How The $1 Trillion Market For ‘Green’ Bonds Is Changing Wall Street

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106863816-1617660366093-bit.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-405264" width="843" height="474" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106863816-1617660366093-bit.jpg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106863816-1617660366093-bit-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 843px) 100vw, 843px" /><figcaption>Dado Ruvic | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



The price of bitcoin took another hit on Friday morning as other cryptocurrencies including ether and doge also saw their values fall.



Bitcoin was trading at $35,904 around 6 a.m. ET and has fallen over 7% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Coin Metrics.



The world’s most popular cryptocurrency has been trying to recover after a week of turmoil that saw its price tumble 30% to around $30,000 last week.



It briefly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/26/bitcoin-price-bounces-back-above-40000-after-a-wild-week-of-trading.html">climbed back above $40,000</a>&nbsp;on Wednesday before losing some of those gains.



Elsewhere, ethereum’s price has fallen around 10% in the last 24 hours to $2,473 a coin, while dogecoin’s price has fallen around 6% to 31 cents.



Cryptocurrencies continue to divide opinion. In a 41-page note last week,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/28/goldman-says-where-its-at-on-bitcoin-ether-and-doge.html">Goldman analysts shared their views</a>&nbsp;on whether the likes of bitcoin and ethereum should be considered an asset class or not.



The latest price falls comes a day after longtime bitcoin bull Cathie Wood, founder and CEO of Ark Investment Management, argued that bitcoin&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/27/cathie-wood-sees-deflation-returning-innovation-stocks-and-bitcoin-to-rally.html">has a place in the world of deflation</a>.



Emerging markets — where currencies are often linked closely to commodity price cyclicality — could ultimately spur outperformance in bitcoin, she said.



“I think what will happen as their currencies come under pressure, the velocity of their money will increase as more and more of their populations shift into bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies and assets,” Wood said at CoinDesk’s Consensus 2021 conference on Thursday.



Last week’s crypto sell-off came after authorities in China and the U.S. moved to tighten regulation and tax compliance on cryptocurrencies. Chinese authorities called for tighter regulation on crypto mining and trading,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/chinas-latest-move-on-crypto-regulation-nothing-new-says-hsbc-.html">reinforcing rules announced in 2017</a>, and the U.S. Treasury announced that it would require stricter crypto compliance with the IRS.



The price recovered after&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/bitcoin-price-soars-after-elon-musk-tweet-on-sustainability-efforts.html">Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Mondaay</a>&nbsp;he spoke to bitcoin miners in North America about renewable energy solutions amid growing concerns about the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/05/bitcoin-btc-surge-renews-worries-about-its-massive-carbon-footprint.html">crypto’s carbon footprint</a>. Elsewhere, hedge fund billionaire&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/billionaire-ray-dalio-i-have-some-bitcoin.html">Ray Dalio revealed</a>&nbsp;in an article published on Monday that he owns some bitcoin.

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Bitcoin falls below $36,000 as cryptocurrencies slip once again

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889138-1622118149551-gettyimages-1320316946-js5_7271_20210527103117393.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-405223" width="840" height="472" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889138-1622118149551-gettyimages-1320316946-js5_7271_20210527103117393.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889138-1622118149551-gettyimages-1320316946-js5_7271_20210527103117393-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 840px) 100vw, 840px" /><figcaption>Detail of the new Rolls-Royce Boat Tail on May 27, 2021, unveiled by Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos at the Home of Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, West Sussex, England. Jeff Spicer | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Rolls-Royce Motor Cars on Thursday unveiled the Boat Tail, a luxury vehicle model it has dubbed “the most ambitious motor car ever created.”



The Boat Tail is a four-seat car, measuring almost 5.8 meters (19 ft) long, with the rear of the vehicle shaped like a yacht deck. Only three will be made, and the price of the car is not being publicized.&nbsp;



The new model comes as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/RR.-GB" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rolls-Royce</a>&nbsp;launches a new division within its business, Coachbuild, an invitation-only program that will allow the carmaker’s most high-end clients to commission unique cars.



Each Boat Tail has been personalized to its purchaser, who collaborated with designers for four years on the cars under the Coachbuild program.



More than 1,800 new parts were developed for the Boat Tail, each of which has luxury features such as double refrigerators for vintage champagne and bespoke timepieces which can be worn or inserted into the car to be used as its clock.&nbsp;



Describing it as a “lovely, magnificent car,” Rolls Royce’s CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös&nbsp;said that the client was involved in “every step of the journey” and that the creation of such bespoke cars was a “money can’t buy experience.”



“It’s something extremely rare and (something) only very selected people might be able to do,” he told CNBC’s Joumanna Bercetche, adding that, by its nature, the Coachbuild division would be a small portion of the company’s overall business.



“That is a very, very small portion of our business and that’s for very good reasons … Our idea is to probably surface a Coachbuild project every second year, commissioned by a selected client.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889137-1622118119612-gettyimages-1320316970-js6_8234_20210527113804404.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-405224" width="838" height="471" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889137-1622118119612-gettyimages-1320316970-js6_8234_20210527113804404.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106889137-1622118119612-gettyimages-1320316970-js6_8234_20210527113804404-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 838px) 100vw, 838px" /><figcaption>Detail of the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail on May 27, 2021, unveiled by Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos at the Home of Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, West Sussex, England. Jeff Spicer | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



“We’re not talking here any volume or numbers – that would be a contradiction to that concept. We want to see that highly, highly exclusive clients are hand-picked, I must say they are hand-picked by me in person, as we want to know with whom we are going on such a journey.”



