Algorithmic stablecoins have had a rough year, starting with UST de-pegging to zero and the subsequent blow-up of Terra’s LUNA token which was used for the asset’s backing. Algorithmic stablecoins are not fully collateralized and rely on different mechanisms to maintain the peg, making them inherently fragile to market conditions. The UST implosion created a domino effect that caused another stablecoin, Magic Internet Money (MIM) to de-peg. Despite the fragility of algorithmic stablecoins, new projects like Djed by Cardano (ADA) are still planning on launching, but that doesn’t mean that the concept has improved since the crises seen earlier in …

Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto are only used by 13.7% of Americans, but they generate more exchange volume than anyone else. The latest data compiled by exchange Huobi confirms that in 2022, the United States is the most “mature” crypto market. U.S., Vietnam lead the way on crypto Despite the heavy drawdowns in price for Bitcoin and altcoins this year, interest throughout the world remains “extremely active,” and the leaders may come as a surprise. In its latest annual report, Huobi Research, an affiliate of Huobi Global, revealed that the U.S. accounts for 9.2% of global centralized exchange (CEX) volume. When …

Hong Kong’s legislative council has passed a new amendment to its anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing system to include virtual asset service providers. The latest legislation will establish a new licensing regime for virtual asset service providers, set to come into effect from June 1, 2023. The new amendment will subject crypto exchange service providers to the same legislation as followed by traditional financial institutions. It means virtual exchanges looking to open a business in Hong Kong will have to go through rigorous AML guidelines and investor protection laws before being granted a license of operation. Unlike most other …

Bitcoin (BTC) price crashed to $15,500 on Nov. 21, driving the price to its lowest level in two years. The 2-day-long correction totaled an 8% downtrend and wiped out $230 million worth of leverage long (buy) futures contracts. The price move gave the false impression to bears that a sub-$15,500 expiry on the Dec. 9 options expiry was feasible, but those bets are unlikely to pay off as the deadline approaches. Year-to-date, Bitcoin price is 65% down for 2022, but the leading cryptocurrency remains a top 30 global tradable asset class ahead of tech giants like Meta Platforms (META), Samsung …

The United States lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 that includes information on crypto rewards and payouts. The proposed amendment under the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) requires the Department of State, an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations, to inform about any crypto payouts or rewards within 15 days of making it. The NDAA is the name for each of a series of United States federal laws specifying the annual budget and expenditures of the U.S. Department of Defense. The official document …

Most cryptocurrencies are likely to be regulated as securities in the United States according to the CEO of Intercontinental Exchange Inc (ICE), Jeffrey Sprecher, and Senator Elizabeth Warren. The renewed focus on regulating cryptocurrencies as securities comes in light of FTX’s recent implosion, which wiped countless billions from the market, put consumer funds in limbo and soured crypto’s reputation among regulators and officials. Speaking on Dec. 6 at the financial services conference by Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Sprecher — whose ICE operates the New York Stock Exchange — confidently stated crypto assets are “going to be regulated and dealt like …

Italy is planning to tighten regulations on digital currencies by expanding its tax laws to include cryptocurrency trading in 2023, according to budget documentation released on Dec. 1. Included in its 2023 budget are plans to impose a 26% levy on profits larger than 2000 euros ( $2,062.3) made on cryptocurrency trading, according to Bloomberg. Prior to this proposal, digital currencies had lower tax rates because they were previously considered “foreign currency." In the proposed bill, taxpayers will have the option to declare the value of their digital asset holdings as of Jan. 1, and pay a 14% tax. This …

Bitcoin (BTC) has been stuck below the $18,600 resistance for the past 19 days and while bears successfully breached the $16,000 support on Nov. 21, the 8% range is pretty narrow for an asset class with 60% annualized volatility. This gives investors good reason to doubt that BTC price will hold its current gains leading into the $430 million BTC options expiry on Dec. 2. Investors are still unsure about whether $15,500 was the Bitcoin bottom and the consequences of the FTX and Alameda Research demise continue to emerge. The latest contagion victim was Auros Global, an algorithmic trading and …

On this week’s episode of Market Talks, Cointelegraph welcomes Magdalena Gronowska, co-founder of Citadel 256 and senior consultant at MetaMesh — a blockchain consultancy and building platform. This week, we take a deep dive into everything that is happening in the crypto space — we get Gronowska’s professional take on Sam Bankman-Fried and the whole FTX saga and also BlockFi’s bankruptcy. Bitcoin (BTC) miners have also had a rough few months with profits slowly dipping. What are the odds of most miners shutting down shop and selling their Bitcoin while still making some profit on it, especially since most of …

The chief of the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Rostin Behnam, claimed Bitcoin is the only crypto asset that can be viewed as a commodity during an invite-only crypto event at Princeton University, reported Fortune. Behnam’s comments are quite a contrast to his early statements in October, where he claimed Ether (ETH) could also be viewed as a commodity. The CFTC chief was answering a question on which crypto assets should be seen as commodities and which ones qualify as securities. The CFTC chief’s backtracking of his comments on ETH comes in the wake of heavy scrutiny of …

The total cryptocurrency market capitalization gained 2% in the past seven days, reaching $850 billion. Even with the positive movement and the ascending channel that was initiated on Nov. 20, the overall sentiment remains bearish and year-to-date losses amount to 63.5%. Bitcoin (BTC) price also gained a mere 2% on the week, but investors have little to celebrate as the current $16,800 level represents a 64% drop year-to-date. Bankrupt exchange FTX remained at the centerpiece of the newsflow after the exchange hacker continued to move portions of the stolen $477 million in stolen assets as an attempt to launder the …

In light of the recent FTX collapse and liquidity scandal, regulators in the European Union have joined other global lawmakers in a push for more clear guidelines and regulations on cryptos. The European Central Bank (ECB) released a blog post titled “Bitcoin’s last stand” on Nov. 30, which summarized the financial career of Bitcoin (BTC) amid current price fluctuations. However, instead of outlining the entire picture, which would include both up and downs of the cryptocurrency’s lifespan thus far, it only portrayed its shortcomings. Written by Ulrich Bindseil and Jürgen Schaaf, the director general and advisor of the ECB, the …