💠Crypto Exchange By bit Granted In-principle Approval to Operate in Kazakhstan

✅Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit has received an in-principle approval to work in 🇰🇿Kazakhstan, a jurisdiction increasingly seen by crypto companies as a gateway to the former-Soviet space. The trading platform wants to expand its presence in the region and other emerging markets.

🗣“The in-principle approval subjects Bybit to pre-conditions leading to permanent authorization upon Bybit’s completion of the full application process,” a press release explained.

Bybit noted that Kazakhstan is a 🌟 gateway to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a regional organization uniting several former-Soviet states. The exchange believes this is a fast-growing market which is rapidly embracing cryptocurrencies and related activities such as mining and blockchain development.

🗣“We are delighted to receive an in-principle approval from AFSA. We believe in the promising potential of the CIS and are eager to open up our world-class trading platform for crypto enthusiasts in the region,” Bybit co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou stated.

Bybit’s announcement comes after the world’s largest crypto exchange by daily trading volume, Binance, obtained in-principle approval to work with cryptocurrencies in 🇰🇿Kazakhstan last August and was eventually 👉 granted full license in October 2022.

🔥Peter Schiff Twitter Apparently Hacked, Shills Gold Crypto, Son Spencer Warns

⚠️ The Twitter account of Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff was found advertising a gold-branded token as a result of an apparent hacking. His son, crypto enthusiast Spencer Schiff, warned users in a tweet not to follow the link posted 🚨 by the unknown attackers trying to lure victims using his father’s name.

🔔 Hackers obviously took control of economist Peter Schiff’s Twitter account to promote the supposed launch of a “groundbreaking cryptocurrency token” called $GOLD.

👉 “Claim your $GOLD,” as it is “extremely close to selling out,” the perpetrators of the apparent scam urged followers of Schiff, who is a well-known gold proponent but also a vocal critic of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin (BTC).

🔵 “Do not click this link,” Schiff’s son Spencer tweeted after seeing the suspicious activity of his father’s account.

Nevertheless, ➡️ the financial commentator announced last week his participation in an art sale featuring non-fungible tokens (NFTs) minted on the Bitcoin blockchain.

✅ However, Schiff took to Twitter to point out that the collection, to be auctioned in June, is a “tribute to gold” and that he is “still not a member of that club.” Unlike his father, Spencer Schiff is a supporter of cryptocurrencies who describes himself as a Bitcoiner.

🔽 Bank of America Predicts Milds Recession After Fed’s Tightening Action

🇺🇸 Bank of America is predicting a mild recession will happen during the last two quarters of 2023. Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America stated that this recession will be the consequence of the U.S. Federal Reserve tightening actions in order to fight inflation, and how this 🔽will increase unemployment to 4%.

✅ Moynihan explained this recession will be the effect of the tightening action of the U.S. Federal Reserve, which has been increasing interest rates to bring down inflation.

⚡️Moynihan’s statements are in line with what the U.S. Federal Reserve has predicted, having stated in April that the U.S.🌟 economy will take a hit later this year.

When asked about hiring slowdowns, Moynihan answered:

🗣Last may. We hired 3,000 people. This May, we hired 700 people and that’s due the attrition rate has slowed so much and we need to trim ahead to count. So we’ll be down 3000 F-T this quarter. We don’t, we’re not making layoffs.

🚨IMF Urges Fed to Maintain Tightening Policy Amid Inflation Concerns, Citing ‘Challenges’ Ahead

💫The IMF is concerned about persistent inflation, and during a press briefing, IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack emphasized the need for the Fed and several central banks worldwide to maintain their current ❎ course of monetary tightening policy.

🟢However, market observers and financial experts anticipate that the Fed will pause its rate hikes during this meeting.

Presently, ⬆️ the benchmark bank rate is at its highest point in 16 years, and lending rates throughout the country have surged.

📣 Kozack stated that the IMF plans to release its World Economic Outlook at the end of July.

💎 Security Agency Detains Nigeria’s Suspended Anti-Bitcoin Central Bank Governor

➡️ The Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele, was suspended by Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on June 9 and was subsequently arrested by a domestic security agency. Several reports have linked Emefiele’s suspension to the central bank’s controversial naira demonetization exercise.

🌟 The Nigerian central bank governor, Godwin Emefiele, was on June 9 suspended by the West African nation’s new president Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

⚡️ At the time when the charges were initially leveled against him, the country’s domestic security agency sought to arrest Emefiele but the move was blocked by a Nigerian High Court.

