Bitcoin: Bitcoin fell as much as 7.8% to $20,079.72 this week, marking an 18-month low. The coin has slumped about 70% from its record high of $69,000 in November.

Bear Market: The S&P 500 Index closed in “bear market” territory on Monday for the first time since March 2020 after an intense sell-off that saw the index shed 3.9% and fall to its lowest level since March 2021.

Coinbase Layoffs: Coinbase announced it was slashing its workforce by 1,100 employees, or about 18% of its staff, because the company had grown too quickly and a potential recession “could lead to another crypto winter.”

Institutional Digital Asset Investment: A new study from Grayscale Investments revealed institutional investors could replace retail investors as major holders of digital assets with the study finding more than 7 out of 10 (71%) of professional investors believe institutions will hold 60% of digital assets within seven years, reversing the current status where institutions hold around 3% of digital assets and retail investors 97%.

Octaura: Leading banks and data and analytics providers including Citi, Bank of America, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Moody’s Analytics announced the launch of Octaura Holdings, a new company aiming to create the first open market electronic trading platform for syndicated loans and collateralized loan obligations.

Retailer Crypto Payments: A report from Deloitte which surveyed over 2,000 executives in retail organizations revealed that more than 3 in 5 retailers plan to integrate crypto in near-term, with 65% of respondents saying that their company has already enabled crypto payments or should do so within a year.