Kategorie: Crypto Markets

• Singapore’s DBS bank holds over 173.7k ETH worth $650 million.
• Blockchain analytics plaform Nansen identified a whale wallet with the ETH as belonging to the bank.

DBS, Singapore’s largest bank that boasts nearly $740 billion in assets, holds Ethereum (ETH) worth $650 million.

On Thursday, blockchain analytics firm Nansen revealed that a whale address with more than 173,700 ETH belongs to DBS. According to Nansen, the said wallet is $200 million in profit on the ETH holdings.

At the time of writing, the wallet address held 173,753 Ether tokens. At current ETH prices of $3,738, that’s worth around $649.4 million.

While this report highlights DBS’ crypto portfolio in terms of ETH holdings, it’s worth noting that the bank has traction in the crypto space. DBS runs a digital asset custody and exchange, catering to accredited investors and announced plans to launch a crypto retail desk.

DBS recently released a report that showed increased demand for crypto across retail and hedge funds among other investors. Per the research, a lot of the interest is around “ETF-like financial products backed by cryptos.”

SEC recently approved spot ETH ETFs

Ethereum price reached highs of $4,000 in March and rose close to the mark this month after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the rule change that allows for the listing of spot Ethereum ETFs in the US.

Anticipation is high ahead of the trading debut of ETH ETFs on exchanges. BlackRock’s filing of an updated spot Ethereum ETF S-1 form has added to speculation that this could happen in coming weeks.

More issuers whose 19b-4s the SEC approved recently are also expected to file their revised S-1s. Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas sees end of June as a probable timeline.

DBS’ holding of ETH among other tokens is an overall bullish indicator for Ethereum and the market, particularly in regards to institutional demand.

The positive sentiment around US regulatory approach to crypto also adds to this outlook.

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• The Mastercard crypto pilot program uses aliases to simplify and secure transactions.
• The initiative involves partners like Bit2Me, Lirium, Mercado, and FoxBit.
• Concerns, however, persist about centralization and data security with Mastercard’s system.

Mastercard, the global credit card company, has embarked on a groundbreaking journey into the world of cryptocurrencies with the launch of its crypto credentials P2P pilot program.

This initiative aims to revolutionize the way individuals engage in crypto transactions, particularly in Latin America, where interest in blockchain technology and digital assets is on the rise.

Mastercard collaborating with Bit2Me, Lirium, Mercado, and FoxBit

The pilot program, which is currently underway, involves collaboration with several key partners in the crypto space, including Bit2Me, Lirium, Mercado, and FoxBit.

Through this initiative, Mastercard seeks to streamline crypto transactions and eliminate user errors by introducing an alias credentialing system.

Walter Pimenta, Mastercard’s executive vice president for product and engineering for Latin America, emphasized the importance of delivering trusted interactions in the burgeoning crypto landscape.

He stated:

“As interest in blockchain and digital assets continues to surge in Latin America and around the world, it is essential to keep delivering trusted and verifiable interactions across public blockchain networks.”

What does the Mastercard crypto credentials program entail?

One of the key features of Mastercard’s crypto credentials program is the assignment of human-readable aliases to individuals.

These aliases, verified by Mastercard, alleviate the need for users to grapple with long strings of alphanumeric characters associated with traditional wallet addresses.

This user-friendly approach aims to enhance the accessibility and convenience of crypto transactions for individuals accustomed to more conventional payment methods.

Moreover, the crypto credentials program endeavors to mitigate the risk of financial loss by pre-screening transactions.

By preventing users from sending incompatible crypto assets to recipients’ addresses, Mastercard aims to enhance security and safeguard users’ funds.

Centralization concerns amid Mastercard’s crypto forays

However, despite the innovative strides taken by Mastercard, concerns regarding centralization persist within the crypto community.

Critics argue that the reliance on Mastercard as an intermediary for identity verification and transaction screening introduces centralization risks.

Furthermore, additional Know Your Customer (KYC) verification and the storage of sensitive data with Mastercard raise apprehensions among security-conscious individuals.

Mastercard’s history of data breaches adds another layer of complexity to these concerns. With well over 40 million accounts exposed to hackers since 2005, the security of users’ data remains a pressing issue.

Nevertheless, Mastercard’s foray into the crypto space represents a significant step towards mainstream adoption of digital assets.

By addressing user interface challenges and enhancing transaction security, Mastercard is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of finance in the digital age.

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• Zilliqa (ZIL) recently hit 66 million network transactions.
• However, ZIL price was down 2.5% at the time of writing, trading near $0.024.

Zilliqa (ZIL) price has traded in the $0.021-$0.026 range. Indeed, the downside pressure on the coin has hindered bulls since the sharp decline witnessed on April 12 and 13 when ZIL price fell more than 30% in two days.

But what’s the outlook for Zilliqa price as the network hits a key transaction milestone? Is Zilliqa 2.0 a potential catalyst for ZIL?

Here’s a look at this coin’s price performance. 

Zilliqa recently hit 66 million transactions

Zilliqa is one of the crypto projects with largest communities around it.

The project has reached nearly 5 million addresses and on May 28, Zilliqa shared a post on X indicating network transactions had surpassed 66 million.

