🧘♂️The B Word
Market Meditations | July 26, 2021
Excuse our language.
Dear Meditators
Welcome to the 2,756 new Market Meditators who have joined us since last week. We are now a community of over 29,500!
? It’s been a surprising 24 hours. At press time, BTC is trading +12% vs the 24 hour. It was over a month ago that we were trading anywhere above $37.5k.
? In today’s newsletter, we explore some of the factors that contributed to this rally. We also discuss some exciting developments in DeFi and, as usual on Monday, we share our ‘Scan The Week’ section.
For 6 free wealth building newsletters a week, consider joining the Market Meditations community ?
Delighted to say this article is brought to you by crypto.com, the world’s fastest growing crypto app. You can use our link to download the crypto.com app. Our favourite features:
? Earn Interest. Grow your portfolio by earning up to 14% interest on your crypto assets.
? Crypto.com Visa Card. Spend with the crypto.com Visa Card and get up to 8% back.
✅ Buy and Sell Cryptos. Join 10m+ users buying and selling 100+ cryptocurrencies at true cost.
? Positive Amazon Sentiment & Green Candles
On Sunday, an anonymous source revealed plans aimed toward Amazon accepting Bitcoin by the end of this year. A headline like this begs a lot of questions, so let’s get into it! Here are a few things that stood out from the plans revealed by the anonymous source:
Bitcoin payments aren’t something merely for the present, but an “integral part of the future mechanism of how Amazon will work.”
The project’s directive is coming from “the very top… Jeff Bezos himself.”
Amazon is looking forward to creating and launching their own cryptocurrency as early as 2022.
Knowing that this crypto project is being directed from the top is assuring in the vision and commitment Amazon has toward crypto. Though the source mentioned Bitcoin payments, she also said that Ethereum, Cardano, and Bitcoin Cash would be next in line.
? What does this mean? By introducing payments, Amazon could arguably spread awareness for Bitcoin to more people than any other investor or any piece of news could have. ? Coincidentally, yesterday Bitcoin pumped 15% in 3 hours! While the Amazon news did not originate from the pump, it certainly may help BTC prices continue to increase. The reasons for the pump remain contested. Some factors referenced by analysts: bullish sentiment from the Amazon news, a short squeeze (with prices surging after $35,000) and a range of good news from big tech and finance players from the U.S. markets.
? Are we in a bear market? Nobody truly knows – price goes up and price goes down. What we do know is that Bitcoin, and crypto as a whole, is here to stay. When the third largest company in the world decides to build infrastructure for crypto and plans to launch their own cryptocurrency it is no longer a matter of if crypto is the future, but rather a confirmation that crypto is the future.
? The B Word
The B Word Conference garnered a lot of attention. Not only for the witty name but also for the crowd: Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla), Cathie Wood (CEO of Ark Invest) and Jack Dorsey (CEO of Twitter) all gathered to discuss Bitcoin. The conference was hosted digitally last Wednesday and was initiated by the Crypto Council Of Innovation. In case you couldn’t tune into the conference, here’s what you need to know:
? Elon Musk’s Redemption?“If the price of bitcoin goes down I lose money. I might pump but I don’t dump,” Musk said. “I definitely do not believe in getting the price high and selling or anything like that. I would like to see bitcoin succeed.” Musk recovered some goodwill from the crypto community. He explained why he was a fan of dogecoin and revealed that he himself owns bitcoin, as well as a “bit of Ethereum and Dogecoin”. He went on to explain that both SpaceX and Tesla own bitcoin, and reiterated his stance whereby “Tesla will resume accepting bitcoin” when there is proof that renewable usage in mining is 50%.
?The Early Internet. Twitter’s CEO said that bitcoin reminds him of the early internet: “What inspires me the most is the community that promotes Bitcoin. It reminds me of the early years of the internet.“ He went on to say that bitcoin can be the internet’s early currency because it is resilient and not controlled by central governments. Musk added that using credit cards is similar to handing your username and password to a waiter at a restaurant!
