BitDigest – Wednesday September 15, 2021
- Gensler fighting crypto’s regulatory chicken or the egg scenario
- Coinbase upsizes debt offering to $2 billion
- Apple blocking digital wallets over off-app purchased NFTs
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| The Headlines |
| Gensler Finds Opposition on the HillSEC Secretary Gensler found objections to his suggestion that Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) should register activities with the securities regulator from Senators including Pat Toomey (R-PA) who suggested the SEC was trying to regulate through enforcement and needs to provide greater clarity before companies know whether or not registration is required.www.bloomberg.com |
| Uzbekistan Does Not See Crypto Payment FutureThe deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan says that unlike regulator issued bank notes, digital currencies are “not backed by anything” and therefore he does not see local authorities allowing the “speculative” assets to be used for payment in the central Asian country.cointelegraph.com |
| China’s Hebei Province Targeting Crypto Mining and Trading OperationsCiting effort to support China’s “carbon neutral goal[s]”,the government officials in China’s northern Hebei province said it will cooperate with other administrative departments to crack down on virtual currency mining and trading and is seeking assistance from whistleblowers and the general public.www.reuters.com |
| Hut 8 Announces Proposed Public OfferingCrypto miner Hut 8 (NASDAQ: HUT) announced the launch of a proposed underwritten public offering in the US and Canada; terms or the size of the offering are to be determined based on marketed conditions.www.prnewswire.com |
| Coinbase Prices $2 Billion in Senior NotesCoinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) upsized its debt offering pricing $1 billion of senior notes due 2028 at 3.375% and an additional $1 billion due 2031 at 3.625%.investor.coinbase.com |
| Bitwise Files Prospectus for Bitcoin Futures ETFBitwise, together with ETF Series Solutions, has filed a new bitcoin ETF prospectus seeking to provide long-term capital appreciation through exchange traded future contracts and not directly by holding bitcoin.Note: Bloomberg is reporting SEC Chairman Gensler has an “openness to ETF’s based on bitcoin futures.”www.sec.gov |
| Apple Blocks Wallet Holding NFTsGnosis Safe tweeted that Apple is blocking the release of it’s updated mobile app because the multi-sig crypto wallet displays NFTs purchased off-app on third party platforms which is in violation of App Store guidelines.twitter.com |
| Jump Trading Formalizes Crypto EffortsHigh-frequency trading Jump Trading Group has raisied $350 million and is launching a dedicated team of talent and resources focused on the growth and development of blockchain ecosystems and cryptocurrencies formalizing its team of already 80 employees working in these nascent fields.www.businesswire.com |
| Flow to Operate on Google CloudDapper Labs has announced a partnership with Google Cloud to support its Flow blockchain’s network infrastructure by allowing developers to choose which regions power their platforms, based on the energy consumption of that region.www.forbes.com |
| Market Data |
| Solana Blockchain Experiencing OutagesSolana experienced a network outage that has blocked blockchain validation on the high speed scaling network since yesterday morning.www.coindesk.com |
| “Grassroots Adoption” Driving Crypto in AfricaChainalysis finds that Africa “has the smallest cryptocurrency economy of any region” the blockchain analytics firms studies but has down 1200% growth over the past year driven by P2P transactions, retail-sized transfers and “some of the highest grassroots adoption in the world.”blog.chainalysis.com |
| Thoughts on the Ecosystem |
| UK CBDC 3 – 5 Years OutNatWest bank chairman Howard Davies expects that “within three to five years we will see [a government issued CBDC} operating in the UK on a sort of pilot basis.”www.reuters.com |
| ETA Issues Guiding Principles for CryptoThe Electronic Transaction Association (ETA) released recommended Guiding Principles policymakers should consider when designing new laws and regulating digital assets:Properly Defining CryptoassetsTailoring Regulations to the Risk Profile of the Participant/ActivityEnsuring Consumer ProtectionHarmonizing With Existing Regulatory FrameworksEncouraging Responsible Innovationwww.electran.org |
| Daily Cartoon |
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