Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | July 22, 2023

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Jul 22 2023

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Markets360

Crypto Market Update

Written by Van

Bitcoin Whales Stir Amid Market Uncertainty

A dormant Bitcoin whale address was recently activated, transferring $37.8 million worth of BTC. Another whale transferred $56.5 million to Coinbase. These transactions align with the upcoming Fed interest rate decision, while BTC remains below $30,000.

Monitoring the Bitcoin Whale Ratio, which indicates selling pressure, is advised by analysts. The current ratio suggests a bearish market, but a decrease in selling pressure could lead to price increases.

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Ethereum Revenue and DeFi Activity Take a Hit

The Ethereum network experienced a significant decline in revenue, dropping by 33.3% in Q2 2023. The decrease reflects a decline in overall activity, particularly in the DeFi market, which also saw a 6% drop in daily active addresses. Despite these challenges, Ethereum remains the leader in DeFi activity, accounting for over 50% of Total Value Locked on all blockchains.

Layer 2 blockchains built on Ethereum, such as Arbitrum and Polygon, are also performing well. The price of ETH is closely following Bitcoin, currently trading at $1,888.

Dogecoin Whales' Moves Stir Speculation of Sell-off

Dogecoin briefly became the eighth largest cryptocurrency after a 10% surge in value, adding $1 billion in market capitalization. However, its price soon dipped, causing it to slip back to the ninth position. Whale Alert reported that two whales transferred millions of Dogecoin (DOGE) to exchanges. One whale moved $6.2 million worth of DOGE to Binance, while another transferred over $32 million worth of DOGE to Robinhood. This could potentially indicate a DOGE selloff.

Maker Token Soars Following Buyback Program Introduction

The governance token of DeFi lender MakerDAO, Maker (MKR), spiked to a one-year high after the introduction of a token buyback program. MKR briefly reached above $1,200 before settling at around $1,108. The protocol is on track to purchase about $7 million worth of MKR tokens per month, reducing the supply by 0.7% monthly. MakerDAO is known for issuing the DAI stablecoin and is currently undergoing a major overhaul.

Market Response Mixed to Cardano's Mithril Launch

Cardano's upcoming Mithril mainnet launch has generated anticipation, but ADA's response has been lackluster. ADA's price has dropped by over 10% in the last seven days, while metrics remain uncertain. However, there are some positive signs, such as a decrease in price volatility and an increase in daily active addresses. Overall, the market's reaction to the Mithril release has been mixed.

XDC Network Token on a Consistent Uptrend

The price of the XDC Network token, XDC, has been steadily increasing and is currently at its highest level since April 2022. The token has gained over 40% this month and its seven-day performance saw a 50% increase. XDC is a blockchain with public and private components and has experienced various price swings since its launch in 2017. The introduction of Chain IDE played a part in its recent rise, and it is expected to continue growing if it maintains its upward trend.

SEC Vs. Ripple: A Second Round on the Horizon

The SEC plans to appeal the ruling in their lawsuit against Ripple, following the judge's decision that XRP's institutional sales are classified as securities. However, the judge ruled that retail sales of XRP did not qualify as an investment contract. The SEC argues that this ruling imposes unnecessary requirements on the Howey Test and creates a distinction between retail and institutional investors.

The number of XRP token holders with at least one million tokens has surpassed 1,900, with a total of 1,988 wallets holding at least one million XRP. The wallets holding between 1 million and 5 million XRP have a combined balance of 2.69 billion XRP, valued at $2.08 billion. However, wallets holding above 500 million XRP have not seen a significant increase.

US Justice Department Enhances Crypto Crime Enforcement

The US Department of Justice plans to expand its digital asset crime enforcement teams to reduce virtual asset-related crimes. The National Crypto Enforcement Team (NCET) will become a permanent body within the criminal division and will merge with the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).

The NCET has been successful in tackling ransomware crimes and will focus on decentralized finance theft and hacks. The team will receive more resources and staff to deal with the rising number of crypto and cyber-related offenses.

Criminals Favor Stablecoins for Illicit Activities

Criminals are switching from Bitcoin to stablecoins like USD Coin (USDC) for illegal financial activities due to the ease of access and ability to launder funds through decentralized exchanges. However, centralized issuers have the capability to freeze specific tokens, providing an advantage for law enforcement.

