Author: dfmines

James Toledano says bitcoin’s measured response to a significant sell-off, triggered by U.S. “reciprocal” tariffs, highlights its growing maturity as a macro asset. Bitcoin Is a Maturing Macro Asset After weeks of seemingly moving in tandem with equities and other traditional assets, bitcoin ( BTC) showed a measured reaction to a historic sell-off sparked by […]

Bitcoin and other crypto assets faced headwinds in the first quarter of 2025 as global economic tensions intensified. After a strong start to the year driven by optimism over President Donald Trump’s return and supportive macroeconomic expectations, the crypto market struggled with a sharp drop in trading volumes. According to a new report by Kaiko, the tariff measures introduced by the Trump administration contributed to increased volatility and risk-off behavior among market participants. Related Reading: Is The Bitcoin Bottom In After Trump’s Tariff Pause? Here’s What To Expect Crypto Q1 Volume and Liquidity Performance Bitcoin, which had rallied to new highs in January, has now fallen by over 25% from its peak, ending the quarter down approximately 12%. Ethereum and the top altcoins also saw declines, with AI and memecoins posting average losses above 50%. Weekly volumes for BTC, ETH, and other major tokens averaged $266 billion, down 30% from levels seen in late 2024. Kaiko attributed much of the decline to offshore exchange activity falling and traders pulling back due to rapid market swings and uncertainty. U.S.-based exchanges maintained strong market depth despite broader selloffs, buffering the impact on Bitcoin’s liquidity. Platforms like Coinbase, Kraken, and CEX.IO collectively comprised 60% of BTC’s market depth in Q1. This allowed BTC to outperform many altcoins, which suffered from both reduced demand and thinner liquidity. Kaiko noted that this environment favored larger-cap assets and further highlighted the resilience of BTC compared to other riskier assets in the crypto space. The report noted: Altcoin volatility surged in early 2025, reaching multi-year or all-time highs for certain tokens, notably Cardano’s ADA. Bitcoin’s volatility also rose, from 34% in February to 51% in March, though it stayed below the peaks observed during last August’s carry trade unwinding. The growing volatility gap between Bitcoin and altcoins may discourage risk-averse traders from entering the market in the near future. The Path Ahead: Outlook For Q2 Looking forward, Kaiko analysts believe the second quarter could offer renewed opportunities. The White House’s recent decision to delay tariff implementation by 90 days has already sparked a short-term rally, suggesting sensitivity to macroeconomic developments remains high. More importantly, structural tailwinds are building: the expansion of the stablecoin market, pending ETF approvals for altcoins, and the appointment of pro-crypto SEC Chair Paul Atkins could all support a recovery In addition, the stablecoin sector, led by USDT and USDC, has grown 33% since late 2024, now exceeding $230 billion in supply. Historical data from Kaiko suggests that expansions in stablecoin supply often precede broader crypto rallies. Related Reading: Bitcoin Bulls Crushed: $500 Million Liquidation Shakes Market Confidence With over 40 crypto-related ETF applications pending review and two stablecoin bills gaining momentum in Congress, the potential for renewed institutional participation is rising. Kaiko’s report concluded that if market volatility subsides and regulatory clarity improves, Q2 may mark a shift in sentiment. While risks remain from geopolitical tensions and economic policies, the combination of macro catalysts and maturing infrastructure may pave the way for renewed growth, particularly for Bitcoin. Featured image created with DALL-E, Chart from TradingView

Pakistan is exploring bitcoin mining and AI data centers as a way to utilize its surplus electricity, with plans to foster innovation, boost exports, and create tech jobs through crypto regulation and infrastructure support. Turning Watts into Wealth: Pakistan Leverages Excess Energy for Crypto Mining Pakistan is looking to bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence (AI) […]

US authorities have charged a tech app founder with fraud, alleging that his advertised artificial intelligence-powered e-commerce app actually relied on human workers in the Philippines.Albert Saniger of Barcelona, Spain, founder and former CEO of the company Nate, was charged with one count of securities fraud and wire fraud, the Justice Department said in an April 9 statement, while the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a parallel civil action.Court documents said Saniger founded Nate around 2018 and launched an app of the same name in July 2020, marketing it as an AI-powered universal shopping cart that offered users the ability to complete online retail transactions, including filling in shipping details and sizing, without human input.The Justice Department alleged that, in reality, “Saniger used hundreds of contractors, or ‘purchasing assistants,’ in a call center located in the Philippines to manually complete purchases occurring over the nate app.”Source: US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New YorkInvestors gave Saniger over $40 million, feds sayActing US Attorney for New York Matthew Podolsky alleged Saniger duped investors by “exploiting the promise and allure of AI technology to build a false narrative about innovation that never existed.” Under the guise of investing in the AI-powered app, Sangier allegedly solicited more than $40 million in investments from venture capital firms and told employees to hide the true source of Nate’s automation. “This type of deception not only victimizes innocent investors, it diverts capital from legitimate startups, makes investors skeptical of real breakthroughs, and ultimately impedes the progress of AI development,” Podolsky said. The company acquired AI technology from a third party and had a team of data scientists develop it, but authorities claimed the app never achieved the ability to consistently complete e-commerce purchases, and its actual automation rate was effectively zero. Related: Aussie regulator to shut 95 ‘hydra’ firms linked to crypto, romance scamsDuring a busy holiday season in 2021, it’s alleged that Sanger directed Nate’s engineering team to develop bots to automate some transactions on the app along with the human workers. Nate ceased operations in January 2023, and Saniger terminated all of Nate’s employees after media reports started casting doubt on the app’s capabilities, according to the SEC’s court filing. The securities and wire fraud charges each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars. The SEC suit is asking the courts to ban Saniger from holding office in any similar company and return investor funds.Cointelegraph contacted Nate for comment. Information on Saniger’s lawyers was not immediately available. Magazine: Memecoin degeneracy is funding groundbreaking anti-aging research

