Crypto Push

​​S Korean Crypto Trading Has Eclipsed Stock Market Activity by USD 389 Billion South Korea’s crypto sector may have taken a battering at the hands of regulators of late, but the number of crypto investors in the nation has grown exponentially – to the point where the cumulative worth of transactions on the nation’s four biggest crypto exchanges has outstripped domestic stock market activity by just over USD 389bn this year. Per Donga, new data from the Financial Services Commission (FSC) obtained by a parliamentary committee shows that South Korean crypto investment is on course to hit the USD 3.8trn mark before the year is out, and will surpass annual Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) trading figures for the first time in history. The KOSPI is an index of Korea Exchange (KRX)-listed companies. While the FSC’s data shows the four platforms had just over half a million customers in 2019, this figure has “soared” to well over 5.7m this year, with customers cumulatively trading 6.7 times as much crypto and fiat as last year. And it appears that the country is now home to some super-active investors: The data shows that the average investor has transacted USD 531,000 on the platforms in the period January to September 2021. Critics say that conventional markets have been “sluggish” for some time, and remain unattractive to younger investors in particular. However, this incredible growth will likely stoke yet more regulatory fervor. MP Kwon Eun-hee, a member of the committee that published the data, was quoted as stating: “As blind spots in regulation can cause investor damage, we now urgently need to come up with a supplementary regulatory plan through amendments to the Business Rights Act.” As bitcoin (BTC) began a surge toward the USD 60,000 mark, trading volumes were swelling once more on South Korean exchanges, with 24-hour volumes up by over 30% on Bithumb at UTC 7:00, per CoinMarketCap figures.

​​Experts Disagree on Prospects of Bitcoin ETF in 2021 as Deadline Nears Receiving “no news is good news” for the approval of a bitcoin (BTC) futures-backed exchange traded fund (ETF), according to Bloomberg’s ETF analyst. However, others are more pessimistic, believing that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is likely to delay the approval of a bitcoin ETF until 2022. Speaking on CNBC on Monday, Todd Rosenbluth, senior director of ETF and mutual fund research at investment research firm CFRA, said that hopeful investors may still have to wait for a while before a bitcoin ETF will be approved, even if the ETF is backed by futures contracts rather than “physical” bitcoins. “It’s possible – in fact, we think it’s likely – that we’re going to see a delay of a bitcoin futures ETF until 2022, until the regulatory environment is more clear,” Rosenbluth said in the video interview. The ETF researcher continued by saying that a potential approval comes down to “a timing issue,” explaining that if the decisions on the ETF proposals are moved to 2022, all of the products “can launch at the same time instead of one getting a first-mover advantage.” In the same interview, ETF issuer Van Eck Associates CEO Jan van Eck also noted that the SEC’s main concern is that discrepancies will occur between bitcoin spot and futures prices. “In bitcoin rallies, bitcoin futures strategies can underperform by even up to 20% a year,” van Eck explained, while adding that the SEC wants “some visibility into the underlying bitcoin markets.” Van Eck Associates is one of the companies that have filed proposals with the SEC for both physically-backed and futures-backed bitcoin ETFs. According to a Bloomberg overview of the pending ETF applications, October 18 is the potential decision date for Van Eck’s futures-backed ETF. According to Bloomberg’s own ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, however, “no news is good news” when it comes to a bitcoin ETF, although he said it is “an unusual situation.” Writing on Twitter on Tuesday, Balchunas noted that the SEC now only has a few days left to decide if it wants to delay a bitcoin futures ETF further. “If we hear nothing, the first ETF filed (ProShares) will be free to launch on October 18.” Still, the analyst warned the crypto community that it may be overestimating how much demand there is for such an ETF, saying Bloomberg expects only about USD 4bn of demand in the first 12 months for the exchange traded fund. The figure represents just 1% of bitcoin’s market capitalization and 3% of all bitcoin futures traded currently, according to Balchunas. Moreover, the analyst also reiterated something the crypto community already knows, namely that a physically backed bitcoin ETF would be the preferred option. Judging from the experience from Canadian ETFs, this also seems to be the general consensus among investors, with far more capital flowing into ETFs backed by real bitcoins than those backed by “paper bitcoins” in the form of futures contracts. On a similar note, Urik K. Lykke, founder of the digital asset hedge fund ARK36 told "Cryptonews com" in a comment that expectations for institutional-type investment vehicles “have often ended up in a ‘buy the rumour, sell the news’ scenario for bitcoin.” “Rarely does the actual product deliver on the hopes of facilitating the institutional adoption of digital assets. For example, the actual market impact of the much-anticipated CME futures launch in 2017 or Bakkt in 2019 proved to be rather disappointing,” Lykke reminded, while adding: “A bitcoin ETF will have a net positive effect on the development of the space but it likely won’t result in an immediate, dramatic rise in institutional adoption of digital assets.”

