Coin360 Weekly Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | July 22 - July 28, 2023

Crypto Weekly Market Update

Written by Van

Table of Contents:

Crypto Market Overview

• Crypto Weekly Recap: Price Actions, Market Trends, and Key Developments

Banking and Regulatory Updates

• U.S. Proposes New Regulatory Laws for Stablecoins and Digital Assets
• Worldcoin's Innovative Financial Network Faces Controversy
• Avalanche Foundation Launches $50M Tokenized Assets Initiative
• Sequoia Capital Downsizes Crypto Fund Amid Market Shifts
• SEC Charges Blockchain Firm Quantstamp for Unregistered ICO

Crypto Exchanges and Platforms

• Binance Seeks Dismissal of CFTC Lawsuit
• Genesis and FTX Aim to Settle Bankruptcy Dispute
• Crypto Payment Processor Alphapo Hacked; $60 Million Stolen
• Crypto.com Receives Regulatory Approval from Dutch Central Bank

Country-Specific Developments

• Tragic End for Crypto Influencer Fernando Pérez Algaba

Web3 and NFTs

• Palm Network Announces Transition to Polygon Supernet by 2024
• British Museum Partners with The Sandbox for NFT Collectibles
• Hungarian Artist Vera Molnár's CG NFTs Sell Out
• Sky Mavis and CyberKongz Collaborate to Reward Players
• Yuga Labs Showcases Bored Ape Yacht Club Integration in Otherside

Crypto Weekly Recap: Price Actions, Market Trends, and Key Developments

Bitcoin:

• Bitcoin dropped 1.73% last week, trading between $29.7k - $29.9k over the weekend.
• Price plunged below $29k on Monday causing $131M long liquidations, biggest since July 14. 
• BTC’s dip came after Binance CEO's comments on wash trading and China's policymakers warn of economic recovery.
• Recovered above $29k until Wednesday when it climbed to $29.6k after Fed's 0.75% rate hike.
• On Friday, BOJ tweaked policy causing bond yields to rise but Bitcoin remained steady above $29k.
• Decline attributed to lack of catalysts, diminishing ETF narrative, $30M long liquidations, rate hikes by Fed and ECB impacting crypto investor sentiment and liquidity.
• If Bitcoin fails to hold $30k, next major support is around $28k.
• Bitcoin whales accumulating more BTC based on CryptoQuant data.
• Long-term holders control 75% of Bitcoin's circulating supply per Glassnode.
• US Core PCE dropped to 4.1%, lowest in over 2 years, signaling a potential soft landing. 

Ethereum:

• Weekly change: dropped 1.11%.
• Reached its weekly high of $1904 on Sunday night, and weekly low of $1840 on Monday afternoon.
• Just like Bitcoin, Ethereum didn’t see big changes in price after the Fed’s rate hike and other macro news.
• It is staying above $1850 on Friday.
• $6.5M net outflows in crypto products last week; Ether saw $6.6M inflows. 
• ETH 2023 prediction by 29 finance experts: $2,451 year-end, $2,700 peak; long-term optimism. 
• CME Report: Ethereum may outperform Bitcoin after 2024 halving. 
• Santiment: Ethereum predicted to bounce to $2,000 in August, despite quiet market. 

Altcoins:

• Animal-themed projects trending on social media, including hamsters, snails, rabbits, horses, and rats. 
• On Thursday, U.S. Congress discusses UFOs, leading to a rise in Alien tokens’ price and the appearance of 50 new UFO and alien cryptos.
• Dogecoin (DOGE): Dogecoin price surges after Elon Musk changes his Twitter name, becomes the 8th largest cryptocurrency by market cap, hit a 2-month high after Elon Musk added "D" to his Twitter profile.
• BNB Chain (BNB): BNB Chain on-chain data shows growing network activity despite regulatory pressure. 
• Optimism (OP): For the first time in half a year, the transaction volumes of Optimism have exceeded those of Abitrum. 
• Conic Finance: Hackers have stolen $4 million from Conic Finance, causing its users to leave the platform.
• PancakeSwap (CAKE): PancakeSwap leverages zkSync for increased scalability and efficiency.
• Nexo (NEXO): Nexo joins ACSS for stronger compliance amid increasing regulatory scrutiny. 
• Sui (SUI): Sui Foundation terminates partnership as MovEx breached lockup, circulating excess SUI tokens.
• Polygon (MATIC): Polygon-backed project by Cetif Advisory selected by Italian central bank for DeFi tokenization research. 
• Ribbon Finance (RBN): Ribbon will merge with Aevo derivatives exchange, transitioning to AEVO token. 
• KuCoin Token (KCS): Crypto exchange KuCoin adjusting personnel but denies layoffs. 
• BadgerDAO: BadgerDAO proposes eBTC, a synthetic Bitcoin on Ethereum. 
• Kin (KIN): Kin token surges 20% after vote to burn 70% of supply. 
• Parrot (PRT): Parrot Finance to begin PRT token buyback after community vote. 
• Shiba Inu (SHIB): Shibarium's Ethereum bridge goes live for testing. 
• Bitcoin Cash (BCH): BCH saw a price surge but has declined since, with miners withdrawing funds and hashrate down 50%.
• Tether (USDT): USDT market cap hits new all-time high according to IntoTheBlock data. 
• Stellar (XLM): Stellar, Ripple, and Solana investment funds see significant AUM increase in July.
• Maker (MKR): MakerDAO token surges 28% as token buyback program goes live.
• Polkadot (DOT): Beatport launches NFT marketplace on Polkadot. 
• Cardano (ADA): Cardano investors selling ADA ahead of Mithril release. 
• Ripple (XRP): XRP whale wallets holding over 100 million tokens reach an 11-week high, Ducati announces NFT debut on XRP Ledger. 

