The U.S. president has rarely made public statements on crypto and blockchain, though officials in his administration are reportedly reviewing current regulations.

United States President Joe Biden will speak directly about cryptocurrency and its role in the attack on the Colonial Pipeline and other ransomware breaches, according to Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan.

In a White House press briefing on Monday, Sullivan said U.S. officials, seemingly including Biden, would like to see an action plan regarding ransomware attacks during the president’s visit to the G-7 summit this weekend. The national security adviser said this plan should address the resilience of such attacks, how to share information with other democracies and “how to deal with the cryptocurrency challenge.”

Sullivan said crypto “lies at the core of how these ransom transactions are played out,” citing cyberattacks as a “national security priority” for the U.S. government — particularly, for “critical infrastructure.” His remarks follow hackers breaching the network behind the Colonial Pipeline in May, reportedly forcing the firm to pay $4.4 million in ransom.

“It’s gotta become a priority on a going forward basis,” said Sullivan, referring to the G-7 addressing such ransomware attacks. He described the issue as a “different order of magnitude of a security threat that the alliance has to concern itself with in a way that it hasn’t historically.”

President Biden has, as an individual, largely been silent on crypto and blockchain both as vice president under former President Barack Obama and during his campaign for office. Last July, then-candidate Biden said he didn’t hold Bitcoin (BTC), following a massive hack that took over high-profile accounts and asked their followers to send crypto.

However, his administration is reportedly reviewing existing rules around crypto and determining whether new restrictions are needed to protect investors following volatility in the market. Since hitting an all-time high price of roughly $65,000 in April, Bitcoin has fallen more than 44% to reach $35,588 at the time of publication.

The G-7 summit is scheduled to be held in the United Kingdom from June 11 to 13. It will be Biden’s first foreign trip acting as U.S. president since his inauguration in January.

Bitcoin and altcoins are likely to remain under pressure for a few days but lower levels could attract buying.

United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen defended President Joe Biden’s latest massive spending package while speaking to Bloomberg. Yellen said it would be “a plus” for society even if it resulted in a higher interest rate environment.

If rates inch higher, traders will explore the best possible options to hedge their portfolios. While gold is down about 2.5% year-to-date, Bitcoin (BTC) is still up 22% during the same period, even after the massive plunge in May.

Bitcoin’s outperformance may not go unnoticed and several institutional investors are likely to make it a part of their portfolio along with gold.

London-based asset management firm Ruffer booked a profit of more than $1 billion on an investment of $600 million in Bitcoin. Ruffer’s investment director Hamish Baillie in an interview with The Times said the company bought in November and sold its “last tranche in April.” Baillie said institutional investors, including Ruffer, are likely to continue buying Bitcoin.

This suggests that Bitcoin is likely to attract huge institutional interest at lower levels, which may act as a strong floor. The larger the purchases by institutions at lower levels, the higher the price is likely to rally during the next bull phase.

Let’s analyze the charts of the top-10 cryptocurrencies to determine their next possible trending move.

BTC/USDT

Bitcoin dropped to the trendline of the symmetrical triangle on June 5 but the bears could not break this support. The bulls successfully defended the trendline for the past two days and are attempting a rebound off it today.

The buyers will have to push the price above the resistance line of the triangle to gain the upper hand. If they manage to do that, the BTC/USDT pair could extend the relief rally to the 50-day simple moving average ($46,784).

A breakout and close above the 50-day SMA will be the first indication that the downtrend could be ending.

However, the downsloping moving averages and the relative strength index (RSI) in the negative territory suggest advantage to the bears.

If the price turns down from the current level or the overhead resistance and breaks below the triangle, the pair could witness panic selling. That may pull the price down to the critical support zone at $30,000 to $28,000.

ETH/USDT

Ether (ETH) turned down from the resistance line of the symmetrical triangle on June 4 but the shallow correction shows the bulls are buying on dips. The price has risen back above the 20-day exponential moving average ($2,743) and the bulls are challenging the resistance line of the triangle.

