15 Years Post 'Bitcoin Genesis Block,' Nation State Adoption Is Key Bullish Narrative
The daily crypto update for institutional investors
Last Month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Appointed Fatma Ozkul, A Professor Who Teaches About Crypto To A Monetary Body Within The Central Bank - 15 Years Since The ‘Bitcoin Genesis Block,’ Various Models Of Nation State BTC Adoption Have Become A Key Bullish Narrative
According to a profile on Marmara University website, courses taught by Ozkul include ‘Blockchain Technology and Crypto Assets.’ In addition, Ozkul has published research on crypto in peer reviewed journals. Examples of this work include a 2020 article titled ‘Taxation of Bitcoin Mining.’ Ozkul becomes the newest member of the Turkish central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee.
Turkey, a country with a population of 85M and the ~19th largest economy in the world, has seen an acute currency crisis for over a decade. Over the last 5 years, the Turkish lira (TRY) has lost 82% of its value against the USD while BTC is currently seeing all-time highs priced in the currency. Turkey’s monetary woes have placed the country on the radar of BTC and crypto proponents. In addition, Chainalysis’ 2023 Crypto Adoption Index ranked Turkey 12th in global crypto adoption, three places ahead of Argentina. Binance has over 100 TRY trading pairs, with USDt/TRY being the most popular. Over the past year USDt/TRY has seen an average daily volume of USD 78.17M, compared to 13.50M for BTC/TRY.
In November, the country’s finance minister Mehmet Şimşek said crypto regulation aimed at addressing money laundering and illicit finance concerns is in its ‘final stage’ of being brought before parliament. Later reporting on the upcoming legislation by Reuters indicated it will also focus on ‘licensing and taxation.’
Takeaway: We previously noted that El Savlador’s successful embrace of BTC, despite fears the country could become a financial pariah, has certainly led other world leaders to study the move. However, Argentina has highlighted a different avenue for BTC and crypto adoption via economic liberalization and reform. Having said that, the intention of Ozkul’s appointment remains unclear, nor if her crypto-related work was a factor. However, considering the popularity of crypto in Turkey, along with the country’s inflationary challenges, further regulatory clarity for the asset class may spur further adoption. Following the election of Javier Milei in Argentina, we noted that the country has the potential to ‘become a hotbed for crypto innovation.’ Similarly, regulatory clarity for crypto, paired with the asset class’ popularity, could further accelerate crypto adoption in the country.
CRYPTO HEADLINES
New York-based Receipts Depositary Corporation (RDC) announced it is launching the ‘the first ever Bitcoin depositary receipt.’ The company said the depositary receipts are expected to be issued in transactions to Qualified Institutional Buyers, exempting them from registration with the SEC. - link - @RDC
Goldman Sachs is considering becoming an authorized participant for BTC spot-based ETFs, according to sources cited by CoinDesk. Last week, firms including JPMorgan (NYSE: JPM), Jane Street, and Cantor Fitzgerald were named as authorized participants to create shares of the prospective ETFs in amended filings by issuers. - link - @CoinDesk
BTC miner CleanSpark (NASDAQ: CLSK) plans to set up an in-house trading desk to manage its treasury of BTC. In an interview, the company’s CEO Zachary Bradford said ‘doing it ourselves is the best way especially with the large Bitcoin balance we have.’ As of December 1, the company held 2,275 BTC. - link - @Cointelegraph
BTC mining firm Cipher Mining (NASDAQ: CIFR) entered into an agreement to buy 2.5 EH/s worth of crypto mining hardware from Canaan. The equipment, expected to be delivered in the second half of 2024, will be deployed across Cipher’s joint venture sites Bear and Chief Mountain. - link - @CIFR
Ethereum-based DeFi venue Gamma Strategies suffered an exploit losing an estimated USD 3.4M worth of ETH. The platform’s development team shut off deposits attempting to mitigate any further losses, and told users it is working to maximize recoveries. - link - @Cointelegraph
Binance has placed ‘monitoring tags’ on assets it describes as having ‘notably higher volatility and risks compared to other listed tokens.’ ANT, FIRO, KP3R, MDX, MOB, REEF, VAI, XMR, ZEC and ZEN have received the tag.’ Binance added that users must pass corresponding quizzes every 90 days to gain trading access to tokens labeled with the monitoring tag. - link - @Binance
Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) will require UK users to fill out a risk-acknowledgement form in order to keep their accounts active. The form involves users specifying what type of investor they classify as, and acknowledging the stated risks associated with investing in crypto. Next week, new rules imposed by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority surrounding financial promotions take effect. - link - @TheBlock
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OPEN-SOURCE RESEARCH / LONG-READ OF THE DAY
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CRYPTO MULTIMEDIA
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CHART OF THE DAY
Interest for 'bitcoin' in some emerging markets, like Turkey, has followed a different pattern compared to developed nations...
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