Weekly Recap

Jan 18th, 2021 - Jan 25th, 2021

Welcome to our 4th weekly recap for February.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] President Biden Freezes FinCEN’s Controversial Crypto Wallet Proposal

• [2] Andreas Antonopoulos Fights FUD With Facts: Bitcoin Is Safe And Worked As Expected

On January 21, 2021, a random dude sent $21 to another random dude. And this is news because that transaction triggered a series of unfortunate events that ended up wiping $84Billion from Bitcoin’s total market cap, driving the community into a panic and causing a drop of more than 11% in the price of the largest cryptocurrency in the crypto ecosystem.

• [3] GrayScale Bought $1.3 Billion Bitcoin

GrayScale has had its most successful week yet, buying close to $1.3 billion bitcoin, up considerably from $500 million a week during December.

• [4] Grayscale has incorporated six more trusts, including ones for Chainlink and Tezos
  

Crypto asset manager Grayscale has incorporated six more trusts, including those tied to Chainlink (LINK) and Tezos (XTZ) tokens.

• [5] Joe Biden’s Treasury Secretary Nominee Asserts Bitcoin’s Potential

Mrs. Janet Yellen has made a follow-up comment about cryptocurrencies since the previous one in her recent confirmation hearing. In what seems like a contrary statement, the Treasury secretary nominee is now asserting the potential of digital currencies.

• [6] Why Polkadot Is The Hottest Crypto In China

It’s not a secret that in China, Polkadot resembles a newer, better EOS, the public blockchain that swept the Chinese crypto ecosystem in 2018.

• [7] Nasdaq-listed Marathon Patent Group buys $150 million worth of bitcoin as part of the company’s treasury reserves

Nasdaq-listed Marathon Patent Group announced Monday that it has purchased around 4,813 bitcoin for about $150 million.

• [8] Rothschild Investment Corporation Increases Its Stake in Bitcoin

According to its new SEC filing, financial services company Rothschild Investment Corporation now holds 30,454 shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) that allows institutional investors to get exposure to the world’s largest cryptocurrency without directly owning it.

BitMEX Research FUD

BitMEX’s Research team recently discovered and brought to attention a double-spending attempt on the Bitcoin blockchain, and the result was widespread FUD across the cryptocurrency market.

[1/2] There was a stale Bitcoin block today, at height 666,833. SlushPool has beaten F2Pool in a race.

It appears as if a small double spend of around 0.00062063 BTC ($21) was detectedhttps://t.co/o8lz9xagYG pic.twitter.com/IEdPu8JEjt

— BitMEX Research (@BitMEXResearch) January 20, 2021

Whilst alarming indeed if it had succeeded, the blocks’ confirmation can be easily verified using the associated URL. It is quickly apparent that only one transaction request was confirmed.

This has been a thinly-veiled attempt at spreading Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt amongst the particularly newly invested crypto participants.

Situations like this happen often as multiple stale, or orphaned blocks are abandoned when conflicting blocks are discovered. It is a fairly common occurrence.

User sent 1st transaction (T1), then sent new transaction (T2) that would replace T1.
2 blocks were found around the same time: B1 and B2. B1 included T1 and B2 included T2. In the end B1 ended up on the winning chain.
So is it really a double-spend? @BitMEXResearch

— hhuey (@hhuey8) January 20, 2021

It is not a double spend, that scenario when 2 blocks are accepted on chain at the same time happens some times, but the solution is when the blocks are getting confirmed several times, in the end the winning chain is accepted and the loosing is dropped

— Gigadig (@Gigadig1) January 21, 2021

Bitcoin utilizes multiple confirmations for each transaction to ensure that the block is properly verified across the vast majority of exchanges and wallets. BitMex uses a one-block confirmation method which assumes that transactions based on the first block confirmation are final, which is not entirely 100% accurate as blocks can be re-organized as further confirmations happen.

Using >=2 block confirmation to validate the transaction would save the recipient from this.

While this was likely a coincidence, this is sort of the reason why 6 block confirmations is commonly required before validating the transaction.

— Veeti Pitkoilija (@veetipitko@bitcoinhackers.org) (@VeetinP) January 20, 2021

This intentional misdirection is absolutely being used for nefarious means as it only takes minimal efforts to verify that the alleged double-spend did not happen, and was not confirmed within the block using https://mempool.space/.

