Monday Market Report | October 16th to 22nd

Every Monday, we cover the latest developments and trends in the dynamic and ever-evolving world of cryptocurrency. From price movements, to industry news, and our favorite resources, we strive to provide our readers with a comprehensive overview of the crypto landscape.

Just as the crypto industry experiences a few slow weeks of news—excluding of course much frothiness from the FTX/SBF trial—another week comes along with enough headlines to make up for months of slow progress. Last week, dear Ndaxer:

• Cointelegraph mistakenly announces the SEC’s approval of a Bitcoin Spot ETF 
• California Governor Gavin Newsom enacts a state crypto regulatory framework, and— 
• The SEC passes on their opportunity to appeal the court decision in their loss against Greyscale. This week’s top stories! 

Cointelegraph issued a clarification and apology to readers on a story they ‘broke’ last week claiming that the SEC had approved BlackRock’s Bitcoin Spot Trust ETF bid. This unconfirmed story, posted by the outlet on social media without proper editorial approval, of course, turned out to be false, but not before sending the digital asset’s price up close to 7% in almost as many minutes, and casually evaporating $100M of short positions along the way. (This didn't stop Bitcoin from surpassing the $30K US mark toward the end of the week, and has also prompted serious dialogue on X (Twitter) over the evident pent-up demand for such a Bitcoin vehicle, but also its ostensible susceptibility to market manipulation. We hear that! Coindesk

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law the Digital Financial Assets Law, which many are referring to as California’s “BitLicense," and which will become effective July 1st, 2025. It mandates the creation of a regulatory framework by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI), which includes licensing and oversight powers for the crypto sector. The DFPI has 18 months to adapt the framework for industry trends and consumer protection. Governor Newsom acknowledged the need for further clarity in the law's terms and scope, aiming to balance consumer protection with innovation. Coindesk

In addition to passing on their opportunity to appeal a recent court decision which found that the SEC’s decision to disallow Greyscale’s bid to convert their GBTC Bitcoin Fund into an ETF was unlawful, SEC Chair Gary Gensler declined to comment on the regulator’s decision not to appeal the Grayscale court win in a Wednesday interview with Bloomberg TV. (A DC Circuit Court of Appeals judge ruled in August that the SEC allowing bitcoin futures ETFs, but blocking GBTC’s conversion to an ETF “was arbitrary and capricious.”) In light of the mounting buzz around the imminent approval of one or several Spot Bitcoin ETFs (in markets and Congress, no less) by applicants ranging from Fidelity, Ark, Greyscale, and Blackrock, notably, the current consensus—including comments by JPMorgan this week—is eyeing an approval as early as Christmas 2023, or early to mid-2024 at the latest. Blockworks 

In the cryptocurrency community, there's always something going on. Here are a few events and happenings that you might be interested in:

• JPMorgan expects spot bitcoin ETF approvals to come 'within months' The Block 
• No trial: SEC moves to dismiss charges against Ripple’s Garlinghouse, Larsen Blockworks 
• XRP Registers Biggest Single-Day Gain in 3 Months After SEC Drops Charges Against Ripple's Leaders Coindesk 
• Spot Bitcoin ETF Excitement Hits Main Street, Google Search Indicates Coindesk 
• Uniswap charges 0.15% to swap certain tokens on the web interface and wallet The Block  

For more news stories, visit our LinkedIn

Top Gainers at Ndax:

With all the fake Bitcoin Spot ETF Approval news—there was quite a bit of volatility in markets. BTC had a great week—and Ripple’s XRP had one of their best days in months.  

• On news that Ripple’s heads wouldn’t be sued by the SEC, the company’s token XRP surged 6.5% on Friday, and has since retraced, and continued its rally over the weekend. XRP is up 6.89% week over week. 
• Bitcoin had... a week. The asset was up, then down, then up, and up some more. Bitcoin ETF Google searches are at ATHs, the market is becoming excited about the (inevitability) of an SEC Spot ETF. Bitcoin is up 11.86% this week.
• Solana has been on a fierce run for almost a month, and this week was no exception. We saw the asset surge another 37.75% week over week. 

Market Summary:

• The global cryptocurrency market has reached a total market capitalization of CAD $1.17 Trillion.   
• Bitcoin continues to lead the market with a dominance of 51.5%, followed by Ethereum at 17.4%.  

Performance:

• Bitcoin is currently the top trading pair on Ndax, followed by Ethereum, Chainlink, XRP, Solana, Polygon, Fantom, and Shiba Inu.
• Week over week, the value of Bitcoin (BTC) is up 11.86% and currently trading at $42,338, while Ethereum (ETH) is down 7.82%, now trading around $2,324. 

As of 10/23/2023 at 1:00:00 AM EST, values in CAD.

Keep an eye on the market here 👉 Cryptocurrency Prices

Mark your calendars!

• Oct 31 – Mt Gox claims payment date
• Fall 2023 - US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit decision in Grayscale Case

For those of you looking to learn more about bitcoin and crypto markets this week:

• A revolutionary new report shows Lightning Network growth of over 1200% since August 2021. New applications continually enter the market. – Bitcoin Magazine - LIGHTNING NETWORK SEES RECORD ADOPTION AMIDST NEW APPLICATIONS 
• Today we have two representatives of the Bitcoin mining firm Luxor Technologies: Nick Hansen, CEO, and Matthew Williams, Head of Derivatives. In this interview, we discuss derivative trading, the potential impact of the BlackRock ETF on the market, the challenges Bitcoin miners face, the political and economic situation in Argentina, and the importance of hedging in business operations. - What Bitcoin Did - Bitcoin Mining: Adapt or Die with Nick Hansen & Matthew Williams  
• Preston Pysh talks with Jesse Myers about the FTX court findings, a few of Jesse’s recent articles on the debt spiral, the ability for institutions to perform multi-institutional Bitcoin custody, and much more. - Bitcoin Fundamentals w/ Preston Pysh - THE DEBT EVENT HORIZON & BITCOIN W/ JESSE MYERS 

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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide investment, legal, accounting, tax or any other advice and should not be relied on in that or any other regard. The information contained herein is for information purposes only and is not to be construed as an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of cryptocurrencies or otherwise.