Exchange
BTC price sees ‘double top’ before FOMC — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week
Bitcoin (BTC) begins a key week of internal and macroeconomic events still trading above $20,000. After its highest weekly close since mid-September, BTC/USD remains tied to higher levels within a macro trading range. The bulls have been keen to shift the trend entirely, while warnings from more conservative market participants continue to call for macro lows to enter next. So far, a tug-of-war between the two parties is what has characterized BTC price action, and any internal or external triggers have only had a temporary effect. What could change that? The first week of November contains a key event that has the potential to shape price behavior going forward — a decision by the United States Federal Reserve on interest rate hikes. In addition to other macroeconomic data, this will form...
USD stablecoin premiums surge in Argentina following economy minister’s resignation
Argentina, a country with one of the highest crypto adoption rates in the world, saw the price of dollar-pegged stablecoins surge across exchanges on Saturday after the abrupt resignation of its Economy Minister, Martin Guzman. The minister’s shock exit, confirmed on his Twitter account on July 3 via a seven-page letter, threatens to further destabilize a struggling economy battling high inflation and a depreciating national currency. According to data from Criptoya, the cost of buying Tether (USDT) using Argentinian pesos (ARS) is currently 271.4 ARS through the Binance exchange, which is around a 12% premium from before the resignation announcement, and a 116.25% premium compared to the current fiat exchange rate of USD/ARS. The local crypto price tracking website has also revealed...
How low can Ethereum price drop versus Bitcoin amid the DeFi contagion?
Ethereum’s native token Ether (ETH) has declined by more than 35% against Bitcoin (BTC) since December 2021 with a potential to decline further in the coming months. ETH/BTC weekly price chart. Source: TradingView ETH/BTC dynamics The ETH/BTC pair’s bullish trends typically suggest an increasing risk appetite among crypto traders, where speculation is more focused on Ether’s future valuations versus keeping their capital long-term in BTC. Conversely, a bearish ETH/BTC cycle is typically accompanied by a plunge in altcoins and Ethereum’s decline in market share. As a result, traders seek safety in BTC, showcasing their risk-off sentiment within the crypto industry. Ethereum TVL wipe-out Interest in the Ethereum blockchain soared during the pandemic as developer...
Kevin O’Leary-backed WonderFi to buy Bitbuy parent company for $162M
Kevin O’Leary-backed decentralized finance (DeFi) platform WonderFi Technologies is increasing its footprint in Canada by buying the first regulated crypto exchange in the country. WonderFi agreed to pay close to $162 million (206 million Canadian dollars) to acquire First Ledger Corp., the parent company of Bitbuy. WonderFi aims to become an end-to-end consumer platform for crypto and DeFi, according to the official announcement. Founded in 2016, Bitbuy became a fully regulated crypto exchange in Canada after being licensed by the Ontario Securities Commission last November. The platform has over 375,000 users who have transacted more than $3.4 billion. The announcement states that Bitbuy had generated over $24 million in revenue in the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2021. The tran...
Centralized systems are here to stay, says Binance CEO CZ
In a tongue-in-cheek hot seat video to round off 2021, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, or “CZ,” responded to a series of curated Tweets from the Binance community. The Chinese-Canadian business executive’s standout message was that centralized exchanges such as Binance would remain relevant in 2022 and beyond. Riposting to a loaded tweet about centralized finance’s dark side as well as the future of decentralized finance, CZ said, “Today, we still need the centralized systems to integrate with the traditional financial industry so that we can bring the money into and out of crypto.” He caveated the sentiment with reference to the cryptocurrency market as still being a nascent industry, prone to “hackers, Ponzi schemes and scammers.” Keen readers will remember one of 2021’s legendary rug pulls,...
Speed, scaling, regulation to play key role for crypto in 2022: FTX CEO
FTX founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, also known as “SBF,” rounded off 2021 on an optimistic note. SBF waxed lyrical about the crypto market’s state in 2021 while revealing the roadmap for FTX in 2022 in a Twitter flood. In his view, there are three keystones to industry progress in 2022: regulation, scaling and transaction speeds. He proposes solutions to each puzzle piece, referencing his exchange’s involvement. On regulation, SBF states stablecoins could be better reported and audited. In line with FTX stablecoin policies, he said more transparency would solve “80% of the problems while allowing stablecoins to thrive onshore.” Meanwhile, better markets oversight and an anti-fraud-based regime for token issuances could address other regulatory gaps. Secondly, while crypto users number s...
