2024-10-30 12:23

The latest price moves in crypto markets in context for Oct. 30, 2024. Latest Prices CoinDesk 20 Index: 2,149.28 +0.13% Bitcoin (BTC): $72,068.34 +0.86% Ether (ETH): $2,661.30 +1.16% S&P 500: 5,832.92 +0.16% Gold: $2,781.56 +0.46% Nikkei 225: 39,277.39 +0.96% Top Stories Having teased a record high, bitcoin traded within a fairly narrow range. BTC fluctuated between $71,150 and $72,500 after climbing to just under $73,000 at around 23:00 UTC on Tuesday. The cryptocurrency rose to over $73,500 during the U.S. afternoon on Tuesday. The broader digital asset market is also muted, having gained just under 0.9% in the last 24 hours, with ETH rising about 1.15% and SOL falling by over 2.5%. Spot bitcoin ETFs recorded their third-highest inflows on Tuesday, adding more than $870 million. Total trading volumes crossed $4.75 billion — the highest since March — with BlackRock's IBIT accounting for $3.3 billion alone. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said he expects bigger inflow figures in the coming days. “$IBIT traded $3.3b today, biggest number in 6mo, which is a bit odd bc btc was up 4% (typically ETF volume spikes in a downturn/crisis),” Balchunas wrote on X. “Occasionally tho volume can spike if there a FOMO-ing frenzy. Given the surge in price past few days, my guess is this is latter, which means look for big inflows this week.” The Bhutan government, which holds over $900 million worth of bitcoin, moved a chunk of its holdings to exchanges on Tuesday, sparking speculation that it is on the verge of selling some of its stash in a move that may weigh on market prices. Bhutan’s BTC movements are part of a broader trend of profit-taking among whales as the cryptocurrency's price approaches the record high set in March. As more holders move into profit and look to lock in gains, their market activity may slow the climb toward the record, CoinDesk research noted earlier this month. Even though realized profit in bitcoin peaked on Oct. 8 and has started to slow down, which is a positive development, there remains higher profit-taking than the yearly average. Trending Posts Crypto Lobby Group CCI Expands Its Reach by Absorbing Proof of Stake Alliance Celestia's TIA Braces for Price Volatility Amid $900M Token Unlock Coinbase Revenue May be Hurt by Lower Trading Volumes, Regulatory Uncertainty, Analysts Say https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/30/first-mover-americas-bitcoin-little-changed-after-teasing-all-time-high/

2024-10-30 11:55

Over-the-counter desks hold 416,000 bitcoin valued around $30 billion, a level that has remained stagnant for the past month. Sophisticated investors and high-net-worth individuals often use over-the-counter desks to execute trades without directly affecting the spot-market price. In the past five months, OTC desks have seen a rise of over 200,000 BTC, one of the highest levels recorded in recent years. As bitcoin (BTC) approaches a record high, sophisticated investors appear to be taking steps to trade without influencing the price in the spot market. At about $72,300 as of noon in Europe, the largest cryptocurrency by market value is less than 2% below the $73,798 record set in March, according to CoinDesk Indices data. Bitcoin has jumped about 14% this month, on track for the biggest one-month gain since March. A remarkable feature of this recent bitcoin run is that over-the-counter (OTC) desks, which allow two parties to trade directly without disclosing information to the wider market, now hold 416,000 BTC ($30 billion) compared with an average of less than 200,000 BTC during the first quarter, according to CryptoQuant data. OTC desks are primarily used by institutions or high-net-worth individuals who prefer to avoid having their transactions appear on crypto exchange order books, allowing them to transact large quantities without affecting the market price. The growing flow to OTC desks is one reason the bitcoin price has been trending in a sideways channel for the past seven months. With an abundance of bitcoin on OTC desks, the U.S. spot-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) could make purchases without affecting the spot price. Even Tuesday's record daily purchases by the bitcoin ETFs represent just 2% of the total bitcoin balance on OTC desks. During the first quarter, with bitcoin posting an all-time high shortly after the ETFs received regulatory approval, the share of inventory ranged between 9% and 12%. The total OTC desk balance, however, has held pretty steady since the beginning of September. The 30-day change is just 3,000 BTC, down from a June high of 92,000 BTC. During the first quarter, the pent-up demand led to a negative 30-day change in OTC desk balances, which helped propel the asset to its record high. For bitcoin to go higher this cycle, daily inflows into OTC desks need to start reducing, as is observed currently. Daily inflows into OTC desks have declined to the lowest levels this year. CryptoQuant notes that in October, OTC desks averaged around 90,000 bitcoin, a reduction of 52% compared with the first three quarters of the year. If demand for BTC continues accelerating amid low inflows into OTC desks, this could propel bitcoin to new highs. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/30/bitcoin-approaches-all-time-highs-as-daily-otc-desk-inflows-drop-to-years-lows-cryptoquant/

