to convince him to exhibit one of the works in the series with a guarantee that it would be realized for $10 million. The painting was estimated in the range of $10 million to $15 million.

Christie's then made a serious effort to promote the work, placing its image on the cover of the evening catalog and running ads in all the art magazines. “The accompanying essay in the catalog included a photograph of a young Bloom with Warhol, Ed Ruscha and Nico of the Velvet Underground. The lucky buyer of this picture was automatically part of art history,” the analyst said.

Ironically, shortly before that, Bloom had appeared in the American Masters documentary “Andy Warhol,” where he described how he exhibited 32 paintings from the “Soup Can” series in his Los Angeles gallery in 1962, valuing each one at $100. It was so radical for the times that a neighboring gallery displayed a pyramid of real Campbell's soup cans with the caption, “We have the real thing for $0.29.”

At the time, Bloom found only six buyers. He eventually persuaded them to cancel their purchases and buy the entire display in one piece. He negotiated a group price of $1000 with the added bonus of paying in installments over 10 months and Warhol was thrilled with this outcome.

According to specialist punk6529, this historical fact illustrates how much the perception of art and the art market has changed in recent decades. “This change in the prices and status of Warhol's work emphasizes the importance of time and context in art. The story of Bloom and his purchases shows how visionary action and risk-taking can lead to huge cultural and financial successes in the future.” Many NFTs are as underappreciated by the community as Warhol's paintings were in the last century, he said.

Читать полностью…

Experts assessed Biden and Trump's attitude to cryptocurrencies

CryptoRank experts spoke about the views of future US presidential candidates, Joe Biden and Donald Trump, regarding the cryptocurrency industry. They noted that the upcoming elections will have a significant impact on the digital currency sector, as politicians offer very different views on regulating the industry.

According to the experts, Trump's changing stance on cryptocurrencies, from initial skepticism to recent endorsement, stands in stark contrast to Biden's more cautious approach. They recalled that in 2019, the billionaire publicly criticized bitcoin and other digital currencies. Trump said they were not money and “their value is highly volatile and fluctuating in the air.”

In 2021, he called Bitcoin a “fraud against the dollar.” However, in early 2024, Trump's position changed significantly. The politician expressed support for the crypto industry by proposing openness towards digital assets. According to analysts, this was a turning point, signaling a recognition of the community's growing influence and potential importance.

Under Biden, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has brought several cases against cryptocurrency companies for alleged violations, citing concerns about investor protection and market integrity. The Department of Treasury (DOJ) has also proposed expanding tax reporting requirements for digital currencies.

More recently, however, Biden vetoed a bill that sought to repeal the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) SAB 121. The bill sought to repeal accounting standards requiring companies to list customers' cryptocurrency assets as liabilities and received bipartisan support in Congress.

Experts emphasized that prominent figures in the cryptocurrency industry publicly supported Trump. Another major factor in Donald's favor was his campaign's acceptance of donations in digital currencies. This one emphasizes the alignment with the interests of the community.

Читать полностью…

Michael van de Poppe predicts growth for Omni Network altcoin

Crypto trader Michael van de Poppe told his 722,400 followers on the X social network, which is banned in Russia, that the Omni Network token (OMNI), which aims to integrate the Ethereum deployment ecosystem (ETH) into a single unified network, could soon rise in value by more than 16%.

I'm very interested in new coins, especially those listed on Binance. OMNI is one of those that is on the cusp of a big upward breakout. It is ready to break through the $16 level, but before that it needs to hold above the support at $12.50.

In addition, the analyst noted that bitcoin (BTC) is in an uptrend after a period of consolidation and could return to all-time highs (ATH) around $73,000. He also believes bitcoin could get a boost from the expected approval of spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The analyst shared a chart that reflects the lowest retail investor demand in three years. This means that demand from this class of investors will soon resume and lead to a surge in bitcoin.

Читать полностью…

The Shiba Inu community has officially asked Binance to burn SHIB

The Shiba Inu community is stepping up efforts to get Binance to burn SHIB tokens using a portion of the token trading fees. Popular community member Labib recently launched a petition on Change.org asking the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange to implement a daily burn rate of 1% of all Shiba Inu trading commissions on its platform.

According to Labib, the move is necessary for the long-term success and sustainability of Shiba Inu. The community member emphasized that the proposal would help reduce the huge amount of SHIBs in circulation, potentially increasing scarcity and raising the price of the token. Labib said that while members of the Shiba Inu community believe in the potential and unique tokenomics of SHIBs, they recognize incineration as an important way to strengthen the token's value proposition.

As of July 18, the petition has already collected 111 signatures out of the original 200. Meanwhile, the petition has 142 signatures and is 58 signatures away from reaching its original goal. Notably, the ultimate goal is to reach the 50,000 signature mark. Interestingly, the creator of the petition believes that the community could reach the 50,000 signature goal by spreading the petition to all corners of the Shiba Inu ecosystem.

