Strengths
- Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the best performer for the week was Loopring, up 45.35%.
- India’s central bank kicked off a pilot program of its digital currency on Tuesday, allowing selected banks to use it to settle secondary market transactions in government securities. Banks traded 2.75 billion rupees worth of bonds on the first day using the new form of currency. The e-rupee will be tested for retail use within a month in some places, the Central Bank of India said according to an article published by Bloomberg.
- Supporters of the Cosmos blockchain are betting that a revamp of the popular crypto protocol will boost the value of its native token amid the ongoing digital asset bear market. Like the recently upgraded Ethereum Blockchain, Cosmos uses a proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanism to verify transactions, meaning that users, or so-called validators, can place their Atom tokens to protect the network.
weaknesses
- Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the worst performer for the week was Aptos, down 11.92%.
- A group of Core Scientific convertible bondholders turned to Moelis & Co. to facilitate debt talks with a struggling Bitcoin miner, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Core Scientific has said it would not make the payment in late October and early November linked to some of its debt. Those creditors could speed up payment, sue the company for nonpayment or take other actions that could then lead to a default on a pair of convertible notes due in 2025.
- Robinhood Markets reported on Wednesday that its crypto transaction revenue fell to $51 million during the third quarter, down 12% from the previous quarter and falling short of analyst estimates of $56.1 million. Other companies have also suffered amid a sharp drop in cryptocurrency prices, as the industry continues to be hit by the collapse of major blockchain platforms, scams and layoffs, writes Bloomberg.
Opportunities
- Hong Kong unveiled a master plan to become a major Asian crypto hub offering legalized retail trading and digital asset exchange-traded funds as part of a broader push to restore the city’s reputation as a financial hub. It will start a consultation on how the retail segment “can be given an adequate degree of access” to the tokens. The city invited global crypto exchanges to explore opportunities, adding that work is intensifying towards a new virtual asset licensing regime.
- A parabolic rise in the meme cryptocurrency Dogecoin over the past week is fueling speculation that other so-called altcoins could also take advantage of the speculative tailwind. The coin represented by an image of a Shiba Inu rose to nearly $0.15 from roughly $0.06 over the period, a gain that in percentage terms far outpaces the performance of the top token Bitcoin.
- Crypto bulls are back with Bitcoin approaching the upper end of its one-month trading range. Smaller tokens like Polygon, Litecoin, and Solana also outperformed the digital asset benchmark.
threats
- Bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain has warned it may be forced out of business after a $27 million share sale appeared to have collapsed, causing the biggest drop in shares since its 2018 IPO. Shares fell as much as 73% in London on Monday and are down around 90% this year as a drop in cryptocurrency prices hit the mining industry.
- The IRS criminal investigation unit seized about $7 billion in cryptocurrency in 2022, double the total from the previous year, an agency official said Tuesday. The investigations unit identified $32 billion in fraud this year, three times the amount from the previous year, said Jim Lee, head of IRS criminal investigation, writes Bloomberg.
- Hackers inflicted further pain on the cryptocurrency sector by looting $28 million from derivatives exchange Deribit. An internet-connected wallet was compromised on Tuesday, Deribit said on Twitter. Deribit, one of the largest derivatives exchanges in crypto, is the latest victim in a growing list of security incidents in crypto projects and protocols, writes Bloomberg.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has gone to great lengths to ensure the accuracy of the information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange of commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article accept no responsibility for loss and/or damage arising from the use of this publication.
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