Many of the questions that get debated first in the West, don't even occur to someone in an emerging market.
Does someone living in Argentina question if they will ever experience hyperinflation? What about Turkey? Lebanon? Egypt?
❓Do people in African nations question why someone might want to use a stablecoin instead of "real US dollars"? Of course not, most people can't get US dollars.
And does the idea of cheap, reliable, near-instant payments hold any appeal for people in Venezuela? Of course, they can't access Venmo!
🥇Tether in the Lead in Emerging Markets
While market pundits obsess over market cap and how large the lead is between Tether and it's competitors, the story being written in emerging markets is different.
Tether is focusing on emerging markets rather than being WallStreet buddies like other competitors.
🏧 Tether worked with ATM companies to make USDT available at over 24,000 ATMs in Brazil Nov 2022.
Two months later stablecoins, and USD₮ in particular, made up over 50% of Brazilian Real volumes.
Does someone living in Argentina question if they will ever experience hyperinflation? What about Turkey? Lebanon? Egypt?
❓Do people in African nations question why someone might want to use a stablecoin instead of "real US dollars"? Of course not, most people can't get US dollars.
And does the idea of cheap, reliable, near-instant payments hold any appeal for people in Venezuela? Of course, they can't access Venmo!
🥇Tether in the Lead in Emerging Markets
While market pundits obsess over market cap and how large the lead is between Tether and it's competitors, the story being written in emerging markets is different.
Tether is focusing on emerging markets rather than being WallStreet buddies like other competitors.
🏧 Tether worked with ATM companies to make USDT available at over 24,000 ATMs in Brazil Nov 2022.
Two months later stablecoins, and USD₮ in particular, made up over 50% of Brazilian Real volumes.
🇧🇷 Brazil also saw record registrations from companies in Brazil holding USD₮ which was the most widely held cryptocurrency in Brazil.
🇪🇬➕🇻🇪 Tether provides a true utility to countries with unstable fiat currencies, unreliable payment rails, and insecure property rights. This is as true in Egypt as it is in Venezuela.
🇪🇬 Since the start of 2022 the Egyptian pound has declined from around 15 pounds per dollar to 30 pounds per dollar. That's a 50% decline versus the dollar in one year! And that is the official rate!
🇪🇬 Whenever a country's currency starts inflating like Egypt's has, it is practically a guarantee that a black market for dollars will emerge. In December, the official exchange rate was 24.6 pounds per dollar but on black markets it was 32 pounds per dollar. These prices are sustained by the fact that people cannot easily access dollars and there is not enough supply to go around.
USD₮ is able to bring dollar liquidity to these areas that is accessible to everyone. There are no gatekeepers, no withdrawal limits, no officially mandated conversion caps.
🔹Anyone with an internet connection can receive and access USD₮.
🔹People turn to Tether in Lebanon when they need to buy groceries.
🔹People turn to Tether in Turkey when they need to protect their savings.
🔹People turn to Tether in Myanmar when they need to fight for Democracy.
🔹People turn to Tether in Argentina when the country's economic stability is in question.
In Africa, young people hopeful of building a better life for themselves are frequently unable to pay for the necessary academic and work credentials because they require dollars they cannot access. Governments with the most volatile currencies have heavily restricted dollar access, but Tether has provided an alternative for people in these countries. USD₮ has been a lifeline for immigration to Western countries.
✅ Tether is committed to serving people in emerging markets globally. Let's build an open future together.
🇪🇬➕🇻🇪 Tether provides a true utility to countries with unstable fiat currencies, unreliable payment rails, and insecure property rights. This is as true in Egypt as it is in Venezuela.
🇪🇬 Since the start of 2022 the Egyptian pound has declined from around 15 pounds per dollar to 30 pounds per dollar. That's a 50% decline versus the dollar in one year! And that is the official rate!
🇪🇬 Whenever a country's currency starts inflating like Egypt's has, it is practically a guarantee that a black market for dollars will emerge. In December, the official exchange rate was 24.6 pounds per dollar but on black markets it was 32 pounds per dollar. These prices are sustained by the fact that people cannot easily access dollars and there is not enough supply to go around.
