1. Market Wrap: Long-Term Bitcoin Holders Trim Positions as Rally Stalls
Still, blockchain data show bitcoin holder positioning is consistent with the early stage of a bull market, one firm says.
Bitcoin traded in a tight range on Tuesday as extreme bullish sentiment appears to be cooling. The cryptocurrency was trading at around $62,000 at press time and is roughly flat over the past 24 hours.
The bitcoin Fear & Greed Index is starting to decline from its highest level in more than seven months, which suggests buyers are starting to take some profits after a nearly 45% rise in BTC’s price over the past month.
In the bitcoin futures market, leveraged funds on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) raised their bets against bitcoin rising to a record high in the week ended Oct. 19, possibly to profit from the widening gap between futures and spot markets prices.
For now, technical indicators suggest limited pullbacks after a retest near the $60,000 support level in bitcoin’s price was achieved earlier this week.
Latest Prices
Bitcoin (BTC): $62,020.52, -1.29%
Ether (ETH): $4,224.98, +0.65%
S&P 500: $4,574.79, +0.18%Gold: $1,793.80, -0.79%
10-year Treasury yield closed at 1.62%
Slight profit taking
Blockchain data show long-term bitcoin holders are starting to take some profits, which typically occurs when BTC reaches an all-time high.
Based on the current price cycle, profit-taking from long-term holders appears to be modest relative to extreme levels seen at the end of a bull market phase, according to a blog post from Glassnode.
The chart below shows significant accumulation of bitcoin around mid-September during a pullback in BTC’s price. And despite the slight profit-taking, current positioning by long-term holders is consistent with the early phase of a bull market, according to Glassnode.
2. Robinhood Shares Fall as Crypto Trading Revenue Declines Sharply
The popular trading platform said reduced crypto trading activity led to significantly fewer new funded accounts and lower revenue in the third quarter.
Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) shares fell about 8% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the zero-commission trading platform missed badly on revenue expectations as its cryptocurrency revenue fell sharply from the second quarter’s record high.
Robinhood said its crypto revenues fell to just $51 million in the third quarter, down from a record $233 million in the second quarter. The company said the reduced crypto trading activity led to significantly fewer new funded accounts and lower revenue in the quarter as compared to the second quarter.
Total revenue for the quarter was $365 million, short of analyst estimates of $437.1 million, according to FactSet. The company reported an adjusted net loss of $2.06 per share, versus analyst expectations of a loss of $0.67.
Robinhood said that over one million customers have signed up on the waiting list for its crypto wallet, which is one of its “most heavily requested products.”
The company also launched recurring crypto investments, allowing customers to automatically buy crypto, without paying commissions and on their own schedule.
On the company’s earnings call on Tuesday, CEO Vlad Tenev said the company was awaiting regulatory clarity before adding more cryptocurrencies to the seven that customers can currently trade — bitcoin, bitcoin cash, bitcoin SV, dogecoin, ethereum, ethereum classic and litecoin. “We’re going to be very careful,” Tenev said.
Previous speculation existed around Shiba Inu being added to Robinhood’s crypto offerings, though Tenev made no mention of this on the call.
The company also noted that the popularity of dogecoin contributed to millions of new accounts being added in the second quarter.
Robinhood went public on July 28 at an IPO price of $38 per share and closed down 8% on its first day of trading.
3. Red Sox Legend David Ortiz, Into Crypto Now, Signs Multiyear FTX Deal
Big Papi will serve as an ambassador for the exchange, joining its long list of sports-related sponsorship deals.
David “Big Papi” Ortiz is the newest ambassador of crypto exchange FTX.
The Major League Baseball (MLB) legend, who hit over 500 home runs and brought home three World Series titles to the Boston Red Sox, has agreed to a multiyear deal with the exchange.
As part of the pact, Big Papi will be compensated in cryptocurrency through the FTX app and release multiple non-fungible token (NFT) collections, according to a press release.
FTX now has a strong lineup of athlete ambassadors, with Ortiz rounding out America’s professional sports trifecta with football’s Tom Brady and basketball’s Stephen Curry. TV commercials referencing the Ortiz deal (and mentioning Brady and Curry) began running on Tuesday night during the first game of the 2021 World Series.
