Another wave of FUD around the possible security status of Ethereum (ETH) is the key reason behind its “underperformance,” data says. However, passionate holders do not seem to be ready for selling en masse.
Ethereum FUD causes record-breaking ETH inflow to CEXes
In the past week, the Ethereum (ETH) supply has experienced mixed trends. As the meme coin mania loses steam, the aggregated Ethereum (ETH) fees dropped by 41%, says leading blockchain data tracker IntoTheBlock.
In this week’s newsletter, we analyze some of the recent FUD against Ethereum. We evaluate ETH’s relative performance in terms of price, its fundamental metrics and the bullish outlook shared by ETH’s long-term investors👇https://t.co/LOJscBi0dF
Such calculations were revealed by IntoTheBlock in its latest On-Chain Insights newsletter.
Also, Ether recorded its largest weekly net inflows into centralized exchanges since September 2022: Scared holders brought $720 million to CEXes.
This week, besides the “regular” rumors about Ether’s security status, some media outlets reported that Ethereum Foundation was being investigated by law enforcers.
Should Ethereum (ETH) be deemed security in the U.S., the prospects of Ethereum ETF approval might be questioned.
As covered by U.Today, U.S. congresspersons and Coinbase CLO slammed the SEC and its leadership for its failure to protect Ethereum (ETH) from a regulatory crackdown.
“ETH underperformance is real,” IntoTheBlock says
It is the FUD to blame for Ethereum’s (ETH) underperformance, IntoTheBlock data says. In the shadow of the marvelous BTC rally, ETH has lagged behind Bitcoin and on a risk-adjusted basis, even behind the S&P 500.
Also, the ratio of ETH/BTC is holding just above 0.05, inching closer to its lowest point since June 2022. It should be noted that BTC has already managed to exceed its 2021 high, while the Ethereum (ETH) upsurge stopped 32% short of the ATH.
At the same time, long-term ETH holders are not ready to sell their coins. The amount of Ethers in wallets that have been holding for over one year continues hitting new highs despite the negative news.
Layer-2 Blast’s DeFi Farming Game Crypto Valleys Surge in Popularity
Blast, an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, is witnessing a surge in gaming activity, particularly from a game called Crypto Valleys.
Crypto Valleys shares some similarities with the once-popular farming game DeFi Kingdoms. Crypto Valleys, in its initial version, is primarily focused on attracting DeFi enthusiasts. The web-based game allows players to purchase NFT-based seeds using the game’s YIELD token, plant them, and harvest the produce to earn additional YIELD. The process can be repeated for continuous gains, creating a simple and streamlined experience.
To add excitement, Crypto Valleys incorporates “gacha” elements, which involve NFT seed packs with randomized contents. Similar to loot boxes in various games, these seed packs offer rewards that range from common to extravagant.
The allure of potential high YIELD gains from seed packs has attracted a surge in players, with Crypto Valleys’ YIELD token becoming the most-traded token on Blast. Over the past 24 hours, it recorded approximately $8.1 million worth of trading volume. The token’s price experienced a pump to around $15.6 currently, and is valued at a market cap of $93.6 million.
Crypto Valleys has also distributed a collection of 1,500 character NFTs for free minting. These assets are now valued at approximately 0.47 ETH ($1,641) on the secondary market. Additionally, players can earn “Blast Gold,” special points that contribute to an upcoming Blast network token airdrop for users.
There aren’t any significant expiries in play for the day ahead. As such, trading sentiment will continue to revolve around the mix of the technicals, risk mood, and broader market sentiment. So far today, there isn’t much to really work with as most markets remain relatively muted. But the dollar is still keeping poised, so keep an eye out for that at least.
For more information on how to use this data, you may refer to this post here.
Brent oil price begins today with slight bullish bias, hinting heading to resume the bullish trend, which targets testing 87.40$ as a first station, noting that breaching this level will push the price towards 88.40$ as a next target.
The EMA50 supports the price from below to reinforce the chances of continuing the bullish wave, noting that breaking 85.30$ followed by 84.55$ levels will stop the expected rise and push the price to turn to decline.
The expected trading range for today is between 84.60$ support and 87.50$ resistance.
As the 2024 crypto presale season unfolds, BlockDAG positions itself as a dominant player, overshadowing Storj and Kelexo with its comprehensive roadmap and ambitious $600 million objective. This analysis explores BlockDAG’s pioneering blockchain technology and its commitment to broader market accessibility and adoption. BlockDAG’s all-inclusive strategy aims to transform the digital economy, positioning itself as
As the 2024 crypto presale season unfolds, BlockDAG positions itself as a dominant player, overshadowing Storj and Kelexo with its comprehensive roadmap and ambitious $600 million objective. This analysis explores BlockDAG’s pioneering blockchain technology and its commitment to broader market accessibility and adoption. BlockDAG’s all-inclusive strategy aims to transform the digital economy, positioning itself as a key player for investors seeking solid, future-oriented crypto opportunities.
