Hi Reader,

Thanks for reading The BlockByte Weekly, where we summarise the key updates in crypto over the last week and provide our perspective on what you need to know as an investor.
​

Executive Summary​
​

• Gold Makes New All-Time High, Stocks & Crypto Flat on Heightened Recession Risk
• CEO of NewMarket Capital Outlines $200B Bitcoin Purchase Plan
• US Regulators Continue to Ease Up on Crypto Companies while EU Tightens Up​
  ​

Market Update

Gold Makes New All-Time High, Stocks & Crypto Flat on Heightened Recession Risk

Over the last week the total crypto market capitalisation fell by as much as -11.4% before recovering to -1.2%. The S&P was flat for the week with the ASX200 down 2% and gold up by ~2.5% hitting a new all-time high of $3,004 USD/Oz. Gold's rise comes on the back of increased risks of a US recession. JPMorgan expects a 40% chance of recession (up from 30%), citing "extreme U.S. policies" concerns.

The silver lining for crypto and equity markets was largely due to US inflation coming in lower than expected at 3.1% vs. 3.2%. Falling inflation increases the likelihood of interest rates cuts later in the year, typically associated with risk-on assets going higher. To keep markets guessing, Trump's ongoing trade war with the rest of the world continues to place the brakes on markets heading higher, the latest threats include a 200% tariff on alcoholic products coming from E.U. countries.

CEO of NewMarket Capital Outlines $200B Bitcoin Purchase Plan

The level of institutional interest in bitcoin and digital assets continues to surge on the back of the US Bitcoin Reserve announcement. NewMarket Capital CEO Andrew Hohn outlined a plan for investing 10% of government issued bonds into bitcoin, starting with $200B of $2T in bonds. For context, the US government has at least $9.3T in debt that is due to be refinanced over the next 12 months. The bonds would aim to deliver superior returns to bond holders, the US taxpayer and policy makers, creating what Andrew called a "win-win-win" scenario. We see this proposition as unlikely to materialise due to the pushback such a proposition would face.

@Vivek4real_

🇺🇸 NEWMARKET’S FOUNDER RECOMMENDS ISSUING BIT BONDS AND BUYING $200 BILLION OF #BITCOIN 🤯THIS IS A MUST WATCH!!!

11:16 AM • Mar 12, 2025

670

Retweets

3715

Likes

Read 113 replies

In addition, last week MicroStrategy announced it plans to raise up to $21 billion by selling special shares called "perpetual strike preferred stock". The shares provide investors with an 8% dividend whilst also offering increased downside protection as they are prioritised for repayment before common stock in the event of a bankruptcy.

Lastly, Senator Cynthia Lummis reintroduced the BITCOIN Act to Congress, which would codify President Trump's Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Executive Order and direct the government to purchase up to 1 million Bitcoin over five years. The bill, which failed to pass when introduced in July 2024, aims to secure America's financial leadership through Bitcoin investment. If passed, this bill would significantly increase the price of bitcoin, though we expect that it will face stiff opposition given the scale of budget needed. 1M bitcoin would cost a minimum of $83B at today's price, but the price would increase with each additional bitcoin bought, likely requiring hundreds of billions of dollars to fulfil.

US Regulators Continue to Ease Up on Crypto Companies while EU Tightens Up

Following several litigations being dropped against crypto companies, the SEC is reportedly preparing to end its four-year enforcement action against Ripple Labs. The case, which alleged XRP was used as an unregistered security, appears to be "wrapping up" despite ongoing appeals over a $125-million court judgment. Ripple's chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty confirmed the case is more advanced than other actions dropped since Trump's inauguration.

Meanwhile in Europe, regulators are reportedly investigating OKX over services that may have facilitated the laundering of approximately $100 million in funds from the January $1.4B Ethereum hack of Bybit exchange. According to Bloomberg, national watchdogs from EU member states discussed the issue during a March 6 meeting hosted by the European Securities and Markets Authority's Digital Finance Standing Committee. The investigation centers on OKX's decentralised finance platform where funds are alleged to have been laundered.

Thanks for reading this week's newsletter.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss the markets in more detail, you can reach out anytime.

Best regards,
James

James Brannan
Managing Director
BlockByte
​
(+61) 412 393 634
​james@blockbyte.com.au​
​https://blockbyte.com.au/​

BlockByte does not provide financial advice. We provide a personalised brokerage service with tailored support, research and secure custody for investing in digital assets. Reach out to our team to discuss how we can help.

​

​