Bitcoin Bounces Back Towards $20,000 amid Dollar Retreat
After a whipsaw week that saw the value of Bitcoin (BTC-USD) drop to as low as $18,500, the most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization has managed to reclaim lost ground to trade to around $19,500, gaining 2.8% week over week.
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Bitcoin came under renewed pressure earlier in the week as the U.S. Dollar reached 20-year highs before rebounding sharply following a decision by the Bank of England to restore quantitative easing, helping Bitcoin inch back towards the $20,000 psychological level. Interestingly, Bitcoin traded against British Pounds has experienced a surge in volume as the Pound’s decline pushed investors to seek alternatives to the UK’s fiat currency.
Despite Bitcoin moving lockstep higher with equity markets in response to the easing decision, pessimism amongst traders remains steady, with the Bitcoin Fear and Greed Index still trending in the extreme fear territory.
Nevertheless, analysts are increasingly bullish concerning the outlook. Popular pseudonymous analyst Credible, a practitioner of Elliot Wave Theory, believes that Bitcoin is poised for a sharp rally in 2023, setting a price target of $150,000 after comparing current sentiment to the outset of the pandemic and the price action that ensued.
DeFi Delivers Noteworthy Gains
Following the plunge in total value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols in the months after the LUNA meltdown, DeFi tokens are on the move, outperforming the broader market over the last week.
Among the top gainers over the last week was PancakeSwap, which unveiled plans to expand beyond Binance Chain to another, yet unannounced blockchain, helping the CAKE token rise 12.8% over the last seven sessions. In line with CAKE was Uniswap (UNI), which also delivered a gain of about 12.8% over the same period.
Another major mover over the last week was ChainLink, the protocol responsible for facilitating communication between off-chain data to on-chain smart contracts. A big reason behind the move is ChainLink’s work with SWIFT to improve cross-chain interoperability and develop a token infrastructure for the international payment network.
This new development, combined with fresh efforts to spur ecosystem growth and staking plans, helped LINK token rally 11.9%. Another major outperformer over the week was DeFi protocol Maker, with MKR governance tokens climbing 13.9%.
Miners Flee Ravencoin, Mashinksy Quits Celsius
As former Ethereum miners sought opportunities in other proof-of-work tokens, they quickly saw fortunes crumble before their eyes as mining rewards fell through the floor. Among the hardest hit tokens was Ravencoin (RVN), a proof-of-work token that attracted miners after the exodus from Ethereum (ETH-USD). Ravencoin was one of the biggest underperformers of proof-of-work blockchains and top 100 tokens by market capitalization, slumping 8.1% week-over-week.
Meanwhile, now months into the Celsius Network (CEL) saga that saw investors blocked from withdrawing funds, embattled CEO Alex Mashinsky submitted his resignation on September 27th as the company undergoes Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. Although CEL token has recovered from its June lows, CEL fell 10% over the last seven sessions as creditors remain anxious to recover their lost funds and a court-appointed examiner reviews the company’s financials.
Do Kwon Dominates News, Walmart in the Metaverse, & More
This week’s main headlines surrounded South Korea’s efforts to arrest Do Kwon, the embattled founder of Terraform Labs associated with the $60 billion LUNA meltdown. Interpol has issued a Red Notice to extradite Kwon to Korea to face charges. Although Kwon has responded via Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) that he isn’t hiding, authorities have yet to determine his whereabouts. In the meantime, South Korea has attempted to freeze Bitcoin worth $67 million held at OKX and KuCoin they believe are associated with Kwon.
In Web3 adoption news, Walmart (NYSE: WMT) has become the latest retailer to enter the Metaverse. The big-box retailer launched Walmart’s Universe of Play and Walmart Land on blockchain-based gaming gateway Roblox (NYSE: RBLX). The two virtual projects will offer a range of Metaverse experiences, including live music performances, virtual dressing rooms, and opportunities to buy virtual merchandise by participating in different games and exploration activities.
Finally, Christie’s is also jumping on the Web3 bandwagon. Following its success in auctioning Beeple’s NFT for $69.3 million in 2021, the famed auction house has launched Christie’s 3.0, an Ethereum-based NFT marketplace. The marketplace will curate collections of NFTs for sale and bring the entire auction process on-chain, beginning with nine NFTs from artist Diana Sinclair.
