The Daily Hodl

Is Crypto Giant Grayscale Preparing to Support Chainlink?

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 22:15:16 GMT

Crypto sleuths have discovered a document that suggests the crypto asset management giant Grayscale could be gearing up to support Chainlink (LINK).

A popular Chainlink enthusiast on Twitter discovered the documents, and warns the filing could be an elaborate hoax designed to pump the coin.

Grayscale Chainlink Trust (LINK)

Filed on December 18th, 2020 as a Delaware Domestic Statutory Trust

Is it real or just an elaborate larp? Only time will tellhttps://t.co/ej4bYWysYz #Chainlink $LINK pic.twitter.com/bLZP5Jnwvw

— ChainLinkGod.eth (@ChainLinkGod) January 21, 2021

This is not the only altcoin trust bearing the Grayscale name that has surfaced.

Whether they have anything to do with the company or not, a search on Delaware’s Division of Corporations website also shows the “Grayscale Decentraland Trust (MANA)” and the “Grayscale Basic Attention Token Trust (BAT).”

Grayscale’s official line of products offer clients exposure to Bitcoin, Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Horizen (ZEN), Litecoin (LTC), Stellar Lumens (XLM), and Zcash.

The firm also offers the Grayscale Digital Large Cap Fund, which provides exposure to a basket of crypto assets.

In recent months, Grayscale has consistently made headlines for buying huge quantities of Bitcoin on behalf of its institutional clients.

At time of publishing, the firm manages $25.5 billion in crypto. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust is by far its most popular product, with $21 billion in assets under management. Ethereum holds the number two spot at $3.6 billion.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Former Ripple Advisor Tapped To Become Top US Banking Regulator: Report

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 19:30:12 GMT

President Biden is reportedly preparing to nominate a former member of Ripple’s advisory board, Michael Barr, as the Comptroller of the Currency.

The Wall Street Journal reports that if Barr is nominated and confirmed, he will succeed Brian Brooks, who stepped down January 14th, and temporary acting Comptroller of the Currency, Blake Paulson.

The Comptroller of the Currency is the senior official at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and their duties include overseeing 1,200 national banks, federal savings associations, and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks that collectively perform 70% of all banking business in the US.

Barr’s possible nomination comes a month after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced it is suing Ripple for the sale of an unregistered security in the form of XRP. The prospective Comptroller of the Currency nominee joined Ripple Labs’ advisory board in July 2015. He left in 2017.

At the time of joining Ripple Labs as an advisor, Barr said the global payments system is “badly outdated.” He argued that “innovation in payments can help make the financial system safer, reduce cost, and improve access and efficiency for consumers and businesses alike.”

The Wall Street Journal adds that the University of California’s Irvine School of Law professor, Mehrsa Baradaran, was also considered for the position by the Biden administration.

In a U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Community Affairs hearing in July 2019, Baradaran said cryptocurrencies are not the “best solution” for the shortcomings of the traditional financial industry.

“While I share many of the cryptocurrency industry’s concerns with respect to failures of the banking industry, I do not believe cryptocurrency is the best solution to the problems of financial inclusion and equity in banking.”

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JP Morgan Offers Three Reasons Investors Should Consider Bitcoin Despite Its Unconventional and ...

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 18:00:08 GMT

Banking giant JP Morgan is sharing three upsides to betting on the king of crypto.

In an assessment issued by JP Morgan’s Cross-Asset Strategy team, the firm explains the benefits of investing in Bitcoin, despite its large and frequent price fluctuations.

Economist and crypto trader Alex Krüger shared the document on Twitter. In it, the banking firm highlights overall favorable market conditions, the diminishing returns of bonds and conventional hedges, and Bitcoin’s unconventional platform as factors that make the asset worth enduring high volatility.

“Why bother considering an unconventional and high-volatility hedge? Three reasons: Equity and Credit valuations look record-rich for a very young business cycle; conventional hedges like DM Bonds barely serve as insurance when US 10Y rates are near 1%; and some as-yet unseen shocks (materially higher inflation, economically-debilitating cyber attacks or climate catastrophe) could favor an asset that operates outside conventional channels.”

JP Morgan’s release comes just as Bitcoin is showcasing its trademark volatility. The asset is down nearly 11% on the day and 21% on the week, as of writing.

In its publication, JP Morgan also asserts that small allocations to crypto assets can improve portfolio efficiency due to higher returns and their tendency to move somewhat independently of the traditional market. However, the firm predicts that the directional correlation between crypto assets and the traditional equities market may increase as the sector sees mainstream adoption.

In November, JP Morgan revealed that deep pocket investors may be ditching gold ETFs for Bitcoin based on vast differences in the volume of demand for gold ETFs and Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust.

The banking institution posits that if Bitcoin is able to capture a fraction of assets traditionally allocated to gold, BTC will be able to double or even triple in price.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Biden’s Pick for Treasury Secretary Says US Should Encourage Legitimate Uses of Bitcoin and Crypto

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 16:30:05 GMT

US Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen is clarifying her view on the role of crypto in the future of finance.

Earlier this week headlines circulated highlighting Yellen’s skepticism about the crypto sector. During her Senate confirmation hearing, Biden’s Treasury Secretary pick vocalized concern over the potential use of cryptocurrencies for nefarious and illicit purposes.

