For much of the past decade, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has been the top-performing asset in the world. Bitcoin was up 125% for the year, which trounced the performance of the Nasdaq (up 30%), gold (up 27%), and the S&P 500 (up 24%). Based on the strength of that performance, Virtuals Protocol ended 2024 as the 33rd-largest cryptocurrency in the world, with a nearly $4 billion market cap.
Wall Street will navigate a series of data releases tied to inflation this week as bond markets continue their months-long selloff.
Sales declined sharply following expiry of tax discounts.
The Zurich and Singapore-based lender closed the oversubscribed "strategic growth round," which was led by BTC-focused venture capital firm Fulgar Ventures
UnitedHealth Group is slated to report fourth quarter earnings before the market opens Thursday. Analysts are generally bullish ahead of the results.
Cryptocurrency is gaining mainstream acceptance with each passing day. The endorsement it received from President-elect Donald Trump during the 2024 election campaign has further cemented its legitimacy within the financial industry and among the public.
Turmoil in Europe's car sector could hit the central European economy and hurt banks' asset quality, S&P Global said on Tuesday, although it added that lenders were strong enough to withstand stress in their automotive portfolios. Automakers across Europe have announced plant closures and big layoffs as they struggle with weak demand, high costs, competition from China and a slower-than-expected transition to electric vehicles. The sector is a mainstay of central Europe's economic growth, accounting for 5% to 10% of the region's gross domestic product and 5% of its employment, according to S&P.
Options linked to BlackRock's spot bitcoin ETF (IBIT) began trading on Nov. 19 and have since grown to half the size of Deribit's BTC options market.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is the world's largest cryptocurrency. Its market capitalization of $1.8 trillion represents more than half the value of all cryptocurrencies in circulation, which currently stands at $3.4 trillion. Bitcoin soared by 120% during 2024, and a significant portion of that gain was generated after Donald Trump's U.S. election win on Nov. 5.
S&P Global Ratings revised Nissan Motor's credit outlook to negative from stable and affirmed its BB+ rating, as it expected it would take the Japanese automaker longer to improve its business performance. "The negative outlook reflects our view that the company's creditworthiness will continue to deteriorate if profitability does not improve and positive free cash flow is not secured," S&P said in a statement. Nissan has increased sales incentives in a bid to correct high inventory levels, which have risen due to a slowdown in car sales in North America, the company's main market, S&P said.
