Today in crypto: VanEck analysts say Bitcoin’s falling hashrate could be a boon for its price, JPMorgan is weighing crypto trading services for institutional clients and Metaplanet approved a capital structure overhaul to raise funds through dividend-paying preferred shares.
Bitcoin miner capitulation may signal bottom is near: VanEck
Bitcoin’s hashrate has fallen 4% over the month to Dec. 15, which VanEck analysts said in a report on Monday was due to Chinese miners shutting down and could be a positive sign for the cryptocurrency’s price in the months ahead as miner capitulation is “historically a bullish contrarian signal.”
“When hash rate compression persists over longer periods, positive forward returns tend to occur more often and with greater magnitude,” said VanEck crypto research lead Matt Sigel and senior investment analyst Patrick Bush.
They said that since 2014, Bitcoin’s 90-day forward returns have been positive 65% of the time when the network’s hashrate had declined over the prior 30 days, compared with 54% when the hashrate rose.
The trend is optimistic for Bitcoin (BTC) miners as rising prices could widen profitability margins for some or result in turning previously unprofitable miners back online.
JPMorgan explores crypto trading for institutional clients: Report
Banking giant JPMorgan Chase is considering offering cryptocurrency trading to its institutional clients, marking a significant expansion for a traditional financial institution expanding its digital asset services.
According to a Monday Bloomberg report citing a person familiar with the plans, JPMorgan Chase is assessing products and services in its markets division as part of a potential expansion into cryptocurrencies. The company’s plans were not public at the time of publication, but could include digital asset spot and derivatives trading.
The crypto trading services are in the early stages of development, in response to interest from the company’s clients amid the changing regulatory environment in the United States. The government under US President Donald Trump has enacted several policies favoring the crypto industry since January, including signing a stablecoin payments bill, the GENIUS Act, into law.
Despite the reported move deepening its ties to the digital asset industry, JPMorgan faced criticism from Strike CEO Jack Mallers, who in November claimed the company closed his accounts without explanation. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said in a December interview that the company does not debank customers based on religious or political affiliations.
Metaplanet clears issuance of dividend-paying shares for overseas institutions
Metaplanet approved an overhaul of its capital structure on Monday, allowing Japan’s largest corporate Bitcoin holder to raise funds through dividend-paying preferred shares aimed at institutional investors.
Investors approved five proposals that collectively expand Metaplanet’s ability to issue preferred shares, introduce new dividend mechanics and open participation to overseas institutional capital, said Dylan LeClair, the company’s Bitcoin strategy director.
The approved measures include reclassifying capital reserves to allow for preferred share dividends and potential buybacks, doubling the authorized number of Class A and Class B preferred shares and amending dividend structures to introduce floating and periodic payouts.
In addition, Metaplanet cleared the issuance of Class B preferred shares to international institutional investors.
Metaplanet held about 30,823 Bitcoin (BTC) at press time, worth $2.75 billion, according to Bitcoin Treasuries. This makes the company the biggest corporate Bitcoin holder in Asia, and the fourth-biggest in the world.
Related: ETHZilla liquidates $74.5M in Ether to redeem convertible debt