News Updates September 12, 2022

1. Bitcoin hits 3-week high as trader says 'all signs there' to short BTC

Little faith remains in continued upside for BTC price action after a week of solid gains brings back the 100-day moving average.

Bitcoin (BTC) kept grinding higher at the Sept. 12 Wall Street open as traders called for an imminent correction.

$23,000 proves essential to flip
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD hitting $22,481 on Bitstamp, its highest since Aug. 19.

The pair had preserved existing gains over the weekend, with a declining U.S. dollar providing a catalyst for risk assets as the week began.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index both traded up 1.1% after the first two hours’ trading. By contrast, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) was down 0.7% on the day.

Analyzing the situation, popular trader Crypto Ed said that the time had now come to eye a corrective move on BTC/USD.

“I would say that all signs are there for some shorts,” he told viewers in his latest YouTube update.

Upside potential was likely limited to $23,000, he suggested, while to the downside, $20,800 was an area of interest.

A CME Bitcoin futures gap left over from the Sept. 10 close, meanwhile, added the area around $21,400 as a possible retracement target.

“I only would be looking for longs if we break $23,000, then for a move towards $28,000–$29,000,” Crypto Ed added.

Equally expecting a trend change was Il Capo of Crypto, who on the day reinforced a conviction that the current price strength was simply a relief rally within an overall bear market.

2. US Inflation Data Could Test Bitcoin’s Rally

The price of bitcoin gained 15% over the weekend as traders wait for positive U.S. inflation data.

The U.S. Consumer Price Index report on Tuesday is expected to show slower inflation in August, which is one of the reasons why the price of bitcoin (BTC) has been rising since Friday.
But the new data could show that while price pressures are cooling, they're still too hot for Federal Reserve officials to ease off on tightening monetary policy.

August inflation gauges will likely be very soft, but that won’t change the bottom line," economists at Bloomberg wrote. "The ‘totality’ of the data that Fed Chair Jerome Powell will follow shows few signs of cooling in the economy, and perhaps even some acceleration.”

The latest CPI report will be released by the Labor Department on Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. ET (12:30 p.m. coordinated universal time). According to a survey by FactSet, the CPI in August was probably up 8.1% over the past 12 months. Such a pace would represent the second straight monthly decline, down from 8.5% in July and a four-decade high of 9.1% in June.

The expectation is that prices for gasoline, airfares, hotels and used cars were down last month, while food prices were up. The Federal Reserve's target is 2% annually.
Bitcoin gained 15% over the weekend in a rally that started after the European Central Bank raised interest rates by 75 basis points, or a 0.75 percentage point, the largest increase in ECB history.

In addition, Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans said Thursday that the U.S. Federal Reserve will likely move ahead with an aggressive rate hike on Sept. 22 even if the latest consumer price index shows cooling price pressure but that it might not have to push rates above 3.5% “that soon,” implying that the Fed could take a more dovish stance in the future. The federal funds rate is currently set in a target range between 2.25% and 2.5%.

Bitcoin (BTC), the largest crypto asset by market capitalization, was trading at $22,153 at press time, the highest since mid-August.
“It may take some time for inflation to return back to the Fed’s target, but even a moderation from the current torrid pace should be very good for overall consumer sentiment,” said Brendan Murphy, head of global fixed Income, North America, at Insight Investment.

A report by the International Monetary Fund showed that the U.S. unemployment rate, now at 3.7%, may need to go as high as 7.5% in order for inflation to slow to the central bank’s target of 2%, Reuters reported.

3. China wants unified QR code systems for digital yuan, central bank official says

China’s central bank is pushing for interconnectivity between its digital yuan and other traditional digital electronic payment tools through universal QR code payments, as the country expands the pilots for its digital currency.

* Fan Yifei, a deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), said at a forum on Thursday that standardization is key for the construction of a sound ecosystem for the e-CNY, the nation’s central bank digital currency.

* Fan said it is important to promote the unification of digital identity, QR code mechanisms, Bluetooth and near-field communications to allow consumers to scan a QR code for various kinds of payment access.

* The comments come as the country has seen widespread use of QR code payment systems dominated by Ant Group’s Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat Pay.

* Earlier this month, Mu Changchun, director-general of the PBoC’s digital currency institute, said the central bank plans to deploy more smart contracts for the digital yuan as an increasing number of use cases have emerged amid testing of the new digital currency.

• The PBoC started pilot trials of the e-CNY in Shenzhen in October 2020 and it has since expanded the trials to at least 23 cities and regions.

4. India's ED 'Unfreezes' Bank Account of Crypto Exchange WazirX

The account was frozen in relation to the "illegal loan apps" scam investigation, which has come under the national spotlight.

India's Enforcement Directorate (ED) has "unfrozen" or restarted the business bank account of crypto exchange WazirX more than a month after it was frozen by the agency, the company said on Monday.
Last month, the exchange's bank account was frozen by the ED in relation to a still ongoing investigation into alleged fraud on instant loan apps, apps that make short-term loans.

Some of the 16 fintech companies under investigation had used the WazirX platform, the company said in a blog post on Monday. "WazirX has been cooperating with the investigators by providing them with all the necessary details, information, and documents of the alleged accused companies who used the WazirX platform," the exchange added.

The "illegal loan apps" scam with China links has come under the national spotlight with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chairing a meeting which was also attended by the Deputy Governor of India's central bank, about the apps on September 8.
On August 5, the ED raided properties of WazirX director Sameer Mhatre for allegedly actively assisting "around 16 accused fintech companies in laundering the proceeds of crime using the crypto route." The agency also froze $8.1 million in funds held by the exchange.

