“Crypto rallies amidst new advisory council, Google is forced to sell Google Chrome to break monopoly, Coinbase unveils Coin50 index tracker.”
TradFi & Global Market News
Global Market: S&P 500 & NASDAQ
The markets dipped initially a fortnight ago following comments made by the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on the data release by the US Labour Department stating that the US was committed to a slower decrease of interest rates as key economic indicators were stable. These trends align with past post-election market election trends as the surge of investment in Trump-associated companies starts to wane from knee-jerk investors. Since then, markets have rallied again as analysts have been bullish on US economic growth in the immediate future and for the entire 2025 as well. In Q4 2024, the S&P 500 is on track for a 12% growth rate, more than double Q3 performance, with significant growth projects in semiconductor, financial services and healthcare sectors. As of Monday, the index closed just under the 6000 mark. Similar trends are projected in the Nasdaq composite, which closed just above the 19000 price point.
Nvidia’s Blackwell chip sales are set to be a proxy for the industry’s performance. Despite immense confidence from CEO Huang, overheating complaints and supply chain constraints have muddied the waters for analysts making predictions on the industry’s sales potential. Meanwhile, pharmaceutical giant Merck is expected to lead the healthcare sector. It has had consistently strong growth across its business units, bolstered by promising data for its latest product, Winrevair, used in research studies for severe pulmonary artery hypertension, a leading cause of high blood pressure.
Global Market: FTSE100
November has been difficult for the UK as Trump’s election catalyses the market’s deviation from positive September trends as inflation seems more under control. Pessimism about Trump’s impact on the global economy and discouraging data on UK households’ shrinking disposable income have depressed the FTSE100 to a monthly low of 8025.77 from 8285. A key downward driver in this period is AstraZeneca, as they have been embroiled in controversy surrounding the illegal import of their cancer drug into China, temporarily alienating them from the vast Asian market. On Monday, the FTSE100 joined the recent global push and recovered to a month high of 8291.68 as mining industries benefitted from increased copper prices.
Competition News: Google Chrome
The ongoing battle to end the Google monopoly made a massive leap as the Department of Justice ordered the sale of Google Chrome to break up this monopoly. Arguments for the motion have stated that Google’s relationship with smartphone producers like Apple and Android has not only created unfair moats to new entrants by blocking distribution channels but has also stifled innovation by these technology companies to innovate their search engine solutions.
Should the dissolution go through, consumers could be worried about a stark disjoint to the seamless existing search processes and disruptions to the cohesive Google walled gardens for Android users. More significant concerns will arise based on privacy issues, as Chrome and all its users must be removed from the existing Google ecosystem. Additionally, this act is set up to be a watershed for further anticompetitive repercussions as this sets a precedent for a potential sale of Android.
While it is yet to be seen if any search engine can rival Google’s mastery of this function, OpenAI has openly stated its plans to create a rival web browser with ChatGPT embedded. However, there have been many controversies about the reliability of AI-enhanced search results. Nevertheless, Google will fight this action, and users should look out for their official response with their suggested terms by 20 December this year.
DeFi & Digital Assets News
Cryptocurrency Market: Bitcoin & Ethereum
Trump’s arrival to the presidency has been a massive rally for cryptocurrencies as Bitcoin has come ever so close to the 100,000 valuation, reaching a high of 98739.25. Altcoins have also been a big winner of the push as Solana reached its all-time high of 265, and meme coins like DOGE have traded up to 41 cents per coin. Ethereum has had a very muted past quarter and is up to a month-high of 3422.19. Additionally, trading volume has increased by 85% from the start of November to $7.13 billion. One firm winning big in the Trump rally is MicroStrategy, which is currently 533% up on its year-to-date value, almost tripling the performance of Nvidia. MicroStrategy is a pioneer of corporate Bitcoin stockpiling, and its strategy is set to become more aggressive, looking to grow its existing 1.8% ownership over all Bitcoin tokens to 4%. To do so, the company plans to raise $42 billion and has already secured about 20% of that target.
Trump’s cryptocurrency promises gain further weight as SEC Chairman Gary Gensler promises to set down on January 20 2025. His career began because of the GameStop rallies, and befittingly, he has stepped down amid cryptocurrency rallies under Trump. While speculation on the new chair remains, investors are sure that a pro-crypto chair will take the seat. The rally is expected to cool off as news about the election victory spreads.
Elsewhere, global demand for cryptocurrencies is also rallying as Hong Kong’s largest virtual bank, ZA Bank, has set up a service to allow retail investors to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum with fiat currency. HashKey supports the effort to coordinate compliance needs of the Hong Kong government to get the appropriate licensing in line with regulatory standards. The Asian digital asset market should see this as a promising sign of growth and acceptance in the region.
Election News: Crypto Tsar
To add further legitimacy to Trump’s commitment to crypto, he has boldly declared an open role of the “crypto tsar” on a new crypto advisory board that will be seated by industry players across the Web3.0 ecosystem. This council is set to provide advisory on digital asset policymaking, coordinate across US various financial regulatory boards and establish the crypto reserve. Industry executives are scrambling for spots on the board, but analysts are confident that Coinbase, a16z and Ripple members will be present. The cumulation of pro-crypto thought leaders will further strengthen belief in the system and establish the credibility of cryptocurrencies as a strategic financial asset.
Innovation News: Prometheum
While often painted as a villain to cryptocurrencies, Gensler liked one particular company, Prometheum. Under Gensler, all cryptocurrencies, bar Bitcoin, can only be labelled as security; the rulings have caused many other tokens like XRP and Solana to have been delisted for failure to comply. Prometheum stands out by offering a unique service of having these crypto asset securities as an investment opportunity. Under the new administration, these tokens may not be securities anymore. As such, the business has decided to pivot towards an even more niche market, the tokenisation of traditional assets. While crypto venture capital Matt Walsh is critical of Prometheum’s business model, these discussions are encouraging as innovations to bridge both financing worlds continue to grow strong.
In Other News…
Short Updates:
Anthropic – The rising AI company received an injection of $ 4 billion in investment from Amazon to lock in a deal with AWS, which could see the companies co-developing future versions of Amazon’s Trainium chips and even a new AI development platform, AWS Neuron. This deal directly challenges NVIDIA’s position as the company’s stock dropped 3% since the deal’s announcement.
Coinbase – The platform launched its benchmark tracker, Coin50, which includes over 50 cryptocurrencies and altcoins. The product is exclusively available as perpetual future contracts to institutional traders on Coinbase Advanced. It targets emerging markets, as the US, UK, and Canada have been excluded from the launch.
Opportunity Spotlight
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