Stably Weekly Newsletter – 01/29/2024

STABLY WEEKLY NEWSLETTER – 01/29/2024

Announcements & Product Updates

• 100+ New Asset Listings Coming Soon: We have successfully integrated LI.FI which now enables Stably Ramp to source on-chain liquidity for any digital asset with an existing liquidity pool across 20+ blockchains. In the coming days, we will be listing 100+ new assets on Stably Ramp for buying, selling, and swapping, including popular assets like ETH, AVAX, DOGE, and stablecoins like DAI, FRAX, and crvUSD as well as native USDC and USDT on most major networks. Click here to view a full list of our upcoming supported assets and networks.

• Horizen EON ZEN is now available: We have successfully integrated SpookySwap which enables us to list ZEN on the Horizen EON network. Stably Ramp users can now easily buy ZEN with cards (Visa, Mastercard), sell ZEN to receive a USD bank transfer, or swap ZEN with digital assets on other networks.

• Free Asset Listing for Stably Ramp Integrators: We are thrilled to begin offering a zero-fee listing program to any third-party project interested in listing its assets on Stably Ramp. In exchange, the project can integrate the Stably Ramp iFrame widget, enabling its users to onboard from 170+ countries/regions and buy, sell, or swap these assets with stablecoins and traditional payment methods. Interested projects only need to apply. We will list the requested asset within 30 days if (1) we can source on-chain liquidity for it, (2) the project completes integrating Stably Ramp, and (3) the project passes our internal compliance review process.

• 4 New Networks Coming Soon: Stably Ramp currently supports assets on 14 networks, including Arbitrum, Avalanche, Binance Smart Chain, Coreum, Ethereum, Fantom, Horizen EON, Optimism, Polygon, Polymesh, Solana, Stellar, STRATO Mercata, Viction. More networks will also be added over time, including Bitcoin, Base, Linea, Polygon zkEVM, and zkSync Era in Q1.

Market & Industry Highlights

• 01/23 (The Block) – 9 new spot Bitcoin ETFs amass over 100,000 BTC in seven days of trading
• 01/24 (Coinpaprika) – US Senator defends crypto against criticisms from Senator Warren
  
• 01/25 (Decrypt) – Rollups are coming to Bitcoin through “superlayer” protocol BitcoinOS
• 01/28 (Coinpaprika) – FTX becomes major Bitcoin shorter amid customer fund recovery efforts
• 01/29 (Bitcoin Magazine) – BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF volume topping GBTC, signaling market shift

• Market Commentary by QCP Capital: Bitcoin’s price briefly dipped below $39,000 last week due to large daily outflows from GBTC and the confirmation of Bitcoin addresses for Mt.Gox creditor repayments (~150,000+ BTC). Since then, however, Bitcoin’s price has recovered to more than $43,000 as of today (-11% from the YTD all-time high of $48,600 on the same day Bitcoin spot ETFs were approved). While the recent approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs has led to initial success in the US, the approval of an Ethereum spot ETF in 2024 remains uncertain. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been delaying decisions on applications by major firms like BlackRock and Fidelity. If the SEC continues this trend, it could indicate a potential approval around May, similar to the Bitcoin ETF approvals. However, if they extend the delay to June, it might suggest that an approval this year is unlikely.
  
  The FOMC meeting and the US Treasury’s Quarterly Refunding Announcement will be important events to watch this week. If the US Treasury decides to issue more short-term debt, it could potentially be bullish for risk assets and the crypto market. With lower interest rate expectations, there’s heightened optimism in the market that could point to a potential continuation of the 2023 rally. However, any surprise increase in long-term issuances could potentially lead to a rise in bond yields and a sharp sell-off in equities and, in turn, crypto.

7-day crypto price performance heatmap.

• Junk Bonds Signal: In times of market stress, bond ETFs have consistently provided price discovery and the ability for investors to express their differing investment views in real time. Historically, when junk bond ETFs were above their 200-day moving average, it indicated a risk-on investor sentiment typically bullish for risk assets. Conversely, being below this average may suggest bearishness. For more information, please refer to this hypothetical backtest for trading Bitcoin based on 200-day moving average signals from the JNK ETF.
  
