NYC Mayor-Elect Eric Adams to Take First 3 Paychecks in Bitcoin
Incoming New York City Mayor Eric Adams said on Thursday that he will take his first three paychecks in bitcoin when he takes office in January.
«In New York, we always go big, so I’m going to take my first THREE paychecks in bitcoin when I become mayor. NYC is going to be the center of the cryptocurrency industry and other fast-growing, innovative industries! Just wait!» — Adams wrote in a tweet on Thursday.
Incoming New York City Mayor Eric Adams said on Thursday that he will take his first three paychecks in bitcoin when he takes office in January.
«In New York, we always go big, so I’m going to take my first THREE paychecks in bitcoin when I become mayor. NYC is going to be the center of the cryptocurrency industry and other fast-growing, innovative industries! Just wait!» — Adams wrote in a tweet on Thursday.
DeFi can be 100 times larger than today in 5 years, currently this sector represents only 0.1% of its maximum potential.
Decentralized Finance is a natural product made possible by blockchain technology and has the right and ready infrastructure to propel the technology to a bigger playing field. The space has grown by leaps and bounds since the Ethereum network went live in July 2015, with Ethereum network transactions growing by 33x to 1.2 million per day currently, and blockchain transactions would exceed millions per day if other chains were included.
Most of these transactions originated from the DeFi services such as Uniswap, which facilitates over $1 billion swaps each day, as well as lending and borrowing protocols such as Aave, Compound and BondAppetit, with tens of billions in market size. While these are large numbers by any standard, it is only a decimal point of the trillion-dollar traditional finance (TradFi) industry.
Decentralized Finance is a natural product made possible by blockchain technology and has the right and ready infrastructure to propel the technology to a bigger playing field. The space has grown by leaps and bounds since the Ethereum network went live in July 2015, with Ethereum network transactions growing by 33x to 1.2 million per day currently, and blockchain transactions would exceed millions per day if other chains were included.
Most of these transactions originated from the DeFi services such as Uniswap, which facilitates over $1 billion swaps each day, as well as lending and borrowing protocols such as Aave, Compound and BondAppetit, with tens of billions in market size. While these are large numbers by any standard, it is only a decimal point of the trillion-dollar traditional finance (TradFi) industry.
New ฿ all time high — $67 803
New Ξ all time high — $4 818
New Ξ all time high — $4 818
🔥 Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, said that he has bought cryptocurrencies.
“I think it's reasonable to own it as part of a diversified portfolio,” Mr. Cook told DealBook's Andrew Ross Sorkin, quickly adding that he wasn't giving investment advice.
“I think it's reasonable to own it as part of a diversified portfolio,” Mr. Cook told DealBook's Andrew Ross Sorkin, quickly adding that he wasn't giving investment advice.
🇨🇳 E-commerce giant JD starts accepting China’s digital currency on Singles Day for the first time.
More than 100,000 people had used e-CNY on the company’s app during the Singles Day promotion period, which started on the evening of Oct. 31 and ends on Thursday.
Note: China’s digital yuan is not a cryptocurrency. It is a digital form of the country’s currency, designed to replace coins and cash in circulation. When formally rolled out, it will be issued via banks and other financial entities by the People’s Bank of China, the central bank.
More than 100,000 people had used e-CNY on the company’s app during the Singles Day promotion period, which started on the evening of Oct. 31 and ends on Thursday.
Note: China’s digital yuan is not a cryptocurrency. It is a digital form of the country’s currency, designed to replace coins and cash in circulation. When formally rolled out, it will be issued via banks and other financial entities by the People’s Bank of China, the central bank.
💣 Raoul Pal: Expect the ‘path of most pain’ around December and upcoming release of Ethereum 2.0 and an Ethereum ETF will extend the crypto market cycle.
Former Goldman Sachs hedge fund manager and Real Vision founder Raoul Pal believes that the social media pundits are wrong and that the crypto market cycle won’t end this year.
