LBX Daily Market Report - Monday 20th August 2018

Market Report: 20th August 2018 — Subscribe to our newsletter.

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CRYPTO NOTE

The daily view from our desk

Top of the mornin’ to ya. Have you ever met someone that’s a lil’ ‘extra’? In other words, they go that extra mile — in any situation — to go beyond, for unnecessary reasons? This catis the definition of picky, fussy, and super extra. If you’re an Arsenal or a Man. Utd fan, this weekend was extra too. Here’ssome extra moustache galore to drown your sorrows. 👨🏻‍🌾

MARKET’S CRYPTIC LIKE A FOOL

Alts waiting while bitcoin and ether range before making a decisive move

Despite some interesting moves last night, where the bulls tried to save the daily and weekly close, this weekend bitcoin continued ranging between £4.9k ($6.2k) and £5.2k ($6.6k). Meanwhile, ether performed similarly, while some alternative cryptoassets managed to appreciate between 5% and 10%, including EOS, XRP, and NEO.

However, price action across the board is not that convincing. Lucid calls our attention to the “many tests of support trends” which “signals weakness”, for ether and alts, despite Crypto Twitter’s increased bullishness. So, the following days will be key to determine whether alts can achieve “higher lows or huge capitulation”, as DonAlt states.

As for bitcoin, despite the reversal cries, remember that last Tuesday it was trading for less than £4.6k ($5.9k) and hasn’t been able to bounce more than 10% since — “a clear illustration of current market indecision”. For now, consensus points towards a continuation of this bounce, but will this be a dead cat or a legitimate pump?

WHAT ABOUT ETF COOL

Traders waiting while the SEC prepares an anticipated decision. Non-event?

What can influence the fate of such a bounce? Price-wise, an initial bullish sign would be better received if bitcoin rose above £5.2k ($6.6k) — since it failed to do so post last night’s mini pump. Still, many believe we would only be out of the woods if the cryptoasset bellwether is able to rise above £6.05k ($7.7k), and eventually break July’s highs.

This week there are strong fundamentals at play. Thursday, the 23rd of August, is the final deadline for the US SEC to decide on the ProShares Bitcoin ETF. Jake Chervinsky, a popular securities lawyer, ‏explains how informative the decision will be and the process here.

The ruling can’t be postponed and thus, the question on everyone’s mind is ‘how will it impact price?’ Alex Krüger, a well-renowned analyst, believes the “odds of approval are close to zero”. That opinion is widely shared but — for now — many disagree on how markets will react. One thing is certain, if most agree on something it likely won’t happen.

WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR

Filter the noise and stay ahead of the pack

▪ BitMEX, an exchange notorious for breaking during critical trading periods, strategically scheduled a 30-minute system upgrade for the 22nd of August. Follow the updates here.

▪ The length of this bear market is a trending topic of discussion. Check Matt Khoury’s thread, consider the outcomes and check if you’re prepared for the least positive one.

▪ Sure, last week’s thread by Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s co-founder — on the history of Proof-of-Stake was good. But have you read this funny parody summarising it?

WHAT TO READ TODAY

An insight a day could give you more profits to play

▪ Worried about the current market slump? @RyanRadloff, CEO of CoinShares provides data on the growing awareness and conservative estimates for crypto’s demand here.

▪ Is decentralisation a myth? Meltem Demirors and Sarah Jamie Lewis dive into the topic, asking what it really means and whether there are better alternative goals.

▪ Are market narratives behind bull and bear tides? Nathaniel Whittemorebelieves so and thus created “”The Crypto Narritive Index”, explaining the themes driving prices.

FOUNDATIONAL TRIVIA

Because the building blocks of crypto needn’t be irrelevant

The use of “bull” and “bear” to describe markets comes from the way the animals attack their opponents. A bull thrusts its horns up into the air, while a bear swipes its paws downward. Great metaphors ey? Upwards trend equals bull, downwards equals bear.