Marshall Islands officially recognizes DAOs as legal entities

FEB 15, 2022

The Pacific island state, long keen to adopt blockchain technology, recognizes decentralized autonomous organizations.

3:03

NEWS

The Republic of the Marshall Islands has moved to formally recognize decentralized autonomous organizations, better known as DAOs, as legal entities — a move that gives collectively owned and managed blockchain projects formal recognition on the global stage. 

DAOs, which are blockchain-based entities governed by self-organizing communities, have attained legal recognition in the Marshall Islands after the country passed the amended Non-Profit Entities Act 2021. The amendment allowed cryptocurrency trading infrastructure platform Shipyard Software to incorporate the island country’s first DAO, Admiralty LLC. The incorporation was aided by MIDAO Directory Services Inc., a domestic organization that was established to help DAOs register within the Marshall Islands.

As it currently stands, the new legislation allows any DAO to register and establish operations in the Marshall Islands.

Bobby Muller, the former chief secretary of the Republic of the Marshall Islands and co-founder of MIDAO, said his country recognizes that now is a “unique moment to lead” in the “blockchain revolution.” He said DAOs will play an important role in creating “more efficient and less hierarchical” organizations.

In a written statement to Cointelegraph, Muller said the Marshall Islands is looking to become a global hub for DAOs, “both in registering and domiciling, but also in developing out use cases and furthering mass adoption.” He further explained:

“The strategy is to provide the lowest cost for incorporation, a supportive government that has internationally recognized courts, and a receptive environment to technological advancements.”

The Marshall Islands is an independent island state located in the Pacific Ocean near the Equator with a population of around 59,000 as of 2019, according to the World Bank. The island state has been actively exploring use cases for digital assets since at least 2018, with the government introducing measures to create a blockchain-based cryptocurrency that would be recognized as legal tender alongside the United States dollar.

As Cointelegraph reported, the Marshall Islands already endorsed the creation of a new cryptocurrency, dubbed Sovereign (SOV), in February 2018. As one would expect by now, the International Monetary Fund, or IMF, has criticized the plan over concerns that a digital sovereign currency would undermine the state’s financial stability. The Washington-based lending institution has levied similar criticisms toward El Salvador, which became the first country to recognize Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender.

However, Marshall Islands senator David Paul emphasized that the country’s DAO legislation doesn’t pose the same complications as a state-backed cryptocurrency. “A sovereign digital currency is financial and generates a lot of concerns from a money-laundering perspective,” he told Cointelegraph in a written statement. “It’s a different realm for DAOs, as this is more about giving them legal recognition to make their case to regulatory bodies, investors and consumers.”

SAM BOURGI

SOURCE: https://cointelegraph.com/news/marshall-islands-officially-recognizes-daos-as-legal-entities

Warren Buffett invests $1B in Bitcoin-friendly neobank, dumps Visa and Mastercard stocks

YASHU GOLA

FEB 15, 2022

That Hill Finance #THF

The “Oracle of Omaha” now has more companies in his portfolio that have direct/indirect exposure to Bitcoin and similar cryptocurrencies.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway dumped a portion of its Visa and Mastercard holdings and increased exposure in Nubank, the largest fintech bank in Brazil that’s also popular among the country’s Bitcoin investors.

In a securities filing late Feb. 14, the industrial conglomerate disclosed that it had purchased $1 billion worth of Nubank Class A stock in Q4/2021. On the other hand, it sold $1.8 billion and $1.3 billion worth of Visa and Mastercard stock, respectively, signaling a shift away from credit companies to gain exposure in their fintech rivals.

Buffett, the so-called “Oracle of Omaha,” is popular for his cautious approach to investing, particularly in the market’s hottest sectors such as fintech. The veteran investor had also downplayed emerging decentralized finance solutions like Bitcoin (BTC), ridiculing it as an asset that “does not create anything.”

But Berkshire’s new stake in Nubank shows that Buffett has been softening up to fintech lately. In detail, the firm had invested $500 million in the startup in July 2021. Its returns on the said investment amounted to $150 million in December 2021 after Nubank debuted on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

So far, Buffett has not shown any intention to sell his position in Nubank.

The Buffett-Bitcoin connection

Buffett’s additional investment into Nubank shows his acknowledgment of the fintech sector’s underlying theme the digitization of financial services, as well as his willingness to associate with companies that are involved in the cryptocurrency sector.