🔩 Meanwhile, in addition to the allegations leveled against him by the DSS, supporters of Tinubu have repeatedly claimed that Emefiele had attempted to block Tinubu’s ascendancy via the CBN’s controversial naira demonetization exercise.

➡️ According to the lawyer, the central bank’s failed naira demonetization exercise proved to be the “straw that broke the camel’s back.”

🔽 Stablecoin Market Records $2.4B in Redemptions in 30 Days as Leading Tokens Experience Supply Declines

🟥 According to statistics, over the span of 30 days, from May 15 to June 15, 2022, more than 2.4 billion stablecoins were redeemed. During this period, three of the leading stablecoins experienced a decline in their supplies ranging from 4% to 19% compared to the previous month.

➡️ In the realm of stablecoin projects, the diminishing supplies of various tokens have become an ongoing trend, and the past month witnessed notable redemptions for USDC, BUSD, and DAI.

⚠️ Redemptions ranging from 1% to 19% have affected the market valuations of seven out of the top ten stablecoins. Since May 15, 2023, roughly 2.471 billion stablecoins have been redeemed, contributing to the overall decline in the stablecoin economy.

🔴The predominantly USD-pegged crypto assets that constitute the stablecoin economy have reached their lowest value in 20 months, and if the trend observed in June persists, a downturn lasting 21 months could be in store.

➡️While BUSD experienced a significant decline of 19%, the losses suffered by other stablecoin projects have resulted in the current value of $128.92 billion. At present, the stablecoin economy represents 12.12% of the crypto economy’s total value of $1.06 trillion.

⚡️ Bitcoin Records Over 12 Million Ordinal Inscriptions, Miners Accumulate $46 Million as BRC20 Market Cap Declines

🪙 As of June 18, the latest figures reveal over 12.49 million Ordinal inscriptions have been recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain. The inscription trend has yielded substantial gains for bitcoin miners, who have accumulated 1,732 BTC equivalent to $46 million using today’s exchange rates. However, the BRC20 economy, experiencing a significant decline in value, has suffered the consequences of bitcoin’s recent price plunge throughout the past week.

👉 As of the latest count, there are over 12 million Ordinal inscriptions linked to the Bitcoin blockchain, with the current tally reaching approximately 12,494,695. This sustained trend has contributed to a backlog of more than 300,000 unconfirmed transactions.

🔩 On Saturday, bitcoin miners confirmed these types of transactions, as well as traditional financial transfers, accumulating a total of 1,737.50 BTC valued at $46.10 million from inscriptions.

Present statistics reveal that 90.7% of all inscriptions consist of plain text.

🔽 While the count of Ordinal inscriptions continues to increase, the BRC20 economy has experienced a substantial decline in value. The BRC20 trade volume within the past 24 hours stands at approximately $25.51 million.

✔️ Despite the considerable decline in the BRC20 market valuation this month, the number of BRC20 tokens has experienced significant growth, increasing by over 38% since June 3.

🔼 Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: BTC Bulls Recover SEC Related Losses, as Price Moves Near $29,000

🪙 Bitcoin rallied to a six-week high on Wednesday, as price moved to the cusp of a breakout above the $29,000 level. Today’s surge sees bulls recover almost all of the losses that came after the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance and Coinbase. Ethereum also climbed higher, rising above $1,800.

✅ Bitcoin (BTC) raced to a six-week high in today’s session, as bulls moved to recover all losses that came as a result of the SEC suing Binance and Coinbase

☀️ BTC/USD hit an intraday peak of $28,975.62 earlier in the day, which comes less than 24 hours after trading at a low of $26,668.79.

💰Today’s move sent the cryptocurrency to its strongest point since May 6, when price traded at $29,850.

❤️ US Treasury Secretary Defends Dollar Dominance as Emerging Markets Push to De-Dollarize

➡️U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has defended the dominance of the U.S. dollar amid rising efforts by emerging countries to de-dollarize. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in particular, is set to raise the issue of de-dollarization at the next BRICS meeting. “There is a very good reason why the dollar is used widely in trade,” Yellen argued.⬅️

💵 Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who also attended the summit, appeared on a panel with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. Reiterating his call for countries to abandon the U.S. dollar and trade in their own national currencies or other alternatives, the Brazilian leader stressed that the use of the USD in international trade puts countries like Brazil at a disadvantage.

