Crypto Market Pulse (17/07/2023)

District Court Judge rules XRP is not a security in some situations. BlackRock’s spot BTC ETF application advances toward SEC review. Indonesia set to launch national crypto exchange.

Weekly Market Index

Last week’s crypto market prices were up slightly at +3.58%. Volume and volatility increased by +26.00% and +60.52%, respectively.

Chart of the Week

Judge Torres of the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York has granted summary judgement in favour of Ripple Labs, ruling that the XRP token is not a security in some situations. This led to a spike in the price of XRP, as markets reacted positively to the news.

Weekly Performance

Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) were up +0.5% and +3.4%, respectively, in the past seven days. Other selected top-cap tokens also mostly increased.

Key categories were up in the past seven days.

News Highlights

• Judge Torres of the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York has granted summary judgement in favour of Ripple Labs, ruling that the XRP token is not a security, but only in regards to programmatic sales on digital asset exchanges. However, the judge also ruled that XRP is a security when sold to institutional investors, as it met the conditions set in the Howey Test. 
• BlackRock’s revised application to offer a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) has been added to the official docket of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as part of its proposed rule change process. The procedural move suggests advancement of the application towards review by the regulator.
• The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) issued a set of detailed proposals on how crypto companies within the European Union should be authorised, the first use of new powers given under the bloc’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) law.
• Argentina’s first Bitcoin index-based futures contract went live, giving qualified investors exposure to crypto in a manner regulated by the local authority.
• Indonesia’s Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency(CFTRA), also known as Bappebti, reportedly plans to launch the national crypto exchange in July 2023.

Recent Research Reports

• Research Roundup Newsletter [June 2023]: We present to you our latest issue of Research Roundup, featuring trending market insights in June, charts of the month, and our latest research exploring ZK rollups and Layer-0 protocols.
• The Development of ZK Rollups: Zero-knowledge rollups (ZK rollups) are still in their nascent stage. However, as the technology evolves, various methods to achieve compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) have emerged.
• Layer-0: Infrastructure for Customised Blockchains: Layer-0 protocols are the infrastructure that customised Layer-1 blockchains can be built on. We explore notable projects like Cosmos, Polkadot, Avalanche, LayerZero, and zkLink.
• Alpha Navigator: Quest for Alpha [June 2023]: Asset classes finished the first half of 2023 strongly, with crypto in the lead. Decelerating US inflation readings could ease market concerns for the time being, while BTC options implied volatilities remain muted.

Recent University Articles

• What Is XRP (Ripple)?: One of the largest cryptocurrencies by market cap, XRP is used by financial institutions, corporations, and end users across the globe for fast payments. Read on to learn more about this altcoin.
• What Is Shorting? How to Short the Crypto Market: Shorting is a way to potentially profit from declining prices. Learn about what shorting means and how it works.
• Introduction to Ethereum Layer-2s: Learn all about Ethereum Layer-2 scaling technologies and how they work.

Catalyst Calendar

Author

Research and Insights Team

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