He said clients would need to bring their own “passion, engagement and the time” necessary to do a collaboration with the carmaker.



Rolls-Royce said on Thursday that its next Coachbuild project was underway, but details are not yet being revealed.

106889138-1622118149551-gettyimages-1320316946-js5_7271_20210527103117393

Rolls-Royce launches the ‘most ambitious’ car it’s ever created

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/GettyImages-1229877299-1-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-401221" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/GettyImages-1229877299-1-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/GettyImages-1229877299-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/GettyImages-1229877299-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/GettyImages-1229877299-1.jpg 1024w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>NETHERLANDS &#8211; 2020/11/29: In this photo illustration, a man holds a syringe with a fake Covid-19 vaccine with the AstraZeneca logo in the background. (Photo Illustration by Robin Utrecht/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



Africa needs at least 20 million doses of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/AZN-GB" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AstraZeneca’s</a>&nbsp;Covid-19 vaccine within the next six weeks to get the second round of shots to people who’ve already received the first, the World Health Organization said Thursday.



Data shows that one dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine is 70% effective for at least 12 weeks, but the second dose provides 81% protection against&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/coronavirus/">Covid</a>&nbsp;for an extended time, according to the WHO. Antibodies have been observed in the body up to six months after one dose.



For the continent to vaccinate at least 10% of its population by September, another 200 million doses of any cleared Covid-19 vaccine is urgently needed, the WHO said.



As of Thursday, 28 million Covid-19 doses from different drugmakers have been administered in Africa, which has almost 1.4 billion people, representing less than two doses per 100 people on the continent. By comparison, more than 165 million people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine dose, equivalent to almost half of the country’s population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



“Africa needs vaccines now. Any pause in our vaccination campaigns will lead to lost lives and lost hope,” said Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa. “We urgently appeal to countries that have vaccinated their high-risk groups to speed up the dose-sharing to fully protect the most vulnerable people.”



France pledged to share half a million doses with six African countries in the next few weeks, and has already sent 31,000 doses to Mauritania. Another 74,400 doses are set to be shipped out soon, the WHO said.



The European Union said it will send 100 million doses to low-income countries by the end of 2021 and the United States has pledged 80 million doses. Other countries around the world have also expressed interest in sharing doses. Countries in Africa that are not using all of their doses are also sharing them with other countries on the continent, according to the WHO.



Redistributing vaccine doses, while helpful, is expensive. The WHO says that Africa must boost its manufacturing capacity for vaccines.



“Intellectual Property waivers are a crucial first step but must come alongside the sharing of expertise and critical technologies,” the WHO wrote in a press release.



In Africa, 54 countries are included in a more than 100-country effort by the WHO to present a draft resolution to the World Health Assembly. The resolution is meant to “strengthen local production, promote technology transfers and innovation, and consider the agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and intellectual property rights through the lens of boosting local production,” according to the WHO.



About 40 African countries have also joined a WHO training to build manufacturing capacity and WHO says it is also working with the African Union on a plan to support feasibility studies and technology transfers upon request.



“It’s too soon to tell if Africa is on the cusp of a third wave.&nbsp;However, we know that cases are rising, and the clock is ticking,” Moeti said.

In this photo illustration, a man holds a syringe with a

Africa needs at least 20 million Covid vaccine doses in the next six weeks, WHO says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106594106-1593199634285gettyimages-1134186398.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-405191" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106594106-1593199634285gettyimages-1134186398.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106594106-1593199634285gettyimages-1134186398-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Internal surveillance camera Krisanapong Detraphiphat | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



With many companies working from home during the pandemic, managers and employers have found themselves in a difficult position with running scattered teams away from the office.



Some have turned to technology to help, but they may be walking a dangerous path using tools like artificial intelligence and algorithms to track employees and their work throughout the day, or even facial recognition that can ensure that someone is at their desk.&nbsp;



A<a href="https://www.ifow.org/publications/the-amazonian-era-how-algorithmic-systems-are-eroding-good-work" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;recent report</a>&nbsp;by the Institute for the Future of Work, a British research and development group, said that algorithmic systems typically used in monitoring the performance of warehouse workers or delivery riders have pervaded more and more industries.



Andrew Pakes, deputy general secretary at U.K.-based trade union Prospect, told CNBC that these “digital leash” technologies have been an upward trend for some time and that Covid-19 remote working accelerated it.



“This was an issue we were picking up before Covid but over the last year, it’s grown rocket boosters as companies have turned to technology,” Pakes said.



“On the one hand, technology has been really important in keeping us safe and connected whilst being at home but there’s another side to it and that’s the worry we’re seeing around it.”



Prospect has published some research into workers’ attitude to these technologies. The<a href="https://prospect.org.uk/news/workers-are-not-prepared-for-the-future-of-working-from-home/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;majority of respondents in one survey</a>&nbsp;said they were uncomfortable with the likes of camera monitoring or keystroke monitoring.



This technology is catching more and more attention from critics. Microsoft<a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-365s-productivity-score-its-a-full-blown-workplace-surveillance-tool-says-critic/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;faced a backlash</a>&nbsp;over its “productivity score” in Microsoft 365, which allowed managers to track an employee’s output.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/dec/02/microsoft-apologises-productivity-score-critics-derided-workplace-surveillance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft has since rowed back on the product’s features</a>, minimizing the data collected on individuals.