It would be wise to take everything BitMEX Research presents with a healthy dose of salt, and cross-reference the evidence. BitMEX executives have been charged with operating in the United States illegally.

Weekly Recap

Jan 11th, 2021 - Jan 18th, 2021

Welcome to our 3rd weekly recap for January.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Cardano’s Mary hard fork to offer native multi-asset support in February

• [2] Reuters: Gary Gensler, MIT blockchain professor and Obama’s CFTC chair, to head Biden SEC

During the Obama administration, Gensler was the chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, in which capacity he was in charge of enforcing the many new provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act that followed the 2008 financial crisis.

• [3] Shopify Security Breach Exposes More Ledger Customers’ Sensitive Data

A previous security breach at the e-commerce firm Shopify has exposed sensitive data belonging to customers of around 200 of its merchants.

• [4] After Buying Over $1 Billion In BTC, MicroStrategy to Host an Educational Bitcoin Conference
  

The NASDAQ-listed business intelligence giant MicroStrategy will host an online conference to educate large organizations about the potential merits of investing in bitcoin. Called “Bitcoin for Corporations,” the initiative has also received support from other industry giants such as Gemini, Binance, Coinbase, Fidelity, Grayscale, and more.

• [5] Mt. Gox Creditors Can Claim 90% of Bitcoin Left in Bankruptcy: Bloomberg

Creditors of the bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox will be presented with the option to claim up to 90% of the exchange’s remaining bitcoin, according to Bloomberg.

• [6] Institutional Investors Bought $2.8 Billion in Bitcoin Through Grayscale In Q4 2020

Grayscale Investment has done it again with another record-breaking quarter. In its Q4 2020 report, the leading digital asset manager informed that institutional investors had allocated over $3 billion into its product, with Bitcoin accounting for the most significant part.

• [7] Cardano “Working On Something” That Could Solve Twitter’s Decentralization Dilemma

Twitter has faced fierce condemnation over the last few days after it decided to ban US Present Donald Trump from its social media platform. A lot of people have opposed the move, seeing it as an attempt by the social media giant to run an online autocratic dictatorship where free speech is strongly restricted.

• [8] Ethereum Layer 2 Optimism Increasing with Mainnet Soft Launch

This year is likely to see unprecedented use and demand on the Ethereum network, so there has never been a better time to ramp up Layer-2 scaling solutions.

Weekly Recap

Jan 4th, 2021 - Jan 11th, 2021

Welcome to our 2nd weekly recap for January.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Banks Can Treat Public Blockchains Like SWIFT and ACH

• [2] Cyprian Hospital Commences COVID-19 Vaccination with VeChain (VET) Solution

Mediterranean Hospital of Cyprus has successfully vaccinated some of its staff against the COVID-19 virus, including 100 doctors and personnel. The process was carried out via the VeChain-powered E-HCert COVID-19 solution, according to a blog post on January 5, 2020.

• [3] XRP About to Leave Top 5 First Time Since 2014 as Cardano (ADA) Soars 40 Percent

XRP is on the cusp of being pushed out of CoinMarketCap’s top 5 after Cardano (ADA) soared over 40 percent in a single day.

• [4] Grayscale Gains $1.9 Billion in Crypto in One Day, While Bitcoin Market Cap Hits Record $700 Billion
  

The world’s largest crypto management fund, Grayscale, has increased its crypto holdings by almost $2 billion in merely one day (as of Jan. 6).

• [5] Cryptocurrency Exchanges Strained as Bitcoin Buying Hits Critical Mass

Coinbase, Binance, Kraken, and Gemini—four of the world’s most prominent cryptocurrency exchanges—experienced technical issues on Thursday after the price of Bitcoin shot past $40,000.

• [6] Litecoin Will Get Smart Contracts via Flare Networks

Litecoin will receive smart contract capabilities through Flare Networks, according to a tweet from the latter project.

• [US] Twitter Permanently Suspends Donald Trump’s Account

Citing “the risk of further incitement of violence,” Twitter has permanently suspended President Donald Trump’s account, @realDonaldTrump.

• [7] Polkadot becomes first blockchain platform to rebrand through a bounty program

Blockchain platform Polkadot announced that it has hired leading design agency Koto to give the blockchain platform a complete design revamp. However, all key decisions regarding the rebranding process will be driven and approved by the Polkadot community and its representatives on-chain.