Analysis of Storj’s Future Value
Forecasts for Storj from 2024 to 2030 suggest a steady uptick in its price, ranging between $1.26 and $8.76. This projection underscores its growing role in the blockchain storage domain. However, despite projections, it’s unlikely Storj will hit the $10 mark by 2030, given the current pace of growth and market capitalization factors.
These projections for Storj highlight its niche in decentralized storage, competing against major players like Amazon S3 and Dropbox by offering secure, efficient, and cost-effective storage solutions at $4 per TB monthly. Yet, the analysis considers Storj a less appealing investment option due to the challenging growth and market cap required to achieve a $10 valuation, despite its innovative solutions and expanding applications in areas such as cloud-native applications and scientific research.
The Turning Point in Decentralized Finance with Kelexo’s Presale
Kelexo’s ongoing presale, particularly attractive in its second phase at $0.04 per token, is capturing attention from communities within Ripple (XRP) and Litecoin (LTC), marking a significant phase in decentralized finance (DeFi). Distinguished by its no-KYC, peer-to-peer lending marketplace, Kelexo aims to extend financial access beyond traditional constraints.
Focusing on inclusiveness and improving user experiences, Kelexo’s presale is identified as a key opportunity in the current bull market. With advancements in Web3 lending, Kelexo aims to offer a transparent, straightforward, and accessible investment in DeFi’s future, bypassing common barriers.
BlockDAG Redefines the 2024 Crypto Presale Scene
BlockDAG rapidly reshapes the 2024 crypto presale scene, with its bold $600 million strategy significantly outpacing Storj and Kelexo. BlockDAG distinguishes itself by adopting a broader approach that incorporates cutting-edge blockchain technology and user-friendly mining experiences to attract a wide audience.
A recent keynote in Shibuya highlighted its goals for broad adoption and inclusivity in the digital market. With a presale achievement of $7.9 million, BlockDAG’s focus on democratizing blockchain through Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAG) and Proof-of-Work (PoW) mechanisms sets it apart from its competitors.
These core technologies promise unmatched scalability, security, and efficiency, placing BlockDAG at the forefront of 2024’s top crypto presales. Its commitment to open communication and community building around trust and innovation further establishes its leadership position. While Storj and Kelexo provide specialized solutions in their fields, BlockDAG’s ambitious, holistic approach seeks to redefine blockchain utility at large, presenting an attractive option for investors aiming for a resilient cryptocurrency investment.
BlockDAG: The Preferred Investment Choice
In the competitive landscape of 2024’s crypto presales, BlockDAG emerges as the top investment choice by integrating revolutionary DAG and PoW technologies. Moving beyond the decentralized storage of Storj and Kelexo’s focus on Web3 lending, BlockDAG addresses a wider range of blockchain applications with superior scalability, security, and efficiency. Its notable presale success of $7.9 million, combined with a vision to make blockchain technology accessible, establishes BlockDAG as the leading choice for investors seeking to engage with the digital economy’s growth.
Investing.com– Most Asian currencies firmed on Monday, recovering a measure of recent losses as the dollar consolidated at one-month highs, while traders remained on guard over potential government intervention for the Chinese yuan and Japanese yen.
Most regional currencies were nursing steep losses from last week, as the dollar blazed past seemingly dovish signals from the Federal Reserve following a surprise rate cut from the Swiss National Bank.
Strength in the dollar limited gains in most Asian currencies on Monday.
USDCNY falls below 7.2, state banks seen intervening
The Chinese yuan strengthened sharply, with the pair falling 0.4% and briefly breaking below the 7.2 level. The offshore yuan’s pair fell 0.5% but remained well above the 7.2 level.
Reuters reported that the People’s Bank of China had instructed state-owned banks to buy yuan and sell dollars in the open market, to support the Chinese currency.
The yuan tumbled to four-month lows in recent sessions amid growing concerns over a sluggish Chinese economy. The PBOC also recently signaled that it still had enough headroom to further reduce its benchmark rates.
USDJPY strengthens after verbal warning
The Japanese yen saw some strength on Monday, with the pair falling 0.1% after a top Japanese currency diplomat offered a verbal warning on potential intervention by the government.
Masato Kanda, vice finance minister for international affairs, said that recent weakness in the yen did not reflect the currency’s fundamentals, and that the government remained ready to respond to the yen’s slide.
The USDJPY level surged to four-month highs last week even as the Bank of Japan for the first time in 17 years. But BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda offered largely dovish signals for monetary policy in the near-term, which were a key weight on the yen.
With the USDJPY pair now trading well above the 150 level, traders were on edge over any potential intervention in currency markets, given that such USDJPY levels have attracted intervention in the past.
for Tokyo is also due later this week.
Dollar steadies below 1-mth high
The and fell slightly from a one-month high in Asian trade, consolidating after a late-week rally.
