What Is FLOW Blockchain And Why Is The Price Up 100% In The Last 24 Hours?
Anyone looking at the charts will have seen FLOW due to the incredible rally that its price has been on. The digital asset has gone from being in the shadows to be on the radar of crypto investors after growing more than 100% in a single. However, lesser known is the reason behind this rally. In this article, we take a look at FLOW and what has triggered such an increase in price over the past day.
Meta News Is The Catalyst
On Thursday, news broke that Meta (formerly known as Facebook) was moving forward with its NFT plans. It was implementing an NFT feature for its sister platform Instagram across 100 countries. The platform had been going deep into the metaverse and NFT space, and the announcement did not shock the market. However, the long-time coming news came with a new player that had previously not been named in the plan.
Naturally, as NFTs need a blockchain to run on, Meta had to announce the blockchain that it would be using. It went against everyone’s predictions that the social media giant would use one of the leading NFT networks to implement this feature. However, it announced that the FLOW Blockchain would be its official partner to host the NFTs on its blockchain.
The news of the announcement quickly circulated, and FLOW blockchain gained more recognition as a result. By the time the day was over, its’ price had already risen more than 100% to be trading above $2.50as investors flocked to capitalize on this newfound fame.
FLOW Continues To Rise
It has been a day since the Meta news broke, but FLOW has not declined in any way. The digital asset has risen quickly as it garners more support from the crypto community. At the time the news broke on Thursday, FLOW had been trading at around $1.85. At the time of this writing, it is trading as high as $2.74. This registers as a new two-month high for the digital asset.
FLOW blockchain was built by Dapper Labs and launched in September 2019. It has a strong community of supporters, as Dapper Labs had been behind the creation of CryptoKitties back in 2017. When it launched the NBA Top Shot, FLOW blockchain had garnered more attention.
Despite this, though, the blockchain has not been able to reach a point where it was competing with market leaders such as Ethereum and Solana. However, Instagram’s popularity may yet make it a top contender.
FLOW’s rally has pushed it upwards in the market. It is currently the 29th largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of $2.8 billion. This puts it ahead of cryptocurrencies such as ApeCoin, Algorand, and Bitcoin Cash.
Featured image from The Coin Republic, chart from TradingView.com
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What comes to mind when you think of Gucci? Designer handbags, fashion jewelry, elegant Swiss watches? What about payment integration with an ERC-20 governance and utility token that wants to power Web3? Rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it? The iconic Italian fashion brand announced this week it would expand its payment options to include the Bored Ape Yacht Club-affiliated ApeCoin (APE) — but only through BitPay. In other words, Gucci will let you liquidate your APE for United States dollars and spend the proceeds at its stores.
If you’re surprised by the news, you should read on to learn more about Gucci’s broadening crypto ambitions. While you’re at it, stick around for this week’s Crypto Biz, where we dissect the latest news surrounding Michael Saylor and Robinhood. We leave you with a sobering analysis of the Terra-induced crypto market collapse from a top Kraken executive.
Gucci becomes first major brand to accept ApeCoin payments
If you missed it, Gucci officially became the first major brand to accept APE payments via Bitpay. The move came months after Gucci announced that it would accept 12 crypto assets as payment across more than 100 North American stores. Holders of Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE) and other crypto are now able to convert their digital assets into a $5,000 GUCCI tote bag. Beyond crypto payments, Gucci launched a pair of nonfungible token (NFT) collections this year, including the SUPERGUCCI NFT lineup in February.
Michael Saylor will step down as MicroStrategy CEO but remain as executive chair
Bitcoin’s chief evangelist Michael Saylor is clearing his calendar to focus almost entirely on promoting the digital asset. This week, Saylor announced he was stepping down as CEO of MicroStrategy in favor of a new executive chair position. Effective Aug. 8, Saylor’s new role will focus on MicroStrategy’s “Bitcoin acquisition strategy and related Bitcoin advocacy initiatives.” A day after the announcement, MicroStrategy’s stock price surged to three-month highs. It looks like investors are pleased with Saylor’s position. We’ll see how they feel if crypto winter lasts another year.
