The projects would have a 3-year grace period, but they must present reports. A lawyer must certify that the networks operate in a decentralised manner.

Commissioner Hester Peirce (SEC) updated a proposal that would regulate the trading of tokens or new crypto-assets through Initial Coin Offerings (ICO).

The guidelines, known as “safe harbour” (Token Safe Harbor 2.0), would allow companies to sell their tokens, but with the guarantee that they would not clash with current securities regulation. Peirce’s proposal appeared the first time in February last year. However, it now features three stages.

First of all, Startups would have a three-year grace period for their developments, something already raised in the past by Peirce. However, the commissioner’s updated proposal is that companies should submit progress reports every six months and have a block explorer.

The second feature is that, once the period develops, the token meets its end. The company must present a report that will be a subject of analysis by an external lawyer. The advisor must validate that the network that supports the token works in a decentralised way.

The third installment shows that the final report and the considerations of the advisor would not be the last word on the project. The goal is to present valuable standards for each network studied in the Commission’s analysis.

Peirce’s suggestions appeared on the SEC’s website. Curiously, the official also published the document on the GitHub collaborative platform to promote “decentralised knowledge”, in her own words.

The “safe harbour” update already accumulates multiple requests and contributions. Some of them went for the definition of decentralisation. Another interesting thought was that of Paul Barclay when he said: “It is possible to have a decentralised application running on a centralised network, at least partially. For example, an ERC-20 token embedded in an iOS application.”

The Regulation Proposal and its Compliance

If a company satisfactorily meets every single requirement outlined in the standard, then startups would avoid registering the tokens with the SEC as securities, and there would be no risk of lawsuits.

The operation of the network would not prove to be under decentralisation after three years of development. In that case, companies must register as issuers of securities to avoid potential lawsuits.

Commissioner Peirce is recognized within the bitcoin ecosystem as the “crypto mom” because she tries to make bitcoin more relevant and visible. In February 2019, the official warned that applying more complex regulations could cut the growth of crypto assets.

Currently, the SEC maintains a lawsuit against the company Ripple and its founders, whom it accuses of trading millions of dollars with XRP. The Commission considers that the crypto active is unregistered security, while the company assures that it is a “virtual currency.”

By: Jenson Nuñez

Oil and copper are some of the goods that increased the most in March 2021. Global Inflation for consumers reached 3.3%, which would encourage savings in crypto assets.

The price of commodities or raw materials continues to grow month by month. This situation sets a pattern in the subsequent Inflation generated in the markets and, ultimately, impacts consumers’ pocket.

According to Trading Economics, crude oil has had an increase of 3.14% in March 2021 (3.8% in the case of Brent) compared to the previous month. In the same period, the increase was 4.9% for gas, and 4.67% for gasoline.

The raw material of the industrial sector is also on the rise. In this sense, steel has shown an increase of 9.2% per month, while copper is worth 2.9% more than in February.

Gold had an increase in its value of 1.83%, while platinum rose reached a higher peak with more than 2.41%. Silver was the only one of the three that decreased in the last month: -0.05%.

However, the year-on-year summary reflects otherwise. The most crucial difference appears in energy, in which the increases are pretty relevant: (30.85% for crude oil —29.4% for Brent—; 6.7% for natural gas and 45.5% for fuel).

Likewise, industrial metals have also reached multiple peaks circling 21.7% in steel and 21.3% for copper. On the other hand, in metals, gold and silver decreased their value (6.64% and 2.26%, respectively), and platinum increased by 13.65%.

Global Inflation is a Consequence

Banks and investors don’t only use the price of commodities as a tool to seek and obtain a better store of value; these prices also influence people’s daily lives in general due to their relationship with the cost of various essential goods and services.

In this sense, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of the United States reflected an increase of 0.6% in March 2021 compared to February of the same year. Meanwhile, the year-on-year growth was 2.6% but lower than the increase in global Inflation, which reached 3.39%.

According to a CNBC publication, the increase registered in the United States between March 2020 and 2021 (2.6%) is the highest in an annual period since August 2018. Dow Jones had forecast a slight increase lower: 2.5%.

Global Inflation in Dollars is Bringing Uncertainty

Inflationary reports raise concern for many, who are thus seeking new ways to protect their savings from loss of purchasing power, which affects even the strongest currencies, such as the dollar.

