Cryptocurrency prices broke down over the past week as Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC) ended May down 4% on the month.
The price of Bitcoin was trading at $74,000 U.S. late on May 29, down from a peak of $82,000 U.S. at the start of the month. Other cryptocurrencies also slid lower, with Ethereum (CRYPTO: $ETH) ending the week and month hovering right around the key support level of $2,000 U.S.
Digital assets continue to sink lower even as stocks indices to hit all-time highs. Investors have rotated capital into technology stocks related to the artificial intelligence (A.I.) trade and out of cryptocurrencies.
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Analysts say that cryptocurrencies continue to be hurt by geopolitical uncertainty, notably the Iran war and rising gasoline prices. There is also weak demand for digital assets among institutional investors and growing outflows from crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Over the past nine trading sessions, investors have pulled a combined $2.8 billion U.S. from about a dozen Bitcoin ETFs, a record amount of selling.
Here’s what else happened in the cryptocurrency sector over the past week.
JPMorgan Sees ‘Cooling’ Crypto Trade: JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: $JPM) says that steady outflows from Bitcoin ETFs point to a “cooling” debasement trade among investors. The debasement trade refers to investors buying assets such as Bitcoin and gold as hedges against geopolitical instability, currency weakness, and inflation. Bitcoin and gold ETFs have seen large outflows in recent weeks amid a retreat by investors from that debasement trade.
BitMine Purchases 60,000 Ethereum: BitMine (NYSE: $BMNR) purchased an additional 60,000 Ethereum as the price languished near $2,000 U.S. In a social media post, BitMine said that it bought 60,000 ETH worth $126 million U.S., extending its accumulation of the second-largest cryptocurrency. BitMine, led by Chairman Tom Lee, now owns 5.2 million Ethereum valued at $11.1 billion U.S.
Kraken Launches Bitcoin Vault: Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has launched a new Bitcoin Vault that offers passive yield to long-term holders of the digital asset. Privately held Kraken says its customers can now earn yield on their Bitcoin holdings without selling the cryptocurrency. The Bitcoin Vault product works with Kraken Earn and allows users to win rewards denominated in BTC while maintaining exposure to the crypto’s price movements.