Now, Yellen’s written remarks to Congress are offering a more comprehensive take on her views.

“I think it important we consider the benefits of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, and the potential they have to improve the efficiency of the financial system.”

Though Yellen does highlight that crypto can be utilized by bad actors, the Treasury Secretary nominee deems it necessary that the administration facilitate legal use of crypto and novel fintech.

“I think it important we consider the benefits of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, and the potential they have to improve the efficiency of the financial system. At the same time, we know they can be used to finance terrorism, facilitate money laundering, and support malign activities that threaten U.S. national security interests and the integrity of the U.S. and international financial systems.

I think we need to look closely at how to encourage their use for legitimate activities while curtailing their use for malign and illegal activities. If confirmed, I intend to work closely with the Federal Reserve Board and the other federal banking and securities regulators on how to implement an effective regulatory framework for these and other fintech innovations.”

According to Reuters, the U.S. Senate Finance Committee scheduled a meeting to discuss Yellen’s appointment Friday, indicating that she could be confirmed as early as this week.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Top Crypto Analyst Says He’s ‘Backing the Truck Up’ To Buy 7 Altcoins As Ethereum and ...

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 13:55:59 GMT

A popular crypto analyst who correctly called Bitcoin’s bear market bottom in 2018 says he’s loading up on several altcoins as Ethereum and Bitcoin suffer price pullbacks.

Smart Contracter tells his 84,000 Twitter followers that BTC could be en route to the $26,000 level after failing to hold onto $33,000.

He’s sharing a chart from a fellow analyst who believes Bitcoin will continue to sink until hitting a bottom at the end of the month.

Source: The EW Guy

Amid the correction, Smart Contracter says he’s buying the dips on Aave (AAVE), Synthetix (SNX), Cream (CREAM), Chainlink (LINK), Uniswap (UNI), SushiSwap (SUSHI) and Perpetual Protocol (PERP).

“Woke up and backed the truck up. Loaded up on almost every single one of my favorite decentralized finance (DeFi) projects.

Wow ya’ll really want tickers hey, I like aave, snx, cream, link, uni, sushi, defi, perp.”

Aave is a peer-to-peer lending platform that’s up 114% in the past 30 days, according to CoinGecko. It’s trading at $180.40 at time of writing.

Cream is another lending platform that Smart Contracter has touted previously, referring to it as the “next Aave.” The crypto asset is trading at $153.44 at time of writing and is up 158.4% in the past 30 days, according to CoinGecko.

SNX is a synthetic asset protocol that’s trading at $13.46 at time of writing. It’s up 85% in the past 30 days, according to CoinGecko. Chainlink is an oracle network that’s trading $19.52 at time of writing and is up 52% in the past month.

Uniswap and SushiSwap are the first and second most-popular decentralized exchanges, respectively. SUSHI is up more than 135% in the past month and is trading at $6.41 at time of writing, according to CoinGecko. UNI is trading at $8.16 and is up more than 117% in the past 30 days.

Perpetual Protocol is a decentralized perpetual contract trading platform that allows users to place long or short bets with leverage of up to 20x on assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), gold, and crude oil. It’s up a whopping 345.7% in the past 30 days and is trading at $4.81 at time of writing, according to CoinGecko.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Second Airdrop Coming to XRP Holders – Here’s the Latest on YieldFlare

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 12:00:20 GMT

A little-known second airdrop is on its way to holders of XRP who are already set to receive the highly anticipated Spark token airdrop from Flare Networks.

In December, the Ripple-backed crypto startup Flare executed a snapshot of participating XRP holders and distributed its Spark (FLR) token to them at a rate of 1.0073 Spark per XRP owned.

In total, Flare is set to distribute 45,827,728,412 Spark tokens to XRP holders in the first half of this year.

The token is part of a new smart contract ecosystem that’s designed to bring Ethereum-type functionality to the XRP Ledger.

Now, Flare Finance – which is built on the Flare blockchain and designed to power swaps, stable currency, yield farming, asset-backed loans, insurance, and yield mining – plans to offer those same participants another airdrop. The company says it will airdrop DAOFlare token (DFLR) to users who receive Spark. DFLR holders can then swap those tokens for YieldFlare, Flare Finance’s official token.

Explains Flare Finance on Twitter,

“One month after the main network launch of the Flare Network, Flare Finance will snapshot all balances of those who hold FLR. 7-10 days after our snapshot, you will be proud owners of both FLR (Spark) and DFLR (DAOFlare).

But wait, you must go one step further to begin interacting with the Flare Finance ecosystem. The last step is to swap your DFLR for YFLR (YieldFlare), the official token of the Flare Finance Ecosystem. Once swapped, endless potential awaits.”

Flare has said the network will launch in the second quarter of 2021.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Quant Analyst Who Predicted Bitcoin Rise to $100,000 Says BTC Whales Quietly Fueling Crypto ...

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 09:29:54 GMT

The CEO of on-chain analysis firm CryptoQuant, Ki Young Ju, says Bitcoin whales are fueling the crypto king’s move to the downside.

In a series of tweets, Ju reports that significant inflows into exchanges from large investors began on Wednesday, which suggests the large BTC holders were ready to sell.

