Block: 850,668
DTG/ICOD: 1200Z 04Jul24
Precedence: Routine (RR)
Controls: Public Release
QQQQ
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BLUF: Colonists Secede From Tyrannical King, Igniting War / Hurricane Beryl Weakens Enroute Yucatan / Russia Makes Gains in Ukraine / China Seizes Taiwan Fishing Boat / Boil Water Order in DC / Medal of Honor Awarded to 2 Union Soldiers / German Gov, Mt Gox, Unload BTC / BTC Core Devs Update Security Policies
Market Data: Price: 1 BTC= $57,482, 24.4 oz Gold, .13 Median US House
24hr Hi: $60,555 / Lo: $57,043
Vol: $37B (Up 41%)
Mkt Cap: $1.13T (Down 4%)
HashRate: 592 EH/s
Avg Fee Rate: 24 sats/vBtye (Up 100%)
Nodes: 19,373
---Reports---
-International Events-
1. Weather deteriorating in the Cayman Islands as Beryl weakens slightly: Category 3 Hurricane Beryl has weakened slightly and now has winds of 120 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 5:00 a.m. ET update. Beryl will reach the Yucatan Peninsula early Friday. (CNN)
2. Ukraine’s army retreats from positions as Russia gets closer to seizing strategically important town: Ukraine’s military said its army has retreated from a neighborhood in the outskirts of Chasiv Yar, a strategically important town in the eastern Donetsk region which has been reduced to rubble under a months-long Russian assault. Chasiv Yar lies a short distance west Bakhmut, which was captured by Russia last year after a bitter 10-month battle. (ABC)
3. Taiwan says China seizes fishing boat near its coast: Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing boat operating near China's coast close to a Taiwan-controlled island late Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, Taiwan's coast guard said, in a further escalation of tensions. (Reuters)
-US Events-
1. DC Water Issues Boil Water Advisory for All Customers in the District of Columbia, the Pentagon, Arlington National Cemetery and Reagan National Airport: This is a precautionary notice to all customers to boil water that may be ingested due to water of unknown quality. Customer should not drink the water without boiling it first. This advisory will remain in place until follow-up testing confirms the water is safe to drink. (DCWater)
2. Civil War soldiers awarded Medal of Honor for Confederate train raid: Two Civil War soldiers who infiltrated Confederate territory to steal a train and destroy the enemy railroad system were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden on Wednesday. Pvt. Philip Shadrach and Pvt. George Wilson, members of the 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, are finally set to receive recognition as participants in what is known as the “Great Locomotive Chase.” (ArmyTimes)
3. Federal agency plans to cull 450,000 barred owls to boost another species: In a final plan released Wednesday, the agency is proposing to kill as many as 450,000 barred owls over 30 years. The plan is designed to prevent the extinction of the spotted owl, a threatened species that is being crowded out of its native territory by the slightly larger and faster-reproducing barred owl. (NBC)
-Regulatory and Legal-
1. Basel Committee finalizes crypto exposure rules for banks: The Basel Committee met on July 2-3 and made policy decisions on issues that included disclosure of banks’ crypto exposure. Its decisions are part of the Basel III reforms that were begun in 2019 to enhance the resilience of European Union banks through regulation, supervision and risk management. (CoinTelegraph)
-Central Bank Digital Currencies-
NSTR
-Institutional Concerns-
1. German gov’t transfers $172M in Bitcoin to multiple locations: The German government’s latest Bitcoin transfers could impact the market significantly, as it moves 3,000 BTC to various crypto exchanges and an unknown wallet. (CoinTelegraph)
-Economics Indicators-
1. Bitcoin Breaks Below $60K, Hits 2-Month Low: Bitcoin prices tumbled again below the key psychological mark of $60,000, hitting a two-month low as the largest cryptocurrency failed to sustain a recent rebound, with analysts pointing to the potential start of Mt. Gox creditor repayments as the likely main culprit. (Trading Economics)
2. US Services Sector Unexpectedly Contracts: ISM: The ISM Services PMI in the US tumbled to 48.8 in June 2024, the sharpest contraction since April 2020. Markets were expecting 52.5 after 53.8 in May. The Business Activity Index also fell, registering 49.6, the first contraction since May 2020. (Trading Economics)
-Security Incidents and Concerns-
1. Brazil Halts Meta's AI Data Processing Amid Privacy Concerns: Brazil's data protection authority, ANPD, has temporarily banned Meta from processing users' personal data to train the company's artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. The decision follows the social media giant's update to its terms that allow it to use public content from Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram for AI training purposes. (HackerNews) (AC-Nothing like AI scraping all your social media and messages to feed the AI machine. This update by Meta has not been challenged in the US.)
-Technology-
1. Pentagon to Launch Supercomputer Cloud Service for US Military, Enhancing Remote Access: This initiative aims to give troops direct access to supercomputing power, significantly enhancing military preparedness and operational efficiency. Unlike the typical laptop with around four CPU cores, these professional systems leverage up to 10,000 cores to solve complex problems. (TechTimes) (AC-What could go wrong?)
-Bitcoin Community-
1. Bitcoin Core Announces New Security Disclosure Policy: A group of Bitcoin Core developers has introduced a comprehensive security disclosure policy to address past shortcomings in publicizing security-critical bugs. This new policy aims to establish a standardized process for reporting and disclosing vulnerabilities, thereby improving transparency and security within the Bitcoin ecosystem. (BitcoinMag)
-Bitcoin Sentiment-
1. Fear(0)/Greed(100) Index: 44/100 (Down 9 pts)
Analyst Comments (AC): "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security." -In Congress, July 4, 1776 (Excerpt)
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Analyst: BV2A
END REPORT
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*NSTR-Nothing Significant To Report