​​China Ready to Get Tough with Crypto Crackdown Enforcement After the bluster, the real Chinese crypto crackdown is set to begin – with regulators, courts and law enforcement agencies now looking at how to implement the terms of last month’s tumultuous joint declaration on cryptoasset-related activities. The watershed declaration was authored by the central People’s Bank of China (PBoC) and called on companies in the country to take punitive measures against crypto-trading customers. It also warned overseas platforms targeting Chinese customers that they could face penalties. Similar statements have been made in the past, but the crypto mining, hardware and exchanges industries appear to have been genuinely spooked by the joint declaration – to the point whereby a number of prominent crypto players promptly closed down their businesses. The exchange giant Huobi, reports claimed, evacuated its staff overseas a week before the statement was issued, apparently aware that the PBoC had something major in the pipelines. However, the firms appear to have made their decisions due to the fact that the PBoC’s co-signatories were heavy-hitting enforcers with real power to dish out punishment: namely, the likes of the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, and the Ministry of Public Security. Per the media outlet Jiwei, these authorities and others are now reviewing the punishment system for illegal crypto mining and undeclared crypto activity. The declaration’s Chinese title can be roughly translated as “Further Preventing and Doing Away with of Risks Associated with Cryptocurrency Trading Hype.” And “doing away” with crypto activity could well become a major priority for the bodies, which have begun to “deliberate” on “how to implement the regulatory requirements.” The procuratorate and legal agencies are, the media outlet noted, “conducting research on crypto exchanges and mining and other related activities,” and “exploring” their options for “conviction and sentencing.” “Judicial interpretations” of the statement are set to be unveiled “in due course,” the outlet added. A PBoC spokesperson briefed the media on October 11 with similar sentiments to those expressed in the joint statement, adding that the government will “maintain a high-pressure crackdown on crypto trading activities.” The spokesperson mentioned three tokens by name again: bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and the stablecoin tether (USDT). The latter is a major gateway for bitcoin traders in China, and has previously allowed many Mainland Chinese access to BTC on overseas-based platforms. The spokesperson added that Beijing’s policy “on cryptocurrencies are clear and consistent,” adding that enforcement agencies would “coordinate” their efforts and that further crackdown measures would marry central and provincial efforts. The PBoC concluded by stating that the crackdown would “maintain” China’s “economic and financial order,” as well as its “social stability.”

​​New Funding Round Could Bring ConsenSys Value To USD 3 Billion Ethereum (ETH)-focused software company ConsenSys is said to be raising funding in a move that could bring the firm’s value to some USD 3bn, the Financial Times reported, citing undisclosed sources briefed on the plans. While ConsenSys did not officially acknowledge its plans, should they be confirmed, the financing would represent a significant milestone for the New York-based company. It could also expand the personal fortune of Ethereum Co-founder and ConsenSys Founder Joseph Lubin. Last April, ConsenSys unveiled it had raised about USD 65m from a group of investors that included JPMorgan Chase, Mastercard, UBS, and other major finance industry players in what the firm called “a formation round”. Then last August, ConsenSys announced that MetaMask, its mobile app and browser extension that functions as a crypto wallet, reached more than 10m monthly active users, providing them with access to the decentralized web where they can swap tokens, borrow, lend, mint and buy non-fungible tokens (NFTs), play games, and perform other activities. Over a one-year period, MetaMask grew more than 1,800%, according to the company. With this rapid growth in mind, ConsenSys is forecasting that annual revenues from MetaMask could expand to USD 1bn within the next year, said a person briefed on the numbers. In addition to organic growth, the company has also been growing its business through acquisitions. In August 2020, ConsenSys announced it was taking over Quorum, an enterprise blockchain unit developed by JPMorgan Chase. Quorum was launched in 2016, and since then, the investment banking giant used it in a number of projects, including its messaging network for cross-border payments, the Interbank Information Network (IIN). Following the acquisition, ConsenSys merged its existing roadmap with Quorum.

​​Introducing World of White Dudes: A Diverse, Inclusive, and Tolerant NFT 8th October 2021, Orlando, Florida - Amid the 2021 NFT explosion, a new hero burst onto the scene. His name happens to be Bob, he happens to be white, and he happens to work in the accounting department. Bob may sound a bit vanilla, but, in this case, Bob is the canvas in which diverse strokes are painted in the World of White Dudes ("WOWD") NFT. What is an NFT Anyway? What does NFT stand for? NFT stands for “Non-Fungible Token.” A “token” is a unit of data stored on a blockchain. While “fungible” items, like dollars, are replaceable or interchangeable, NFTs are “non-fungible,” meaning unique and non-interchangeable. What does non-fungible mean? An NFT is a digital item, or deed/reference to an item, that you own that is unique or one of a kind. If you have USD 10 in your bank account, each dollar is not unique; you don't know (or care) which is which when you withdraw, making dollars “fungible.” However, your grandmother’s wedding ring is not interchangeable. If you stored it in the bank's security deposit box, you would not be happy if someone replaced it with an identical-looking ring from someone else's marriage. Your grandmother’s ring is “non-fungible”. Why do I hear “blockchain” and "NFT Crypto"? A blockchain is a chain of data, like a ledger, that is decentralized or distributed, making it essentially impossible to hack. NFTs are developed on a cryptocurrency (or “crypto”) blockchain because it permanently records ownership in an ultra-secure manner. If title to your house was tied to whoever owns a certain token, you certainly wouldn't want anyone but yourself to be able to transfer it.The NFT is the deed to the underlying token, which in the case of WOWD represents art, not your house! NFT art on NFT Marketplaces? Yes, there are several online marketplaces where you can view, purchase, and sell NFTs to others. WOWD is a collection of 10,000 portraits, each one different from the rest, that live as NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain. WOWD officially launched in October 2021 and has made splashes ever since. As of this article's writing, not all 10,000 NFTs have been issued yet. This is done by the initial purchaser on WOWD’s website in a process called "Minting". Once all 10,000 have been minted, no new Bob can ever be created. To acquire one, you would have to purchase it on a secondary NFT marketplace. WOWD has created a walkthrough video tutorial to help those purchasing an NFT on the OpenSea marketplace. What Makes World of White Dudes NFT Interesting: A Clash with Diversity Simply put, the project is interesting because it stays true to its intention of highlighting diversity and inclusion while inciting confusion in others who judged the book by its cover (the cover being Bob). The project beautifully dances the tango of nuance over these issues without missing a step. Christopher di Girolamo, the artist behind WOWD, says: "I was inspired to highlight just how diverse we all are. If you launched an art project highlighting diversity within exclusive groups like ‘women of the world,’ the overall reaction today would be very supportive. I wanted to take this ‘diversity within exclusive groups’ concept to the extreme with World of White Dudes by highlighting the diversity within the group ‘white male Bobs who work in accounting." “When learning about WOWD, people are generally either angry – at the assumed exclusivity based on race/gender, or amused – at the absurdity of the project. I really want both groups of people to take a deeper look and think for themselves. You really can find diversity within any singular group of people. Yes... even in a group of white dudes named Bob who work in the accounting department. World of White Dudes is a snapshot of Internet culture at an interesting crossroads in time: digital artwork is selling for millions of dollars, and the idea of diversity has been manipulated by marketing teams and corporate activists to the point of becoming inane.

