The Egyptian fintech startup Mnzl plans to enhance its lending technology and expand its operations using the .5 million raised in a seed funding round. Co-founder Sameh Saleh said the startup seeks to empower families by providing financial leverage and contributing to broader economic prosperity in the region. Empowering Financially Excluded Egyptian Families The Egyptian […]
Bitcoin News
Billionaire Peter Thiel’s Venture Capital Firm Leads Polymarket’s $45 Million Series B Funding Round
Billionaire Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund recently led the Series B funding round for the crypto-based prediction markets platform, Polymarket, which raised million. The latest round valued Polymarket lower than the billion it had anticipated before the Commodity Futures Trading Commission proposed a ban on events betting contracts. CFTC Seeks to Clamp Down on […]
Bitcoin News
Optimism Stack Update: OP to Support Layer Three With Funding, Features, and Revenue Sharing
Ethereum scaling solution provider Optimism announced plans to enhance blockchain throughput by integrating Layer three applications on top of its OP Stack, aiming to foster a Superchain network where Layer threes can build and share revenue with the Optimism Collective. The OP Stack, an open standard codebase, extends its utility beyond Layer two deployers to […]
Bitcoin News
Blackrock Reinforces Tokenization Drive Leading $47 Million Funding Round in Digitization Company Securitize
Blackrock, the largest asset management company in the world, has led a strategic funding round of million in Securitize, a capital markets digitalization company. The round, which had the participation of other financial markets and crypto native companies, shows Blackrock is betting on the transformative capabilities of tokenization for global capital markets. Blackrock Leads […]
Bitcoin News
Negative Nirvana? Decoding The First Bitcoin Funding Rate Dip Of 2024
The recent Bitcoin halving event, which cut the block reward for miners in half on April 20, 2024, has sparked a wave of optimism in the cryptocurrency market. While a brief dip in a key futures metric hinted at potential short-term bearishness, overall market indicators suggest a bullish trend taking hold.
Analysts at Kaiko, a market data provider specializing in crypto derivatives and futures, reported a shift in Bitcoin’s funding rate leading up to the halving. The funding rate is a fee paid between long and short position holders in futures contracts.
A negative rate signifies that short positions are compensating long positions, potentially indicating a bearish outlook. Notably, Bitcoin’s funding rate dipped into negative territory for the first time this year on April 18th, just two days before the halving.
Bitcoin Bounces Back With Renewed Bullishness
However, this short-lived bearishness seems to have been overshadowed by a broader sense of optimism. Following the halving, Bitcoin’s funding rate swiftly recovered and currently sits at a positive 0.0051. This suggests a return to the status quo where long positions are incentivized, reflecting a more bullish market sentiment.
Funding rates for $BTC perps turned negative for the first time since late 2023 in the lead up to the halving. pic.twitter.com/MjiU4C1L5m
— Kaiko (@KaikoData) April 24, 2024
Further bolstering this positive outlook is the uptick in Bitcoin’s Open Interest (OI), a metric that represents the total amount of outstanding futures contracts. Despite a dip last week, OI has since rebounded to over billion, indicating continued investor engagement in the Bitcoin market.
Halving Impact Exceeds Historical Trends
Perhaps the most intriguing finding from Kaiko’s analysis is the suggestion that this halving event might be having a more positive impact on Bitcoin’s price compared to previous halvings.
At the time of the report, Bitcoin was up 2.8% since the halving, exceeding the price increases observed immediately after the 2012, 2016, and 2020 halving events. Despite a slight price correction in the following days, Bitcoin remains nearly 3% up since the halving.
However, analysts caution against drawing definitive conclusions from this initial data. The cryptocurrency market is inherently volatile, and short-term fluctuations are to be expected.
Some experts point to historical trends where price increases following a halving event were often followed by periods of consolidation or correction. The true impact of the halving on Bitcoin’s long-term price trajectory might not be fully evident for several months.
Bullish Sentiment Fueled By Macroeconomic Factors
Beyond technical indicators, some analysts believe that broader macroeconomic factors are also contributing to the current bullish sentiment surrounding Bitcoin.
The ongoing global inflationary pressures and geopolitical uncertainties have driven investors towards assets perceived as hedges against inflation. Bitcoin, with its finite supply due to the halving mechanism, fits this profile for some investors.
Additionally, the increasing institutional adoption of cryptocurrency is seen as a positive sign for Bitcoin’s long-term prospects. Major financial institutions are actively exploring ways to offer Bitcoin exposure to their clients, suggesting a growing level of confidence in the asset class.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
Russia Warns US of Further Aggravation After Funding Bill Passes Amid Heightened Geopolitical Strife
Amid ongoing global tensions, the price of gold remains robust at ,391 per troy ounce, while bitcoin continues to trade at a 12% deficit from its peak value. Recently, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a series of funding bills for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. Following the bill’s passage, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova […]
Bitcoin News
Aligned Layer Secures $2.6M in Funding to Become a Faster and Cheaper Settlement Layer for Validity Proofs on Top of EigenLayer
PRESS RELEASE. April 15th, 2024 –– Aligned Layer has successfully raised .6 million in a funding round led by Lemniscap, a VC firm specializing in emerging crypto assets and early-stage blockchain startups. The round also won investment from Paper Ventures, Bankless Ventures and industry angels. The raise marks a significant milestone in Aligned Layer’s mission […]
Bitcoin News
43 Bitcoin Projects Secure Key Funding in 2024 Attracting Over $127 Million
Since the onset of 2024, the Bitcoin ecosystem has seen an influx of capital flowing into startups. Data gathered by Coin98 Analytics from the web portal crypto-fundraising.info, reveals that over the past few months, 43 Bitcoin-centric projects have secured funding from key investors. Startups Dedicated to the Bitcoin Ecosystem Gather Significant Capital Injections A fresh […]
Bitcoin News
Paradigm Drives $225M Funding Round For Monad Labs, Blockchain Rival To Ethereum, Solana
Venture Capital (VC) firm Paradigm is leading a substantial 5 million funding round for a new Layer 1 (L1) network, that aims to compete with the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. Other notable participants include VC firms Electric Capital and Greenoaks.
