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Good morning. Here’s what’s happening:

Prices: Bitcoin maintains its position around $30,000 as investors exercise caution, according to an analyst's assessment.

Insights: In the future, Ben Zhou, the CEO of crypto exchange Bybit, envisions a scenario where various regional hubs will fiercely compete for business opportunities in the cryptocurrency industry.

Prices

$29,951
+90.7 ▲ 0.3%
$1,882
+13.1 ▲ 0.7%
1,258
+10.7 ▲ 0.9%
S&P 500
4,536.34
+1.5 ▲ 0.0%
Gold
$1,964
−0.8 ▼ 0.0%
Nikkei 225
32,304.25
−186.3 ▼ 0.6%

BTC/ETH prices per CoinCryptoUs Indices, as of 7 a.m. ET (11 a.m. UTC)

 

Crypto Traders Are Cautious as BTC Maintains $30K

As Asia enters its trading week, the CoinDesk Market Index stands at 1,302, representing a gain of 1.27%.

Bitcoin currently sits at $29,951, marking a modest 0.3% increase, while Ether, on the other hand, shows a more significant rise of 0.7% at $1,882.

“The trading range remains relatively narrow due to investors' cautious stance, primarily influenced by ongoing developments surrounding the legal case of XRP,” Johnny Teng, Senior Researcher at LBank Labs, wrote in a note to CoinDesk. “The disappointment expressed by SEC chair Gary Gensler over the court's ruling on the securitization of XRP token has added to uncertainty, with the possibility of an appeal by the SEC further complicating the situation.”

Teng emphasized that the current situation in the bitcoin market calls for cautious decision-making among investors due to various factors. These include the anticipated selling pressure resulting from the U.S. government's sale of confiscated BTC, along with profit realization by short-term holders. On the other hand, institutional players are providing robust support, and there is significant liquidity present around the $24,300 mark. The convergence of these factors has created a state of heightened uncertainty in the market.

Joe DiPasquale, the CEO of BitBull Capital, observes a continued consolidation in the market with an underlying positive sentiment. Despite this positivity, he urges both bulls and bears to approach the situation cautiously.

“For now, bulls may want to be cautious since drops are not out of the question,” DiPasquale wrote in a note to CoinDesk. “Bears will need to be extra cautious, since their downside risk, at this point, is far greater than any potential gain projections.”

This week is expected to be action-packed, featuring the FOMC's decision on interest-rate policy scheduled for Wednesday, along with numerous earnings reports. However, it has already been indicated that this upcoming rate hike will be the final one, implying that traders might have already factored it into their calculations.

Biggest Gainers
 
Asset Ticker Returns DACS Sector
XRP XRP +5.3% Currency
Solana SOL +3.0% Smart Contract Platform
Ethereum ETH +1.6% Smart Contract Platform
 
Biggest Losers
 
Asset Ticker Returns DACS Sector
Stellar XLM −17.8% Smart Contract Platform
Chainlink LINK −12.8% Computing
Terra LUNA −9.5% Smart Contract Platform

 

Insights/News

Bybit CEO Ben Zhou: Regulators See "Opportunity, Rather Than Crisis"

During an interview with CoinDesk, Ben Zhou, the CEO of Bybit, pointed out the striking contrast in tone regulators have been adopting towards cryptocurrencies in Asia and the Middle East as compared to North America.

Zhou noted that the process of Crypto licensing is now characterized by cooperation and confidence rather than anxiety and fear. Although various jurisdictions may adopt distinct approaches, they all share a common goal: regulators aim to collaborate with crypto companies instead of working against them.

“You start to see many regulators realizing this is actually an opportunity, rather than a crisis,” Zhou told CoinDesk. “Hong Kong, for example, is becoming extremely aggressive, trying to attract crypto companies, trying to attract talent."

While all regulators share a common goal, they are not on equal footing in the pursuit of it.

In Zhou's view, Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) currently surpasses Hong Kong in terms of advancement.

“I think Hong Kong is at the very early stage, a little bit like how Singapore was maybe three, four years ago,” he said. “They're at the grandfathering stage.”

VARA, as Zhou elucidates from his interactions during the Bybit licensing process, employs highly sophisticated and detailed procedures that exchanges are required to undergo to obtain a license. These encompass providing comprehensive explanations of how the exchange meticulously scrutinizes transactions, handles sanction-related matters, implements Anti-Money Laundering practices, and prevents any association with tainted addresses.

Bybit used to serve customers from Canada, but it no longer operates in the U.S. and decided to exit the Canadian market in May due to a "challenging regulatory environment."

“The attitude towards crypto in Canada has changed dramatically after FTX," he said.

Bybit engaged in continuous dialogues with Canadian regulators and received an invitation to pursue a license. However, following the developments surrounding FTX, the company opted to withdraw from the market due to regulations that restrict the use of stablecoins.

It's worth mentioning that Hong Kong currently prohibits the usage of stablecoins, at least for the time being. The authorities aim to establish well-defined regulations before permitting access to stablecoins for retail traders, and they have reservations about algorithmic stablecoins altogether.

Does that mean Bybit will consider re-entry into the Canadian market?

Certainly, Zhou said, if the rules change.

 

Important events.

8:30 p.m. HKT/SGT(12:30 p.m. UTC): Chicago Fed National Activity Index (June)

Source Coindesk