Binance gets green light from Canada and Bahrain
Binance is celebrating the new year with approvals from two different sides of the world. The crypto exchange has been granted an in-principle license by the Central Bank of Bahrain to operate as a crypto asset service provider in the Kingdom of Bahrain. According to the announcement, the in-principle approval a first for a Binance entity in the Middle East and North Africa region. In a statement, Binance CEO CZ said that approval from national regulators is “essential to build trust in crypto and blockchain and help further improve mass adoption.” When it comes to licensing, it is “a matter of formalities,'” according to Abdulkarim Haji, director for licensing at the country’s central bank. He highlighted Bahrain as the ideal location for Binance to establish...
Just 1.3 million Bitcoin left circulating on crypto exchanges
In glad tidings for an orange Christmas, Bitcoin (BTC) supply is drying up to lows not seen for years. In a recent tweet by CryptoRank, just 6.3% of the total Bitcoin supply, or 1.3 million BTC, is held on cryptocurrency exchanges. The decreasing supply is nothing new, trending down since the Bitcoin halving in 2020 when the BTC block reward was cut in two. BTC availability on exchanges followed suit, slowly trending down over the past year. Exchange wallets accounted for 9.5% of the BTC supply in October 2020, just before the 2020 Christmas all-time highs, and 7.3% in July this year. The 6.3% December figure is the lowest recorded in 2021. Interestingly, Coinbase’s BTC wallet dominance is also slipping. The American exchange used to custody more BTC than all other exchanges combined...
Provost advocates national confab on education
Provost of the Federal College of Education (Technical), Isu, Ebonyi state, Prof Ruben Okey Okechukwu, has advocated an education conference in the country to discuss the way out of the many challenges confronting Nigeria’s education system. According to the professor, the report of the conference will help in addressing the many challenges that have bedeviled the nation’s education system. He noted that a similar conference convoked immediately after the civil war in 1970 had developed education immensely which led to the introduction of the universal primary education. On the ravaging insecurity plaguing some parts of the North, leading to kidnapping of students in exchange for ransom, he urged government to urgently arrest the ugly trend. Okechukwu, who spoke in Abuja after he was confe...
DSS asks Sunday Igboho to surrender
The Department of State Services (DSS) has asked Yoruba Nation activist, Chief Sunday Adeyemo, a.k.a Sunday Igboho to surrender to the nearest security agency. The Public Relations Officer of DSS, Dr Peter Afunanya, gave the advice at a media briefing on Thursday in Abuja. He said 13 people were arrested in a raid on the Ibadan home of the activist early on Thursday. “Consequently, ADEYEMO/IGBOHO is advised to turn himself in to the nearest security agency. “Those cheering and eulogising him may appeal to or advise him to do the needful. He should surrender himself to the appropriate authorities. “He or anyone can never be above the law”, Afunanya said. He said those arrested will be charged accordingly. He said the operation was based on intelligence report that Igboho had stockpiled arms...
Tanzania to spend $470 million on vaccines, coronavirus-damaged economy
Tanzania will spend $470 million buying vaccines and supporting economic sectors hit hard by the coronavirus, President Samia Suluhu Hassan said on Monday. Since Hassan took office after the death of then-president John Magufuli in March, the government has changed tack from playing down the pandemic to calling for social distancing and emphasising mask wearing in public. Issuing the first data on infections since May 2020, Hassan said there were more than 100 Covid-19 patients in Tanzania as of last Saturday, with 70 of them being provided oxygen. Half of the cash will be spent on vaccines, protective gear and other medical equipment, Hassan said, with the rest going to stimulate sectors that are reeling from the crisis. She did not give details about the sectors but tourism, one of the t...
Plateau council poll: PDP accuses PLASIEC of plotting to exclude party in election
File Photo The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Plateau State, has raised the alarm over plan by Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) to exclude the party from the October, 2021 Local Government Election in the state. Secretary, PDP Caretaker Committee, Plateau State, Hon. Patrick Ogbu disclosed this on Friday during a press briefing in Jos and vowed that the party will resist such attempt. He noted that the Caretaker Committee was drafted to the state following a court judgment that ordered fresh State Congress to elect officers of the party and on resumption, the committee invited PLASIEC to participate in their up coming local government party primaries but didn’t show up. “Based on the election guidelines and timetable released by PLASIEC, our great party in line wit...
