Revolut secures UK banking license

  • Crypto-friendly fintech platform Revolut has secured a banking license in the UK.
  • The digital bank has 9 million UK customers and 45 million globally.

After a three-year wait, crypto-friendly fintech firm Revolut has finally secured a banking license from United Kingdom’s banking regulator Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).

Revolut announced the milestone in a news release on Thursday, July 25, noting that the next step is the “mobilization” stage. Also known as ‘Authorisation with Restrictions’, this is a step in the licensing process that many new banks have to complete as part of building out operations before launching in the market.

“We are incredibly proud to reach this important milestone in the journey of the company and we will ensure we deliver on making Revolut the bank of choice for UK customers” Nik Storonsky, CEO of Revolut, said in a statement.

UK customers not impacted

According to Revolut, the restricted period covering the “mobilization” stage will not impact UK customers. The bank, which has over 9 million customers in the UK and more than 45 million worldwide, has assured its UK customers that use of the Revolut e-money account will continue as normal.

Commenting on the development, Francesca Carlesi, UK CEO of Revolut, said:

“Today’s announcement is a significant step forward for Revolut and for our customers. It is a tremendous responsibility to be a bank in the UK and we will work relentlessly to offer products and services that improve the financial lives of everyone who uses Revolut.

Revolut first applied for the UK license from PRA in 2021.

In May this year, Revolut announced the launch of a new crypto exchange platform dubbed Revolut X.

The stand-alone crypto platform is for professional crypto traders and offers access to on and off ramps and low fees. These features, the fintech said at the time, will see Revolut X compete with leading exchanges in the market.

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HSBC Australia blocks payments to crypto exchanges

  • HSBC Australia will block all customer payments to crypto exchanges as from July 24, 2024.
  • The bank told customers in an email that the decision is due to rising cases of crypto related investment scams.
  • A recent report suggested Australians lost $171 millin to such crypto scams in 2023.

HSBC Australia has begun blocking payments to crypto exchanges, citing rising cases of scams.

The bank told its customers that the new measure took effect on July 24, with all bank accounts and credit card payments to cryptocurrency exchanges blocked. At least six major banks in Australia currently block payments to crypto exchanges, Cointelegraph noted in a report.

Customer protection

HSBC Australia, like other major banks to take the step in the country, say the objective is to protect its customers.

Clients looking to make payments to crypto platforms will have to find alternative means, the bank wrote in the email.

“From 24 July 2024, HSBC will block payments from bank accounts and credit cards that we reasonably believe are being made to cryptocurrency exchanges, for your protection,” the banking giant wrote.

The bank pointed to a recent report by the Australian competition and consumer regulator, ACCC, for its decision. According to the report, investment scams accounted for up to $171 million in losses for Australians in 2023.

HSBC Australia’s notification to its customers wasn’t the only major setback for crypto in the county on the day. Shortly after the bank’s move, another firm, Bendigo Bank, notified its clients of a similar move. Bendigo Bank also cited investment scams in crypto, asserting that its decision is in the best interest of customers and for their protection.

While HSBC Australia has blocked payments to crypto platforms, the bank will still process customers’ cryptocurrency payments from exchanges.

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ETH falls amid $133 million spot Ethereum ETFs outflows

  • Ethereum (ETH) slumped more than 8% after the US spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds saw over $133 million in outflows in the second day of trading.
  • Ether price fell on Thursday amid the outflows, reaching lows of $3,156 across major exchanges.

Spot Ether ETFs outflows

The new ETFs cumulatively posted over $106 million in inflows on day one, which incidentally remained green despite more than $484 million exiting the Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust (ETHE). But on day two, the total outflows of $326.9 million from ETHE outpaced the total inflows, resulting in net outflows of $133.3 million.

Per data on SosoValue, ETHE has seen two-day outflows race to over $810 million, which has the converted fund’s net assets as of writing at $8.04 billion.

