The Central Bank of Nigeria warned local financial institutions against rejecting older or lower-denomination U.S. dollar banknotes. The apex bank said it will take strong action against financial institutions that refuse to accept mutilated or overcirculated local currency banknotes. Older U.S. Dollar Banknotes Still Legal Tender The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has informed registered […]
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US Banking Sector Teeters: $517B Unrealized Losses, 63 Troubled Institutions Flagged
U.S. banks reported an alarming increase in unrealized losses and a growing list of institutions at risk of failure in the first quarter of 2024, according to the latest U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) data. The FDIC report highlights 7 billion in unrealized losses and identifies 63 banks as vulnerable, marking a concerning uptick […]
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AI-Driven Fraud on the Rise, Financial Institutions Unprepared, Reveals Report
A new report by Signicat, the European digital identity and fraud prevention solutions provider, reveals that artificial intelligence (AI) is used in over a third of fraud attempts targeting financial institutions, with one in fifteen fraud attempts now using deepfakes. The study, titled “The Battle against AI-driven Identity Fraud,” found that 42.5% of detected fraud […]
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South African Regulator Licenses 75 Institutions as Crypto Asset Service Providers
South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority said on April 22 that it has approved 75 institutions to be licensed as crypto asset service providers (CASPs). The regulator said the unveiling of licensed CASPs is intended to dispel misconceptions arising from the supposedly misleading media reports. FSCA Continues to Receive License Applications The Financial Sector Conduct […]
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Litecoin ETF Rumors Fuel 10% Surge As Institutions Hint At Interest
Rumors regarding a potential spot Litecoin (LTC) Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) have sparked a significant price surge, with the digital asset gaining 10% amid speculation of institutional interest. Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett, through a post on X (formerly Twitter), unveiled insights suggesting growing institutional intrigue towards a Litecoin ETF.
Terrett shared, “SCOOP: Hearing rumblings on the institutional level about possible interest in a Litecoin ETF. The logic is that because of LTC functional similarities to BTC, the SEC may be more inclined to approve it, possibly even more so than ETH.”
Why A Spot Litecoin ETF Could Be Possible
This statement comes at a pivotal time as the crypto market continues to navigate through regulatory uncertainties and growing interest from traditional financial institutions. Adding to the buzz, Terrett highlighted recent actions by the Coinbase Derivatives to launch futures contracts for Dogecoin, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash, all set to begin on April 1st, 2024.
These futures contracts, as detailed, are part of Coinbase’s strategic move to diversify its offerings, leveraging the self-certification approach under CFTC Regulation 40.2(a). This approach permits entities to launch new products without the explicit approval of the CFTC, provided they comply with the Commodity Exchange Act and accompanying regulations.
Moreover, the recent classification of Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC) as commodities by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in its lawsuit against KuCoin has added another layer of legitimacy to the discourse surrounding Litecoin’s regulatory standing. The CFTC’s action emphasizes its view of certain cryptocurrencies as commodities.
Amidst these regulatory clarifications and developments, discussions about the potential approval of a spot Litecoin ETF have intensified. Luke Martin, a renowned crypto analyst, echoed the sentiment, suggesting that the approval of an Ethereum ETF could pave the way for other “old altcoins,” like Litecoin, which may have a stronger case for not being classified as securities.
He stated, “When the ETH ETF launches and passes, the question then becomes especially with the SEC’s track record versus tokens […] there’s other dinosaur old altcoins which you can make almost a stronger case [that] they’re not a security, one that sounds ridiculous but if you think deeply about it, it’s true – Dogecoin you could probably prove easier is not a security than ETH. Why wouldn’t they launch Litecoin, Dogecoin?”
CFTC FILING: COINBASE FILES TO LIST FUTURES FOR $DOGE $LTC $BCH
Is this a hint for which alts are getting ETFs next?!
Spoke with @zhusu a few weeks ago about this exact scenario, and the unique trading opportunities that come with a $DOGE ETF. pic.twitter.com/tlyFgDvUhR
— Luke Martin (@VentureCoinist) March 21, 2024
Adding to the momentum, Alan Austin, Managing Director at the Litecoin Foundation, expressed enthusiasm about the prospects of a spot Litecoin ETF, stating, “I’ll say it again, love or hate ETFs, the first company to launch a Litecoin ETF is going to crush it!”
LTC Price Is Lagging Behind
Despite the current buzz, Litecoin’s price analysis indicates that it is still down by 77% from it’s all-time high in May 2021, signaling a bearish trend in comparison to other cryptocurrencies that have already surpassed their 2021 peaks. Nevertheless, a recent break above the 200-week EMA has ignited a glimmer of bullish momentum.
Overcoming the red resistance zone between 2 and 6 could be critical for Litecoin to reach new heights, with the 8 mark (0.236 Fibonacci retracement level) as a potential near-term target.
Goldman Sachs Sees More Institutions Diving Into Crypto — Says Bitcoin ETFs Prompt a ‘Psychological Shift’
Goldman Sachs is seeing more institutions diving into crypto, the global investment bank’s head of digital assets has revealed, noting that until now the bitcoin price action has been driven primarily by retail investors. “But it’s the institutions that we’ve started to see come in,” he stressed, adding that the appetite has “transformed.” Bitcoin ETFs […]
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Solana Demand Soars As Institutions Buy Up SOL At A Massive 870% Premium
Solana (SOL) looks to be attracting the attention of institutional investors, with this Solana fund trading as high as an 870% premium following SOL’s bullish momentum. These investors’ interest in the SOL token isn’t surprising as on-chain metrics suggest it is still undervalued, and a parabolic rise might be on the horizon.
