Hong Kong Legislative Council Member Regina Ip: I believe there is room for further relaxation of regulation to allow the cryptocurrency industry to grow

Hong Kong Legislative Council Member Regina Ip said that Hong Kong is the only place in the country that can currently develop cryptocurrency trading. Although the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau of the SAR Government has issued a policy declaration on the development of virtual assets in Hong Kong as early as October 2022, clarifying the government's policy stance and guidelines for developing a vibrant virtual asset industry and ecosystem for Hong Kong, and has established a relevant policy framework, the Securities and Futures Commission has also implemented a virtual asset trading platform licensing system, but the scale of the industry is still small, and we must continue to actively promote and improve the relevant regulatory framework as soon as possible. I believe there is room for further relaxation of regulation to allow the industry to grow. Lau added that the financial technology industry is worth developing in Hong Kong because it is "Asset light", that is, there is no need to invest a lot of infrastructure, build a lot of roads, and fill a lot of land. This is based on Technology, just like the cryptocurrency Bitcoin was created with technology, using Blockchain, which is very suitable for Hong Kong.

One month into his term, the "Trump trade" is being abandoned by traders, and the crypto craze is fading

One month into Trump's second term, the excitement brought by him, from stocks to the dollar to Bitcoin, is fading. Previously, crypto assets soared as the industry supported Trump and he promised to create a friendlier regulatory environment. But those gains have faded without many new developments to continue the bullish sentiment. For example, the establishment of a national Bitcoin reserve promised during Trump's campaign has not yet been realized, and David Sacks, the White House's director of encryption and artificial intelligence, said this month that an internal working group needs to study the feasibility of the plan. Two months after the election, Bitcoin rose about 50%. But after reaching a high of more than $100,000 in January, it has fallen to around $97,000 as of Thursday. Scandals involving meme coins such as Libra have also weakened investors' interest in cryptocurrencies. "The atmosphere in the cryptocurrency market is very negative right now," said Matthew Hougan, chief investment officer of Bitwise.

Current crypto market sentiment has not yet attracted bargain hunters and contrarian traders

With the US Bitcoin ETF seeing its first net outflow since early January last week, the closely watched cryptocurrency fear and greed index has entered the "fear" zone, a sharp drop from its peak in November last year. Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, said this is an indirect signal that the market's relatively stable performance is suppressing investor sentiment. The most worrying thing is that at the current sentiment and market value levels, the market has not yet attracted bargain hunters and contrarian traders. It is reported that Bitcoin technical analysis shows that it may form a so-called "death cross", that is, the short-term trend line falls below the long-term trend line, and some people worry that this may foreshadow a plunge in Bitcoin prices. The price of Bitcoin once broke through the $100,000 mark after Trump's victory, but is currently stagnant below this key level.

The SEC Announces the Establishment of a Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit to Protect Retail Investors, Involving the Fight Against Cryptocurrency Fraud

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the establishment of the Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit (CETU), focusing on combating improper conduct related to the internet and protecting retail investors from bad actors in the emerging technology space. Led by Laura D'Allaird, CETU replaces the previous Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit and consists of about 30 fraud experts and attorneys from multiple SEC offices. Specifically, CETU will leverage its staff's extensive fintech and internet-related experience to combat misconduct related to securities trading in the following priority areas: fraud implemented using emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning; fraud conducted through social media, the dark web, or fake websites; obtaining significant non-public information through hacking; takeover of retail brokerage accounts; fraud involving blockchain technology and cryptocurrency; compliance of regulated entities with cybersecurity rules and regulations; fraudulent disclosures of cybersecurity by public companies.

SBF changes political stance to support Trump in first interview in prison, tries to seek pardon

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried criticized the Biden administration's "extremely destructive" politicization of the justice system and tried to seek a pardon from President Trump in his first interview at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, where he is serving a 25-year sentence for committing one of the largest cryptocurrency scams to date. Bankman-Fried reiterated his claims that FTX was solvent but illiquid, and that law firm Sullivan & Cromwell mishandled the bankruptcy proceedings.

