On October 17th, the optimistic sentiment in the cryptocurrency market continued to heat up, with Bitcoin briefly breaking through the $68,000 mark on Wednesday. As of the time of writing,$Bitcoin (BTC.CC)$ still maintaining a high level above $67,000, at $67,423; $Ethereum (ETH.CC)$ at $2,653.82.
Key Focus
With support for Musk's "Department of Government Efficiency," Dogecoin's price surged by 10%.
According to CoinDesk, with the discussion of Elon Musk's "Department of Government Efficiency" on social media, the price of Dogecoin (DOGE) has risen by 10% in the past 24 hours, breaking the $0.12 mark. Musk recently donated $75 million to a political action committee supporting the Trump campaign and publicly proposed the establishment of a government efficiency department with an abbreviation matching "DOGE", further drawing attention to Dogecoin in the market. The close relationship between Musk and Trump, along with their recent interactions, has increased market expectations for more support for Dogecoin in the future, especially in the event of a Trump victory. With the sharp increase in DOGE-related trading volume and open interest in futures (OI), market interest in the token has significantly heated up.
Bitcoin's market share has reached its highest level since April 2021.
According to Cointelegraph, amidst the downturn in the altcoin market, as the prices of cryptos continue to rise, Bitcoin's market share has reached its highest level since April 2021. TradingView data shows that early this morning, Bitcoin's dominance reached its highest point in three and a half years, at 58.77%, while the price of Bitcoin also hit a new high in ten weeks.
Standard Chartered: Bitcoin has a 12% upside potential before the US presidential election.
In a new study, Geoff Kendrick, Head of Digital Asset Research at Standard Chartered Bank, estimates that bitcoin could reach $73,800 before the November US presidential election, a 12% increase from current levels.
Italy plans to raise the capital gains tax on bitcoin from 26% to 42%.
According to Bloomberg, Italy plans to raise the capital gains tax on cryptos such as Bitcoin from 26% to 42%. Italian Deputy Minister of Finance Maurizio Leo revealed this news during a budget planning conference call in Rome.
Report: 94% of surveyed private wealth stakeholders in Asia are currently investing or planning to invest in cryptos.
A new report from Hong Kong wealth management platform Aspen Digital estimates that 76% of private wealth sector in Asia have already entered the digital assets space, with an additional 18% planning future investments.
Thailand's Siam Commercial Bank has become the country's first bank to use stablecoins for cross-border payments.
According to Cryptoslate, Thailand's fourth largest and oldest bank, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), has become the country's first financial institution to offer cross-border payment and remittance services based on stablecoins. The stablecoin remittance service will be provided in partnership with the fintech company Lightnet. This move aims to reduce transaction costs and provide customers with faster international transfers. Introducing services based on stablecoins will allow SCB customers to send and receive payments globally 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The service has been tested through Thailand's banking digital asset sandbox to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and flexibility for future expansion. This move is expected to further promote the development of Thailand's digital economy, making SCB a key player in future financial services.
a16z Crypto report: Cryptocurrency activity and usage reach an all-time high.
According to The Block, a study released by a16z Crypto on Wednesday found that cryptocurrency activity and usage have reached an all-time high this year. The report estimates that as of September, there are approximately 617 million cryptocurrency holders globally, with monthly active users reaching 60 million. By 2024, the number of active monthly crypto addresses is expected to exceed 220 million, including Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) chains, with Base having 22 million addresses topping the list, and Solana dominating non-EVM chains with over 100 million addresses. This year, the number of mobile wallet users has also reached a record high, with the USA accounting for 12% of global users. Furthermore, the report points out that Ethereum's Den čun upgrade and the inclusion of EIP-4844 in March have contributed to a 36% increase in ETH value on Layer 2 while the proportion of Layer 2 payments to Layer 1 fees has decreased by 94%. Daren Matsuoka, a data scientist at a16z Crypto, said, 'We seem to be at a turning point in crypto infrastructure, rapidly driving blockchain expansion and unlocking new possibilities for applications and user activities. The sharp decrease in user transaction fees helps stablecoins find the right product market. We are also observing an emerging shift in NFT behavior, which is very interesting, with an increase in low-cost, social collecting activities and a decrease in high-priced, speculative secondary market activities.'
Poll in El Salvador: 92% of the population admits to not using Bitcoin for transactions, with only 1.3% believing Bitcoin is the country's future main development direction.
According to Decrypt, a new survey from the Universidad Francisco Gavidia in El Salvador found that only 7.5% of respondents in El Salvador said they use cryptocurrencies for transactions, while 92% admit they have not used cryptocurrencies, and only 1.3% believe Bitcoin is the country's future main development direction. Around 58% of respondents said they think the country is heading in the right direction, with the vast majority supporting President Bukele. The survey interviewed 1,224 18-year-old Salvadorans and covered various aspects from economics to security. It is known that in 2021, El Salvador declared Bitcoin as the country's legal tender.
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