July 14, 2022

The latest moves in crypto markets, in context

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Good morning, and welcome to First Mover. I'm Lyllah Ledesma, here to take you through the latest in crypto markets, news and insights.

Price Point: Bitcoin and altcoins are trading up over the last 24-hours despite widespread risk aversion and more negative news from crypto lenders.
Market Moves: A decentralized exchange says it's pushing back against that crypto-market convention – with plans to offer "expirable" futures contracts.

This newsletter was produced by Parikshit Mishra. Let us know what you think by replying to this email.

Price Point

Bitcoin (BTC) was trading 3% up on the day even as troubled crypto lender Celsuis is the latest to file for bankruptcy.

Celsius, which is facing a liquidity crisis, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, the lender said in a statement issued late Wednesday.

BTC was trading at around $19,820 at the time of writing, holding surprisingly well even after negative news. Ether (ETH) was also slightly down over the last 24-hours, at $1,070.

Polygon's MATIC was up 17% over the last 24-hours, following the news that the Ethereum scaling solution will join Disney's 'Accelerator Program' to develop augmented reality, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and artificial intelligence experiences.

Also rallying overnight was decentralized exchange Uniswap (UNI), which climbed 16%.

"We've seen strong gains across select decentralized finance (DeFi) coins over night such as UNI, SYN and LDO," said Matthew Dibb, co-founder of Stack Funds.

"While the gains aren't on huge volume, they appear to be forming a technical base at these levels which may lay ground for further upside," said Dibb.

Meanwhile, bankrupt crypto lending platform Voyager Digital's native coin voyager (VGX) has more than tripled in three days. According to one analyst, the move appears to be driven by a short squeeze.

Since Tuesday, VGX has increased by 257% from $0.14 to $0.50 with prices hitting a high of $1.01 in the past 24 hours, CoinDesk data shows.

In other news, crypto exchange OKX has followed in the footsteps of FTX and Kraken and secured a license in the UAE, according to a press release on Thursday.

A metric which measures the difference between bitcoin's going market value and its 200-day simple moving average (SMA), the Mayer Multiple, is suggesting the $836 billion crypto market may be close to bottom.

At press time, the Mayer Multiple was 0.53, meaning the crypto market valued at $863 billion was worth almost half of its 200-day average of $1.603 trillion.

The Block reported that move-to-earn Solana based project 'Stepn', which awards users for walking/jogging announced Tuesday that it earned $122.5 million from platform fees in the second quarter of 2022 and 5% of those earnings will go toward buying and burning Green Metaverse Token (GMT).

Bitcoin (BTC)

See the latest price here

Ether (ETH)

See the latest price here

Market Moves

DEX Contango Pushes Retro Alternative to Perps With 'Expirable Futures'

The bitcoin perpetual swap is an innovation in crypto markets that was pioneered in 2016 by the exchange BitMEX and quickly adopted by rivals including Binance and FTX.

Perpetual swaps are like futures contracts without expiration dates; they can be held indefinitely without the need to roll over contracts as they reach maturity.

The decentralized exchange Contango says it's pushing back against that crypto-market convention – with plans to offer "expirable" contracts that more closely resemble the traditional futures traded on exchanges like CME, linked to everything from bitcoin to crude oil and pork bellies.

Contango says its offering will be the first of its kind on a decentralized exchange, or DEX. The firm said Thursday in a statement that it raised $4 million in a seed round in December, at a $45 million valuation, from an investment group led by ParaFi and including Coinbase Ventures, Spartan Group and Amber Group.

The company says its platform is undergoing security audits and that it plans to launch a beta version later in the summer.

The downside of perpetual futures is that funding rates (periodic payments that are long or short based on the difference between perpetual and spot prices) are largely unpredictable, according to Contango's co-founder, Kamel Aouane.

Whereas with expirable futures, investors are in full control of the cost from the beginning.

"With perpetual futures, if you are on the wrong side of the market, you are bleeding money," said Aouane, in an interview with CoinDesk.

Contango prices futures using spot and interest rates, as implied by the interest rate parity, a formula well known in traditional finance.

There are currently no other DEX's that offer expirable futures in the crypto market, according to a report on the state of the crypto derivatives market by Jump Crypto, the cryptocurrency arm of the decades-old trading firm Jump Trading Group.

In the report, Jump Crypto wrote that the decentralized derivatives markets across both futures and options are "under-developed" compared with their centralized counterparties.

Read the full story here: DEX Contango Pushes Retro Alternative to Perps With 'Expirable Futures'

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Crypto Prices

The following are the biggest movers in the CoinDesk 20 digital assets over the past 24 hours:

Biggest Gainers

Asset	Ticker	Returns	DACS Sector
Polygon	MATIC	+12.7%	Smart Contract Platform
Avalanche	AVAX	+4.4%	Smart Contract Platform
Cosmos	ATOM	+4.1%	Smart Contract Platform

Biggest Losers

Asset	Ticker	Returns	DACS Sector
Terra	LUNA	−4.6%	Smart Contract Platform
Gala	GALA	−3.0%	Entertainment
Dogecoin	DOGE	−2.0%	Currency

Sector classifications are provided via the Digital Asset Classification Standard (DACS), developed by CoinDesk Indices to provide a reliable, comprehensive, and standardized classification system for digital assets. The CoinDesk 20 is a ranking of the largest digital assets by volume on trusted exchanges.

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Latest Headlines

Digital Euro Would Be a Success Only If Widely Used, ECB Says
The European Central Bank expects to complete the investigation phase of its digital euro project in the autumn of 2023.
Voyager Digital's Token Surges Over 250% on 'Short Squeeze'

A short squeeze refers to a sharp rally fueled by the unwinding of bearish positions or several sellers rushing to take profits.
OKX Secures License in Dubai and Plans to Open Regional Hub
OKX has followed in the footsteps of FTX and Kraken in securing a license in the UAE.
Policy Body Representing India's Crypto EcoSystem Disbanded: Sources
The Blockchain and Crypto Assets Council was the only body representing the interests of India's crypto industry.
Celsius' Mining Unit Files for Bankruptcy Just Months After Announcing IPO Intention
Economists say robust employment complicates the recession outlook.
Celsius Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
The troubled crypto lender says its purpose for the voluntary action is to enable a "comprehensive restructuring plan" that benefits all "stakeholders."
Brazilian Congress Postpones Crypto Bill Vote Until After October Presidential Elections
Deputies were originally scheduled to consider the text this week, which has already been approved by the Senate.

What to watch:

Check out the CoinDesk TV show "First Mover," hosted by Christine Lee, Emily Parker and Lawrence Lewitinn at 9:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern time.

Nauman Sheikh, managing director, and head of treasury management and derivatives trading, Wave Financial
John Attanasio, founder and CEO, Toonstar
Ryan Dahl, partner, Ropes & Gray

Where innovators, changemakers, investors and leaders present their best ideas for investing in the future of the Web 3, digital assets, blockchain and crypto ecosystems. Register now.

Disclaimer: The information presented in this message is intended as a news item that provides a brief summary of various events and developments that affect, or that might in the future affect, the value of one or more of the cryptocurrencies described above. The information contained in this message, and any information liked through the items contained herein, is not intended to provide sufficient information to form the basis for an investment decision. The information presented herein is accurate only as of its date, and it was not prepared by a research analyst or other investment professional. You should seek additional information regarding the merits and risks of investing in any cryptocurrency before deciding to purchase or sell any such instruments.