Key Takeaways
- Digital assets push higher on Wednesday, extending their Tuesday gains
- Ether trading 6% to the upside, Bitcoin higher by 3% on the day
- Marshall Wace, a $55bn hedge fund, announces plans to get involved in crypto
Cryptocurrency Market Climbs
Major cryptocurrencies are staging a move higher on Wednesday as traders and investors in the nascent market put efforts into lifting the sentiment. Ether, the second-biggest cryptocurrency with a market cap of nearly $280bn, is trading higher for a second straight day. The Ethereum token advanced 6% on the day, extending it’s Tuesday gains to a total of almost 10% for the past couple of days.
Bitcoin is also higher for a second consecutive day. The world’s most popular digital currency is now floating near $34,800, up about 3% on the day. Bitcoin’s price has been consolidated after a wave of negative news swept the crypto space. Since the beginning of the month, the price of the number one digital asset remains virtually flat, higher by less than 1%.
Anti-crypto Movements vs Growing Support
For the week, several events have been priced in already. On Monday, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) reiterated its firm anti-crypto stance. Indeed, the PBOC warned banks, payment companies and institutions against providing services related to cryptocurrencies. Both the Chinese central bank and the Chinese government stepped up their crackdown efforts in recent weeks, a move largely responsible for the darkening of the market sentiment.
However, yesterday another sign of an expansion of the crypto universe appeared. UK based hedge fund Marshall Wace announced it is mulling over investments in the digital asset sector. The firm, managing over $55bn in assets, is in fact preparing to dive into cryptocurrencies via a portfolio that would hold privately owned digital finance companies.
Thus Marshall Wace is the latest example of a traditional hedge fund interested in exploring the cryptocurrency space. Previously, other investment firms including Stanley Druckenmiller’s Duquesne Capital and Anthony Scaramucci’s SkyBridge Capital showed their intent to expand into crypto assets. In addition, Brevan Howard Asset Management is another hedge fund that is already involved in crypto.
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