Blockchain & Cryptocurrency Regulation
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Curious About Cryptocurrencies? Investors Need to Make Sure They Separate “Investing” from “Speculation” by Don Mcarthur, CFA®
Curious About Cryptocurrencies? Investors Need to Make Sure They Separate “Investing” from “Speculation” By Don McArthur, CFA® Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have received plenty of media coverage lately, and it is natural for investors to wonder about them. Even celebrities have become associated with Bitcoin publicity through social media. Interest has piqued to a point where there are even Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that invest in Bitcoin, giving investors the means to invest in the Futures market. After having performed in-depth research on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, our position at Commerce Trust Company is that they should not currently play a role in client portfolios. As part of that research, Commerce Senior Vice President and Investment Analyst Don McArthur, CFA, put together a primer on the topic of cryptocurrencies in general. In the following commentary, he explains why Bitcoin at this stage is more about speculating than investing in something with intrinsic value. He also touches on how Blockchain networking technology not only supports cryptocurrencies, but many other industrial applications as well. We thought you would enjoy this commentary as McArthur shares his thoughts in a mind-opening Q&A. Q . What is Bitcoin and how did it start? A. Bitcoin is one of hundreds of digital currencies, or cryptocurrency, based on Blockchain technology. As an early mover, Bitcoin is by far the largest digital currency. Bitcoin was launched in 2009 by a mysterious person (or persons) known only by the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. Unlike traditional currencies, which are issued by central banks, Bitcoin has no central monetary authority. -
The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven A closer look at functional attributes of blockchain platforms The Magnificent Seven1 Following a whitepaper published in late 2008, the Bitcoin system came into being in 2009, and the underlying technology became what we refer to as Blockchain today. 1 The top seven cryptocurrencies covered a good variety of attributes that are essential to gain a more thorough understanding of the potentials offered by this new technology. The Magnificent Seven 1 Since then, a variety of different cryptocurrency platforms have been created, and based on data from CoinMarketCap (https://coinmarketcap.com/), as of 27 March 2021, there were 8,964 crypto tokens in existence, with a total Market Cap of over USD$1.6 Trillion. The top seven cryptocurrencies made up around 80% of the global market capitalisation: Market Cap Token Symbol (billion USD) % Bitcoin BTC 1,026.8 59.23 Ethereum ETH 0,196.2 11.32 Cardano ADA 0,040.2 02.32 Binance Coin BNB 0,039.1 02.25 Tether USDT 0,038.5 02.22 Polkadot DOT 0,030.4 01.75 XRP XRP 0,025.8 01.49 80.58 Rest of 8,957 tokens 19.42 Bitcoin alone represents nearly 60% of the total cryptocurrency value, with Ethereum being the second highest by value. However, these cryptocurrencies are not in fact the same: value aside, they differ in some interesting ways, which in turn affect their “function” and value proposition. Asset Smart Token Year Type Minable Consensus2 Limit Backed Contract BTC 2009 Native Yes POW No 21m ETH 2012 ERC-20 Yes / No3 POW | POS No Y none ADA 2017 Native No POS No Y 45bn BNB 2017 ERC-20 No Tendermint No 100m Multiple Forms: USDT-Omni, USDT 2014 USDT-TRON, No NA USD none USDT-ERC20 and USDT-EOS DOT 2017 Native NPOS No Y none Ripple XRP 2012 Native No Transaction No 100bn Protocol Source: https://icorating.com/ and https://coincodex.com/ 2 In simple terms, consensus mechanism is a means of authenticating and validating transactions on a Blockchain (or distributed ledger) without having to trust or rely on a central authority. -
Crypto Daily Report – June 9