If buyers propel the price above the triangle and the 50-day SMA ($2,918), it will suggest the start of a rally to the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement level at $3,362.72. This level may act as stiff resistance but if the bulls arrest the next decline above the 20-day EMA, it will suggest the downtrend could be over.

Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the current level and slides below $2,550, the ETH/USDT pair could drop to the support line of the triangle. A bounce off this support could extend the stay of the pair inside the triangle.

The first sign of weakness will be a break and close below the support line of the triangle. Such a move could clear the path for a decline to $2,180.53 and then $1,728.74.

BNB/USDT

Binance Coin (BNB) turned down from $433 on June 4 and the bears thwarted another attempt by the bulls to clear the resistance on June 5. This suggests the bears are aggressively defending the $433 level.

Although the price traded below the 20-day EMA ($398) for the past two days, the bears could not sink the BNB/USDT pair to the trendline. This suggests that bulls may be regrouping to make another assault at the $433 level.

If buyers succeed in driving the price above this resistance, the BNB/USDT pair could rally to the 50-day SMA ($492) and then to the 78.6% retracement level at $589.04.

Alternatively, if the price turns down from the current level or the overhead resistance and drops below $365, the pair may correct to the trendline. A break below this support will suggest the bears are back in the game.

ADA/USDT

Cardano (ADA) turned down from $1.88 on June 3 but the bulls have not allowed the price to sustain below the 20-day EMA (1.67). This suggests the sentiment is turning positive and the bulls are buying on dips to the 20-day EMA.

The buyers will now have to push the price above $1.94 to gain the upper hand. If that happens, the ADA/UDST pair could rally to the all-time high at $2.47. A breakout and close above this resistance will suggest the start of the next leg of the uptrend.

Contrary to this assumption, if the price turns down from the overhead resistance, it will suggest aggressive selling at higher levels. That could keep the pair range-bound between the 50-day SMA ($1.56) and $1.94 for a few days.

The first sign of weakness will be a break below $1.33. That could open the doors for a further slide to $1.

DOGE/USDT

Dogecoin (DOGE) had formed a Doji candlestick pattern on June 5 and 6 near the 20-day EMA ($0.37), indicating indecision among the bulls and the bears.

If bears sink the price below $0.35, the DOGE/USDT pair could drop to the neckline of a large head and shoulders pattern. A breakdown and close below the neckline will be a huge negative as that could increase the possibility of a drop to $0.10.

However, the moving averages are flat and the RSI is just below the midpoint, indicating a few days of range-bound action. If the price turns up from the neckline, the pair could rise to $0.47 and remain stuck between these levels for a few days.

A breakout and close above $0.47 will be the first sign of strength. It will clear the path for a northward march toward $0.59.

XRP/USDT

XRP’s price is getting squeezed between the 20-day EMA ($1.03) and $0.88 for the past few days. The downsloping moving averages and the RSI below 44 indicate advantage to the bears.

If the price turns down from the current level or the 20-day EMA and breaks below $0.88, the XRP/USDT pair could drop to $0.79 and then to the May 23 low at $0.65.

This negative view will invalidate if the bulls propel the price above $1.10. If that happens, the pair could rally to the 50-day SMA ($1.23) and then to the downtrend line.

This is an important resistance to watch out for because a break above it will suggest the downtrend is over.

DOT/USDT

Polkadot (DOT) has been trading inside an ascending channel for the past few days. The altcoin is attempting to bounce off the trendline of the channel and rise above the overhead resistance at $26.50.

If that happens, the DOT/USDT pair could rise to the 50-day SMA ($31.68) and then to the resistance line of the channel. If the price turns down from the resistance line, the pair may continue to trade inside the channel.

However, if the bulls thrust the price above the channel, the momentum could pick up. That will also suggest an end to the downtrend.

Conversely, if the price turns down from the 20-day EMA or the 50-day SMA, it will suggest that traders are selling on rallies to the moving averages. A break below the trendline of the channel will increase the possibility of a drop to $18.41 and then to $15.