​​Countries Should Prevent 'Regulatory Arbitrage' for Stablecoins – FSB The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has warned governments that “global stablecoins” that enter the mainstream financial system through mass use across borders could represent a risk to financial stability. To mitigate this, the agency said countries should work to prevent “regulatory arbitrage and harmful market fragmentation” in the stablecoin space. The emergence of global stablecoins (GSCs) would pose greater risks to financial stability than existing stablecoins, said the report, and it may also "challenge the comprehensiveness and effectiveness of existing regulatory, supervisory and oversight approaches." The FSB report stated that: “Ensuring appropriate regulation, supervision and oversight across sectors and jurisdictions will therefore be necessary to prevent any potential gaps and avoid regulatory arbitrage.” Headed by the US Federal Reserve Governor and Vice Chairman Randal K. Quarles, the FSB is an international organization set up in 2009 by the G20 countries to monitor and make recommendations about the global financial system. The organization is currently made up of central bankers and government officials from the world’s largest economies, as well as a number of international organizations. In the report, titled Regulation, Supervision and Oversight of “Global Stablecoin” Arrangements, the FSB further claimed that the current generation of stablecoins are still not being used for payments “on a significant scale,” making them less of a threat for now. However, the report also noted that “vulnerabilities” in the stablecoin and digital asset space have grown over the course of 2020 and 2021. Specifically, it warned that increased participation in the market for digital assets by retail investors “could give rise to broader financial stability issues through an erosion of trust in the financial system.” This new report comes after the international body last year published its “high-level recommendations” for governments to regulate global stablecoins. The recommendations, which still stand today, among other things, included points like: ensure authorities have “the necessary powers and tools, and adequate resources, to comprehensively regulate, supervise and oversee” global stablecoins; ensure cooperation and coordination between authorities, “both domestically and internationally”; ensure global stablecoins have systems in place for “collecting, storing and safeguarding data.” Since the publication of the recommendations, the FSB noted that the market capitalization of existing stablecoins has continued to grow, along with the broader crypto market, to a level of about USD 123bn as of September 2021. As the currently most important USD-pegged stablecoins, tether (USDT), USD coin (USDC), and binance USD (BUSD) were all named in the report, while EURS was named as the leading euro-pegged stablecoin. However, the report said that the functions performed by the existing stablecoins remain “limited” as of now, given that they are mainly used for investing in “speculative crypto assets.” Finally, the G20-appointed agency said that it will “continue to support” the implementation of its high-level recommendations, and that by July 2023 it will have completed a review of its recommendations in coordination with other relevant international organizations.

​​Investments In Bitcoin Rotate From Ethereum Again as BTC Flirts With USD 50K Last week ended with “growing investor confidence” across the digital asset market, with bitcoin (BTC) in particular becoming a more favored investment at the expense of ethereum (ETH) once again, per data from cryptoasset management firm CoinShares. According to the firm’s weekly report on digital asset fund flows, which tracks flows into and out of regulated digital asset funds, bitcoin saw inflows of USD 69m last week. The weekly inflows marked the third consecutive week of positive flows for the asset, after having suffered from “the longest run of outflows on record” earlier this year, the report said. Meanwhile, ETH funds saw less than one-third of the inflows that bitcoin had, with USD 20m flowing in last week, according to the report. The stronger inflows into bitcoin led to the number one digital asset taking market share from ethereum, CoinShares said, while noting that ethereum’s market share for the investment products covered has fallen from a peak of 28% to 25% last week. Also, in a week, flows into BTC increased by 38%, while flows into ETH dropped by 45%. The fund flows tracked by CoinShares are often seen as a proxy for institutional interest in different digital assets, as many financial institutions and traditional investors prefer to hold regulated funds rather than the digital asset itself. In terms of other digital assets, binance coin (BNB) and polkadot (DOT) were the only two that saw outflows, each losing USD 0.8m. n total, digital asset investment products saw inflows of USD 90m last week, making it the seventh consecutive week of fund inflows for the sector. However, CoinShares also noted that volumes still remain relatively low at USD 2.4bn for the week. The latest fund flows data marks a change from findings in a report from investment banking giant JP Morgan from two weeks back. In the report, the bank said that prices of regulated bitcoin and ethereum futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) suggests an increasing institutional interest in ethereum at the expense of bitcoin. Meanwhile, the bitcoin price on Monday and Tuesday continued to strengthen, as it flirted with the psychologically important USD 50,000 mark for the first time since early September. At 09:50 UTC, bitcoin was up by 5% over the past 24 hours to trade at a price of USD 50,078. Ethereum, meanwhile, was up 2% to USD 3,428 over the same time period.

