Join Matt and Nick as they discuss why crypto prices rallied after Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt. They also break down Germany’s heavy selling of nearly 50,000 Bitcoin; upcoming cash payments to some FTX creditors; Ethereum ETFs; altcoin updates; and more.

Key Takeaways

• Cryptocurrency prices rallied after the attempted assassination of U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump. In the hours after this event, Trump’s odds of winning November’s election jumped from 60% to 70%, according to Polymarket.
• Speaking of Trump, last week he was confirmed as a speaker at Bitcoin’s largest annual conference, Bitcoin 2024. His 30-minute speech is scheduled for 2pm CT (7pm UTC) on July 27. This event will likely generate plenty of mainstream attention for crypto.
• The German government seemingly finished selling its stash of nearly 50,000 BTC it seized in late January. While it’s unknown how much BTC was actually sold—and how much is left to be sold—the market will likely stop caring about this story.
• Certain FTX creditors are set to receive $12B–$16B later this year. While this will create some short-term buy pressure, it’s unrealistic to expect all of this to go straight back into the crypto market.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Solana’s progress on ‘Firedancer’ client and Starknet’s proposal to add a staking functionality to STRK.

Join Matt and Nick as they discuss the crypto market sell-off; Mt. Gox starting to redistribute Bitcoin; Germany selling more Bitcoin; Circle becoming the first compliant stablecoin issuer in the EU; Ethereum ETFs; key altcoins updates; and more.

Key Takeaways

• Defunct exchange Mt. Gox started redistributing a portion of the ~142,000 BTC it owes creditors. The deadline for its rehabilitation creditor repayments is Oct. 31, 2024.
• German and U.S. authorities continued to move BTC to exchanges, presumably to sell. It is unclear how much they intend to sell and over what time frame. Long term, these sales are meaningless.
• The spot Ethereum ETFs are still tracking to launch in July. While estimates of the combined net inflows of these ETFs vary greatly, the long-term effect is undoubtedly positive for ETH.
• USDC stablecoin issuer Circle became the first compliant stablecoin issuer under the EU’s new crypto laws.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Solana’s sliding stablecoin transfers; Polkdaot’s exorbitant marketing costs; and Bittensor’s blockchain issues.

Join Matt and Nick as they discuss the state of the market; Ethereum and Solana ETF updates; the SEC suing Consensys; the MegaETH funding round; altcoin updates; and more.

Key Takeaways

• Mt. Gox will start incrementally distributing its ~142,000 BTC to creditors this month. While some BTC will be instantly sold by recipients, the amount of sell pressure will likely not be as large as some may expect.
• Spot Ethereum ETFs are expected to go live slightly later than most expected. Still highly likely they launch in July.
• The SEC sued Consensys, alleging that it violated federal securities laws because some of its offerings are brokers of ‘crypto-asset securities’. In the lawsuit, the SEC alleged that Lido (LDO) and Rocket Pool (RPL) were securities, causing a sell-off.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: BLAST valuation opens at less than market expectations and Solana introduces blockchain links, or blinks.

Join Matt and Nick as they discuss the SEC closing its investigation into the initial sales of ETH; Germany selling its large Bitcoin holdings; altcoin updates; and more.

Key Takeaways

• Prices have continued falling amid market conditions with very few new buyers. These types of pullbacks are consistent with all past crypto bull markets, and we still expect prices to be much higher by year-end.
• Consensys said the SEC "would not bring charges alleging that sales of ETH are securities transactions." A significant concession by the SEC, potentially reflecting a shift in positioning towards crypto.
• The German government has been selling some of its BTC holdings. It still owns slightly less than 47,000 BTC (≈$2.9B). If the sales continue, it may drive BTC’s price lower in the short term. Long term, these sales are meaningless.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: LayerZero’s controversial token launch, Lens’ migration to ZKsync, and Jupiter’s proposed token supply decrease.

Matt breaks down why cryptocurrency prices slid after the U.S. central bank’s big update. He also covers how Donald Trump and Joe Biden are warming to crypto; MicroStrategy’s latest capital raise; Bitcoin ETFs in Australia; and altcoin updates.

Key Takeaways

• Cryptocurrency prices after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it now anticipates just one rate cut in 2024, down from the three cuts estimated in March.
• Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Joe Biden continue to up their engagement with the crypto industry, a promising development given both have historically opposed crypto. However, time will tell whether it lead to any favourable outcomes after November’s election.
• Australia’s largest stock exchange, the ASX, approved its first spot Bitcoin ETF. This milestone should bring greater credibility to Bitcoin and crypto more broadly.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Lido’s involvement with Symbiotic and Mellow Finance, and Polygon and Arbitrum announce well-funded growth initiatives.

Matt breaks down why Bitcoin’s price is not surging despite there being such strong ETF demand. He also covers the big week ahead for macro, Coinbase Smart Wallet, continued institutional adoption, and altcoin updates.

Key Takeaways

• Spot Bitcoin ETF demand continued to surge, yet prices held steady. It is becoming increasingly evident that more hedge funds are buying these ETFs while shorting BTC on the futures market (i.e. executing a cash-and-carry trade).
• The big macro event to watch this week will be the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision (June 12). The U.S. CPI data release (June 12) will also be closely watched. If these are in line with expectations, a relief rally is highly likely.
• Coinbase announced its smart wallet in an effort to dramatically simplify onboarding, eliminate network fees, and remove recovery phrases.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Arweave’s upcoming AO token, Optimism’s important upgrade, and airdrop details for ZKsync (ZK).

Matt breaks down the most important events in crypto from the past week. Topics include the Ethereum ETF, U.S. President Biden denying the crypto custody bill, celebrity memecoins and altcoin updates.

Key Takeaways

• The Ethereum ETF applicants started submitting their S-1 filings to the U.S. SEC. Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, expects the ETFs to start trading in early July.
• U.S. President Biden vetoed legislation that would have made it easier for banks to offer custody services for cryptocurrencies.
• Celebrities such as Caitlyn Jenner and Iggy Azalea launched their own cryptocurrencies on Solana. These are extremely risky and will likely lose relevance very soon.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Arweave’s upcoming AO token, PayPal’s stablecoin launching on Solana, and Sei v2 preparing to go live

Join Matt and Nick as they break down the latest market uptick; the state of Wisconsin’s investing in Bitcoin ETFs; the U.S. Senate voting to override an anti-crypto rule; Solana vs Ethereum; altcoin updates; and more.

Key Takeaways

• The U.S. SEC shocked the market by approving all eight spot Ethereum ETF applications. No indication of when these ETFs will go live. The issuers still need to get their filings approved, which may take months.
• ETH rallied by more than 20% after news circulated that the SEC was all of a sudden likely to approve the ETFs.
• U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump doubled down on his support of crypto, pegging himself against the Biden administration. While it’s unclear whether Trump is simply just trying to win votes, it’s encouraging to see increased publicity surrounding crypto.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Chainlink’s involvement in another asset-tokenisation pilot and Uniswap Labs’ response to the SEC’s Wells notice.