UST Resumes Spiral After Quiet Day Orbiting 90 Cents
Terra’s shaky stablecoin is prompting calls for closer regulation by key U.S. officials.
May 10, 2022 at 10:15 p.m. UTC:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/J4ZKF7WH5JDYTPGEK45OZFPZKA.jpg)
TerraUSD (UST) broke its peg, falling below $1 for a second time on Monday and never regaining it. (Clive Mason/Getty Images)
Danny is CoinDesk's Managing Editor for Data & Tokens. He owns BTC, ETH and SOL.
TerraUSD (UST) resumed its downward spiral Tuesday afternoon New York time, sinking below 80 cents as it breached a relatively quiet 12-hour period when its price remained stable around 10% off its dollar peg.
- Terra’s shaky stablecoin has struggled to maintain its $1 target since this weekend’s dips began; it reached as low as 68 cents Monday in a swan dive that prompted billion-dollar rescue efforts from reserve overseer, the Luna Foundation Guard.
- Crypto market participants, regulators and critics are keenly watching UST’s flailing to measure up to the concept of algorithmic stablecoins, which rely on programs (over full collateral) to stay at $1 a coin.
- “I think that simply illustrates that this is a rapidly growing product, and that there are risks to financial stability and we need a framework that's appropriate," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said of UST at a U.S. Senate hearing Tuesday.
- Sinking to 78 cents and lower late Tuesday, UST ruptured the day’s staid trading session amid reports by The Block that LFG was searching for a $1 billion bailout. Firms reportedly involved in the talks did not immediately respond to CoinDesk.
- LUNA, the token meant to act as a backstop to UST's price, lost 63% of its value over the past 24 hours, plunging from $44.18 to less than $16 at press time. The token traded hands above $86 less than a week ago.
UPDATE (May 10, 2022, 22:28 UTC): Adds context on LUNA's price.
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Danny is CoinDesk's Managing Editor for Data & Tokens. He owns BTC, ETH and SOL.
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Danny is CoinDesk's Managing Editor for Data & Tokens. He owns BTC, ETH and SOL.
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