Day: January 21, 2021

What Is the ‘Grayscale Chainlink Trust’?

by Decrypt

In brief

  • Something called the “Grayscale Chainlink Trust (LINK)” was incorporated last month in Delaware.

  • Some suspect that it’s a new trust from Grayscale, the digital asset manager that’s responsible for over $27 billion in crypto.

  • Here’s what we know so far.

A mysterious filing for a Delaware-based corporate entity has raised suspicions that crypto investment manager Grayscale may be dipping a toe in LINK, the token from decentralized computing network Chainlink.

Something called the “Grayscale Chainlink Trust (LINK)” was incorporated last month in Delaware, according to the state’s Division of Corporations. And while the name definitely resembles those of Grayscale’s other big trusts as registered with the Division of Corporations (Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (BTC), Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETH), etc.) there’s no guarantee that it’s the same Grayscale behind it, or if it’s even connected to a company named Grayscale at all.

A quick search for “Grayscale” on Division of Corporations’ website reveals several other similar entries, including a Grayscale Decentraland Trust (MANA), which nods to the metaverse platform Decentraland and its token, as well as a Grayscale Basic Attention Token Trust (BAT), which may or may not be connected to the Brave Browser’s token of the same name.

Grayscale was not immediately available for comment. And a representative for Chainlink, the company, declined to comment.

Grayscale manages over $27 billion in assets, much of which is in its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust—an investment vehicle that roughly tracks the price of Bitcoin. The company offers eight other trusts, seven of which are centered around single assets, like Stellar, Ethereum, and Litecoin. There’s also a ninth trust, called the Large Cap Trust, which—true to its name—invests in cryptocurrencies with large market capitalizations

Grayscale had a tenth trust dealing in XRP, though it’s moved to ditch the asset in the wake of the SEC’s lawsuit against XRP issuer Ripple Labs.

The company has made headlines over the past few months as its stores have increased. It began 2020 with just $2 billion under management, and has seen exponential growth over the past few months.

Chainlink is a decentralized oracle provider, which makes off-chain data usable on the blockchain; if Grayscale has actually incorporated a Chainlink trust, it could end up boosting the LINK token, which is now the ninth largest cryptocurrency by market cap (it recently closed in on a new all-time high).

For now, though, there’s no way to know. But Link Marines can dream, can’t they?

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.

Source

Tagged : / / / /

Brazil’s Biggest Bitcoin Exchange Expanding to Other Countries

by Decrypt

In brief

  • Mercadobitcoin is the biggest exchange in Latin America, but operates almost exclusively in Brazil.

  • It wants to be a top-5 cryptocurrency exchange globally.

  • It’s looking to expand to Chile, Mexico, and Argentina, among other countries.

Brazil’s most popular crypto exchange is about to expand throughout Latin America.

Founded in 2013, Mercadobitcoin is one of the oldest and best-known cryptocurrency exchanges in Brazil. It boasts more than 2 million customers and has moved over $3.7 billion in volume since its creation.

These numbers make Mercadobitcoin the largest exchange in Latin America, despite the fact that it operates almost exclusively in Brazil. 

Now, after a successful investment round that generated more than $37 million (200 Million BRL) from notable venture capitalists such as Parallax Ventures, Evora Fund, HS Investimentos FIP, Banco Plural, and Gear Ventures, the company hopes to get out of its cozy Brazilian environment and explore new horizons.

And it is aiming high. According to statements by Reinaldo Rabelo, CEO of Mercadobitcoin, the exchange hopes to compete with industry heavyweights: “We want to develop the crypto ecosystem in Brazil and create a market as developed as that of the United States. To do this, we want to be one of the five largest digital exchanges in the world.”

He added that the exchange is looking “at other markets, like Chile, Mexico, and Argentina, which have a regulatory culture closer to [Brazil’s].”

Mercadobitcoin is a pioneer in the field of Brazilian cryptocurrency trading. Unlike several other regional competitors, it has been able to survive the unfriendly posture of some regulators.

Currently, however, the country has a better opinion about crypto than it had in previous years. For example, the country’s central bank is considering issuing a CBDC, and even though there are still some legal voids in Brazil’s regulatory framework, the system is now more permissive regarding crypto trading.

This has served as a springboard for several crypto businesses to operate. Since 2018, several platforms have spread across the country, some even allowing Brazilians to use credit cards funded directly by the sale of their Bitcoins.

Some examples include Zro Bank, Bancryp, Alter, and Uzzo. While they don’t move as much volume as Mercadobitcoin, they are evidence that Brazil’s crypto ecosystem is offering growth opportunities for local entrepreneurs.

In a press release today, the company also teased two new products: Bitrust, a custody service aimed at institutional clients, and Meubank, a digital wallet regulated by the Central Bank of Brazil.

