Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Is FTX the Federal Reserve of crypto?

The cryptocurrency industry sometimes markets itself as an alternative to the traditional financial system and its dependence on the US Federal Reserve, but this week crypto investors are learning how useful it is to have a lender of last resort.　　As the industry weathers a bear market thats destroyed $2 trillion, Bahamas-based crypto exchange FTX gave crypto lender BlockFi a $250 million loan. The head of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, also owns quant trading firm Alameda Research which last week extended a revolving line of credit to crypto broker Voyager Digital last week. (Crypto markets are happy with the deal: In the last 24 hours, the FTX token is up nearly 9%).　　Collateralizing loans with digital assets that are worth more than the principal of the loan was supposed to keep crypto lenders solvent in a crisis.　　These lending standards aren‘t always followed, however, as some lenders offer unsecured loans and others lend out the collateral backing loans. Collateralization also doesn’t save a lender from a borrower who is unable to meet margin calls in a market where the price of the collateral plummets suddenly.　　FTXs CEO is now choosing winners and losers in the crypto bear market. The move is not unlike when JP

2022-06-23Deep Dive

ECB head calls for separate framework to regulate crypto lending

A week after the major American crypto lending platform Celsius had to freeze the withdrawal option for its users, European Central Bank (ECB) president Christine Lagarde voiced her conviction on the necessity of tighter scrutiny over this part of the crypto market.　　During a testimony before the European Parliament on Monday, Lagarde expressed her thoughts not only about the looming inflation in Europe and around the globe but also about the increasing activities of crypto-asset staking and lending. In Lagardes opinion, this trend demands additional regulatory efforts from the European Union. Referring to the major regulatory package making its way through the legislative routine, Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA), she even coined the term “MiCA II”:　　“MiCA II should regulate the activities of crypto-asset staking and lending, which are definitely increasing.”　　Lagarde warned about the risks, posed by the lack of regulation in this segment of the market:　　“Innovations in these unexplored and uncharted territories put consumers at risk, where the lack of regulation is often covering fraud, completely illegitimate claims about valuation, and very often speculation as well as criminal dealings.”　　The official made a separate mention of decentralized finance (DeFi), which, from her point of view, also poses a “real risk to financial stability”

2022-06-23Deep Dive

Powell Sees No ‘Macroeconomic Implications’ From Bitcoin Price Swings

The Federal Reserve is closely watching the crypto world—but isn‘t worried, according to the central bank’s chairman.　　Fed Chief Jerome Powell said today at a Senate committee meeting that the bank saw no “macroeconomic implications” from Bitcoin and the wider crypto markets volatile price swings, but that better regulation still was required.　　“I think the principle implication is really what weve been saying, and what others have been saying for some time, which is that in this [crypto] very innovative, new space, really there is a need for a better regulatory framework,” said Powell, after saying the central bank was closely watching it.　　Bitcoin and most other coins and tokens in the ecosystem have suffered dramatic price drops the past month as many investors worried about the Fed hiking interest rates to control inflation have sold off riskier assets.　　Bitcoin right now is trading for $20,162.59, according to CoinMarketCap. Last November, it went as high as $68,789.63. The crypto market selloff seems to be closely correlated with equities, and the U.S. stock market has had a horrible year.　　Powell also was asked about stablecoins—digital assets pegged to fiat money like the U.S. dollar that are less volatile than Bitcoin and considered the backbone of the

