Bitcoin - Page 37

U.S. regulators announced that they require additional time to decide whether an exchange-traded fund (ETF) designed as a comprehensive crypto portfolio can be listed on Nasdaq’s electronic securities exchange, according to an August 9 regulatory filing.

This filing responded to Nasdaq’s June request for permission to list the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index ETF on its electronic exchange.

If approved, the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index ETF would become the first diversified spot crypto ETF in the U.S. market. It would also be the first U.S. ETF to include alternative cryptocurrencies, or “altcoins.”

The ETF aims to track the Nasdaq Crypto US Index (NCIUS), which includes a diverse portfolio of cryptocurrencies weighted by market capitalization. According to the ETF’s registration filing, the holdings include core digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) as well as altcoins like Chainlink (LINK) and Uniswap (UNI). Notably, approximately 95% of the index is comprised of ETH and BTC.

Before this ETF can be traded, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must approve its registration application, known as an S-1, and allow at least one public equities exchange, such as Nasdaq, to list the product.

On August 6, Nasdaq submitted a similar filing to U.S. regulators, requesting permission to list options on Ethereum (ETH) ETFs. To date, the SEC has not permitted any exchanges to list options on spot BTC or ETH ETFs.

If approved, Nasdaq’s request would enable options trading exclusively for BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), the only ETH ETF listed on Nasdaq’s electronic exchange. Other ETH ETFs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange’s (NYSE) Arca or Cboe.

In July, the SEC informed several options exchanges, including Nasdaq ISE, that more time was needed to make a decision on their requests to list options on spot BTC ETFs.

Bitcoin and Ether ETFs were first introduced in the U.S. in January and July, respectively, and now manage approximately $65 billion in assets, according to Yahoo Finance.

At the Aug. 7 Wall Street open, Bitcoin (BTC) hovered around $56,000, raising concerns over a lack of support.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC’s price rebound stalling, with BTC/USD remaining flat compared to the daily open. Despite being up by around $7,000 from the six-month lows on Aug. 5, market observers remained worried amid uncertainty.

Analyzing exchange order book conditions, trading resource Material Indicators suggested that Bitcoin’s price direction could go either way based on current buy and sell liquidity. “The amount of BTC ask liquidity between here and the CME Gap fill is significant, but not insurmountable,” it noted in a post on X. “The concern is that there aren’t any large buy walls in the active trading range to create a foundation for a stronger move up. Let’s see if that changes after TradFi opens and the CME Gap is open for business.”

The “gap” in CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market, potentially acting as a price magnet, was identified between $57,845 and $58,845.

Material Indicators co-founder Keith Alan warned about two potential death crosses involving various moving averages but mentioned that the downside they suggest could be mitigated. “Trend Precognition and the MACD are both signaling a momentum shift on the Bitcoin Daily chart. The bullishness of those signals is somewhat dampened by the death cross between the 21-Day and 100-Day MAs. It appears that the 50-Day and the 200-Day are also on a similar path,” he explained on X, referencing proprietary trading indicators.

“It’s worth noting that Death Crosses are lagging indicators. A fast recovery could unwind them, and if BTC bulls can manage to fill the CME Gap today and continue upward, that would be a sign of strength. Failure to fill the gap or a rejection from the top of the gap would be a concern for bulls.”

The macroeconomic situation also remained volatile, with traders adopting a “wait and see” approach. In its latest bulletin to Telegram subscribers, trading firm QCP Capital advised monitoring macro correlations closely. “While the initial shock may have passed, we foresee continued selling pressure in the coming days as systematic funds continue to pare exposure in light of the heightened volatility,” it warned. “We recommend keeping a close eye on Nasdaq, Nikkei, and USDJPY as cross-asset correlations remain high in the near term.”

QCP reiterated its earlier view on long-term profitability, suggesting that crypto should now be suitable for longs.

At the Aug. 7 Wall Street open, Bitcoin (BTC) hovered around $56,000, raising concerns over a lack of support.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC’s price rebound stalling, with BTC/USD remaining flat compared to the daily open. Despite being up by around $7,000 from the six-month lows on Aug. 5, market observers remained worried amid uncertainty.

