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Blogs, news and announcements – page 23

2024-08-27-1US.png

Andrew FentonMarket update

BTC US$63k. Sony‘s new Ethereum L2, Bitcoin ETF inflows continue

Bitcoin surged by almost 5% in a few hours on Saturday after the Federal Reserve's Jerome Powell said "the time has come for policy to adjust." US interest rates are now widely expected to fall in mid-September which is good news for risk assets. RFK Jr also dropped out of the race for the White House that day, potentially increasing the chances of a pro-crypto Donald Trump victory. Bitcoin is now back above the Short-Term Holder Realised Price, which is "bullish" news, according to analyst Philip Swift. It finishes the week up 3% to trade around A$93,005 (US$63,363). Ethereum also gained 1% over the past seven days to trade around A$3,972 (US$2,677). Solana was up 8% despite the memecoin craze cooling and daily transaction fees falling to levels last seen in May. XRP lost 3%, Dogecoin gained 1%, and Cardano surged by 7%. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 55, or Greed.

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Andrew FentonMarket update

BTC US$60k. Bull run has another 12 months to go

In a week that marks 53 years since President Richard Nixon took the US off the gold standard, leaving the US dollar essentially unbacked, Bitcoin traded as high as A$92.6K (US$61.7K) and as low as A$86K (US$56.8K)… but finishes the week pretty much where it began at A$89,774 (US$60,752). Ethereum lost 2.8% over the same period and is currently trading around A$3,945 (US$2,642). The memecoin craze may finally be waning, with Coinshares attributing a record A$57.9M (US$39M) outflow from Solana funds last week to a “sharp decline in trading volumes of meme coins, on which it [Solana] heavily relies.” Solana and Cardano were flat, XRP gained 5.5% and Dogecoin fell by 5.5%. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 30, or Fear, which is a marginal improvement on last week's 25 or Extreme Fear.

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Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$59k. Crypto rebounds but global risk levels remain high

Congratulations — you survived the bear market of August 5 to 8. This time last week, things were looking grim, with Bitcoin plunging to $A77K (US$49.8K) as traditional markets tanked. But Bitcoin went on to jump 12% on Thursday, which was the biggest single-day rise since February 2022. The Bank of Japan soothed fears of any further interest rate rises, and Bitcoin whales bought the dip, according to Santiment. Despite a "death cross" appearing on the charts (often not that deadly), Bitcoin has recovered almost all of the ground it lost in the crash and finishes the week up 5% from last Tuesday. Ethereum was hit harder, and while it finished the week at 7%, it remained 8% below its pre-crash price. Solana gained 3%, XRP (10%), Dogecoin (7%) and Cardano (2%). With Iran still indicating it will launch an attack on Israel and US inflation and retail sales data out this week, there are still plenty of risks. LMAX Group market strategist Joel Kruger told Blockworks: “Technically speaking, there has been nothing in recent price action to suggest anything more than choppy trade.” With August and September typically poor months for crypto market returns, analysts appear to be coalescing on October as the most likely time for price appreciation. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 25, or Extreme Fear.

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Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$55k. Crypto & stock markets in panic as fire sale begins

Stocks and crypto markets took a dramatic dive on Monday. While there are growing fears of a recession in the US as unemployment rises—and even talk of emergency rate cuts—the main catalyst appears to be the worst one-day plunge on Japan’s Nikkei index since Black Monday in 1987, amid the violent unwinding of the Japanese Yen carry trade.

How to deposit USD and NZD using SWIFT

Ben RobertsKnowledge base

How to deposit NZD and USD using SWIFT

Independent Reserve allows you to deposit NZD and USD using SWIFT. Processing times are typically between 1 and 2 days. USD deposits under $5,000 will incur a fee of USD 15, and NZD deposits under $5,000 will incur a fee of NZD 15. View our fees page for more information.