USD₮ is able to bring dollar liquidity to these areas that is accessible to everyone. There are no gatekeepers, no withdrawal limits, no officially mandated conversion caps.
🔹Anyone with an internet connection can receive and access USD₮.
🔹People turn to Tether in Lebanon when they need to buy groceries.
🔹People turn to Tether in Turkey when they need to protect their savings.
🔹People turn to Tether in Myanmar when they need to fight for Democracy.
🔹People turn to Tether in Argentina when the country's economic stability is in question.
In Africa, young people hopeful of building a better life for themselves are frequently unable to pay for the necessary academic and work credentials because they require dollars they cannot access. Governments with the most volatile currencies have heavily restricted dollar access, but Tether has provided an alternative for people in these countries. USD₮ has been a lifeline for immigration to Western countries.
✅ Tether is committed to serving people in emerging markets globally. Let's build an open future together.
Bitcoin mining difficulty hits all-time high again 🔥
As a result of the next recalculation, the difficulty of mining the first cryptocurrency increased by 4.68%. The indicator has updated its historical high at around 39.35 T.
📈 According to Glassnode , the network's smoothed 7-day moving average hashrate is close to 291 EH/s.
Hash pricewith a value of $0.075 per TH/s per day remains close to the maximum levels over the past three months.
Recall that on January 20, a lone miner with a hardware hashrate of only 10 TH / s included a block in the bitcoin blockchain.
As a result of the next recalculation, the difficulty of mining the first cryptocurrency increased by 4.68%. The indicator has updated its historical high at around 39.35 T.
📈 According to Glassnode , the network's smoothed 7-day moving average hashrate is close to 291 EH/s.
Hash pricewith a value of $0.075 per TH/s per day remains close to the maximum levels over the past three months.
Recall that on January 20, a lone miner with a hardware hashrate of only 10 TH / s included a block in the bitcoin blockchain.
On the evening of January 29, the quotes of the first cryptocurrency came close to the level of $24,000. Over the past day, the asset has grown by 2.1%, according to CoinGecko .
At the moment, digital gold exceeded $23,960. The current price is $23,658.
Ethereum is up 2.4% in 24 hours. At the time of writing, the second largest cryptocurrency by capitalization is holding above $1625.
Following the flagships, assets from the top 10 moved into the "green zone". At the time of writing, the exception is Dogecoin — the coin has lost 0.1%. The total market capitalization is $1.1 trillion.
The crypto-currency index of fear and greed moved from the zone of "extreme fear" to "greed" in a month, reaching 61 points.
According to a CoinGecko survey, 32.1% of the 4,306 participants in the study believe that Bitcoin will be in the $25,000-26,000 range this week. At the same time, 21.4% allow the price to pull back below $22,000.
At the moment, digital gold exceeded $23,960. The current price is $23,658.
Ethereum is up 2.4% in 24 hours. At the time of writing, the second largest cryptocurrency by capitalization is holding above $1625.
Following the flagships, assets from the top 10 moved into the "green zone". At the time of writing, the exception is Dogecoin — the coin has lost 0.1%. The total market capitalization is $1.1 trillion.
The crypto-currency index of fear and greed moved from the zone of "extreme fear" to "greed" in a month, reaching 61 points.
According to a CoinGecko survey, 32.1% of the 4,306 participants in the study believe that Bitcoin will be in the $25,000-26,000 range this week. At the same time, 21.4% allow the price to pull back below $22,000.
💻 South Korea to Implement Cryptocurrency Tracking System in 2023
🏢 The Ministry of Justice of South Korea announced the introduction in the first half of 2023 of a system for tracking crypto transactions to combat money laundering and return illegally obtained funds.
The "Virtual Currency Tracking System" is used to monitor the history of transactions, related information and verify the source of funds before and after the transfer.
💬 “In response to the growing ingenuity of criminals, we will improve our toolbox. We will build a criminal justice system that meets international standards,” the agency said in a statement.
💵 Financial Services Commission of South Korea announced that, as part of the fight against money laundering, it will start tracking transactions of users whose assets exceed 100 million KRW (~ $ 70,000).
