Catégorie : Non classé

By Omkar Godbole (All times ET unless indicated otherwise)

The crypto market continues to lose ground, driven by disappointment over the absence of a plan for the U.S. government to buy bitcoin under the newly announced strategic reserve plan and amid persistent macroeconomic concerns.

BTC fell to $80,000 late Sunday, trading below the 200-day simple moving average, and ether took out a macro bullish trendline with a dip below the long-held support of $2,100. Other coins followed the two majors, posting bigger losses.

« Many investors are pulling out of bitcoin, viewing it as a risky asset class for the first time since Trump took the White House, » said Zach Burks, CEO and founder of NFT-service provider Mintology. « It’s no longer playing its role as a store of value. Gold prices have spiked as many go back to the original ‘doomsday asset,’ which is no surprise as tariffs and grenades continues to get thrown across the free world. »

The tariffs are making it harder for the Fed to move forward with rate cuts despite the continued decline trend in real-time inflation indicators. On Friday, Fed chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank is waiting for greater clarity on Trump’s policies before making the next move.

Meanwhile, Japan’s fastest base pay rise in 32 years strengthened the case for a BOJ rate hike, pushing the nation’s bond yields and the yen higher. Bouts of strength in the haven currency typically breed downside volatility in risk assets.

Still, some observers are unsure if the market weakness, particularly seen over the weekend, could be long-lasting. « Trading volumes over the weekend were extremely low, reducing the value of the bearish signal, » Alex Kuptsikevich, the FxPro chief market analyst, told CoinDesk.

« We note that sellers push the price down in periods of low liquidity, but the price bounces back with the arrival of institutional buyers. It looks like the big buyers have enough liquidity left to buy out the drawdown, » Kuptsikevich said. Stay alert!

What to Watch

Crypto:

March 10: Movement (MOVE), an Ethereum-based L2 blockchain, has its mainnet launch.

March 11, 9:00 a.m.: Horizen (ZEN) mainnet network upgrade to version ZEN 5.0.6 at the block height of 1,730,680.

March 11, 10:00 a.m.: U.S. House Financial Services Committee hearing about a federal framework for stablecoins and a U.S. CBDC. Livestream link.

March 11: The Bitcoin Policy Institute and U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis co-host the invitation-only one-day event « Bitcoin for America » in Washington.

March 12: Hemi (HEMI), an L2 blockchain that operates on both Bitcoin and Ethereum, has its mainnet launch.

March 15: Athene Network (ATH) mainnet launch.

March 15: Reploy will close its V1 RAI staking program to new users as it transitions to a fully automated revenue-sharing protocol.

March 17.: CME Group launches solana (SOL) futures.

Macro

March 10, 7:50 p.m.: Japan’s Cabinet Office releases (final) Q4 GDP data.

GDP Growth Annualized Prev. 1.2%

GDP Growth Rate QoQ Est. 0.7% vs. Prev. 0.3%

March 11, 8:00 a.m.: The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) releases January industrial production data.

Industrial Production MoM Prev. -0.3%

Industrial Production YoY Prev. 1.6%

March 11, 10:00 a.m.: The U.S. Department of Labor releases January’s JOLTs report (job openings, hires, and separations).

Job Openings Est. 7.71M vs. Prev. 7.6M

Job Quits Prev. 3.197M

Earnings (Estimates based on FactSet data)

March 17 (TBC): Bit Digital (BTBT), $-0.05

March 18 (TBC): TeraWulf (WULF), $-0.04

March 24 (TBC): Galaxy Digital Holdings (TSE: GLXY), C$0.39

Token Events

Governance votes & calls

GMX DAO is voting on the decentralization and automation of the fee distribution process for the GMX ecosystem to ensure “real-time, trustless, and verifiable fee allocations.”

Aavegotchi DAO is voting on using the auto swapper contract to turn $2 million worth of stablecoins into GHST.

Frax DAO is discussing upgrading the protocol by renaming FXS to FRAX, making it the gas token on Fraxtal, implementing the Frax North Star hard fork and introducing a tail emission plan with gradually decreasing emissions and other enhancements.

March 10, 9 a.m.: Waves to host an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session with founder Sasha Ivanov.