Performance wise for the other spot Ether ETFs, the second day of trading saw Fidelity’s FETH record the most inflows at $74.5 million. This was slightly lower than the $71.3 million investors put into FETH on July 23.

Meanwhile, Bitwise saw $29.6 million flow into its BITW on day two, down from $204 million seen a day earlier. BlackRock’s ETHA, which stormed out of the gate with over $266 million in inflows on debut, recorded just $17.4 million on July 24.

The outflows have seen total net assets in the spot Ether ETFs drop slightly from over $10.2 billion on Jlu 23 to around $9.54 billion as of the end of trading day July 24. Overall, this accounts for about 2.35% of the total market cap of Ethereum.

Crypto liquidations hit $290 million

ETH price currently hovers around $3,179, about 8% down in the past 24 hours. The altcoin’s price has dropped nearly 6% in the past month.

With Ethereum struggling after the ETF launch and Mt. Gox repayments weighing down Bitcoin, the total crypto market cap has declined 4% in 24 hours. Meanwhile, total crypto liquidations after the sharp decreases for ETH and BTC reached $290 million early Thursday.

Of these, Coinglass data shows $262 million are longs, with Ethereum accounting for over $98 million and Bitcoin $72 million in liquidated bullish bets.

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Crypto price predictions: Raydium (RAY), LayerZero (ZRO), Poodlana (POODL)

  • Raydium’s (RAY) price targets $4.27 after a 50% surge, supported by MoonPay.
  • LayerZero (ZRO) forecasted to hit $4.524084 by August and $6.038442 by end of September.
  • Poodlana (POODL) presale raises $2.6M, with the final price set to $0.054.

As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, investors are closely monitoring emerging tokens and established players alike. Among the notable names making waves are Raydium (RAY), LayerZero (ZRO), and Poodlana (POODL), each offering unique opportunities and risks.

This article delves into the recent price movements, developments, and future predictions for these three tokens, providing insights into their potential trajectories in the ever-dynamic crypto space.

Raydium (RAY) could hit $4.27 after the MoonPay integration

Raydium (RAY) has recently demonstrated impressive price performance, fueled by a combination of strategic integrations and market dynamics.

This price performance follows a significant increase in price over the last two days, with gains exceeding 30% and a notable pump of more than 50%.

The token’s growth is attributed to the recent integration with MoonPay, which has enhanced its accessibility by allowing users to purchase Solana-based tokens directly with fiat currencies.

The integration with MoonPay is a key development for Raydium, simplifying entry into the Solana ecosystem for its 20 million users. This move lowers barriers to entry and attracts new participants to the platform, potentially boosting liquidity and trading volumes.

After finding support at $1.83, Raydium has been on a bullish rally, with a primary target set at $4.27.

However, technical analysis suggests caution, as the price is approaching resistance at around $2.6. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is currently at 73, indicating that the market may experience a short-term retracement before any further significant movements.

Long-term investors should watch the $2.6 resistance level closely for signs of continued bullish momentum.

LayerZero (ZRO) projected to see modest gain as July comes to an end

LayerZero (ZRO) has also seen a positive trajectory, with its price showing robust growth over recent months. As of July 25, 2024, LayerZero’s price stands at $4.505978.

Predictions for the near term suggest a modest increase, with the price expected to reach approximately $4.510197 by the end of this week.

Moving into August, the price could further rise to $4.524084 by August 24, 2024. Looking further ahead, LayerZero is projected to see a 5% increase by September, potentially reaching $6.038442.

The token’s performance is buoyed by its significant role in the blockchain interoperability space.

LayerZero’s technical advancements and successful distribution of rewards in its Sybil bounty program have contributed to its growing market presence. The network has also been integrated on several chain over the past weeks including Flare Network, Gravity Chain, Mode Network, and it is currently developing an interoperability standard for Cosmos that enables Cosmos chains to connect to LayerZero-enabled chains.

As the network continues to develop and integrate new features, LayerZero’s long-term outlook remains positive, with anticipated steady growth in its value.

