Bitcoin (BTC) and most major altcoins witnessed a sharp sell-off on Aug. 19, but there does not seem to be a specific trigger for the sudden drop. The sharp fall resulted in liquidations of more than $551 million in the past 24 hours, according to data from Coinglass. Barring a V-shaped bottom, other formations generally take time to complete as buyers and sellers try to gain the upper hand. This tends to cause several random volatile moves that may be an opportunity for short-term traders, but long-term investors should avoid getting sucked into the noise. Glassnode data shows that investors …

The pressure on crypto is growing swiftly in the Philippines. After a recent series of controversial moves from the state regulators and local think tanks, the country’s central bank published a warning to the citizens, discouraging them from engaging in any operations with unregistered or foreign crypto exchanges. The announcement itself doesn’t sound menacing but taken in the context of accompanying developments, it makes a 112-million nation a restive region for crypto. On Aug.17, The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) published a warning note to the country’s citizens, “strongly urging” them not to deal with Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) …

One of the most substantial value propositions of Bitcoin (BTC) is that no one can create more of it apart from its fixed supply. However, an executive from a crypto exchange made a bold claim that some exchanges can create and sell BTC that's only in their system, not on the blockchain, to manipulate the market. In an interview with Cointelegraph, Serhii Zhdanov, the CEO of crypto exchange Exmo, shared his beliefs that market manipulation is still prevalent in the digital asset space and gave an example of how it can happen. According to the executive, if anyone wanted to …

Cryptocurrency lending firm Hodlnaut has cut most of its workforce and has applied to be placed under judicial management due to bleak financial circumstances. Hodlnaut, which offers interest-bearing cryptocurrency investment options in vetted institutions, confirmed the dire state of affairs on Aug. 19. The company’s poor financial position has been put down to losses suffered by its Hong Kong subsidiary during the infamous TerraUSD crash, high volumes of withdrawals and the general downturn across cryptocurrency markets. The company opted to apply for judicial management, which will see the Singaporean Court appoint a manager to review its accounts and activities as …

Australian crypto exchange Swyftx has had to lay off 21% of its staff to lower costs as it wades through the current bear market. According to an Aug. 17 note from co-CEOs Alex Harper and Ryan Parsons stated that 74 colleagues had to be let go, as the current economic climate that they were hired in has shifted dramatically to what it is today: “As you’re all aware, we are operating in an uncertain business environment, with levels of domestic inflation not seen in over two decades, rising interest rates, highly volatile markets across all asset classes, and the potential …

After an impressive 73% rally between July 13 and Aug. 13, Avalanche (AVAX) has faced a 16% rejection from the $30.30 resistance level. Some analysts will try to pin the correction as a "technical adjustment," but the network’s deposits and decentralized applications reflect worsening conditions. To date, Avalanche remains 83% below its November 2021 all-time high at $148. More data than technical analysis can be analyzed to explain the 16% price drop, so let’s take a look at the network’s use in terms of deposits and users. The decentralized application (DApp) platform is still a top-15 contender with a $7.2 …

Bitcoin (BTC) briefly broke above $25,000 on Aug. 15, but the excitement lasted less than an hour and was followed by a 5% retrace in the next 5 hours. The resistance level proved to be tougher than expected, but may have given bulls false hope for the upcoming $335 million weekly options expiry. Investors’ fleeting optimism reverted to a sellers' market on Aug. 17 after BTC dumped and tested the $23,300 support. The negative move took place hours before the release of the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) minutes from its July meeting. Investors expect some insights on whether the …

Unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges operating in South Korea could see their services grind to a halt as the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) takes action against 16 foreign-based firms. The FIU has notified its investigative authority that 16 virtual asset service providers have been carrying out business without the necessary registrations. Major exchanges, including the likes of KuCoin, Poloniex and Phemex, were listed alongside 13 other exchanges that are set to be hamstrung by the FIU. All 16 exchanges have purportedly engaged in business activities targeting domestic consumers by offering Korean-language websites, running promotional events targeting Korean consumers and providing credit …

Canada-based crypto exchanges Bitbuy and Newton are enforcing a $30,000 (CAD) annual “buy limit” for "restricted coins" for their users based in Ontario in order to “protect consumers” amid tightened regulations. Newton, a Toronto-based crypto exchange announced the new changes come after working on getting registered with the Ontario Securities Commission and the securities regulatory authorities in other provinces and territories of Canada, noting in an Aug. 16 post: “These changes are to protect crypto investors, like yourself, and to make sure investors are aware of the risks associated with investing in crypto assets.” Under the new changes, Ontario-based crypto …

The Ethereum network’s long-awaited transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake is set to occur on Sept 15 to Sept. 16 and for the last year traders and analysts have been discussing various outcomes for the upgrade and possible trading strategies. Let’s take a look at three options investors and traders have. Hodl ETH to earn the expected “hardfork” token The first strategy is relatively simple. Traders can simply buy Ether (ETH) in the spot market and hold it in their exchange wallet, or whatever platform/wallet will support forked tokens, and wait for the expected PoW token. Way back in 2017, when …

Bitcoin’s (BTC) bounce fizzled out near $24,500 on Aug. 17, indicating that the recovery still faces stiff resistance from the bears. On-chain monitoring resource Material Indicators said the ask liquidity on the Fire Charts was similar to prior local tops. Another reason for caution among crypto investors was that the recovery in the S&P 500 was reaching extreme overbought levels in the near term. Jurrien Timmer, director of global macro at asset manager Fidelity Investments, said that 88% of stocks in the S&P 500 were trading above their 50-day moving average, which was “stunning.” Some were also cautious as Michael …

Michael Moro, chief executive officer of Digital Currency Group’s market maker and lending subsidiary Genesis Trading, has become the latest executive to step down from a leadership role at a crypto company amid the market downturn. In a Wednesday announcement, Genesis said Moro will leave his position as the company’s CEO, a role in which he worked since April 2016. According to Moro, he will support Genesis’ “next phase of growth” in an advisory role as the firm transitions to new leadership. 7/ Since our founding in 2013, Genesis has successfully navigated periods of intense market volatility. Looking ahead, we …