Vitalij Sova
bitcoin (BTC-USD) Friday was on track for a marginal week gains of around 0.2%the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization stabilizing somewhat after a sharp drop last week.
With no specific positive news to boost sentiment, the token’s weekly advance seemed to be mostly a correction after its over 9% decline last week.
Another catalyst that could have supported bitcoins (BTC-USD) the weekly gain was a new investment strategy from stablecoin issuer Tether, which said that he would use up to 15% of his realized net operating profits to buy the cryptocurrency.
Nervousness around the banking system, an impending economic downturn, increased congestion in the BTC network, liquidity issues resulting from low participation by institutional market makers, and regulatory scrutiny are some of the reasons that led to bitcoin (BTC-USD) losses last week.
“A month ago, Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was surging, breaking above the $30,000 level for the first time since the summer of 2022. Regional banking concerns and rising Fed rate cut bets provided strong support for the cryptos. The upside catalysts have now faded, along with about 30% of this year’s rally,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.
The total crypto market cap currently stands at $1.12T, a 0.16% increase Thursday, according to CoinMarketCap.
Regulatory updates
Coinbase Global crypto exchange (PIECE OF MONEY) was again in the spotlight this week. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday asked an appeals court to dismiss a petition filed by COIN regarding the development of rules for the cryptocurrency industry because there are no time limits for the regulator to take action on it.
Additionally, according to reports, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, in a keynote speech at a conference on Monday, hit back at COIN’s petition by saying there were already rules in place for the markets. cryptocurrency.
“Bitcoin got no favors from SEC Gensler earlier in the week, just standard comments on how the rules are already in place. The regulatory issue remains key for the cryptoverse and traders will need to remain patient,” said said OANDA’s Moya.
Elsewhere across the Atlantic, the European Union’s vast set of cryptocurrency rules received final approval by Member States on Tuesday. The rules aim to combat money laundering and improve transparency in the crypto industry.
Meanwhile, UK Treasury committee lawmakers have urged than trading unsupported cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin (BTC-USD) and Ethereum (ETH-USD) should be regulated as games of chance.
Bitcoin, ether price
- bitcoin (BTC-USD) pink 0.31% at $28.85K at 2245 ET and ether (ETH-USD) was in place 0.57% at $1.81,000.
- Find out why SA contributor Vlad Deshkovich believes Obviously BTC and ETH have some level of fundamental value if they are to be considered currencies.