2024-10-30 09:51

The Bhutan government recently deposited almost 1,000 BTC into a Binance deposit address. It holds $900 million of the asset. The government of Bhutan deposited almost 1,000 bitcoin into a deposit address on crypto exchange Binance on Tuesday. The largest cryptocurrency surpassed $73,000 on Tuesday, approaching its record high, with many investors selling to lock in gains as 99.7% of the circulating supply was in profit. The Bhutan government, which holds over $900 million worth of bitcoin (BTC), moved a chunk of its holdings to exchanges on Tuesday, according to Arkham Intelligence, sparking speculation it is on the verge of selling some of its stash in a move that may weigh on market prices. Bhutan moved $65 million worth of bitcoin to crypto exchange Binance late Tuesday as the largest cryptocurrency neared a lifetime peak above $73,500, Arkham data shows. BTC dropped to around $72,400 as of mid-morning in London, according to CoinDesk Indices. The tiny, picturesque Southeast Asian nation emerged as a BTC whale — an influential holder of the asset — earlier this year after Arkham identified wallets belonging to Bhutan for the first time, making it the second nation after El Salvador to officially hold BTC. The country's bitcoin holdings represent nearly a third of its gross domestic product (GDP) and were gained through mining operations run by state-owned Druk Holdings. The mining is linked to Bitdeer Technologies Group (BTDR), which has been expanding mining facilities in the country and is aiming for a 600 megawatt capacity by 2025. Bhutan's investment in digital assets is part of a broader strategy by Druk to diversify revenue streams, with recent wallet activity showing both deposits and withdrawals, including significant transactions with exchanges like Kraken. An email to the department on the bitcoin movements to exchanges and any related plans did not receive a reply prior to publication. Meanwhile, Druk wallets tracked by Arkham show brisk deposit and withdrawal activity in the past few weeks. It has received up to 2 BTC from Foundry, another miner, and other unidentified Bitcoin addresses several times over the past week. Profit-taking Bhutan’s BTC movements are part of a broader trend of profit-taking among whales as the cryptocurrency's price approaches the record high set in March. As more holders move into profit and look to lock in gains, their market activity may slow the climb toward the record, CoinDesk research noted earlier this month. Since Oct. 17, when the research was published, profit-taking has not abated, but it still seems as though a new all-time high is on the cards. Even though realized profit in bitcoin peaked on Oct. 8 and has started to slow down, which is a positive development, we are still seeing higher profit-taking than the yearly average. As of Tuesday, 99.7% of the circulating supply was in profit, with $1.5 billion of realized profit taken. Most of that has come from larger entities holding at least 100 BTC, according to Glassnode data. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/30/bitcoin-profit-taking-continues-as-btc-price-nears-high-is-bhutan-next-to-sell/

