- Multiple 2024 tailwinds drive bitcoin higher: Bitcoin reached new annual highs this week driven by multiple tailwinds, including potentially imminent ETF approvals, the upcoming Bitcoin halving, and a possibly lower interest rate environment. Notably, BTC broke above $40k for the first time in over a year on Monday, with no signs of slowing. BTC was hovering around $44k on Friday morning.
- Robust jobs data and upcoming Fed meeting may bring volatility: November nonfarm payroll numbers released on Friday pointed to continued strength in the job market with 199k new jobs added, above estimates of 190k. Market participants are also waiting on the outcome of the next FOMC meeting on December 13. Following Friday’s job numbers, investors continue to expect rates to remain unchanged until Q1 next year, but any deviation from those expectations could inject volatility ahead of the usual pre-holiday contraction.
- Dog memecoins hit new highs as Doge turns 10: Doge reached its 10th anniversary on Wednesday and celebrated by posting +18% gains over the past 7 days. Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Solana dog token BONK followed suit with gains of +20% and 225%, respectively.
- Expected ETF approvals lift bitcoin-linked altcoins: The market focus on BTC ahead of a potential bitcoin ETF approval has led several altcoins to move higher. Stacks (STX), which enables smart contracts and decentralized finance (DeFi) applications on the Bitcoin network, posted +40% gains this week. Ordinals (ORDI), a BRC-20 token focused on Bitcoin’s ordinals protocol, saw another huge run up this week, adding +140%.
- Societe Generale stablecoin EURCV lists on Bitstamp: SocGen’s crypto division developed the Ethereum-based Euro stablecoin, EURCV, to bridge the gap between traditional and digital assets and help onboard institutional market participants. The move may increase adoption of non-USD backed stablecoins.
🤖Topic of the Week: Trading APIs
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