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ICE Banking On Bitcoin (BTC) and Crypto

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The main operator for up to 23 biggest exchanges around the world, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), has recently announced a new global digital assets platform centered around Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto.

ICE announces the creation of a new platform

ICE, which is the operator for the New York Stock Exchange, among others, will collaborate with Microsoft to kickstart a new ecosystem for various digital assets. The new ecosystem will be regulated and open, as well as cloud-powered, courtesy of Microsoft. The announcement came on August 3, and it unveiled that the new company’s name is Bakkt.

Bakkt will be working with an entire group of various enterprises like Microsoft, BCG, Starbucks, and others. The goal of the team-up is to make a platform that will allow merchants, consumers, ass well as institutional investors, to work with their favorite digital assets. They will be able to sell them, buy them, and even store them on the project’s global network.

The first use cases will see the conversion and trade of Bitcoin tokens. The platform users will be able to exchange BTC for fiat currencies, and then use those fiat currencies to buy items at Starbucks. The warehousing and markets used by the new ecosystem are to be federally regulated.

Additionally, Bakkt will offer futures exchange within the US, as well as a clearinghouse plan, that will see the launch of BTC contracts that will be physically delivered, which is to be a 1-day event. Introducing the regulated venues like this will lead to the establishment of completely new protocols regarding the management of specific settlement and security requirements for cryptos.

Physical delivery of BTC futures contracts

ICE’s intention is to design Bakkt as a means of support for transaction flows by mobilizing the infrastructure of a trusted market. Bakkt ecosystem investors will have the ability to include Mike Novogratz’ Galaxy Digital, the venture capital arm of Microsoft, Susquehanna International Group, Pantera Capital, and others.

Originally, the reports of ICE’s potential launch of Bitcoin futures contracts that will be physically delivered came in May of this year. CBOE and CME are currently offering similar deals, but theirs are settled in fiat, which is a big difference between what ICE is going to offer.

Back then, analysts commented on this move by saying that a physical delivery might lead to significant price moves within the crypto market, due to a large stream of institutional capital that is expected to come. According to Mike Novogratz’s estimations, this is just what the crypto market needs. He stated earlier that the institutional investors need a trusted name behind a project like this in order to feel comfortable joining in.

He predicted that someone like HSBC, Goldman Sachs, or a big Japanese bank are needed to give their support to such a project. Additionally, he predicted that ICE would also be a valid candidate, and now, it would seem that his prediction may come to pass.

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Disclaimer: This article should not be taken as, and is not intended to provide, investment advice. Global Coin Report and/or its affiliates, employees, writers, and subcontractors are cryptocurrency investors and from time to time may or may not have holdings in some of the coins or tokens they cover. Please conduct your own thorough research before investing in any cryptocurrency and read our full disclaimer.

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Bitcoin

Bitcoin Price Dumps Below $41,000 Amid Uncertainty

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Bitcoin price dumped hard on Monday, briefly slipping below $41,000, erasing gains recorded in the previous week. The premier cryptocurrency seems to have exhausted its recent rally propelled by industry vulnerabilities. At the time of writing, the world’s largest cryptocurrency was trading slightly lower at $41,385. Bitcoin’s total market cap has dipped by 2% over the past day, while the total volume of BTC tokens traded over the same period climbed by 58%.

Fundamentals

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Bitcoin’s price slump is mirrored in the wider crypto market, with the global crypto market cap decreasing by 1.85% over the past 24 hours to $1.55 trillion. The total crypto market volume has increased by 32% over the same period. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index has plunged from a level of extreme greed to a greed level of 70, suggesting a decline in risk appetite.

Ethereum, the largest altcoin by market capitalization, is currently trading at $2,167, down almost 3% for the day. Meme coins have been hit hard by the market slump, with Dogecoin and Shiba Inu down by more than 4% over the last day.

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Bitcoin Price is in Consolidation Mode Despite Market Optimism Post-Fed Decision

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Bitcoin price edged lower on Thursday despite optimism in wider markets on the back of the Fed’s interest rate decision. The flagship cryptocurrency has been consolidating above the critical level of $42,000 after briefly topping $44,000, its highest level in 20 months. Bitcoin was trading 0.71% lower at $42,569 at press time. BTC’s total market cap has increased by more than 3% over the last day to $832 billion, while the total volume of the asset traded over the same period jumped by 22%.

Economic Outlook

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Bitcoin Price Blasts $44K in Spectacular Surge as Spot Bitcoin ETF Approval Looms Large

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Bitcoin price has been hovering above the $43,000 psychological level over the past two days amid anticipation about the potential approval of a spot bitcoin ETF. The flagship cryptocurrency has climbed more than 16% in the past week and nearly 170% in the year to date. Bitcoin’s total market cap has increased by nearly 5% over the past 24 hours to $858.9 billion, while the total volume of the token traded rose by 43%. The Bitcoin price was trading at $43,914 at press time.

Fundamentals

Bitcoin price has posted significant gains over the past few days, climbing to its highest level since April 2022, before the crash of a stablecoin that started a litany of company failures, pummeling crypto prices. The world’s largest cryptocurrency briefly topped the crucial level of $44,000 on Wednesday amid rising momentum despite being massively overbought.

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