Why bitcoin hit an all-time high...
[Advertisement] March 06, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [UNICEF USA]( Good morning. When bitcoin last hit an all-time high, in November 2021, the first Dune had been out for less than three weeks. Yesterday, bitcoin returned to its all-time high, and look whatâs dominating the box office: Dune: Part Two. Apparently, spending money on things you donât fully understand is cyclical. âMatty Merritt, Cassandra Cassidy, Sam Klebanov, Adam Epstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 15,939.59 -1.65% S&P 5,078.65 -1.02% Dow 38,585.19 -1.04% 10-Year 4.137% -8.2 bps Bitcoin $62,581.32 -8.43% Apple $170.12 -2.84% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 10:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: [Stocks tumbled]( on Tuesday as several of the âMagnificent Sevenâ tech giants shed some of their gains from earlier this year, dragging the entire market with them. One of those companies was Apple, which fell about 3% after a report suggested that iPhone sales in China have plunged in the first six weeks of 2024. Â CRYPTO [Bitcoin surged to an all-time high](
[bitcoin logo]( Annissa Flores Dust off those Coinbase wallets you forgot you put a couple hundred dollars in during the good times: Itâs time to tell everyone you were always a crypto fan. Bitcoin set a new record yesterday, briefly [jumping]( past $69k before falling back down to ~$62k. The rally highlighted the cryptoâs seemingly rapid recovery from the nail-in-the-coffin that was FTXâs demise in 2022. Why so much interest in the internet coins again? The SEC [approved]( 11 organizations to launch spot bitcoin ETFs in January, which allowed more traditional investors to get in on the action. The move also let big-name investors like Fidelity and BlackRock buy and sell groups of assets. And so far, these ETFs have done better than most analysts predicted. - The total market cap for spot bitcoin ETF products is $53.7 billion, according to Blockworks data. BlackRockâs alone passed $10 billion last week, which is what one analyst [predicted]( the whole market would achieve in its first year. Itâs also almost time for the bitcoin âhalvening,â which sounds like an M. Night Shyamalan movie about evil twins who can only be destroyed by their own reflection. Itâs a piece of code that cuts how much bitcoin miners get rewarded in half every four years in order to control the amount in circulation. Historically, the halvening has driven up demand and price. Big picture: Memecoins like doge and shiba inuâand even the much-derided NFTsâare [rallying]( too. Despite predictions that the FTX imbroglio would be the industryâs kiss of death, crypto might just be [too big to fail](. Meanwhile, gold is also surging: It hit an [all-time high]( of $2,142 yesterday as investors worry over geopolitical issues and the future of interest rates.âMM Â Â PRESENTED BY UNICEF USA [Your actions can make a difference](
[UNICEF USA]( UNICEFâs focus? Improving the health, safety, and well-being of every child. The way forward? Paved in part by unwavering supporters like you. As UNICEF works to reach millions of people with [humanitarian aid]( this year, supporters are more critical than ever to achieving brighter futures for children. Students, teachers, artists, nurses, athletesâaka people like youâare just some of the supporters striving every day to make this vision possible. UNICEF USAâs new initiative [I AM UNICEF]( invites you to join this global team helping children continue to learn, hope, and dream. Want to learn more about UNICEFâs work and this unstoppable community? Check out I AM UNICEF and get ready to be inspired. [Your actions can make a difference](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#)
[Biden and Trump]Angela Weissmandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images Biden, Trump on a collision course for November. Like the NBA Finals from 2016â2018, the upcoming presidential election is all but guaranteed to be a [rematch]( after President Biden and former President Trump coasted through their primaries on Super Tuesday, the electoral extravaganza when people in 16 states and American Samoa headed to the polls. Trumpâs GOP challenger Nikki Haley only won a single stateâVermontâbut did not bow out of the race. Here are the [main takeaways]( from Super Tuesday, including what we learned from down-ballot races. ð Tesla halted production in Germany after an arson attack. The automaker stopped work at its German plant indefinitely as police investigate what it believes was arson. A nearby electricity pylon was [set on fire]( cutting power to the facility, though the fire did not spread to the plant itself. Reuters reported that the blaze will cost Tesla hundreds of millions of euros, another headache for the company in Europe following an earlier pause of production due to the Red Sea shipping crisis and ongoing fights with labor unions across Scandinavia. A far-left group called Volcano Group took responsibility for the attack in a letter published by local media. Arizonaâs Sen. Kyrsten Sinema will not run for a second term. She made the announcement [in a video]( posted to social media, saying that her approach to politics is ânot what America wants right now.â Most polls projected her finishing in third place behind Democrat Ruben Gallego and Republican Kari Lake. Sinema was elected in 2018 as a Democrat, but once in office, she positioned herself as a moderate wild card, [frequently angering]( Democratic colleagues. In 2022, the Arizona Democratic Party censured her after she helped block Democrats from changing filibuster rules to advance voting rights legislation. Shortly after that, she left the party to become an independent. SPORTS [NCAA reckoning: Dartmouth bball votes to unionize](
[Dartmouth menâs basketball team]( Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images What would college sports look like if student-athletes were treated as employees? Weâre one step closer to finding out. Yesterday, members of the Dartmouth menâs basketball team voted to unionize 13â2, becoming the first American college sports team to do so. The decision has the potential to alter every aspect of collegiate athletics, creating a genuine existential crisis for the NCAA. How we got here: In September, Dartmouth menâs basketball team filed a petition to unionize with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which declared in February that student-athletes are employees, a decision that killed the NCAAâs long-held position that they were amateurs and therefore not entitled to job protections like workers comp or the power to bargain collectively. What next? A long legal battle, probably. Dartmouth indicated it plans to appeal the decision, and experts say they wouldnât be surprised if the case went all the way to the Supreme Court. And, if schools are forced to adopt the employment model, it could jeopardize some sports that donât generate revenue. Meanwhileâ¦the NCAA is embroiled in a separate case alongside USC and the Pac-12 against the NLRB over the same issue. The outcome of that case could change how all college athletes are classified (Dartmouthâs case only pertains to athletes at private colleges)âwith even bigger consequences for the organization.âCC   TOGETHER WITH ENERGYX
