Finance news-Page 15
Arab Bank has chosen Tezos to facilitate institutional custody service
Arab Bank Switzerland announced Tuesday that it will integrate staking, trading and custody services onto the Tezos blockchain’s native token (XTZ) in a bid to provide a digital asset environment for institutions, corporations and high net-worth individuals. The 50-year old establishment partnered with Tezos in the hope of benefiting from the ecosystem's inherent focus on energy conservation, low-gas fees and fast upgrades. Managing Director of Arab Bank Switzerland, Rani Jabban commented on the institution’s ambitions following the announcement: “Digital Assets are a cornerstone of our strategy, requiring strong agility while complying with the highest security standards. Our mission is to …
Blockchain / Oct. 5, 2021
Opposition mounts to Biden’s OCC pick, fears she could ‘regulate crypto into oblivion’
Resistance is mounting to United States President Joe Biden’s reported plans to tap a staunch banking and crypto critic to run the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The proposed nomination of law professor Saule Omarova to head the federal bank regulatory agency has raised eyebrows in political and financial circles, as she is widely seen as anti-crypto and anti-big banks. Senator Ted Cruz has become the latest crypto ally to speak out, claiming that her decisions, if nominated, could change the future of the industry in a tweet on Tuesday. “Not only is Saule Omarova, Biden’s pick to …
Regulation / Sept. 29, 2021
Biden to nominate anti-crypto and anti-big bank law professor to run the OCC
The Biden administration reportedly intends to nominate Kazakhstani-American attorney, academic and former policy advisor Saule Omarova to head the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency — the institution that oversees the United States banking sector. Omarova has levied criticisms at both crypto assets and the legacy banking sector in the past, having once pledged to “end banking as we know it.” She has characterized cryptocurrency as “benefiting mainly the dysfunctional financial system we already have.” According to a Wednesday report from Bloomberg citing three anonymous sources “familiar with the nomination process,” Omarova could be nominated as soon as this …
Regulation / Sept. 23, 2021
Finance Redefined: DeFi’s $4M lobsters and Solana gaming, Sept. 6–10
Welcome to the latest edition of Cointelegraph’s decentralized finance, or DeFi, newsletter. In a week where the crypto market bears returned for blood, DeFi enlisted an army of lobsters to fight its feuds. While we ponder a feasible battleground for that mammalian–invertebrate combat, feel free to scroll on and read the top choices for the week’s most impactful stories. What you’re about to read is a shorter, more succinct version of the newsletter. For a comprehensive summary of DeFi’s developments over the last week — delivered to your inbox quicker than a food delivery order in lockdown — subscribe below. …
Blockchain / Sept. 10, 2021
Marketplace efficiency is closer than ever, with features that allow users to stake assets as collateral when trading on margin
One platform might have found the solution to address the major pain points of traditional staking. AscendEX, a platform marketed as the nexus between the decentralized and centralized finance community, provides users with several unique features. On the AscendEX platforms, users can access trading services for over 200 trading pairs, including many initial exchange offerings (IEOs) along with margin trading of over 50 tokens. It is also the only centralized exchange to provide users with access to Polygon yield farming. New users are encouraged to try out these features, with what are believed to be more contests and the biggest …
Bitcoin / Sept. 2, 2021
A digital bank leverages AI to provide robo-advisory to all users
An artificial intelligence-powered platform designed to enhance traditional mobile banking with seamless crypto integration is about to launch v2 of its mobile application, describing it as an all-in-one crypto-financial solution. BlockBank, which describes itself as a platform designed for professional traders and new retail market participants, reported that the new version of its application is a significant advancement compared to what has been offered in the space so far. The application is said to consist of four main components: a centralized custodial wallet, a non-custodial Web 3.0 wallet, banking and an AI-powered robo-advisor. The team emphasized that users won’t have …
Blockchain / Aug. 26, 2021
$7B investment firm recommends crypto to beat currency debasement
Contrarian investment firm Horizon Kinetics is advising investors to seek exposure to crypto assets amid mounting global economic challenges. Speaking to the Financial Times, Horizon co-founder Peter Doyle warned that the coronavirus pandemic and growing debt will usher an inflection point for the world economy, predicting: “There is no turning back after the pandemic and globally there is a debt problem and it means either default or currency debasement.” Horizon’s Paradigm fund made a 1% allocation into Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust in 2016, with the investment now representing 10% of the fund’s portfolio. “People should have exposure to the asset class,” …
Business / July 28, 2021
Tesla reports record $1B income for Q2 despite $23M impairment loss on BTC
Electric vehicle and clean energy firm Tesla has reported $1.14 billion in net income for the second quarter. The firm’s Monday earnings report showed that total revenue grew by 98% year-on-year for Q2, increasing from $6 billion in 2020 to $11.9 billion this year. Tesla attributed the bulk of its growth to a surge in demand for its electric vehicles, stating: “In the second quarter of 2021, we broke new and notable records. We produced and delivered over 200,000 vehicles, achieved an operating margin of 11.0%, and exceeded $1B of GAAP net income for the first time in our history.” …
Business / July 27, 2021
DeFi projects face a painful dilemma right now as they seek ‘the holy grail’
Cryptocurrencies have garnered something of a reputation as being fast, dangerous and lethal for many — so much so that the average investor is scared of digital assets. The volatility that’s associated with this new asset class has also meant that gaining exposure to the world’s biggest coins has been likened to an experience that’s not for the faint-hearted — or, in traditional investor terms, “not for the wise.” Inevitably, this will spark endless debate on whether crypto is something for everyday consumers to be scared of. Is investing a small percentage of one’s portfolio into digital assets prudent or …
Blockchain / July 26, 2021
No, Jackson Palmer, you are wrong about crypto
15 years ago, the social media application Twitter was launched. You might have heard of it, it’s pretty big. Initially, the microblogging and social networking service was a friendly place, packed full of helpful articles and adorable videos. In a recent article, aptly titled ‘How Twitter ruined everything,’ the author Douglas Murray wrote, somewhat nostalgically, “It all started out so well." Jack Dorsey’s brainchild was once, believe it or not, fun. People used the platform to say wacky things, but fun wacky, not QAnon wacky. Oh, how times have changed. Twitter, in many ways, has gone from being a heavenly …
Bitcoin / July 21, 2021
Harmony announces $1M hackathon aimed at merging traditional finance and DeFi
The Harmony blockchain has opened registration for a hackathon starting next month with more than $1 million in seed funding and prizes for participants. In a Thursday announcement on Twitter, Harmony said the hackathon would be focused on bringing in more people from traditional finance for challenges bridging their fields and decentralized finance. The protocol said there would be four challenges in each category of social wallets and keyless security, cross-chain and trustless bridges, and cross-border with fintech integration. “In blockchain, finance is where we are seeing product market fit,” said Harmony. “But most of DeFi was created by people …
Business / July 16, 2021
Japan to reportedly take action to scrutinize crypto globally
Japan is strengthening its efforts to regulate digital currencies on a global scale, with related government authorities reportedly looking to expand staff to impose stricter rules. Japanese regulators have expressed fresh concerns over the massive growth of the cryptocurrency market, particularly cautioning against stablecoins, Reuters reported on Friday. Tokyo is willing to engage with global financial regulators to develop stricter rules for private digital currencies, three Japanese officials reportedly said, adding that G7 and G20 group regulators have called for greater regulations for fiat-pegged stablecoins. “Japan can no longer leave things unattended with global developments over digital currencies moving so …
Regulation / July 16, 2021