News updates May 22, 2022
1. Bitcoin Dips Below $30K As S&P 500 Officially Turns Bearish. --The S&P 500 is down 20% from its latest peak.
--According to data from TradingView, BTC/USD trading was dipping below $28,700 coming into the weekend.
--Bitcoin is still just teetering on the edge.
The S&P 500 is down 20% from its latest peak, which now officially means it meets the definition of a bear market territory.
According to data from TradingView, BTC/USD trading was dipping below $28,700 coming into the weekend, subsequently adding around $500. Being down 4.7% from the previous day’s $30,700 highs, the pair seemed to be range bound after the United States stocks indices saw a volatile final trading day of the week.
The S&P 500 seemed to have reversed after initially falling at the open, although it is still showing bear market tendencies by trading at 20% below its high from last year.
2. Crypto Hedge Fund CEO Su Zhu Lists Three Potential Catalysts for Next Bitcoin (BTC) Rally.
Crypto Hedge Fund CEO Su Zhu Lists Three Potential Catalysts for Next Bitcoin (BTC) Rally
Daily Hodl Staff
May 22, 2022
Su Zhu, the CEO of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, says that he sees three potential catalysts that could trigger a new Bitcoin (BTC) bull market.
The crypto veteran first notes why he believes Bitcoin is entering an accumulation range and suggests that the downtrend doesn’t have much further to go.
According to Zhu, Bitcoin has had seven red weeks in a row, the most in its entire history, indicating seller exhaustion.
Second, the crypto hedge fund executive points out the huge trading volume during the collapse of TerraUSD (UST), which could signal capitulation and the beginning of a trend change.
The third sign that BTC is in a reaccumulation phase, according to Zhu, is that BTC is showing unusual strength against equities markets during overnight hours. Over the last week, the S&P500 is down 4.5% while BTC is up nearly 1%.
The fourth signal catching Zhu’s attention is the Mayer Multiple, an indicator that gauges the current price of Bitcoin against its 200-day moving average to determine whether BTC overbought or oversold.
Zhu points out that the Mayer Multiple is hovering at historical lows, suggesting that BTC is undervalued. Lastly, Zhu notes how Bitcoin has been trading at a premium during the Asia session.
3. This Week on Crypto Twitter: Terra Conspiracy Theories Swirl as All Eyes Turn to Do Kwon
After Terra’s historic collapse, many accused Do Kwon of foul play. He’s stood his ground this week and won back some support. Crypto fans, fear not. The worst is over. After seven long weeks of declines, prices finally stopped falling. Though how long that will hold is anyone’s guess.
Over on Crypto Twitter this week, Terra CEO Do Kwon stood in the dock as conspiracy theories were hurled at him and the entities he acted under during Terra's historic collapse. Terraform Labs, the Luna Foundation Guard, and ultimately Kwon himself stand accused of fraud, unscrupulous profiteering, and tax evasion.
To get an idea of the scale of the damage, consider Binance’s once-stately LUNA investment.
4. Not Be Part of SEC’s Jurisdiction, Commissioner Peirce Says.
U.S. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said Congress is looking into details about regulating cryptocurrencies and stablecoins.
The recent havoc in the crypto market wreaked by Terra’s collapse has put stablecoins under the spotlight again. As of now, the next move by America’s top financial watchdog (the Securities and Exchange Commission) on crypto regulations remains unclear.
An SEC Commissioner revealed in a recent interview that stablecoin regulations might not fall into SEC’s jurisdiction, and the US Congress has looked into the matter for offering guidelines.
Congress Has a Role to Play
Only a day after the SEC’s Chairman Gary Gensler warned crypto investors that more coins would fall to nearly zero as Terra did, a disaster that may hurt many investors, Commissioner Hester Peirce also weighed in on regulations regarding stablecoins and other cryptocurrencies.
Peirce, known for her pro-crypto stance, said in an interview that she personally would like to see a clear SEC-initiated regulatory framework for the industry, but, at the same time, it may not be something within the authority’s jurisdiction.
“Stablecoins may or may not be within the SEC’s jurisdiction, but facts and circumstances matter… It’s something that the Congress has been looking at.”
