DIB 3 APR 2024
BTC Daily Intelligence Bulletin (DIB)
Block: 837,541
DTG/ICOD: 0800EST 03Apr24
Precedence: Routine (RR)
Controls: Public Release
QQQQ
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BLUF: Taiwan Earthquake Kills 9, Damages Much / Israel Accidental Strike Kills Aid Workers / NATO Works to Build Ukraine Long-Term Funding / Baltimore Ship Channels Open / FL Supreme Court Upholds Abortion Rulings / USG Moving Seized BTC / ARK BTC ETF Has 2 Days of Outflows / Gold, Oil Up, Trust Down
Market Data: Price: 1 BTC= $66,124, 29.09 oz Gold, .15 Median US House
24hr Hi: $66,664/ Lo: $64,559
Vol: $41B (Up 9%)
Mkt Cap: $1.3T (Up 1%)
HashRate: 641 EH/s
Avg Fees: 5,371 sats/tx (Down 22%)
Nodes: 18,167
—Reports—
-International Events-
1. Taiwan’s strongest earthquake in 25 years kills at least 9: Hundreds of others were injured in the 7.4-magnitude tremor off the island’s east coast, which was felt across the region and prompted tsunami warnings that were later lifted. TSMC has closed one of their chip factories due to the earthquake. (NBC)
2. Israel draws fire for death of aid workers as charities pull out: Some of Israel’s closest allies, including the United States, on Tuesday condemned the deaths of seven aid workers who were killed by airstrikes in Gaza — a loss that prompted multiple charities to suspend food deliveries to Palestinians on the brink of starvation. (euronews)
3. NATO ministers mull 100 billion euro military fund for Ukraine: NATO foreign ministers met on Wednesday to discuss how to put military support for Ukraine on a long-term footing, including a proposal for a 100 billion euro ($107 billion) five-year fund and a plan seen as a way to “Trump-proof” aid for Kyiv. (Reuters)
-US Events-
1. Second channel opened allowing some vessels to bypass wreckage at the Baltimore bridge collapse site: Work is ongoing to open a third channel that will allow larger vessels to pass through the bottleneck and restore more commercial activity, officials announced at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. A tug and fuel barge were the first vessels through the first temporary opening yesterday. (AP)
2. Democrats Descend on Florida Following State Supreme Court Abortion Rulings: The Florida Supreme Court issued two abortion-related rulings on Monday, unleashing “a frenzy of campaigning among Democrats eager to turn the Sunshine State back into the nation’s most important battleground,” The state’s high court upheld a 15-week limit on abortion, while also paving the way for a six-week abortion limit that was passed last year. (Breitbart)
-Regulatory and Legal-
1. Bitcoin advocate Max Keiser slams Javier Milei’s crypto policy: Javier Milei, who secured the Argentine presidential seat last December, has introduced aggressive economic policies to rescue the country’s collapsing economy and battle the consistent devaluation of the Argentine peso, which is down 99% against the U.S. dollar since 2008. According to Keiser, the Argentine president’s decision to lump Bitcoin with crypto is a “rookie mistake.” He contended that the recent legislation, which identified Bitcoin as part of the crypto ecosystem, has set Milei’s economic reform agenda back by years. (CryptoNews)
-Institutional Concerns-
1. Feds Move Bitcoin From Seized Silk Road Wallet Holding $2 Billion in Funds: Blockchain data shows that on Tuesday morning, a wallet tagged as belonging to the US DOJ started moving some of the $2 billion worth of held BTC to an address believed to be crypto exchange Coinbase. (Decrypt)
2, Cathie Wood’s ARK Bitcoin ETF has record $87M outflows, surpassing GBTC: The outflows from the Ark 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) was $87.5 million on April 2 — roughly 1,300 BTC — according to data from Farside Investors. Today marked the second consecutive day of outflows for ARKB, which lost $300,000 in assets on its first-ever day of outflows on April 1. (CoinTelegraph)
-Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC)-
1. Chinese Government Reveals Public Blockchain Platform for Belt and Road Initiative: Since 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative has formed the centerpiece of China’s foreign policy under Xi Jinping. It aims to extend the state’s influence through development projects in Asia, Africa and South America. The Chinese government recently unveiled plans for a new blockchain platform designed to enhance cross-border cooperation and reduce friction between Belt and Road participants. (CCN) (AC-Similar to the BRICS effort to establish a CBDC, this effort by China to establish a blockchain-based CBDC specifically for the Belt and Road Initiative would encompass many smaller countries and even compete with the US Dollar in world trade. This is the second major competitor to the USD as the world’s reserve currency.)
-Economic Indicators-
1. Gold Notches Record High Again: Gold prices rose to fresh record highs of $2,283 an ounce on Wednesday (TradingEconomics)
2. Oil Prices Stay Firm Ahead of OPEC+ Gathering: WTI crude futures held around $85 a barrel on Wednesday while Brent crude futures remained near $89 a barrel. (TradingEconomics)
3. US Job Openings Top Expectations: The number of job openings went up by 8,000 from the previous month to 8.756 million in February 2024, above market expectations of 8.75 million. (TradingEconomics)
-Security Incidents and Concerns-
1. Cyber review board blames cascading Microsoft failures for Chinese hack: A federal review board concluded in a scathing report Tuesday that the theft of a Microsoft signing key used to spy on senior U.S. officials was a preventable failure caused by the company’s failure to appropriately prioritize security. The CSRB, established by President Biden, lays the blame for the incident squarely on Microsoft. (CyberScoop)
-Bitcoin Community-
1. Arkon Energy Strikes Deal With Bitmain for 27,700 Bitcoin Mining Rigs: Ohio-based bitcoin mining and colocation company Arkon Energy announced its procurement of 27,700 bitcoin mining rigs from Bitmain, equaling a hashpower of 6 exahash per second (EH/s). (BitcoinCom)
-Bitcoin Sentiment-
1. Fear(0)/Greed(100) Index: 71/100 (Down 8 pts)
Analyst Comments (AC): Commodity prices are indicative of trust in fiat initiatives such as currency or securities markets. As prices in gold, oil, housing and bitcoin continue to rise, it portrays a declining trust in the promises of the US government in upholding its obligations. There are numerous possible reasons for this phenomena, including the debt burden of the government, mistrust in politics, global insecurity, or election season. Although these reasons can be viewed as the cause of demand in hard assets, the underlying fundamental is that fiat promises only last as long as they are kept. Populations are now discounting those promises.
Follow us on NOSTR: @Bitcoin Veterans
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Analyst: BV2A
END REPORT
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*NSTR-Nothing Significant To Report