M3TA Recap: May 15 – May 21, 2023
U.S. debt ceiling passed, Ledger Recover controversies, and more. What's happening in the latest headlines? Read on!
Top performers (7D)
Render - $RNDR: +33.3%
Price as of time of writing: RNDR/USD - $2.5
The Render Network is a project that harnesses the power of blockchain to allow people to offer their spare GPU resources for others to render visual effects and motion graphics projects.
The fact that $RNDR experienced an 8% surge could be attributed to speculation surrounding Apple's potential launch of a Mixed-Reality headset, which is expected to drive demand for Render's decentralized GPU solution in the metaverse.
CocosBCX - $COCOS: +31.3%
Price as of time of writing: COCOS/USD - $1.71
Cocos-BCX is a platform that helps create custom metaverse and improves the user experience when playing games.
The price increase in COCOS, which will change its name to COMBO, was first suspected to be a direct influence of Binance's support for the name change on May 25th. Or the price surge is within the realm of the surging Hong Kong trend, as there is an upcoming official event on June 1st where cryptocurrencies officially become legal properties. Relevant? Let us explain.
Cocos-BCX is a partner of NodeReal, a renowned blockchain infrastructure provider known for its scalability and efficiency based in Singapore. And NodeReal is collaborating with Alibaba Cloud, a prominent cloud service provider based in Hong Kong. NodeReal will build its node on Alibaba Cloud's platform, offering scalable and efficient solutions. Hence, the Hong Kong trend.
Tomochain - $TOMO: +19.5%
Price as of time of writing: TOMO/USD - $1.08
TomoChain is a Layer 1 based in Vietnam that supports all smart contracts, protocols, and seamless token transfers across different chains that are compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
The majority of the value locked in Tomochain comes from Luaswap, accounting for about 99% of it. However, the total value locked in the entire network is only $700K, which doesn't fully explain the recent price increase. The project hasn't provided any updates on expanding its ecosystem, either.
It's possible that the price increase is driven by internal factors within the project itself.
Mask Network - $MASK: +19.3%
Price as of time of writing: MASK/USD - $4.59
Mask Network allows users on popular social media platforms to send cryptocurrency, use decentralized apps, and share encrypted content securely with an open-sourced browser extension.
Mask Network recently participated in investing in TON Network to expand its own Social-fi ecosystem. The Mask Network project originates from China, so this price increase is also influenced by Hong Kong's opening to blockchain projects.
Kujira - $KUJI: +18.3%
Price as of time of writing: MASK/USD - $0.776
Kujira is a Layer 1 blockchain built on the Cosmos IBC protocol. The project focuses on Fintech and offers various products such as a decentralized exchange (DEX), liquidations, stablecoin, cross-chain staking, money maker, and launchpad.
On May 17th, the project held a sale of $WINK meme coin on Kujira's launchpad called PILOT. To take part in the launchpad, users needed to borrow axlUSDC by depositing $Kujira. This caused the price of Kujira to increase.
Top losers (7D)
Kaspa - $KAS: -28%
Price as of time of writing: KAS/USD - $0.01684231
Kaspa is a PoW cryptocurrency that uses the GHOSTDAG protocol, whose way of working could be loosely compared to sharding. Thanks to GHOSTDAG protocol, transactions can take place concurrently across different chains, unlike traditional blockchains which usually facilitate one by one.
Blox - $CDT: -24.1%
Price as of time of writing: CDT/USD - $0.170236
Blox is a solution designed for professionals, businesses, and enterprises to track, manage, and perform bookkeeping for their crypto assets. Blox is building the world’s first Non-Custodial Staking Platform for Ethereum and decentralized SSV-based staking pools.
SSV stands for "Simple Staking Validation," which is a method of validating transactions on the Ethereum blockchain. SSV-based staking pools are decentralized pools where multiple users pool their cryptocurrency holdings to increase their chances of validating transactions and earning rewards.
These pools are managed through smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain and do not require users to give up control of their assets to a centralized authority, making them non-custodial.
ORDI - $ORDI: -19.7%
Price as of time of writing: ORDI/USD - $10.67
Ordinals token ($ORDI) is a token that operates on the Bitcoin network. It allows users to represent text and images as NFTs and tokens.