U.S. Proposes New Regulatory Laws for Stablecoins and Digital Assets

The US is looking to regulate stablecoins and digital assets with new legislation. The proposed laws aim to protect investors and prevent fraud, while also promoting innovation in the sector. The legislation would require issuers of stablecoins to obtain bank charters and hold reserves equal to the value of their coins. 

It would also require digital asset exchanges to register with regulators and comply with anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) rules. The proposed laws could have a significant impact on the future of the cryptocurrency industry in the US.

Worldcoin's Innovative Financial Network Faces Controversy

Worldcoin, co-founded by Alex Blania and Sam Altman, aims to create a global financial network and digital identity system. The ecosystem consists of World ID, Worldcoin Token (WLD), and the World App. The project has faced controversy over concerns of centralization, privacy, and security, particularly regarding its use of biometrics. 

The ICO in the UK is investigating the iris scanning methods employed by Worldcoin. Despite the scrutiny, the project has gained traction, with the WLD token trading at $2.70 and a fully diluted valuation of over $20 billion.

Avalanche Foundation Launches $50M Tokenized Assets Initiative

The Avalanche Foundation has launched the Avalanche Vista initiative, a $50 million program aimed at purchasing tokenized assets on the Avalanche blockchain. Tokenization offers benefits such as increased liquidity and reduced transaction costs. 

The initiative showcases the potential of tokenizing various asset classes and sets a precedent for other blockchain platforms to follow. Major institutional players recognize the potential of tokenization, expecting it to transform financial markets in the coming years. The Avalanche Vista initiative is a significant step towards propelling the Avalanche blockchain ecosystem forward.

Sequoia Capital Downsizes Crypto Fund Amid Market Shifts

Sequoia Capital, a prominent Silicon Valley-based VC firm, has reduced its cryptocurrency fund by 65.8% from $585 million to $200 million in response to changing market conditions. The downsizing comes amid a liquidity crunch and a shift towards supporting smaller crypto startups.

The firm aims to focus more on early-stage investments due to recent crypto industry turmoil and to provide liquidity to its limited partners. This move reflects a broader trend as venture capital firms are downsizing their cryptocurrency bets.

In June, venture capital investments in the crypto market fell 29.7% compared to the previous year.

SEC Charges Blockchain Firm Quantstamp for Unregistered ICO

The US SEC has charged Quantstamp, a blockchain security firm, for conducting an unregistered ICO that raised $28 million in 2017. Quantstamp has agreed to settle the charges and repay the proceeds to investors. The SEC found that the firm violated securities registration provisions.

Additionally, Quantstamp will establish a "Fair Fund" to return funds to affected investors. The firm will also transfer its own QSP token holdings to the Fair Fund administrator, where they will be permanently disabled or destroyed. 

Binance Seeks Dismissal of CFTC Lawsuit

Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, have requested the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), accusing the regulator of exceeding its authority and engaging in regulatory overreach.

The motion to dismiss argues that the CFTC lacks regulatory authority over spot trading domestically and internationally. In March, the CFTC initiated a lawsuit against Binance, alleging that the company offered unregistered derivatives products in the US, including cryptocurrency trading services, futures and options products.

Binance is also confronting legal challenges in the US stemming from a lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in June.

Genesis and FTX Aim to Settle Bankruptcy Dispute

In an ongoing bankruptcy dispute, crypto lender Genesis Global Capital and FTX have reached an agreement in principle to resolve their claims. Genesis is the largest unsecured creditor of FTX with claims totaling $226 million, while FTX claims that Genesis owes $2 billion.

The agreement, subject to documentation, aims to settle these claims. Specific details about the settlement were not disclosed. Genesis temporarily halted redemptions and new loans following FTX's collapse and filed for bankruptcy protection in January. Three Arrows Capital's collapse also contributed to Genesis's losses.

