In the past week, three newly created wallets withdrew over $150 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) from Binance and Kraken, as reported by blockchain tracker Lookonchain. The first whale withdrew 35,860 ETH worth more than $64 million from Binance across a series of transactions, while the second pulled out 27,000 Ethereum worth more than $48 million from Binance across four withdrawals. The third wallet withdrew 23,660 ETH worth more than $42 million from Kraken across five transactions. The withdrawals could possibly be reflective of traders choosing to self-custody their crypto amidst the recent regulatory crackdown on the digital asset sector in the United States. Earlier this month, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance, the largest global crypto exchange by trading volume, and the company’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, for allegedly violating securities laws. A day later, the SEC also sued Coinbase, alleging the top US crypto exchange had operated as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. It is possible that some traders are withdrawing their cryptocurrency from centralized exchanges and opting to hold it in their own wallets in order to avoid regulatory scrutiny. Despite regulatory uncertainty, some select traders continue to profit in the digital asset marketplace. Lookonchain notes that one “smart whale” has netted more than $6 million trading Lido Staked Ether (stETH) in the past three months. This trader bought 27,606 stETH at $1,629 from March 13 to March 15, sold 12,746 stETH at $1,937 on April 21, bought 15,701 stETH at $1,671 on June 15, and sold 15,125 stETH at $1,724 on June 19. As of writing, Ethereum is trading at $1,787, up nearly 3% in the past 24 hours. Source: The DALY HODL

Deribit, the world’s largest cryptocurrency Options exchange, has announced that investors are showing increased interest in bitcoin Futures and Options contracts that expire two months after the fourth mining reward halving event, which is expected to take place in April 2024. The reduction in the pace of supply expansion by 50% every four years, which is a programmed code of Bitcoin, is known to significantly impact the cryptocurrency’s price. As such, preparations for the halving have already begun, with many investors seeking to participate in the market through Futures and Options contracts. In response to user demand, the Panama-based exchange has decided to launch the June 2024 expiry Futures and Options contracts a week earlier than originally planned, on Thursday at 08:00 UTC. “Normally, Deribit would introduce the June 2024 Options and Futures next week at the June 2023 quarterly expiry. However, with the halving expected in April, clients have requested us to list them earlier to facilitate the trading of these contracts ahead of the regular listing date,” said Deribit’s Chief Commercial Officer Luuk Strijers. Derivatives desks and dealers benefit from trading on exchanges, as it reduces their overall capital requirements and allows them to hedge their exposure relating to bilateral and over-the-counter positions. Futures are financial derivative contracts that obligate parties to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined future date and price. Options are derivative contracts that give the purchaser the right but not the obligation to purchase the underlying asset at a predetermined price on or before a specific date. A call option gives the right to buy, while the put confers the right to sell. Futures work as a hedge against future market volatility, while options are mainly used to hedge or reduce the portfolio’s risk exposure. Sophisticated traders often buy Options or Futures to take a leveraged bullish or bearish bet on the underlying asset at a lower cost. As per historical trends, Bitcoin has rallied in the months leading up to supply-altering events and seen price pullbacks following the event. Source: CoinDesk

Digital assets manager CoinShares has revealed that institutional investors are turning their attention to altcoins such as XRP, Cardano (ADA), and Polygon (MATIC) as crypto markets continue to experience outflows for the ninth consecutive week. According to CoinShares’ latest Digital Asset Fund Flows Weekly Report, institutional investors sold off $5.1 million in crypto holdings last week, which is significantly less than the previous eight weeks. While minor inflows were observed following news of a Bitcoin ETP application by one of the world’s largest asset managers, they weren’t enough to offset the outflows, resulting in a total of $423 million.  Bitcoin, Ethereum, multi-asset investment vehicles, and Tron were among the assets sold off by institutional investors. However, following recent declines in altcoin prices, investors added to their positions, with inflows totaling $2.4 million. XRP, Cardano, and Polygon were the focus of these inflows, seeing $1 million, $0.6 million, and $0.2 million inflows, respectively. The report suggests that the crash in Altcoin prices from the prior week prompted investors to take advantage of the dip and invest in these alternative cryptocurrencies. Altcoins have been hit hard in recent weeks as regulatory pressure and environmental concerns surrounding Bitcoin’s energy consumption have led to increased volatility in the crypto markets. Despite the outflows, the report notes that digital asset investment products continue to see strong inflows this year, totaling $5.3 billion. This figure is still significantly lower than the $6.7 billion seen during the same period last year but represents a strong recovery from the significant outflows experienced earlier this year.  The report also notes that the total assets under management (AUM) for digital asset investment products hit a record high of $76.1 billion last week, up from $69.9 billion the previous week. This increase in AUM suggests that institutional investors remain bullish on the long-term prospects of the crypto market, despite the recent price volatility. Source: The Daily HODL

Bitcoin‘s market dominance, which measures the proportion of the total cryptocurrency market cap attributed to Bitcoin, has exceeded 50% for the first time in two years. This surge in market dominance is largely due to investors turning to Bitcoin as a safe haven amidst regulatory scrutiny of the crypto industry in the United States and the recent FTX crisis. The measure has grown by over 10.5% since November 2022, when it stood at just under 40%, representing a significant increase in demand for Bitcoin as investors seek a stable asset in uncertain times. As of June 19 at 6 pm UTC, Bitcoin’s dominance hit just above 50% and has since settled to 49.9% at the time of publication, according to data from TradingView. This means that Bitcoin alone accounts for half of the total $1.1 trillion dollar market capitalization of the entire crypto market. Bitcoin’s current market capitalization stands at $519 billion, according to data from Coingecko. It is worth noting that while Bitcoin’s dominance has increased significantly over the past eight months, Ether’s market dominance has been holding steady around the 20% mark for the better part of a year. MicroStrategy co-founder and outspoken Bitcoin enthusiast Michael Saylor believes that Bitcoin’s market dominance will continue to grow, eventually topping 80% in the coming years. He attributes this forecast to increasing regulatory pressure from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) causing Stablecoins and other crypto assets to “go away.” Saylor believes that regulatory clarity will drive Bitcoin adoption by eliminating the confusion and anxiety holding back institutional investors and that the crypto industry will rationalize around Bitcoin as it goes mainstream. Saylor also blamed the lack of any “mega institutional money” entering the crypto space on the “confusion and anxiety” brought about by the 25,000 other cryptocurrencies that have positioned themselves as alternatives to Bitcoin. He believes the entire industry is destined to be rationalized down to a Bitcoin-focused industry, with maybe half a dozen to a dozen other Proof of Work tokens. Investment firm Blackrock’s filing for a Bitcoin spot ETF is also believed to have contributed to the recent upward price action of Bitcoin. The value of Bitcoin has grown more than 3% over the course of the last week despite “fear” in the crypto market reaching its highest point in three months. Crypto research firm Santiment also points to Blackrock’s filing as one of the major drivers of Bitcoin’s recent price action.  Source: Cointelegraph

The latest figures indicate that the Bitcoin blockchain has recorded over 12.49 million Ordinal inscriptions as of June 18, 2023. This sustained trend has resulted in substantial gains for Bitcoin miners, who have earned a total of 1,732 BTC, equivalent to $46 million using current exchange rates, from these inscriptions. These earnings were accumulated from various types of transactions confirmed by Bitcoin miners, including traditional financial transfers and the inscriptions above. Despite this positive news for Bitcoin miners, the BRC20 economy has suffered a significant decline in value due to Bitcoin’s recent price drop. As of June 18, BRC20 tokens had a market valuation of $141.97 million, with a trading volume of approximately $25.51 million within the past 24 hours. This is a notable drop in value from its previous valuation of nearly half a billion dollars. Several top BRC20 tokens have been affected by the decline, such as ORDI and PEPE, which have seen their values drop from $11.36 to $6.263 and $0.20 to $0.050 per token, respectively, in just two weeks. Despite the decline in the BRC20 market valuation, the number of BRC20 tokens has grown by over 38% since June 3. Marketplaces such as Magic Eden, Okx, Ordinals Market, Ordswap, Ordinals Wallet, Open Ordex, Gamma, and Unisat continue to witness active trading of BRC20 and Ordinal inscriptions. This growth in the number of BRC20 tokens is in contrast to the decline in the value of these tokens, indicating that there may still be significant interest in trading them. Regarding the Ordinal inscriptions themselves, the majority of them are plain text, accounting for 90.7% of all inscriptions. The remaining portion comprises various file formats such as JPEGs, PNGs, SVGs, GIFs, video files, software files, and applications. Out of the overall inscriptions, a significant 11,259,647 are composed solely of plain text. In terms of Bitcoin-based non-fungible tokens (NFTs), sales have decreased by more than 22% in the past week, totaling $21.49 million in sales, according to data from cryptoslam.io. The second highest-priced NFT sold during this period was a Bitcoin-based “uncategorized Ordinal,” which fetched $3.52 million. This decrease in NFT sales may be related to the recent downturn in the crypto market, which has affected the value of several cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and BRC20 tokens. Source: Bitcoin.com

