Category: Cryptocurrency

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WisdomTree has achieved regulatory clearance from the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) to operate its digital asset business in the state, placing it among a select group of entities approved in one of the United States’ most rigorous crypto regulatory environments.

The Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuer obtained a charter to function as a limited-purpose trust company under the New York Banking Law, as announced in a statement on March 22. This charter paves the way for the introduction of its WisdomTree Prime platform in the state.

With this charter, WisdomTree is authorized to engage in fiduciary custody of digital assets, including providing digital wallet services, facilitating stablecoin trading, and managing stablecoin reserves, subject to DFS oversight.

Jonathan Steinberg, WisdomTree’s Founder and CEO, underscored the significance of the license in enabling the firm to offer innovative products while prioritizing customer safeguarding. He emphasized that the New York State Department of Financial Services holds a leading position as a regulator for businesses involved in digital asset activities. Additionally, he highlighted the importance of the well-established trust company charter program, which existed before the emergence of digital assets. This program is founded on rigorous banking regulations, allowing the company to introduce innovative products while ensuring customer protection remains paramount.

New York boasts one of the most stringent crypto regulatory frameworks in the United States, necessitating registration and licensing for crypto-related entities. Over the past year, the state has taken legal action against several crypto platforms, including Gemini and the now-defunct Genesis crypto lender, for breaching local regulations.

WisdomTree Prime Platform

The regulatory approval also sets the stage for the rollout of the WisdomTree Prime platform, which will offer a suite of products within the WisdomTree Prime ecosystem, including the issuance of WisdomTree Gold and Dollar Tokens.

The mobile platform will provide users access to cryptocurrencies, digital gold, and various digital funds, creating an integrated ecosystem for saving, spending, and investing on-chain. Leveraging the firm’s trust charter and fiduciary powers will enhance customer protection, particularly regarding asset storage.

Will Peck, CEO of WisdomTree Digital Trust Company, expressed confidence in the company’s product lineup and responsible growth strategy.

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The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has intensified its examination of Ethereum, inadvertently rallying the cryptocurrency community against it.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse confidently stated that the SEC would ultimately lose its battle against Ethereum. In a post on March 22 on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Garlinghouse highlighted that the financial watchdog failed in its classification attempt of his company’s XRP token and is likely to face a similar outcome in its efforts to classify ETH as security. He mentioned that the SEC is engaging in disputes with the industry and is experiencing significant losses in court battles. Additionally, they are currently in conflict with other regulators such as the CFTC, and are trailing behind international counterparts.

Echoing Garlinghouse’s sentiments, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty suggested that the US Congress should halt funding for this “insanity.”

SEC’s Investigation of Ethereum

Recent reports revealed that the SEC, led by Gary Gensler, is investigating entities associated with Ethereum, such as the Ethereum Foundation, in an attempt to classify ETH as a security. This move sparked significant backlash from both the crypto community and US legislators, who expressed concerns about the SEC’s aggressive stance toward the burgeoning industry.

Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, highlighted numerous instances where the SEC and its representatives have referred to Ethereum as a commodity. He pointed to statements from former high-ranking SEC official William Hinman, as well as congressional hearings and testimony from Gensler before his tenure as SEC chair, which indicated that the digital asset was not considered a security. Additionally, Grewal noted instances where SEC lawyers attempted to draw comparisons between ETH and BTC.

Community Sentiments and Ripple’s Support

Notably, Ripple executives’ endorsement of Ethereum comes as unexpected, given the historical friction between the XRP community and ETH. For years, XRP supporters have alleged that Ethereum received preferential treatment from the SEC due to its non-classification as a security by former SEC official Hinman, arguing that this contributed to Ethereum’s widespread adoption and subsequent development.

Moreover, past negative remarks about XRP from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin further fueled animosity between the two projects.

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Frax Finance has taken a step forward in reinstating its protocol fee switch by presenting a new proposal on Thursday.

