LMAX Digital volumes were lighter in the previous week, with the market continuing to take a breather following record volumes in May. However, while total notional volume and Ether volume were off some 10% from 30-day average volumes into the end of last week, Bitcoin volume was actually holding steady.

Total notional volume at LMAX Digital over the past 30 days comes in at $37.2 billion. Average trading size for Bitcoin over the past 30 days comes in at $9,111. Average trading size for Ether over the past 30 days comes in at 4,307. The average daily trading range for BTCUSD is $2,640. The average daily trading range for ETHUSD is $212.

We haven’t seen much in the way of activity in recent weeks and the market remains confined to a consolidation into the summer months. At this stage, we believe a lot of the downside risk associated with the correction off the record high from earlier this year and the downside risk from regulatory headwinds have been mostly priced into the market, leaving little room for additional downside on these risks.

At the same time, we wouldn’t rule out the possibility for a little more downside over the coming weeks if we see a rotation out of very extended US equities market. Ultimately, setbacks from risk capitulation in US equities should be short lived in the crypto market, but it is a risk we believe is worth highlighting nonetheless.

As far as recent stories in the space go, aside from the largest difficulty drop on record for Bitcoin, driven off the crackdown on Bitcoin mining in China, headlines have been quite positive. The major banks continue to expand coverage of cryptocurrencies, with JP Morgan recently putting out a piece on staking, Coinbase is offering an attractive USDC yield product as a competitor to traditional finance, Visa has gone out and made 5 strategic hires, and Tom Brady has taken equity stake in crypto exchange FTX.

And even the sour news associated with the China crackdown isn’t all that sour when considering the longer-term objective of Bitcoin. After all, miners getting forced out of China only helps to encourage a more decentralized Bitcoin network, something that will only serve Bitcoin all the more well going forward.