• [8] Cardano becomes the biggest staking network, 69% of its circulating supply staked

Cardano has been an extremely important project in the cryptocurrency ecosystem in the past few years and IOHK has been in the process to expand Cardano’s ecosystem and make it more self-sufficient. As the developments evolve behind the scenes, Cardano has emerged to be the biggest staking network in the world.

• [9] EOS Plummets After Block.one CTO Dan Larimer Resigns

Prolific blockchain developer and crypto community member, Dan Larimer, the CTO of Block.one, has announced his resignation today.

Weekly Recap

December 28th, 2021 - Jan 4th, 2021

Welcome to our 1st weekly recap for January.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Miami’s Mayor ‘Open To Explore’ Investing 1% of City’s Treasury Reserves in Bitcoin

• [2] SkyBridge Capital Invested $182 Million in Bitcoin, Says It’s ‘Digital Gold’

SkyBridge Capital, the investment firm run by Anthony Scaramucci, has reportedly already invested $182 million in bitcoin and said in an investor brochure the flagship cryptocurrency is “digital gold.”

• [3] Bittrex To Delist Privacy Coins Monero, ZCash and Dash in Two Weeks

Crypto exchange Bittrex today announced that it will delist privacy coins Monero (XMR), ZCash and Dash on Friday, January 15, at 23:00 UTC.

• [4] U.S. Congress Members Oppose Treasury Crypto Ruling in Letter
  

In a letter sent to the Treasury on December 31st, 9 congresspeople wrote that they have concerns over the proposed crypto ruling by FinCEN.

• [5] Bitcoin Smashes through $30K Barrier Amid Rising Institutional Interest

In yet another major milestone for the premier cryptocurrency, bitcoin on Saturday broke through the $30K price for the first time, setting new all-time highs.

• [6] Binance’s $10M Endorsement Leads to 90% Surge For Polkadot (DOT)

Polkadot (DOT) surged more than 9 percent last week following a home page listing and vote of confidence by cryptocurrency exchange Binance.

• [7] Grayscale Did Not Unload 9 Million XRP Amidst Ongoing Ripple Lawsuit

Digital investment giant Grayscale has not unloaded more than 9 million XRP following the announcement of a lawsuit against parent company and payments platform Ripple, despite what some data aggregators and news outlets indicate.

• [8] Iconloop secures gov backing to test blockchain driver’s license project

Enterprise blockchain firm Iconloop has secured approval from South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT to test its decentralized identity, or DID, technology system to manage driver’s license data in the country.

• [9] Ukraine Government Picks Stellar Development Foundation to Help Build National Digital Currency 

Ukraine’s government has chosen the Stellar blockchain network as a platform to build a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

Weekly Recap

December 21st, 2020 - December 28th, 2020

Welcome to our 4th weekly recap for December.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] SEC issues custody-focused guidance for brokers of digital asset securities

• [2] White House releases stablecoin report

The CME Group, a global markets company, and the world’s largest financial derivatives exchange, has announced that it will be launching Ether futures contracts for institutional traders.

• [3] Ripple Lawsuit Triggers XRP Led Altcoin Apocalypse

Depending on your view, a devastating blow has been dealt to crypto, or a much-needed purge is in progress due to the SEC suing Ripple and two of its top executives for selling XRP tokens which the regulator claims were unregistered securities.

• [4] New Pro-Crypto SEC Chairman Appointed
  

Elad Roisman has been appointed to chair the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), according to a tweet shared by Commissioner Hester Peirce.

• [5] Bitcoin’s Market Cap Surpasses That of Visa

The world’s biggest crypto cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, has exceeded the Visa payment giant by the market capitalization value.

• [6] 4 Crypto Platforms Drop Support for XRP As Coinbase Reportedly Explores Its Options

In light of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) impending lawsuit against Ripple, some crypto exchanges have either halted trading for XRP and/or dropped the asset from their platform entirely.

• [7] BlackRock Looking to Invest in Bitcoin and ETH

BlackRock, the world’s biggest investment manager with some $8 trillion in assets under management, is looking for a Blockchain Lead in their investments division in New York.

Weekly Recap

December 7th, 2020 - December 14th, 2020

Welcome to our 2nd weekly recap for December.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Bitcoin Fund Starts Trading on Canada’s Largest Stock Exchange
  

• [2] The CME Group to Launch Ether Futures in Early 2021
  

The CME Group, a global markets company, and the world’s largest financial derivatives exchange, has announced that it will be launching Ether futures contracts for institutional traders.

