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Coinbase to close HQ offices and go remote by 2022

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    Remote work has been around for a few years, but it was made popular over the past year due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Despite the availability of vaccines and countries slowly returning to business activities, some companies prefer to continue remote operations, and Coinbase is one of them.

    Coinbase to close San Francisco headquarter in 2022

    US-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced that it would close its San Francisco headquarter by next year. The company wants to go remote in a bid to support the decentralized workforce.

    Coinbase announced this move via a series of tweets yesterday. The company said, “Coinbase is committed to being remote first. We announced we no longer have an HQ, and as a next step, we’re closing our SF office (our former HQ) in 2022.”

    Although the move might come as a surprise, the idea is not. Several companies and some countries around the world are shifting to the telecommuting model. Remote working costs less, and employees get to enjoy a better work-life balance.

    “We’ve committed to having no HQ, and it’s important to show our decentralized workforce that no one location is important than the other. Closing our SF office is an important step in ensuring no office becomes an unofficial HQ and will mean career outcomes are based on capability and output rather than location. Instead, we will offer a network of smaller offices for our employees to work from if they choose to.” the cryptocurrency exchange added.

    The move comes barely a month after Coinbase listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. It is now one of the leading cryptocurrency companies in the world, with a market cap of roughly $60 billion.

    Coinbase releases H2 2020 transparency report

    The cryptocurrency exchange released the second half 2020 transparency report earlier today. The report detailed government requests for customer data between July 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020. The exchange received a total of 2,313 information requests in the second half of last year. 90% of the requests were from the US, the UK, and Germany.

    “The FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) and HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) comprise the majority of U.S. law enforcement information requests at ~50.9%,” Coinbase reported. Coinbase pointed out a 20% increase in requests from France while requests from the US dipped by 7%.

    Coinbase’s price on the stock exchange currently stands at $269 per share, down from its all-time high of $429, which it achieved on its opening day.

    NYDIG partners FIS to allow banks to offer Bitcoin services

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      underratedcrypto
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      Banks have been skeptical about providing cryptocurrency services to their clients. Instead, most of them focus on offering services to crypto companies. This could all change thanks to a partnership between FIS and NYDIG.

      NYDIG collaborates with FIS on Bitcoin adoption

      NYDIG, the bitcoin-focused subsidiary of investment firm Stone Ridge has partnered with fintech firm FIS to provide a new service that would allow banks to offer bitcoin capabilities to their customers. This latest development will make it possible for banks to allow their customers to buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin.

      In a press release yesterday, FIS said, “Financial technology leader FIS® (NYSE: FIS) today announced an industry-first solution that enables banks to offer their customers the ability to buy, sell, and hold bitcoin via their bank accounts.” The partnership is expected to solve some of the problems in the crypto space.

      At the moment, individuals and corporations usually open new accounts, sometimes with unregulated entities, and move outside of the traditional banking system to buy bitcoins. “The new solution taps into the advanced functionality of the FIS Digital One™ Mobile solution to allow banks to provide bitcoin services via a seamless, easy-to-use digital experience – enabling them to drive fee income and better attract and retain customers,” the post reads.

      Thanks to this solution, traditional banks would now allow their customers to buy, sell, and hold bitcoins with them. NYDIG, thanks to its partnership with FIS towards the end of last year, will provide a secure custodial and trading platform for managing the bitcoin transactions.

      Demand for cryptocurrencies led to the partnership

      Rob Lee, head of Global Core Banking and Channels, FIS, stated that this partnership is due to the rising demand for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The fintech firm is focused on enabling their core banking clients to respond to growing market demand and better serve their customers. He added that unlocking the capabilities for financial institutions at all levels evens the playing ground for banking with bitcoin, leading to further innovation in the industry.