In a Real Vision interview on Wednesday, Pal predicted that the current bull run won’t end in December, as it did spectacularly in 2015 and 2017, and will instead extend to some time between March and June.
According to Pal, Bitcoin, Ethereum and altcoin markets are likely to “take the path of most pain,” potentially crashing twice over the next six months.
Former Goldman Sachs hedge fund manager and Real Vision founder Raoul Pal believes that the social media pundits are wrong and that the crypto market cycle won’t end this year.
In a Real Vision interview on Wednesday, Pal predicted that the current bull run won’t end in December, as it did spectacularly in 2015 and 2017, and will instead extend to some time between March and June.
According to Pal, Bitcoin, Ethereum and altcoin markets are likely to “take the path of most pain,” potentially crashing twice over the next six months.
🏦 Russians transact $5B in crypto each year, Bank of Russia says
The Bank of Russia published a fresh review on financial stability on Thursday, pointing out the country’s growing role in the $2.8 trillion market.
Citing estimations reported by major local banks in July 2021, the Bank of Russia suggested that the total annual volumes of crypto transactions of the Russian population amount to $5 billion.
In the report, the Bank of Russia also noted that the Russian Federation is among global leaders in terms of visits to the Binance cryptocurrency exchange. According to data from the digital intelligence provider SimilarWeb, Russia is the second big in terms of total traffic on Binance after Turkey.
The Bank of Russia published a fresh review on financial stability on Thursday, pointing out the country’s growing role in the $2.8 trillion market.
Citing estimations reported by major local banks in July 2021, the Bank of Russia suggested that the total annual volumes of crypto transactions of the Russian population amount to $5 billion.
In the report, the Bank of Russia also noted that the Russian Federation is among global leaders in terms of visits to the Binance cryptocurrency exchange. According to data from the digital intelligence provider SimilarWeb, Russia is the second big in terms of total traffic on Binance after Turkey.
💸 Bitcoin offers «Black Friday deal» with sub-$55K BTC price — Just like 2020
Bitcoin (BTC) may be down 20% from all-time highs, but this is a golden opportunity to “buy the dip,” analysts argue.
Black Friday is living up to its name in crypto this year as both Bitcoin and many altcoins are trading at their lowest in six weeks.
After an overnight sell-off sparked by a declining United States dollar and macro markets rattled by a new coronavirus variant, BTC/USD is trading near $54,000.
As mainstream media highlight the fall, others are far from concerned, however — current prices arguably offer a golden entry opportunity.
Others poked fun at a knee-jerk article from Bloomberg in which the publication initially declared that Bitcoin had “entered a bear market.”
On short-term targets, popular trader and podcast host Scott Melker warned over going with the herd, expecting even lower levels to buy.
Bitcoin (BTC) may be down 20% from all-time highs, but this is a golden opportunity to “buy the dip,” analysts argue.
Black Friday is living up to its name in crypto this year as both Bitcoin and many altcoins are trading at their lowest in six weeks.
After an overnight sell-off sparked by a declining United States dollar and macro markets rattled by a new coronavirus variant, BTC/USD is trading near $54,000.
As mainstream media highlight the fall, others are far from concerned, however — current prices arguably offer a golden entry opportunity.
Others poked fun at a knee-jerk article from Bloomberg in which the publication initially declared that Bitcoin had “entered a bear market.”
On short-term targets, popular trader and podcast host Scott Melker warned over going with the herd, expecting even lower levels to buy.
🐳 Today MicroStrategy bought another 7002 BTC or $414.4m with average price $59 187.
Total BTC balance eclipsing $3.5 billion.
Total BTC balance eclipsing $3.5 billion.
🌎 The Metaverse is a $1T opportunity after users increase 10x: Grayscale report.
Crypto investment giant Grayscale has published a bullish report on metaverses, estimating that the “market opportunity” for bringing the metaverse to the mainstream may be worth over $1 trillion in the next few years.