The greenback had shot up after dovish signals from the SNB and Bank of England suggested that the dollar will remain the only relatively high-yielding, low-risk currency in the near-term.
While the Fed still flagged at least 75 basis points of rate cuts this year, that figure will depend largely on the path of inflation. data- the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, is due this Friday.
Broader Asian currencies firmed, but gains were limited in anticipation of key economic figures this week.
The Australian dollar firmed, with the pair rising 0.2% ahead of a reading due later in the week.
The South Korean won’s pair rose 0.3%, while the Singapore dollar’s pair firmed 0.1% ahead of due later in the day.
GBTC saw net outflows of $169.9 million on March 22 versus $358.8 million on March 21 and $642.5 million of net outflows on March 18. Outflows on March 18 were the highest since the launch of the Nine on January 11.
With GBTC net outflows of $2,001.3 million in the week ending March 22, the markets anticipate net outflows to fall significantly. Investors attributed the GBTC net outflows to the bankruptcy court ruling, allowing Genesis Global Holdco LLC to liquidate GBTC shares worth approximately $1.3 billion.
The BTC-spot ETF market saw five consecutive days of net outflows in the week ending March 22. BTC-spot ETF market flow data for March 25 could impact buyer demand for BTC late in the session. GBTC outflows and inflow data for iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) will likely be the focal points.
IBIT and FBTC registered 51 consecutive days of net inflows on Friday. However, Five consecutive sessions of total net outflows fueled speculation about the BTC-spot ETF market seeing inflows dry up.
President of ETF Store Nate Garaci had this to say about the BTC-spot ETF market flow trends,
“Spot bitcoin ETFs have taken in a net $11bil & have $50bil AUM in 2+ months & the media is already trying to call it over… No idea what happens w/ flows moving forward, but someone pls tell them numerous RIAs & brokerage platforms haven’t even approved these things for use yet.”
Coming up today, at 1415 GMT / 1015 US Eastern time:
Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Catherine Mann gives a speech at the Royal Economic Society’s annual conference in Belfast, titled “Industry policy: Boon or bane for productivity growth”
That topic doesn’t sound like it’ll have much to do with monetary policy, but perhaps there will be something.
This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.
GBP/USD is holding just below the 1.2650 mark on Friday. The major pair’s decline is supported by the strengthening of the US dollar (USD) and the Bank of England’s (BoE) softness. Investors are awaiting fresh impetus from the UK retail sales data, which is expected to fall 0.3% in February.
The Bank of England kept the interest rate unchanged at 5.25% at its March meeting on Thursday, as expected. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said the economy is not at the point where the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) can cut interest rates, but the economy is on the right track. Markets expect the UK central bank to need more evidence of moderate wage growth before it can start cutting rates. Nevertheless, investors are keeping bets on a Bank of England rate cut this year, and the mood for an easing policy from the Bank of England Governor is weighing on the Pound Sterling (GBP) and acting as a headwind for GBP/USD.
The Fed left the rate unchanged at 5.25-5.50% at its March meeting on Wednesday, with the FOMC’s average forecast keeping the possibility of three cuts in 2024. Markets rate the probability that the Fed will cut rates in June at about 80%, according to CME FedWatch Tool data.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Michael Barr are scheduled to speak today. Traders will focus on the data and look for trading opportunities in the GBP/USD pair.
Trading recommendation: Trade predominantly with sell orders from the current price level
Moreover, US housing sector data also needs consideration. Economists consider housing sector data as a leading indicator for the US economy.
Upward trends in housing sector-related data could signal a pickup in consumer confidence. Consumer confidence could fuel consumer spending and demand-driven inflation. Demand-driven inflationary pressures could leave the Fed in a holding pattern. A higher-for-longer rate path may reduce disposable income and curb consumer spending.
Economists forecast new home sales to increase by 3.0% in February after rising by 1.5% in January.
Beyond the numbers, investors must track Fed chatter. FOMC members Lisa Cook and Raphael Bostic are on the calendar to speak. Deviations from the FOMC Economic Projections could move the dial.
Short-term Forecast
Near-term trends for the USD/JPY will hinge on inflation numbers and central bank chatter.
This week, inflation numbers from Japan and the US will impact the BoJ and Fed rate paths. However, hotter-than-expected inflation numbers from the US could tilt monetary policy divergence toward the US dollar. Interest rate differentials and the outlook for carry trades support the USD/JPY at current levels.
USD/JPY Price Action
Daily Chart
The USD/JPY remained well above the 50-day and 200-day EMAs, affirming the bullish price signals.
A USD/JPY break above the 151.685 resistance level would support a move to the 152 handle.
Intervention chatter, US economic data, and Fed comments need consideration.
Conversely, a USD/JPY fall through the 150 handle could give the bears a run at the 50-day EMA and the 148.529 support level.
The 14-day RSI at 64.45 suggests a USD/JPY move to the 152 handle before entering overbought territory.