In detail, Easynvest, a trading platform that Nubank acquired in September 2020 has been actively offering a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) since June 2021. Dubbed QBTC11, the ETF is backed by QR Asset Management and is listed on the B3 stock exchange, the second-oldest bourse in Brazil.

Thus, it appears that Nubank, which remains exposed to the emerging crypto sector via Easynvest, could use the additional revenue opportunities to benefit its top investor, Warren Buffett, despite his views that Bitcoin is a “rat poison squared.”

That is primarily because of the growth of crypto-related investment products in 2021. Notably, their numbers doubled in the year, rising from 35 to 80, as per Bloomberg Intelligence data, while the total valuations of the assets they held reached $63 billion versus $24 billion at the start of 2021.

Cash flowing into crypto funds doubled in 2021. Source: Bloomberg Intelligence

Emily Portney, chief financial officer at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. — another firm in Buffett’s investment portfolio — noted that digital assets could become a “meaningful source of revenue” for investment banking firms as Bitcoin investment vehicles become more mainstream.

Related: Bitcoin’s 30% recovery in two weeks has BTC whales back in accumulation mode

Meanwhile, Leah Wald, chief executive of crypto-asset manager Valkyrie Investments, predicted an increase in the capital flows into crypto-related investment vehicles, saying they have become a “phenomenon that’s starting to take off,” before commenting:

“If you look at inflows from a volume perspective, not only has it been steady even with the price corrections that Bitcoin is notoriously famous for, but you’re seeing a lot of institutions jump in.”

Buffett’s portfolio full of crypto-loving companies

While Buffett might not invest in Bitcoin directly, he is already gaining indirect exposure as companies in his portfolio foray into the crypto sector.

For instance, in October 2021, just a month before Bitcoin reached its all-time high of $69,000, fifth-largest U.S. bank U.S. Bancorp launched a cryptocurrency custody service for its institutional investment managers, noting that they witnessed an increase in demand from their “fund services clients” over the last few years.

Similarly, in another announcement made October 2021, Bank of America launched a cryptocurrency research initiative, citing “growing institutional interest.”

Months before, BNY Mellon announced that it would hold, transfer and issue Bitcoin and similar cryptocurrencies for its asset-management clients.

“The Nubank investment can be tagged as Buffett’s way of supporting the fintech/crypto world without taking back his criticisms of the past,” asserted Greg Waisman, co-founder and chief operating officer of crypto wallet service Mercuryo, adding that the Berkshire boss is now backing the “digital currency ecosystem indirectly.”

“Even an indirect exposure is bound to increase the positive sentiment that may push more investors into the space.”

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

SOURCE: https://cointelegraph.com/news/warren-buffett-invests-1b-in-bitcoin-friendly-neobank-dumps-visa-and-mastercard-stocks

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ERC20 tokens & ETH payouts are being processed with a delay, due to the very high and unstable tx fees on the ETH network. Please be patient.

2021-10-26 15:07

PancakeSwap (CAKE) is now available for mining!.

2021-10-23 15:26

We just added an article on what is multi chain support  and how to use it, be sure to check it to better understand this new feature, which will also be available for more tokens very soon!

2021-09-01 17:31

We have had to introduce some updates to our ERC20 & SHIB payment thresholds, related to the current ETH network congestion, kindly check our Twitter for details 

2021-08-26 20:59

Just added multi chain support for SHIB, currently supporting BSC (BEP20) & ETH (ERC20) chains. Be sure to verify if you are able switch between chains, on your Address section. Support for more coins & tokens is coming very soon, stay tuned!

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US regulators say issuers of ‘stablecoins’ should be policed like banks

The hotly awaited report will likely boost policymakers’ efforts to put guardrails around stablecoins

By Pete Schroeder and Michelle Price | Reuters

WASHINGTON – A U.S. Treasury Department-led regulatory body called on Monday for Congress to regulate issuers of “stablecoins” like banks and urged financial agencies to assess whether the role of these fast-growing digital assets in the country’s payments system posed a systemic risk.

The hotly awaited report by the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets will likely boost policymakers’ efforts to put guardrails around stablecoins, a type of digital asset pegged to traditional currencies which the body said could pose threats to the broader financial system.

Stablecoins, which include the likes of Tether, USD Coin and Binance USD, have ballooned 500% to reach a market cap of $127 billion over the past 12 months, according to the report.

