Hey folks, Welcome back! With the crypto market crawling back to normalcy, let’s look at the highlights that occurred across the community over the past 24 hours. From steep dips to wider adoption, the market witnessed various developments in the digital assets sector.
Powell’s Statements Shake the Market
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell‘s recent speech at the FOMC put a lot of pressure on the financial sector, including cryptocurrencies. Powell’s indication that rate cuts may slow down next year threw the market into confusion. Major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, experienced a disastrous shift from its upward trend. The coin which went till $108K drastically dropped below $98K. Further, the entire U.S. stock market bathed in red. In the crypto section, nearly $866.37 million were liquidated across major CEXs. This includes $752.22 million in long positions and $114.15 million in short positions. The drastic fall highlighted the market’s heightened risk and sensitivity to macroeconomic cues.
FTX and Alameda Research Liquidate WLD Holdings
The now-defunct crypto exchange, FTX and Alameda Research have taken a hit after closing their positions on Worldcoin (WLD). After massive sell-offs, the firms sold their WLD, making the observers wonder about the financial policies of these leading firms that once dominated the crypto market. The move is considered as a part of their organizational restructuring strategy after the bankruptcy. Such actions can often trigger market instability, leading to price fluctuations and shifting sentiment around the value of specific tokens.
XRP and DOGE Face Pressure
Among the major cryptocurrencies that suffered heavily are XRP and DOGE. XRP which had earlier gone up following the partial legal win in the SEC case, however, had a sharp selloff. The prime factors include regulatory concerns/skepticism and market exhaustion. On the other hand, DOGE also experienced a significant fall. Although Elon Musk extended his support indirectly to the meme coin, DOGE had a decrease in activity.
Hong Kong Expands Crypto Licenses
Hong Kong is gearing up to become a crypto hub through the approval of four new exchange licenses. This development demonstrates its determination to promote innovation and growth in the blockchain sector. The decision is in line with the overall development plan of Hong Kong to become a talent and business hub of the digital asset industry. These actions give regulatory certainty and solid foundations for the region to strengthen its position in the world of cryptocurrency.
BlackRock Secures Abu Dhabi License to Boost UAE Expansion IMF Deal Influences El Salvador’s Bitcoin Policies
El Salvador, the first nation to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, has signed a $1.4 billion deal with the IMF. The deal is geared up to develop new Bitcoin policies and regulate the country’s economic issues simultaneously. Notably, the adoption of Bitcoin by the government has attracted attention, drawn to its audacity and challenges. With the IMF, adequate integration of cryptocurrencies can be enhanced within sustainable economic development.
Sky Protocol’s MKR Migration and Future Plans
In regard to its strategic development, Sky Protocol revealed the migration of MKR tokens to the SKY network. The protocol had promised to improve scalability through their so-called Star Expansion, which suggests a shift towards blockchain adoption on a larger scale. This migration has been in line with the general practice of the industry to change protocols in order to accommodate the budding decentralized environment. Notably, the Sky Protocol’s vision has been to create a decentralized ecosystem that is inherently interconnected and, above all, user-oriented in the context of Web3.
Fartcoin’s Unusual Rise
Fartcoin, an altcoin, created to be an internet meme, surpassed expectations and increased to a $1 billion market valuation despite a downturn in other altcoins. It underlines the volatile and rather irrational tendencies of the crypto space as valuation depends on popularity. However, crypto experts warned that such skyrocketing can only go upwards but must be corrected at some point to act as a reminder that cryptocurrencies are full of risk.
Binance.US to Resume USD Services
Binance.US revealed its intentions to restore the USD services by 2025. The decision is positive as it shows improvement in tackling issues that have made the company face problems in regulations in the United States. It is viewed as an effort by the company to regain clients’ trust and gain a larger share of the market that provides high compliance standards. Through this announcement, industry experts believe that other centralized exchanges facing similar issues in terms of regulation and transparency will look up to Binance.US.
ASIC Sues Binance for Retail Client Protection Failures VIX Spike Drives Market Dip
The most notable indicator to have gone up this week is the Volatility Index (VIX), commonly known as the ‘fear index,’ which negatively impacted the crypto market. High volatility, if occurred, could affect investor interest. Thus investment firms are cautioned from taking risks in speculative assets like cryptocurrencies. According to the experts, the changes in the VIX are the result of market volatility around the world, and this is likely to continue in the future since the classical and newcomers markets are still closely connected.
Justin Sun Sparks Controversy
In a major turn of events, Tron founder Justin Sun’s banana stunt has sparked controversy. Sun, who had purchased the iconic banana artwork worth about $6.2 million, urged a media newsletter to omit the article from its publication. Reportedly, Justin Sun’s team had asked Bullish, the parent company of CoinDesk, to remove the article, citing the ‘tone of the article’ as hostile. Although the article was removed from CoinDesk’s publication, it remains accessible on Yahoo News.
Conclusion
With the market undergoing a difficult patch, it sheds light on the unspoken truth that the crypto world is filled with surprises and twists that cannot be predicted. Further, with the wider adoption of crypto and enhanced innovations in the blockchain sector, several investors are keen to make their mark despite the mixed emotions exhibited by the market.
The post The Blockchain Bulletin,Dec 20: Hong Kong Approves Four New Crypto Exchanges appeared first on CryptoTale.