A month earlier, the country's authorities arrested 16 people suspected of facilitating illegal foreign exchange transactions as part of the kimchi premium arbitration.
🏢 The Ministry of Justice of South Korea announced the introduction in the first half of 2023 of a system for tracking crypto transactions to combat money laundering and return illegally obtained funds.
The "Virtual Currency Tracking System" is used to monitor the history of transactions, related information and verify the source of funds before and after the transfer.
💬 “In response to the growing ingenuity of criminals, we will improve our toolbox. We will build a criminal justice system that meets international standards,” the agency said in a statement.
💵 Financial Services Commission of South Korea announced that, as part of the fight against money laundering, it will start tracking transactions of users whose assets exceed 100 million KRW (~ $ 70,000).
A month earlier, the country's authorities arrested 16 people suspected of facilitating illegal foreign exchange transactions as part of the kimchi premium arbitration.
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World's first stablecoin 🚀
🔥 Binance will create a metaverse and implement solutions based on zk-SNARK
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance spoke about plans for 2023, including the development of solutions to ensure transparency in the operation of the platform and the creation of a metaverse.
⚙️ Mayur Kamata, Head of Product at Binance, said the developers will continue to improve the concept launched at the end of 2022. Now they are preparing the release of several products based onzk-SNARKto implement the Proof-of-Solvency mechanism.
💵 Binance also plans to reach 1 billion verified users through optimization KYC-procedures.
At the same time, the platform is exploring the possibility of creating its own metaverse. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao did not reveal the details of this project, but said that it will “definitely work on Binance Coin.”
💬 “But since we don’t make games yet and we don’t have a game design team, the exchange is more open to investing in other VR projects or metaverse games,” Zhao said.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance spoke about plans for 2023, including the development of solutions to ensure transparency in the operation of the platform and the creation of a metaverse.
⚙️ Mayur Kamata, Head of Product at Binance, said the developers will continue to improve the concept launched at the end of 2022. Now they are preparing the release of several products based onzk-SNARKto implement the Proof-of-Solvency mechanism.
💵 Binance also plans to reach 1 billion verified users through optimization KYC-procedures.
At the same time, the platform is exploring the possibility of creating its own metaverse. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao did not reveal the details of this project, but said that it will “definitely work on Binance Coin.”
💬 “But since we don’t make games yet and we don’t have a game design team, the exchange is more open to investing in other VR projects or metaverse games,” Zhao said.
🏦 Institutions have invested a record amount of funds since July in crypto funds
From January 21 to January 27, $117 million went into cryptocurrency investment products, the highest since July 2022.
📈 Trading volume was $1.3 billion, 17% above the year-to-date average.
The greatest activity was concentrated in bitcoin funds - investors invested $116 million in this type of product. Structures that allow you to open shorts on the first cryptocurrency recorded an inflow of $4.4 million.
The outflow from products based on various altcoins amounted to $6.4 million. The negative dynamics continued for the ninth week in a row.
In altcoins, a positive trend was recorded. Ethereum-based products raised $4.2M, Polkadot raised $1M, XRP and Cardano raised $0.6M each, and Avalanche raised $0.5M.
In general, inflows were predominantly observed in altcoins. Ethereum-based products raised $2.3M, Solana $1.1M, Polygon $0.2M. BNB and XRP-based products saw outflows of $0.4M and $0.2M, respectively.
From January 21 to January 27, $117 million went into cryptocurrency investment products, the highest since July 2022.
📈 Trading volume was $1.3 billion, 17% above the year-to-date average.
The greatest activity was concentrated in bitcoin funds - investors invested $116 million in this type of product. Structures that allow you to open shorts on the first cryptocurrency recorded an inflow of $4.4 million.
The outflow from products based on various altcoins amounted to $6.4 million. The negative dynamics continued for the ninth week in a row.
In altcoins, a positive trend was recorded. Ethereum-based products raised $4.2M, Polkadot raised $1M, XRP and Cardano raised $0.6M each, and Avalanche raised $0.5M.
