A note from our OTC Desk, Ethereum turns deflationary, XRP expands its ODL network and TradFi giant supports crypto custody.
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BTC Fear & Greed Index
Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index is currently at 20/100 in the Extreme Fear zone down 6 points from this time last week. The index reached a high of 24/100 on Saturday, and a low of 20/100 today.
From the OTC Desk
We are now less than 24 hours from the US CPI prints for the month of September. As in past weeks, this data release is getting significant attention from traders looking for that catalyst to break the current trading range. In my last update, we were beginning to see the etchings of this take place, with the daily range on most assets tightening, and continuing to coil up.
A notable exception being XRP, as this asset continues to carry strength into October. Even on the XRP/BTC chart, where we see the asset priced against Bitcoin, buyers continue to push up towards new local highs. Valued against the AUD, we see XRP holding the important $0.75 level, currently trading a few cents higher at $0.78. Volume levels on the exchange support this, as our usual podium leaders (BTC & ETH) often having to step aside to take a breath.
Continuing from our previous mention of volatility metrics, the daily chart of BTC/AUD is hinting at its next big move. This compression in price has resulted in now being amidst the lowest volatility environment that we have seen in several months. One of the many volatility indicators, such as Bollinger Bands, will exhibit this, confirming we are 'winding up'. The upper and lower bands are now tightly constricted, awaiting a probable expansion, or a strong break in price action in either direction. Interestingly enough, we are also seeing the level of global open interest, a measure of traders' exposure to futures contracts, continue to rise as traders take a position.
The total crypto market cap had a slight decrease to AUD $1.532 trillion, a 0.71% drop since last week. Bitcoin is currently trading at AUD $30,560 and Ethereum at AUD $2059.
On the desk, we continue to see strong moves towards the USD through Stablecoin flows. Is this just a temporary pause before the next leg up, or are we starting to see the USD reach levels of exhaustion? Clarity on this situation will be upon us later this evening as we look towards the release of these key inflation metrics.
Eric - OTC Desk.
Crypto news
Ethereum has been deflationary for the first time since 'The Merge'.
Ethereum's supply growth has become deflationary for the first time since 'The Merge' according to theblock.co as its new supply outpaces demand. The average gas fees suddenly skyrocketed with the launch of a new staking crypto asset called XEN where users could mint its token but paid themselves for the gas expenses. During its launch event users’ congested ETH transactions trying to mint this token which caused gas prices to pump upwards of 30 gwei.
XRP on-demand liquidity services expand to France and Sweden.
XRP has announced the expansion of its on-demand liquidity (ODL) service as it signs on two financial intermediaries, Swedish-based firm Xbhat and Paris-based firm Lemonway. These efforts are part of XRPs ongoing strategy to further increase the accessibility of its global program. The ODL service has undergone tremendous growth over the past 12 months, with XRP reporting a 9x year-on-year increase during the previous financial year.
The new ODL partners intend to accelerate the transfer and exchange of fiat currencies between countries as XRP grows its presence in the remittance market, which is expected to reach US $630 billion in 2022. At present, XRP has over 300 financial institutions and banks as a part of its RippleNet partner network.
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BTC Markets is the Australian partner for the Ripple ODL program, and our technology provides remitters access to Ripple’s ODL payments solution. Cross-border payments are now completed in seconds and this market-leading technology is a first for Australia.
America's oldest bank BNY Mellon to provide crypto custody services.
BNY Mellon has launched Bitcoin and Ethereum custody services, as investment firms expand their appetite for crypto products. The announcement follows a series of inroads the bank has taken since its original commitment to provide crypto custody services in 2021 as it adds to its current balance of US $43 trillion assets under custody.
BNY Mellon worked alongside Fireblocks, an institutional digital asset custody provider, to develop the technology that enables its services. According to a Decrypt article, ‘BNY Mellon will store clients' private keys and provide some bookkeeping on the crypto assets in their portfolios.’
This comes after other global asset management giants, Blackrock and Fidelity ventured into cryptocurrencies early this year in response to consumer demand for these new types of investment products.
BTC Markets updates
Support for Ethereum PoW (ETHW) announced.
We are excited to announce our support for Ethereum PoW (ETHW). As per last week's airdrop announcement, clients who held ETH at the time of the fork will be credited ETHW into their BTC Markets account. We are finalising the timeline for distribution and will update our ETHW blog and Twitter page once everything is confirmed.
BTC Markets sets the industry standard for crypto compliance in Australia.
At BTC Markets, we have an industry-leading compliance program that models itself on the traditional framework applied to the financial services industry. Chainalysis, a blockchain data platform specialising in cybersecurity, has been selected as our compliance partner.
“We’ve built our business on partnerships and Chainalysis KYT has been a cornerstone, providing the appropriate measures to protect our clients and position our exchange well for the future.” said our CEO, Caroline Bowler.
Our mission is to provide the fastest and most secure exchange to all crypto traders and investors. Our cutting-edge platform combines excellent client support, secure transactions, and top-of-the-line security protocols. Additionally, our world-class trading engine and peer-to-peer marketplace provide peace of mind knowing that your transaction will be executed quickly and efficiently.
When security matters, trade with confidence at BTC Markets.
Did you know that BTC Markets is one of the only Australian based exchanges to provide onshore custody of your crypto assets? This means we keep your crypto on our shores, under our laws. Your asset security is our number one priority that’s why we have institutional-grade security and compliance processes in place along with Australian based, client support teams available to assist you seven days a week.
You can trade with confidence knowing that you have partnered with a fully licensed, compliant, and self-regulated crypto exchange. If you have any questions about how we manage your assets, please feel free to contact us at any time or visit our security FAQ page to learn more.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this email is for general purposes only. It should not be construed as professional financial advice from BTC Markets Pty Ltd. BTC Markets is not a financial adviser, and you should consider seeking independent legal, financial, taxation or other advice to ensure that the information relates to your unique circumstances. BTC Markets is not liable for any loss caused, whether due to negligence or otherwise arising from the use of, or reliance on, the information provided directly or indirectly, by use of this information contained with this email. Prices are accurate as of 10:00 AM AEDT on 13/10/2022.