• [3] Germany Legalizes Blockchain-Based Securities
  

Germany has passed a law that allows electronic securities to be recorded on a blockchain, according to reports from Reuters.

• [4] Crypto exchange Kraken to integrate Bitcoin’s Lightning Network
  

Popular bitcoin exchange company Kraken, today announced new investments and forthcoming features designed to bring the benefits of Bitcoin’s Lightning Network to its global exchange.

• [5] Coinbase Files with SEC to Go Public
  

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has confidentially filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

• [6] US Treasury to Apply Bank Secrecy Act Rules to Crypto Wallets

After weeks of speculation that the Treasury Department was working on regulations that would affect crypto wallets, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today issued proposed rules that would “require banks and money service businesses (‘MSBs’) to submit reports, keep records, and verify the identity of customers” who make crypto transactions into unhosted (read: private) wallets.

• [7] US Treasury Proposes New Rules Regulating Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Transactions

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), an agency of the US Treasury Department, has proposed a new set of rules that would require financial institutions to keep a record of certain transactions sent to private cryptocurrency wallets.

• [8] Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google Stocks Now Available in DeFi
  

The Binance-backed exchange has added decentralized stock trading for Big Tech mainstays Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google. The update is the result of a partnership with Terra and Band Protocol.

• [8] MicroStrategy Acquires Another $650 Million Worth of Bitcoin
  

As per the latest tweet by CEO Michael Saylor, his business software giant MicroStrategy has just acquired another massive lump of Bitcoin—29,646 Bitcoins worth a whopping $650 million raised recently from investors.

Weekly Recap

December 7th, 2020 - December 14th, 2020

Welcome to our 2nd weekly recap for December.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] G7 Finance Chiefs Support Calls for Crypto Regulations

• [2] Fidelity to Offer Bitcoin-Collateralized Loans

Fidelity Digital Assets, the cryptocurrency arm of the Boston-based mutual fund empire, is set to offer Bitcoin-collateralized dollar loans, according to a Dec. 9 report published by Bloomberg.

• [3] Singapore’s DBS Bank announces plans to launch BTC, XRP, ETH-offering exchange

In what is yet another victory for the still-nascent crypto-market, DBS, Southeast Asia’s biggest bank, has announced that it will launch a cryptocurrency exchange. The planned digital currency exchange will offer Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), XRP, and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).

• [4] Grayscale Reportedly Stockpiles Another 1.3K BTC & 100K ETH in 24 Hrs
  

Grayscale Investment Trusts added another $240 million or more worth of crypto this week.

Up to 100,000 ETH were also purchased by the company, which now trades at over a 120% premium.

• [5] Grayscale Buys Almost $140 Million in BTC in 24 Hours
  

Grayscale, the Bitcoin Trust custodian and digital asset manager, has added another $140 million worth of Bitcoin to their Bitcoin Trust portfolio within the last 24 hours.

• [6] MicroStrategy Raises $650 Million to Put It All Into Bitcoin
  

Business intelligence firm MicroStrategy has completed a $650 million debt offering of 0.750 percent convertible senior notes, according to its Dec. 11 press release.

• [7] Crypto Traders Can Now Buy Bitcoin and Ethereum With Apple Pay
  

A new feature in Lumi’s iOS wallet allows traders to buy crypto assets through Apple’s popular payments service.

• [8] Cardano to Add DeFi Capability with Bondly(Polkadot)

Cardano announced that Bondly is bringing new DeFi capabilities to its platform. Cardano expects to launch its major Goguen upgrade by end-February 2021.

• [8] Pornhub: Now Accepting Crypto OnlyCardano to Add DeFi Capability with Bondly(Polkadot)

It appears that Pornhub, the world’s largest adult website, is only accepting crypto for its premium service. The move was noticed on the site today after Visa and Mastercard cut off payments to the website last week.

Weekly Recap

December 1st, 2020 - December 7th, 2020

Welcome to our 1st weekly recap for December.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Visa Comes Full Circle With USDC Stablecoin Integration
  

While volatility in crypto has kept some payment companies at bay, Visa has plunged in to connect Visa’s payment system with USD Coin (USDC). USDC was developed by Circle, a company that specializes in digital payments.