The proposal outlines the reintroduction of the protocol fee switch, with 50% of the yield directed towards veFXS and the remaining 50% utilized to purchase other Frax assets for pairing in the FXS Liquidity Engine (FLE), according to the proposal put forth by Frax Finance on Thursday. The implementation of FLE aims to bolster Frax’s balance sheet while significantly enhancing liquidity for FXS and paired Frax assets.

Furthermore, the proposal elaborates on a new tokenomics system designed to fully collateralize the decentralized stablecoin FRAX, along with suggesting enhancements to yield structures. Concerning the non-liquid staking reward veFXS, the proposal states, “veFXS stakers will receive total protocol fees upon the passage of this proposal, added to the veFXS yield distributor on the Ethereum mainnet and subsequently to the veFXS yield distributor contract on Fraxtal.”

Frax Finance had initially proposed activating the protocol fee switch on February 26, reversing an earlier decision to suspend rewards, as reported by The Block previously. Sam Kazemian, the protocol’s founder, remarked at the time that Frax felt “it is the right time to turn on the huge switch. It will be a ton of revenue.”

Frax Finance is responsible for developing and overseeing the FRAX USD-pegged decentralized stablecoin, the protocol’s native token FXS, and the veFXS token distributed to users upon staking FXS. As of 5:32 p.m. on March 21, FXS was trading at $7.48, showing a 1.13% increase over the past 24 hours, according to The Block’s FXS price page.

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In a quick turn of events, Bitcoin dipped below the $65,000 mark, despite major stock indices reaching record highs driven by expectations of rate cuts.

The correction in Bitcoin’s price over the past day resulted in significant liquidation of long positions on centralized exchanges.

Despite major stock indices hitting record highs, with the Dow gaining about 0.7% and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite adding roughly 0.3% and 0.2% respectively on Thursday, Bitcoin witnessed a downturn, slipping below the $64,000 mark during Friday’s trading session.

This dip in Bitcoin’s price comes amidst positive macroeconomic sentiment fueled by signals of rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve and a surprise rate cut by the Swiss National Bank.

The surprise reduction in Switzerland’s key interest rate to 1.5%, following a decrease in Swiss inflation to 1.2% in February, marked the first such action by one of the world’s major central banks since the onset of efforts to counter post-pandemic price surges.

As of 8:46 a.m. Eastern Time, Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization, witnessed a decline of more than 4% over the previous 24 hours, with its value resting at $63,990. This decrease reflects ongoing market volatility and liquidations.

Market Volatility and Liquidations

The correction in Bitcoin’s price over the past day triggered significant liquidation of long positions on centralized exchanges, with over $54 million in Bitcoin positions being liquidated, the majority of which—over $40 million—were long positions, as per CoinGlass data.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, Ether, also experienced a 3.4% downturn in the past day, trading at $3,417 at 8:46 a.m. ET. SOL, the native coin of the Solana network, saw a sharper decline of over 8% during the same period, according to The Block’s Prices Page.

The overall cryptocurrency market witnessed over $134 million in liquidated long positions in the last 24 hours, contributing to a total of $192 million in liquidations across various centralized exchanges, according to data.

Declining Bitcoin Exchange Reserves

Bitcoin exchange reserves have reached a multi-week low, indicating a trend of investors withdrawing their coins for long-term holding.

Data from CryptoQuant shows an outflow of over 44,600 bitcoins in the past month, resulting in exchange reserves hitting a multi-week low of just over 2 million bitcoins.

This outflow from exchanges to cold storage has been a consistent trend since the beginning of the year, possibly influenced by the increase in Bitcoin’s price and inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Over the last 24 hours, the GM 30 Index, which tracks the performance of the top 30 cryptocurrencies, has dipped by 3.98% to reach 141.78.

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Tech giant Google has seamlessly integrated Ethereum Name Service (ENS) data into its search results using information sourced from Etherscan. CryptoSlate confirmed this integration through various ENS addresses, including Vitalik.eth, belonging to Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum.

