Weekly Headlines 2023.5 W4
“Bitcoin really doesn’t care about what anyone thinks and it offends VCs the most.” – Jimmy Song
Weekly News Report:
News
1. Visa, Microsoft and others join Brazilian CBDC pilot
– Both national and global companies will participate in the upcoming pilot project of the Brazilian central bank digital currency.
2. Circle launches euro-based stablecoin on Avalanche blockchain
– Stablecoin issuer Circle has launched EUROC on Avalanche, a move that aims to deliver faster and more efficient payments and financial services for developers and users.
3. BNB Chain Developers Schedule Hard Fork Dubbed Luban on June 12
– Through the current block generation speed, Binance Chain core developers expect the Luban hard fork to take place on June 12.
4. Malaysia Says Crypto Exchange Huobi Global Isn’t Registered, Must Cease Operations
– The Securities Commission Malaysia ordered Huobi Global to stop operations in the country, including disabling its website and mobile applications because it is operating a digital asset exchange without registration.
5. Crypto Trading Platform Hotbit Terminates CEX Operations
– Hotbit users have until 04:00 UTC on June 21 to withdraw their assets from the platform.
6. First Bitcoin Tower to Be Built in Dubai
– The Bitcoin Tower will be a center that will host blockchain conferences and also promote AI and cryptocurrency initiatives.
7. Governor Ron DeSantis Bans Digital Dollar in Florida, Other States Prepare to Emulate Decision
– Governor of Florida recently signed a bill prohibiting the use of CBDCs in the state. And now, his move may have set a precedent for other states to follow.
8. DEX Mangrove Launches on Polygon Testnet, Plans to Go Live on Mainnet in June
– Wintermute and Cumberland-backed Mangrove plan a mainnet launch of its programmable order book DEX in early June.
Institution
1. Hong Kong Securities Regulator to Accept License Applications for Crypto Exchanges Starting June 1
– The SFC’s guidelines prohibit crypto “gifts” designed to incentivize retail investments, which likely includes airdrops, and say stablecoins should not be admitted for retail trading until they are regulated.
2. EU Banks Could Access Stablecoins More Easily Under Leaked Plans
– The European Commission wants to make it easier for commercial lenders to hold stablecoins and tokenized assets, after lawmakers pushed to discourage crypto holdings as part of a wider banking reform.
3. Banking Giant BNY Mellon Announces Its Long-Term Committment to Digital Assets
– The American banking giant will be focusing on three key initiatives – distributed ledger technology, tokenization, and digital cash.
4. Liechtenstein Considers Enabling Bitcoin Payments for Government Services
– Among the possible uses of Bitcoin, we should mention enabling citizens to make deposits in Bitcoin and immediately exchange them for the national currency of Liechtenstein – the Swiss franc.
Market
1. Attendance at World’s Largest Bitcoin Conference Down by Half as ‘Crypto Winter’ Drags On
– Roughly 15,000 attendees are expected at the Bitcoin 2023 event, versus 35,000 last year – likely a result of the downturn known as “crypto winter.”
2. Crypto’s Open Source Ethos Yields Results
– It’s crypto winter and a time for building, as innovative new open-source projects on Polkadot and Cosmos can attest.
3. Litecoin (LTC) on Bullish Run after Lightning Network Integration
– Litecoin has been gaining some momentum since the start of the year with a focus on its next Halving event which is a few months away.
4. Ether Balance on Exchanges Nears All-Time Low
– The number of ether on exchanges has hit a low not seen since July 2016 as staking saps up available ether.
5. USDT Issuer Tether to Enhance Reserves via Regular Bitcoin Purchase
– Stablecoin issuer Tether has announced plans to purchase Bitcoin with 15% of realized operating profits routinely.
6. Stablecoin Market Shrinks for 14th Straight Month, Posing Potential Headwinds for Crypto Prices
– The contraction of the stablecoin market suggests that the crypto market is still in its bear phase, macro analyst Tom Dunleavy said.
7. AI Can Generate a Trading Edge in Crypto Markets
– Large language models like ChatGPT could supercharge sentiment analysis, a key aspect of trading.
8. Bitcoin’s Declining Correlation With Stocks Revives Its Appeal for Investors: K33 Research
– The correlation of BTC’s price with the NASDAQ index has fallen to 17-month lows, making the asset attractive again for portfolio diversification, crypto research firm K33 noted.
9. Bitcoin HODLing Has Never Been More Popular
– More BTC than ever has been held for at least a year, according to Glassnode, a potentially bullish sign.
10. Consensus Survey: TradFi Investors Remain Bullish on Crypto’s Long-Term Prospects
– Despite the market turmoil of the last six months, investment managers say they largely plan to keep putting capital into digital assets, our survey finds.
11. Bitcoin Jumps to Key Price Resistance as Hong Kong Opens Crypto Trading for Retail Investors
– BTC rose to key price resistance early Tuesday as Hong Kong said retail investors could trade digital assets from June 1. The announcement is consistent with long-held expectations that developments in Asia will catalyze the next crypto bull run and contrasts the lack of regularity in the West, particularly in the U.S.
12. U.S. Is ‘Losing’ the Bitcoin Movement: Cathie Wood
– Cathie Wood also referenced last year’s dramatic collapse of crypto exchange FTX, saying it “proved the concept” of bitcoin.
13. Shiba Inu’s Puppynet Testnet Logs 10M Transactions, Putting Ecosystem Tokens in Focus
– Ecosystem tokens shiba inu, leash and bone will be used to transact on the upcoming Ethereum-based blockchain.
14. Why the Biggest Emerging Markets Are Turning to Crypto
– Many large countries around the world, including Pakistan and Nigeria, suffer from currency turmoil. And, despite official efforts to curb crypto activity, there are signs their citizens are turning to crypto assets as a hedge, says Noelle Acheson.
15. Bitcoin Preferred to Dollar and Yen as Safe-Haven Option amid Higher US Debt-Limit Default Risks
– Amid mounting debt-limit default risks, US investors have turned to Bitcoin as ‘digital gold’ to better hedge their savings.
NFT
1. Bitcoin surpasses Solana to become second-most popular NFT blockchain
– Bitcoin’s NFT market is growing, but it is primarily driven by newfound hype for memecoin trading on the blockchain.
2. F1 Ticket Provider Platinum Group Introduces NFT Tickets for Global Racing Event
– The NFTs, debuting this weekend at the Monaco Grand Prix, offer collectors access to the race as well as future loyalty benefits.
3. Pudgy Penguins NFT Project, Once Endangered, Proves Web3 Turnaround Is Possible
– After Pudgy Toys debuted on Amazon on May 18, the floor price of the cute NFT project shot up over 6 ETH. Now, with the launch of Pudgy World and the addition of the collection to the NFT lending platform Blend, it is continuing to build momentum.
4. Blend Seizes 82% of NFT Lending Market Share: DappRadar
– Since NFT lending marketplace Blend launched May 1, it has amassed 169,900 ETH or about $308 Million in volume.
5. Web3-Friendly Browser Brave Introduces NFT-Gated Video Calls
– The new tool for its Brave Talk video service allows hosts to use NFTs and POAPS to manage access to calls.
6. Sorare Carves Out Unique Entry Method for France Due to NFT Regulations
– The Web3 fantasy sports game is working with the French National Gaming Authority to create a framework for France-based players who face a tighter regulatory regime.
7. SuperRare’s Latest NYC Gallery Pop-Up Will Bring Human Connection Back to NFT Art
– The NFT marketplace’s two-month show in the 0x.17 gallery kicks off with a solo exhibition from artist Claire Silver about our future with AI.
8. Sotheby’s Auctions Part of 3AC’s Rare NFT Collection, Bringing In $2.4 Million
– Sotheby’s on Friday concluded its sale of several rare NFTs seized from bankrupt crypto hedge fund 3AC expansive collection, bringing in $2,482,850 to recoup some of the lost funds.
9. Toy Maker Mattel to Launch Fast & Furious NFT Collection
– The new collection is part of Mattel’s Hot Wheels NFT Garage Series and will be based on the Fast & Furious film franchise.
10. Binance Launching NFT Loan Feature
– The tool, launching on Friday, will initially support Ethereum loans and NFTs from Bored Ape Yacht Club, Mutant Ape Yacht Club, Azuki and Doodles collections.
Metaverse
1. Top metaverse property investments suffer massive losses: Report
– Prices of virtual lands on some of the top metaverses have declined significantly from their peak prices of 2022, with most depreciating around 90% in value.
2. Alibaba Cloud Taps Avalanche to Create Metaverses for Businesses
– The demand for blockchain technology and metaverse has recently been on the rise. With businesses keen to take their brands to Web 3.0, Alibaba Cloud has taken it upon itself to help its clients with their transitions. To achieve this, the digital technology and intelligence division of Alibaba Group has partnered with layer-1 blockchain Avalanche.
DeFi
DeFi protocol Voltz launches SOFR swaps on Avalanche
– DeFi protocol Voltz now allows Avalanche users to trade interest rate swaps of the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR), a benchmark dollar rate used throughout the global economy.
Web3
1. Ava Labs Launches ‘No-Code’ Web3 Launchpad AvaCloud
– Ava Labs, the company behind layer 1 blockchain Avalanche, is launching AvaCloud, a Web3 launchpad that helps businesses build no-code, fully managed blockchain ecosystems.
2. Web3 Move-to-Earn App STEPN Integrates Apple Pay for In-Game Purchases
– Web3 move-to-earn game STEPN is integrating payments service Apple Pay as a fiat onramp for in-app purchases in a bid to make its app more widely accessible.
May 26, 2023