Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Strike Users in US Can Now Get Paid in Bitcoin

Strike, the startup best known for helping El Salvador adopt bitcoin, is letting its U.S. users instantly convert all or a portion of their paychecks into the original cryptocurrency. And they can do so without needing their employers to embrace bitcoin or carry it on their books.　　The Pay Me in Bitcoin option, introduced Thursday, allows users to deposit their salaries directly to their Strike accounts and choose the amount that is automatically swapped and credited to their bitcoin balance. Strike is not charging a fee for the service.　　Strike began experimenting with the feature last year when National Football League player Russell Okung used Strike to split his $13 million salary 50-50 between bitcoin and fiat. Several other athletes have since followed in his footsteps. Now the service has been made widely available to Strikes U.S. customers.　　The expanded feature comes less than a month after Coinbase, the leading U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, announced that it will let users deposit all or part of their paychecks in crypto or dollars, also without a fee.　　However, unlike Coinbase, which lists a smorgasbord of digital assets for trading, Strike is a staunchly bitcoin-focused shop.　　Bitcoin as a savings vehicle　　Founder and CEO Jack Mallers framed the bitcoin conversion

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Morgan Stanley CEO: Crypto Won't Go Away

Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman sounded upbeat about cryptocurrencies during the banks third-quarter earnings call, claiming that the industry will not go away:　　“I dont think cryptos a fad. I dont think its going to go away.”　　Morgan Stanley was the first major U.S. bank to grant its wealthy clients access to Bitcoin funds in March.　　So far, Gorman does not see a lot of client demand for Bitcoin, but he does not rule out that crypto may start playing a bigger role in its business:　　“For us, honestly, its just not a huge part of the business demand for our clients. That may evolve and will evolve with it, but certainly its not whats driving our economics one way or the other.”　　Shares of Morgan Stanley (MS) are up 44% since the start of 2021.　　The banks investment revenue crushed analysts estimations in the third quarter of 2021, reaching $2.85 billion.　　Not siding with Dimon　　Gormans views on Bitcoin diverge from those of JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon. While the Morgan Stanley head refrained from making specific price predictions, he opined that the largest cryptocurrency would be here to stay:　　“I dont know what the value of Bitcoin should or shouldnt be. These things arent going away.”　　As reported by

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Putin suggests openness to moving energy trade to crypto from dollar in the future

Russian President Vladimir Putin is publicly showing more openness to cryptos role in the countrys future, particularly in the international energy markets on which Russias economy depends.　　In an interview with CNBCs Hadley Gamble for Russias Energy Week, Putin addressed the possibility of eventually shifting oil contracts off of the dollar and onto other currencies, including crypto.　　“Cryptocurrency, of course, can be a unit of account, but its not stable. To transfer money from one place to another — even trade, moreover trade energy resources — in my opinion, its still premature.”　　Specifically regarding crypto in the oil trade, Putin reiterated: “It seems to me, its still a little early to talk about.”　　While its not a glowing endorsement of cryptocurrencies or a promise of future action, it is a notable signal from the most powerful figure in Russia. Putin himself and the regime that he exercises broad control of have not been this specific about a serious use case for crypto in the past.　　Russian law currently allows cryptocurrency trading, but since 2020 the nation has barred cryptos use as a means of payment, domestically. Internationally, however, Russia has long been interested in alternatives to the dollar. While Putins comments are certainly not a

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Mexican President Rules Out Adopting Bitcoin as Legal Tender

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has decisively rejected the idea of adopting Bitcoin as legal tender, Expansión Política reports.　　During an Oct. 14 press conference, Lopez Obrador said that his administration is trying not to innovate a lot in the area of financial management:　　“We think that we must maintain orthodoxy in financial management.”　　He claims that his main objectives are ensuring that Mexicans have good salaries and are rooting out tax evasion.　　Lopez Obrador adds that investing in cryptocurrencies is not necessary for financing the countrys development.　　In June, the Mexican central bank announced that crypto is off-limits for financial institutions, disrupting the plans of Bitcoin-friendly Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego.　　El Salvador, a small tropical nation in Central America, became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in early September.　　BitMEX CEO Alexander Höptner recently predicted that at least five nations would adopt Bitcoin as their official currency by 2022.　　For more blockchain news, please download WikiBit - the Global Blockchain Regulatory Inquiry APP.

