The post China’s economic shift and its implications for crypto appeared first on CryptoSlate.
What is CryptoSlate Alpha?
A web3 membership designed to empower you with cutting-edge insights and knowledge. Learn more ›
Connected to Alpha
Welcome! 👋 You are connected to CryptoSlate Alpha. To manage your wallet connection, click the button below.
Oops…you must lock a minimum of 20,000 ACS
If you don’t have enough, buy ACS on the following exchanges:
Connect via Access Protocol
Access Protocol is a web3 monetization paywall. When users stake ACS, they can access paywalled content. Learn more ›
Disclaimer: By choosing to lock your ACS tokens with CryptoSlate, you accept and recognize that you will be bound by the terms and conditions of your third-party digital wallet provider, as well as any applicable terms and conditions of the Access Foundation. CryptoSlate shall have no responsibility or liability with regard to the provision, access, use, locking, security, integrity, value, or legal status of your ACS Tokens or your digital wallet, including any losses associated with your ACS tokens. It is solely your responsibility to assume the risks associated with locking your ACS tokens with CryptoSlate. For more information, visit our terms page.
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced settlements with multiple DeFi companies in a press release dated Sept. 7 as it and its counterpart regulator for the securities market, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), show no sign of slowing down their ongoing enforcement actions against actors in the cryptocurrency space.
Ian McGinley, the CFTC’s Director of Enforcement, wrote:
“Somewhere along the way, DeFi operators got the idea that unlawful transactions become lawful when facilitated by smart contracts…They do not.”
The CFTC primarily targeted ZeroEx Inc., best known for creating 0x Protocol. The agency said that ZeroEx also offered a frontend called Matcha, which traded third-party tokens that provided leveraged exposure to BTC, ETH, and other assets. The CFTC said that these leveraged tokens are commodities and can only be offered on registered exchanges.
0x was once seen as a promising basis for Ethereum-based decentralized exchanges before current leaders such as Uniswap dominated the area.
Though long-term trading volumes are no longer available, market rankings provide some indication of 0x’s former popularity. In 2018, 0x’s ZRX token often ranked among the 30 largest tokens by market cap. Today, ZRX ranks below the 700 largest cryptocurrencies, and Uniswap’s UNI token is the 24th largest cryptocurrency. As such, the CFTC’s latest action is significant because it targets one of DeFi’s past top contenders.
The CFTC additionally targeted Opyn, a decentralized Ethereum and stablecoin investment platform. The CFTC said that Opyn’s oSQTH tokens are commodities and can only be offered on registered exchanges. The value of the oSQTH token is determined by a squared ETH-to-USDC index operated by the company,
Finally, the CFTC targeted Deridex, a defunct trading platform built on Algorand. The CFTC said that Deridex’s perpetual contracts, which are based on the relative value of the STABL2 token and another asset, qualified as a commodity.
Each platform faced multiple charges
Apart from those specific violations, the CFTC charged Deridex and Opyn with various failures to register, and with failure to comply with customer identification programs in accordance with the Bank Secrecy Act. ZeroEx is not described as facing those charges.
Additionally, the agency charged all three platforms with the illegal offer of leveraged and margined retail commodity transactions in digital assets. Each company must cease and desist from violating any of the relevant regulations.
The CFTC has imposed a different monetary penalty on each company. Opyn must pay $250,000, ZeroEx must pay $200,000, and Deridex must pay $100,000. The agency said that it reached these settlements at the time that it filed charges.
The latest charges are part of a growing list of crypto-related actions from the CFTC. The agency concluded a fraud case against Mirror Trading International and took action against an individual pool operator this week. The CFTC has also targeted major crypto companies, including Binance, FTX, Tether, and BitMEX in the recent past.
A recent report by IntoTheBlock offers new insights into the profitability of meme coin holders, including Dogecoin, highlighting variations in the percentage of holders in profit and whale concentration. Dogecoin, the forerunner in this category, continues to hold its own, with new data underscoring its dominance in terms of profitability for its holders.
Dogecoin Holds The Lead
According to the report by blockchain data analytics platform IntoTheBlock, Dogecoin outpaces its counterparts, with 42% of its holders being in profit.
It is worth noting that this appears to solidify its position as a frontrunner in the meme coin domain and emphasizes its growing importance in the broader crypto space.
