Laden...
November 25, 2020 The top stories in bitcoin, crypto and more – all in one place, delivered daily By Daniel Kuhn
HOLIDAY NOTICE: Blockchain Bites will publish next on Monday, Nov. 30. Happy Thanksgiving to our U.S. subscribers. If you were forwarded this newsletter and would like to receive it, sign up here.
Top shelf Coinbase cuts margin trading. Binance sweeps out U.S. customers. OKEx offers rebates to clients affected by its five-week pause.
Tax change Binance sweeps Chained together Everything OK? Levy extension Introducing Valid Points, a CoinDesk Newsletter CoinDesk is staking 32 ETH in Ethereum's historic upgrade, and research analyst Christine Kim and tech reporter Will Foxley are breaking down Ethereum 2.0 and its sweeping impacts on crypto markets, weekly. Using data direct from CoinDesk’s own Eth 2 validator node, Valid Points features original insights about what the future of Ethereum looks like for industry stakeholders and investors.
The Valid Points newsletter launches with Eth 2.0's launch. Learn why CoinDesk staked 32 ETH in the new blockchain protocol and follow our journey and insights by subscribing to Valid Points here.
Quick bites HER WORDS: Here’s What Janet Yellen Has Said About Bitcoin (CoinDesk)YEARNING FOR PICKLE? Two DeFi yield farming protocols merge. (CoinDesk) IN INDIA: Digital innovation clashes with internet censorship. (CoinDesk) GAB JIBJAB: “Free speech-focused social media platform Gab earned $100,000 in a month thanks to Bitcoin.” (Decrypt) CAPITAL STORAGE: Huobi launches Filecoin incubator backed by $10 million fund. (The Block)
Market intel Bulls bet
Webinar: How to Value Ethereum Transaction volumes on Ethereum represent the movement of a diverse array of crypto assets. In the fourth and final episode of How to Value Ethereum, CoinDesk Research explores unique insights about decentralized applications and their tokens based on volume data.
Register to join the final episode of How to Value Ethereum on Dec. 1.
At stake Actual delivery? Coinbase announced an end to all margin trading as of Nov. 25, 2020, becoming the first high-profile exchange to cut the profitable business line. According to a report from CoinDesk’s Nikhilesh De, the San-Francisco based trading platform is following recent Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) guidance. Margin trading is effectively a line of credit offered by an exchange or brokerage to allow users to place highly leveraged bets. Existing positions will be allowed to close out next month, though Coinbase will cancel any open limit order unfulfilled by 2 p.m. PT today.
In March, CFTC clarified the meaning of “actual delivery” of digital assets. According to the guidance, a customer has legal rights, or actual delivery, of a cryptocurrency if they control it after purchase, including if it was acquired via a margin or leveraged product. This also means that the seller has no control over the cryptocurrency in question.
This is where it gets tricky for Coinbase’s margin trading business. Because the exchange uses cold storage and other custody solutions as part of this business line, it complicates the nature of actually delivering an asset in accordance with the updated rule.
At the time the guidance was first proposed, in 2018, then-Chief Legal and Risk Officer Mike Lempres, argued that affiliates and third parties should be able to hold crypto on behalf of Coinbase customers.
“Requiring unfettered ability to transfer digital assets would effectively mean that U.S. entities and regulated entities, or entities using cold storage or other asset protection methods, could not hold digital assets acquired through margined transactions,” Lempres said at the time.
“Essentially, Coinbase would have to register with the CFTC as a commodities exchange if it wants to continue offering leveraged products,” De writes.
Who won #CryptoTwitter?
ATTENTION: Scammers have been sending fraudulent emails with links to sites disguised to look like coindesk.com. If you are in doubt about a link, type https://www.coindesk.com directly into your browser; do not copy and paste. Remember, if something seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Blockchain Bites
A newsletter from CoinDesk
Copyright © 2020 CoinDesk, All rights reserved.
250 Park Avenue South New York, NY 10003, USA You can manage your preferences here or unsubscribe from all CoinDesk email. |
Laden...
Laden...