Weekly Market Update - December 8, 2023
Bitcoin Breaks Through Another Yearly High, Doge Turns 10 and Spurs Memecoin Rally, and Bitcoin-Linked Altcoins Have Strong Showing With ETF Decisions on the Horizon
*Crypto prices as of Friday, December 8, 2023, at 11:45am ET. Check out the latest crypto prices here . All prices in USD.
Takeaways
Bitcoin Continues March Higher For Eighth Successive Week
Bitcoin (BTC) continued its march higher this week as it looks to post its eighth successive weekly green candle. Despite an already impressive run, BTC showed no signs of slowing down as it broke above $40k for the first time in over a year on Monday morning.
With perhaps a bit of FOMO starting to creep into the market as we edge closer to a possible US spot BTC ETF approval in January, BTC saw another quick surge above $44k on Tuesday, the first time it hit such levels since April 2022. A growing institutional interest in Bitcoin , the imminent ETF approvals , the upcoming Bitcoin halving , along with the potentially lower interest rate environment — all of which are expected during the first half of 2024 — are providing a strong tailwind to the current price action.
On Tuesday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced it would open the comment period for its review of applications submitted by asset manager Franklin Templeton and crypto-native firm Hashdex. The news came earlier than expected, and was a surprise to some as the next scheduled deadline for a response from the SEC on the application was more than a month away.
Markets Calm Ahead of Potential Pre-Holiday Volatility
U.S. Indices have remained relatively quiet over the past couple of weeks, with the S&P 500 remaining in a tight range between 4,540 and 4,600 . However, upcoming market data could inject some increased volatility before the usual contraction as we head into the December holidays and New Year. November nonfarm payroll numbers released on Friday pointed to continued strength in the job market with 199k new jobs added, above estimates of 190k. Markets reacted mildly to the news in early Friday trading.
The next significant event market participants are tracking is the Federal Open Market Committee's final interest rate decision of 2023 , and their updated economic and interest rate projections, to be released on December 13th. Investors are currently expecting rates to remain unchanged at next week's meeting, and a ~50% chance that we see a rate cut in March next year.
Dogecoin Hits New Highs On 10th Anniversary
Dogecoin (DOGE) , the original memecoin, reached its 10th anniversary on Wednesday. To celebrate, DOGE price made a run at breaking the $0.1 level , which has posed strong resistance over the past year. DOGE briefly traded as high as $0.106 on Wednesday , before losing steam along with the rest of the market, but still managed to post +18% gains over the past 7 days. In true memecoin style, other popular dog tokens were not left behind with Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Solana’s biggest canine token BONK gaining an impressive 20% and 225% respectively over the past seven days.
Altcoins Linked to Bitcoin Gain Ahead of Anticipated ETF Approvals
With much of the market's focus centered around Bitcoin in the build up to the potential launch of a US spot ETF next month, a number of altcoins linked to the market leader have gained traction recently. Stacks (STX) , a project whose goal is to enable smart contracts and decentralized finance (DeFI) applications on Bitcoin, has posted +40% gains this week . In addition, Ordinals (ORDI) , a BRC-20 focused on Bitcoins ordinals protocol, saw another huge run up this week adding +140%. The price of ORDI is now trading up +320% over the past month, with the token making the initial move higher following a listing on Binance.
EURCV Launches on Bitstamp To Aid Institutional Adoption
Societe Generale’s (SocGen) Euro stablecoin EUR Coinvertible (EURCV), which was first announced back in April, was launched on Bitstamp this week. SocGen’s crypto division developed the Ethereum-based Euro stablecoin in an attempt to bridge the gap between traditional and digital assets and help onboard more institutional capital. The move may also increase adoption of other stablecoins outside of the currently dominant USD-backed stablecoins.
-From the Gemini Trading Desk
领英推荐
To learn more about the BitcoinBuzz Indicator and its components, read our introduction here . Check back every Friday for an updated score!
Introduction to Trading APIs
An application programming interface (API) is a software bridge that allows computers to communicate and execute tasks with each other. You can think of it as a language translator for computers. An API links a trader’s account with a broker’s automated trading system to execute trades quickly and efficiently, and to perform algorithmic (algo) or programmable trades in certain scenarios.
APIs have gained popularity as traders realize the benefits of automated trading tools, which allow them to hedge bets into the future, and abandon traditional manual trades. Whether it’s a stock trading API or a bitcoin trading API, the key functions and benefits remain the same.
What Can an API Do?
A crypto exchange’s API acts as an intermediary between you and your broker so you can perform various transactions. These may include buying and selling assets, viewing real-time market data, and executing more sophisticated trading strategies. Crypto exchanges, for instance, use APIs to offer customers the ability to trade cryptocurrency pairs and carry out basic to high-performance trading through premium trading platforms. Experienced day traders can engage in advanced charting, multiple order types, auctions, and block trading, among other functions.
Who Can Use API Trading?
Anyone interested in trading can use APIs. Traders can use APIs to trade stocks, crypto, commodities, and virtually every other asset under the sun. To develop trading strategies from scratch, traders often use coding software such as Python, C++, or Java.
Algorithmic Trading: Welcome to Robo-Trades
The next level in API trading is algorithmic, or algo, trading where traders define a certain set of instructions or complex mathematical equations (algorithms). Sometimes called “black box”’ trading in reference to heavily guarded and proprietary trading strategies, well over 50% of equity trades are thought to be executed by machines. Algo trading has also provided the building blocks for high-frequency trading (HFT) . As its name implies, HFT involves very rapid execution — faster than the blink of an eye — of large orders using powerful computer algorithms. Explore basic algorithmic trading strategies here.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and API Trading
We can’t discuss algo trading without considering artificial intelligence and its growing role in automated trading. You pre-set certain conditions such as price, volume, volatility, and so on for a computer to execute, then use AI machines to track these strategies’ results in order to fine tune them for higher future profits. As AI provides new insights from analyzing historical data and trading patterns, a growing number of brokers are marrying algo trading with AI — so much so that some wonder whether robots will completely replace human traders in the future.
See you next week. Onward and Upward!
Team Gemini
*This material is for informational purposes only and is not (i) an offer, or solicitation of an offer, to invest in, or to buy or sell, any interests or shares, or to participate in any investment or trading strategy, (ii) intended to provide accounting, legal, or tax advice, or investment recommendations, or (iii) an official statement of Gemini. Gemini, its affiliates and its employees do not make any representation or warranty, expressed or implied, as to accuracy or completeness of the information or any other information transmitted or made available. Buying, selling, and trading cryptocurrency involves risks, including the risk of losing all of the invested amount. Recipients should consult their advisors before making any investment decision. Any use, review, retransmission, distribution, or reproduction of these materials, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited in any form without the express written approval of Gemini.