Decentral Block Post

Since May 2022, the Bitcoin (BTC) margin markets on the Bitfinex exchange have been plagued by an unusually high open interest of over $2.7 billion. This information alone should raise a red flag, especially in light of Bitcoin's price decline from $39,000 to less than $25,000 during the same period.

Traders seeking to leverage their cryptocurrency position had borrowed over 105,000 Bitcoin. Currently, the cause of this anomaly is unknown, as well as the number of entities involved in the trade.

Cheap borrowing favors high demand

Bitfinex's sub-0.1% annual rate may be a contributing factor to the size of the Bitcoin lending market. To date, this has been the norm and it creates enormous incentives for borrowing, even if there is no current need. There are few traders who would turn down such a ridiculously inexpensive leverage opportunity.

Margin borrowing can be used to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities, where a trader exploits price discrepancies between different markets. For example, borrowing Bitcoin on margin allows a trader to take a long position in one market and a short in another, profiting from the price difference.

To understand how Bitcoin borrowing can be used to profit on derivatives markets, including those outside of Bitfinex, one must understand the distinction between futures contracts and margin markets. The margin is not a derivative contract, so the trade occurs on the same order book as spot trading. In addition, unlike futures, margin longs and shorts are not always in balance.

Bitcoin’s dominance over the crypto market, which represents its share of market capitalization relative to the total cryptocurrency market capitalization, rose steeply from around 44% to highs of 48% in March. 

While Bitcoin’s price increased by 22.7% during the month, most altcoins yielded subpar or negative returns. However, there were some outliers which showed a second month of positive momentum. Take for example, XRP, which saw steady positive momentum as investors expect a positive outcome in its U.S. court case against the SEC.

Conflux Network

Conflux Network continued its positive run from February, nearly doubling its price in March. The project’s team continued to strengthen its partnerships in China by adding XCMD, the world’s third-largest construction machinery manufacturer and Zen Spark Technology.

The Conflux team also supports the development of permissionless applications. It has established a grants program to promote its ecosystem development.

The CFX token tested the support between $0.10 and $0.20 and continued its positive run to reach a new yearly high of $0.46. The market structure of the token with higher highs and higher lows looks bullish, with a potential target of $0.80. It represents the breakdown level from the 2021 bull run.

Bitcoin’s dominance over the crypto market, which represents its share of market capitalization relative to the total cryptocurrency market capitalization, rose steeply from around 44% to highs of 48% in March. 

While Bitcoin’s price increased by 22.7% during the month, most altcoins yielded subpar or negative returns. However, there were some outliers which showed a second month of positive momentum. Take for example, XRP, which saw steady positive momentum as investors expect a positive outcome in its U.S. court case against the SEC.

Conflux Network

Conflux Network continued its positive run from February, nearly doubling its price in March. The project’s team continued to strengthen its partnerships in China by adding XCMD, the world’s third-largest construction machinery manufacturer and Zen Spark Technology.

The Conflux team also supports the development of permissionless applications. It has established a grants program to promote its ecosystem development.

The CFX token tested the support between $0.10 and $0.20 and continued its positive run to reach a new yearly high of $0.46. The market structure of the token with higher highs and higher lows looks bullish, with a potential target of $0.80. It represents the breakdown level from the 2021 bull run.

The price of Solana (SOL) fell nearly 95% in 2022, partly due to its association with tainted crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried and his collapsed ventures FTX and Alameda Research. But so far in 2023, things have improved for the SOL price.

Solana price doubles in Q1/2023

Solana's price has risen 104% to around $20.60 per SOL in the first quarter of 2023, the highest gains compared to any cryptocurrency in the top-25, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).

In fact, January was Solana's best month since August 2021 in terms of price performance.

SOL price rallied by about 140% in it, without any major fundamentals that could have driven the rates up. Nonetheless, the SOL/USD pair became excessively oversold in December 2022, which may have influenced traders to buy the dip. 

The rally also coincided with Messari's analysis of the Solana ecosystem after the FTX collapse, showing its staking and decentralization was stable and actually improved its position after the FTX fiasco.

The price of Solana (SOL) fell nearly 95% in 2022, partly due to its association with tainted crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried and his collapsed ventures, FTX and Alameda Research. But so far in 2023, things have improved for SOL’s price.

Solana’s price doubles in Q1/2023

Solana’s price has risen 104% to around $20.60 per SOL in the first quarter of 2023, the highest gains compared to any cryptocurrency in the top 25, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).

In fact, January was Solana’s best month since August 2021 in terms of price performance.

SOL’s price rallied by about 140% in it without any major fundamentals that could have driven the rates up. Nonetheless, the SOL/USD pair became excessively oversold in December 2022, which may have influenced traders to buy the dip. 

The rally also coincided with Messari’s analysis of the Solana ecosystem after the FTX collapse, showing its staking and decentralization were stable and actually improved its position after the FTX fiasco.

Bitcoin (BTC) recovered recent losses at the March 31 Wall Street open as traders looked for a strong monthly close.

PCE delights risk assets as with BTC price up $1,000

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD heading to $28,556 on Bitstamp after the opening bell, up $1,000 from the day's lows.

The fresh gains followed encouraging macroeconomic data from the United States, with the February Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index modestly beating expectations in some areas.

"We are making progress in the fight against inflation," an official White House statement about the PCE numbers read.

"Today’s report shows annual inflation down by nearly 30 percent from this summer, against a backdrop of low unemployment and steady growth."