Crypto Payment Processor Alphapo Hacked; $60 Million Stolen

The cryptocurrency payment processor Alphapo was hacked, resulting in the theft of $60 million from its Ethereum, Tron, and Bitcoin hot wallets. The attackers also bought more ETH using Ethereum and Tron tokens and bridged it to the Avalanche network.

Additionally, an extra $37 million was detected in TRON and BTC, indicating a total amount stolen of $60 million. The hack is suspected to have been carried out by the Lazarus group, leaving a distinctive fingerprint on the chain.

Alphapo was responsible for handling cryptocurrency payment transactions for popular online gambling platforms.

Crypto.com Receives Regulatory Approval from Dutch Central Bank

Crypto.com has received approval from the Dutch central bank to offer crypto services in the Netherlands. The company met the regulatory requirements set by De Nederlandsche Bank, enabling it to offer its services to users in compliance with local regulations.

The move comes after Binance exited the country due to regulatory hurdles. Crypto.com has previously obtained approvals and licenses in Singapore, France, the UK, Australia, and Spain. The company aims to foster a sustainable and thriving crypto ecosystem while gaining greater acceptance and recognition from users and regulators.

Tragic End for Crypto Influencer Fernando Pérez Algaba

Crypto influencer Fernando Pérez Algaba was found dead and dismembered in a suitcase in Buenos Aires, Argentina, days after he disappeared. The police have arrested a suspect, trans woman Nicol Alma Chamorro, but believe there may have been others involved. 

Algaba was known for flaunting his lavish lifestyle on Instagram and had nearly a million followers. The authorities suspect his death may be connected to his massive debts, bad investments in crypto-related funds, and the money he owed the tax authorities in Argentina. His brother has vowed to find his killers and ensure justice for him.

Top Weekly Altcoin Gainers and Losers

Gainers:

XDC Network XDC (+47.96%)

FLEX FLEX (+22.70%)

Casper CSPR (+14.05%)

Maker MKR (+13.14%)

Frax Share FXS (+10.90%)

Losers:

Mantle MNT (-12.77%)

Injective INJ (-12.04%)

Gala GALA (-10.50%)

Ripple XRP (-10.05%)

Pepe PEPE (-9.83%)

NFT Market Map

Palm Network Announces Transition to Polygon Supernet by 2024

Palm Network plans to transition to a Polygon Supernet by 2024, with the first phase involving a shift to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism network by August 23. The move will enable Palm Network to extend its tools to mammoths, artists, and creators interested in Web3 opportunities. 

Post-transition, Palm Network will facilitate the formation of decentralized autonomous organizations and subdaos, strengthening security through the integration of Polygon's zero-knowledge proof protocols.

British Museum Partners with The Sandbox for NFT Collectibles

The British Museum is partnering with Ethereum-based metaverse game, The Sandbox, to create NFT digital collectibles featuring the museum's collections. The museum will also have its own immersive space in the game and aims to reach new audiences through this partnership.

This is not the first time the museum has embraced technology, as it has previously collaborated on NFT collections with French startup LaCollection. Other cultural institutions, such as the Pompidou Center in Paris, have also entered the Web3 space. The Sandbox has previously created an in-game museum dedicated to NFTs.

Hungarian Artist Vera Molnár's CG NFTs Sell Out

Computer-generated NFTs created by 99-year-old Hungarian artist Vera Molnár, in collaboration with Martin Grasser, have sold out for ETH 631, worth $1.2m. The "Themes and Variations" collection features 500 minted NFTs, each with a starting price of ETH 20, and was released on July 26.

Molnár is widely considered a pioneer of computer art and explored the machine imaginative method from 1959 to 1968. The collection "explores the power of the grid and randomness of color" and uses a long-form algorithmic system written in JavaScript.

Sky Mavis and CyberKongz Collaborate to Reward Players

Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis has partnered with NFT collection CyberKongz to reward players with digital assets. CyberKongz will release a new NFT collection called Genkai, with some tokens minted on Sky Mavis's Ronin sidechain. Holders of Mystic Axie NFTs will receive a free Genkai NFT per Mystic Axie owned.

While CyberKongz has seen a decline in sales volume and token value, Axie Infinity remains the best-selling NFT collection of all time. The Genkai NFTs will be available on Ronin and Ethereum Mainnet, and there are plans for a game featuring the collection. 

Yuga Labs Showcases Bored Ape Yacht Club Integration in Otherside

Yuga Labs organized an exclusive event on the CBS backlot to showcase the integration of Bored Ape Yacht Club avatars and locations in the Otherside game. The event, attended by around 40 NFT owners and superfans, allowed them to test the 3D space with a recreated Bored Ape vibe.

Yuga Labs aims to create a metaverse game where Bored Ape NFT owners can build and co-create in a persistent online world. The event showcased the excitement of the community and the potential for custom experiences in Otherside.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.