The cryptocurrency market is gearing up for important events this week, with the release of U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) data and massive token unlocks totaling over $230 million attracting attention.
These events are expected to increase volatility and shape market direction.
MakerDAO’s Spark Tokenization Grand Prix starts on Monday
MakerDAO, a major player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, will launch the Spark Tokenization Grand Prix on August 12, 2024. The plan aims to introduce up to $1 billion in tokenized assets, focusing on U.S. Treasury bills and similar instruments. It will also showcase MakerDAO’s strategic efforts to strengthen the decentralized finance ecosystem.
Competition participants will be evaluated based on price, liquidity, and alignment with the SparkDAO vision. The goal is to discover proposals that promote innovation and financial inclusion.
Maker Governance reviews contest results. They will ultimately decide which assets to add, while ensuring compliance with global financial regulations.
The Spark Tokenization Grand Prix has already generated interest from major issuers of tokenized Treasury bills. In an email sent to BeInCrypto, representatives from Superstate and OpenEden expressed their intention to participate with their flagship products USTB and TBILL. Other reports indicate that BlackRock will also join the fray with its BUIDL token.
Learn more: What are the implications of tokenizing real-world assets (RWA)?
US Consumer Price Index Report Impacts Cryptocurrency Market Sentiment
The July U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report is scheduled to be released on August 14, 2024. Market participants expected the data to confirm that the deflationary trend of recent months will continue.
Analysts believe that unless CPI data shows a sharp rise in inflation, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is likely to lower expected interest rates in September. These rate cuts are likely to increase liquidity in the market, which could push up the prices of assets, including cryptocurrencies.
June CPI data showed that core inflation rose slightly to 0.1% on the month and 3% for the whole year. Meanwhile, July CPI is expected to continue to indicate the economy is cooling, according to forecasts from the Cleveland Fed and prediction market Calci.
In particular, the overall cryptocurrency market fell sharply last week, with Bitcoin falling to $49,000. It has since rebounded to around $60,000, but upcoming CPI data is expected to determine whether this recovery is sustained or if there is further volatility.
Ethena Labs announces details on using Solana as new backup asset
Ethena Labs has expanded USDE (synthetic U.S. dollar) to the Solana network, effective August 7, 2024. This integration allows Solana users to trade with USDE while earning native rewards through sUSDE.
In addition to this integration, Ethena Labs also plans to integrate Solana’s SOL token as a supporting asset for USDE. The process is currently awaiting governance approval and is expected to be completed this week.
The Ethena Labs team said: “USDe’s supported asset SOL will be submitted for governance execution in the next few weeks, opening an additional $2-3 billion in open contracts on major exchanges, further improving USDe’s scalability.” on Twitter superior).
Learn more: What is the Ethena Protocol and USDe Synthetic Dollar?
Major coins like SANDBOX (SAND) unlocked this week
This week, the cryptocurrency market is set for a massive token unlock worth over $230 million, led by The Sandbox and Arbitrum. Sandbox plans to issue 225.59 million SAND tokens, equivalent to 9% of the total circulation.
The tokens, worth approximately $55.84 million, will be distributed among team members, advisors and company reserves. This distribution also marks the final unlocking of SAND by retail investors.
Likewise, Arbitrum plans to unlock over 90 billion ARB tokens, worth approximately $53.5 million. For more information on major cryptocurrency token unlocks this week, read this article.
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