Synopsis
- The curious case of the Ethereum ETF approval
- Are NFTs making a comeback?
- The meteoric rise of THORChain
- Biggest winner and loser of the week
Key Observations
Analysis
Blackrock sets sight on Ethereum ETF
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has submitted a filing with the U.S. SEC for an Ethereum exchange-traded fund, marking the first such ETF in the United States. The ETF named “iShares Ethereum Trust” aims to expose investors to Ethereum’s spot price without direct cryptocurrency purchases, and it is set to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange for retail and institutional investors.
The filing revealed that Coinbase will serve as the custodian for the ETF’s Ethereum holdings. This aligns with industry efforts to meet regulatory requirements, including market surveillance agreements, to gain approval for cryptocurrency ETFs from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Following this news, the price of Ethereum (ETH) experienced a surge, reaching its highest level of the year of $2132, before undergoing a pullback. BlackRock’s move signals a growing interest among traditional financial institutions in offering crypto-related investment products.
Is an NFT Revival on the cards?
Recent data from Coingecko indicates a notable surge in the floor prices of the top 15 NFT collections, signaling a significant uptick in demand. The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) collection has seen an impressive 70% increase in its floor price over the past month. Additionally, BAYC’s 24-hour trading volume spiked by 51%, reflecting heightened trading activities across various marketplaces.
CryptoPunks led in sales volume with a 373% weekly increase, while BAYC recorded a 42% rise in sales. The broader NFT market, spanning Ethereum, Solana, and even Bitcoin’s BRC-20 collections, experienced over a 60% increase in weekly sales. While the NFT market is on a positive trajectory in Q4, it still remains below its peak in 2021, leaving room for potential growth if the positive sentiment continues into the new year.
All eyes on RUNE – THORChain’s remarkable rise
In a notable development, THORChain has surged in trading volume, surpassing PancakeSwap to claim the second position among decentralized exchanges based on the volume traded in the last 24 hours.
Over this period, THORChain achieved a trading volume of $334.3 million, outpacing PancakeSwap’s $286.8 million.THORChain’s trading volume witnessed a remarkable 102% surge in 7 days. However, it’s important to note that THORChain’s total value locked (TVL) stands at $264 million, considerably lower than Uniswap’s $3.6 billion and Pancakeswap’s $1.5 billion.
Despite the lower TVL, THORChain is the only major market facilitating direct swaps between native Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies without intermediaries. Unlike leading DEXs such as Uniswap, THORChain enables users to trade real Bitcoin seamlessly across various blockchains, eliminating the reliance on tokenized derivatives.
Furthermore, THORChain offers users distinctive lending opportunities, allowing them to lend BTC and ETH to the protocol and borrow stablecoin debt without incurring interest, liquidation risks, or an expiration date.
Top gainer of the week: FTX Token (FTT) up by 168% ⬆️
Opinions:
Fundamental Analysis:
Earlier this week, the SEC Chair Gary Gensler shared his opinion on the potential of the FTX exchange being revived. This was the first positive and borderline official acknowledgment regarding the revival that led to the rally.
Technical Analysis:
The moving average acted as support through the rally up, and now it can be seen acting as the resistance. If FTT breaks out, it will be tested again at 3.74 region. However, it will likely test the support levels of 3.06 if FTT does not hold current levels.
Oscillator indicators: 2 bearish, 7 neutral, 2 bullish
Moving average indicators: 6 bearish, 1 neutral, 8 bullish
Biggest loser of the week: The Graph (GRT) down by 8.76% ⬇️
Opinions:
Fundamental analysis: During a positive market, the whale activity of dumping GRT tokens in a sell-the-news fashion in light of GRT’s newest announcement has led to this downtrend.
Technical analysis: GRT is poised to stay within 0.136 and 0.123 as it consolidates before attempting a breakout. The moving average has acted as support through the rally. If it gets rejected by 0.13 levels, we should see support levels of 0.123 being tested.
Oscillator indicators: 2 bearish, 9 neutral, 0 bullish
Moving Average indicators: 3 bearish, 1 neutral, 11 bullish
Conclusion
The cryptocurrency market was marked with important events. Blackrock moves past BTC and sets its sights on the Ethereum as well. RUNE’s rise to the top, fueled by the trading activity and an NFT revival close to Christmas, round up the key highlights of this week. The activity in the market suggests that the market shall test resistance levels of 38,000 before moving up.
