Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | July 20, 2023

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Jul 20 2023

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Markets360

Crypto Market Update

Written by Van

Tesla's Q2 Earnings Show Unchanged Bitcoin Holdings
Bitcoin Struggles to Maintain $30,000 Amidst Market Uncertainty
Ethereum Dominates Q2 Market Cap Despite Volatility
Stellar Sees Significant Price Surge; Eyes on Future Performance
Chainlink Tokens Surge Following Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol Release

Crypto Exchanges and Platforms

FTX's Bankman-Fried Accused of Personal Misuse of Funds
Binance Labs Invests $10M in DeFi Protocol Radiant Capital

Country-Specific Developments

China's Digital Yuan Sees $250 Billion in Transactions
Aptos User Surge Following Integration with Indian Social Platform
Canadian Police Warn of Robberies Targeting Crypto Investors

DeFi and Staking

Liquid Staking Overtakes DEXs in DeFi, Reports Binance
Terra, Do Kwon Cite Ripple Case in SEC Lawsuit Defence

NFT News

Mobile NFT Platform Floor to Absorb Apple, Google Fees
Proof Collective Launches New NFT Collection, 'Mythics'

Federal Reserve Launches Instant Payments Service, FedNow

The U.S. Federal Reserve's instant payments service, FedNow, has launched with 35 banks and credit unions participating. The service, which offers fast and convenient access to paychecks and invoices, will operate 24 hours a day and process payments in a matter of seconds.

This is in contrast to the existing U.S. automated clearinghouse system, which offers same-day service or delays of days or weeks for cashing a check. The FedNow service aims to provide an alternative to private sector alternatives like stablecoins and may be a step towards a central bank digital currency.

SEC Chair Gensler Requests $109M Increase in Enforcement Budget

US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler has requested an additional $109 million for the agency's enforcement budget to tackle challenges in the cryptocurrency market. Gensler highlighted the need for increased resources to bring clarity and order to the industry, which he described as a "Wild West" characterized by noncompliance and speculation.

The allocation would elevate the SEC's enforcement budget to $1.4 billion. Gensler also acknowledged the surge in complaints related to cryptocurrencies and stress.

Kuwait's CMA Reaffirms Ban on Cryptocurrencies

Kuwait's Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has reiterated its ban on cryptocurrencies, including investments and payments, through circulars jointly issued by regulatory bodies. The circulars also prohibit granting licenses to crypto service providers, citing the unregulated and speculative nature of virtual assets.

Violations may result in penalties under Anti-Money Laundering laws, following recommendations by the Financial Action Task Force.

UK's FCA Launches Permanent Digital Sandbox for Product Testing

The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is launching a permanent Digital Sandbox for early-stage testing of financial products. The sandbox is open to firms in the banking, investment, lending, payments, insurance, and pensions sectors and will provide participants with access to datasets and APIs for experimentation.

The FCA aims to foster innovation and growth through the sandbox, with previous participants experiencing positive developments such as launching new products and securing funding. The approval process takes up to four weeks, and applications are open from August 1.

UK Rejects Regulation of Cryptocurrencies Like Gambling

The UK finance ministry has rejected the suggestion by the Treasury Committee to regulate cryptocurrencies like gambling. The ministry disagreed with the view that trading and investing in unbacked crypto assets should be classified as gambling, stating that it would not address the risks associated with the industry and would go against global recommendations.

The Treasury Committee had previously called for such regulation due to the risks and potential fraudulent activities associated with cryptocurrencies.

Tesla's Q2 Earnings Show Unchanged Bitcoin Holdings

Tesla's Q2 earnings reveal the company still holds $184 million in Bitcoin, unchanged since Q4 2022 when it sold 75% of its holdings. Elon Musk's decision to accept Bitcoin payments for Tesla vehicles was reversed due to environmental concerns. Despite surpassing expectations, Tesla stock dropped 4.19%.

There are rumors that Tesla may integrate Bitcoin and Dogecoin as payment options, but it has been discovered that these cryptocurrencies were already present in Tesla's payment source code since January 2023.

Bitcoin Struggles to Maintain $30,000 Amidst Market Uncertainty

Bitcoin failed to hold above $30,000 after a rejection at the 21-day trendline, causing uncertainty among traders. Analysts warn of a potential return to range lows and anticipate further downside for BTC. The U.S. dollar gained strength due to strong tech earnings and a slowdown in jobless claims.

Ethereum Dominates Q2 Market Cap Despite Volatility

In Q2 2023, Ethereum's market cap dominance grew despite market volatility. Interest in staking rose, with a 58% surge in base fee burn and 380,000 ETH burnt. Real yields for validators increased to 6.1%, attracting more flows into staking contracts. Traders are bullish about ETH's future in Q3, indicated by the declining put-to-call ratio.

