5 Things to Know in Crypto Today – CPI Report Anxiety Hits the Market

Key Insights:

• This morning, the crypto market sits in the deep red as investor jitters resurfaced ahead of today’s US CPI report.
• Despite recent losses in the case against Ripple, the SEC continues to target digital assets.
• Huobi Token (HT) has nearly doubled in price on Justin Sun news.

Crypto Market Slides to Sub-$870 billion as US CPI Report Looms

On Wednesday, the crypto market rose by $3.8 billion to $885.1 billion. It was just the second increase in eight sessions.

On October 5, the ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI and ADP nonfarm employment change figures shifted sentiment toward the November Fed policy decision. On October 7, the US jobs report added fuel to the investor jitters that have gripped the markets since the August inflation report back on September 13.

Fed Chair Powell set the tone at the Jackson Hole Symposium on August 22, and the market has struggled since the August CPI report.

Today, the September CPI report will draw plenty of interest. Steady or higher inflation numbers could cement a 75-basis point rate hike in November and in December. Labor market conditions are ripe for the Fed to front-load rate hikes, with the US unemployment rate sitting at just 3.5%.

It is, therefore, unsurprising that the crypto market is down $13.2 billion to $871.9 billion, up from a morning low of $866.0 billion. The August CPI report sent the crypto market cap tumbling $78.9 billion. A similar loss today could see BTC back at sub-$18,000 for the first time since June 22. However, a US annual inflation rate below 8% could drive BTC back to $20,000.

Bored APE NFTs Come Under the Scrutiny of the SEC

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has continued targeting digital assets despite its ongoing battle in the SEC v Ripple case.

On Tuesday, news hit the wires of the SEC investigating Yugo Labs, the platform behind Bored Ape Yacht Club. According to a Bloomberg report, the SEC is exploring whether NFTs are similar to stocks and therefore fall under the watchful eye of Gary Gensler and the team.

XRP investors will be familiar with the story and the price impact of an SEC probe. In response to the news, apecoin (APE) slid by 8.58% on Tuesday and is currently down 7.37% through this morning’s session.

I-Remit Comes to Ripple’s Aid with an Amicus Brief Filing

On Wednesday, I-Remit formally filed its Amicus Brief in support of the Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. The filing attempts to show that XRP is not a security by highlighting the uses of XRP and exploring the SEC’s Howey test defense.

I-Remit made an interesting point relating to the Howe test, saying,

“Even assuming that the SEC could establish the first two Howey factors – that there has been an investment of money into a common enterprise – it cannot establish the third. As I-Remit’s usage of XRP reveals, XRP (1) is not used with any expectation of profit and (2) is not used because of reliance upon Ripple’s purported efforts to enhance XRP’s value.”

However, despite the filing, XRP is under water this morning, with market jitters ahead of today’s US CPI report weighing on XRP and the broader crypto market. XRP is down 6.60% to $0.45613.

Huobi Token (HT) Outperforms the Broader Crypto Market

This morning, huobi token (HT) is down by 0.24% to $7.1655. Compared with the crypto top 100, the loss is modest, with HT continuing to find support from the news of Justin Sun becoming a member of the exchange’s revamped advisory committee.

While down for the session, HT has soared by a whopping 72% this week.

Mango Markets Investors Lose Over $100 million in DeFi Scam

Cybercriminals nab $100 million in an MNGO token price manipulation scam. Last week, Binance was the victim of a $570 million hack. A sharp rise in hacks will likely increase regulatory scrutiny in the interest of protecting investors.

This morning, MNGO was down 13.98%. On Tuesday, MNGO tumbled by 54.09% on the news.