BTC Holding Behaviors Remain Strong; Riot Q3 Revenue Falls Short of Estimates

Chart of the Day 

The US equity markets rose for a second day in a broad-based rally ahead of midterm elections, which historically is a potential booster of stock prices. Speculations on the election result and its potential impact on financial markets temporarily diverted traders’ attention from the Federal Reserve’s resolute campaign to curb inflation. The dollar fell with Treasury yields. 

However, the broader crypto market seems to be moving in the opposite direction. As of the time of writing, BTC is changing hands below the $20k key psychological threshold after shedding more than 5% of its market value in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, the on-chain supply active in the last six months reaches historic lows last seen in May 2022, underscoring the extreme level of holding behaviors in the current cycle. 

ETH also took a plunge alongside the largest cryptocurrency by market cap. It is now trading below the $1,500 mark after dropping by 6.6% in the same period. Mid-to-large-cap altcoins have largely flipped red, with FTT and SOL leading the downside correction on double-digit percentage losses in a similar time frame. In fact, several other tokens associated with FTX and Alameda were caught in the crossfire of the latest Binance-FTX tensions, including FIDA (-11.2%), SRM (-10.03%) and RAY (-13.9%).  

Talk of the Town 

Bitcoin mining company Riot Blockchain’s third-quarter revenue fell short of analysts’ expectations, with its net loss widened to $36.6 million from $15.3 million earlier this year. The firm’s revenue dropped 28% to $46.3 million amid the ongoing battle against stagnate spot prices and soaring energy costs, missing the $54.2 million estimate by analysts. Other notable miners in the industry, including Argo and Iris Energy, are also struggling to repay debt, while the mining industry as a whole is facing grim challenges.