Читать полностью…

Wintermute's management expects to raise up to $2 billion

According to Bloomberg journalists, Wintermute's management is now actively negotiating with numerous investors. This includes a dialog with China's largest Internet and gaming company, Tencent. It is about raising funds worth about $2 billion to further develop the institution's business.

It is reported that the total transaction size is for each potential investor will be between $200 million and $300 million.According to The Information, cryptocurrency market maker Wintermute Trading is discussing a new round of funding with plans to sell $100 million worth of stock.In addition, the management wants to issue new securities, but the specific amount has not yet been determined and details have not been agreed upon.

Wintermute is a leading market-making and algorithmic trading company that specializes in cryptocurrency markets. Founded in 2017, the organization has quickly gained a reputation as one of the key players in the cryptocurrency industry.

Wintermute offers its services, which includes providing liquidity on various cryptocurrency exchanges. The company uses advanced algorithms and high-frequency trading to create markets and maintain narrow spreads between buy and sell prices, making trading more efficient and less volatile.

Wintermute provides liquidity on over 50 cryptocurrency trading platforms, both centralized (CEX) and decentralized (DEX). This helps to improve trading conditions and minimize the difference between the buy and sell prices of virtual assets.

The organization also develops and uses sophisticated algorithms for automated cryptocurrency trading. Finally, the institution provides services for large OTC OTC transactions for institutional investors and large clients.

Читать полностью…

The failure in Microsoft's systems did not affect the crypto sector

The large-scale failure of Microsoft system applications, which disrupted the work of many critical sectors of the world economy, including the London Stock Exchange, did not affect the crypto sector and the work of Web3 applications.

On Friday, July 19, there was a global failure of the international technology infrastructure built on Microsoft products. The disruption caused significant chaos in traditional financial systems, paralyzing many airlines, airports, banks, utilities, as well as affecting the telecommunications and communications area.

However, major crypto exchanges and DeFi projects continued their operations without interruption. Cryptocurrency executives and industry insiders have commented that the decentralized nature of blockchain is less prone to single points of failure compared to traditional financial systems, which rely heavily on centralized technology and infrastructure.

Earlier, analysts at Swiss blockchain firm CV VC published a research report on the African blockchain market that reported a 74% year-over-year decline in venture capitalists' interest in funding the industry.

Читать полностью…

White-hat hackers ready to return $7.6 million worth of stablecoins to DeFi Rho Markets minutes

More than $7.6 million worth of USDC and USDT steiblecoins have been withdrawn from Rho Markets' blockchain-based Scroll lending protocol. White hackers are ready to return the funds under certain conditions.

Cyvers, a cybersecurity company, named the cause of the exploit: third parties gained access to the protocol oracle. Rho Markets confirmed the discovery of unusual activity on its platform and suspended its operations.

As “blockchain sleuth” ZachXBT later reported, the hackers claim they did not steal funds and are ready to return them in full. Their MEV bot profited from the Rho Markets price oracle configuration error. The so-called “hackers” are ready to return the stolen funds in full, but they need an admission from Rho Markets that it was not an exploit or hack, but a configuration error on the protocol side. They also demanded to know the measures the protocol will take to prevent similar incidents in the future.

The loss of assets on Rho Markets comes just days after Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX suffered a hacking attack. The hackers stole $230 million worth of cryptocurrencies, making it the second largest cryptocurrency heist in 2024. The largest hack in June occurred on Turkish crypto exchange BtcTurk, which lost $100.25 million.

The Li.Fi protocol was also attacked this week, as a result of which attackers misappropriated $10 million worth of cryptocurrencies using a smart contract exploit. The project team later reported that the vulnerability had already been fixed.

Recently, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) reported that users of the Hamster Kombat clicker game have been the target of phishing attacks, with attackers stealing users' credentials and robbing them of their savings.

Читать полностью…

Analyst: switch from gold to bitcoin will raise BTC price to $750,000

Joe Burnett is convinced that the market does not fully assess the potential of bitcoin in this cycle and misses the possibility of its impact on the global financial system. According to the expert, after 2020, the first cryptocurrency entered a new phase of development, which is characterized by a decrease in the supply of liquid coins.

Burnett points out that gold, which is considered a reliable means of saving, is losing its attractiveness as the best investment instrument, and its place can be taken by cryptocurrency.

According to the analyst, the halving of bitcoin serves as a catalyst for the value of the asset and encourages its adoption in everyday life. Joe Burnett claims that bitcoin is ready to significantly expand its presence in the global market.

According to the expert's forecast, the bitcoin rate may reach $750,000 in the medium term and even overcome this level as the investment attractiveness of gold declines.