Despite the pullback, Ju remains convinced that BTC is on its way to $100,000.

“Whales are depositing BTC to exchanges. No doubt it’ll hit $100,000 this year, but in the short-term, if we wouldn’t see any significant buying pressure from Coinbase Pro, I think BTC would be bearish.”

Per CryptoQuant’s Exchange Whale Ratio indicator, the level is now above 85%, which indicates a bearish scenario. A level below 85% indicates a bullish scenario.

Source: CryptoQuant/Twitter

Ju adds that outflows from Coinbase normally head to the exchange’s vaults, which hold crypto on behalf of investors.

“It seems Coinbase significant outflows usually go to many cold wallets owned by the Coinbase OTC desk. Pretty good hit rate. Above 10k BTC is significant.”

The crypto analyst further explains that the Coinbase premium, which is the gap between Bitcoin’s price on Coinbase and Binance, is trending lower.

Source: CryptoQuant/Twitter

“There has been buying pressure that’s enough to make a $100 gap between BTCUSD in Coinbase and BTCUSDT in Binance. This might come from high net-worth individuals and institutional investors.”

Ju argues that large investors may be pushing the price lower in order to create a period of consolidation.

“It seems BTC sellers came from Coinbase. Coinbase Premium Index has been a negative value since an hour ago. Coinbase whales might want BTC to go lower for consolidation.”

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Josh Rager Bullish on 10 Altcoins Programmed To ‘Print Money’, Warns Bitcoin’s Big ...

Fri, 22 Jan 2021 08:04:50 GMT

Crypto analyst Josh Rager says he’s patiently waiting for Bitcoin to prove it’s hit a bottom before placing any buy orders.

Rager tells his 100,000 followers on Twitter that the crypto market’s rapid descent is likely not over yet.

“This is why it can be wise to wait. BTC broke a daily level so continuation down, along with bounces in between, can be expected…

Not worried about catching the bottom. Not going to rush into alts or buying more spot BTC or ETH yet.

Happy to buy at a slightly higher price after confirmation of bounce or reversal. Nothing worse than buying something and watching it continue to go lower.”

Source: Josh Rager/Twitter

Rager says Bitcoin may have a lot more room to fall, but won’t sink below the $19,000 level.

As for the altcoin market, Rager is responding to a query from Real Vision CEO Raoul Pal, who’s asking crypto Twitter to pitch their favorite altcoins.

“Danger! I’m going to add a basket of 10 alts to my BTC and ETH bets, using this dip.

Shill me your coin but with a quality paragraph WHY I should look at it. My knowledge base is low, so treat me like the idiot I am (nicely).”

Rager tells Pal he’s bullish on ten DeFi “blue chip” assets, meaning he believes the projects could play a fundamental role in the future of the industry.

Rager names the yield aggregator Yearn.finance (YFI), exchange token SushiSwap (SUSHI), exchange token Uniswap (UNI), non-custodial money market protocol Aave (AAVE), synthetic asset token SNX, lending token Compound (COMP), exchange liquidity token Curve DAO (CRV), cross-chain platform Alpha Finance (ALPHA), cross-chain platform THORChain (RUNE) and the data feed provider Chainlink (LINK).

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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How Traders Are Gaining by Holding Crypto: Staking Tron (TRX) and Cardano (ADA)

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 23:15:47 GMT

OUR STORY DISCOVER CRYPTOCURRENCIES NEWS AND UPDATES

If like many people you are interested in the cryptocurrency market but the frequent price fluctuations seem too risky, crypto staking is an investing strategy that you may want to consider. Staking actually allows you to grow your crypto investment over time, simply by holding the supported cryptoasset – no matter if the market goes up or down.

What is crypto staking?

To put it simply, think of staking as “cryptocurrency mining” without the need for any hardware; or in more traditional terms, a lot like depositing money in a bonus interest savings account. Staking acts as a support to the operation and security of the blockchain network to which the token belongs, while offering a reward for your investment. This reward is in the form of more of that cryptoasset, paid automatically and monthly according to the percentage yield.

Staking Cardano

Cardano, also known as ADA, is a fully open-source, decentralized public blockchain and cryptocurrency project. In July 2020, Cardano’s Shelley upgrade was implemented to make the cryptoasset’s protocol completely autonomous by decentralizing its internal operational activities. More significantly, the most anticipated feature of this update was the introduction of staking for ADA.

Fundamentally, Cardano works like any other cryptocurrency staking system. By holding and staking its tokens, you assist the network with validating blocks on the protocol and receive a return on your investment. However, Cardano does not permit solo staking – you can either opt to run a staking pool that other participants can join, or delegate your holdings to someone else’s pool. This is to ensure that there are enough node operators within the network.

So, how can an individual crypto investor stake Cardano without all the hassle? Through a reliable and regulated platform. eToro is one of the first regulated platforms to offer a staking service for Cardano (ADA).

eToro’s staking service is a process that allows you to earn staking rewards on Cardano every month, automatically and with absolutely no action required on your part. The staked cryptoassets remain yours and are held in your investment portfolio. eToro executes the entire staking procedure for you, protecting your assets against exposure to any additional risks and handling all the necessary procedures behind the scenes. Furthermore, eToro’s staking rewards are among the most generous in the market, offering from 75% and up to 90% of the staking yield, with complete transparency regarding the way your monthly rewards are calculated.