Welcome to the Daily General Discussion on r/ethereum https://imgur.com/3y7vezP Bookmarking this link will always bring you to the current daily: https://old.reddit.com/r/ethereum/about/sticky/?num=2 Please use this thread to discuss Ethereum topics, news, events, and even price! Price discussion posted elsewhere in the subreddit will continue to be removed. As always, be constructive. – Subreddit Rules Want to…
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It may be too early for Bitcoiners to start getting bullish over the longer-term impacts of a potential recession on Bitcoin’s price, says 10x Research head of research Markus Thielen.Thielen said in an April 11 markets report that credit spreads continue to widen, indicating that “recessionary concerns may be seeping deeper into the economy.”“Expecting a bullish impulse is too early,” he said.Bitcoin may face short-term headwindsWhile the long-term effects of a recession could be bullish for Bitcoin (BTC) — due to the monetary easing that typically follows US Federal Reserve rate cuts — Thielen warned that Bitcoin may face headwinds before gaining bullish momentum.“Normally, Bitcoin first sells off when China devalues or the Fed cuts, as the first cut might not be so impactful and also confirms economic weakness,” Thielen told Cointelegraph. Bitcoin is trading at $80,620 at the time of publication. Source: CoinMarketCapWhite House crypto and AI czar David Sacks said in an April 10 X post that it is “time for a rate cut” after the core Consumer Price Index increased 2.8% year-by-year for March, the lowest it has been since March 2021.CME Group’s FedWatch Tool shows a 64.8% chance of no rate cut at the Federal Reserve’s May Federal Open Market Committee meeting.Traders typically see interest rate cuts and monetary supply expansions as positively affecting asset prices, especially Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.However, Thielen said that historically, when year-over-year credit spreads “begin to widen,” Bitcoin often faces more downside pressure and takes longer to recover.Related: Bitcoin ‘significantly de-risked here’ as nearly 80% of cyclical price correction is done — Analyst“This pattern suggests that while a longer-term opportunity may emerge, Bitcoin could still face pressure in the near term,” Thielen said. He added that currency devaluations have also historically been bearish for markets in the short term before being bullish in the long term.It comes amid growing concern among market participants over the weakening US dollar.The US Dollar Index (DXY) is sitting at 100.337, down 2.92% over the past five days, according to TradingView data. The DXY is sitting at 100.337 at the time of publication. Source: TradingViewTrading resource account, The Kobeissi Letter, said in an April 10 X post, “The US dollar has exited the room. Once again, something is broken.”Meanwhile, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, Robbie Mitchnick, said in late March that Bitcoin would most likely thrive in a recessionary macro environment. “I don’t know if we’ll have a recession or not, but a recession would be a big catalyst for Bitcoin,” Mitchnick said.Magazine: Memecoin degeneracy is funding groundbreaking anti-aging researchThis article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

Crypto-critical US Senator Elizabeth Warren has led six Senate Democrats in urging the Department of Justice to reverse its decision to terminate its crypto investigations and prosecutions division.In an April 10 letter to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Senators said the decision to disband the department’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team was a “grave mistake” that would support “sanctions evasion, drug trafficking, scams, and child sexual exploitation.”Senators Richard Durbin, Mazie Hirono, Sheldon Whitehouse, Christopher Coons and Richard Blumenthal signed the letter in addition to Warren.On April 7, Blanche shuttered the DOJ’s crypto enforcement team, saying in a memo that “The Department of Justice is not a digital assets regulator.”The senators claim that the decision gave a “free pass to cryptocurrency money launderers” and claimed that crypto mixing services — used to obfuscate blockchain transactions — are “go-to tools for cybercriminals.” “It makes no sense for DOJ to announce a hands-off approach to tools that are being used to support such terrible crimes,” the letter said.An excerpt of Democrat’s letter to the DOJ. Source: US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban AffairsThe senators also questioned why the Justice Department  had decided not to prosecute a “host of crimes involving digital assets, including violations of the Bank Secrecy Act.”They claimed that this creates a “systemic vulnerability in the digital assets sector,” which “drug traffickers, terrorists, fraudsters, and adversaries” will exploit on a large scale. The lawmakers requested a staff-level briefing no later than May 1, providing “detailed information on the rationale behind these decisions.” Targeting Trump family crypto endeavors The letter also took a swipe at the Trump family’s crypto projects, suggesting potential conflicts of interest.Related: SafeMoon boss cites DOJ’s nixed crypto unit in latest bid to toss suitA press release accompanying the letter stated that the senators are raising concerns about the “potential connections” between the DOJ’s actions and the crypto ventures of President Donald Trump and his family.The Trumps have an interest in and have backed the crypto platform World Liberty Financial along with its token. The platform is also planning to launch a stablecoin while President Trump’s sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., are working to launch a crypto-mining company called American Bitcoin.“Your decisions give rise to concerns that President Trump’s interest in selling his cryptocurrency may be the reason for easing law enforcement scrutiny,” the Democrats stated.  In a memo announcing the crypto enforcement team’s disbandment, Blanche accused the Biden administration of using the Justice Department to “pursue a reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution.”Magazine: Illegal arcade disguised as … a fake Bitcoin mine? Soldier scams in China: Asia Express

Institutional traders can now leverage cryptocurrencies and tokenized money market funds as off-exchange collateral, thanks to a new program launched by Standard Chartered and OKX. Boosting Institutional Investor Confidence Standard Chartered and OKX have unveiled a “pioneering” collateral mirroring program, enabling institutional clients to utilize cryptocurrencies and tokenized money market funds as off-exchange collateral for […]