Bitbond has raised $1.2 million in new equity capital to grow its user base and further its product development; the firm offers loans globally to small and medium-sized enterprises and uses the bitcoin blockchain for global cross-border lending; since its launch the platform has originated over 1,600 loans worth approximately $1.2 million; it currently has 76,000 registered users in 120 countries. Source
Billionaire investor Mike Novogratz has 10% of his money invested in bitcoin; the former hedge fund manager and Goldman Sachs partner began betting on the digital currency in 2013 and has benefited from its one year gain from $500 in 2016 to a current price of over $1,200; to manage some of the risk of bitcoin's price volatility Novogratz suggests sector diversification; he is an investor in cryptocurrency ether which has seen a price increase from $1 to over $48 and is also a proponent of blockchain. Source
Welcome back to the Fintech Blueprint / Rebank podcast series hosted by Will Beeson and Lex Sokolin. Max Friedrich is a fintech analyst a ARK Invest, a public markets investment manager focused on disruptive technologies including autonomous tech, robotics, fintech, genomics and next generation internet. Max recently published a report on digital wallets, including Venmo and Square’s Cash App, which is available for download on ARK’s website. In this conversation, we explain why Cash App has seen exponential growth.
Bitcoin was back above $10,000 for the first time in more than a year as the digital currency saw a...
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority and Cyprus’s CySEC have issued warnings to retail traders on contracts for difference based on cryptocurrencies; CFD trading based on the digital currencies has started to become popular with the volatility in bitcoin; regulators are worried that retail investors will suffer significant losses and are looking to limit leverage as a result; this continues a worldwide trend by regulators as they get a handle on the growing crypto asset class. Source.
In the long take this week, I revisit decentralized finance, providing both an overview and 2019 update. The meat of the writing is the following long-range predictions for the space in the next decade -- (1) the role of Fintech champions like Revolut and Robinhood as it relates to DeFi, (2) increasing systemic correlation and self-reference in the space, which requires emerging metrics for risk and transparency, and (3) the potential for national services like Social Security and student lending to run on DeFi infrastucture, (4) the promise of pulling real assets into DeFi smart contracts and earning staking rewards, and (5) continued importance of trying to bridge into Bitcoin. Here's to an outlandish 2020!
Making news this week was the CFPB director testifying before both the Senate and House, Fidelity will allow bitcoin in 401(k) plans, Robinhood had a bad week, the OCC is talking stablecoins, Goldman created a lending facility backed by bitcoin and more.
"Bitcoin, a New Asset Class" has been published by authors Chris Burniske and Adam White; in their research they identify bitcoin as an emerging asset class analyzing its characteristics over time; they find that its volatility has been decreasing while its price has been increasing; the authors make the case for including bitcoin as an investment in modern portfolio theory calculations; they expect the cryptocurrency to gain increased institutional investment and imply that including it in a modern portfolio theory managed account could help investors more efficiently manage the investment risk according to their risk tolerance. Source
This week, we look at:
The Bitcoin money supply being worth as much as the M1 of several countries
The Visa/Plaid deal DOJ anti-trust filing and the PayPal integration of Bitcoin
Understanding Central Bank Digital Currencies in the context of card networks, payment processors, and digital economies
Chinese CBDC and how it could relate to stopping the $34B Ant Financial IPO
How a CBDC ecosystem is like an operating system, rather than a payment rail
Let's make a collective decision to see the glass as half-full. While physical banking (7,000 US branches gone during 2012-2017) and employment in the sector (425,000 jobs lost since 2013) has been contracting, digital commerce, banking, and investment management have been growing. Even DFA is finally giving in and lowering fees on their $600 billion institutional mutual fund family. Of course, Fintech has been a slow and gradual transformation, not a rapid disruption. We can make a choice to bemoan the loss of the past, or a choice to express an excitement for the future and participate in its making. Which side are you on?