Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Why Bitcoin And Crypto Will Prevail Over The SEC, Ex-Goldman Sachs Breaks It Down

Bitcoin and the crypto industry are sitting in the eye of a storm. The first cryptocurrency by market cap has been attracting attention from regulators and politicians as more people jump into the crypto space.　　This has led to a subtle push between the U.S. top market regulators, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). SEC Chair Gary Gensler wants to take on more authority to regulate the crypto market.　　Former Goldman Sachs executive Raoul Pal commented on a recent speech given by Gensler, also a former employee of this banking giant. Pal believes the SEC Chair is “laying down the hardest case” to try to classify most cryptocurrencies as securities and regulate them.　　Currently, only Bitcoin and Ethereum have a clear classification as commodities in the U.S., but even this has been contested under Genslers leadership. In that sense, Pal compared the current situation of the crypto industry with the beginnings of the internet.　　At that time, the former Goldman Sachs executive said, authorities tried to imposed rules and laws to take more control of the emerging sector. In time they failed, and allowed innovation to generate one of the most important events in financial markets for

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Crypto Addiction. Is It for real?

Crypto trading is a new and more intensified form of day-trading addiction　　Cryptocurrencies may appeal to gamblers who show severe signs of gambling dependency.　　The 24/7 market opening can generate mental health issues as well as societal alienation.　　Money used to grow on trees, but now money grows online and is closely tied to the value and volatility level of Bitcoin. The leading cryptocurrency is appealing to investors precisely because of its heightened volatility. However, the same fluctuations can damage anyone actively involved in buying, selling, or day-trading crypto as it brings a new dynamic to finance. Crypto addiction is not a well researched phenomenon but communities have started to acknowledge the unseen dangers.　　 Crypto Is 24/7　　Anthony Robbins, said “consistency is key” because it helps develop habits. Whats unknown is the fact that not all habits are normal or healthy, which leads to the creation of unhealthy behaviors. In a thread, Reddit user, Far-Pie-4360 advanced the idea that crypto addiction is an ever growing reality that gets minimum attention. He states:　　“Crypto has taken over my life. It is like an addiction. I do not get the shaking, sweating, and hallucinations. But I definitely feel anxious, worried, nervous, and always battling with a serious

2021-09-23Deep Dive

CRYPTO CRASH AMID THE INSOLVENCY OF CHINA EVERGRANDE REAL ESTATE

Evergrande, the property giant in China has admitted that it is under tremendous pressure and may be able to meet its crippling debt obligations.　　The real estate developer is sinking under a mountain of liabilities totaling more than $300 billion after years of borrowing to fund the rapid growth. Evergrande stepped up its acquisitions in recent years, taking advantage of the real estate frenzy.　　But the property giant began to falter after Beijing introduced new measures in August 2020 to control the total debt level of major property developers.　　As reported by Bloomberg, investors have made down payments on around 1.5 million properties, citing data from December.　　Evergrande was downgraded by two credit rating agencies last week and its Hong Kong-listed shares have collapsed by more than 80% this year.　　On Monday, the Shanghai Stock Exchange paused trading in Evergrandes May 2023 bond after it fell more than 30%.　　Amid this insolvency in Evergrande, the crypt market took a hit. Losing over 5% of its value on Monday, thereby causing a big fluctuation in the crypto market. All cryptocurrencies are falling in panic as a result of the insolvency of Evergrande, which leads to turbulence in the global property market and collective currency devaluation.　　This is similar

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Smart Contracts Coming To Bitcoin: The Ultimate Ethereum and Cardano Killer?

Its smart contract season as Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, is gearing up for a smart contract upgrade courtesy of Dfinity‘s Internet Computer blockchain (ICB). The decision which received 96.55% approval on the platform’s native Network Nervous System (NNS) connection is the 20,586th since ICP broke into mainstream cryptocurrency ranks in May.　　Following the trailblazing successes of Ethereum and more recently Cardano, Dfinity is looking to plug its upgraded mainstream network link known as ‘chain key cryptography’ to the Bitcoin blockchain network, thereby linking native ICB addresses to the BTC network and providing smart contract extensions that perfectly work on BTC addresses.　　Dfinitiys boss, Dominic Williams added that: “The Internet Computer is powered by novel ”chain key cryptography“ that allows it to sign transactions for other blockchains such as Bitcoin.” when explaining the possible outcome of the infusion, Williams added: “the Internet Computer smart contracts will gain access to bitcoin liquidity, and Bitcoin will gain powerful new smart contract functionality, without the need for insecure and cumbersome trusted bridging services.”　　As seen in Ethereum and Cardano, adopting the integration of turing-complete has paved a way for a broad range of smart contract innovations and Web 3.0 development on both networks making

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Almost half of crypto owners turn to celebs like Kim Kardashian for advice: Survey

A new survey has revealed bleak insights into the apparent willingness of retail investors to follow digital asset advice from the social media accounts of celebrities and influencers.　　According to a Morning Consultant survey of 2,200 U.S. adults, 45% of crypto-holding respondents indicated they would be likely to seek exposure to a digital asset if it is endorsed by a celebrity, compared to just 20% of participants overall.　　There were some more promising results, with three-quarters of crypto investors indicating they were likely to invest based on a family member or friends recommendation while 81% would invest in response to advice from a financial advisor.　　Almost 20% of all respondents and nearly one third of crypto owners said they were aware of a post published to Kim Kardashians Instagram account spruiking the ERC-20 token Ethereum Max (EMAX) in early June. An astonishing 19% of respondents who saw the Instagram ad admitted to having invested in Ethereum Max afterward — however they comprising just 3.8% of the overall sample.　　The post and project have been embroiled in controversy ever since. The price of EMAX saw meteoric growth after being announced on May 26 as “the exclusive cryptocurrency accepted for online ticket purchasing” for the cash-grab

