2023-11-10 10:39

Copyrighted Image by: Investing.com The cryptocurrency market has been buoyed by optimism as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began its decision-making window for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This anticipation comes on the heels of applications from financial giants such as Invesco and BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), and a recent court ruling favoring Grayscale against the SEC. Bitcoin experienced a significant price increase to $38,000, reflecting market expectations for an ETF approval, before stabilizing at around $36,500. Over the past month, Bitcoin has seen a notable 33% rise in value. Despite a potential delay in approvals until 2024 if not decided within the current window, analysts from Bloomberg estimate a 90% chance of approval before January 10, 2024. On Thursday, Bitcoin was trading up by 4.6% for the week at $36,495, while Ether saw a weekly gain of 7.5%, reaching $2,058. The positive trend was further supported by Glassnode analysts who observed tight Bitcoin supply due to high coin inactivity metrics, suggesting a bullish sentiment among investors. Reflexivity Research highlighted that 70% of Bitcoin's supply has not been touched for over three months. Despite a 45% drop from its peak in November 2021, Bitcoin has rallied over 120% this year without triggering a sell-off among most holders. In tandem with these developments, BlackRock registered an iShares Ethereum Trust with Delaware's Division of Corporations, signaling progress towards an Ether ETF. Anchorage Digital commented that Ethereum's proof-of-stake model could enhance institutional adoption and offer additional staking rewards if an ETF is approved. Smaller cryptocurrencies also saw growth, with Hashnote analysts suggesting that the market might be entering a 'crypto spring'. The broader crypto market's uptick indicates increased investor confidence and a possible shift in sentiment towards digital assets. https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/bitcoin-and-ether-prices-surge-on-etf-approval-speculation-93CH-3230393

2023-11-10 09:40

Copyrighted Image by: Reuters The Ethereum market has been buzzing with activity in recent weeks, marked by significant price movements and large-scale transactions by a prominent Ethereum investor, known colloquially as a 'whale'. Today, the same whale added an additional 30,001 ETH (over $63 million) into Binance, the popular cryptocurrency exchange, according to data analytics firm Lookonchain. The deposit was made amidst an ongoing price rally for Ethereum, which saw its value increase from around $1,900 to over $2,100. This latest deposit follows a series of large-scale transactions by the same investor. On November 2, the whale deposited 10,000 ETH (approximately $19 million) into Binance, coinciding with a rise in Ethereum's price to nearly $1,900. In total, the whale has now transferred all of their previously held Ethereum to Binance, including an initial deposit of 83,000 ETH earlier in November. These transactions were made at a loss compared to the price at which the Ethereum was originally acquired. The whale had withdrawn 123,000 ETH ($451 million) in 2022 when Ethereum was valued at $3,672. If sold at the current trading price of $2,105 per ETH, the investor would incur a loss of around $180 million. Despite Ethereum's recent one-day gain of 10%, it is speculated that the whale is looking to exit at what they consider a good price in anticipation of a potential price drop. Also contributing to Ethereum's recent price surge was BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)'s registration of the iShares Ethereum Trust in Delaware on November 9. This development sparked rumors of a spot ETH ETF filing and led to a considerable increase in Ethereum's value. It also resulted in the liquidation of many short positions. Despite these developments and being outshone by other digital assets in late October, Ethereum experienced a $300 price surge. The recent activity by the Ethereum whale and the registration of the iShares Ethereum Trust by BlackRock have added to the heightened interest in this digital asset market. https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/ethereum-price-surge-prompts-whale-deposits-and-blackrock-ethereum-trust-registration-93CH-3230306

2023-11-10 09:36

Ripple's CEO Brad Garlinghouse provided insight into the robust growth of the cryptocurrency industry during a fireside chat with CNBC's Dan Murphy on Thursday. Despite facing significant challenges, the market has seen an increase of 20 to 30% this year, reaching a valuation of $1.3 to $1.4 trillion. Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, has managed to rally past its pre-Terra crash levels to about $38,000, marking an 18-month recovery period. This recovery indicates the market's capacity to overcome past traumas. Bloomberg analysts have predicted a 90% chance for a spot Bitcoin ETF to be approved by January 10, 2024. Ethereum also reached significant milestones, hitting the $2,000 mark due to BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)'s ETF filing. This event has helped reinforce bullish sentiment across the market. Other cryptocurrencies such as BNB, XRP, and Solana have also registered substantial gains. During DC Fintech Week, Garlinghouse acknowledged XRP's surge but admitted he does not possess a "magical window" for predicting crypto price movements. The CEO's comments underscore the unpredictable nature of the cryptocurrency market despite its recent successes. https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/ripple-ceo-discusses-crypto-industry-resilience-and-growth-93CH-3230301

