Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Crypto Exchange FTX is Exploring a Robinhood Buyout: Sources

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF)s crypto exchange FTX is examining pathways by which it can acquire Robinhood, according to people with knowledge of the matter.　　As reported by Bloomberg on Monday, FTX is having internal deliberations on how it can buy out the brokerage app.　　The source of the information chose to remain anonymous, as this matter is not public yet. FTX is also yet to formally approach Robinhood with an offer.　　The exchange may still opt out of the deal, as no final decisions have been made.　　Robinhood is an app that grants users commission-free stock and cryptocurrency trades. It has since announced its upcoming NFT and Defi compatible non-custodial wallet, following plans for a lightning network wallet revealed in April.　　Robinhood grew massively in popularity during the 2021 Dogecoin boom, and currently holds around one-third of all circulating DOGE.　　However, the company was forced to lay off 9% of its full-time employees in April due to overhiring during the previous year. Multiple other crypto companies have since been forced into the same position, while others face possible insolvency.　　Meanwhile, SBF has positioned himself as a market savior at this time, offering to bailout firms like BlockFi and Voyager at FTX and Alameda Research respectively.　　SBF already acquired a

2022-06-28Deep Dive

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler calls Bitcoin a commodity

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler said that Bitcoin was the only cryptocurrency he was prepared to publicly label a commodity.　　Gensler made the comments on CNBCs Squawk Box, where he discussed the implications of labeling particular cryptocurrencies commodities rather than securities.　　Distinguishing commodities from securities　　Speaking to CNBCs Jim Cramer, Gensler addressed his earlier calls to introduce more regulatory clarity to the crypto market.　　He said that all of the main market regulators in the U.S. agreed that cryptocurrencies were a highly speculative asset class. Both the SEC and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) have been following the ups and downs of this asset class for a long time, focusing not just on Bitcoin but on hundreds of other tokens on the market.　　Observing the market has led the SEC to conclude that the investing public was hoping for a return from most of those tokens, just like when they invest in securities. Gensler said that many tokens on the market have the “key attributes” of securities, which puts them under the jurisdiction of the SEC.　　Bitcoin, on the other hand, falls into a different category.　　Gensler said that “some like Bitcoin” are commodities.　　While he was careful when choosing his words to

2022-06-28Deep Dive

Crypto transactions hit a record high in Nigeria despite Government's sanctions

By: Damian Okonkwo　　The volume of Cryptocurrency transactions carried out in Nigeria has attained a record high in 2022 despite the current ban placed on Cryptocurrency transactions by the CBN.　　According to the report from punchng.com “Nigerians traded at least N77.75bn ($185m) worth of Bitcoin in the first three months of the year despite the Central Bank of Nigerias restrictions on cryptocurrency transactions in the country.” This amounts to a 5.71% increase from the N73.54bn worth of Bitcoin that was traded in the corresponding period of 2021.　　This data was disclosed by Paxful exchange which has become one of the most popular crypto exchange platforms in the country.　　As noted by the Paxful exchange, “trades from Nigeria accounted for 25.87 per percent of the total N300.48bn ($715m) worth of Bitcoin that was traded on the platform in the quarter under review.”　　Following the report, “this marks an over 8.33% increase from the N277.377bn ($660m) that was traded on the platform by Nigerian traders in 2021.” This has further set Nigeria apart as the largest of the Paxful exchange in 2022.　　Moreso, according to the report from KuCoin - a third major crypto exchange in Nigeria with over 11 million registered users; over 33.4 million Nigerians today

2022-06-27Deep Dive

Is Anonymity in Crypto Creating New Avenues For Women In Finance?

