The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day Mar. 31, 2022 Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Sign up here. Supported by |
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Today's must-reads Top Shelf |
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SOLID CUSTODIAN: One of the oldest banks in the U.S., BNY Mellon (BK), will serve as the "primary custodian" for peer-to-peer payments company Circle Internet Financial as the stablecoin issuer looks to bring USDC into the world of regulated finance. - The popular dollar-denominated store-of-value crypto traders also highlights Circle's vested interest in building trust in its USD coin.
- The partnership could simultaneously boost BNY Mellon's brand among crypto clients, as it lends its credibility to USDC. BNY Mellon CEO of Asset and Head of Digital Roman Regelman said the bank's custodial role aims to "support the broader marketplace and [bring] value to our clients."
PRIVACY BUST: The European Union Parliament has voted to pass various privacy-busting rules that may stifle a number of crypto-related activities. The vote faced pushback from the crypto industry and legal experts, and could face legal challenges in EU courts. - The proposals extend anti-money laundering requirements, and would apply to payments made over EUR 1,000 ($1,114) and rope in unhosted or self-hosted wallets. Companies like Coinbase (COIN) for instance, now need to report any time a customer received crypto over this threshold from a self-hosted wallet.
- Additional measures under discussion could see unregulated crypto exchanges cut off from the conventional financial system.
- Elsewhere in the EU, the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB), which was created after the 2008 crisis, is considering new regulations that would impose bank-style lending caps on fintech firms.
FUNDING ROUND: Crypto exchange Blockchain.com has reached a $14 billion valuation following its latest funding round led by Lightspeed Venture partners and investment management firm Baillie Gifford & Co. - The latest funding amount was not disclosed but follows a series of funding efforts by the U.S.-based company, which raised $300 million in March of last year, placing the company's value then at just $5.2 billion.
- The exchange, founded in 2011, has 37 million verified users and processes one-third of bitcoin network transactions through its platform.
PAYING IN BITCOIN: Chandler, Arizona, is welcoming utility payments from its residents via crypto, including bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH) and litecoin (LTC) held in user's PayPal (PYPL) accounts. - According to a press release, the city said it will never touch those coins; instead, its utility processor, Invoice Cloud, will sell it all for fiat. Chandler's choice of PayPal means that bill payers can't use their self-custodied coins, as PayPal's crypto service is a closed loop that doesn't let digital assets in or out.
- City Council member Mark Stewart notes that it's important to serve residents with the newest technology. However, it remains unclear whether any of the residents in Chandler have begun using the alternative payment method.
–Fran Velasquez |
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Overheard on CoinDesk TV... Sound Bites |
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"Just because you're awesome at hacking doesn't necessarily mean that you're awesome at what happens after you hack." –Former CIA Agent Adam Darrah, on the recent $600 million Ronin attack, on CoinDesk TV's "First Mover." |
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What others are writing... Off-Chain Signals |
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Binance becomes official crypto exchange partner of 64th Grammy Awards (Cointelegraph) 35 NFTs including Bored Apes stolen via phishing attack in last week alone (The Block) Polygon Taps Zero-Knowledge Proofs to Enhance Privacy for Users (The Defiant) Binance steps up hiring, activity in crypti hub Dubai (Reuters) One in five adults has invested in, traded or used cryptocurrency, NBC News poll shows (CNBC) Texas Bitcoin Miners Seek Tax Break for Using Trapped Well Gas (Bloomberg)
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Putting the news into perspective The Takeaway |
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Vitalik Buterin on Ethereum's 'Roads Not Taken' Ethereum today has resulted from previous choices, decisions that were constrained by resources and "brain cycles" and implementations where sometimes it was worth waiting for "perfect" and other times when "good enough" sufficed. Ethereum could have been less complex, Buterin writes. Its virtual machine could have used existing code rather than a bespoke solution. Its developers could have gone with a crude version of proof-of-stake (the consensus algorithm that will eventually secure Ethereum) that existed in 2013. Ethereum could have been "more Bitcoin-like," Buterin said, referencing that first blockchain, which aims to do one thing well – serve as a global, peer-to-peer settlements layer denominated in a secure, digital bearer-asset, BTC. "In general, it sometimes feels to me like Ethereum's biggest challenges come from balancing between two visions – a pure and simple blockchain that values safety and simplicity, and a highly performant and functional platform for building advanced applications," Buterin wrote. Ethereum initially wanted to become the "world computer," or a decentralized platform, powered by cryptocurrency to execute any conceivable application. Today, Ethereum supports a multibillion-dollar economy, attracts some of the world's smartest computer scientists and is the wellspring from which a number of novel computer "primitives" surface. This balancing act between elegant design and complexity is complicated by Ethereum's being an open network. It exists so anyone with an idea and sufficient capital can build their dream applications or chase a quick buck. Ethereum is often criticized within the crypto industry, especially by bitcoiners, for its hierarchy of developers. There are certainly people and organizations with sway over Ethereum, but the network is arguably democratic. Or, at the very least, its oligopoly exists in the open. When Buterin speaks, people listen. Earlier this month, Time magazine ran a cover story about Buterin, where he suggested he would take a more defined leadership role going forward. "One of the decisions I made in 2022 is to try to be more risk-taking and less neutral," Buterin said. "I would rather Ethereum offend some people than turn into something that stands for nothing." Read the full article here. –Daniel Kuhn |
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Cracking the Notification Conundrum in Web 3 Apps* Ping! You've got mail. This is one of the oldest memes of the internet age. The little icon in the corner of our screens, the talking paper clip, the familiar buzz of the phone in our pockets. We take real-time alerts and notifications for granted. They are hard-wired into our everyday lives. And when an app does not provide notifications and alerts, it feels outdated. But in the most modern iteration of the internet – Web 3 and blockchains – these notifications are conspicuous by their absence. The reason for this is largely technical. *This is sponsored content from Tatum. |
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Ver "Roger Ver and Richard Heart on B... 
EU Passes Stricter Rules on Crypto