PwC was<a href="https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/pwc-facial-recognition-tool-criticised-for-home-working-privacy-invasion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> criticized last year</a> for developing a facial recognition tool for finance firms that would monitor an employee and ensure they are at their desk when they’re supposed to be. A PwC spokesperson told CNBC that the tool was a “conceptual prototype.”



But these types of backlashes haven’t stopped others from tinkering with the technology.<a href="https://www.fujitsu.com/global/about/resources/news/press-releases/2021/0301-02.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;Fujitsu has developed</a>&nbsp;an AI tool that can determine how hard someone is concentrating in an online meeting or class by analyzing muscle movements in the face.&nbsp;



As more and more tech like this hits the market, employers will need to be careful around what they deploy.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-privacy">Privacy&nbsp;</h2>



According to Brian Honan, a cybersecurity consultant and former advisor to Europol, introducing AI-powered work tracking tools like facial recognition or keystroke monitoring brings a whole host of risks for companies.



“Companies do have a duty of care to protect their business and they do have a legitimate interest in ensuring their business interests are taken care of, but they have to be balanced against the rights of the individual in the workplace,” Honan said.



He suspects that many tools like keystroke monitoring or programs that snap screenshots of a person’s desktop could be illegal under the EU’s sweeping GDPR regulations. “If you think about all the information that these tools could be gathering as people are working,” he said.



Honan added that the power of these tools is heavily weighted toward the employer and may overreach into a worker’s personal space.



He said the case of a camera monitoring that a person is at their desk can be particularly problematic in a work-from-home scenario. The camera could capture footage of the employee’s family or housemates, he said, and now their privacy has been violated.



Beyond the regulatory risks at play, he added, the use of these technologies does little to foster a positive culture in the workplace.



“Invariably what you’re saying to your employees is ‘I don’t trust you to do your job, what I’m paying you to do’,” he said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-regulation">Regulation</h2>



Pakes said that GDPR provides a good framework for employers to follow when considering any technology for managing employees, but stricter rules specifically for the workplace in the age of hybrid and remote working is needed.



Prospect advocates for a “right to disconnect” law in the U.K., which sets a clear line for when communication between a worker and their boss ends. Pakes said such regulations are necessary for protecting workers from overreach by employers through technology. Right to disconnect laws have been passed in France and Ireland.



Separately,<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/19/eu-launches-plan-to-regulate-ai-aimed-at-silicon-valley-giants.html">&nbsp;tighter rules in the EU</a>&nbsp;around artificial intelligence are coming down the track, which will rein in how AI is used in various industries. Any employer dabbling with facial recognition will need to be wary of new obligations.



“Most of the employment laws in Europe were designed in the last century around physical harm and risk, health and safety. They weren’t designed for this digital age of AI and decisions about data being taken in clouds or black boxes, which is why we very much argue that data is the new health and safety,” Pakes said.



“We need to update our employment laws to keep them fit for purpose for the way AI is being used on us.”

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Bosses putting a ‘digital leash’ on remote workers could be crossing a privacy line

How Tesla Is Changing The Electrical Grid

Are Swiss banks in trouble? | CNBC Explains

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106888428-1622028919907-gettyimages-1232967074-omarques_18052021_crypto_3.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-405018" width="834" height="469" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106888428-1622028919907-gettyimages-1232967074-omarques_18052021_crypto_3.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106888428-1622028919907-gettyimages-1232967074-omarques_18052021_crypto_3-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 834px) 100vw, 834px" /><figcaption>Omar Marques | LightRocket | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The price of bitcoin briefly climbed back above $40,000 on Wednesday morning, a week after its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/19/bitcoin-btc-price-plunges-but-bottom-could-be-near-.html">price tumbled 30%</a>&nbsp;to around $30,000.



The world’s most popular cryptocurrency traded 6.9% higher at $40,196.06 at 9:00 a.m. ET on Wednesday, according to Coin Metrics data. Bitcoin was last trading 3.3% higher at $38,855.50 by 10:00 a.m. ET.



Other major digital coins were also in the green Wednesday. Ethereum’s price jumped 5.5% higher to $2,693.75, while dogecoin’s price was flat at 34 cents a coin.



Last week’s crypto sell-off came after authorities in China and the U.S. moved to tighten regulation and tax compliance on cryptocurrencies.



Chinese authorities called on Friday for tighter regulation on crypto mining and trading,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/chinas-latest-move-on-crypto-regulation-nothing-new-says-hsbc-.html">reinforcing rules announced in 2017</a>, and the U.S. Treasury announced Thursday that it would require stricter crypto compliance with the IRS.



But the cryptocurrency market is trying to recover some of the losses this week after it&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/23/bitcoin-resumes-selloff-over-weekend-briefly-falls-below-33000.html">plunged again on Sunday</a>&nbsp;to almost $31,000.



Bitcoin’s latest price rise comes after <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/bitcoin-price-soars-after-elon-musk-tweet-on-sustainability-efforts.html">Tesla CEO Elon Musk said</a> Monday he spoke to bitcoin miners in North America about renewable energy solutions. Elsewhere, hedge fund billionaire <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/consensus-ray-dalio-i-have-some-bitcoin" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ray Dalio said</a> in an article published on Monday that he has some bitcoin.

