The technicals show there’s a strong case for resuming the prior up trend, which is good if you’re a bull and yesterday made you nervous. 🫣
We’ll look at the evidence pointing to a resumption of the bull and a few other stories.
On deck for today: A new metaverse game, a big Aussie crime bust, and how BTC options have overtaken futures.
Here’s how the market looked at the end of the trading day:
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $37,711 | 6.12% |
| Ethereum (ETH) | $2,054 | 3.89% |
| Total Market Cap | $1.404 Trillion | 5.17% |
| Altcoin Market Cap | $667 Billion | 4.15% |
| Rune (RUNE) – Biggest Winner |
$6.03
|
22.83% |
| Polygon (MATIC) – Biggest Loser | $0.91 | -0.63% |
A new metaverse game, Avalon, spearheaded by industry veterans from EverQuest to Assassin’s Creed fame, is coming soon. 🥷
They’ve raised a hefty $13 million, backed by giants like Coinbase Ventures. Their game design approach is like snapping Lego bricks together – no coding mastery is needed.
The game’s world is a unique blend of medieval and cyberpunk, with filters to keep the universe coherent – think no mixing DeLoreans with Star Trek. Avalon is offering a content creation kit focused on MMO experiences, simplifying the creation of dungeons and quests. 🐲
Beta testing kicks off in 2024, with a full launch expected in 2025. Players can create, publish, and monetize their content. Blockchain technology is at the heart of Avalon, granting players true ownership of their in-game items, steering clear of NFT controversies.
Will Avalon be the next big thing or just another fantasy? We’ll have to wait and see. 🕵️♂️
Crypto
From Lamborghinis to Lockup
Australian police pulled off one hell of a sting operation. The target? One of Australia’s most notorious crime syndicates, with a penchant for cryptocurrencies and a taste for the high life. 🚨
With roots tracing back to Lebanon, the gang wasn’t just playing in the digital sandbox. They were also knee-deep in the old-school vices – drugs, firearms, and tobacco, moving a cool AU$1 billion ($652 million) worth of these illicit goodies.
The New South Wales (NSW) police, not to be outdone by the criminals’ flair for the dramatic, launched a two-day blitzkrieg. Over 450 officers, 37 search warrants, and what must have been an ocean of coffee later, 24 arrests were made. 🚓
The cops seized an arsenal of 25 firearms, a stash of AU$2 million ($1.3 million) in cryptocurrency, and nearly AU$1.5 million ($980,000) in cold, hard cash. Oh, and let’s not forget the AU$3 million ($1.9 million) in luxury watches and a Lamborghini (because why not?).
The cherry on top? Two tonnes of drugs worth over AU$130 million ($85 million). That’s a lot of zeros.
The most wanted man in this saga, Bilal Haouchar, was nabbed by Lebanese authorities, while his brother Nedal got a not-so-warm welcome at Sydney airport. ✈️
Crypto
Options Overtake BTC Futures
Bitcoin options are overtaking its futures cousin in a big way. We’re talking a whopping $17.5 billion in notional open interest versus the futures market at $15.84 billion. 😱
This isn’t just a numbers game; it’s a sign of the crypto market flexing its muscles with newfound sophistication. $BTC‘s been on a rollercoaster this year, doubling its value and riding the waves of safe haven demand, U.S. spot ETF buzz, and a dovish Federal Reserve. But the real MVPs? Bitcoin options.
Options are now the cool kids on the block, offering a savvy way to bet on Bitcoin’s price swings without breaking the bank. The shift has some believing there’s a clear sign of the market’s maturation – like choosing chess over checkers. ♟️
But with great power comes great responsibility. A booming options market means traders need to keep an eye on the ripple effects of quarterly and monthly settlements, not to mention the market makers’ sneaky hedging moves.
Options are like a Swiss Army knife in your trading toolkit. They’re versatile, allowing you to hedge, speculate, and even play around with volatility and time. Earlier this year, traders were writing options to cash in on market lulls. Now? They’re riding the volatility wave for all it’s worth.