It is worth recalling that there are plenty of forecasts indicating that the BTC rate will grow. However, bitcoin has so far failed to overcome even the $70,000 level. Perhaps, after some period of time, the first cryptocurrency will really demonstrate a rally in the market, and its price will exceed hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars.

Читать полностью…

Ryan Selkis announced his resignation as CEO of Messari

On July 19, Ryan Selkis announced that he is stepping down as CEO of Messari.

“A leader's primary responsibility is to his team. This week was the first time in 6.5 years that my policies and rhetoric hurt the team. As such, I have decided to step down as CEO,” Selkis wrote.

The reason was likely due to statements made by Messari's founder regarding the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, which are not in the public domain at the time of writing. According to CoinDesk, he reacted emotionally to the incident in a number of posts, as well as echoed the anti-immigration policies of the US presidential candidate's movement.

The position of CEO of the company will be taken by Eric Turner. He previously worked in the position of chief revenue officer. Selkis will move to the status of senior advisor.

Company officials said he will focus “on cryptopolitics and national issues important to him.”

Messari closed a $21 million Series A funding round in August 2021, with the startup backed by billionaire Steve Cohen via Point72 Ventures, Galaxy Digital, crypto funds CMS Holdings, Nascent, Underscore VC and early investors.

The analytics company raised $35 million in its next round of fundraising in September 2022. It was led by billionaire Alan Howard's Brevan Howard Digital unit.

Recall that in early July, Selkis announced the start of Messari's war “against the illegitimate and corrupt” SEC.

Earlier he said that the industry has no future in the United States in case of re-election of Joe Biden for a second term.

Читать полностью…

Esther Pierce: “SEC open to dialog on possible approval of staking in ether ETFs”

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Hester Peirce, known in the crypto community as “cryptomama,” has expressed openness to a potential dialog about the possible approval of steaking in future ETH-ETF filings.

Hester Peirce said that regulatory pressure from the Commission has led issuers of ether ETFs, particularly ARK21 Shares and Fidelity, to exclude steaking from their offerings in order to comply with the SEC's strict requirements.

As a reminder, the regulator views cryptostaking as an investment contract in which investors invest their assets with the expectation of receiving a return as a result of the efforts of the network's validators.

Pearce noted that banning steaking amid the launch of an ETF on ether could result in a significant portion of ETH supply being withdrawn from the Efirium steaking pool, which could negatively impact the stability and security of the network.

“Cryptomama” added that if there are objective prerequisites, the regulator may return to discuss the concept of staking, which ETF issuers have been forced to exclude from their applications.

Earlier, Esther Pearce proposed that the Bank of England and the UK Financial Services Authority create a “unified cross-border sandbox” to regulate innovation in digital assets.

Читать полностью…

An underground miner from Khakassia owes 28 million rubles to energy companies

According to the ruling of the Arbitration Court of Khakassia, an underground miner who paid for energy at residential tariffs will have to pay an additional 28 million rubles for electricity.

The underground miner owned five land plots in different towns and villages of the republic. There he installed equipment for cryptocurrency mining. At the same time, there were no residential houses or other outbuildings on the plots.

The court ordered the miner to recalculate from the tariff for the population to the tariff for entrepreneurs. Given the scale of cryptocurrency mining, the underground miner now has to pay 28 million rubles.

“The average monthly consumption at one of the miner's sites in Belaya Yar exceeded the electricity consumption in an ordinary residential house by 115 times. In Chernogorsk, the mining farm consumed 336 times more electricity per month than an average family living in the private sector. In total, at five sites, electricity consumption for 10 months exceeded 3.9 million kWh,” reported the local sales organization AtomEnergoSbyt.

As emphasized the head of the State Committee for Tariffs of Khakassia Natalia Mikhailenko, the authorities of the region are not against the mining of cryptocurrencies, but it is necessary to pay for energy at the rates for entrepreneurs.

Earlier in Khakassia, the court ordered the miner to pay 3.8 million rubles to the energy sector.

Читать полностью…

Ripple: SEC may withdraw its complaint against the company

Ripple management expects that after a series of unsuccessful lawsuits, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will drop further investigations and withdraw its claims against the company.

Yesterday, July 18, Ripple expected to receive a final verdict drawing a line under the SEC's multi-year investigation into the company for possible violations of securities laws and selling digital assets without registration.

However, the Commission abruptly canceled a closed-door meeting that was supposed to discuss the ongoing litigation against Ripple. The company believes that this could be a signal of the SEC's impending dismissal of additional lawsuits and demand for payment of fines.

Ripple attributes its positive expectations to the fact that the SEC has recently suffered serious reputational losses due to poor evidence gathering and unsubstantiated claims. As a result, judicial authorities have been denying the regulator's claims.

For example, the SEC recently dropped its investigation into the Hiro project, formerly known as Blockstacks, and in July it withdrew its lawsuit and dropped its investigation into the Paxos steblecoin issuer.