      Robert Gutmann, co-founder and CEO of NYDIG, commented that although Bitcoin adoption is growing, some people still find it challenging to buy, sell, and hold the cryptocurrency. “Working with an innovative leader like FIS on this integration will usher in a new age of financial freedom, choice, and trust for consumers with their existing banks. We welcome FIS as an investor, and we are deeply excited about how our partnership can elevate banks across the country,” Gutmann said.

      More traditional banks are entering the cryptocurrency space, with the likes of Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, BNY Mellon, and Morgan Stanley all offering crypto-related services to their clients.

      Crypto Setups – 6 May

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      underratedcrypto
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      XRPUSDT Intraday Setup:

      Support: $1.6650, 1.5880 (minor), $1.5200, $1.3400, $1.2800, $1.1400, $1.0000

      Resistance: $1.8050-$1.8300, $2.0800-$2.1150, $2.3800-$2.4000

      Chart: https://www.tradingview.com/x/sob5QdFu/

      LTCUSD Intraday Setup:

      Support: $332, $308-$313, $283-$285, $269.50, $242-$247

      Resistance: $350, $366.50, $387-$390, $450

      Chart: https://www.tradingview.com/x/vuXTdZWd/

      ETHUSD Intraday Setup:

      Support: $3,278, $3,090, $3,000, $2,725, $2,630, $2,470, $2,360, $2,200

      Resistance: $3,500-$3,540, $3,750-$3,800, $4,000, $4,400, $4,700

      Chart: https://www.tradingview.com/x/K2e8CqKT/

      BTCUSD Intraday Setup:

      Support: $54,850, $53,650, $51,700-$52,100, New Red dotted trendline, $49,250, $46,800, $43,700, $41,400

      Resistance: $57,050-$57,450, $60,850, $63,000, $67,800, $69,500

      Chart: https://www.tradingview.com/x/ewBR4Kwr/

      Open your eyes & utilise. These are calls indicating what the market is going to do. Draw these lines on your charts and trade them!

      On-Chain Forensics

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      underratedcrypto
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      On-Chain Forensics focuses on on-chain movements happening on the Bitcoin network amongst different classes of HODLers to breakdown their behaviour and where the market may be headed next.

      The data is sourced from WhaleMap – a data aggregator.

      Grayscale announces first crypto partnership with an NFL team

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        underratedcrypto
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        Cryptocurrency companies have been finding ways to expand their presence and attract more users to the industry. One of the ways to do so is via partnerships with sports teams, and Grayscale has made its move in this direction.

        Grayscale partners NFL team New York Giants

        Grayscale, one of the leading institutional digital asset investment firms, has announced its partnership with the New York Giants. This is the first time a cryptocurrency company is partnering with a National Football League (NFL) team.

        The Giants, in their press release, said, “Grayscale Investments®, the world’s largest cryptocurrency asset manager, and the New York Giants today announced their exclusive partnership, making Grayscale the Official Digital Currency Asset Management Partner of the New York Giants. Grayscale is the first cryptocurrency partner of an NFL team, and the partnership reflects both Grayscale and the Giants’ commitment to supporting the New York metro area, home to Grayscale’s headquarters.”

        Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein said the partnership with the NFL team is significant since the company has roots in New York. He expressed his excitement to partner with a forward-thinking franchise and looks forward to working with the Giants on philanthropic initiatives.

        In its capacity as the Official Digital Currency Asset Management Partner of the New York Giants, the cryptocurrency company will be the Presenting Sponsor of The Giants Foundation Golf Outing. “Grayscale will also be a Presenting Home Game Sponsor, a Supporting Sponsor of Giants Training Camp, and will host voluntary, educational seminars on cryptocurrencies for Giants personnel each year,” the post added.

        New York Giants Chief Commercial Officer Pete Guelli commended Grayscale for playing an innovative role in the digital currency market. He added that the Giants chose Grayscale because they wanted a partner that would understand the value of aligning with the Giants brand and help them navigate the cryptocurrency space. “Grayscale quickly emerged as a company that shares our passion for the New York market but also has the institutional knowledge and network of partners that we can access as crypto continues to evolve,” he concluded.