This document is being provided publicly in the following form. Please subscribe to FSInsight.com for more. Members Area Crypto Daily Crypto Daily Report – June 9 Crypto Daily Crypto Daily Report – June 9 June 9 FSInsight Team Crypto Daily Report The Most Important Daily Data for Digital Assets Daily Analysis from FSInsight June 9, 2021 Late Tuesday evening, lawmakers in El Salvador's Congress voted by a supermajority in favor of making bitcoin legal tender. The law allows for the prices of goods and services to be denominated and paid in BTC, and perhaps more notably, exempts any exchanges in bitcoin from capital gains tax. Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN) revealed Tuesday that its institutional holdings grew 170% from $45 billion to $122 billion in Q1 2021 as demand skyrocketed alongside the latest crypto bull run. The Company has over 8,000 institutional clients, many of which use its Coinbase Custody product. Crypto exchange Gemini acquired custody specialist Shard X for an undisclosed amount on Wednesday morning. Gemini COO, Noah Perlman, stated that the acquisition will enable Gemini " to meet the current demand for fast withdrawals, interacting with DeFi staking, or the transferring of digital assets with greater efficiency." Daily Important Metrics CRYPTO SIZE SENTIMENT BULLISH SIGNAL Bullish signal is tied to the crypto market growing Market Cap $1.5T +$42B ( +2.79% ) BTC Dominance 41.64% ( +1.49% ) STABLE COINS FUTURES CME BULLISH SIGNAL A positive spread between Futures Prices and Spot BULLISH SIGNAL Prices is Bullish Increase in circulating -
Rev. Rul. 2019-24 ISSUES (1) Does a Taxpayer Have Gross Income Under
26 CFR 1.61-1: Gross income. (Also §§ 61, 451, 1011.) Rev. Rul. 2019-24 ISSUES (1) Does a taxpayer have gross income under § 61 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) as a result of a hard fork of a cryptocurrency the taxpayer owns if the taxpayer does not receive units of a new cryptocurrency? (2) Does a taxpayer have gross income under § 61 as a result of an airdrop of a new cryptocurrency following a hard fork if the taxpayer receives units of new cryptocurrency? BACKGROUND Virtual currency is a digital representation of value that functions as a medium of exchange, a unit of account, and a store of value other than a representation of the United States dollar or a foreign currency. Foreign currency is the coin and paper money of a country other than the United States that is designated as legal tender, circulates, and is customarily used and accepted as a medium of exchange in the country of issuance. See 31 C.F.R. § 1010.100(m). - 2 - Cryptocurrency is a type of virtual currency that utilizes cryptography to secure transactions that are digitally recorded on a distributed ledger, such as a blockchain. Units of cryptocurrency are generally referred to as coins or tokens. Distributed ledger technology uses independent digital systems to record, share, and synchronize transactions, the details of which are recorded in multiple places at the same time with no central data store or administration functionality. A hard fork is unique to distributed ledger technology and occurs when a cryptocurrency on a distributed ledger undergoes a protocol change resulting in a permanent diversion from the legacy or existing distributed ledger. -
White Paper of Bitcoin Ultimatum Introduction
White Paper of Bitcoin Ultimatum Introduction 1. Problematic of the Blockchain 4. Bitcoin Ultimatum Architecture industry 4.1. Network working principle 1.1. Transactions Anonymity 4.1.1. Main Transaction Types 1.2. Insufficient Development of Key Aspects of the 4.1.1.1. Public transactions Technology 4.1.1.2. Private transactions 1.3. Centralization 4.1.2. Masternode Network 1.4. Mining pools and commission manipulation 4.2. How to become a validator or masternode in 1.5. Decrease in Transaction Speeds BTCU 4.3. Network Scaling Principle 2. BTCU main solutions and concepts 4.4. Masternodes and Validators Ranking System 4.5. Smart Contracts 2.1. Consensus algorithm basis 4.6. Anonymization principle 2.2. Leasing and Staking 4.7. Staking and Leasing 2.3. Projects tokenization and DeFi 4.7.1. Staking 2.4. Transactions Privacy 4.7.2. Leasing 2.5. Atomic Swaps 4.7.2 Multileasing 4.8. BTCU Technical Specifications 3. Executive Summary 4.8.1. Project Stack 4.8.2. Private key generation algorithm 5. Bitcoin Ultimatum Economy 5.1. Initial Supply and Airdrop 5.2. Leasing Economy 5.3. Masternodes and Validators Commission 5.4. Transactions Fee 6. Project Roadmap 7. Legal Introduction The cryptocurrency market is inextricably tied to the blockchain – its fundamental and underlying technology. The modern market is brimming with an abundance of blockchain protocols, algorithms, and concepts, all of which have fostered the development of a wide variety of services and applications. The modern blockchain market offers users an alternative to both established financial systems and ecosystems/infrastructures of applications and services. -
