Crypto Moves – Bitcoin and Ethereum Rise; NFT marketplace OpenSea cuts jobs

RIYADH: Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency internationally, traded higher on Monday, rising 0.70 percent to $ 21,504.27 at 8:30 Riyadh time.

Ethereum, the second most traded cryptocurrency, was priced at $ 1,432.34, up 5.41 percent, according to data from Coindesk.

Regulated digital currencies have advantages, say central bank governors

As long as companies can be properly regulated, consumer-focused digital tokens issued by private companies can be better than central bank-issued tokens, the Australian central bank governor said on Sunday, Reuters reported.

“If these tokens are to be used extensively by society, they must be supported by the state, or regulated just as we regulate bank deposits,” said Philip Lowe.

“I tend to think that the private solution is going to be better – if we can get the regulatory arrangements right – because the private sector is better than the central bank at innovating and designing features for these tokens, and it will probably be very significant costs for the central bank to set up a digital token system, he said.

Around the world, many central banks are developing digital currencies, either retail tokens for direct consumer use or wholesale tokens for bank use.

This is a response to the development of stable coins such as Tether and USDC, which are often used for payment and as value stocks.

Decentralized financial projects, part of the cryptocurrency ecosystem, can also be reduced by greater scrutiny of such tokens, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority chief who spoke at the G20 financial services meeting in Indonesia.

HKMA CEO Eddie Yue said that more scrutiny of stack coins could also help reduce the risk from DeFi, which aims to replace financial intermediaries with data code.

Celsius’ customers are waiting for news about their funds

After Celsius filed for bankruptcy in May, customers are eagerly waiting to find out if their money and whether they will ever get it back, according to Reuters.

In June, Celsius froze withdrawals citing extreme market conditions, triggering $ 300 billion in digital asset sales and cutting savings for legions of retail investors.

When Celsius Network filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New York this week, it revealed a $ 1.2 billion hole in the balance sheet.

Reuters spoke with six lawyers who specialize in bankruptcy, restructuring and cryptocurrency to find out what will happen to clients’ money.

Lawyers say the Chapter 11 process will be slow due to limited bankruptcy, multiple lawsuits against Celsius and the high complexity of any restructuring.

Daniel Gwen of the Ropes & Gray law firm in New York said that “this can last for years.”

“It is very likely that there will be a lot of lawsuits,” he added.

NFT marketplace OpenSea cuts 20 percent of jobs

OpenSea, a New York-based marketplace for non-fungible tokens, has cut 20 percent of its workforce amid a prolonged downturn in digital asset markets, Reuters reported.

As Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies increased in popularity in 2021, the company’s sales grew.

Due to rising inflation, central bank rate hikes and fears of a recession, the nascent NFT market has fallen in recent months.

CEO Devin Finzer said: “The reality is that we have entered into a unique combination of a crypto winter and broad macroeconomic instability, and we need to prepare the company for the possibility of a prolonged downturn.”

In June, OpenSea’s NFT sales volume fell to $ 700 million, down from $ 2.6 billion in May and well below its peak of almost $ 5 billion in January.

Digital files such as images and texts are represented by NFTs, which are blockchain-based assets.

As a result of the job cuts, Finzer said the company would be able to maintain growth at current volumes for the next five years.

The American crypto exchange Coinbase is gaining a regulatory nod in Italy

The large American crypto exchange Coinbase has received approval from Italian regulators to continue serving customers in Italy, it is stated in a blog on Monday.

Coinbase said it had met the requirements of the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori, known as the OAM, which oversees financial agents and credit brokers in Italy and implements anti-money laundering controls.

Financial watchdogs around the world are struggling with how to regulate the crypto market, which is still subject to incoherent rules, according to Reuters.

Consumer protection, threats to financial stability and the illegal use of digital coins are among the most important issues on regulators’ agendas.

Under groundbreaking new rules adopted this month by the EU, crypto companies will need a license and customer protection to issue and sell digital tokens in the block.

OAM says on its website that it can collect and share with anti-mafia and anti-terrorism investigators in Italy data provided by crypto companies about their customers and operations.

Coinbase rival Binance, the world’s largest stock exchange, said in May that it had registered with OAM.

Paraguayan Senate approves cryptocurrency law

The Senate of Paraguay has approved a bill that seeks to regulate cryptocurrencies and their activities in the country.

The bill states that crypto mining companies must submit an energy consumption plan to the national energy administration, which will be able to cut the power to these companies if they do not follow it.

Cryptocurrency companies will also be exempt from paying VAT, but will have to pay income tax, according to Bitcoin.com.

(With input from Reuters)