Only one-third of Australians think Trump's presidency is good for cryptocurrencies

After Trump's election as US president, the cryptocurrency market soared due to his promise to support the industry, but a recent survey shows that only about a third of Australians think he is optimistic about cryptocurrencies. A survey of 2,100 local adults released on February 21 by Australian cryptocurrency exchange Independent Reserve found that 31% think Trump is good for cryptocurrencies, while 8% think he is bad for the industry. Most respondents, about 60%, were neutral on the topic. The survey found that cryptocurrency investors have a more positive view of Trump than non-investors. Half of Australian cryptocurrency investors said he is positive about cryptocurrencies, while 44% are neutral. Only 6% said he is negative for the cryptocurrency industry. Among non-cryptocurrency investors, only about 20% said he is positive about cryptocurrencies, while 10% think he is negative for the industry.

Franklin Templeton Launches Bitcoin, Ethereum Index ETF

Franklin Templeton Asset Management said on February 20 that it has launched an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that holds spot Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Franklin Crypto Index ETF (EZPZ) is the second cryptocurrency index ETF to enter the market after asset management company Hashdex launched the Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF (NCIQ) on February 14. Franklin Templeton's EZPZ fund holds a basket of assets referenced in the U.S. CF Institutional Digital Asset Index, which tracks only Bitcoin and Ethereum as of February 20. According to CF Benchmarks, as of February 20, the market-cap-weighted index was composed of approximately 87% BTC and 13% ETH. Franklin Templeton plans to have EZPZ hold more cryptocurrencies that are added to the index, eventually becoming a one-stop cryptocurrency portfolio for U.S. investors.

The PI project is a scam, and Bybit will not list any suspected scam projects

In 2023, the Chinese police issued an official warning about PI, warning the public that it was a scam targeting the elderly, leaking personal data and causing the loss of pensions, and there were multiple other reports questioning the legitimacy of the project. Bybit has not made any listing requests to PI, and claims that PI refused Bybit to list or that Bybit did not pass some kind of PI KYB are completely nonsense. If the PI project is real and legitimate, it should actively respond to these doubts, but it chooses to make up lies and make unfounded and naive attacks; I still think PI is a scam, and Bybit will not list any suspected scam projects.

Evening Thoughts on February 21
The big pancake started to decline after reaching around 98600 in the early morning, hitting a low near 97900, and then fluctuating around 98100. In the afternoon, it spiked upwards near 98000, and then began to decline, currently rebounding to around 98500.

Operation Suggestions
Big pancake buy around 97800 to 98000, target 99000 to 99500.
Aunt buy around 2730 to 2750, target 2820 to 2850.

Bitcoin prices may be subject to 'artificial' suppression

Samson Mow, founder of Pixelmatic, warned at the Consensus Hong Kong cryptocurrency conference that Bitcoin prices may be under 'artificial' suppression. Despite retail buyers consistently purchasing Bitcoin, there seems to be selling pressure. 'Although both institutional and retail buyers are accumulating Bitcoin, the price is not rising, which certainly indicates that someone is selling.' Last year, structural sellers emerged in the market due to bankruptcies and restructurings, but that period has essentially ended. Additionally, the repayment process of FTX has intensified selling pressure. The company is repaying based on a Bitcoin price of around $20,000 from November 2022. As creditors attempt to liquidate for profit, this may lead to more sell-offs, with FTX selling Bitcoin at much lower prices, which could explain the lack of upward momentum in Bitcoin prices.

Thoughts on the morning of February 21
After the opening of the US stock market yesterday, it rose directly to 98,000. After several attempts to break through 98,000, it began to fall back to around 96,700, and then rebounded directly. In the early morning, it rose again and ran directly along the upper track of the Bollinger Bands, reaching a maximum of around 98,600. It is currently running around 98,100.