The report highlights that metaverse platforms integrated with crypto tokens, decentralized finance services such as staking and lending, nonfungible tokens (NFT), decentralized governance and decentralized cloud storage have “created a new online experience” that’s rapidly attracting new users.
Analyzing “global all-time active metaverse wallets” data since the start of 2020, it found the user base has grown by 10x since that time to sit at around 50,000 as of June 2021.
“Compared to other Web 3.0 and Web 2.0 segments, Metaverse virtual world users are still in their early innings, but if current growth rates remain on their current trajectory, this emerging segment has the potential to become mainstream in the coming years.”
The report highlights that there’s no shortage of venture capitalists taking a punt on the sector’s potential. According to the report, fundraising totaled $1 billion for blockchain gaming in Q3. That represented 12% of total fundraising for the entire crypto sector in the quarter, ranking it as the “top sub-sector” within the Web 3.0 and NFT category.
Crypto investment giant Grayscale has published a bullish report on metaverses, estimating that the “market opportunity” for bringing the metaverse to the mainstream may be worth over $1 trillion in the next few years.
The report highlights that metaverse platforms integrated with crypto tokens, decentralized finance services such as staking and lending, nonfungible tokens (NFT), decentralized governance and decentralized cloud storage have “created a new online experience” that’s rapidly attracting new users.
Analyzing “global all-time active metaverse wallets” data since the start of 2020, it found the user base has grown by 10x since that time to sit at around 50,000 as of June 2021.
“Compared to other Web 3.0 and Web 2.0 segments, Metaverse virtual world users are still in their early innings, but if current growth rates remain on their current trajectory, this emerging segment has the potential to become mainstream in the coming years.”
The report highlights that there’s no shortage of venture capitalists taking a punt on the sector’s potential. According to the report, fundraising totaled $1 billion for blockchain gaming in Q3. That represented 12% of total fundraising for the entire crypto sector in the quarter, ranking it as the “top sub-sector” within the Web 3.0 and NFT category.
🐫 Silk Road Founder Ross Ulbricht to Launch NFT Collection on Ethereum
Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the defunct Silk Road marketplace, announced via a Medium post that he is auctioning a line of NFTs detailing various points in his life, from childhood to his time in prison.
Minted on Ethereum, the Ross Ulbricht Genesis Collection will launch Thursday at the 2021 Art Basel event in Miami. The auction will run from December 2-8 on the SuperRare NFT platform, curated by Entoptic. The collection will include ten items from Ulbricht, including artwork, writings, and original animation by digital artist Levitate, including a voice-over by Ulbricht.
"I was 29 years old when I was arrested. Suddenly, sitting in prison, I had time for drawing again, I reconnected with my artistic side, producing illustrations that told the story I was going through."
Having been incarcerated since 2013, Ulbricht hasn't fully participated in the NFT explosion taking over crypto. The Silk Road creator wrote that when someone suggested selling his art as NFTs, which are digital tokens of ownership, he had no idea what they were talking about. But with the help of others, he learned and began developing them.
The FreeRoss.org website, run by Ulbrich's mother Lyn, says the NFT launch will act as a fundraiser for both prisoner support and Ulbricht's freedom efforts.
Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the defunct Silk Road marketplace, announced via a Medium post that he is auctioning a line of NFTs detailing various points in his life, from childhood to his time in prison.
Minted on Ethereum, the Ross Ulbricht Genesis Collection will launch Thursday at the 2021 Art Basel event in Miami. The auction will run from December 2-8 on the SuperRare NFT platform, curated by Entoptic. The collection will include ten items from Ulbricht, including artwork, writings, and original animation by digital artist Levitate, including a voice-over by Ulbricht.
"I was 29 years old when I was arrested. Suddenly, sitting in prison, I had time for drawing again, I reconnected with my artistic side, producing illustrations that told the story I was going through."
