Ethereum tests major resistance level, below 23,6 Fibonacci retracement 📉

• Ethereum loses on wave of news about regulators' intervention in cryptocurrency industry
• The possibility of staking Ethereum on the Kraken exchange has been suspended by an SEC decision.
• Price slips below 71.6 Fibonacci retracement, near $1530
• JP Morgan indicates that the average profit from staking on the network will fall to 5% 
• In view of the usually lower liquidity and volumes of the crypto market on weekends, big moves often take place on Fridays, when large players use the liquidity to possibly exit positions

JPMorgan indicated that the 'Shanghai upgrade' which will allow Ethereum staking investors from December 2020 to cash out their cryptocurrency and staking rewards will cause the number of validators (ETH stakers) to eventually increase from 0.5 million to 2.2 million, and the average annual yield to drop from 7.4% today to around 5% (more people to distribute rewards).  A 5% yield from staking may have sounded attractive when interest rates were near zero. Today, banks are offering more attractive interest rates, and institutions with access to 'fixed income' instruments may be considering other opportunities to generate passive income while minimizing risk.

Concerns have been raised among investors that Ethereum will be classified as a 'security' by the SEC. This was suggested earlier by Gary Gensler, pointing to all Proof of Stake projects as potentially being under the jurisdiction of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC chief argued that staking gives investors the opportunity to profit through third-party assets which classifies PoS as subject to the SEC.  According to ETH co-founder and ConsenSys founder Joe Lubin, it is highly unlikely that the SEC would start regulating Ethereum because it would cause a huge uproar among regulators, politicians and the industry and Washington is now focusing its attention on so-called stablecoins. Lubin cited that he had been privy to discussions with the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission CFTC for many years.

Ethereum price has dropped below the 100 and 200 session moving averages, forming a so-called death cross on the H1 interval. The RSI has cooled and stands at 27 points signaling an oversold level. After falling below the 71.6 Fibonacci retracement of the upward wave started in November 2022, the next resistance may turn out to be the 61.8 level near $1460. Source: xStation5