News updates May 15, 2022

1. Bitcoin Breaches $30K as Ethereum, Cardano, Solana Join Weekend Rally
Last week, Bitcoin fell to $26,350, the lowest since December 2020. 

Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, briefly rose above $30,000 today after six straight weeks of market declines.

As of this writing, Bitcoin was up nearly 4% to 29,980.72, according to CoinMarketCap data.

2. Bitcoin price analysis: BTC sellers slowly regain control, push below $27,500 next?

* Bitcoin price analysis is bearish today.

* BTC/USD saw further downside overnight.

* $29,500 support broken again.

Bitcoin price analysis is bearish today as we have seen another lower high set at $31.000 and another push lower this morning below $29,500. Therefore, BTC/USD is ready to decline and look to test further downside over the next days.

Bearish momentum has returned over the last 24 hours, with Bitcoin down over 5 percent. Ethereum declined slightly more – by 6.15 percent, while Avalanche (AVAX) is the worst performer, with over 16.4 percent loss.

 *Bitcoin price movement in the last 24 hours: Bitcoin continues lower after consolidation below $31,000*

BTC/USD traded in a range of $28,717.82 to $30,464.47, indicating strong volatility over the last 24 hours. Trading volume has declined by 34.57 percent, totaling $32.3 billion, while the total market cap trades around $548.4 billion, resulting in a dominance of 44.62 percent.

 *BTC/USD 4-hour chart: BTC on its way below $27,500?*

On the 4-hour chart, we can see the Bitcoin price looking to decline further as a new lower high has been established yesterday.

Bitcoin price action has continued to trade along with the several-week long bearish momentum. From the $32,000 resistance, BTC/USD lost over 20 percent to the $25,500 mark.

From there, a quick reaction higher followed early on Thursday, indicating that retracement had begun. More upside did indeed follow as BTC retraced as high as the $31,000 mark.

Yesterday, Bitcoin price consolidated around the new high as sellers slowly took over the momentum again. Drop lower began overnight, leading back below the $29,500 support.

Since then, BTC/USD has slowly traded even lower, meaning that another push lower can be expected soon. Likely the $27,500 next support will be tested by the end of the week, with a potential for a higher low to be finally set. 

 *Bitcoin price analysis:* Conclusion:

Bitcoin price analysis is bearish today as we have seen selling pressure take over late yesterday, leading back below the $29,500 support. BTC/USD is now free to drop until the $27,500 mark, where some reaction higher could be seen tomorrow.

While waiting for Bitcoin to move further, see our articles on how to buy BTT, Elongate, and CRO coins.

3. Panic Selling of BTC Has Come to a Halt:

* The falling face is an appropriate opportunity to convert Altcoins to Blue-chip coins.

* The selling rate crossed 175K in the mid of the week.

For the last few days, the crypto market had to face many cryptocurrencies being sold. The reason behind this is seen to be the fear among investors as the volatility is very high. People are taking this step to think to gain as much as possible, as the dip seems to have prolonged.

Analysts advise the bothered investors not to be anxious and to hold to their shares. The one major piece of advice from their side is to acquire the coins or tokens that they were aiming to do for a long time.

Bear markets are typically a great time to accumulate the coins you have long-term conviction in,……..it’s a tough market for sure, but it’s a good time to strategize.”

 *BTC Selling Rate*

The current BTC price is around $29.5K, according to CMC at the time of writing. The glassnode reports the selling rate of BTC crossing 175K on May 12, and as of early the present day, it is within the 50K limit.

Also according to the intotheblock, the cumulative exchange price at the end of May 13 is $1.37B which is 37.74% less compared to the previous day’s $3.63B.The highest exchange in the last three months was noted on May 9, with a $4.11B price.

4. US, UK, Canada, Australia, Netherlands Share Crypto Criminal Leads, Including a Potential $1B Ponzi Scheme:

Officials from the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands have shared data and identified more than 50 crypto-related criminal leads, including one case that could be a $1 billion Ponzi scheme.

 *Officials Share Data on Global Crypto Crime*

The heads of tax enforcement from the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (J5) countries met in London this week to share intelligence and data to identify sources of illegal cross-border crypto activity, Bloomberg reported Friday.

The J5 was formed in response to the call to action from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for countries to do more to tackle the enablers of tax crime. It’s comprised of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), the Fiscale Inlichtingen- en Opsporingsdienst (FIOD), HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

During the meeting, the officials identified more than 50 crypto-related criminal leads, the publication conveyed.

Jim Lee, chief of criminal investigations at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), told reporters Friday:

He added that one lead “appears to be a $1 billion Ponzi scheme,” noting that this lead “touches every single J5 country.”

Moreover, the officials have identified leads involving decentralized exchanges and financial technology companies, Lee said, adding that there could be announcements on “significant targets” as soon as this month.

Niels Obbink, chief and general director of the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD), told reporters:

5. A Singaporean LUNA/UST Investor Files Lawsuit Against Terra’s Do Kwon

A user on Reddit claims to have filed a Police Report against Terra's Do Kwon with Singaporean authorities.

A user on the popular American social news aggregation platform Reddit reported that he has filed a police complaint with the Singaporean officials against Do Kwon, the founder of cryptocurrency LUNA and the stablecoin TerraUSD.

Do Kwon has already been in contact with Singaporean authorities after a serial LUNA investor “trespassed” at his home, reports The Chosun Ilbo. According to reports, the investor suffered losses of a whopping $1.56 million in the LUNA crash. The anonymous investor rang the doorbell to Do Kwon’s residency Thursday night, which was answered by Do Kwon’s wife. The unidentified man asked something like, “Is your husband home?” and then ran away.

6. Global Regulators Consider Launching a Joint Body to Coordinate Crypto Rules
 
 *A Global Body to Coordinate Crypto Rules*

Top executives at the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) discussed cryptocurrency regulation this week. Members of the global organization regulate more than 95% of the world’s securities markets in more than 130 jurisdictions.

Emphasizing the need for a global group to align crypto rules, IOSCO Chair Ashley Alder said global market regulators are likely to launch a joint body within the next year to better coordinate cryptocurrency regulations, Reuters reported.

Noting that similar setups are already in place for climate finance, including one set up by the G20 countries, Alder described:

Citing the boom of digital currencies, including bitcoin, the IOSCO chair said crypto “has gone up the agenda” and become one of the three key areas authorities are focused on.

She noted that there are multiple crypto-related risks that need to be addressed, adding that regulators are lagging behind on some key risk areas, including cyber security, operational resilience, and a lack of transparency in the crypto ecosystem.

He opined: “I don’t have to have a crystal ball to be able to say, ‘Will crypto still be around in 20 years’ time?’ It doesn’t matter. I do know, as you can see, that it has developed sufficiently that we have to begin to act as if it will still be around in 20 years’ time. We have to take it that seriously.”

The secretary-general urged the crypto industry to engage with regulators, stating:

7. Report: Terra Founder Do Kwon’s Spouse Seeks Police Protection After the LUNA and UST Fallout

Following the aftermath of the Terra blockchain tokens LUNA and UST losing significant value, reports indicate that the Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon’s apartment was visited by an unidentified person. Do Kwon’s spouse has requested protection from the Seongdong police in Seoul after the unknown person broke into the apartment building and rang the doorbell asking for Kwon.

8. European Central Bank releases new paper for digital euro

The European Central Bank is currently actively engaged in releasing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). However, this product has faced much opposition from the public, and this opposition has been fuelled further by the release of yet another paper detailing the dynamics of a digital euro.

The recently released working paper on a CBDC provides insight into the technical analysis of a potential digital euro and how this currently would fit into the existing monetary system.