        Crypto companies building valuable partnerships in the sporting world

        This latest development comes at a time when crypto companies are partnering with sporting establishments around the world. Last month, crypto exchange FTX officially became the sponsor of the Miami Heat basketball team in a deal that would span for 19 years. FTX’s subsidiary, Blockfolio, signed an endorsement deal with NFL star Trevor Lawrence and paying the player his bonuses in cryptocurrencies.

        Uniswap officially launches V3 with exciting features

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          underratedcrypto
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          Cryptocurrency trading platforms provide regular updates to ensure their users continue to enjoy high-end features. Decentralized exchange Uniswap has launched its V3, and it comes with some exciting features for the users.

          Uniswap V3 officially launches

          The decentralized finance (DeFi) space has experienced immense growth in recent months, with new products and features being released every week. Uniswap, the leading decentralized exchange (DEX), will need to also roll out new features to ensure it maintains its position in the second.

          The decentralized exchange Uniswap has released version 3 of its protocol. This latest upgrade will give users more control over the liquidity they provide on the platform and lower their trading risks.

          Uniswap V3 is expected to make the exchange the most flexible and efficient automated market maker (AMM) ever designed. Uniswap stated that the new protocol version comes with three features. The first is concentrated liquidity. According to Uniswap, AMMs has always required all liquidity providers to share similar strategies and deposit funds across the entire price curve. Thus, failing to account for individual expectations of future price activity. However, with the concentrated liquidity provided by Uniswap V3, traders no longer need to put as much capital on the line to achieve meaningful results.

          Uniswap is also introducing more fee tiers, allowing traders to assess their risk level when trading volatile assets. Lastly, the Uniswap V3 comes with easier and cheaper oracles, ensuring that the price is up to date and reduces the risk of being negatively affected by bad data. Uniswap stated that although these advanced trading features won’t make much sense to newbie traders, they can lead to higher returns for the expert DeFi traders and investors.

          Uniswap remains the most popular Ethereum-based DEX

          Uniswap V3 is coming roughly a year after the exchange released the V2. The decentralized exchange remains the most popular on the Ethereum blockchain. It allows people to swap tokens that exist on the Ethereum network.

          Uniswap is an AMM, which means it relies on algorithms to price assets instead of buying and selling orders. Users on the platform provide liquidity by locking up their tokens, while others can borrow those tokens and pay them back with interest to the liquidity providers.

          According to Coinmarketcap, Uniswap processes over $1.5 billion in trading volume per day. Decentralized exchanges are still behind their centralized counterparts, with Binance processing over $70 billion per day.

          Galaxy Digital set to acquire BitGo for $1.2b in stock and cash

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          underratedcrypto
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          Galaxy Digital is one of the leading companies in the cryptocurrency space. The firm wants to expand its services by acquiring BitGo, one of the leading independent digital assets infrastructure providers.

          Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital set to buy BitGo

          Galaxy Digital has announced that it is currently in the process of acquiring BitGo. The acquisition would cost the financial services and investment management innovator roughly $1.2 billion, which would be paid in stocks and cash.

          In a press release earlier today, Galaxy Digital stated that it has agreed to acquire BitGo. “The acquisition will position Galaxy Digital as a leading global full-service platform for institutions seeking access to the crypto economy, offering an unparalleled breadth of industry-leading products and services at scale,” the post added.

          Mike Novogratz, CEO and Founder of Galaxy Digital, noted that by acquiring BitGo, Galaxy Digital would become a one-stop shop for institutions. Hence, accelerating the company’s mission to institutionalize digital asset ecosystems and blockchain technology. “The power of the technology, solutions, and people we will have as a result of this acquisition will unlock unique value for our clients and drive long-term growth for our combined business. We are excited to welcome Mike Belshe and the talented BitGo team to Galaxy Digital,” Novogratz added.