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Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$68k. Crypto spring has returned, BTC inflows continue

Crypto spring has returned with 11 straight days of inflows into the Bitcoin ETFs, this week's scheduled launch of the Ethereum ETFs, and the appearance by pro-crypto Presidential candidate Donald Trump at Bitcoin 2024. The developments have temporarily outweighed concerns about a possible A$13.5B (US$9B) Mt Gox creditor dump. (An unscientific Reddit poll of creditors suggests 56% plan to HODL their recovered Bitcoin anyway). Adding to the fun Elon Musk has just changed his profile pic to laser eyes, but no one is quite sure if it's a crack at Joe Biden withdrawing from the race, or a hint the X owner will be making a Bitcoin announcement at Bitcoin 2024 as well. Bitcoin dipped briefly after Biden's withdrawal announcement came through (as it makes Trump's election less likely) but the price quickly recovered and Bitcoin is up 6.3% on the same time last week to trade around A$101,879 (US$68K). While the price is up, demand from retail investors (sub US$10K/A$15K traders) is at a three year low according to CryptoQuant. ARK invest analyst David Puell also says on chain indicators suggest Bitcoin is currently oversold and in the "deep value" zone. Ethereum barely managed to recover earlier losses to trade around A$5,183 (US$3,425) suggesting uncertainty over the ETF inflows. Solana surged 15% as various rumours fly around about potential ETFs, XRP gained 11% on news it may soon settle litigation with the SEC, Dogecoin was up 12%. Cardano lost 3% and Shiba Inu declined 13%. Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 70, or Greed.

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Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$58.3k. Trump heading to Bitcoin 2024, Germany out of BTC

Bearish sentiment caused by the great German Bitcoin selloff and Mt Gox repayments has abated. The catalyst appears to be the attempted assassination of Donald Trump boosting the pro-crypto candidate's chances of getting elected up to 71% on Polymarket. Bitcoin surged 8.2% from A$86K (US$58,340) to its current A$96,124 (US$65,310) in the aftermath of the assassination attempt and is up 14% for the week. Many analysts now believe we have bounced off a local bottom and the Crypto Fear and Greed Index surged almost 20 points in a day to its current 52, or neutral. Wildly speculative, unsourced rumours that China may be reconsidering overturning its crypto ban may also be playing a part. The ASX hit a record high of 8,000 points, and in the US the market is now pricing in a 95% chance of an interest rate cut in September. Ethereum gained 15% this week to trade at A$5,162 (US$3,471), Solana gained 16%, XRP surged 25%, Dogecoin (15.7%), Cardano (22%) and Shiba Inu (16.9%).

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Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$56.2k. Is the bull market already over?

The bull market appears to have been temporarily suspended due to the prospect of large amounts of Bitcoin flowing on to the markets from Mt Gox, and the German government. Bitcoin finished the week down 11% at A$83,793 (US$56,242), while Ethereum was hit even harder and pulled back 14% to A$4,471 (US$2,999). Everything else was in the red including Solana (-8%), XRP (-12%), Dogecoin (-11.6%), Cardano (-10%) and Shiba Inu (-3.5%). On the upside, Santiment says that the MVRV scores for Dogecoin, Uniswap, Ethereum, Link, XRP and Cardano indicate a potential buy the dip opportunity. Wall Street traders are also pricing in a 72% chance the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in September which should make macro conditions more favourable. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at the lowest point since January 2023 at 28, or Fear.

2024-07-02-1US

Ben RobertsMarket update

BTC US$63.1k. We've listed TRON (TRX), Mt. Gox FUD overstated

After dropping below A$89K (US$59K) in the wake of the Mt Gox repayments news, Bitcoin has recently staged a recovery and the price jumped 4% a day or so ago. BTC is currently trading at A$94,354 (US$63.1K) which puts it 4% up on the same time last week. Ethereum is trading around A$5,160 (US$3,451) which is 3% up on the same time last week. Solana led the altcoin gains with an 11% rise thanks to speculation over a potential ETF, XRP gained 0.15%, Dogecoin (3.5%), Cardano (7%) and Shiba Inu (7%). The US Bitcoin ETFs ended June in the black, with a net A$1.03 billion (US$688 million) of inflows. However, the final week of June saw around A$56M (US$37.3M) in outflows. Historically July is a positive month for crypto markets with an average gain of 7.42%. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 53, or Neutral.