[EnergyX]( Lithiumâs rising star. We can't rely on outdated tech to meet the projected 20x demand for lithium by 2040. Enter Teague Egan and his company, [EnergyX](. Their tech unlocks 300% more lithium, earning them investments from GM and POSCO. Now you can invest, too. [Join Teague and EnergyX as a shareholder today](. PHILANTHROPY [Tech bros are buying Hawaii](
[Hawaii island]( Paul Mounce-Corbis/Getty Images Cue David Attenborough: The richly feathered Silicon Valley Mogul flies west in search of a tropical paradise in which it will attempt to live to 120. Tech billionaires have long been perching in Hawaii, but now they also seem worried about assuaging fears that locals are getting crowded out as housing costs have skyrocketed. For example, yesterday Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff [announced]( a $150 million donation to two hospitals in the state after locals grew concerned about his plans for the land heâs been buying up on Hawaiiâs Big Island. Billionaireâs paradise Benioff, a longtime Hawaii resident famously obsessed with its culture, has been on a buyerâs bend. NPR tech correspondent Dara Kerr reports Benioff has anonymously [bought 38 land parcels]( there since 2000, with over half of them purchased in the last three years. His incognito land shopping spree (which has been an open secret) inspired much nervous speculation, but Benioff says heâs not just looking to snag extra vacation space. Kerr found that Benioff bought 11 land parcels for philanthropic purposes, including 282 acres he donated to an affordable housing nonprofit. Heâs not alone: Metaâs Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly building a [secret bunker]( and [cosplaying]( as a cattle rancher on his property in the state, and he and his wife reportedly donated $72 million to Hawaiian orgs, according to SFGate. Meanwhile, Oracle founder [Larry Ellison bought 98%]( of the island Lanai in 2012.âSK Â Â GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#)
[Florence Pugh, Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, and Austin Butler]Dave Benett/Getty Images Stat: The spice is flowing for millennials and Gen Zers. Nearly half (46%) of ticket buyers to the opening weekend of Dune: Part Two were between the ages of [18 and 35]( according to film analytics company EntTelligence. Thatâs up from 34% for the first Dune movie in 2021. In total, the sequel grossed a better-than-expected $82.5 million at the US box office last weekend and another $100 million internationally. Perhaps thatâs what happens when you add Florence Pugh and Austin Butler to a cast that already included zoomer royals Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya. Or maybe itâs the [viral Dune bucket]( effect. Hard to say. Quote: âno instagram? no problem! we donât have wifi anywayâ Flying on Ryanair might be like strapping yourself to a seagull and hoping for the best, but at least the low-cost Irish airliner has a sense of humor. After Facebook and Instagram briefly went down yesterday, Ryanair [posted on X]( poking fun at its breathtaking lack of amenities, including in-flight internet. Meta fixed the issue after a couple of hours, restoring usersâ access just in time to see their high-school acquaintancesâ predictions for Super Tuesday. But for a fleeting moment, we all knew what it was like to fly Instagramless Ryanair. Read: Why the controversial comet strike theory just wonât die, despite the best efforts of mainstream science. ([New York Times]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Jeff Bezos]( surpassed Elon Musk to become the worldâs richest person after he sold some of his Amazon stock and Teslaâs falling share price dinged Muskâs net worth.
- [Perplexity]( the AI search startup challenging Google, is now valued at $1 billion after a round of funding, the WSJ reported.
- [McDonaldâs]( will reportedly become the new naming sponsor of Franceâs top soccer league, Ligue 1, in a $65 million deal.
- [The Biden administration]( announced an $8 cap on most credit card late fees and launched a joint FTC-DOJ âstrike forceâ to crack down on price gouging.
- [BowFlex]( a fitness brand name you havenât heard since 2004, filed for bankruptcy, citing the âpost-pandemic environment and persistent macroeconomic headwinds.â RECS
[Wednesday to-do list] Hack: Merge, split, compress, edit, and convert your PDFs with this free [handy tool](. Watch: [Where to stream]( this yearâs Oscar documentary nominees. Time: How [far along we are]( in 2024, represented as a 9â5 workday, a round of golf, and more. Spacewalk: NASA is [accepting applications]( for astronauts for the first time in four years. Rich people have financial advisors: So youâre gonna need one eventually. Have a free consultation to [find out if Domain Money is right for you]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Word Search: Owls and lions and bearsâoh my! Identify famous animal logos in todayâs [Word Search](. Musician trivia Take the name of a famous singer (first and last), remove all the consonants, and youâll be left with the vowels âEIEIOââthe refrain of the song âOld MacDonald Had a Farm.â Can you name the singer? SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. Weâre saying weâll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others:
[morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=a905682a]( ANSWER Celine Dion Word of the Day Todayâs Word of the Day is: imbroglio, meaning âan extremely confused, complicated, or embarrassing situation.â Thanks to Steve from Austin, TX, for the calm and cool suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. â³ï¸ A Note From EnergyX This is a paid advertisement for EnergyXâs Regulation A+ offering. Please read the offering circular at [(. Written by [Adam Epstein]( [Matty Merritt]( [Cassandra Cassidy]( Sam Klebanov, and [Neal Freyman]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Take The Brew to work - Marketers: [Marketing Brew](
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