📣 Commenting on emerging countries, including Brazil, pushing for de-dollarization, Yellen noted that it would be challenging for countries to find a viable alternative to the U.S. dollar, which has dominated global trade for decades.

❤️ While Yellen defended the U.S. dollar, she acknowledged in April that over time, the use of financial sanctions “could undermine the hegemony of the dollar.”

🟢Meanwhile, a growing number of emerging markets are ramping up efforts to de-dollarize, including members of the BRICS economic bloc and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ➡️ The BRICS also has a proposal for a common currency that is expected to be discussed at the upcoming summit in August.⬅️

🕯 Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: BTC Rebounds Ahead of US Consumer Confidence Report

📈 After a three-day losing streak, bitcoin rebounded on Tuesday, ahead of the upcoming consumer confidence report in the United States. Price briefly fell below the $30,000 level earlier in the session, however bullish momentum has since returned. Ethereum rose above $1,900 for a short period.

🪙 Bitcoin (BTC) rebounded from recent losses on Tuesday, ahead of the upcoming U.S. consumer confidence report.

🔼 BTC/USD rose to an intraday high of $30,751.19 on Tuesday, following a low at $29,955.74 to start the week. The move appears to have occurred as the 14-day relative strength index (RSI) bounced from a support point at 68.00.

🔷 Ethereum (ETH) briefly rose above the $1,900 level in today’s session, after falling towards a support level of $1,830 on Monday.

🔼 Following a low of $1,840.22 to start the week, ETH/USD jumped to a peak at $1,905.36 earlier in the day. Momentum has since shifted, with the world’s second largest cryptocurrency once again falling below the $1,900 level.

📈 Biggest Movers: LTC, BCH Surge 20% Higher on Friday

👉Litecoin surged by as much as 20% in today’s session, as bulls took the token to its highest level since April. The move came prior to the latest consumer sentiment report from the U.S, which rose to a reading of 64.4. Bitcoin cash climbed to its highest point since April 2022.

🟢 Litecoin (LTC) rose above $100.00 for the first time since April, as traders seemingly remained bullish on the token following its recent listing on EDX markets.

✔️ Today’s move came as bulls were able to break out of a recent resistance level of $98.00, with the relative strength index (RSI) doing similar.

➡️ Should momentum continue, bulls will likely ease pressure closer to an upcoming level of 68.00.

➡️Bitcoin cash (BCH) made significant gains for a second straight session, this time rising by over 20% to end the week.

🪙 🔷Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: ETH Nears $2,000, Ahead of US Independence Day

⚡️ Ethereum moved closer to $2,000 on Monday, as markets prepared for a short, but busy week of U.S. economic data. This is due to the fourth of July Independence Day celebrations, which will see some markets in the United States closed. Once reopened, the FOMC minutes, and non-farm payrolls report will be some of the key fundamentals released. Bitcoin largely consolidated today.

👏 Bitcoin (BTC) was once again in consolidation, as the world’s largest cryptocurrency remained below a key resistance level for a third straight day.

💎 BTC/USD moved to a peak at $30,789.11 earlier in the day, less than 24-hours after nearing a drop below $30,000.

🔵Despite the marginal gain, BTC remained below a key level of resistance at the $30,800 for the third straight session.

🚨 Biggest Movers: BCH Back Above $300.00

👍 After falling by as much as 10% on Wednesday, bitcoin cash rebounded in today’s session, climbing back above $300.00 in the process. The move came during a volatile market session, which saw crypto’s global market cap remain largely unchanged. Solana was a notable exception however, racing to a one-month peak.

➡️ Bitcoin cash (BCH) rallied back above $300.00 on Thursday, prior to the global crypto market moving to consolidate. Following a low of $250.23 on Thursday, BCH/USD jumped to an intraday peak at $300.85 earlier in the day’s session.

💲 As a result of the rally, price moved to its strongest point since the start of the week, and closer to a recent 15-month high. Earlier gains have now been erased, with BCH falling to a current reading at $279.71 as of writing.

💟 One of the catalysts for this is the fact that the relative strength index (RSI) moved closer to a ceiling at 73.00, after bouncing from a floor at 70.00.

💎The index is now tracking at 71.69, and will likely consolidate around this area for the remainder of the day.

⭐️ World Gold Council’s Mid-Year Report: Gold Set for a Neutral Second Half Under Economic Uncertainty

📔 On July 6, 2023, the World Gold Council (WGC) released its 2023 Mid-Year Outlook, revealing that a “strong first half for gold is likely to give way to a more neutral H2.” According to WGC researchers and market strategists, central banks are “nearing the end of their tightening cycles,” and the market consensus indicates “a mild contraction in the U.S. in late 2023.”

