Dave Portnoy, founder and owner of Barstool Sports, has recommended that investors focus on bitcoin for their crypto investments. “I’ve learned that the hard way,” he said, reflecting on lessons from his past crypto investing experiences. Portnoy recently declared his intention to purchase more bitcoin if its price declines substantially. Barstool’s Dave Portnoy Offers Crypto […]
Bitcoin News
Yuga Labs Resumes Layoffs; CEO Says Web3 Platform ‘Lost Its Way’
According to Greg Solano, co-founder of Yuga Labs, the Web3 platform has laid off additional workers partly because it had “lost its way.” Solano also encouraged employees uninterested in the next phase to consider accepting the same severance package offered to those affected by the layoffs. Convoluted Corporate Processes Yuga Labs, the Web3 platform behind […]
Bitcoin News
FA Hayek’s Foresight: Imagining Bitcoin’s Unstoppable Rise Through a ‘Sly, Roundabout Way’
In recent years, discussions have flourished around the visionary predictions of famed architect and systems theorist Buckminster Fuller, who is said to have anticipated a concept akin to Bitcoin. Similarly, industrial magnate Henry Ford is credited with imagining a novel energy currency with the potential to halt wars. Furthermore, Friedrich Hayek, a towering figure in […]
Bitcoin News
Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire at Davos Tokenization Panel: ‘It’s Coming on in a Significant Way’
Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, the stablecoin company, stated that tokenization adoption will keep growing after the spot Bitcoin ETF approval and the endorsement of Blackrock. He believes that financial companies might be issuing tokenized versions of their assets this year and criticized the “same activity, same rules” regulatory principle.
Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire States Tokenization ‘Is Coming’ at Davos
Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, stated that the tokenization of assets will be a part of the evolution of financial companies this year. Tokenization tech, which involves creating a digitized version of an asset and putting it into a blockchain, is likely to grow this year due to its benefits versus traditional finance processes.
At a panel titled “The Tokenization Economy,” Allaire highlighted that the endorsement of Larry Fink, CEO of Blackrock, one of the world’s largest asset managers, on tokenization tech means that it is poised to be adopted in financial markets sooner than later.
On Fink’s tokenization remarks, Allaire stated:
It suggests confidence that tokenization is going to be coming on in a significant way. That we’re going to see some of the very biggest asset issuers in the world issuing tokenized versions of those assets this year. That’s significant.
Nonetheless, Allaire also acknowledged the difficulties of dealing with an unclear regulatory policy for digital assets in the U.S., where the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sustains that many of these tokens are indeed securities. Asked by an attendant to the panel about the possible application of the “same activity, same risk” principle to digital assets’ regulation, Allaire stated:
That’s insane. if we had applied that to software and the internet, we wouldn’t have the incredibly flourishing global world that we have today.
While Euroclear’s CEO Lieve Mostrey, who was also part of the panel, was favorable to this approach, Allaire explained the disadvantages that adopting such a policy would bring to the industry. He argued that if this was applied in the early days of the internet, each website would have to be registered with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and that each audio streaming company would have to receive a radio license.
Instead, he leans into considering digital assets as a nascent field with new applications that need to be considered by upcoming specific regulations.
What do you think about tokenization and its future? Tell us in the comments section below.
NEAR Hits New High Since 2022 – Will The Bears Get In The Way?
The past two months have been a green flag for the broader crypto market in the run-up to the festive season. Although the hype has since cooled down, a few outliers continue to follow the upward trend. NEAR is one of those tokens that aren’t showing signs of cooling down.
According to Coingecko, the token is up nearly 8% in the daily, with the biggest jump being at 23% in the weekly timeframe. With this price ascent, NEAR just reached a new high of .81. The token hit its all-time high of .42 in January 2022.
Several on-chain integrations power this new wave of bullishness for NEAR.
NEAR: Monolithic And Modular?
Recently, eyes are on NEAR as it continues to improve its systems. According to a Medium article last week, the protocol is implementing more changes to become what they call “a monolithic going modular” blockchain.
“In a monolithic blockchain, all four functions are executed by the same set of nodes. This has some benefits, such as high security, easier deployment, and potentially improved utility for users thanks to the ability to specialize the entire network,” the Medium article said.
Although the NEAR team says that the token is a monolothic chain, its implementation of sharding do not overwhelm individual validators. However, this isn’t enough for users as both users and developers quickly realized that publishing on Ethereum becomes an expensive ordeal.
But NEAR DA aims to change that.
NEAR DA (“DA” meaning data availability) will give rollup operators access to NEAR’s storage capacity.
“NEAR runs four shards with roughly 16MB throughput a second. Assuming 100 bytes per transaction, you can store quite a significant amount of your data on NEAR at a fraction of the cost of publishing to NEAR,” the article explained.
As of writing, only a handful of rollups are using NEAR DA; namely Caldera, Fluent, and Movement Labs. Once this capability is in the hands of commercial users and other rollup operators, NEAR will be able to increase exposure to other investors.
How Does This Affect NEAR’s Price?
As of now, the token is on its way to break through .90 price ceiling. However, it seems that the January 2022 high of .42 will be a tough nut to crack as the bears mount a strong defense. But the advent of strong on-chain development along with good market conditions will bring more bullishness in the short to medium-term.
For now, investors and traders should brace for a possible correction towards .25 once the hype starts to settle down.
Featured images from Shutterstock
Former SEC Chair Discusses ‘Appropriate Way’ to Regulate Crypto — Says Classification Issues Are ‘Overblown’
Former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Jay Clayton has discussed what he believes to be the “appropriate way” to regulate crypto. The former regulator added that “the classification issues” about whether a crypto token is a security or a commodity are “overblown,” emphasizing: “Most of those decisions are pretty easy.”