UNI/USDT

Uniswap (UNI) turned down from the 20-day EMA ($27.64) on June 4 but the bulls did not allow the price to drop below $25. This suggests a positive sentiment because traders are not waiting for a deeper correction to buy.

If buyers thrust the price above the 20-day EMA and the overhead resistance at $30, the UNI/USDT pair could rise to the 50-day SMA ($32.79). This level may again act as a stiff resistance.

However, if the bulls arrest the next decline at the 20-day EMA, it will suggest the sentiment has turned positive. That will enhance the prospects of a rally to the 78.6% retracement level at $38.15.

This bullish view will invalidate if the price turns down and plummets below $21.50. Such a move will suggest the bears have overpowered the bulls.

ICP/USDT

Internet Computer (ICP) is struggling to rebound off the $103.71 support for the past two days, which indicates a lack of buyers even at these levels. This increases the likelihood of a break below the support.

If that happens, the ICP/USDT pair could drop to the all-time low at $86.01. This is an important support to watch out for because if this level cracks, the pair could extend its decline to $60.

The negative view will invalidate if the price turns up from the current level and rises above $120. That will indicate strong buying at lower levels. A break above $136.60 could open the door for a rally to $168.

BCH/USDT

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is currently trading between the downtrend line and the support at $616.04. The downsloping 20-day EMA ($747) and the RSI in the negative zone suggest bears have the upper hand.

If the price dips below the $616.04 support, the bears will try to pull the price down to the May 23 support at $468.13. This is an important support to watch out for because if it cracks, the decline could extend to $400.

Conversely, if the price turns up from the current level and breaks above the 20-day EMA, it will suggest buyers are attempting to make a comeback. The BCH/USDT pair could then rally to the 50-day SMA ($930).

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk. You should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Market data is provided by HitBTC exchange.

Nayib Bukele says he wants to help entrepreneurs embrace El Salvador as a base, with Bitcoin free from capital gains tax.

Bitcoin (BTC) hodlers who want to earn BTC tax-free will get help to stay in El Salvador, the country’s president has said.

In a tweet on Monday, President Nayib Bukele said that his government would “help” settle foreign workers.

El Salvador: “We’ll help with this”

The announcement is one of many that continue to come informally from Bukele, now famous for attempting to put El Salvador on a form of “Bitcoin standard.”

At last week’s Bitcoin 2021 conferwnce in Miami, he told the audience in a prerecorded video message that he would send a bill to lawmakers demanding that Bitcoin be made legal tender. 

Welcome to the future #Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/j30vcZVXvJ

— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) June 5, 2021

Now, as part of social media engagement with well-known cryptocurrency figures, Bukele suggested that those wishing to travel to work in El Salvador would get official support. Once made legal tender, Bitcoin income would not face capital gains tax.

“We’ll help with this,” he replied while debating the topic with podcast host Stephan Livera.

Tu tienes Bitcoin? tu tienes residencia en el Salvador yo en cualquier momento caigo … https://t.co/drpnIQ1lAj

— MARCIANOTECH (@MARCIANOPHONE) June 6, 2021

In a separate tweet came promises of “immediate permanent residence for crypto entrepreneurs,” a move that spurred interest from figures such as Tron CEO Justin Sun and Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, among others.

Latin America embraces Bitcoin

As Cointelegraph reported, meanwhile, El Salvador’s plan has already seen Paraguay make a similar move.

Likewise using Twitter as a venue for publicizing still unofficial government plans, one congressperson hinted that a deal involving PayPal would shortly be announced by Asuncion.

This likewise received a warm reception.

“Now Paraguay? The sovereign level game theory starting to take shape just like many have been talking about for years,” podcast host Preston Pysh responded. 

Criticism has nonetheless come mixed with concern for El Salvador. The political structure of the country has worried some, while others believe that there would be international backlash over a Bitcoin standard. 

Bukele, however, has already pledged to rise above external pressure.

“Some powerful interests will try to make this historical #Bitcoin move fail,” he wrote.