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Bitcoin hovers around $40,000 after a wild week of trading

<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/BTC.CM=">Bitcoin</a>’s aggressive moves are being driven by much more than the next China crackdown or Elon Musk headline.



Traders taking excessive risk in the unregulated cryptocurrency market being forced to sell when prices go down were in large part responsible for last week’s 30% drop in prices and outages for major exchanges, according to analysts. A burgeoning bitcoin lending market is also adding to the volatility.



The price of cryptocurrencies tanked last week, with bitcoin losing roughly a third of its value in a matter of hours. Bitcoin popped to nearly $40,000 on Monday but is still down about 33% from its high.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="381" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887490-1621882994137-Capture.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-404959" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887490-1621882994137-Capture.jpg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887490-1621882994137-Capture-300x154.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /></figure>



When traders use margin, they essentially borrow from their brokerage firm to take a bigger position in bitcoin. If prices go down, they have to pay the brokerage firm back in what’s known as a “margin call.” As part of that, there’s often a set price that triggers selling in order to make sure traders can pay the exchange back.



Brian Kelly, CEO of BKCM, pointed to firms in Asia such as BitMEX allowing 100-to-1 leverage for cryptocurrency trades. Robinhood does not allow traders to use margin for cryptocurrency, and Coinbase only allows it for professional traders.



“You get this crowd factor — everybody’s liquidation price tends to be somewhat near everyone else’s&#8211; when you hit that, all of these automatic sell orders come in, and the price just cascades down,” Kelly, told CNBC.



Bitcoin traders liquidated roughly $12 billion in levered positions last week as the price of the cryptocurrency spiraled, according to bybt.com. This mass exodus wiped out about 800,000 crypto accounts.



“Selling begets more selling until you come to an equilibrium on leverage in the system,” said JMP analyst Devin Ryan. That selling begins to “compound” as leveraged positions are liquidated, because they can’t meet those margin requirements, he said.



“Leverage in the crypto markets — particularly on the retail side — has been a big theme that accentuates the volatility,” Ryan added.



As the crypto market expands, Ryan said he expects leverage to become less of an influence, especially as more institutional capital comes in.



Investors, both retail and institutional, have poured into bitcoin and other digital assets in 2021. The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange — Coinbase —&nbsp;<a href="https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001679788/949f7b09-2fd5-44c6-9b18-28654150e39c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;trading volume in the first quarter of the year was $335 billion, of&nbsp;which approximately $120&nbsp;billion was&nbsp;retail&nbsp;and&nbsp;$215&nbsp;billion was institutional. Trading volumes totaled about $30 billion in the first quarter of 2020.



Mark Cuban weighed in on the leverage aspect for ether, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency, on Twitter last week.



“De-Levered Markets get crushed. Doesn’t matter what the asset is. Stocks. Crypto. Debt. Houses. They bring forced liquidations and lower prices. But crypto has the same problem that [high-frequency traders] bring to stocks, front-running is legal, as gas fees introduce latency that can be gamed,” Cuban said in a tweet last week.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lending">Lending</h2>



The other behind-the-scenes cause for selling may have come from the growing bitcoin lending market.



Crypto companies such as BlockFi and Celsius allow bitcoin holders to store their crypto with the firm, in exchange for an interest rate of between 6% and 8%. On the back end, those firms lend bitcoin out to hedge funds and other professional traders. They also allow people to use their bitcoin holdings as collateral for loans.



For example, if someone took out a $1 million loan backed by bitcoin and the price drops by 30%, they may owe 30% more to the lender.



″As you hit a certain collateral level, firms will automatically sell your bitcoin and send the collateral to the lender,” BKCM’s Brian Kelly said. “This adds to the massive cascade effect &#8212; there was so much volume that most of the exchanges broke.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-regulation">Regulation</h2>



The fact that bitcoin is not regulated by a central bank is part of what makes it so valuable to its investors.



But that lack of a central authority, and increased adoption has put a target on its back from some in Washington. The Treasury Department&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/20/us-treasury-calls-for-stricter-cryptocurrency-compliance-with-irs.html">announced Thursday</a>&nbsp;it will require any transfer worth $10,000 or more in crypto to be reported to the Internal Revenue Service.



“The market does not have the same backstops that other more traditional markets do,” said Ryan. “In some ways the crypto markets are cleaner and they’re not being influenced by a buyer of last resort.”



Still, Ryan said regulation can be viewed as validation of the crypto market, and could be a positive for the digital asset.



“The crypto markets are still in their early days relative to other asset classes and so they’re going through a maturation phase where they are scaling and adoption in increasing, its still relatively nascent,” he said. “Volatility is a feature here just as the market develops,” Ryan said.

bitcoin

Bitcoin traders using up to 100-to-1 leverage are driving the wild swings in cryptocurrencies

The cryptocurrency space could branch out into three different markets — and people may even stop talking about crypto as a single entity one year on, predicted Paul Brody, global blockchain leader at EY.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/24/bitcoin-ethereum-attempt-positive-start-to-week-after-wild-plunges.html">Bitcoin and ether have had a wild ride</a>&nbsp;in recent weeks, with billions of dollars wiped off their market value, according to Coinmarketcap.com.