Having been incarcerated since 2013, Ulbricht hasn't fully participated in the NFT explosion taking over crypto. The Silk Road creator wrote that when someone suggested selling his art as NFTs, which are digital tokens of ownership, he had no idea what they were talking about. But with the help of others, he learned and began developing them.
The FreeRoss.org website, run by Ulbrich's mother Lyn, says the NFT launch will act as a fundraiser for both prisoner support and Ulbricht's freedom efforts.
🔥 Bitcoin dropped more than 7% in 24 hours, Ethereum deflated by over 8% of its surging price tag today. In all, the global cryptocurrency market cap fell by nearly 7%.
It's not just crypto. After a solid start to the morning, U.S. stock indexes are all trending downward for the day and week. The Nasdaq is off pace by 2.8% today, while the Dow Jones is trending 0.9% lighter.
What's to blame?
Well, there is the threat posed by the Omicron COVID variant, which has made landfall in California. Remember that economic uncertainty greeted COVID's first foray into America back in March 2020, cutting the stock market off at the knees while dunking Bitcoin to just above $4,000.
Each intervention has required a new cure. Lockdowns led to stimulus checks, which led to labor shortages and supply chain issues. As a result, prices for goods and labor are on the rise. Now, there's the growing expectation that the Federal Reserve must raise interest rates to combat inflation. While that doesn't easily explain why inflation hedges like BTC are dropping today, Bitcoin is showing high levels of correlation with the S&P 500 stocks as the investment has become increasingly mainstream.
It's not just crypto. After a solid start to the morning, U.S. stock indexes are all trending downward for the day and week. The Nasdaq is off pace by 2.8% today, while the Dow Jones is trending 0.9% lighter.
What's to blame?
Well, there is the threat posed by the Omicron COVID variant, which has made landfall in California. Remember that economic uncertainty greeted COVID's first foray into America back in March 2020, cutting the stock market off at the knees while dunking Bitcoin to just above $4,000.
Each intervention has required a new cure. Lockdowns led to stimulus checks, which led to labor shortages and supply chain issues. As a result, prices for goods and labor are on the rise. Now, there's the growing expectation that the Federal Reserve must raise interest rates to combat inflation. While that doesn't easily explain why inflation hedges like BTC are dropping today, Bitcoin is showing high levels of correlation with the S&P 500 stocks as the investment has become increasingly mainstream.
🔥 Bitcoin tumbles below $47K wiping out October gains — Bear market begins?
Bitcoin (BTC) has suddenly fallen below $47,000 on Dec. 4, losing nearly 20% in the past 24 hours. This makes this the biggest one-day drop since May 15 when Bitcoin price momentarily came down to nearly $33,000.
The market price of BTC fell down 26.4% from week-long support of $57,206 to go down to $42,268 before recovering back to the $45k mark. According to Coinglass data, the Bitcoin market experienced $1.3 billion in total liquidations in the past hour, with $735 million liquidated in BTC longs on this drop.
As a result, Bitcoin’s bear market cancels out the two-month long bull market since Sept. 29, where BTC soared over 63% to attain an all-time high of $67,602 by Nov. 8. However, numerous Bitcoin analysts including TechDev point out a similar trend with Bitcoin’s price action for every year.
Another reason for Bitcoin’s two-month low bearish streak can also be attributed to mainstream resistance from United States regulators that have invited the CEOs of prominent crypto exchanges including FTX and Binance US for a hearing on crypto-assets.
Despite concerns surrounding volatility and non-compliance with traditional financial practices, Bitcoin continues to rise as a viable asset for jurisdictions with unstable economies.
Bitcoin (BTC) has suddenly fallen below $47,000 on Dec. 4, losing nearly 20% in the past 24 hours. This makes this the biggest one-day drop since May 15 when Bitcoin price momentarily came down to nearly $33,000.
The market price of BTC fell down 26.4% from week-long support of $57,206 to go down to $42,268 before recovering back to the $45k mark. According to Coinglass data, the Bitcoin market experienced $1.3 billion in total liquidations in the past hour, with $735 million liquidated in BTC longs on this drop.
