Happy Wednesday! In today's Daily, Bitget and Foresight Ventures invest $30 million in TON blockchain, CME futures traders are poised for bitcoin volatility ahead of the Fed's interest rate decision, Google Cloud rolls out an Ethereum RPC service and more.
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Bitget, Foresight Ventures invest $30 million in TON blockchain
Crypto exchange Bitget and Foresight Ventures announced a $30 million strategic investment in The Open Network (TON) blockchain on Wednesday.
The investment aims to support Telegram-based projects, with a focus on tap-to-earn games like Hamster Kombat and Notcoin, allocated through the acquisition of TON coins.
Telegram and TON blockchain operate independently but collaborate closely to support the ecosystem's growth.
Telegram clicker games have attracted millions of users in recent months with the promise of potentially earning crypto tokens on TON blockchain via subsequent airdrop rewards.
"The surge of the TON ecosystem represents the biggest growth opportunity in the cryptocurrency market this year," Foresight Ventures co-founder and CEO Forest Bai said.
Bitget and Foresight also plan to increase their involvement in TON blockchain governance and future development, the companies said.
CME futures traders increase bitcoin short positions ahead of Fed rate decision
CME bitcoin futures traders have increased their short positions, signaling market caution ahead of a key Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Wednesday, according to K33 Research analysts.
The FOMC is expected to announce its latest interest rate decision at 2 p.m. ET, with traders now predicting a 55% likelihood of a 50 basis-point cut, compared to a 45% probability for a 25 basis-point cut in what would be the first reduction in the benchmark rate since 2020.
The analysts acknowledged that while interest rate cuts could have an easing effect with the potential for improved liquidity for risk assets, market participants continue to hold concerns over a potential economic slowdown.
Meanwhile, SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci was more optimistic, predicting that rate cuts combined with favorable crypto regulations could push bitcoin to new all-time highs, possibly reaching $100,000 by year-end.
Google Cloud releases Ethereum-compatible RPC service
Google Cloud has launched an Ethereum-compatible remote procedure call service, enabling developers to access blockchain data and functionality via API calls.
The "Blockchain RPC" service supports both the Ethereum mainnet and its test networks, with plans to expand to additional blockchains next year.
It is set to compete with existing providers like Infura, Alchemy, Ankr and QuickNode, which allow developers to interact with the blockchain without running a full node.
Google Cloud is no stranger to web3 technology and already provides node hosting and data analytics for several blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana and Aptos.
RELATED INDICES
Monerium rolls out first euro-backed stablecoin on Cosmos via Noble
MiCA-compliant fintech firm Monerium has launched EURe on the Noble blockchain, making it the first euro-backed native stablecoin within the Cosmos ecosystem.
EURe is backed by euro-denominated deposits and integrated with the SEPA framework, allowing instant transfers between on-chain and custodial bank accounts.
Monerium provides a unique IBAN linked to each user's self-custodial Noble address to facilitate the transfers.
Noble also serves as the native asset issuance network for Circle's USDC stablecoin in the Cosmos ecosystem and claims to have facilitated over $3 billion in transfer volume.
'It’s cool to hate Ethereum right now. I bet this ends up looking silly,' Bitwise CIO says
"No one likes Ethereum right now," according to Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan, with the ETH/BTC ratio recently hitting its lowest level in three years below 0.04 amid election risk, mixed ETF results, rising competition and a focus on Layer 2s.
ETH is trading flat for the year, up less than 1% in 2024 compared with 41% and 26% respective gains for BTC and SOL year-to-date.
Despite the challenges, the "Microsoft of blockchains" offers a contrarian bet into year-end amid potential post-election regulatory clarity, given its established dominance in stablecoins, DeFi, NFTs and real-world asset tokenization, Hougan said.
In the next 24 hours
The Bank of England's latest interest rate decision is due at 7 a.m. ET on Thursday. U.S. jobless claims data follow at 8:30 a.m.
TOKEN2049 concludes in Singapore.
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Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.
© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