In general, inflows were predominantly observed in altcoins. Ethereum-based products raised $2.3M, Solana $1.1M, Polygon $0.2M. BNB and XRP-based products saw outflows of $0.4M and $0.2M, respectively.
🗓 In 2022, there were 359 different incidents in the crypto industry, including hacks and bankruptcies, which caused a combined damage of more than $63.9 billion, HAPI Labs researchers reported.
📉 According to their calculations, 188 cases are directly related to hacker attacks, 133 of which occurred in the DeFi segment. The remaining 171 incidents include bankruptcies, exit scams and other fraudulent activities by companies. At the same time, 154 cases (90%) fell on the classic rug pull schemes.
The six major bankruptcies of 2022 accounted for $57.6 billion in losses, or 90.2% of the total. 5 out of 6 incidents are related to custodial platforms.
📉 According to their calculations, 188 cases are directly related to hacker attacks, 133 of which occurred in the DeFi segment. The remaining 171 incidents include bankruptcies, exit scams and other fraudulent activities by companies. At the same time, 154 cases (90%) fell on the classic rug pull schemes.
The six major bankruptcies of 2022 accounted for $57.6 billion in losses, or 90.2% of the total. 5 out of 6 incidents are related to custodial platforms.
🐋 Despite the crypto winter, about 82% of millionaires have been interested in including digital assets in their portfolios over the past 12 months, financial services provider deVere Group said.
✅ Clients interviewed pointed to a surge in interest in cryptocurrencies from major Wall Street players and asked personal advisors for advice on investing in cryptocurrencies.
💬 “Wealthy investors are realizing that digital currencies are the future of money,” said Nigel Green, founder of the deVere Group.
✅ Clients interviewed pointed to a surge in interest in cryptocurrencies from major Wall Street players and asked personal advisors for advice on investing in cryptocurrencies.
💬 “Wealthy investors are realizing that digital currencies are the future of money,” said Nigel Green, founder of the deVere Group.
⚡️ The Waves team changed the ticker of the "depreciated" stablecoin USDN to XTN
The ticker of the algorithmic stablecoin USDN, which lost parity against the US dollar back in August 2022, has been changed to the Neutrino Index (XTN). Sasha Ivanov, CEO and founder of the Waves Platform, announced this.
💬 “USDN is being phased out as a stablecoin, the name of the asset has been changed. Let's move on," he wrote.
⚙️ According to the protocol's Twitter account Neutrino, the decision to rename was approved by the community. The process will be carried out using a transaction of type Update Asset Info.
The developers assured that the update “will not affect exchanges, aggregators of token statistics and theirAPIthat will continue to use the existing USDN ticker."
💬 “This means your wallets will still display USDN. However, it will gradually be renamed to XTN everywhere,” they noted.
The ticker of the algorithmic stablecoin USDN, which lost parity against the US dollar back in August 2022, has been changed to the Neutrino Index (XTN). Sasha Ivanov, CEO and founder of the Waves Platform, announced this.
💬 “USDN is being phased out as a stablecoin, the name of the asset has been changed. Let's move on," he wrote.
⚙️ According to the protocol's Twitter account Neutrino, the decision to rename was approved by the community. The process will be carried out using a transaction of type Update Asset Info.
The developers assured that the update “will not affect exchanges, aggregators of token statistics and theirAPIthat will continue to use the existing USDN ticker."
💬 “This means your wallets will still display USDN. However, it will gradually be renamed to XTN everywhere,” they noted.
⚙️ Ethereum launched a testnet to check the withdrawal of ETH from Beacon Chain
On February 1 at 15:00 UTC, the Zhejiang testnet was launched to simulate the withdrawal of ETH from the Beacon Chain staking contract. The functionality is provided in EIP-4895, planned for the next Shanghai hard fork of the Ethereum network.
On February 7, a hard fork will take place in Zhejiang , which will activate EIP-4895. At the moment, users will only be able to deposit b.
Previously, developers launched devnet to test the function of withdrawing cryptocurrency from a deposit contract by validators.
On February 1 at 15:00 UTC, the Zhejiang testnet was launched to simulate the withdrawal of ETH from the Beacon Chain staking contract. The functionality is provided in EIP-4895, planned for the next Shanghai hard fork of the Ethereum network.
