Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Bitcoin breaks $21,000 alongside $255m of 24-hour spot purchases

Bitcoin has surpassed the $21,000 mark.　　BTC was worth $21,083 at 12:59 a.m. UTC on January 14, according to Coingecko data. Its market capitalization was $403 billion. This indicates a 12% growth in just 24 hours.　　Bitcoin prices for Jan. 13-14 via CoinGecko (time in PST)　　According to data, $245 million in shorts were liquidated in the last 24 hours, while $255 million in Bitcoin was purchased on spot markets today.　　There are no noteworthy events that could have clearly boosted investor activity. Rather, shifting investor mood may be attributable to a lack of bad news, as well as the notion that huge catastrophes such as FTXs demise are becoming a thing of the past.　　Furthermore, todays gains reflect continued growth over the last few days. Positive anticipation and sentiment surrounding a Consumer Price Index (CPI) report appears to contribute to Bitcoins price gain this week.　　The round figure of $20,000 also indicates a psychological barrier, and as such, investors may be encouraged that Bitcoin has overcome it.　　Bitcoin normally leads the crypto market, and its success today contributed to the overall expansion of the crypto market. The whole crypto market cap has increased by 8% in the last 24 hours, reaching $1.02 trillion.　　Today, Bitcoin and the

2023-01-14Deep Dive

Hong Kong will restrict cryptocurrency trading by retail investors to just "highly liquid" products.

The majority of individuals are aware that the cryptocurrency market can result in significant losses quickly as well as quick rewards. Knowing this, organizations and businesses attempting to implement this technology are required to keep the safety of their customers in mind.　　According to the news of the day, Hong Kong is implementing a strategy to give priority to consumer rights by restricting individual investors to only trade “Highly Liquid” Crypto Assets. On January 11, this information was made public during the Asia Financial Forum.　　Hong Kong Will Compile A List Of Crypto Assets For Retail Investors　　According to Julia Leung Fung-yee, CEO of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Hong Kong regulators are taking substantial steps to bring crypto to the territory. To enable retail investors to trade only “highly liquid” assets with a licensing law, it includes shortlisting cryptocurrency assets.　　Leung also mentioned that the SFC will publish a discussion paper later this quarter with further information on the products and requirements for individual investors to trade in assets. Leung made these remarks on Wednesday at the Asia Financial Forum. The SFC will also publish guidelines for the licensing requirements for exchanges of virtual assets concurrently.　　Leung noted the drawback of only allowing

2023-01-13Deep Dive

In Hong Kong, Samsung will introduce a Bitcoin ETF.

Big players in the technology business are becoming interested as the blockchain and cryptocurrency industries are growing rapidly. One such company is the South Korean electronics giant Samsung, which announced today the creation of a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Hong Kong.　　Based on a statement by the Korean media outlet Fortune Korea posted on January 12, Samsung explicitly noted that the registration of the “Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF” on the Hong Kong stock market should occur on January 13.　　The registration, which followed the establishment of two other ETFs by the electronics giant - “Samsung Blockchain Technology ETF” and “Samsung Asia Pacific Metabus ETF,” that were officially launched last year - will be conducted by the businesss financial division, Samsung Asset Management.　　By trading in Bitcoin futures items listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), particularly the CME Bitcoin Futures and CME Micro-Bitcoin Futures, the newly-listed ETF will monitor the spot price of Bitcoin.　　Samsung Asset Management Hong Kongs head, Park Seong-jin, commented on the progress by stating that:　　“The Samsung Bitcoin ETF is a competitive product that reflects the know-how and risk management experience of Samsungs long-term operation of the futures-based ETFs, which will represent a new option for investors interested

2023-01-13Deep Dive

Coinbase will end most of its operations in Japan.