2022-06-23Deep Dive

eBay Acquires NFT Marketplace

American e-commerce company eBay has acquired KnownOrigin, one of the top NFT marketplaces, according to a Wednesday announcement.　　The acquisition is part of the companys “tech-led reimagination,” the press release says. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.　　Jamie Iannone, CEO of eBay, says that the e-commerce giant is looking forward to welcoming a passionate community of artists and collectors.　　KnownOrigin was launched back in 2018, which makes it one of the oldest markets worldwide. The Manchester-based start-up, which was started out of a basement, secured £3.5 million worth of funding after completing its Series A round this February.　　eBay launched its first collection of NFTs last month in partnership with OneOf, another NFT platform. For more blockchain news, please download WikiBit - the Global Blockchain Regulatory Inquiry APP.　　The company updated its policy to facilitate NFT sales last May.　　Iannone has repeatedly mentioned that the company was exploring cryptocurrency payments, but the San Jose, California-based company is yet to adopt them.　　The e-commerce giant, which came into prominence at the peak of the dot-com craze in the late 1990s, has been toying with the idea of embracing Bitcoin since 2013.　　Shares of eBay are up roughly 0.54%, peaking at $42.41. They have so far

2022-06-23Deep Dive

Twitter Board Recommends Shareholders Accept Musk Deal

Social media giant Twitter on Tuesday has filed a proxy statement with the SEC asking its shareholders to attend a special meeting on Elon Musk‘s $44 billion takeover deal. In the filing, Twitter’s board of directors unanimously recommends its shareholders to vote in favor of the takeover deal.　　Twitter Board Asks Shareholders to Approve the Takeover Deal　　Twitter‘s board of directors believes Elon Musk’s $44 billion deal and the other transactions contemplated by the agreement are fair to, advisable, and in the best interests of Twitter and its stockholders.　　The board recommends shareholders to vote “FOR” the merger agreement, compensation payable to its executive officers, and adjournment of the special meeting due to insufficient votes.　　Elon Musk established three entities X Holdings I, X Holdings II, and X Holdings III as part of the bid to acquire Twitter.　　Under the deal, Twitter will merge with X Holdings II, a subsidiary of X Holdings I. After the merger, Twitter will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of X Holdings I, the parent firm. Moreover, Twitter will cease to be a publicly-traded company and common stock will convert into the right to receive $54.20 in cash, without interest.　　The shareholders are expected to vote on the deal in July or

2022-06-22Deep Dive

Meta Unveils Metaverse Monetizing Tools for Facebook and Instagram Creators

In a Facebook post on June 21, Zuckerberg said there would also be updates to “help creators build for the metaverse.” He added that he wanted platforms such as Facebook to play a role in the growing creator economy.　　There were six new updates that Zuckerberg shared in his thread. The first one was more revenue to creators, with the social media platforms holding off on any revenue sharing on Facebook and Instagram until 2024. “That includes paid online events, Subscriptions, Badges, and Bulletin,” he added.　　Previously, the commitment to give more revenue to creators only ran until 2023, but the chief executive has now extended that. In a June 2021 post, he said the company would take “less than the 30% that Apple and others take.”　　Eligible Content Creators　　Interoperable Subscriptions allow creators to give their paying subscribers on other platforms access to subscriber-only Facebook Groups.　　Additionally, the Facebook Stars section will be opened up to “all eligible creators,” enabling more people to earn from their Reels, live, or VOD videos.　　The Reels Play Bonus program will also be opened up to more creators allowing them to cross-post Instagram Reels to Facebook and monetize them there too.　　An Instagram Creator Marketplace is also being tested to

2022-06-22Deep Dive

Deutsche Börse Partners With Kaiko to Access Crypto Market Data

Crypto data provider Kaiko has announced partnering with Deutsche Börse Group as the latter aims to expand its presence in the digital asset industry.　　According to the official press release, the integration is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of this year.　　The latest move is focused on expanding the German stock exchanges market reach.　　As part of the partnership, the French digital assets data platform will provide Deutsche Börse Group with tick-level trade data from all centralized and decentralized crypto exchanges.　　Kaiko collects data from more than 100 such trading platforms for both the spot and derivatives markets.　　The tick level data collected from the centralized exchanges alone account for around 150,000 instruments. It also covers a majority of blockchain protocols such as Ethereum or Avalanche　　Following the development, Alireza Dorfard, Head of Market Data and Services at Deutsche Börse, highlighted the high demand among its for consolidated data from exchanges to develop relevant crypto-focused investment strategies in light of high volatility and price fluctuation. The exec also added,　　“Our new offering fulfills this need, helps our clients gain a deeper understanding of the cryptocurrency market, and allows them to analyze specific events. With Kaiko and its extensive catalog of data types, we have