According to a recent Fortune Magazine report, Monad Labs, the company behind the blockchain project, aims to compete with established players such as Solana (SOL) and Ethereum and the Layer 1 blockchain protocol Sui (SUI).
Monad’s Rebuilt Ethereum Blockchain
Per the report, Monad’s initiative is to rebuild the Ethereum blockchain from the ground up, while retaining the ability to execute smart contracts. The project aims to achieve faster transaction speeds, handle higher volumes, and offer lower costs compared to existing networks.
Notably, Monad ensures compatibility with Ethereum’s programming infrastructure, known as the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This compatibility allows developers to port applications built for Ethereum, ensuring a fluid transition to the new blockchain.
Keone Hon, the founder of Monad, stated in an exclusive interview with Fortune that the company has dedicated approximately two years to developing its blockchain solution.
Hon noted that Monad Labs stands out by fully supporting the EVM bytecode standard. Developers use this standard to create decentralized applications (dApps) on platforms such as Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche, Binance Smart Chain, and Optimism.
According to Avichal Garg, managing partner of Electric Capital, nearly 90% of developers working across various crypto ecosystems focus exclusively on EVM chains.
This statistic, highlighted in a recent report by Electric Capital, demonstrates the significant appeal of EVM compatibility. Although Monad does not undergo a complete redesign of its programming language like some other blockchains, it still benefits from the widespread usage and familiarity of the EVM.
Blockchain-Powered Exchanges?
According to the report, Monad plans to launch its mainnet by the end of the year and expects to launch a testnet in the coming months. The company, which currently employs around 30 people, is also looking to launch a native token, although details of its launch alongside the mainnet have not been disclosed.
While Keone Hon emphasized the pursuit of mainstream adoption, he pointed out that Monad’s initial use case is likely to be “high-frequency” trading activity, drawing on his own experience at Jump Trading, a data and research-driven trading firm.
Hon emphasized the need for a highly performant blockchain to enable exchanges on the scale of Nasdaq or Chicago Mercantil Exchange (CME), which process millions to billions of transactions daily.
Lastly, Hon also highlighted the potential for a blockchain with high transaction capacity and low fees to enable various applications, such as gaming. He cited examples where blockchain-based games, such as RuneScape, require frequent updates of player statistics, necessitating low-cost and fast transactions on the blockchain.
At the time of writing, ETH was trading at ,497, down nearly 5% in the past 24 hours.
Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com
Trouble Ahead? Binance Coin Futures Market Under Pressure With Negative Funding Rates
The outlook for Binance Coin (BNB) has turned cloudy, with both futures market data and technical indicators flashing bearish signals. Based on our analysis of Coinglass data, negative funding rates and declining open interest in BNB futures contracts paint a picture of growing pessimism among traders.
A negative funding rate suggests that more traders are holding short positions, anticipating a decline in the price of the asset. This sentiment was confirmed on April 1st, when BNB’s funding rate dipped into negative territory at -0.012%.
Binance Coin Funding Rate And Open Interest Down
Further fueling the bearish narrative, BNB’s futures open interest has also witnessed a slight decline of 0.15%. Open interest reflects the total amount of outstanding futures contracts that haven’t been settled yet.
A decrease in open interest suggests traders are exiting their positions without opening new ones, potentially signaling waning confidence in the market.
Funding rates are a crucial mechanism in perpetual futures contracts that keep the contract price aligned with the spot price. When the contract price trades higher than the spot price, long position holders pay a fee to shorts, resulting in positive funding rates.
Conversely, negative funding rates materialize when the contract price dips below the spot price, indicating that short sellers are currently paying fees to longs.
More Traders Close Their Positions
As negative sentiments mount, this open interest is expected to plummet further. This would imply that more traders are closing their positions and not opening new ones, suggesting a potential price drop for BNB.
The bearish sentiment isn’t confined to the futures market. The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD), another technical indicator, is suggesting a possible resurgence in selling pressure.
There’s an indication that the MACD line might cross below the signal line, typically interpreted as a bearish sign signaling the return of sellers to the market. It’s noteworthy that since March 18th, the MACD lines for BNB have been positioned for a downtrend.
BNB Price Retreat In The Offing?
Considering both the futures market and technical analysis, there’s a potential for a short-term decline in BNB’s price. However, it’s important to acknowledge that market sentiment can shift rapidly, and technical indicators aren’t infallible predictors of future price movements.
At the time of writing, BNB was trading at 7, up 6% in the last 24 hours, data from CoinMarketCap shows.
Meanwhile, a closer look at BNB’s technical indicators on the 24-hour chart reveals another trend.
The Directional Movement Index (DMI), used to gauge trend strength, displayed a bearish crossover where the negative directional index sits above the positive directional index. This positioning suggests that bearish momentum is currently dominating the market.
Analysts commonly interpret this particular crossover as an imperative signal prompting traders to consider exiting long positions and initiating short positions.
This strategic move aligns with the prevailing trend indicated by the DMI, reinforcing the notion of a prevailing bearish sentiment within the market ecosystem.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView