Every week, I will be collecting some news stories / opinion pieces that I have found to be interesting in the crypto world and condensing them down into one easily digestible article. All the article and images are taken from a news source that I like to use and an alternative to CoinTelegram called BeInCrypto.
BeInCrypto is a news website founded in August 2018 that specialises in cryptographic technology, privacy, fintech, and the Internet — among other related topics. The primary goal of the website is to inject transparency into an industry rife with disingenuous reporting, unlabelled sponsored articles, and paid news masquerading as honest journalism. You can visit their website by clicking here or join their new Telegram Trading channel by clicking here. I am also part of that group and like the content they are discussing. There is a lot of news that came out last week, So let's get started!
Bitcoin Flies as PayPal Boards the Crypto Express
PayPal has announced that its customers will soon be able to carry out crypto transactions with its 26 million merchants. In a statement released on Oct 21, the payments giant revealed that it will enable crypto payments on its network in early 2021.
The service, which will enable PayPal users to buy, hold, and sell cryptocurrency directly from their PayPal accounts is the result of a partnership with the Paxos Trust Company. PayPal has also received a first-in-category conditional Bitlicense from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).
If you want to read more about this, click here.
DeFi Craze Drives Stablecoin Market Cap to $20 Billion
This year’s decentralized finance (DeFi) frenzy has driven such a demand for stablecoins that their combined market capitalization now exceeds $20 billion. This is more than any other cryptocurrency aside from Bitcoin and Ethereum.
The 2020 DeFi boom has resulted in huge amounts of cryptocurrency collateral flooding into protocols and yield farming liquidity pools. A vast majority of this has come from stablecoins, resulting in increased demand and a surging aggregated market capitalization. To read more about this, click here.
Ethereum Staking Delay Is Latest in String of Setbacks Despite Urgency
An Ethereum Foundation researcher has said that ETH 2.0’s deposit contract is now set to launch in mid-November. This follows a number of setbacks for ether’s urgent scaling solution.
On the Bankless podcast, Ethereum Foundation researcher Danny Ryan said that ETH 2.0’s deposit contract is not quite ready. The contract needs to get the go-ahead from a vetted cryptography audit firm before going live. To read more about this update, click here.
JPMorgan Does an About Face, Turns Bullish on Bitcoin
Wall Street bank JPMorgan has surprisingly turned bullish on bitcoin’s medium to long-term growth potential.
In its latest Flows & Liquidity report, JPMorgan reportedly stated that bitcoin will compete favorably with gold as an alternative currency in the coming years, as millennials take up a larger share of the total investment picture. You can read more about this topic by clicking here.
Uniswap’s First Governance Proposal Led by Dharma Set to Be Approved
Uniswap’s first governance proposal following the launch of its governance token is set to be approved. While opposed by some, the community largely favors the change, which is expected to increase the participation rate.
Uniswap is undergoing its first governance proposal, one that was initiated by the Dharma DeFi platform on Oct. 13. The vote aims to reduce the proposal submission and quorum values by implementing threshold values of 3 million UNI and 30 million UNI, respectively. To read more, click here.
Chainlink Snags Blockchain Star to Support DeFi Scene
Ben Chan, former BitGo CTO & WBTC DAO architect, has joined Chainlink Labs as vice president of engineering.
He will use his experience building infrastructure for crypto to help Chainlink grow. The news was shared on Twitter by both Chainlink and Chan and was met with a lot of enthusiasm by the crypto community. To read more, click here.
China’s Central Bank Set to Ban Cryptocurrency Issuance
In yet another crypto-related ban, China’s central bank is accepting public comments concerning a draft law that seeks to pave the way for the digital yuan.
China’s 2017 ICO and crypto trading ban sent shockwaves across the market at the time. Since then, authorities in the country continue to place restrictions on cryptocurrency commerce. To read more about this update, click here.
Kraken Relaunches Crypto Trading in Japan Following Two-Year Hiatus
After a two-year break, U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has launched funding and crypto trading services in Japan.
In an Oct 22 blog post, the exchange announced it had launched spot trading for five major cryptocurrencies, domestic JPY currency deposits and withdrawals, and crypto deposits in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a few other well-known cryptocurrencies. To read more about this update, click here.
Mastermind in Alleged Billion Dollar Crypto Ponzi Scheme Arrested
Santiago Fuentes, CEO of Arbistar 2.0, was finally tracked down and taken into custody on Thursday, Oct. 22, at one of his residences in Tenerife, Spain, by police in south Tenerife, according to sources from the National Police, local news outlet Canarian Weekly reported on Oct. 22.
Fuentes is being accused of defrauding close to 32,000 investors in a Bitcoin (BTC) scam — a value worth nearly 850 million euros (about $1 billion, at press time). According to the police, there is an open investigation into Arbistar 2.0, a Spain-based crypto investment firm. To read more about this, click here.
Ethereum Value Transactions Now Outstrip Bitcoin Two-to-One
Massive spikes in stablecoin and decentralized finance (DeFi) transactions have seen Ethereum (ETH) overtake Bitcoin (BTC) in total value transaction volume.
The Ethereum network has also suffered multiple network congestions owing to this uptick. Fees spike on such occasions, resulting in miners earning more from transaction costs than the actual block rewards. To read more about this, click here.
IDEX Launches Version 2.0 in One Small Step for DEXs
Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have ascended to the spotlight amid the frenzy in the DeFi space. And while DEX trading volume and user numbers are on the rise, the majority of trading in the cryptocurrency space still occurs on centralized exchanges.
IDEX is looking to change the script with its latest update, dubbed IDEX 2.0. The new version is designed to address user interface issues, chief among which are front-running and failed-transactions, according to an announcement. IDEX is looking to bridge the performance gap between centralized and decentralized exchanges for users without requiring them to sacrifice something near and dear to the heart of crypto investors —control of their assets. To read more about this, click here.
Mode Adds Bitcoin to Reserves, Joining Microstrategy and Square
A UK-based fintech firm has just announced a large purchase of bitcoin using its cash reserves. Mode Global Holdings, an already bitcoin-friendly financial company, has become the first UK publicly traded firm to allocate part of its reserves to the cryptocurrency.
The announcement follows those of Microstrategy and Square. As many cryptocurrency industry observers suspected, Microstrategy’s August revelation appears to now be inspiring others. To read more about this, click here.
Yearn Finance Launches GUSD Vaults and Unveils Keep3r Network
Popular DeFi protocol Yearn Finance continues to innovate in the sector despite some negative press lately and a slump in native token prices. The addition of Gemini dollar vaults and a stealthily developed decentralized smart contract jobs marketplace are two of its latest developments.
The latest addition to the leading DeFi protocol is the addition of Gemini Dollar (GUSD) vaults, however, the strategies and potential earnings have yet to be revealed. The four current stablecoin pools using Tether, USDC, Dai, and True USD, were reporting yearly growths of between 5.6% and 7.6%. To read more, click here.
FinCEN Slaps Bitcoin Mixing Service with $60 Million Fine
Ohio resident Larry Dean Harmon has been hit with a $60 million civil penalty after being convicted of running a Bitcoin tumbler that laundered money for the darknet website AlphaBay.
Some may recall that in 2019, Harmon was indicted by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on multiple counts relating to his role as founder and operator of Bitcoin mixing services Helix and Coin Ninja. To read more about this, click here.
That is my weekly roundup of the interesting news coming from the crypto world. What do you think about the topics / news stories and what was your favourite article? If you liked the content, please consider following me and tipping the article. Also are you a trader? If you are check out my favourite Telegram Trading chat, where you can discuss and find out more about crypto projects. Click here to start conversations with other crypto traders!
