5 Things to Know in Crypto Today – Crypto Market Struggles on Fed Bets

Key Insights:

• US economic indicators fuel bets of 75-basis point Fed rate hikes in November and December to leave the crypto market in negative territory.
• Huobi Token (HT) continues leading the top 100 for the week, while XRP finds support from SEC v Ripple case updates.
• NFTs enjoy airtime, with FIFA and Sir Anthony Hopkins in the mix.

Crypto Market Sees Red in Response to US Economic Indicators

On Friday, the crypto market fell by $4.4 billion (-0.49%) to end the day at $882.7 billion. A bullish morning session was short-lived. US economic indicators sent the NASDAQ 100 and the crypto market deep into the red.

In September, retail sales held steady despite the sharp rise in interest rates, persistent inflation, and economic uncertainty. Consumer sentiment also defied gravity.

The Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index increased from 58.6 to 59.8 in October, while the Expectations Index slipped from 58.0 to 56.2. Notably, long-run inflation expectations returned to 2.9% after falling below the 2.9% – 3.1% range in September for the first time since July 2021.

The indicators led the markets to lock in a 75-basis point Fed rate hike in November and raise the prospects of a 75-basis point hike in December.

The probabilities of 75 basis point Fed rate hikes in November and December stand at 99.4% and 66.7%, respectively. One week earlier, the chances of 75-basis point hikes were 81.1% and 23.4%, respectively.

While the crypto market loss was modest, the NASDAQ 100 tumbled by 3.08%.

The crypto market demise from $1 trillion came in response to a sequence of events that kick-started with Fed chatter. On August 19, unexpected hawkish Fed chatter wiped $100 billion from the market, with the Fed Chair Powell Jackson Hole speech sending the market down by another $68 billion.

The US CPI report for August followed, wiping another $79 billion from the market to set the stage for the hawkish end of the year.

Huobi Token (HT) Continued to Climb Despite Bearish Crypto Sentiment

This morning, huobi token (HT) is down by 2.25% to $7.4790. While the early loss is heavy compared with the crypto top 100, HT continues to find support from the news of Justin Sun becoming a member of the revamped advisory committee.

While down for the session, HT has soared by an impressive 83.54% this week. From the October 2 low of $3.7865, HT surged by 117% to an October 14 high of $8.2060.

XRP Down for the Week but Eyes a Return to a September High of $0.5587

Monday through Friday, XRP fell by 8.11% to $0.48887. A 7.22% tumble on Monday left XRP struggling at sub-$0.50.

However, despite the current loss, XRP has formed an uptrend from an early September low of $0.31255. Updates from the ongoing SEC v Ripple case point to a favorable outcome for the defendants, XRP holders, and the broader crypto market.

This week, I-Remit and TapJets filed Amicus Briefs to support the Defendants. Both filings provided details of how XRP fails at least one prong of the Howey Test.

While the amicus briefs are XRP positive, the other focal point remains the William Hinman speech-related documents. In a famous 2018 speech, Division of Corporation Finance, William Hinman, said that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are not securities.

The SEC still has not responded to the Court overruling the SEC objection to the Court denying the SEC motion to protect the William Hinman speech-related documents under the attorney-client privilege. Investors continue to view the Hinman speech-related documents as the key to the case.

For the SEC and William Hinman, Hinman is also part of a second lawsuit filed by Empower Oversight.

In late 2021, Empower Oversight, a non-profit government watchdog, filed a lawsuit against the SEC, alleging that former officials were biased against Ripple Lab and XRP. Empower Oversight claims that Hinman received millions of dollars from his former employee (Simson Thacher). After leaving the SEC, Hinman returned to Simson Thacher.

By way of background, Simpson Thacher is part of a group that promotes Enterprise Ethereum. The Empower Oversight case against the SEC is also ongoing.

Both cases could prove detrimental to the SEC and Gary Gensler’s hopes of winning the right to regulate the digital asset space.

This morning, XRP was down 0.43% to $0.4865.

NFTs Enjoy Some Crypto Airtime Thanks to Anthony Hopkins

This week, Sir Anthony Hopkins, known for his starring role in the Silence of the Lambs, hit the crypto news wires.

Titled “The Eternal Collection,” Sir Anthony Hopkins sold his first-ever NFT art collection in an impressive seven minutes. Sir Anthony Hopkins collaborated with Orange Comet, a Web3 entertainment and technology company, to bring art to digital space.

FIFA Embraces the Digital World with new Budweiser NFT Gig

With the start of the FIFA World Cub 2022 rapidly approaching, Budweiser became the latest Web3 collaborator with FIFA.

On Friday, Budweiser announced the release of the first-ever Budverse x FIFA World Cup digital collectibles.

Via nft.budweiser.com, fans can select and represent their teams through their own Budverse x FIFA World Cup Live Scoreboard NFT.

The Live Scoreboard NFT also gives fans,

• Entry for a chance to win a VIP 360 Experience, including Finals match tickets.
• Exclusive Budweiser Football merch kit.
• Access to holders-only Discord channel for an always-on-game time community.
• The Budverse Penalty Kick Mini Game.