CRYPTOCURRENCY EXPERT SAYS BITCOIN, STABLECOIN PAYMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED BY MORE BUSINESSES

“The rapid growth of stablecoins increases the urgency of this work,” the report stated. “Failure to act risks growth of payment stablecoins without adequate protection for users, the financial system, and the broader economy.”

While stablecoins are primarily used to facilitate trading in other cryptocurrencies, they could become widely used by households and businesses to make payments, the report said.

A U.S. Treasury Department-led regulatory body called on Monday for Congress to regulate issuers of “stablecoins” like banks and urged financial agencies to assess whether the role of these fast-growing digital assets in the country’s payments system

Currently, though, stablecoins have a wide range of policies governing disclosures, what assets are held in reserve to back the coins, and around redemption rights, all of which could make them susceptible to runs if users lose confidence in the asset.

“Runs could spread contagiously from one stablecoin to another, or to other types of financial institutions that are believed to have a similar risk profile. Risks to the broader financial system could rapidly increase as well, especially in the absence of prudential standards,” the report warned.

Chief among the report’s recommendations is for Congress to “urgently” pass a law that would regulate stablecoin issuers akin to insured depository institutions, subjecting them to strict supervision by banking regulators while also providing some form of government backstop in the event of crises.

BURGER KING, ROBINHOOD SERVING UP ‘SIDE OF CRYPTO’ WITH BITCOIN, DOGECOIN, ETHEREUM GIVEAWAY

The President’s Working Group (PWG) has been researching stablecoins, in consultation with the financial industry, academics and advocacy groups, for the past few months after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said policymakers must move quickly to build a regulatory regime for the asset class.

“We look forward to reviewing the paper and providing guidance to the working group,” A White House official said.

A proposed law that would regulate stablecoin issuers akin to insured depository institutions and subjecting them to strict supervision by banking regulators while also providing some form of government backstop in the event of crises is under consid (iStock)

The PWG traditionally includes the Treasury, Federal Reserve, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency are also involved in the stablecoin work.

‘VERY CONCERNED’

The report said Congress should also require stricter oversight of stablecoin wallet providers which hold the digital currency on behalf of customers.

That conclusion is likely to disappoint advocates of stronger oversight, since it can take years for Congress to pass such laws.

‘SQUID GAME’ CRYPTOCURRENCY DEVELOPERS STEAL MILLIONS IN PURPORTED ‘RUG PULL’ SCAM

“I’m very concerned that they conclude legislation is absolutely necessary to address stablecoins’ risks. The SEC and FDIC currently have regulatory authority to address many of the problematic aspects of these cryptocurrencies,” said Todd Phillips, director of financial regulation for the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank.

Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Ohio and chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Democratic U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, praised the report in a statement and said he planned to work with Yellen on a path forward.

But Senator Pat Toomey, the senior Republican on that panel, emphasized in a statement that Congress should not stifle digital currencies, and questioned whether federal regulators should have jurisdiction over stablecoins. The Senate is currently evenly split between Republicans and Democrats.

If Congress fails to act, the Financial Stability Oversight Council, a body of U.S. regulators created following the 2007-2009 financial crisis, could designate some stablecoin activities – most notably payment, clearing and settlement – as a systemic risk, which would subject them to stricter oversight.

Monday’s report also affirmed that both the SEC and the CFTC have jurisdiction to police stablecoin activity as securities or derivatives, respectively.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a statement that those agencies plan to “deploy the full protections” of relevant laws to stablecoins while Congress considers legislation.

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World’s largest crypto exchange Binance briefly suspends crypto withdrawal

Last Updated: Nov. 1, 2021 at 1:13 p.m.

First Published: Nov. 1, 2021 at 9:30 a.m.

Frances Yue

Binance Coin is recently trading at $538.90, up 4.88% over the past 24 hours.

BLOOMBERG

Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, briefly suspended all crypto withdrawals on its website on Monday.

The exchange announced on Twitter early Monday that it temporarily disabled all crypto withdrawals due to a large backlog, and later said the function has been resumed.

About 20 minutes after the resumption notice, Binance tweeted that it closed all crypto withdrawals again, without explaining reasons. The withdrawals were later resumed.

A Binance spokesperson wrote to MarketWatch in an email that the suspension was due to “a database system issue” that affected the exchange’s withdrawal service. “At no times were users funds at risk,” the spokesperson wrote.

Binance Coin was recently trading at $538.90, up 3% over the past 24 hours.

SOURCE: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/worlds-largest-crypto-exchange-binance-suspends-crypto-withdrawal-11635773443