Author: CVJ.CH Content Partner BeInCrypto

Investment bank Goldman Sachs will reopen its cryptocurrency/bitcoin trading desk from next week. The trading desk will be within Goldman’s digital assets sector, which includes other projects related to blockchain and digital currencies. Initially, Goldman will offer its clients Bitcoin (BTC) futures and non-deliverable forwards (NDFs), according to Reuters. The bank is also looking into offering bitcoin exchange traded funds (ETF), as well as investigating digital asset custody. Overall, the digital assets sector is a part of the US bank’s Global Markets division. Growing Institutional Interest The reopening comes amidst growing institutional interest in Bitcoin, as the price of the…

The Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP-1559) is a proposal for the Ethereum Protocol, which aims to solve the high transaction fees and inflation of Ether (ETH). According to industry insiders the controversial upgrade could be launched as soon as July. Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 1559 has been the most talked-about upgrade for the network since ETH 2.0 was launched on Dec. 1, 2020. The EIP tackles the debilitating problem of high transaction fees which have strained the network in recent months. Rising transaction fees The surge in prices and a booming DeFi sector have put a huge demand on Ethereum. As a consequence,…

This week, the Canton of Zug will start accepting crypto currencies Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) for cantonal tax payments. The Canton has always been a pioneer in the blockchain space and is the heart of the Crypto Valley for a reason, now their decision is being implemented. This big step for crypto adoption was announced a few months ago, but now it is finally being put into practice. A video shows how Swiss crypto-enthusiasts can use their Bitcoin (BTC) or Ether (ETH) to pay their taxes. Taxpayers should indicate they want to pay with crypto when they get their…

Canada’s Purpose Investments launched its bitcoin exchange traded fund on Feb. 11, according to its website. The Purpose Bitcoin ETF, which the Canadian government approved, becomes the first crypto exchange traded fund (ETF) in North America. CAD and USD versions will trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the tickers BTCC and BTCC.U respectively. According to the prospectus, the ETF will be audited by Big Four advisory Ernst and Young. Cidel Trust will handle custodian chores in Canada, while Gemini Trust Company, which is owned by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, is the sub-trustee for non-Canadian holdings. Canadian Connection to Gemini…

The Italian football club AC Milan has launched its own fan token (ACM), prompting the team to ask fans for a new motto. They are one of many clubs to get involved with the blockchain technology, driving the adoption in different areas than just the financial industry. The club announced the partnership in January 2021. But now, the token will be made available on the fan engagement and rewards app Socios. Together with the launch, the AC Milan marketing team asked fans to devise a new motto for the group, replacing the infamous: “We will be a team of devils.…

The business intelligence firm MicroStrategy was the first publicly traded company to add Bitcoin to their balance sheet. CEO Michael Saylor shared their strategy and reasoning in a conference that attracted representatives from 6’917 different companies. MicroStrategy held two-days of video sessions for companies interested in following its path to holding bitcoin. Called “Bitcoin for Corporations’”, the event featured key MicroStrategy officials, including CEO Michael Saylor.  On Feb. 6, Saylor tweeted that Bitcoins for Corporations had attracted 8197 viewers from 6917 companies. Our @MicroStrategy World 2021 was a great success, with 22,031 registrants. The #Bitcoin for Corporations program attracted 8,197 attendees…

Quite a few cryptocurrency firms have been seeking to capitalize on the bullish sentiment with IPOs. They are lining themselves up for public listings amid the market’s positive atmosphere to capture some of the value. One of the most prominent examples is the Coinbase IPO. According to Bloomberg, as many as eight firms are eyeing IPOs in the near future. These companies are attempting to seize the fervent sentiment to expand – reminiscent of the ICO boom that occurred in 2017. The crypto-entities that have filed for IPOs span a range of services within the industry. Besides exchanges, which have…

The term “vampire mining” was coined when DeFi protocol SushiSwap forked from Uniswap in August 2020. SushiSwap subsequently leeched a good portion of Uniswap’s liquidity, but now it appears to be standing on its own as a DeFi “bluechip”. On-chain metrics provider Santiment has taken a deep dive into the SushiSwap DeFi clone. It draws a conclusion that SushiSwap has become a “formidable Uniswap competitor” in its own right. In terms of total value locked, SushiSwap is making gains on Uniswap as it has now surpassed $2 billion according to DeFi Pulse. This puts SushiSwap in sixth place, less than one…

