A Week in Review: Bitcoin ETFs see high volume， Binance delists Monero， & other news

We’ve selected the hottest materials of the past week for you to stay up-to-date with the latest crypto news:

#1\xa0‘Big volume day’ for BlackRock as Bitcoin ETFs notch \\$1B volume

Total daily trading volume for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs)topped a billion dollars on Feb. 7, with BlackRock leading the pack. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart described it as a “big volume day” for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust, which saw a daily trading volume of \\$341.2 million, eclipsing the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust’s \\$296.5 million in volume, according to Seyffart. Meanwhile, Fidelity’s FBTC fund came in third with \\$200 million in volume, and the remaining seven funds had \\$188 million in daily volume — bringing the total for the day to more than a billion dollars.

#2.\xa0Monero hits 5-month low as Binance plans delisting

Binanceis delisting Monero (XMR) and other tokenslike Aragon, Multichain, and Vai on Feb. 20, 2024. The announcement sent XMR's value to five-month lows on Feb. 6. The exchange will remove all trading pairs involving Monero, including those trading against Bitcoin, Ether, Tether, and Binance's native coin, BNB. Withdrawals for XMR tokens will be suspended after May 20, 2024. Binance's decision is based on factors like contribution to the crypto ecosystem's health, ethical conduct and responsiveness to due diligence requests, said the exchange.

#3.\xa0ARK 21Shares refiles spot Ethereum ETF with cash creates, adds staking

ARK 21Shareshas amended its spot Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) applicationto adopt a cash-creation model — similar to its approved spot Bitcoin ETF — and has also floated plans to stake a portion of the ETF’s Ether to generate additional income. Under the cash creates model, ARK 21Shares would purchase Ether equivalent to the order amount and deposit it in the trust’s account with the custodian. ARK's filing also proposes adding a staking element to its spot Ether ETF. According to the filing, the ETF would stake Ether from the trust’s cold vault balance, and staking rewards would be treated as income for the trust. In another headline, the U.S. SECdelayed a decision on whether to approve an Ether ETFproposed by Invesco and Galaxy Digital.

#4.\xa0Prediction of the week:\xa0\xa0Bitcoin shorts should brace to ‘get squeezed’ as BTC price eyes \\$50K

This week saw Bitcoin's strongest performancesince October, leading to some analysis that Bitcoin shorters would be playing a risky game.

“Strong bounce from the midrange, attacking \\$48,000 again, as expected,” popular pseudonymous trader Jelle wrote in part of his latest analysis on X (formerly Twitter). “Last hurdle for Bitcoin to overcome, not much standing in the way of new all-time highs once it breaks.”

More sober on the immediate outlook was Keith Alan, CEO and co-founder of trading resource Material Indicators, who observed significant sell-side liquidity immediately below the two-year range highs and \\$50,000.

“Something to consider before you FOMO into BTC at this level. There is ~\\$175M in BTC ask liquidity (aka resistance) stacked between here and \\$50k, and only ~\\$50M in bid support down to \\$43k,” part of Alan’s own X post read.

#5.FUD of the week:\xa0Hut 8 CEO steps down just weeks after short seller accusations

Bitcoin mining firm Hut 8announced a leadership transition, replacing its CEOweeks after “pump-and-dump” allegations against the company were published by the controversial short-selling firm J Capital Research. On Feb. 7, the mining company published a press release saying that its former CEO, Jaime Leverton, will depart from his position. Asher Genoot, the president and a member of the company’s board of directors, is replacing the former executive. Bill Tai, chairman of the board of Hut 8, said in the announcement that the company is at a “pivotal inflection point,” as they just completed the merger with US Bitcoin Corp (USBTC). The executive added that Genoot will bring a “disciplined, proven approach” to unlock the potential of the merger.

#6. FUD of the week:\xa0Bakkt, once touted as Bitcoin’s ‘savior,’ is running low on cash

Crypto company Bakkt, backed by the Intercontinental Exchange, has justwarned it may not have enough cash to stay in businessover the next 12 months. The company filed an amendment to its quarterly report with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on Feb. 7, warning that it may “not be able to continue as a going concern.” The company was founded in 2018 amid a lot of hype by Intercontinental Exchange, which owns the New York Stock Exchange. Bakkt says it’s now looking to potentially raise additional capital by issuing its registered securities in the public markets to “fund our long-term vision.”

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