Analyzing exchange order book conditions, trading resource Material Indicators suggested that Bitcoin’s price direction could go either way based on current buy and sell liquidity. “The amount of BTC ask liquidity between here and the CME Gap fill is significant, but not insurmountable,” it noted in a post on X. “The concern is that there aren’t any large buy walls in the active trading range to create a foundation for a stronger move up. Let’s see if that changes after TradFi opens and the CME Gap is open for business.”

The “gap” in CME Group’s Bitcoin futures market, potentially acting as a price magnet, was identified between $57,845 and $58,845.

Material Indicators co-founder Keith Alan warned about two potential death crosses involving various moving averages but mentioned that the downside they suggest could be mitigated. “Trend Precognition and the MACD are both signaling a momentum shift on the Bitcoin Daily chart. The bullishness of those signals is somewhat dampened by the death cross between the 21-Day and 100-Day MAs. It appears that the 50-Day and the 200-Day are also on a similar path,” he explained on X, referencing proprietary trading indicators.

“It’s worth noting that Death Crosses are lagging indicators. A fast recovery could unwind them, and if BTC bulls can manage to fill the CME Gap today and continue upward, that would be a sign of strength. Failure to fill the gap or a rejection from the top of the gap would be a concern for bulls.”

The macroeconomic situation also remained volatile, with traders adopting a “wait and see” approach. In its latest bulletin to Telegram subscribers, trading firm QCP Capital advised monitoring macro correlations closely. “While the initial shock may have passed, we foresee continued selling pressure in the coming days as systematic funds continue to pare exposure in light of the heightened volatility,” it warned. “We recommend keeping a close eye on Nasdaq, Nikkei, and USDJPY as cross-asset correlations remain high in the near term.”

QCP reiterated its earlier view on long-term profitability, suggesting that crypto should now be suitable for longs.

Buying a “strategic reserve” of Bitcoin would be another “Louisiana Purchase moment” for the United States, according to Michael Saylor, the outspoken co-founder of business intelligence company MicroStrategy. Speaking on CNBC on August 6, Saylor endorsed Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis’ proposed BITCOIN Act, which aims to compel the US Treasury to gradually accumulate 1 million BTC, almost 5% of the total supply.

“Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory for $15 million in 1803 and nearly doubled the size of the United States,” Saylor remarked. “Bitcoin is scarce, desirable digital property. It’s a great idea to trade a little bit of currency or paper for someplace that billions of people are gonna want to be in 100 years.”

Saylor’s company, MicroStrategy, owns approximately $8 billion worth of BTC. He has consistently been bullish on Bitcoin and recently predicted that its price could reach approximately $13 million per coin by 2045. This forecast was made during his keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2024 conference on July 26.

The Bitcoin 2024 conference, which Saylor described as “very catalytic and marked an inflection point for Bitcoin,” attracted significant attention from political figures, including US presidential candidates, governors, senators, and house members who voiced their support for the digital asset. “Now, it’s possible to discuss nation-states holding Bitcoin on the balance sheet. And if nation-states are going to buy it, then it’s reasonable for institutions, corporations, and individuals to buy it as well,” Saylor told CNBC.

Saylor has urged investors to become “triple maxi” BTC bulls, advocating for pouring all available resources into BTC with the goal of achieving a nine-figure net worth in the coming decades.

His comments came just one day after the entire crypto market experienced a $510-billion drop in total market capitalization during a market crash. Despite Bitcoin’s approximate 18% price decline, it has shown partial recovery. Notably, long-term investors have remained resilient, with BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) experiencing zero net outflows on August 5, despite the market turbulence.

Bitcoin (BTC) attempted to stabilize at the Wall Street open on August 5 as the crypto markets recovered from a significant sell-off.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed a $4,000 rebound in BTC’s price after the U.S. trading session began, bringing it near $55,000. This recovery followed a dip below $50,000, the first time since February, causing concern among traders who feared further declines as traditional financial markets reopened.

Risk assets experienced relatively mild losses, with the S&P 500 down 3% and the Nasdaq Composite Index 3.7% lower at the time of writing. U.S. markets thus avoided the severe losses seen in Asia, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 suffered its worst two-day combined losses in history.

Mass selling by trading firm Jump Trading was reported to have significantly impacted the crypto market’s sharp reaction. The Kobeissi Letter attributed the market turmoil to the unprofitable Japanese yen carry trade, exacerbating existing market pain. “The solution to this problem is not as simple as it may seem and may require a separate thread,” it explained on X. “This is a vastly different situation than previous market downturns.”