Given this situation, the demand for cryptocurrencies could suffer a sudden boost, according to a Bank of America report. To respond to this demand, the central banks of various countries analyze the distribution of central bank digital currencies (CBDC) to stimulate the economy and upgrade the distribution of economic aid in those affected regions.

The distribution of cryptocurrencies could have the opposite effect and contribute to the inflationary process. While none have officially come out yet, China, Sweden, the United States of America, and the Bahamas have plans to do so in the future.

By: Jenson Nuñez

The ‘cousin Kimchi’ keeps growing. In other relevant places of the world, Bitcoin experiences a price decline, but in South Korea, a BTC is trading above USD 64,500.

South Korean financial authorities have decided to strengthen regulations applied to digital currencies amid a local surge in trading in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The South Korean government announced a new offensive against cryptocurrency transactions to take advantage of Bitcoin’s so-called “kimchi premium” between local exchanges.

The ‘kimchi premium’ is the gap in cryptocurrency prices on South Korean exchanges compared to other global sales. As a result, Bitcoin can trade up to 25% higher on South Korean exchanges.

Regulators will Fight ‘illegal’ Transactions

A report published this Monday by The Korea Times explained in detail that the Financial Supervision Service (FSS) and other national regulators chose to go on this way last Friday.

“The decision came to fruition due to a response to growing suspicions that investors, here and abroad, are engaging in cryptocurrency speculation by buying digital currency on foreign exchanges and selling it through Korean exchanges,” the outlet wrote.

For its part, a report by the local news agency Yonhap News Agency highlighted that the Financial Services Commission would intend to improve and strengthen the monitoring of “virtual money” withdrawals with the additional aid of local financial institutions.

According to the report, the strictest measures require financial institutions to monitor and detect any signs of possible money laundering and report them to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). This government agency tracks illegal money flows.

South Korean regulators also plan to monitor any illegal cryptocurrency transfers out of the country closely. The new offensive is part of a broader government strategy to tackle foreign exchange remittances that may involve Chinese residents and potentially illegal activities such as tax evasion.

The Cryptocurrency Market and the Way it Eclipsed the Stock Market

The South Korean government’s strategy appeared right after the country’s commercial banks applied limits on money transfers for retail customers, requiring them to consolidate verification for cross-border transactions that surpass $ 50,000.

These strategies also come at a time of high demand for the local Bitcoin market. For the first time in history, South Korea’s cryptocurrency trading volumes have outpaced the domestic stock market activity. Cryptocurrency trading is now accelerating at an alarming rate.

As reported by various news portals, on April 15, the daily digital currency trading volume figures approached a maximum of USD 21.5 billion. The value calculation happened using CoinMarketCap data from 14 national exchanges that support switching between local fiat currency (KRW) and crypto.

Bitcoin is Trading Above $ 65,800 in South Korea

According to data from CryptoMarkets, Bitcoin is trading around $ 54,500 among the major global exchanges. However, among South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges, the top digital currency is trading $ 10,000 above.

The trading pair of Bitcoin with the local currency (Korean won) on two of the largest exchanges in the country, Bithumb, and Korbit shows that the cryptocurrency price is currently 71,803,000 South Korean won, equivalent to approximately USD 64,400.

By: Jenson Nuñez

A year and a month ago, the price of BTC decreased 40%, three times the one that happened last Sunday. The drop in the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies was five times greater this time.

The founder and CEO of Alameda Research and derivatives exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), compared through Twitter the fall in the price of bitcoin last weekend with the notorious retracement that occurred on March 12, 2020, known as Black Thursday. This fall, which affected all markets just a year ago, coincided with the WHO declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The researcher referred to March 2020 crash in Twitter as “the worst day for cryptocurrencies,” with bitcoin’s price crumbling down by nearly $ 4,500, from $ 8,000 to $ 3,500, before finding a stable recovery of around USD 5,000.

“The industry almost died that day,” said SBF, also highlighting that many market participants suffered massive losses. The cryptocurrency market demands resilience, SBF claims, but it was not prepared to withstand a BTC price level below $ 4,000. The subsequent liquidations on March 12 caused a loss of $ 100 billion in the market capitalization of bitcoin.

For FTX, March 12, 2020, was an unforgettable day, as the volume traded that day reached USD 5 billion, says SBF. But it was not mean that they had to celebrate. “It would have been like bringing champagne to a funeral,” said the executive.

