Regulators, China and Ruja Ignatova

Crypto news: We bring you a round up of what’s been happening in crypto this week. The U.S. makes life even more difficult for crypto firms, while attention turns (almost implausibly) to China for good news. And can we expect any positive news on the Ripple vs. SEC case any time soon? Don’t hold your breath.

As U.S. regulators turn the screws on Web3 business, the question turns to where the money and talent will head to next. Hong Kong has been making overtures to establishing itself as a regional crypto hub in a move some are interpreting as tacit consent from the Chinese government. But competition will be tough with Singapore and South Korea also vying for business.

China on the March

On Tuesday, a sudden surge of liquidity from the People’s Bank of China stoking massive price increases for Neo, Conflux and Flamingo. After the economy reopened from COVID-19 restrictions, loan demands created a liquidity shortage. Hence, the PBOC had to inject the amount to ease the liquidity tensions in the economy. As the property sector is struggling and the exports have weakened, analysts expect more aggressive easing moves from the central bank.

The crypto community, however, sees the move as fueling the next bull run.

Crypto – Socially Speaking

A Ripple of Change?

With attention on U.S. regulations, the outcome of the long-running case between Ripple and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may well prove to be a watershed moment for the agency’s enforcement regime. 

If Ripple wins the case, which CEO Brad Garlinghouse expects to conclude by summer, it could change the way the SEC regulates by enforcement. 

Fintech analyst with Moor Insights and Strategy, Melody Brue, echoed a common complaint that there is no clarity or guidance from the SEC. “Gensler is making up rules as he goes in regards to crypto. [That’s why] one of the more significant things that will come out of (the Ripple) decision will be precedent,” he said.

This Week in NFT Sales

Sales were up nearly 160% in the past week, driven higher by rewards from the up-and-coming Blur marketplace. Total sales hit $772 million, up from $299 million the week prior.

The (Crypto) Queen is Dead – Long Live the (Crypto) Queen

Nature abhors a vacuum, so the saying goes. And news abhors a vacuum even more. Ruja Ignatova is no stranger to The Week in Crypto, so we couldn’t let another lurid story of the OneCoin scammer’s whereabouts go unreported.

Keen readers will recall the last stories about the “Cryptoqueen,” which variously describe her as living in a $13 million penthouse apartment in London and undergoing a sex-change operation, Well, now it appears she (or he) may have been killed on a yacht in Greece. The Bureau for Investigative Reporting and Data claims to have seen documents which says she was killed and her body tossed into the sea.

Some media outlets claim that while there is possible evidence, there is no conclusive proof. They state that it is unlikely that the FBI would put dead individuals on the most wanted list. At the moment, it does appear that the rumors are just that – rumors.

Crypto Coin News – Stacking Stacks

It was a bumper week for the crypto market with Stacks (STX) booking a one-way ticket to the moon. The Bitcoin Ordinal inscription craze is behind the massive pump. In second place, Conflux (CFX) price nearly doubled – increasing by 91.06%.

Even the losers could hardly be described as losers. Better to call them underperformers. And they were Loopring (LRC), down by 13.62%, Render Token (RNDR) fell 12.13%, and dYdX (DYDX) dropped 11.89%

Kusama (KSM) Posts Biggest Candlestick in Years

BeInCrypto senior analyst Valdrin Tahiri chooses Kusama (KSM) as his coin of the week. He thinks if the price breaks above a key level, it could hit a potential target of $120.

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