Notably, it is the first cryptocurrency developed in the BRC-20 format specifically designed for the Bitcoin network.
Bitgert - $BRISE: -14.6%
Price as of time of writing: BRISE/USD - $0.000000310784
Bitgert is a crypto engineering organization operating on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC). It aims to offer global solutions for blockchain-based audits and products. Bitgert has developed its own blockchain called Brise Chain, which is known for its fast transaction processing and absence of gas fees.
Axelar- $AXL: -13.6%
Price as of time of writing: AXL/USD - $0.472968
Axelar is a decentralized network that enables seamless communication between dApp builders, blockchain ecosystems, applications, and users across different blockchains. It offers a protocol suite, tools, and APIs that aim to simplify cross-chain communication.
Axelar operates through a decentralized network of validators, allowing anyone to join, utilize, and build upon the network. Its goal is to remove obstacles and facilitate smooth cross-chain interactions.
This week, there were no significant standouts among the top losers as they followed the price movement of BTC. BTC had a rough week with considerable selling pressure, resulting in a downward trend.
Macro
Retail Sales - which track consumer demand for finished goods over time by measuring purchases of durable and non-durable goods
Retail sales in April increased by 0.4% compared to March. This growth is lower than the expected 0.8% rise predicted by economists from Refinitiv.
Crypto market did not seem to move after this news.
Why is US Debt Ceiling so High?
M3TA_Analytics - May 16, 2023
Consequences if debt can’t be paid:
Suspension of specific pension payments.
Reduction or elimination of pay for soldiers and federal workers (or those mentioned in the attached list).
Delay in interest payments.
Potential risk of the US government defaulting.
For more information, you can refer to our article on U.S. Debt Ceiling.
Micro
Axie Infinity Origins Now Available on Apple's App Store
Bitcoin.com - May 22, 2023
Apple has stricter guidelines compared to Google, leading to restrictions on blockchain-based apps and NFT platforms in the past.
But now, Axie Infinity Origins is now available on Apple's App Store for iOS users in select countries such as Argentina, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Venezuela, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
This marks the first time Apple has allowed externally-purchased NFTs to be usable on the App Store.
News Highlight
M3TA_Analytics - May 18, 2023
Concerns arise about the security of users' secret phrases and private keys with the implementation of Ledger Recover:
Ledger Recover automatically duplicates and encrypts users' seed phrases upon subscription, raising concerns about Ledger's access to users' secret phrases.
The concept of offline storage for cold wallets is contradicted by the Ledger Recover updates, as fragments of encrypted private keys are sent to three corporate servers online.
Ledger only requires 2 out of the 3 parties to recover a user's Secret Recovery Phrase, raising concerns about the potential access to a user's private key if those two parties collude.
The recovery function update only applies to previously manufactured Nano X wallets, leading to suspicions about the possibility of a backdoor storing users' seed phrases on those devices.
BinanceNews - May 18, 2023
Binance Australia temporarily suspends AUD services due to their payment service provider PayID discontinuing support.
Users are unable to make AUD PayID deposits and withdrawals via bank transfer.
Binance is actively seeking an alternative provider to restore AUD services.
Trading cryptocurrencies using credit or debit cards is still available, and the Binance P2P trading platform remains operational.
User funds are protected by the Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) insurance fund.
Disclaimer
The views expressed herein are for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice. They may not necessarily represent the opinions of M3TA. As every investment and trading opportunity carries risk, you should conduct your own research before making any decisions. M3TA assumes no responsibility for our users' investment activities or their profits or losses. The articles, data, and content provided by M3TA should not be relied upon for any investment-related decisions. We do not advise investing funds you cannot afford to lose.
This article, encompassing text, data, content, images, videos, audio, and graphics, is presented for informational purposes only and is not intended for trading purposes. M3TA cannot guarantee the accuracy, comprehensiveness, or timeliness of the content, documents, data, materials, or website pages accessible through any service, and neither M3TA nor any of its affiliates, agents, or partners shall be liable to you or anyone else for any loss or injury caused in whole. The content available through this website is the property of M3TA and is safeguarded by copyright and other intellectual property laws. Failing to provide proper citation may result in being accused of plagiarism.