“At its current market cap, Bitcoin has a money supply worth more than 170 different fiat currencies. The USD, EUR, CNY, and JPY are the only world currencies with a larger money supply than Bitcoin.
The M0 figure represents the total value of all the banknotes, coins, and other money substitutes that can be easily converted into cash.”
“As the public comment period for the controversial rule comes to a close, industry heavyweights are logging their opposition in a coordinated effort. They are trying to delay the rule’s implementation until after a new presidential administration takes over, as well as raise procedural and substantive concerns. The proposed rule, industry participants contend, could drive crypto innovation outside the U.S. and threaten the digital privacy rights of individuals and entities transacting with cryptocurrencies.
As of press time, well over 65,000 comments had been submitted (though less than 4,000 were available to read), with major fintech firms such as Square, traditional business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and crypto exchanges like Coinbase filing comments pushing back against the proposed rule. U.S. lawmakers have also weighed in, asking the Treasury Department to at least slow down and engage with the industry before implementing any strict Know-Your-Customer (KYC) rules on counterparties.
A number of respondents questioned whether sending name and address information to FinCEN would be safe for users. Young noted that over the past few months, the FinCEN Files were leaked and the Treasury Department’s systems were breached as part of a broader intrusion into U.S. government agencies through the use of a software vendor, SolarWinds.
If anything, the Treasury’s awful infosec proves just how essential our financial privacy is. We’re safer when we use personal wallets, privacy coins and other financial tools free from government surveillance and interference.
It will similarly increase physical security concerns for CVC holders who may be subject to physical harm or threats from bad actors should their identity become known, particularly those storing CVC in self-hosted wallets.
If the rule is finalized, it will likely be challenged in court and the shortened time period will be used as one argument.
Special counsel to the Electronic Frontier Foundation and an attorney with Ropes and Gray, told CoinDesk she believes the proposed regulation might violate the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which protects against “unreasonable searches and seizures” and requires probable cause for warrants to be issued.
The warrantless mass surveillance of financial records is a Fourth Amendment violation.”
“The number of Bitcoin locked on Ethereum reached an all-time high in mid-November of nearly 152,000, worth approximately $2.5 billion at a BTC price of $16,150 at the time. Since then, the number of locked BTC has actually fallen a little more than 10%, during the same period the price of Bitcoin more than doubled.
It’s possible, then, that the exodus of BTC from Ethereum is due to Bitcoin investors cashing out in search of profits on those holdings.
More value in DeFi means better borrowing rates and capacity for even more users. Even if a few thousand Bitcoin are leaving the industry, rising value may still be viewed as a positive sign for the budding DeFi industry.”
“With an open interest of $2.1 billion, the CME accounted for 19.09% of the global tally of $11 billion on Wednesday. OKEx was the second-biggest, while Binance ranked third.
Looking back a year, the size of the futures market was quite small. Global open interest stood at $3 billion on Jan. 7, 2020, of which the CME contributed just 7% or $224 million. Open interest refers to the number of contracts traded but not squared off with an offsetting position.
The exchange is considered synonymous with institutional trading.”
See Also: FiCAS’ Actively Managed Crypto ETP Gets Green Light for European Expansion
“Crypto exchange BTSE launched a Wrapped Monero token yesterday. A first-of-its-kind, the token is issued via the Ethereum network, and each unit is backed by an actual Monero token. BTSE will mint and redeem the Wrapped Monero and act as the custodian of the underlying Monero.
With this product, the value of XMR is further unlocked. Users don’t need to sell their Monero to buy erc20 tokens.
Meanwhile, such benefits come at the cost of privacy.“
“Twelve staffers involved in the Aragon Network have announced their resignations Thursday due to an apparent lack of financial transparency.
I no longer recognize the place that I used to love to work. I believe it no longer reflects my values, nor the values of the Aragon Manifesto.
The mass exodus of Aragon developers was preceded by some 52,000 in ether (ETH) from the project’s 2017 initial coin offering (ICO) moving onto various exchanges on Dec. 15 and Dec. 22. It’s unclear if the mass transfer of funds was a catalyst for the resignations.”
“After a troubled few months, crypto exchange Bithumb looks like it’s set on turning over a new leaf through an acquisition by one of South Korea’s top gaming firms. Nexon, a multi-billion dollar gaming conglomerate, has signed a memorandum of understanding, or MoU, to acquire the exchange at an evaluated price of 650 billion won ($460 million).
Nexon’s holding company, NXC, has previously invested in cryptocurrency and fintechs, including the well-known exchange Bitstamp.”
“Can’t get into specifics, but know we tried – and will continue to try [with] the new administration – to resolve this.
Garlinghouse, along with Ripple General Counsel Stuart Alderoty, said the San Francisco-based firm’s response to the SEC suit is on its way.”
The Disrupt 