Ever wondered how meme coins compete on important metrics? 📊Dive into our latest infographic where we break down the performance of 6 popular meme coins, analyzing holder profits and whale concentration.#Dogecoin #Pepe #LEASH #SHIB #FLOKI #ELON pic.twitter.com/Di5vbyo3PZ
— IntoTheBlock (@intotheblock) September 8, 2023
The analysis, which took into account the top six meme coins including Dogecoin (DOGE), Pepe (PEPE), Doge Killer (LEASH), Dogelon Mars (ELON), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and Floki (FLOKI), positioned PEPE and LEASH in second and third places, with 21% and 19% of their holders respectively turning a profit.
Whale Concentrations And Other Tokens
In addition to highlighting profitability, the study delved into the concentration of whales within these meme coins. Interestingly, 44% of Dogecoin tokens are held by whale accounts, while nearly half of the PEPE tokens (49%) are whale-owned.
The report also shows that whale concentration for LEASH rests at 42%. Dogelon Mars and Shiba Inu, although popular names in the meme coin sphere, are fourth and fifth in terms of holder profitability, with 14% and 11%, respectively.
Floki, on the other hand, sees 10% of its holders in profit with a 59% whale concentration, indicating the large players’ influence in the meme coin market. Notably, whale concentrations can significantly impact the price movements of cryptocurrencies, making large holders create substantial market swings just with their trading decisions.
Furthermore, while Dogecoin has put roughly 44% of its holders in profit, the meme coin has not been exempt from the market’s volatile swings. In the past month alone, DOGE has seen a more than 16% decline. It took a dip from its previous high of $0.77 to a low of $0.62, at the time of writing.
Dogecoin (DOGE) price is moving sideways on the 4-hour chart. Source: DOGE/USDT on TradingView.com
In addition, despite the market downtrend, DOGE’s trading activity has surged. The daily trading volume for the meme coin currently stands at $201 million, a considerable increase from the $128 million recorded late last month.
Featured image from Unsplash, Chart from TradingView
The Federal Reserve Bank vice chairman spoke at the Philadelphia Fed’s fintech event on Sept. 8 about what the central bank’s role is in financial innovation. Research and supervision was the short answer, with a nod to the FedNow Service.
Along with the standard disclaimer about it making no decisions without congressional authorization, Barr provided an overview of the Fed’s “current focus” of central bank digital currency (CBDC) research. He characterized it as “basic research […] that might support a CBDC payments backbone, or for other purposes in the existing payments system.”
Specifically, Barr mentioned system architecture for recording transactions and ownership in ledgers and tokenization models. A FEDS Notes publication the same day on wholesale CBDCs also emphasized that “the technology associated with tokenized platforms is not incompatible with existing central bank money functioning as a settlement asset.”
This payments speech from Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision at the Federal Reserve, features a punctuation mark rarely observed in Fedspeak: an exclamation point! pic.twitter.com/F3GJezrs3N
— Brendan Pedersen (@BrendanPedersen) September 8, 2023
Barr reminded his audience of the Fed’s novel activities supervision program, which it introduced last month. That dedicated team of supervisors can provide feedback that would allow a federally supervised bank to obtain “written supervisory non-objection” to its novel activities involving stablecoins, among other things. Barr said this activity aligns with Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) policies outlined in interpretative letters 1174 and 1179.
Related: US lawmakers invoke FTX and spar on direction of crypto bills
Strong federal oversight of stablecoins, which is foreseen in the OCC letters, is in the interest of the Fed, Barr said, as a dollar-pegged stablecoin “borrows the trust of the central bank.” He expressed his appreciation for current legislative efforts:
“If non-federally regulated stablecoins were to become a widespread means of payment and store of value, they could pose significant risks to financial stability, monetary policy, and the U.S. payments system.”
The Fed equipped large banks, regional banks, community banks and credit unions with the rails for broadly accessible 24-hour instant payments through the FedNow Service, introduced in July, Barr said. He added that current volumes of the service are small, but it is up to the depository institutions to make the service available.
Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom
Ripple has reportedly completed its acquisition of web3-focused company Fortress Trust for an undisclosed sum.
On Sept. 6, the crypto company revealed that it had agreed to purchase the Nevada-based chartered trust company. According to the press statement, the acquisition would further complement Ripple’s business and product roadmap.
The acquisition broadens Ripple’s regulatory licenses, including the addition of a Nevada license to its current holdings, such as the New York BitLicense and money transfer licenses across 30 U.S. states.
The purchase aligns with Ripple’s expansion plans, which have been positively influenced by a partial victory they secured against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Earlier in the year, the crypto payment company completed a $250 million deal, making it the sole shareholder of Swiss-based crypto custody firm Metaco.
