Crypto Market
Bitcoin Core Developer Claims Loss Of $3.3 Million After PGP Exploit
Luke Dashjr, a Bitcoin OG and core developer, claims his wallet was hacked due to a Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) key compromise right before the new year. Dashjr claims to have lost “basically” all his BTC, which is about 200 BTC or $3.3 million at current market prices.
Hong Kong Brokers Line Up for SFC Approval Ahead of New Virtual Asset Trading Legislation
According to local media reports, financial service companies in Hong Kong have begun seeking advice on licencing requirements and have already begun providing services to retail investors after Lawmakers passed an amendment to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance (AMLO) in December 2022.
The new law, which introduces a new licensing scheme for virtual asset service providers, will allow retail investors the ability to trade in virtual assets. Trading in digital assets is currently only permitted for qualified investors or traders who can show they have at least $1 million in bankable assets.
Tax-Loss Harvesting Platform Unsellable is Building ‘The World’s Largest Collection of Worthless NFTs
NFT traders and enthusiasts are reportedly offloading their worthless NFTs on a platform called “Unsellable” in order to leverage tax loss harvesting provisions. Unsellable, which launched last month, acquires “worthless” NFTs for the cost of gas plus a few bucks.
The site, which describes itself as “Web3 junk removal,” offers instant liquidity for worthless and unsellable NFTs, providing a quick way for NFT investors to capture their losses. The majority of NFTs that the site buys are derivative projects, or collections that are based on other well-known projects. These include Baby Goblinz, a parody of Goblintown, Lost Nouns, a derivation of Nouns, and Anatomy Science Ape Club, a BAYC derivative
Dogecoin Foundation Announces New Fund for Core Developers
In order to further develop the Dogecoin ecosystem in the coming year, the Dogecoin Foundation has recently announced a new fund for Dogecoin Core developers. According to the announcement, 5 million Dogecoin ($360,000) will be allocated to the new fund to support the development of the Dogecoin platform.
The fund will be kept in a new multisignature wallet that is maintained by the Dogecoin foundation’s members and requires three of the five signatures from the core developers of Dogecoin, including chromatic, Marshall Hayner, Michi Lumin, Patrick Lodder, and Ross Nicoll. Besides controlling the release, these custodians won’t have any other access to the funds.
Stock Market
Jobs data, Fed minutes, and a fresh start for investors: What to know this week
The December jobs report and details from the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting of 2022 will headline a short opening week of 2023 for investors as Wall Street limps into a new year after its worst run since the Global Financial Crisis.
U.S. stock and bond markets will be closed on Monday, January 2, in observance of New Year’s Day.
Economic data will pick up when traders return to a four-day trading week after a quiet end of December.
The Labor Department will publish its jobs report for December at 8:30 a.m. ET Friday morning, and economists expect a payroll gain of 200,000 jobs last month, per Bloomberg consensus estimates.
Global and U.S. stocks closed out their worst year since 2008 on Friday. Aggressive central bank actions to quell historic inflation and war in Ukraine battered financial markets and ended a three-year winning streak for the major averages.
The S&P 500 tumbled 19.4% in 2022, its largest calendar-year decline since a 38% drop in 2008 during the Great Recession. The Dow fell a comparably modest 9%, holding up better than its index peers.
The Nasdaq Composite wiped out one third of its value, dropping 33% and closing out its first four-quarter decline since the 2000 dot-com bubble as rising interest rates wreaked havoc on technology stocks.
Even as investors turn the page on 2022, much of Wall Street expects more pain remains ahead.
The FOMC is set to convene January 31-February 1 and is expected to deliver its first rate increase of 2023 and eighth of the current hiking cycle at the conclusion of discussions.
Elsewhere on the economic calendar this week, readings on durable goods orders and PMI data will offer investors the latest snapshots of industrial and manufacturing activity.
The earnings calendar remains light during the off-season, with a few notable names including Conagra (CAG), Constellation Brands (STZ), and Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) set to report.
