In today’s bitcoin and cryptocurrency news, discover that Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange, reported that as of March 1, the total value of Bitcoin held by traders on the platform has dropped to about $2.3 million from a record high of $3.1 million in 2020. It also noted that wallet balances held in cold storage have not grown at the same rate, suggesting that users are selling their coins rather than storing them. In addition, analysts at Standard Chartered predict that the price of bitcoin could continue to drop significantly through 2020. In one scenario that the banking group has thought about, the world’s first and biggest cryptocurrency falls below $5,000 because the “crypto bubble” bursts. This would have a lot of effects all the way through 2023. Lastly, the latest data from Brazil’s tax agency (RFB) indicates that Brazilian institutions have once again set new records for cryptocurrency purchases. Nearly 42,000 businesses were recorded by the organization as having purchased cryptocurrencies in October, breaking the previous record of 40,161 purchases reported in September.
This Isn’t Crypto Winter; It’s a Bitcoin “Bloodbath”
Original Source: Cryptoverse: Forget crypto winter, this is a bitcoin ‘bloodbath’
Abu Dhabi crypto trader Jad Fawaz says he’s virtually bankrupt. “I’m laughing because there’s no point in being depressed and frustrated.”
The 45-year-old, who stopped real estate a year ago to trade, has lost his holdings in recent months. Stress has kept him up all week.
“I had about 40 coins and then I came down to 20 coins, then 10 coins, then five coins, and now I’m down to the last two coins, and it’s bitcoin and ripple XRP,” he adds.
I’ll die before selling these last two coins.
Retail traders and investors say enough.
Bitfinex reported that bitcoin holdings on crypto exchanges, where individual investors trade, have decreased to 2.3 million from their 2020 high of 3.1 million. It stated that self-custody wallet balances have grown slower, indicating more selling than storage.
“There are evidence that a considerable number of ordinary investors have been discouraged to the point of quitting crypto outright,” Bitfinex analysts stated.
Fawaz has company.
Investors suffered this year. Bitcoin’s price has plunged 63%, while the cryptocurrency market capitalization has lost $1.63 trillion.
Sam Bankman-FTX Fried’s collapsed the market.
According to Glassnode data, November saw a 7-day realized loss of $10.16 billion in bitcoin assets as investors exited long-term positions, the fourth-largest on record.
“This is not the winter season anymore, this is a slaughter, since the FTX problem was like a domino that fell so many enterprises,” said Linda Obi, a Lagos-based crypto investor and blockchain firm Zenith Chain employee.
The 38-year-old said she was a “long-haul” investor with an investing horizon of five years and traded “a bit of everything”, including altcoins and memecoins.
“I’m going be quite honest, I do think there’s a whole lot of hype around crypto, with influencer marketing and your favorite celebs talking about crypto,” she continued.
“Jumping in without researching should change. We are discussing how to clean and market the space.”
DAVID VS GOLIATH
Crypto retail investors lose money regularly. A study from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), performed between 2015 and 2022, estimated that 73% to 81% likely lost money on their investments in cryptocurrencies.
As hedge funds and other wealthy investors entered crypto, retail trading became harder.
“It’s incredibly difficult to trade on news since we don’t have inside information, a tweet may alter everything,” said Lisbon-based Adalberto Rodrigues, 34, who trades crypto in addition to operating a software firm.
BIS analysts stated blockchain data analysis indicated that the largest holders of bitcoin regularly sold while smaller players were buying, “earning a return at the smaller users’ expense”.
Eloisa Marchesoni, a trader who was unable to withdraw $2,000 from FTX, believes crypto will continue to attract smaller investors.
“Retail will suck it up, as always,” said Marchesoni, who lives near Tulum on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.
Charley Cooper, R3’s communications chief, said the FTX collapse’s large investor losses may spur authorities to act.
Politicians find it tougher to ignore constituents who lost their savings or food money than high-flying crypto hedge funds.
In a ‘Surprise’ Move, Bitcoin’s Price May Fall Below $5,000 by 2023
Original Source: Bitcoin Could Drop to $5,000 in 2023 ‘Surprise’: Standard Chartered
Standard Chartered analysts expect bitcoin to tumble further next year.