Ponzi and pyramid schemes remain a concern, with $7.8 billion stolen through scams. The decreasing hype and lower prices in the crypto market may be reducing criminal activity.

Bitfinex Hack Suspects Reach Plea Deal

A couple accused of laundering $4.5 billion in Bitcoin from the Bitfinex attack have reportedly reached a plea deal with US prosecutors. The couple will appear in court for a defense hearing on August 3. The attack in 2016 saw hackers transfer 119,756 Bitcoins, causing the price to drop by 30%.

Celsius Network Settlements: A Beacon of Hope for Customers

Crypto lender Celsius Network has reached settlements that could pave the way for the return of customer assets. The agreements would resolve customer claims over fraud allegations, with a total of 30,000 claims seeking $78 billion potentially being settled.

Court approval for the settlements is expected to be obtained on August 10, with disbursements to customers possible before the end of the year. Celsius filed for bankruptcy last year and is currently facing a lawsuit from the US Securities and Exchange Commission over alleged fraudulent activities.

Craig Wright's Bitcoin Copyright Case Advances in UK

Craig Wright, who claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the inventor of Bitcoin, has won the right to argue his case for copyright protection of the Bitcoin file format under UK law. A court denied his previous plea to block the operation of Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash, but a bench of three UK judges has now accepted his appeal.

The issue of copyright protection and Wright's identity as Nakamoto will be determined at a trial in January 2024. The decision has raised concerns about the potential for developers to be sued for violating the file format of open-source software.

Parrot Finance's Controversial Buyout Proposal

Parrot Finance, a crypto lending protocol, is holding a vote to buy out its investors. The proposal involves ending the governance token and dividing $50 million of the treasury among token owners, which would only be worth $0.0045 each.

Critics argue that the team could walk away with tens of millions of dollars while early investors suffer losses. The situation highlights the risks of funding crypto protocols through unregulated token offerings and the lack of regulation enforcement by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Bundle Pivots Away from Crypto Exchange Services

Nigerian social payments app, Bundle, is shutting down its crypto exchange services to focus on payment solutions. Users have until September 12, 2023, to withdraw their assets, with specific steps outlined for users in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and francophone-speaking countries. This decision comes as Bundle aims to meet the needs of the growing Web3 and blockchain community.

Wormhole Foundation Unveils Gateway Appchain on Cosmos

The Wormhole Foundation has launched a new appchain called Gateway within the Cosmos ecosystem. It allows users to bridge funds to any Cosmos appchain without extra fees and aims to simplify the integration of assets from various blockchains. The Gateway caters to Cosmos developers and other users who want to bridge their assets to or from the Cosmos network.

Top Altcoin Gainers and Losers

Gainers:

XDC Network XDC (+16.31%)

Casper CSPR (+10.31%)

TRON TRX (+6.54%)

Losers:

Injective INJ (-3.52%)

Maker MKR (-3.32%)

Curve DAO Token CRV (-3.13%)

NFT Market Map

McDonald's Partners with The Sandbox for McNuggets Land

McDonald's Hong Kong has partnered with The Sandbox to create McNuggets Land, a virtual world celebrating Chicken McNuggets' 40th anniversary. Users can play games and complete quests to win rewards, including the utility token SAND. The partnership brings The Sandbox closer to achieving mass adoption of the metaverse.

McDonald's China also previously released non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to mark its anniversary. The Sandbox has collaborated with numerous global brands and offers a self-publishing feature for brands to launch experiences directly on its platform.

Polygon 2.0 Commemorative NFT Stirs Up Excitement

Polygon Labs is generating excitement for the upcoming release of Polygon 2.0 with the launch of a commemorative NFT. The NFT has gained significant attention from the community, with thousands of users already minting it. Polygon 2.0 aims to transition to a network of zero-knowledge-proof powered blockchains for unlimited scalability and unified liquidity.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.

Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | July 22, 2023

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents:

Cryptocurrency Movements and Predictions

Regulatory and Legal Developments

Crypto Exchanges and Platforms

Crypto and the Metaverse