The cryptocurrency market has been experiencing a bearish trend lately as the total market capitalization fell to $1.02 trillion on June 15, its lowest level in three months. This is due to regulatory uncertainty and lack of transparency on stablecoins, with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, XRP, and Ether experiencing losses while others like BNB saw small gains. The regulatory environment is also worsening globally, with exchanges such as Bakkt delisting certain cryptocurrencies due to recent regulatory developments in the United States, and Binance facing legal and regulatory challenges in France and the Netherlands. Despite this, two derivatives metrics show balanced demand for BTC and ETH leverage, indicating that bulls are not yet giving up. Perpetual futures contracts have a neutral seven-day funding rate for BTC and ETH, indicating balanced demand from leveraged longs (buyers) and shorts (sellers). However, BNB was the only exception, with traders paying up to 1% per week for short bets due to added risks after regulatory scrutiny over the Binance exchange. The Tether premium is also a good gauge of China-based crypto retail trader demand, and it measures the difference between China-based peer-to-peer trades and the United States dollar. The Tether premium in Asian markets fell to 99.2% after being flat since June 6, indicating moderate discomfort. Reports on June 16 regarding Tether reserves’ exposure to Chinese debt markets could have been the cause. Despite the most recent bounce from the support level, any gains above $1.12 trillion in capitalization (up 10% from the $1.02 trillion low) will likely be short-lived over the next few months. Consequently, bears are yet to prove their strength if they intend to push crypto below the $1 trillion mark. Bulls are hoping for a Bitcoin ETF approval or a Federal Reserve rate cut to trigger a potential bull market, with the Bitcoin halving still over 300 days away. Source: Cryptopanic

BlackRock’s recent filing for a Bitcoin trust has received mixed responses from the cryptocurrency industry. While some observers believe it will boost investors’ confidence in Bitcoin and even be “the best thing that could happen” to BTC, others warn of a hidden cost and potential negative consequences. Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz hailed the ETF application as a positive move, stating it would be “the best thing that could happen to $BTC.” He expressed hope that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, would successfully pull off a Bitcoin ETF. Cryptocurrency analyst James Edwards of Finder.com also sees the timing of BlackRock’s filing as a sign of confidence in Bitcoin’s status as a commodity, rather than a security. He believes that BlackRock’s willingness to press on with a Bitcoin ETF during a time when the SEC is cracking down on crypto shows their confidence in Bitcoin’s future legal status. Edwards also notes that BlackRock intends to use Coinbase Custody to control funds, which should be seen as a massive confidence booster for Coinbase as it prepares its legal defense. He explains that BlackRock likely wouldn’t partner with Coinbase had they not been “confident” in Coinbase’s legal position. However, some critics argue that such approval would undermine the ethos of decentralized cryptocurrencies. Investor Scott Melker argues that it would be a disservice to crypto-native innovators who built the industry. He states that while it may be good for institutional adoption, it violates the ethos and is a push away from the people who built the industry in the United States. Cinneamhain Ventures partner and Ethereum bull Adam Cochran believes that BlackRock will swoop in on the “discounted coins” of retail investors, a theory also shared by Melker.  Steven Lubka, a managing director at Swan Bitcoin, shares a similar view, predicting that BTC will reach $1 million, but few retail investors would reap the rewards because the bulk of BTC will be owned by BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and other ETF issuers. Melker adds that Wall Street firms will continue to move into the space and that U.S. regulators will likely “choose them” over incumbent platforms. Meanwhile, other investment firms, including ARK Invest, Grayscale, Fidelity, Galaxy Digital, VanEck, Valkyrie Investments, NYDIG, SkyBridge, and WisdomTree, have also applied for similar Bitcoin and cryptocurrency ETFs. Since the news was first reported, the price of BTC has increased 2.2% to $25,584 at the time of writing. Interestingly, the Fear & Greed Crypto Index increased from 41 to 47, leaving the fear zone, following the news of BlackRock’s filing. Source: Cointegraph

