How DeFi promises to transform financial services Thus far, 2020 hasn’t been the best of years for many. But for decentralised finance, or DeFi, 2020 has been a period of stratospheric growth, with the total value locked in rising from under $1bn, to just under $8bn today. Although still very much in its infancy, the popular ecosystem is rapidly transforming the face [...]
Bitcoin slides to $10,000. Is the party over? In typical bitcoin-fashion, the number one crypto retained its commitment to spontaneity as the crypto market seemingly took a turn for the worst. However, given the macro-bull trend, could one reasonably expect a corrective move to be short-lived? Another bitcoin rug-pull Since the local high on the 17th of August, bitcoin experienced a level of [...]
Blockchain: Protecting our Democracy As the US and indeed the world, faces one of its most important elections for many years, the Covid19 world has brought increased political pressure on the under-funded US Postal Service and the security of remote / mail-in voting generally. Important themes for all of us globally. Even though conservatives are generally more fearful of [...]
Technically Speaking August 18, 2020 August 1st 2012, as the trading day begins on the New York Stock Exchange, Knight Capital, the largest trader in US equities at the time, goes on a buying spree: within 45 minutes the firm buys 150 different stocks for 7 billion US dollars. There were no special circumstances to suggest such optimism – besides, [...]
Is bitcoin gearing up for an unprecedented move? August 13, 2020 As debates on bitcoin and alternative asset classes circle the internet, all signs point towards bitcoin leap-frogging the entire cryptocurrency industry into the next paradigm – and the best part is: this is not hyperbole. Indeed, the news that emerged this week about MicroStrategy purchasing a total of 21,454 bitcoin ($250,000,000) cannot not be taken [...]
Token standards and the challenges facing Ethereum. July 14, 2020 There are many token standards floating around in the blockchain universe with the ERC family of tokens the most popular. ERC stands for Ethereum Request for Comment which is how these tokens start their life. Anyone can come up with an idea or a proposal and then it is shared for feedback. If enough people [...]
Are Blockchain Limitations Stifling Arbitrage Opportunities? July 7, 2020 Cryptocurrency exchanges have grown exponentially since 2017, catering to retail, institutional, and an ever-growing crowd of sophisticated calibre traders who have set up high-frequency algorithmic strategies. Notably, in the past few years, spot exchanges have taken markets by storm, adding leveraged derivatives to their suite of trading products. Derivative products have given traders an array [...]
Explanation of DeFi staking and the importance of Ethereum 2.0 June 30, 2020 The financial world is changing at a pace never before seen in history. These new instruments are being developed and made available to anyone willing to explore the space and to serve a wide variety of needs. Investment in Decentralised Finance (or DeFi) has spiked to 1.5bn USD in assets locked. These assets are in [...]
Is this Bitcoin’s crescendo moment? June 24, 2020 Bitcoin is fast approaching a crescendo moment that might set the tone for the coming weeks against a backdrop that could push the coin to all-time highs this year. A story of consolidation As bitcoin approaches the end of the second quarter, the coming monthly close could dictate the tone of the next few weeks [...]
Where Next for Stablecoins? June 9, 2020 Tether, Paxos, Dai: welcome to the world of stablecoins, instruments that are designed to follow closely the price of the assets or currencies which they are pegged to. They are on the opposite end of the volatility spectrum, compared to Bitcoin or Ether, as they play a different role: they allow investors to move dollars [...]
