Author: Forbes
As cryptoassets continue to become increasingly integrated into mainstream financial conversations, financial markets, and are adopted by financial institutions, it is simply a matter of time before more sophisticated financial instruments make their debut. Even while bitcoin and crypto exchange traded funds (ETFs) continue to languish under regulatory review, other products and services have raced ahead. Decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are just a sampling of the blockchain related asset classes that have dominated market conversation since 2021. Add in the discussions around Web 3.0 and the tokenization of both virtual and physical assets,…
U.S. senator Elizabeth Warren, a long-time crypto critic, has announced a new bill that would block bitcoin and cryptocurrency companies from doing business with those hit by sanctions. The bill would crack down on the use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to evade strict sanctions put on Russia, Belarus and wealthy oligarchs since the invasion of Ukraine. The bitcoin price has swung wildly as international financial sanctions have ramped up in recent weeks amid speculation bitcoin and crypto could be used by those looking to evade sanctions. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates for the first time since 2018 in spite…
Last Wednesday, March 9, the White House finally announced a much-anticipated policy directive on cryptocurrency and distributed ledger technology with an Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets (Order) issued by President Biden. On the same day as the Order was signed, Dr. Alondra Nelson, head of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and Deputy Assistant to the President, published a blog post that describes her priorities for cryptocurrency regulation in the United States. Dr. Alondra Nelson, who penned the blog, is the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) since February 17, 2022. Nelson has served since…
Adrian Cheng, CEO of Hong Kong real estate giant New World Development, has added crypto custody provider Hex Trust and blockchain infrastructure developer ConsenSys to his investment portfolio, increasing his bets on what could be the future of the internet–commonly referred to now as Web3. “Both Hex Trust and ConsenSys are platforms that provide wholistic solutions and cater to people’s needs in the digital era,” Cheng said in a written response to Forbes. “ConsenSys has been a pioneer in creating the foundational software for the next wave of the internet Web3, and Hex Trust can meet compliance and regulatory standards in this digital era.” Cheng announced…
President Biden’s recent executive order regarding the responsible development of digital assets helped lift the price of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies. According to Ari Redford, Head of Legal and Government Affairs at TRM Labs: “The executive order is really a call for coordination—playing quarterback to ensure that regulators are working together to feed into a clear and consistent framework for crypto regulation rather than engage in disparate work streams.” The executive order will help banks get more comfortable with the world of crypto and meet the demand that many Americans have to get Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies directly from their banks.…
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK’s top financial regulator, has continued its time-honored tradition of warning British consumers that they “should be prepared to lose all their money” if they dabble in bitcoin. Its latest admonishment came in a press release declaring that all bitcoin ATMs in the country are being operated illegally because their owners have not undergone checks by the regulator. More about that later. First, though, let’s have a quick look at how consumers would have fared if they’d listened to the FCA on any of the previous occasions that it warded people off bitcoin – the world’s…
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency prices have been under pressure through most of 2022, with the bitcoin price losing almost 20% so far this year. The ethereum price and other major cryptocurrencies have also fallen sharply as bullish investors balk at the prospect of rising interest rates and a slow down in pandemic-era stimulus measures. Now, Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, who sent shockwaves through the crypto world when he added $1.5 billion of bitcoin to Tesla’s balance sheet last year, has said he still owns and “won’t sell” his bitcoin, ethereum and dogecoin—advising people not to hold dollars when inflation is high.…
Pantone, a company known to artists and homemakers as one of the biggest authorities in color, has announced they are celebrating this year’s selection for Color Of The Year, PANTONE® 17-3938 by releasing their first ever NFT collection through a giveaway on Instagram. The collection, which features nine unique NFTs created by Paris-based digital artist Polygon1993, utilizes Pantone’s “Very Peri” blue to capture humans and other scenes in lo-fi digital renditions—emblematic of the artist’s retro-futurist style. The color, which Pantone describes as highlighting “personal inventiveness and creativity” makes a natural fit for the company’s first foray into digital art. The…
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency prices are on a tear this week. Bitcoin’s price rocketed up past $40,000, gaining 11.7% from its lowest March point. Other major cryptos also rose but trailed in bitcoin’s wake. Ethereum’s price rose 7.7%, BNB 4.8%, cardano 2.4%, XRP 2.7%, and solana 3.3% over the week Cryptos jumped after Biden signed the long-awaited (and dreaded) executive order, which came out more pro-crypto than expected. The directive calls on federal agencies to coordinate crypto oversight, but it didn’t lay out any specific regulations. In fact, policymakers appear to recognize digital assets’ role in monetary innovation. As Coindesk reported: “one part…
Entrepreneurs Alex Taub and Michael Schonfeld once built software tools for the social media boom. Now they’re hoping to provide the plumbing for a new one in the Wild West of Web3. After launching a new venture, Upstream, upon the sale of their previous startup, SocialRank, in early 2020, Taub and Schonfeld have shifted Upstream’s focus more to groups using cryptocurrencies recently. This past November, they launched Upstream Collective, a product to help manage decentralized autonomous organizations (or DAOs). After finding early traction with users, they’ve now raised $12.5 million in Series A funding led by Boldstart Ventures to expand.…