​​Can You Trust Centralized Big Tech? Apple’s plan to scan customers’ phones and other devices for images depicting child sexual abuse generated a backlash over privacy concerns, which led the company to announce a delay. Apple, Facebook, Google and other companies have long scanned customers’ images that are stored on the companies’ servers for this material. Scanning data on users’ devices is a significant change. However well-intentioned, and whether or not Apple is willing and able to follow through on its promises to protect customers’ privacy, the company’s plan highlights the fact that people who buy iPhones are not masters of their own devices. In addition, Apple is using a complicated scanning system that is hard to audit. Thus, customers face a stark reality: If you use an iPhone, you have to trust Apple. Specifically, customers are forced to trust Apple to only use this system as described, run the system securely over time, and put the interests of their users over the interests of other parties, including the most powerful governments on the planet. Despite Apple’s so-far-unique plan, the problem of trust isn’t specific to Apple. Other large tech companies also have considerable control over customers’ devices and insight into their data. Trust in Apple and Big Tech Apple has stated that their scanning system will only ever be used for detecting child sexual abuse material and has multiple strong privacy protections. The technical details of the system indicate that Apple has taken steps to protect user privacy unless the targeted material is detected by the system. For example, humans will review someone’s suspect material only when the number of times the system detects the targeted material reaches a certain threshold. However, Apple has given little proof regarding how this system will work in practice. After analyzing the “NeuralHash” algorithm that Apple is basing its scanning system on, security researchers and civil rights organizations warn that the system is likely vulnerable to hackers, in contrast to Apple’s claims. Critics also fear that the system will be used to scan for other material, such as indications of political dissent. Apple, along with other Big Tech players, has caved to the demands of authoritarian regimes, notably China, to allow government surveillance of technology users. In practice, the Chinese government has access to all user data. What will be different this time? It should also be noted that Apple is not operating this system on its own. In the US, Apple plans to use data from, and report suspect material to, the nonprofit National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Thus, trusting Apple is not enough. Users must also trust the company’s partners to act benevolently and with integrity. Big Tech’s less-than-encouraging track record This case exists within a context of regular Big Tech privacy invasions and moves to further curtail consumer freedoms and control. The companies have positioned themselves as responsible parties, but many privacy experts say there is too little transparency and scant technical or historical evidence for these claims. Another concern is unintended consequences. Apple might really want to protect children and protect users’ privacy at the same time. Nevertheless, the company has now announced – and staked its trustworthiness to – a technology that is well-suited to spying on large numbers of people. Governments might pass laws to extend scanning to other material deemed illegal. Would Apple, and potentially other tech firms, choose to not follow these laws and potentially pull out of these markets, or would they comply with potentially draconian local laws? There’s no telling about the future, but Apple and other tech firms have chosen to acquiesce to oppressive regimes before. Tech companies that choose to operate in China are forced to submit to censorship, for example.

​​El Salvador Gov’t to Mitigate Against Fuel Price Crisis – Using its Bitcoin App The government of El Salvador has launched a drive to help promote its Chivo bitcoin (BTC) wallet – allowing citizens and businesses who use the app to buy fuel at a discounted rate as global prices rise. President Nayib Bukele announced that the Chivo operators had negotiated a deal with two fuel distribution companies, meaning that Chivo users could receive a discount worth USD 0.20 per gallon at petrol stations across the nation. Bukele wrote that the “state-owned company Chivo” had “negotiated with the largest gas station companies in the country,” and that the move would “mitigate several increases in the international price of fuel.” The president went on to note that the discount would “have no limit” and would apply not only to individuals, but also to public transport operators, “entrepreneurs and all companies.” The discount will be valid from September 30 to October 14, he explained. The government mouthpiece Diario El Salvador reported that “taxi drivers, Uber and InDriver drivers, public transport, school transport operators, private motorcyclists, couriers, private vehicles, delivery people, travelers and merchandise distributors” all stood to benefit. The President added that the move would also “reduce transportation costs in supply chains.” Fuel prices are on the march all over the world and shortages have been reported around the world in recent days, disrupting nations as far afield as the UK and Brazil. Per Bloomberg data, Brent crude prices are peaking at levels not seen since late 2018, while natural gas prices are also up. "ElSalvador com" reported that the international picture “will drive up the price of gasoline and diesel” in the nation, and noted that this year alone “there have been at least 15 increases in fuel prices and only three decreases.” But mainstream media outlets continue to report that many in the nation are still struggling to come to terms with bitcoin adoption after the token became legal tender, alongside the USD, on September 7. Reuters quoted Jean-Paul Lam, an associate professor at the Canadian University of Waterloo, as stating: “Bitcoin is not an easy technology to adopt … especially for old people looking to receive remittances. It will face a lot of obstacles in getting people to adopt it.” However, Lam conceded that other nations are likely casting an eye at events in the Central American nation, calling Bukele’s BTC plans a “little lab experiment that other countries are watching.”

​​Ripple Goes Big On NFTs, Ethereum's Upgrade, Algorand's Machine, Multi-Crypto ETF + More News NFTs news Ripple has launched their USD 250m creator fund, which they say fosters innovation in tokenization, with a focus on non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The fund aims to provide targeted support for creators, brands, and marketplaces to explore new use cases for NFTs on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), the team said. Blockchain news Ethereum (ETH) upgrade Altair is scheduled to take place at epoch 74240, or roughly October 27, according to Ethereum Foundation researcher Danny Ryan. In the upgrade, EIP-2982 introduces “punitive parameters” to ensure that the proof-of-stake protocol is economically secure, where “inactivity leak” and “slashing” are two proposed penalties. Algorand (ALGO) has announced the availability of the Algorand Virtual Machine (AVM), which provides tools for developers and organizations looking to build applications on the network. They added that this upgrade includes “powerful features” that new developers “wouldn’t expect.” Investments news Evolve Funds Group Inc. said it has launched "Canada's first multi-cryptocurrency ETF." The Evolve Cryptocurrencies ETF (ETC) has closed its initial offering of units begins trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange today under the ticker symbols: ETC (CAD Unhedged Units) and ETC.U (USD Unhedged Units), the company said, adding that ETC intends to initially invest in Bitcoin ETF (EBIT) and Ether ETF (ETHR). BlockFi has announced it will increase its interest rates for stablecoins in their BlockFi Interest Accounts starting October 1, while cryptocurrency rates will stay the same. For accounts with less than 40,000 coins, the rates will go from 8% to 8.25%, while for those with more, they will increase from 5% to 7%. Banking giant Morgan Stanley bought over 58,000 shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust on July 31, according to a recent filing. They cost USD 2.4m at the time, with a reported value of just above USD 2m in the filing. Mining news Crypto mining company Compute North has entered into an agreement with clean energy tax equity fund PowerFund One, to begin delivering more than USD 100m of green energy and tax credits to mining operations seeking to invest in and migrate to socially responsible energy sources. The companies will offer their mining customers the opportunity to invest in Tax Equity which provides benefits structured to reduce tax obligations and give investors the ability to own and operate their rigs on dedicated clean energy sites.

