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Close Up Of Silver And Golden Cryprto Currency Laying Down On Table.
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IS BINANCE’S U.S. OPERATION A CLEVER DECOY FOR REGULATORS?
In an exclusive, Forbes revealed that Binance Holdings Limited, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, conceived of an elaborate corporate structure designed to intentionally deceive regulators and surreptitiously profit from crypto investors in the United States, according to a document thought to be created by its senior executives.
The 2018 document details plans for a then-unnamed U.S. company, dubbed the “Tai Chi entity,” to set up operations in the United States to distract regulators with feigned interest in compliance, while measures would be put in place to move revenue in the form of licensing fees and more to the parent company, Binance. While Binance appears to have gone out of its way to submit to U.S. regulations by establishing a compliant subsidiary in 2019, Binance.US, an ulterior motive is now apparent.
MORE CRYPTO BANKS ARE COMING
This week Avanti Financial Group unanimously received the second coveted Special Purpose Depository Institution license from the Wyoming Division of Banking. Led by 20-year veteran of Wall Street and former head of Morgan Stanley’s pension advisory group Caitlin Long, Avanti becomes the second applicant to SPDI bank to be approved. Kraken received the first license in September.
As an SPDI bank, Avanti will now be allowed to take custody of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies while also holding dollars on deposit at the Federal Reserve. As part of the charter approval process, Avanti will also be able to launch Avit, a programmable electronic currency that’s redeemable at par with a U.S. dollar. It will initially reside on the Bitcoin sidechain Liquid as well as Ethereum.
PRIVACY COINS COME TO ETHEREUM
Leading privacy coin zcash just received a major boost. Through a process known as “wrapping,” a synthetic version of zcash is now available on Ethereum that is compatible with all of its major wallets and DeFi applications. This means that zcash is much more widely available than it was a few weeks ago. Proponents feel that “wrapped zcash” will substantially increase the underlying asset’s value proposition that, like bitcoin, is primarily to serve as a store of value.
That said, important questions remain such as whether or not Ethereum can handle the increased network activity, or if wrapped zcash will be valued the same way as the underlying asset, and if the DeFi movement has lost some steam following its white-hot summer.
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CRYPTO MARKETS
Current price of top 5 coins by market cap
Messari
Source: Messari. Prices as of 4:00 p.m. on October 30, 2020.
TRUMP CAMPAIGN WEBSITE HACKED IN CRYPTOCURRENCY SCAM
President Donald Trump’s campaign website was briefly hacked on Tuesday night in what appeared to be a crude effort to promote a cryptocurrency scam. The scammers claimed, without evidence, to have gained information proving “the trump-gov is involved in the origin of the corona virus” and is cooperating with foreign actors to manipulate the election.
The message linked to two monero cryptocurrency addresses—one to share the information and another to keep it secret—and asked users to deposit money into the wallet corresponding to their desired outcome. Like zcash, monero is a privacy coin that is difficult to track. The breach resembles the infamous Twitter hack in July, where scammers accessed dozens of high profile accounts—including Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden—to promote a different cryptocurrency scam.
BITCOIN DEFENDS $13,000, BUT ITS NEXT MOVE IS UNCERTAIN
Amid a wild year filled with economic uncertainty and pandemic concerns, the crypto industry’s top asset, bitcoin (BTC), has posted a standout year with returns passing 80%. Additionally, the price has pushed even higher in recent weeks, reaching prices not seen regularly since the ICO-craze back in 2018.
However, while further upside is not out of the question, noted financial analyst John Bollinger says that the $14,000 level stands as a formidable opponent and major psychological barrier. That said, he notes that technical indicators are stronger now than in years past and increased corporate interest is also a strong price driver.
ELSEWHERE
Harvest Finance: $24M Attack Triggers $570M ‘Bank Run’ in Latest DeFi Exploit [CoinDesk]
Coinbase’s crypto debit card is launching in the U.S. and lets users earn back bitcoin [The Block]
Bitcoin’s Hash Rate Drops As China’s Rainy Season Ends [Decrypt]