Five Things to Know in Crypto This Week – Republicans Back Innovation

Key Insights:

• Crypto investors respond to the passing of the US Debt Limit Suspension Bill and mixed signals from the global economic calendar.
• US Republican lawmakers release a Digital Asset Market Structure Draft Bill for discussion.
• The XRP Community waits patiently for the release of the infamous William Hinman speech-related documents.

Crypto Market Recovers from Week Lows on Debt Limit Suspension Bill

This week, the crypto market cap is down 1.66% ($18.69 billion) to $1,108 billion.

It has been a choppy week, with the market cap rising to a Monday high of $1,140 billion before falling to a Thursday low of $1,082 billion.

Investors responded throughout the week to debt ceiling-related news updates from Washington. The threat of a US default weighed on the crypto market. However, the House of Representatives and the Senate passed the Debt Limit Suspension Bill on Wednesday and Thursday to avoid a Monday default.

Economic indicators from China and the US contributed to the choppy session. NBS private sector PMI numbers from China tested buyer appetite on Wednesday. However, the all-important Caixin Manufacturing PMI provided modest relief.

The US Jobs Report and the passing of the Debt Limit Suspension Bill supported a market recovery on Friday. The latest Jobs Report backed market bets on a Fed pause in June.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, the probability of a June interest rate hike rose from 20.4% to 25.3%. One week earlier, the chance of a 25-basis point hike stood at 64.2%.

AliExpress Announces FLOKI Payments

On Wednesday, shopping.io announced that retailers could purchase products on AliExpress using FLOKI through shopping.io, saying,

“Experience the power of FLOKI & pay for your favorite items! What’s even better? Enjoy an additional 10% ShopBack on every purchase you make.”

Under the Alibaba (BABA) banner, AliExpress reportedly garnered an impressive 2.7 billion visitors. Significantly, visitors never dropped below 390 million visitors each month during the period stated.

However, the news failed to deliver a FLOKI breakout, with FLOKI down 8.41% for the current week.

US Lawmakers Release the Digital Asset Market Structure Proposal

US Republican lawmakers released the Digital Asset Market Structure Proposal on Friday.

The discussion draft provides a legal framework for digital asset regulation. Notably, the bill aims to provide regulatory clarity, remove gaps, and fuel innovation.

Chairman of the Financial Services Committee Patrick McHenry had this to say,

“This discussion draft is the first step toward delivering on Republicans’ commitment to develop clear rules of the road for the digital asset ecosystem.”

Chairman of the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Inclusion, French Hill said,

“Legislation from Congress is needed to protect US consumers and investors, as well as preserve America’s role as a global leader in finance, technology, and innovation.”

With the SEC and CFTC battling it out for responsibility of the digital asset space, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development, Dusty Johnson said,

“There is a lot of confusion surrounding digital assets. Our bill establishes a functional framework to fill the caps in the regulatory process between the CFTC and the SEC.”

The draft bill comes ahead of the anticipated release of the infamous William Hinman speech-related documents (June 13). The speech-related docs could influence the outcome of the SEC case against Ripple.

Memecoin Investors Hit Elon Musk Hit With Another Lawsuit

Elon Musk hit the news wires for the wrong reasons on Wednesday. Memcoin investors filed a lawsuit with the US District Court Southern District of New York. The investors allege market manipulation to drive up the price of DOGE.

According to a Court filing with the US District Court Southern District of New York,

“This is a securities fraud class action arising from a deliberate course of carnival barking market manipulation and insider trading by the world’s richest man Elon Musk, who hijacked an emergent pop-culture phenomenon to cross-promote himself and his companies and to pad his obscene fortune, preying on the earnest hopes of vulnerable Americans, including war veteran, blue-collar workers, and the elderly.”

Causes of action include securities and common law fraud against Elon Musk. Additional causes of action, including insider trading and unjust enrichment are against Elon Musk and Tesla Inc. (TSLA).

In June 2022, investors filed a $258 billion lawsuit against Elon Musk, Tesla Inc., and SpaceX for promoting DOGE.

NFT Thefts Hit $2.9 Million in May

The crypto winter has taken a toll on the NFT market, with Ethereum monthly trading volumes well below the record levels hit in early 2022.

According to Dune Analytics, Ethereum trading volumes fell from $285.31 million in April to just $183.40 million in May. Ethereum NFT trading volumes hit a record high of $4,870.27 million in January 2022.

Negative press contributed to the sharp decline in trading volumes, with wash trading and thefts frequenting the headlines throughout 2022 and early 2023.

Market conditions were no better in May 2023, with NFT thefts reportedly reaching $2.95 million.

According to PeckShieldAlert, NFT thefts were down 8.7% compared with April. In February, NFT thefts totaled $16.2 million. While the downward trend is positive for the market, trading volumes have collapsed, likely contributing to the monthly decline since the 2023 peak.