Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin
BTCUSD,
and ether
ETHUSD,
have exploded in popularity in recent years, and are now traded by both individual investors and large companies like Tesla
TSLA,
and Citibank.
The total market cap for all crypto nearly hit $3 trillion during parts of 2021 and companies like Robinhood
HOOD,
Coinbase
COIN,
and Crypto.com capitalized on higher volume of crypto trading. Since then, a crypto winter has taken shape and the total global crypto market cap moved below $1 trillion in June 2022, according to CoinMarketCap.
As the interest in crypto continues to rise, so, of course, does the interest in crypto prices.
Here’s how crypto prices changed in June 2022:
Bitcoin
Prices for bitcoin dropped 34.76% lower during June, continuing a soft 2022 for the crypto.
“Thanks to the rebound in U.S. stock markets and the fall in U.S. yields, Bitcoin looks to have traced out a low of around $18,000 for now,” Jeffrey Halley, an analyst at broker Oanda, told Barron’s on June 27. “From a technical perspective, a rise above $22,000 looks possible, extending onward to $24,000.”
“In the medium-term, Bitcoin remains in the danger zone, and only a rise above $28,000 negates,” he continued.
See also: Michael Burry of ‘The Big Short’ fame thinks the market selloff may be ‘halfway there’
One report indicated that the recent drop in bitcoin prices could force crypto miners to sell some of their digital assets to fund the mining operations.
MicroStrategy
MSTR,
CEO and bitcoin bull Michael Saylor said in a June 15 interview that the recent dip in bitcoin prices was “absolutely” a buying opportunity.
Bitcoin is down 41.6% over the past 12 months.
Ethereum
Prices for ether decreased 40.27% during the month of June, continuing a downward trend for the crypto in 2022.
Ethereum’s “Merge,” a major upgrade to its blockchain, will take place this year, Vitalik Buterin, ethereum’s co-founder, said. Further details about the “Merge” can be found here.
See also: California is sending ‘inflation relief’ checks up to $1,050 — here’s who qualifies
Meta’s
META,
Facebook began testing ethereum and polygon NFTs on its platform, according to Decrypt. Meta Product Manager Navdeep Singh detailed the news in a tweet.
Ether is down 49.73% over the past 12 months.
Other cryptocurrency news
Crypto lender Celsius was scheduled to hold an Ask Me Anything session with its chief executive, Alex Mashinsky, in June, but the company abruptly canceled the event just minutes before it was set to begin. Celsius paused withdrawals, swaps and transfers for account holders in June.
Fellow crypto exchange CoinFlex says it won’t lift its withdrawal freeze yet, despite “significant progress,” CEO Mark Lamb told MarketWatch.
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, said at a June conference that the worst of the crypto crash “is probably over.”
FTX is reportedly closing in on a deal to acquire crypto lender BlockFi for $25 million, or roughly a 99% discount to BlockFi’s most recent private-market valuation.
See also: Sports betting stocks — How companies like DraftKings, Caesars performed in June
Recent crypto market conditions have not only led to a dramatic decrease in crypto prices, but also impending layoffs at crypto exchanges. Crypto exchange Coinbase
COIN,
laid off 18% of its employees, BlockFi says it plans to lay off 20% of its employees and Gemini plans to lay off 10% of its employees.
One investor in meme crypto dogecoin
DOGEUSD,
is suing Elon Musk along with Tesla Inc. and SpaceX for $258 billion. The investor is accusing Musk and the companies of organizing a “pyramid scheme” to inflate the price of the cryptocurrency.
“It has no value at all,” the lawsuit states. “It’s simply a fraud.”