“They know what it means if it succeeds. It will.”

Plan B Passport, a dedicated service helping Bitcoin owners move to more appealing jurisdictions such as Portugal, has yet to add El Salvador to its list of destinations.

BTC

The Bitcoin price bounce has stalled ahead of the $40,000 level and the coin is at risk of retesting the $30k lows from mid-May. The coin could look to set a more secure low at that level, but there is a risk of further losses, with little in the way of support to the $20k level. 

Business intelligence company MicroStrategy has announced another fund-raising to buy $400 million of BTC, but the bounce on that news was weak. Investors know that the expected corporate wave thesis has been dented after Telsa pulled back on its plans to accept BTC as a form of payment.

Michael Saylor’s firm announced on Monday that it will offer another $400 million of senior secured debt to institutional buyers. The debt will be due in 2028 and MicroStrategy plans to use the proceeds to purchase more Bitcoin, according to a press release.

MicroStrategy stock is up by more than 250% in the past year but is down by 22% in the past month after Bitcoin’s price drop. 

BTC trades around the $36,000 level and the week ahead should determine whether there is strong support ahead of the $30k level. 

TFUEL

TFUEL was the best performing coin of the week with a gain of around 25%.

TFuel is rising ahead of the Theta Mainnet release in 23 days, which will add TFuel staking and uptime mining.

A key part of the new mainnet will be TFUEL burning where Elite Edge Nodes will burn at least 25% of each TFUEL payment to the network. In addition to this, 

“network transaction fees and smart contract fees are also burned taking these TFUEL perpetually out of circulation.”

The new upgrade will see a moderate increase in the gas fee on Theta protocol but the project has released comparisons to show it is less expensive than using Ethereum.

Currently, the fees on the Theta network are near zero, and after the proposed increase would still be sufficiently low and cost-effective for smart contracts and Dapps with transaction fees of 0.3 TFUEL for send transactions, 20 TFUEL to deploy a smart contract, and 1 TFUEL to interact with a smart contract. 

The table below shows the estimated fees in USD based on today’s TFUEL price for Theta before and after the update, along with Ethereum for comparison:

TFuel now trades at $0.52 with a market cap of $2.8bn, while the Theta token trades at $9.57 with a market cap of $9.57bn. Theta is currently the number 18 project by that valuation.

The Theta platform offers access to esports, music, video, and entertainment, with users rewarded in TFuel.

DGB

Digibyte was higher on the week with a price of $0.70 but the coin’s ability to get above the resistance at $0.80 could hinge on the Bitcoin moves in the week ahead.

DigiByte is a fast digital currency, which is 40x faster than BTC, but it has since expanded to digital assets, smart contracts, decentralized applications, and secure authentication.

DGB has been around for seven years and according to developers, it is “one of the safest, fastest, longest and most decentralized UTXO blockchains in existence.”

The Digi-ID protocol is a secure sign-in tool built on the DigiByte blockchain for use with websites, applications, and the internet of things.

A recent development for DGB was the acceptance of the coin for loans at CoinRabbit. Users can stake coins as collateral and pay 10% APR for a fast loan. 

Digibyte was also recently ranked number three in the top Internet of Things (IoT) coins by Satoshi Club, behind VeChain and MIOTA.

FIL

FIL was higher in the last week as the coin repairs some of the recent damage from a plunge. Filecoin’s token saw highs at $220 going into April but has since fallen to $60. Last week’s gains took the coin to $90.

FIL offers a more environmentally friendly mining option than other networks as coins are awarded to miners that store data on the blockchain. Filecoin operates in a similar way to a decentralized Dropbox, where miners can sell spare hard drives as storage space. And with the network being decentralized, it’s difficult to delete this data from the network.

The price of FIL staged a bounce amidst a bearish week for the cryptocurrency market and that could see support in the coming weeks. The coin is one of a few that could benefit from the recent concerns surrounding the environmental footprint of BTC.

The price of FIL will look to get back the recent highs at $220, with the coin now ranked at number 22 in the list of coins with a market cap of $7bn.