In my next job, I intend to focus more on #Bitcoin.
‘This is on me’ — Robinhood CEO to lay off 23% of staff after Q2 loss
Robinhood’s foray into crypto looked great over a year ago when we were riding the bull market. Now, with crypto, stocks and the economy in the dumps, the discount brokerage has been forced to lay off nearly a quarter of its staff. Vlad Tenev, Robinhood’s CEO, delivered the bad news shortly after the company reported dismal second-quarter earnings results, which included a 44% decline in year-over-year net revenues. Crypto-focused companies have seen sweeping layoffs this year as asset prices plunged and trade volumes dried up.
“Departing Robinhoodies will be offered the opportunity to remain employed with Robinhood through October 1, 2022 and receive their regular pay and benefits. They will also be offered job search assistance (including an opt in Robinhood Alumni Talent Directory).”
Bitcoin’s performance over the past week has taken both the bulls and the bears by surprise. Meanwhile, Ether has bounced strongly off its lows as the hype surrounding its upcoming Merge intensifies. But, the outlook on both assets is as clear as mud. In this week’s Market Report, I sat down with fellow analysts Marcel Pechman and Benton Yaun to debate an important topic: Have BTC and ETH bottomed yet? You can catch a full replay of the show below.
Crypto Biz is your weekly pulse of the business behind blockchain and crypto delivered directly to your inbox every Thursday.
We’re thrilled to announce that Kraken now supports JUNO (JUNO)!
Funding and Trading
Funding and trading are now live. Keep an eye on the status page for updates.
You can add these tokens to your Kraken account by navigating to Funding, selecting the asset, and hitting Deposit. Deposits are near-instant.
All tokens are tradeable against USD and EUR on Kraken and the Kraken Pro interface with the following price precisions and minimum deposits:
Asset
Pair
Price Decimal Precision
Minimum Order Size
Min Deposit
JUNO
USD, EUR
3
1
160
Note:
Deposit JUNO on the JUNO network only. Deposits sent from other networks will be lost.
Trading via Kraken App and Instant Buy will be available once the liquidity conditions are met (when a sufficient number of buyers and sellers have entered the market for their orders to be efficiently matched).
Here’s what you need to know about the assets:
JUNO (JUNO)
JUNO is an open source platform that helps developers build smart contracts using the Cosmos software development kit (SDK). The network makes it easier to build decentralized applications by compiling smart contracts that have been created using various programming languages. JUNO is the native asset of the JUNO network, which can be staked to earn rewards for helping secure the network, allocated to participate in on-chain governance or spent to pay for computation services.
Will Kraken list more assets?
Yes! But our policy is to never reveal any details until shortly before launch – not even which assets we are considering. All of Kraken’s listed tokens are available on our website, and all future tokens will be announced on Kraken’s blog and social media profiles. Our client engagement specialists cannot answer any questions about which assets we may be listing in the future.
These materials are for general information purposes only and are not investment advice or a recommendation or solicitation to buy, sell, or hold any digital asset or to engage in any specific trading strategy. Some crypto products and markets are unregulated, and you may not be protected by government compensation and/or regulatory protection schemes. The unpredictable nature of the cryptoasset markets can lead to loss of funds. Tax may be payable on any return and/or on any increase in the value of your crypto assets and you should seek independent advice on your taxation position.
230 Economists Warn the US Government’s Proposed Inflation Reduction Act Will Fuel Inflation – Economics Bitcoin News
Last week, Democrats unveiled climate and health care legislation called the “Inflation Reduction Act,” and there’s a lot of debate over the name of the proposed public policy measures. After the legislation was revealed, 230 economists sent a letter to the country’s House and Senate leaders warning that the proposed policies will actually fuel inflation. The letter stresses that there is an urgent need to curb America’s inflationary pressures, but further notes the “‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’ is a misleading label applied to a bill that would likely achieve the exact opposite effect.”
