Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

PwC: Blockchain Tech Could Add $1.76 Trillion to Global GDP by 2030

PricewaterhouseCoopers‘ (PwC) recently published Time for Trust report indicates that the firm’s economists have a great deal of optimism for blockchain technology. The analysis suggests that the technology could add $1.76 trillion to the global economy by 2030.　　It emphasizes that the industry is evolving beyond bitcoin, and cryptocurrencies are only one aspect of the market. Furthermore, it notes that public registers, agreements, and other records can all result in greater trust in organizations as it cuts out the need for middlemen.　　PwCs economists expect the majority of businesses to be using blockchain technology by 2025 and that crossing the mainstream barrier will result in a sharp increase in economic benefits. By 2025, it expects the GDP value of blockchain tech to be $422 billion.　　The economists highlight the COVID-19 pandemic as one of the reasons behind the adoption of blockchain tech. Companies are reviewing how their businesses operate in the wake of those disruptions and how to secure their future better. One such growing trend is the digital transformation of businesses, and 61% of CEOs put this as a top priority.　　As for the top use cases, PwC lists supply chain provenance, payments and financial instruments, identity, contracts and dispute resolution, and customer

2022-03-08Deep Dive

First Mover Asia: Malaysia May Be Asia's Next Crypto Hub; Major Cryptos Decline as Russia Onslaught

Here’s what’s happening:　　Prices: Bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and other major cryptos decline.　　Insights: Malaysia has the ingredients to become Asias next crypto hub.　　Technicians take: BTC appears to be oversold on intraday charts, although momentum has weakened.Prices　　Bitcoin (BTC): $38,311 .2%　　Ether (ETH): $2,510 -1.7%　　Top Gainers　　　　Top Losers　　　　Bad news continued flowing from the Ukraine on Monday, pushing investors away from cryptocurrency and other higher-risk assets.　　At the time of publication, bitcoin was trading at about $38,300, off slightly over the past 24 hours. Ethereum was changing hands just above $2,500, down 1.7%. Most other major cryptos were firmly in the red. It was the third consecutive day of crypto declines, which started late on Friday as faint hopes for a ceasefire or targeted truce to allow civilians to evacuate besieged cities evaporated.　　Ukrainian civilian casualties mounted as Russia continued to bomb non-military targets. Delegations from the Ukraine and Russia failed in their latest attempt to negotiate safe passage for citizens of the Black Sea port of Mariupol and other major Ukraine cities that are under bombardment.　　Investors worried about rising energy prices that have already increased significantly over the last few months and wider inflationary pressures. The average price of gasoline rose to $4.009 per gallon on Sunday,

2022-03-08Deep Dive

HOW BITCOIN SAVES PEOPLE IN UKRAINE DURING WARTIME

The article describes Bitcoin‘s role in the Ukrainian economy during wartime. Although Russia’s unprecedented aggression has caused serious threats to peoples lives and national security, Bitcoin offers a reliable solution. Despite the banking system not working properly, Ukrainians are still able to support their army and each other. As Bitcoin is legal in Ukraine, both government officials and citizens can reliably count on it on a daily basis.　　People from all over the world actively contribute to Ukraine‘s fight for freedom. The recent events also illustrate how Russia’s military aggression appears to be the major environmental threat, while Bitcoin assists in minimizing it.A COUNTRY IN NEED OF A LIFELINE　　Ukraine faces unprecedented aggression from Russia in a conflict described by the BBC as the “biggest war in Europe since 1945.”　　In an attempt to pursue its imperialist policies, Russia now deliberately violates basic international treaties and legal standards such as the Geneva Conventions, which regulate military conflicts and humanitarian treatment.　　The Ukrainian military service reports that more than 2,000 civilians were killed during the first week of Russia‘s invasion. Russia’s military forces attack and destroy residential buildings, hospitals, kindergartens and other objects of civil infrastructure despite claiming a supposed focus on military bases. So-called

