(Edited by James Rubin)Good morning. Here’s what’s happening this morning:Market moves: Bitcoin returned above $50,000 after the S&P 500 rose t
(Edited by James Rubin)
Good morning. Here’s what’s happening this morning:
Market moves: Bitcoin returned above $50,000 after the S&P 500 rose to a near record high.
Technician’s take (Editor’s Note): First Mover Asia replaces the usual Technician’s Take today with CoinDesk’s annual list of the most influential people in cryptocurrency. This year’s group of 50 influencers encompasses developers and entrepreneurs behind the projects already transforming the way we consider money and our way of doing business; thinkers trying to make sense of the rapidly emerging industry; and regulators and politicians trying to set reasonable boundaries that will protect consumers without crimping crypto’s remarkable innovations. The nature of end-of-year lists invites disagreement, sometimes controversy and often speculation. So read CoinDesk’s selections with an eye to whom you would have chosen and who might make the 2022 list. Presenting CoinDesk’s Most Influential 2021: The 50 people who defined the year in crypto.
Catch the latest episodes of CoinDesk TV for insightful interviews with crypto industry leaders and analysis.
Prices
Bitcoin (BTC): $50.290 +2%
Ether (ETH): $4,158 +2.5%
Markets
S&P 500: $4,712 +0.9%
Dow Jones Industrial Average: $35,970 +0.6%
Nasdaq: $15,630 +0.7%
Gold: $1,783 +0.3%
Market moves
Bitcoin has recovered most of its losses in the past week and rose back above $50,000 on Sunday. The rebound followed two days after the S&P 500 closed Friday at a level close to its all-time high level.
Trading volume across major centralized exchanges remained low over the weekend, far from the high level a week ago when the oldest cryptocurrency tumbled to as low as $42,333 on Dec 4. The subdued trading volume indicates that the price recovery will be less sustainable, meaning that it remains uncertain where bitcoin is headed once markets open in Asia.
Prices for alternative cryptocurrencies also rose: ether, the No. 2 cryptocurrency by market cap, rose above $4,100 on Sunday.
The U.S. stock market rallied on Friday as the inflation reading by the Labor Department was not as high as many investors anticipated, according to CNBC.
Column
Presenting CoinDesk’s Most Influential 2021: The 50 people who defined the year in crypto. (by CoinDesk Staff)
It was a massive year for crypto: Twelve months when long-held theses were validated and many once sci-fi concepts became relatively mainstream.
Celebrities embraced NFTs (non-fungible tokens), and DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations) became a thing. The U.S. Congress taxed crypto (but accepted it more and more). And the markets … well, they were nuts.
“Crypto” today means more than it did a year ago and much more than it did a decade ago. It takes in the future of money, the future of culture, perhaps the future as we know it.
Most Influential is CoinDesk’s recognition of this wide-ranging field of innovation. The following names were selected first by readers in a survey and then by staff over two rounds of (intense) meetings.
The top 10 are recognized for outstanding contributions across development, business building, regulation, gaming, art and investing. CoinDesk commissioned 10 artists to create portraits of these influencers, with NFTs of the works available at platforms like SuperRare and Foundation. Up to 20% of the sales will go to charities of the artists’ choice.
The “honorable 40″ (listed below the top 10) are recognized for their ongoing work. We’ll roll out more profiles and interviews over the course of this week.
Most Influential 2021: The Top 10
1. Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of FTX
Why: For naming stadia “FTX” and becoming crypto’s richest and cleverest twentysomething. Read the full profile.
2. Roham Gharegozlou, CEO of Dapper Labs
Why: For leading NBA Top Shot and bringing tokens to sports (including the NFL). Read the full profile.
3. Bitcoin’s Taproot developers
Why: For contributions to the biggest Bitcoin upgrade in years. Read the full profile.
4. Jack Mallers, founder and CEO of Strike
Why: For his work in El Salvador with President Bukele and development of the Bitcoin Lightning Network. Read the full profile.
5. Elon Musk, entrepreneur
Why: For his Dogecoin advocacy – and showing the dangers of influencers on crypto markets. Read the full profile.
6. Trung Nguyen, CEO of Axie Infinity
Why: For making crypto fun and catalyzing a “play to earn” juggernaut. Read the full profile.
7. Cynthia Lummis, U.S. senator representing Wyoming
Why: For leading pro-bitcoin discourse in the U.S. Senate. Read the full profile.
8. Gary Gensler, chair of U.S. Securities and Exchanges Commission
Why: For grasping the nettle of crypto regulation. Read the full profile.
9. Do Kwon, CEO of Terraform Labs
Why: For his contributions to Cosmos and the multi-chain future. Read the full profile.
10. Katie Haun, general partner atAndreessen Horowitz
Why: For leading policy discussions and notable investments. Read the full profile.
The Honorable 40
The following…
www.coindesk.com