Bitcoin miners’ revenue plunges, SEC files appeal in XRP lawsuit, and stablecoins grow
DATA from CryptoCompare shows that the price of Bitcoin went through a rollercoaster over the past week, starting with a surge to around $64,000 and plunging to a low just above the $60,000 mark before recovering, to now trade above $63,000.
Ethereum’s Ether - the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation - went down significantly as the week started, seeing a drop from $2,650 per ETH to $2,300 before it started recovering, yet the cryptocurrency is still trading at $2,450.
Headlines in the cryptocurrency space this week detailed that Bitcoin’s price dropped over the week amid rising tensions in the Middle East that culminated with Iran launching some 180 ballistic missiles against Israel.
As BTC’s price dropped, gold surged to $2,665 per ounce while crude oil prices rose 7% as tensions grew. Bitcoin’s price drop coupled with its halving event earlier this year has seen Bitcoin miners’ profits drop to a record low in September, according to JPMorgan Chase analysts.
The analyses pointed out that the daily block reward gross profit dropped 6% compared to the previous month, marking the lowest point in "recent record". Per the analysts, this was the third consecutive month in which miners saw falling revenue.
The cryptocurrency space was over the week also hit with Swan Bitcoin filing a lawsuit against several former employees and consultants, accusing them of stealing its Bitcoin mining business with help from Tether, its former partner.
SEC files notice to appeal landmark ruling on Ripple's XRP sales
Over the week the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a “notice of appeal” with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals roughly two months after Judge Analise Torres issued a decision on its market case against Ripple over its XRP sales.
Back in July 2023, Judge Torres ruled that Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP had violated federal securities laws, while sales made to retail investors through exchanges did not. Although the SEC initially sought to appeal this partial victory through an interlocutory appeal, it was denied.
The regulator is now moving with a full appeal, with a spokesperson stating the district court’s ruling contradicts long-standing precedents set by the Supreme Court and securities laws
Regulatory pressure also saw popular cryptocurrency exchange Kraken announce that it will crease support for the privacy-focused cryptocurrency Monero (XMR) in the European Economic Area.
Over the week the SEC also announced that Gurbir S Grewal, the director of the division of enforcement, will step down from his role next week, and Sanjay Wadhwa will take over as acting director following Grewal’s departure.
Grewal led the SEC’s enforcement division through a turbulent period, especially following the 2022 collapse of FTX. Under his leadership, the SEC ramped up its enforcement efforts against cryptocurrency firms, filing over 100 lawsuits against companies in the sector. Notable cases included actions against Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange, and Binance, the world’s biggest exchange by trading volume.
His enforcement strategy drew criticism from some lawmakers and crypto advocates. Representative Tom Emmer, a vocal critic of the SEC’s crypto policies, expressed relief at Grewal’s departure, accusing him of fostering “lawlessness and chaos” at the regulator. His sentiments were echoed by others in the cryptocurrency space.
Stablecoin market cap records twelfth consecutive monthly increase
This past week CCData unviled its latest Stablecoins & CBDCs report, which detailed that the total market capitalization of the stablecoin sector rose 1.5% to $172 billion last month, recording its twelfth consecutive monthly increase in the metric to reach its highest market cap since April 2022.
The stablecoin market’s dominance dropped from 8.04% in August to now stand at 7.55%, after registering its first decline in four months.
The report also details that the Federal Reserve’s recent interest rate cut, the first since March 2020, is set to lead to a loss of $625 million in annual interest income for the top five centralised stablecoins per 50bps rate cut, as they hold nearly $125 billion in US Treasury Bills.
Notably, this past week PayPal completed its first business payment using its PYUSD stablecoin, in an invoice sent to Ernst & Young LLP that was facilitated by SAP SE’s digital currency hub, a platform enabling instant, 24/7 digital payments. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed.
Francisco Memoria is a content creator at CryptoCompare who’s in love with technology and focuses on helping people see the value digital currencies have. His work has been published in numerous reputable industry publications. Francisco holds various cryptocurrencies.