The financial organization predicted that the “crypto bubble” would collapse in 2023, sending the world’s largest cryptocurrency to $5,000.
“Yields plummet along with technology equities, and while the Bitcoin sell-off decelerates, the damage has been done,” says the bank’s head of global research Eric Robertsen.
Standard Chartered’s annual list of shocks the markets may be overlooking or underpricing included the prediction.
A drop in oil prices, the impeachment of U.S. President Joe Biden, and a food price crash might also disrupt the year.
In its eighth edition, the list considers non-zero probability events that are not part of market consensus.
The paper stated investor confidence in crypto assets might collapse and push consumers back to gold if more crypto firms and exchanges run out of cash.
Gold may rise 30% in this situation. In 2022, gold has down 20% from its March highs, but a crypto confidence decline could help it.
Standard Chartered also predicted a wider tech stock slump than many businesses experienced this year.
Analysts linked the Nasdaq 100’s 25% decline in 2022 to the dot-com meltdown of the early 2000s, foreshadowing further declines.
Researchers speculated that crypto sector issues caused this fall.
“Next-generation technology companies expect a jump in bankruptcy in 2023,” they stated.
As financing prices rise and liquidity diminishes, early-stage enterprises may have trouble getting investment.
Brazilian Firms Set New Cryptocurrency Purchasing Records in October
Original Source: Brazilian Companies Break Crypto Purchasing Records Again in October
The Brazilian revenue authority (RFB) reported that institutions have shattered crypto purchase records again. The group reported that around 42,000 corporations bought cryptocurrencies in October, breaking the previous record of 40,161 in September.
Brazilian Businesses Buy Crypto in Waves
Brazil is adding crypto to its treasuries. The Brazilian tax office (RBF), which is authorized by law to receive crypto purchase declarations from taxpayers, reported that about 42,000 organizations bought bitcoin in October.
In September, 40,161 institutions surpassed the record for crypto purchases, but 41,817 corporations did. However, from roughly 1.5 million in September, 1.265.818 people bought crypto within the same period.
This new record shows that institutions have been hoarding to take advantage of the market’s low prices. Given that the data shown are from October, the impact of FTX’s recent death on Brazilian users’ trust in the cryptocurrency market is unclear.
As with other possibilities, the reports show the number of transactions and token amounts exchanged. In October, Tether’s USDT, a dollar-pegged stablecoin, settled more payments in Brazil. USDT was used in over 119,366 transactions worth nearly $1.8 billion.
Third-party integration with the regular financial system boosts USDT’s appeal. Smartpay, a cryptocurrency service provider, merged its services with Tecban, a Brazilian ATM operator, on October 22 to allow users to convert USDT to fiat currency in over 24,000 ATMs.
Bitcoin (BTC) still had the most transactions, at 1.34 million worth $190.2 million. 693,086 operations were recorded by BRZ, a local real pegged stablecoin. According to reports, FTX was the key market for these activities, and it is unclear if other markets will absorb this volume. The top five currencies by volume are USDC, ETH, and BTC.
Summary of today’s bitcoin and cryptocurrency news
In summary, Glassnode data shows that the 7-day realized loss in bitcoin investments in November was $10.16 billion because investors had to sell long-term positions. This was the fourth greatest loss on record by this metric. Linda Obi, a crypto investor in the Nigerian city of Lagos and employee of blockchain startup Zenith Chain, recently commented, “This is not the winter season anymore, this is a massacre,” since the FTX issue was like a domino that brought down so many enterprises.
Meanwhile, according to the paper, investors’ confidence in crypto assets could plummet if more crypto companies and exchanges run out of money. This could cause consumers to return to the traditional safe haven of gold. There is a 30% chance of a surge in gold prices in this scenario. The precious metal hasn’t been well-liked this year, sliding 20% from its March highs, but it could profit from a decline in crypto confidence.
Finally, 1.34 million bitcoin (BTC) transactions were recorded, totaling $190,2 million. There were 693,086 BRZ transactions, which is a local real pegged stablecoin. If reports are to be believed, the vast majority of these trades were conducted on FTX, and it is not clear whether or not the other markets can handle this influx of activity. In addition to USD, BTC, and EUR, USDC and ETH round out the top five most-traded currencies.