On February 7, a hard fork will take place in Zhejiang , which will activate EIP-4895. At the moment, users will only be able to deposit b.
Previously, developers launched devnet to test the function of withdrawing cryptocurrency from a deposit contract by validators.
🔥 BonqDAO and AllianceBlock hit by $89M hack
An unknown person withdrew approximately 114 million AllianceBlock (ALBT) tokens and 98 million BEUR from the pool on the BonqDAO protocol.
Due to the low liquidity of the assets, the hacker was only able to partially convert them into Ethereum and DAI in the amount of approximately $1.7 million. In total, the hacker’s wallet stores coins worth about $89.8 million.
AllianceBlock said that the incident did not affect other BonqDAO pools, or "treasuries", as they are called in the project. Hacked by manipulating the price oracle, the smart contract allows issuing BEUR against collateral in ALBT.
Both teams are working with partners to remove liquidity from the market and stop exchange trading of coins.
The developers of AllianceBlock also stopped the work of the cross-chain bridge until the situation is resolved. The protocol team stated that it took a snapshot to issue tokens in order to compensate for the damage to users.
An unknown person withdrew approximately 114 million AllianceBlock (ALBT) tokens and 98 million BEUR from the pool on the BonqDAO protocol.
Due to the low liquidity of the assets, the hacker was only able to partially convert them into Ethereum and DAI in the amount of approximately $1.7 million. In total, the hacker’s wallet stores coins worth about $89.8 million.
AllianceBlock said that the incident did not affect other BonqDAO pools, or "treasuries", as they are called in the project. Hacked by manipulating the price oracle, the smart contract allows issuing BEUR against collateral in ALBT.
Both teams are working with partners to remove liquidity from the market and stop exchange trading of coins.
The developers of AllianceBlock also stopped the work of the cross-chain bridge until the situation is resolved. The protocol team stated that it took a snapshot to issue tokens in order to compensate for the damage to users.
⚙️ MetaMask has added privacy settings to the browser extension - now users can set additional options for RPC providers and send requests to third-party services (to detect phishing and identify incoming transactions).
🎨 Leading NFT marketplace OpenSea has unveiled a new security feature. It implies the introduction of a 3-hour waiting period for tokens received on the account. Users will not be able to stake and therefore redeem NFTs, which will reduce the risk of them being stolen.
To interact with its own accounts and hardware devices, OpenSea has integrated the DelegateCash service, which will allow transactions between trusted addresses.
✅ The marketplace also announced a new phase of the Drops program.
To interact with its own accounts and hardware devices, OpenSea has integrated the DelegateCash service, which will allow transactions between trusted addresses.
✅ The marketplace also announced a new phase of the Drops program.
📝 Binance Agrees on the Implementation of Educational Initiatives with the Georgian Authorities
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Georgian Innovation and Technology Agency (GITA) to implement blockchain initiatives.
Cooperation under the agreement will include various educational and charitable initiatives from Binance Academy and Binance Charity, as well as local events and hackathons from BNB Chain.
💬 “Through this collaboration, Binance will facilitate the generation of new startup ideas and the implementation of projects focused on commercialization,” said GITA Chairman Avtandil Kasradze.
This is not the exchange's first educational initiative in the country. Last month, Binance signed a memorandum of cooperation with the University of Business and Technology of Georgia. Together with Binance Academy, the platform will provide teaching materials to teach students the basics of blockchain, Web3, NFT, and cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Georgian Innovation and Technology Agency (GITA) to implement blockchain initiatives.
Cooperation under the agreement will include various educational and charitable initiatives from Binance Academy and Binance Charity, as well as local events and hackathons from BNB Chain.
💬 “Through this collaboration, Binance will facilitate the generation of new startup ideas and the implementation of projects focused on commercialization,” said GITA Chairman Avtandil Kasradze.
This is not the exchange's first educational initiative in the country. Last month, Binance signed a memorandum of cooperation with the University of Business and Technology of Georgia. Together with Binance Academy, the platform will provide teaching materials to teach students the basics of blockchain, Web3, NFT, and cryptocurrencies.