Ex-SEC Chair Discusses Crypto Regulation
Former chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Jay Clayton, discussed cryptocurrency regulation at the Council on Foreign Relations last week.
Responding to a question about what the appropriate way to regulate the crypto industry would be, the former SEC chair stated:
The appropriate way to regulate crypto is to recognize that it’s a technology, not a product.
“It’s a different technology for almost all cases, delivering a product that we already know, sometimes in a more efficient way,” he added.
“I’m very sympathetic … to the entrepreneurs who want to reach out to the public to raise capital, and I’m very sympathetic to the retail investors who want those opportunities,” Clayton also said. Noting the widespread frustration that prevailed during the initial coin offering (ICO) craze and among cryptocurrency enthusiasts, he stressed: “We should be looking at making it easier to raise capital for small or medium-sized companies, and making it easier for nonaccredited investors or even accredited investors to participate in those opportunities.” He continued: “I don’t know if it’s gonna be worth a little or a lot but I’m at a point where I think the market can decide.”
Commenting on the ongoing debate in the U.S. about whether certain crypto tokens are securities or commodities, the former SEC chief opined:
I think the classification issues about whether a product is a security or a commodity are overblown. Most of those decisions are pretty easy.
Commenting on Clayton’s statement claiming that the decision on whether a crypto token is a security or a commodity is easy, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse wrote on social media platform X: “I’m in disbelief.” His company just spent about 0 million fighting the SEC over the status of XRP. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler is of the opinion that all crypto tokens, except bitcoin, are securities.
What do you think about the statements by former SEC Chairman Jay Clayton on crypto regulation? Let us know in the comments section below.
US Senator Bill Hagerty Warns SEC Actions ‘Pave the Way’ for a CBDC
Tennesse U.S. senator Bill Hagerty has warned about the consequences of the recent actions of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against cryptocurrency platforms in the country and the objectives that might be behind these. Hagerty stated that the true motivation behind the lawsuits against Coinbase and Binance is to remove the possible competitors of a federal government-issued central bank digital currency (CBDC).
U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty Believes SEC Is Paving the Way for a CBDC
U.S. senator Bill Hagerty has warned about what he thinks are the true objectives behind the recent legal actions against exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, which have been charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with violating securities laws.
Hagerty, a long-time critic of the SEC’s stance against crypto, believes that the organization is purposefully leading platforms out of the U.S. with a single objective: to establish a single central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Hagerty stated:
Gary Gensler is finally saying the quiet part out loud: the Biden Admin wants to kill market innovation to pave the way for a CBDC, which would give the federal gov. unprecedented insight into your life.
Hagerty, part of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, added he would combat this initiative. Before, he had hinted at some congressional action against Gary Gensler and the SEC for “weaponizing” their roles to kill the cryptocurrency industry.
He declared:
Allowing a company to list publicly and then stonewalling their attempts to register is indefensible.
Before, the senator had criticized the SEC for establishing regulations disguised as guidance, vowing to push back against these actions. On April 2022, Hagerty introduced the Stablecoin Transparency Act, that “aims to provide much-needed clarity without giving the keys away to unaccountable bureaucrats who threaten to choke off innovation,” according to his statements.
Opposition to a CBDC Agenda
The senator is not the only one opposing the hypothetical issuance of a CBDC in the U.S. Florida governor Ron DeSantis has taken an anti-CBDC stance, signing a law that does not allow for national and foreign CBDCs to be classified as money. He stated:
The last thing our country needs is a federally controlled centralized bank digital currency (CBDC) weaponized by the Biden administration.
In April, presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr warned about the possible dangers of issuing a CBDC in the country, explaining that “CBDCs grease the slippery slope to financial slavery and political tyranny.”
What do you think about Bill Hagerty’s remarks on recent SEC actions? Tell us in the comments section below.
Jim Cramer Advises Against Using Binance — Says Crypto Exchange Is ‘Way Too Sketchy’
The host of Mad Money, Jim Cramer, has warned investors about using cryptocurrency exchange Binance, stating that the crypto trading platform is “way too sketchy.” Cramer cited former regulator Timothy Massad, who previously served as chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The regulatory agency recently took action against Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ).
Jim Cramer Warns About Binance
The host of CNBC’s Mad Money show, Jim Cramer, cautioned investors about using cryptocurrency exchange Binance on Friday. Cramer is a former hedge fund manager who co-founded Thestreet.com, a financial news and literacy website. He tweeted:
After listening to Tim Massad on last night’s show (former head of the CFTC), I would not do business with Binance. Just way too sketchy.
Massad, who served as chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from 2014-2017, has been an advocate of stronger cryptocurrency regulations for years. Explaining the charges the CFTC filed against Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Massad described that the crypto trading platform engaged in a “systematic effort to cultivate U.S. business.” He added that Binance allegedly helped “U.S. persons get around restrictions” and failed to comply with know-your-customer (KYC) regulations.
Many people on social media are entertained by Cramer’s tweet. Some ridiculed the Mad Money host for frequently making wrong predictions and took his negative comment about Binance as a bullish signal for the crypto exchange. Before the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, Cramer recommended investors purchase stocks in the two banks.
This was not the first time Cramer has cautioned against Binance. In December last year, he said he would trust his money more in fantasy sports betting platform Draftkings than he would Binance.
Cramer has also been warning investors about investing in cryptocurrencies. Earlier this month, when the price of BTC soared, the Mad Money host said he would sell his bitcoin “right into this rally.” He firmly believes that crypto prices are being manipulated up. Prior to the BTC rally, he advised investors to get out of the crypto. Cramer also expects the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to “do a roundup” of uncompliant crypto firms.
Do you agree with Mad Money host Jim Cramer that Binance is “way too sketchy”? Let us know in the comments section below.