On Wednesday, Bitcoin and several major altcoins saw a significant decline in value following the US central bank’s decision to pause interest rate hikes. Bitcoin fell below $25,000, marking its lowest level since mid-March, while Ether, ADA, SOL, and Matic all experienced notable drops in value. Ether fell over 3% to $1,650, hitting a three-month low, while ADA plunged more than 5%, and SOL and Matic each dropped over 4%. Investors‘ skittishness can be attributed to several factors, including the SEC’s lawsuits against Binance and Coinbase, uncertainty regarding Fed monetary policy signals, and other macroeconomic concerns. Despite this, some analysts remain bullish. A price pattern called “throwback” has emerged on Bitcoin’s daily chart, which could signal a potential rally towards $37,000, according to Valkyrie Investments. A throwback is a price drop to a former breakout level or resistance-turned-support, which is typically followed by a surge in prices. Markus Levin, the co-founder of XYO Network, is optimistic about the global macro setup, stating that Bitcoin and other digital assets have “likely already hit the bottom.” He expects sideways action in the coming months, with bouts of volatility before a potential surge after the BTC halving kicks in next year. Levin believes that the global macro setup is shifting significantly, with the rate-hike pause being the clearest indication of this shift. He notes that inflation is falling fast, and global central banks are injecting liquidity to stimulate their economies. The focus is now on growth and whether there will be a broad-based and deep recession. Overall, while the markets have experienced a decline in value, some analysts remain optimistic about the future of digital assets and believe that a potential rally may occur in the coming months. Source: Coindesk

During the BTC Prague 2023 conference, Jan3 CEO Samson Mow suggested that the Bitcoin market is much larger than what is tracked by exchanges like Binance and Coinbase. In an interview with Cointelegraph, Mow argued that the total Bitcoin market is not limited to these exchanges, as a lot of trades are block trades conducted through private trading channels such as peer-to-peer (P2P) or over-the-counter (OTC) deals. This makes it difficult to quantify how much of the market Bitcoin represents. Mow’s comments highlight the fact that the Bitcoin market is more extensive than what is recorded by major crypto tracking websites like CoinGecko, which only tracks trades happening on crypto exchanges and does not track trades happening on P2P platforms and brokerages. P2P platforms include places like Binance P2P, Huobi P2P, Paxful, and Remitano, among others, and CoinGecko has no plans to track such platforms in the near future. Apart from P2P, CoinGecko also doesn’t record institutional trades on OTC, which means that Bitcoin’s daily trading volume is likely much larger than the $9.6 billion recorded at the time of writing. Mow’s remarks imply that cryptocurrency exchanges such as Binance and Coinbase might not dominate the Bitcoin market as much as some people think. This is not the first time that concerns have been raised about the dominance of certain exchanges in the cryptocurrency market. In January 2023, Norwegian crypto research firm K33 Research (formerly Arcane Research) stated that Binance handled 92% of the Bitcoin spot market in 2022. However, Mow’s comments suggest that Bitcoin’s market is much more significant than what is recorded by exchanges and tracking websites. Private trading channels like P2P and OTC deals play a crucial role in Bitcoin trading and are likely to continue to do so in the future. Source: Cointelegraph

US Congressman Brad Sherman recently expressed his hope for the end of cryptocurrencies in a CNBC interview. Sherman, who is well-known for his anti-crypto stance, took issue with the idea that cryptocurrencies could benefit the economy or consumers. He argued that their primary use was to evade the U.S. government and sanctions.  Sherman’s comments come on the heels of recent regulatory actions taken by the SEC against major cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Coinbase, which have led to increased scrutiny of the cryptocurrency market. When asked if the ongoing crackdown signaled the end of cryptocurrencies in America, Sherman replied, “I hope so, don’t think so.” He also dismissed the claimed advantages of cryptocurrencies for everyday users, stating that they did not make it easier or cheaper to buy a sandwich at Subway. He argued that if you have crypto, you have to change it into money, transfer it to your debit card, and then buy a sandwich, which is more cumbersome than simply using a debit or credit card. While Sherman expressed skepticism at the high valuation of certain cryptocurrencies, arguing that there was “no logical reason why Bitcoin is more valuable than Hamster Coin or Cone Tribe Coin,” he did stop short of calling for complete regulatory extinction. Instead, he suggested that the market might self-regulate. Sherman’s comments are likely to ruffle the feathers of cryptocurrency enthusiasts who believe in the transformative potential of digital currencies. However, they also reflect ongoing concerns about the use of cryptocurrencies for illicit purposes and the need for increased regulation in the space. Source: Cryptopanic