5. CryptoQuant: Investors Are Waiting for the Real BTC Price Bottom
Bitcoin has struggled to flip $30k into reliable support over the past few days. The king coin plunged as low as $23,800 last week amid widespread market turmoil that sent shivers down the spines of many crypto traders. Since then, the bulls have managed to reverse the decline and sparked a fresh increase after forming a strong base above $28,500.
*Bitcoin Exchange Reserves Remain at a 3-Year Low*
On Friday, the resurgence saw BTC prices momentarily break the $30K resistance zone, alleviating fears of any further capitulation. At the time of writing, BTC/USD is hovering just below $29k, marking a slight retracement from the day’s $30,721 high.
Per the latest bitcoin metrics overview by Cryptoquant, investors are still waiting for the real BTC price bottom. The on-chain analytics firm highlighted that the number of coins held in all exchanges’ reserves is at a 3-year low despite Spot exchanges experiencing a slight increase in inflows.
The data corresponds with insights from Glassnode, which recorded a steady inflow of coins into centralized exchanges that triggered last week’s massive sell-offs.
Cryptoquant further highlighted that investor sentiment is more dominant toward the short position, indicating that the market is over-leveraged. Meanwhile, open interest has increased by $1 billion ahead of the $640M bitcoin options expiry on May 20th.
Coupled with the recent crypto market downturn that took overly-optimistic leverage buyers by surprise, the upcoming BTC options expiry could see prices dive towards last week’s lows.
**Is the Real BTC Price Bottom here yet?*
Cryptoquant analysis shows that some market participants don’t think the real BTC price bottom is here despite the recent capitulation. According to the metrics, whales and miners are still HODLing as they await to see where the benchmark cryptocurrency heads next.
While some analysts forecast a buildup of bullish momentum could push the BTC price toward $30k, some market participants share a different view. For instance, on-chain monitoring resource Whalemap argues that bitcoin is currently trading in no man’s land and must defend the $24k to $26k support levels to avoid fresh losses.
Whalemap predicts that the biggest bitcoin investors could have a major say in the coin’s next decisive move. If whales provide the much-needed on-chain support under $27,000, they could help avoid a much deeper retracement.
However, should mounting sell pressure unravel this “do or die” zone, the BTC price could slump below last week’s lows, prompting more traders to offload their holdings. The Whalemap statistics support recent CryptoQuant metrics suggesting that last week’s dip to $23.8k may not be the real bottom price for Satoshi’s invention.
*Crypto Traders Advised to stack up on Bitcoin*
The recent dip in crypto prices has negatively affected market sentiment, prompting one market expert to predict that the next “generational bottom” could be near $22,700.
However, a group of crypto traders who survived the crypto winter of 2018 is encouraging bear market rookies to HODL despite decreasing BTC prices. For instance, crypto veteran Guy Swann advises newbies to ignore the market price and stack regularly on their coin supply.
6. Report: BRICS Countries Told to Consider Countering the Dollar's Global Hegemony
Chinese experts have called on leaders of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries to consider countering the dollar, whose global hegemony is thought to be abusive. Still, the experts concede that any attempt to diminish the dollar’s dominance will take time.
*BRICS Countries’ Dependence on the US-Dominated Global Financial System*
Chinese experts have urged BRICS countries, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, to counter the dollar’s global dominance which is now being abused by the United States government, a report has said. According to the experts, BRICS countries can achieve this by enhancing trade ties and limiting their reliance on a financial system in which the U.S. dollar dominates.
As explained in a Global Times report, the call by the experts was made just before the foreign ministers from the five countries were scheduled to hold a virtual meeting on May 19. At the meeting, the foreign ministers were expected to discuss enhancing solidarity, building consensus, as well as giving emerging markets a greater voice in global governance.