🔼The World Gold Council (WGC) emphasizes in its latest 2023 Mid-year Outlook report that it anticipates “gold to remain supported on the back of rangebound bond yields and a weaker dollar.”

🔵“If the recession risk increases, gold investment could see greater upside,” the WGC report details.

🪙 While bitcoin (BTC) is not mentioned among the competitive assets, the WGC mid-year report specifies that gold emerged as one of the top-performing assets in 2023 when compared to U.S. cash, U.S. bonds, and the MSCI EM Index.

🗣 “Given the inherent uncertainty in predicting the global macroeconomic outcome, we believe that gold’s positive asymmetrical performance can be a valuable component to investors’ asset allocation toolkit,” the 2023 Mid-year Outlook report concludes.

🎁 Top Stablecoins See Steady Decline Over Past Month as Dollar-Pegged Token Economy Shrinks

📣 The top stablecoins have continued to see redemptions over the past 30 days as the dollar-pegged crypto economy currently hovers at $127.32 billion on July 12. The stablecoin BUSD’s supply has dropped below the 4 billion mark as the token’s number of coins in circulation has fallen 16.7% over the last month.

⚠️ During the past ten days, the stablecoin economy shrank by $890 million after dropping from $128.21 billion to today’s $127.32 billion. Statistics show that the net value of the top dollar-pegged market capitalizations shrunk a great deal since the start of 2023.

✔️ On March 26, 2023, the stablecoin economy was worth $135.08 billion, which means $7.76 billion has been removed from the dollar-pegged token economy over the past 108 days.

🟪 30-day statistics paint a similar story as four out of the top five stablecoins saw redemptions shrink their supplies. Tether (USDT) saw a slight drop of 0.3%, while usd coin’s (USDC) supply was reduced by 3.9%.

🔵 Makerdao’s DAI saw a 5.6% reduction last month and BUSD’s supply dropped by 16.7%. Trueusd’s (TUSD) supply is still up 41.7% for the month but it has dropped under the 3 billion range to 2.88 billion tokens. Over the past 24 hours, the stablecoin economy recorded $26.42 billion in global trade volume.

💵 Furthermore, out of the 2.88 billion TUSD tokens circulating today, 2.45 billion TUSD is also held by Binance. This means 90.65% of the BUSD tokens today are held by the world’s largest exchange and 85.06% of the TUSD supply is controlled by Binance.

🪙 Bitcoin Price Outlook for July

✅ Two weeks into July and bitcoin has risen to a fourteen-month high, as cryptocurrency markets reacted to the Ripple Labs’ ruling. XRP was partially ruled to not be a security by U.S. judge Analisa Torres, after a lawsuit from the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). However, what does this mean for price action for the remainder of the month?

👉 Prior to Thursday, cryptocurrency markets mostly consolidated to start the month, as traders digested various data points from the United States.

💲 Firstly, non-farm payrolls fell below expectations, coming in at 205,000, then inflation also slipped, dropping to a two-year low of 3.0%.

⏳ Despite this, traders still struggled to define market sentiment, with BTC unable to break out of a ceiling at $31,000, until this week.

💎 Bitcoin (BTC) surged to an intraday peak of $31,862 on Thursday, which was its strongest level since May 2022.

⚫️ The move came following a breakout of a resistance level at $31,400, however, bulls have so far been unable to sustain this.

🟢 As of writing this, BTC is trading at $30,342.71, after briefly falling below $30,000 during Saturday’s session.

➡️ Looking at the chart, the price has since stabilized, as the relative strength index (RSI) of 14 weeks, fell to a floor at 61.00.

🔩 Should this floor hold, bitcoin bulls will likely continue to target a breakout above the next key ceiling, which lay at $32,400.

🔥 Study: Six Countries Account for Over 90% of Africa’s Crypto Interest in H1 2023

📝 Between Jan. 1 and July 4, the Nigerian share of Africa’s overall interest in cryptocurrency stood at 66.8%, a figure nearly eight times that of second-ranked South Africa’s share, according to the latest Coingecko report. South Africa, along with Morocco, Ghana, Egypt, and the Ivory Coast, accounted for 23.8% of the continent’s interest in cryptocurrency year-to-date (YTD).

🇳🇬 The data in the Coingecko report is the latest to reaffirm Nigeria’s status as Africa’s number crypto nation both in terms of user curiosity and traded volumes.