2023-11-10 08:19

Copyrighted Image by: Reuters. The Nigerian Naira continues to experience significant depreciation, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria's attempts to strengthen the local currency. The Naira's value has been on a downward trajectory since June 2023, when forex reforms triggered the floating of the local currency from N471.67 per dollar, marking the beginning of its depreciation journey. On Tuesday, November 7, 2023, in Zone 4 Abuja, the Naira was valued at 874.71 per US Dollar in the official FMDQ market. However, by Wednesday, November 8, it had dropped by 122.01 Naira to close at 996.75 per Dollar. This marked a significant depreciation on the official forex window since October 30, when the Naira traded at N993.82 per dollar. The situation worsened on Thursday, November 9, as the Naira plunged to an all-time low of N996.95 per dollar on the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), nearing the parallel market rate of N1,175 per dollar. This represented a staggering 111% depreciation since June's forex reform. In addition to this decline in the official market, the parallel market also saw further depreciation to 1140 Naira per Dollar from Wednesday's 1100 Naira. A Bureau de Change operator, noted a spike in Dollar buying rate to N1400 on Thursday from N1100 on Wednesday, while the selling rate remained at N1140 per Dollar. These rates remained stable into Friday, November 10. Despite a high turnover of $228.54 million and improved liquidity leading to a shrinking gap between official and parallel rates by 15% to N179 with N996.75 per dollar due to government's policy to strengthen the Naira, pressure on the Naira remains high. This depreciation occurred following an attempt by the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen the Naira by clearing forex backlogs to commercial banks and airlines last week. However, street currency dealers, also known as the black market, have been accused of sabotaging these policies. Traders in Lagos report intense dollar demand outstripping supply, adding further pressure on the already struggling Naira. https://www.investing.com/news/forex-news/nairas-value-continues-to-plummet-despite-central-bank-of-nigerias-efforts-93CH-3230142

2023-11-10 08:18

Copyrighted Image by: Reuters. Investing.com - The U.S. dollar slipped higher in early European trade Friday, but was heading for healthy weekly gains after Fed Chair Jerome Powell raised the possibility of further rate hikes to combat inflation. At 03:20 ET (07:20 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, edged 0.1% lower to 105.727, remaining on course for a gain of almost 1% this week. Hawkish Powell boosts dollar The dollar has received a boost after Fed chief Powell warned on Thursday that the U.S. central bank stood ready to hike rates further to combat inflation, if necessary. "[The Fed] is committed to achieving a stance of monetary policy that is sufficiently restrictive to bring inflation down to 2% over time," Powell said. "We are not confident that we have achieved such a stance. If it becomes appropriate to tighten policy further, we will not hesitate to do so." These comments followed similar remarks from a string of other Fed officials, and came a week after the U.S. central bank left interest rates steady and raised expectations that rates could have peaked, causing the dollar to tumble in the aftermath. Traders still see a high probability of the Fed keeping rates steady when it meets in December for the final time this year, but some are now factoring in the possibility of a rate increase early next year. Lagarde speech, U.K. GDP in focus The European Central Bank also held interest rates steady at its meeting in late October, and President Christine Lagarde is due to speak later in the session. EUR/USD edged higher to 1.0667, on track to lose 0.6% this week, with the latest eurozone business activity data, released at the start of the week, suggesting there is a growing chance of a recession in the region by the end of the year. GBP/USD edged higher to 1.2224 after the data released earlier Friday showed that growth stagnated in the U.K. in the third quarter, although gross domestic product rose 0.2% on the month in September, slightly better than the flat figure expected. The pair is still on course for a weekly loss of around 1.2%. Traders on yen intervention watch In Asia, USD/JPY rose 0.1% to 151.34, pushing past the 151 level and raising expectations of intervention in currency markets by Japanese authorities, as a dovish Bank of Japan contrasts sharply with the more hawkish tone from the head of the Federal Reserve. USD/CNY rose 0.1% to 7.2930, with the yuan weak on growing concerns over an economic slowdown in China following a string of weak data prints for October. AUD/USD edged lower to 0.6362, with the pair set to drop well over 2% this week after dovish signals from the Reserve Bank of Australia in the wake of its interest rate hike earlier this week. https://www.investing.com/news/forex-news/dollar-edges-lower-but-set-for-weekly-gain-after-powells-speech-3230134

2023-11-10 08:17

Article (publication date: Friday, November 10 2023 08:17 AM, Timezone: UTC): UBS Group AG (SIX:UBSG) is set to permit its Hong Kong clients to trade three crypto-linked ETFs, namely Samsung (KS:005930) Bitcoin Futures Active, CSOP Bitcoin Futures, and CSOP Ether Futures. This development aligns with Hong Kong's broader strategy of establishing itself as a digital asset hub, a goal shared by competitors such as HSBC Holdings Plc (LON:HSBA). Hong Kong's endeavor to become a digital asset hub was underscored on June 1st when it introduced a regulatory regime for digital assets. This dual-purpose initiative is aimed at safeguarding investors and promoting a digital asset hub. The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) now allows retail investors to trade major tokens on licensed platforms and is contemplating permitting spot crypto ETFs. However, the recent collapse of the unlicensed JPEX exchange due to fraud allegations on October 23rd has had a chilling effect on these efforts. As a response, Hong Kong has stepped up its oversight of the crypto industry by creating a joint SFC-police task force. Additionally, Hong Kong authorities have recommended selling complex virtual assets only to those with professional investor status, indicating a stricter approach to crypto. Despite enduring a $1.5 trillion market rout in 2022 and significant collapses such as Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX platform, there's renewed optimism in the crypto sector. Speculations that the US may greenlight the country's first spot Bitcoin ETFs have contributed to Bitcoin's price doubling this year. Today, UBS Group AG's Asia Pacific division announced that wealthy clients can now trade Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF, CSOP Bitcoin Futures ETF, and CSOP Ether Futures ETF on its Hong Kong platform. Financial institutions like DBS Group (OTC:DBSDY) Holdings Ltd., ZA Bank Ltd., and SEBA Bank AG are showing increased engagement with the crypto economy, reflecting the shifting attitudes towards digital assets within the financial sector. https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/ubs-group-to-offer-cryptolinked-etfs-to-hong-kong-clients-93CH-3230132