Bitcoin, the largest digital currency by market cap, at one point&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/19/bitcoin-btc-price-plunges-but-bottom-could-be-near-.html">plunged by 30%</a>&nbsp;to hover near the $30,000 level. It has since bounced back partially to current levels of about $38,090, according to Coin Metrics.



There are currently three “very different” stories going on in the cryptocurrency space, Brody told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Tuesday.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-meme-coins">1. ‘Meme coins’</h2>



The first category is what Brody termed “meme coins” such as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/07/what-is-dogecoin.html">dogecoin, a digital token that originally started as a joke</a>. Its meteoric rise in price, however, has been no laughing matter. Since the start of the year, dogecoin has risen more than 7,000%, according to data from Coinbase.



This segment of cryptocurrencies “could be categorized as investing as entertainment,” Brody said.



“It’s hard for me to predict where they’re going to go, but I don’t see them as having a very big future in the ecosystem,” he added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. Bitcoin as ‘digital gold’</h2>



The next part of the ecosystem revolves around bitcoin, Brody said. The digital token has often been cited as a potential competitor to gold as a hedge against inflation and safe-haven asset. Still, bitcoin’s price volatility tends to be much higher as compared with gold.



According to Brody, however, bitcoin is “better than gold” in some ways.



“When the price of gold goes up people mine more, but you can’t really do that with bitcoin,” he said.



The cryptocurrency is limited and a maximum of 21 million bitcoins can be “mined” — there are currently&nbsp;<a href="https://messari.io/asset/bitcoin/metrics" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">more than 18 million already in circulation</a>. New bitcoin is created by computer users who solve complicated mathematical puzzles, and they take up a lot of energy.



“Bitcoin is gonna go up if everybody buys into this idea that you should have some percentage of your … portfolio in bitcoin — that will drive a lot of participation,” Brody said.



Questions remain around bitcoin’s exact place in an investment portfolio, with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/21/socgen-says-bitcoins-place-in-a-portfolio-remains-highly-contested.html">analysts from Societe Generale saying that it’s still “highly contested.”</a>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. The Ethereum ecosystem</h2>



“The third ecosystem, that could potentially diverge here, is the Ethereum ecosystem,” Brody said, adding that it builds a “whole business ecosystem” around sectors such as decentralized financial services and storage.



It will be “driven by demand for those services and the growth of that ecosystem,” he added.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/01/mark-cuban-on-his-crypto-portfolio-i-own-ethereum-ether-and-bitcoin.html">Billionaire investor Mark Cuban</a>&nbsp;is a firm supporter of Ethereum and has said that “the number of transactions and the diversity of transaction types along with the development efforts in Ethereum dwarf bitcoin.”



Meanwhile, New York University’s Aswath Damodaran told CNBC last week that he sees ether — the cryptocurrency that runs on the Ethereum blockchain — as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/20/nyus-aswath-damodaran-discusses-bitcoin-crash-cryptocurrency-sector.html">having “a better shot” at becoming a commodity than bitcoin</a>.



For his part, Brody predicted that “we’ll stop talking, I think, in a year about crypto as a whole — and start talking about the Ethereum ecosystem or the bitcoin value proposition.”



— CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos contributed to this report.

Meme-coins-or-digital-gold-Blockchain-analyst-weighs-in-on-594×375

Meme coins or digital gold? Blockchain analyst weighs in on where crypto markets are headed

<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/MRNA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Moderna</a>&nbsp;said Tuesday its Covid-19 vaccine was 100% effective in a study of adolescents ages 12 to 17, making it the second shot behind&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/PFE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer</a>’s to demonstrate high efficacy in younger age groups.



The company said it plans to ask the Food and Drug Administration to expand the emergency use of its Covid vaccine for teens early next month. If approved, it would likely dramatically expand the number of shots available to middle and high school students ahead of the next school year. Pfizer and German partner&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/22UA-DE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BioNTech</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/10/pfizer-covid-vaccine-fda-clears-use-in-kids-ages-12-to-15.html">were cleared</a>&nbsp;to use their vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds earlier this month.



“We are encouraged that mRNA-1273 was highly effective at preventing COVID-19 in adolescents,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a press release. “We remain committed to doing our part to help end the COVID-19 pandemic.”



The two-dose vaccine, which is given four weeks apart, is already authorized for adults.



The phase 2/3 study the company is citing Tuesday included more than 3,700 adolescents. No cases of Covid were observed in participants who received two doses of the vaccine, while four cases were observed in the placebo group, according to the company.



No significant safety concerns have been identified, and side effects generally are consistent with those seen in an earlier trial of adults, the company said. The most common side effects after the second dose were headache, fatigue, muscle pain and chills, Moderna said.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/06/covid-moderna-mrna-earnings-q1-2021.html">The new data comes less than three weeks after</a>&nbsp;the company disclosed in an earnings report that early data showed the shot was 96% effective at protecting against Covid in teens ages 12 to 17. That data was based on those who received at least one dose of the vaccine.



The company said Tuesday the shot was shown in the trial to be 93% effective after one dose. Because children are less likely to get seriously ill, Moderna used the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s definition of Covid-19 to calculate that figure. It requires only one symptom and a positive Covid test.



U.S. regulators are expected to grant Moderna’s request for use in teens. The approval process could take about a month, just in time for some summer activities and fall classes if Moderna submits the data by early June. Pfizer and BioNTech requested expanded use of their shot in adolescents on April 9, for example, and were authorized by the FDA on May 10.