Staking TRON

In addition to Cardano, eToro also offers staking for TRON (TRX). Justin Son, TRON’s founder, said,

“We are thrilled that eToro has chosen TRON as one of the first assets to be offered on their new staking service. Services such as eToro’s staking service takes the complexity and confusion out of the staking process, and makes it accessible to everyone.”

Again, the process for earning your monthly staking rewards for TRON is as easy as just holding your coins in your eToro portfolio.

eToro, a multi-asset trading platform with over 10 million registered users, is working on offering future staking rewards for other cryptoassets soon, including NEO, Tezos, EOS and ETH 2.0. You can check out eToro’s entire offering of seamless crypto services. Sign up and open an eToro account for free here.

For more information about staking, click here.

This post originally appeared on the eToro blog.

Cryptoasset investing is unregulated in most EU countries and the UK. No consumer protection. Your capital is at risk.

This is a marketing communication and should not be taken as investment advice, personal recommendation, or an offer of, or solicitation to buy or sell, any financial instruments. This material has been prepared without having regard to any particular investment objectives or financial situation, and has not been prepared in accordance with the legal and regulatory requirements to promote independent research. Any references to past performance of a financial instrument, index or a packaged investment product are not, and should not be taken as a reliable indicator of future results.

All contents within this report are for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. eToro makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared utilizing publicly-available information.

Cryptoassets are volatile instruments which can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading cryptoassets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework. Your capital is at risk.

This content is sponsored and should be regarded as promotional material. Opinions and statements expressed herein are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of The Daily Hodl. The Daily Hodl is not a subsidiary of or owned by any ICOs, blockchain startups or companies that advertise on our platform. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in any ICOs, blockchain startups or cryptocurrencies. Please be advised that your investments are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility.

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Ripple Executives Predict What’s Coming for Crypto in 2021

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 22:15:45 GMT

Members of Ripple’s senior management team are unveiling a set of crypto predictions for the year ahead.

In a new blog post, the executives offer their forecast on what’s next for crypto regulation, decentralized finance (DeFi), central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and how issues of scalability and sustainability will play out in the space.

Ripple’s general counsel, Stu Alderoty, believes the growth of crypto in the US hinges on friendly crypto regulation as the sector continues to mature.

Alderoty predicts that President Joe Biden’s administration will prioritize crypto regulation, hoping that “intelligent, well thought-out regulations” can help “unleash innovation and further mainstream adoption” of cryptocurrencies in the US.

Alderoty does not directly address the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission’s allegations that Ripple illegally sold XRP as an unregistered security, though he recently said the company will soon issue a formal response.

As for the fate of CBDCs, Ripple’s vice president of central bank engagements James Wallis believes the trend of digital currencies being pegged to fiat currencies will continue to evolve.

“Over the course of 2021, I expect to see greater evolution of cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and CBDCs with each firm establishing their place in finance and payments through more defined use cases.”

In the DeFi space, Ripple’s head of DeFi, Michael Zochowski, anticipates that the “truly useful” projects will grow their userbase as early projects consolidate, get acquired or shut down. Zochowski further predicts that Ethereum’s market share in the DeFi space will fall this year.

“I believe at least 25% of the value deployed in DeFi by the end of 2021 will be on networks other than Ethereum.”

Asheesh Birla, the general manager of Ripple’s institutional payment-providers network RippleNet, predicts that the status quo that traditional financial institutions enjoy will continue to face a growing threat from financial technology and cryptocurrency firms.

“The tide is turning. It’s possible that we could even see a fintech or cryptocurrency company acquire a traditional financial institution this coming year.”

Concerning scalability and sustainability, Ripple’s chief technology officer David Schwartz foresees a move away from the Proof-of-Work technologies.

“The fact of the matter is that PoW systems consume a lot of resources and energy. They also feature an inevitable bend towards centralization over time as the miners with the cheapest power become key stakeholders. 2021 will see technical innovations continue to improve blockchains…”

In looking ahead at the potential impact of crypto on society, the general manager of Ripple’s developer platform RippleX, Monica Long, envisages that 2021 will be the year the initial goal of crypto will be realized.

“In 2021 we’ll see crypto make good on its original promise to remake finance as more accessible and equitable for the world’s underserved.”

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Brian Brooks Says Crypto, DeFi and Stablecoins Necessary as Money Supply Goes to the Moon

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 19:30:40 GMT

Brian Brooks is touting the benefits of crypto, decentralized finance (DeFi) and stablecoins as he exits his role as Acting Comptroller of the Currency.

In a farewell Twitter thread the day before he leaves office, the Chief of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is calling crypto, DeFi and stablecoins essential elements of the future of finance.

Brooks tells the crypto community that though there may be uncertainty in the sector, its advancements will prove necessary in the coming years to usurp power from banking institutions and rectify the issues caused by increasing M1 money supplies.

“Crypto? Scary to some today but necessary tomorrow as M1 money supply goes to the moon.

DeFi? Scary to some today but necessary tomorrow as some banks start telling you what you can and can’t do with your own money.