          According to the terms of the deal, BitGo shareholders will receive 33.8 million of newly issued shares of Galaxy Digital common stock. They will also get about $265 million in cash, bringing the total transaction value to roughly $1.2 billion per Galaxy Digital’s closing share price yesterday.

          The two companies were reported to be in advanced talks last month about a possible deal. BitGo has been around since 2013 and is the first independent regulated custodian, purpose-built for digital assets. The firm currently has around $40 billion in assets under management, providing services to over 150 exchanges and 400 institutional investors. Currently, BitGo processes over $30 billion in monthly transactions.

          Galaxy Digital looking to list in the US

          Galaxy Digital is a publicly listed company in Canada. However, it is working towards becoming a publicly-listed company in the United States. The acquisition of BitGo is part of the company’s plan to go public in the US.

          The company’s board of directors approved a proposed reorganization and domestication designed to help Galaxy Digital become a US publicly-listed entity.

          Bitso exchange raises $250m to reach a $2.2b valuation

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            underratedcrypto
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            One of the easiest ways for companies to expand their operations and provide better services is through fundraising. Bitso, one of the leading crypto exchanges in Latin America, has raised $250 million and now has a total valuation above $2 billion.

            Bitso raises $250m in Series C funding

            Cryptocurrency exchanges provide an easy way for people to buy and sell a wide range of cryptocurrencies. They have been experiencing huge trading volumes in recent months, thanks to the current market rally.

            Bitso, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in Latin America, has raised $250 million, bringing its total valuation to $2.2 billion. The cryptocurrency exchange raised the money via a Series C round of funding, led by Tiger Global Paradigm, BOND & Valor Capital Group, and Coatue. They were joined by existing investors QED, Pantera Capital and Kaszek.

            The cryptocurrency exchange said it is now one of the largest financial entities in the region. The investment will be used to expand the company’s operations, allowing them to continue providing access to cryptocurrencies for local residents and expand operations. The company’s co-founder and CEO Daniel Vogel stated that “We want to make sure that folks in the region really benefit from accessing these global financial services that are getting built on top of blockchain.”

            Bitso is a Mexican-based cryptocurrency exchange that focuses on providing crypto access to traders and investors in Latin America. Currently, Bitso has over 2 million users in Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina. The cryptocurrency exchange stated that the demand for cryptocurrency assets and crypto-enabled financial products amongst individuals and businesses has soared in the region over the past few months. Bitso said it is the only company offering crypto-insurance services in the region and intends to maintain its lead. “The growth of the crypto ecosystem this year has been remarkable. It took Bitso six years to get its first million clients. Now — less than 10 months later — we have reached the 2 million mark,” the CEO added.

            Bitso to expand its operations into other Latin American countries

            The cryptocurrency exchange said it would be using the funds to improve its services and expand into other Latin American countries in the coming months and years. Vogel told TechCrunch that “This is a pivotal moment for the future of finance in Latin America. We see a significant amount of traditional financial infrastructure in the region being replaced by crypto. We plan to use this funding to continue that trend by expanding our product offering for individuals and businesses.”

            LarvaLabs begins Meebits, its third NFT project

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            underratedcrypto
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            Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have become an exciting field in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space. The rate of development and adoption of NFTs has been massive. Many companies in the play are expanding their presence in the market. As an example, LarvaLabs has just launched its third NFT project after spearheading previously successful ones.

            LarvaLabs introduces Meebits

            LarvaLabs, the company behind the Cryptopunks NFTs, has launched its third NFT project, the firm announced earlier today.

            In a blog post, the company stated that it hopes Meebits will be an upgrade to the Cryptopunks. The statement read, “If the Cryptopunks is an ideal 2D avatar for Discord, Twitter, and other social media, then we hope that the Meebits will be the 3D avatar for virtual worlds, games, and VR. We are bullish about the metaverse future, and we look forward to seeing how the Meebits are used in such environments.”