Vaccinating children is seen as crucial to ending&nbsp;the pandemic. The nation is unlikely to achieve herd immunity — when enough people in a given community have antibodies against a specific disease — until children can get vaccinated, health officials and experts say.



Children make up around 20% of the total U.S. population, according to government data. Some 70% to 85% of the U.S. population needs to be vaccinated against Covid to achieve herd immunity, medical experts say, and some adults may refuse to get the shots. Though more experts now say herd immunity is looking increasingly unlikely as variants spread.



Vaccinating kids may also hasten the return of in-person learning and greenlight after-school extracurricular activities such as sports, art and other in-person activities, health experts say.

106882526-1620910846471-gettyimages-1232851817-covid_vaccine_clinic_milford_pa_5-12-21_41371

Moderna says its Covid vaccine is 100% effective in teens, plans to seek FDA OK in early June

Why Houses Are So Expensive In The U.S.

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106839886-1619527017616-106839886-1613137951786-gettyimages-1231048263-widak-teslabuy210208_npv7Z.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-404831" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106839886-1619527017616-106839886-1613137951786-gettyimages-1231048263-widak-teslabuy210208_npv7Z.jpg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106839886-1619527017616-106839886-1613137951786-gettyimages-1231048263-widak-teslabuy210208_npv7Z-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Tesla, led by Elon Musk, confirmed that it purchased about $ 1.5 billion in bitcoin in January and expects to start accepting it as a payment in the future. Artur Widak | NurPhoto | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The price of bitcoin is approaching $40,000 once again after Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that he was having active discussions with bitcoin miners regarding the sustainability of the digital coin.



Bitcoin on Tuesday was trading at around $37,961.32 at 5:54 a.m. ET and its price has risen over 4% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinDesk.



Almost all of the other major cryptocurrencies are also trading higher.



Ethereum’s price has risen more than 13% to $2,550.62 in the last 24 hours, while dogecoin has seen its price rise more than 7% to 34 cents a coin.



A small handful of less well-known cryptocurrencies such as Tether and Dai have seen their price fall in the last 24 hours, but the declines are negligible.



Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, jumped minutes after Musk tweeted: “Spoke with North American Bitcoin miners. They committed to publish current &amp; planned renewable usage &amp; to ask miners WW to do so. Potentially promising.”



The coin initially popped 4% to hit $39,824.81 a few hours later, before falling back to almost $38,000.&nbsp;



Microstrategy CEO Michael Saylor followed up on Musk’s tweet, saying he hosted a meeting between the Tesla CEO and some bitcoin miners that led to the formation of the Bitcoin Mining Council, which will promote sustainability.



Bitcoin mining requires vast amounts of energy. As a result, bitcoin has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/05/bitcoin-btc-surge-renews-worries-about-its-massive-carbon-footprint.html">a carbon footprint comparable to that of New Zealand</a>, producing 36.95 megatons of CO2 annually, according to Digiconomist.



Musk has been a big supporter of cryptocurrencies, sparking rallies in the prices of digital coins, including bitcoin, several times in the past year. His tweets and comments around cryptocurrency often send the prices soaring or plunging.



In an SEC filing in February, Tesla revealed that it bought $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin and would accept it as a form of payment. The company later said it registered a net gain of $101 million from sales of bitcoin during the quarter, helping to boost its net profits to a record high in the first quarter.



However, Musk’s relationship with the digital coin appeared to change earlier this month. He tweeted on May 12 that the company “suspended vehicle purchases” using bitcoin, out of concern over “rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels” for bitcoin mining.



Bitcoin’s rally this week comes after turmoil in the crypto markets that saw its price fall below $32,000 on Sunday.



Last week’s crypto sell-off came after authorities in China and the U.S. moved to tighten regulation and tax compliance on cryptocurrencies.



Chinese authorities called for tighter regulation on crypto mining and trading on Friday, and the U.S. Treasury announced Thursday that it would require stricter crypto compliance with the IRS.



— Additional reporting by CNBC’s Jessica Bursztynsky.

106839886-1619527017616-106839886-1613137951786-gettyimages-1231048263-widak-teslabuy210208_npv7Z

Bitcoin attempts to close in on $40,000 after Elon Musk said he spoke to miners about energy usage

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887249-1621862722565-gettyimages-1232959942-SPRWANDA-KIGALI-BASKETBALL_AFRICA_LEAGUE-INAUGURAL_SEASON.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-404760" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887249-1621862722565-gettyimages-1232959942-SPRWANDA-KIGALI-BASKETBALL_AFRICA_LEAGUE-INAUGURAL_SEASON.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106887249-1621862722565-gettyimages-1232959942-SPRWANDA-KIGALI-BASKETBALL_AFRICA_LEAGUE-INAUGURAL_SEASON-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Benjamin Chukwukelo Uzoh 2nd R of Rivers Hoopers of Nigeria vies with Wilson Nshobozwa of Patriots Rwanda during the opening game of the the inaugural Basketball Africa League BAL in Kigali, capital city of Rwanda, May 16, 2021.
Cyril Ndegeya | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The National Basketball Association has formed its Africa business operation, luring investors and former players including, Dikembe Mutombo, Grant Hill and Junior Bridgeman.