The price collapse that day was close to 40%, which indicates the stabilization price at USD 4,800. However, the cost of BTC gradually healed after the crash, SBF claimed. A month after the fall, on April 20, 2020, the price of BTC had recovered by 90% to approach USD 7,200.

BTC Price Crumbles Down

Regarding the curious price decrease on Sunday, April 18, a downward movement of the current cycle occurred after the price registered on April 14, a new historical maximum above USD 64,000.

In the SBF chart, the deterioration of March 18’s price went from a level close to USD 62,000 to almost USD 50,000 to stabilize with USD 54,830, representing less than 12%.

However, SBF highlights that the total decrease in the price was USD 12,000, which led to removing some USD 500,000 million from the total capitalization of cryptocurrencies, five times more than in March 2020. Settlements amassed about USD 10,000 million.

SBF also said that a year ago, the market would have considered a price level under USD 4,000, but, according to market expectations and to SBF, that minimum level is USD 50,000. The executive disagrees with that perception. “$ 50,000 is perfectly possible. We had that level a few weeks ago!”

Among the reasons that caused the price drop this Sunday, the most mentioned is the 40% decrease in the Bitcoin hash rate due to the failure of miners in the Chinese province of Xinjiang due to power supply problems.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Despite its price drop to nearly USD 51,000, Bitcoin maintained its market capitalization above USD 1 trillion. Willy Woo reiterated that the reduction in the supply of the pioneering cryptocurrency implies a new bullish momentum.

The market for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies was very moved in the last week. In this period, Coinbase finally made its entry into Wall Street and cryptocurrencies, in general, reached a new all-time high. Furthermore, the Bitcoin hash rate fell in China’s Xinjiang province, leading to a 14% decline in price.

The long-awaited listing of Coinbase on Nasdaq has finally happened and the exchange is now trading through the COIN stock. Its initial price was USD 400, which then fell and stabilized around USD 340. Among the most prominent investments on the exchange is that of ARK Invest, which bought 750,000 shares of Coinbase. That amount is currently equivalent to around USD 255 million.

Coinbase’s entry into Nasdaq helped both Bitcoin and Ether set new all-time highs. The bullish momentum spread to the entire cryptocurrency market, which exceeded 2 trillion in market capitalization. Additionally, Bitcoin’s dominance dropped from 70% at the beginning of the year to around 54.44%.

After the drop in its price due to the steep decline in hash rate, the pioneering cryptocurrency experienced a recovery. It went from a low of USD 51,500 to above USD 56,000 at the close of the day. Although it was close to USD 51,000, Bitcoin kept its market capitalization above USD 1 trillion.

Bitcoin Supply Reduction Is a Bullish Sign

Bitcoin maintains its fundamental parameters despite the recent drop in its price. Renowned analyst Willy Woo reiterated that the reduction in the supply of the first cryptocurrency in the market continues. This implies that Bitcoin is on the verge of new bullish momentum, according to Woo.

Woo considers miners to be above the point of profitability, which allows them to accumulate Bitcoin. Of course, this contributes to a reduction in its supply.

Bitcoin Is First To Reach USD 1 Trillion Market Capitalization

Michael Saylor, CEO of MicroStrategy and Bitcoin evangelist in the corporate world, forwarded a tweet from @DocumentingBTC. This user explains how many years it took MAGA companies (Microsoft, Apple, Google, and Amazon) to reach a USD 1 trillion market capitalization.

Apple was the first, managing to inaugurate the club of trillion-dollar companies after 42 years. It took Microsoft two more years, from its founding, to exceed USD 1 trillion. Amazon and Google, more agile in the digital world, required half the time of their predecessors.

For its part, Bitcoin recently entered the exclusive group of trillion-dollar “companies”, just 12 years after its birth. H.G. Wells may have the explanation for this feat as he said that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

Major Banks Continue to Support Bitcoin

America’s largest investment banks keep sending messages of support for Bitcoin. This could have repercussions among the investors that constitute their respective customers.

For example, J.P. Morgan sees a promising future in the Bitcoin derivatives market. Its returns in futures and options are five times the annual returns of the fiat currency market, according to a study by that bank. Goldman Sachs even rates Bitcoin as a relevant asset for the future of global financial systems.

By Alexander Salazar