Neumann Hamburg

• MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay discussed crypto’s biggest problem and what his company is doing to address it.
• The closure of Silicon Valley Bank caused investors to panic, resulting in large transactions as people sought stability.
• As a result, MetaMask saw an all-time high in users and swap fees, suggesting the crypto market is growing despite systemic dangers.

Crypto Market Growing Amid Systemic Dangers

The recent failure of two major banks sparked speculation and panic among investors, causing many to move their funds into more stable assets. In response to this increased demand for alternative investments, MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay addressed the industry’s „biggest plague“ in an interview on The Scoop podcast with Frank Chaparro.

MetaMask Co-Founder Addresses Crypto’s Most Vexing Problem

According to Finlay, the main issue that consumers have with cryptocurrencies is not feeling comfortable owning them. He explains that MetaMask is working to remedy this problem by providing users with access to decentralized web3 applications through its wallet service.

Impact of Bank Closure on Crypto Markets

Circle reported $3.3 billion in reserves at Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which was shut down by state regulators on March 10th. This led many investors to worry about the value of their stablecoins decreasing, driving down prices for digital assets such as DAI which rely heavily on USDC for backing.

MetaMask Sees Surge in Business Following SVB Collapse

Despite these systemic dangers, Finlay believes this situation can be seen as “very positive” for the crypto market due to increased interest from consumers who are recognizing its potential even during times of upheaval. Last weekend saw an all-time high for MetaMask Swaps and the company earned approximately $1.5 million in swap fees due to it’s booming business since SVB’s collapse earlier this month.

Conclusion

The recent increase in demand for cryptocurrencies suggests that there may be a shift away from traditional banking systems towards digital assets due to perceived instability within financial markets around the world. Although there may be some systemic risks associated with cryptos, companies like Metamask are providing solutions that make ownership more accessible and secure than ever before

• Bitcoin (BTC) is trading below $20,000 for the first time since mid-January.
• The crypto market has dropped this week and BTC’s significant support and resistance level at $18,000 is yet to be broken.
• Recent negativity surrounding crypto such as Silvergate and SVB issues are possible reasons for the price plunge.

Bitcoin Breaks Down Below $20k

Bitcoin (BTC) has been struggling with recovery for some time and recently dropped below $20,000 at $19,650. This is the first time BTC has fallen below this crucial line since mid-January. The 24-hour charts indicate that BTC has been trading in the red zone for 24 hours and its 7-day chart paints a similar picture of continuous price declines.

Market Pressure

The market charts show that BTC’s most significant price plunges occurred between March 9 and 10 when it dropped from $21.7k to $19.9k in less than a day. Crypto assets have all been trading in the red this week according to technical analysis which depicts strong sell that may run up to the next support level of 18K should it break down further. The Moving Average Convergence/Divergence (MACD) indicator shows a sell bias, while the relative Strength Index (RSI) for BTC/USD daily is at 26.94 levels.

Possible Reasons

Recent negativity surrounding crypto could be reason for the current price plunge such as implosion of a crypto-favored bank Silvergate and inflationary pressure as well as general sentiment from key personnel in the regulatory space building fear in crypto investors with Fed chair Jerome Powell mentioning possibility of raising interest rates higher and Bank of America CEO predicting US could suffer minor recession with interest rates remaining high until 2024.

Recovery Attempts
Despite several attempts by Bitcoin to recover without success, breaking down past 18K could open more falls further though no official confirmation yet on whether it will reach that far or not yet given many are still holding out hope that prices can remain above 20K despite recent market pressures seen across cryptocurrencies lately..

Conclusion As things stand now, Bitcoin continues to trade around 19K with little signs of recovering anytime soon but no one can say what will happen next so only time will tell where this asset goes from here given all these factors playing into its current performance .

• BUSD’s market cap has dropped below $10 billion from its all-time high set at $23.49 billion, due to a regulatory crackdown from US authorities and a possible delisting from Coinbase.
• Coinbase announced it will suspend trading for Binance USD (BUSD) on March 13, 2023, citing that it did not meet their listing standards.
• Three US senators have pushed Binance to be held accountable by the SEC regarding its trading of unregistered securities.

