Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Stablecoin Wars: Why USDC Outperforms USDT

USDC has gained significant ground over Tethers USDC since the start of the year.　　USDC has risen by a stunning 1,820% since January while Tether records only a 200% gain.　　The disparity in gains is most evident on the Ethereum network with USDTs supply falling and USDC rising.　　The proposed launch of Compound Treasury and Coinbase‘s announcement of offering 4% interest on USDC are indicators of USDC’s future dominance.　　Stablecoins have become an integral part of the cryptocurrency space because of the utility that they offer users. Their indispensable nature has resulted in their meteoric rise in popularity that has led to their combined market capitalization to be well over $112 billion.　　At the top of the stablecoin ladder are Tether and USDC, battling one another for supremacy. Although Tether ranks as the larger of the duo, recent data suggests that USDC is turning the tide as it outperforms Tether in terms of growth trajectory in Ethereum and DeFi in general.　　USDCs Dominance　　At the start of 2021, there was only $1.3 billion worth of USDC in circulation. Fast forward six months to July and that figure has jumped to $25.15 billion. This staggering leap in market capitalization means an over 1,000% growth rate.　　In tracking the growth

2021-07-05Deep Dive

‘Owners of XRP and Ethereum are the most educated’

Trend cycles never remain constant. They keep evolving and get refined with time. As far as the crypto market is concerned, several narratives like “buy the dip” and “HODL” have translated themselves into cyclic trends and have garnered mass traction of late.　　A recent Bank of International Settlements (BIS) paper identified several emerging trends exhibited by the market and its participants. The first and most interesting trend highlighted was the change in HODLing patterns. Arguably, for any market to grow, existing investors need to be retained.　　IntoTheBlock‘s data weaved a complementing narrative. HODLers have, by and large, been outnumbering and dominating other participants like the cruisers and traders over the past few months. The report further claimed that crypto markets might stabilize with time, if HODLing becomes even more pervasive. What’s more, the BIS paper asserted,　　“Those who invested in cryptocurrencies in the past are likely to remain invested.”　　Next, the report contended that cryptocurrency ownership had nothing to do with the “distrust” in fiat currencies. They further emphasised that cryptos like Bitcoin did not pose any threat to traditional financial tools. The report noted,　　“Cryptocurrencies are not sought as an alternative to fiat currencies or regulated finance, bur are instead a niche digital speculation

2021-07-05Deep Dive

Breaking news in Crypto: Bitcoin and Altcoins.

Breaking news in Crypto: Bitcoin and Altcoins.　　By: Damian Okonkwo　　ABSTRACT:　　Expect Bitcoin greatest volatility this month of July ahead of Grayscale unlocking of stock shares worth 41852.26 BTC.　　Bitcoin Must Hold above the Support at 29k this month of July or we see a crash to $19,500.　　Thailand SEC files a Criminal case against Binance - the world leading Crypto exchange Market; as an Unregistered operator amidst its recent ban in UK, Japan, Germany and Ontario.　　SECs commissioner - Hester Peirce accuses SEC of showing double standards towards approving the Bitcoin ETF proposals, says it ought to have been a reality.　　1.0 Expect Bitcoin and Altcoins greatest volatility this month of July ahead of Grayscale unlocking of stock shares worth 41852.26 BTC.　　This month of July will definitely experience the greatest volatility in the Crypto market especially Bitcoin as Grayscale investment sets to unlock stocks worth 41852.26 BTC. This will mark the largest single-day unlocking of the GBTC shares so far in its history with 16,000 Bitcoin to be released. Following the data on Bybit, “On July 18, GBTC stocks worth 41852.26 BTC shall be unlocked. This will be the largest single-day unlocking of the GBTC shares so far in history.”　　Investors look forth with keen interest