230 Economists Tell House and Senate Leaders That the Proposed Climate and Health Care Legislation Is Not a Good Idea While the US Faces ‘Dangerous Crossroads’
Inflation has been high in 2022 and the Federal Reserve has been trying to curb the problem by raising the federal funds rate. There’s been a lot of debate over whether or not the U.S. is in a recession after two consecutive quarters of negative gross domestic product (GDP) growth. On Friday, there was some positive news, as the latest U.S. jobs report indicated that 528,000 jobs were added in July and unemployment data slid to pre-pandemic levels.
The Inflation Reduction Act won’t just be the largest investment in clean energy and American energy security in history.
It will be the largest investment in American manufacturing as well.
Amid the Ukraine-Russia war, tensions between China and Taiwan, and a gloomy global economy, U.S. Democrats have introduced new legislation to address climate change and health care called the Inflation Reduction Act. Democrats claim that the legislation will “make a historic down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation.” The $739 billion Inflation Reduction Act package recently got the green light from U.S. politicians Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer. The Arizona Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema was the last to show support for the proposed climate and health care legislation.
As I predicted the #Inflation “Reduction” Act will not eliminate the carried interest tax loophole. The one thing #Democrats care more about than taxing billionaires is getting their campaign donations.
The politicians sponsoring the initiative also insist the policies will “invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030.” The act will be voted on Saturday and many people believe the legislation’s label is inaccurate and misleading. In fact, 230 economists wrote a letter to Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, Nancy Pelosi, and Kevin McCarthy to tell them that the bill would increase inflation.
“At a time when the economy already faces supply/demand imbalances, the residual effects of stimulus, labor shortages, and supply chain disruptions, this bill would compound rather than alleviate many of these problems,” the letter states. The economists’ letter to the House and Senate leaders adds:
In particular, its $433 billion in proposed government spending would create immediate inflation pressures by boosting demand, which the supply-side tax hikes would constrain supply by discouraging investment draining the private sector of much-need resources.
Redditors From r/Economy Subreddit Openly Mock Analysis by the Global Warming Advocacy Group That Claims Inflation Reduction Act Will Help Americans Save Money
Of course, Democrats, left-leaning media publications, and non-profit think tanks have stated that the Inflation Reduction Act would reduce inflation and allegedly lead to savings. A Yahoo Finance article written by Akiko Fujita attempts to prove the bill will help Americans save money by citing a new analysis published by the non-profit group Rewiring America.
It has never felt more 1984 than 2022.
Inflation “might still be transitory but it will take a few years to go down.”
“Recession” doesn’t mean what we said it means.
The “Inflation Reduction Act” is a $739 pork barrel that’s 50% for climate change and taxes the working class.
— Occupy The Fed Movement (@OccupytheFeds) August 5, 2022
The 501(c)(3) Rewiring America is a global warming advocacy group managed by Arabella Advisors. The Washington, D.C.-based for-profit consulting company Arabella controls the Sixteen Thirty Fund, the New Venture Fund, the Hopewell Fund, and the Windward Fund. Arabella itself was founded by the former Clinton administration appointee Eric Kessler.
While the analysis asserts the Inflation Reduction Act could lead to $1,800 in savings for the average household, a significant majority of Redditors from the subreddit r/economy did not agree with Rewiring America’s claims. One person quoted Rewiring America’s modern home installation requirements, and stressed: “How the f*** can a low-income household afford these?” The person who posted the article to r/economy replied to the individual by saying it was “typical government idiocy.” The Redditor added:
The entire green movement is a money grab for this generation.
Many other Redditors discussed how politicians have a “higher than the average” point of view when it comes to what is perceived as “low income” in the United States. “Just skimming through the article shows that the ‘$1,800’ in savings the average household would ‘get’ is actually tax breaks for low-income families to install more efficient electrical equipment. Is this a joke?” another Redditor asked.
“Unfortunately for us, it isn’t a joke,” the thread’s author wrote in response to the joke question.
