Markets

Crypto markets took a sharp dive yesterday, mainly due to their higher correlation with stock markets. Stock markets were shaken by increased geopolotical instability, information about Russia preparing an offensive in Ukraine, news about lockdowns in China and increased inflation numbers that were reported yesterday. As a result, Bitcoin fell below $40,000 for the first time in nearly a month and most altcoins are also in the red today. Total market capitalization is also back under $2 billion.

Tip: Changing world order and lessons we can learn from history – Ray Dalio

Bitcoin (BTC) is now trading at 40,239 USD down by 3,3% in 24h

Ethereum (ETH) is now for 3,024 USD down by 1,9% in 24h

PlatonCoin (PLTC) is now for 0,680 USD down by 1.4% in 24h

Total marketcap is currently at 1.958 trillion USD down by 2.7% in 24h

(all data valid at the time of publishing, from Coingecko.com)

News

Epic Games, Sony and Lego in Metaverse: Epic Games, creator of the Unreal Engine graphics engine and publisher of the massively popular video game Fortnite, has secured $2 billion in a fresh fundraising round led by Sony Group and KIRKBI, the owner of the Lego toy and entertainment brand. The announcement is part of a strategy to fast-track the company’s aim of making a presence in the Metaverse.

Meta and Horizon Worlds: Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive of Meta, revealed that the company is experimenting monetization for the Horizon Worlds virtual reality app in order to enable developers to generate income. While the new virtual reality game is now only available to a select set of creators, it represents an essential next step in the company’s long-term strategy of laying the groundwork for virtual social networking.

UPS and metaverse: UPS submitted the applications to the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on April 5. The applications cover a plethora of virtual and NFT goods and services. Specifically, UPS seeks to offer NFTs and crypto-collectibles, NFT-backed multimedia, virtual retail shipping and delivery, Virtual clothing, packages, vehicles, airplanes, and sports collectibles, marketplaces for digital goods and NFT-backed media, and retail stores featuring virtual goods.

Bank of America and recession: As per a report by Reuters, BofA’s chief investment strategist Michael Hartnett warned in a weekly note that the US economy could sink lower following what he termed as “inflation shock” and “rates shock”. Last week, the Federal Reserve signaled it will likely start slashing assets from its $9 trillion balance sheet at twice the rate it did before. Furthermore majority of commissioners want the Fed to hike its key interest rate by 50 basis points. Hartnett argued that in the context of this economic turmoil, cash, commodities, and cryptocurrencies would likely come out strongly, outperforming bonds and stocks.