Bitcoin slips below $60K, SEC drops Ethereum investigation

June hasn’t been kind to Bitcoin: The cryptocurrency’s price slipped below the $60,000 level on Monday, before later looking like it might surpass its former all-time top of more than $73,000, currently.

The latest negative news for Bitcoin comes in the form of an upcoming distribution of Bitcoins due to former customers of the closed Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, with estimates of over 140,000 Bitcoins coming to the market.

That said, the moment of momentum hasn’t been entirely bad news for crypto, as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ended its investigation into Ethereum and blockchain generation company ConsenSys without filing any charges. . Additionally, crypto asset supervisor Hashdex has filed to launch a crypto exchange-traded investment (ETF) that will focus on diversification.

Mt. Gox reimbursement plan causes Bitcoin panic

Defunct Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox announced it would begin the long-awaited process of returning assets to its customers in July, more than a decade after it filed for bankruptcy following a string of hacking incidents. The allocation of the total amount of bitcoins is more uncertain, with estimates ranging from 65,000 to 140,000 bitcoins, which could potentially be worth up to $9 billion.

Some traders fear that the influx of those bitcoins could drive down the cost, others argue that the potential promotional force is also exaggerated, given that collectors have years to promote their claims if they are urgent. Want finance. The announcement of a Mt. Gox repayment in the near future sent Bitcoin’s price below $60,000 on Monday, continuing its current downward trend.

Spot Bitcoin ETFs have suffered the largest outflows over a two-week period since US spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved in January, with investors netting $1.1 billion from those funds during that time, according to information from Farside Traders. Has taken out.

SEC closes Ethereum 2.0 investigation

On June 18, blockchain era corporate ConsenSys announced that the SEC’s enforcement division has completed its investigation into Ethereum 2.0. Despite the closure, the SEC’s stance on whether Ether, the native token of the Ethereum blockchain, is eligible for protection remains additional unclear.

According to ConsenSys, the regulator launched its investigation into Ethereum last month and the company sued the SEC earlier this month, claiming that Ether was a commodity and that the SEC lacked jurisdiction for the research.

While SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has not definitively classified Ether as a security to date, the Commodity Futures Exchange Commission (CFTC) considers it a commodity. The closure of the investigation may indicate that the SEC is leaning toward treating Ether as a commodity, even if the SEC’s ERA-related activities remain uncertain.

in line with LuckConsenSys’ fraught battle with the SEC will continue regardless of the heated announcement. The war initially stemmed from the SEC’s investigation into ConsenSys-owned crypto wallet MetaMask, specifically leading up to its token-swapping operations and staking admissions. The SEC argues that those purposes represent unlicensed brokerage operations involving unregistered crypto asset securities. ConsenSys indicated that while closing the Ethereum 2.0 investigation is a victory, it does not fully address the broader regulatory problems.

Hashdex Information for Mixed Bitcoin-Ether ETF

Spot Bitcoin ETFs are already traded in the US and with an Ether ETF clearly around the corner, the latter structure could be a mixed ETF consisting of both major cryptocurrencies. Hashdex, a crypto asset manager, is leading this fight with the latest filing for the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF.

If approved, this ETF would be the first in the US to reserve both Bitcoin and Ether at once. According to Nasdaq’s filing with the SEC, the ETF will follow the Nasdaq Crypto Index (NCI), which is weighted by market capitalization. Coinbase is fully prepared to provide custody and BitGo as custodians. The goal of ETFs is to provide a passive investment strategy that allows investors to gain insight into the overall performance of the market. Hashdex already has a similar product in Brazil.

The date unused ETF will initially focus on Bitcoin and Ether, with the filing leaving room for the inclusion of alternative crypto assets going forward, provided they meet regulatory standards. Bloomberg analyst James Seifert said consensus from the SEC on the utility of Hashdex is expected by early March 2025.

What to expect from the market this month?

Crypto market analysts will be watching Bitcoin price closely at this time, hoping for indicators that will stop the bleeding, especially in the context of the top Bitcoin ETF outflows and subsequent Mt. Gox distribution.

On the other hand, some market watchers like Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Depot, say that the decline in Bitcoin price in the context of the hot halving tournament is not a matter of concern. Longy posted on “

All optics may now also be activated by the US presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump on Thursday, as the conversation about cryptocurrencies could gain momentum on the marketing campaign path.

Former President Trump has changed his stance regarding Bitcoin, now clearly supporting the cryptocurrency without making any definitive regulatory or policy-related comments for the virtual asset. Due to the SEC’s anti-competitive enforcement actions throughout his administration, President Biden is, by extension, no longer seen as crypto-friendly – ​​an image that his marketing campaign is attempting to disassociate from him, even if There may be no specific details on crypto either, coverage from that camp.