Russia's Finance Ministry has reportedly begun working with governments in “friendly” nations to establish a cross-border stablecoin-based payments platform. According to a Tuesday report from Russia state-owned news agency TASS, deputy finance minister Alexey Moiseev said the government was looking to create the settlement platform in an effort to avoid the use of U.S. dollars and euros. The finance minister reportedly said the Russian government would need to impose additional regulations to enact the platform between itself and friendly nations — possibly including China, Belarus, and North Korea. “We offer mutually acceptable tokenized instruments that will be used on these …

According to a new Twitter post, Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin issuer Circle, said that the recent decision by Binance to merge stablecoin dollar books is "a good thing" for USDC. "This move would lead to a gradual net share shift from USDT to BUSD and USDC," said Allaire. The day before, Binance announced it would cease trading support for USDC and auto-convert deposits after Sept. 29 to a consolidated Binance USD balance comprising other stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar. Users will be able to withdraw individual constituents from the consolidated balance at par …

Crypto exchange giant Binance has confirmed it has no plans to “auto-convert” Tether (USDT) to Binance USD (BUSD) at the moment, though noted that this “may change.” On Sept. 6, the crypto exchange surprised the market with the announcement it will cease trading support for U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) on its platform, along with USDP Stablecoin (USDP) and TrueUSD (TUSD). Any users that are still holding the three stablecoins on Sept. 29 will begin to have their holdings auto-converted to BUSD at a 1:1 ratio over a 24-hour period. Binance stated that the move was a decision to …

In the world of crypto, FUD stands for fear, uncertainty and doubt. It’s often evoked intentionally in order to draw negative attention to a particular project or business. One of crypto’s most enduring legacies has been the constant FUD surrounding Tether, whose USDT stablecoin commands a market capitalization of nearly $68 billion. Whether intentional or not, The Wall Street Journal ran a story this week claiming that Tether was on the edge of technical insolvency and that it wouldn’t take much to push the stablecoin issuer into financial peril. Of course, Tether didn’t take it lying down and immediately issued …

Members of the Germany-based Bundesblock, otherwise known as the German Blockchain Association, updated the community on the upcoming Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations in a virtual panel held on Thursday, Sep. 1. According to the panel, the final legal text for the long-awaited regulations is set to be released in the upcoming 4-6 weeks. However, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and stablecoins are still not covered, while crypto asset service providers (CASPs) are discussed in scope. @bundesblock panel discussion of #MiCAR with @DrStefanBerger, @SchildtMoritz, @paddi_hansen, moderated by Alireza Siadat. Key take aways: final text of MiCAR available in 4-6 weeks, MiCAR fully …

What is a gold-backed cryptocurrency? A gold-backed cryptocurrency is a type of digital currency that is backed by physical gold. The currency’s value is based on the current market price of gold and can be used for transactions just like any other type of cryptocurrency. Some cryptocurrencies are backed by gold in order to tie the derivative asset (crypto) to a tangible asset (gold), thereby preventing excessive fluctuations in price. Thus, gold-backed cryptocurrency is often more stable than other digital currencies. This is because the price of gold is generally less volatile than the prices of other assets, such as …

Crypto derivatives exchange Bybit has partnered with stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Financial to expand its suite of spot trading pairs denominated in USD Coin (USDC) — a move the company says will increase retail and institutional access to USDC-settled products. Under the partnership agreement, Bybit will expand its USDC spot pairs to include several additional cryptocurrencies and make auto conversions between the United States dollar and USDC available, the company disclosed Wednesday. Bybit said it intends to collaborate with Circle on other initiatives to boost stablecoin and crypto adoption. Currently, Bybit supports around 35 USDC spot pairs, according to a …

Just when the global economy largely recovered from the crippling effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical tensions and the resultant supply chain pressures have once again roiled financial markets across the world. Furthermore, inflation has once again reared its ugly head, forcing central banks across major economies to raise interest rates in an attempt to curtail runaway prices of essential commodities like food and fuel. Despite these efforts, developed economies like the United States and the United Kingdom continue to report inflation at multi-year highs, adding even more stress on household savings and negatively impacting consumer spending. Apart from the …

Ether (ETH) is the second largest crypto by market capitalization and the absolute leader in decentralized applications by deposits. Becoming a victim of its own success, the network experienced a fee hike in November 2021 when the average transaction costs surpassed $50. That's precisely why the Merge is a critical step to implementing a fully functional scaling solution. The confirmation of a transition to a proof of stake (PoS) consensus was the main driver for the rally toward $2,000 on Aug. 15. Investors were partially excited about the reduced issuing schedule and likely a transition to a deflationary scenario, but …

Tether Holdings Limited has clapped back at The Wall Street Journal over an article it claims spread “false information” about the stablecoin issuer’s profitability, solvency and accounting standards. In an Aug. 29 article, the Journal claimed that Tether could be deemed “technically insolvent” if its assets fell just 0.3%. That conclusion was drawn from Tether’s reported assets and liabilities as of Aug. 25. One week prior, Tether published its latest attestation showing $67.7 billion of reported assets against $67.5 billion of liabilities. The August attestation was conducted by BDO Italia, the Italian arm of international accounting firm BDO Global. As …

The South Korean central bank has indicated that initial coin offerings (ICOs) will be allowed under the Digital Assets Framework Act, according to a local news report. That comprehensive legislation is expected to be introduced in 2023 and implemented the following year. The Bank of Korea (BOK) discussed ICOs in comments to a Korean translation released Monday of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) legislation. The BOK stated that the MiCA regulatory package protected users and investors without hindering innovation. “A balanced approach is needed to foster a sound market through the introduction of a crypto asset regulatory system …

An article in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has claimed that Tether’s balance sheet is in a position that even a 0.3% drop in value of its reserve assets could “render Tether technically insolvent.” In an Aug. 27 report, WSJ journalists Jean Eaglesham and Vicky Ge Huang focused on the cloudy nature of Tether’s USDT reserves and its long-awaited audit that has been in the works since 2017. Eaglesham and Huang suggested that such a “thin cushion of equity” could cause mayhem in the market, if Tether’s liabilities were to outweigh its assets: “A 0.3% fall in assets could render …