The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day |
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Bitcoin (BTC) was little changed over the weekend ahead of a busy week that includes a much-awaited Presidential debate and the release of key U.S. economic figures that track changes in consumer prices and inflation. BTC traded in a tight range between $54,000 and $55,000 over the weekend, marked by lower trading volumes on exchanges. On Friday, over $220 million in crypto longs, or bets on higher prices, were liquidated amid a sudden market drop after a jobs report - leading to less activity. Major tokens were similarly little changed, with ether (ETH), Solana’s (SOL), Cardano’s ADA, Ripple's XRP (XRP) and Tron’s (TRX) rising just 0.5% in the past 24 hours. Mid-cap tokens showed some gains as memecoin neiro on ETH (NEIRO) and the BitTorrent token (BTT) jumped 25%. However, bitcoin appears attractive to traders at Presto Research at current prices, who said in a Monday note that they consider the asset “grossly undervalued.” |
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Saylor Says GOP 'Progressive' on Crypto |
Republicans are way ahead of Democrats regarding their opinion of crypto and bitcoin (BTC), said MicroStrategy (MSTR) Executive Chairman Michael Saylor. “There’s no doubt the Republicans have taken a very pro crypto stance [...] Trump in particular.” Saylor said in a CNBC appearance on Monday when asked about the impact of the presidential election on the industry. “At this point the Republicans have shifted to way progressive and the Democrats are drifting to the middle [...] in terms of their view toward crypto and bitcoin,” he added. Of U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman and crypto gadfly Gary Gensler's role in a potential Harris administration, Saylor said it was above his pay grade to answer that question. |
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Ether.Fi to Launch Visa 'Cash' Card |
Blockchain technology has been around for over a decade now, but it has arguably failed to find many mainstream use cases beyond speculative investment and simple peer-to-peer transactions. Ether.fi, best known for its liquid restaking service, wants to change all that with a new blockchain-based credit card, Ether.fi Cash. It announced on Monday a plan to work with Scroll, a layer 2 network on Ethereum, to bring the credit card to market. Ether.fi Cash would enable users to spend fiat while using their crypto assets as collateral, allowing people to hold onto crypto and earn yield while making everyday purchases. The card is currently in use internally at Ether.fi and will start shipping out to pre-order customers on Sept. 16. The partnership with Scroll aims to enhance cardholder transaction efficiency and provide a range of crypto-based rewards. |
50 Basis Point Cut Could Hit 'Risk' Assets |
Friday's U.S. jobs report has seemingly set the stage for the Federal Reserve (Fed) to start cutting interest rates, with the first move likely to happen next week. The supposedly bullish liquidity easing cycle may klick off on a sour note for risk assets, including cryptocurrencies, if the Fed cuts rates by 50 basis points (bps) on Sept. 18, according to 10x Research. Rate moves are expressed in “basis points (bps),” equal to 1/100 of a percentage point and central banks, including the Fed, typically opt for 25 basis point interest rate changes. However, more significant moves are occasionally chosen, indicating a sense of urgency. For instance, the Fed delivered multiple 50 bps and 75 bps hikes during the 2022 tightening cycle, signaling an urgency to control inflation and causing risk aversion in financial markets. A 50 basis point rate cut next week might imply heightened economic concerns or a sense of falling behind the curve in combating the impending economic slowdown, thus leading investors to scale back exposure to risk assets like bitcoin (BTC) and stocks. |
The Takeaway: Venture Capital Blind Spots |
Guest post by CoinDesk Columnist Azeem Khan: Decentralization is a hotly debated topic in Web3, but one area where it may be stifling innovation is venture capital. In Web2, the concentration of venture capital in the Bay Area created a clear hub where founders knew they needed to be. Today, with top builders scattered across the globe, the lack of a central hub may be preventing some of the most promising innovators from accessing the resources they need to build, launch, and scale the companies that could drive the industry forward. Consider the example of a founder building an artificial intelligence (AI) company in Web2. If you’re developing AI products anywhere in the world, it's widely accepted that you need to find your way to the Bay Area. This is because the Bay Area hosts many of the world’s top venture capitalists (VCs), a high concentration of talented professionals, successful companies that serve as inspiration, and accelerators like Y Combinator. Of course, there are drawbacks to this concentration, as with any situation, and opportunity costs exist on both sides. To name a few challenges, obtaining a U.S. visa remains one of the most difficult hurdles for international founders. On top of that, the exorbitant cost of living in the Bay Area is well-documented. For most people, relocating means moving to a place where they have no friends or family, which brings its own set of mental and emotional health challenges. Additionally, figuring out how to build a network in a new city, often far from anything familiar, is no easy task. Yet, there are numerous examples of people who have successfully navigated these challenges, building companies worth billions over the decades. While it’s not easy, the conventional wisdom around it suggests that it is still achievable. Now, contrast this with a founder based in Ghana, Argentina or Vietnam. Builders from regions like South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia often have real use cases where blockchain can improve daily life, particularly due to the lack of robust infrastructure in areas like banking, or because younger populations are more willing to adopt new technology. While there are likely phenomenal builders in these regions, without established networks or relationships, they are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to scaling their projects into fully developed companies. Without a concentrated hub or strong relationships, these builders face significant challenges in bringing their innovations to a global scale.
Full post here. |
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A Day Is a Long Time in Crypto |
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