The announcement comes the same day as ETC Group’s Bitcoin ETP began trading on the same exchange.

Switzerland-based 21Shares, formerly known as Amun, has said it will make its Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded product available to traders in the United Kingdom through the Aquis Exchange.

According to an announcement from 21Shares, its Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) will be available to professional investors on the Aquis Exchange this summer. U.K.-based firm GHCO will be acting as the crypto ETP’s liquidity provider, with 21Shares saying the product would be “engineered like an [exchange-traded fund].”

“ETPs trade on exchanges in a similar manner to a listed stock and institutional investors in the U.K. will get exposure to Bitcoin via a regulated framework and structure which they are already accustomed to,” said 21Shares. “The ETP has been designed to provide institutional U.K. investors with secure and cost-effective exposure to Bitcoin without the associated Bitcoin custody and security challenges.”

21Shares reported more than $1.5 billion in assets under management across 14 ETPs available on European stock exchanges. One unit of the firm’s Bitcoin ETP on Aquis will reportedly represent exposure to 0.00035 BTC, or roughly $12.54 at the time of publication.

A few companies have begun expanding their crypto products to the U.K. market. Also on Monday, crypto investment manager ETC Group’s Bitcoin ETP began trading on the Aquis Exchange in London and Paris. However, the country’s financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority, banned the sale of crypto derivatives to retail traders in January.

The company’s stock has dropped by more than 60% after topping out at $1,135 in early February.

A lackluster balance sheet, excessive debt load and over-leveraged exposure to Bitcoin have crashed MicroStrategy stock by more than 63% since February already. Nevertheless, the business intelligence company has ignored the risks of its frothy valuations, and it now wants to raise more debt and buy Bitcoin with proceeds (BTC).

MicroStrategy announced on June 7 that it “intends to raise $400 million aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes in private offering […] to acquire additional Bitcoins.” The company already holds more than 92,000 BTC, worth about $3.31 billion at current exchange rates — almost 1.5x its principal investment.

MSTR plunged 2.17% to $469.29 per share after the New York Stock Exchange’s opening bell on June 7. At its year-to-date high, it was changing hands for $1,135.

Not making money

In previous statements, MicroStrategy clarified that it is building up a Bitcoin portfolio as an insurance policy against the continuing devaluation of the world’s major currencies. But with its back-to-back Bitcoin purchases, the company has effectively protected itself from more than just the U.S. dollar decline. Here’s a hint: unprofitable business lines.

A look into MicroStrategy’s alternative asset holdings also shows that the company is overly skewed toward Bitcoin, with real estate accounting for less than 0.2% of the total investments.

Its latest quarterly report also shows a weaker balance sheet as of March 31, with a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.55 — a significant debt load of $1.66 billion against an equity valuation of $0.37 billion.

That is particularly risky when Bitcoin’s price volatility is taken into account. MicroStrategy does not generate sufficient income to service its debt load and hugely relies on Bitcoin profits to do so. Atop that, it now wants to raise another $300 million, although its convertible notes are not due to mature until 2028.

Juan De La Hoz, a closed-end fund/exchange-traded fund strategist, fears that MicroStrategy risks becoming insolvent should Bitcoin fall by more than 50% in the future, noting the flagship cryptocurrency’s massive declines in the years 2014 and 2018. The analyst added that MicroStrategy would most likely liquidate its Bitcoin holdings to avoid insolvency.

Hoz added that he would neither invest in cryptocurrencies through leverage nor invest in a company that did so, hinting at his extremely bearish outlook for MicroStrategy and Bitcoin.

“It is simply too risky, you could lose it all, and I’d rather not take that chance.”

Bitcoin prices sleepwalked through MicroStrategy’s announcement early in the U.S. morning before trading began on the NYSE. The BTC/USD exchange rate continued trading sideways while maintaining support above $36,000.

