By Marcus Sotiriou, Market Analyst at the publicly listed digital asset broker GlobalBlock (TSXV:BLOK). 

Bitcoin’s comeback has stalled at the $24,000 level, as it retraced last night to $22,700. Bitcoin just broke down from an up-trending line of support on the lower time frame (LTF), so we could see further downside in the short term. The next key level of support is $21,500.

Russia’s capacity for crypto mining has increased significantly, according to a survey of leading operators. This survey claims that the total capacity of crypto farms in Russia has expanded to 500 MW, showing how Russian crypto miners are preparing for growth. Executives have cautioned that growth could be limited by the government’s decision on whether to impose electricity tariffs and taxes. In addition, Russian miners are under threat from US sanctions – particularly Bitriver, which was targeted by the US. Nonetheless, Bitriver, the largest Russian miner, has capitalised on depressed mining equipment prices as they doubled the amount of their data centres. They recognise the advantages that Russia has with its abundant energy resources and the long term opportunity if/when crypto prices recover.

Separately, a recent Messari report highlighted the opportunities of BNB Chain this year. The report mentioned a focus on growth strategies, scaling solutions and Ethereum Virtual Machine implementation. Messari said, “The team plans to expand the network with L2-like solutions, such as ZK-rollups and sidechains, and to increase decentralization by open-sourcing the validator set. Despite several challenges along the way, BNB Chain successfully executed its 2022 roadmap … After a dramatic year with many challenges, BNB Chain looks to remain competitive heading into 2023.” Indeed, daily active addresses on BNB chain grew last year as average daily transactions remained steady at approximately 3.4 million per day. During a persistently down trending market, these statistics are noteworthy and signal strength.