-
In a recent blog post, IMF economists Tobias Adrian and Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli called on policymakers to take “prompt regulatory action” to address the “notable risks” posed by privately issued digital currencies, called stablecoins, that are designed to maintain a consistent value. More to the point: central banks may need to get into the stablecoin business themselves.
-
“To really determine whether concepts like central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are a logical evolution, it’s thus essential to step back in time as far back as the 80s when the big fintech discussions of the day were centred not around distributed ledgers or cryptocurrencies but RTGS systems.”
-
“It is a hopeful sign of the beginning maturation of the digital asset markets that various players are staking out their positions and arguing their opinions about market structure. The topic often becomes mired in technical details so for this piece, we have taken a step back to discuss a broader set of market structure points, informed by history and experience, aiming to see the forest in addition to the trees.”
-
“Even if antitrust enforcement moves forward, social welfare regulations are also required. This is why there have also been calls for the creation of a new regulatory agency focused on digital platforms. Such an agency would need to be able to address not only concerns about competition but also these broader social welfare concerns. Essentially, then, we need a robust public interest framework for platform regulation.”
-
Russia has set out to divide cryptocurrencies into three legal categories. They are thus legitimizing it within the country’s borders.
-
BigTech firms are entering finance, and their access to massive amounts of information may give them an edge in areas like credit assessment and beyond. This column assesses the economic forces behind the adoption of Big Tech services in finance. It shows that BigTech lenders thrive in countries with less competitive banks and less strict regulation, and that they have an information advantage from the use of big data and machine learning.
-
Switzerland’s principal stock exchange now has seven cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs) listed. They allow investors to either gain exposure to individual cryptocurrencies or invest in portfolios of top cryptocurrencies. Four ETPs track the prices of single cryptocurrencies.
-
On Oct. 7 at 22:00 UTC, Coinbase will usher in higher rates for new tiers of accounts transacting under $10,000, and between $10,000 and $50,000.
-
Coinbase has a new banking partner in Britain that will provide real-time payments for customers, three months after losing the service when it broke with Barclays. Coinbase is now a client of ClearBank, a lender that started operations in 2017.
-
While waiting for the US SEC to approve its proposed bitcoin ETF, VanEck and SolidX have launched a bitcoin security under Rule 144A. It is the first open-ended DTC-eligible bitcoin security that can be held in a brokerage account and is designed to trade close to the net asset value per share.
-
The Vanguard Group is testing a blockchain-powered platform that will allow asset managers to trade currencies while avoiding the big investment banks.