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Coinbase Wants the U.S. To Revamp Crypto Regulations

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is urging U.S. regulators to create a unified system of cryptocurrency regulations.　　Coinbase Lays Out Regulatory Suggestions　　Today, Coinbase published a document entitled “Digital Asset Policy Proposal: Safeguarding Americas Financial Leadership.”　　CEO Brian Armstrong also wrote an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal laying out those points more briefly.　　Armstrong and his company put forward four key points. First, he argued that the U.S. government should create a new regulatory framework around digital assets. Armstrong argues that regulations currently in place were built around financial intermediaries and concepts that do not apply to cryptocurrency.　　Second, Armstrong argued that a single federal regulator should be responsible for the new framework. Currently, he says, the U.S. has an “impenetrable array of regulators.”　　Third, he argued that this new framework should protect crypto investors. Fourth, he suggested that the framework should allow for fair competition and interoperability between crypto projects.　　Armstrong wrote that these suggestions are “meant to spark a conversation about regulating crypto,” adding that they are “not anchored in specific products” but rather a “high-level view of the changing financial system and the new technology that underpins it.”　　Will the Plan Go Forward？　　Its not clear how much influence these suggestions will have. Elsewhere, Coinbase Chief Policy

2021-10-15Deep Dive

"Dogecoin Killer" Shiba Inu to Be Listed on Turkey's Biggest and Oldest Exchange

Shiba Inu, the second-largest canine cryptocurrency, is set to be listed on BTCTurk, the biggest and oldest Turkish crypto exchange.　　According to a Thursday announcement, users will be able to deposit and withdraw SHIB tokens on Oct. 15 starting from 12:00 p.m. UTC.　　The meme coin has been gaining plenty of traction with exchanges over the past two months.　　Earlier this week, as reported by U.Today, Shiba Inu launched ZebPay, the oldest crypto exchange in India.　　Coinbase added the Dogecoin knock-off in September. In less than a month, it became the most-traded cryptocurrency on the largest American exchange.　　The dire state of Turkeys crypto industry　　Instanbul-based BTCTurk has been operational since 2013, and it remains the leading exchange in the country.　　Recently, multiple Turkish trading platforms closed up shop, with Coinzo being the latest company to discontinue its services. This Monday, the platform announced that all of its customers had to withdraw their funds.　　Thodex, another major exchange, collapsed after its boss went missing with customers money in April. It later turned out that CEO Faruk Fatih Ozer had fled to Albania. Vebitcoin also halted operations after authorities launched a criminal investigation into the exchange.　　In April, the Turkish central bank banned cryptocurrency payments for goods and services.　　Last month,

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Michael Burry of "Big Short" Warns About $7 Trillion Worth of Stocks That Are Exposed to Crypto

Michael Burry, the American investor who made a fortune by predicting the crash of the U.S. housing market, has taken note of a recent report published by financial firm MSCI, which highlights the risks that cryptocurrencies pose to the U.S. equities market.　　MSCI has estimated that a staggering $7.1 trillion worth of stocks have exposure to the fledgling industry.　　This includes public cryptocurrency-only companies of the likes of Coinbase as well firms like Tesla that are heavily invested in the new asset class. Finally, there is also a group of stocks that only have insignificant exposure to crypto.　　Burry, who has emerged as an ardent crypto skeptic earlier this year, takes issue with the fact that only 79 out of the 6,500 board members of the companies whose stocks are part of the $7 trillion figure are knowledgeable about crypto.　　“MSCI says there is $7.1 trillion in market cap tied to stocks of companies holding crypto. But MSCI also says only 79 people of 6,500 corporate board members have crypto expertise. This is, as they say, a feature, not a bug.”　　— Cassandra (@michaeljburry) October 14, 2021　　He jokes that this egregious lack of expertise must be a feature, not a bug.　　As reported by U.Today, Burry

