Uncle Sam as BTC whale? May 23

?? Weekly TL;DR?

Here’s to the long weekend; we hope you’re touching grass, sand, or lake water.?

Just when you thought 2023 couldn’t get any more bizarre. Last week:?

USD Stablecoins are ditching... the currency to which they are ostensibly pegging their value.??

• “It’s not personal—It's just business.” - Circle to the Fed?

Crypto cold storage mainstay Ledger faces massive user backlash, and--?

The US Government as one of the largest BTC Whales in the world.?

?? Weekly Moves?

Market Summary:?

• The global cryptocurrency market has reached a total market capitalization of CA$1.58 trillion.? ?
• Bitcoin—just about flat on the week—continues to lead the market with a dominance of 47.1%, followed by Ethereum at 19.3%?

Performance:?

• Bitcoin is currently the top trading pair on NDAX, followed by Ethereum?
• Over the past 7 days, the value of Bitcoin (BTC) has increased by 0.4% and is currently being traded at CA$36,200. ?

Market Trends:?

The 'regulatory forward' stablecoin option UDSC has opted to further reduce their counterparty risks (following a scary episode where a significant portion of their Dollar reserves was jeopardized during the collapse of SVB):?

• USDC announced last week that they were effective immediately, replacing their US Treasury Reserves with Repo money agreements. ?
• Think of the Repo market?(short for ‘Repurchase Agreement’) as a Pawn Shop for US Treasury Reserves: When markets lose trust in the “Full faith and credit of the US”, they go to private—Repo—markets,?to be extra safe. ?
• The irony that a digital asset is ostensibly distrustful of the underlying currency to which it was designed to peg its value, is lost on no one.?
• Circle, the issuer of USDC, has enacted this drastic policy shift not because of the current banking crisis or the unpredictability of Federal Reserve monetary policy, but to protect reserves from a potential U.S. debt ceiling related government default.

Speaking of Uncle Sam, apparently, they are now one of the largest hodlers in the world... (But not in the way we’re all hoping for):?

• The U.S. Gov holds billions in seized BTC from criminal investigations. But—?
• US Senator Cynthia Lummis and the Secret Service, among others, agree that Bitcoin is a godsend for Law Enforcement due to its open and public nature.?

Ledger launched a new Crypto Key Recovery product to much consternation.?

• Whether or not there are indeed ‘backdoor’ risks inherent to new?Ledger firmware code, many hardened Ledger users have taken to twitter to protest and are certainly not waiting around to find out.?

Prices and percentages as of 22/5/2023 1:15 AM EST?

?? Community News??

• Is Ledger’s New Bitcoin Key Recovery Feature Safe? Experts Have Doubts Coindesk?
• Bitcoin cleans up the environment and helps catch criminals: US Senator Cynthia Lummis CoinTelegraph??
• Bitcoin Hovers Below $27K as Fed Chair Powell Makes Modestly Dovish Comments CoinDesk?
• Decreased Bitcoin Activity and Liquidity Point to Imminent Volatility Spike Blockworks?
• The US government is one of the largest bitcoin whales. What does that mean for the crypto market? The Block?
• USDC Issuer Circle Moves $8.7B to Repo Agreements to Protect Reserves From U.S. Government Default CoinDesk?

?? Educational Resources?

For those of you looking to learn more about bitcoin and crypto markets this week:?

• For most of the last few years, the US political establishment has been concerned about the risk that stablecoins might have for the mainstream financial system. This year, however, it's been the mainstream financial system wreaking havoc on stablecoins. NLW discusses Circle's move from longer-dated Treasuries to repo agreements, as well as Tether's new Bitcoin purchase plan. – The Breakdown w/ NLW: Will the US Default on Its Debt? Circle Ditches Treasuries and Tether Buys BTC?

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• Preston interviews Bitcoin OG, Tuur Demeester, about inscriptions and what it means for L1 and L2 Bitcoin moving forward. – The Investors Podcast; Bitcoin Fundamentals w/ Preston Pysh – INSCRIPTIONS & HIGH FEES ON BITCOIN L1 W/ TUUR DEMEESTER?

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• Making his first public appearance as a presidential candidate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. outlined his vision for supporting Bitcoin and freedom in the U.S. Bitcoin Magazine - ROBERT KENNEDY JR. MAKES CAMPAIGN DEBUT AT BITCOIN 2023: ‘FREE MONEY IS AS IMPORTANT AS FREE EXPRESSION’?

?? Upcoming Events?

Mark your calendars!?

May 18 - Bitcoin 2023 Conference Miami

May 22 - Bitcoin Pizza Day!

May 26 – CME Futures Expiry

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THIS WEEKLY UPDATE AND WEBSITE ARE NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE INVESTMENT, LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, TAX, OR ANY OTHER ADVICE AND SHOULD NOT BE RELIED ON IN THAT OR ANY OTHER REGARD. THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS AN OFFER OR SOLICITATION FOR THE SALE OR PURCHASE OF CRYPTOCURRENCIES OR OTHERWISE.?

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All right, friends: For buying bitcoin I recommend NDAX.?

• Largest platform in Canada by volume (i.e., deep liquidity and paper-thin spreads)?
• 0.2% trade commission across the board. No hidden fees/markups.?
• Intuitive UI (+ advanced orders/ technical tools for traders)?

IMHO it's the safest, most transparent and least expensive marketplace in Canada for bitcoin.? Plus, NDAX is the only crypto trading platform in Canada that is Soc 2 Type 2 compliant... (And this--publicly audited by a reputable Canadian accounting firm-- for several years in a row).??

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Deposits are free and receive $10 when you fund your account with $100CAD+ Sign up today.?