Stablecoins? Scary to some today but necessary tomorrow if we want the dollar to remain a competitive global medium of exchange.”

Brooks emphasizes the importance of making room for disruptive fintech and the danger of protecting traditional financial institutions to a fault.

“I’m incredibly optimistic that our big, brawling, risk-taking, dynamic country will continue to lead and succeed — but not by protecting powerful incumbents. Success will come from disruptive ideas that are scary today but expected and even necessary tomorrow.”

To combat what Brooks sees as undue power in the hands of large corporations, he calls for the allowance of a decentralized internet that redistributes power to the people.

“…Sometimes institutions decide people’s ideas or economic choices are wrong, and then try to suppress those ideas or choices.

Hence decentralization: an *open* internet and an *open* financial system put[s] power back in the hands of the actual people for whose benefit government and corporations are supposed to exist.”

During his term, Brooks has led the OCC in a crypto-friendly direction. This year, Brooks granted banking institutions the right to custody crypto and under his leadership, Kraken became the first firm to be granted a US bank charter to offer crypto services.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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Crypto Regulation Will Accelerate Stampede of Money Into Bitcoin, Says Michael Saylor

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 18:00:37 GMT

The co-founder and CEO of MicroStrategy, Michael Saylor, says increasing regulatory scrutiny of the crypto industry will only make Bitcoin stronger.

In a new interview with Salt Talks, Saylor responds to recent comments from President Biden’s Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen, who said she’s concerned about the illicit use of crypto assets.

Saylor says he believes new rules regulating the industry will ultimately be bullish for BTC.

“To the extent that we have regulated entities that are dealing in Bitcoin, I think it’s just going to accelerate the stampede of institutional money into Bitcoin.”

Saylor points out the fact that Bitcoin purchases are already taking place on regulated exchanges that are compliant with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) laws put in place to prevent money laundering, terrorism financing and other crimes.

“Everybody’s buying Bitcoin on regulated exchanges, you know. You know what it’s like to get like a New York-regulated license to sell Bitcoin, they all have to comply with KYC, they all have to comply with AML – anti-money laundering regulations, know your customer regulations.”

Saylor says regulation of the industry is a reflection of crypto’s increasing mainstream adoption, and the work governments are doing to ensure they have a grip on the flow of money in and out of the space, just as they do in traditional finance.

“The implication is you’re going to see large banks and brokerages that are already complying with AML and KYC regulations that will continue to comply with those things. And all of the money that’s currently sitting in Apple stock and Amazon and sovereign debt and cash accounts and real estate indexes, that is subject to AML and KYC regulations, will continue to be subject to it. And it’s going to float into some digital gold…

And should the central regulators decide that banks have to comply with AML and KYC regulations with regard to a crypto asset in the same way that they would comply with those with regard to a stock asset, a real estate asset, a bond asset or a commodity asset, I don’t think it’s earth-shattering. I don’t think it’s going to be negative for the industry. In fact, I think it’s the opposite…

I don’t think Bitcoin needs to be unregulated to be successful. I think Bitcoin just needs to be better than gold to be successful.”

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Coinbase Bump Alert: US Exchange Announces Support for Crypto Asset on Custody Platform

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 16:30:32 GMT

A new Ethereum-based token is receiving a big boost from Coinbase.

The top US exchange just announced that it is now supporting deposits and withdrawals of Rally (RLY).

Coinbase is an investor in Rally, which is an incentivization platform designed to allow people to easily create their own branded cryptocurrency on the Ethereum blockchain.

The network is designed to connect content creators and fans, who can buy, donate and hold their favorite creator’s coin.

The Rally network uses its RLY governance token to compensate users, influencers, and local ambassadors, settle transactions anywhere in the world, as well as vote on community proposals.

Since its addition to the platform, RLY token has rallied 10.4% from $0.31 to $0.35 according to CoinGecko at time of publishing.

The project is also backed by a16z, Battery, Canaan, Kinetic, 1confirmation, Altos Ventures, SparkLabs and The House Fund.

Rally is the second crypto asset to be supported by Coinbase Custody in a month. Injective Protocol (INJ) surged 33% in late December after it was added to the platform.

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Top Crypto Lawyers Predict Outcome of SEC’s Case Against Ripple and XRP

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 13:55:21 GMT

Two prominent lawyers in the crypto space are offering their take on the likely outcome of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s lawsuit against Ripple.

Stephen Palley, a blockchain and digital currency lawyer at Anderson Kill, and Gabriel Shapiro, a decentralized technology attorney at BSV Law, spoke about the lawsuit on the Unchained Podcast.

The SEC alleges Ripple illegally sold XRP as an unregistered security upon its launch, and maintains that the digital asset is a security to this day. The SEC also filed actions against Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple’s chief executive, and Chris Larsen, the company’s co-founder.

Palley predicts the San Francisco payment company will lose.

“This is a prediction. I guess I could be wrong, I have to hedge because I’m a lawyer. Ripple’s going to lose. Garlinghouse and Larsen are going to lose. They’ll monkey around, they’ll file motions to dismiss, they’ll be denied. They’ll probably do some discovery, maybe they take some depositions. Presumably in the enforcement action, they took depositions… and they’ll probably file cross-motions for summary judgement, and they’re going to lose.