As a result, Bitcoin’s bear market cancels out the two-month long bull market since Sept. 29, where BTC soared over 63% to attain an all-time high of $67,602 by Nov. 8. However, numerous Bitcoin analysts including TechDev point out a similar trend with Bitcoin’s price action for every year.
Another reason for Bitcoin’s two-month low bearish streak can also be attributed to mainstream resistance from United States regulators that have invited the CEOs of prominent crypto exchanges including FTX and Binance US for a hearing on crypto-assets.
Despite concerns surrounding volatility and non-compliance with traditional financial practices, Bitcoin continues to rise as a viable asset for jurisdictions with unstable economies.
🏦 Russia’s largest bank struggles to register its digital asset platform
State-owned bank Sber is trying to launch digital asset tools, but regulators remain skeptical about the industry.
Sber, Russia’s largest bank, is apparently struggling to obtain regulatory approval for its digital asset issuance platform as the company continues delaying registration plans.
Sber CEO Herman Gref announced Tuesday that the bank now expects its digital asset issuance platform to have been registered with the Bank of Russia by the end of 2021, local news agency Prime reported.
“We are in constant contact with the central bank, and we are discussing various issues. We really want to believe that the platform will be registered by the end of this year,” Gref said.
The new comments come almost a year after Sber initially filed an application with the Bank of Russia to launch a blockchain platform for its Sbercoin stablecoin in January 2021. At the time, Sber director of transactions Sergey Popov said that the registration procedure usually takes no longer than 45 days. As such, the bank had b expecting to launch its platform and the stablecoin by spring 2021.
While unable to move forward with the plans by the fall, Sber then said that it was planning to register its digital asset issuance platform in September.
Sber did not respond to Cointelegraph’s requests for comment on the matter.
Sber’s delayed plans hardly come as a surprise, as Russia’s central bank has taken a hard stance on cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and has even barred some major banks from offering crypto investment services. The bank has said that such services do not “meet the interests of investors and bear great risks.”
In the meantime, Bank of Russia governor Elvira Nabiullina believes that tools such as central bank digital currencies should serve as a good option for governments to replace decentralized cryptocurrencies.
State-owned bank Sber is trying to launch digital asset tools, but regulators remain skeptical about the industry.
Sber, Russia’s largest bank, is apparently struggling to obtain regulatory approval for its digital asset issuance platform as the company continues delaying registration plans.
Sber CEO Herman Gref announced Tuesday that the bank now expects its digital asset issuance platform to have been registered with the Bank of Russia by the end of 2021, local news agency Prime reported.
“We are in constant contact with the central bank, and we are discussing various issues. We really want to believe that the platform will be registered by the end of this year,” Gref said.
The new comments come almost a year after Sber initially filed an application with the Bank of Russia to launch a blockchain platform for its Sbercoin stablecoin in January 2021. At the time, Sber director of transactions Sergey Popov said that the registration procedure usually takes no longer than 45 days. As such, the bank had b expecting to launch its platform and the stablecoin by spring 2021.
While unable to move forward with the plans by the fall, Sber then said that it was planning to register its digital asset issuance platform in September.
Sber did not respond to Cointelegraph’s requests for comment on the matter.
Sber’s delayed plans hardly come as a surprise, as Russia’s central bank has taken a hard stance on cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and has even barred some major banks from offering crypto investment services. The bank has said that such services do not “meet the interests of investors and bear great risks.”
In the meantime, Bank of Russia governor Elvira Nabiullina believes that tools such as central bank digital currencies should serve as a good option for governments to replace decentralized cryptocurrencies.
👨💻 Bitmart hacked for $200M following Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain exploit
The hackers made away with a mix of over 20 tokens that includes altcoins such as BNB, Safemoon, BSC-USD and BPay.
Crypto exchange Bitmart lost nearly $200 million in a hot wallet compromise hosted over the Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain blockchains.
