Press Releases TheBitTimes.com

Hashdex's approach differs from recent filings as it won't depend on the Coinbase surveillance sharing agreement, opting to acquire spot Bitcoin from physical exchanges within the CME market. Hashdex, a crypto asset management company, has joined the competition for a spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETF in the United States. The firm, known for its global leadership in crypto asset management, has submitted an application to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a Bitcoin futures ETF that will hold actual spot Bitcoin.  Exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, are investment funds that trade on a stock market with their value derived from an underlying basket of assets such as stocks, bonds, commodities and other financial instruments. Similarly, Bitcoin ETFs track BTC's value and trade on traditional stock exchanges rather than crypto exchanges. Hashdex's approach differs from recent filings as it won't depend on the Coinbase surveillance sharing agreement, opting to ac...

Bitcoin price has been showing weakness near the $30,000 level, but multiple data points highlight the fact that bears remain at a disadvantage. Bitcoin (BTC) price gave back some of its recent gains this week, but multiple data points suggest that $30,000 should hold as support going forward. Bitcoin remained within a narrow 4.3% range for the 15 days leading up to July 7. Despite the proximity of the $29,895 to $31,165 range, investors' sentiment was significantly impacted by an unsuccessful attempt to break above $31,400 on July 6. Trader’s tendency to overreact to short-term price movements rather than Bitcoin's year-to-date gains of 82% could be part of the reason for the short-term correction This same rationale applies to the events related to other cryptocurrencies. At the front of investors' minds are questions about whether the recent price gains were solely driven by multiple spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) requests. Other pressing developments inclu...

Bitcoin price continues to explore the lower regions of its trading range, but a drop to $25,000 seems nearly inevitable according to derivatives data. Bitcoin (BTC) has been trading in a narrow 3.4% range for the past three days after successfully defending the $25,500 support on June 10. In this time, investors’ attention has shifted to the macroeconomic area as the U.S. Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision on June 14. Cryptocurrencies might work independently from the traditional finance markets, but the cost of capital impacts almost every investor. Back in May, the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate to 5%–5.25%, the highest since 2007. All eyes will be on Fed’s Chair Jerome Powell media speech 30 minutes after the rate announcement as markets are pricing in 94% odds of a pause at the June meeting, based on the CME FedWatch tool. Crypto fears more than just a FOMC meeting The upcoming FOMC meeting isn’t the only concern for the economy, as the U.S. Treasu...

After leading Zodia’s series A funding round, the Japanese financial conglomerate SBI Holdings became its second-largest shareholder. Global Banks continue to expand their crypto currency-related capabilities, with the British multinational bank Standard Chartered raising new Funding for its crypto platform Zodia. Standard Chartered-backed crypto custody subsidiary Zodia Custody has raised $36 million in a new series A funding round, Bloomberg reported on April 27. Japanese financial conglomerate SBI Holdings has led the fund raise , becoming Zodia’s second-largest shareholder, Zodia Custody CEO Julian Sawyer reportedly said. Prior to the Funding round, London-headquartered Zodia was backed exclusively by Standard Chartered and Northern Trust, with Standard Chartered owning a 90% stake in the firm. It still remains the majority shareholder following the fund raise , according to Sawyer. Zodia CEO emphasized that it’s typical of Standard Chartered’s ventures strategy to raise external...

The exchange shared that all customer funds are safe but advised its U.S. customers to withdraw their funds by April 30, 2023. Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex has announced it will be winding down its operations in the United States due to the challenging regulatory and economic environment. The announcement was made on the platform's ninth anniversary, marking a bittersweet moment for the company.  Due to continued regulatory uncertainty, we have made the difficult decision to wind down our U.S. operations , effective April 30, 2023. All funds are safe and can be fully withdrawn immediately. This does not affect customers of @BittrexGlobal https://t.co/MY4u7XLk9z — Bittrex (@BittrexExchange) March 31, 2023 Co-founder and CEO Richie Lai shared that as the crypto ecosystem evolved, regulatory requirements have become increasingly "unclear" and "enforced, without appropriate discussion or input," leading to an uneven competitive landscape. This environment ha...

Bitcoin NFT inscription activity continues to rise and the launch of new BTC specific marketplaces could lay the groundwork for the next hype cycle. Bitcoin NFT inscription activity has remained strong with consistency in the daily number of NFTs inscribed on Bitcoin. At the same time, the infrastructure to foster Bitcoin trading is finally coming together with the development of wallets and marketplaces supporting Ordinals. NFT marketplaces, Gamma and Magic Eden, added support for Bitcoin NFTs this week. While the initial response of traders has been subdued, the activity is expected to pick up soon. Improving the infrastructure around Bitcoin NFTs Bitcoin NFTs, also-known-as Ordinals, began with much fanfare in late January as they enhanced the utility and revenue of the Bitcoin blockchain. Dune dashboard from data analyst dgtl_assets shows that the Ordinals inscription activity remains robust, with nearly 580,000 NFTs inscribed in less than three months. Cumulative sum and number o...

