Regulation and monetary policy
BIS Calls for Central Bank Digital Currencies Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
The Bank of International Settlements (BIS) has issued a report arguing in favor of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and digital payments amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bank of France Launches Experiment Program on Central Bank Digital Currency
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bank-of-france-launches-experiment-program-on-central-bank-digital-currency?utm_source=Telegram&utm_medium=social
As a number of global jurisdictions like the Bahamas and Sweden are already testing their central bank digital currencies (CBDC), French central bank is getting more straightforward regarding its own CBDC plans.
Japanese Regulations on Crypto ‘Likely to Help the Market to Mature’
A new report has found strict regulations in Japan are likely to benefit new players in the long term.
Russia Postpones Its Crypto Law Again, Now Blaming Coronavirus
After facing multiple delays, the adoption of Russia’s major cryptocurrency law will be postponed again, now due to the coronavirus. Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on Financial Markets, says that the country’s crypto law — the bill “On Digital Financial Assets” — is now finalized but won’t be adopted before the end of the spring 2020.
Europe’s Vision On Central Bank Digital Currency Offers Cautionary Lessons For Cryptocurrency
The European Central Bank released, a few months ago, a little-noticed working paper on how it sees central bank digital currency fitting in with its financial system.
FATF Report: US Is Not Focusing Enough on Crypto Financial Risk
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has reevaluated the United States on its compliance with global anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) regulations. According to the report published on March 31, the U.S. is only “largely compliant” with FATF regulations on cryptocurrencies and virtual assets.
SEC Postpones Decision on Overstock-Affiliated Security Token Exchange
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking more feedback and more time before it decides whether to approve the launch of the Boston Security Token Exchange (BSTX).
As Malta Delays Regulatory Clarity, Fewer Firms Remain on ‘Blockchain Island’
It seems that Malta is becoming both less popular among and less populated with crypto firms. The European Union country attracted dozens of industry players in 2018 on the back of the “blockchain island” agenda championed by the local government, but the relevant framework has not yet proven to be effective.
Competitors
Tether Adds $60 Million to its Inventory, USD Stablecoin Supply Rises over $2.5 bln
https://coingape.com/tether-addition-usd-stablecoin/
The stablecoin supply of cryptocurrencies has been in a strong uptrend in March 2020. Last night, $60 million was added to the inventory of Tether, as the firm prepares for issuance of more USDT.
Tether Prints over a Billion USDT in March, Rising Demand or Exchange Run?
This demand for USD is coming from over-the-counter (OTC) flow, primarily from Asia, and people selling BTC converted into USDT to hedge positions and to reduce risk. Another thing worth noting is margin USDT which drives some of this demand and requires the funds to be kept in USDT.
Analytics and opinions
Why Ethereum Should Go Mobile
https://cointelegraph.com/news/why-ethereum-should-go-mobile?utm_source=Telegram&utm_medium=social
Mobile applications are the future, and they’re increasingly showing promise over desktop and web technologies. Today, we spend 42% of our time online using mobile devices rather than computers, a massive transition from 10 years ago.
The stablecoins have recorded a volume of transactions record in the first quarter
The Stablecoin do not know the crisis. At the moment the whole financial market is in sharp decline, the volume of transactions of stablecoins saves a new record, increasing 8% in the first quarter of 2020.
Blockchain Head at European Commission Explains Usefulness of DLT
The head of the digital innovation and blockchain unit at the European Commission (EC), Pēteris Zilgalvis, explained the concise benefits of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in an interview to The Banker, a subsidiary of the Financial Times. In the interview, published on April 3, Zilgalvis talked about the benefits and challenges of the technology.
UnionBank Head Foresees the End of Physical Cash
Edwin Bautista, president and chief executive of UnionBank of the Philippines, has forecast that the coronavirus outbreak will drive banks to shift towards digital currencies, leaving physical cash behind.
Traditional Traders Show Growing Interest in Crypto
A survey published on March 31 revealed that senior trading executives believe that large companies in the business would be interested in taking advantage of the recent crypto plunge, particularly Bitcoin (BTC).
Zero Interest Rates Could Hamper the Stablecoin Business
https://www.coindesk.com/zero-interest-rates-could-hamper-the-stablecoin-business
With the recent collapse in U.S. interest rates, the stablecoin industry is in for a rough ride. Some stablecoin issuers may have to rejig their business models over the next few months. The weakest of them may have to close shop.
USD Stablecoins Are Surging, but Zero Interest Rates Complicate Business Model
The last 30 days have been historic by any meaning of the word. The coronavirus is shaking up life as we know it, and has already caused unprecedented dislocations in both the traditional financial markets and the crypto market.
Stablecoin Market Caps Swell Over $7 Billion — Volumes Surpass Most Trading Pairs
https://news.bitcoin.com/stablecoin-market-caps-7-billion-volumes-most-pairs/
While most digital assets have been suffering, stablecoins have been surging since the market downturn in mid-March and tether (USDT) is capturing more than 70% of BTC trades today. Besides tether, a wide range of other dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies have also benefited this month, as the market valuation of eight different stablecoins combined is well over $7 billion.
Why Stablecoins Are Booming During the COVID-19 Pandemic
https://nulltx.com/why-stablecoins-are-booming-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/
The global economy is facing an unprecedented meltdown. No part of the global economy has been left unscathed by the COVID-19 pandemic. While most financial markets have been facing weeks of a meltdown, some asset classes have grown due to the crisis. One of these asset classes is USD-backed stablecoins.
New projects, partnerships, and investments
Coinbase Invests $1 Million in DeFi Projects UniSwap and PoolTogether
Coinbase continues to ramp up its support for decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, announcing a fresh $1.1 million investment via its USDC Bootstrap Fund for two projects in the field.
Amid Widespread Privacy Coin Delistings, Bitstamp Considers Zcash Support
The prospective listings comprise Basic Attention Token (BAT), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Stellar Lumens (XLM), Paxos Standard (PAX), 0x (ZRX), USD Coin (USDC), and Zcash.
ShapeShift Enables US-Based Customers to Buy Crypto With Debit Card
Switzerland-based crypto exchange, ShapeShift, has enabled its United States-based customers to buy Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) with a debit card in the new exchange’s platform.
Coinbase-Backed Crypto Rating Council Lists IOTA, BAT, and USDC
USDCoin, a major stablecoin project backed by major crypto companies like Coinbase and Circle, is ranked at 1.00. This indicates that the token should not be considered a security. USDC is not the only U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin defined in the CRC’s asset ratings list. Dai (DAI), another stablecoin project, scored an identical 1.00.
STABLECOIN DIGEST 5.04.2020 was originally published in STASIS Blog on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
