ChainCatcher news, a Reuters survey shows that the Brazilian central bank will raise the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points on November 6, marking the second step in its short-term tightening actions, in stark contrast to the policy easing in most global markets. The Brazilian central bank's monetary policy committee, Copom, raised the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points last month, the first increase in two years, and hinted at more adjustments to come in response to a challenging inflation outlook.According to the Reuters survey conducted from October 21 to 25, the median estimate of 34 economists indicates that Copom may raise the Selic rate from 10.75% to 11.25%. Among them, 30 economists expect a 50 basis point increase, while four predict an additional 25 basis points increase.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Benchmark has raised the target price for MicroStrategy stock from $215 to $245. Analyst Mark Palmer believes that the company's Bitcoin holdings and software business value will continue to grow. He also considers the company's high stock price to be justified, as the value it provides is not just from holding a large amount of Bitcoin.

ChainCatcher news, according to KBS, the Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee held its seventh monetary policy direction meeting of the year today (11th), lowering the benchmark interest rate from the current 3.50% to 3.25%, a decrease of 25 basis points.This rate cut marks a shift from the Bank of Korea's monetary tightening stance, which began in August 2021 with a 0.25% rate increase, to a loosening stance after 3 years and 2 months.

ChainCatcher news, Federal Reserve's Williams stated that the Federal Reserve has launched a benchmark interest rate committee, which will help the market utilize and understand the benchmark interest rate. (Jin Ten)

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, Mark Palmer of investment bank and research firm Benchmark stated that the recent support for the development of the cryptocurrency sector may encourage MicroStrategy to start generating revenue by lending out a portion of its Bitcoin holdings. MicroStrategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor has mentioned the idea of lending some of MicroStrategy's Bitcoin for yield, but he believes it is not feasible due to the lack of counterparties with sufficient financial strength and robust balance sheets, which makes him hesitant to take this step. Benchmark's Mark Palmer pointed out that this situation may soon change.At a public hearing last week, Senator Cynthia Lummis's chief legal advisor revealed that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has granted a conditional exemption to Bank of New York Mellon from the agency's SAB 121 guidance, which requires entities that choose to custody crypto assets to list them on their balance sheets and create corresponding liabilities equal to the value of the cryptocurrencies. The largest custodian in the U.S., Bank of New York Mellon, seems to have obtained cryptocurrency custody permission. Palmer stated that if the SEC's lenient stance on digital assets and the growing institutional interest extends beyond financial institutions like Bank of New York Mellon to corporations, then MicroStrategy may soon be able to engage with large institutional counterparties to lend Bitcoin and feel more confident in repaying loans.In a report on Tuesday, Palmer wrote: "The revenue generated by MSTR from lending a portion of its Bitcoin holdings could offset the annual interest on its debt, and if the company is willing to lend out more Bitcoin, it could use the related revenue as another way to increase its holdings without involving any concerns about leverage or dilution." Palmer noted that after issuing convertible bonds and exiting preferred notes, MicroStrategy may gain greater flexibility in accessing capital markets due to its reduced interest expenses and increased unencumbered Bitcoin reserves. He wrote: "While the premium at which MSTR trades relative to its net asset value (NAV) is a point of contention among investors, we believe that the flywheel effect emerging from its Bitcoin acquisition strategy supports the argument that the premium is justified, and this is a feature of the strategy rather than a flaw."

ChainCatcher news, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has lowered the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 5.25%.Previous news, the Federal Reserve announced a rate cut of 50 basis points in the early morning.

ChainCatcher news, Sui Chung, CEO of index provider CF Benchmarks, stated that demand for Ethereum spot ETFs may continue to grow in the coming months, and more wealth management companies are expected to offer such products to their clients.Sui Chung said: "We expect that once wealth managers and financial advisors complete the educational process about what Ethereum is, its utility, and why they should hold it alongside Bitcoin ETFs, the inflow of funds into Ethereum ETFs will continue to rise. The educational process will help investors understand the Ethereum economy and highlight the key differences from Bitcoin, thereby fully illustrating that the allocation drivers are different, and both belong to a balanced portfolio."

ChainCatcher news, the Romanian central bank has lowered the benchmark interest rate to 6.50%. (Jin Ten)

ChainCatcher news, following a sharp decline into a bear market on Monday, the Japanese stock market rebounded strongly on Tuesday. The Nikkei 225 index and the Topix index rebounded nearly 10%, marking the largest increase since October 2008; after the yen fell about 1% against the dollar, export stocks such as technology companies and automakers surged. The significant fluctuations in the stock market triggered the circuit breaker mechanism for Nikkei index futures, while the implied volatility of the index also retreated from its highest level since 2008.Nomura Asset Management Chief Strategist Hideyuki Ishiguro stated, "The panic selling may have ended, but today's market movements could still be a roller coaster, as global market anxiety remains very high."

