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Bitcoin $30K Resilience Amid Crypto Meltdown and Stablecoin Crash Shows its Brilliant Architecture – PayBito CEO

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

Despite Bitcoin’s slashed valuation in the past few months, the leading cryptocurrency has steadily held the $30,000 level because of its unique decentralized proof-of-work (PoW) mechanism, according to Raj Chowdhury, the CEO of crypto trading platform PayBito.

Chowdhury pointed out that:

“Despite its apparent flaws, Bitcoin’s architecture makes it a modern-day marvel immune to global financial policies. The benefits far outweigh the cons, evident from its increasing acceptance across multiple nations and global organizations.”

Bitcoin has been hovering around the psychological level of $30K for a couple of months in the face of the algorithmic UST stablecoin crash, which saw nearly $60 billion wiped off the crypto market.

Moreover, the crypto meltdown was sparked by the recent interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve (Fed), which triggered a risk-off approach.

Nevertheless, BTC remains steadfast around the $30K zone, given that its price was at $30,428 during intraday trading, according to CoinMarketCap.

Chowdhury believes that Bitcoin’s volatility should be addressed, but the bigger picture of financial inclusion remains intact.

He noted:

“The age of digital assets has already arrived. There are some challenges that need resolution, such as Bitcoin’s volatility and energy-intensive mechanism. But, the scope of process optimization through the elimination of intermediaries, promoting financial inclusion across regions with poor banking infrastructure, enhanced security and transparency will eventually lead to its success as an effective alternative of the USD hegemony.”

Market insight provider On-Chain College recently stated that the accumulation phase in the Bitcoin market might be back as large entities were on a buying spree. Similar sentiments were echoed by CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju.

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Abu Dhabi Women Set to Receive Free Crypto Domains to Expand Their Web3 Knowledge

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

To give women residing in Abu Dhabi the opportunity to expand their knowledge base and ultimately explore the Web3 world, Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) and Access Abu Dhabi have teamed up with NFT domain name provider Unstoppable Domains.

Women of Web3, a powerhouse group of disruptive female US tech entrepreneurs, made the revelation during a visit to Abu Dhabi.

Therefore, women residing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital will have the chance to explore the Web3 space through free crypto domains. Moreover, the initiative aims to bridge the gender gap because approximately 5% to 7% of all crypto users are women.

Abdulla Abdul Aziz Al Shamsi, the acting director general of ADIO, welcomed the move and said:

“Abu Dhabi is ensuring the future of Web3 is built around a powerful infrastructure that appeals to all members of the community. By supporting initiatives that invite and uplift women, we can champion diversity early in the Web3 era.”

By enhancing women’s knowledge base, Al Shamsi believes “the partnership with Unstoppable Domains to provide free crypto domains to all women in Abu Dhabi embodies the emirate’s promise of inclusion, while creating opportunities for private sector participation in a fast-growing space.”

As the UAE gears to become a blockchain/crypto hub, Abu Dhabi intends to have a piece of the cake by propelling Web3 opportunities.

Sandy Carter, the SVP of Unstoppable Domains and Founder of Unstoppable Women of Web3, noted:

“It’s great to see Abu Dhabi leading the mission to bring Web3 opportunities to women in the Middle East. It has been an honour to be a part of the ‘Women of Web3’ delegation.”

She added:

“Providing free crypto, NFT and blockchain domains to all women in Abu Dhabi is a power move that ensures women will be included in increasing numbers within the fabric of the Web3 movement for generations to come.”

Raj Chowdhury, the CEO of blockchain development company HashCash Consultants, had previously acknowledged that a paradigm shift was being witnessed in the Middle East, especially the UAE, as the region’s interests were changing from oil to crypto and metaverse, among other blockchain innovations. Drafting women along this path of innovation is a step in the right direction

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Tagged : Abu Dhabi / Crypto Adoption / Unstoppable Domains / Women in Blockchain / WOMEN OF WEB3

Stablecoins to be Issued by Licensed Banks and Trust Companies in New Japanese Law

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

In a move to protect investors, Japan’s parliament has passed a bill classifying stablecoins as digital money that must be connected to the nation’s currency, yen, or another legal tender.

The legal framework, which is expected to be rolled out in a year, also stipulates that holders have the right to redeem stablecoins at face value. Per the announcement:

“The legal definition effectively means stablecoins can only be issued by licensed banks, registered money transfer agents and trust companies. The legislation doesn’t address existing asset-backed stablecoins from overseas issuers like Tether or their algorithmic counterparts.”

It seems it’s a race against time for global governments to put up guardrails in the stablecoin arena following the shocking collapse of TerraUSD (UST), which triggered the loss of approximately $60 billion.

Things started going haywire after the algorithmic UST stablecoin on the Terra network experienced a de-pegging from its US Dollar benchmark.

Some experts like Ransu Salovaara, the CEO of DeFi platform Likvidi, stated that the algorithmic nature of UST could have triggered the crash.

