By Marcus Sotiriou, market analyst at the publicly traded digital asset broker GlobalBlock (TSXV: BLOCK)
After Bitcoin’s incredible rally to $25,000 last week, Bitcoin is currently consolidating around $24,500. Under the US regulatory onslaught recently, crypto investors have not been phased.
The SEC issued a Wells Notice last week for Paxos (the issuer of BUSD), which has a direct relationship with global digital asset platform Binance. The SEC told Paxos they plan to sue them for their issuance of BUSD, supposedly because BUSD is a security. However, it was reported today that Paxos said it is ready to challenge the SEC over its claims that BUSD is a security. Although the details of the SEC case have not been released, I think Paxos has a strong chance of winning this challenge. This is because all definitions of securities refer to use as an investment with the expectation of profit. A stablecoin like BUSD, with no upside, cannot have a profit expectation, so it’s hard to understand how/why the SEC made these claims. This could potentially be a backdoor to go after Binance, as Paxos is the only US-based company directly affiliated with Binance.
DBS, the largest bank in Southeast Asia, has revealed that its digital asset platform trading volume is up 80% in 2022, while ETH trading volume is up 65%. A DBS executive said: “We believe the market has definitely shifted its focus to confidence and stability, especially in the wake of multiple scandals that have rocked the industry.”
Could the next bull run in the East be starting amid the lack of clarity for crypto companies in the US? The surge in trading volume on DBS’s digital asset platform is a reminder that any government, even the US, that fails to provide clear guidance may be lagging behind in the fourth industrial revolution.