Читать полностью…

Bitcoin price will not cross $71,000, believes Peter Brandt

Well-known trader Peter Brandt doubts that bitcoin will exceed $71,000 and set a new price record.

I try to be as fair as possible to Edwards/Magi/Shabaker [economists] when identifying patterns. The current stagnation in the bitcoin market is incorrectly called a flag (lasts too long), it represents a downward channel. Anything longer than 4-6 weeks is not a flag,” Brandt wrote.

The flag that some analysts believe has appeared on the bitcoin rate chart foreshadows an upcoming bull rally. And the descending channel that Peter talks about, on the contrary, indicates a decline in the price of the coin. This pattern is formed by lower tops and bottoms recorded after the price of BTC reached an all-time high in March.

Judging by the chart published by Peter, he believes that the bitcoin price will not overcome the resistance line, which is around $71,000. In this case, a bearish trend will begin, during which BTC may fall in price to $51,000. In this case, the descending channel is slightly widening, respectively, the volatility level of the bitcoin rate should increase over time.

Читать полностью…

Nine Ethereum-ETFs are preparing to launch in the US: what investors need to know

A historic moment for the cryptocurrency market will come on July 23, 2024, when nine Ethereum-based exchange-traded funds (ETH) will be launched in the United States. For the first time, shares of publicly traded Ethereum-ETFs will appear on leading US exchange traded funds alongside giants such as Apple Inc (AAPL) and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY).

Launch dates and venues

The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) confirmed July 23 as the launch date for five ETFs on its platform: 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF, Fidelity Ethereum Fund, Invesco Galaxy Ethereum ETF, VanEck Ethereum ETF and Franklin Ethereum ETF. The remaining four funds are also expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq and NYSE Arca exchanges that day.

Where to buy Ethereum-ETF shares

Where to buy Ethereum-ETF shares? On almost any major brokerage platform. All Ethereum-ETFs that are about to be listed have already received regulatory approval to trade on at least one major U.S. exchange. Ordinary investors will be able to purchase shares through intermediaries - well-known brokerage firms like Fidelity, E*TRADE, Robinhood, Charles Schwab and TD Ameritrade.

Choosing the best ETF

Which ETF to choose? The mechanics of how all nine funds work are virtually identical. Each ETF is managed by a reputable company, holds the underlying assets with a qualified custodian and relies on professional market makers to create and redeem shares.

For most investors, the deciding factor will be commissions. Eight of the nine ETFs have management fees between 0.15% and 0.25%. The exception is Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) with a 2.5% commission.

The low-commission leader is Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH) at 0.15%, with no commission at all for the first six months. The Franklin Ethereum ETF (EZET) also looks attractive with a 0.19% commission, which also goes to zero until January 2025.

The issue of staking in Ethereum-ETFs

Will Ethereum-ETFs offer steaking? At this time, no. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has rejected issuers' requests to include steaking in ETFs. The problem is liquidity: it takes several days to withdraw Ethereum from steaking, which conflicts with the requirement to quickly redeem the fund's shares. Issuers are still looking for a solution, but steaking in ETFs is unlikely in the coming months.

Conclusion

The emergence of Ethereum-based exchange-traded funds marks a turning point in digital assets, as for the first time, millions of U.S. savers will be able to invest in ETH through familiar financial products under regulatory oversight.

Читать полностью…

Vitalik Buterin: Blockchain and its role in the search for truth

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, recently expressed an opinion on blockchain, calling it a “truth machine.” In his understanding, the technology provides “consensus approximate truth” regarding timestamps and message sequences. However, developers have confirmed that blockchain is unable to provide answers to fundamental questions.

This limitation, according to Buterin, is what reduces the “possible attack surface” of such networks, making them more secure. In his opinion, other tools and methods are needed to find true information at a deeper level.

Recently, Buterin has often spoken out about the prospects and development of blockchain technology. He recently emphasized the importance of working on the scalability and efficiency of the Ethereum network, mentioning projects such as Ethereum 2.0 and the introduction of sharding technology. This initiative aims to increase network capacity and reduce transaction fees, which in turn makes the network more accessible and attractive to a wide range of users.

Vitalik also noted the importance of decentralized finance (DeFi) and its potential to transform the global industry. According to him, this sector provides an opportunity for anyone with internet access to use financial services without having to trust traditional institutions. This opens new horizons for inclusion and democratization of access to tools.

Beyond the technical aspects, Buterin often talks about the social impact of blockchain technologies. He is convinced that they can contribute to more transparent and accountable systems of governance. For example, the use of smart contracts in asset management and corporate governance can significantly reduce the risks of fraud and abuse.

