HSBC Launches HKD Stablecoin for Everyday Payments

Welcome back to The Warmup.

Happy Monday and happy FOMC week.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Market Snapshot

• HSBC Launches HKD Stablecoin for Everyday Payments

• AERO Support Play

• Bitcoin Slips Below $80,000 as Longs Get Liquidated

• Calendar

Market: Traditional markets are holding up, with US stocks and gold higher and the VIX lower, while Bitcoin and Ethereum slip slightly and Solana remains in positive territory.

HSBC Launches HKD Stablecoin for Everyday Payments

What’s going on:

HSBC has launched RedCoin (RCHKD), its first Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, through the PayMe app.

Users can activate a wallet to send money to other people and pay more than 100,000 merchants.

The launch follows HSBC receiving a stablecoin license under Hong Kong’s new regulatory framework.

What it means:

Stablecoins are moving beyond crypto trading and into everyday payments.

HSBC gives users access to blockchain-based transfers through an app they already know, without needing a crypto exchange account.

The key question is adoption. Can a stablecoin offer enough advantages over existing payment methods to change consumer behavior?

If it works, this could become a blueprint for other major banks to bring blockchain rails to everyday transactions.

AERO Support Play

What’s going on:

AERO has dropped from nearly $1.00 to $0.67, breaking below the $0.76–$0.78 support zone. Price is now testing the key $0.62–$0.65 demand area.

Key levels we’re watching:

• Support: $0.62–$0.65 → key demand zone

• Resistance: $0.76–$0.78 → reclaim needed for recovery

• Upside target: $0.85–$0.90

• Invalidation: Daily close below $0.62

Directional Bias: Cautiously bearish

What we’re waiting for:

• Buyers defending $0.62–$0.65

• Reclaim of $0.76–$0.78

• Volume confirmation on a reversal

AERO is approaching a major demand zone. A bounce could offer recovery potential, but losing $0.62 would expose further downside.

Bitcoin Slips Below $80,000 as Longs Get Liquidated

What’s going on:

Bitcoin fell below $80,000 over the weekend, triggering roughly $404 million in long liquidations in just four hours.

Total crypto liquidations reached around $815 million over 24 hours, while Bitcoin ETFs saw significant outflows late last week.

With thinner weekend liquidity, falling prices forced leveraged traders out of their positions, adding more selling pressure.

Rising oil prices and uncertainty ahead of this week’s central-bank meetings also weighed on sentiment.

What it means:

The break below $80,000 puts a key support level back in focus. The move shows how crowded bullish positioning can accelerate a correction when prices start falling.

The next thing to watch is whether ETF outflows continue and Bitcoin struggles to reclaim $80,000, or buyers step in and reverse the move.

Leverage can accelerate both sides, so a liquidation-driven drop doesn't automatically mean the broader trend has changed.

Key Events this Week

Major token unlocks:

• Grass (GRASS) releases multiple tranches on Oct 28 totaling several million dollars.

Macroeconomic data calendar:

Tue (Oct 27)

• Visa, Boeing, Coca-Cola, PayPal, UPS, SoFi, Robinhood

Wed (Oct 28)

• FOMC rate decision at 2:00 PM ET, followed by the press conference. Markets widely expect the Fed to hold rates.

• Microsoft and Alphabet after the close (hours after the Fed decision)

Thu (Oct 29)

• Advance Q3 GDP and September PCE inflation. These give the first clean read on growth and the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge for the quarter.

• Amazon after the close, Eli Lilly before the open, Intel and Mastercard also report

• CoinDCX confirms $16M loss from retired wallets days after CEO called breach reports a 'false alarm'

• Keystone customers say breach exposed data the hardware wallet maker promised to delete

• Initia halts network after security incident as attacker reportedly mints tokens

Bitcoin’s break below $80,000 shows how quickly leverage can accelerate a sell-off, while HSBC’s stablecoin launch highlights the longer-term shift toward regulated onchain payments.

This week brings several major catalysts: the Fed’s rate decision on Wednesday, Q3 GDP and PCE inflation on Thursday, and earnings from Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and other major companies.

GRASS token unlocks add another supply-side event to watch. Keep an eye on ETF flows, Bitcoin’s ability to reclaim $80,000, and whether this week’s data shifts market expectations.

— The Warmup Team

Always do your own research. This newsletter is supplemental material to help educate readers as they make their own decisions. Projects mentioned here are provided to give a potential early-mover advantage.