March 13, 10 a.m.: Mantra to host a Community Connect call with its CEO and Co-Founder to discuss various major updates.

Unlocks

March 12: Aptos (APT) to unlock 1.93% of circulating supply worth $62.09 million.

March 15: Starknet (STRK) to unlock 2.33% of its circulating supply worth $10.25 million.

March 15: Sei (SEI) to unlock 1.19% of its circulating supply worth $10.99 million.

March 16: Arbitrum (ARB) to unlock 2.1% of its circulating supply worth $33.46 million.

March 18: Fasttoken (FTN) to unlock 4.66% of its circulating supply worth $80 million.

March 21: Immutable (IMX) to unlock 1.39% of circulating supply worth $13.13 million.

Token Listings

March 11: Bybit to delist Bancor (BNT), Paxos Gold (PAXG) and Threshold.

March 31: Binance to delist USDT, FDUSD, TUSD, USDP, DAI, AEUR, UST, USTC and PAXG.

Conferences

CoinDesk’s Consensus is taking place in Toronto on May 14-16. Use code DAYBOOK and save 15% on passes.

Day 1 of 2: MoneyLIVE Summit (London)

Day 1 of 3: AIBC Africa (Cape Town)

March 11-12: VanEck Southern California Blockchain Conference 2025 (Los Angeles)

March 13-14: Web3 Amsterdam ‘25

March 16, 6:00 p.m.: Solana AI Summit (San Jose, Calif.)

March 18-20: Digital Asset Summit 2025 (New York)

March 18-20: Fintech Americas Miami 2025

March 19-20: Next Block Expo (Warsaw)

March 24-26: Merge Buenos Aires

March 25-26: PAY360 2025 (London)

March 25-27: Mining Disrupt (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

March 26: Crypto Assets Conference (Frankfurt)

March 26: DC Blockchain Summit 2025 (Washington)

March 26-28: Real World Crypto Symposium 2025 (Sofia, Bulgaria)

March 27: Building Blocks (Tel Aviv)

March 27: Digital Euro Conference 2025 (Frankfurt)

March 27: WIKI Finance EXPO Hong Kong 2025

March 27-28: Money Motion 2025 (Zagreb, Croatia)

March 28: Solana APEX (Cape Town)

Token Talk

By Shaurya Malwa

Zerebro (ZEREBRO), once a celebrated AI agent token, has crashed 96% from its January peak market cap of above $800 million to just $33.5 million.

AI agent tokens were among the hottest sectors in October and November, seeing rapid listings by exchanges and promotion by influencers on the narrative of a confluence between crypto and artificial intelligence.

Zerebro created its own music album and offered NFTs to fans, with plans of introducing a platform that allows token holders to launch their own AI agents. It reached over 120,000 followers on X in a short period.

Fundamentals remain strong, however, offering hope for those looking to invest in AI agent tokens. The project was selected as one of the validators for IP-focused blockchain Story last week, playing a role in a future economy that is wholly run by AI agents and machines.

A validator is a critical participant in a blockchain network, responsible for verifying and validating transactions and blocks to ensure the security and consensus of any network.

Story Protocol validators have specific responsibilities tailored to the protocol’s mission of managing and monetizing intellectual property on a blockchain, and the validators are paid in return for ensuring the network keeps functioning.

Derivatives Positioning

Perpetual funding rates in BTC, SOL, ADA, XRP and TRX have flipped negative, pointing to a bias for shorts as the market wilts.

Open interest in futures tied to BNB, HYPE, OM and DOT has increased in the past 24 hours, a sign of traders shorting in a falling market.

On Deribit, traders have snapped puts at $85K and $80K strikes while long positions in the $75K put rolled out or moved to June expiry.

ETH puts have been in demand as well, trading at a premium to calls out to June expiry.