Operational suggestions
Big cake is around 98,300 to 98,600, with a target of around 97,500 to 97,000
Auntie is around 2,750 to 2,770, with a target of around 2,700 to 2,670

The overall leverage level in the current market is relatively low, with market attention shifting to the downside potential of BTC. The liquidation situation of Bitcoin and Ethereum in this round is significantly different from that during the bull market period of 2020/2021. At that time, liquidations often triggered extreme price fluctuations, while in this round, even with a liquidation volume of up to $600 million in the short term, prices have still managed to stabilize at the bottom without significant follow-down. This indicates that the overall leverage level in the current market is low, traders are more cautious in setting stop losses, and market confidence is stronger, possibly influenced by the SEC's approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs. Furthermore, the risk of Bitcoin going to zero has been largely eliminated, and market attention is turning to its downside potential. However, historical data shows that the downward pressure from liquidations is relatively limited, which sharply contrasts with the market under the high leverage environment of 2020/2021.

Czech Central Bank Governor: Bitcoin Should Not Be Confused with Cryptocurrencies

Czech Central Bank Governor Ales Michl stated that Bitcoin is significantly different from other crypto assets and should not be conflated with cryptocurrencies. His remarks came after a recent memecoin scam incident, aimed at clarifying Bitcoin's reputation and emphasizing its uniqueness. Michl had previously suggested that the Czech National Bank include alternative assets like Bitcoin in its balance sheet, a proposal that has now been approved by the bank's board and is in the preliminary analysis stage. Michl believes that studying Bitcoin and its underlying technology will help enhance the central bank's capabilities without causing negative impacts.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voluntarily withdrew its appeal of a ruling that blocked the agency from expanding existing securities laws to cover DeFi users and projects. In a four-page motion filed with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the SEC expressed its desire to "voluntarily withdraw its appeal," a move that was not opposed. Last November, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the SEC's expansion of the legal definition of "dealer" exceeded the regulator's authority. The judge ruled that the changes to the SEC's dealer rules were illegal because it conflated DeFi traders with financial brokers.

Trump: Hope to be at the forefront of everything, including cryptocurrency
On Wednesday, Trump stated at the Miami Future Investment Initiative conference: "Bitcoin has hit multiple all-time highs because everyone knows I am committed to making America the capital of cryptocurrency." He added, "We want to be at the forefront of everything, and one of those is cryptocurrency, and Miami seems to be the center of action. Think about it carefully, maybe it will always exist." Washington is expected to have the most pro-cryptocurrency Congress to date, with pro-cryptocurrency lawmakers like Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott and House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill leading key committees and dominating cryptocurrency regulation.

Recently, the data for Bitcoin has not yet turned into net inflows, but the scale of outflows is far from shaking the price trend.
Recently, institutions in the US have withdrawn a total of 543 BTC, which is not a large amount. Currently, whether it is Bitcoin or Ethereum spot ETF players, they seem to have entered a state of 'calmness', with both buying and selling data being quite sluggish. This situation reminds one of last year's 'slump period', where the market seems to be waiting for a turnaround in tranquility, and players are still looking forward to new developments on the policy front.

More and more states in the US are proposing plans to include BTC in their strategic reserves. Although these news have not directly pushed up prices, they undoubtedly lay the groundwork for future increases. Among them, Utah's proposal is progressing the fastest and has a higher probability of being approved.
Currently, market sentiment is indeed leaning towards pessimism, and I share this sentiment. Favorable factors and liquidity support are still on the way. If it were not for this, the market might have already significantly declined, rather than maintaining the current oscillating pattern.

Investment involves risks, and one must be cautious when entering the market!
This is a clear understanding we must have before engaging in trading. First, consider whether you can bear the consequences if you fail. If it is within your capacity to bear, then proceed; if not, remain cautious and better to miss out than to take unnecessary risks.

There is no remedy for regret in this world, so don't regret after the fact, as it won't help. The greatest responsibility to yourself is to think clearly before taking action.