Women have always been underrepresented in the financial field.　　There are many phrases that women will hear throughout their lifetime, however, one of the most common is the idea to grow up and ‘marry a rich husband’. It pushes the idea that women should not pursue financial independence, and that men should be the ones dealing in and growing their finances.　　It is a simple idea, but one that completely explains the overwhelming dominance men have in financial sectors.　　When young girls are dissuaded from pursuing finance, it means that in the future fewer women will be inclined to pursue it. It is a constant cycle and one that can only be broken if women are shown the potential they have in finance. This is where crypto comes in.　　With Xchange Monsters (MXCH) even ratio of men and women in their leadership team, to the equality of anonymity, the opportunities presented to women to find a place in crypto is vast. However, whether women benefit more from being known or being anonymous in the crypto space is an angle worth exploring.　　Does anonymity level the playing field？ Or does being doxxed present opportunities for inspiration？　　Anonymity As Equality　　One of the biggest draws of cryptocurrency is the

2022-06-27Deep Dive

Goldman Sachs looks to buy Celsius’ assets for $2B as it is advised to file for bankruptcy

Goldman Sachs is allegedly shopping around for investors to form a web3 fund to purchase Celsius assets.　　The multinational investment bank is raising $2 billion from a wide range of funds to take advantage of a potential discount on Celsius crypto assets.　　Should Celsius be forced to file for bankruptcy, it may be required to sell off its assets quickly to pay back any creditors. The exchange has allegedly already been advised to file for bankruptcy by Citigroup and Akin Group.　　The news was initially reported by Coin Desk, which cites people familiar with the matter as the source of information.　　The struggling exchange reportedly had over $11 billion in assets as of May 2022, meaning if Goldman Sachs could purchase all of Celsius assets, it would be paying just 20 cents on the dollar. Whether the group is looking to take Celsius on as a going concern or strip and sell its assets is unknown at this time.　　Celsius also received an unsolicited offer from rival exchange Nexo on June 12, which was not accepted. However, Coin Desk reported that Citigroup had been brought in to assess the deal. Nexo has over 4 million users compared to Celisus 1.7 million who claimed:　　“Nexo is in

2022-06-27Deep Dive

BlockFi Increased Deposit Rates And Removed Free Withdrawals

Crypto lending platform BlockFi has recently announced that it will be increasing its deposit rates spread across spread across a wide range of cryptocurrencies. It also mentioned that it has decided to rescind permitting the policy of one free withdrawal that was previously available every month.　　This particular announcement was followed after BlockFi provisionally bagging a $250 million revolving credit line from FTX. Amidst concerns regarding the companys financial status , the lending platform has fired 20% of its staff in order to improve their finances.　　The policies that BlockFi has decided to implement shall be made effective from July 1. The reason behind such policies are attributed to proper risk management strategies as mentioned by the company.　　It also includes effectively helping bring down its market competition and overall enhance the macroeconomic yield conditions of the platform.　　 BlockFi And Its Recent Policy　　In BlockFis recent most policy, the rates for BTC, ETH, USDC, GUSD, PAX, BUSD and USDT into BlockFi Interest Account (BIA) have all been hiked.　　In order to defend the price initiative the platform stated that the previous rates had provided chance of bigger customer rewards during the crypto market crash. In their official Twitter account, it had announced the increase of

2022-06-27Deep Dive

Binance Launches New Platform for VIP and Institutional Crypto Investors

Crypto exchange Binance has launched a new platform for VIP and institutional investors. The VIP program allows Binance users to “get rewarded with more discounts and VIP privileges” as their trading volume climbs up VIP tiers.　　‘Binance Institutional’ Launched　　Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced Thursday the launch of “Binance Institutional,” a new platform for VIP and institutional cryptocurrency investors. It is one of Binances efforts “to upgrade its institutional offerings and services,” the exchange said.　　Binance Institutionals services are tailored for all types of institutions, its website describes. They include asset managers, brokers, hedge funds, family offices, proprietary trading firms, liquidity providers, high net worth individuals, and mining companies.　　The new platform offers a number of services, including direct access to OTC liquidity, asset management, custody, and brokerage.　　Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) commented:　　“Brokerage services are well positioned to help our industry bridge some of the gaps between the crypto and traditional financial markets and drive continued digital asset growth.”　　The VIP program allows users to “get rewarded with more discounts and VIP privileges” as their trading volume climbs up VIP tiers, Binance explained. VIP privileges include fee discounts and higher 24-hour withdrawal limits.　　The exchange offers nine VIP tiers. A VIP must have a 30-day trade

