CoinLoan Weekly: Macro fears, Ripple’s jump, 10,000 comments on digital euro

Price dynamics

BTC price

Bitcoin started the week by dipping below $39,500. It then gained over $2,000, peaking out at $41,522.57 on Thursday, April 14. Subsequently, BTC teetered between $40,000 and $40,622 until Monday, April 18, when it slumped to its 7-day low ($38,779.59).

The Fear & Greed Index plunged to 24 for the first time since mid-March as extreme fear took over. This deterioration is associated with the downturn in other markets in Asia and the US. Bulls are struggling to uphold the $40,000 level while the selling pressure is rising.

As of now, BTC is trading at $39,934.75, with a 24-hour slip of -0.8% and a 7-day loss of -5.7%.

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ETH price

Like Bitcoin, Ethereum reached a peak on Thursday, April 14 ($3,146.96), and bottomed out on Monday, April 18 ($2,898.12). Between these extremes, ETH stayed in a slim range with prices barely rising over $3,070.

Over the week, ETH lost more than BTC. Its recovery from the latest plunge has just begun.

As of this writing, ETH is trading at $2,955.57, with a 24-hour loss of -3.4% and a 7-day fall of -8.2%.

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XRP price

Last week, Ripple diverged from the biggest cryptoassets. While it saw an uptick on Thursday, April 14, it then briefly dropped and surged to nearly $0.79. The price peaked out on Saturday, April 16 ($0.799260), and the ensuing fall was relatively modest.

XRP’s jump on Friday, April 15, followed positive news regarding the SEC’s ongoing lawsuit. The day before, Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse told CNBC, “The lawsuit has gone exceedingly well’ after the SEC was forbidden to alter emails due to be released as part of the case.”

As of now, XRP is trading at $0.753343, with a 24-hour change of -2.5% and a 7-day dip of -0.4%.

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Cryptocurrency news

SHIB and DOGE crash as macro fears trigger market fall

The early hours of Monday, April 18, brought a sweeping market downturn. BTC dropped by almost 4%, falling below pivotal support to $38,779.59. DOGE and SHIB lost roughly 7%, while SOL and ADA fell by 6.6% each. BCH slid by over 10%.

DOGE’s crash came in stark contrast to its jump last week. The uplifting effect of Elon Musk’s intention to buy Twitter proved fleeting. The reversal made the meme coin the biggest loser in the top 20 as it fell from roughly $0.14 to just over $0.13.

Apparently, the slump in global markets is to blame. Bitcoin has been falling since it reacted to stock market performance two weeks ago.

On April 18, concerns over looming policy tightening caused Asian markets and US indices like NASDAQ and S&P 500 to slide lower. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. warned of a 35% chance of a recession in the US in the next two years. According to its note, the Fed could struggle to achieve a soft landing —  that is, cool inflation through monetary policy tightening.

Traditionally, April has been a bullish month for Bitcoin, which may have been a psychological phenomenon. Falling macroeconomic sentiment has affected its price targets since 2021 — it is still 43% down from the highest high of $69,000 in November 2021.

European commission gets over 10,000 comments on the digital euro

Since April 5, The European Commission has received over 10,000 public comments regarding the digital euro. According to the regulator’s website, this public consultation will last through June 14. The feedback will be used to hone the initiative concerning the creation and regulation of the CBDC (central bank digital currency).

The commission is particularly interested in input from industry specialists, suppliers of payment services and infrastructure, developers, merchants, consumer associations, payment supervisors, and other experts. According to the Call for Evidence, their feedback will be analyzed to prepare a legislative proposal. The consultation stage covers multiple aspects, including

• Users’ needs and expectations with regard to the digital euro
• The role of the CBDC in retail payments and the EU’s digital economy
• Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT)
• Confidentiality and data protection
• Specific aspects of international payments

The CBDC initiative emerged in late 2019. In 2020, the European Central Bank published a comprehensive report on the subject. In 2021, its president Christiane Legarde stated that the EU could launch the digital euro within four years.

According to Mairead McGuinness, European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union, The EU is due to consider the Commission’s CBDC legislation proposal in early 2023.