The cryptocurrency market remains bullish, with Bitcoin (BTC) hitting a new all-time high of $37,313 in the last few hours. When writing this article, Bitcoin was trading at $36,922, reflecting a gain of 8.6% in the previous 24 hours. Ether (ETH), which was trading at $1,199, is also on the verge of crossing its 2018 high of $1,216. XRP, which has been slapped with multiple lawsuits by SEC and private investors, has gained 15% to trade at $0.2605.
Major altcoins which have gained ground in the last 24 hours include ChainLink (LINK-$16.76, 15.8%), IOTA (IOTA-$0.3721, 6%), Cosmos (ATOM, $6.66, 11.6%), Cardano (ADA-$0.3398, 24.60%), Tezos (XTZ-2.60, 11%), Stellar (XLM-$0.3634, 69.5%), USD Coin (USDC-$1, 0.1%), Binance Coin (BNB-$41.83, 1.8%), Dash (DASH-$93.87, 0.9%), Polkadot (DOT-$10.24, 4%), EOS (EOS-$3.37, 16.8%), Tron (TRX-$0.0308, 8.7%), Bitcoin Cash (BCH-$453.67, 8.7%), Bitcoin SV (BSV-$181.59, 7.9%) and Monero (XMR-$141.31, 5.2%).
Government level initiatives
Turkey’s Naci Agbal informs Parliament the theoretical research on digital currency is complete
Turkey’s central bank governor Naci Agbal informed the Parliament that it had completed the primary theoretical research on central bank digital currency (CBDC). The live trial would begin in the second half of next year. The initiative is seen as an attempt to control double-digit inflation (14%) and soaring consumer prices.
As per Agbal, “There is an R&D project initiated on digital money. Currently, the conceptual phase of this project has been completed. We aim to start pilot tests in the second half of 2021.”
The country has been researching CBDC since mid-2019. Agbal, who took over as the chief of the central bank a month before, has stated that the bank would take necessary measures to bring down inflation and achieve the objective of 9.4% by the year-end.
Private sector initiatives
Velo Labs revealed that two associates have completed the first-ever FCX live trade
Velo Labs’ core team has revealed that two of its associates, SEBA Bank and Lightnet Group, have completed the first-ever live trade using its FCX (Federated Credit Exchange Network). Stellar network backs Velo Labs in terms of financial assistance (via Stellar Development Foundation) and technology. The Velo token – issued on Stellar Blockchain – serves the purpose of collateral to guarantee digital loans. Interestingly, Velo Token can also act as collateral for other financial services.
FCX can be defined as a distributed network of organized access nodes linking a broad array of centralized and decentralized financial associates. The platform has been structured to achieve both efficiency and liberty of DeFi with time-tested, evolved ways and criteria of CeFi (centralized finance) and conventional media.
FCX enables the liquid exchange of digital credits pegged to any fiat currency while settling the transaction using the VELO token as collateral within the ecosystem.
FCX facilitates the liquid exchange of crypto credits linked to any fiat. The transaction is completed through the utilization of the VELO token in the form of collateral. In the trade mentioned above, SEBA Bank selected a digital loan linked to the franc (CHF). At the same time, Lightnet Group chose a loan related to the greenback. Subsequently, a USD/CHF pair was used to complete the transaction.
IGT receives patent for gamblers to move their crypto holdings to a gaming account
International Game Technology (IGT), the world’s largest manufacturer of slot machines, has received a patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for a system that would facilitate gamblers to move their crypto holdings to a “gaming establishment account.” The patent filing illustrates the process of transferring cryptos such as Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ether (ETH) from third-party wallets to wallets linked to accounts with casinos.
Regarding the patent, Phil O’Shaughnessy, spokesperson of IGT, said: “IGT secured this patent to bolster its industry-leading patent portfolio in anticipation of any possible future direction in regulated gaming involving cryptocurrency.”
Notably, IGT has also received regulatory endorsement in Nevada for providing Resort Wallet to players. The wallet enables players to conduct cashless deposits. Referring to the pandemic, the company asserted that the system offers a “reduced-contact” and secure gaming experience.
Miscellaneous
CEO reveals that Binance records a volume of $80 billion
CEO of arguably the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), revealed that his company’s trading platform recorded a volume of $80 billion on January 4. He further stated that the trading volume on January 4 is four-times the volume handled by the platform between November 15, 2017, and December 15, 2017.
A day before CZ revealed the volume, the spot trading volume of Binance surpassed $23.60 billion, while derivatives volume shot to $57 billion. The platform did face issues in tackling colossal volume. Changpeng Zhao stated: “We saw some scaling issues today. We probably will see more issues as we continue to grow. We aren’t perfect, but we will fix them as quickly as we can.”
Nevertheless, along with unexpectedly high trading volume, Binance also witnessed the liquidation of short positions worth $190 million in a matter of 10 minutes as Bitcoin plunged below $30,000.
Notably, on January 4, Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO and founder of crypto derivatives exchange FTX, revealed that the trading platform had executed trades worth over $10 billion.
Disclaimer: Any financial trading analysis offered here is our opinion and is not intended as advice or direction for investors. We cannot guarantee the success of any trades made as a consequence of this article, and we encourage traders to incorporate a strong money management strategy to limit losses when they enter the markets. Please use this article as part of your own research before formulating strategies prior to trading.