The $200 million Bitmart hack was first revealed by Peckshield, a blockchain security and data analytics company that initially identified a transfer of roughly $100 million over the Ethereum blockchain.
The hackers made away with a mix of over 20 tokens that includes altcoins such as Binance Coin (BNB), Safemoon, BSC-USD and BNBBPay (BPay). Sizable amounts of meme coins such as BabyDoge, Floki and Moonshot were also compromised in the hack.
The hackers made away with a mix of over 20 tokens that includes altcoins such as BNB, Safemoon, BSC-USD and BPay.
Crypto exchange Bitmart lost nearly $200 million in a hot wallet compromise hosted over the Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain blockchains.
The $200 million Bitmart hack was first revealed by Peckshield, a blockchain security and data analytics company that initially identified a transfer of roughly $100 million over the Ethereum blockchain.
The hackers made away with a mix of over 20 tokens that includes altcoins such as Binance Coin (BNB), Safemoon, BSC-USD and BNBBPay (BPay). Sizable amounts of meme coins such as BabyDoge, Floki and Moonshot were also compromised in the hack.
💎 Vitalik Buterin outlines «Еndgame» roadmap for ETH 2.0
The Eth2 launch process began in November 2020. The network’s switch to proof-of-stake is expected to make ETH a deflationary asset.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has outlined his vision for a “plausible roadmap” for Eth2, presenting a future where the largest smart-contract platform can increase its scalability while meeting high standards for trustlessness and censorship resistance.
In a Monday post noscriptd «Endgame», Buterin presented a thought experiment for how the average big blockchain — defined by very high block frequency, high block size and thousands of transactions per second — can still be considered sufficiently trustless and censorship-resistant. The obvious trade-off for this level of scalability is the centralization of block production. Buterin’s solutions, as presented in the blog post, do not address the centralization issue, but still provide a roadmap for implementation.
With respect to the solutions, Buterin suggested “a second tier of staking, with low resource requirements,” to carry out distributed block validation; “introduce either fraud-proof or ZK-SNARKS to let users directly (and cheaply) check block validity” directly; and “introduce data availability sampling to let users check block availability [and] add secondary transaction channels to prevent censorship.”
With these updates, “We get a chain where block production is still centralized, but block validation is trustless and highly decentralized, and specialized anti-censorship magic prevents the block producers from censoring,” Buterin explained.
Buterin said block production would remain centralized even with the implementation of so-called “rollups,” which are layer-two solutions that execute transactions outside of the main Ethereum chain. (Interestingly, Buterin presented a rollup-centric roadmap for Ethereum in October 2020).
“No single rollup succeeds at holding anywhere close to the majority of Ethereum activity. Instead, they all top out at a few hundred transactions per second,” he said. While it may appear that rollups could contribute to distributed block production, decentralization may not last because of the possibility of cross-domain maximal extractable revenue, or MEV. As the name implies MEV refers to the maximum amount of value that can be earned from block production in excess of standard block rewards and gas fees.
The Ethereum co-founder concluded that there’s a high probability that block production will end up centralized regardless of the path to scalability that the network takes. The benefit of Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap is that it’s open to all futures, he said.
@DeCenterOrg
The Eth2 launch process began in November 2020. The network’s switch to proof-of-stake is expected to make ETH a deflationary asset.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has outlined his vision for a “plausible roadmap” for Eth2, presenting a future where the largest smart-contract platform can increase its scalability while meeting high standards for trustlessness and censorship resistance.
In a Monday post noscriptd «Endgame», Buterin presented a thought experiment for how the average big blockchain — defined by very high block frequency, high block size and thousands of transactions per second — can still be considered sufficiently trustless and censorship-resistant. The obvious trade-off for this level of scalability is the centralization of block production. Buterin’s solutions, as presented in the blog post, do not address the centralization issue, but still provide a roadmap for implementation.