➡️ Meanwhile, the data also shows that in the period between Jan. 1 and June. 4, no other African country had a level of interest in crypto which surpassed 10%.

🔴 As shown by the statistics in the report, South Africa, Morocco, Ghana, Egypt, and the Ivory Coast accounted “for 23.8% of the continent’s interest in crypto YTD [year-to-date].”

🔽 The findings also suggest that just eight countries had a level of interest in crypto which exceeded 1%. According to the data, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, and Mozambique had the least interest in crypto among the surveyed African countries.

🪙 BTC to Peak at $42K in 2023: Finder’s Bitcoin Price Predictions Report

🌟 Bitcoin is expected to reach its peak at $42,000 in 2023, with an end-of-year price prediction of $38,000, according to Finder’s bitcoin price predictions report. The report, based on a survey of 29 industry specialists, reveals that 43% of panelists believe bitcoin is currently underpriced, 36% say it is priced fairly, and 21% consider it overpriced.

⚫️ Finder’s average prediction for the peak price of bitcoin (BTC) in 2023 remains consistent with previous estimates, but the end-of-year projection has increased by 9% to $38,000.

⚫️ Martin Froehler, CEO of Morpher, believes bitcoin is currently undervalued, attributing his end-of-year prediction of $40,000 to the anticipated bitcoin halving event and the ongoing interest rate cycle.

🟡 Looking ahead, the panel forecasts an average bitcoin price of approximately $100,000 by the end of 2025 and over $280,000 by the end of 2030.

🟡 On the more bullish end of the spectrum, Ben Ritchie, managing director at Digital Capital Management, projects BTC to be worth $150,000 by 2025 and $375,000 by 2030.

➡️ n terms of investment strategies, the majority of panelists (59%) advise buying bitcoin, while 33% recommend holding and only 7% suggest selling.

🐶 Biggest Movers: DOGE Surges as Elon Musk Launches X

📣 Dogecoin was one of Monday’s notable gainers, climbing by as much as 5%, following the news that Elon Musk was rebranding Twitter to X. Speculators believe the new platform will allow users to make crypto payments. XRP, on the other hand, fell to a ten-day low.

🔼 Dogecoin surged by as much as 5% to start the week, as traders reacted to the news Twitter was rebranding to X.

💬 Following the announcement, Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino tweeted that “X is the future state of unlimited interactivity – centered in audio, video, messaging, payments/banking – creating a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities. Powered by AI, X will connect us all in ways we’re just beginning to imagine.”

✅ DOGE/USD hit an intraday high of $0.07718 earlier in the day, following Sunday’s low at $0.07056.

🔽 XRP plunged to a ten-day low on Monday, as market sentiment seems to have shifted bearish in recent days. After surging to a high of $0.7506 on Sunday, XRP/USD has started the week at a low of $0.6901.

❕ This is the lowest level the token has traded at since June 13, when price was trading below $0.5000.

⚡️ South Africa’s Foreign Minister Hints at Expansion of BRICS Bloc With 3 New Members

💎 In a recent interview published on July 26, South Africa’s foreign minister Naledi Pandor highlighted the BRICS group of economies’ commitment to peace, asserting that these nations do not aim to “weaponize the oceans.” Moreover, leading up to the much-anticipated 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg next month, Pandor indicated that an announcement regarding the addition of three new countries to the BRICS nations is probable.

➡️ The forthcoming BRICS Summit, occurring from August 22 to 24, 2023, at the Sandton Convention Centre (SCC) in Johannesburg, South Africa, has generated considerable buzz. It is estimated that over 40 countries have either applied or expressed interest in joining the BRICS nations, comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

⚫️Although discussions surrounding the BRICS are often linked with de-dollarization and competition with Western nations like the United States, the White House stated this week that it does not wish to restrict partnerships between countries. In an exclusive interview with South Africa’s foreign minister Naledi Pandor, the diplomat underscored that BRICS harbors no intentions of “weaponizing the oceans,” clarifying that talks of peace will be held during the 15th BRICS Summit.

📣 Pandor also noted that a platform aimed at resolving the conflict between Ukraine and Russia would be established. “We’re not standing against anyone; we’re not standing for anybody. We work for the good of the world. We’re not seeking to weaponize the oceans, we’re not seeking to weaponize the forest, and we’re not seeking to weaponize climate change,” stated Pandor to RT. She further added that other African leaders intended to strengthen their ties with Russia.