Date: 10/07/2021
“For the first time ever, my crypto exposure is greater than gold.” — Kevin O’Leary, entrepreneur and Shark Tank star
Weekly News Report:
1. Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, surged past $54,000 to the highest in almost five months as bullishness returns to the market following the prior months’ slump, up 25% already this month.
2. A futures-based ETF, if approved, could bring more buying pressure for the CME futures. Bitcoin was trading at about $50,650, up 5.14% for the week, after it rallied more than 10% last week. Expectations that the U.S. could soon approve a futures-based bitcoin exchange-traded fund are among the main factors powering the cryptocurrency higher.
3. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), a key U.S. banking regulator, is said to studying whether certain stablecoins might be eligible for its coverage. Such coverage would ensure holders of the tokens against losses up to $250,000 if the bank holding the collateral were to fail.
4. European soccer NFT platform Sorare is continuing its growth with a slew of new hires, Sorare announced Thursday. Sorare raised $680 million in a Series B funding round that valued the company at $4.3 billion.
5. Yield Guild Games (YGG), a decentralized gaming startup, said it invested $175,000 in Merit Circle to help “bring play-to-earn to the masses.” YGG said its users can interact with the gaming guild by applying and receiving a scholarship for Axie Infinity or by purchasing Merit Circle’s soon-to-be-released governance token “$MC” to be a part of the DAO.
6. Released in 2017, L.O.L. Surprise doll was MGA’s best-selling U.S. toy property for three consecutive years, which amassed $25 billion in 2020 in retail sales. Consumer entertainment products giant MGA Entertainment is moving into the NFT industry by turning its best-selling toys into digital collectibles on blockchain.
7. It’s still the early days for Fantom, said Nansen’s Alex Svanevik, but promising growth has made it the data site’s third network. Popular blockchain analytics platform Nansen has expanded coverage to the Fantom blockchain today, shedding light on a rapidly expanding decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
8. Credit Suisse is working with Swiss crypto custody and trading platform Taurus on the project, taking part in the tokenization of a Swiss resort using the Ethereum blockchain.
9. According to a research study by crypto asset management outfits Iconic Funds and Cryptology Asset Group, the ability of crypto investments to positively impact the performance of investment portfolios cuts across several asset allocation models. Crypto’s ability to improve the profitability of diversified investment portfolios comes despite its volatility, especially the recent market crash that occurred in May.
10. Financial services company MoneyGram International has partnered with the Stellar Development Foundation to enable consumers to send money using Circle’s popular stablecoin, USD Coin, and convert directly to and from fiat.
11. New Zealand-based crypto exchange Easy Crypto has raised $11.75 million (17 million New Zealand dollars) in Series A funding, as the firm eyes a potential initial public offering (IPO) in the future.
12. United States-based publicly listed mining firm Riot Blockchain has revealed that its year-to-date Bitcoin production has more than tripled compared to 2020 and is hoarding $194M in bitcoin.
13. Entrepreneur and Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, also known as Mr. Wonderful, stated that his investment portfolio has a larger exposure to crypto than gold. O’Leary stated that “crypto for the first time is more than gold for me” and doesn’t see a situation where crypto “goes away” as a result of regulation.
14. International Monetary Fund, IMF, managing director Kristalina Georgieva said more than half of all central banks in the world are exploring how to launch digital currencies.
15. Speaking at the Aspen Institute Cyber Summit on Wednesday, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said the Justice Department had launched the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, an initiative aimed at going after platforms “that help criminals launder or hide their criminal proceeds.”