2021-07-05Deep Dive

Analyst Runs Down All The “Coordinated Attacks” On Crypto

The crypto analyst going by “@CroissantEth” on Twitter has spoken at length about all the seemingly coordinated strikes on Bitcoin, which has dragged the crypto market severely.　　The “China & Crypto” Tragicomedy　　In April, when the flooded coal mine in Xinjiang damaged miners in the area, it resulted in a 35% hash rate drop of Bitcoin and brought up serious concerns about mining centralization.　　In May, along with banning Bitcoin mining, China stopped crypto-related transactions in all financial payment institutions. Plus, the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) continued its anti-crypto rally through state-run media outlets that warn citizens about the dangers of crypto markets. This led to a drastic 20% drop in Bitcoin prices.　　FUD, FUD, And More FUD　　FUD plagued the crypto market in 2021. News of Turkey banning Bitcoin mining, rumors of a crypto ban in India, and misinformation spread by the Twitter handle FXHedge about shady crypto dealings, crippled the market.　　On 12th May, Elon Musk announced that Tesla would not accept Bitcoin because of environmental concerns, leading to a sharp drop in price. His continued tweets hinting at “breaking up” with Bitcoin chipped away further at the coins price. Even Pope Francis expressed concerns about finding an alternative to Bitcoin over environmental concerns.　　Altcoins

2021-07-05Deep Dive

After record Capital Outflows in June 2021, where do things stand for Ethereum?

Between June 7th and June 28th, Ethereum‘s value depreciated by 26.9%, which was after dropping 41% during the 3rd week of May. The 2nd quarter wasn’t exactly pretty for the crypto-industry, and Ethereum wasnt spared. At press time, Ethereum was recovering at 12% for the week, but by the end of June, the asset registered massive capital outflows.　　Did Institutions go shy on Ethereum after the drop？　　According to the Coinshares Digital Asset Fund Flows report, digital asset investment products had witnessed a 4th consecutive week of outflows. While negative sentiment did remain very small in comparison to early 2018, Ethereum recorded net outflows of $50 million.　　In comparison, Bitcoin registered minor net outflows of $1.3 million, as there was mixed sentiment between Bitcoin investors.　　Source: Coinshares　　Yet the drop in interest for Ethereum was most surprising, but during the last week of June, the sentiment did turn against the largest altcoin due to Options Expiry.　　ETH Options expiry on 25th might have triggered chaos　　On 25th June, ETH Options faced its largest Options Expiry where ETH contracts worth over $1.4 billion were executed. Due to ETHs value being under $2100 during that time, most of the long contracts were deemed worthless, and market sentiment might be

2021-07-05Deep Dive

Trustless bridges may be the key to blockchain interoperability

The arrival of interoperable solutions will be an opportunity for a positive shift in the publics perception of blockchain.　　Crypto and blockchain enthusiasts take pride in belonging to a community that is working on the future of financial systems. Yet, the community is innately fragmented thanks to multiple blockchains working independently of each other. The dream of mass adoption of blockchain and decentralized finance faces a major hurdle: a lack of interoperability.　　Meanwhile, decentralized applications (DApps) — the fruits of decentralization — are being held up. DApp developers face difficulties while transacting between different blockchain networks, and the reason behind this is they are stuck in the Ethereum ecosystem. Despite having the best infrastructure, Ethereum is losing its foothold.　　Ethereums pursuit of single-network blockchain dominance　　As per a DApp market report, around 59% of all DApps run on the Ethereum blockchain. The growth of decentralized finance on Ethereum notwithstanding, many developers and users are unhappy with the network.　　Growing transaction charges are an outright bane for developers and users alike. Likewise, the Ethereum network is also prone to clogging. Even six years after launch, Ethereums transaction speed languishes around 15 transactions per second (TPS). The combination of the above factors derails the efforts of developers

