Bitcoin And Crypto Are Braced For A Huge Week As The Price Of Ethereum, BNB, XRP, Solana, Cardano, Terra’s Luna And Avalanche Swing

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Musk magic fades ✨

Elon Musk, the Tesla billionaire who last year could create and destroy billions of dollars in crypto value with his erratic and whimsical tweets, has failed to much move the market with his latest inflation-based overtures. Musk tweeted he didn’t plan on selling his undisclosed personal crypto holdings, which includes bitcoin, ethereum and the meme-based dogecoin. While the price of dogecoin briefly popped higher, it quickly fell back. Read the full story on Forbes.

Now read this: Biden’s Executive Order To Fuel A Bank-Bitcoin Boom

Cryptocurrency prices are broadly flat this morning, however, Terra’s luna is charging higher, up almost 10%. At the other end of the scale, Ripple’s XRP has given up gains it made over the weekend following a positive development for Ripple in its long-running legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Bitcoin’s big week 🎉

Make or break: Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are braced for two seismic developments this week.

– First, European Union lawmakers will vote on a proposed rule that could force proof-of-work cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin to shift to more energy-friendly consensus mechanisms. The vote is happening this morning after revisions to the bill’s text over the weekend. The Block has the latest.

– Second, El Salvador is expected to launch its $1 billion, bitcoin-backed bond that’s designed to fund the country’s “Bitcoin City” powered by geothermal energy from a nearby volcano—and the buying of even more bitcoin.

What’s being said: The E.U.’s vote is “very much undecided,” Coindesk reported on Sunday. “Extremely high stakes vote in the EU,” founder of Circle Pay and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin Jeremy Allaire, said via Twitter. “That such a proposal made it this far is extraordinarily concerning and unlikely to stand up to practical reality.” Meanwhile, Reuters reports Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could derail El Salvador’s plans. “If this is a failure, a lot of doors close,” Carlos Acevedo, a former president of El Salvador’s central bank told the Financial Times. “This issuance is going to define a lot.”

Why it matters: The two key developments this week highlight the growing international divergence on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies—a split that’s also reflected in the worlds of finance and technology. While one side wants to embrace crypto, the other sees it as a dangerous threat to stability.

Now read this: Inheriting bitcoin is harder than it sounds

NFT consolidation 🧺

👾 Bored Ape Yacht Club creator Yuga Labs has snapped up the rights to two other huge non-fungible token (NFT) collections: CryptoPunks and Meebits—meaning it now controls three of the most valuable NFT collections on the market.

✍️ “This means that we now own the brands, copyright in the art, and other IP rights for both collections, along with 423 CryptoPunks and 1711 Meebits,” Yuga Labs wrote in a blog post announcing the purchase from Larva Labs and adding: “The first thing we’re doing is giving full commercial rights to the NFT holders.”

🏷️ The companies declined to share the sale price and Larva Labs has said it will continue to operate independently and work on new projects.

Now read this: Why crypto is unlikely to be useful for sanctions-dodgers

The week ahead 🗓️

👀 Keep an eye out for these cryptocurrency and crypto-adjacent events this week.

🌋 At some point this week, El Salvador is expected to issue its hotly-anticipated, volcano-powered, $1 billion bitcoin-backed bond. However, Reuters reported late last week that Russia’s war in Ukraine could delay things.

📢 Over the weekend, “crypto, web3 and metaverse evangelists” descended on Austin, Texas, for the SXSW tech event. Look out this week for big-name appearances from digital artist Beeple, famous for his record $69 million non-fungible token (NFT) sale last year, and The O.C. actor Ben McKenzie, who’s out promoting his new crypto skeptic book.

🗳️ Today, the European Union will vote on a proposed rule that could effectively see bitcoin banned in the trading bloc. Coindesk reckons the outcome is too close to call. You can watch proceedings here from around 9am ET.

🏦 On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to raise its base rate of interest by 25 basis points in a move that has been carefully telegraphed to markets. Traders are watching closely for how economic ripples from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and severe sanctions that have been put on Russia as a result could change Fed chair Jerome Powell’s thinking. Powell’s previously said cooling red-hot inflation that’s soared to a 40-year high is his priority.

💷 On Thursday, the U.K.’s Bank of England is set to follow in the Fed’s footsteps, with forecasters predicting the central bank will vote to raise rates from 0.5% to 0.75%, taking the benchmark rate back to the level it stood at in January 2020.

Good to know: Ukraine turns crypto donations into 5,550 bulletproof vests, 500 helmets and more