Some extremely exciting data I came across in the most recent market research report released by crypto .com.

Investors are demonstrating a healthy response in the aftermath of the startling events of the FTX collapse. DEXs eating up spot trading volume may be a sign that the industry is slowly being driven away from centralization towards decentralized alternatives that can provide increased asset security. Which is a positive market response that demonstrates people understanding that FTXs faults are not the faults of the technology. Instead they were a symptom of centralization, mismanagement and excessive risk.

Decentralization will eat the world.

This is and always will be what I stand by. Because decentralization is a vote for equitability and autonomy for investors around the globe.

Excited to see whether this trend continues over the course of 2023 and whether new DeFi primitives emerge to capitalize on the hunger for trustworthy decentralized options.

The United States SEC plans to sue stablecoin issuer Paxos, the institution behind the USDP and BUSD tokens, over the latter stablecoin. According to an SEC spokesperson, the agency can neither confirm nor deny the possibility of an in-depth investigation as of this time.

Nevertheless, the SEC claims that BUSD is an unregistered security. The announcement comes just days after it was reported that Paxos is being investigated by the New York Department of Financial Services, although the scope of the investigation remains unknown for now.

After the announcement by the SEC, Paxos stated that it would suspend the production of new BUSD tokens for the time being. BUSD is a stablecoin completely owned and managed by Paxos, according to a Binance spokesperson.

As a result, the BUSD market cap shall continue to fall over time. Meanwhile, Paxos would keep supporting the product, manage redemptions, and provide additional information as needed. Paxos also assured that the funds are secure and covered by bank reserves.

In other news, the SEC recently settled charges with Kraken, alleging that the staking services provided by the crypto exchange constituted an unregistered securities offering. Under the terms of the settlement, Kraken did not deny nor admit to the charges, however the decision was made to cease operations for all of its US staking programs.
 

As 2023 gets underway and the crypto industry steadily grows in popularity, numerous developers are focusing their efforts on improving user experience, which is a major source of frustration for many. To that end, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has frequently been viewed as a technology that has the potential to improve how people use and regularly interact with various cryptocurrencies and crypto related technology like blockchain, NFTs, and the metaverse.

A new age of digitization?

The popularity of OpenAI and applications like ChatGPT has fueled the narrative that AI really is taking over the world. Unsurprisingly, the trend has also spread to the crypto industry, where tokens associated with AI-related crypto projects such as AGIX have seen a recent price increase.

With that in mind, it is almost certain that AI shall be integrated into crypto applications in a manner which significantly enhances user experience. In fact, many crypto on-chain data platforms will inevitably and regularly utilize AI to help users find information more easily, similar to how Bing integrated ChatGPT not too long ago.

What does this have to do with crypto?

Following the failure of many crypto platforms in 2022 like 3AC, Terra, and FTX, institutions adopted a new standard known as Proof of Reserves to offer more transparency to their end users. However, some have argued that this may be useless because it cannot be relied upon to confirm solvency, as many of the collapses last year could have been avoided if users just had more information on how exchanges and lending platforms were managing deposits via on-chain data. Furthermore, regulation could be more effective if on-chain data was closely monitored as well, according to some online discussions.

In this way, compelling narratives can be viewed as fuel for crypto markets, and AI is simply the latest trend in that regard. AI-based tokens are hence being heralded as the sector which will lead the next bull market cycle by prominent traders on Twitter, Reddit, and other platforms. Thus far, they may be correct, as such tokens have increased by an average of 80% in the last few weeks alone, which include the likes of AGIX, FET, and ALI.

What will the future hold?

According to the 7th e-Trading Edit report by JPMorgan, responses by 835 institutional traders in 60 global markets were gathered and over half of these traders said that AI and machine learning will be the most influential technologies shaping trading methods within the next three years.

Lastly, although blockchain and crypto had been mentioned prominently in previous surveys, AI was mentioned 4 times more than blockchain. This makes sense given the fact that ChatGPT for instance took only 2 months to reach 100 million users, an accomplishment which others like Netflix, Gmail, Twitter, Whatsapp, and Facebook all took years to achieve.