The displayed results provide comprehensive details such as the Ethereum balance and the timestamp of the last transaction, all retrieved from the Ethereum block explorer Etherscan. ENS serves as a naming system for the Ethereum blockchain, facilitating human-readable names for diverse resources, including crypto wallets.

The news of this integration was first shared by Brantly Millegan, a former core member of the ENS team, on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

Google’s Embrace of Crypto

This integration underscores Google’s increasing involvement with crypto and blockchain technology. Previously, the tech giant allowed users to directly check Ethereum address balances via its search engine. Furthermore, Google displayed animated pandas in sync to initiate a countdown to the Ethereum Merge event in 2022.

Last year, Google revised its crypto advertising policy to include “Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts,” enabling investors to trade shares in trusts holding digital assets. As a result, Bitcoin ETF products from prominent asset managers like BlackRock now feature in search results for queries such as “Bitcoin ETF.”

ENS Token’s Upward Movement

The news of Google’s feature on social media has helped the ENS token reverse its recent downward trend, experiencing a gain of approximately 6% in the last 24 hours, trading at $21.56 as of press time, according to CryptoSlate’s data.

In recent months, the ENS project has achieved significant milestones, including full decentralization and a pivotal partnership with GoDaddy, a domain registrar.

Jeff Lau, a developer with ENS, highlighted that these developments aim to “humanize web3.” He emphasized ENS’s role as a naming system for crypto addresses, evolving to encompass various functions within the web3 ecosystem, including serving as farcaster IDs, crypto payment addresses, and DAO contract identifiers.

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Bitcoin has experienced a decline of over 10% from its recent all-time high, reflecting a decrease in interest for newly established spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Strategists at JPMorgan Chase and Co. have cautioned that this pullback could continue.

The group of 10 spot Bitcoin ETFs is currently witnessing its largest weekly outflow since its introduction on January 11. Concurrently, Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, is on track for one of its most challenging weeks of the year following a 6% downturn. On Friday, the token was down 2.7% to $63,675.

JPMorgan strategists reiterated their view that Bitcoin appears overbought, reiterating a prediction made in February for further declines leading up to April’s eagerly awaited halving event, which will reduce the supply of newly minted Bitcoin from miners.

The continuous interest seen in CME Bitcoin futures, along with the diminishing flows in ETFs, stands as notable bearish signs for Bitcoin’s price, as highlighted by strategists headed by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou in a note issued on Thursday.

The slowdown in net inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs challenges the perception of a continuous one-way net inflow, particularly as the halving event approaches. This trend of profit-taking is expected to persist, especially considering the overbought positioning backdrop, despite the recent correction.

Last month, JPMorgan forecasted a decline in Bitcoin’s price towards $42,000 post-April as the euphoria induced by the halving event subsides.

From Monday through Thursday, a net $836 million was withdrawn from the ETFs, reflecting outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust and a decrease in subscriptions for competing offerings from BlackRock Inc. and Fidelity Investments.

While the ETF category has seen net inflows of $11.3 billion to date, marking one of the most successful debuts for an ETF category, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which transitioned into an ETF, has experienced $13.6 billion in outflows.

Despite Bitcoin reaching a record high of almost $73,798 on March 14, retail traders’ enthusiasm may be waning, according to Naeem Aslam, chief investment officer at Zaye Capital Markets. Aslam expressed concerns about the rally’s strength post-all-time high and emphasized the significance of the upcoming halving event in maintaining momentum. However, failure to sustain this momentum could lead to a significant retracement, potentially dropping below $50,000.

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Binance Coin is making significant strides following the recent SEC decision on the Bitcoin ETF, edging closer to its all-time high. Concurrently, savvy investors in Monero and Hedera are rushing to participate in the presale of the emerging crypto project InQubeta. Let’s delve deeper into these developments.

BNB Soars Towards All-Time High

Binance Coin is witnessing a meteoric rise, with many experts predicting that it is on the verge of reaching a new all-time high. Recently, it experienced a remarkable 7% price surge, pushing BNB closer to the coveted $610 mark, currently trading at $529.