The VIX volatility index reached levels seen only during the 2008 global financial crisis and the March 2020 COVID-19 market crash. Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, noted the similarities to early 2020: “Some eerie similarities to early 2020. Stocks overvalued, growing risk of recession, rising unemployment, sharp correlated global market moves down,” he told X followers.

Edwards suggested that the Federal Reserve would likely intervene with early rate cuts and liquidity measures, but the timing remains uncertain. “At some point, the Fed will step in, likely with early rate cuts and probably liquidity too. But when? Until then, expect ALL markets to correlate.”

An emergency meeting by the Federal Reserve was reportedly under consideration, with varying predictions on the outcome. Jeremy Siegel, a professor at the Wharton School of Business, predicted, “I’m calling for a 75 basis point emergency cut in the Fed funds rate, with another 75 basis point cut indicated for next month at the September meeting – and that’s minimum,” in an interview with CNBC. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting next month is now expected to trigger a 0.5% rate cut, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.

Trading volumes for Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) soared past $1 billion as trading commenced on August 5, driven by plummeting markets that led to “extremely elevated” trading activity in the crypto sector, according to Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Digital. In a post on the X platform, Thorn highlighted that within just 20 minutes, Bitcoin ETFs recorded over $1.3 billion in trading volume, with iShares Bitcoin Trust leading the pack at over $875 million.

Thorn anticipates net inflows for BTC ETFs due to “dip buying” as investors rush to capitalize on an approximate 8% drop in spot BTC prices since August 4. This decline followed a significant downturn in Ether (ETH) prices, which plunged by over 21%. The sharp drop was attributed to substantial sales by funds such as Jump Trading and Paradigm VC, who offloaded hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Ether, as reported by QCP Group on August 5.

Bitcoin prices have fallen around 8% in the past day, according to CoinMarketCap. Related reports indicate that the crypto market crash was triggered by “aggressive” selling by Jump Trading, with analysts noting that Jump has already sold over $377 million in ETH and may plan to liquidate up to $481 million in total.

The overnight sell-off exacerbated a deteriorating macroeconomic environment affecting all asset classes. The S&P 500 index has dropped more than 5% since August 1. The report further stated, “Macro sentiment has also worsened following poor US unemployment data last Friday. Additionally, huge unwinds across all assets [have] caused volatility to spike sharply.”

Japan’s central bank raised interest rates on July 30, prompting traders to rapidly unwind positions that had taken advantage of the country’s low borrowing costs.

Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research, expressed to Cointelegraph his expectation of a slowdown in new crypto investments until the market stabilizes: “The market structure, including fiat-to-crypto on-ramps, has been weak for months […] It’s unlikely that significant players will invest amid high volatility and unpredictable prices. Many still need to exit positions and deleverage their portfolios.”

Bitcoin (BTC) attempted to stabilize at the Wall Street open on August 5 as the crypto markets recovered from a significant sell-off.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed a $4,000 rebound in BTC’s price after the U.S. trading session began, bringing it near $55,000. This recovery followed a dip below $50,000, the first time since February, causing concern among traders who feared further declines as traditional financial markets reopened.

Risk assets experienced relatively mild losses, with the S&P 500 down 3% and the Nasdaq Composite Index 3.7% lower at the time of writing. U.S. markets thus avoided the severe losses seen in Asia, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 suffered its worst two-day combined losses in history.

Mass selling by trading firm Jump Trading was reported to have significantly impacted the crypto market’s sharp reaction. The Kobeissi Letter attributed the market turmoil to the unprofitable Japanese yen carry trade, exacerbating existing market pain. “The solution to this problem is not as simple as it may seem and may require a separate thread,” it explained on X. “This is a vastly different situation than previous market downturns.”

The VIX volatility index reached levels seen only during the 2008 global financial crisis and the March 2020 COVID-19 market crash. Charles Edwards, founder of Capriole Investments, noted the similarities to early 2020: “Some eerie similarities to early 2020. Stocks overvalued, growing risk of recession, rising unemployment, sharp correlated global market moves down,” he told X followers.

Edwards suggested that the Federal Reserve would likely intervene with early rate cuts and liquidity measures, but the timing remains uncertain. “At some point, the Fed will step in, likely with early rate cuts and probably liquidity too. But when? Until then, expect ALL markets to correlate.”

