❕ Ordinals Reach 20 Million Milestone, But Bitcoin-Based NFT Sales Slide

➡️ This week marked a milestone as the number of Ordinal inscriptions minted on the Bitcoin blockchain crossed the impressive 20 million threshold. But despite this achievement, Bitcoin-based non-fungible token (NFT) or Ordinal marketplace sales have witnessed a downturn since mid-July. Once consistently taking the second spot week after week in the NFT sales ranking, Bitcoin-based NFT sales have now stumbled, finishing seventh in the last seven-day stretch.

⏳ On July 28, 2023, the tally of Ordinal inscriptions achieved a significant milestone, exceeding 20 million. These Bitcoin Ordinals, digital asset inscriptions within the Bitcoin blockchain, enable users to affix information to individual satoshis, the smallest fraction of BTC.

⚫️ The week from July 22 to July 29, 2023, however, painted a different picture. Bitcoin-centric NFT sales slumped by 35.22%, as per the statistics on cryptoslam.io.

🖥 Data from Dune Analytics further illustrates a decline in volumes since mid-July concerning marketplaces engaged in Ordinal trades, including Okx, Unisat, Magic Eden, Gamma, Open Ordex, Ordinals Wallet, Ordswap, and Ordinals Market. Following a pronounced drop since May, there was a fleeting surge on June 29.

🪙 While Bitcoin NFT sales have witnessed a downtrend, other blockchains have experienced a rise, and this week’s seven-day sales figures as a whole have jumped 8.43% higher than the week prior.

🟢 From 4-Week Low, After Collision With Key Support Point

🔼 Polygon rebounded from a four-week low on Wednesday, as bulls rejected a breakout below a key support point. The wider market cap was mostly higher in today’s session, led by the optimism surrounding Microstrategy’s latest bitcoin investment. Chainlink also jumped higher after recent losses.

📈 Polygon (MATIC) bounced back higher during Wednesday’s session, as the token moved away from a recent four-week low. After plunging to a bottom $0.6751 on Tuesday, MATIC/USD rallied to a peak of $0.7022 earlier in the day.

💲 The move came as bulls rejected a breakout below a recent price floor of $0.6750, which coincided with the relative strength index (RSI) pushing away from its own support level. After racing from the aforementioned point at 43.00, the index made an attempt to reach resistance of 45.00.

➡️ However, at the time of writing, price strength is now tracking at a reading of 44.06, with MATIC back below $0.7000. Overall, momentum appears to be bearish, with the token falling for five of the last seven sessions.

❌ X Will ‘Never’ Launch a Crypto Token, Says Musk

➡️ Tech investor Elon Musk said that his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, will never launch its own cryptocurrency token. He made the statement in response to a post by a user of the networking service warning about fake coin projects exploiting Musk’s name and that of the platform.

🟡The latter bear names such as “$X token” and “Twitter token,” creating the false impression of links to or authorization by X or Twitter, its previous brand name, and Musk. Investors are lured with claims of incredible price gains in short periods of time.

🟡The warning points out that neither the social media network nor its owner have ever launched a digital token. “And we never will,” responded Elon Musk who bought Twitter for $44 billion last year and is now rebranding it to X.

🟡The clickbait media titles also reference the favorite crypto of X’s former CEO and current tech chief, dogecoin. DOGE has become one of the most recognizable and popular meme coins, largely due to Musk’s association with it and shilling.

🇺🇸 US Representative Patrick McHenry: Stablecoins ‘Hold Promise as a Pillar of Our 21st-Century Payments System’

💰 Representative Patrick McHenry, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, weighed in positively on the launch of PYUSD, a dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by Paypal, a U.S.-based payments company. McHenry stated that if properly regulated, stablecoins “hold promise as a pillar of our 21st-century payments system,” calling on Congress to put clear rules on the sector by enacting stablecoin-specific regulation.

⚫️ U.S. Representative Patrick McHenry issued a statement on Monday, weighing in on the significance of the recent U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin launched by payments behemoth Paypal.

⚫️ McHenry, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, viewed this development positively, stating that Paypal’s announcement was “a clear signal that stablecoins—if issued under a clear regulatory framework—hold promise as a pillar of our 21st-century payments system."