Ripple to leverage on Fortress Trust’s technology
This strategic move enables Ripple to tap into Fortress Trust’s technology, licensing, and infrastructure, enhancing its ability to serve the growing crypto market.
Fortress Trust, founded by financial industry veteran Scott Purcell, specializes in providing financial and regulatory infrastructures for blockchain companies. Notably, Ripple was already a minority investor in Fortress Blockchain, the parent company of Fortress Trust, having participated in the company’s seed funding round in August 2022.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse noted that Fortress Trust had built an impressive business with recurring revenue and a strong roster of crypto-native and new-to-crypto customers since its launch in 2021. He added:
“We’re excited to bring on this team and its technology to accelerate our business and continue pressing our advantage in the areas critical to crypto infrastructure.”
The crypto company’s president, Monica Long, stated that the acquisition would help it “to build and deliver best-in-class customer experiences for enterprises using its crypto infrastructure across our payments and liquidity solutions.”
Fortress Blockchain CEO Scott Purcell said the purchase was a testament to the team and business they built within a short period.
The post Ripple’s acquisition of Fortress Trust adds to company’s regulatory licenses appeared first on CryptoSlate.
Bitcoin’s price is trading in a frustratingly tight range between $25,500 and $26,500, leaving traders unsure of the next direction that the asset could take.
However, Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, believes that Bitcoin’s (BTC) current price presents a low-risk long-term buying opportunity. Edwards’ view is based on Bitcoin’s production cost and energy value.
Capriole Investments energy value theory gives a fair value price of $47,200, and Edwards reiterated his bullish stance by saying that Bitcoin’s production cost gives a floor price estimation of around $23,000 with a 100% hit ratio.
The trade has a risk-reward ratio of 1:5, with the potential for even higher price targets, but Edwards added it is based on the assumption that the rally price “would stop at fair value, which it never has.”
My favorite Bitcoin chart right now. The relative distance between Bitcoin’s price, the historical price floor (Bitcoin Electrical Cost) and fair value (Bitcoin Energy Value). That’s a 5:1 risk-reward assuming no-hype and that price would stop at fair value, which it never has. pic.twitter.com/J2yuGcNX9q
— Charles Edwards (@caprioleio) September 7, 2023
Bullish energy value theory
Edwards proposed Bitcoin’s energy value theory in December 2019. According to the theory, the fair value of Bitcoin can be estimated by the amount of energy it takes to produce it.
The model assumes that the more work that has been put into something, the more valuable it is.
In 2023, the amount of energy spent in Bitcoin mining has been on the rise as mining companies increased their capacity and share of hash rate with the installation of new ASICs and by preparing for the halving in April 2024.
According to Edwards, the Bitcoin energy value reflects its fair value.
Bitcoin’s energy value has shown a strong correlation with Bitcoin’s spot price and this suggests that the theory is at least somewhat valid. However, there are some caveats to the theory.
One limitation is that Bitcoin’s energy value is not always accurate. This is because the mining energy efficiency can vary over time.
Related: Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index updated to reflect hardware distribution and hash rate increases
Additionally, the theory does not take into account other factors that can affect the price of Bitcoin, such as the market’s current demand and supply and the steps taken by miners ahead of the halving next year.
Bitcoin looks primed for further downside
Bitcoin’s spot liquidity data on Binance indicates that buyers are looking at the $24,600 level for support. However, the bullish momentum appears to be fading as most traders are crowding around the yearly low levels and hoping that these hold.
The liquidation levels of futures orders from CoinGlass show that buyers are expecting downside to $24,600, with smaller liquidations extending toward $23,000.
Notably, the price range between $25,000 and $25,500 has the most leveraged orders in significantly high volumes, making them hot targets for traders.
Should the price drop down to the $23,000 level, the buyer’s conviction will be tested. A drop below $23,000 would target the $21,451 and $19,549 levels from 2022.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
In a recent series of tweets, Vetle Lunde, Senior Analyst at K33 Research, delved deep into the potential ramifications of the US Bitcoin (BTC) spot ETFs. Lunde’s analysis suggests that the broader market might be significantly underestimating the transformative power of these financial instruments.
Lunde’s assertion is rooted in five core reasons. He began with a bold proclamation: “The market is wrong – and dramatically underestimates the impact of US BTC ETFs (and ETH futures-based ETFs).”
Why The Market Is Wrong On Bitcoin
Firstly, Lunde believes that the current climate is ripe for the approval of US spot ETFs, suggesting that the odds have never been more favorable. As NewsBTC reported, Bloomberg experts Eric Balchunas and James Seyffart recently raised their Bitcoin spot ETF approval odds following the Grayscale judgment to 75% this year, 95% by the end of 2024.
