Read in the Digest
- Weekend sell-off ignites extreme fear, Dow futures jump 250 points.
- Terra (LUNA) spikes to new all-time high while market slumps.
- Stolen private key behind $196 million Bitmart hack,
- Metaverse land tops NFT sales, BSC, and Animoca Brands launch $200 million GameFi funds.
- Binance to relaunch in the U.K. within 12 months, trading volume of DEXes reach new all-time high.
Weekend Sell-Off Ignites Extreme Fear, Dow Futures Jump 250 Points
After showing promising signs of recovery at the beginning of the month, December 4th turned out to be a nightmare day for investors as the price of Bitcoin dropped from as high as $58k, down to $42,874 within a matter of hours. Other cryptocurrencies were quick to follow suit.
In the depths of the sea of red, cryptocurrencies lost an overall market cap of $1 trillion. The market decline, which saw Bitcoin selling at $42.8k, has sent the ‘Crypto Fear and Greed Index’ into “extreme fear” territory.
The Bitcoin Fear and Greed index is now at 16, despite the price of Bitcoin rising back up to $48k. The index had previously reached a local peak of 84 points on November 9th when Bitcoin peaked at the $69,000 level.
The “extreme fear” marker ignited a sell-off that led to new record trade volumes for Bitcoin. The 24 hour BTC trading volume across major exchanges crossed the $61 billion mark for the first time since September 7th.
Flipsider:
- As Bitcoin declined, Dow futures jumped by 259 points as investors sold their tech stocks with relatively high valuations.
- Investors are now placing their bets on firms linked to the recovering economy.
Terra (LUNA) Spikes to New All-Time High While Market Slumps
Terra (LUNA) excelled while the cryptocurrency market suffered a massive blood bath on Saturday, December 4th. The sharp market decline saw Bitcoin slide to as low as $42.8k, representing a new 60-days low.
On Sunday, December 5th, LUNA gained by more than 35% in 24 hours, going on to set an all-time high at $77.94. Terra’s market cap crossed the $30 billion milestone during the interday session as it briefly became the 9th largest cryptocurrency.
The December 4th – 5th trading chart for Terra (LUNA). Source: Tradingview
Flipsider:
- While the crypto market is gradually recovering from the decline, LUNA is experiencing a sharp sell-off by contrast.
- Over the last 24 hours, Terra (LUNA) has declined by as much as 15% and is now trading at $64.32.
The 24 hour price chart for Terra (LUNA). Source: Tradingview
Why You Should Care
Terra continues to lead the pack in terms of development, which led to its 2,700% price rise since the start of 2021.
Stolen Private Key Behind $196 Million BitMart Hack
As the crypto market recorded one of the biggest declines of 2021, crypto exchange BitMart suffered “a large-scale security breach.”
According to the founder and CEO of BitMart, Sheldon Xia, hackers made away with $196 million (as opposed to the previously stated $150 million) by stealing a private key that opened two hot wallets on December 4th.
According to Peckshield, the hackers moved $100 million worth of various cryptocurrencies from the Ethereum blockchain, and $96 million from the Binance Smart Chain held by BitMart.
Peckshield noted that the hacker used popular decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator 1inch to swap the stolen tokens for ETH. After completing the exchange, the hacker deposited the ETH at privacy mixer Tornado Cash in order to obscure their identity.
While BitMart’s founder said only a “small percentage” of the exchange’s assets were at risk, the company has frozen all withdrawals on the platform “until further notice,” and is reviewing security. December 7th has been set as the prospective date for the resumption of withdrawals.
Flipsider:
- The Huobi and Shiba Inu communities have offered to help BitMart overcome its $200 million breach.
Why You Should Care
Despite the industry’s significant development, large-scale cryptocurrency heists remain a significant headache for crypto firms to solve.
Metaverse Land Tops NFT Sales, BSC and Animoca Brands Launch $200 Million Fund
Ever since Facebook’s rebrand, there has been an explosion in the popularity of metaverse platforms. As a result, land in digital worlds is fast becoming the most sought-after asset in the non-fungible market.
Of the $300 million in NFT sales carried out in the week ending December 2nd, the sale of metaverse land accounted for more than $106 million. The plots of land were sold to more than 6,000 traders, with OpenSea, the Sandbox, and Decentraland being the top marketplaces.
Looking to further the development of GameFi, Binance Smart Chain (BSC), and Animoca Brands have launched a $200 million investment fund. The program aims to focus on helping the development of early-stage cryptocurrency-based gaming projects being built on BSC.
The program, which seeks to expand the BSC ecosystem, will also support decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible token (NFT) projects.
Flipsider:
- Despite the metaverse and Web 3.0 being some of the most heavily discussed topics, industry leaders seem to lack a consensus on its prospects.
Binance to Relaunch in the U.K. Within 12 Months, Trading Volume of DEXs Reach New All-Time High
Embattled crypto exchange, Binance, is looking to relaunch its services in the United Kingdom after an order from the Financial Conduct Authority previously instructed the platform to cease advertising in the territory. Binance has hired many compliance officers, including former FCA employees, in a bid to become more regulatory compliant.
According to the CEO of Binance, Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, the exchange company will be reapplying for an FCA license. CZ has explained that, by putting anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing compliance in place, Binance hopes to become a fully registered crypto-asset firm, and to even offer futures and derivatives trading within the upcoming six months to a year.
Flipsider:
- While Binance is clearly a leading centralized exchange, many traders have been turning to decentralized exchanges as they offer more assets, with cheaper transaction rates.
- According to Dune Analytics, the trading volumes on decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregators surged last week to a new ATH of $6 billion – more than 50% of the first week of November.
Why You Should Care
Decentralized exchanges are slowly claiming a notable share in the crypto market as they offer a trustless economy with little influence from third parties.
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