2024-10-30 05:27

BlackRock’s IBIT recorded over $629 million in single-day inflows as the asset neared lifetime highs on Tuesday, ahead of next week’s U.S. elections. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw over $870 million in net inflows on Tuesday, with BlackRock's IBIT leading at $629 million. This surge in investments coincided with bitcoin's price nearing its all-time high, fueled by pre-election market volatility expectations. Spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) listed in the U.S. recorded over $870 million in net inflows on Tuesday, the third-highest such figures since the products first went live in January. BlackRock’s IBIT logged over $629 million in inflows, SoSoValue data shows, followed by Fidelity’s FBTC at $133 million, Bitwise’s BITB at $52 million, Grayscale’s mini bitcoin trust (BTC) at $29 million, VanEck’s HODL at $16 million and Ark’s ARKB at $12 million. Grayscale’s bitcoin trust (GBTC) was the only ETF recording net outflows at $17 million. Total trading volumes crossed $4.75 billion — the highest since March — with IBIT accounting for $3.3 billion alone. The ETF demand came as bitcoin fell just shy of its lifetime highs late Tuesday, boosted ahead of next week’s U.S. elections that traders largely consider a harbinger of volatility in the near term. Some target an $80,000 price level in November regardless of a Democrat or Republican win, with options bets for that price range seeing a surge in demand last week. BTC jumped 3% Tuesday, extending seven day gains to 7.7% and leading a market move higher. Meanwhile, Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas expects bigger inflow figures in the coming days on investor “FOMO,” or Fear Of Missing Out on a trade. “$IBIT traded $3.3b today, biggest number in 6mo, which is a bit odd bc btc was up 4% (typically ETF volume spikes in a downturn/crisis),” Balchunas said on X. “Occasionally tho volume can spike if there a FOMO-ing frenzy (a la $ARKK in 2020). Given the surge in price past few days, my guess is this is latter, which means look for (more) big inflows this week.” High inflows into an ETF is a measure of investor confidence or interest in the underlying asset. While inflows may not directly cause the ETF's underlying assets to increase in value, the buying pressure can lead to a price bump in the near term due to supply and demand dynamics and increased sentiment among traders. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/30/bitcoin-etfs-record-870m-inflows-as-btc-flirts-with-lifetime-highs/

2024-10-29 19:29

The largest crypto has extended its year-to-date gain to nearly 75% and has more than doubled from year-ago levels. Bitcoin on Tuesday pushed as high as $73,500, only about $300 below its all-time high set more than seven months ago. The world's largest crypto is now up nearly 75% year-to-date and has more than doubled from year-ago levels. The roaring success of the spot ETFs, new monetary easing cycles across major economies, and rising victory odds for crypto-friendly presidential candidate Donald Trump are among the positive catalysts. Bitcoin (BTC) surged to within a few dollars of a fresh all-time high price during U.S. trading hours Tuesday, rising to as much as $73,500 before pulling back a bit. The record high of $73,798 was touched on March 14 of this year. At press time, the world's largest crypto was trading at $73,000, up 4.6% over the past 24 hours, roughly in line with the performance of the broader CoinDesk 20 Index. Bitcoin has been in a consolidation phase for multiple grueling months since its March 14 peak , dropping to as low as just under $50,000 at one point over the summer, but mainly sitting in roughly the $60,000-$65,000 range. The action tested investors' patience and left many concerned that the bull market cycle begun in early 2023 had already topped out. Multiple attempts for new highs were met with heavy selling from bitcoin miners and long-term investors, while breakdowns were quickly arrested and bought up. The recent gain has brought bitcoin's year-to-date advance to just shy of 75%. The price has also more than doubled from its level of one year ago, when a rally began to get underway as it became understood that U.S. regulators had finally moved towards greenlighting spot-based ETFs. That approval ultimately came on Jan. 10 of this year. Those ETFs became wild successes, with BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) alone having taken in nearly $24 billion as of last week. Among other catalysts for the rally are new monetary easing cycles begun in 2024 from nearly every major Western central bank as well as sizable fiscal and monetary stimulus from China, and the rising presidential election victory chances for the crypto-friendly GOP nominee Donald Trump. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/29/bitcoin-tops-735k-climbing-just-shy-of-new-record-high/

2024-10-29 18:28

An X account posted that on Oct. 24 a partner at DWF drugged her at a bar — and was caught on camera doing it DWF Labs, a crypto trading firm, said it fired one of its partners following social media allegations that one of its employees had spiked a woman's drink at a Hong Kong bar. In a press release, the company said it dismissed a partner from "management and operational roles effective immediately" and called the allegations "deeply concerning." The company, which said it's investigating the matter, did not name the partner. A representative for DWF referred CoinDesk to the press release. "From day one, our team has been built on transparency and upholding the highest ethical standards. We do not condone actions that go against our core values of integrity, respect, and accountability," the press release said. Earlier Tuesday, X account @hananotsorry posted that on Oct. 24 a partner at DWF drugged her at a bar — and was caught on camera doing it. The post did not name the person but said police had been contacted. https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/10/29/dwf-labs-fires-a-partner-after-drink-spiking-allegations/