Ethereum sinks 10% as Merge date moves closer
Bitcoin dived to $20K at the weekend after a speech from Jerome Powell on Friday sent global markets spinning.
Speaking from the Jackson Hole symposium, the Federal Reserve chairman said that the central bank will continue hiking rates until 2% inflation is achieved, regardless of the possibility of a recession. His words sent both stocks and crypto into a downward spiral, causing the total crypto market cap to fall below one trillion dollars. The negative sentiment even overwhelmed optimism about The Merge, with Ethereum sinking 10% despite a firm date being set for the first step of the launch sequence to be initiated.
Chiliz was one of the week’s only winners, adding 10% amidst market turmoil after founder Alexandre Dreyfus announced his intention to shift operations away from Ethereum to Chiliz’ own native chain: CHZ 2.0. Elsewhere, EOS and ATOM both rose more than 5% on developments in their own ecosystems.
This Week’s Highlights
– EOS leaps 5% on Antelope upgrade
– ATOM adds 7% as Cosmos expands
EOS leaps 5% on Antelope upgrade
EOS, which has lagged behind its rivals since raising $4 billion in a blockbuster initial coin offering back in 2018, is moving upwards.
The token of the blockchain platform was one of last week’s biggest gainers, rising 5% after the EOS Network Foundation announced the launch of a community-led protocol called Antelope, which will serve as the underlying protocol for EOSIO-based blockchains.
In addition, the blockchain protocol also recently introduced a new incentive program enabling investors to earn yield on their EOS and USDT.
ATOM adds 7% as Cosmos expands
As the Cosmos blockchain ecosystem continues to expand, native token ATOM is feeling the benefit — making 7% gains in the last week alone.
ATOM is the primary collateral asset for three new stablecoins within the Cosmos ecosystem, and is also in hot demand from stakers looking to benefit from a series of airdrops.
Perhaps the biggest catalyst for Atom’s growth, however, is a report from VanEck. The global investment manager praised Cosmos’s pioneering cross-chain bridging capabilities, and predicted that more than 5,000 blockchains will be built on its network before 2030.
Week ahead
In the coming week, crypto markets are likely to continue digesting Powell’s speech, and could also be impacted by other macroeconomic factors such as China’s brewing real estate crisis, and the beginning of quantitative tightening.
Darkening the outlook further, regulatory enforcement may also be on the horizon. Crypto lawyer Jake Chervinsky suggests that we could see big moves in September and October as US regulatory agencies ramp up action before the end of the fiscal year.
Nevertheless, each day now brings us significantly closer to what many are expecting to be the crypto market’s saving grace: The Merge. This big upgrade will be set in motion on September 6th, and is widely expected to lead to appreciation in the price of Ethereum.