​​Regulator is Like a ‘Bulldozer’ but Crypto is ‘Resistant to State Control’ The regulatory battles against the crypto industry continue, with new ones instigated daily it seems – as, in the US, the latest to find itself as the mark is crypto exchange Kraken. Yet, while some warn of bulldozing power of regulations, others argue that crypto in its essence is unstoppable. Yesterday, the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued “an order filing and settling charges against respondent Payward Ventures, Inc. d/b/a Kraken … for illegally offering margined retail commodity transactions in digital assets,” including bitcoin (BTC), and failing to register as a futures commission merchant. The company must pay a USD 1.25m civil monetary penalty. Meanwhile, per Acting Director of Enforcement Vincent McGonagle, this is part of the regulator’s “broader effort to protect US customers,” stating that margined, leveraged, or financed digital asset trading offered to retail US customers “must occur on properly registered and regulated exchanges in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.” Meanwhile, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler said that US cryptocurrency markets and regulated platforms will “not end well” if they stay outside regulators' purview, Bloomberg reported. “There are trading venues and lending venues where they coalesce around these, and they have not just dozens but hundreds and sometimes thousands of tokens on them,” he reiterated on Monday during the Code Conference in California. And there are more reports that crypto will not see an ally during the President Joe Biden’s administration. The White House nominated Saule Omarova to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, reported Bloomberg, noting that Omarova’s “critiques of digital tokens fit right in with statements that have recently emerged from government watchdogs” – such as that of Gensler. “It took several years for regulators to wake up, but it’s like a bulldozer,” Jim Angel, an associate professor specializing in market structure at Georgetown University is quoted as saying. “It’s slow, it’s steady and it will grind down anything in its path.” Yet, some, like Karen Shaw Petrou, a managing partner at research firm Federal Financial Analytics, suggest that it may be too late for market participants to find common ground with regulators, stating that crypto “conveniently believed that spouting often dubious inclusion and innovation propositions would forestall regulation,” and that the sector “was extraordinarily intoxicated with the cool factor.” Tesla chief Elon Musk shared his own opinion, during the Code Conference, on the US regulating crypto, opining that – it shouldn’t. On the question of whether the US government should be involved in regulating the space, he replied: “I would say, ‘Do nothing’.”

​​Facebook Launches USD 50M Investment In Metaverse Research, Partnerships Facebook has unveiled a two-year USD 50m investment in global research and program partners to ensure a "responsible development" of the metaverse. The development is part of the social media giant’s strategy to become “a metaverse company,” functioning in an “embodied internet” that blends real and virtual worlds to an unprecedented extent. Earlier this year, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg went public with his metaverse-related ambitions, claiming that “a good vision for the metaverse is not one that a specific company builds,” but rather one that has a “sense of interoperability and portability.” The development could potentially have a major impact on the firm’s Diem stablecoin plans. “Just like the internet, the metaverse exists whether Facebook is there or not," the company said. It added that many of these products will not be fully realized for another 10-15 years, “While that’s frustrating for those of us eager to dive right in, it gives us time to ask the difficult questions about how they should be built,” they said. Facebook stated that its investment will allow the firm to collaborate with experts across the board to analyze the underlying issues and opportunities within the metaverse, such as building the necessary interoperability across services, and various challenges related to human rights, civil rights communities, and inclusiveness. “Through this fund, we’ll collaborate with industry partners, civil rights groups, governments, nonprofits and academic institutions to determine how to build these technologies responsibly,” according to the company. Some of the key areas where the social media giant aims to work with partners include: economic opportunities, privacy, safety and integration, equity and inclusion. In the US, the program’s initial partners include the Organization of American States, while Facebook’s African partners comprise Africa No Filter, Electric South, and Imisi3D. In Europe, the company wants to collaborate with Women In Immersive Tech, while Asian partners include the Seoul National University, the University of Hong Kong, and the National University of Singapore’s Centre for Technology, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence & the Law at the Faculty of Law.

