Digital Assets
Digital assets are about more than just Bitcoin. The global adoption of blockchain, expansion of cross-border payments, new investment vehicles tied to intellectual property, and more, could one day establish a global market of digitized assets worth $50 trillion. This channel provides access to the latest developments, opportunities, risks, and thought leaders in the growing Digital Assets space.
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Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) has launched its Crypto app in the European Union (EU), allowing eligible customers to engage in crypto trading with the added incentive of earning Bitcoin rewards. Customers stand to receive up to 1 BTC as a reward when signing up and can earn an additional 1 BTC for each successful referral. The platform claims to be the sole custodial crypto platform in the EU offering customers a percentage of their trading volume back every month, paid in Bitcoin.
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More Stories on Digital Assets
Digital Assets: China May Crack Down On Bitcoin Mining; Fresh Slide In The Crypto
China’s phobia of social unrest following financial market upheavals has led its regulators to go hammer and tongs at cryptos. Their dire reminders earlier this week of the regulatory position on cryptocurrencies played a not insignificant role in the great bitcoin crash on Thursday. But there were more grim pronouncements regarding bitcoin from China today.
FinTech: Blockchain Fintech Figure Tech Scores $200M Round
Figure Technologies, a blockchain-based fintech startup, closed a $200 million Series D round at a valuation of $3.2 billion. The round was co-led by 10T Holdings and Morgan Creek Digital. New and existing investors including DCM, Digital Currency Group, HCM Capital, Ribbit Capital, RPM Ventures, the partners at DST Global, and others also participated.
Digital Assets: Insurance Major CNA Coughed Up $40M Cyber Ransom In March
A Bloomberg report revealed today that CAN Financial Corp (NYSE: CAN), one of the largest insurers in the U.S., was forced to pay up $40 million in cyber ransom after criminals mounted a ransomware attack. The company initially rejected the $60 million ransom demand but caved in a couple of weeks later, settling for $40 million.
Digital Assets: Bitcoin Flash Crash – Post Mortem II
The generally assigned causes for yesterday’s market mayhem in bitcoin (and other cryptos) were Musk’s volte-face on bitcoin; the fresh warnings issued against cryptos by Chinese authorities; and a generally risk-off mentality on Wall Street. However, bitcoin’s kamikaze dive and then its spectacular recovery yesterday laid bare the fragility of the underlying systems, according to FT.
Digital Assets: Bitcoin Collapses To $30K; Recovers To $40K In Wild Volatility
A perfect storm engulfed bitcoin today as a sell-off in bitcoin that was gathering pace since last week intensified and perhaps climaxed at the day’s low of $30,000.51. A confluence of factors appear to be behind the crash in bitcoin, including Elon Musk, Chinese saber-rattling against cryptos, and a risk-off environment taking hold on Wall Street.
Digital Assets: Bitcoin A “Bubble” – Bank Of America Fund Manager Survey
Bank of America’s survey of fund managers in May covered 216 panelists holding $625 billion in assets under management between May 7 and 13.
Artificial Intelligence: Australia’s ASIO Gets $1.3B AI Budget To Thwart Bad Actors
The Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) got a $1.3 billion funding boost for cutting-edge AI technology aimed at beefing up the country’s security and intelligence capabilities. The AI-on-a-war-footing move comes as Australia identified several countries behind infiltration attempts targeting government, commercial and industrial organizations.
Digital Assets: Musk Clears The Air – Tesla “Has Not Sold Any Bitcoin”
Bitcoin enthusiasts and investors will be relieved to learn that Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) has not sold its stash of bitcoins. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a tweet early this morning: “To clarify speculation, Tesla has not sold any Bitcoin.” Musk had played a not insignificant role in bitcoin’s rally in recent months when he announced Tesla’s $1.5 billion investment in the leading cryptocurrency. He later also said that the carmaker would accept bitcoin for its cars.
Alternative Investments/Digital: A New ETF From Bitwise For “Crypto-Adjacent” Assets
The new Crypto Industry Innovators ETF (NYSE: BITQ) from Bitwise Asset Management offers investors exposure to shares of “public companies that are participants in the growing bitcoin and cryptocurrency sector.” The fund may address investors’ zeal for crypto given the SEC’s continued reluctance to green-light a bitcoin ETF.
Digital Assets: Colonial Pipeline Caved; Paid $5M Ransom To Hackers
Though initial reports said that Colonial Pipeline would not pay a ransom to the hackers that brought the nation’s largest fuel pipeline to a halt, Bloomberg reported Thursday that the company did pony up nearly $5 million in hard-to-track cryptocurrency last Friday.
