The Crypto Roundup: 10 June 2024

Latest price and news from the crypto space

Latest price from our hand picked list of digital assets

PayPal President and CEO Dan Schulman has revealed in the company’s Q2 earnings call that the firm is looking to expand its crypto buy and sell functionality to the United Kingdom as soon as next month.

Maryland-based firm ProShares has launched what it says is the first publicly available mutual fund tracking the price of the flagship cryptocurrency bitcoin. The Bitcoin Strategy ProFund invests in bitcoin futures.

Bitcoin’s hashrate has reached 115.27 EH/s this week, an 85% increase since the steep drop it suffered last month, after China’s crackdown on cryptocurrency mining saw its hashrate plunge to 58.84 EH/s.

Sponsored: Another exciting quarter has come and gone and despite the turmoil experienced in crypto markets after mid-May, the Invictus Capital suite of funds has continued to offer investors exceptional returns, with the Hyperion VC (IHF), Margin Lending (IML) and Crypto10 Hedged (C10) Funds all shooting the lights out.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

PayPal to Roll out Crypto Trading in the UK
New Bitcoin Mutual Fund Makes it Easier to Gain Exposure to BTC
Bitcoin’s Hashrate Recovers from China’s Mining Exodus
Coin of the Week: Quant (QNT)
Sponsored: Invictus Capital Q2 2021 Investment Report

PayPal to Roll out Crypto Trading in the UK

PayPal President and CEO Dan Schulman has revealed in the company’s Q2 earnings call the firm is looking to expand its crypto buy and sell functionality to the United Kingdom as soon as next month.

While the call contained no direct mention of Bitcoin, it mentioned cryptocurrency services offered via its Venmo app. Schulman said:

“We're also seeing strong adoption and trading of crypto on Venmo. In this quarter, we expanded the Venmo value proposition to allow merchants and consumers to pay for goods and services and receive buyer and seller protections for commerce transactions.”

The CEO also hinted that future updates allowing users to withdraw their BTC and move it outside of the PayPal ecosystem could come as part of its “super app” product, which would offer “high-yield savings, early access to direct deposit funds, new and improve bill pay functionality, messaging capabilities as well as additional crypto capabilities and customized deals and offers.”

Schulman also expressed interest in decentralized finance applications and in central bank digital currencies.

New Bitcoin Mutual Fund Makes it Easier to Gain Exposure to BTC

Before fees and expenses, the fund aims to track the price of bitcoin and allow investors to gain exposure to the cryptocurrency without having to manage any public or private keys. While companies such as PayPal, Robinhood, and Square have started letting users easily buy crypto, some may prefer a more familiar option, like a mutual fund.

The product has a 1.15% total expense ratio, but according to ProFunds’ CEO Michael Sapir offers advantages over direct exposure to BTC as investors don’t have to open a new account “with an unregulated party.”

Bitcoin’s Hashrate Recovers from China’s Mining Exodus

Bitcoin’s hashrate measures the computing power securing the network and hit an all-time high above 198 EH/s in mid-April. It fell after Chinese provinces issued shutdown orders against BTC mining operators, which were forced to relocate to the U.S. or Kazakhstan.

The hashrate increase will also lead to a mining difficulty increase to ensure blocks on the network are found at a stable rate every 10 minutes. Some experts now predict bitcoin’s hashrate and mining difficulty are headed toward a new all-time high thanks to next-generation mining machines from Bitmain and MicroBT being distributed to miners.

Coin of the week: Quant (QNT)

Quant (QNT) saw its price explode over 60% last week after being listed on Coinbase. The cryptocurrency benefitted from what’s known as the ‘Coinbase effect’, which occurs when cryptocurrencies pump after being listed on the exchange.

Coinbase is a major trading platform that is used by millions of retail investors around the world. Being listed on the platform could also mean that users will be paid just to learn about QNT in the future through the Coinbase Earn platform. Quant’s market cap surged to $5.1 billion this week and its 24-hour trading volume exploded along with its price.

What is Quant?

Quant is a cryptocurrency project that launched in June 2018 that aims to connect blockchains and networks on a global scale without sacrificing efficiency. It aims to allow applications to operate on multiple blockchains through the creation of the first blockchain operating system.

That operating system is called the Overledger Network and connects different blockchains using APIs. The operating system allows developers to build decentralized multi-chain applications (called MApps) for their users.

Invictus Capital Q2 2021 Investment Report

Another exciting quarter has come and gone and despite the turmoil experienced in crypto markets after mid-May, the Invictus Capital suite of funds has continued to offer investors exceptional returns, with the Hyperion VC (IHF), Margin Lending (IML) and Crypto10 Hedged (C10) Funds all shooting the lights out.

AUM is still ticking up, with an average of $145 million under management over June. Hyperion has continued to astound, and we are incredibly proud of the performance of the underlying portfolio that now firmly places the fund within the top tiers of global venture capital fund performance.

The company's funds offered commendable performance in a quarter marked by heightened volatility and extreme fear in the Bitcoin and broader cryptoasset market. The simple average return across our suite of seven funds was 9.85% for the quarter, which is equivalent to an annualized return of 45.61%.

We invite you to read the full Q2 2021 investment report which includes comprehensive macroeconomic and crypto market analysis, fund-specific commentary and detailed company updates.

Disclaimer:

Cryptocurrency trading involves high risk, and is not suitable for all investors. Before deciding to trade cryptocurrencies, tokens or any other digital asset you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite.

Its content does not constitute financial advice. Please remember that the value of investments, and any income from them, can fall as well as rise so you could get back less than you invest. If you are unsure of the suitability of your investment please seek advice.