Crypto

Bitcoin (BTC) may be hitting new all-time highs, but it may just be another bubble, new research suggests. Unveiling a theory that could well rile Bitcoin bulls, analytics guru Material Scientist revealed what seems to be a strong correlation between Bitcoin price cycles and Chinese debt cycles. Casting doubt on the power of Bitcoin halvings With BTC/USD hitting its latest all-time high in April 2021, expectations are high that another will come before the end of the year. Looking back at Bitcoin’s history, Material Scientist shows that previous cycle tops in Bitcoin have coincided with tops in Chinese debt cycles. The ebb and flow — as seen this year in April versus today — likewise marks a cooling off in Bitcoin. This, the analyst argues, could not only mean that Bitcoin behaves lik...

Nine banking industry associations have submitted a letter to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) in response to its proposal to introduce stringent capital requirements for banks looking to hold crypto assets on their books. In June of this year, the BCBS had published a consultation paper which assigned a 1,250% risk weight to Bitcoin (BTC), meaning that banks would need to hold $1 in capital for each $1 worth of exposure they have to Bitcoin. In their letter this week, industry groups — among them, the derivatives associations ISDA and FIA, the Institute of International Finance, European markets body AFME and the Chamber of Digital Commerce — argued that the prudential framework envisaged by the BCBS would create “material impediments to regulated bank participation in cr...

Coinbase is looking for a new hire to manage the exchange’s sour relationship with policymakers. The United States-based crypto exchange aims to swell its legal and compliance team ranks. The company is looking for more than 350 new hires, with 24 job openings within the legal and compliance team. More specifically, Coinbase is seeking a new manager to oversee communications with U.S. policymakers. Along with a strong network in Washington D.C, Coinbase expects its new U.S. policy communications manager, who would lead its media relations and strategic presence in critical policy debates, to have “excellent political judgment.” Better communication with policymakers might be an urgent requirement for Coinbase, which is reportedly at odds with the United States Securities and Exch...

Financial regulators in the United Arab Emirates have reached an arrangement to officially allow and support cryptocurrency trading in an economic free zone in Dubai. The Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA) announced Sept. 22 that it signed an agreement with the UAE’s Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) to support the regulation and trading of crypto assets within the DWTCA free zone. The new initiative establishes a framework enabling the DWTCA to issue necessary approvals and licenses for financial activities related to cryptocurrencies. As part of the agreement, the SCA will also supervise major crypto-related activities like issuance, listing, trading and licensing processes. According to the announcement, the agreement was signed by SCA’s acting CEO Maryam Al Suwaidi, DW...

The Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan is partnering with Ripple to pilot a central bank digital currency in the mountainous kingdom. In a Wednesday announcement, Ripple Labs said Bhutan’s central bank would be taking advantage of the company’s private ledger to issue and manage a digital ngultrum. According to Ripple, the move was motivated by the Royal Monetary Authority’s, or RMA’s, effort to improve cross-border payments, expand financial inclusion for its residents, and “extend its commitment to sustainability as the only carbon-negative country in the world.” With a population of roughly 800,000, Bhutan’s gross domestic product amounted to $2.5 billion in 2020. Although many news outlets report on the country’s “gross national happiness” as an alternative to traditional finance...

Admittedly, the last few days have not been not the most pleasant time for crypto traders as the price of Bitcoin (BTC) price fell short of breaking the $50,000 threshold, then slid to the low-$40,000 range and pulled the majority of altcoins down with it. Despite this sharp downturn, a handful of tokens seemed to do much better than the rest of the market by posting weekly gains in their BTC and U.S. dollar-denominated pairs. Some traders looking to rack up their Bitcoin holdings cannot be bothered to follow an altcoins’ price dynamics against the dollar. For them, BTC slumps like the recent one can be seen as a profit opportunity, but how does one tell what coins are likely to perform well when BTC is on its way down? AVAX: Powered by the news Avalanche (AVAX) has added 28.19% in its dol...

Digital asset manager Cobo has raised $40 million to advance institutional pathways to decentralized finance products, offering compelling evidence that more Asia-Pacific investors are seeking secure access to the DeFi market.   The Series B financing will be used by Cobo to develop the first DeFi-as-a-service, or DaaS, infrastructure, which allows institutions and their customers to access decentralized finance products in a compliant manner, the company announced Wednesday. Specifically, the capital will be deployed to acquire regulatory licenses and ensure that anti-money laundering guidelines are followed on all products. Cobo further explained that DaaS gives institutions more secure exposure to DeFi smart contracts without the need to understand market complexities.  T...

The Biden administration reportedly intends to nominate Kazakhstani-American attorney, academic and former policy advisor Saule Omarova to head the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) — the institution that oversees the U.S. banking sector. Omarova has levied criticisms at both crypto assets and the legacy banking sector in the past, having once pledged to “end banking as we know it”. She has characterized cryptocurrency as “benefiting mainly the dysfunctional financial system we already have.” According to a Sept. 22 report from Bloomberg citing three anonymous sources “familiar with the nomination process,” Omarova could be nominated as soon as this week. Currently working as a law professor at Cornell University Law School, Omarova is expected to seek tighter regulations for...

The team behind the design of NBA Houston Rockets player John Wall’s nonfungible token may have ripped off one of the backgrounds directly from the popular online game Fortnite. Wall first announced he planned to release a line of “Baby Baller” nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, on Tuesday to raise $100,000 for charity and the “Ballers community.” However, once he posted a preview of the tokenized artwork on Twitter, social media users were quick to notice that the background appeared to be lifted from Fortnite. The image, available on eason 5 of Fortnite from Epic Games, shows a basketball court adjacent to a building near coconut trees. Though Wall’s preview included one of the Baby Ballers on the court spinning a basketball on his finger, many commented that the artwork was a seemingly lazy a...