Bitcoin
1 Top cryptocurrencies will soar 116%, according to Standard Chartered. Is it a purchase?
Analysts at a major British bank say that Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) is expected to more than double between now and the end of 2024. Does this projection make sense?
Bullish Standard Chartered Ethereum Analysis
Geoff Kendrick, Head of Emerging Markets Crypto and Exchange Research at Chartered Standard (OTC: SCBF.F), set a year-end price target of $8,000 at Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) earlier this week.
Speaking to crypto news site The Block on Tuesday, Kendrick predicted that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would approve the first exchange traded funds (ETFs) tracking the spot price of Ethereum. He argued that the approval would inspire large flows of money into the Ethereum cryptocurrency, similar to the flows that followed after the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January.
The analyst also noted that he correctly classified the money flow effects of the Bitcoin ETF approval and highlighted the long-term price increases that are expected to result from these substantial investment moves.
You see, Kendrick based his Ethereum price target on his latest Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) target. In other words, Ethereum ETFs strike you as good news for the crypto market as a whole, not necessarily boosting Ethereum prices faster than the rest of the sector. Historically, Ethereum has closely tracked Bitcoin’s price movements due to its strong market correlation and shared investor sentiment.
“Given that we now see Bitcoin reaching the $150,000 level by the end of 2024, this would imply an $8,000 level for Ether,” said the Standard Chartered analyst.
SEC Moves Closer to Approving Ethereum ETFs
Two days later, the SEC approved a rule change that will result in the first Ethereum-based ETFs on US markets. The funds will not hit the market immediately, as the SEC must analyze each application in detail before approving anything. While this process could take months, the established precedent of Bitcoin ETFs suggests that SEC approval could be expedited. It’s still a long way toward final approvals, which now seems like a matter of time.
Crypto investors were excited by Standard Chartered’s prediction, sending the price of Ethereum up 23% the next day, while Bitcoin rose as much as 7%.
Market Reactions to ETF Predictions and News
However, the two biggest cryptocurrencies barely budged on the actual ETF news. Ethereum has remained stable since Kendrick’s prediction and Bitcoin fell a few percent on Friday.
But Kendrick’s analysis still seems directionally correct. The combination of ETF approvals and the recent Bitcoin halving should indeed drive another price surge for Bitcoin, Ethereum and many smaller altcoins over the next year or so. Rising investment star Cathie Wood of Ark Invest also set her year-end Bitcoin target at approximately $150,000, with much higher long-term goals in mind.
The story continues
Evaluating Kendrick’s analysis and its implications
From a simple logic point of view, the idea of rising cryptocurrency prices makes sense.
Bitcoin’s market value is receiving boosts from both sides of the supply and demand calculation. Halving Bitcoin mining rewards makes it harder to obtain newly minted digital coins. At the same time, the new ETFs open the floodgates for near-direct investments in Bitcoin by several new types of buyers – retail investors can now access Bitcoin ETFs (and soon Ethereum ETFs) in their retirement accounts, while money managers institutions can rely on family resources. ETFs instead of opening new accounts on unapproved cryptocurrency exchanges.
Burning the value candle at both ends, Bitcoin is facing increased demand and strictly limited supply. This is a recipe for higher prices, especially since the necessary process of mining Bitcoin ceases to make economic sense unless coin prices increase enough to offset the lower rewards.
And where Bitcoin goes, other cryptocurrencies tend to follow. In particular, Ethereum tends to closely follow Bitcoin’s price chart:
Ethereum Price Chart
Balancing Your Portfolio with Crypto Investments
Standard Chartered’s Ethereum target is 116% above the smart contract pioneer’s current price (and 160% beyond where it was before Kendrick spoke to The Block). I can’t promise that it will exactly achieve this goal, but I am convinced that both Ethereum and Bitcoin will increase as the year goes on.
Unexpected twists and turns can derail the work, of course, and other unplanned events can push cryptocurrencies even higher. You never really know what will happen in this young and volatile market until it happens.
Therefore, I wouldn’t recommend backing the truck, literally betting the farm, or going overboard with crypto investments right now. A diversified approach with crypto playing a modest role in a diversified portfolio will allow you to enjoy the benefits of a price rise without risking everything. Ethereum looks like a solid buy today, but I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for Kendrick’s specific $8,000 target to materialize.
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Anders Bylund has positions in Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has positions and recommends Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool recommends Standard Chartered Plc. The motley fool has a disclosure policy.
