The Breakdown First Five - Friday June 16, 2023

Welcome back to The Breakdown First Five — the 5 most interesting and/or important stories in bitcoin, crypto, and markets to start your day.

5. The Blackrock Bull

Bitcoin smashed resistance at $30,000 on increasing volume yesterday. Market cap dominance continues to rise, now above 51%. RSI metrics are showing “overbought” but the Bitcoin freight train keeps on moving. Bitcoin ETFs could be waiting months for approval but the front running has begun in earnest. The Institutions aren’t coming, they’re already here.

4. Bathhouse Bitcoiners

A Brooklyn bathhouse made waves by revealing that their pools are heated with hashpower. Although recycling the waste heat from bitcoin miners is uncontroversial within the industry, the comments bubbled over. Apparently hipsters prefer their artisanal bath water heated by conventional means. We’ve got a long way to go before every space heater can also mine sats.

3. No Redemption Arcs

Collapsed hedge fund 3AC has relaunched as 3AC Ventures. The firm says it will focus on “superior risk-adjusted returns without leverage” and will be investing in projects in the OPNX ecosystem. The OPNX exchange launched by disgraced 3AC founders is struggling for volume and attention. Founders have yet to answer subpoenas in their bankruptcy case and are facing calls for contempt of court proceedings.

2. Congress Progress

July’s session will see two major Crypto bills advanced. Stablecoin regulations will see final revisions and a committee vote ahead of introduction on the House floor. McHenry/Thompson market structure draft bill will see debate and revision. The bill defines the decentralization process for Crypto tokens to become commodities. House Financial Services will hold two SEC oversight hearings today with the stink of Prometheum hanging over the agency.

1. Powell: Crypto has staying power

Fed Chair Powell gave a thumbs up to the Crypto industry in congressional testimony. Said crypto “appears to have some staying power” as an asset class. Views stablecoins as a “form of money” with the Fed having a “robust” regulatory role. On inflation there’s a long way to go, but Fed policy will moderate as inflation tapers down. QT won’t bring bank reserves under $2.5T. Also, he’s a fan of the Grateful Dead.

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Thanks for reading -NLW