Listen in:
What Moved Global Markets
Coronavirus update:
– Global cases: More than 4.31 million
– Global deaths: At least 295,000
- The coronavirus could become endemic like HIV, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, warning against any attempt to predict how long it would keep circulating and calling for a “massive effort” to counter it. “This virus may never go away,” WHO emergencies expert Mike Ryan told an online briefing.
- U.S. stocks fell sharply for the second day on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned of extended economic weakness due to the coronavirus pandemic but did not mention new central bank support. The U.S. economy will take some time to get back to where it was, Powell said in a webcast, as he pledged to use the U.S. central bank’s power as needed and called for more fiscal stimulus.
- The world economy is projected to shrink by 3.2 percent in 2020 after the coronavirus pandemic sharply restricted economic activity, increased uncertainty and sparked the worst recession since the depression, the United Nations said on Wednesday. A report by the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs said there would likely only be a gradual recovery of lost output in 2021. In January, the department had projected world economy growth of between 1.8 to 2.5 percent this year.
Crypto Prices (from CoinMarketCap)
Bitcoin: Up 4.46% to $9,325.36
Total trading volume (24h): $45.92+ billion USD
Ethereum: Up 4.39% to $198.89
Total trading volume (24h): $17.32+ billion USD
3 biggest movers 24 hours
Biggest Mover 1: Kappi Network (KAPP) is up 303.50% to $0.000001
Biggest Mover 2: Litecoin SV (LSV) is up 259.99% to $0.930713
Biggest Loser: Unicorn Token (UNI) is down 50.57% to $0.000231
What Moved Crypto Markets (i.e. digital assets)
- Bitcoin’s hash rate, the measure of miner’s performance, appears to have dropped by about 16% after the third halving as miners now generate twice less from the block subsidy. The daily miner revenue has dropped by about 44% after the halving – from $16.1 million to $9.0 million. Most of the older ASIC mining equipment, such as Antminer S9, is now unprofitable. The new-gen devices, such as Antminer S17 and Whatsminer M30S, remain vastly profitable.
- The total stablecoin supply hit an all-time high of $10.4 billion on Tuesday, crossing the $10 billion mark for the first time. Tether still dominates the stablecoin sector with 85.1% of the market share and over $8.8 billion in total supply. USDC ranks second with 7.2% of the market share.
Other Specialties
Fintech: Singapore is giving fintech companies more funds to help them ride through the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure they can continue to innovate alongside financial institutions. A new SG$6 million ($3.44 million) grant can be tapped to cover their day-to-day expenses as well as fund proof-of-concepts. Put together by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Singapore FinTech Association (SFA), AMTD Group, and AMTD Foundation, the new “fintech solidarity grant” was in addition to a SG$125 million ($71.62 million) support package that was announced last month to help the local financial services industry and fintech firms boost their digital capabilities.
Healthtech: Alphabet-owned Google’s planned $2.1 billion purchase of fitness trackers company Fitbit may harm consumers and hinder innovation, European consumer group BEUC said on Wednesday, calling it a game-changer deal in the health and digital markets. Google announced the deal in November last year. Critics, however, said the deal would give the U.S. tech giant access to a trove of health data gathered from Fitbit’s fitness trackers and other devices used to monitor users’ daily steps, calories burned and distance travelled.
Smart Cities: Uber on Wednesday said it will require drivers, delivery workers and riders globally to wear a mask as countries around the world begin easing restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus. Beginning on Monday, the company will require everyone using its ride-hailing service in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and most Latin American and Asian countries to wear some form of face covering and ask passengers to sit in the back. The company will also lower the number of passengers allowed on its standard Uber rides to three from four.
AI: Australia has won a competition to write a winning “Eurovision” song — using artificial intelligence (AI). Dutch broadcaster VPRO decided to organise an AI Song Contest after the country won the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. The aim was to research the creative abilities of AI and the impact it has on us, as well as the influence it could have on the music industry. Thirteen teams entered the contest, with Australia beating out Sweden, Belgium, the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands to take home the title, giving fans a taste of Eurovision after 2020 contest was cancelled due to COVID-19. The winning song, titled Beautiful the World, includes audio samples of koalas, kookaburras and Tasmanian devils, and was made by music-tech collective Uncanny Valley as a response to the Black Summer bushfires.
NexChangeNOW Pick of the Day
Pavel Durov: TON Blockchain is ‘Over’