2022-06-22Deep Dive

U.S. Fed says recent strain highlights ‘structural fragilities’ in stablecoin sector

The Federal Reserve views stablecoins as an area of concern due to the recent strain on the digital assets, noting that this has highlighted the “structural fragilities in that rapidly growing sector.”　　In a June 17 monetary policy report, the agency said that structural vulnerabilities remain at some money market funds, bond funds, and stablecoins but funding risks at domestic banks and broker-dealers are low.　　 Potential for regulation　　The report states that stablecoins grew exponentially in recent years to a valuation of more than $180 billion in March 2022, with Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), and Binance USD (BSUD) constituting more than 80% of the total market value.　　The agency alluded to the collapse of TerraUSD (UST) to highlight the lack of regulation and standards for stablecoins that are not backed by safe and sufficiently liquid assets, adding that it creates risks to investors and potentially to the financial system, including making such coins vulnerable to potentially destabilizing runs.　　The Fed states in the report: “The collapse in the value of certain stablecoins and recent strains experienced in markets for other digital assets demonstrate the fragility of such structures.”　　The Fed states in the report that such vulnerabilities in these stablecoins may be further heightened

2022-06-22Deep Dive

Study: Today's Metaverse Still Not Suited for Remote Work

A study released earlier this month has found that working in the metaverse with the tools available today might decrease the productivity of employees, and also increase their frustration and anxiety related to remote work. 11% of the participants in the study felt so much discomfort that they could not complete even a day in the study, leaving their tasks incomplete.　　Metaverse Needs Upgrades to Support Remote Work　　Companies and individuals are betting that the metaverse, an alternate digital representation of our world, will have an important role in the future of work, allowing people to complete tasks remotely. However, a recent study made by researchers of Coburg University, the University of Cambridge, the University of Primorska, and Microsoft Research, paints a different picture of the issue.　　The report, titled “Quantifying the Effects of Working in VR for One Week,” compared the performance of 16 different workers developing their tasks in a normal environment and in a common metaverse setup during a 40-hour work week. The results were mostly negative, hinting at the possibility that todays metaverse could still be too limited to support work-based applications.　　According to the study, people reported negative results by using the metaverse setup, experiencing 42% more frustration, 11%

2022-06-22Deep Dive

BlockFi gets $250 million credit facility from FTX to support platform

Crypto lending platform BlockFi has signed a term sheet with leading crypto exchange FTX to secure a $250 million revolving credit facility, BlockFi CEO Zac Prince announced June 21.　　According to Prince, this agreement will offer BlockFi access to additional capital, which the firm will use to strengthen its balance sheet.　　The proceeds of the credit facility will contractually be subordinate to all client balances across all BlockFi accounts. These include BlockFi Interest Account (BIA), BlockFi Personalized Yield (BPI), and BlockFi loan collateral. BlockFi intends to use the proceeds to bolster its operations as the bear market continues ravaging the crypto space.　　BlockFi seeks to keep user funds safe　　Prince noted that this deal underscores BlockFis commitment to serving its clients and ensuring the safety of their funds.　　In the past week, Celsius Network suspended withdrawals, swaps, and transfers on its platform due to liquidity issues. In a ripple effect, crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC) faced liquidation after failing to meet margin calls from lenders. According to a Financial Times report, BlockFi was among the lenders that liquidated 3AC.　　While BlockFi did not confirm its role in liquidating 3AC, Prince said the company liquidated a large counterparty after failing to meet margin calls. He

2022-06-22Deep Dive

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