The "illegal loan apps" scam with China links has come under the national spotlight with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chairing a meeting which was also attended by the Deputy Governor of India's central bank, about the apps on September 8.
On August 5, the ED raided properties of WazirX director Sameer Mhatre for allegedly actively assisting "around 16 accused fintech companies in laundering the proceeds of crime using the crypto route." The agency also froze $8.1 million in funds held by the exchange.

The events snowballed into a Twitter spat between WazirX's co-founder Nischal Shetty and Binance's CEO Changpeng Zhao about who truly owns WazirX.
The company also stated it had no association with any of the alleged accused companies and that it had already identified and blocked most of the suspicious users after an internal investigation in 2020-2021.

5. Top 3 Reasons Why Cradles Will Make You Want To Try The Metaverse

The metaverse is fast becoming a household name. The innovation behind virtual reality has been around for a while and is only now starting to gain ground.

Most of the current success of the metaverse can be attributed to the growth of gaming in the space that has seen players earn while enjoying this blossoming virtual reality. However, as more projects come out, it has begun to be a repeat of the same thing, with users in the space becoming bored with repetitive titles showing little creativity.

Primarily, there have been those who have found success with these same tedious systems, but the current shift in the market suggests that a change needs to happen if the metaverse is to retain current players and onboard new ones. This is why new innovation is needed when it comes to the metaverse and the gaming aspect.

Some projects have already taken the lead when it comes to providing new experiences for users. Cradles: Origin of Species is a new blockchain game that is redefining what it means to participate in the metaverse. It features a total top-to-bottom overhaul of the established gaming systems, bringing not only captivating gameplay and characters to users but also changing how the utility is thought of when it comes to non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Cradles: Origin of Species is the very first time-lapsing metaverse to grace the space. The game world basically has a life of its own, tagged as a “living, breathing virtual world that continues to evolve and process, simulating the laws of time and physics just like in real life.” This unique approach to building a virtual world that feels real and mirrors the characteristics that make the real world so compelling sets Cradles apart from the rest.

The game integrates aspects of the existing metaverse systems but also focuses on being a game first and foremost. For this reason, Cradles manages to capture the type of experience that transforms newcomers into return players.

The Cradles metaverse is a complete world with a city and an adventure zone, both coming with a map to navigate the world. It provides an extreme level of freedom to all who enter by allowing them to take the shape and form of different living things. The metaverse serves as home to extinct creatures that once roamed the Earth. Players, depending on what they prefer, can choose to take the forms of these animals by injecting themselves into these beasts. You can choose to be a mammoth or one of dozens of dinosaurs; the possibilities are endless.

6. Crypto Backer And Prime Minister Bet Gets Job As Canada’s Party Leader

Pierre Poilievre, a known crypto supporter who is running as prime minister of Canada, was voted as the new leader of the country’s Conservative Party.

Poilievre is a proponent of cryptocurrencies and has stated that, if elected prime minister, he would work with provincial authorities to disentangle the current regulatory web controlling digital assets.

Poilievre won the election decisively after a seven-month campaign, garnering 22,993 of the under 33,800 electoral points.

The former cabinet minister and long-time Ontario member of parliament has a personal financial interest in cryptocurrencies, which he has endorsed as a hedge against inflation during his campaign.

Poilievre demonstrated his support for cryptocurrencies by buying a sandwich in an Ontario restaurant using Bitcoin, during his leadership campaign.

According to political analysts, it was part of a political antic designed to garner support for his campaign. But, it seems his buying of the shawarma has worked in his favor.

Based on his disclosure to the federal ethics commissioner on May 4, Poilievre’s assets include shares of Purpose Bitcoin, a Canadian exchange-traded fund (ETF) that holds cryptocurrencies.

In March of this year, Poilievre stated that a Canadian government under his leadership would do more to normalize cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum in order to “decentralize” the economy and lessen the influence of central bankers.

Poilievre has taken a stand against the Bank of Canada’s policy because, like some conservative economists, he views the government’s ability to print money as a tax.

During the height of the trucker protest in February of this year, the Toronto Star reported that Greg Foss, who secured $830,000 worth of Bitcoin for the demonstration, frequently spoke with Poilievre about “sound money.”

Meanwhile, a report released by Bank of Canada last June disclosed that the number of Bitcoin holders in Canada soared three-fold from 2020 to 2021.

The central bank appointed an official to supervise regulatory efforts surrounding stablecoins, while the Canadian Securities Administrators required that all crypto companies seeking to conduct business in the country comply with anti-money laundering and cybersecurity regulations.

Saturday’s election was won by Poilievre with 68% of party members’ votes. If elected prime minister, he pledged to assist those who are barely scraping by.

7. Congressman Hopes For Total Ban Of Crypto

Congressman Brad Sherman is a staunch crypto sceptic and believes that it should be banned. His comments disregard any saving graces for the sector.

The Republican representative for Southern California, Congressman Brad Sherman, was interviewed by CNBC on Friday. He gave his views as to what he thought about crypto, and while admitting that it would not be banned any time soon, he thought that there would still be a chance to outlaw it at some point.

He stated that crypto was “not a new asset class” and that “Charles Ponzi” developed it more than a century ago. It is his view that if crypto loses enough of the money and power behind it, then there would be a better opportunity to pass legislation to have it banned.

For Sherman, the key is to impose anti-money laundering (AML) laws on all crypto companies. He said that once this was done:

He said that if these laws could be imposed then crypto would become “just another non-fungible token” and that it becomes “the pet rock of the 21st century”, (obviously a snipe against the NFT pet rock craze in Summer of 2021).