Kategorie: Crypto Markets

• Chiliz launched a new layer-1 blockchain that’s EVM-compatible.
• The price of the native token CHZ rose more than 20% to a two month high above $0.17.
• Profit taking today has seen it decline over 7% to around $0.15.

Chiliz , the blockchain-based platform for fan tokens and leading Web3 sports infrastructure, marked its 5th anniversary on 8 February with the validation of the genesis block of its new layer-1 blockchain.

Chiliz’s native token CHZ will power the new blockchain ecosystem, including fueling all the decentralised applications (dApps). With CHZ holders able to stake and receive rewards, the overall appeal of buying CHZ and then staking the coin helped push its price higher following the genesis block.

According to data from CoinGecko, the price of CHZ rose to highs above $0.17, ticking up by more than 20% on the day. However, with the broader crypto market slipping on Thursday morning, and likely due to profit taking deals, CHZ/USD has pared its recent gains and currently trades just above $0.15.

The token’s value is down 7.6% in the past 24 hours, though it’s still nearly 10% up this past week and over 33% in the last 30 days.

The Chiliz Blockchain launch

As earlier noted, the launch of the EVM-compatible Chiliz blockchain comes as the network looks to tap into the growing adoption of fan tokens across the world’s sports and entertainment brands.

Over the past year, Chiliz has, through the Socios.com fan engagement and rewards app, issued fan tokens and sealed collaborations with top sports brands, including soccer giants FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.

The platform makes it possible for clubs and entertainment brands to leverage the Chiliz blockchain to issue fan tokens, allow for the minting of NFTs, and build DeFi products. Chiliz also helps brands develop and grow via new play-to-earn (P2E) games as they look to further fan engagement.

The post Chiliz token declines 7% after rallying to 2-month high on new blockchain launch appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Aave, a crypto lending platform, is currently one of Ethereum’s largest DeFi products.
• MakerDAO, on the other hand, facilitates the generation of DAI stablecoin.
• MakerDAO is planning to launch a crypto lending platform called Spark Lend to rival Aave.

MakerDAO, the DAO of the giant decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Maker and the facilitator of the generation of DAI stablecoin has unveiled its plans to launch a crypto lending platform to rival the Aave lending protocol.

The plan to launch Spark Protocol was announced on MakerDAO Forum alongside the announcement to launch Phoenix Labs.

Spark Protocol

Spark Protocol is a fork of Aave v3 and will be a front-end app allowing users to interact with the DAI stablecoin by staking, borrowing, and lending. News about the Spark Protocol comes after months Aave, which has a total value locked (TVL) of about $4.6 billion, announced its own generated stablecoin, the GHO.

Since its inception in 2017, MakerDAO has sourced its revenue from the issuance of DAI and the development of a dedicated lending protocol represents a shift in the DeFi protocol’s focus.

MakerDAO has formed Phoenix Labs, a research and development company tasked with the development of the Spark Protocol.

etherDAI deployment

Besides Spark Protocol, MakerDAO has also announced the deployment of etherDAI, which will be a synthetic liquid staking derivative of Ether (ETH) pegged to ETH on a ratio of one-to-one.

Liquid staking will allow users to get extra yield besides the standard staking rewards for staking tokens on MakerDAO.

At press time, the price of Maker (MKR), the native token of Maker had risen by 1.13% over the past 24 hours showing some positive response to the news about the Spark Protocol.

The post MakerDAO to launch Spark lending platform to rival Aave appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Peter Wall resignation is the second after the Argo Blockchain acquisition by Galaxy Digital.
• Peter Wall will remain an adviser to Argo to support the transition.
• Argo has been conducting a series of changes since late December 2022 when it reported insufficient funds.

Leading Bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain has announced that Peter Wall has resigned as CEO. The company made their announcement via Twitter after Peter Wall announced his resignation from his position earlier today.

We announced today that CEO @PeterGWall has stepped down as CEO/Chairman.

Seif El-Bakly, CFA (COO) has been appointed interim CEO; Matthew Shaw has been appointed Chairman.

We thank Peter for his many achievements and wish him every future success.https://t.co/iPxeeXp7c3

— Argo (@ArgoBlockchain) February 9, 2023

Wall’s resignation is the second resignation of the executive since the company was acquired by Galaxy Digital. He will however remain an adviser to the company for the next three months to support the transition.

The price of the ARGO token has risen by about 12% at press time following the news, adding to the bullish trend that the token started on February 7.

Argo board member Sarah Gow also resigns

The same announcement announcing the resignation of Peter Wall also announced the resignation of Argo board member Sarah Gow, which was because of health reasons.

On February 1, Argo lost its chief financial officer (CFO) Alex Appleton through resignation. According to a filing with the London Stock Exchange, Appleton stated that he was resigning to “pursue other opportunities.”