Unless there’s a limitations argument or unless they get a sympathetic judge who reads through this and is convinced that this was not an ongoing securities offering. They lose and they probably settle.”

Shapiro largely agrees with Palley, though he’s less certain on the outcome for Garlinghouse and Larsen.

“I think Ripple will lose. I would say I’m less certain that the founders will end up having personal liability.

We’ll have to see about that. But certainly, Ripple will lose, in my mind. And I’m more just curious about what the remedy will end up being.”

According to a recent report citing sources familiar with Ripple’s strategy, the company will argue that its payment products do not depend on the digital asset, that news stories about Ripple have not impacted the price of XRP and that the cryptocurrency is fully liquid without the need for Ripple’s involvement.

A pretrial hearing on the lawsuit is set for February 22nd.

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Crypto Analysts Outline Crucial Levels for Ethereum After Failure To Burst Above All-Time High

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 12:00:19 GMT

Crypto analysts are tracing the potential paths forward for Ethereum after the second largest crypto asset came breathtakingly close to breaking its all-time high of about $1,432, which was set back in January of 2018.

Trader Michaël van de Poppe says relatively low levels of volume indicate Ethereum is now set to encounter a move to the downside.

“We can see that Ether broke out yesterday, but the breakout is not as significant as we wanted it to be. In higher time frames as we can see here, it’s looking like we are topping out… The recent break out is not showing the volume that we want it to be showing and that’s why we are going to define the crucial levels to watch. If those crucial levels do not hold as support we are likely to see a breakdown again in another range bound construction.

$1,280 is a critical level for Ethereum to hold. If that holds, we could continue running and we might be hitting $1,600 quite soon.

However, if $1,280 is lost the next level to watch is the $1,080 area. If that is lost, in the worst case, we are going to look at $900 or maybe even $760.”

After a healthy correction, van de Poppe expects Ethereum to finally break through its all-time high and soar to $2,500.

A pseudonymous analyst known in the industry as Capo is also expecting a correction, but he believes it will be very short-lived.

“ETH $2,500 sooner than you think. Mark this tweet.”

Capo shares a chart indicating that he expects Ethereum to retest the $1,080 area at the start of February and then reach the $2,500 target around mid-February.

Source: il Capo/Twitter

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European Commission and ECB Begin Broad Review of Digital Euro

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 09:29:18 GMT

The European Commission (EC) and the European Central Bank (ECB) are joining forces to work through a range of key legal, policy, and technical questions that may arise as the Eurosystem moves towards the introduction of a digital euro.

In a new statement, the EC and ECB say that they are forming a joint task force that will look into the policy, legal and technical aspects of Europe’s very own central bank digital currency (CBDC).

“The ECB and the European Commission services are jointly reviewing at technical level a broad range of policy, legal and technical questions emerging from a possible introduction of a digital euro, taking into account their respective mandates and independence provided for in the Treaties.”

The ECB’s initiative comes as Europeans increasingly move away from cash towards digital means of payment. In a comprehensive report on the potentials and pitfalls of a digital euro, the ECB says a digital euro could combine the safety and stability of central bank money with the efficiency of modern digital financial technology.

ECB board member Fabio Panetta said in October that concerns relating to the technical and legal aspects of a CBDC need to be ironed out in order to achieve legal tender status. In addition to ensuring that the digital euro is simple and easy to use, Panetta says it should be rooted in citizens’ trust.

“To be successful, a digital euro would also have to enjoy strong support from the public. It would be a digital symbol of progress and integration in Europe. And it would support the international role of the euro.”

The ECB launched extensive public consultations on October 12th, gathering over 8,000 responses from various stakeholders.

According to a preliminary analysis of the responses, privacy ranked highest among the requested features of a digital euro, garnering 41% of the votes, followed by security and pan-European reach.

Bringing together experts from several government institutions, the task force is set to publish a comprehensive analysis of the public consultations and complete extensive preparatory work by mid-2021, which will serve as an important factor in deciding whether or not to fully pursue a digital euro.

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Crypto Trader Says Two Altcoins No One’s Talking About Are Set To Explode in 2021

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 08:04:15 GMT

Analyst and trader Tyler Swope has his eye on two altcoins that he believes could explode when they hit the market.

Swope tells his 173,000 YouTube subscribers that a decentralized finance (DeFi) asset and a data privacy project are flying under the radar.

The first project is Centrifuge and its Radical Token (RAD). Centrifuge is a DeFi project that provides access to bankless liquidity.

Says Swope,

“The reason I love this project is it combines all the things I like about crypto into one sweet package. Ethereum, DeFi, NFTs, Polkadot, stablecoins — Centrifuge uses it all…

The first major project from Centrifuge is the Tinlake DApp. With this, asset originators can collateralize invoices, royalties and other real-world assets and then gain instant liquidity with that collateral through DeFi and stablecoins. Asset originators are real-world businesses with the real-world assets who need access to capital now instead of wading through the typical invoice or royalty or other business payment process. And these real-world assets are tokenized into collateral with NFTs.”

The Tinlake DApp lives on the Ethereum chain, however, Swope highlights that Centrifuge’s governance and other functions will happen on Substrate, one of the few live Polkadot chains.