Republican Senators have made it clear that Joe Manchin’s and Chuck Schumer’s Inflation Reduction Act reforms deal will not get traction from the right-leaning party. “Senator Manchin, if you think you’re gonna get 60 votes to get the sweeteners that can’t be done in reconciliation, you need to think long and hard about what you’re doing,” Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wrote on Friday.
What do you think about the letter 230 economists sent to House and Senate leaders about the proposed Inflation Reduction Act? Let us know your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.
Jamie Redman
Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 5,700 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.
This On-Chain Indicator Suggests Bitcoin Still Only 1/3rd Into Bear Market
The Bitcoin long-term holder SOPR may suggest that the crypto has still only gone one-third of the way through the latest bear market.
Bitcoin 20-day SMA Long-Term Holder SOPR Has Only Been 86 Days Into Bottoming Zone
As pointed out by an analyst in a CryptoQuant post, the crypto is still only 1/3rd of the way into the 260 days average historical bottoming period.
The relevant indicator here is the “Spent Output Profit Ratio” (or SOPR in brief), which tells us about whether the average Bitcoin investor is selling at a profit or at a loss right now.
The metric works by looking at the history of each coin being sold on the chain to see what price it was last moved at. If this previous selling price was less than the latest BTC value, then the coin has just been sold at a profit. While if the last value was more than the current one, then that particular coin realized some loss.
When the value of the SOPR is greater than one, it means the market as a whole is selling at a profit right now.
On the other hand, the indicator being less than one implies the average holder is moving coins at a loss at the moment.
The “long-term holders” (LTHs) is the Bitcoin cohort that includes all investors who have held onto their coins for at least 155 days without selling or moving them.
Now, here is a chart that shows the trend in the BTC SOPR (20-day MA) specifically for these LTHs over the the last several years:
Looks like the value of the metric has been pretty low recently | Source: CryptoQuant
As you can see in the above graph, the Bitcoin LTH SOPR (20-day SMA) dipped below the “one” mark a while back.
Also, in the chart the quant has marked all the relevant zones of trend for the indicator in relation to the bear market.
It seems like historical bottoming periods have lasted whenever the metric has been stuck below the breakeven point.
On average, past bear markets have lasted around 260 days based on the LTH SOPR. In the current cycle, the coin has so far been 86 days into the bottoming zone.
This would suggest that if Bitcoin ends this bear market in about the same time as the average, then the crypto is still only one-third of the way through.
BTC Price
At the time of writing, Bitcoin’s price floats around $23k, down 2% in the last week. Over the past month, the coin has gained 13% in value.
The value of the crypto seems to have been moving sideways during the last few days | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView
Featured image from mana5280 on Unsplash.com, charts from TradingView.com, CryptoQuant.com
The United States Labor market added 528,000 jobs in July, much better than the 258,000 estimate. Wages saw growth of 5.2% year-over-year and 0.5% over the month. This suggests that inflation remains high and the U.S. Federal Reserve may continue with its rate hikes in the near future.
After staying in close correlation with the U.S. equities markets for the past several months, the crypto space could be ready to chalk out a new course.
Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone and senior market structure analyst Jamie Coutts said in a recent report that Bitcoin (BTC) has started base building similar to the one seen near $5,000 in 2018–2019. They expect the recovery to decouple from stocks and behave more like U.S. “Treasury bonds or gold.”
Although crypto prices have plunged sharply during the ongoing bear market, it has not dented investors’ appetite. A report by crypto analytics firm Messari and Dove Metrics showed that the crypto space raised $30.3 billion in funds in 2022, surpassing the total amount raised in 2021.
Could Bitcoin continue its recovery or will bears pose a strong challenge at higher levels? Let’s study the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to find out.
BTC/USDT
The bears pulled the price below the 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) ($22,630) on Aug. 4 but could not sustain the lower levels. This indicates that the bulls are defending the level aggressively.
BTC/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The gradually up-sloping 20-day EMA and the relative strength index (RSI) in the positive territory indicate a minor advantage to buyers. If the price rises off the 20-day EMA, the bulls will attempt to push the BTC/USDT pair to the overhead resistance at $24,668.