A prominent Brazilian bank has announced a new and convenient way for taxpayers to pay their taxes with crypto. As per a statement released on February 11th by Brazilian bank Banco do Brasil, it is now possible for local taxpayers to pay their tax bill with crypto as part of a collaborative effort with Bitfy, a crypto firm based in Brazil.

As such, the new service is available to Brazilians who have crypto stored with Bitfy, which shall act as a sort of collection partner for Banco do Brasil. In addition to the ease the new serivce provides customers, it also has the potential to expand the use of and subsequent access to the overall digital asset ecosystem with national coverage alongside the dependable security of a bank.

This decision was made following Rio de Janeiro reportedly accepting crypto as tax payments back in October 2022. Brazil passed a regulatory framework in December 2022 which legalizes the usage of crypto as a viable payment method. The new law is expected to go into effect in June 2023. Finally, only investors who trade over 35,000 Brazilian Reals in crypto are required to pay income tax.

The Algorand Foundation has been tasked by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to create an educational curriculum focused on Web3 for its workforce. The announcement, made on November 30th, reveals that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be accessible to over 22,000 UNDP employees as well as personnel linked to various other United Nations agencies.

A global initiative

The curriculum will reportedly emphasize the practical applications of blockchain technology within the framework of sustainable development. During the first quarter of 2024, a beta version of the course will commence, progressively rolling out across the UNDP global staff throughout the year. Robert Pasicko, a UNDP research and data analyst specializing in alternative finance and low carbon development, announced the initiative at the Algorand Impact Summit in New Delhi.

Pasicko expressed enthusiasm, stating that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be instrumental in equipping the team with the tools needed to address complex global challenges using blockchain technology. He further mentioned the goal to upskill, empower, and inspire UN practitioners globally.

The initiative will also involve participation by representatives of Algorand ecosystem projects such as HesabPay, Wholechain, Koibanx, and Quantum Temple.

Slow and steady

Doro Unger-Lee, Head of Education and Inclusion at Algorand Foundation, sees this initiative as a crucial step toward identifying and delivering practical use-cases of blockchain to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across various areas.

This move aligns with the broader trend of the UN embracing Web3 and distributed ledger technologies. Still, while the UN has shown a progressive stance toward adopting blockchain, a cautionary note was sounded in August 2022 by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, warning about the potential risks of unregulated cryptocurrencies, such as threats to monetary stability and the potential for tax evasion in underdeveloped economies.

The Algorand Foundation has been tasked by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to create an educational curriculum focused on Web3 for its workforce. The announcement, made on November 30th, reveals that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be accessible to over 22,000 UNDP employees as well as personnel linked to various other United Nations agencies.

A global initiative

The curriculum will reportedly emphasize the practical applications of blockchain technology within the framework of sustainable development. During the first quarter of 2024, a beta version of the course will commence, progressively rolling out across the UNDP global staff throughout the year. Robert Pasicko, a UNDP research and data analyst specializing in alternative finance and low carbon development, announced the initiative at the Algorand Impact Summit in New Delhi.

Pasicko expressed enthusiasm, stating that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be instrumental in equipping the team with the tools needed to address complex global challenges using blockchain technology. He further mentioned the goal to upskill, empower, and inspire UN practitioners globally.

The initiative will also involve participation by representatives of Algorand ecosystem projects such as HesabPay, Wholechain, Koibanx, and Quantum Temple.

Slow and steady

Doro Unger-Lee, Head of Education and Inclusion at Algorand Foundation, sees this initiative as a crucial step toward identifying and delivering practical use-cases of blockchain to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across various areas.

This move aligns with the broader trend of the UN embracing Web3 and distributed ledger technologies. Still, while the UN has shown a progressive stance toward adopting blockchain, a cautionary note was sounded in August 2022 by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, warning about the potential risks of unregulated cryptocurrencies, such as threats to monetary stability and the potential for tax evasion in underdeveloped economies.