Source

Tagged : / / /

A crypto moment to make us think Compound’s @rleshner retweets FEW dude, Metacartel man/LAO mentor Alex’s new thing. What’s it take for DeFi leaders to see how just how much $FEW experimenter-takers hurt ETH DeFi’s image? Has it been swept under the rug by DeFi’s top brass?

by Brad Laurie
A #crypto moment to make us think

Compound’s @rleshner retweets FEW dude, Metacartel man/LAO mentor Alex’s new thing.

What’s it take for #DeFi leaders to see how just how much $FEW experimenter-takers hurt #ETH #DeFi’s image? Has it been swept under the rug by DeFi’s top brass? https://t.co/9mMdyLA18y

Source

Tagged : / /

How Traders Are Gaining by Holding Crypto: Staking Tron (TRX) and Cardano (ADA)

by Dailyhodl

If like many people you are interested in the cryptocurrency market but the frequent price fluctuations seem too risky, crypto staking is an investing strategy that you may want to consider. Staking actually allows you to grow your crypto investment over time, simply by holding the supported cryptoasset – no matter if the market goes up or down.

What is crypto staking?

To put it simply, think of staking as “cryptocurrency mining” without the need for any hardware; or in more traditional terms, a lot like depositing money in a bonus interest savings account. Staking acts as a support to the operation and security of the blockchain network to which the token belongs, while offering a reward for your investment. This reward is in the form of more of that cryptoasset, paid automatically and monthly according to the percentage yield.

Staking Cardano

Cardano, also known as ADA, is a fully open-source, decentralized public blockchain and cryptocurrency project. In July 2020, Cardano’s Shelley upgrade was implemented to make the cryptoasset’s protocol completely autonomous by decentralizing its internal operational activities. More significantly, the most anticipated feature of this update was the introduction of staking for ADA.

Fundamentally, Cardano works like any other cryptocurrency staking system. By holding and staking its tokens, you assist the network with validating blocks on the protocol and receive a return on your investment. However, Cardano does not permit solo staking – you can either opt to run a staking pool that other participants can join, or delegate your holdings to someone else’s pool. This is to ensure that there are enough node operators within the network.

So, how can an individual crypto investor stake Cardano without all the hassle? Through a reliable and regulated platform. eToro is one of the first regulated platforms to offer a staking service for Cardano (ADA).

eToro’s staking service is a process that allows you to earn staking rewards on Cardano every month, automatically and with absolutely no action required on your part. The staked cryptoassets remain yours and are held in your investment portfolio. eToro executes the entire staking procedure for you, protecting your assets against exposure to any additional risks and handling all the necessary procedures behind the scenes. Furthermore, eToro’s staking rewards are among the most generous in the market, offering from 75% and up to 90% of the staking yield, with complete transparency regarding the way your monthly rewards are calculated.

Staking TRON

In addition to Cardano, eToro also offers staking for TRON (TRX). Justin Son, TRON’s founder, said,

“We are thrilled that eToro has chosen TRON as one of the first assets to be offered on their new staking service. Services such as eToro’s staking service takes the complexity and confusion out of the staking process, and makes it accessible to everyone.”

Again, the process for earning your monthly staking rewards for TRON is as easy as just holding your coins in your eToro portfolio.

eToro, a multi-asset trading platform with over 10 million registered users, is working on offering future staking rewards for other cryptoassets soon, including NEO, Tezos, EOS and ETH 2.0. You can check out eToro’s entire offering of seamless crypto services. Sign up and open an eToro account for free here.

For more information about staking, click here.

This post originally appeared on the eToro blog.

Cryptoasset investing is unregulated in most EU countries and the UK. No consumer protection. Your capital is at risk.

This is a marketing communication and should not be taken as investment advice, personal recommendation, or an offer of, or solicitation to buy or sell, any financial instruments. This material has been prepared without having regard to any particular investment objectives or financial situation, and has not been prepared in accordance with the legal and regulatory requirements to promote independent research. Any references to past performance of a financial instrument, index or a packaged investment product are not, and should not be taken as a reliable indicator of future results.

All contents within this report are for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. eToro makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared utilizing publicly-available information.

Cryptoassets are volatile instruments which can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading cryptoassets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework. Your capital is at risk.

This content is sponsored and should be regarded as promotional material. Opinions and statements expressed herein are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of The Daily Hodl. The Daily Hodl is not a subsidiary of or owned by any ICOs, blockchain startups or companies that advertise on our platform. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in any ICOs, blockchain startups or cryptocurrencies. Please be advised that your investments are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility.

Follow Us on Twitter Facebook Telegram

 

Featured Image: Shutterstock/GreenBelka

Source

Tagged : / /
Bitcoin (BTC) $ 26,652.14 1.65%
Ethereum (ETH) $ 1,594.56 1.83%
Litecoin (LTC) $ 64.98 0.38%
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 208.93 2.46%