2024-10-24 08:42

Dominance refers to the ratio between the market capitalization of BTC to the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies combined and is often used as a gauge for market sentiment. PLUS: Some Solana tokens are up as much as 70%. While bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies showed minimal movement, Solana's SOL token surged by 5% to $173, leading the market gains with a 14% increase over the week. Bitcoin's market dominance reached over 57%, the highest since April 2021, indicating a market preference for Bitcoin's stability over altcoins. Although one trader holds a bearish view. The Solana network experienced increased activity with AI-themed memecoins driving trading narratives, leading to record-high token issuances and revenue through platforms like Pump. Solana’s SOL and ecosystem memecoins, such as popcat (POPCAT), led crypto market gains on Thursday, with bitcoin (BTC) and majors mostly flat. A bitcoin trader believes the rising dominance rate for suggests short-term bearishness. BTC added under 1% in the past 24 hours, with majors ether (ETH), BNB Chain (BNB), xrp (XRP) and dogecoin (DOGE) showing mixed price action. The broad-based CoinDesk 20 (CD20), a liquid index tracking the largest tokens by market capitalization, rose 0.43%. Last week, a widely tracked bitcoin dominance indicator reached over 57% on CoinMarketCap, to its highest level since April 2021. Dominance refers to the ratio between the market capitalization of BTC to the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies combined and is often used as a gauge for market sentiment. High dominance might indicate that bitcoin is leading the market, which can be seen when investors prefer the relative stability and established nature of bitcoin over the higher risk associated with altcoins. Conversely, a decrease in bitcoin's dominance might suggest that investors are moving their capital into altcoins, potentially signaling the start of an “altcoin season.” “Ethereum continues to lose market share to bitcoin and other altcoins. As a result, BTC’s share of all cryptocurrency capitalization has risen to 57.3%, the highest since April 2021,” Alex Kuptsikevich, senior market analyst at FxPro told CoinDesk in an email. “But that doesn’t necessarily mean an upward trend for the top cryptocurrency, which has pulled back below $67K, losing 1% in the last day and nearly 4% from its peak on 21 October. “The price is now close to a local support level at $66.8K. A break of this support will open the way for a deeper correction to $65.5K, near the 61.8% retracement level from the last rally and the late September top,” Kuptsikevich warned. SOL leads market SOL jumped 5% to $173 in the past 24 hours, extending weekly gains to 14% as it reached price levels last seen in early August. SOL set a record high against ether, as reported, while, network-based memecoins POPCAT, BONK and GOAT rose as much as 70% amid a bump in network volumes and trading activity. The Solana ecosystem is a flourishing hotbed for trading activity for its engaged community and prevalence of small-cap trading - where frenzied memecoins trend often last a few weeks that boosts SOL prices. Artificial intelligence-themed memecoins are the current flavor of the week, where projects claiming to have AI tools are driving trading narratives on the network. That pushed revenues and token issuances on the Solana token deployer Pump to record highs earlier this week. Active addresses grew to 85,000, of which 37,000 were new wallets, indicative of strong demand. A Pump-connected fee account sold over $6 million worth of SOL late Monday, taking its lifetime sales to over $78 million or 500,000 SOL. Over 40,000 new tokens were created on Solana in the past 24 hours, SolanaFloor data shows. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/24/bitcoin-trader-warns-of-correction-as-btc-dominance-reaches-2021-levels-solana-leads-market-gains/

2024-10-24 07:49

The strategy will profit most if BTC rises to $80,000 by the end of November. The institution set up a multi-legged strategy in Derive's onchain options market, generating $25 million in volume. The strategy will make the most profit if BTC rises to $80,000 by the end of November. As the U.S. election nears, increased betting and hedging tied to the political event, is powering notable increases in trading volumes in the crypto market. The election will have far-reaching consequences for the crypto regulatory space in the world's largest economy. Early this week, the decentralized derivatives exchange Derive saw an institution take a multi-legged bitcoin (BTC) options strategy, betting on a continued move higher in BTC after the Nov. 5 election. The trade generated a notional trading volume of $25 million, the largest ever onchain options transaction bet tied to the U.S. election, Derive told CoinDesk in an email. The institution acquired 100 call option contracts with a $70,000 strike price set to expire on Nov. 29 while simultaneously writing or selling 200 contracts of the $80,000 call and 100 contracts of the $50,000 put, both expiring on Nov. 29. The institution deposited eBTC, restaked bitcoin created via EtherFi, as collateral, ensuring it earns passive yields on the same. The strategy, which looks like a ratio call spread funded by a short put position, will profit most if bitcoin rallies to $80,000 by Nov. 29. The positioning is consistent with options flows on centralized exchanges, which indicate expectations for a post-election rally to $80,000 and higher. "This $25 million options trade marks a watershed moment for onchain options trading, and it's one that could have significant implications post-election. The institution has strategically positioned a unique structure with sold puts, bought calls, and eBTC collateral, potentially standing to make $1,020,000 on the structure if BTC hits $80,000 by November 29 – excluding any gains from the eBTC collateral," Nick Forster, co-founder of Derive told CoinDesk in an email. "The trade is a prime example of how onchain options offer scalable, non-correlated yield for any onchain asset," Forster added. Derive is the largest onchain options platform, accounting for 32% of the total DEX options volume of $339 million in the past 24 hours, according to DeFiLlama. The onchain market, however, is still relatively small compared to Deribit and other centralized platforms, which boast a cumulative 24-hour volume of several billion dollars. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/24/institution-takes-25m-hedge-bet-on-derives-bitcoin-options-market-as-us-election-looms/