The Algorand Foundation has been tasked by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to create an educational curriculum focused on Web3 for its workforce. The announcement, made on November 30th, reveals that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be accessible to over 22,000 UNDP employees as well as personnel linked to various other United Nations agencies.

A global initiative

The curriculum will reportedly emphasize the practical applications of blockchain technology within the framework of sustainable development. During the first quarter of 2024, a beta version of the course will commence, progressively rolling out across the UNDP global staff throughout the year. Robert Pasicko, a UNDP research and data analyst specializing in alternative finance and low carbon development, announced the initiative at the Algorand Impact Summit in New Delhi.

Pasicko expressed enthusiasm, stating that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be instrumental in equipping the team with the tools needed to address complex global challenges using blockchain technology. He further mentioned the goal to upskill, empower, and inspire UN practitioners globally.

The initiative will also involve participation by representatives of Algorand ecosystem projects such as HesabPay, Wholechain, Koibanx, and Quantum Temple.

Slow and steady

Doro Unger-Lee, Head of Education and Inclusion at Algorand Foundation, sees this initiative as a crucial step toward identifying and delivering practical use-cases of blockchain to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across various areas.

This move aligns with the broader trend of the UN embracing Web3 and distributed ledger technologies. Still, while the UN has shown a progressive stance toward adopting blockchain, a cautionary note was sounded in August 2022 by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, warning about the potential risks of unregulated cryptocurrencies, such as threats to monetary stability and the potential for tax evasion in underdeveloped economies.

The Algorand Foundation has been tasked by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to create an educational curriculum focused on Web3 for its workforce. The announcement, made on November 30th, reveals that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be accessible to over 22,000 UNDP employees as well as personnel linked to various other United Nations agencies.

A global initiative

The curriculum will reportedly emphasize the practical applications of blockchain technology within the framework of sustainable development. During the first quarter of 2024, a beta version of the course will commence, progressively rolling out across the UNDP global staff throughout the year. Robert Pasicko, a UNDP research and data analyst specializing in alternative finance and low carbon development, announced the initiative at the Algorand Impact Summit in New Delhi.

Pasicko expressed enthusiasm, stating that the Algorand Blockchain Academy will be instrumental in equipping the team with the tools needed to address complex global challenges using blockchain technology. He further mentioned the goal to upskill, empower, and inspire UN practitioners globally.

The initiative will also involve participation by representatives of Algorand ecosystem projects such as HesabPay, Wholechain, Koibanx, and Quantum Temple.

Slow and steady

Doro Unger-Lee, Head of Education and Inclusion at Algorand Foundation, sees this initiative as a crucial step toward identifying and delivering practical use-cases of blockchain to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across various areas.

This move aligns with the broader trend of the UN embracing Web3 and distributed ledger technologies. Still, while the UN has shown a progressive stance toward adopting blockchain, a cautionary note was sounded in August 2022 by the UN Conference on Trade and Development, warning about the potential risks of unregulated cryptocurrencies, such as threats to monetary stability and the potential for tax evasion in underdeveloped economies.

An agreement was recently announced between popular crypto exchange Gemini, Genesis Global Capital, LLC (Genesis), and Digital Currency Group (DCG) which brings Gemini Earn users one step closer to reclaiming their funds. Cameron Winklevoss, Co-Founder of Gemini, disclosed the agreement on Twitter.

Genesis halted withdrawals in November 2022 after being embroiled in a public battle over the Earn program, prompting users and Cameron himself to threaten legal action against both the company and DCG founder Barry Silbert. They demanded that Genesis provide a concrete plan for repaying the $900 million loan Gemini made to Genesis Global, which has since gone bankrupt.

As per the agreement, Gemini shall therefore contribute a maximum of $100 million for Earn users, and the terms of the agreement with DCG reportedly also include the sale of Genesis Global Trading.

Additionally, DCG will convert its existing $1 billion note due in 2032 into convertible preferred stock as well as refinance its existing 2023 term loans in two tranches that would be made payable to creditors totaling just about $500 million.

