Market Wrap: Cryptocurrencies Decline With Equities, Traders Remain Cautious

Most cryptocurrencies traded lower on Tuesday as rising bond yields continued to weigh on U.S. equities. As investors reduce their appetite for risk, the most speculative areas of global markets have been hit the hardest. For example, the Nasdaq 100 is down about 5% from its all-time high, compared with a 4% drawdown in the S&P 500 and a roughly 37% drawdown for BTC. Government bonds, deemed to be a traditional safe haven investment, are also selling off as yields rise. The iShares 20+ year Treasury bond exchange-traded fund (NASDAQ:…

Analysts warn that Bitcoin could dip to $38K ‘before an eventual breakout’

The cryptocurrency market faced another day of weakness on Jan. 18 as the price of Bitcoin (BTC) dropped lower and additional pressure was also put on the altcoin market. Currently, the crypto Fear and Greed Index registered “Extreme Fear” among investors and some traders caution that BTC price could soon fall below its recent $39,000 swing low. Crypto Fear & Greed index. Source: Alternative Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that bulls lost control of the $42,000 support level during the early trading hours on Jan. 18 as…

Is Crypto a Ponzi? Define 'Ponzi'

If you can believe it, scams and Ponzi schemes have existed and thrived in the cryptocurrency industry well before the recent speculative exuberance around decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and token launches on blockchains like Binance Smart Chain. For sure there are a lot of sketchy “profile pic” projects (PFPs) and questionable economic games played using smart contracts, those lines of code that supposedly cut out the middlemen from basic financial services. So, you know, do your own research. Thankfully, some crypto projects make it easy for you. In…

Microsoft Bets on ‘Metaverse’ With $69B Acquisition of Activision Blizzard

CryptoX – Cryptocurrency Analysis and News Portal Microsoft today announced it is acquiring game publisher Activision Blizzard in a nearly $69 billion all-cash deal. The acquisition is being widely seen as a big bet to keep Microsoft competitive in the burgeoning metaverse space. On today’s episode, NLW gives the background and explores the emerging battle between the corporate and the open metaverses. Original Source The post Microsoft Bets on ‘Metaverse’ With $69B Acquisition of Activision Blizzard appeared first on CryptoX. CryptoX Portal

Blockchain Firm Animoca Brands Raises $358 Million to Enhance Web3 and the Metaverse – Finance Bitcoin News

Animoca Brands has announced the blockchain and cryptocurrency-focused firm has raised $358.8 million to bolster the non-fungible token (NFT) industry and “build the open metaverse.” The capital raise follows the firm’s previous $65 million and $138.88 million raises last year and today, Animoca Brands has an overall valuation of $5 billion. Animoca Brands Raises $358 Million in Financing Led by Liberty City Ventures, Blockchain Company Has Pre-Money Valuation of $5 Billion The firm Animoca Brands is a global developer utilizing popular brands, gamification, A.I., blockchain, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and mobile…

Digital Asset Funds Hit by 5th Week of Outflows

Investors pulled money out of cryptocurrency funds for a fifth straight week, reflecting the bearish market mood as bitcoin suffers one of its worst-ever starts to a year. Digital-asset investment products saw $73 million of outflows during the seven days through Jan. 14, according to a report published Monday by the crypto firm CoinShares. The redemptions accumulate to $532 million over the five weeks, cutting industrywide assets under management across all funds to $56.1 billion. Investment funds focused on bitcoin (BTC), the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value, accounted for…

Damien Hirst Launches Chainlink Price Index for NFT Project

When Hirst – the British artist best known for wildly expensive works involving taxidermied sharks and diamond-studded skulls – released “The Currency” last year, the project took most of its cues from other popular NFT collections. Like CryptoPunks or the Bored Ape Yacht Club, “The Currency” consists of 10,000 images with slight variations. And as with those projects, it was valued partly according to its “floor,” or the lowest listed price for a single NFT in the collection. Source

‘The risks outweigh the benefits’ of a Swiss CBDC, says SNB governing board member

Andréa Maechler, a member of the governing board for the Swiss National Bank, or SNB, has reportedly altered her position on the central bank issuing a digital franc.  According to a Tuesday report from Reuters journalist John Revill, Maechler said officials at the country’s central bank “believe the risks outweigh the benefits” when it comes to CBDCs. The governing board member said having the general public use a digital franc in day-to-day transactions would likely not help to promote financial inclusion in Switzerland, where almost all the working population already…