  As of today, JNK is 5.70 points above its 200-day moving average (vs. an all-time average of 1.20 points). This could be interpreted as a very bullish signal for both equities and crypto in the short term.

Top pane: JNK with a 200-day simple moving average. Center pane: S&P 500. Bottom pane: BTC.

• Alt Season Index: The 12-Month Alt Season Index is an indicator that measures the relative price performance of altcoins vs. Bitcoin in the previous 12 months. When the Index rises above 50, it signifies altcoins outperforming Bitcoin which is typically associated with major crypto market rallies (for example, during the 2021 bull market and DeFi Summer 2020).
  
  As of today, the Index’s value is 22. This could be interpreted as Bitcoin outperforming altcoins for the time being, which means that a major crypto market rally is still not in play, yet.

12-Month Alt Season Index.

• DeFi TVL & Stablecoin Market Capitalization: DeFi total value locked (TVL) and total stablecoin market capitalization are two reliable on-chain metrics to assess the crypto market’s current health. Rising TVL and stablecoin market capitalization indicate an increasing level of investor trust and engagement within the DeFi ecosystem, suggesting a robust and growing market. On the other hand, declining TVL and stablecoin supplies can signal a decrease in market liquidity and investor confidence, often reflecting bearish market sentiments
  
  As of today, the total TVL in DeFi and the total stablecoin market capitalization stood at $110.78 billion (+6.71% WoW) and $135.35 billion (+1.1% WoW), respectively. This could be interpreted as a bullish signal for the crypto market as well as DeFi in the short term.

DeFi TVL and total stablecoin market capitalization.

Other Updates

• Coin98 & Stably Strategic Partnership: Our friends at Coin98 have recently joined Stably in a strategic partnership to expand our infrastructure development services to emerging blockchain ecosystems. Specifically, Coin98 and Stably will offer emerging chains various solutions ranging from self-custody wallets to stablecoins and fiat on/off-ramps, enhancing their accessibility, liquidity, and interoperability. Through our solutions, users of emerging chains will be able to:
  • Self-custody and utilize emerging chain assets in the Coin98 Super Wallet, a powerful all-in-one DeFi platform with over 8 million users worldwide.
  • Mint and redeem CUSD, a US Dollar-backed stablecoin sponsored by Coin98 and issued compliantly by Stably under our FinCEN-registered money service business. CUSD is fully backed by bank deposits, money market instruments, and USDC, held by a designated trustee for the benefit of verified token holders. Monthly collateral account statements and quarterly third-party attestations are also published by Stably to ensure transparency and verify CUSD’s collateral backings. Every CUSD is redeemable 1-to-1 for fiat or USDC (minus fees). Launched in December 2023, CUSD is currently live on the Viction network and will be expanding natively to more emerging chains very soon in the future.
  • Buy, sell, and swap emerging chain assets, including CUSD, for as low as 0.5% in transaction fees using assets from other chains or traditional fiat payment methods like bank transfers and cards in 170+ countries/regions. All of this can be done seamlessly through Stably Ramp.
• Proposal to Expand CUSD to MetaChain (by DeFiChain): We are excited to announce our proposal for the native integration of CUSD with MetaChain, a cutting-edge EVM layer from DeFiChain dedicated to fast, intelligent, and transparent decentralized financial services that’s accessible by everyone. You can find a detailed summary of our proposal on Reddit, where we invite community engagement and feedback. Additionally, the proposal is now live for on-chain voting, continuing through to the last week of February. We would greatly value your support and participation in this voting process, as it is crucial for us to secure the necessary votes for this significant expansion.

• TrustPilot Review: As a valued user of Stably Ramp, your experience with our platform is highly valuable to us. We would greatly appreciate it if you could share your thoughts on TrustPilot, helping others to understand the benefits of our service. Your feedback is not only appreciated but also instrumental in shaping our community and services