Appleton’s resignation coincided with the finalization of the Helios crypto mining facility sale to Galaxy Digital Holdings. Helios was sold for $65 million to help Argo reduce its debt as it looks for ways to avoid Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The crypto miner reported mining fewer bitcoin in December 2022.

The acquisition also allowed Argo to regain compliance with the Nasdaq minimum bid price rule. However, there is a lawsuit that was filed on January 26 alleging that Argo, some of its executives, and board members did not disclose key information like susceptibility toward capital constraints, electricity costs and network difficulties to investors.

The post ARGO token ticks higher as Peter Wall resigns as CEO of Argo appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Hut 8 to merge with US Bitcoin to diversify revenue streams.
• Mining potential of the combined company will be 5.6 EH/s.
• Hut 8 Mining Corp stock ended slightly down on Wednesday.

Hut 8 Mining Corp ended slightly in the red on Wednesday after revealing plans to merge with US Bitcoin Corp.

What’s in it for the two companies?

The said merger is expected to help diversify revenue streams and lower costs related to mining. It will create a larger publicly listed company that will operate under the name Hut 8 Corp.

Both companies have already secured unanimous approval for the agreement from their respective boards. In the press release, Jaime Leverton, who will continue to lead the joint company said:

Bringing together Hut 8 and US Bitcoin accelerates our diversified strategy, positions us for near-term growth, and establishes us as a strong player that’s ready and able to seize additional opportunities as they rise.

For the year, the Canadian digital asset mining company is currently up more than 150%.

Hut 8 to see a boost to mining potential

Bill Tai will also keep his role as Chairman of the Board while Asher Ganoot will remain the President of the combined firm. The press release named Michael Ho its Chief Strategy Officer and Shenif Visram its CFO.

The new Hut 8 Corp will manage in total 680 MW of infrastructure operations and note an increase in mining potential to 5.6 EH/s. According to Michael Ho – the co-Founder of US Bitcoin:

We’ve been searching for the right partner to join us on our ambitious growth journey for some time and are confident that Hut 8 is the perfect fit.

Last year, Hut 8 mined 3,568 bitcoin that increased its reserve to 9,086 BTC – up 65% year-on-year. Wall Street currently has a consensus “overweight” rating on this Toronto-headquartered firm.

The post Hut 8 just announced a merger with US Bitcoin: here’s what we know appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Visa’s head of crypto revealed the plans at a StarkWare event this week.
• The payments giant has been trialing large-value USDC settlements on the Ethereum blockchain.
• Swarm Markets co-founder Philipp Pieper says Visa’s crypto strategy could be key to further DeFi/TradFi integration.

Payments giant Visa is reportedly testing a payments system that could see it accept digital assets payments from its customers.

The cryptocurrency news relates to an announcement Visa Head of Crypto Cuy Sheffield shared during the StarkWare Sessions 2023 event.

. @cuysheffield and @visa have fell into the rabbit hole of Account Abstraction!

This is huge! pic.twitter.com/CFniLLBq5C

— Starknet-Ecosystem.com ✨ (@StarkNetEco) February 5, 2023

According to Cuy Sheffield, Visa has recently trialed large value transfers where the network accepts tokenised digital dollar payments with settlements in traditional dollars. Specifically, Visa is looking to start with USD Coin (USDC) transactions on Ethereum. USDC is a major stablecoin issued by Circle and which Visa added support for in March 2021.

“We’ve been testing how to actually accept settlement payments from issuers in USDC starting on Ethereum and paying out in USDC on Ethereum,” Visa’s head of crypto strategy said during the StarkWare event.

Visa’s crypto strategy huge for crypto, says Swarm Markets co-founder

Visa’s plans on crypto settlements come as the global focus on stablecoins increases from a regulatory perspective following recent events in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. They also follow increased interest in central bank digital currencies, with the UK’s consultation paper on its digital pound the latest move in the CBDCs race.

Some experts view these developments as what’s likely to spark further innovation in crypto, rather than be the end of it.

Philipp Pieper, co-founder of blockchain platform Swarm, commented on Visa’s reported foray into crypto payments settlement as a major development set to bolster innovation across the global financial infrastructure.

The company’s move could also mark a key pivot in the adoption of blockchain technology and digital assets, significantly aiding decentralised finance (DeFi) and traditional finance (TradFi) integration, Pieper noted.

In a comment sent to CoinJournal, the Swarm Markets co-founder added:

“If Visa can begin to introduce seamless settlement between stablecoins and fiat then this overcomes a significant obstacle toward greater DeFi/TradFi integration. With the advent of digital assets such as stablecoins revolutionizing the way users transact and settle payments, it makes sense for Visa to start working toward this future now.”

The post Visa reportedly testing USDC settlements on Ethereum appeared first on CoinJournal.