🇷🇺 Bank of Russia Reports 13 Banks Will Participate in Digital Ruble Pilot

➡️ The Bank of Russia has announced that all 13 banks intending to participate in the digital ruble pilot have already completed their preparations to join the upcoming test. Olga Skorobogatova, first deputy governor of the Bank of Russia, stated that customers of these banks will be able to apply to join the pilot “after some time.”

💰 The Bank of Russia is completing preparations for the upcoming digital ruble pilot test that will start on August 15. The bank recently announced that all banks that expressed their desire to be part of this test have already confirmed their participation in the pilot, making technical arrangements specifically directed for this test.

🔑 The level of involvement of banks in this pilot was revealed earlier by the chairman of the board of Ingosstrakh Bank, Stanislav Danysh, who explained that the participating banks would allow users and corporations to transact using the digital ruble. However, the first phase, he stated, would be limited, only including bank partners and employees.

🖥 In July, the Bank of Russia also considered integrating the digital ruble network with other digital currencies to interconnect different payment systems. This would allow the bank to harness the digital ruble as a cross-border payment currency. At the time, the governor of the Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, stated that several ways for reaching this integration were being discussed with friendly countries.

🚀 Biggest Movers: LINK Ends 4-Day Losing Streak

🪙 Chain link was one of the notable movers on Monday, as the token ended a streak of four consecutive days of declines. The move comes despite the global market cap mostly trading lower to start the week, falling 0.23% as of writing.

🔴Chain link snapped a four-day losing streak on Monday, despite the global market cap mostly tracking lower to start the week.

🟢 Following a low of $7.32 on Sunday, LINK/USD jumped to a peak of $7.54 earlier in today’s session.

💲 Monday’s move sees chainlink edge closer to a key resistance level of $7.65, which was last truly broken on July 30.

⚫️In addition to this, an upward crossover between the 10-day (red) and 25-day (blue) moving averages looks imminent.

⚫️Should this occur, there is a strong possibility that chainlink may not only move past the aforementioned ceiling, but closer to the $8.00 level.

🔽 Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: BTC, ETH Near 2-Month Lows as Bears Regain Momentum

🪙 Bitcoin (BTC) neared a two-month low during today’s session, as traders continued to react to the latest FOMC minutes report.

🟡 Following a high of $29,192.26 on hump-day, BTC/USD dropped to an intraday low of $28,376.50 earlier in the day. This was the weakest point that bitcoin had fallen to since June 21, when it was at a low of $28,271.

🟡 The drop comes as a recent upwards crossover between the 10-day (red) and 25-day (blue) moving averages has reversed course. Additionally, the relative strength index (RSI) has plunged deeper into oversold territory, and is now tracking at 35.05.

🟡This is its lowest level since March, and should momentum continue to fall, price could end up at a floor of $27,600.

🔷 Bearish sentiment was also high in ethereum (ETH), which fell to a multi-month low of its own on Thursday. ETH/USD bottomed out at $1,783.05 on Thursday, less than 24 hours after trading at a high of $1,826.82.

⚫️ As a result of this sell-off, ethereum slipped to its lowest point since June 20, when it almost moved under the $1,700 mark.

⚫️ Ethereum’s RSI is also currently hovering in bear territory, with a reading at 33.67, and appears to be angling to reach a floor at 30.00. Should it reach this point, ethereum will likely be trading around a long-term support point of $1,750.

✅ Farmington Bank Faces Fed Wrath: Alameda-Backed Financial Institution Ordered to Shut Down

⚡️ In a statement released August 17, 2023, Farmington State Bank, with an investment from Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research, consented to a cease and desist order from the U.S. Federal Reserve. Alameda invested $11.5 million into the bank’s coffers in January 2022. Government seizure documents from January 2023 indicate Bankman-Fried reportedly had $50 million stashed in the bank.

🟢 Farmington State Bank (Moonstone Bank) is complying with the U.S. central bank’s cease and desist order signed July 18, 2023. The Federal Reserve Board and Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (WDFI) issued the order against Farmington State Bank of Farmington, Washington, and its holding company, FBH Corporation of Baltimore, Maryland.