Secondly, Lunde pointed out that BTC price has retraced to pre-BlackRock announcement levels. The third reason revolves around the potential competition and the simultaneous launches of multiple US spot ETFs. Lunde anticipates that these, if approved, could lead to robust inflows, potentially surpassing the initial trading days of both BITO and Purpose.
For context, he highlighted that Purpose saw inflows of 11,141 BTC, and in its wake, subsequent ETF launches in Canada resulted in a whopping 58,000 BTC worth of inflows within a mere four months. Given the vastness of the US market compared to Canada, the inflow potential is considerably higher.
The fourth reason Lunde presented is based on historical data from the past four years. He emphasized a noticeable correlation between strong BTC investment vehicle inflows and appreciating BTC prices. This relationship becomes even more pronounced during periods of extreme inflows, which have historically contributed to significant market uplifts.
The last crucial point for Lunde is that on August 17 the market got rid of from excess leverage, as NewsBTC reported.
By The Numbers
In conclusion, the research firm posits that US BTC spot ETFs could see at least 30,000 BTC worth of inflows in their first 10 days. Over a span of four months, the combined inflows into BTC investment vehicles could range between 70,000 to 100,000 BTC, driven by US spot ETFs and growing inflows to ETPs in other countries.
Based on these flow assumptions and data from the past four years, Lunde suggests a potential 66% BTC rally, targeting a price of $42,000. However, he also cautioned that this projection is based on a “naïve assumption” and doesn’t account for other market-moving events.
At press time, BTC traded at $25,865.
Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com
Cointelegraph video journalist and YouTube host Giovanni Pigni challenged ChatGPT to a crypto investment game. Both contenders had $100 to build a strong crypto portfolio and make as much money as possible in two weeks.
The goal of the experiment was to find out whether artificial intelligence can beat a human in crypto trading and to find human strengths and weaknesses relative to AI’s investment approach.
In order to build the AI’s crypto portfolio, Giovanni trained it on a summary of the main events that happened in crypto in the last two years. Given the bearish market conditions of the previous few months, ChatGPT came up with a low-risk portfolio.
To build his own portfolio, Giovanni relied on the expert advice of Cointelegraph market analyst Marcel Pechman, who suggested a more aggressive but riskier approach.
Pechman recommended betting on high-beta decentralized finance tokens that were deeply affected by the Curve Finance hack in July. The logic was that those tokens had a good chance to bounce back and outperform large-cap cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).
To find out who came out as the winner of the challenge, watch the full video on the Cointelegraph YouTube channel, and don’t forget to subscribe!
Tangem applet receives certification from VISA, sets to launch self-custodial payment solution, according to a Sept. 8 press statement shared with CryptoSlate.
The Switzerland-based cryptocurrency company disclosed that its applet obtained VISA certification the previous year. This certification empowered users to utilize Tangem Pay, which will be launched next year.
Integrating VISA’s payment card chips with the Tangem applet allows the bank card to store a cryptocurrency wallet’s public and private keys securely.
In practical terms, when these cards are employed for payments, they can generate a VISA payment message. Simultaneously, an OTP (one-time password) is developed to sign a transaction on the blockchain.
The firm stated that this novel application would be launched next year and it would be “the first fully self-custodial payment solution integrated with a global payment network.”
Tangem eyes upgrade
Meanwhile, the company’s partnership is coming as part of efforts to completely redesign its application and add new features to improve user experience.
Tangem unveiled a range of new features, including token sorting, a dark theme, and providing users with the option of concealing their available balances. Additionally, the company has announced enhancements to its brand style guide, a refreshed logo, and redesigned cards and packaging.
To bolster its firmware security, Tangem plans to introduce a firmware audit feature, allowing users to verify the integrity of their firmware. They are also gearing up to launch a new product page on Sept. 10, complete with 24/7 customer support.
Furthermore, Tangem confirmed that its cards will be distributed to more than 140 countries via warehouses in Europe, the USA, and Hong Kong from Oct. 10.
Tangem has emerged as a top challenger in the hardware wallet sector, rivaling more storied rivals like Trezor and Ledger. The company said it recorded a 738% growth in monthly active users since last year’s recent product release and believes its planned upgrade would help attract more customers globally.
Update on Sept 8, 18:16: The article clarified the company’s relationship.
The post Tangem applet receives certification from VISA; set to launch self-custodial payment solution appeared first on CryptoSlate.