😰 __Stressin’…__ A new report suggested that crypto-related job [openings](https://fortune.com/crypto/2023/07/06/collapse-crypto-bubble-job-listings-tumble/) in major US cities were down as much as 80% from their highs in 2021 and ’22, when hotspots including Miami and NYC sought to become crypto hubs as __[bitcoin](https://robinhood.com/us/en/crypto/BTC/)__ prices soared. 

🌶️ __Spicy…__ Taylor Swift had reportedly [agreed](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/06/taylor-swift-agreed-to-ftx-partnership-despite-contrary-public-claims-source.html) to a $100M promo deal with __FTX__ before the crypto exchange backed out. Investors are suing celebs including Tom Brady and Larry David over their roles in promoting the now failed company. 

🪙 __Coins…__ The price of bitcoin no longer seems so tightly [correlated](https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2023/07/05/bitcoin-is-no-longer-correlated-to-us-stocks/) with US stocks. For some of last year, the OG crypto traded in parallel with tech stocks as investors and pundits declared the "digital gold" narrative dead.

BADBLOOD

The Crypto Catch-Up…

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__It’s hot in here…__ but don’t blame the summer swelter. Last month the US labor market appears to have gone from 75 and sunny to 95 and boiling. Yesterday __[ADP](https://robinhood.com/us/en/stocks/ADP/)__ reported that private-sector companies added nearly 500K jobs in June — more than *double* what was expected, and the most in over a year. It’s a big ramp-up from May’s 267K gain. 

- __Planes, trains, and restaurant chains:__ The leisure and hospitality industry led the charge, accounting for 232K of new hires.

- __Fed up:__ Despite the Fed’s aggressive rate hikes to quell inflation and cool the hot jobs market, there are still nearly two open roles for each available worker.

- __Fell Dow:__ Yesterday the Dow and S&P 500 had their worst day since May as investors feared that “good” labor news could mean more rate-hike woes.

- __FYI:__ Today we’ll get the full jobs report from the Labor Department (which doesn't always match the ADP's #s). 

__Direct-deposit feeling…__ While the pace of wage growth cooled, annual pay jumped 6.4% from a year ago, and for people who switched jobs, the median bump was over 11%. For a chunk of the pandemic, wages weren’t keeping up with rising prices. Recently, though, paychecks were back to growing *[faster](https://www.wsj.com/articles/as-greedflation-starts-to-fade-wageflation-creeps-in-1adb7b9c?mod=business_lead_pos11)* than inflation. That’s good for workers but not great for companies’ bottom lines. In the first quarter, labor costs per unit of sales jumped 6% — more than prices — while profits per unit of output were up a measly 1.6%. 

Comin’ in hot (Michael Macor/Getty Images)

9-to-5

__Payrolls are a two-sided coin…__ A strong labor market and rising wages can boost spending and strengthen the economy. But they can also exacerbate the sticky-inflation problem (higher labor costs can = higher prices). Now investors worry that the Fed’s interest-rate hill could get steeper. If today’s Labor Department report is as hot as the ADP’s, rate-hike expectations could rise.

Blistering June jobs growth and rising wages give investors a case of the Fed sweats

__Got me like, baby, oh no...__ Justin Bieber’s Bored Ape non-fungible [token](https://gizmodo.com/justin-bieber-bored-ape-price-collapse-million-dollars-1850606250) is worth 95% less than the $1.3M he paid for it in January 2022, as the value of Bored Apes and other blue-chip NFT collections plummets. The cheapest Bored Ape on the market (aka the “floor price”) could be had for 27 ETH on Sunday, down 88% from a peak of 152 ETH in April 2022. NFTs in a recently launched Bored Ape spinoff game have fallen too.

- __Class rep:__ __Yuga Labs__ — which owns Bored Apes, CryptoPunks, and other NFT collections — is one of the best-known NFT companies, and cooling interest in its tokens could be a bad sign for the broader industry.

__It’s not a “gm” for NFTs…__ NFTs were a buzzword in 2021-22. But after cratering later last year and clawing back some of its interest earlier this year, the non-fungible tide has turned once again. NFT royalties, a revenue driver for the collections’ creators, are at their lowest point in two years, partly because they often aren’t enforced. Just $10M in NFTs are being sold daily, compared to $30M last year. Popular NFT collections including Doodles and Pudgy Penguins have seen recent price dips, and __Azuki__ Elementals fell nearly 60% last week following a controversy with its founder.

Yawn

__Buzzy businesses need to keep things fresh…__ While investors might not expect much excitement from a century-old canned-goods company, innovative products like NFT collections need to keep churning out new-ness. But Yuga Labs appears to have let its bananas go from ripe to rotten, and it may be running out of time to even make bread. It’s been hyping the release of its virtual world, dubbed Otherside, since March 2022 — but after buyers spent $320M on Otherside “deeds,” they’re still waiting for the world to go live.

The Crypto Catch-Up…

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