2022-03-08Deep Dive

US AML watchdog issues alert on potential crypto sanctions evasion from Russia

US authorities continue to be on high alert for Russia to use cryptocurrencies to evade the recent round of sanctions.　　On March 7, the Financial Crime Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, put out an alert, warning financial institutions to look out for convertible virtual currencies, or CVC, in Russias efforts to circumvent sanctions. FinCENs alert said:　　“It is critical that all financial institutions, including those with visibility into CVC flows, such as CVC exchangers and administrators — generally considered money services businesses under the BSA — identify and quickly report suspicious activity associated with potential sanctions evasion, and conduct appropriate risk-based customer due diligence or, where required, enhanced due diligence.”　　FinCEN is an office within the US Treasury. It is actually the Office of Foreign Asset Control that administers the US sanctions regime, but it is FinCEN that maintains general standards for identifying money laundering risks and reporting them.　　US agencies and lawmakers have been on guard for use of crypto in Russias attempts to get around sanctions. And yet, there has been minimal evidence that Russia is looking to crypto. The alert, indeed, acknowledges this repeatedly.　　“Although we have not seen widespread evasion of our sanctions using methods such as cryptocurrency, prompt reporting of suspicious

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Coinbase Blacklists Over 25,000 Crypto Addresses Tied to Russian Individuals and Entities

Coinbase Intends to Comply With International Sanctions, Chief Legal Officer Says ‘Digital Assets Have Properties That Naturally Deter Sanctions Evasion’　　Following the statements of the two chief executives from two of the largest crypto exchanges on the planet, Coinbase has published a blog post concerning the company‘s goals toward promoting sanction compliance. The post was written by Coinbase’s chief legal officer Paul Grewal and it touched upon the current conflict in Ukraine. Essentially, the gist of the article highlights that “Coinbase is committed to complying with sanctions.”　　“In the past few weeks, governments around the world have imposed a range of sanctions on individuals and territories in response to Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine,” Grewal’s post details. “Sanctions play a vital role in promoting national security and deterring unlawful aggression, and Coinbase fully supports these efforts by government authorities. Sanctions are serious interventions, and governments are best placed to decide when, where, and how to apply them.”　　The Coinbase executive‘s post further explains that crypto assets have specific “properties that naturally deter common approaches to sanctions evasion.” This is due to the fact that most blockchains are public, auditable, and traceable. As far as traceability is concerned, Grewal says when applied to public blockchain

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Anchor Nips at Aave's Heels as Defi Protocol Becomes Second-Largest Lending Application

Anchor TVL Surges More Than 40% in 30 Days, Protocol‘s TVL Rivals Aave’s Lead　　The Terra-based token anchor protocol (ANC) has increased in value significantly against the U.S. dollar during the last month. At the time of writing, 14-day metrics show ANC has gained 82.7%, and 30-day stats indicate ANC is up 182.4%.　　Anchor is a lending protocol built with the Terra blockchain network, and it gathers liquidity from lenders and borrowers. Moreover, lenders depositing the stablecoin terrausd (UST) gather a stabilized yield at close to 20% APY.　　In order to gather yield, Anchor uses a liquid-staking mechanism. Anchor and Orion Money also offer Ethanchor, which allows depositors to gather yield on Ethereum-based stablecoins in contrast to Anchors UST functionality.　　Currently, Anchor is the sixth-largest defi application today, out of all the defi applications in existence according to defillama.com metrics. Anchor‘s TVL has increased 5.55% over the last week, but monthly statistics indicate the protocol’s TVL jumped 40.13% since last month. Much of Anchors TVL increase to $11.5 billion occurred during the last 30 days.　　In terms of the 124 lending applications, Anchor is now the second-largest defi lending protocol under Aave. The lending protocol Aave is just a hair above Anchor as Aave currently

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Biden Will Sign Executive Order on Crypto This Week: Report

