The Death of Compromise, and a Way Forward for Crypto
Lessons for TradFi and DeFi from some toppled LEGO.
South African Crypto Exchange Valr Partners with Visa to Expand Crypto Payments
South African cryptocurrency exchange Valr has partnered with global payment card service company Visa to expand the use of cryptocurrency payments within and outside African countries.
Lineshree Moodley, General Manager of Visa South Africa, said the two companies will collaborate to develop a solution that will allow Valr's customers to use Visa's network for payments or receipts.
BitGo acquires crypto wealth management platform HeightZero
Digital asset custodian BitGo has acquired cryptocurrency wealth management platform HeightZero, with specific transaction details yet to be disclosed. HeightZero is a company that provides software tools for wealth management institutions, whose clients may want to invest a portion of their investment portfolios in cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
Crypto Strategist Predicts Downside for Altcoin with $1.9 Billion Market Cap, Updates Outlook on Solana and Woo Network
According to a popular crypto strategist, the native asset of the Cosmos blockchain ecosystem, ATOM, appears to be in a bearish trend and may drop further to $5.50 before experiencing a relief rally. The analyst also notes that Solana is currently stuck in a wide trading range between $16 and $27, while Woo Network's native asset, WOO, remains in a sideways trend with support at around $0.147. The strategist suggests that WOO may be a decent longer-term investment, but does not see it as a buy at the current time.
Australia’s Treasury proposes to regulate crypto trading platforms under existing laws
On October 16th, the Australian Treasury Department released a proposal for regulating digital asset service platforms, aiming to provide clarity and protect consumers in this field. The government plans to utilize existing Australian financial services laws to require platforms with a certain asset threshold to obtain Australian financial services licenses.
In addition, regulatory agencies also hope that certain obligations will be fulfilled, including the development of custody software standards and token trading requirements. The proposal will also impose additional obligations on activities such as trading, pledging, tokenization, and fundraising. The consultation period for this consultation document will end on December 1, 2023.
Airwallex partners with Alpaca to offer settled transactions to investors
Financial platform Airwallex announced a partnership with API brokerage platform Alpaca to support Alpaca's global payment and foreign exchange (FX) needs. Through the partnership with Airwallex, Alpaca and its brokerage partners can utilize Airwallex's global local collection and payment channel network to support financing and settlement transactions in multiple currencies, starting with Australian dollars (AUD), Canadian dollars (CAD), euros (EUR), and many other currencies. Previously reported, stock and cryptocurrency trading API service company Alpaca received $15 million in funding from SBI Group.
Venezuela Ranks Fifth for Crypto Value Received in Latin America, According to Chainalysis Report
Despite being seen as a potential model for national cryptocurrency adoption due to hyperinflation and authoritarianism, Venezuela only ranks fifth in total crypto value received in Latin America and doesn't make it to the top 20 worldwide, according to a report by Chainalysis. Venezuelans are more interested in the global reserve currency and have been moving towards a de-facto dollarized economy internally, says Javier Bastardo, organizer of Satoshi in Venezuela.
Crypto for Advisors: Waiting for the Next Crypto Bull Market? It’s Already Here.
Is crypto winter slowly thawing and spring upon us? Thanks to Jennnifer Murphy from Runa Digital Assets sharing their perspective on the crypto market and indicators that the bull may be upon us.
Ferrari Starts Accepting Cryptocurrency Payments for Its Luxury Sports Cars in the U.S. and Plans to Extend the Scheme to Europe
Luxury carmaker Ferrari has begun accepting cryptocurrency payments for its vehicles in the US and plans to extend the scheme to Europe. The move comes in response to requests from wealthy customers, some of whom have built their fortunes around cryptocurrencies. Ferrari will use BitPay, one of the largest cryptocurrency payment processors, to ensure that virtual currencies come from legitimate sources and are not used for criminal activity or tax evasion. The company's marketing and commercial chief said the majority of its US dealers have already signed up to the scheme.
Hamas' Use of Crypto for Financing: Should We Be Worried?
The Wall Street Journal recently published a report claiming that Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups had raised $41 million in crypto between August 2020 and June 2021. The report suggested that crypto was being used to finance terrorist operations and that law enforcement was struggling to contain the flows. However, Yaya Fanusie, a former CIA staffer who has been tracking crypto financing of terrorism since 2016, argued that crypto is far from a golden ticket for groups wanting to raise money secretly. He noted that the public nature of public blockchains, exchanges, and wallet addresses opens up terrorist financing to scrutiny.