2022-06-27Deep Dive

What Lido staking dominance may mean for Ethereum’s future

Lido DAO token holders have commenced voting to determine whether the DeFi platform should reduce its staking pool. The vote is a follow-up to a governance proposal released on June 24.　　The voting process results from a month-long deliberation over Lidos staking dominance and whether it should limit itself to curb potential centralization risks.　　Lido currently holds 31% of all staked Ether on the Ethereum proof-of-stake blockchain, the Beacon chain. The staking dominance has raised fears within the Ethereum community, and critics fear it will threaten Ethereums decentralization.　　The vote is expected to end on July 1, and the result will determine whether Lido will self-limit or not. Should the majority of voters vote in favor, another vote will take place on how the self-limiting process should work.Concerns over stETH dominance　　In the governance proposal, Lido stated that its staking dominance would give it more voting power once the Beacon chain goes live. As a platform that started to counter centralized exchanges, it argued that such centralized voting power poses an existential threat to the blockchain.　　The Ethereum community has raised similar fears about the centralization of voting powers. The DeFi platform currently has around one-third of all staked Ether, which could give voting leverage

2022-06-26Deep Dive

Why Solana Is Going Big on Mobile—And Making a Smartphone

Solana‘s teasers leading up to yesterday’s “SMS” event suggested something to do with mobile, but few could have imagined the twist that was announced in New York City. Yes, Solana Labs has built a mobile software platform… but its also releasing a smartphone.　　Solana Labs yesterday revealed the Solana Mobile Stack (SMS) software kit, which provides tools for developing native Android mobile apps, walls, and games, and also includes a decentralized app store. The company also revealed the Saga, a powerful Android smartphone that will be released in early 2023.　　Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana and CEO of Solana Labs, told Decrypt that his team has been working on the SMS push for about five months, and the hardware itself for a bit longer. But the idea of improving Web3 access and functionality on mobile has been in his head for years, particularly given his past experience as a Qualcomm engineer.　　“What does it look like with 1 billion people using [crypto]？ What do you imagine？ Its in this device—the device you use everyday,” he said, holding up the Solana Saga prototype. “That has to be your hardware wallet. Thats just something that we always felt.”　　Yakovenko said the idea went from concept to

2022-06-26Deep Dive

Yuga Labs Lawsuit Accuses Ryder Ripps of 'Scamming Consumers' With Fake Bored Apes

Yuga Labs, the company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club, has filed a lawsuit against Ryder Ripps, claiming the online provocateur has been “scamming” buyers with falsely equivalent NFTs in a “deliberate effort to harm Yuga Labs at the expense of consumers.”　　NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique blockchain tokens that prove ownership over digital or physical assets, such as pieces of artwork or items in video games.　　Ripps, referred to in the suit as “a self-proclaimed conceptual artist,” is the creator of RR/BAYC, an Ethereum NFT collection that features identical BAYC images he did not purchase. Ripps first began minting his RR/BAYC NFTs on May 13 on Foundation, and after Yuga sent him an initial DMCA takedown claim, it quickly rescinded the claim when Ripps fought it. OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace, has since removed Rippss collection because of “a claim of intellectual property infringement,” but not before it saw nearly $3.5 million in total volume traded.　　Ripps responded to the lawsuit on Twitter, but didnt respond to Decrypt on Friday when asked for additional comment about a blog post by BAYC co-founder Gordon Goner (real name Wylie Aronow) that called Ripps a “demented troll.”　　Yuga Labs, in part, wrote on Twitter on Friday

2022-06-26Deep Dive

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