Unlike previous crypto winters, this time we are witnessing two weather fronts hitting crypto at the same time. One is sunny and warm and inviting, the other is cold, dreary and repellent.
If you are in the UAE for example crypto is under a warm summer spell. I mean let us take the first drop of news where MENA based Trust Smart Solutions (TSS), a payment tech service provider just partnered with PayScript global company focusing on digital assets, to enable the Crypto Payment Acceptance on Point of Sales Terminals. This is huge, as Payscript is an all-inclusive Crypto Solutions-as-a-Service platform that aims at bridging the gap between the merchants’ accepting cryptocurrencies and the owners of cryptocurrencies. The platform will allow users to do crypto payment via different channels including sending and receiving payments, accepting payments on E-commerce stores and online websites, as well as physical Point-Of-Sale transactions in Retails Stores and Cafes.
The platform will be delivered in a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) model in TSS’ operating markets, which brings an element of efficiency and scalability to banks that participate in the platform ecosystem. The platform comes with a core focus to accelerate the adoption of Crypto Payments, providing the platform to bank/Financial Institution and Merchants as an alternative payment channel and additional revenue streams.
Mr. Tamim Halawani, Deputy General Manager of Trust Smart Solutions commented “Crypto is at the forefront of payment innovation globally, addressing high-impact use cases across the merchant-consumer ecosystem. We firmly believe that our partnership with Payscript will democratize access to the crypto universe and drive seamless adoption across various payment channels”.
Mr. Nadeem Shaikh, CEO of Payscript commented “Cryptography is going to be the future of money, whether it’s Bitcoin or Stable Coin or Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) still needs to be seen but it’s inevitable. Crypto provides a better, transparent, secure framework for managing money. Our partnership with Trust Smart Solutions will enable merchants across Middle East and North Africa to accept crypto payments on the point-of-sale terminals directly in addition to cards! Isn’t that amazing? I am super excited about the partnership and the opportunities lying ahead”.
But that’s not all that is happening in MENA, an entity called crypto and Properties has launched allowing anyone to purchase properties in the UAE via cryptocurrencies. As per their website their vision is to be recognized as Dubai’s most trusted and established real estate brokerage brand. They are the authorized agents of names such as Emaar, Meraas, Dubai Holding, Omniyat, Damac, Kempinski, Nakheel, and others. If crypto is dead then why so many outlets popping up supporting crypto payments?
Even globally According to a Bank of America Global Research survey of U.S. crypto users and prospective users 91% of respondents said they intend to buy cryptocurrencies in the next six months despite a sharp decline in prices. The same number of respondents also reported purchasing coins and other digital assets over the past six months.
Circle Internet Financial has announced a USD coin custody partnership with the American bank holding company New York Community Bancorp (NYCB). Under the agreement, NYCB’s subsidiary, New York Community Bank, will become a custodian for the company’s stablecoin reserves.
It is also interesting to see that even though China through its state run media has noted that Bitcoin is heading to zero amidst its previous ban on cryptocurrency transactions and mining, China is once again the second biggest crypto mining market in the world, superseded by the USA. China has reemerged as a major Bitcoin mining hub, taking second place after USA with 21 percent of market Share. USA holds 37.8 percent of market share. It seems like an oxymoron of sorts coming from a country that seems to officially despise crypto but inherently embrace it.
So there are a lot of interesting good weather news for crypto around the globe, even Luna2, the child of failed Luna seems to be skyrocketing. The price of Terra (LUNA2) recovered sharply after falling to its historic lows of $1.62. On June 27, LUNA2’s rate reached $2.77 per token, thus chalking up a 70% recovery when measured from the said low. Still, the token traded 77.35% lower than its record high of $12.24, set on May 30th 2022.
In other areas the crypto winter is upon us. Three Arrows Capital just got struck by an arrow right in its heart. A court in the British Virgin Islands has ordered the liquidation of Singapore-based Three Arrows Capital as per a Sky News report. The order reportedly came on the same date that Voyager Digital issued a notice of default to 3AC for its failure to pay its 15,250 Bitcoin and 350 million USDC loan.
Shares of crypto exchange Coinbase Global have been downgraded by analysts at Goldman Sachs after plunging cryptocurrency prices affected the exchange’s underlying business, underscoring the challenges posed by the bear market. The reason for the downgrade stems from the “continued downdraft in crypto prices,” Goldman analyst William Nance said in a note that was obtained by Bloomberg. Coinbase is also laying off 18 percent of its staff.
In MENA as well crypto exchange BitOasis announced a layoff of 5 percent of its employees. This comes after RAIN Crypto exchange carried out its own layoffs in May.
In the meantime, crypto mining operations globally are facing liquidity issues pushing them to sell their crypto assets or lose their operations all together such as in the case of Compass Mining.
So there is a lot of news hovering within the storm of the crypto winter, but in the end it all depends on how you want to look at it. So for example when you read a newspiece that says 80,000 Bitcoin millionaires wiped out in the great crypto crash of 2022, in that same article it also reads, the bear market has seen more than 13,000 new “wholecoiners”, a wallet that contains one or more BTC , bringing the total number of wholecoiners to just over 860,000. This significant spike in the number of whole coiners would suggest that retail investors are accumulating large amounts of BTC while prices tank.
It is up to you the reader to assess whether it is truly a crypto winter or the likings of a crypto spring.