The NBA Africa will oversee the league’s business throughout the continent, including operating Basketball Africa League, which launched on May 16. The entity will establish corporate partnerships, expand&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/17/genius-sports-wins-data-partnership-with-nbas-basketball-africa-league.html">content, media rights</a>&nbsp;and build new arenas. The NBA envisions basketball being a top sport throughout Africa in 10 years.



Specific terms of the investment in NBA Africa were not made available, but NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a press conference Monday that the enterprise value for NBA Africa is worth nearly $1 billion.





Nigeria-based industrial group&nbsp;<a href="https://yinkafolawiyogroup.com/about-us/the-group" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Yinka Folawiyo</a>&nbsp;Group and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.heliosinvestment.com/helios-fairfax-partners" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Helios Fairfax Partners Corporation</a>, an investment holding company that trades on the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.heliosinvestment.com/uploads/files/HFP-2021-Q1-Press-Release.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Toronto Stock Exchange</a>&nbsp;under the ticker symbol “HFPC,” are investors in NBA Africa. Former NBA players&nbsp; Luol Deng and Joakim Noah are also investors.



Silver and NBA chief operating officer Mark Tatum will have NBA Africa board seats, joining Babatunde Folawiyo (CEO of Yinka Folawiyo) and Tope Lawani (co-CEO of Helios Fairfax). NBA Africa will be led by CEO Victor Williams.



On the call with reporters, Williams said part of NBA Africa’s strategy is to accelerate the “development of basketball’s eco-system” via creating more youth academies that will serve as a pathway for talent and growing the NBA’s brand.



“This growth will come to life by, amongst other things, increasing the NBA’s footprint in Africa and opening additional offices in priority markets across the continent starting in countries like Nigeria, where there is already a strong affinity for the game,” said Williams.



The NBA’s business operation in Africa business is similar to its’ NBA China business, which has grown to over a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/11/trump-order-banning-business-with-wechat-could-affect-nbas-china-deal-with-tencent.html">$5 billion business</a>. It launched in 2008, with a $253 million investment from partners including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/DIS" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Disney</a>. NBA China allowed the league to gain more access to the country’s top marketplace as China has a population of 1.3 billion.



“There are some structural similarities in that we’ve taken a geographical area and carved it into a distinct entity and added strategic partners because we recognize that was the best opportunity for growth,” said Silver when asked about NBA Africa’s comparison to its China business. “But I think the comparison probably ends there.”



Another significant difference is the NBA is now operating a league in Africa, whereas the Chinese Basketball Association is state-run. But NBA’s business relationship with China remains strained after a 2019 tweet by then Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey.



<figure class="wp-block-image is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/106887255-1621862852797-gettyimages-1200836666-02142020_cares_unified_game_haynes_0385.jpeg?v=1621862887&amp;w=678&amp;h=381" alt="Dikembe Mutombo #55 of the Away Team poses for a photo during NBA Cares Special Olympics Unified Game as part of 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend on February 14, 2020 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois." width="833" height="468"/><figcaption>Dikembe Mutombo #55 of the Away Team poses for a photo during NBA Cares Special Olympics Unified Game as part of 2020 NBA All-Star Weekend on February 14, 2020 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois.Jeff Haynes | National Basketball Association | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



CCTV, the state-run broadcast network, has yet to air games for the 2020-21 season after briefly returning NBA games during the 2020 NBA Finals. Last year’s Finals featured the Los Angeles Lakers, a popular team in the country. NBA games are available for streaming due to Tencent’s $1.5 billion rights deal. And tensions between the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/13/american-chamber-of-commerce-in-china-unequal-access-for-us-business.html">U.S. and China</a>&nbsp;isn’t making business in the country&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/09/business/china-nba-anta-xinjiang.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">any easier to conduct</a>.







Still, the NBA continues to eye more global markets, and Africa is one of the fastest-growing on the planet, with a population of about 1.07 billion (sub-Saharan), according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/popfacts/PopFacts_2019-6.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">United Nations</a>. The NBA opened its African headquarters in Johannesburg in 2010.



Again, a big part of this business will be&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/15/sports-money-basketball-africa-league-reveals-teams.html">growing the BAL</a>. The league consists of two conferences, 12 teams, and the top six clubs will compete in a single-game elimination tournament following the season to determine the champion. Amadou Gallo Fall is president of the league.



Speaking to CNBC about the league, NBA team owner Robert Sarver said BAL can be used as a pipeline to grow basketball talent in hopes some players will end up playing in the NBA. And having teams play in selected areas will help with scouting, too. Currently, 55 players from the continent, or with African roots (parents are natives), play in the NBA.



“From a talent perspective, one of the things that’s been a challenge in Africa is the continent is very large, and it’s very spread out,” said Sarver, who owns the Phoenix Suns. “So unlike the United States, where the top young players, regardless of what state you live in, come together and compete against each other a lot, that’s hard to do in Africa.

106887249-1621862722565-gettyimages-1232959942-SPRWANDA-KIGALI-BASKETBALL_AFRICA_LEAGUE-INAUGURAL_SEASON

NBA lures players and investors to form Africa business entity valued at nearly $1 billion

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="630" height="354" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bitcoin-1.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-404731" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bitcoin-1.jpeg 630w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bitcoin-1-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px" /><figcaption>A visual representation of digital currencies. Yuriko Nakao | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The crypto market edged higher Monday after a week of hell during which billions of dollars were wiped off the value of bitcoin and ether.



