Around the block

Off the block

As the crypto winter persists, many crypto investors have made investment decisions based solely on the speculative value of crypto rather than the long-term value of the underlying blockchain technology.

The recent Converge22 conference, hosted by technology company Circle and its founder Jeremy Allaire, suggested that we could be pivoting from a period focused on speculation to one focused on innovation and utility. We think this could be a healthy shift for three reasons:

• It could pave the way for investors to make more informed decisions about the utility of the underlying technology rather than speculative appeal.
• It reinforces that blockchain technology is transformational and not limited to just crypto currencies.
• Growing blockchain use cases and compatible solutions allow for future investment opportunities yet to be created.

We remain focused on regulatory progress as one of the first potential catalysts that could begin to thaw crypto from its winter season.

Industry developments

• NASDAQ made its first steps in crypto services launching a bitcoin and ether custody service for institutional investors.
• Mastercard launched its new Crypto Secure solution aimed to help consumers bridge the gap between crypto and traditional finance in a safe and seamless way.

Regulatory developments

• The Financial Stability Oversight Council released its Report on Digital Asset Financial Stability Risks and Regulation on October 3^rd representing a key step on the road to regulation.
• The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision released a study finding some of the world’s largest banks only have $9 billion in crypto asset exposure.

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