10 things before the opening bell

Welcome to 10 Things Before the Opening Bell.

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Let’s get into it. 

1. Fed hawkishness is thrashing crypto. The aggressive tone of the minutes from December’s meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee sent bitcoin, ethereum and other tokens plunging into the red yesterday. The prospect that policymakers could raise rates faster or earlier than expected spurred the crypto sell-off and sunk the world’s largest token to a one-month low. 

As the Fed plans to curtail unprecedented easy money policies that have supported the economy through the pandemic, risk assets investors flocked to for returns lose their luster. Higher bond yields make cryptocurrencies — as well as high-growth tech stocks — less attractive. 

Bitcoin’s bear market is dragging the total crypto market capitalization back down toward $2 trillion after peaking at $3 trillion just two months ago. 

And even as digital assets gain mainstream acceptance, some institutional investors continue to show hesitance in the space, with many wealth managers pointing to security and regulatory uncertainty. 

Here’s what else to keep on your radar:

• Bitcoin dropped as low as $42,500 in Thursday trading, after trading above $47,000 the day before.
• Altcoins followed suit, as metaverse tokens Axie Infinity, Enjin coin, and The Sandbox all tumbled.
• Separately, JPMorgan this week warned that ethereum’s dominance is threatened by rivals if its network upgrade doesn’t come soon enough. 

2. US stocks are trading nervously ahead of the December jobs report, given the Fed’s more hawkish tone. A strong reading could push policymakers to step up the pace of interest rate hikes, which would hit risk assets. Check out the latest moves on the market.

3. RBC Capital said to buy these 30 high-conviction global stocks set to dominate in 2022. Some of the listed stocks are set to provide returns above 40% — and one is even set to surge over 200%. 

4. Earnings on deck: Acuity Brands, Lawson Inc., and Cal-Maine Foods, all reporting.

5. Rivian stock dipped below its IPO price in Thursday trading after Amazon’s new agreement with rival EV-maker. The e-commerce giant is set to be the first commercial customer of Stellantis, a maker of electric delivery vans — but Amazon said it doesn’t expect the new deal to impact its business with Rivian.

6. GameStop shares are surging after a report said the retailer is planning an NFT marketplace. The combo of meme stock and crypto-mania has Reddit apes ready for a return to last year’s retail trading frenzy. 

7. The tech rout sparked by Fed hawkishness might actually be a buying opportunity. The spiral doesn’t seem to worry Wedbush’s Dan Ives. He noted Wednesday that it represents a “get out the shopping list” moment for investors willing to buy downward trending stocks.

8. Samsung is opening a metaverse store. The tech giant will launch a version of its flagship NYC store in Decentraland, an ethereum-based virtual world. Samsung said customers will be able to buy and sell exclusive digital assets like land and wearables.

9. Stockcharts.com’s Julius de Kempenaer explained why altcoins look primed to outperform bitcoin in the weeks ahead. The world’s largest cryptocurrency doesn’t have the momentum as some smaller altcoins — but Kempenaer shared what could signal a bitcoin surge to $70,000.

10. Even as Apple smashed through the $3 trillion mark, UBS said buying other tech themes could deliver bigger returns than the mega cap going forward. Over the next few years, Mark Haefele thinks some companies in the 5G or AI sectors could beat out Apple and even the entire sector. See the four tech themes he’s eyeing.

Compiled by Phil Rosen. Feedback? Email prosen@insider.com or tweet @philrosenn.

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