The price of Bitcoin edged upwards towards $37,000 on Monday after plummeting to less than $32,000 on Sunday. Bitcoin was up around 8% at $36,764.83 in the 24 hours leading up to 5:00 a.m. ET, according to CoinDesk, which put the market cap of the world’s most popular cryptocurrency at around $686 billion.



Meanwhile, ether, the world’s second most popular cryptocurrency, rose from less than $1,800 on Sunday to over $2,300 on Monday. It was trading around $2,296.90 at 5:00 a.m. ET – up 14% over 24 hours and with a market cap of around $266 billion, according to CoinDesk.



Elsewhere, dogecoin also showed signs of recovery, with its price rising from 24 cents on Sunday to 33 cents on Monday.



Broadly speaking, the crypto market was a sea of green on Monday, with just a small handful of lesser-known coins down in the last 24 hours. It comes after a week of turmoil that left many crypto investors shaken.



Last week’s crypto sell-off came after authorities in China and the U.S. moved to tighten regulation and tax compliance on cryptocurrencies.



Chinese authorities&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/21/bitcoin-falls-after-china-calls-for-crackdown-on-bitcoin-mining-and-trading-behavior.html">called for tighter regulation</a>&nbsp;on crypto mining and trading on Friday, and the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/20/us-treasury-calls-for-stricter-cryptocurrency-compliance-with-irs.html">U.S. Treasury announced</a>&nbsp;Thursday that it would require stricter crypto compliance with the IRS.



Bitcoin on Wednesday plunged more than 30% at one point to nearly $30,000, its lowest price since late January, according to Coin Metrics. The cryptocurrency peaked in April near $65,000.



The sell-off is a major reversal for the cryptocurrency, which appeared to be gaining traction among major Wall Street banks and publicly traded companies. This month, however, bitcoin has been hit by a series of negative headlines from major influencers and regulators.



— Additional reporting by CNBC’s Hannah Miao.

Cryptocurrencies attempt a positive start to the week after wild plunges

How China is using automation to reshape its economy | CNBC Reports

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106872485-16191105747557-DoubleVerify-Photo-210422-PRESS-6-jpg.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-404708" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106872485-16191105747557-DoubleVerify-Photo-210422-PRESS-6-jpg.jpg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/106872485-16191105747557-DoubleVerify-Photo-210422-PRESS-6-jpg-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Source: NYSE</figcaption></figure>



U.S. stock index futures traded higher early Monday after the S&amp;P 500 posted its second negative week in a row the previous week.



Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average implied an opening gain of about 145 points. S&amp;P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were also trading in positive territory.



The previous week saw the Dow post its fourth negative week in five, while the S&amp;P registered two straight weeks of losses for the first time since February. The Nasdaq Composite, meanwhile, gained 0.31% last week, snapping a four-week losing streak.



Despite the tech-heavy index’s weekly gain, however, the Nasdaq Composite finished Friday’s session in the red as bitcoin prices once again moved lower, putting pressure on the broader technology sector.



The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/23/bitcoin-resumes-selloff-over-weekend-briefly-falls-below-33000.html">cryptocurrency’s sell-off continued on Sunday</a>, with bitcoin dropping around 16% to under $32,000, according to data from Coin Metrics. On Wednesday, bitcoin prices tumbled to just above $30,000, dropping to the lowest level since late January.



“The rapid rise in digital currency values hit a major speedbump this week as cryptocurrencies of all stripes saw sharp declines in their prices,” strategists at CIBC wrote in a note to clients. “The asset class continues to be highly volatile, with the potential of significant price movements resulting from a single tweet or public comment.”



The decline came as Chinese regulators called for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/21/bitcoin-falls-after-china-calls-for-crackdown-on-bitcoin-mining-and-trading-behavior.html">stricter laws</a>&nbsp;around mining and trading the cryptocurrency.



“Despite this week’s collapse in crypto markets and rather hawkish FOMC minutes, another equity dip was bought by investors,” JPMorgan wrote in a note to clients. “This ‘buy the dip’ mentality has been remarkably strong this year and has provided a support preventing any small correction in equities and risk markets from becoming more extended,” the firm added.



The Federal Reserve hinted at its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/19/fed-officials-said-rapid-progress-in-economy-could-lead-to-lowerng-asset-purchases.html">April meeting</a>&nbsp;that easy monetary policies could be reconsidered if the economy continues to show signs of rapid improvement, according to minutes from the meeting released last week.



Looking ahead, there are a number of retail companies set to report quarterly earnings in the coming week, including Nordstrom, Urban Outfitters, Gap and Ulta. Several technology companies will also release quarterly updates, including Nvidia, Snowflake, Workday and Salesforce. On the economic data front, consumer confidence and new home sales data will be released on Tuesday.



Heading into the last full trading week of the month, the Dow is on track to post a gain for May, while the S&amp;P is on track to snap a three-month winning streak. The Nasdaq Composite, which is down more than 3% for the month, is on track to snap its longest monthly winning streak since Jan. 2018, with its first negative month in seven.



After outperforming year-to-date, small caps have faced recent weakness, and the Russell 2000 is on track to snap a seven-month winning streak.



“We think the choppy/sideways trend will continue for a bit longer, and the market will experience sell-off scares along the way,” noted Adam Crisafulli, founder of Vital Knowledge. “While stocks are absorbing a lot of changes well so far, all the inflection points still have longer to play out.”

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