 "Sam Bankman-Fried")
The cryptocurrency market was in the red after the conviction of Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of crypto exchange FTX. On Friday, Bitcoin fell over 3 per cent and was trading around $34,300, according to CoinMarketCap. Ethereum was down 2.2 per cent and was trading below $1,800.
In the last week, both the tokens have made minor gains. Bitcoin was up 0.59 per cent and Ethereum rose 0.28 per cent. The markets had begun the market on a high amid a rate hike pause by the US Federal Reserve.
"The big development from the courtroom was the FTX trial's verdict, where founder Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty on all seven charges of criminal fraud. Crypto markets did react negatively to the news, resulting in a divergence from other risky assets like equities, which continued to scale amidst the rate hike pause, while crypto prices corrected," said Parth Chaturvedi, investments lead at CoinSwitch Ventures.
After the month-long trial, US jurors rejected Bankman-Fried's claim during testimony in Manhattan federal court that he never committed fraud or meant to cheat customers before FTX, once the world's second-largest crypto exchange, collapsed into bankruptcy a year ago.
The Associated Press reported that US Attorney Damian Williams said Bankman-Fried perpetrated one of the biggest financial frauds in American history, "a multibillion-dollar scheme designed to make him the king of crypto".
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"But here's the thing: The cryptocurrency industry might be new. The players like Sam Bankman-Fried might be new. This kind of fraud, this kind of corruption, is as old as time and we have no patience for it," he said.
According to the research team of crypto exchange CoinDCX, Bitcoin's key support levels include the $34,400 inclined trendline support and approximately $33,400, while resistance levels are situated at $35,170 and $36,000.
"Bitcoin's next move hinges on whether it can break through the $35,000 threshold to resume its upward trajectory or if it might find support around $34,300," added Edul Patel, chief executive officer of Mudrex. "The market sentiment is presently neutral as investors await the release of the US non-farm payroll report later today."