Читать полностью…

Binance: “Cryptocurrency market faces structural weakness”

The cryptocurrency market has experienced significant turbulence over the past few months. Despite the recent rebound, market capitalization is still 14% lower compared to its March peak.

According to a report from Binance Research, June saw a “brutal” 11.4% decline in overall market capitalization, which coincided with the recent bitcoin (BTC) sell-off by the German government.

Major bitcoin moves by the U.S. government on June 26 and the start of payments to Mt.Gox creditors on July 5, when 140,000 BTC was set to return to the market, only added fuel to the fire.

Significant bitcoin transactions by the U.S. government on June 26, coupled with the start of payments to Mt.Gox creditors on July 5, which resulted in 140,000 BTC being returned to the market, further exacerbated the situation.

Structural weakness in the crypto market

The Binance report highlights the structural weaknesses of the market dynamics through the newly created Capital, People and Technology (CPT) framework.

The model shows that new capital inflows have slowed, leading to a Player vs. Player (PvP) market where traders compete head-to-head for limited profits.

According to the report, in this PvP market, where there are “no new capital flows,” one market participant must take losses so that another can profit in an ongoing “stagnant market.”

This slowed liquidity inflow is evidenced by the stagnant supply of stablecoins, reduced outflows from spot BTC exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and reduced project funds raised.

Positive upcoming catalysts

The Binance Research report also balances the market downturn with upcoming catalysts that could continue to drive the market after the March peak.

The report looks at the macroeconomy, highlighting signs of lower inflation and potential interest rate cuts that could stimulate the cryptocurrency market and boost its market capitalization.

It also suggests that new capital flows could arise from increased supply of stablecoins and approval of spot Ethereum ETFs, expected around July 23, which could stimulate demand for ether (ETH).

Will $220,000 be the peak of the market?

Accompanying the expected market drivers in the coming months, a crypto analyst under the pseudonym Cryptonary highlighted a shift in the capitulation of BTC miners.

The analyst shared a hash-tagged chart showing the correlation between the end of the capitulation of miners and a significant rise in BTC prices using an exponential decline model.

According to Cryptonary, the model suggests that based on historical data, the post-halving period (cutting miner rewards in half) could see a price peak of $223,000 for the upcoming market cycle.

Читать полностью…

Major asset managers are buying up bitcoins

Major financial firms including Blackrock, Fidelity, Ark Invest and VanEck are actively buying into bitcoin (BTC). This indicates a significant change in the dynamics of the cryptocurrency market and how it is perceived by traditional investment institutions. Arkham Intelligence data highlights the interest of these organizations in the largest cryptocurrency, which could have major implications for the entire industry.

Purchases by influential players could signal a growing acceptance of bitcoin as a fully-fledged investment asset. Blackrock and Fidelity, as some of the largest asset managers in the world, have significant influence over global financial markets. Their involvement can help build confidence in digital currencies among institutional investors and encourage further capital flows into the sector.

The involvement of Ark Invest and VanEck, known for their innovative approaches to investing and active participation in the cryptocurrency space, also highlights the growing role of bitcoin as an important element of a portfolio. This activity could help increase liquidity in the market and stabilize BTC prices.

Many analysts note that bitcoin purchases by such large organizations may also reflect the expectations of their executives regarding future economic conditions and the role of cryptocurrencies in the global financial system. Amid uncertainty and volatility in traditional markets, bitcoin is increasingly seen as “digital gold” - an asset that can retain value over the long term.

These developments may also encourage other large financial institutions to rethink their strategies and begin to consider cryptocurrencies as an important element of portfolio diversification. The growing number of institutional participants in the market may further develop and strengthen the position of digital currencies in the global economy.

Читать полностью…

Reports on the launch of ETH-ETF had a positive impact on the market

-- Bitcoin surpassed $66,000 and Ethereum reached $3500 after the announcement of the start date for spot ETH-ETF trading.
-- Despite the positive factors, the second most capitalized cryptocurrency is at risk of facing a supply crunch.

Digital gold has consolidated above $66,000 on the CBOE amid the approval of the start date for spot Ethereum-ETF trading.

According to the exchange, the product from Franklin Templeton is scheduled to be listed on July 23. Prior to that, the SEC approved applications to launch an Ethereum-based mini-ETF from Grayscale and an exchange-traded fund from ProShares.

On the evening of July 19, the crypto market began an active growth. Bitcoin tested the level of $67,000, but then corrected to $66,500. The asset grew by 4.5% over the day.

Ethereum was a little weaker than the first cryptocurrency. The coin added 2.3% in 24 hours and is trading around $3500 at the time of writing.

Other assets from the top 10 by capitalization also entered the “green zone”. XRP grew the strongest during the day, increasing by 8.2%.

According to Coinglass, the volume of liquidations over the past day reached $149.3 million. $96 million of them came from short positions.