The group has previously warned of “financial stability concerns” and risks faced by banks when it comes to cryptocurrencies.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision has said it will be publishing a consultation paper aimed at banks reducing their risk of exposure to crypto. 

According to the Switzerland-based Bank of International Settlements, or BIS, the Basel Committee will publish the paper on crypto exposure this week following its decision to hold a public consultation on the matter. The announcement came during a Friday meeting, during which the committee also discussed the impact of the current pandemic on the banking system as well as any proposed policy initiatives:

“While banks’ exposures to cryptoassets are currently limited, the continued growth and innovation in cryptoassets and related services, coupled with the heightened interest of some banks, could increase global financial stability concerns and risks to the banking system in the absence of a specified prudential treatment.”

The BIS added that though many authorities seek the approval of the Basel Committee, the regulator relies on its members to enforce proposed actions. In other words, the committee’s decisions do not carry the force of law. Banking regulators from countries including Japan, the United States and many nations in Europe are members of the group.

Calling for a “prudential treatment” of crypto has been a common theme for the committee. In 2019, the regulator said that cryptocurrencies were “unsafe to rely on” as a medium of exchange or store of value.

The DeFi space crashed along with the rest of the market on May 19, but the liquidations mechanisms passed the biggest stress test.

The savage sell-off that took place in mid-May fueled volatility in markets and triggered liquidations among numerous decentralized finance protocols. Like an earthquake, the market fall exacerbated the biggest wave of liquidations in DeFi history. The market experienced a higher amount of liquidation on May 19 than in the past two years in the DeFi space. 

As part of the Market Insights bi-weekly newsletter, Cointelegraph Consulting teamed up with Covalent to investigate the liquidations on Aave, Compound and Maker. While the three DeFi protocols account for nearly 50% of all DeFi total value locked, according to DappRadar, they saw liquidations hitting a record of over $1.17 billion worth of collateral recently.

The largest single day of liquidations so far was May 19 as the three protocols together witnessed $377 million worth of collateral liquidated. Aave accounts for $170 million, while Compound lags not far behind with $147 million worth of liquidations, and Maker accounts for $60 million worth of liquidations. 

The data reveals that the recent liquidations dynamics bear a striking resemblance to tsunami waves, with the second of them coming on May 23 when Ether’s (ETH) price plunged to $1,925 from its all-time high at $4,332. The day marks over $160 million of liquidations, with Compound overtaking Aave by value liquidated.

Liquidations on Compound also hit a fresh record. Previously, the protocol faced over $88 million liquidated in November as the result of the Dai stablecoin’s sudden price surge.

The recent wave of liquidations was the biggest in terms of the number of liquidations, too. The data indicates that there have been a total of 13,323 liquidations in the history of the protocols studied, and over a third of the total number of liquidations on the top three DeFi platforms occurred as the result of the recent market turmoil.

Of those 5,012 liquidations that happened after the prices had started to fall on May 19, 64% came from Aave, 29% from Compound and 7% from Maker. Notably, more liquidations occurred on May 23 than on May 19, which is uncorrelated with the data on value liquidated across the protocols.

There have been a total of 418 keepers throughout the history of the three protocols, but the top five make up more than 57% of total liquidations with the top 25 liquidators accounting for more than 91% of all liquidations. The largest keeper has liquidated more than $220 million across the three protocols.

Similarly, there have been 4,148 liquidated users across the three protocols, with the largest address facing a $72-million liquidation. The top 10 liquidated users account for more than 33% of total liquidations. The data indicates there have been 169 addresses with an excess of $1 million liquidated.

The recent market drop was a test of DeFi’s viability. Despite the losses, the protocols have survived the stress test. Aave’s TVL passing the $20-billion mark provides evidence of the positive user sentiment toward the protocol prospects. 

However, while moving forward to an increasing rate of DeFi adoption, it would be important for the protocols to introduce mechanisms that protect users from unpredictable loss of funds as well as to educate them about the underlying risks.

For the latest news, market signals and fundraising activity wrap-up, download the full issue of Cointelegraph Consulting’s bi-weekly newsletter.