This is an important level to keep an eye on because if the price breaks above $24,668, the pair could pick up momentum and rally toward $28,000 and then on to $32,000. Such a move will suggest that the pair may have bottomed out.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the current level or the overhead resistance and breaks below the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that bears continue to sell on minor rallies. That could open the doors for a drop to the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) ($21,388).
ETH/USDT
Ether (ETH) has been trading between the 20-day EMA ($1,560) and the $1,700 resistance for the past four days. Usually, tight range trading is followed by a range expansion.
ETH/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The up-sloping 20-day EMA and the RSI in the positive zone indicate advantage to buyers. A break and close above the overhead resistance zone between $1,700 and $1,785 could open the doors for a possible rally to $2,000 and later to $2,200.
Alternatively, if the ETH/USDT pair turns down from the current level and breaks below the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that bears continue to defend the overhead zone with all their might. That could result in a decline to the strong support at $1,280.
BNB/USDT
BNB bounced off the $275 support on Aug. 2 and broke above the immediate resistance at $302 on Aug. 3. This indicates the resumption of the up-move.
BNB/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The up-sloping 20-day EMA ($277) and the RSI in the overbought zone indicate that bulls are in command. The BNB/USDT pair could rally to the stiff overhead resistance at $350. This level is likely to attract strong selling from the bears.
To invalidate this bullish view, the bears will have to sink and sustain the price below the 20-day EMA. If that happens, short-term traders may rush to the exit and that could pull the pair down to the 50-day SMA ($246).
XRP/USDT
The buyers have successfully held the 20-day EMA ($0.36) support in the past few days but have failed to achieve a strong rebound in XRP. This suggests that bears are selling on rallies.
XRP/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The XRP/USDT pair could remain stuck between the 20-day EMA and the overhead resistance zone between $0.39 and $0.41. If bulls clear the overhead hurdle, the positive momentum could pick up and the pair could rally to $0.48 and then to $0.54.
Alternatively, if the price turns down and breaks below the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that the demand has dried up. That could sink the pair to the 50-day SMA ($0.34) and keep the pair range-bound between $0.30 and $0.39 for a few more days.
ADA/USDT
The bears repeatedly tried to sink Cardano (ADA) below the 20-day EMA ($0.50) in the past three days but the bulls held their ground.
ADA/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The ADA/USDT pair has rebounded off the 20-day EMA and the buyers will attempt to push the price above the overhead resistance at $0.55. If they manage to do that, the bullish momentum could pick up and the pair could rise to $0.63 and later toward $0.70.
Alternatively, if the price turns down from the overhead resistance, it will suggest that bears are active at higher levels. The sellers will then again attempt to sink the price below the moving averages and retain the pair inside the range between $0.40 and $0.55 for some more time.
SOL/USDT
The bears tried to sink the price below the support line on Aug. 3 but the bulls defended the level successfully. Solana (SOL) formed an inside-day candlestick pattern on Aug. 4, which resolved to the upside on Aug. 5.
SOL/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
If buyers sustain the price above the 20-day EMA ($40), the SOL/USDT pair could climb to $44 and then retest the stiff overhead resistance at $48. The bulls will have to clear this hurdle to signal the formation of an ascending triangle pattern. This bullish setup has a target objective of $71.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down and breaks below the support line, the bullish setup will be invalidated. The pair could then slide toward the strong support at $31.
DOGE/USDT
Dogecoin (DOGE) bounced off the 50-day SMA ($0.07) on Aug. 4 and the bulls extended the up-move above the 20-day EMA ($0.07) on Aug. 5.
DOGE/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The bulls will attempt to push the price toward the overhead resistance at $0.08. This is an important level for the bears to defend because a break and close above it will complete an ascending triangle pattern. The DOGE/USDT pair could then start an up-move to $0.10 and then to the pattern target at $0.11.