Data also showed close to 110,000 delegators and over 5 million in total staked ZIL, which represents 29% of the total circulating supply. Zilliqa is recording these positive metrics ahead of Zilliqa 2.0, an upgrade aimed at enhancing network scalability, security and interoperability.

A new version of Zilliqa will not only streamline transactions via state sharding, but also bring about greater EVM compatibility, native account abstraction, smart accounts and improved developer tools.

ZIL price outlook

Zilliqa price is down 2.5% in the past 24 hours and flat in the past 30 days as bulls struggle for momentum.

ZIL currently trades at $0.024 across major crypto exchanges, with these levels indicating an unimpressive 2.9% upside in the past year.

A look at ZIL price on the weekly chart shows weakness despite a green candle close this past week. Buyers are also likely to target a positive return this week, but with the RSI and MACD suggesting a bearish course, its possible Zilliqa could retreat to lows of $0.022.

However, if price breaks higher alongside gains for Bitcoin and the big cap altcoins, ZIL could target $0.034 and $0.039 as the next major hurdles.

Notably, Bitcoin and Ethereum are also struggling amid broader crypto downside.

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• Sei v2 upgrade introduces sub-second transaction finality, enhancing scalability.
• Sei Foundation implements fairer eligibility criteria for token distribution event.
• SEI token price drops by 3.91% to $0.5185 amid distribution of 27M tokens post v2 upgrade.

The SEI token has experienced a notable decline in price, dropping by 3.91% in the past 24 hours to $0.5185, at press time, coupled with a decline in trading volume by 19.51% over the past 24 hours.

This downturn comes amidst the distribution of over 27 million SEI tokens following a successful v2 upgrade by the Sei Foundation.

Rewarding active participation in SEI ecosystem

Sei Foundation initiated the distribution of over 27 million tokens through an airdrop event to reward active participation in the ecosystem since the Pacific-1 Mainnet launch.

The second of its kind, this event acknowledges the contributions of Mainnet users, reflecting the foundation’s commitment to fostering community engagement.

The distribution process, however, faced criticisms regarding fairness in light of previous airdrop events. To address this, the foundation implemented eligibility criteria, ensuring a more equitable distribution.

Addresses holding more than 42 SEI or liquid staked tokens, along with those possessing two or more NFTs from the top eight collections by volume, were eligible to receive tokens.

Notably, addresses with exceptionally high SEI holdings or NFT collections were excluded from the distribution, aiming to promote fairness among participants.

Sei’s successful v2 upgrade

The successful upgrade to v2 marks a significant milestone for Sei network, introducing sub-second transaction finality and enhanced scalability.

With transactions now confirmed and completed in under one second, the network aims to enhance user experience and compete effectively with other parallelized EVM networks such as Monad and Neon.

DevilK, a Sei Foundation executive, expressed optimism about the upgrade, highlighting its potential to unlock new opportunities for users and developers alike.

As the distribution of tokens continues and the network evolves with the v2 upgrade, stakeholders remain vigilant, assessing both the technological advancements and market dynamics shaping the cryptocurrency’s ecosystem.

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• Gemini Earn users get $2.18 billion in digital assets back, which represents a 232% recovery.
• Users will receive 100% of their crypto back, with the initial distribution representing 97% of Earn users’ assets.

Gemini has announced that its customers of its Gemini Earn program have received $2.18 billion worth of digital assets.

The distribution is in kind and represents a 232% recovery for Earn users, Gemini co-founder and CEO Tyler Winklevoss and co-founder and President Cameron Winklevoss said in a news release.

Gemini Earn users get $2.18 billion in digital assets

Per Gemini‘s announcement, the $2.18 billion distribution accounts for 97% of the digital assets owed to Gemini Earn’s users. The initial payout is $1 billion on more, or 232% recovery on users’ digital assets following Genesis’s halting of withdrawals and bankruptcy.

Commenting on the payment in kind, Gemini noted that a customer who deposited one bitcoin receives one bitcoin back. Gemini has also assured Earn users that they will receive “any and all appreciation” of their digital assets from the time they lent them into the program.

A long wait

Crypto lender Genesis halted withdrawals in November 2022, a development that followed the shocking collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Genesis revealed it had significant exposure to the imploded crypto exchange.

While crypto prices plummeted amid the chaos that followed, including Bitcoin’s dive to lows of $15,600, the past two years have seen BTC prices skyrocket.

In March this year, Bitcoin rose to a new all-time high above $73,000. The top digital asset traded around $22,700 when Genesis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan in January 2023.

Gemini Earn’s users are getting their digital assets back after a US bankruptcy judge approved Genesis Global’s chapter 11 wind-down early this month.

Earn users to receive 100% of their assets

In February, Gemini announced that it would return 100% of users’ assets following a settlement with Genesis and the bankrupt crypto lender’s other creditors.

According to today’s announcement, users should expect the balances within the next 12 months.

“It’s important to note that the Genesis bankruptcy was not a crypto problem. It was old-fashioned financial fraud compounded by a lack of regulatory clarity,” Gemini CEO Tyler Winklevoss said.

The exchange reportedly contributed $50 million towards the Earn recovery.

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