In accordance with a latest comment by Nana Murugesan, the firms vice president for business development and international, the U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase will reduce the majority of its activities in Japan.　　In a Wednesday conversation, Murugesan stated:　　“Weve decided to wind down the majority of our operations in Japan, which led to eliminating most of the roles in our Japan entity.” Considering the Japanese entitys merger and acquisition operations, he chose not to remark.　　Murugesan did not disclose how several Japanese workers are impacted by the news, but he did indicate that a limited group will continue to be dedicated to ensuring the safety of clients assets.　　　　The Nasdaq-listed Coinbase exchange was authorized to serve Japanese consumers on June 18 last year, following filing with the countrys Financial Services Agency (FSA), the countrys top financial watchdog.　　Murugesan highlighted that Coinbase Japan is in a transformation process till negotiations with Japans FSA are completed. Nao Kitazawa, the entitys chief executive officer, is pushing the discussions and will make his announcement “afterward.”　　A busy 2023 for Coinbase　　Just two weeks into the New Year, and Coinbase is already hardly ever out of the news. The New York Department of Financial Services and the corporation reached an agreement last

2023-01-13Deep Dive

Hard Fork Coming to Polygon's Blockchain

A wide variety of economic output, including NFT marketplaces, gaming, and the expanding DeFi ecosystem, can be found on the Ethereum blockchain. Due to its compatibility with smart contracts that can be employed to create a broad range of applications, Ethereum is ideally suited for this task.　　Nevertheless, as these applications gain more traction, more activities are added to the Ethereum blockchain. As a consequence, transaction costs, or “gas,” might occasionally increase to the level where making quick or frequent deposits can become unprofitable.　　Enter Polygon, a “Layer 2” scaling solution (or “sidechain”) that has developed to offer users cheaper and quicker transactions. Alongside the original Ethereum blockchain, it functions as a quick secondary blockchain. By “bridging” some of your cryptocurrency to Polygon, you may use it to access a variety of well-known crypto applications that were previously restricted to the primary Ethereum blockchain.　　　　A planned hard fork to Polygons proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain has been disclosed as part of the developments scalability of Ethereum. The software change is expected to occur on January 17 if approved, and it will manage gas price increases and chain rearrangement (reorgs). The Polygon team was initially made aware of the hard fork conversation in December 2022.　　What lies

2023-01-13Deep Dive

Binance claims that the BUSD peg was maintained with flaws.

Bringing Up The Problems With The BUSD Peg　　After an examination of the Binance Smart Chain was published, concerns about the pegging to the Binance BUSD initially surfaced. Patrick Tan highlighted that there have been instances in the past where BUSD, and more especially the BUSD on BSC, have not been supported by an equal number in dollars.　　　　For those who do not know, Paxos and Ethereum collaborated to produce the initial iteration of BUSD on the Ethereum network. This stablecoin is governed and actually endorsed by an equivalent amount of dollars. However, Binance started minting BUSD on BSC after launching its very own blockchain in 2020.　　Because the BUSD on Ethereum was backed by dollars, it was planned that the BUSD on Ethereum would serve as security for the BUSD issued on BSC. This would imply that a comparable quantity of the stablecoin would be maintained in an Ethereum wallet for every unit of BUSD that was created on BSC.　　The issue surfaced when it was discovered that, on many occasions, the Ethereum wallet that was meant to house the equal BUSD issued on BSC instead held less BUSD than that of the stablecoins floating on the Binance Chain.　　Simply put, this means that

2023-01-12Deep Dive

Gemini Terminates the Crypto Earn Program in the Wake of DCG Collapse

The flagship Earn programs interest-bearing item has been formally discontinued by Gemini. On January 10, this message was distributed through email. The existing Master Loan Agreements between Gemini and Genesis Global Capital, which was in charge of managing the Earn program on behalf of its clients, have been terminated.　　　　This action by Gemini is a continuation of the widely publicized conflict with Genesis and itself. Gemini stated in the email it issued to its clients on Tuesday that it was ending the programme in an effort to convince Genesis to pay back the $900 million the firm owed the exchanges users.　　The email noted:　　“We are writing to let you know that Gemini—acting as agent on your behalf—has terminated the Master Loan Agreement (MLA) between you and Genesis Global Capital, LLC (Genesis), effective as of January 8, 2023.”　　Also stated by the business, “This officially terminates the Earn Program and requires Genesis to return all assets outstanding in the program. Existing redemption requests are not impacted and continue to await fulfillment by Genesis.”　　As previously indicated, the email claimed that the company would arrive at a solution for the clients who want to reclaim their assets and that the current cash withdrawals wont be impacted.　　The

2023-01-12Deep Dive

As Binance's bleeding worsens, the Voyager Acquisition is granted.