In contrast, spot and futures markets are like that one-trick pony at the fair – good for a ride up or down, but that’s about it. 🐎
Some of the altcoins that experienced deep pullback yesterday, while still down, have retraced most of those losses and are in the green. 💚
The Total Market Cap itself is setting up for its highest close in 1.5 years.
Total Market Cap Daily Chart
Over the past seven days, the Total Market Cap chart has attempted to close at the $1.40 T mark five times, with today being the sixth. 6️⃣
If you’re a bull and you’re wondering if the bounce today is just a continuation of the prior up move, strong technical evidence suggests that that is the case.
The daily chart shows hidden bullish divergence between the candlesticks and oscillators (RSI and Composite Index).
Hidden bullish divergence is a condition where the price chart makes higher lows, but the oscillator(s) make lower lows. It’s only valid if the prior trend was up, which is the case for the Total Market Cap.
Does that mean wen lambo and mooooon are up next? No – but there’s a good probability of that happening. 🌑
Bullets
Bullets From The Day:
🎨 Disney Dives into NFTs with Dapper Labs: Mickey and friends are going digital! Disney’s new NFT platform, Disney Pinnacle, is set to tokenize a century of beloved characters, including those from Pixar and Star Wars. Launching later this year, it’s all about collecting and trading digital pins, no matter where you are in the world. The platform, based on Dapper Labs’ Flow blockchain, is a bold move, especially after Disney’s recent cost-cutting spree. Meanwhile, Dapper Labs, known for CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot, is riding the NFT wave despite a few staff cuts.
📈 NFT Sales on the Rise: The NFT market is shaking off its blues, with sales climbing from $56 million to $129 million in just a month. Industry insiders like Jonathan Perkins of SuperRare and Sonia Shaw of CoinW are bullish, seeing NFTs as more than just digital art. They’re eyeing a future where NFTs play major roles in real estate, finance, and beyond. But let’s not forget the challenges: regulation, environmental impact, and security are still big hurdles to clear.
📉 Michael Burry’s New Target: Semiconductors: The man who called the housing market crash is now betting against semiconductors. His firm, Scion Asset Management, has snapped up $47.4 million in put options against the iShares Semiconductor ETF. This move is a sharp turn from his previous bets against the broader market. It’s a game of high stakes, with other big players like Soros Fund Management and Tiger Global Management making their own moves in the sector.
💸 Raft Stablecoin Protocol Hacked for $6.7 Million: Even after multiple security audits, Raft couldn’t keep the hackers at bay. They exploited a smart contract glitch to mint 6.7 million R tokens, walking away with $3.6 million. This heist not only hit Raft’s stablecoin peg but also raises fresh concerns about the security of decentralized finance. Raft’s response? Police reports and collaboration with exchanges to track the stolen funds. Meanwhile, their smart contracts are on ice.
🏦 Jamie Dimon Weighs in on U.S. Economy: The JPMorgan Chase bigwig isn’t buying the recent dip in inflation figures. He’s warning that the Fed might need to keep hiking rates, and he’s throwing some shade at credit rating agencies for downgrading the U.S. Dimon’s take? The market’s view of the U.S. as AAA-rated is more on point than the agencies’. He’s also calling out the irony of countries relying on U.S. military protection while enjoying higher credit ratings. Bottom line: Dimon thinks the U.S. fiscal situation needs serious attention.
The Correlation IS Causation Chart Of The Day
Marriage is apparently a root cause of measles. Evidence exists with this graph, so it must be true.
Links
Links That Don’t Suck
🎇 Bitcoin Ordinals reach new milestone amidst taproot 2nd anniversary
📢 ChatGPT puts paid plan signups on pause as systems strain
🎮 Amazon latest firm to cut jobs in gaming industry
🪙 The IRS and the rising cost of crypto tax compliance
🤖 Microsoft announces custom AI chip that could compete with Nvidia
💫 Anthony Scaramucci predicts Bitcoin and Ethereum rallies, says Fed gearing up for rate cuts