This explains why governments are looking at cracking the whip in the stablecoin space because tokens in this sector have a market value of around $161 billion, according to CoinGecko.

Tether (USDT) tops the stablecoin list, followed by Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) and Binance USD (BUSD).

Is it the end of the algorithmic stablecoin era?

Speaking to CNBC during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Reeve Collins noted that it was both unfortunate and not a surprise that money was lost through the algorithmic UST stablecoin because smart people were trying to peg it to the dollar.

The Tether co-founder added:

“A lot of people pulled out their money in the last few months because they realized that it wasn’t sustainable. So that crash kind of had a cascade effect. And it will probably be the end of most algorithmic stablecoins.”

With algorithmic-based stablecoins being at the experimental stage, volatility becomes inevitable.

Anshul Dhir, the co-founder, and COO of EasyFi Network pointed out:

“Experimental algorithmic stable coins are volatile, and it is believed that it will take some time to find a good algorithmic stable coin. Over a period of time, such programmable money should be possible, which ultimately is the end goal of decentralized finance.”

Therefore, time will tell how things turn out for algorithmic stablecoins moving forward.

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Tagged : ALGORITHMIC STABLECOINS / DIGITAL ASSETS / Digital Money / Japan / Law / Regulation / Stablecoin / Terrausd / Ust

Binance to Sponsor The Weekend’s Upcoming Music Tour

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

Binance cryptocurrency exchange, the world’s largest crypto exchange platform by trading volume has announced it will be the major sponsor of Canadian hip-hop singer, The Weeknd’s “After Hours Til Dawn” tour.

As announced by the trading platform, this sponsorship will be the first of its kind deal and it also marks the first global concert tour to integrate Web 3.0 technology for an enhanced fan experience.

Binance exchange has made a reasonable attempt over the past few years to plug itself between culture and sports, and it has made its presence known with sponsorships and investments. Through the partnership with The Weeknd, the trading platform said it “will collaborate with HXOUSE, a think-center and community incubator for creative entrepreneurs, to release an exclusive NFT collection for The Weeknd’s tour, along with co-branded tour merchandise.”

Binance exchange also said it will donate $2 million to support the XO Humanitarian Fund, the initiative founded by The Weeknd to support residents living in the most hunger-prone areas of the world.

The fund is administered by the World Food Programme (WFP), and as further support, Binance exchange and The Weeknd will be creating “a specially designed NFT collection and five percent of its sales will be donated to the XO Humanitarian Fund.”

Binance has been named as a major sponsor of key events in the past few months including the Africa Cup of Nations and its Humanitarian efforts in Ukraine are some of the most robust. The trading platform, while attempting to shift its focus to attaining the right licenses through building functional relationships with regulators, the exchange is also not missing out on the use of good publicity with its numerous partnerships.

In light of these thoughtful partnerships, Binance exchange was also named as one of the sponsors of this year’s Grammy Awards as announced by Blockchain.News, and per the trend formed, more of such news is poised to be unveiled in due course.

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Tagged : Binance / Exchanges / OX HUMANITARIAN FUND / The Weeknd / WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME

BitMEX Lists Luna 2.0, ETH Margin and Settlement Options

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

Cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX announced on Thursday that it has expanded its margin trading services by listing the new Luna 2.0 token (LUNA) on its platform. Terra Luna launched the new cryptocurrency on 28 May.

BitMEX listed Terra 2.0 (LUNA) in a dedicated trading zone and opened trading for LUNAUSD and LUNAUSDT trading pairs at 04:00 UTC on 2 June 2022.

Terra 2.0 holds the maximum leverage of 25x for the users. Users are now able to trade XBT, and USDT margined Terra Luna 2.0 contracts.

LUNAUSD has a fixed Bitcoin multiplier, which lets traders go long or short on the listing without trading LUNA or USD. The LUNAUSDT product is a linear perpetual swap margined in USDT. Margins appear in XBT, and so do the earnings or loss from the trade.

Terra 2.0 is part of the revival plan introduced by Do Kwon, the CEO, and founder of Terra Protocol after the Terra protocol collapsed.

Besides that, BitMEX launched ETH options for margins and settlement for their perpetual and futures contracts, which also apply to the listings above. The service allows users to trade on leverage — margin trading lets users multiply their gains and losses.

BitMEX said that the leverage (the amount that can be borrowed against a user’s crypto collateral) is 25x. A customer’s margin wallet balance determines the amount of funds he or she can borrow, following a fixed rate of 25:1 (25x).

The introduction of ETH margin trading follows the launch of BitMEX Spot, which aligns with BitMEX’s focus on providing new, easy-to-use trading services for both existing and new users.

Founded in 2014, BitMEX is a Seychelles-based cryptocurrency derivatives platform that enables traders to buy and sell futures and perpetual on a wide range of cryptocurrencies.

In 2016, BitMEX launched perpetual leveraged swap contracts on Bitcoin to allow customers to trade Bitcoin futures with up to 100x leverage with no expiry date. As a result, the innovative new crypto derivative trading service helped BitMEX become one of the Bitcoin exchanges with the highest volumes in the world.