On the other hand, if the price turns down from the current level and breaks below the 50-day SMA, it will suggest that bears are selling on rallies. The pair could then drop to the support line of the triangle. A break below this level could negate the bullish setup.
Related: Bitcoin fails to beat $23.4K sellers as US payrolls upend inflation debate
DOT/USDT
Polkadot (DOT) bounced off the 20-day EMA ($7.78) on Aug. 3, indicating demand at lower levels. The buyers will attempt to push the price to the overhead resistance zone between $9 and $9.21.
DOT/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
If bulls clear this overhead hurdle, the DOT/USDT pair could pick up momentum and start its northward march toward $10.80 and then $12. The up-sloping 20-day EMA and the RSI in the positive zone indicate that buyers are in control.
To invalidate this bullish view, the bears will have to sell aggressively and sink the pair below the moving averages. If that happens, the pair may remain stuck inside the range between $6 and $9 for some more time.
MATIC/USDT
The buyers have successfully held Polygon (MATIC) above the 20-day EMA ($0.85) during the correction, which suggests a change in sentiment from selling on rallies to buying on dips.
MATIC/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
Both moving averages are sloping up and the RSI is in the positive territory, indicating advantage to buyers. If bulls thrust the price above the overhead resistance at $1.02, the MATIC/USDT pair could rally to $1.26 and then to $1.50.
Conversely, if the price turns down and breaks below the 20-day EMA, it will suggest that the pair may extend its stay inside the range between $0.75 and $1 for some more time. The sellers will gain the upper hand on a break below $0.75.
AVAX/USDT
Avalanche (AVAX) has bounced off the 20-day EMA ($22.86), indicating that bulls are buying the dips to this support.
AVAX/USDT daily chart. Source: TradingView
The buyers will drive the price to the stiff overhead resistance at $26.38. The gradually up-sloping 20-day EMA and the RSI in the positive territory indicate advantage to buyers. If bulls push the price above $26.38, the AVAX/USDT pair will complete a bullish ascending triangle pattern. The pair could then rally to $33 and later to $38.
Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the overhead resistance and breaks below the 20-day EMA, the pair could drop to the support line.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.
The crypto industry faced headwinds in recent months as May’s collapse of the Terra ecosystem took its toll. In June and July, major crypto lending platforms (including Celsius, BlockFi, Voyager and Vauld) took drastic measures in the wake of “extreme market conditions.”
June’s leverage-related fallout for crypto lenders continued into July but did not extend to cryptocurrencies, which rallied. ETH led the way, spurred by news that The Merge, Ethereum’s switch from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake, is set to take place at the end of this quarter. On July 15, Ethereum developers announced the long-awaited Merge could occur as soon as September 19, 2022.
The macroeconomic environment remained challenging as worldwide inflation continued to rise in June. The U.S. Federal Reserve instituted another 75-basis-point hike while signaling their intention to keep raising rates in the months ahead. The U.S. economy’s two consecutive quarters of negative real GDP growth satisfies one popular definition of a country that has entered a recession. Russian military occupation of Ukraine continued.
A rebounding crypto market within a challenging macroeconomic environment could make it difficult to forecast what lies ahead. On-chain data can help separate the signal from the noise by providing evidence of trends in network usage and demand. In Kraken Intelligence’s latest on-chain digest, All Eyes on ETH, the team recaps what went down in July.
Dominance shift
BTC rose by 16.9% month-over-month, from $19,950 at the end of June to $23,321 at the end of July. But ETH took the cake with a 57.1% rise from $1,070 to $1,681 over that same timeframe.
Despite trending lower YTD, total crypto market capitalization increased by around $210 billion in July. BTC dominance has increased by 1 percentage point (pp) in 2022 as altcoin market dominance fell across the board. ETH dominance remained the year’s worst performer (-1.3 pp), followed by SOL (-1 pp), AVAX (-0.6 pp), ADA (-0.3 pp), ALGO (-0.3 pp) and DOGE (-0.2 pp).