There are a few ways to earn Centrifuge’s governance token RAD, though many are involved and are not available to US investors. Swope says US investors may be able to earn RAD more easily in the future, citing an interview with Centrifuge’s head of token design.

Swope is also looking at the data privacy protocol HOPR.

“I like HOPR because they are partnered with Avado on multiple levels and I like HOPR because they are doing multiple testnets – xDai, Matic and [Binance]. That means it’s going to work on all those layers, including Ethereum – enhancing privacy for all the DApps built on those layers.

And with the partners and investors it has established, when the mainnet goes live it’s going to be highly used – a recipe for success in my eyes. The only risk is it’s a privacy token.”

Swope points viewers to a Medium post that tells potential users how and when they will be able to get the HOPR token.

Hopr says that anyone who runs a node and stakes HOPR will be able to earn the token, however, the team is not yet ready to announce a date for its mainnet launch.

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Top Trader Says He’s Heavily Investing in New Crypto Asset – Here’s the Scoop on Akash Network

Wed, 20 Jan 2021 22:15:35 GMT

A popular crypto analyst and trader says he’s accumulating a new crypto asset in large numbers.

The pseudonymous crypto strategist, known in the industry as Altcoin Psycho, explains to his 83,700 Twitter followers why he’s bullish on Akash Network (AKT).

“I’ve got my new favorite altcoin.

AKT – Akash Network

1) Live main net w/ thriving dev network
2) US, dox’d team
3) Cosmos

I’ve been quietly accumulating HEAVY. Firmly believe this will be a top 100 project. Look at the team, you’ll see why I’m bullish.”

Built on the Cosmos hub, the Akash Network aims to disrupt the cloud computing industry, which is dominated by Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud.

To achieve its vision, the project plans to leverage the cloud capacity of millions of data centers to create the world’s first decentralized cloud computing marketplace.

Akash Network says it could help developers reduce their cloud computing costs by a factor of 10 while compute providers can raise their earnings by up to 4x.

AKT, Akash Network’s native asset, serves as the protocol’s governance token. Holders can also stake the token to help keep the network secure in exchange for rewards.

Akash Network’s advisory group features former BitGo chief executive Will O’Brien and former Blockfolio lead architect Brandon Goldman.

AKT has more than doubled in price in the last seven days, soaring from $0.77 to $1.55 today, according to CoinGecko.

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What Will Happen After the Last Bitcoin Is Mined?

Wed, 20 Jan 2021 19:30:57 GMT

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The cryptocurrency world continues to mature and grow, proving to the traditional financial system that it’s time for a change. Leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin is hitting all-time highs, setting new records. But we all know that Bitcoin’s emission is limited to 21 million coins and every four years, Bitcoin is subjected to halving, which reduces the miners’ reward by half.

Let’s think about what will happen to the global crypto ecosystem when the last coin is mined – how the industry will be transformed and whether it’ll be able to take root in the world of new finance.

The economic model, or a story about sad miners

So, there will be 21 million Bitcoin, each mined in about 10 minutes now. Miners initially received a reward of 50 coins for the new block production, and today the reward is now 6.25 BTC. Another halving will take place in another four years, and then miners will receive even less until all Bitcoin are released to the market. In 2140, only legends will remain about how it was possible to get Bitcoin without buying and making millions on mining.

But as sad as it may sound, this is the essence of Bitcoin’s economic model. On the day mining stops, the new block hunters will shut off their equipment and breathe a sigh of relief, which will mean the end of the race. Interestingly, the Bitcoin system will not sink into oblivion but will continue to exist in the already formed economic realities as a financial instrument. The cryptocurrency will be used in the daily routine – to pay for products and services, for transfers around the world, etc.

This will be the day when Bitcoin becomes a real adult and begins its world tour in the digital gold status. All coins have been mined, the market feels the deficit’s formation and, as a result, the coin’s rate will confidently rush up.

I’d like to consider an interesting hypothesis, which may have been the basis of Satoshi Nakamoto’s idea in 2009. At that time, the total amount of all money reached $50 trillion. Dividing this money by 21 million (total BTC), we get approximately $2.381 million for one coin. It sounds strange, but we’ll consider this as the maximum plan for the new economic system implementation.

I agree that the sum is rather big, and it may seem that Bitcoin can be compared with gold only for storing large amounts. But we also know that Bitcoin is better than gold since it can be used as a payment method because BTC is divided not into hundredths but a hundred-millionth. And so, the possible rate of $2.381 million is divided by 100 million, and we get the Satoshi rate equal to 2.381 US cents. Such an idea fits perfectly into the active life of future finances, and before its possible success, humanity will survive another 31 halvings.

Let’s be realistic

I draw your attention to the fact that $2.381 million for one BTC is an ideal picture in an ideal world. But I don’t see unicorns around. Therefore, we return to reality. There are many lost Bitcoins in the world – someone forgot the keys to the wallet, someone lost access to them and someone completely forgot that back in 2010, he had BTC.

