Share this article
Bank of America Says Cryptocurrencies Continue to Act as Risk Assets
Ether continues to slide as investors shift to a wait-and-see approach regarding future upgrades, the bank said in a research report.
By Will Canny
Updated Apr 9, 2024, 11:41 p.m. Published Sep 26, 2022, 8:17 a.m.
Digital assets continue to act as risk assets, falling as global interest rates rise, Bank of America (BAC) said in a research report Friday.
Still, positive signs of an eventual recovery include stablecoin inflows. Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency whose value is pegged to another asset, such as the U.S. dollar or gold.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
Last week these inflows jumped to $490 million, 58% higher than the previous week, the report said, as “real-world use cases like payments/remittances are adopted and real-world data providers like decentralized oracle networks increase functionality.”
The four largest stablecoins had exchange net inflows for the third week in a row, the report said, noting that large Binance USD (BUSD) inflows/USD coin (USDC) outflows could be the result of investors “preemptively rotating” into BUSD from USDC to avoid disruptions following Binance’s decision to auto convert some stablecoins into its own stablecoin.
Bank of America expects regulatory clarity to support decentralized finance adoption. DeFi is an umbrella term used for lending, trading and other financial activities carried out on a blockchain without the use of traditional intermediaries.
The jump in ether’s price from mid-July to mid-August continues to reverse as investors digest that the Ethereum blockchain’s switch to proof-of-stake (PoS) does not fix scalability concerns or high fees, and these investors shift to a “wait-and-see approach regarding future upgrades,” the note said.
The transition from proof-of-work (PoW) to a more environmentally friendly proof-of-stake consensus mechanism is the first of five upgrades for the Ethereum blockchain, a process that was called the Merge.
Read more: Morgan Stanley Says Stablecoin Market Cap is Contracting Again
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Tom Lee urges BitMine shareholders to approve share increase ahead of January 14 vote
The chairman of the former bitcoin miner-turned-ether treasury firm reiterated his view that Ethereum is the future of finance.
What to know:
- Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine Immersion (BMNR), urged shareholders to approve an increase in the company's authorized share count from 500 million to 50 billion.
- Lee assured shareholders that the increase is not intended to dilute shares, but instead to enable capital raising, dealmaking, and future share splits.
- Shareholders have until January 14 to vote on the proposal, with the annual meeting scheduled for January 15 in Las Vegas.
Top Stories