FTX will also be serving as a title sponsor for the David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic, and contribute donations to his charity, the David Ortiz’s Children’s Fund.
The crypto exchange led by CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is growing familiar with the MLB, with its current sponsorships including patches of its logo on the league’s umpire uniforms and “Moonblasts,” where the exchange has donated $10,000 for every postseason home run hit over 425 feet.
“David is an MLB legend, known for hitting home runs to the moon and his incredible personality,” Bankman-Fried said in a press release. “Most importantly, he is dedicated and passionate about helping others, so when he wanted to get into crypto, we were incredibly excited to help him start his journey. Now the world knows that Big Papi is in.”
4. Brazilian Ride-Hailing Giant 99 to Enable Bitcoin Trading
The company will offer users of its digital wallet, 99Pay, commission-free buying and selling of the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.
99Pay, the digital wallet of Brazilian ride-hailing company 99, will enable the purchase and sale of bitcoin on its platform, the company announced on Tuesday.
Users of 99Pay will be able to execute commission-free transactions with a minimum purchase amount of 10 Brazilian reais and a maximum of 10,000 reais — equivalent to 1,800 U.S. dollars — starting Nov. 3.
99Pay, part of the Chinese vehicle-for-hire company DiDi, said that the platform will deliver bitcoin cashback promotions as well.
The initiative comes amid rapidly increasing interest in cryptocurrency among Brazilians and demand for crypto services. According to data published by the country’s Central Bank (BCB) in October, Brazilians have already acquired $4.27 billion so far in 2021. On the legislative front, Brazil’s congress plans to discuss a bill that would regulate companies operating in the cryptocurrency sector.
Brazil’s 99 is a ride-hailing, food delivery and financial services company founded in 2012. It was acquired by DiDi Chuxing, the Chinese equivalent of Uber, in a $1 billion transaction in 2018. The 99Pay platform has 20 million active users, according to the company.
99 launched its digital wallet in July 2020 within its app. The company launched a 99Pay’s stand-alone app last week.
Users will not be able to use bitcoins to pay for trips on 99, since crypto will first have to be switched to fiat, 99Pay’s Director, Maurício Orsolini Filho, told us.
Orsolini Filho added that the company implemented the bitcoin trading feature following research conducted at the company’s request that showed potentially strong demand for the service. According to the data, 81% of Brazilian digital banks’ users already know or have heard of cryptocurrencies, while another 54% do not invest in digital assets but have shown interest in entering that market.
In 2020, DiDi told it was forming a task force to design and run a trial of China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) on its transportation platform.
5. International Police Seize $4.9M in Crypto From Alleged Darknet Drug Traffickers
Operation Dark HunTor cracked down on criminals involved in the sale of tens of thousands of illicit goods and services throughout Europe, Australia and the U.S.
International police including the FBI-led Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (JCODE) and Europol have busted a group of 150 alleged darknet drug traffickers, seizing $4.9 million in cryptocurrencies.
The operation dubbed “Operation Dark HunTor” cracked down on criminals who were involved in the sale of tens of thousands of illicit goods and services across Australia, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the U.K. and the U.S.
The U.S.-Italian operations seized €3.6 million (US$4.17 million) in cryptocurrencies, while police seized approximately $1 million in drug proceeds that included $700,000 in cryptocurrency.
Overall, Operation Dark HunTor resulted in the seizure of over $31.6 million in both cash and virtual currencies, approximately 234 kilograms of drugs worldwide and 45 firearms.
The U.S. Department of Justice reports darknet vendor accounts were linked to individuals selling illicit goods on active marketplaces, as well as inactive darknet marketplaces such as Dream, WallStreet, White House, DeepSea and Dark Market.
“Criminal darknet markets exist so drug dealers can profit at the expense of others’ safety. The FBI is committed to working with our JCODE and Europol law enforcement partners to disrupt those markets and the borderless, worldwide trade in illicit drugs they enable,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray in a statement.
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October 27, 2021