In making the case against BRICS countries’ continued dependence on the U.S.-dominated financial system, one of the experts, Cao Yuanzheng, the chairman of BOC International Research, claimed the United States only prioritizes its domestic needs and is less concerned about the potential consequences of its policies. Yuanzheng said:
*US Dollar Neutrality*
The expert added that the recent sanctioning of Russia, as well as the United States government’s freezing of the former’s forex and gold reserves, means the U.S. dollar is no longer a neutral currency. Meanwhile, the report implied China’s yuan currency, which is popular in countries and regions along routes of the Belt and Road Initiative, can be an alternative to the dollar. Therefore, an agreement between BRICS countries could potentially result in the increased use of the yuan in certain regions, the report said.
However, other experts interviewed by Global Times warned that reducing the U.S. dollar’s dominance will take time. Similar sentiments were recently expressed by the former governor of China’s central bank, Zhou Xiaochuan. Xiaochuan has previously warned that reducing the dollar’s dominance will also depend on whether businesses and the public are willing to suddenly abandon a currency they have been using for a long time.
7. The French Binance License: Is Paris Planning to Become Europe’s Crypto Hub?
Earlier this month, Binance became a fully regulated Digital Asset Service Provider in France.
However, analysts remain skeptical about the potential of Paris as a crypto leader in Europe.
Crypto regulation is probably the most important topic of discussion across the global financial ecosystem these days. Amid LUNA and UST crashes, the need for a clear crypto regulatory framework is now more than ever before. France, the second-largest economy in Europe with a GDP of more than $2.5 trillion, witnessed a jump in the adoption of digital currencies in the past few years.
Due to the potential of France as an economic power, Binance, one of the biggest crypto trading platforms in the world, accelerated its efforts to provide digital asset services in the region under a regulated environment. As a result, the company acquired a Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) registration by the AMF during the first week of May 2022. The registration allows Binance France to expand its operations in the country.
While the economic power of France is evident, its potential as a financial hub has always been debatable. Compared to other European financial centers like London, Zurich, and Frankfurt, Paris failed to gain the attention of large financial services providers, including brokers, asset managers, and exchanges. Despite the reason that David Princay, CEO of Binance France, called the recent DASP registration a “key milestone” for the crypto ecosystem in Europe, analysts remained skeptical about the country’s potential as a crypto hub.
To be honest, I don’t see Paris as a future crypto capital as it has never been a big financial hub. When it comes to forex, France is one of the most old-fashioned countries. Unlike Germany, the UK, Italy, Sweden, Poland, and even Spain, France has never needed to be a very developed country in terms of using financial instruments,” said Daniele Casamassima, Chief Executive Officer at Pure.
8. Kevin O'Leary Expects US Crypto Regulations to Come Out After Midterm Elections
Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, says U.S. crypto regulations will not come out until after the midterm elections. He explained that President Joe Biden “is not interested in discussing crypto” when his approval ratings have sunk to record lows. O’Leary also cited other factors, including double-digit inflation and high food and gas prices.
*Kevin O’Leary on Crypto Regulation, Biden’s Policy*
Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary talked about bitcoin and cryptocurrency regulation in an interview with Stansberry Research, published Friday.
He was asked how far away the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is from approving a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).
“It’s a long way away,” O’Leary replied. “That’s not what’s going to happen first. I think what’s going to happen first is we are going to see policy on stablecoins.” He cited two bills that have been proposed for the regulation of stablecoins. One was introduced by Senator Bill Hagerty and the other by Senator Pat Toomey.
He explained the reason was that “There was no institutional support in the early days of Amazon.” The Shark Tank star asserted: “That’s the same right now for bitcoin … People talk about institutions owning it. That’s just not true. They don’t own any of it and they won’t until the SEC rules on it.”
9. Market update
At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $29,037, Ether (ETH) at $1,943 and XRP at $0.40. The total market cap is at $1.24 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Kyber Network Crystal v2 (KNC) at 46.16%, KuCoin Token (KCS) at 19.99% and Kadena (KDA) at 17.37%.
The top three altcoin losers of the week are TerraUSD (UST) at -62.18%, Convex Finance (CVX) at -23.47% and Helium (HNT) at -21.56%.
10. Dubai Creates Committee to Help Cement Its Position as ‘Key City in the Metaverse’
The rulers of Dubai have created a committee that is mandated with tracking the latest developments in the digital economy. The committee is also expected to bolster the rulers’ quest to make Dubai a “key city in the metaverse.”