BUSD Market Cap Drops Below $10 Billion

BUSD’s market cap has dropped below $10 billion from its all-time high set at $23.49 billion on Nov. 15, 2022. This is a new all-time low in the past two years as the coin faces regulatory pressure from US authorities and potential delisting from Coinbase. Since hitting its peak on Nov 15th, the value has been steadily dropping and was recorded at 9.66 billion on March 3rd, 2023 – the lowest level since June 29th 2021.

Coinbase Suspending Trading for Binance USD (BUSD)

On February 27th, 2023 Coinbase tweeted that it is planning to delist Binance USD due to not meeting their listing standards upon review. The suspension will affect simple and advanced trading on Coinbase Pro, Coinbase Prime, Coinbase Exchange and Coinbase itself; however investors can still access their funds and withdraw anytime they choose to do so. Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase responded to Bloomberg TV saying that there is liquidity concern with Paxos – BUSD’s central issuer – which may have led to this decision after being ordered by New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).

US Senators Pressuring Binance

Three US senators have asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to hold Binance accountable for unregistered securities trading via Paxos services. In response, SEC issued a Wells notice to Paxos warning them of possible legal enforcement actions if they continue with this practice which would ultimately affect the market capitalization of BUSD as well as other cryptocurrencies in circulation today.

Impact On Price Of Other Cryptocurrencies

The news about possibly delisting has had an effect on other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple(XRP) etc., with prices dropping significantly in some cases due to investor worries over potential losses incurred by delisting or regulation changes imposed by financial institutions such as SEC or NYDFS . Some traders are reportedly taking profits while awaiting further clarity regarding these matters hence leading to lower crypto prices across exchanges around the world today compared with previous weeks/months when prices were climbing steadily upwards before any official announcements were made publically by financial watchdogs/exchanges etc..

Conclusion

In conclusion, it appears that regulatory clampdowns are having an impact on cryptocurrency markets with many coins experiencing drops in values due to uncertainty surrounding future regulations or listings status on major exchange platforms such as Coinbase etc.. Investors should monitor these situations closely before making any investment decisions regarding cryptocurrencies moving forward into Q1/Q2 2021 & beyond so that they can make informed decisions accordingly based upon updated information available at any given time during this volatile period for digital assets globally today!

• Block Inc.’s Q4 report reveals a decrease in bitcoin revenue, with sales dropping by 7%.
• The company attributed the reduction to the decline in BTC price throughout 2022.
• Despite this, Block Inc.’s share prices rose through after-hours trading due to an increased gross profit of 40% from 2021’s Q4.

Block Inc. Reports Decrease in Bitcoin Revenue

Block Inc. released their quarterly and full-year results on Feb. 23, showing a 7% drop in bitcoin (BTC) sales for the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to the same period the previous year. This was attributed to the 65% decrease in BTC/USD price throughout that year. Despite this, Cash App’s bitcoin gross profit decreased by 25%, coming in at $35 million for the quarter – its lowest total since reporting began.

Full Year Results

For all of 2022, Cash App made $7.11 billion in bitcoin revenue and $156 million in bitcoin gross profit – representing decreases of 29% and 28%, respectively, when compared to 2021’s figures. Meanwhile, Block Inc.’s net loss reached $114 million while its adjusted profits before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose to $281 million or a 53% rise – leading to an increase in share prices through after-hours trading due to a surge in revenue and higher than expected adjusted profits before interest etc..

Lightning Network Functionality Enabled

On Oct 25th functionality for transactions made via Bitcoin Lightning Network was enabled to Cash App businesses section of Jack Dorsey’s payment firm Block Inc., enabling mobile phone payments within it. It also offers bitcoin sales via its app which brings money into the company but has since seen a steady decline as mentioned earlier due to declining BTC prices during that period of time.

Decline of Bitcoin Prices In 2022

Bitcoin’s price dropped by nearly 65% throughout 2022 causing the decrease in BTC sales made by Block Inc.’s Cash App business section totaling $1.83 billion for Q4 alone compared with what it earned during that same period last year according to their report which appears consistent with other industry reports suggesting similar drops during that period within their sector as well (Source: CoinMarketCap).