Beauty Is Not in the Eye of the Beholder
Insight Consumer and Wealth Management Digital Assets: Beauty Is Not in the Eye of the Beholder Parsing the Beauty from the Beast. Investment Strategy Group | June 2021 Sharmin Mossavar-Rahmani Chief Investment Officer Investment Strategy Group Goldman Sachs The co-authors give special thanks to: Farshid Asl Managing Director Matheus Dibo Shahz Khatri Vice President Vice President Brett Nelson Managing Director Michael Murdoch Vice President Jakub Duda Shep Moore-Berg Harm Zebregs Vice President Vice President Vice President Shivani Gupta Analyst Oussama Fatri Yousra Zerouali Vice President Analyst ISG material represents the views of ISG in Consumer and Wealth Management (“CWM”) of GS. It is not financial research or a product of GS Global Investment Research (“GIR”) and may vary significantly from those expressed by individual portfolio management teams within CWM, or other groups at Goldman Sachs. 2021 INSIGHT Dear Clients, There has been enormous change in the world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology since we first wrote about it in 2017. The number of cryptocurrencies has increased from about 2,000, with a market capitalization of over $200 billion in late 2017, to over 8,000, with a market capitalization of about $1.6 trillion. For context, the market capitalization of global equities is about $110 trillion, that of the S&P 500 stocks is $35 trillion and that of US Treasuries is $22 trillion. Reported trading volume in cryptocurrencies, as represented by the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, has increased sixfold, from an estimated $6.8 billion per day in late 2017 to $48.6 billion per day in May 2021.1 This data is based on what is called “clean data” from Coin Metrics; the total reported trading volume is significantly higher, but much of it is artificially inflated.2,3 For context, trading volume on US equity exchanges doubled over the same period. -
Realising Blockchain's Surge in Mass Adoption with Unlimited Scaling, Speed and Cross-Chain Interope
THE NuGENESIS REVOLUTION: REALISING BLOCKCHAIN’S SURGE IN MASS ADOPTION WITH UNLIMITED SCALING, SPEED AND CROSS-CHAIN INTEROPERABILITY; and, BRIDGING WITH LEGAL AND MAINSTEAM ECONOMIC SUPPORT PART A INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY INTRODUCTION NuGenesis is a fully completed native blockchain originally built for Government and transnational corporate applications. In the context of building a blockchain for Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC’s), and an exchange clearing house for settlement, limitations to scaling and speed, latency and reliance on human miners and validators had to be eliminated. Security had to be enhanced, its integrity underscored by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and carbon neutral in its efficiency. We have now made the NuGenesis gasless network of cross-chain blockchains available for commercial and social application for use by modifying it to maximise its efficacy for the up-coming tidal wave of mass adoption. This has meant not only the most advanced next-generation layer 1 multi-chain blockchain configuration system that is cross-chain interoperable, but which it easy and cost effective for developers to customise their own version which can run as a parallel network and accessing explosive new potential capabilities for Smart Contracts, NFTs, virtual reality innovation. The NuGenesis multi-cross chain network provides: 1. The Most Advanced Tech The NuGenesis blockchain network currently consists of a quad cross chain configuration interoperability: (a) The NuGenesis Main blockchain, built on Substrate; (b) The Ledger X (Exchange) chain based on C++ that is itself a parallel processing chain made of a tri blockchain configuration; (c) The Ethereum chain; and, (d) The Bitcoin Chain NuGenesis achieves unlimited scalability and speed through eliminating the validation bottleneck to data flow, uses consensus before packing and, currently implementing load balancers, with their own blockchain, to maximise block data, creation and speed. -
Bitcoin Tumbles As Miners Face Crackdown - the Buttonwood Tree Bitcoin Tumbles As Miners Face Crackdown