​​Multiple CBDC Platform May Cut Int Payment Costs By Up To Half - BIS The Innovation Hub of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and four central banks have jointly developed a prototype of multiple central bank digital currencies (mCBDCs). According to the Hub, it demonstrates the potential of using digital currencies and distributed ledger technology (DLT) for ensuring "real-time, cheaper and safer cross-border payments and settlements." The mBridge project is a collaboration between the BIS and four Asian central banks: the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Bank of Thailand, the Digital Currency Institute of the People's Bank of China, and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates. “The prototype is part of our efforts to design CBDC technology. The project includes experimenting with use cases and trials, balanced with analysis of governance, policy and legal considerations with a focus on cross-border use,” said Benoît Cœuré, Head of the BIS Innovation Hub. The prototype platform for mCBDC settlements succeeded in completing international transfers and foreign exchange operations in seconds. This is in contrast to several days that are normally required for any transaction to be completed using the existing network that relies on commercial banks. Additionally, "CBDCs can be operated 24/7, eliminating any mismatch of operating hours," they said. A report published by the project participants states that the cost of such operations to users can also be reduced by up to 50%. This said, the study also notes several limitations that could hamper the DLT's further implementation in cross-border payments. “In particular, the reliance on Privacy Groups to preserve privacy across multiple jurisdictions does not allow for fully atomic payment versus payment transactions," according to the report. Also, "since there is no single entity or jurisdiction that can view the balance of all pending foreign exchange transactions; an optimal liquidity savings mechanism has yet to be found,” they said. In addition to this, the scalability and performance of DLT in carrying out large transaction volumes requires to be further assessed if more jurisdictions or currencies are to be added to the platform. In-depth risk governance procedures also need to be put in place, the study said. Despite these limitations to the technology’s global roll-out, the project participants say they will “continue to push the capabilities of DLT and CBDC in areas where results are not yet sufficiently advanced to support real-world critical infrastructure requirements." This will involve trials with market participants to "further iterate and improve on the prototype and its functionalities.” Meanwhile, a 2021 survey by the BIS showed that 86% of the polled central banks were actively researching the potential of CBDCs. Based in Basel, Switzerland, the BIS says it is jointly owned by the world’s 62 central banks, representing countries that together represent some 95% of the global gross domestic product (GDP).

​​Bitcoin Miners Secure More Nuclear Deals Amid Climate Concerns Bitcoin (BTC) miners keep on finding ways to use the excess power which would otherwise go wasted – this time shaking hands with operators of struggling, carbon-free nuclear plants. This may be a perfect match as the nuclear power plants need more customers amid rising competition that has cheaper power sources, while Bitcoin miners need exactly what they have to offer - stable and carbon-free power, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing “executives and analysts.” Also, this may be a particularly well-suited solution for the miners, as they continue to face backlash over their operations’ power consumption and environmental impact. According to the report, in Ohio, starting in December, Standard Power mining center will get power from nuclear generator Energy Harbor Corp. Furthermore, Talen Energy Corp. entered into a joint venture with Bitcoin-mining company TeraWulf Inc. They started land development next to its nuclear plant in Pennsylvania for a mining facility which is expected to be the size of four football fields. New nuclear projects are reportedly eyeing cryptocurrency miners as well. As reported, in July, Oklo, a California-based company developing clean energy plants, announced a 20-year commercial partnership with Compass Mining, a US-based online marketplace for Bitcoin mining hardware and hosting, to introduce advanced nuclear fission to supplement fossil fuels and "promote diversity and sustainability in the energy sources used by miners." This deal doesn’t include a set price for power, but Whit Gibbs, chief executive of Compass, told the WSJ that he is confident that the companies will agree on a price that allows for profitable cryptocurrency mining. Jacob DeWitte, co-founder and chief executive at Oklo, said he had received inquiries from other interested Bitcoin miners, but federal approval is still needed, he added, and this isn’t likely to happen until 2023-2025. Still, Bill Dugan, a director at energy advisory firm Customized Energy Solutions, opined that, despite more “nuclear-bitcoin tie-ups” being expected, it’s unlikely that they’ll be large enough or happen fast enough to save many nuclear plants. Meanwhile, Mayor Francis Suarez is presenting Miami as a destination for crypto miners, exchanges and investment firms, mentioning the nuclear-power plant which is owned by Florida Power & Light. There have been talks with this company’s officials which have included the possibility of mining facilities being located near the nuclear plant, and finding cheap land to build warehouses for mining gear, said Suarez.

​​Dominated by Institutions, Bitcoin Mining is also Possible from Home Cryptocurrency mining is big business. In the month of April alone, when bitcoin (BTC) hit its all-time high of around USD 65,000, BTC miners generated almost USD 3bn in revenue, resulting from sales of the coins they had obtained via either block rewards or transaction fees. Such figures would lead most people to assume that Bitcoin mining is now largely the preserve of big organizations, commercial entities with the resources to invest in the construction of large plants capable of commanding a significant slice of Bitcoin’s massive hashrate, or the computational power. However, opinion on this question is very much mixed, with at least one miner -- known on Twitter as burn the bridge (econoalchemist) -- recently affirming that it is possible for individuals to profitably mine BTC from the comfort of their own homes. Do-it-yourself home Bitcoin mining Posting in mid-July, US-based Bitcoin community member econoalchemist shared data revealing that it is actually possible to make money by mining Bitcoin at home, at least if you lived in the United States and in an area of the country with relatively low electricity costs. In particular, he suggested that it’s more cost-effective mining bitcoin yourself than directly purchasing BTC with USD. Counter-arguments Not everyone agrees that mining Bitcoin at home is the best strategy for individuals. “Bitcoin mining is increasingly out of reach for most home-based operations. Given the scarcity and buying power required to obtain new equipment, energy, and infrastructure, home miners will largely need to rely on used equipment and colocation facilities,” said Zach Bradford, the CEO and President of CleanSpark, a Nevada-based energy technology and clean Bitcoin mining company. Bradford also noted that as mining difficulty rates increase and competition over block rewards ramp up, home-based miners will find it increasingly difficult to make a profit. He admitted that in some cases certain miners may be able to perform reasonably well, but most will on average be priced out of the mining sector. “I could imagine a scenario where someone is able to use stranded or excess renewable energy to increase access and bring down the cost of energy but competitive mining machines would still be too expensive for most home-based operations,” he told "Cryptonews com." These misgivings aside, not everyone operating within the mining industry holds that Bitcoin mining is out of reach of the home-based individual. For BitRiver CEO and founder Igor Runets, individuals increase the chances of making mining profitable for themselves by joining a pool. “Although customers of our colocation services are mainly institutional mining businesses, some of our customers are actually pools of individuals who combine their resources to get bulk pricing from both the machine sellers and the datacenter that provides hosting for those machines. Somebody with modest means could also join such pools to get the most out of their resources,” he told "Cryptonews com" Opinions are also mixed on whether home-based mining has been declining in recent years, or whether it’s making at least a modest resurgence, as knowledge of its feasibility spreads. “It has been declining in tandem with the growth of large, well-funded companies across the world that are now mining ... Mining equipment is so specialized now that it is often out of reach for DIYers and at-home miners,” said Bradford. On the other hand, econoalchemist suggested that based on what he himself has witnessed since the end of 2020, mining from home has actually increased.