2024-10-24 05:49

Beige Book bolsters hope for quarter-point Fed rate cuts in November and December. Beige Book bolsters hope for quarter-point Fed rate cuts in November and December. The rally in the DXY stalled after the Beige Book report, paving the way for BTC recovery. Bitcoin (BTC) is back above $67,000 as the Federal Reserve's (Fed) latest Beige Book survey of economic conditions across the U.S. released Wednesday portrayed a subdued outlook, bolstering the case for further rate reductions in the coming months. The latest edition had nine out of 12 regional banks reporting stagnant or slightly weak economic activity since early September. Most districts witnessed a decline in manufacturing activity, with some signs of moderation in consumer demand. Inflation or cost of living continued to moderate as selling prices increased slightly or modestly in most districts. Employment increased somewhat, but hiring focused primarily on replacement rather than growth. Meanwhile, multiple Districts pointed to slower wage increases. On balance, the sluggish outlook contradicts the hotter-than-expected September jobs report and opens door for further rate cuts by the Fed. Bitcoin has recovered from the overnight lows under $65,200 to trade 1% higher on the day at $67,300 at press time, and the dollar index (DXY) rally has stalled. The index has pulled back to 104.30 from the overnight high of 104.57, according to data source TradingView. "Those [Beige book] comments got the markets' attention and helped to solidify the belief that another 25 bps cut is coming in November and a high chance of one in December. The turn in the dollar was across the board afterward," ForexLive noted in the blog post. Several Fed officials, including chairman Jerome Powell, cited the dour Beige Book outlook as one of their reasons for cutting the benchmark borrowing cost by 50 basis points to the 4.75%-5% range in September. Markets were quick to price an additional 75 basis points of easing by the year's end. Those hopes, however, were dented by the upbeat September jobs data and the hotter-than-expected September inflation report. 8:10 UTC: Corrects the overnight low to $65,200. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/24/bitcoin-retakes-67k-dollar-index-rally-stalls-as-beige-book-supports-fed-rate-cuts/

2024-10-23 21:37

The chief of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, recounted his own brush with the U.S. government's pressure on banks to be wary of digital assets, saying Citi dumped him. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has personally been severed from a longtime banking relationship because he's a prominent figure in crypto, he told an audience in Washington on Wednesday. "Individuals within the crypto industry are being de-banked," he said at DC Fintech Week. "I personally have been de-banked." Garlinghouse tied his own experience to the wider trend in the U.S. industry that's struggled to maintain banking ties as regulators have cautioned institutions to limit their crypto involvement. He later added in an interview with CoinDesk that the institution that cut him off recently was Citigroup Inc., with which he'd been a customer for about 25 years, he said. And he added that it's not the only personal banking relationship he's lost because of his role in crypto. "They said, 'You have five days to move your money," he said. "They were actually super honest. They're like, 'Look, you are a notable person in crypto, and having notable people in crypto, and banking the crypto industry means more scrutiny from federal regulators." The CEO was highly critical of President Joe Biden's administration in Washington, saying Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler has led a "reign of terror," and accusing the U.S. Treasury Department and banking regulator Office of the Comptroller of the Currency of being "hostile" to the industry. He said that whichever way the U.S. presidential elections go next month, the future for crypto policy will be better. "No matter what happens, we're going to see a reset," he said. He also said that an exchange-traded fund (ETF) pegged to the price of XRP was "inevitable" during his remarks. Garlinghouse and Ripple have been among the chief backers of the Fairshake political action committee, the pro-crypto group that has been among the dominant campaign-finance forces in the 2024 elections. Apart from personally supporting the political opponent of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), he isn't endorsing either major U.S. political party and said he was wearing a purple tie on Wednesday for a reason. The primary indicator of the next administration's crypto stance will be who the president appoints at agencies such as the SEC, Treasury, OCC and Commodity Futures Trading Commission. "It'll be telling as to what the direction of travel is for the next four years," Garlinghouse said. "No matter what, we're going to end up in a better place." "When we look back on this period of time in the United States as it relates to crypto, it's going to look like a speed bump," he said. Still, when asked what advice he'd give to a crypto startup right now, he said they should incorporate outside the U.S. "I hate saying that," he said. "I'll be honest: I grew up in Kansas. I'm a pro-U.S. guy." But he said there's too much uncertainty about protecting a company from being sued by regulators in the U.S., as Ripple was by the SEC. A Citi spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment. Read More: Ripple Co-Founder Larsen Flooding Kamala Harris' Election Effort With XRP https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/10/23/citibank-debanked-ripples-brad-garlinghouse-due-to-crypto-exec-says/

