The entire crypto industry faced threats of debanking under Operation Chokepoint 2.0. Jason Lau — the chief innovation officer at crypto exchange and self-custody wallet provider OKX — told Cointelegraph that fostering relationships with banks and keyholders was a hedge against debanking. Lau said the traditional financial world is heavily based on trust and that…

Stablecoins locked onto Ethereum layer-2 networks have reached a new all-time high, showcasing rising demand for cryptocurrencies. The stablecoin supply to all blockchains combined is dominated by Tether, USD Coin and Ethena’s stablecoin, USDe. As of  Dec. 20, the Ethereum blockchain held $13.5 billion worth of stablecoins, according to data from Tie Terminal, a crypto data platform…

Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) faced a significant sell-off on Dec. 19, reaching net outflows of a record $671.9 million, marking the largest single-day outflow event of the year. According to Farside Investors data, the biggest outflows came from Grayscale’s GBTC, shedding $208.6 million, followed by ARK Invest’s ARKB, which fell $108.4 million. The fallout of these…

2024 will be remembered as one of the most transformative periods in the global crypto regulatory landscape. As crypto assets continue steadily into mainstream finance, policymakers worldwide are stepping up with comprehensive rules. From the United States president-elect pledging a strategic Bitcoin reserve to the European Union’s rigorous Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) directive, regulators made…

In the latest episode of the Hashing It Out podcast, host Elisha Owusu Akyaw sat down with Tom Trowbridge, co-founder and CEO of Fluence Labs, to discuss the evolving concept of Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN). Trowbridge offers insights into this emerging sector, which he said is poised to disrupt traditional infrastructure models in the next year and…

The Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has updated its crypto rules, adding requirements on crypto-related marketing promotions from virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and social media influencers. In its revised Digital Asset Rules, the SEC said that VASPs engaging third-party service providers to promote their crypto products must “obtain prior approval from the Commission.” The rules…

More than $1 billion was liquidated in the crypto market over the past 24 hours as participants were caught off guard by the strong momentum of crypto over the past 30 days. Still, one analyst suggested the market downturn may be short-lived. “We’ve had such a bullish narrative over the last month that the market…

Deutsche Bank, Germany’s largest lender, is reportedly developing its own layer-2 (L2) blockchain on Ethereum using ZKsync technology to address compliance challenges associated with using public blockchains in regulated finance. The L2 solution, part of Project Dama 2, looks to improve transaction efficiency and secure regulatory safeguards, integrating directly with Ethereum, according to Bloomberg. Project Dama 2…

The debate over whether Bitcoin’s 21 million supply cap is truly fixed has resurfaced after BlackRock posted a three-minute Bitcoin explainer video, which added a disclaimer saying there’s no guarantee it won’t be changed. Bitcoin’s fixed supply is one of its strongest propositions as a store of value, and uncapping it would impact how investors…

Cryptocurrency market commentators and observers have predicted positive market trends associated with United States President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration in January 2025, but BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has a different perspective. Hayes cautioned against the high expectations of quick crypto policy changes promised by Trump, highlighting a gap between market anticipation and the realities of policy implementation….