Risks for Ethereum

Despite the positive factor in the form of exchange-traded funds, the second most capitalized cryptocurrency may face a supply crisis.

According to Benjamin Cowan, analyst and founder of Into The Cryptoverse, the price of Ethereum risks falling if supply continues to grow at the current rate after the initial hype around ETFs subsided.

He claims that the number of new coins has been growing by around 60,000 ETH every 30 days for four months. The Merge hardfork reduced total supply by 455,000 ETH by April, but the figure could return to previous values as early as December, the expert warned.

“If you ignore monetary policy because you think it doesn't play a role, you might consider 2016. The ETH/BTC pair had a false exit below the lows in the second quarter of 2016, then a real capitulation in the fourth quarter. Perhaps we'll see the same thing this year?” suggested Cowen.

While the CEO of Into The Cryptoverse believes the price of ETH is likely to be “higher than the current price” by the end of 2025, there is potential for a decline over the next “three to six months.”

On July 16, analyst Leon Weidmann warned that Ethereum is facing a “supply crisis.”

“The balance of exchanges [in ETH] has dropped to 10.2%, while 39.3% of assets are locked in smart contracts. Most investors still don't realize how limited the supply of the coin is and how big the effect of ETFs will be,” he said.

Recall, QCP Capital predicted the growth of ether to $4800 after the approval of the ETH-ETF. Experts believe that demand in the amount of 10-20% of inflows into bitcoin funds will trigger a positive movement.

In July, Binance CEO Richard Teng said that the products will provide stable and significant capital inflows, but only over time.

Читать полностью…

Galaxy Digital has bought out the assets of CryptoManufaktur

Public company Galaxy Digital has acquired nearly all of the assets of blockchain node operator CryptoManufaktur. The deal expands the Michael Novogratz-led firm's role in mainstream altcoin-stacking. The Block estimates that Galaxy Digital has increased its Ethereum reserves by about $1 billion. It's worth noting that the terms of the deal between CryptoManufaktur and Galaxy Digital have not been officially disclosed.

“The acquisition of CryptoManufaktur is an important milestone that significantly strengthens our position as a leading technical partner for crypto protocols and core developers.” Galaxy Digital spokesperson Zane Glauber said. As part of the deal, CryptoManufaktur's engineering team will join Galaxy Digital's blockchain infrastructure staff. They will be involved in developing steaking services for qualified investors.

“We believe that Galaxy Digital is uniquely positioned to act as an infrastructure provider and leading validator among high-performance blockchains. We look forward to joining the new team.” CryptoManufaktur founder Torsten Behrens said.

CryptoManufaktur came into existence in 2020. The organization initially focused on the underlying infrastructure for Chainlink price streams and later expanded to run automated nodes on the Ethereum network. The team has also been developing infrastructure solutions for many other blockchains.

Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz remains a significant figure in the cryptocurrency space. This is largely due to his impressive experience in the segment of traditional finance. At one point, he was even an executive director of Goldman Sachs.

Читать полностью…

Binance will add Banana Gun token to its listing

The world's largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance has launched the first project on its Airdrop portal - the Banana Gun token (BANANA). The coin supports the work of the Banana Gun Telegram bot, which provides tools for cryptocurrency trading.

Binance's Airdrop Portal is a blockchain platform that allows projects to distribute their tokens to cryptocurrency exchange users simply and efficiently.

Binance will add Banana Gun to the listing on Saturday
Binance customers who have blocked BNB tokens in Simple Earn between June 23 and July 5, 2024 will be able to participate in the BANANA airdrop.

The Banana Gun Telegram bot coin listing will take place on July 20. The BANANA token will appear on the platform with a “monitoring” tag because it presents more risks compared to other assets. Binance will launch trading with the following trading pairs:

-- BANANA/BTC;
-- BANANA/USDT;
-- BANANA/BNB;
-- BANANA/FDUSD;
-- BANANA/TRY.

“BANANA is a freely tradable token. Airdrop will quickly increase its issuance on the secondary market, which may lead to sharp fluctuations in price compared to the current price after listing on Binance,” the cryptocurrency exchange warned its customers.

Following the news from Binance, the BANANA token exchange rate jumped by more than 20%. According to CoinGecko, at the time of writing, the asset is trading at $69.55. Meanwhile, the capitalization of Banana Gun coin exceeded $166.8 million.

The sharp rise in the value of BANANA has attracted the attention of crypto traders. According to Lookonchain, today a user spent 440 Ethereum (ETH), which is valued at $1.5 million, to buy 21,183 BANANA at an average price of $71.14.

Prior to that, the crypto market participant bought 18,803 BANANA at an average price of $12.52, draining $235 thousand. Later, he sold the coins at $26.26 and recorded a profit of $258 thousand.

In September last year, BANANA quotes collapsed to zero due to an error in the smart contract. The Banana Gun project team had to sell off all its assets to maintain liquidity.

