Author: Admin

The Fortune article, which debuted about a week after suspicions of a different kind of manipulation on Polymarket, cited research done by two blockchain analytics firms. One, Chaos Labs, “concluded that around one-third of trading volume — and overall users — on the presidential market alone was likely wash trading, along with across all markets.” The other, Inca Digital, “found that a ‘significant portion of the volume’ on the market could be attributed to potential wash trading,” the magazine said.

“$IBIT traded $3.3b today, biggest number in 6mo, which is a bit odd bc btc was up 4% (typically ETF volume spikes in a downturn/crisis),” Balchunas said on X. “Occasionally tho volume can spike if there a FOMO-ing frenzy (a la $ARKK in 2020). Given the surge in price past few days, my guess is this is latter, which means look for (more) big inflows this week.”

High open interest can lead to increased volatility, especially as contracts near expiration. Traders might rush to close, roll over, or adjust positions, which can lead to significant price movements. Research firm Kaiko said in an X post that while futures showed strong interest from traders, the funding rates for such positions remain well below March highs which indicate tempered demand.

Bitcoin at press time was changing hands at $68,100, ahead 2.9% over the past 24 hours. Ether (ETH) continued to underperform bitcoin and the broader market, gaining just 1.1% and touching a new 3.5 year low relative to the price of BTC. Solana (SOL) continued to outperform, rising 3.0% and marking a new record high relative to ether.

The number of so-called whales or network entities owning at least 1,000 BTC jumped to 1,678 early this week, reaching the highest since January 2021, according to data tracked by Glassnode and Bitwise. The growing accumulation by large holders alongside solid uptake for alternative vehicles, especially the U.S.-listed spot ETFs, suggests increasing confidence in bitcoin’s price prospects. Meanwhile, retail investor accumulation has slowed, with the cryptocurrency’s price nearing $70,000, according to analytics firm CryptoQuant.”Retail holdings have risen by just 1K Bitcoin in the last thirty days, a historically slow pace,” analysts at CryptoQuant told CoinDesk.