2021-07-05Deep Dive

How Taproot Might Affect Bitcoin’s Competitiveness

Taproot is on its way. The long-awaited Bitcoin (BTC) upgrade has been confirmed, after it passed the minimum threshold of 90% miner approval in mid-June, meaning that it will be implemented in November.　　While the core features of Taproot — increased privacy and enhanced wallet scripting — are fairly well-known, what will the upgrades impact be on Bitcoin in a wider sense？ Will it attract more adoption, take users away from privacy coins, or even incur the wrath of regulators？　　The answers to these questions are fairly mixed, according to a range of Bitcoin developers. Because while Taproots features might attract greater use of Bitcoin, it may also take a while before applications and Bitcoin-based services make full use of them, with protocols having to be built on top of Bitcoin before cost-saving and privacy features have a significant impact.　　What Taproot does for Bitcoin　　As a recap, here are the three main benefits Taproot will bring to Bitcoin:　　Reduced fees for multisig/complex transactions: Taproot will significantly reduce the data needed for processing complex transactions, such as those involving multiple signatures or time-locking. This is great for anyone who needs greater security.　　Increased privacy: in combination with Schnorr signatures, Taproot will let users mix transactions made

2021-07-05Deep Dive

The Dean of Valuation: Bitcoin Failed as a Good Currency

The financial specialist and professor at the New York University – Aswath Damodaran – criticized bitcoin in a recent speech. In his opinion, the primary digital asset “failed miserably” and did not prove itself as a good currency.　　Gold and BTC Are Not The Same　　The prominent Indian professor – Aswath Damodaran – shared his point of view on bitcoin in the most recent episode of Moneycontrol Masterclass. He asserted that the largest cryptocurrency has failed to classify as a good currency because people disregard it as a payment method for daily and household purchases:　　“A good currency, in my view, is one that [is] used to buy coffee, buy your house, buy a car, and on that count, bitcoin has failed, and not just failed, its failed miserably.”　　Damodaran, also known as “the Dean of Valuation,” believes that crypto enthusiasts ignore bitcoins disadvantages only because they have made a lot of money from it.　　Speaking about the correlation between gold and the digital asset, the Indian opined that the yellow metal is the true store of value because it holds its price during financial catastrophes. He reminded that this is not the case with bitcoin, whose volatile nature makes it a highly risky investment

2021-07-05Deep Dive

Philippine Stock Exchange Wants to Be the Site for Crypto Trading When It’s Approved: Report

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) wants to be the platform for trading crypto assets when the countrys regulators issue long-awaited rules governing the practice, according to a report from CNN Philippines.　　PSE President and CEO Ramon Monzon told CNN that management first discussed the idea of setting up a domestic crypto exchange two weeks ago. The PSE has both the trading infrastructure and investor protection safeguards that Monzon said are necessary to trade cryptocurrencies.　　Monzon told CNN that mounting interest in cryptocurrencies means the Philippines cannot ignore them anymore. The PSE is currently awaiting guidelines from the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which began seeking comments from banks, investors, and the public in 2019 on whether the country should begin building a domestic crypto exchange.　　The country‘s government has historically been friendly toward digital assets. The Philippine Central Bank, though it has been outspoken about not considering the development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) anytime soon, has licensed over a dozen crypto exchanges to operate in the country. And many Filipinos have become interested in crypto as a way to make money in the country’s struggling economy, with play-to-earn crypto mobile games like Axie Infinity becoming a popular way to

2021-07-05Deep Dive

Are cryptocurrency ransom payments tax-deductible?

Any ransom payments made in cryptocurrency are taxed as property rather than currency, so be aware of the U.S. tax implications.　　Now, as trade increasingly has shifted to the digital realm during the global COVID-19 pandemic, cyberattackers are taking advantage of organizations‘ lax cybersecurity measures. They are using ransomware to lock these organizations’ data with encryption until a ransom payment in cryptocurrency is made. Back in 2019, 98% of ransomware payments were made in Bitcoin (BTC).　　Anne Neuberger, United States deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, explained:　　“The number and size of ransomware incidents have increased significantly. [...] The U.S. government is working with countries around the world to hold ransomware actors and the countries who harbor them accountable, but we cannot fight the threat posed by ransomware alone. The private sector has a distinct and key responsibility.”　　The administration of President Joe Biden is moving to treat cyberattacks — which are estimated to cost $1 trillion a year and often take the form of ransomware — as a national security threat. Intelligence agencies have concluded that they pose an elevated threat to the country, with gasoline, food supplies and hospital systems at risk.　　Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice seized 63.7

2021-07-05Deep Dive

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