The show Macro Markets, hosted by crypto analyst Marcel Pechman, which airs every Friday at 12 pm ET on the Cointelegraph Markets & Research YouTube channel, explains complex concepts in layman’s terms and focuses on the cause and effect of traditional financial events on the day-to-day crypto activity. In today’s episode, Pechman discusses the housing crisis, especially after the United States Case–Shiller Index dropped for the seventh straight month. Increased mortgage rates certainly played a part, considering 15-year financing rose to 5.6% from 3.7% in March 2022. However, Pechman explains why…
Author: Marcel Pechman
$920B is the number to watch now that crypto’s trillion dollar total market cap is gone
Big round numbers always pique the interest of investors and the $1 trillion total crypto market capitalization is no exception. It’s a level that held for 48 days before collapsing on March 9. After a 16-hour negative 8.6% price movement, the indicator fell to $914 billion, its lowest level since Jan.13. Total crypto market cap in USD, 1-day. Source: TradingView Concerns about the stability of the U.S. banking industry, specifically the downfall and subsequent closure of Silvergate Bank (SI) on March 8 and the shut down of Silicon Valley Bank…
3 reasons why Bitcoin is likely heading below $16,000
December will likely be remembered by Bitcoin’s (BTC) fake breakout above $18,000, but apart from that brief overshoot, its trajectory was entirely bearish. In fact, the downward trend that currently offers an $18,850 resistance could bring the BTC price below $16,000 by mid-January. Bitcoin/USD price index, 12-hour chart. Source: TradingView A handful of reasons can explain the negative movement, including the reported withdrawal of the Mazars Group auditing firm from the cryptocurrency sector on Dec. 16. The company previously handled proof-of-reserve audit services for Binance, KuCoin and Crypto.com. Additionally, one…
Bitcoin price liquidation risk increases as BTC struggles to reclaim $18K
Bitcoin (BTC) price had a mixed reaction on Dec. 9 after the November report on United States producer prices showed a 7.4% increase versus 2021. The data suggested that wholesale costs continued to rise and inflation may last longer than investors had previously believed. Oil prices are also still a focus for investors, with crude WTI hitting a new yearly low at $71.10 on Dec. 8. The United States Dollar Index (DXY), a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of top foreign currencies, sustained the 104.50 level, but…
US Treasury yields are soaring, but what does it mean for markets and crypto?
Across all tradeable markets and currencies, U.S. Treasuries — government bonds — have significant influence. In finance, any risk measurement is relative, meaning, if one insures a house, the maximum liability is set in some form of money. Similarly, if a loan is taken from a bank, the creditor has to calculate the odds of the money not being returned and the risk of the amount being devalued by inflation. In a worst-case scenario, let’s imagine what would happen to the costs associated with issuing debt if the U.S. government…
The impact of the Wintermute hack could have been worse than 3AC, Voyager and Celsius — Here is why
Most crypto investors probably never heard of Wintermute Trading before the Sept. 20 $160 million hack, but that does not reduce their significance within the cryptocurrency ecosystem. The London-based algorithmic trading and crypto lending firm also provides liquidity to some of the largest exchanges and blockchain projects. As a crypto-native trading firm, meaning digital assets have been its core since its inception in July 2017, Wintermute’s expertise in the sector is attested by $25 million in funding from global venture capital investors like Fidelity Investments, Pantera Capital and Blockchain.com Ventures.…
Ethereum gone wrong? Here are 3 signs to keep an eye on during the Merge
The assumption that Ethereum will just transition to a fully functional proof-of-stake (PoS) network after the Merge somewhat ignores the risk and effort necessary to move an asset that has a $193 billion market capitalization and 400 decentralized applications (DApps). That is precisely why monitoring vital network conditions is essential for anyone willing to trade the event which is scheduled for Sept. 14, according to ethernodes.org. More importantly, traders should be prepared to detect any alarming developments in case things go wrong. Apart from the $34.2 billion in total value…
Hawkish Fed comments and Bitcoin derivatives data point to further BTC downside
A $750 pump on Aug. 26 took Bitcoin (BTC) from $21,120 to $21,870 in less than two hours. However, the movement was completely erased after comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated the bank’s commitment to contain inflation by tightening the economy. Following Powell’s speech, BTC price dropped as low as $20,700. Bitcoin/USD 30-min price. Source: TradingView At Jackson Hole, Powell specifically mentioned that “the historical record cautions strongly against prematurely loosening policy.” Right after those remarks, the U.S. stock market indexes reacted negatively, with the S&P 500…
Ethereum options data show pro traders ready to go long into ETH’s Merge
Ether (ETH) is down 11.5% in seven days even after the recent confirmation of the “Ethereum merge” transition to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus network in September. During the Ethereum core developers conference call on July 14, developer Tim Beiko proposed Sept. 19 as the tentative target date. The transition out of energy-intensive mining has been delayed for years, and the journey toward scalability using sharding technology — parallel processing capability — is yet to be scheduled. Still, some analysts expect the network’s monetary policy to boost the value of Ether.…
Bitcoin price action decouples from stock markets, but not in a good way
This week the stock markets began to flash a little green and Bitcoin (BTC) is decoupling from traditional markets but not in a good way. The cryptocurrency is down 3% while the Nasdaq Composite tech-heavy stock market index is up 3.1%. May 27 data from the United States Commerce Department shows that the personal savings rate fell to 4.4% in April to reach the lowest level since 2008 and crypto traders are worried that worsening global macroeconomic conditions could add to investors’ aversion to risky assets. For example, Invesco QQQ…