The crypto market has been fairly muted in the past few weeks. Bitcoin has been stuck at $60,000, while Ethereum has been stuck at $1,500. XRP and other altcoins have also been flat in this period. This article highlights some of the top crypto news that may affect the industry.
Strategy Woes to Continue Amid Financing Risks
Michael Saylor’s Strategy has come under intense scrutiny in the past few weeks as the prices of its preferred stocks nosedived from their par value. STRC, STRD, and STRK stocks have all plunged in the past few days.
This retreat has been driven by the ongoing financing challenges in the company. The value of its Bitcoin holdings has continued to dwindle as BTC has plunged from a record high of $126,300 to its current level of $60,000.
READ MORE: Aave Price Jumps as Founder Hints at Tokenomics Revamp in Aavenomics 3.0
Investors are now waiting for more information from Michael Saylor on how he plans to address the crisis. That’s because the company does not have good options. It can continue raising cash by selling shares, or even sell its Bitcoin. Selling shares will lead to further dilution, while dumping BTC will drive prices lower.
In a statement today, June 29, the company said it will conduct a board-authorized BTC monetization over time to ensure its minimum USD reserve covers at least 12 months, a move that may lead to Bitcoin and share sales. In addition, it said it will establish a $1 billion STRC repurchase program for the STRC asset and a separate one for MSTR shares.
There are also concerns that these challenges are spreading in other Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) companies. For example, Strive’s SATA dropped to a record low of $79 last week before paring back the losses to over $90. Similarly, BitMine’s BMNP dropped to a record low of $79 from its all-time high of $92.97.
US Non-Farm Payrolls Data
The other key crypto market news will be from the United States, which will publish the official non-farm payrolls (NFP) report on Thursday. This report will come a day earlier because the US will have a holiday on Friday this week.
Economists expect this report to show that the US economy created 114k jobs in June as the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.3%. A stronger-than-expected report will raise the possibility that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates later this year.
In line with this, investors will focus on the upcoming European Central Bank meeting in Portugal. This will be crucial, as it will be the first time Kevin Warsh has attended.
Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF Inflows
The other key crypto news to watch will be the data on Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF inflows and outflows. Last week, Bitcoin ETFs lost over $1.79 billion in assets, the largest weekly loss since their approval in 2014.
Ethereum ETFs also shed millions of dollars worth of assets. This is happening as investors are slowly moving away from the cryptocurrency market toward stocks to take advantage of the booming stock market, with the AI boom accelerating this year.
READ MORE: Peter Schiff Warns Michael Saylor as MSTR Crashes, Draws Comparison to FTX Collapse
