Privacy concerns boost Zcash 10%
As inflation cools down, the crypto market is heating up.
Bitcoin jumped 5% in a matter of minutes last Wednesday, following the release of US inflation data suggesting the Fed may not need to raise rates as high as expected. The leading asset was then boosted further as the worlds largest asset manager, BlackRock, launched a Bitcoin Trust. Yet it was still outperformed by Ethereum, which added almost 20% over the week as the Goerli testnet Merge was completed.
Meanwhile, privacy-protecting cryptoasset Zcash surged 20% as the US Treasury blacklisted crypto mixing service Tornado Cash, and other top altcoins including Chiliz, Shiba Inu and Ethereum Classic all made double-digit gains. On the flipside, ApeCoin fell 10%.
This Weeks Highlights
Ethereum rallies 17% on Goerli Merge
BlackRock embraces Bitcoin
Ethereum rallies 17% on Goerli Merge
No more dry runs. No more dress rehearsals. Nothing is now standing in the way of the Ethereum Merge, which is expected to occur on September 15th.
Last Thursday, the Merge of the last remaining Ethereum testnet, Goerli, went off without a hitch, boosting investor confidence that the Mainnet Merge will also be successful.
In reflection of this growing optimism, the price of Ethereum surged 17% last week to tap $2K for the first time since June.
BlackRock embraces Bitcoin
The worlds largest asset manager, BlackRock, has launched a private trust offering US-based financial institutions exposure to Bitcoin.
Bitcoin is the oldest, largest, and most liquid cryptoasset, and is currently the primary subject of interest from our clients within the cryptoasset space, said the $10 trillion asset manager in a statement. Despite the steep downturn in the digital asset market, we are still seeing substantial interest from some institutional clients.
BlackRock is the latest to join a gang of big-name money managers moving into digital assets over the last few weeks. US broker Charles Schwab recently launched a crypto exchange traded fund, after UK asset manager Schroders bought a stake in digital assets manager Forteus in July, and Fidelity added Bitcoin to its retirement offerings in April.
Week ahead
The sense that inflation has peaked could continue to drive rallies across both the stocks and crypto markets in the week ahead.
Ethereum, which has outperformed Bitcoin in recent weeks, could contribute further to the positive sentiment as investors countdown to the Merge event in September.
However, Ethereum enthusiasts will also be closely watching the situation in Amsterdam, where the developer of Ethereum-based dApp Tornado Cash has been detained in a move that could signal a new era of regulatory enforcement.