Investors are unwilling to add long positions as the Shanghai Fork is expected to unlock a significant amount of ETH over a short period. The price of Ether (ETH) declined 6% between March 2-3, followed by a tight range trading near $1,560. Still, analyzing a wider time frame provides no clear trend, as its chart can point to a descending channel or a slightly longer seven-week bullish pattern. Ether (ETH) price index in USD, 1-day. Source: TradingView Ether's recent lack of volatility can be partially explained by the upcoming Shanghai hard fork, an implementation aimed at allowing ETH staking withdrawals. Those participants were each required to lock 32 ETH staked on the Beacon Chain to support the network consensus protocol. After a series of delays, typical for changes in the production environment, the Shanghai Capella upgrade — also known as Shapella — is expected for early April, according to Ethereum core developer and project coordinator Tim Beiko. The Goerli testnet upgr...

Strong U.S. jobs data for January could not pull Bitcoin and select altcoins lower, indicating a strong bullish undercurrent. Bitcoin’s (BTC) rally in 2023 has been boosted by expectations that the United States Federal Reserve will slow down the pace of its rate hikes as inflation has started cooling down. Some even anticipate a rate cut by the end of the year. That assumption received a jolt on Feb.3 when the U.S. employment data for January beat expectations and unemployment hit its lowest level since May 1969. If markets do not react negatively to news perceived as bearish, it’s a sign that the sentiment has turned positive. Traders may then shift their focus to the next important economic data release. Trading firm QCP Capital said in its latest market update that the Consumer Price Index print on Feb. 14 could move markets. They believe the risks to the data are to the upside. Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360 The current crypto bear market seems to have ...

ETH price continues to encounter resistance at the $1,600 level, a potential sign that the current rally lacks sustainable momentum. Ethereum (ETH) price is struggling to overcome resistance at $1,600 and this is the altcoin’s third attempt since September 2022. Some would say the 33% year-to-date rally could be interpreted as a failed opportunity to breach the $200 billion market capitalization mark.  Ether/USD price index, 2-day. Source: TradingView If Ethereum price were to break above $1,600, it would return Ether to a top-60 global tradable asset, surpassing giant multinational companies like Nike (NKE), Novartis (NVS), Cisco (CSCO) and Toyota (TM). Unfortunately, at least for bullish traders, derivatives markets are not hinting that Ether will finally break the $1,600 resistance — at least, not until the U.S. Federal Reserve reverses its course of tightening the economy. Bulls' frustrations can partially be explained by Silvergate Bank's $1 billion net loss in the latest...

Bitcoin and select altcoins remain under pressure as bounces off support levels are being sold into. Investors have faced a tumultuous year in 2022 as stocks, bonds, and the cryptocurrency sector have all witnessed sharp declines. As of Nov. 30, the performance of a traditional portfolio comprising 60% stocks and 40% bonds has been the worst since 1932, according to a report by Financial Times. The next big question troubling crypto investors is whether the pain in Bitcoin (BTC) is over or will the downtrend continue in 2023. Analysts seem to be divided in their opinion for the first quarter of the new year. While some expect a drop to $10,000 others anticipate a rally to $22,000. Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360 While the near-term remains uncertain, research and trading firm Capriole Investments said in its latest edition of the Capriole Newsletter that Bitcoin could copy gold’s explosive bull move in the 1970s and if that happens, Bitcoin could soar past $6...

Bitcoin exchange users get comfortable as "Do Nothing December" sees BTC price volatility drop to record lows. Bitcoin (BTC) exchange users have forgotten all about the FTX scandal this Christmas, data shows. According to on-chain analytics firm Glassnode, exchange outflows have now hit their lowest levels in over six month s. Still not your keys, still not your coins? As Bitcoin volatility sets a new record low in what is being called “Do Nothing December,” exchange users’ habits are also rapidly adjusting to the current climate. After seeing an overwhelming surge in light of the FTX meltdown, BTC withdrawals from exchange wallets have entirely reversed the spike which began around six weeks ago. Having hit a peak of 142,788 BTC on Nov. 14, outflows from the trading platforms tracked by Glassnode have declined over ten times. On Dec. 25, the latest date for which numbers are available, total exchange outflows came in at just 9,352 BTC — a drop of 93.5%. Bitcoin exchange ou...

Data suggests that BTC’s rally to $18,300 is the only Santa Claus rally Bitcoin will see before the year ends. As the coldest days of the crypto winter set in, investors’ speculative interest in the crypto market has fallen to pre-2021 levels, impairing the chance of a substantial directional price move. However, there’s a possibility of a bear market rally akin to the July through August 2022 uptrend. The market enters a state of limbo The FTX implosion impacted over 5 million users globally and adversely affected numerous crypto companies that were exposed to it. The industry is currently in a recovery mode and Cumberland, a U.S.-based crypto market broker, recently echoed this narrative in a tweet. The firm noted that "dozens of crypto companies are either severely curtailed or out of business, and the industry's future is as cloudy as ever." Data suggests that building a sustainable bullish move will be challenging because the market is pushed back to a low liquidit...