On-chain fundamentals
Transaction fees represent the cost crypto users are willing to pay to include a transaction on a protocol’s ledger; it is a proxy for network demand. ETH fees have taken the biggest hit YTD (-93%), followed by DOGE (-65%) and BTC (-55%), as network demand has slowed.
While the sharp drop in ETH fees YTD indicated dwindling network demand, other on-chain metrics signaled increased interest this month as the asset led the cohort with a 28% rise in daily active addresses in July 2022. This was followed by a month-over-month increase in daily active addresses for ADA (+8%), BTC (+0.7%) and AVAX (+0.5%). On the other hand, SOL dropped from first place to third in terms of total active addresses (though it has since regained second place behind BTC).
Though overall on-chain metrics were mixed, they leaned positive this month. Catalysts for rising demand over coming months include increased ADA development activity, ETH’s upcoming Merge and total market capitalization finding a new support level last month. On-chain demand and usage may continue to increase in August.
Want to learn more about on-chain activity in July and what’s ahead? Read the Kraken Intelligence report, All Eyes on ETH, in which the team explores the crypto fundamentals and on-chain data that shaped the market in July.
These materials are for general information purposes only and are not investment advice or a recommendation or solicitation to buy, sell, or hold any digital asset or to engage in any specific trading strategy. Some crypto products and markets are unregulated, and you may not be protected by government compensation and/or regulatory protection schemes. The unpredictable nature of the cryptoasset markets can lead to loss of funds. Tax may be payable on any return and/or on any increase in the value of your crypto assets and you should seek independent advice on your taxation position.
THETA Hits 3-Month High, While Near Climbs 17% on Friday – Market Updates Bitcoin News
Theta network was trading at its highest point in three months on Friday, as prices broke out of a key resistance level. Today’s move comes as crypto markets were mostly higher in the session, climbing 2.86% as of writing. Near protocol rose by 17%, also recording multi-month highs.
Theta Network (THETA)
Theta network (THETA) was one of Friday’s notable gainers, as prices rose by nearly 16% in today’s session.
Friday’s surge saw the token hit an intraday high of $1.65, which comes less than 24 hours after trading at a low of $1.37.
Today’s rally sees THETA/USD climb to its highest point since May 11, when price was at a peak of $1.84.
THETA/USD – Daily Chart
Looking at the chart, the move came as THETA broke out of its key resistance level at $1.57, which is two days removed from its last attempt to move past this hurdle.
This comes as the relative strength index (RSI) also moved past a ceiling of its own at 62, and as of writing, it is tracking at 65.30.
This is the highest point price strength has hit since April, and comes as THETA has entered overbought territory.
Bears could look to reenter the market in upcoming sessions as a result of this.
Near Protocol (NEAR)
Near protocol (NEAR) was trading even higher than THETA on Friday, with the token climbing by as much as 17%.
Following a low of $4.33 on Thursday, NEAR/USD raced to a peak of $5.19 earlier in today’s session.
Like THETA, this high came as near protocol broke out of its long-term resistance level of $4.80.
NEAR/USD – Daily Chart
This ceiling was held since June 10, which was the beginning of a five-day bearish streak that pushed price to a low of $3.11.
Since rebounding from those declines, the 14-day RSI has gone from a low of 36.51 on June 14, to now tracking at 68.
As a result of this, prices are now overbought, although bulls appear keen to move even higher, as they target a ceiling of $5.55.
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Do you expect near protocol to surge further, despite being overbought? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Eliman Dambell
Eliman brings a eclectic point of view to market analysis, having worked as a brokerage director, retail trading educator, and market commentator in Crypto, Stocks and FX.
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Bitcoin Sends Mixed Signals At $23,000, Capped Upside Potential?
Bitcoin keeps on moving sideways as the weekend approaches and, with less trading volume on exchange platforms, the cryptocurrency hints at potential losses. BTC’s price has surrendered the gains from the past week but has been able to hold to its current levels as critical support.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $23,000 with sideways movement over the past 24 hours and a 3% loss over the past week. The first cryptocurrency by market cap has been severely outperformed by Binance Coin (BNB) and Polkadot as risk appetite seems to return to the crypto market.