Читать полностью…

Ryan Selkis resigns as Messari CEO after inflammatory tweets

Ryan Selkis has stepped down as CEO of Messari, the Crypto data and research firm he co-founded, after a series of inflammatory tweets about politics, civil war and his desire to remove immigrants from the country.

He announced his departure Friday on X, a social media platform where he posted a stream of controversial messages this week.

“This week was the first time in 6.5 years that my policies and rhetoric put the team in jeopardy,” he wrote. “That is why I have decided to step down as CEO.”

Never in the habit of insulting X, he stepped up his comments in the wake of last weekend's assassination attempt on Donald Trump. “Anyone who votes against Trump at this point could die in a freaking fire,” he wrote on X the afternoon after the shooting. “Literal war.”

He also told the immigrant via X, “I hope we send you back... You are not eligible for citizenship. I hope it stays that way.”

Read more: After 'civil war' and anti-immigrant tweets, his Crypto startup's management advised Ryan Selkis to cool things down

Messari said Chief Revenue Officer Eric Turner will serve as interim CEO. “Ryan recently informed us of his decision to relinquish his operational role as CEO of Messari , so that he can fully focus his time on Crypto and national issues important to him,” the company wrote on X.

Читать полностью…

BlackRock and other Wall Street giants have entered the cryptosphere

The entry of investment giants into the cryptosphere, such as BlackRock, has already surprised analysts greatly. The fund now holds more than $18 billion in bitcoins. BlackRock's plans to create an exchange-traded fund (ETF) on Ethereum further underscores management's growing commitment to organizing in the cryptosphere.

While some see this influx of capital as a positive step towards mass adoption of cryptocurrencies globally, others are concerned about the implications for the very principles of decentralized finance. Some argue that while the cryptosphere strives to operate according to the principles of decentralized financial communications, the concentration of massive amounts of bitcoins owned by companies like BlackRock and MicroStrategy may actually contribute to the opposite effect.

The debate about the future of cryptocurrencies is far from over. Some believe that large investment institutions can help further develop the cryptosphere, while others fear that their presence will stifle innovation and lead to a transformation of the basic principles of decentralization.

In any case, the cryptocurrency market is already beginning to see a correlation in the dynamics of inflows-outflows of investor funds following the inflow or outflow (net) of money into bitcoin-ETF units in the United States. Previously, the bitcoin price was highly correlated with the Nasdaq Composite index, as well as (to a lesser extent) the S&P 500, but now a new correlation factor has emerged.

Recently, independent U.S. presidential candidate, Robert F. Kennedy, stated that the world's largest investment entities, BlackRock, State Street and Vanguard, through cross-ownership of stakes in each other and through managing portfolios of assets, end up controlling nearly 90% of all stocks that are reflected in the S&P 500.

In fact, this oligopolistic structure of the world's largest stock market, the U.S. stock market, may suggest a strong influence of key investors on the stock performance of the 500 largest U.S. companies. And since this is the case, the bitcoin market, although far from such a share of control by these structures, but the emerging trend will continue to cause discussions to what extent the bitcoin price will be formed based only on the spontaneous dynamics of supply and demand in the market.

Читать полностью…

BitForex to open for withdrawals after Chinese police investigation

-- BitForex will return online to process withdrawals.
----The exchange was detained and investigated by Chinese police on February 23.
---All operations and services will cease following the withdrawal of funds.

Cryptocurrency exchange BitForex said it will open for withdrawals after a five-month disruption caused by a police investigation in China's Jiangsu province.

The exchange said in a statement X , that trading and deposits will remain suspended, but withdrawals will be open to customers who have passed a “know your customer” (KYC) check.

BitForex shut down on February 23 after a $57 million outflow. User withdrawals and access to the site were blocked, leading to a warning from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Markets (SFC) regulator.

“On February 23, 2024, the Bitforex team was detained and investigated by the police of Jiangsu Province in China,” the report said. “This unexpected event caused the platform to become inaccessible and users were unable to withdraw assets that day.”

BitForex said it will cease all operations and undergo a “comprehensive remediation” after returning the assets to users.

Читать полностью…

The creators of Nirvana Labs have raised $4 million from investors

The developers of cloud-based blockchain company Nirvana Labs have announced the successful completion of their latest round of funding. Their organization raised $4 million from investors as part of an initial fundraising round.

According to The Block, Castle Island Ventures and RW3 Ventures jointly led the round. Additional support came from the likes of BitGo Ecosystem Fund, Hash3, Third Earth, and Play Ventures. The company's press release states that Nirvana Labs' total funding over the past 6 months has already totaled $5.7 million.

This company is actively developing a cloud infrastructure designed for the development of the Web3 sector. Its product, Nirvana Cloud, is used by well-known cryptocurrency companies including Chainlink, BitGo, Goldsky, Thirdweb and Pairpoint.