Grayscale Solana Trust Trades At A Premium
Per data from Grayscale’s website, the Grayscale Solana Trust (GSOL) is currently trading at 7 per share, representing a significant premium from SOL’s current price. The premium had risen to 870% on March 8 when GSOL was trading at 0. Shares in the fund are designed to track the value of SOL’s price, allowing institutional investors to have exposure to the token without holding it.
The disparity between the share price of GSOL and SOL’s price might be because institutional investors are limited in the means to gain exposure to SOL. As such, a fund like GSOL could see its price increase exponentially (just like now) when there is increased institutional demand for the SOL token.
Institutional interest in SOL is also evident from NewsBTC’s recent report that crypto-focused asset manager Pantera Capital is raising funds to buy 0 worth of SOL. Investors are likely to jump on this opportunity, considering that these SOL tokens will reportedly be sold at a fixed price of .95, meaning there is an opportunity to make significant gains from the deal.
SOL Still Greatly Undervalued
Crypto analyst Hansolar suggested that SOL was still undervalued when he mentioned that the crypto token might not take off until BTC and ETH hit new all-time highs (ATH). He also predicted that SOL could rise to as high as 0 in this bull cycle. Meanwhile, the argument about SOL being undervalued is backed by the fact that it is still far off from its ATH of 0.
Crypto tokens are known to set a new ATH in every bull run, and there is every likelihood that it won’t be different for SOL this time around. Moreover, SOL and the Solana network are gaining much traction heading into this cycle, which should contribute to more price surges for the SOL token.
Solana recently registered an ATH in the number of daily new addresses, with many users onboarded into the ecosystem. This increased interest in the network has been partly due to its DeFi landscape, which is going head-to-head with Ethereum’s, and the current meme coin frenzy on Solana, which has attracted investors.
At the time of writing, SOL is trading at 2, up over 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
Entry of Tradfi Institutions Can Help Reshape User Perceptions Towards Crypto — Sami Start
The recent adoption of cryptocurrency by traditional financial (tradfi) institutions is likely to reshape user perceptions of this asset class and may even foster broader acceptance of blockchain technology, Sami Start, co-founder and CEO of the crypto trading platform Transak, has argued. Start added that the entrance of tradfi institutions into this market is likely […]
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Institutions Can’t Get Enough Of Crypto As Trading Volumes Hit New $30 Billion Record
Inflows into crypto investment products have ballooned in the past few weeks to reach a record trading volume last week. According to CoinShares, digital asset investment products received inflows of .84 billion last week, the second-highest on record. Particularly noteworthy is that the inflow into crypto funds caused trading volume to cross over a weekly volume of billion for the first time.
Institutions Rush To Crypto
Weekly trading volume in investment products has now displaced its 2021 record to cross over billion. The timing is not a coincidence, as most cryptocurrencies are currently on the backs of bullish price action for the past few weeks.
Recent market dynamics have seen institutions and large traders rushing into crypto assets, most especially Bitcoin. Consequently, this cohort has become a large part of the crypto industry, contributing highly to a surge in trading volume across the board.
As expected, the majority of inflows and trading volume was centered around Bitcoin. Bitcoin remains the most popular digital asset for institutions, and interest has really piqued since Spot Bitcoin ETFs went live in the US. Last week, the weekly trading volume for Spot Bitcoin ETFs alone crossed a record .3 billion. The ETFs ended the week at a net inflow of .72 billion, despite an outflow of .45 billion from Grayscale’s ETF.
According to CoinShares, around .73 billion, representing 94% of the total inflow into investment products, went into Bitcoin last week. The company also noted that investment products at times represented 50% of global Bitcoin daily trading volumes on exchanges.
Ethereum led the altcoin market with a net inflow of .7 million, bringing its total net inflow this year to 7 million. This is Ethereum’s largest weekly inflow since mid-July 2022. However, its current .6 billion worth of assets under management is 38% below its all-time high of .7 billion.
XRP, Chainlink, and Litecoin registered inflows of .5 million, .6 million, and .2 million, respectively. Short investors also poured million inflows into short-Bitcoin investment products.
On the other hand, Solana registered an outflow of .9 million last week. Its year-to-date flow has yet to turn positive, as it has been million in outflows since the beginning of the year. Multi-asset products also saw outflows of .3 million.
In terms of geographical location, the USA had the most inflows with .88 billion, Switzerland with .6 million, Australia with .7 million, and Brazil with .7 million. On the other hand, Canada, Germany, and Sweden had net outflows of .1 million, .8 million, and .6 million, respectively.
Study: Institutions More Bullish on Ethereum in H2 of 2023 — BTC and ETH Holdings Surge to 80%
Between July 2023 and January 2024, the concentration of bitcoin and ethereum in institutional digital asset portfolios increased from 50% to 80%, the latest Bybit user asset allocation report has shown. During this period, institutions appeared to be more bullish on ethereum than bitcoin, a sentiment that contrasted with that of retail investors. Stablecoins and […]
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