• [2] 224-Year Old German Bank to Float Crypto Fund in 2021
  

According to Fundview, Hauck & Aufhäuser will roll out a crypto fund via its Hauck & Aufhäuser Innovative Capital (HAIC) GmbH subsidiary in Jan. 2021. Dubbed HAIC Digital Asset Fund I, the product will focus on Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Stellar (XLM).

• [3] Crypto Indexes Set for 2021 Launch: S&P Dow Jones Indices

S&P Dow Jones Indices announced on Thursday that it will be launching its own cryptocurrency indexes. The new products will reportedly go live in 2021.

• [4] Grayscale Absorbs $137 Million More in Bitcoin in Last 24 Hours, $12.6 Billion AUM in Total
  

According to data shared by Bybt analytics service, over the past 24 hours, Grayscale Investments fund spearheaded by Barry Silbert acquired another large amount of BTC.

Grayscale has added 7,188 BTC to its crypto holdings – that is $136,960,870 at the current exchange rate.

• [5] Grayscale Buys Almost $140 Million in BTC in 24 Hours
  

Grayscale, the Bitcoin Trust custodian and digital asset manager, has added another $140 million worth of Bitcoin to their Bitcoin Trust portfolio within the last 24 hours.

• [6] World’s First Ethereum ETF IPOs
  

The world’s first ethereum Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is undergoing an Initial Public Offering (IPO) at the Toronto Stock Exchange (pictured) under the ticker of QETH.U.

• [7] Ethereum fund to debut on the Toronto Stock Exchange
  

Next week, Canadian digital asset investment manager 3iQ will be launching an IPO of an Ethereum exchange-traded trust, The Ether Fund, on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the ticker QETH.U.

• [8] G7 Finance Ministers Support Regulating Cryptocurrencies

In its Dec. 7 press release, the United States Department of the Treasury (USDT) mentions that the finance ministers of the G7 countries voiced strong support for regulating cryptocurrencies during a recent video conference:

There is strong support across the G7 on the need to regulate digital currencies. Ministers and Governors reiterated support for the G7 joint statement on digital payments issued in October.

Weekly Recap

November 23rd, 2020 - November 30th, 2020

Welcome to our 4th weekly recap for November.

Overview 

Crypto News

• [1] Bitcoin hits the home page of The Wall Street Journal
  

After rallying 80% in two months, Bitcoin (BTC) is recapturing media interest from the top end of town, with The Wall Street Journal discussing the cryptocurrency’s adoption among institutional investors on the site’s home page on Nov. 23.

• [2] Japanese Financial Giant SBI Group Debuts Lending Product for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP
  

Japanese financial giant SBI Group has announced a cryptocurrency lending service in its Sept. 24 press release.

It will be offered through the company’s cryptocurrency-oriented arm SBI VC Trade.

• [3] Binance Confirms Support for XRP’s Flare Networks Snapshot and Airdrop
  

Binance has announced that it will support XRP’s Flare Networks snapshot and airdrop of Spark tokens and is the latest major exchange to support the event.

• [4] IOTA Partners With Pantos for European Blockchain R&D Lab
  

IOTA in collaboration with Pantos is looking to promote blockchain and DLT interoperability under the aegis of a new research laboratory dedicated to the two emerging technologies.

• [5] US Director of National Intelligence Urges SEC to Support Bitcoin and Crypto Companies: Report
  

John Ratcliffe, the US Director of National Intelligence, has reportedly penned a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expressing concern about China’s control over Bitcoin and crypto.

• [6] Anticipation of Post-Covid World Fueling Bitcoin Boom and Gold Slump, Says Weiss Ratings
  

Crypto rating agency Weiss Ratings is reporting that the anticipation of a post-Covid world is serving as fuel for Bitcoin’s ascent while other safe-haven assets like gold are losing their luster.

• [7] Guggenheim opens door to bitcoin exposure for $5 billion macro fund via Grayscale’s GBTC
  

The firm, which invests across asset classes on behalf of companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, wrote in a filing on November 27 that it might “seek investment exposure to bitcoin indirectly” via Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust product (GBTC) through its Macro Opportunities Fund.

• [8] Thousands of New Nodes Launch Ahead of Ethereum 2.0

Thousands of new nodes have joined the ethereum network in the last few days to reach 11,162, one of its highest number in years.

There were some 8,000 nodes on November 15th, with it beginning to jump on the 22nd from 9,500 to more than 11,000.