Strengths
- Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the best performer for the week was Stacks, rising 114.41%.
- Bitcoin’s year-to-date gain has now reached 50% after a further jump in February, reports Bloomberg, contrasting with a retreat in global equities this month courtesy of a macroeconomic environment replete with growth and inflation concerns. This divergence has dented a positive correlation between shares and crypto that sprouted during the pandemic.
- Music streaming service Spotify is testing a new service called “token-enabled playlists,” reports Bloomberg, which allows holders of NFTs to connect their wallets and listen to curated music.
Weaknesses
- Of the cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinMarketCap, the worst performing for the week was Fantom, down 17.14%.
- Liquidators of bankrupt hedge fund Three Arrows Capital said they will take steps to sell some of the firm’s NFTs as part of their recovery efforts, reports Bloomberg. The document did not provide details of the NFTs up for sale but clarified that these do not include the popular “Starry Night” portfolio, the article continues.
- Coinbase Global Inc., which laid off staffers twice in the last year, could be cutting more if it becomes necessary, CFO Alesia Haas said. This would be to improve the company's financial performance, according to Bloomberg.
Opportunities
- Nigeria is in talks with potential technology partners to develop a new system to run and manage its central bank digital currency, the eNaira. The central bank of Nigeria wants to develop its own software for the digital currency so that it can keep full control of the effort, Bloomberg explains. They are currently in talks with New York-based tech firm R3.
- Coinbase Global is launching a blockchain, expanding the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange’s reach deeper into the world of decentralized finance and nonfungible tokens. Coinbase has been introducing new products and services to lessen its dependence on retail-driven trading revenue, writes Bloomberg.
- Bitcoin is on pace for its second monthly advance, reports Bloomberg, breaking with stocks and other riskier assets that have slid amid renewed concern about rising interest rates. Bitcoin has advanced more than 4% so far in February.
Threats
- California lawmakers, on Wednesday, expressed frustration with how Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration has tackled cryptocurrency regulations, arguing for the need of state legislation to help further rein in the industry. At hearings, two panels asked for information from the state Department of Financial Protection and Innovation on its efforts to protect consumers, writes Bloomberg.
- A fresh indictment of FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried features a pair of co-conspirators the U.S. says helped illegally seek to influence the regulation of cryptocurrency by donating millions of dollars to both the Democratic and Republican parties. The U.S. didn’t identify the co-conspirators in the indictment nor has either been charged, writes Bloomberg.
- The top U.S. banking regulators stepped up their warnings to banks on the liquidity risk tied to stablecoin-related reserves and other funding sources from crypto firms, writes Bloomberg. The three watchdogs pointed to deposits that include stablecoin-related reserves as notably susceptible to unpredictable, large, and rapid outflows in crypto markets.
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