The catastrophic earthquake which struck Turkey and Syria on February 6th left a path of devastation in its wake, affecting countless communities and individuals.

Binance has therefore announced an airdrop of $100 USD worth of BNB tokens to all users residing in the earthquake-affected regions. The process of identifying eligible users shall involve reviewing Proof of Address (POA) submissions made before February 6th in various earthquake-affected cities, namely Adana, Adyaman, Diyarbakr, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, Kilis, Malatya, Anlurfa, and Osmaniye.

Much like the situation regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the usage of crypto transfers for delivering financial aid has steadily grown in popularity, as these transfers are quick, unrestricted, transparent, cost-effective, and seamless, making them well-suited for offering aid in emergency situations.

Lastly, while the aforementioned POA process is not perfect, Binance believes it is the best option for locating users affected by the disaster. The total value of the donations is anticipated to be around $5 million. Binance Charity additionally established a public donation address, encouraging people to donate to the Emergency Earthquake Appeal with cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, XRP, BUSD, and BNB.

The highly anticipated FOMC meeting recently took place, and there was much to discuss not just regarding crypto but also the overall market and the record-setting inflation levels which were the highest they have been since 1982.

What happened?

In summary, US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell confirmed at the FOMC meeting that the central bank expects to raise interest rates twice more, at the very least. Still, his acknowledgement that the disinflationary process has officially begun has provided traders with some semblance of reassurance that those would be the final two hikes of this cycle and that the Fed shall be on hold midway through the second quarter of 2023.

Correspondingly, his repeated emphasis on various core services has offered a clear inflation metric for traders to monitor in order to determine what the central bank shall do within the next few months. Powell also talked about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and how that is adversely affecting the economy, but is hopeful that inflation will continue to ease somewhat.

How did the market react?

Following a modest reaction to the monetary policy statement, the market appears to have concluded that the FOMC meeting was more dovish than expected. Still, the crypto market continues its gradual road to recovery, as investors gradually make their return while Bitcoin looks to slowly gain momentum once more.

In any case, the United States Dollar (USD) is losing 50-100 pips against all of its major competitors. Infact, the entire Treasury yield curve is steadily falling, with the closely watched 2-year yield decreasing by over 10 basis points to 4.12%. Elsewhere, gold went up 12 points on the day to just under $1,960, and the broad US indices were up as well, led by a 1.5% gain in the Nasdaq 100.

What comes next for Bitcoin?

The Fed-provided benchmark rate rested between 450 and 475 basis points as of the time of writing, its highest level since 2007. The 25-point increase corresponded with market expectations and was less severe than the 50-point increase in December.

For its part, Bitcoin was trading around $23,000 before the announcement and saw little movement in the aftermath. Nevertheless, there has been a steady increase since last month after rallying alongside numerous tech stocks in response to the positive inflation data that arose at the end of 2022.

Furthermore, with inflation seemingly on the decline, market participants began to suspect that the Fed was planning to either slow or reverse its interest rate hikes, thereby making investment easier and hopefully bolstering the economy.

Sberbank (SBER.MM), the largest lender in Russia, recently announced its plans of launching a decentralized finance platform within the next few months. Sberbank claims that it wants to make the Russian DeFi system the best in the world, to which end it is currently beta testing its own platform.

Based on distributed ledger (blockchain) technology, decentralized finance platforms enable users to conduct traditional banking transactions like investing, saving, and lending. Various traditional financial institutions across the globe are actively investigating how to enter the burgeoning sector and integrate DeFi technology into their own existing regulated operations.

According to Konstantin Klimenko, Head of Products at the blockchain branch of Sberbank, the lender shall begin open testing of its platform in March and hopes to commence commercial operations by the end of April. Klimenko also indicated that the DeFi platform would be built on the Ethereum blockchain, a popular choice by many.

Advocates claim that the new platform could significantly decrease banking costs and even replace traditional banks, while detractors believe it has few real-world applications and suffers from the same drawbacks as crypto in general including lack of regulation and vulnerability to money laundering and other kinds of fraudulent activities.