The crypto-savvy Gary Gensler will be appointed to the position of SEC Chairman under the Biden administration. A move that could be advantageous for the industry, according to people in the space. He was previously the Chairman of the CFTC and taught at MIT. President-elect Joe Biden will appoint Gary Gensler as US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as Chairman, according to a Reuters report. Gensler is knowledgeable about Bitcoin and blockchain, having taught a course on similar topics at MIT. Neither Biden nor Gensler has made an official statement on the subject as of press time. Gensler joins the SEC Gary Gensler…

The year 2020 has brought considerable increases to a number of well- and lesser-known cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin (BTC) reached a new all-time high on the first of December, while several smaller altcoins reached their all-time highs in August during “DeFi Summer”. The year 2020 has been a very compelling year for traders who are active in the cryptocurrency world. It began with relatively stable movement in the form of a gradual increase. This served to create a bullish bias, since Bitcoin made several attempts at moving above the 2019 highs at $13’880. However, this was not a sign of things to…

A developer at the Yearn Finance DeFi aggregator platform has released an update on the development status of its long-awaited second iteration. There will be general upgrades, as well as new vault strategies and the integration of protocols such as Cover and Cream. During the DeFi boom of late-2020, Yearn Finance broke the mold with products and strategies that did the work for the yield farmer. Aggregating other DeFi protocols in order to find the best returns and bundling them into easy to use vaults was a revolutionary innovation for the ecosystem. Fast forward to 2021 and yields have dwindled…

Without a doubt, Decentralized Finance (DeFi) was a strong driver of crypto markets in 2020. Bitcoin (BTC) did rise over 300% and Ethereum (ETH) over 480%, but some of the DeFi tokens outperformed those gains with monumental price increases. Many of today’s DeFi-related coins did not exist at the beginning of the year as the scene has resembled a microcosmic explosion of new protocols and tokens all within a six-month period. Many of those tokens have resembled the pump and dump patterns that 2017’s altcoins went through, but some have performed solidly, and this article will highlight those high flying…

Unregulated stablecoins such as Tether face increasing regulatory pressure from the US government. A new bill called the Stable Act is stirring anxiety in crypto circles. It could effectively put an end to billions of dollars of transactions and throw the industry back several years. The Act calls for banking licenses for stablecoin issuers such as Tether. It doesn’t end there. The bill proposes additional requirements for Federal Reserve reporting. It also proposes issuance approval in addition to ongoing auditing requirements and an insurance policy to cover assets. Another proposal may require stablecoin issuers to store their reserves directly at…

Hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger has suffered another massive data breach for the second time this year. The exposure of thousands of clients’ personal information has increased the threat of SIM swapping as an attack vector. For the second time this year, personal data from Ledger wallet buyers has been dumped online. The leak was posted by several members of the crypto community who found files allegedly containing the ‘full database’ of Ledger customers containing emails, phone numbers, and even physical addresses. Major data leak Ledger published a statement on Twitter, claiming it was old data from the June 2020 server breach. Today we were…

We’ve just witnessed the biggest purchase of a blockchain-based digital artwork collection in history, smashing the previously held record by hundreds of thousands of dollars. The artist behind this historic sale is Mike Winkelmann who works under the moniker ‘Beeple.’ Beeple broke the record for the largest sale of a blockchain-based collection of digital artwork by hundreds of thousands of dollars. The auction for the BEEPLE: EVERYDAYS 2020 collection, which Winkelmann refers to as ‘THE COMPLETE MF COLLECTION,’ is a one-of-one curation of all the digital art creations Beeple made in 2020. When all was said and done, the collection…

Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G7 nations are reportedly unanimous in their call for robust crypto regulations. From keeping up with China’s digital yuan efforts to maintaining monetary policy control capabilities, the financial architecture across these nations presumably has a lot at stake. The US Treasury Department revealed the news via a readout published on its website this week. According to the press statement, finance chiefs across the G7 agree that there is a need to regulate digital currencies. This consensus was part of a meeting of the G7 finance chiefs along with the heads of the…