1.QCP Capital: Market volatility will increase significantly after the Federal Reserve meeting
QCP Capital’s latest report pointed out that today’s Federal Reserve meeting is crucial and will have a profound impact on the medium and long-term trends of financial markets. Market expectations for the size of the rate cut are divided: 33% see a 25 basis point cut and 66% expect a 50 basis point cut, according to federal funds futures pricing. However, 104 of economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected a 25 basis point cut, while just nine expected a 50 basis point cut. Market volatility will rise significantly after this meeting, especially following the interest rate decision, dot plot forecasts, and Fed Chairman Powell's press conference. The report emphasizes that although the market faces short-term corrections and high volatility, it is optimistic about BTC price increases in the long term and recommends focusing on long-term structured products.
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2. Chainalysis: Hong Kong is the city with the largest increase in cryptocurrency trading volume in East Asia
Hong Kong rose from 47th place last year to 30th place this year, according to the Global Cryptocurrency Adoption Index ranking released by research firm Chainalysis on Wednesday. The report noted that Hong Kong's cryptocurrency trading volume increased 85.6% year-on-year, the largest increase in East Asia. Chainalysis said that Hong Kong regulators' acceptance of cryptocurrencies and "decisiveness" in developing a regulatory framework have driven institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies. According to the Chainalysis report, South Korea has the largest cryptocurrency trading volume in East Asia.
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3. Arthur Hayes: Rate cuts will likely cause risk assets to fall in the short term, and the era of central banks is over
Arthur Hayes, founder of BitMEX and CIO of Maelstrom, said on Token2049 that with the upcoming rate cut by the Federal Reserve, risk assets may fall in the short term, especially the rise in the yen exchange rate may impact the crypto market. However, as interest rates fall to near zero, high-yield assets such as Ethereum will benefit. Ethereum's current annualized staking yield is about 4%. Once the Fed's rate cut causes the U.S. Treasury rate to fall below 4%, ETH will become very attractive and may trigger a new round of bull market. In addition, tokens such as Ethena's USDe and Pendle's BTC staking will benefit from it. Hayes also pointed out that the era of central banks is over, governments will dominate monetary policy, and crypto assets will become the only globally transferable safe-haven tool.
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4. Drug distributor Cencora was blackmailed by hackers and paid a $75 million Bitcoin ransom
The hacker group Dark Angels received a $75 million ransom through a cyberattack on pharmaceutical distributor Cencora Inc., the largest known cyber ransom payment. The payment was made in three installments in the form of Bitcoin, and the initial ransom demand was $150 million. Cencora discovered that its data had been stolen in February, and hackers stole sensitive data including personal information and medical data. It is reported that the previous highest ransom record was $40 million paid by CNA Financial Corp. in 2021.
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5. Tether's second quarter 2024 audit shows its reserves at $118.4 billion
Tether's audit for the second quarter of 2024 showed that its reserves amounted to $118.4 billion, exceeding liabilities by $5.3 billion, of which more than $97.6 billion were U.S. Treasuries. This makes Tether the 18th largest holder of U.S. Treasuries in the world, surpassing countries such as Germany, the UAE and Australia. In addition, Tether actively cooperated with 180 institutions in 45 jurisdictions around the world, froze approximately 1,850 wallets involved in the case, and assisted in the recovery of more than $113 million in assets.
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