Conclusion

Despite showing a decrease overall in blockchain related income due largely attributed to declines within cryptocurrency markets throughout 2022; Block Inc’s share prices have risen significantly following its release of financial results indicating an increase across several areas including gross profits for Q4 which saw a 40% jump from those reported last year indicating potential growth despite declining revenues from cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin during that same time frame as well as enabling new functionalities such as transactions via Bitcoin Lightning Network which could potentially lead them towards future success given proper management and adaptation strategies moving forward .

• BinaryX (BNX) has surged over 200% in one month, reaching its 52-week peak of $181.35 on Feb. 13.
• BinaryX is a GameFi platform that operates two play-to-earn games and serves as the platform token for all activities in the BinaryX ecosystem.
• This surge can be attributed to the increase in user growth and the announcement of plans to expand its range of games and split its BNX token in a dramatic 1:100 ratio.

What is BinaryX?

BinaryX is a GameFi platform that operates two play-to-earn games, CyberDragon and CyberChess, both of which run on the BNB chain. As per data from DappRadar, BNX ranks as the 13th largest decentralized app (dapp) on the BNB chain, with over $1 billion locked in smart contracts as of Feb. 17. This marks a 30% increase in one month. The BinaryX platform initially served as a decentralized derivative trading protocol, but the system has since evolved to accommodate the advancements in the GameFi sector. BNX functions as the platform token of BinaryX and serves as a utility token for all activities in the BinaryX ecosystem, including games and the incubation fund.

Why is BNX Rising?

In their year-end report, BinaryX reported a significant increase in user growth, going from 98,000 to 130,000 players. This was met with positive market sentiment, as their BNX token continued to thrive with the growing number of users. However, this excitement didn’t stop there –BinaryX announced plans to expand its range of games and split its BN

• Sharky Fi, an NFT lending platform, announced that it might temporarily disable foreclosures for loans at a loss for borrowers.
• This decision was taken to give borrowers the time to repay and balance out the inequality between lenders and borrowers on the platform.
• A lender on Twitter had complained about this decision as they thought it was using their funds to subsidize unrelated issues.

Sharky Fi Halts NFT Withdrawals During Solana Downtime

NFT lending platform Sharky Fi has announced that it might temporarily disable foreclosures for loans „at a loss for borrowers“ in order to give them more time to repay.

Inequality Between Lenders and Borrowers

A lender named LtLollipop on Twitter complained that Sharky Fi’s move is creating an inequality between lenders and borrowers on the platform, as lenders are not able to collect their NFTs.

Explaining the Move

When responding to LtLollipop’s tweet in October 2022, Sharky Fi stated that locking users from accessing their claims was necessary while Solana was underperforming „to give borrowers a bit more room.“ They also added that they have two options when Solana goes down – do nothing and let hundreds of borrowers take a massive loss or disable foreclosures for a few hours and risk some lenders being upset.

LtLollipop’s Complaints

LtLollipop suggested that the company was using his funds to subsidize issues unrelated to him but this claim was refuted by Sharky Fi who said they were disabling claims for a „good reason“ since the Solana network went down.

Centralization vs Decentralization

• Binance has discontinued its wallet support for WazirX, an Indian cryptocurrency platform.
• A public argument sparked the end of the collaboration between the two firms on Twitter due to alleged violations of foreign exchange regulations.
• Binance emphasized that it does not own WazirX and only provides wallet and tech services to the Indian exchange.

Binance Ends Partnership with WazirX

Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, has stopped its wallet services for WazirX, an Indian cryptocurrency platform. This follows a public argument over who had ownership of the exchange, which was ignited after Indian authorities started looking into the exchange’s operations due to alleged violations of foreign exchange regulations.

Deadline Set by Binance

Binance has given Zanmai Labs, who manages WazirX, a deadline of Feb. 3rd, 2023 at 11:59 UTC to withdraw their untrue statements or end their partnership with Binance. Since no satisfactory reply was received from them, Binance was forced to end their association.

WazirX User Assets

A proof of reserves report revealed that 90% of user assets are stored in Binance wallets; this is represented by stablecoin USDT tied to the value of the U.S dollar worth $285 million in total user asset value at the time of reporting. Other exchanges held only $26.45 million compared to Binance’s $259.07 million holdings in user assets.