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Ripple Partners with Central Bank of Bhutan to Launch CBDC Trial

The Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan will start trialing a digital Ngultrum in partnership with Ripple, Japanese financial news outlet Nikkei reports.　　The San Francisco-based company will integrate its distributed ledger technology into Bhutans existing payment system with the help of its CBDC Private Ledger product.　　During the trial phase, the Ripple-powered central bank digital currency will be used for cross-border and wholesale payments.　　CEO Brad Garlinghouse says that his company wants to develop a platform that will allow different CBDCs to reach interoperability.　　The partnership seems to have been in the works for quite some time. Tashi Yezer, senior payments system officer at the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan, was one of the speakers at Ripples Swell webinar for the APAC region that took place in April.　　Yangchen Tshogyel, deputy governor of the central bank, expects a Ripple-powered digital Ngultrum to become a “sustainable” payment instrument: “Our collaboration with Ripple is testament to the potential of CBDCs to provide an alternative and sustainable digital payment instrument in Bhutan.”The partnership is expected to increase financial inclusion in the country by 85 percent.　　As reported by U.Today, Ripple announced a private version of the XRP Ledger designed for central banks in early March. It pitched the solution

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Dubai World Trade Centre takes pro-crypto stance with trading agreement

The Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA) in collaboration with the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) of the UAE has announced entering a pro-crypto agreement that will enable the trading of crypto assets and related financial activities within DWTCAs free zone.　　 Dubai World Trade Centre to play on backfoot as SCA takes command　　The Dubai World Trade Centre has put the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) in charge of regulatory surveillance for the issuance, offering, listing, and trading of virtual assets in the nation. Furthermore, the SCA will also be responsible for licensing the related financial activities that come under DWTCAs jurisdiction.　　The agreement additionally allows the SCA to look over the inspection of entities operating within DWTCAs free zone, along with laying out a structure so that DWTCA can also issue necessary approvals and licenses, allowing official operations of financial activities relating to crypto-assets.　　“Our agreement with the Securities and Commodities Authority will allow DWTCA to broaden its regulatory, licenses and services capabilities, in addition to extending the centralized supervision of the crypto market to our free zone…With the rise of new technologies such as non-fungible tokens set to play an important role in the future of commerce, and building on the

2021-09-23Deep Dive

ETF Giant VanEck Set To Offer A Solana ETF Fund In Germany

It appears there are plans by VanEck, a global ETF and mutual fund manager, to offer its clients a Solana-backed ETF through a listing in Germany. VanEck has filed for several Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF listings in the U.S. which have so far not been approved. The firm however hopes to enter the cryptocurrency ETF market by this new means.　　Matthew Sigel, VanEcks Head of Digital Assets Research, spoke last month about considering Layer 1 smart contract platforms other than Ethereum. He also pointed out Solana because of its lower transaction prices and faster throughput.　　“The idea that you could get 50,000 transactions per second, which would rival Nasdaq, opens up the potential to just securitize any number of existing assets, tokenize them and trade them in parallel using the Solana network.”　　While the multiple reports have not been confirmed by VanEck or anyone affiliated to them or Solana, Solanas recent success throws them in with the big-name blockchain networks.　　There is no doubt that the adoption of Solana is rising considerably. Solana currently has the 5th highest ranking in total value locked (TVL) on its DeFi platforms having reached $4.3 billion this month. NFTs too has attracted users in their droves to Solana,

2021-09-23Deep Dive

HSBC Chief Executive Comments On Bank’s Support Of CBDCs

UK bank HSBC revealed in an insight article that they are working in collaboration with a number of central banks on the discussion and development of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs)　　The chief executive of HSBC, Noel Quinn, shared the banks views on CBDCs, the form of centralised digital currency backed by a central bank. Quinn revealed that the commercial bank has been in discussions with several central banks, including the UK, France, and China.　　“As one of the worlds largest financial institutions, with deep experience of cross-border payments and foreign exchange markets, HSBC will continue to be involved in discussing and developing CBDCs. We are already working in partnership with many central banks, including those in the UK, France, Canada, Singapore, mainland China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the UAE, as they each consider how CBDCs can best work for them.”　　The insight article provided insight into the operations of a major UK bank, with HSBCs CEO providing an optimistic view of CBDCs, noting that CBDCs could help spur further economic growth as well as fueling innovation across the financial sector.　　As well as the positive of digital currency, the potential risks of these were also outline, with Quinn noting:　　“We must ensure that new

2021-09-23Deep Dive

Mike Novogratz: Gary Gensler 'Wants to Be the Sheriff of Cryptoville'

Galaxy Digital founder and CEO Mike Novogratz famously said of institutional crypto adoption back in 2017 that “the herd is coming.” In 2021, the herd has indeed arrived, but so has the law.　　The newly minted Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Gary Gensler did not set foot inside the Messari Mainnet conference in New York this week, but he was nonetheless ubiquitous, conducting an interview with The Washington Post on Tuesday—streamed live at the conference—in which he called cryptocurrencies “an asset class thats highly speculative.” His remarks added to a crypto market correction on Tuesday.　　On a Wednesday morning panel at the conference, Novogratz was unequivocal when asked about Gensler. “Gary is smart, theres absolutely no doubt about it hes smart,” the billionaire investor and Bitcoin bull said. “Theres also absolutely no doubt about it that he wants to regulate crypto. Clear as could be. He wants to be the sheriff of Cryptoville.”　　Gensler also used his Post interview on Tuesday to make the case to D.C. lawmakers that the SEC is the entity best placed to regulate the nascent $2 trillion crypto industry and the lending protocols that are fueling its growth. “It‘s highly likely that [lending platforms] have thousands of tokens,

2021-09-23Deep Dive

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