Daily Crypto Signals: Bitcoin Struggles Below $75K, BlackRock’s Staked Ethereum ETF Makes Strong Debut
Bitcoin's funding rates turned negative amid bearish sentiment and macroeconomic headwinds, while BlackRock launched a staked Ethereum ETF
Quick overview
- Bitcoin's funding rates turned negative as bearish sentiment and macroeconomic challenges persisted, with prices struggling to surpass $71,000.
- BlackRock launched its iShares Staked Ethereum Trust, achieving $15.5 million in trading volume on its first day, indicating strong interest in Ethereum staking.
- Regulatory developments saw the SEC and CFTC agreeing to coordinate oversight of the cryptocurrency market, aiming to create a more effective regulatory framework.
- JPMorgan faces a proposed class action lawsuit related to its alleged involvement in facilitating illicit fund flows for a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme.
Bitcoin’s funding rates turned negative amid bearish sentiment and macroeconomic headwinds, while BlackRock launched a staked Ethereum ETF that drew $15.5 million in volume on its first day. Regulatory developments also took center stage as the SEC and CFTC agreed to coordinate crypto oversight and the CFTC opened prediction markets rulemaking to public comment.
Crypto Market Developments
On Thursday, the cryptocurrency market had to navigate a challenging combination of institutional momentum and regulatory activity. Regarding regulations, the SEC and CFTC signed a letter of understanding to coordinate financial market oversight, specifically mentioning cryptocurrency as a crucial area in need of a “fit-for-purpose regulatory framework.” Paul Atkins, the chair of the SEC, described it as a step toward putting an end to decades of “regulatory turf wars” that he claimed had hindered innovation and forced market players to relocate to other countries.
In the meantime, Michael Selig, the chair of the CFTC, suggested new regulations for prediction market platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi, categorizing event contracts as a “financial asset class” and inviting public feedback. Legally speaking, JPMorgan is facing a proposed class action lawsuit that claims the bank enabled $328 million in illicit fund flows for Goliath Ventures, a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme operator whose CEO was arrested in February and may spend up to 30 years in jail if found guilty.
Bitcoin Struggles with $75,000 Resistance
Due to a weakening US stock market and growing pessimism in derivatives markets, Bitcoin BTC/USD was unable to breach beyond $71,000 on Thursday. The annualized funding rate for Bitcoin perpetual futures fell to -7%, indicating that short sellers were having to pay to keep their positions. This indicates that bearish are becoming more and more convinced. The monthly futures premium has been below the neutral 5% barrier for several weeks, and buyer interest has been weak as Bitcoin is currently selling about 45% below its all-time high.
However, a floor is still provided by institutional demand. Spot Bitcoin ETF inflows and continued accumulation tactics are keeping continuous purchasing pressure below $75,000, and analysts predict sellers at current levels will eventually exhaust their supply. Bitcoin’s story as a store of wealth is being complicated by rising gold prices above $5,100 and a dramatic increase in 5-year US Treasury yields to 3.80%. A sustained increase beyond $78,000 is unlikely before April, according to analysts.
BlackRock’s ETH Staking ETF Sees Over $15M in Debut Volume
With the launch of BlackRock’s iShares Staked Ethereum Trust (ETHB), which had $15.5 million in first-day trading volume over approximately 593,000 shares, Ethereum ETH/USD took center stage on Thursday. Although it was not as successful as similar Solana staking ETFs, such as Bitwise’s BSOL, which attracted $55.4 million on its launch day last October, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart called the result “very, very solid” for a debut product. The fund began with $106.7 million in net assets, which are held by Coinbase and consist of 20% unstaked and 80% staked Ether.
ETHB aims for an annual staking income of about 4%, which is disbursed monthly via institutional validators run by Attestant, Figment, and Galaxy Digital. For the first $2.5 billion in assets under management for a year, the sponsor fee of 0.25% is waived and reduced to 0.12%. The debut adds to BlackRock’s growing crypto portfolio, which includes IBIT and ETHA — products that have drawn approximately $62.8 billion and $11.9 billion in inflows respectively since their 2024 launches. When the ETF first launched, Ether was trading at about $2,115.
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