            The Meebits project is LarvaLab’s third NFT. They previously developed Cryptopunks and Autoglyphs. LarvaLabs stated that Meebits share some characteristics with the other two NFT projects. For instance, Autoglyphs-style generative tattoo patterns can be used on certain Meebits.

            According to LarvaLabs, the Meebits were created using low-poly and voxel 3D graphics. However, it wasn’t an easy process. “Writing a generator of voxel characters was a lot more challenging and involved than writing a 2D generator. We’ve been tinkering with voxel generation for a few years and are proud of where we ended up,” the post stated.

            Ultimately, the company intends to include other upgrades, including an asset pack for each Meebit that enables the owner to create a “T-pose” version of the avatar. The owner can use this upgrade in any 3D studio, game engine, or virtual world that supports the rigging of humanoid avatars for animation.

            Community members to benefit from the grant.

            Additionally, LarvaLabs will reward Cryptopunk and Autoglyph holders. In fact, each Cryptopunk and Autoglyph will act as a ticket that owners can use to redeem a free Meebit. The exception will be for gas fees. Granted, they will also retain their original NFTs.

            Meebits are standard ERC-721 tokens with their marketplace built-in. LarvaLabs will allow users to buy and sell them using ETH and other complex trades. People can purchase Meebits as long as they are not locked up via the community grant. The company will set an initial price that will decrease over the week until it reaches zero.

            LarvaLabs’ Cryptopunks have become popular. They are set to be a part of the auction house Christie’s upcoming sales event.

            Accenture partners with Digital Dollar Foundation to conduct CBDC trials

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              underratedcrypto
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              Countries are ramping up efforts to develop central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). They are sometimes doing so with the help of some leading companies in their countries. Accenture is set to carry out CBDC trials over the next year.

              Accenture to conduct five CBDC trials.

              Fortune 500 company Accenture will work with the Digital Dollar Foundation to conduct CBDC trials in the United States over the coming twelve months. The partnership was announced yesterday, and the duo would conduct five tests over the next year.

              According to the announcement, the private-sector pilots would be initially funded by Accenture Plc. The trials would involve financial firms, retailers and non-profit organizations, and others. The pilots aim to generate data that would help US policymakers design and develop a digital dollar.

              The report said

              We intend to highlight how a US CBDC (a digital dollar) could address some common challenges faced by different stakeholders, including consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and fintech. These examples are illustrative of challenges met and opportunities that can be explored with a US CBDC were testing the merits of such a solution either against or as a complement to other solutions would be sound national policy.

              The partnership, called the Digital Dollar Project, was first created in 2020 to promote research into a US CBDC. Christopher Giancarlo, former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and co-founder of the Digital Dollar Foundation, stated that research papers and conferences are coming out every week in various parts of the world regarding CBDCs. However, he added that what is lacking is ideal data and testing from the United States to contribute to the debate. Hence, the job of the Digital Dollar Foundation is to generate that real-world data.

              Several countries are already researching and developing their CBDCs. China is already live-testing the digital currency to see how it performs in the real world. However, the paper pointed out that the US Fed is taking a cautious approach regarding CBDCs as it is the guardian of the world’s reserve currency. Although Fed Chair Jerome Powell is suitable to be careful, Giancarlo said the US is at risk of falling further behind China, which has already reached an advanced stage in development and issuance. “It’s vital that the US asserts leadership as it has in previous technological innovations,” Giancarlo added.

              CBDC developments are sweeping across the globe
              Several central banks globally are actively researching ways to develop CBDCs or have already begun. The need for CBDCs arose following the rise of stablecoins. Facebook-backed Libra project faced criticisms in several parts of the world. However, Libra and other stablecoins opened the eyes of regulators to the need to develop CBDCs as central banks have fallen behind private institutions in the digital world.

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