Crypto Markets Witness Recent Developments: Julian Assange’s Freedom Supported by Bitcoin, Ethereum Inflation Continues, and Spot Ethereum ETF Listing Approaching
The cryptocurrency market has seen significant developments in the past 24 hours. Here are the key highlights:
Julian Assange’s Freedom Supported by Bitcoin
After 14 years of fighting against extradition to the USA, WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange has finally gained his freedom, thanks to the support of the cryptocurrency community. A generous Bitcoin investor donated approximately $500,000 to help cover Assange’s travel and settlement expenses. With this support, Assange left the UK and relocated to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, where he admitted to violating the Espionage Act in a local court. Stella Assange, his wife, acknowledged that “freedom has a price,” and the entire process was funded by crypto investors.
Ethereum Inflation and the Negative Inflation Story
The circulating supply of Ethereum has been steadily increasing for over 70 days, signaling a shift in the negative inflation story. Despite the transition to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, which initially made Ether deflationary, the recent Dencun update led to a drop in transaction fees and the distribution of staking rewards over the burned supply. This has resulted in an increase in the circulating supply of Ether, contradicting the initial deflationary trend.
Since the Merge, over 345,000 ETH has been burned, effectively preventing $1.1 billion worth of supply from entering circulation. However, the circulating supply has continued to increase for 73 days, indicating a shift towards inflation.
Spot Ethereum ETF Listing on the Horizon
VanEck, a prominent investment management firm, has submitted Form 8-A to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its spot Ether ETF. This submission suggests that the listing process is nearing completion, following a similar path to the Bitcoin ETF process. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas has stated that this is a significant step, and the SEC is expected to issue the listing order soon.
If the timeline follows that of the Bitcoin ETF process, the spot Ethereum ETFs could begin trading as early as July 2. Several well-known companies, including VanEck, BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, ARK 21Shares, Invesco Galaxy, and Bitwise, have already had their spot Ethereum ETF applications approved. The approval was granted approximately a month ago.
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Disclaimer: This article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and carry risks. It is advisable to conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions.