Digital Currency

Fei Labs, a project building a more capital-efficient decentralized stablecoin, raised $19 million from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Framework Ventures, Coinbase Ventures and AngelList founder Naval Ravikant, among others. The raise, disclosed Monday, is another sign competition is heating up among issuers of stablecoins. These cryptocurrencies are designed to hold their value against some mainstream asset, usually (as in Fei’s case) the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins play a linchpin role in the crypto ecosystem, allowing traders to quickly move fiat currency (or the next best thing) between global exchanges to take advantage of…

Bitcoin has erased Sunday’s gains as stock markets struggle to cheer progress on U.S. fiscal stimulus efforts. The cryptocurrency is changing hands just over $50,150 at press time, representing a 1.55% drop on the day, according to CoinDesk 20 data. Prices had jumped from roughly $49,000 to $51,800 on Sunday as the U.S. Senate approved President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan. The bill now heads back to the House of Representatives so it can be reconciled with the House-passed version and then sent on to President Biden to sign. Traditional markets had mixed…

Bitcoin developers have been debating the best way to activate the Taproot upgrade for at least a year. Some are hopeful a new proposal called “Speedy Trial” might put an end to the debate, by bringing forth a solution that more developers can get behind. Ideated by Blockstream developer Russell O’Connor and written up on the Bitcoin developer email list by technical Bitcoin writer David Harding, “Speedy Trial,” would take a quicker approach than some of the other proposals in determining if miners are ready for activation of Taproot. All of the largest…

Bitcoin (BTC) trading around $51,800.08 as of 21:00 UTC (4 p.m. ET). Climbing 3.48% over the previous 24 hours. Bitcoin’s 24-hour range: $49,390.18-$51.982.31 (CoinDesk 20) BTC trades above its 10-hour and 50-hour averages on the hourly chart, a bullish signal for market technicians. Bitcoin trading on TradingViewSource: TradingView Bitcoin’s price in recent weeks has retreated from February’s all-time highs, declining alongside U.S. stocks as investors grew increasingly concerned rising U.S. government bond yields might prompt the Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy, curtailing the easy-money era that has boosted risky assets from…

U.S. mega-bank JPMorgan has 34 open blockchain job positions posted on its website. It’s quite possibly a record for any company in the space (JPMorgan has been noted for its enthusiastic blockchain hiring in the past). The majority of the job openings, posted this month and last, are spread across the U.S., India and Singapore. Many of the jobs relate directly to Onyx, the division created in October of last year to oversee JPM Coin, the bank’s wholesale payments token. By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to…

MicroStrategy, Tesla and Square have done it. So have many others, although more quietly. I’m talking about holding corporate treasury reserves in bitcoin (BTC, +1.92%). This trend is attracting attention even from trade press. Consultancies and crypto companies are scrambling to launch services to help businesses navigate the process. “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer thinks it’s “almost irresponsible” for companies to not do so. This week, sponsored content from Deloitteexplaining the benefits and risks appeared in the Wall Street Journal. You’re reading Crypto Long & Short, a newsletter that looks closely at the forces driving cryptocurrency markets. Authored…

“Today, the physical mural doesn’t exist. But it still exists with NFTs, and with value,” Boyart tells me from Paris. “This is very satisfying.” See also: What Are NFTs and How Do They Work? Subscribe to State of Crypto, our weekly newsletter on policy impact. SUBSCRIBE By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy. Boyart minted a non-fungible token (NFT) version of the mural, dividing it into 100 pieces and selling each one for 0.5 ETH. He would sell more NFTs. Many more….

India’s Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said the government needs to study national security risks posed by virtual currencies before making any decision on their legality. “We understand there is immense interest in these virtual currencies, but we also need to look at national security and security of Indians and individuals,” Thakur said while addressing an event organized by Entrepreneurs’ Organisation Punjab on Saturday. Thakur took a jab at the high price volatility of cryptocurrencies, saying that these coins often chart 10x price moves in weeks. “That doesn’t happen in…

Leuthold Group Chief Investment Officer Jim Paulsen told Reuters he is frustrated by not being able to hold bitcoin (BTC, +5.14%) for his clients. Leuthold Group manages $1 billion but regulatory barriers prevent the firm from holding cryptocurrency. “What I like about bitcoin is … its correlation to stocks and other assets is extraordinarily independent,” Paulsen told Reuters. In lieu of holding the asset itself, wealth managers are clamoring for the approval of bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that would meet the legal standards required of traditional investments, according to the report. The U.S. Securities and…