What the G20 summit said about crypto
Many of the world’s largest economies discussed crypto policy at this year’s G20 summit in New Delhi, India. [Bet_Noire via Getty Images]
There’s never a dull moment on the blockchain. Here’s what you need to know this week:
BTC sank to a three-month low before bouncing back. How inflation and other economic forces are impacting crypto markets.
Crypto was a hot topic at this year’s G20 summit. Leaders of the world’s largest economies talked crypto at their annual meeting.
This week in numbers. The year’s buzziest crypto app sees new signs of life, France quizzes its crypto influencers, and more.
MARKET UPDATE
Crypto prices dip again as traders wait for inflation numbers
All ten of the biggest non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies were down again earlier this week, with BTC briefly hitting a three-month low below $25,000 on Monday before climbing back above $26,500 on Tuesday. Market watchers are paying attention to several key events that could have further impact on prices.
Here’s what you need to know.
Two key economic indicators will be announced on Wednesday and Thursday of this week: the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures the prices Americans pay for a wide range of goods and services, and the Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures the change in the prices paid to producers of goods and services.
The CPI and PPI are considered good proxies for inflation, which the Federal Reserve has been fighting by raising interest rates to their highest level in decades. According to a new Morningstar report, the data will likely show that inflation is slowing fast enough for the Fed to leave rates where they are. But if the data shows inflation rising or falling more slowly than anticipated, rates could continue to tick up, which could pressure crypto markets.
A wide range of altcoins, including Arbitrum, Polygon, and Aptos have seen steep drops this week. XRP — which spiked earlier this summer after issuer Ripple’s legal victory over the Securities and Exchange Commission — fell nearly 5% overnight on Sunday as the SEC prepares to appeal the decision.
At least some of the bearish altcoin sentiment came in response to FTX’s plans to liquidate around $3.3 billion in crypto assets. According to a court filing, the firm holds nearly $1.2 billion in Solana (SOL). Many analysts pointed out that FTX’s bankruptcy process isn’t likely to cause market shocks. As Messari noted, the firm’s SOL holdings are “largely comprised of vesting tokens that are not immediately liquid in open markets.”
BTC’s Tuesday rebound may have been the result of a “short squeeze” according to CoinDesk: “a rally powered by an unwinding of bearish derivative bets.”
The bottom line… Despite the flurry of news this week, there might not be that much to see here. Market sentiment seems to reflect that dynamic: After crypto’s broader market cap slid about 3% on Monday, it rebounded by almost the same amount on Tuesday.
DIGITAL DIPLOMACY
Global leaders talk crypto policy at the G20 summit
Crypto was a major topic at the G20 summit, which gathered the leaders of many of the world’s biggest economies in New Delhi, India last weekend. The summit, which was hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (and attended by leaders including President Biden), issued a joint declaration that included a section on crypto policy — an indicator that governments around the world see the growing need for clarity in crypto regulation. Here’s what you need to know.
What is the G20?
The Group of 20 is a consortium of many of the world’s largest economies, consisting of 19 countries and the European Union. Members — including the U.S., China, Russia, India, and South Africa — meet annually in an attempt to coordinate policy around issues that impact the global economy. Key issues up for discussion this year included the war in Ukraine, global climate policy, and crypto regulation.
Why was crypto on this year’s agenda?
There’s growing international consensus on the need for regulatory clarity in crypto. According to a recent Coinbase report, “83% of G20 members and major financial hubs have made progress toward regulatory clarity for crypto.”
The host country sets the agenda, and since last year, major Indian political figures have been signaling their intention to make crypto a key topic, with the country’s finance minister saying that "no one single country can succeed in individually, being in a silo, trying to regulate the crypto assets.” In the runup to this year’s meeting, India also requested that the International Monetary Fund and Financial Stability Board detail a roadmap toward a global crypto regulatory framework and policy recommendations.
Which crypto topics were discussed at the G20?
Participating countries agreed to work toward implementing the IMF-FSB policy roadmap — although the plan is short on specifics. Instead, it provides broad recommendations: that countries shouldn’t implement outright bans of crypto, that they should institute sound monetary policies to ensure that citizens don’t begin to prefer crypto over fiat currencies in the long run, and that central banks shouldn’t hold crypto. Because G20 resolutions are non-binding, actual regulations will come from each member’s domestic legislative process.
What happens next?
As India’s G20 presidency winds down, all eyes are turning toward Brazil, which will assume the presidency in December, and which is expected to have a more progressive approach to crypto as a global leader in crypto regulation. Latin America’s largest economy already boasts a domestic crypto framework, has multiple spot crypto ETFs trading on markets, and allows for tax payments in cryptocurrency.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
$31.7 million
Value of energy credits earned by crypto mining firm Riot Platforms for lowering the power consumption of its BTC mines in Texas during a record heat wave this month.
$22.8 million
Total value locked into the buzzy decentralized social protocol Friend.tech, weeks after many observers described it as “dead” following a sharp drop in user activity. As of Monday Friend.tech ranked third across all DeFi apps in earned fees and revenue.
25
Number of questions on a new exam that French crypto and finance “influencers” have to take as part of a certification process aimed at protecting investors. Influencers must score 75% to pass.
AROUND COINBASE
A competition for web3 ideas, ETH staking gets easier, and what’s next for crypto?
Coinbase CEO Brain Armstrong spoke to Yahoo Finance at Goldman Sachs’ Communacopia + Technology conference in San Francisco last week in a wide-ranging discussion about regulatory developments, bitcoin ETF applications, and why he is confident that crypto “could become a hot topic in the presidential race in 2024.” (Watch the interview.)
Think you have an idea for the next great decentralized application or crypto protocol? Complete our new product challenge and submit your web3 idea for a chance to win up to $2,000 in ETH, a Finisher NFT, and more.
Partial ETH staking is here. Together with Kiln, Coinbase is launching a partial ETH staking solution, allowing users to stake any amount of ETH natively and participate directly on the blockchain. The new offering will be accessible on Coinbase Wallet in coming weeks.
TOKEN TRIVIA
What is proof of work?
A
The way miners secure and scale Bitcoin’s blockchain
B
A way to verify transactions on a blockchain
C
The predecessor to proof of stake
D
All of the above
Find the answer below.
Trivia Answer
D
All of the above