6/8/2021 Bitcoin Tumbles as Miners Face Crackdown - The Buttonwood Tree Bitcoin Tumbles as Miners Face Crackdown By Haley Cafarella - June 1, 2021 Bitcoin tumbles as Crypto miners face crackdown from China. Cryptocurrency miners, including HashCow and BTC.TOP, have halted all or part of their China operations. This comes after Beijing intensified a crackdown on bitcoin mining and trading. Beijing intends to hammer digital currencies amid heightened global regulatory scrutiny. This marks the first time China’s cabinet has targeted virtual currency mining, which is a sizable business in the world’s second-biggest economy. Some estimates say China accounts for as much as 70 percent of the world’s crypto supply. Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi suspended both crypto-mining and some trading services to new clients from China. The plan is that China will instead focus on overseas businesses. BTC.TOP, a crypto mining pool, also announced the suspension of its China business citing regulatory risks. On top of that, crypto miner HashCow said it would halt buying new bitcoin mining rigs. Crypto miners use specially-designed computer equipment, or rigs, to verify virtual coin transactions. READ MORE: Sustainable Mineral Exploration Powers Electric Vehicle Revolution This process produces newly minted crypto currencies like bitcoin. “Crypto mining consumes a lot of energy, which runs counter to China’s carbon neutrality goals,” said Chen Jiahe, chief investment officer of Beijing-based family office Novem Arcae Technologies. Additionally, he said this is part of China’s goal of curbing speculative crypto trading. As result, bitcoin has taken a beating in the stock market. -
Decentralized Finance – the Possibilities of a Blockchain “Money Lego” System*
Financial and Economic Review, Vol. 20 Issue 1, March 2021, 74–102. Decentralized Finance – The Possibilities of a Blockchain “Money Lego” System* Tamás Katona With the adoption of blockchain technology, initiatives to provide financial, investment and insurance services to a wide range of users in a decentralized manner have emerged. But can decentralized finance be the alternative to the traditional financial system, or has it only created another “technology playground” for users who are biasedly enthusiastic about crypto-assets? The study examines the key definitions of decentralized finance and then synthesizes them to formulate a new, more complete definition. This is followed by a presentation of the different layers of decentralized finance and their prevalence, as well as an analysis of its benefits and risks. In the conclusions, the author finds that decentralized finance has the potential to provide financial services with an open, transparent and robust infrastructure, and has the possibility of reaching a broad range of users with its basic financial services. However, this requires further development of the sector and effective management of emerging risks. Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) codes: G10, G15, G20, G23, G24, G28 Keywords: blockchain, decentralized finance, Ethereum, crypto-assets, smart contract, yield farming, liquidity mining 1. Introduction The financial system has undergone fundamental changes in recent years, with the appearance of the FinTech sector.1 New providers have entered the financial markets, combining digital technologies and financial services in a more efficient and innovative way than any other solution so far. The FinTech ecosystem consists of vastly diverse players, some of which provide new products and services, occasionally outside existing regulations, while others seek to sell products offered * The papers in this issue contain the views of the authors which are not necessarily the same as the official views of the Magyar Nemzeti Bank. -
Initial Coin Offerings: Financing Growth with Cryptocurrency Token
Initial Coin Offerings: Financing Growth with Cryptocurrency Token Sales Sabrina T. Howell, Marina Niessner, and David Yermack⇤ June 21, 2018 Abstract Initial coin offerings (ICOs) are sales of blockchain-based digital tokens associated with specific platforms or assets. Since 2014 ICOs have emerged as a new financing instrument, with some parallels to IPOs, venture capital, and pre-sale crowdfunding. We examine the relationship between issuer characteristics and measures of success, with a focus on liquidity, using 453 ICOs that collectively raise $5.7 billion. We also employ propriety transaction data in a case study of Filecoin, one of the most successful ICOs. We find that liquidity and trading volume are higher when issuers offer voluntary disclosure, credibly commit to the project, and signal quality. s s ss s ss ss ss s ⇤NYU Stern and NBER; Yale SOM; NYU Stern, ECGI and NBER. Email: [email protected]. For helpful comments, we are grateful to Bruno Biais, Darrell Duffie, seminar participants at the OECD Paris Workshop on Digital Financial Assets, Erasmus University, and the Swedish House of Finance. We thank Protocol Labs and particularly Evan Miyazono and Juan Benet for providing data. Sabrina Howell thanks the Kauffman Foundation for financial support. We are also grateful to all of our research assistants, especially Jae Hyung (Fred) Kim. Part of this paper was written while David Yermack was a visiting professor at Erasmus University Rotterdam. 