Tuesday April 26, 2022
◾ Fidelity Investments plans to allow investors to add bitcoin accounts to their 401(k)s. (WSJ)
◾ The Bank of Canada says the Canadian dollar, not the digital loonie, will remain at the center of the its financial system. (Reuters)
◾ ECB Executive Board member Fabio Panetta is calling for greater regulations over the crypto “Wild West” suggesting “Satoshi Nakamoto’s dream of creating trustworthy money” actually “aspired to realize an anarchistic utopia of a stable currency free from public scrutiny.” (ECB)
The Fear & Greed Index for bitcoin and other large cryptocurrencies remained unchanged this week holding in a seven-point range for the second week in a row. Bitcoin has held between $39.4k – 41.5k with ether in a tighter range around $3,000 leaving investors waiting for the next buyer. Protocol development continues but the crypto investment story has firmly evolved into a risk-off tale. Bitcoin’s correlation has increased to the S&P with its 90-day correlation nearing all-time-highs at .576. Today’s news that Fidelity Investments plans to allow investors to add bitcoin to their 401(k) will be seen as an extremely positive move, but investors seems more interested in Twitter, tech earnings, inflation and the Fed today.
Government & NGO Actions
◾ The Department of Justice has indicted two Europeans for conspiring with Ethereum researcher Virgil Griffith to educate North Korea on how to use crypto technology to evade sanctions. (Justice.gov)
Spain’s tax authority has been selective in advising crypto investors to declare income taxes warning only 5.3% of the estimated 4.4 million Spanish citizens who have invested in digital assets. (News.bitcoin)
◾ The City of Fort Worth Texas is voting on a resolution to initiate a pilot with three donated bitcoin mining rigs and position the city as “crypto-friendly…[to] responsible businesses contributing to the development [of crypto] technology.” (Star-telegram)
Public Company Releases
◾ Brazilian crypto asset manager Hashdex has received approval from the SIX Swiss Exchange to list ETPs in Switzerland. (GlobeNewswire)
◾ The launch of three crypto focused ETFs in Australia has been delayed due to “standard checks.” (Coindesk)
Protocols, Applications & Business News
◾ Leading NFT platform Open Sea has acquired marketplace aggregator Gem allowing pro users to buy NFTs across multiple marketplaces with a single transaction. (OpenSea)
◾ Meta (FB) is opening its first bricks and mortar retail location providing consumers with hands-on experiences with its metaverse focused hardware products. (Meta)
◾ Binance is launching the Binance Refugee Crypto Card allowing displaced Ukrainians to receive and make crypto payments at retailers throughout the European Economic Area. (Cision)
Metaverse Briefings & Activations
◾ Standard Chartered Bank has purchased land in the metaverse and plans to build “innovative experiences for our clients and the community” in The Sandbox. (Altfi)
◾ Decentraland is holding the first ever marathon in the metaverse today. (Decentraland)
Market Data
◾ Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis published a ranking of crypto gains by country finding investors in the US realized 28.8% of all crypto gains in 2021 followed by the UK (5.0%), Germany (3.6%), and Japan (3.4%). (Chainalysis)
Exchange, Custody and Product Updates
◾ Crypto exchange ByBit plans to offer options trading to customers. (Theblock)