This bullish trend is backed by strong market dynamics, partly influenced by Bitcoin’s recent performance. Additionally, the launch of innovative projects like ether.fi on the Binance Launchpool, where users can earn ETHFI by staking BNB, is further fueling this momentum.

Renowned crypto analysts such as Altcoin Sherpa are confident that BNB is gearing up to surpass its previous peak of around $680. Sherpa’s analysis suggests that a new ATH is achievable in the coming months.

Another prominent figure in the crypto scene, Captain Faibik, concurs. He highlights that BNB has exceeded his earlier prediction by a staggering 120%. Faibik initially projected that BNB would reach a new ATH in the first half of 2024, and the current price movement aligns well with that forecast.

In a broader context, BNB has surged by an impressive 57% over the past month. This significant momentum sets the stage for BNB to potentially enter uncharted territory, with global investors closely monitoring its journey to an unprecedented ATH.

InQubeta: Revolutionizing AI Through Crypto Crowdfunding

InQubeta is attracting investors from leading coins like Monero and Hedera by offering a blockchain ICO platform that opens up AI investments to everyone through crypto crowdfunding.

This innovative crypto ICO project is currently undergoing a highly successful multi-month presale, having already secured an impressive $12 million in funding. The current presale price stands at an appealing $0.028 per QUBE token, with the next and final stage set to see a price increase to $0.0308.

InQubeta’s primary goal is to democratize AI investments by introducing the first-ever crypto crowdfunding platform for fractional AI startup investment, all powered by the native QUBE token.

QUBE: The Heart of the InQubeta Ecosystem

QUBE is a deflationary token that revolutionizes the way AI startups secure funding and promotes community engagement. Built-in transaction taxes contribute to a burn wallet (2%) and a reward pool (5%), enabling holders to earn passive income through staking.

At the core of InQubeta’s strategy lies a revolutionary and popular NFT marketplace. Here, AI startups can mint each investment opportunity as an NFT, which can then be fractionalized. This approach, facilitated by blockchain technology and smart contracts, allows for flexible investor participation.

This unique model offers a mutually beneficial scenario. AI startups gain access to new funding streams through reward and equity-based NFTs, while holders of QUBE ERC20 tokens can easily invest in projects they are passionate about. It is a symbiotic ecosystem that fosters mutual growth.

QUBE Holders: Shaping the Future

The power extends beyond that. QUBE empowers its holders by granting them governance rights. This means they can propose, discuss, and ultimately vote on improvements, actively shaping the platform’s evolution. This governance aspect adds another layer of community involvement and decentralization to the InQubeta ecosystem.

Conclusion

The cryptocurrency market is a rollercoaster of excitement and opportunities. Binance Coin is poised for significant gains as it eyes its ATH, while InQubeta is attracting investors with its innovative approach that is reshaping the AI investment landscape.

InQubeta’s presale is entering its final stretch, and the token price is set to rise. With a vibrant community, a clear roadmap, and a fresh perspective on AI investment, it is a promising project worth considering. Visit their website to learn more or participate in the presale, and join their active community on Twitter for the latest updates.

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El Salvador is leading the way for other nations to follow, with President Nayib Bukele announcing plans to purchase one bitcoin daily until it becomes unaffordable with fiat currencies. This initiative has boosted the country’s bitcoin holdings to a substantial 5,690 BTC, valued at approximately $400 million.

In addition to its cryptocurrency efforts, El Salvador has made a significant statement in the global investment arena by eliminating income tax for international investments and money transfers, aiming to attract foreign investors and stimulate economic growth.

This week, the country took a major step in its bitcoin strategy by transferring over 5,000 BTC into a cold wallet. President Bukele revealed that a large portion of these assets, worth $400 million, has been moved to an offline device stored in a physical vault within the nation’s territory. This move to secure the digital assets in a “Bitcoin piggy bank” signifies a strong belief in the cryptocurrency’s future and enhances its security.

