Big events and trends to watch

This week in the Bitcoin and crypto markets is characterized by several crucial events that can significantly affect investor sentiment and market dynamics. Among them, central bank interest rate decisions, the Nvidia GTC conference and the launch of Etherfi are particularly noteworthy. Below is an in-depth preview of these events and their potential impact on the crypto landscape.

#1 FOMC meeting looms: how will Bitcoin and Crypto react?

Central banks representing almost half of the global economy are set to announce key interest rate decisions this week, affecting six of the ten most traded currencies. This series of decisions, the largest so far for 2024, includes announcements from the United States, Switzerland, Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, among others.

These moves could indicate how central bankers view the current risk of inflation, with significant implications for the US dollar index (DXY) and, conversely, for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The highlight of the week is the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision on Wednesday, March 20. Interest rates are expected to remain at their current level, with a 98% probability, according to the CME Fed Watch tool.

Goldman Sachs noted in a research note: “Inflation has been firmer in recent months […] We now expect 3 cuts in 2024, mainly due to the slightly higher inflation path […] We suspect that the Fed leadership is also still targeting a first cut in June.” This narrative emphasizes a cautious approach to rate adjustments, reflecting a nuanced understanding of current economic indicators and their potential impact.

This upcoming FOMC meeting is especially important for the crypto market. Recently, the correlation between the Bitcoin and crypto markets with the broader macroeconomic factors has strengthened, highlighted by Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies’ price movements in response to warmer-than-expected US CPI and PPI data. Anticipation of the “higher for longer” interest rates by the US Fed led to market volatility, underscoring the importance of this week’s FOMC meeting for digital assets.

#2 Nvidia GTC: NEAR, Render (RNDR) and AI coins on the rise

The Nvidia GTC conference, a pivotal event for AI and GPU computing enthusiasts, is all set to raise the profiles of several AI-focused cryptocurrencies. In particular, RNDR, NEAR, TAO and FET saw significant price movements in anticipation of the conference.

NEAR In Focus: NEAR Protocol, a high-performance blockchain designed to provide the infrastructure for decentralized applications, has seen its native token NEAR rise 125% in the past two weeks.

This rise is largely attributed to growing excitement about Nvidia’s annual conference, where Illia Polosukhin, co-founder and CEO of NEAR Protocol, is scheduled to speak on a panel titled “Transforming AI,” hosted by Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang, to appear.

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“Mom, we’re getting the gang back together”

All 8 authors of ‘Attention is All You Need’, the paper that gave birth to transformer technology and the current tidal wave of AI, join @nvidia founder on March 20th.

And yes, that includes @ilblackdragon, co-founder of NEAR.

Details: https://t.co/DCmHOzxPE2

— NEAR Protocol (@NEARProtocol) March 7, 2024

Polosukhin’s participation is highly anticipated, as it could signal NEAR’s deeper foray into AI applications and possible collaboration with Nvidia. This has generated significant interest in the NEAR token as investors and enthusiasts speculate about the future integrations and innovations that may arise from this intersection of blockchain and AI.

The upcoming release of Near Tasks, an AI facet of NEAR’s ecosystem, further fueled speculation about the protocol’s commitment to leveraging AI within its infrastructure. This move could potentially position NEAR as a key player in the emerging field of decentralized AI, providing scalable and efficient solutions for AI applications.

Render Network Spotlight: Jules Urbach, founder of Render Network, is set to deliver a highly anticipated talk at the Nvidia GTC conference. His presentation, titled “The Future of Rendering: Real-Time Ray Tracing, AI, Holographic Displays, and the Blockchain,” promises to offer insights into the future of digital content creation and the role of decentralized networks in supporting these advances.

Urbach’s history of impactful presentations at GTC, including his collaboration with Nvidia’s Jensen Huang in 2013, suggests that this year’s talk could have significant implications for the Render Network and the broader ecosystem of GPU computing and AI.

“I think this will be one of my most relevant GTC talks, and a reflection of the next paradigm shift we’re entering for distributed GPU systems, on par with the first one back in 2013 – when I took the stage with Jensen stepped in to announce Render’s centralized frontrunner (ORC) and then launched with AWS,” said Urbach, looking ahead

#3 Etherfi launch

Etherfi, a leading liquid recycling protocol, will launch its ETHFI token today, March 18, marking a significant development in the DeFi space. The launch on Binance’s Launchpool will allow users to stake BNB or FDUSD tokens to stake ETHFI tokens, providing early access to rewards and project involvement.

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The Eligibility Checker has been updated and is now LIVE!https://t.co/dWjoxJIXTK pic.twitter.com/UafFBE6AIk

— ether.fi (@ether_fi) March 18, 2024

After a successful Series A funding round of $23 million, EtherFi’s total value closed (TVL) has risen to $2.9 billion, according to DefiLlama data. The protocol’s innovative approach to liquid recycling, which allows users to access Ethereum stake rewards and additional returns without locking up assets, underscores its potential to reshape the Ethereum and broader crypto ecosystem.

Users can stake their Ethereum directly through Etherfi and receive ETHFI tokens in return. These crypto tokens represent the Ethereum used and earn stake rewards over time. However, unlike traditional staking, ETHFI tokens can be used within the DeFi ecosystem, giving users the flexibility to engage in other return-generating activities without sacrificing their stake rewards.

Etherfi uses EigenLayer, a layer that builds on top of Ethereum, to enable additional returns on top of Ethereum stake rewards. This integration not only improves the reward structure for strikers, but also contributes to the security and scalability of the Ethereum network by leveraging EigenLayer’s functionalities.

At press time, BTC was trading at $68,096.

Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com