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Crypto SWOT: Last week Bitcoin briefly dropped below $60,000 for the first time in more than a month

Kitco Media
By Frank E Holmes
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Crypto SWOT: Last week Bitcoin briefly dropped below $60,000 for the first time in more than a month teaser image

Strengths

  • Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the best performer for the week was Celestia, rising 9.48%.
  • Move-to-earn game Stepn announced the launch of a collaborative NFT collection with titan sportswear brand Adidas on Monday, writes Decrypt, with plans to bring Solana NFT sneakers from the brand into the fitness-focused game.
  • The advent of EigenLayer restaking has opened up new yield opportunities for Ethereum holders, writes Bloomberg. A handful of protocols now provide liquid restaked ETH, juicing returns for those who know where to look. A new product from Index Coop aims to bundle those yields into an index token for easy access and built-in diversification, the article continues. 

Weaknesses

  • Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the worst performer for the week was Nervos Nework, down 31.81%.
  • Bitcoin briefly dropped below $60,000 for the first time in more than a month, with volatility increasing ahead of a software update in the blockchain that has long been touted as bullish for the cryptocurrency. The digital asset fell as much as 5% before paring the decline, writes Bloomberg. 

  • Grand Base experienced a devastating hack and a significant security breach that shocked the DeFi community. The breach occurred when a malicious actor accessed the Grand base deployer’s wallet, triggering approximately a $2 million loss, writes Bloomberg. 

Opportunities

  • With just a day or so to go, JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank say that the once-every-four-years Bitcoin software update called the “halving,” that has long been touted as one of the keys to propping up the cryptocurrency’s value, is pretty much priced in, writes Bloomberg.  
  • Binance Holdings received its long-sought full crypto license in Dubai after co-founder CZ agreed to give up voting control in the local entity. The license is a much-needed win for Binance which suffered a string of regulatory hits over the past two years, Bloomberg reports.  
  • A startup prime brokerage, backed by Citadel Securities, is the latest firm looking to raise new funds amid a bounce back in the digital-asset market, writes Bloomberg. Hidden road partners, which focuses on cryptocurrencies and foreign exchange, is raising a series B equity round that will bring its valuation to around $1 billion.  

Threats

  • A trader accused of exploiting Mango Markets rules to steal $110 million from the exchange was convicted of fraud in the first U.S. trial involving criminal charges tied to cryptocurrency manipulation, reports Bloomberg. Federal jurors in New York found Avraham Eisenberg, 28, guilty of commodities fraud, commodities manipulation, and wire fraud.
  • Two senators are proposing a measure to regulate stablecoins amid a push in the House and Senate to pass such legislation as soon as next month. The bill states that they would be protecting both consumers and the U.S. dollar, writes Bloomberg.  
  • Anthony’s Scaramucci, the founder of SkyBridge Capital, has voiced his skepticism toward meme coins, despite their recent high returns in the first quarter of 2024. Skybridge Capital will not touch meme coins despite returns north of 1,000%, writes Bloomberg. 
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Frank E Holmes

Frank Holmes is CEO and chief investment officer of U.S. Global Investors, Inc., a boutique investment advisory firm based in San Antonio that manages domestic and offshore funds specializing in the natural resources and emerging markets sectors. The company’s no-load mutual funds include the Global Resources Fund (ticker PSPFX), the World Precious Minerals Fund (UNWPX) and the Gold Shares Fund (USERX).

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