An emergency meeting by the Federal Reserve was reportedly under consideration, with varying predictions on the outcome. Jeremy Siegel, a professor at the Wharton School of Business, predicted, “I’m calling for a 75 basis point emergency cut in the Fed funds rate, with another 75 basis point cut indicated for next month at the September meeting – and that’s minimum,” in an interview with CNBC. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting next month is now expected to trigger a 0.5% rate cut, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.

Trading volumes for Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) soared past $1 billion as trading commenced on August 5, driven by plummeting markets that led to “extremely elevated” trading activity in the crypto sector, according to Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Digital. In a post on the X platform, Thorn highlighted that within just 20 minutes, Bitcoin ETFs recorded over $1.3 billion in trading volume, with iShares Bitcoin Trust leading the pack at over $875 million.

Thorn anticipates net inflows for BTC ETFs due to “dip buying” as investors rush to capitalize on an approximate 8% drop in spot BTC prices since August 4. This decline followed a significant downturn in Ether (ETH) prices, which plunged by over 21%. The sharp drop was attributed to substantial sales by funds such as Jump Trading and Paradigm VC, who offloaded hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Ether, as reported by QCP Group on August 5.

Bitcoin prices have fallen around 8% in the past day, according to CoinMarketCap. Related reports indicate that the crypto market crash was triggered by “aggressive” selling by Jump Trading, with analysts noting that Jump has already sold over $377 million in ETH and may plan to liquidate up to $481 million in total.

The overnight sell-off exacerbated a deteriorating macroeconomic environment affecting all asset classes. The S&P 500 index has dropped more than 5% since August 1. The report further stated, “Macro sentiment has also worsened following poor US unemployment data last Friday. Additionally, huge unwinds across all assets [have] caused volatility to spike sharply.”

Japan’s central bank raised interest rates on July 30, prompting traders to rapidly unwind positions that had taken advantage of the country’s low borrowing costs.

Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research, expressed to Cointelegraph his expectation of a slowdown in new crypto investments until the market stabilizes: “The market structure, including fiat-to-crypto on-ramps, has been weak for months […] It’s unlikely that significant players will invest amid high volatility and unpredictable prices. Many still need to exit positions and deleverage their portfolios.”

Shares of MicroStrategy could see a 30% increase if Bitcoin reaches $150,000 by the end of 2025, according to an Aug. 2 analyst report shared with Cointelegraph. Benchmark fintech analyst Mark Palmer suggests that the stock could climb to $2,150 per share, given that MicroStrategy continues the Bitcoin purchasing spree initiated by founder Michael Saylor in 2020. Currently, the stock trades at approximately $1,450.

“Our valuation assumes that [MicroStrategy] will continue to aggressively accumulate Bitcoin during the next 1.5 years and that Bitcoin’s price will reach $150,000 by the end of 2025,” Palmer told Cointelegraph via email.

On its Aug. 1 earnings call, MicroStrategy reaffirmed its commitment to Bitcoin by introducing a unique performance metric: Bitcoin yield. This metric measures the ratio of BTC holdings to outstanding shares, effectively setting BTC-per-share as a key performance indicator. The goal is to “demonstrate the efficacy of its bitcoin acquisition strategy and its use of intelligent leverage,” Palmer explained.

“While [MicroStrategy’s] approach has had plenty of detractors, […] management has responded to criticism by pointing to the scoreboard: since the company adopted its bitcoin acquisition strategy on August 10, 2020, the company’s stock has appreciated by 1,206%,” the report noted, adding that MicroStrategy has significantly outperformed both Bitcoin and other stocks during this period.

Benchmark’s “buy” rating is “based on a sum-of-the-parts analysis that combines (1) our estimate of the year-end 2025 value of the company’s Bitcoin holdings and (2) our estimate of the year-end 2025 value of its enterprise software business,” Palmer stated.

MicroStrategy’s stock has declined by about 10% since its investor call, following losses of $5.74 per share, attributed to declining revenue in its core enterprise software business. Despite this weak quarter, the company acquired 12,222 BTC for $805 million—approximately $65,800 per coin—financed through “cash flows, as well as proceeds from equity and debt financings,” CEO Phong Q. Le mentioned during the call.

MicroStrategy now holds a substantial stockpile of 226,500 BTC, valued at around $14.7 billion at current prices.