Stellar Sees Significant Price Surge; Eyes on Future Performance

Stellar (XLM) has experienced a significant surge in price, rising by 22.1% in the past 24 hours and 68.8% in the past week. The rise is attributed to Ripple Labs' legal victory and the integration of the Stellar network on Coinbase. XLM's future performance is closely monitored, and a partnership with Fonbnk to convert prepaid SIM cards into virtual debit cards is expected to further impact its price.

Chainlink Tokens Surge Following Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol Release

Chainlink tokens surged as wealthy investors swapped ether for link (LINK) following the release of the company's Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP). Link's trading volume more than doubled to $580 million, with prices rising 6%. CCIP aims to build cross-chain applications and services and is being tested by 25 partners. Other oracle protocols like Band Protocol's BAND and Uma's UMA also saw price increases.

FTX's Bankman-Fried Accused of Personal Misuse of Funds

FTX administrators have accused Sam Bankman-Fried of channeling funds to his NGO, Latona, for personal gain rather than scientific innovation. Lawyers for the bankrupt exchange claim to have recovered $5 billion in customer funds and cryptocurrencies.

They have filed to recover millions redirected to Latona and have also filed a lawsuit to retrieve $700 million transferred to investment shop K5 Global in 2022. Entities like the New York Metropolitan Museum are returning funds donated by Bankman-Fried's companies.

Binance Labs Invests $10M in DeFi Protocol Radiant Capital

Binance Labs is investing $10 million in DeFi lending protocol Radiant Capital in order to enhance cross-chain lending and borrowing capabilities. Radiant Capital, built on Binance-supported LayerZero Labs, aims to expand beyond the BNB Chain and Arbitrum on the Ethereum blockchain.

The investment is part of Binance Labs' efforts to drive mass adoption of DeFi protocols. Radiant Capital plans to grow into a cross-chain money market and already supports ten digital asset classes.

China's Digital Yuan Sees $250 Billion in Transactions

China's digital yuan has seen nearly $250 billion in transaction volume since the start of its pilot program, according to the country's central bank governor. However, the digital yuan only represents 0.16% of China's monetary supply and adoption is still minimal compared to its population. The digital currency has primarily been used for domestic retail payments, with limited cross-border trials in Hong Kong.

Aptos User Surge Following Integration with Indian Social Platform

Aptos experienced a 900% surge in new users after integrating with Chingari, an Indian social media platform. Chingari migrated to Aptos for enhanced user experience following Solana's network outages in 2022.

Chingari accounted for 80% of Aptos' daily active users and 50% of gas fees paid on the network. Transactions increased by 150%, and Chingari anticipates reaching 1.25 million users by the end of July. The growth reflects the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies in India.

Canadian Police Warn of Robberies Targeting Crypto Investors

Canadian police have warned of a series of home invasion-style robberies targeting large cryptocurrency investors. The suspects allegedly target victims who are heavily invested in crypto, gain access to their homes under false pretenses, and steal information that gives them access to the victims' crypto accounts. Police advise investors to remain vigilant and take necessary precautions to protect themselves and their assets.

Liquid Staking Overtakes DEXs in DeFi, Reports Binance

Liquid staking has become the largest sector in decentralized finance (DeFi), surpassing decentralized exchanges (DEXs) in terms of total value locked (TVL), according to Binance's Half-Year Report 2023. It allows users to stake tokens and earn yield while maintaining liquidity, but carries risks such as vulnerabilities and price fluctuations.

Terra, Do Kwon Cite Ripple Case in SEC Lawsuit Defence

Terra and Do Kwon's legal team argue that the recent ruling in the SEC v. Ripple Labs case supports their motion to dismiss the SEC's lawsuit. They claim that cryptocurrency sales on exchanges do not qualify as securities. The defense highlights the distinctions between programmatic sales and institutional sales. The defense also asserts that the SEC did not allege any direct or secondary market sales of the cryptocurrency UST.

Top Altcoin Gainers and Losers

Gainers:

Chainlink LINK (+17.43%)

Stellar Lumens XLM (+11.71%)

XDC Network XDC (+7.03%)

Losers:

MultiversX EGLD (-5.54%)

FTX Token FTT (-4.59%)

FLEX FLEX (-4.28%)

NFT Market Map

Mobile NFT Platform Floor to Absorb Apple, Google Fees

Mobile NFT platform Floor will absorb the 30% fees charged by Apple and Google for in-app purchases of NFTs. This sets Floor apart from other NFT marketplaces like OpenSea, which direct users to their website to make purchases.

Floor hopes this move will push for a reduction in the fees charged by Apple and Google. The platform has already raised $8 million in funding and has around 25,000 users.

Proof Collective Launches New NFT Collection, 'Mythics'

Proof Collective, backed by a16z, is launching a new collection called Mythics as an expansion of its Moonbirds NFT brand. The collection will consist of 20,000 NFTs, with 100 new NFTs being released each day for at least 200 days. Sales of Moonbirds NFTs have declined significantly since their initial release in April 2022.

Proof is hoping to generate renewed interest and engagement with the brand through the release of Mythics and enriching the underlying intellectual property.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.