? All Things Twitter. Musk asked Dorsey whether he would consider accepting bitcoin as payment from Twitter’s advertisers as a way to support the cryptocurrency. To which Dorsey replied that he agreed with the concept but that he was more focused on creating “economic incentives in the network itself without having to rely on advertising.”
All in all, the conference did help bolster market sentiment and certainly the bullish comments will be well received by the community. However, it was missing an element of debate or more detailed analysis of the benefits of cryptocurrency, decentralization and blockchain technology.
Are you enjoying this letter so far? For more content like this, consider becoming a FREE subscriber.
? Free subscribers get full access to:
6 clear, concise and actionable newsletters a week
Fundamental and technical analysis to compliment your trading/investing
Trading education and self improvement
? Follow the Money
Siam Commercial Bank reports holding approximately $110 million in its blockchain venture capital division. This has grown significantly from $50 million in seed money since it was initiated in February. Rather than approaching the topic of decentralized finance with belligerence, Mukaya Panich, chief investment officer of SCB’s venture fund, considers DeFi an opportunity. Though the nature of DeFi seems to acutely contrast the lending methods of traditional finance, Panich prefers to be prepared rather than suffer the consequences of blind obstinance. Under his guidance, SCB has invested heavily in projects like Ripple, BlockFi and Anchor Protocol. In a refreshing approach, Panich has actively sought to collaborate with these communities to play an active role in the evolution of permissionless finance.
This news comes soon after the announcement of Aave’s permissioned protocol deployment, scheduled to go live this month.
In a bid to increase exposure to institutional investors, Aave has partnered with Fireblocks to launch Aave Pro. This permissioned (think “private” blockchain which can only be accessed by authorized persons) protocol bridges some crucial regulatory gaps, making it easier for financial institutions to offer direct access to decentralized markets.
While this may work counter to the intrinsically decentralized nature of DeFi, it gives large financial institutions a gateway to gain exposure to the emerging trend sooner rather than later.
Some entities will struggle to maintain the status quo long after the evolution of finance has reached the point of no return. Some have already seen the writing on the wall and are proactively seeking ways to integrate. Though the future of DeFi is still unfolding, its momentum is gathering speed. If you want to learn more about DeFi, check out our comprehensive introduction to decentralized finance here.
On Mondays, our ‘Scan The Week’ section is designed to show our community what events and headlines we will be keeping an eye on.
Monday, 26th July
❓Nexo AMA
Due to popular demand, join the Nexo team on July 27, Tuesday, 15:00 BST for their monthly #AskAntoniAnything session. Submit your questions ahead of time today on July 26!⚔️ Axie Infinity Trading Battle
To mark the listing of AXS and SLP in the Crypto.com App, Crypto.com are giving away USD 15,000 worth of token rewards as part of the Axie Infinity Trading Battle! Empower your squad on Axie Infinity by trading USD 100 or more of AXS and SLP in the App by 6 August.
Tuesday, 27th July
?The Graph Community Update
Join The Graph Community Talk to get all the latest updates from The Graph ecosystem and protocol. The talk is geared towards a broad audience regardless of background, whether technical or non-technical
Wednesday, 28th July
?The Global NFT Summit
Catch up with the NFT enthusiasts around the world to learn about the newest developments and trends in the industry. Hear from executives at Casper Labs, Microsoft, Adobe, and more.??Federal Reserve Meeting
The world was caught by surprise at the last Federal Reserve Meeting, where we learned that interest rates will be hiked by 2023. On Wednesday, we will see what is in store this time. Maybe nothing, maybe statements that move the market!
? Did you enjoy today’s newsletter? This survey is your chance to tell us how we can improve the product for you. Link here.
??♂️✍️ Stories in this newsletter were written by Kyle F., Misael Calleja, Nick T., Max P,. Kimia K., Ellen B. and Koroush AK. Graphics were produced by Gerasimos P.
Not financial or tax advice. The content in this newsletter is for informational purposes only. Nothing in this email is intended to serve as financial advice. We are not financial advisors. Every investment and trading move involves risk. Do your own research when making a decision. See our important security disclaimers here.
Disclosure. Some of the links we’ve included are affiliate, they give you rewards and discounts and earn us a commission. Additionally, the Market Meditator writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here.