As the exchange experiences substantial withdrawals, a U.S. bankruptcy court has authorized Voyager Digitals planned $1 billion transfer of its operations to Binance.US.　　The United States also approved the agreement. Michael Wiles, a bankruptcy judge in New York, said Voyager might ask for creditor approval of the deal. The insolvent cryptocurrency lender stated that it will work to have the deals national security approval expedited. In the absence of a subsequent court hearing, the court declared the sale to be complete.　　　　CFIUS issues　　Attorney for Voyager Joshua Sussberg addressed issues raised by the United States during the court session. United States Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS). China has come under increased scrutiny from the interagency group that examines foreign investments in American businesses for national security issues. Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of Binance, was born in China but has lived in Canada for 30 years.　　　　The CFIUS review “could affect the ability of the parties to complete the transactions, the timing of completion, or relevant terms,” the agency stated. Furthermore, to transfer $20 million in cash, Voyagers clients would be transferred to Binance.USs exchange, as per Sussberg. This would allow investors to then make withdrawals.　　Voyager predicts that consumers could recoup about 51% of the

2023-01-12Deep Dive

BTC surges near $18,300

On January 12, bitcoin prices increased by 4.2% in a matter of hours.　　Bitcoin was valued at $17,548 at 11:00 p.m. UTC. The asset was worth $18,287 at 1:00 a.m. UTC. Prices began to fall immediately after that high point, though it is unknown what Bitcoins long-term price trend will look like at this time.　　Bitcoin prices via Coingecko (times in PST)　　It is unclear why Bitcoin prices surged so abruptly, as no major events or announcements occurred during the price surge.　　Investors may have instead acquired Bitcoin in anticipation of impending events, such as Consumer Price Index announcements (CPI). The CPI statistics from December had a similar influence on prices last month, albeit after the fact.　　The abrupt move might alternatively be the consequence of large holders or “whales” activities, in which case Bitcoins ascent would be the product of individual trading decisions — rather than any huge events that could have a broad impact on the market.　　Bitcoins 4.2% price gain in the last few hours is greater than its 4.1% 24-hour price gain today.　　Furthermore, Bitcoins robust performance appears to have caught up with the rest of the crypto industry. The whole crypto market cap has increased by 3.3% in the last 24 hours,

2023-01-12Deep Dive

Despite the Crypto Winter, Binance is growing

Obtaining a regulatory license in Sweden allows Binance to grow. While competitors are laying off employees, the company intends to hire up to 30% more people.　　Despite the worst part of the crypto winter, Binance is still growing. The company declared that the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority had given it regulatory approval.　　The Changpeng Zhao exchange wants to expand geographically and internally, while its rivals are laying off workers, by up to 30%. Most recently, 950 workers were let off by Coinbase. It has let go of more than 2000 people since June 2022.　　The Binance Growth　　Binance is now permitted in seven European Union Member States and 15 jurisdictions worldwide thanks to legal permission from Sweden.　　The membership will enable Swedish individuals to use Binances cryptocurrency and Web3 services, comprising euro deposit and withdrawals, crypto buying using euro, trade, and stake.　　According to a CNBC article, Binance wants to grow the number of employees by 15% to 30% in 2023. At the Crypto Finance Conference in St. Moritz, Switzerland, Changpeng Zhao stated that the companys staff rose from 3000 to over 8000 in 2022.　　Investors withdrew 25% of the capital of the Changpeng Zhao-led Exchange in just two months.　　Binance was damaged by the FTX crash because

2023-01-12Deep Dive

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