President Joe Biden will sign an executive order this week to task federal agencies with assessing the risks and opportunities that Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies bring to the U.S. and outline the government‘s strategy for the market’s regulation, reported Bloomberg.　　The order will direct federal agencies to examine potential regulatory changes and the national security and economic impact of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency, people familiar with the administrations plans told Bloomberg.　　“The executive order, which has been in the works since last year, will require federal agencies across the government to report later this year what theyre doing regarding digital tokens,” per the report. “The plan is expected to begin carving out roles for agencies across the government, from the State Department to the Commerce Department.”　　Regulatory efforts would also involve the Treasury Department, National Economic Council, Council of Economic Advisers, and the White House National Security Council.　　Bitcoin has risen to the spotlight since the U.S. and its allies began imposing restrictions on Russia in a push to isolate the countrys economy and suppress its abilities to continue marching forward in its Ukraine invasion. Despite being a tangible alternative to Russian citizens who may now find themselves unable to send and receive money freely, Bitcoin

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Coinbase Blocks 25K Russian Addresses Supposedly Related to Illicit Activity

The leading US-based cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, has decided to block access to more than 25,000 addresses related to Russian individuals who are supposedly engaging in illegal activities.　　Coinbase Blocks 25K Russian Addresses　　According to an official blog post from today – March 7th, 2022 – the leading US-based cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, has blocked “over 25,000 addresses related to Russian individuals or entities we believe to be engaging in illicit activity, many of which we have identified through our own protective investigations.”　　Further, the company has shared these addresses with the US government to “support sanctions enforcement.”　　The post once again reiterated that the exchange is “committed to complying with sanctions.”　　“During onboarding, Coinbase checks account applications against lists of sanctioned individuals or entities, including those maintained by the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, United Nations, Singapore, Canada, and Japan.”　　In any case, the move comes just days after Coinbase CEO said they will comply with the sanctions against Russia.　　Crypto to Avoid Sanctions？　　Many have brought up the question if cryptocurrencies can be used to avoid the sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.　　Brian Armstrong, CEO at Coinbase, said that he doesn‘t think there’s a high chance of that.　　“That being said, we don‘t think there’s

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Binance, Coinbase Explain Why Cryptocurrency Won't Help Russia Evade Sanctions

CEOs of Binance and Coinbase Say Crypto Not Useful at Evading Sanctions　　Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, governments worldwide have raised concerns that cryptocurrency could be used to circumvent sanctions placed by Western nations.　　The CEOs of two leading cryptocurrency exchanges have shared their thoughts on whether crypto can be an effective tool to circumvent sanctions. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) was quoted by the Guardian as saying:　　Currently, the media and politicians are spending a lot of effort and focus on crypto and sanctions. The truth is, crypto is too small for Russia.　　“If we look at the crypto adoption today, there is probably about 3% of the global population with some kind of crypto exposure (ie, owning some crypto),” Zhao continued. “Of those, most only have a small percentage of their net worth in crypto. Less than 10% on average. So, there is probably only less than 0.3% of the global net worth in crypto today. This percentage applies equally to Russia.”　　The Binance boss added:　　Another reason Russia would not want to use crypto is that it is too traceable. And governments around the world are already very adept at tracking it.　　Furthermore, Zhao said using privacy-focused cryptocurrencies, such as monero, would

2022-03-07Deep Dive

Centralised finance cripples Russia as Visa and Mastercard withdraw from country

Mastercard and Visa have announced that they will no longer operate inside Russia. With Russia already cut off from the SWIFT network and PayPal, the impact of exclusive reliance on centralised financial services is increasingly evident.　　Guy from Coin Bureau noted on Twitter:　　“Now that Visa if your country waged an unjust war, would you expect to be shut off from PayPal, online banking and your debit or credit cards？ How would you feed your family？Decentralised payment services　　Web3 offers many potential payment solutions through decentralisation. These solutions can allow ordinary civilians to have autonomy over their wealth. Companies such as Block (formerly Square) are attempting to lead the way in decentralised payment solutions. In November, they announced a decentralised exchange, tbDEX, with further integration into other Block apps such as CashApp to come.　　We are still a ways away from cryptocurrency being a mainstream method of paying for goods and services. However, many civilians affected by conflict will be reading up on crypto in the coming months as they seek ways to transact free from centralised control.　　There is a flip side to this argument; if Russia had a fully decentralised payment system in place, then the rest of the world may struggle to

2022-03-07Deep Dive

...

298300

...

737