Wow, what a week it's been in the cryptocurrency industry. Tether CEO says he has no intention of launching blockchain, Michigan holds over $10 million in Spot Ethereum ETF, Global Dollar Stablecoin launches, Bitcoin hits new all-time high BlackRock's IBIT set a single-day inflow record of $1.12 billion.
Let's take a closer look at these and summarize what happened in crypto this week.
Tether has not launched blockchain
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said the company is not launching a Tether chain at this time because “neutrality is very important to us.”
Posting on X, Ardoino said, “Various independent L2 solutions are working to support USDt for gas fees.” He said Tether is interested in working with businesses and communities instead of trying to centralize everything.
His announcement comes as Tether hits a record-breaking milestone in the final quarter of 2024, delivering $7.7 billion in nine-month profits.
Focusing on the fourth quarter of 2024, Ardoino said the outlook is “very positive” with quarterly on-chain wallet growth reaching more than 35 million new addresses.
Michigan has over $10 million in Spot Ethereum ETFs
The Michigan State Pension Fund revealed that it currently holds more than $10 million in Spot Ethereum exchange traded funds (ETFs).
According to a 13F filing, the Michigan Retirement System disclosed its holdings in the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) and the Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH). According to filings, Michigan's state pension owns 460,000 shares of ETHE stock worth about $10 million and 460,000 shares of ETH (Mini Trust ETF) stock worth about $1.1 million.
This news is significant because the Michigan State Pension Fund became the first entity to disclose its holdings in the ETH ETF. According to Eric Balchunas, senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, this is a “huge win” for Ethereum.
In a post to X, he said: “Michigan pensions not only bought Ether ETFs, they bought more than Bitcoin ETFs, $10 million vs. $7 million. This is even though BTC was up significantly and Ether was at the bottom. Despite that, it's a pretty big win for Ether who can use one. ”
Launch of Global Dollar Stablecoin
The Global Dollar (USDG) stablecoin was launched with the aim of promoting stablecoin adoption worldwide.
Global Dollar Network's initial partners include Anchorage Digital, Bullish, Galaxy Digital, Kraken, Nuvei, Paxos, and Robinhood. The USDG stablecoin, pegged to the US dollar and issued by Paxos from Singapore, comes at a time of intense competition in the stablecoin market.
Currently, Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC stablecoins make up the majority of the stablecoin market. In September, it was reported that USDT accounted for over 75%. However, the “lack of competition” in the stablecoin market is preventing “the industry from realizing its full potential,” said Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Kraken. said and added:
“USDG flips this dynamic with a more fair model that brings mainstream participants into the ecosystem and accelerates new stablecoin use cases.”
Bitcoin hits new all-time high of over $77,000
Bitcoin continues its upward trajectory following Donald Trump's presidential victory, hitting a new high above $77,000.
Bitcoin hit a new high of $75,315 earlier in the week as the results suggested Trump won the White House. The last time Bitcoin hit an all-time high was in March, when it hit $73,000.
But Bitcoin didn't stop there.
It then rose further, reaching more than $76,000 on major exchanges on November 7th. News of Bitcoin's new all-time high came as the US Federal Reserve announced a 25 basis point interest rate cut.
It remains to be seen how far Bitcoin will continue to rise. However, Bernstein analysts say that following President Trump's victory, Bitcoin could reach between $80,000 and $90,000 by the end of 2024.
BlackRock IBIT sets record with $1.12 billion in daily inflows
BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) exchange-traded fund (ETF) sets a new record with inflows of $1.12 billion, surpassing the previous record of $872 million. did.
BlackRock's IBIT net assets currently stand at $34.29 billion, giving it a significant lead over its competitors. This new record follows a milestone in October, when the company reached $30 billion in total assets in 293 days.
In an interview with CoinJournal, Dary McGovern, chief operating officer (COO) of Bitcoin native Xapo Bank, said that Bitcoin's new record is “a record for BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). “This suggests a broader shift in institutional confidence, accompanied by notable market movements such as net inflows.”
A new record was also seen across the 12 U.S. Spot Bitcoin ETFs, reaching $1.38 billion since their launch in January.