Thus, there will be fewer than 21 million coins in the world, and new ones will not appear. The price will go up faster, but it’s unlikely to reach $2 million even by 2200. But against this background, fraud will also intensify – speculation and new schemes will lure money from honest people, fake Bitcoin will appear, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. The regulators will face a difficult task – to adapt the legislation to the new realities, or better – to develop universal international law because cryptocurrencies are already one of globalization’s facets.

There are several more scenarios for the development of events in the crypto world after all BTC will be available for transactions. By the way, the most likely of them is an increase in the cost of commissions since miners will rush to grab this tidbit – because there will be no opportunity to make money on mining.

The industry is also discussing the option of making changes to the Bitcoin code in order to increase the coins’ emission. But even if someone succeeds, the cryptocurrency will crash as inflation will destroy its economic model. Miners will begin to actively mine BTC amid falling rates, which will happen due to users’ distrust of the code’s immutability. Thus, the capitalization of the first cryptocurrency will tend to zero, and the industry will devalue in a matter of months.

However, I believe that the most likely scenario is the switch of miners’ attention to other assets that work on algorithms that don’t require expensive equipment. Of course, earnings will not be as large as in the early years of Bitcoin’s development, but there will be more alternative coins on the market. Based on this position, we can confidently predict a new wave of mining popularity.

Conclusion

I heard an opinion from people outside the crypto world that after the end of the classic mining era, cryptocurrencies will lose their popularity and become unnecessary. However, let’s compare them with fiat funds – today, cash seems to be something from the past. Do you think that in 2100 there will still be those who will use papers? Moreover, humanity strives for independence from states and the destruction of financial borders. Crypto assets are ideal as a modern financial instrument.

Of course, Bitcoin mining is a complex process that depends on many factors. That’s why there are many theories regarding the BTC future and we can only guess what will happen after the last Bitcoin will be mined. And don’t forget about the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, who may suddenly appear again and completely change the entire industry. How exactly? It’s not clear, but the situation will be very interesting.

Oleg Kiyan

CMO at WhiteBIT crypto exchange. Creative yet data-driven marketing executive with 6+ years in digital marketing, entrepreneurial mindset and deep SEO expertise. Conceptual, analytical and hands-on strategist with expertise in leveraging market research and customer insights to create high-impact branding and marketing initiatives that drive positive ROI, revenue growth, market penetration and brand recognition. Find him on LinkedIn.

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Janet Yellen Says She’s Concerned About Illicit Use of Crypto Assets, Chainalysis Finds 0. ...

Wed, 20 Jan 2021 18:00:52 GMT

Former Federal Reserve chair and Treasury secretary nominee Janet Yellen is addressing the potential use of cryptocurrency for illicit financing.

Speaking at a confirmation hearing with the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, Yellen answered questions from Senator Maggie Hassan about the potential for terrorists to use digital assets to fund illicit activities.

“Cryptocurrencies are a particular concern. I think many are used, at least in a transaction sense, mainly for illicit financing and I think we really need to examine ways in which we can curtail their use and make sure that anti-money laundering doesn’t occur through those channels.”

The comments come as the blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis releases its latest overview on the real-world use of crypto among bad actors. It finds that crypto-related crime dropped to 0.34% of total transaction volume in 2020, down from 2.1% in 2019.

In addition, a study from SWIFT released in September found that criminals prefer to use cash for money laundering by a wide margin.

“Identified cases of laundering through cryptocurrencies remain relatively small compared to the volumes of cash laundered through traditional methods.”

As technologies behind cryptocurrencies advance, Yellen says regulatory authorities must also evolve along with it to combat terror financing.

“The technologies to accomplish this change over time. We need to make sure that our methods for dealing with these matters with tech terrorist financing change along with changing technology.”

A report released in December from the blockchain analysis firm Elliptic found that individual and small cell terrorist supporters have “been identified as attempting to fund activity using cryptocurrencies in some limited instances.”

The group says criminals are looking to exploit a lack of regulation in the international cryptocurrency ecosystem, and notes the FBI is concerned criminals could adopt privacy coins like Monero. But the firm also cautions against unsubstantiated and hyperbolic claims on how often crypto assets are used for crime.

“Cryptocurrencies are frequently thought of in connection to their potential use in money laundering and terrorist financing. But public discussion surrounding cryptocurrency crime trends is often anecdotal, sensationalized, and of little practical use to compliance officers at cryptocurrency businesses.”

Speaking at the Canada FinTech Forum in Montreal in 2018, Yellen flatly said that Bitcoin is not useful as a currency or store of value.

“It has long been thought that for something to be a useful currency, it needs to be a stable source of value, and Bitcoin is anything but. It’s not used for a lot of transactions, it’s not a stable source of value, and it’s not an efficient means of processing payments. It’s very slow in handling payments. It has difficulty because of its very decentralized nature.”

Back in 2015, Yellen encouraged a regulatory approach to digital assets that doesn’t stifle innovation.

“The costs and benefits of developing new statutes or regulations related to digital currencies should be weighed carefully. New regulation, such as the creation of special licenses for digital currency providers, may work to strengthen the soundness of virtual currency schemes and increase public trust in the products, as some may refrain from investing in or using digital currencies due to a perceived legal uncertainty and/or lack of consumer protection.

On the other hand, new regulation would need to be flexible enough to address effectively the evolving nature of digital currency systems and technology while not stifling innovation.”

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