Bactionship with WazirX

Despite announcements pointing to otherwise back in 2019, Binance has stated that it does not own WazirX and only provides wallet and tech services for them as part of its partnership agreement with them.

Conclusion

It is clear that there is an ongoing dispute between both companies regarding ownership rights and control over operations on WazirX; however, it remains uncertain if this will be resolved soon or not as both sides have yet to reach any form of agreement thus far.

• Gains Network, a decentralized exchange (DEX), has reached over $1.5 billion in volume on the Arbitrum blockchain one month after its launch.
• The exchange allows users to trade financial derivatives of different assets, including tokens, U.S. stocks, and indexes, by pairing user trades with smart contracts.
• The current rise in transactional activity on Polygon has been largely attributed to Gains Network, which has managed over $25 billion in transaction volume on the Polygon and Arbitrum networks.

Gains Network, a decentralized exchange (DEX), has seen extraordinary growth in a short period of time, hitting over $1.5 billion in volume on the Arbitrum blockchain around a month after its launch. This surge in transactional activity has been largely attributed to Gains Network, which was first introduced on the Polygon platform. The exchange allows users to trade financial derivatives of different assets, including tokens, U.S. stocks, and indexes, by pairing user trades with smart contracts. This means that global traders can now trade U.S.-listed commodities without the need for banks and onerous Know Your Customer (KYC) rules.

Data from Dune Analytics has shown that the $1.5 billion in trading activity on Arbitrum has yielded $1.1 million in charges for users, providing liquidity to the network and increasing the usefulness of the network’s native GNS token. Moreover, the preceding 24 hours saw users complete trading activity totaling over $220 million, with more than $120 million of that coming from cryptocurrency futures and $70 million from instruments tracking foreign exchange (forex).

Gains Network has also launched a trading competition earlier this week, offering traders $1 million in prizes for trading their favorite tokens on the platform. This competition is the latest sign of Gains Network’s commitment to providing a secure and reliable platform for traders of all experience levels.

As Gains Network continues to grow, it has become clear that the decentralized exchange platform is quickly becoming one of the most popular platforms for traders to use. With its low fees and secure trading environment, traders of all backgrounds will be able to take advantage of the platform’s offerings. With the continuing growth of Gains Network, it is likely that it will become an even more popular trading platform in the near future.

• Elon Musk suggests that McDonald’s should accept Dogecoin as payment.
• He offered to eat a Happy Meal live on television if the company does so.
• Twitter users are responding to the tweet with hope that McDonald’s would reconsider its decision not to take Dogecoin.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and a major proponent of the cryptocurrency Dogecoin, recently made headlines with his Twitter acquisition deal, and has now sparked another discussion on Twitter when he suggested that McDonald’s should accept Dogecoin as payment. Musk tweeted that he would be prepared to consume a Happy Meal live on television if McDonald’s accepts the cryptocurrency.

The tweet began after McDonald’s, the world’s largest fast-food chain, inquired on Twitter about what they had missed, which prompted Tesla’s CEO to respond with a hint about the possibility. When a designer from Dogecoin questioned whether Musk’s first offer to McDonald’s on adopting Dogecoin was still open, the multibillionaire responded with a “100” emoji. Later, the designer posted a tweet to McDonald’s on his official account, to which Twitter users responded in various ways, with some expressing hope that the quick-service restaurant company would rethink its decision to stop taking Dogecoin.

It is no secret that Dogecoin has become increasingly popular, especially over the past few months. Musk, as well as other celebrities, have taken to Twitter to show their support for the cryptocurrency, and while the value of Dogecoin has fluctuated, the coin has seen a huge surge in value over the past few weeks. This has led to more companies accepting Dogecoin as payment, and Musk’s tweet has sparked renewed interest in the cryptocurrency.

If McDonald’s were to accept Dogecoin, it would be a major step forward for the currency, as it would bring it into the mainstream. It would also be a huge step forward for the cryptocurrency industry, as it would signal that mainstream companies are beginning to take cryptocurrencies seriously.

It remains to be seen whether or not McDonald’s will accept Dogecoin, but it is clear that there is a lot of support for the idea. If McDonald’s does decide to accept the cryptocurrency, it could be a game-changer for the industry. For now, all eyes are on the fast-food chain to see if they will take the leap into the world of cryptocurrencies.