ETH's Moment, Powell Watch, and AI Phones

Never thought we’d say this, but all eyes are on Jackson Hole, Wyoming this week, as Wall Street holds its breath to hear Powell’s speech.

This Week in Crypto

Bitcoin dropped a bit after some inflation data spooked the markets:

• Bitcoin reached a new all-time high last week at $124,496, but dropped back down this week to around $113K.

• The crypto market tumbled as well due to inflation concerns, with more than $500M in forced selling of long positions.

But in better news, this was ETH’s week to shine!

• Ethereum ETFs drove a record $40B weekly volume and recorded a $729M daily net inflow - the second-largest surge on record.

• ETH has climbed about 70% since June 1, vs. about 9% for BTC - lifting the ETH/BTC ratio above 0.037 to a new yearly high.

And the ETF wars are heating up as well:

• Ether ETFs saw greater inflows ($326.83M) than Bitcoin ETFs ($246.75M), marking the first time Ethereum has beat Bitcoin in the ETF contest.

• Meanwhile, Blackrock’s ETHA ETF reported a $500.85M daily inflow, contributing to a cumulative total of $11.31B. 

We’re finally seeing an end to the Ripple legal drama:

• Ripple Labs and the SEC have officially agreed to dismiss appeals in their ongoing legal battle, ending the five-year-long case with a $125M settlement. 

• One might think XRP’s price could rise with continued institutional support and favorable regulatory news.

  • However, in classic SEC fashion, they threw another curveball. 

  • The SEC pushed back decisions on XRP ETFs from 21Shares and CoinShares, with new deadlines set for October 19 and October 23.

  • Despite the delays, probability of an XRP ETF approval by 2025 jumped to 98% on Polymarket.

This Week in TradFi

Wall Street’s main indexes climbed today, following a string of recent losses due to weaker macro data, as investors await Jerome Powell’s address at the Jackson Hole symposium.

• Traders now see a 69.5% chance of a 25bps rate cut next month, down from an 85.$ chance one week ago.

• 10 of the 11 S&P 500 sub-sectors traded higher, with health care and real estate leading gains. 

• Losses in big technology stocks earlier this week mean the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are likely tracking for weekly losses.

  • This raises the stakes for Nvidia Corp’s quarterly results on Wednesday. 

On the international front:

• Canada’s retail sales rose as expected in June, as shoppers bought more food and beverages.

  • Retail sales in June increased by 1.5% on a monthly basis, compared with a contraction of 1.2% in May.

• The Mexico economy grew 0.6% in the second quarter from the previous three-month period. 

• The German Economy Minister is urgently calling for economic reforms, after the country’s federal statistics office reported a stronger-than-expected slump in GDP in Q2. 

  • Reforms could include more flexible working hours, a reduction in non-wage labor costs, lower energy prices, and a lessening of tax burden on companies.

• Gold prices dipped today, while the U.S. dollar firmed, as investors await Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium. 

  • Spot gold was down 0.5% as of this morning, and U.S. gold futures were 0.5% lower.

  • The dollar hovers near a two-week high, making gold more expensive for other currency holders. 

This Week in Tech

For once, our AI news this week is not about hiring or new models:

• Meta is hitting pause on AI hiring after its massive poaching spree of more than 50 AI researchers and engineers from competitors. 

• The freeze went into effect last week, and it’s unclear how long the freeze will last. 

• Meta is continuing to work through its reorg, which split its AI unit Meta Superintelligence Labs into four new groups - TBD Labs, run by former Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang, and three groups focused on research, product integration, and infrastructure. 

Google is doubling down on “AI phones” with the launch of its new Pixel 10 series. 

• Last year, the Pixel 9 series added various AI features, like Gemini Live, image-generation tools, call notes, searchable screenshots, and more.

• The Pixel 10 includes even more AI-powered upgrades, like a Visual Overlays feature for the camera, a “Magic Cue” feature, Camera Coach, Voice Translate for calls, an assistant-like “Take a Message” feature, Pixel Journal, and more. 

• Additionally, Google announced that Gemini Live will gain a new audio model that can detect your tone - for example whether you’re excited or angry - and adjust its response accordingly. 

• The announcement comes just weeks ahead of Apple’s expected iPhone 17 reveal, which is supposed to be…thinner? Maybe some more colors? 

As usual, below are some fundraising announcements, M&A, and tech personnel changes that caught our eye:

• Battery materials startup Group14 has closed a $463M Series D round. 

• Databricks is in the process of closing a $1B round at a $100B valuation, co-led by Thrive and Insight Partners. 

• YC-backed Garage, a marketplace startup that sells specialized equipment, has raised $13.5M. 

Arch is building a next-gen wealth management platform for individuals holding Alternative Assets. Our flagship product is the crypto-backed loan, which allows you to securely and affordably borrow against your crypto.

Disclaimer: None of the above is financial advice, seriously.