1Introduction Initial coin offerings (ICOs) may be a significant innovation in entrepreneurial finance. In an ICO, a blockchain-based venture raises capital by selling cryptographically secured digital assets, usually called “tokens.” These ventures often resemble the startups that conventionally finance themselves with angel or venture capital (VC) investment, though there are many scams, jokes, and tokens that have nothing to do with a new product or business. -
BLOCK by BLOCK a Comparative Analysis of the Leading Distributed Ledgers
BLOCK BY BLOCK A Comparative Analysis of the Leading Distributed Ledgers Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 PRELIMINARY MATTERS 4 A NOTE ON METHODOLOGY 4 THE EVOLUTION OF DISTRIBUTED LEDGERS 5 SEC. 1 : TECHNICAL STRUCTURE & FEATURE SET 7 PUBLIC OR PRIVATE? 7 PERMISSIONED OR PERMISSIONLESS? 8 CONSENSUS MECHANISM 9 LANGUAGES SUPPORTED 10 TRANSACTION RATES 11 SMART CONTRACTS 12 ADDITIONAL FEATURES 13 SEC. 2 : BUSINESS CONSIDERATIONS 14 PROJECT GOVERNANCE 14 LICENSING 16 THIRD PARTY SUPPORT 16 DEVELOPER SUPPORT 17 PUBLISHER SUPPORT 18 BLOCKCHAIN AS A SERVICE (BAAS) PROVIDERS 19 PARTNERSHIPS 21 ASSOCIATED COSTS 22 PRICING 22 COST PER TRANSACTION 23 ENERGY CONSUMPTION 24 SEC. 3 : HEALTH INDICATORS 25 DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY 25 MINDSHARE 27 PROJECT SITE POPULARITY 28 SEARCH ENGINE QUERY VOLUME 29 FINANCIAL STRENGTH INDICATORS 30 MARKET CAP 30 24 HOUR TRADING VOLUME 31 VENTURE CAPITAL AND INVESTORS 32 NODES ONLINE 33 WEISS CRYPTOCURRENCY RANKINGS 34 SIGNIFICANT DEPLOYMENTS 35 CONCLUSIONS 36 PUBLIC LEDGERS 37 PRIVATE LEDGERS 37 PROJECTS TO WATCH 40 APPENDIX A. PROJECT LINKS 42 MERCY CORPS 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Purpose This report compares nine distributed ledger platforms on nearly 30 metrics What’s Included related to the capabilities and the health of each project. The analysis looks at a broad range of indicators -- both direct and indirect -- with the goal of Bitcoin synthesizing trends and patterns that define the market leaders. Corda Ethereum Audience Hyperledger Fabric Multichain This paper is intended for readers already familiar with distributed ledger NEO technologies and will prove most useful to those that are currently evaluating NXT platforms in order to make a decision where to build or deploy applications. -
CRYPTOCURRENCIES & DECENTRALIZED FINANCE THREAT OR OPPORTUNITY? Strategic Resource Management
02 – 25 – 21 CRYPTOCURRENCIES & DECENTRALIZED FINANCE THREAT OR OPPORTUNITY? Strategic Resource Management Presented By: Larry Pruss, Senior Executive Vice President srmcorp.com SRM Proprietary and Confidential 1 LARRY PRUSS Senior Vice President 20+ Years of Financial Services Experience STRATEGIC RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Doing Business since 1992 Helps financial institutions improve performance through benchmarks, data, and analytics $3.6 Billion in implemented cost savings/ revenue increases 2 SRM Proprietary and Confidential • All information found here, including any ideas, opinions, views, predictions, forecasts, commentaries, or suggestions, expressed or implied herein, are for informational, entertainment or educational DISCLAIMER purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. • The cryptocurrency industry is extremely fast- moving. Data/statistics become outdated quickly. While the information provided is believed to be accurate, it may include errors or inaccuracies. 3 SRM Proprietary and Confidential WHAT DO THESE COMPANIES HAVE I N C O M M O N ? 4 SRM Proprietary and Confidential W H A T I S CRYPTOCURRENCY? In broad strokes, a Ownership and transaction Cryptocurrencies are cryptocurrency is a digital records are recorded onto becoming popular with asset used as a medium of a digital ledger called a retail and institutional exchange. “blockchain”. investors, sovereign wealth funds, and even countries. 5 SRM Proprietary and Confidential It’s the basis of a decentralized cryptocurrency. It is a distributed ledger,