BTC’s price moving sideways on the 4-hour chart. Source: BTCUSDT Tradingview
In a recent report, trading firm QCP Capital reiterates its position: BTC’s price upside potential will remain capped after a bullish response to last week’s macro-economic events. The firm expects Bitcoin and Ethereum to move sideways during the coming weeks with potential short-lived rallies.
The latter could be translated into price action based on three bullish macro-economic factors: the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) has hinted at a less aggressive monetary policy, inflation might have reached its short-term peak as reflected by the drop in the price of commodities, and the potential upside in legacy markets.
QCP Capital believes that many market participants in traditional finances took short positions, potentially expecting more losses in the past earnings seasons. These positions are susceptible to a “short squeeze”, a sudden move to the upside, which could benefit Bitcoin and the crypto market. QCP Capital said:
Post-FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee, last Thursday), the immediate market reaction was a price rally and vol sell-off. BTC rallied to 24,666 high and ETH rallied to 1,793. In vols, BTC frontend dropped to below 70% (from close to 90%) and ETH to 90% handle (from 125%).
Source: QCP Capital via Twitter
Can Bitcoin And Ethereum Break Past Mid-Term Obstacles
As there is potential for bullish momentum, bears could resume their attacks if the Fed turns more aggressive on its monetary policy. QCP Capital noted that there are “many” Fed members in disagreement with current market expectations.
Market participants have been trying to get ahead of the Fed by pricing in their future interest rate hikes. Thus, why some Fed members might want to turn more hawkish and surprise the market with a bigger hike, reduce demand and possibly have a deeper impact on reducing inflation. QCP Capital said:
We continue to think that markets will trade sideways and will be sensitive to economic data releases. US CPI next Wednesday will be the next important one to watch.
The trading firm believes that the upcoming Ethereum “Merge” is the biggest hurdle for future appreciation. This event might open the path for the emergence of ETH fork tokens.
If one of these tokens, the ETH based on Proof-of-Work (PoW), is able to retain market share from the ETH based on Proof-of-Stake, the token could see a “significant price disruption akin to a stock split or special dividend”.
Binance Card users now have access to XRP, SHIB and AVAX
Binance announced on Friday that its Binance Card now supports three new altcoins. Card users can now access their holdings of Ripple (XRP), Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Avalanche (AVAX).
The Binance Card allows its holders to “convert and spend cryptocurrencies in over 60 million online and physical stores.” However, the card is only available to European citizens and, according to the website, Ukrainian refugees. Prior to the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, Binance had intentions of expanding its card reach into Ukraine by sometime this year.
With the latest addition, the card now supports 14 cryptocurrencies, including Cardano (ADA), Avalanche (AVAX), BNB, Bitcoin (BTC), Binance USD (BUSD), Polkadot (DOT), Ether (ETH), S.S. Lazio Fan Token (LAZIO), FC Porto Fan Token (PORTO), Santos FC Fan Token (SANTOS), SHIB, Swipe (SXP), Tether (USDT) and Ripple (XRP).
New additions to the supported crypto do not change the current payment preferences for those already using the Binance Card.
Related: Binance US will delist AMP following SEC claim token is a security
This development comes one day after Binance announced its partnership with Mastercard to bring prepaid cards to Argentina. The two financial service providers will team up in an effort to broaden payment possibilities to Binance users in the country.
Argentinian clients will be able to use BTC and BNB, among other cryptocurrencies, for purchases and withdrawals wherever Mastercard is accepted.
Earlier this year, Wirex added AVAX to its already large list of currency offerings on its crypto card. The platform offers users the ability to pay in 61 different currencies, both fiat and cryptocurrencies.
Nexo also came out with a crypto card in partnership with Mastercard. Nexo announced the project back in 2019, though it finally manifested nearly three years later. Similar to the Binance Card, it is only available to residents within certain countries in Europe.