With respect to the solutions, Buterin suggested “a second tier of staking, with low resource requirements,” to carry out distributed block validation; “introduce either fraud-proof or ZK-SNARKS to let users directly (and cheaply) check block validity” directly; and “introduce data availability sampling to let users check block availability [and] add secondary transaction channels to prevent censorship.”
With these updates, “We get a chain where block production is still centralized, but block validation is trustless and highly decentralized, and specialized anti-censorship magic prevents the block producers from censoring,” Buterin explained.
Buterin said block production would remain centralized even with the implementation of so-called “rollups,” which are layer-two solutions that execute transactions outside of the main Ethereum chain. (Interestingly, Buterin presented a rollup-centric roadmap for Ethereum in October 2020).
“No single rollup succeeds at holding anywhere close to the majority of Ethereum activity. Instead, they all top out at a few hundred transactions per second,” he said. While it may appear that rollups could contribute to distributed block production, decentralization may not last because of the possibility of cross-domain maximal extractable revenue, or MEV. As the name implies MEV refers to the maximum amount of value that can be earned from block production in excess of standard block rewards and gas fees.
The Ethereum co-founder concluded that there’s a high probability that block production will end up centralized regardless of the path to scalability that the network takes. The benefit of Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap is that it’s open to all futures, he said.
@DeCenterOrg
🏦 Germany's trillion-euro savings banks mull crypto wallet
Germany's savings banks, a conservative bastion that holds more than 1 trillion euros for thrifty Germans, is looking into offering a wallet to trade cryptocurrency, a group of the banks said on Monday.
The project marks a potentially radical departure for the banks, whose customers still use cash and eschew risky investing or heavy borrowing.
Entrusted with the savings and investments of roughly 50 million customers, they make up Germany's biggest financial group.
"The interest in crypto assets is huge," a spokesman for the German Savings Banks Association said, with reference to the pilot project. He said no decision had been taken and that the savings banks group was currently sceptical.
The move comes against a backdrop of high inflation and penalty charges on banks and savers from negative interest rates, fuelling a heated debate in Germany about central bank money printing.
It has prompted Germans to invest more in property and elsewhere to avoid what some have dubbed the "expropriation" of their wealth.
Last month, Helmut Schleweis, the president of the German Savings Bank Association, called the combination of low interest rates and rising prices a "toxic mix," saying it had become harder to stop the erosion of wealth.
Bitcoin , the world's largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of roughly $1.2 trillion, has risen strongly, fuelled in part by fears of inflation, with its limited supply seen as offering protection.
Bitcoin also has dozens of smaller rivals, all vying for a share of the wider $2 trillion digital currency market.
Among the major "altcoins" - as all cryptocurrencies aside from bitcoin are known - some, such as ethereum, aspire to be the backbone of a future financial system. Others, like Dogecoin, are barely used in payments.
Retail punters are pouring money into them, despite their volatile track record, in hopes of a quick profit.
Germany's savings banks, a conservative bastion that holds more than 1 trillion euros for thrifty Germans, is looking into offering a wallet to trade cryptocurrency, a group of the banks said on Monday.
The project marks a potentially radical departure for the banks, whose customers still use cash and eschew risky investing or heavy borrowing.
Entrusted with the savings and investments of roughly 50 million customers, they make up Germany's biggest financial group.
"The interest in crypto assets is huge," a spokesman for the German Savings Banks Association said, with reference to the pilot project. He said no decision had been taken and that the savings banks group was currently sceptical.
The move comes against a backdrop of high inflation and penalty charges on banks and savers from negative interest rates, fuelling a heated debate in Germany about central bank money printing.
It has prompted Germans to invest more in property and elsewhere to avoid what some have dubbed the "expropriation" of their wealth.
Last month, Helmut Schleweis, the president of the German Savings Bank Association, called the combination of low interest rates and rising prices a "toxic mix," saying it had become harder to stop the erosion of wealth.