⚫️ The regulators determined Farmington violated commitments to regulators by engaging in digital asset activities, such as stablecoin issuance, without necessary approvals.

💲 The order mandates Farmington cease unauthorized activities, halt dividends, maintain assets and avoid further actions without written consent.

➡️ Prosecutors noted at the time that it was believed the confiscated funds were misallocated FTX customer assets. Farmington is among numerous banks forced to wind down operations this year, curiously associated with FTX, Alameda, and Bankman-Fried in various capacities.

🌟 Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: BTC, ETH Drop to 5-Day Lows, as Traders Await Fed’s Jackson Hole Symposium

🪙 Bitcoin

⏺Bitcoin moved below a key price floor late on Tuesday, as the cryptocurrency extended its streak of consolidation. Following an earlier high of $26,160.78, BTC/USD dropped to an intraday low of $25,520.73 late during yesterday’s session.

⏺This resulted in price diving to a five-day low, and below a recent support point at the $25,600 level.

⏺As of writing, bitcoin has since rebounded and is currently trading at $25,870.08, with the relative strength index (RSI) hovering around a floor of its own at 20.00.

⏺Price strength now sits at 19.82, which remains in the depths of a bear zone, however, it also acts as a positive for longer-term bulls, as sentiment appears to have already found a bottom.

🔷 Ethereum

⏺Ethereum (ETH) briefly fell under the $1,600 level yesterday. However, price has gone on to recover in today’s session. ETH/USD bottomed out at $1,596.38 on Tuesday, following a peak of $1,662.88 earlier in the day.

⏺Similar to bitcoin, this drop pushed ethereum to its lowest point since last Thursday, which is when markets reacted to the Spacex news. ETH is now trading at $1,637, and comes as the RSI bounced from a support level of 22.00, and has now moved to 23.19.

⏺The 27.00 mark remains the target for bulls currently in the market, with a collision likely to result in ETH rising above $1,700.

🌟 Biggest Movers: SHIB, XRP Jump Higher on Saturday

🐶 Shiba inu was one of Saturday’s notable gainers, as price rebounded from recent lows to start the weekend. Today’s rebound comes as the global crypto market cap moved into the green earlier in the session. XRP was also higher on Saturday.

📉 Shiba inu (SHIB) moved away from a recent support point to start the weekend, as bulls opted to buy a recent dip in price. Following a low of $0.000008016 on Friday, SHIB/USD rose to an intraday peak of $0.00000822 on Saturday.

❌ As a result, shiba inu moved away from the aforementioned price floor around the $0.00000790 zone. The bounce comes as the relative strength index (RSI) also avoided a support of its own at 39.00, and has now jumped to a reading of 43.27.

🪙 A ceiling of 47.00 now awaits traders in the event that bullish momentum intensifies during the weekend. Additionally, XRP was also in the green, rebounding from recent losses of its own.

📈 XRP/USD rose to a high of $0.5298 to start the weekend, less than 24 hours after trading at a low of $0.5128. Similar to shiba inu above, the rise in price sees the meme coin attempt to move beyond a recent floor at $0.5045.

⏺ Earlier gains have somewhat eased, however, as the RSI collided with a resistance level of 35.00, with price falling to a current reading of $0.5235. In the event that this ceiling is broken, bulls will most likely be targeting exits around the $0.5435 zone.

🪙 Debunked: FBI-Owned Bitcoin Wallet Erroneously Tied to Late Russian Oligarch Prigozhin in Recent Speculation

➡️ Amid swirling speculations about the third biggest bitcoin wallet, chatter has now emerged linking the fifth largest BTC wallet to the late Yevgeny Prigozhin, former owner of the Wagner private military company (PMC). However, a straightforward blockchain explorer search clearly indicates the wallet bears a label identifying it as property of the U.S. government. Nevertheless, this hasn’t deterred the media and netizens from propagating unfounded theories.

💲 While it’s plausible that the Russian magnate, Prigozhin, dabbled in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, the ownership of the fifth-largest BTC wallet isn’t his legacy. In reality, the U.S. government holds the keys to this vault, having confiscated a whopping 94,643 BTC — valued at $2.4 billion today — from the culprits behind the Bitfinex hack.