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Tagged : Bitmex / ETH MARGIN / Exchanges / LUNA 2.0

Coinbase to Revoke Job Offers Extended to Newly Employed Staff

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

Coinbase Global Inc, the largest trading platform in the United States is going all tough on its no-hiring plans which were announced by Emilie Choi, the firm’s President and COO about 2 weeks ago.

In a new update by L.J Brock, the company’s Chief People Officer, the no-hiring measures will be extended and some of the newly sent offer letters for employment will be revoked.

Brock said the company has had to re-evaluate its position in light of the current economic outlook which is largely unfavorable for business in general. The additional measures according to the exchange will help it curb excessive spending as it fights to come out of this unprecedented economic onslaught in a stronger way.

“We will also rescind a number of outstanding offers for people who have not started yet. This is not a decision we make lightly, but is necessary to ensure we are only growing in the highest-priority areas,” the exchange said.

The Nasdaq-listed company, however, said new hires within the compliant and security team will not be tampered with as it has a high standard to maintain and client’s funds to protect. The company said it is ready to help the affected candidates cushion the impact of the new decision. The support will range from dolling out good severance packages in line with the company’s internal policies.

“We will apply our generous severance philosophy to offset the financial impact of this decision,” Brock said on behalf of the company. “To further support impacted individuals, we are establishing a talent hub to allow them to opt-in to receive additional support services including job placement support, resume review, interview coaching and access to our strong industry connections.”

Cutting expenses is now becoming a major trend amongst exchanges as Gemini also recently announced its plans to lay off as many as 10% of its entire workforce.

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Tagged : Coinbase / EMILIE CHOI / Exchanges / MARKET DOWNTURN

NYAG Letitia James Warns Investors About Crypto Investment Risks

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

The collapse of the Terra protocol and its associated coins, LUNC and UST, as well as rhe ripple effect it had on the market, has pushed the New York Attorney General, Letitia James to issue new guidance on the risks inherent in the crypto industry.

As is customary of the legal luminary, the Attorney General said the risks inherent in the crypto industry played out last month when a number of old and new digital currencies lost the majority of their value.

While this sort of crash is not new in the financial world considering stocks are also plunging based on the impact of the broader macroeconomic events around today. To Letitia James, the plunge into the crypto ecosystem comes with an extra risk when compared to the broader stock that Americans are familiar with.

“Over and over again, investors are losing billions because of risky cryptocurrency investments,” said Attorney General James. “Even well-known virtual currencies from reputable trading platforms can still crash and investors can lose billions in the blink of an eye. Too often, cryptocurrency investments create more pain than gain for investors. I urge New Yorkers to be cautious before putting their hard-earned money in risky cryptocurrency investments that can yield more anxiety than fortune.”

Besides the risks of rug pulls, hacking, and theft amongst others, the Attorney General also highlighted the highly speculative and unpredictable value of cryptocurrencies, the difficulty in cashing out due to liquidity constraints on exchanges, high transaction costs, unstable stablecoins, limited oversight, hidden trading costs and conflicts of interest as some of the major risks associated with trading the digital currencies.

In a bid to protect investors in New York, Letitia James has brought quite a number of enforcement actions against crypto entities over the past few years with Bitfinex amongst the most publicized culprit.

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Tagged : Cryptocurrency / Letitia James / Nyag / Regulation

Gemini Joins the Bandwagon, Lays Off 10% of Workforce

by Blockchain NewsJune 3, 2022

Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by twin brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss has shed off as many as 10% of its entire workers. The news was broken by the twin founders who made public a message that they had shared earlier with the staff of the company.

In the letter, Gemini said the “crypto winter” that is here has necessitated additional cost-cutting measures, one that implies some of its astronauts will have to be deboarded.

“We have asked team leaders to ensure that they are focused only on products that are critical to our mission and assess whether their teams are right-sized for the current, turbulent market conditions that are likely to persist for some time. After much thought and consideration, we have made the difficult but necessary decision to part ways with approximately 10% of our workforce” the shared blog post reads.

In justifying the exchange’s decisions, Gemini has taken a beat despite being on the good side of both history and technological innovation with blockchain and crypto technology. The macroeconomic variables at this time, coupled with Russia and Ukraine’s ongoing war have further dampened hopes that recovery if at all it comes off good is poised to strain the firm if its balance sheet is not eventually trimmed.

Gemini considers laying off its staff as one of the avenues to truly cut costs, but it assured that it will help cushion the financial stress on those impacted. Gemini seems not to be alone in this move as the job security of most workers in other trading platforms is also threatened.

In the same vein, Coinbase Global Inc said it will not just halt the employment of new staff as it revealed about 2 weeks ago, but that it will also revoke some of the offers that have been shared with the newly hired team members, retaining only those whose assigned department is crucial for regulatory compliance and its overall security enhancements.

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Tagged : Coinbase / Gemini / News