​​Institutions Turning from Bitcoin to Ethereum Futures, JPMorgan Claims Large investors and financial institutions are turning away from bitcoin (BTC) futures and instead focusing their attention on the ethereum (ETH) market, a new note from analysts at investment bank JPMorgan claims. According to the note, ETH futures are currently drawing more interest, as expectations for the number one cryptocurrency – BTC – have softened, Insider reported. As evidence of the softening institutional demand for bitcoin, the analysts pointed to bitcoin futures prices on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) in September, which it said had traded below the spot prices for bitcoin. "This is a setback for bitcoin and a reflection of weak demand by institutional investors that tend to use regulated CME futures contracts to gain exposure to bitcoin," the analysts wrote. Looking at real-world price data for September, however, it is difficult to find any backing for the analyst’s claim that CME’s bitcoin futures have traded at a discount compared to the spot market. On the contrary, a comparison of the price charts from CME’s bitcoin futures and the spot bitcoin market on crypto exchange Coinbase shows that the futures contracts have often traded at a premium, particularly when prices are rising such as earlier this week. Comparison between the bitcoin spot price on Coinbase (blue line) and the bitcoin futures price on CME (orange line) in September. Red areas indicate weekends, when CME is closed for trading. Source: TradingView Similarly, the market for ethereum futures has also traded at a premium to the spot market on Coinbase during periods of rising prices in September. This is in line with normal expectations for futures contracts, which are often a preferred way for financial institutions to get exposure to underlying assets, including BTC and ETH. Comparison between the ethereum spot price on Coinbase (blue line) and the ethereum futures price on CME (orange line) in September. Red areas indicate weekends, when CME is closed for trading. Source: TradingView At 15:04 UTC, BTC was trading at USD 42,340, having dropped by almost 4% in a day and 11% in a week. At the same time, ETH was changing hands at USD 2,901, after it dropped 7% in 24 hours and 19% in 7 days. Meanwhile, JPMorgan was also in the news for reasons unrelated to cryptocurrency this week, although still of interest to traders. According to Reuters, the investment bank has agreed to pay USD 15.7m in cash to settle a class action lawsuit by investors who have accused it of intentionally manipulating the US Treasury futures and options prices by using a technique known as “spoofing.” In trading, spoofing involves placing orders only to cancel them shortly after, thereby creating the illusion of higher demand or supply of an asset. The now-settled lawsuit came after what was described as a lengthy US government investigation into illegal trading in both US Treasury and precious metals markets. JPMorgan did not admit to any wrongdoing in the settlement, which needs to be approved by a federal judge in Manhattan before being considered final, the report said.

​​US Utility Mines Bitcoin To Balance Electricity Supply US electric power utility Ameren Missouri says it uses Bitcoin (BTC) mining as an efficient measure to balance electricity supply, contrasting with how mining is often perceived by various critics across the world. The company’s executives say they consider their crypto-focused initiative as principally research and development, hoping to match electricity demand and supply as more renewable energy continues to come online. An increased use of BTC mining by utilities for grid balancing could help mend Bitcoin’s reputation as a fossil fuel-hungry asset that boosts the world’s carbon footprint, a factor that triggered the crypto’s selloffs earlier this year. Warren Wood, Vice president of regulatory and legislative affairs at Ameren Missouri, told E&E News that the process could be compared to using cruise control on the highway versus driving in dense city traffic. “We have pretty dramatic changes in load minute by minute, second by second at times,” Wood said. “We need something that’s really got quick, ramping up and down capability to be a really effective tool for grid balancing.” Ameren Missouri started to mine crypto last April. When the state’s demand for energy is low and electricity is relatively inexpensive, computers that sit inside a metal container at the company’s Portage Des Sioux coal-fired plant mine Bitcoin. With some 1.2m customers, the company is the state’s largest utility. Ameren initially aimed to include USD 8,000 in electricity costs for 309,000 kilowatt-hours of energy usage related to BTC mining into its fuel costs recovery formula. However, it withdrew its request after Missouri’s consumer advocate questioned the plan. “If Ameren Missouri wants to enter into speculative commodities, like virtual currencies, then it should do so as a non-regulated service where ratepayers are unexposed to the economics of them,” said Geoff Marke, Chief economist for the Missouri Office of the Public Counsel, adding that the endeavor was “beyond the scope of intended electric utility regulation”. Meanwhile, the utility says its mining operations at the Sioux plant currently consume just 0.5 MW, and can ramp up within a minute and back down within 20 seconds depending on the existing grid conditions. “We’re talking a minute or less to be on or off,” Wood said. “You really have a good mechanism for trying to seek that better balance of the grid between your generation resources and load.”

