Crypto Market Holds Ground, Bitcoin Slips Marginally

The global cryptocurrency market held its ground at $1.54 trillion with a marginal 0.6 per cent decline in the 24-hour period ending 9 am IST. Crypto trade volumes continue to remain volatile with a 10 per cent drop in the same period. 

Bitcoin (BTC) ended its 8-day streak of gains to close at $39,700 with a modest 1.1 per cent decline. BTC has had a remarkable run in the past week from a local low below $30,000, assisted by massive trade volumes increasing as high as 60 per cent day on day. However, BTC faced resistance at the $40,200 level, which is its 100-day moving average. Investors are booking profits currently and hence BTC is expected to have muted gains in the next couple of days. BTC’s market share currently stands at 48.4 per cent. The market continues to be dictated by Bitcoin’s price actions.

Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, was trading near $2,280 at day’s close with a minor dip of 0.9 per cent from the previous day. ETH will face selling pressure at the $2,350 resistance level while $2,050 currently acts as the support.

The majority of the top 20 cryptocurrencies were in the red today as BTC couldn’t maintain its growth momentum. Ripple (XRP) gained 9 per cent today post the launch of a new On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) payment corridor between Japan, and the Philippines. Amongst the lot, Litecoin (LTC) and Polkadot (DOT) had minor gains, while Chainlink (LINK) and Polygon (MATIC) took moderate losses of up to 4 per cent. 

If BTC fails to hold the $39,000 level, a likely pullback to the $35,000 region is possible this week. Alternatively, a daily close above $40,500 would open the door towards its 200-day moving average near $44,000. 

Top Gainers today:

1. THORChain (RUNE): 25.2%
2. Terra (LUNA): 18.7%
3. Quant (QNT): 14.7%

Top Loser today:

1. Axie Infinity (AXS): -8.8%
2. Internet Computer (ICP): -7.7%
3. BitTorrent (BTT): -7.2%

The analysis includes the top 100 coins only as of 9 am IST

Source: CoinMarketCap

Crypto News at a Glance:

1. Profunds, a $60 billion fund manager, has announced the first publicly available Bitcoin mutual fund in the U.S. called Bitcoin Strategy ProFund (BTCFX). The new mutual fund offers investors exposure to Bitcoin without separately managing a hardware wallet or exchange custodial solution.
2. Lolli, which provides Bitcoin rewards for shopping, has raised $10 million in series A funding round led by Acrew capital. Lolli reports that over $3.5 million worth of Bitcoin rewards have been awarded till date.
3. Ripple, the leading provider of enterprise blockchain and global crypto payments, has announced the launch of its first On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) corridor in Japan, and the Philippines. The market for yearly remittances from Japan to the Philippines is estimated at $1.8 billion. Ripple recently expanded its footprint in Asia with a 40 per cent stake acquisition in cross-border payments firm Tranglo.
4. Global crypto exchange Binance has introduced new withdrawal limits for users who have not completed full KYC verification and a new tax reporting tool in light of increasing regulatory pressures. New users who do not adhere to the latest rules will be unable to withdraw more than 0.06 BTC per day.
5. According to global crypto exchange Coinbase, Ethereum has grown faster than Bitcoin in trade volumes in the first half of 2021. Ethereum’s trade volume grew 1,461 per cent compared to Bitcoin’s 489 per cent over the same period. 

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