Poodlana (POODL) price projected to rise by 170% by presale end

Poodlana (POODL), a meme coin that has carved out a niche in the FashionFi space, is experiencing a remarkable presale phase.

As of now, the presale has raised an impressive $2,620,278.89, with the current token price at $0.0265, reflecting a 32.5% increase from the initial offering.

The presale is set to conclude in 22 days and the final presale price is projected to reach $0.054, with day-one buyers potentially seeing returns of up to 170%.

Poodlana’s unique blend of luxury fashion and meme culture has struck a chord globally, particularly in Asian markets.

The token’s appeal lies in its association with high-fashion aesthetics and the beloved poodle breed, creating a fresh and engaging niche known as FashionFi.

The upcoming exchange listing on August 16 at 12 p.m. UTC is highly anticipated, as it will mark Poodlana’s debut on decentralized exchanges like Raydium with full token visibility and liquidity. All tokens will be 100% unlocked from day one, ensuring transparency and fairness.

The project’s roadmap includes several exciting phases beyond the presale. Following its launch, Poodlana plans to expand through centralized exchange listings, a major marketing blitz, and collaborations with high-end fashion brands.

Additionally, Poodlana aims to introduce a staking platform and exclusive airdrops, further engaging its community and rewarding early supporters.

The long-term vision includes global expansion and philanthropic efforts to support animal welfare, enhancing its appeal to a broad audience.

For more information about Poodlana and the ongoing POODL token presale, visit their official website.

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Base Network Pushes for Stage 1 Decentralisation

  • Coinbase’s layer 2 chain, Base, begins the journey to Stage 1 Decentralisation by deploying fault proofs on the Base Sepolia testnet.
  • The Base network is centralised as only the operator can propose the network’s state to the Ethereum mainnet.
  • Fault proofs will enable anyone to propose Base’s state, and begin its transition into a decentralised rollup.

on July 23rd 2024, the Base network operator announced the deployment of fault proofs to the Base Sepolia testnet, a staging environment for running and testing applications and code before deploying on the mainnet.

According to Base’s social media post on Mirror, a Web3 social media platform, “the launch paves the way for bringing fault proofs to securely to mainnet, and completing other milestones to reach Stage 1 Decentralisation”.

Fault proofs will allow anyone to propose the root state of Base. This technical term describes submitting a summary of the Base chain, including smart contracts, account balances, and other relevant data, to the Ethereum mainnet to ensure that it is recognised.

The Journey to Stage 1 Decentralisation

According to Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s co-founder, Layer 2 rollups must undergo three major milestones before they can be said to be sufficiently decentralised or “take their training wheels off”.

The first stage (Stage 0 or the full training wheels stage) is when layer 2 rollups launch their mainnet. At this stage, users should be able to post transactions without cooperation from the operator, i.e., chain operators cannot freeze users’ assets. However, there does not need to be any fraud proof.

The next stage is Stage 1 Decentralisation, the limited training wheels stage, and must involve fraud proof. There can be a multi-sig override mechanism (called a security council) that can override the fraud proof in cases where the proof system code has bugs; however, it must have a 6-of-8 or stricter threshold, i.e. at least 8 participants and at least 75% agreement to override.

Also, enough participants in the multi-sig override system must be outside the organization running the rollup, in this case, Base (and Coinbase by association).

The final stage, Stage 2 or no training wheels, requires that no actor or group of actors can override the fraud proofs to post a state other than the output of the network’s code. However, this is only advisable when it is ascertained that the fraud proof code has no bugs.

Base’s Journey

Base is currently the second largest Layer 2 rollup with a TVL of $1.76 billion according to Defillama, a leading blockchain data provider. The network has grown tremendously in 2024, leveraging its affiliation with Coinbase to create a network effect that has propelled its growth.

Base’s journey to Stage 1 Decentralisation will help cement its position in the league of other networks within that stage, some being Arbitrum, OP Mainnet, and dYdX v3.

Other chains that have reached this level have issued governance tokens, however, as of writing, Base maintains that it does not intend to issue a token in the future.

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