1 Top cryptocurrencies will soar 116%, according to Standard Chartered. Is it a purchase? was originally published by The Motley Fool
Bitcoin
RIOT, MARA and CLSK shares at risk
Bitcoin (BTC) Mining stocks like Riot Platforms (RIOT), Marathon Digital (MARA) and CleanSpark (CLSK) retreated in pre-market trading as BTC retreated.
RIOT, MARA and CLSK all fell more than 2%, while other crypto-related stocks such as MicroStrategy (MSTR) and Coinbase (COIN) fell 1.5%.
Bitcoin sell-off continues
Crypto-linked stocks retreated as Bitcoin resumed its downtrend on Wednesday. After rising to $63,750 on Monday, BTC is hovering at $60,0000 and it is unclear whether it will recover.
More importantly, Bitcoin is dangerously close to the crucial support at $58,273, which is the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA). The next support level for Bitcoin is $56,426, representing its lowest level in May.
Bitcoin Price Chart
If Bitcoin drops below this price, it will be a sign that the bears have prevailed, which could take it to the $50,000 level, if not below.
This decline happened after a whale deposited nearly 2,000 Bitcoins to Binance in two separate transactions. While this isn’t always the case, deposits to exchanges often happen when holders are exiting their positions.
The whales’ action coincided with a period in which the German government continues to sell off its Bitcoin holdings. It transferred $52 million worth of coins to exchanges on Tuesday.
As a result, data from CoinGlass shows that the volume of Bitcoin balances on exchanges has started to increase. The volume rose to 2.49 million on Tuesday, from last month’s low of 2.47 million.
Bitcoin balances on exchanges
Bitcoin Mining Companies at Risk
If the Bitcoin sell-off continues, it will put Bitcoin mining companies like Marathon, CleanSpark, and Riot Platforms at risk. These companies have tended to have a close correlation with Bitcoin in the past.
This drop is happening a few months after the halving event, reducing the amount of Bitcoins that miners receive.
To compensate for this drop, most of these companies have added their mining equipment. CleanSpark has reached a hash rate of 20 EH/swhich helped her mine 445 coins in June after mining 417 coins the previous month. She did this after purchasing 5 mining sites in Georgia.
Digital Marathon mined 590 coins in June, down 40% from the same month in 2023 and flat from May.
Riot Platforms, on the other hand, focused on acquiring Bitfarms, a company that mined 189 coins in June.
Bitcoin
Michael Saylor Issues Statement on Bitcoin Amid Crypto Market Sell-Off by U.Today
U.Today – Amid an ongoing sell-off in the cryptocurrency market, Michael Saylor, a prominent advocate and president of MicroStrategy, made a statement on X (Twitter) that reverberated across the crypto space: “Just Bitcoin.”
This two-word tweet comes as the cryptocurrency market faces significant sell-offs as the price of Bitcoin plummets.
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market value, began its decline in Tuesday’s trading session, hitting $63,223 at one point before falling further.
Losses deepened on Wednesday as investors considered remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, with Bitcoin hitting intraday lows of $59,509. At the time of writing, BTC is down 2.85% over the past 24 hours to $60,274.
According to data from CoinGlass, the sell-off has resulted in a significant amount of cryptocurrencies being liquidated in the past 24 hours, totaling over $166 million. However, this has not deterred Saylor’s confidence in Bitcoin, as he reiterates his longing for the crypto asset in his tweet.
Cryptocurrency market crashes
Cryptocurrencies fell on Tuesday after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank needs to see more progress on inflation before cutting interest rates, which are now at 5.25%-5.50%. Powell revealed at a monetary symposium in Sintra, Portugal, that the United States is moving closer to a disinflationary path.
“We want to be more confident that inflation is moving sustainably downward toward 2% before we begin the process of tapering or easing policy,” Powell said.
Market losses deepened after Wednesday’s economic releases that indicated the labor market is cooling. Recent data showed weaker-than-expected private payroll growth in June, but weekly jobless claims were higher than economists had forecast. The latest figures come ahead of the highly anticipated June nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.
As the cryptocurrency market goes through a period of uncertainty, the coming days and weeks will be crucial in determining the direction of BTC’s price.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin and Ethereum in GTA 6? Still rumors — for now
Rumors that the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto 6 will use cryptocurrency that has been circulating for more than a year now—and they’re spinning again.