El Salvador’s decision to transfer funds to a cold wallet came after its bitcoin treasury unexpectedly swelled, nearly doubling its previously known stash. The country has been acquiring bitcoin through various means, including daily purchases, passport sales, currency conversions for businesses, mining, and government services.

El Salvador made headlines in September 2021 when it became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender. Since then, the cryptocurrency’s value has experienced significant fluctuations, recently reaching a record high of $73,800. The country’s ongoing daily bitcoin purchases and the establishment of a tax-free crypto haven powered by geothermal energy from a volcano demonstrate its innovative approach to using cryptocurrency for economic development.

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The Terra blockchain encountered an unexpected halt on Thursday, marking the second disruption within the month. The core team is actively investigating the issue, as stated in an official update. Despite this setback, the price of LUNA, Terra’s native token, has remained largely unaffected, with a weekly loss of nearly 13%.

The Terra blockchain issued an official update regarding the sudden halt experienced on Thursday, the second such incident in March. The cause of the halt remains unclear, prompting the core team to intensify efforts to identify and resolve the issue. The community has been assured that updates will be provided as the investigation progresses.

In a previous occurrence on March 14, the Terra blockchain faced a similar unexpected issue resulting in a temporary halt. Following swift action from the team, block production resumed, and an initial investigation was conducted. While users were informed of the restoration, the team committed to conducting a post-mortem analysis to prevent future occurrences.

Just a week later, on March 21, the blockchain once again paused block productions, prompting a follow-up tweet from the team. Despite these interruptions, the price of LUNA has shown resilience, maintaining stability amidst the technical challenges. As of the latest update, LUNA is trading at $0.9224, representing a 4% increase for the day, recuperating from its weekly losses.

Currently, LUNA’s price is consolidating below the resistance level of $1. Despite the disruptions, the asset remains 41% below its year-to-date high of $1.55, recorded on March 5.

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BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), the world’s largest asset manager, demonstrates its commitment to the digital asset space by launching its inaugural tokenized fund, the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL). This move comes on the heels of its recent introduction of a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF).

In collaboration with Securitize Markets, LLC, BlackRock aims to offer qualified investors the opportunity to earn U.S. dollar yields through the BUIDL fund, which will be tokenized on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain as an ERC-20 token.

Robert Mitchnick, Head of Digital Assets at BlackRock, sees this as a natural progression of their digital assets strategy, emphasizing their focus on providing solutions that address real client needs.

Securitize is set to serve as a pivotal transfer agent and tokenization platform, overseeing tokenized shares and facilitating processes such as Fund subscriptions, redemptions, and distributions. BlackRock has structured the fund under the jurisdiction of the British Virgin Islands, with a minimum investment requirement of $100,000.

Tokenization remains central to BlackRock’s digital asset strategy, with CEO Larry Fink highlighting its potential to revolutionize capital markets. Carlos Domingo, co-founder and CEO of Securitize, views this development as a significant step towards making traditional financial products more accessible through digitization.

The BUIDL token offers various benefits, including enabling ownership issuance and trading on a blockchain, expanding investor access, ensuring instantaneous and transparent settlement, and facilitating transfers across platforms. BNY Mellon will facilitate interoperability between digital and traditional markets.

Designed to maintain a stable value of $1 per token and provide daily accrued dividends, BUIDL invests 100% of its assets in cash, U.S. Treasury bills, and repurchase agreements, offering investors yield while holding tokens on the blockchain.

Investors will have the flexibility to transfer tokens to pre-approved counterparts at any time and choose their preferred custody options. Anchorage Digital Bank NA, BitGo, Coinbase, Fireblocks, and other market participants and infrastructure providers in the crypto industry support the launch of BUIDL.

In a testament to community engagement, anonymous donors have sent various tokens and NFTs to the fund’s public Ethereum address, reflecting growing interest and support for BlackRock’s venture into digital assets.

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