🗣 Nevertheless, the tale of Prigozhin’s alleged link with this wallet gained traction, reminiscent of the many baseless speculations that often engulf the crypto realm. It’s akin to the earlier social media frenzy suggesting Blackrock owned the third-largest bitcoin wallet.

🌟 Bitcoin, Ethereum Technical Analysis: BTC Hovers Near $26,000 Following US Nonfarm Payrolls

⚫️Bitcoin slipped below the $26,000 level on Friday, prior to the release of August’s U.S. nonfarm payrolls report. BTC/USD dropped to a low of $25,752 earlier in the day, less than 24 hours after peaking at $27,456.

⚫️This drop caps off an extremely volatile week for bitcoin, which was trading above $28,000 three days ago. As a result of this latest sell-off, the world’s largest cryptocurrency closed in on a key price floor of $25,600.

⚫️Despite strong gains earlier this week, the 14-day relative strength index (RSI) was unable to break out of a ceiling at 53.00. This triggered previous bulls to instead secure their profits, liquidating earlier positions in the process.

⚫️At the time of writing, price strength is tracking at 38.58, however price is now back above $26,000, following the NFP report. Ethereum (ETH) remained in the red during today’s session, falling below $1,700 in the process.

⚫️After reaching a high of $1,720 on Thursday, ETH/USD slipped to a bottom of $1,634 earlier in the day. As a result of this price dive, ethereum briefly fell below a recent support level of $1,650.

🛥 Samuel Trabucco’s Multi-Million Dollar Yacht Spotlighted in FTX’s Financial Records

💲 The FTX debtors filed a bankruptcy court document detailing lavish cash transfers and purchases by former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and other company insiders. The section titled “Statement of Financial Affairs for Non-Individuals Filing for Bankruptcy” shows that Bankman-Fried reportedly received more than $1 billion in cash transfers in the year before FTX’s collapse.

➡️ Recent court documents indicate Sam Bankman-Fried allegedly received cash payments of $68.3 million on Aug.

💵 The document details other lavish purchases, including multimillion-dollar real estate in the names of insiders like former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison. Transfers to political groups on behalf of insiders are also listed, such as a $500,000 donation in the name of FTX co-founder Nishad Singh to the People for the Progressive Governance.

❌ Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to criminal fraud charges related to the alleged misuse of FTX customer deposits.

🆕 Canaan to Launch Avalon 14 Series Bitcoin Miner With Advanced 1X J/TH Efficiency

👑 In mid-August, Bitmain revealed its intention to launch a new Antminer featuring an efficiency rating of 1X joules per terahash (J/TH). Three days after this disclosure, Canaan also announced plans to unveil a novel product but with little details. Canaan has since offered more information, indicating that their upcoming release will belong to the Avalon 14 series, alongside equaling the efficiency level of 1X J/TH.

📈 At present, the leading application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) bitcoin miners produced today possess an efficiency rating of 20 joules or higher per terahash. Yet this status quo may shift within the month as two rival bitcoin mining rig manufacturers intend to introduce a new generation of mining products.

👏 Canaan has now provided further information about the imminent Avalon or A14 series. In a promotional advertisement for the approaching “Avalon Bitcoin & Crypto Day” convention in Singapore, Canaan reveals that the new A14 will also boast an efficiency rating of 1X J/T.

➡️ Although both prominent mining rig manufacturers have confirmed these machines’ enhanced efficiencies, neither Canaan nor Bitmain have specified the terahash per second output. With the upcoming BTC halving event on the horizon, miners look forward to devices delivering increased terahash per second (TH/s) alongside improved efficiency concerning joules per terahash. The forthcoming “Avalon Bitcoin & Crypto Day” conference is slated to occur one week from now, on September 12.

🔥Turkish Crypto Exchange Boss Gets 11,196 Years in Prison

➡️ The CEO of collapsed Turkish crypto exchange Thodex has been sentenced to 11,196 years, 10 months, and 15 days in prison. He purportedly absconded with more than $2 billion in cryptocurrency belonging to more than 400,000 customers. The court found his crypto trading platform to be a criminal organization.

