Circle’s high-yield USDC business accounts take aim at DeFi

Originally launched as an attractive alternative to traditional fiat business accounts for Internet-based ventures, the latest features for the Circle Business Account appear to take aim at a different kind of competitor: the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.  Circle, the Goldman Sachs-backed payments company and issuer of the USDC stablecoin, announced their Circle Business Account service on March 10, 2020. The accounts featured a suite of services designed to help businesses leverage USDC, including APIs that could connect to traditional payment rails, accept dollar-denominated payments as USDC, a USDC wallet service,…

4 on-chain metrics suggest Bitcoin price rally may not stop at $16,000

After rejecting at $15,960 on Nov.6 Bitcoin (BTC) price has been defending the $15,000 support level with strength. Based on four on-chain data points, analysts believe the rally might continue beyond $16,000. Analysts have pinpointed lower Bitcoin exchange reserves, unmoved supply, a rise in “stronger hands,” and unrealized profits as factors for the rally to continue. The number of BTC held on exchanges drops Recently, Delphi Digital, an independent cryptocurrency research and consulting firm, released a report on the outlook of the Bitcoin market. Paul Burlage, an analyst at Delphi,…

4 on-chain metrics suggest Bitcoin price rally may not stop at $16,000

After rejecting at $15,960 on Nov.6 Bitcoin (BTC) price has been defending the $15,000 support level with strength. Based on four on-chain data points, analysts believe the rally might continue beyond $16,000. Analysts have pinpointed lower Bitcoin exchange reserves, unmoved supply, a rise in “stronger hands,” and unrealized profits as factors for the rally to continue. The number of BTC held on exchanges drops Recently, Delphi Digital, an independent cryptocurrency research and consulting firm, released a report on the outlook of the Bitcoin market. Paul Burlage, an analyst at Delphi,…

Financial Giant SBI to Test XRP in $6.6 Trillion Foreign Exchange Market

Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings is preparing to test the use of XRP in the foreign exchange (FX) market. The pilot will utilize the cryptocurrency to execute cross-border currency swaps, according to the financial outlet Nikkei. The test is designed to determine whether the speed of XRP can be used as a bridge asset to lower the risk of price fluctuations that can occur as one currency is traded for another, as well as determine potential savings on fees associated with the transfer. To perform the trial, SBI is reportedly…

Most ‘organic’ Bitcoin pump in years — trader explains why a blow-off top is unlikely

Despite Bitcoin’s (BTC) steep rally in November, the price is consolidating above $15,000 as on-chain analyst, Willy Woo says a blow-off top is unlikely for three main reasons. The three factors are the growing outflow of funds from exchanges, increase in “HODLers,” and data showing that investors already took profit. Bitcoin is moving from exchanges to individual wallets According to the data from Glassnode, a large amount of Bitcoin has been moving out of centralized exchanges in late October. Woo says this metric is optimistic because it shows investors are transferring funds from…

DeFi needs real-world adoption, not just disruptive pioneering

Satoshi Natakmoto’s anonymity and powerful mining-incentive mechanism are key examples of what made Bitcoin (BTC) unique and led to its unparalleled success. But for truly democratized money and finance to be achieved, it is worth reminding enthusiasts that Bitcoin was an iteration in a series of trials and errors that go back as far as the 1980s. David Chaum conducted research as early as 1982 that laid the groundwork for the invention of “Computer Systems Established, Maintained, and Trusted by Mutually Suspicious Groups.” Other cryptographers — including Adam Back, Hal…

Going mainstream through enterprise use

American market research company Forrester recently released its blockchain predictions for 2021. The report reveals interesting findings, noting that 2020 has been an important year for growth in the enterprise blockchain and distributed ledger technology space.  Martha Bennet, principal analyst at Forrester and a co-author of the report, told Cointelegraph that the firm’s blockchain predictions are based on inflection points that show definite changes rather than the continuation of trends. For instance, the report predicts that 30% of global projects will make it into production next year. This is partly…

Ethereum Prints Pivotal Reversal Against Bitcoin Amid ETH2 Rollout

Ethereum strongly underperformed Bitcoin during BTC’s move to $16,000. In fact, for most of the rally from $13,000 to $16,000, ETH was trading for $380-400, failing to break higher. But after BTC has begun to consolidate, ETH has finally started to break higher. Ethereum currently trades for $440, up 10% in the past 24 hours alone. Analysts see this reversal as notable due to the fact that it comes at an important support level for the ETH/BTC trading pair. Related Reading: Here’s Why Ethereum’s DeFi Market May Be Near A…

Bitcoin Futures Traders Are Too Bullish After Pump to $16,000

It’s starting to appear that Bitcoin traders are a bit too bullish for their own liking. The leading cryptocurrency has exploded higher in the past two days, rallying from the weekly lows of $13,300 to highs near $16,000. This rally comes as the U.S. dollar has plunged lower on expectations that Joe Biden will be taking the White House in the presidential election. Bitcoin may head higher if the U.S. dollar moves lower, but futures market data shows that the rally is quickly becoming untenable. Namely, the funding rates of…