5 Things to Know in Crypto Today – SEC Turns Over Hinman Docs to Ripple

Key Insights:

• US economic indicators reinforce bets of 75-basis point Fed rate hikes in November and December to further test investor appetite.
• The SEC v Ripple Case takes an unexpected turn, with the SEC turning over the Hinman speech-related docs.
• Cardano (ADA) faces the risk of a fall to sub-$0.320 as network updates disappoint.

US Economic Indicators Leave Crypto Market on the Back Foot

On Thursday, the crypto market fell by $4.3 billion (-0.49%) to end the day at $870.3 billion. Another choppy start to the day saw the crypto market slide to a low of $867.5 billion before rising to a post-US stat high of $884.5 billion.

However, the upswing was short-lived, with the latest US stats supporting 75-basis point Fed rate hikes in November and December.

In October, the Philly Fed Manufacturing Index rose from -9.9 to -8.7 versus a forecast of -5.0. While falling short of expectations, components of the Index were upbeat.

The New Orders Index rose from -17.6 to -15.9, with the Prices Paid Index up from 29.8 to 36.3. However, the employment numbers drew greater interest. The Philly Fed Employment Index jumped from 12.0 to 28.5.

Jobless claims also impressed, with a fall from 226k to 214k in the week ending October 14.

For the Fed, the labor market numbers provide further reason to front load rate hikes. The markets responded, with the probability of a December rate hike rising to 77.4 this week. According to the FedWatch Tool, the likelihood of a December rate hike had stood at 69.8% one week earlier and just 0.7% one month ago.

The NASDAQ 100 fell by 0.61%, the downside limited by upbeat corporate earnings results. Things were not much better this morning, with the NASDAQ Mini down 72.55 points.

The SEC Turns Over the Hinman Speech-Related Documents

On Thursday, the SEC unexpectedly turned over the Hinman speech-related documents after having withheld them despite numerous Court orders. The SEC v Ripple case has been ongoing since December 2020, and William Hinman has become a central figure in the case.

In a famous 2018 speech, Division of Corporation Finance, William Hinman, said that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are not securities.

Ripple lawyer Stuart Alderoty said,

“Over 18 months and 6 court orders later, we finally have the Hinman docs (internal SEC emails and drafts of his famous 2018 speech). While they remain confidential for now (at the SEC’s insistence), I can say that it was well worth the fight to get them.”

Alderoty added,

“I’ve always felt good about our legal arguments, and I feel even better now. I’ve always felt bad about the SEC’s tactics, and I feel even worse about them now.”

Brad Garlinghouse also took to Twitter, saying,

“The SEC wants you to think that it cares about disclosure, transparency, and clarity. Don’t believe them. When the truth eventually comes out, the shamefulness of their behaviour here will shock you.”

However, XRP failed to reverse losses from the session, with investors likely waiting for the defense team to reveal the contents of the documents.

This morning, XRP was up 0.39% to $0.44830, partially reversing a 1.03% loss from Thursday.

Cardano (ADA) Faces the Prospect of a Fourth Daily Loss and Sub-$0.320

On Thursday, ADA fell by 2.86% to end the day at $0.340. Yet another bearish saw ADA fall to a 2022 low of $0.337 before steadying. Investor sentiment has failed to improve this morning. ADA is down 0.59% to $0.338. Notably, ADA fell to a new current-year low of $0.334 before finding support.

Since the September 22 Vasil hard fork, Cardano network project numbers have disappointed, leading to a sharp ADA price reversal.

Since September 23, ADA has fallen in 20 of the 27 sessions. The 20 bearish sessions left ADA down 26.4%, leaving ADA down 74% year-to-date.

In contrast, the crypto market is down 3.82% from September 23 to date and down by 60.3%, year-to-date. The divergence is most evident since the Vasil hard fork.

A sharp influx of projects would likely deliver a bearish trend reversal. Input Output HK will release the latest weekly development report later today.

The SEC Is Not Alone in Crypto Enforcement with the CFTC more Active

In the fiscal year ending September 2022, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission carried out 18 enforcement actions in the digital asset space, up 20% YoY.

The CFTC filed 82 enforcement actions in total and obtained orders imposing over $2.5 billion in restitution and civil monetary penalties through settlement or litigation.

Chairman Rostin Behnam said,

“This FY 2022 enforcement report shows the CFTC continues to aggressively policy new digital commodity asset markets with all of its available tools.”

Web3 Activity Ever Present Despite the Prolonged Crypto Winter

Overnight, Warner Brothers announced a new Web 3 Movie Experience, launching the Lord Of the Rings Epic Edition.