​​OpenSea To Expand Beyond Ethereum, Eyes 'Broadening' of Marketplace – CEO The popular non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea will continue its work to expand onto other blockchains beyond Ethereum (ETH), while also broadening its offering when it comes to NFT categories that can be traded, the platform’s CEO and co-founder Devin Finzer said. Speaking at crypto research firm Messari’s Mainnet 2021 event in New York City on Monday, the CEO stated that expansion to other blockchains is a priority for the NFT marketplace going forward. The existing integrations with Polygon (MATIC) and Klaytn (KLAY), Finzer said, are a step on the way to a multi-chain future, but even more alternatives will likely be available for NFT collectors going forward. Asked by Messari CEO Ryan Selkis for more details as to what OpenSea will look like in ten years, Finzer said that he believes “there will be a broad expansion” in terms of both the number of blockchains that are supported, and in terms of the types of NFTs that can be bought and sold on the marketplace. The metaverse, gaming, and virtual worlds are all interesting directions within the NFT space that are likely to continue to grow, Finzer explained, while adding that although OpenSea “will be the broadest and best marketplace,” there will be other marketplaces as well. Further in the talk, the CEO, who founded OpenSea in late 2017 and built it through the entire 2018 bear market, opened up about what he sees as the necessary ingredient in order to succeed with a new idea in crypto. “We relied on conviction and worked on it for a long time,” Finzer said, adding that an important thing in order to succeed in a frontier technology like crypto is to “just find a problem that you want to work on for a really, really long time.” For OpenSea, Finzer said the conviction came from the realization that NFTs allowed people “to belong to a tribe,” which is something a lot of people like. “There weren’t a lot of users,” the CEO said about the early days of the platform, but he added that the team still maintained enough conviction to make it through the bear market. Lastly, Finzer also admitted that OpenSea has recently “gone through a lot of growing pains,” which has caused some difficulties for users. However, the CEO promised that these issues are being addressed - naming for instance the new mobile app that initially couldn’t trade NFTs as an example of a product that will be upgraded to offer the full NFT trading functionality shortly. This platform found itself in quite a controversy last week when it had been accused of insider trading, which the platform subsequently confirmed. They then implemented several policies that forbid its team members from trading collections that are featured or promoted by the company, among other restrictions.

​​Users to Begin Testing Robinhood Crypto Wallets Next Month US-based major financial services company Robinhood confirmed that crypto wallets are coming to the platform, allowing their users to move crypto in and out of the app. They shared in today’s announcement that “starting next month, the first customers will begin testing crypto wallets on Robinhood.” The next step is to observe the experience and feedback of those testing the new service, and share it with the rest of the community, after which they “will continue to roll out access to more and more customers through our waitlist.” Interested users can already join the waitlist. This wallet will allow users to move their crypto in and out of the app, send crypto to other wallet addresses, as well as receive supported cryptocurrencies. “This means you can consolidate your coins into one account so it’s easier to track your portfolio, move supported coins into your Robinhood account so you can trade those coins commission-free, and more,” said the post. The wallets are coming with security features such as identity verification, multi-factor authentication, as well as email and phone verification. And while the company recently announced the launch of crypto recurring investments, they’ve made it available to all users starting today. This allows users to buy chosen coins automatically, commission-free, “and with as little as USD 1 on a schedule of your choice,” said the announcement.

​​US Watchdogs Send More Warning Signs to Altcoins & DeFi, But Coinbase Has a Plan Crypto regulation could be set to come to a head in the United States: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler said his agency had “robust authorities” to regulate the crypto sector “broadly,” adding that the SEC is “going to use them.” At the same time, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu compared current developments in the crypto industry with "the fool’s gold rush" in 2008. Meanwhile, America’s biggest crypto exchange is hoping to steal a march on regulators – by issuing its own proposals for policing the sector. In a video interview with the Washington Post, Gensler likened stablecoins to gambling tokens, stating that “Stablecoins are acting almost like poker chips at the casino gaming tables.” He stated that without more regulation “people” would “get hurt.” The ears of altcoin fans, in particular, may have pricked up when Gensler stated that he doesn't think that "there's a long-term viability for five or six thousand private forms of money. History tells us otherwise. Gensler referred to American experiments with private money in the so-called “wildcat banking era” (also known as the “free banking era”) in the period 1836 to 1865. He remarked that "This all had a lot of cost, a lot of problems." In a Wall Street Journal article, the SEC chief was quoted as stating that he “doesn’t see much long-term viability for cryptocurrencies.” However, Gensler conceded in the Washington Post interview that distributed ledger technology had been a “catalyst for change” in the wider financial sector and could lead to “enhanced payment systems” and mainstream “decentralized lending.” Meanwhile, in a speech earlier this week, the Acting Comptroller of the Currency said that "It feels like we may be on the cusp of another financial crises with cryptocurrencies (crypto) and decentralized finance (DeFi)." "The 2008 crisis holds lessons that can help industry and regulators chart a better path and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past," he said, admitting that "crypto/DeFi is able to pose a threat to the status quo because many people feel ignored, taken for granted, or exploited by banks." Hsu suggested that "financial innovation should be anchored in purpose," adding that "it is difficult to see how the current set of activities" in "crypto/DeFi" is increasing financial inclusion. Meanwhile, the Acting Comptroller of the Currency also mentioned Bitcoin (BTC), saying that "The origin story of bitcoin, captured in the beautifully written eight-page paper by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto, talks about protecting buyers and sellers from fraud, making possible “small casual transactions,” and building a system that allows willing parties to transact “without the need for a trusted third party.” And while regulators are sending their own signs, America’s only stock market-listed crypto exchange, Coinbase, is set to preempt regulators by launching its own regulatory proposals “at the end of this month or early next month.” Speaking to Tech Crunch, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated that regulators had asked to see a “draft or proposal … about how crypto could be regulated federally.” But Armstrong said that regulators needed to show a “willingness to engage with private enterprise” if they hoped to ensure a mutually beneficial solution.