ChainCatcher news, according to Coindesk, despite MicroStrategy (MSTR) reporting second-quarter revenue that missed expectations, Wall Street brokerage Benchmark has raised the target price for MSTR stock to $2,150 and given it the highest rating. (The current stock price is only $1,447)Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer wrote in a research report on Friday that since adopting Bitcoin as its primary reserve asset in August 2020, MSTR's stock price has increased by 1,206%. Since then, the stock's performance has sharply contrasted with Bitcoin (BTC), the S&P 500 index, and the Nasdaq index, which have risen by 442%, 64%, and 60%, respectively.The company reported a net loss of $102.6 million for the second quarter on Thursday, as it recorded an impairment loss of $180.1 million on its Bitcoin holdings. The company currently holds 226,500 Bitcoins, with an average purchase price of $36,821 each.

According to a research report released by investment bank Benchmark on Monday, the increasing interest from artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) companies in the energy assets of cryptocurrency miners in recent months has boosted the value of Bitdeer.As a result, Benchmark raised the target price for Bitdeer from $13 to $16 and reiterated a buy rating on the stock. In pre-market trading, the stock was priced at $11.10.

ChainCatcher news, according to PR Newswire, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and cryptocurrency benchmark index provider CF Benchmarks announced today that they plan to launch two new cryptocurrency reference rates and real-time indices for XRP and ICP starting July 29. These will be calculated and published daily by CF Benchmarks, utilizing pricing data from cryptocurrency trading platforms that are currently part of the CME CF benchmark reference rate and real-time index suite.Each new benchmark will be calculated using pricing data from at least two trading platforms, which include Bitstamp, Coinbase, Gemini, itBit, Kraken, and LMAX Digital.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the previous sell-off of altcoins triggered a decline in DeFi Technologies' stock price, but Wall Street brokerage firm Benchmark stated in a research report on Thursday that the sell-off of DeFi Technologies (DEFI) shares appears to be excessive, and the stock now presents an attractive buying opportunity, reiterating its buy rating.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinGape, Vanguard mentioned digital currencies in its newly filed fund documents with the U.S. SEC. The fund is called Vanguard Specialized Funds and aims to track the performance of a benchmark index. In the submitted documents, Vanguard referred to digital currencies and provided some key definitions related to cryptocurrencies.Vanguard describes "digital currency" as a digital asset that serves only as a store of value, medium of exchange, or unit of account. It is further classified as a digital asset not issued or guaranteed by any jurisdiction, central bank, or public institution. According to the documents submitted by Vanguard, digital assets rely on algorithmic technology to facilitate the regulation of the generation of new units of digital assets.It is noteworthy that the company continues to distinguish between digital currencies and digital security tokens. The latter group includes any digital assets that are neither digital currencies nor digital utility tokens. The documents submitted to the U.S. SEC state that the value of digital security tokens typically derives primarily from or represents their rights. The final group of assets described by Vanguard is digital utility tokens, which are characterized as digital assets that provide access to specific networks, products, or services.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Sui Chung, CEO of CF Benchmarks under the cryptocurrency exchange platform Kraken, expects that by the end of 2024, the asset management scale of Bitcoin ETFs in Hong Kong will reach $1 billion.London-based CF Benchmarks provides reference data for crypto ETFs, primarily Bitcoin products, including BlackRock's IBIT. The company is currently collaborating on a new ETF in Hong Kong, which was launched earlier this week. Chung believes that South Korea and Israel are the next markets for listed crypto ETFs.CF Benchmarks was founded in 2017 and was acquired by Kraken for over a million dollars in 2019.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, investment bank Benchmark stated that if MicroStrategy (MSTR) chooses to adopt the new accounting standards, the software company may surprise Wall Street analysts by reporting better-than-expected earnings and become eligible for inclusion in the most important U.S. stock index: the S&P 500.As of March 19, MicroStrategy holds 214,246 bitcoins, valued at $13.9 billion at current prices.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, investment bank Benchmark has raised the target stock price of Bitcoin mining company Hut 8 to $12, while its current stock price is around $8.05.In addition, Benchmark has also rated the company as "buy."

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, cryptocurrency benchmark index provider CF Benchmarks has launched a Bitcoin Volatility Index to assist in tracking and trading 30-day Bitcoin price fluctuations.It is reported that the product consists of the CF Bitcoin Volatility Real-Time Index (BVX) and the CF Bitcoin Volatility Index Settlement Rate (BVXS).