BIT Blog

Weekly update: Crypto Snapshot

Weekly update: Crypto Snapshot
Brought to you by DWF Labs, the global digital asset market maker and multi-stage web3 investment firm.

Bitcoin’s Current Outlook Shows Continued Positivity Amongst Investors

Current market metrics indicate that investors and traders are bullish on the price of Bitcoin in the near future, and the spate of regulatory actions has done little to dent the positive outlook. The chart of Bitcoin’s 2-month futures premium shows that the annualized premium rose to 6%, and that represents a shift from neutral to bullish market sentiments. Meanwhile, the USDC premium charts continued to show stable demands for the token, which indicates that the markets remain unaffected despite current regulatory actions.

Ethereum Derivatives Charts Reveal Upcoming Bullish Sentiments

While Ethereum continued to trade near the US$1,600 level over the weekend, the token’s futures and options metrics showed a potential for the price to move to the upside as the market remains neutral-to-bullish. Ethereum’s futures annualized premiums seem to follow that of Bitcoin’s as it periodically traded around the 7% mark in February, and the 30-day options skew moved away from a bearish outlook as it moved from +10% to a near 0% skew.  

Bitcoin Funds Remain Attractive To Institutional Players, Says Spokespersons

Institutional interest remains strong amongst companies who are seeking exposure to digital assets like Bitcoin, according to Kraken’s Head of OTC and ETC Group’s CEO. Despite the current regulatory shakeup in the crypto space, institutions are looking out for products that provide a higher yield generation, and Bitcoin is one of the key digital assets with BTC exchange-traded products seeing high net inflows at the start of 2023.

GameFi Makes A Comeback in 2023, According To DappRadar’s Blockchain Games Report

After experiencing a decline amidst the market downturn in 2022, GameFi protocols are set to reclaim their spot as a growing Web3 sector this year. DappRadar’s latest report on blockchain games and tokens shows that major GameFi tokens like GALA, MAGIC, and MANA have seen triple-digit growths in their market cap. This is attributed to a series of positive developments such as Gala Games acquiring a mobile gaming studio, BAYC’s latest NFT game Dookey Dash, and Axie Infinity’s launch of the Homeland metaverse.

Conflux token jumps 9% following $10 million token round with DWF Labs

DWF Labs has invested another US$10 million in the fast-rising Conflux Network to fuel its growth in the Chinese blockchain space. The layer-1 blockchain has been making waves recently with its latest partnerships with China Telecom and the Chinese social platform Little Red Book, and its CFX token has since gained 18% following the announcement. With Hong Kong fast becoming the next Asian crypto hub, the team plans to expand its goals with the new influx of funds under Hong Kong's new Web3 policy.

Lightning Network Integration Drives Bitcoin Payment Utility

The Lightning Network, a protocol built on the Bitcoin network which facilitates transactions, is driving the utility of BTC through numerous adoptions at the start of 2023. The network is being rapidly adopted in regions like South America and Africa where countries like El Salvador and Brazil are leading the use of BTC as legal tender, while Lightning Network-based remittance services have recently launched in countries like Ghana and Kenya. Damus, the decentralized app launched on the Apple Store, has also integrated Lightning Network wallets too.

DWF Labs Push For NFT Utility Through Latest Partnership With SIX Network

DWF Labs recently partnered with SIX Network to fund the development team’s efforts in creating a non-fungible token (NFT) on-chain data layer that gives NFTs more useful utility. The blockchain company aims to create easier access to Web3 by providing an easy-to-use platform, and DWF Labs will provide financial investments and strategic partnerships for accelerating the growth of SIX Network.

DWF Labs Launches Partnership With Beldex Network For Greater Privacy Measures

DWF Labs launched its latest partnership with the Beldex Network, a blockchain that focuses on building privacy-based applications and privacy reservations. The network currently has a list of privacy-focused decentralized applications such as BChat, BelNet, and the Beldex browser under its belt, and users can expect their social interactions on these dApps to be private.

Ethereum Is Ready For Consensus Layer Fork As Part of Shanghai Upgrade

Ethereum’s consensus layer upgrade, also known as the Shapella upgrade, took place earlier this week on 28 February. The upgrade is part of the overall Shanghai upgrade on the Ethereum network which aims to implement ETH unstaking, and users are given the options to engage in partial withdrawal, which is to withdraw their staking rewards only, or full withdrawal, which removes both the rewards and staked ETH from the beacon chain.

Market Makers Make The Market…And Cocktails? Yes, Says Participants At European Convention

The whole crypto world’s a high-end club party, and market makers are the bartenders that keep the drinks flowing for a good time. At least that’s what the leaders of key market makers such as Keyrock, Crypto Finance, and Flowdesk said in the recent European Blockchain Convention which took place in Barcelona. The participants agree that market makers are essential for a thriving crypto economy, and they carry a huge responsibility in aiding market recovery.

Focusing On DeFi Is Key To TON’s Success, Says First Stage Labs’ Report

Venture studio First Stage Labs recently released its evaluation of the network development on The Open Network, and the team concluded that DeFi infrastructure should be the main focus for developers at the moment. These include having core DeFi projects such as lending protocols, liquid staking derivatives, and a decentralized stablecoin. In addition, the core developers should also look at implementing incentives to bring more projects on board.

Enjoy Three TON-Based Games That Are A Ton Of Fun To Play

DappRadar’s recent report on blockchain gaming shows a booming GameFi scene in 2023, and gamers will definitely want to try out three key games that have been released on the TON blockchain. FANTON, a football-based play-to-earn game lets players compete in tournaments with football card collectibles, while a second game, Escape From Zeya, places gamers in a space resource management game. The third game, TON CAPS, lets players play to earn by collecting NFT caps in multiplayer battles.

The TON Community Says ‘Aye’ To Freezing Early Mining Wallets

The Open Network (TON) Community has voted in favor of freezing early mining wallets temporarily. The vote applies to wallets that have not been activated since the creation of the network and the freeze will be enforced for 48 months. Tal Kol, the founder of the voting platform Ton.vote, rationalizes the proposal by highlighting that tokens in these smart contract wallets were mined with a 2-year PoW mining program, and the wallets may not have been deployed for use. The vote aims to restrict these tokens to reflect the true circulating supply of TON on platforms like CoinMarketCap.

Disclaimer: This article should not be taken as financial advice. It is essential to conduct research before making any investment decisions.

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