Spirit Blockchain Capital CEO Lewis Bateman will be speaking at CoinDesk’s Consensus, the world’s largest and most influential gathering for the cryptocurrency, blockchain, and Web3 community. Since becoming CEO in 2022, Lewis has led Spirit Blockchain Capital’s growth and continues to drive innovation in the digital asset space. Consensus is the premier event for the cryptocurrency, blockchain, and Web3 community, providing a platform for industry leaders to share insights and discuss the future of these revolutionary technologies. Stay tuned for more updates and insights as we continue to lead and innovate in the blockchain and digital asset space.
This Week’s Market Overview
SEC’s Potential ETH ETF Approval Sparks Market Rally
Anticipation of the SEC’s decision on spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has sparked significant market activity. From Monday to Tuesday, Ethereum (ETH) surged by 19.24%, while Bitcoin (BTC) saw a 7.8% increase. If these ETFs are approved, they will enable investors to directly track ETH’s price, providing a new investment pathway for the second-largest digital asset.
This speculation has reverberated through the cryptocurrency market, boosting prices across both major cryptocurrencies and meme coins. Binance (BNB), Solana (SOL), and Polkadot (DOT) posted gains of 4.55%, 6.92%, and 7.93% respectively. Meanwhile, Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) increased by 6.66% and 8.7%.
Despite some price stabilization by Wednesday, most cryptocurrencies remain near their recent highs.
The continued momentum of this rally largely hinges on the SEC’s ruling, expected by Thursday, May 23. Approval of the spot ETH ETFs could lead to a significant influx of capital, potentially exceeding the inflows observed following the approval of spot BTC ETFs earlier this year.
U.S. Bitcoin ETF Holdings Reach Record High
U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have reached a new record, holding over 850,000 BTC, surpassing the previous high of 845,000 BTC from early April. Grayscale’s GBTC remains the largest fund with over $20 billion in Bitcoin, closely followed by BlackRock’s IBIT.
This Week’s Headlines
- Ethereum ETFs Will Attract $500 Million in Their First Week If Approved
- House passes crypto market structure bill with bipartisan support
- Grayscale launches two new trusts investing in NEAR and STX
- Jeff Kaufman: Decentralized Social Will Revolutionize Marketing
- Little Known Meme Coin CorgiAI Up 60%, Flips Pepecoin and Memecoin
- An Argentinian energy company has partnered to launch a gas flare-powered Bitcoin mining facility, using stranded gas to mitigate emissions
- Farcaster, a crypto-based social network, raised $150M with just 80K daily users
- Bitcoin and Ether ETPs Approved To Be Listed on the London Stock Exchange
- SEC’s Gensler criticizes crypto regulation bill ahead of vote
- Self-custodial Wallet MetaMask Plans Bitcoin Integration Soon: Report
- DeFi Protocol Pendle Reaches All-Time High as Total Value Locked Tops $5.78 Billion
- Coinbase Enables Ripple (XRP) Trading in New York
- Hong Kong’s SFC is considering allowing staking for spot Ethereum ETFs in the region
- Ethereum ETF Approval Is Likely Say Sources Close to SEC
- 18M Americans used or owned crypto in 2023 — Fed survey
