Bitcoin
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Largest, RoaringKitty Fuels Meme Coins
Key Takeaways
- Blackrock’s IBIT has overtaken Grayscale’s GBTC as the largest bitcoin ETF on the market.
- President Joe Biden vetoed a bill that would have allowed traditional banks to more easily serve as custodians of crypto assets on behalf of their customers.
- Japanese crypto exchange DMM Bitcoin was hacked for around $308 million worth of bitcoin.
- This week, all eyes are on meme coins as infamous Reddit user Keith Gill returned to GameStop trading.
Bitcoin (Bitcoin) briefly surpassed $70,000 on Monday, after spending most of last week below that mark. However, it was BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (I BITE) that made headlines after taking down the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) as the largest cash bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) in assets.
Additionally, US President Joe Biden vetoed a cryptocurrency bill that passed both houses of Congress and a Japanese cryptocurrency exchange was hacked for more than $300 million worth of bitcoins. Meanwhile, Keith Gill, the man behind the meme stock frenzy in 2021, fueled a rally in some meme coins with his latest bet.
Blackrock’s IBIT is now the largest Bitcoin ETF
Just over four months since it began trading on January 11, BlackRock’s bitcoin ETF has become the largest Spot bitcoin ETF by assets, overtaking Grayscale’s GBTC for first place. At the end of May, IBIT’s assets were US$19.5 billion, while GBTC’s were US$19.385 billion.
GBTC is the oldest fund with bitcoin investments that were converted to ETFs when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission allowed spot bitcoin ETFs earlier this year. At that time, GBTC’s assets exceeded US$24 billion.
However, as soon as other comparable products began trading, investors withdrew large sums of money from GBTC, resulting in around $17.9 billion in net outflows since January 11. In sharp contrast, BlackRock’s IBIT reported substantial inflows, attracting around $16.6 billion. this year, according to Farside Investors.
The disparity in fees between Grayscale’s ETF and other bitcoin ETFs from Blackrock, Fidelity and others has played a crucial role in the competition Grayscale’s fund has faced. For example, GBTC charges a fee of 1.5%, while IBIT charges a fee of 0.25%. Notably, shades of gray plans will soon launch an alternative spot bitcoin ETF offering with lower fees under the ticker BTC.
President Biden Vetoes Crypto Bill
President Biden, as predicted, vetoed a bill that sought to nullify the SEC’s special regulations for crypto asset custodians. This SEC policy could pose significant challenges for traditional financial firms looking to offer crypto custody services.
The White House had already signaled its intention to veto the legislation. In a statement, President Biden expressed a desire to establish a balanced regulatory framework for digital assets under the authority of existing regulatory agencies.
According to Axios, critics noted that the deadline for Congress to review the SEC’s procedural action under the Administrative Procedure Act had expired and argued that the policy did not constitute a rule, a point disputed by the Government Accountability Office.
Banking trade organizations urged the president to support removing the rule, claiming it would make cryptocurrency custody services prohibitively expensive for traditional financial firms, ultimately harming their customers.
This move from the Biden White House follows a perceived reversal in crypto policy when several filings for spot ether ETFs were approved late last month by the SEC, after it was assumed that the rejection of these financial products was imminent.
Former President Donald Trump also reversed his initial stance on bitcoin and other crypto assets, going so far as to make a campaign promise to release convicted Silk Road online marketplace operator Ross Ulbricht from prison. Ulbricht is serving a life sentence for running a platform where illegal drugs and other illicit items were purchased using bitcoin.
More than $300 million stolen from Japanese cryptocurrency exchange
On Friday, Japanese exchange DMM Bitcoin announced a hack or “unauthorized leak” during which 4,502.9 bitcoins, valued at approximately 48.2 million yen, were stolen. This translates to about $308 million worth of bitcoin.
DMM Bitcoin assured customers that their bitcoin deposits would be fully compensated through purchases supported by the group’s companies, although no timeline was provided. The theft occurred at 1:26 pm Tokyo time, coinciding with a 4,502 bitcoin transaction seen on Bitcoin blockchain.
In response, the exchange suspended cryptocurrency withdrawals, spot market purchases and new leveraged trading positions, while also delaying yen-denominated withdrawals. DMM Bitcoin stated that further updates would be shared in a subsequent announcement. According to blockchain analytics provider Elliptic, this incident ranks as the eighth largest crypto exchange hack in history and the largest since the $477 million FTX theft in late 2021.
What to expect from the markets this week
A speculative surge has driven up the prices of some meme tokens and GameStop (GME) shares on Monday, just hours after renowned retail trader Keith Gill, of 2021 GME short squeeze fame, released his latest bet on the stock. Using his nickname “DeepF—ingValue” on Reddit, Gill shared his GME picks positions on the r/Superstonk subreddit, revealing bets worth more than $115 million in shares and $65 million in call options expiring on June 21.
Gill also passes Roaring Kitty on YouTube and his most recent viral post sparked an outcry, with cat-themed meme tokens such as POPCAT and MOG. Meanwhile, unrelated GME meme coin on the Solana network it increased by around 200%. Gill’s social media activity previously sparked similar rallies in Mayemphasizing his significant influence and impact on the market since his initial analysis of GameStop in 2019, which culminated in the January 2021 short squeeze.
Although bitcoin has been in a sustained bull market throughout the year, the so-called altseason, referring to a rally in altcoins or non-bitcoin tokens, has yet to materialize. However, the frenzy surrounding meme tokens shows that there is still a lot of speculation taking place in the crypto market outside of bitcoin. Of course, it’s worth noting that trading small-cap tokens in the crypto market often amounts to nothing more than gambling.
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
News and market data brought to you by Benzinga’s APIs
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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