On Wednesday, a pseudonymous Crypto Twitter influencer named Gordon — apparently named after Gordon Gekko from the iconic 1987 film “Wall Street” —shared to his nearly 500,000 followers that “GTA 6 will allow cryptocurrency payments” and that “so far only Bitcoin, EthereumIt is USDT [are] confirmed.”
But in reality, no cryptocurrency has been confirmed for Grand Theft Auto 6, despite ongoing chatter about the rumors. Rockstar Games and parent company Take-Two have made no such announcements this week on the subject, nor have they made any prior announcements, and official trailers and announcements have made no mention of cryptocurrency being included.
However, the tweet — which also included a fake trailer for the game — quickly went viral, with over 500,000 views as of this writing in a matter of hours. When Twitter users asked Gordon for his sources, he would jokingly respond that his “uncle works there” or say that previous reports on the matter were “old” at this point.
But really, nothing has changed since then. DecipherGG’s reported in previous rumors in May 2023, not even since the first official trailer — which initially leaked with “BUY BTC” stamped on itApparently by the leaker in question—premiered last December.
DecipherGG reached out to Rockstar Games for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Could Grand Theft Auto 6 implement a crypto element when it releases in 2025? It’s certainly possible, and if so, it would be a transformative moment for cryptocurrency adoption by the traditional gaming industry.
Take-Two Interactive has explored the space before, acquiring casual gaming giant Zynga in early 2022, when Take-Two founder and CEO Strauss Zelnick suggested there were “Web3 opportunities” that they could explore better as a team. Zynga has launched its first blockchain game on Ethereum, called Sugartownbut Take-Two has yet to get involved with other brands.
Rockstar Games, on the other hand, prohibited the use of cryptocurrency or NFTs on player-run Grand Theft Auto 5 servers in late 2022, following a rise in the use of NFTs to represent unique player-owned assets on modded game servers.
And given Grand Theft Auto’s satirical tone, the game may be more likely to criticize cryptocurrency and poke fun at caricatures of crypto fans and NFTs, for example, rather than trying to launch its own on-chain currency. But that’s all speculation at this point, as there are relatively few official details about GTA 6.
For now, at least, don’t believe the hype. While Rockstar Games hasn’t officially closed the door on cryptocurrency usage in Grand Theft Auto 6, it hasn’t confirmed anything about it either. However, it’s sure to remain a hot topic in the long run leading up to release, which is currently scheduled for fall 2025.
Edited by Ryan Ozawa.
Bitcoin
Crypto President Trump’s ‘Lesser’ Regulation Will Bless Coinbase’s Bitcoin Leverage, Expert Says – Coinbase Glb (NASDAQ:COIN)
Chris SenyekChief Investment Strategist at Wolfe Researchrecently expressed his opinion on the potential impact of a Donald Trump win the 2024 elections in the cryptocurrency market.
What happened: Senyek suggested that a Trump presidency could ease cryptocurrency regulations, benefiting companies like Coinbase Global Inc. COIN due to its importance Bitcoin BTC/USD Leverage.
“Trump would be less harsh on crypto regulation, and Coinbase would be a big beneficiary of that given its influence on bitcoin,” Senyek said during CNBC’s “Last Call” on Tuesday.
See too: Enhance Your Retirement Portfolio: The Benefits of Adding Cryptocurrency
Why does this matter?:Senyek’s comments come in the context of the former president Donald Trump‘s reported plans to participate at the Bitcoin 2024 convention, which could reinforce his image as a “Crypto President”.
Trump’s potential participation in the Bitcoin 2024 convention, a major event on the cryptocurrency calendar, could have significant implications for the industry.
Pratik KalaHead of Research in DigitalX Limitedhe has predicted a Trump victory in the upcoming elections, but warns that immediate cryptocurrency-friendly regulations may not be a priority.
A recent report by 10x Search explore the recent rise in Bitcoin price and its potential connection to Trump’s strong position in the 2024 election race. The report, titled “Is the Bitcoin Trump Pump Sustainable?”, highlights a 4% spike in Bitcoin’s price following the news that the president Joe Biden will remain in the race despite a poor performance in the presidential debate.
Price Action: At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading 2.10% lower at $60,860.66, according to Benzinga Pro.
Read next:
Image created using photos from Shutterstock
This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Pooja Rajkumari
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© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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