“At Nirvana Labs, we understand the unique challenges faced by companies building onchain applications within the constraints of the general purpose cloud,” said Nirvana Labs founder Devin Bandara. “The new funding will allow us to enhance specialized cloud services by providing an alternative to traditional providers. We will offer infrastructure with a focus on Web3 development,” said the CEO.

He emphasized that his team's main goal is to provide “unmatched performance” of the cloud and allow customers to save money. According to him, the Web3 space requires a new generation of alternative clouds.

The entrepreneur is confident that life does not stand still and the development of a decentralized Internet is considered a top priority in today's technological world. The specialist is sure that in order to create something new, it is necessary to improve all aspects in accordance with the new tasks.

Читать полностью…

State-owned $520 billion Italian bank tests digital bonds on Polygon

Italy's state-owned bank Cassa Depositi e Prestiti SpA has just completed a $27.2 million digital bond issue with trillion-dollar investment bank Intesa Sanpaolo using Ethereum layer-2 Polygon.

The transaction was part of a trial conducted by the European Central Bank to identify new solutions for the central bank's monetary settlement of wholesale blockchain-based transactions, Intesa Sanpaolo explained in a July 18 statement.

It was the first transaction of its kind since Italy introduced its financial technology law, which regulates the issuance and circulation of financial instruments in digital form.

The $27.2 million (25 million euros) Cassa Depositi bonds mature within four months - expiring Nov. 18, 2024 - and offer a fixed coupon of 3.63%, calculated annually. Intesa Sanpaolo was the sole institutional investor in the litigation.

The cash flow was calculated on the same day using the Bank of Italy's TIPS Hash Link tool, which enables interoperability between blockchains and traditional payment systems.

“This transaction demonstrates that public blockchains are a powerful technology for financial institutions, making transactions faster and more secure,” explained Niccolò Bardoscia, head of digital asset trading and investments at Intesa Sanpaolo in a July 18 LinkedIn post.

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who believes that all stocks and bonds will move to blockchain in the future, was also in favor of tokenization.

However, not everyone shares Fink's views.

Last month, financial law professor Hilary Allen told the U.S. Congress that public blockchains are too “fragile” to tokenize trillions of dollars in real assets because they are highly inefficient and cannot handle large volumes of transactions.

Meanwhile, Boston Consulting Group predicts that the market for tokenized assets could reach $16 trillion by 2030, while another consulting firm, McKinsey, predicted a more modest $2 trillion over the same period.

More than 89 billion tokenized assets have migrated to blockchain, according to data compiled by 21Shares in Dune Analytics.

Polygon ranks fourth among blockchains in terms of tokenized value at $40.3 million, behind only Ethereum, Stellar and Mantle.

Читать полностью…

Artificial intelligence determined the price of bitcoin as of Aug. 1

After bitcoin (BTC) recovered sharply - its price rose from $55,000 to $65,000 - the price outlook for the major cryptocurrency looks quite positive.

According to advanced artificial intelligence algorithms on the PricePredictions platform, bitcoin will continue to increase its price by August 1, 2024, eventually reaching $68,953.45 (almost $69,000).

If this prediction, based on the interplay of various technical indicators such as Bollinger Bands (BB), Moving Average Convergence and Divergence (MACD), Average True Range (ATR), etc., turns out to be correct, it will lead to a 6.16% increase in bitcoin's price relative to current values.

Renowned cryptocurrency trading expert Michael van de Poppe recently noted that bitcoin is “consolidating nicely over a four-month range” and is “very likely to continue rising” as long as it holds above $60,000.

He also noted that bitcoin's NVT ratio, an important indicator of the major cryptocurrency, has reached “its lowest negative value in 2.5 years,” accordingly, the correction is over.

Читать полностью…

Kraken Custody enters the UK and Australian markets

Kraken Institutional, a subsidiary of the Kraken cryptocurrency exchange offering comprehensive custodial services for institutional clients, has announced its entry into the UK and Australian markets.
The decision follows the successful launch of Kraken Custody's institutional client service in the US in March. The service allows institutions to securely store, manage and transfer funds within a single interface integrated with the rest of Kraken's products.

“The market needs more alternatives for storing digital assets. Kraken Custody provides institutions looking to invest in the digital asset class with an optimal solution that combines advanced security protocols and role-based access control with seamless integration with other products in the Kraken ecosystem,” said a spokesperson for the exchange's unit.

Kraken Institutional noted that Kraken Custody services for institutional clients are provided through Kraken Financial, a special depository institution registered in the U.S. that separates clients' digital assets from the exchange's own funds.

Earlier, an internal study by Kraken exchange experts of the Australian digital asset market showed that the most favorite digital currency of Australian crypto traders is bitcoin.

Читать полностью…