⚫️ Özer was found guilty of various charges including fraud, leading a criminal organization, and money laundering. The court also found Thodex to be a criminal organization and that Özer acted with fraudulent intent from the beginning. In addition, Özer’s sister Serap and brother Guven were found guilty of the same charges.

⚫️ The Thodex CEO refuted the finding that his intentions were criminal. He told the court he would “not have acted so amateurishly” if that was the case, according to state-run news outlet Anadolu Agency. The publication quoted him as saying:

💬 I am smart enough to lead any institution on Earth … That is evident in this company I established at the age of 22.

🖥 Lazarus Group Suspected in $54M Coinex Hack Following Recent Stake.com Breach

💀 The North Korean hacking syndicate Lazarus Group was likely behind the recent Coinex hack on Tuesday, according to onchain analyst Zachxbt. He revealed that the hackers inadvertently connected the funds to the recent Stake breach.

💲 On Tuesday, Coinex was hacked, losing about $54 million, which included 231 BTC, 6,559 ETH, 137.128 million TRX, and several million in assorted ERC20 tokens and stablecoins. Coinex informed the community about the hack after blockchain monitoring firms detected that the wallets were being drained. New findings suggest the hackers are likely from the North Korean hacking syndicate Lazarus Group.

⏳ Lazarus Group has operated since at least 2009 and is tied to several notable cyberattacks. These include the 2017 Wannacry ransomware attack, the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures, and significant attacks against crypto exchanges since 2017. The group is believed to be associated with the Reconnaissance General Bureau, a North Korean military intelligence agency. It’s recognized for its advanced tactics and techniques.

⚫️ Four days ago, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) disclosed that Lazarus Group was behind the recent Stake.com theft, which resulted in a loss of about $41 million in crypto. On Sept. 13, 2023, a day after the Coinex incident, prominent onchain analyst Zachxbt revealed the link to North Korea’s Lazarus Group on the social media platform X. Zachxbt said:

💬 It appears North Korea is also responsible for the $54M [Coinex] hack from yesterday after they accidentally connected their address to the $41M Stake hack on OP [and] Polygon.

⚫️If Lazarus Group is to blame, the North Korean hackers took $95 million from two exchanges in less than a week. Exchanges and crypto businesses are likely on high alert following these events, but the method used by the hackers remains unknown.

💻Mark Cuban’s Crypto Wallet Hacked, $870,000 Lost

💸Cryptocurrency worth hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars has been evidently stolen by hackers from a hot wallet owned by American entrepreneur Mark Cuban. The billionaire confirmed to crypto media he was the victim of an attack.

❕The suspicious movement of funds from the wallet, which had been inactive for 160 days, was first noticed by blockchain sleuth Wazz on Friday.

💲In a matter of minutes, amounts in various cryptocurrencies, including stablecoins and tokens, worth a total of $870,000 were drained, according to the transaction history of the Metamask wallet identified as ‘Mark Cuban 2’ on Etherscan.

🔵 Blockchain Data Visualization Startup Bubblemaps Secures $3.2M in Seed Funding

⚡️ Paris-based Bubblemaps, a firm specializing in blockchain data visualization, announced on Monday that it had secured $3.2 million in seed funding from a group of investors. Bubblemaps stated that the newly acquired funds would be directed toward a mission to increase access to blockchain data, serving both individuals and institutions.

💬 “We’ve successfully raised €3M to accelerate blockchain data innovation,” announced Bubblemaps on the social media platform X.

➡️ The platform offers users vibrant bubble visualizations linked to onchain data for blockchains, decentralized finance (defi), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Bubblemaps dubs the platform the “first supply auditing tool for defi tokens and NFTs.” Bubblemaps has established partnerships with various blockchain projects, including Polygon, Fantom, Cronos, BNB, Arbitrum, and Avalanche.

💵 In the past two years, companies specializing in blockchain and crypto-related analytics have secured substantial investments. In August 2021, Messari raised $21 million, while just a few months earlier in May, Coin Metrics obtained $15 million. February 2022 witnessed Dune Analytics raising $69.4 million, and the preceding month, Cryptoslam secured $9 million.