Cryptocurrency Market Overview 19.10.2023
News block
1. UK: the growth of cryptocurrency adoption
According to a new study by the analytical company Chainalysis, the UK has become the leader in the volume of cryptocurrency transactions in Central, Northern and Western Europe (CNWE).
Over the past year, the CNWE region has become the second largest crypto economy in the world, second only to North America. It accounted for 17.6% of the global volume of crypto transactions in the period from July 2022 to June 2023 (about $1 trillion).
The UK topped the list of leaders in CNWE and ranked third in the world in terms of transactions after the USA and India:
In the analyzed period, about $252.1 billion worth of crypto transactions were made in the UK. Other major crypto economies in CNWE include Germany and Spain (about $120 billion and $110 billion, respectively). These countries are followed by France, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden and others.
Back in February 2023, the Recap tax platform reported that London had become the most cryptocurrency-ready city for business, ahead of Dubai and New York.
2. The future of CBDC in the USA
Speaking at Harvard Law School, Michelle Bowman, the governor of the Federal Reserve System, said that she has not yet seen a convincing argument that CBDC can solve problems that other alternatives are not able to solve.
Bowman pointed out that the FedNow instant payment platform, which the Fed launched this summer, is able to solve many problems related to payments:
"FedNow and similar services for the private sector are designed to help make everyday payments faster and more convenient, allowing consumers to instantly receive funds with same—day access, as well as allowing small businesses to manage cash flows more efficiently without processing delays," Bowman said.
The Federal Reserve continues to study the issue of launching a CBDC, while the central bank admits that it has not made much progress on this issue yet.
3. Tesla left Bitcoin on its balance sheet
According to the latest quarterly report, the number of bitcoins on Tesla's balance sheet remained unchanged. This is already the fifth quarter when the company does not sell BTC, but also does not increase its quantity.
Overview of the crypto market
🔸 The current capitalization of the crypto market is $1,120 trillion
🔸 Trading volume for the last day is $36.76 billion
🔸 BTC dominance 49.4%
🔸 Fear and greed index:
- 52 today, 50 yesterday, 44 a week ago
where 0 is extreme fear (may be a sign that investors are too scared - often it's a good time to buy), and 100 is extreme greed (the market needs correction).
BTC continues to trade above $28,000. Positive news on bitcoin ETFs helps to maintain this level - yesterday, the asset management giant Fidelity updated its application for the SEC to launch the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust spot exchange—traded fund. Fidelity made edits regarding the issues of protecting customers' bitcoins on deposit accounts and disclosed the risks associated with the regulatory environment around cryptocurrencies.
In this matter, Fidelity follows Ark Invest and Invesco, which also recently made edits to their spot applications for bitcoin ETFs.
In this regard, a number of analysts believe that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is in active dialogue with ETF issuers:
"Another proof that potential issuers of spot bitcoin ETFs are communicating with the SEC regarding the changes/amendments necessary for the SEC to consider approval," wrote James Seyffart, a research analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
The second largest outflow of bitcoins from Bitmex
On October 16, 19,460 BTC was withdrawn from Bitmex, one of the world's leading crypto exchanges, which became the second largest outflow of bitcoins in the history of the exchange.
Bitcoin transactions in such significant volumes are often associated with large financial institutions. It is known that Bitmex mainly serves professional and institutional traders.
Such BTC movements can be used by major players to change the price context of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The cryptocurrency market is known for its instability, and the presence of large institutions can exacerbate this volatility. When large volumes of assets are withdrawn or placed on exchanges, this can cause a chain reaction and affect prices, creating opportunities for profit or risk reduction:
Growth of applications for the launch of spot Ethereum- ETF
Invesco and Galaxy have submitted revised documents to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for their application for the spot Ethereum-ETF "Invesco Galaxy Ethereum ETF".
Currently, a number of similar applications are already under consideration by the SEC, including: VanEck Ethereum ETF, ARK 21shares Ethereum ETF, Hashdex Nasdaq Ethereum ETF and Grayscale Ethereum Trust Exchange (ETHE).
At the same time, wallets with a balance of more than 1 million ETH continue to accumulate coins. The percentage of ETH supply held by these wallets has grown to 32.27%, which is the highest value in the last 7 years. And in the Ethereum network itself, there is an increase in large transactions (more than $ 1 million):