Bitcoin , the world's largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of roughly $1.2 trillion, has risen strongly, fuelled in part by fears of inflation, with its limited supply seen as offering protection.
Bitcoin also has dozens of smaller rivals, all vying for a share of the wider $2 trillion digital currency market.
Among the major "altcoins" - as all cryptocurrencies aside from bitcoin are known - some, such as ethereum, aspire to be the backbone of a future financial system. Others, like Dogecoin, are barely used in payments.
Retail punters are pouring money into them, despite their volatile track record, in hopes of a quick profit.
🇨🇭Swissquote To Launch Crypto Exchange
Switzerland's largest online bank is riding the crypto wave. Swissquote's ambitions include setting up its own trading platform for digital currencies.
Other ambitions in the crypto space include becoming «the leading Swiss provider of digital assets.» To achieve this the broker aims to add more cryptocurrencies to its offering, in addition to stablecoins and staking services, which are currently in high demand.
Platform Surge
Swissquote's crypto exchange starts its operations as planned, there will be a sudden surge in trading platforms for digital assets in Switzerland.
In recent weeks, Swiss Stock Exchange SIX launched a fully licensed digital exchange, SDX. Just days later, Berner Kantonalbank launched SMEIX, a platform that lists tokenized small caps.
In September 2020, crypto bank Sygnum got the green light from regulators to launch its new trading system, which also acts as an exchange for crypto assets.
Last June, Deutsche Boerse bought Swiss fintech Crypto Finance; the acquisition gives Germany’s exchange a direct entry point for digital asset investments, including post-trade services.
«Almost overrun»
Swissquote has already bulked up its workforce in response to the surging demand for digital tokens and coins last spring and will continue hiring to fuel further expansion. «Our compliance and customer service teams were almost overrun by the crypto rush,» recalls De Schepper.
The hiring spree has paid off in reducing waiting times for clients calling in. «Now, we regularly manage to open a trading account on the same day,» De Schepper says. In exceptional cases when special clarification is needed, account opening can take up to a week, he says.
Net income from crypto investments increased by over 1000 percent to 63.2 million Swiss francs in the first half of 2021. At the end of 2021, Swissquote expects to double its pre-tax profit. However, expenses will also rise: Swissquote is investing heavily in infrastructure.
@DeCenterOrg
Switzerland's largest online bank is riding the crypto wave. Swissquote's ambitions include setting up its own trading platform for digital currencies.
Other ambitions in the crypto space include becoming «the leading Swiss provider of digital assets.» To achieve this the broker aims to add more cryptocurrencies to its offering, in addition to stablecoins and staking services, which are currently in high demand.
Platform Surge
Swissquote's crypto exchange starts its operations as planned, there will be a sudden surge in trading platforms for digital assets in Switzerland.
In recent weeks, Swiss Stock Exchange SIX launched a fully licensed digital exchange, SDX. Just days later, Berner Kantonalbank launched SMEIX, a platform that lists tokenized small caps.
In September 2020, crypto bank Sygnum got the green light from regulators to launch its new trading system, which also acts as an exchange for crypto assets.
Last June, Deutsche Boerse bought Swiss fintech Crypto Finance; the acquisition gives Germany’s exchange a direct entry point for digital asset investments, including post-trade services.
«Almost overrun»
Swissquote has already bulked up its workforce in response to the surging demand for digital tokens and coins last spring and will continue hiring to fuel further expansion. «Our compliance and customer service teams were almost overrun by the crypto rush,» recalls De Schepper.
The hiring spree has paid off in reducing waiting times for clients calling in. «Now, we regularly manage to open a trading account on the same day,» De Schepper says. In exceptional cases when special clarification is needed, account opening can take up to a week, he says.
Net income from crypto investments increased by over 1000 percent to 63.2 million Swiss francs in the first half of 2021. At the end of 2021, Swissquote expects to double its pre-tax profit. However, expenses will also rise: Swissquote is investing heavily in infrastructure.
@DeCenterOrg