Digital Assets: Musk To Bitcoin – It’s Not Me, It’s You
Elon Musk has suddenly got religion on bitcoin. He announced in a tweet on Wednesday that Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) will no longer sell its cars for bitcoin due to the leading cryptocurrency’s carbon footprint and consequently adverse effect on the environment.
Digital Assets: Palantir Accepts Bitcoin Payments; Mulls Adding Cryptos To Balance Sheet
Secretive data analytics company Palantir (NYSE: PLTR) revealed on its first-quarter earnings call that it had already begun accepting bitcoin as payment from its customers and that it was also considering holding bitcoin, as well as other cryptos, on its balance sheet.
Alternative Investments/Digital: Ninepoint’s Bitcoin ETF To Offset Carbon Footprint Of Bitcoin Holdings
Bitcoin has been getting a lot of flak recently for the impact that its mining has on the environment. As verification computations get more complex, bitcoin mining rigs consume more and more energy for generating mining rewards. This process becomes a vicious circle when bitcoin prices are on a rally because it becomes more profitable to mine and sell the cryptocurrency. ETFs and other funds holding bitcoin are becoming increasingly concerned about the carbon footprint inherent in their holdings.
Alternative Investments/Digital: Mark Yusko Sees Bitcoin At $250K In Five Years
Mark Yusko’s Morgan Creek Capital Management has assets under management of about $2 billion. Assuming his usually bullish stance on bitcoin in an interview on Friday, Yusko said the leading crypto could scale a price of $100,000 in 2021 or 2022. He went further and said it could go up to $250,000 in five years.
Digital Assets: UBS Considering Cryptos For Rich Clients
A Bloomberg report said Monday that UBS Group AG (SWX: UBSG) was mulling avenues for investing in digital assets for its wealthy clients. It would follow banks across the pond such as Citigroup (NYSE: C) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS).
Digital Assets: Fairfax County Pension Fund Does Well On Crypto Fund Investment
The $1.4 billion Fairfax County Police Officers Retirement System did well last year on its investments in Morgan Creek Digital Fund III. The move paid off, allowing the pension fund to report good gains last year. Unsurprisingly, in April, the fund approved additional investments in the crypto and blockchain space.
Digital Assets: Colonial Pipeline Shut Down By Ransomware Attack
On Friday, Colonial Pipeline, the largest refined products pipeline in the United States, transporting more than 100 million gallons of fuel daily for consumers from Houston, Texas to the New York Harbor across 8,500 km, was shut down by a ransomware attack.
Digital Assets: Citigroup Heeds Clients; Mulling Cryptos
An FT Exclusive says Citigroup is weighing an entry into the cryptocurrency markets. Itay Tuchman, Citi’s (NYSE: C) global head of foreign exchange has told the FT that the bank is considering a foray into the cryptocurrency markets after seeing rising interest among its clients. “There are different options from our perspective and we are…
Digital Assets: Goldman Sachs’ Crypto Trading Desk Is Up And Running
An internal memo at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) issued Thursday announced that its all-new crypto trading team had successfully traded certain bitcoin derivatives. According to CNBC, which saw the memo issued by Goldman partner Rajesh Venkataramani, the team is a part of the bank’s global currencies and emerging markets trading division and reports to him, though it is also a constituent of the digital assets unit led by Mathew McDermott.
FinTech: Surging Cash App Volumes Help Square Crush Q1 Market Expectations
Square Inc (NYSE: SQ) left analysts’ estimates in the dust with its numbers for the first quarter. The payments giant clocked quarterly revenues of $5.1 billion, well above analysts’ consensus of $3.34 billion and last year’s tally of $1.38 billion. It reported adjusted earnings of 41 cents per share, compared to expectations of 17 cents and last year’s loss of 2 cents a share.
Digital Assets: Tala And Visa Will Offer Stablecoin Transactions To The Underbanked
Tala, a personal finance app and financial services provider active in emerging economies, and Visa (NYSE: V) will collaborate to bring cryptocurrencies, such as the USDC stablecoin, to underbanked people across the world.
Alternative Investments/Digital: VanEck Lists Digital Assets UCITS ETF In Europe
The VanEck Vectors Digital Assets Equity UCITS ETF (DAPP) is listed on the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse. It will offer exposure to blockchain-focused companies involved in various digital businesses. It is claimed to be the first ETF on the continent to target companies engaged specifically in digital asset projects.
Digital Assets: Galaxy Digital To Buy BitGo For $1.2B
Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd (TSE: GLXY), founded by Michael Novogratz has inked a deal to acquire BitGo Inc for $1.2 billion in cash and stock.
Alternative Investments/Digital: eToro Launches Bitcoin-Themed Portfolio
Last week, eToro flagged off its BitcoinWorldWide product, a thematic portfolio. The platform described it as “a new innovative CopyPortfolio,” covering the value chain created from activities related to bitcoin.