2021-10-15Deep Dive

Analysts set a $20 target for Cardano as holders stake 71% of ADA supply

Cardano has become one of the most decentralized cryptocurrencies among other smart contract platforms, with 71% of the current supply being staked by holders.　　Cardano announces Satoshis light wallets to increase the accessibility of cryptocurrencies and NFTs with interoperability and ease of use.　　Analysts are bullish on Cardano, setting a target of $15-$20 for ADA price at the end of the year.　　After Cardano deployed smart contract capabilities on its network, more ADA tokens were pulled out of circulation. Over 71% of ADA supply has been pulled out of circulation, creating a shortage. Cardano emerges as one of the most decentralized cryptocurrencies　　Cardanos Project Catalyst – the altcoins on-chain governance, treasury and community innovation – has generated massive participation and exceeded the top 10 Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs).　　Input-Output Hong Kong, the organization behind the development of Cardano, made the announcement.　　Layer-1 blockchains with smart contract capabilities like Solana, Internet Computer Protocol and Avalanche compete with Cardano for dominance. Interestingly, since the Alonzo hard fork, there is an increase in the ADA tokens being staked. 　　Based on data from crypto staking statistics provider Pooltool.io, 71% of Cardanos current supply is staked by ADA holders. 　　The Ethereum-killer has announced several updates to the Cardano ecosystem, including the

2021-10-14Deep Dive

Institutional investors risk missing the blockchain bus

Investors looking to buy into blockchain-based businesses need to come off the sidelines and make a play, lest they find themselves too far behind the game to make any impact.　　The final day of the CoinGeek Conference in New York saw Ayre Ventures Managing Director of Private Equity Paul Rajchgod moderate the “Investing in Blockchain Ventures” panel. Rajchgod, who earlier in the Conference delivered a solo presentation on how Ayre Ventures chooses its investments, decided to take the temperature of a number of other blockchain-based investment firms.　　Joining Rajchgod onstage were Wendy Diamond – Founder Alex Fauvel – co-founder Roman V. Livson – CFO, Burkhan World Investments; Craig Massey – Chairman, Satoshi Block Dojo; and Zach Resnick – Managing Partner, Unbounded Capital.　　Ayre Ventures focuses its investments on projects built on the infinitely scaling BSV blockchain, and Rajchgod quizzed the panel on how the issue of scalability factored into their evaluation of potential investments. Livson, who in addition to his Burkhan role is a principal at New York investment bank Capitalist Securities, said scalability was “critical” to his decision process, particularly in terms of how companies pitch their technology to prospective customers.　　Livson said he watched how companies explained the ways their tech would

2021-10-14Deep Dive

Interview With Aventus On The Opportunities For Token Holders With Their Staking Program

When the Ethereum Network launched its Deposit Contract and began its journey into a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) based consensus, critics doubted that it was going to generate enough interest to lock the necessary 500,000 ETH. At the time of writing, over 7 billion ETH or $25 billion have been sent to this address.　　This proved one more time that there is a high demand from stakers to access products capable of offering yields on their investments. This was acknowledged by Aventus Network, a customizable layer-2 scaling solution to build on Ethereum and other blockchains for faster and low-cost transactions.　　The protocol operates with a PoS based layer; a native token called AVT, and a staking mechanism via the Aventus Validator Program. This allows users to have access to fast transactions and rewards for staking their funds in the protocol.　　We sat down with their team to discuss the relevance of PoS staking for investors, the role that Avanti Network could play in the future of Ethereum, and the potential of its staking program to offer users an accessible and high-quality product. This is what they had to say.　　Q: For those unfamiliar with Aventus Network, its features, and capabilities, can you tell us more about

2021-10-14Deep Dive