2024-10-23 20:03

The traders appeared to have made a quick profit, selling quickly after the price jump. RUSSELL, a meme coin, briefly rallied Wednesday after the AI bot Truth Terminal tweeted the word in response to a post from Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong (whose dog is named Russell). The bot did this after someone spammed it with the word "Russell," leading some observers to conclude the action was the work of traders who amassed a large RUSSELL position and then sold after a quick pop in the price. Andy Ayrey, the operator of Truth Terminal, took to X to confirm suspicions that the word "Russell" was spammed in Truth Terminal's mentions, pushing the AI bot to pick up and use the term. https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/10/23/crypto-traders-apparently-spam-truth-terminal-into-pumping-coin-associated-with-brian-armstrongs-dog/

2024-10-23 19:53

Cryptocurrencies weren't spared as stocks, bonds, gold and oil all declined on Wednesday. Cryptocurrencies fell today alongside the broader stock market. Among major tokens, ether fared particularly poorly, falling 5%. SOL/ETH notched a new all-time high, while ETH/BTC made new lows. Cryptocurrencies bled lower on Wednesday alongside a slide in traditional markets across the board. The CoinDesk 20 – an index of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, excluding stablecoins and exchange coins – was down 2.6% in the last 24 hours, with Chainlink (LINK) the worst performing, slumping 7.6%. The only project to buck the downtrend was Internet Computer (ICP), which rose 1% Bitcoin (BTC) dipped 2.3% to $66,000, while ether (ETH) tumbled 5.3%, taking its price back under $2,490. Solana (SOL), meanwhile, showed further strength today – at press time, the coin was flat at $169. ETH not only made new lows against BTC – the ETH/BTC ratio went below 0.038 for the first time since April 2021 – but also against SOL. The SOL/ETH trading pair notched a decisive new all-time high by rising 6.3% to 0.068 amid renewed debate in the crypto community about the wisdom behind Ethereum’s roadmap. “Much of the poor sentiment and questions around Ethereum's roadmap is due to recent underperformance versus BTC and SOL,” Brian Rudick, director of research at crypto trading firm GSR, posted on X. “However, this is a poor comparison as BTC and SOL were subject to two large idiosyncratic events,” Rudick wrote, namely, the immense success of the spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds, and the impact of the FTX collapse – and Solana’s resurgence from the ashes – on investor perception. “Measuring from crypto's ATH market cap in Nov 2021 to remove [the FTX collapse] shows ETH and SOL have had [about] the same performance,” Rudick added. The looming U.S. election, only two weeks away, didn't appear to offer any assistance either. Even with crypto-friendly Donald Trump in the lead (based on betting markets), and Vice President Kamala Harris appearing less adversarial towards crypto than the current administration, markets will have difficulty “breaking upwards before election day,” Joe Edwards, head of research at digital assets broker Enigma Securities, wrote in a research report. Broader market uncertainty The bleeding out Wednesday wasn’t contained to crypto. The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow Jones were each lower by more than 1% shortly before the end of the session as price consolidated following strong runs higher for all over the past couple of months. The bond market was also lower, with the 10-year Treasury yield rising to a three-month high of 4.25%. Making record highs on seemingly a daily basis of late, gold also pulled back, slipping 1.1% to $2,730 per ounce. The price of oil fell 1.35% to $70.77 per barrel. “Don’t worry folks Tesla will save the market when they report earnings,” Ram Ahluwalia, CEO of crypto investment advisor Lumida Wealth, posted on X. “Overall, I’d say we are closer to the end of this move of pricing in higher for longer… November is looking very good in my view.” Tesla is due to report its quarterly results after this afternoon's market close. Crypto equities felt the brunt of the pullback. Bitcoin miners fared the worst, with MARA Holdings (MARA) and CleanSpark (CLSK) each lower by about 5%. Coinbase (COIN) slumped 6% and MicroStrategy (MSTR) slipped 2.5%. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/10/23/bitcoin-slides-to-66k-ether-dives-5-in-market-wide-selloff/