BIG PICTURE
The inflation numbers are in for June and at 9.1%--way higher than expected--amount to a very public glove in J Pow’s face; to see just how hawkish he can get.
The duel has been set for July 28th, and for now, all eyes are on the FOMC (hard at work sharpening inflation-slaying swords and daggers) to see if they have the backbone to hike rates a full 1%.
Bitcoin–having held relatively steady around $21K US: “Grab the popcorn?”
MARKET FUNDAMENTALS
Another week of crypto winter brings us one step closer to spring: Celsius files for Chapter 11 as Voyager seeks Southern-District permission to prioritize repayment of $350M in depositor liabilities… But we wouldn’t be adding much value to your lives, dear readers, if we covered these developments every single week... (More in Market Updates below.)
BITCOIN & ETHER have remained relatively steady, continue to trade within their range and are back up about 10% from last Monday.
- BTC & ETH are changing hands at their highest price levels in over a month.
- (Ether may have been catalyzed by positive Merge dates/news)
- At this point, this might be the best that digital asset investors can hope for.
The cost of mining/producing bitcoin is down roughly 50% MoM.
- This is largely due to the sharp adjustment in electricity prices.
- It may relieve some miners from having to sell their BTC reserves to cover costs in the short term…
- But depending on their own operational and strategic imperatives, it may take months for that positive cost adjustment to take effect,
- Or have any significant impact on Hash, Difficulty, Price and other important on-chain metrics (such as liquid supply).
- Many Texas miners went offline this week to meet the local grid’s increased electricity demands to combat the current heat wave.
Are you planning on attending next month’s Futurist Conference?
- NDAX is a title sponsor
- Our own COO Tanim Rasul will be one of the headline speakers
- Stay tuned on Twitter and Reddit for NDAX Ticket Giveaways coming soon!
And finally; last week we mentioned 3 Execs had left JPMorgan Chase to pursue big opportunities in Crypto…
- Well this week, renowned Bitcoin Bull, VC and Host of the Pomp Podcast (‘the best business podcast’) raised over $12M from the likes of…
- Thiel Capital, former Palantir CFO Colin Anderson, Fifth Down Capital, and XYZ FundFor his crypto labor training and placement firm Inflections Points, which has announced its acquisition of a rival crypto HR solution.
MARKET UPDATES
REGULATION:
- Former Ripple Advisor Michael Barr Appointed Top Financial Watchdog CoinDesk
- US Treasury Issues Framework for International Engagement on Digital Assets US Treasury Dept
INDUSTRY NEWS:
- Bitcoin Bull Anthony Pompliano Nets $12.6M to Help Crypto Labor Liquidity, Buys Rival: Among Backers, Peter Thiel, Fifth Down, YYZ & Former Palantir CFO Blockworks
- Celcius Files for Chapter 11 Protection, Optimistic About the Future CoinDesk
FUNDING:
- MultiCoin Capital launched a $430M Fund for Early-stage Projects TechCrunch
FOR FUN
- Rare CryptoPunk Sells for $2.6M Amid Quiet NFT Markets CoinDesk
THE TAKEAWAY
Until the Fed’s upcoming FOMC meeting in late July, markets will digest their recent ingestion of a much larger than anticipated +9.1% YoY inflation print and what it could mean for US Markets, a 20year strong USD, and its ‘wrecking ball’ effect on all global debtors.
All eyes will be on this meeting, unsurprisingly, as it could signify an even harsher approach to dealing with inflation than may have been ‘priced-in’.
And in case you’re still wondering why we find it so important to harp on what the Fed is doing; until further notice (or until our little industry reaches some kind of escape velocity from the Fed’s gravitational pull), we will always be looking to the FOMC as a North Star in terms of what is or is not to be expected. (Nothing against the Bank of Canada, but we prefer to take our cues directly from the Fed Chair.)
Have a great week and stay safe out there, cryptonauts!
BITCOIN TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Bitcoin rallied to a 1 month high to start off the current week, up over 10% WoW.
- Continuing its momentum from last week BTC achieved a high around $29,000…
- But failed to pierce the $30K level and tapered off. A retest may be in play. Stay tuned!
- Bitcoin has strong support at C$22,500
- Strong resistance at C$30,000
- A breakout above C$30,000 (with strong volume) could signal a rally to C$35,000
- Whereas a close below C$22,500 could lead to further losses.
- Flat Moving Averages and RSI around 50: A neutral stance for bull and bears alike.
KEY LEVELS:
COIN SENTIMENT
An overwhelming number of NDAX users continue to accumulate bitcoin, and sentiment has not been this comparatively bullish in many weeks.
About half of this week’s transactions on Canada’s favourite Crypto Platform were BUYS.
- BTC sentiment is very strong: Over 4/5ths of orders were BUYS
- DOT HBAR LINK & ALGO: About 2.3rds of orders were to BUY