Sept 19, 2023

Bitcoin held just above $27,000 after rising to the highest since Aug. 31 as U.S. rates traders penciled in greater odds of the Federal Reserve keeping borrowing costs unchanged later this week and through the rest of the year.  The leading cryptocurrency by market value jumped to $27,220 Monday, having climbed almost 8% since the ominous-sounding death cross pattern appeared on its daily price chart a week ago. The advance since that bearish crossover of the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) below the 200-day moving average reinforces the measure's reputation as an unreliable standalone indicator. Bitcoin has retreated slightly since, trading at around $27,100. Solana’s SOL gained 3% on Tuesday and ether was up slightly at $1,643. 

Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX has sued founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried's parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, to "recover millions of dollars in fraudulently transferred and misappropriated funds," the company said in a Monday court filing. The filing, redacted in parts, asks the court to award the FTX estate damages, the return of any property given or payment made to the parents by FTX, and punitive damages resulting from "conscious, willful, wanton, and malicious conduct." According to the filing,"FTX Trading paid $18,914,327.82, inclusive of taxes, fees, and costs, for Blue Water, to which Bankman and Fried received title, as well as various expenses related to Blue Water totaling more than $90,000," as one example. The filing also alleged that "Bankman’s command of tax law and unique understanding of the FTX Group’s muddled corporate structure allowed him to facilitate the transfer of a cash gift totaling $10 million to himself and Fried consisting of Alameda Ltd. funds."

Alums from some well-known names in crypto and fintech are starting a new $60 million fund called Oak Grove Ventures, which focuses on the intersection of Web3, artificial intelligence and biotech. The Singapore-based team includes some notable figures including Sally Wang, formerly of Sino Global Capital (now Ryze Labs), Ethan Wang, former tech lead of Libra, Shawn Shi, co-founder of Alchemy Pay, as well as Michael Li, a former VP of Coinbase. “We understand that the journey of building groundbreaking technologies is not just about capital; it's about fostering a community of visionaries, pioneers, and founders who share our passion for innovation. With this fund, our strategy is simple yet profound: to raise funds for the founders,” Sally Wang, the fund’s head of investments, said in a statement to CoinDesk.

A message from Phemex

Bitcoin (BTC) has largely been running in place for the past month, but its market dominance has been on the rise as risks increase for the rest of the cryptocurrency sector.

The Bitcoin market dominance rate, which tracks the largest cryptocurrency's share of the total digital asset market, rose to 50.2% on Monday, its strongest level in a month and near a 26-month high of 52% reached at the end of June.

Taking a broader view, the rate ranged between 39% and 49% for more than two years before it hit June’s 52% level after asset manager BlackRock’s filing for a spot BTC exchange-traded fund spurred hopes about unleashing massive inflows into the asset.

- Lyllah Ledesma

Several legislators shaping the future of digital assets policy have committed to joining CoinDesk’s inaugural State of Crypto: Policy and Regulation, including Sen. Lummis, Rep. Hill, Rep. McHenry, Rep. Thompson, Rep Torres and many more. 

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