Fancy getting paid to game?

Sunday is upon us.

Welcome to another newsletter from us at The Merge.

This Week’s Roundup :

• 👾 Play-to-Earn gaming is upon us

• 📈The highest inflows into BTC ETFs since the first trading day

• 👨🏽‍💻$7 trillion request from OpenAI’s Sam Altman to address global chip shortage issue?

Before we get into it, let’s take a look at the winners and losers of this week across the markets.

Read Time: 6 Minutes

Biggest Winners & Losers This Week

Dymension | DYM - Modular blockchain with native integration of Dymension hub (↑89%)

Kaspa | KAS - Layer-1 PoW / some refer to it as the second coming of BTC? (↑35%)

Beam | BEAM - Gaming blockchain and ecosystem (↑33%)

Monero | XMR - Privacy token - recently delisted on Binance (↓29%)

Ronin | RON - EVM blockchain specifically for gaming (↓12%)

Jupiter | JUP - Recently launched Solana DEX (↓11%)

What’s happening in Crypto?

Here’s what else is happening in crypto that you should know about:

1/ Play-to-Earn gaming is upon us

Shrapnel, a game developed by a studio called CryWorks, has recently launched its early access on Steam, where a suite of top-tier triple AAA games is available to avid gamers. This is a first for a blockchain-based FPS and has taken place alongside a three-day play event on Thursday with $100,000 in SHRAP token rewards.

Play-to-earn games leverage blockchain and cryptocurrency to empower players to earn real-world value through in-game activities. The rise of play-to-earn is attributed to the increasing popularity of blockchain technology, specifically non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and decentralised finance (DeFi).

As the industry continues to embrace the concept, play-to-earn has the potential to reshape the gaming landscape, fostering a more inclusive and rewarding environment for players who can now turn their passion into a source of income.

2/ The highest inflows into BTC ETFs since the first trading day

Bitcoin has reached $48,000 in its most recent upward movement, this is attributed in part to the record-breaking inflows into cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) of $540 million, the highest amount in one day since the first trading day.

The influx of institutional investment into these funds signals a growing acceptance of digital assets among traditional financial entities and investors, contributing to the broader mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies.

The importance of this development lies in the increasing recognition and integration of cryptocurrencies into traditional financial systems. The surge in prices and the record ETF inflows indicate a shift in perception, with more investors viewing cryptocurrencies as legitimate and valuable assets.

Onwards and upwards my friends.

3/ $7 trillion request from OpenAI’s Sam Altman to address a global chip shortage issue?

OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, seeking $7 trillion to address the global chip shortage. Altman is reportedly exploring potential solutions to the semiconductor supply chain crisis that has affected various industries worldwide. To alleviate the shortage, Altman is considering a comprehensive strategy that involves significant investment.

The importance of this initiative lies in recognising the critical role that semiconductors play in modern technology, from consumer electronics to automotive manufacturing. The shortage has disrupted various sectors, impacting production timelines and creating economic challenges.

Wowza.

Good luck to the guy trying to source that sort of money.

Our Favourite Tools to Navigate Crypto

👻 Phantom Wallet: Multi-Chain Crypto Wallet

Becoming our favourite wallet to use. An easy-to-navigate cross-chain compatible wallet (you can use it for SOL & ETH etc) with a user interface that beats most of the competition out of the ballpark (link)

😺🪐 Jupiter: Solana Decentralised Exchange

We only started using Jupiter a few months back and it’s by far our favourite DEX to use. Clean UX, cheap SOL fees, and DCA functionality are a godsend (link)

🦇 Arkham Insights: Smart Money Insights

An investment tool if you want to understand where ‘Smart Money’ (aka the market makers) are placing their bets then make sure to check it out (link) 

🦙 DefiLlama: Defi Dashboard

Analytics dashboard which shows the Total Value Locked (TVL) across all of the major DeFI protocols (link)

🦎 CoinGecko: Crypto Data and Analysis Platform

Keep up to date with prices, trading volumes, and crucial crypto data (link)

Ones to Watch

This list will continue to grow/change as the month’s progress and the market develops over this coming bull run.

AI: (↑15%) this week

(TAO) Bittensor: 3.6B MC (↑36%) - Decentralised AI Network

(RNDR) Render Network: 1.76B MC (↓1.6%) - Decentralised GPUs

(OLAS) Autonolas: 229M MC (↑10%) - Autonomous AI Services - NEW

Gaming: (↑13%) this week

(BEAM) Beam Network: 1.2B MC (↑40%) - Network & Ecosystem for Developers and Gamers

(SFUND) Seedify Fund: 194M MC (↑10%)- IDO Launchpad for New Tokens

(SHRAP) Shrapnel: 62 MC (↑30%) - FPS Triple AAA Game Backed by Franklin Templeton (1.5B AUM)

Depin | Distributed Computing: (↑4%) this week

(SHDW) Shadow Network: 174M MC (↑4%) - Solana Infrastructure

(NOS) Nosana: $122M MC (↑28%) - Decentralised GPU's

(OPSEC) Opsec Network: 16M MC (↑40%) - Ethereum Privacy & AI Physical Infrastructure

L1’s/Parallel EVM: (↑<1%) this week

(SEI) Sei Network: 1.6B MC (↑12%) - Extremely Fast L1 with V2 & Parallel EVM Launching in Q2

(NEON) Neon EVM: 63M MC (↓15%) - First Live Parallel EVM to go live on Mainnet - Direct Interoperability with No Fragmentation between ETH & SOL

(MONAD)* Coming this year → keep an eye out for it.

*NFA of course - these are just ones we’re keeping an eye on*

Key Indicators to Look at

MVRV

The MVRV Z-Score uses blockchain analysis to identify periods where bitcoin is significantly over or undervalued relative to its ‘fair value’.

It can be a good sign to an investor/trader of when to buy or sell. You can read more in detail about how it can be used here.

Current MVRV Score: 1.64

Fear and Greed

Investors need to be cautious of their own nature as their emotions could cloud their rational decision-making and judgement.

This Index is a collection of sources to track the general sentiment of the crypto market.

Current Fear & Greed Index: 74

Extreme fear can be a sign that investors are too worried. That could be a buying opportunity.

When Investors are getting too greedy, that means the market is due for a correction.

That’s it!

As always, thanks for reading.

Hit reply and let us know what you found most helpful this week—we’d love to hear from you.

Until next Sunday,

The Merge