Cryptocurrency Update
/BTC Markets Australian First partnership with Mastercard
Australian cryptocurrency exchange BTC Markets has entered a merchant partnership agreement with Mastercard to allow direct debit, prepaid or credit card payments into the cryptocurrency exchange. Consumers can now have the same experience online and in the real world as they would with a regular credit card. Previously BTC Markets customers could only pay via bank transfer. BTC Markets also has partnerships with Volt Bank and SelfWealth
IOSCO - decentralised finance is cloning financial markets
IOSCO has published a report detailed how decentralised finance (DeFi) is starting to mirror conventional financial markets. The DeFi market is quickly evolving with new products, services and principal participants. Some products and services are only found on DeFi, but many replicate conventional financial services and activities, with less regulation and increased investor risk.
The report outlines key concerns for the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) with a comprehensive review, casting doubt upon the main claim by DeFi innovators that DeFi is a peer-to-peer marketplace without centralised insider control. Once DeFi is observed a little closer,
there are central actors who often retain control, e.g. centralised trading platforms with significant conflicts of interest. A new taskforce has been created in response to the report.
Advisers getting interested in crypto
A recent survey found that consumers are diving into cryptocurrencies and financial advisers are finding it difficult to keep up. Monochrome Asset Management conducted a survey that revealed 77 per cent of advisers had fielded enquiries from clients about cryptocurrency investments, with only 11 per cent feeling equipped to help.
Monochrome and Lonsec are delivering a masterclass that covers frequently asked questions on crypto-asset investing such as how to gain access, how to keep assets safe, and how to integrate crypto into a portfolio.
eBay to add crypto as a payment method soon
The chief executive of eBay, Jamie Iannone, revealed in a recent interview that the e-commerce platform could be offering crypto as a way to pay. Nonfungible tokens are already available for sale on eBay. This isn’t eBay’s first time - in 2014 the platform tried to integrate bitcoin payments, and more exploring was being undertaken in 2021.
Russian government to treat bitcoin as currency
The Russian government and its central bank have made a decision to treat bitcoin as currency, with crypto transactions over 600,000 rubles (about $8,000) to be declared. A law is being crafted to define crypto as an ‘analogue of currencies’ rather than digital financial assets.
