Crypto Highlights Week #9 – Bitcoin reaches bottom at $34k or is it too early to tell?

Crypto Highlights: Rakuten launches NFT marketplace, China tightens crypto law, Ukraine requests Bitcoin donation, traders call Bitcoin bottom: These and more in this weeks’ Crypto Highlights.

Top Headlines Of The Week

• China continues to make life difficult for its citizens as it tightens laws to jail those found raising funds through crypto sales.
• As Bitcoin nears the $32k previous lows as traders call $34K as the bottom, but data says it’s too early to tell.
• NFT continues to find widespread adoption, Rakuten launches the NFT marketplace to capitalize on growing adoption in Japan.

Top Stories Of The Week

Ukraine’s official Twitter account posts pleas for crypto donations amid Russian invasion

On Saturday, Ukraine’s official Twitter account announced direct calls for bitcoin donations in the midst of Russia’s escalating invasion. Hence it is no surprise that Ukraine grabs the spotlight in this week’s top stories of the crypto highlights.

The official account, @Ukraine, had shared three such tweets as of press time, albeit the first two had been removed. The addresses presented remained similar — for both bitcoin and ether/USDT – while the language of the requests altered with each iteration. It is unknown if the tweets were erased and republished on purpose, or if the inclusion of bitcoin addresses triggered Twitter safeguards implemented in the aftermath of the 2020 account breaches.

The contribution addresses were also released by Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov’s verified Twitter account and Telegram channel.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation, which Fedorov oversees, informed The Block via a press contact email provided on its website that “the communications channels of the Ministry Of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and Minister Mykhailo Fedorov are secure. We are not hacked. This is [the] official position and messages we want to share.”

“We are trying to contribute to Ukraine’s victory and raise the awareness of international society on what’s happening in Ukraine. In every ptpossible way we can,” the representative continued.

Olexander Scherba, a Ukrainian ambassador, also shared the Ukrainian account’s donation appeal. According to blockchain statistics, the BTC address has received a total of 9.78612041 BTC as of press time, with the first transaction occurring on February 24.

Approximately 85 ETH has been transferred to the specified address. According to Etherscan data, donations have also been made in the form of USDT, USDC, and various non-fungible currencies.

China tightens law to jail those found raising funds through crypto sales

As part of its crypto crackdown, China revealed the ability to imprison anybody found guilty of generating cash through token sales. According to a statement issued today, China’s Highest Court modified its interpretation of the country’s Criminal Law to make soliciting money from the public using “virtual currency” unlawful. The amendment goes into effect on March 1.

While China has prohibited cryptocurrency-based fundraising since 2017, the latest amendment means that Chinese courts may now formally penalize offenders. Depending on the amount raised, jail sentences will range from less than three years to more than 10 years.

A “large amount” of crypto fundraising fraud will be defined as much more than 100,000 yuan ($16,000). If the sum exceeds 500,000 yuan ($79,000), it will be classified as “enormous,” according to Article 192 of the Criminal Law.

China has been active in its efforts to eradicate cryptocurrency from the country. Last September, China’s central bank declared all cryptocurrency transactions unlawful. Crypto-related economic operations, such as trading and mining, have also been ruled prohibited.

The US has profited from China’s crypto crackdown, allowing it to overtake China as the top market for bitcoin mining. According to the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, the United States currently accounts for more than 35% of Bitcoin hash rate or computational power.

Mainstream Adoption Of The Week

Rakuten launches NFT marketplace to capitalize on growing adoption in Japan

Rakuten, a major Japanese e-commerce company, has announced the launch of Rakuten NFT, its own non fungible token (NFT) trading platform.

In response to the rising popularity of nonfungible tokens throughout the world, the company first announced ambitions to build a private NFT marketplace in 2021. The NFT marketplace, according to Rakuten, also includes a platform that lets intellectual property owners construct their own websites for issuing and selling NFTs.

Cointelegraph reached out to the Rakuten team for further information, and this story will be updated when more information becomes available.

Many people believe that Japan, with a population of over 126 million people and a well-known pop culture that includes anime and manga, has the potential to increase the adoption of blockchain assets such as crypto-collectibles. The global NFT ecosystem had great growth in 2021. Following a surge in trade volumes and acceptance, important participants in a variety of industries began trading in NFTs.

Interest in these innovative assets is developing in Japan as the value of the NFT market continues to climb. Coincheck, the country’s local crypto exchange, launched a specialized NFT marketplace in March 2021. Mai Fujimoto, also known as “Miss Bitcoin,” an early bitcoin evangelist, teamed up with the blockchain gaming ecosystem Enjin in July to create an NFT charity program in Japan.

This Week’s Market Sentiment

Bitcoin traders say $34K was the bottom, but data says it’s too early to tell

Bitcoin’s (BTC) price fell by 23% in the eight days following its failure to break through the $45,000 barrier on February 16. The $34,300 low on February 24 occurred immediately after the Russian-Ukraine war erupted, causing a major sell-off in risk assets.

While Bitcoin fell to its lowest level in 30 days, Asian stocks were also reacting to the worsening conditions, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index falling 3.5 percent and the Nikkei falling to a 15-month low.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) price fell by 23% in the eight days following its failure to break through the $45,000 barrier on February 16. The $34,300 low on February 24 occurred immediately after the Russian-Ukraine war erupted, causing a major sell-off in risk assets.

While Bitcoin fell to its lowest level in 30 days, Asian stocks were also reacting to the worsening conditions, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index falling 3.5 percent and the Nikkei falling to a 15-month low.

Many analysts have been calling for the bottom since Bitcoin hit $34k lows. The correlation metric, like the futures premium, is based on past data and should not be used to forecast trend reversals. During unstable markets, investors, particularly professional fund managers, tend to avoid high volatility assets.

Understanding market psychology is critical for preventing price movements that are unanticipated. As a result, as long as market participants regard Bitcoin as a hazardous asset, these short-term declines should be the rule rather than the exception.

As a result, it becomes reasonable to wait for more indicators of decoupling before calling a Bitcoin bottom.

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This Week’s Crypto Meme

We hope you enjoyed this week’s edition of crypto highlights. For a peek at our last edition of crypto highlights & blockchain news, click here.