In the latest edition of The Market Report, Cointelegraph analyst and writer Marcel Pechman examines a range of topics affecting the cryptocurrency market. First and foremost, Pechman discusses Bitcoin’s continual surge as it broke through the $30,000 mark, marking a new high for 2023. According to CoinGecko data, Bitcoin has slightly surpassed $30,000 and is nearly $30,190 at the time of writing, a price it hasn’t reached since June 10, 2022.
BTC has been on a steady incline for the past 30 days, recording gains of almost 46%, rising to its highest level in 10 months on April 11. Some analysts predicted that it would hit $30,000 again as traders eagerly await the United States Consumer Price Index (CPI) report on April 12. The CPI report will give insights into the Federal Reserve’s battle against inflation.
While many are pointing to the anticipation of the CPI report as the reason for Bitcoin’s recent price rise, Pechman shares his thoughts on whether or not there are other factors at play, stating “there are several factors driving the price growth, including increased adoption and investment by institutional investors, companies like Tesla, MicroStrategy and MassMutual, who announced plans to invest in Bitcoin.”
Moving on to other news, Tether, the issuer behind the leading stablecoin Tether (USDT), blacklisted an address that drained Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) bots for $25 million last week. In this case, the rogue validator address swooped in to back-run the MEV’s transaction, leading to losses of almost $25 million in various digital assets, making it the largest MEV exploit to date.
Etherscan has already flagged the address, warning of its involvement in the exploit, raising discussions on the appropriateness of Tether’s decision to blacklist the address. In this regard, Pechman offers his perspectives on the issue, breaking it all down for viewers of The Market Report.
Lastly, Ethereum’s stakers and validators will soon be able to withdraw $32 billion of Ether (ETH) from the Beacon Chain, accounting for approximately 15% of Ethereum’s circulating supply. However, some worry that the upcoming upgrade, also known as the Shanghai hard fork, may decrease the overall number of validators and impose selling pressure on the network, among other concerns.
Despite these valid concerns, the upgrade should mitigate risks for investors. Rich Rosenblum, co-founder, and president of GSR, a crypto market-making firm, told Cointelegraph, “Lower volatility plus a yield makes for a more familiar and less risky asset to hold long-term.”
In conclusion, the cryptocurrency market has been experiencing a flurry of activities recently, with Bitcoin reclaiming its $30,000 price tag, Tether blacklisting a validator address, Ethereum’s upcoming upgrade, and many others. Pechman is optimistic about the cryptocurrency market’s future, citing increased acceptance and investment in virtual assets by institutional investors and the growing interest in cryptocurrency by retail investors. Therefore, investors and enthusiasts alike can look forward to more exciting developments in the cryptocurrency industry in the months and years to come.