Market Movements:

BTC is down 4.61% from 4 p.m. ET Friday at $82,373.88 (24hrs: -3.21%)

ETH is down 1.6% at $2,101.66 (24hrs: -2.04%)

CoinDesk 20 is down 6.4% at 2,632.12 (24hrs: -3.26%)

Ether CESR Composite Staking Rate is down 8 bps at 3%

BTC funding rate is at 0.0015% (1.67% annualized) on Binance

DXY is down 0.14% at 103.76

Gold is up 0.15% at $2,909.10/oz

Silver is up 1.14% at $32.92/oz

Nikkei 225 closed +0.38% at 37,028.27

Hang Seng closed -1.85% at 23,783.49

FTSE is down 0.59% at 8,629.02

Euro Stoxx 50 is down 0.96% at 5,415.85

DJIA closed on Friday +0.52% at 42,801.72

S&P 500 closed +0.55% at 5,770.20

Nasdaq closed +0.7% at 18,196.22

S&P/TSX Composite Index closed +0.71% at 24,758.80

S&P 40 Latin America closed +0.73% at 2,361.82

U.S. 10-year Treasury rate is down 5 bps at 4.25%

E-mini S&P 500 futures are down 1.16% at 5,709.25

E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures are down 1.34% at 19,958.25

E-mini Dow Jones Industrial Average Index futures are down 0.96% at 42,428.00

Bitcoin Stats:

BTC Dominance: 61.19 (-0.14%)

Ethereum to bitcoin ratio: 0.02562 (2.40%)

Hashrate (seven-day moving average): 813 EH/s

Hashprice (spot): $48.2

Total Fees: 4.4 BTC / $371,994

CME Futures Open Interest: 142,260 BTC

BTC priced in gold: 28.2 oz

BTC vs gold market cap: 8.01%

Technical Analysis

BTC has dived below a pennant pattern, hinting at the continuation of the broader decline from December highs.

The breakdown has strengthened the case for a retest of the former resistance-turned-support at around $73,800, the March 2024 high.

A pennant is a continuation pattern, representing a mid-trend triangular consolidation.

Crypto Equities

Strategy (MSTR): closed on Friday at $287.18 (-5.57%), down 5.33% at $271.87 in pre-market

Coinbase Global (COIN): closed at $217.45 (+1.53%), down 5.36% at $205.79

Galaxy Digital Holdings (GLXY): closed at C$18.84 (+0.11%)

MARA Holdings (MARA): closed at $16.02 (+6.16%), down 4.24% at $15.34

Riot Platforms (RIOT): closed at $8.37 (+3.21%), down 4.42% at $8

Core Scientific (CORZ): closed at $7.78 (-0.89%), down 2.7% at $7.57

CleanSpark (CLSK): closed at $8.83 (+8.34%), down 3.85% at $8.49

CoinShares Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI): closed at $16.32 (+3.29%), down 6.25% at $15.30

Semler Scientific (SMLR): closed at $37.19 (+3.02%), down 3.47% at $35.90

Exodus Movement (EXOD): closed at $29.40 (+0.34%), up 6.22% in pre-market

ETF Flows

Spot BTC ETFs:

Daily net flow: -$409.3 million

Cumulative net flows: $36.21 billion

Total BTC holdings ~ 1,137 million.

Spot ETH ETFs

Daily net flow: -$23.1 million

Cumulative net flows: $2.72 billion

Total ETH holdings ~ 3.635 million.

Source: Farside Investors

Overnight Flows

Chart of the Day

The chart shows the daily volume on Solana’s decentralized exchange Raydium has dropped to $1 billon, the lowest since Nov. 29 and significantly below the Jan. 19 peak of $16.4 billion.

The sharp decline in activity helps explain the price swoon in Solana’s SOL token.

While You Were Sleeping

Howard Lutnick Plays Down Recession Fears as BTC Lingers in $80K Range (CoinDesk): Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick dismissed recession concerns, saying Trump’s tariff strategy will drive $1.3 trillion in investment and boost U.S. growth.

Ether’s 20% Plunge Shatters Bull Market Trendline Created After 2022 Terra Crash (CoinDesk): ETH’s posted its worst weekly drop since November 2022, breaking a bullish trendline from mid-2022 and signaling the potential for further losses.

Stablecoin Market Cap Tops $200B as U.S. Sees Industry Helping Maintain Dollar Dominance (CoinDesk): U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said stablecoins will help keep the dollar as the top reserve currency.

Oil Prices Decline As Tariff Uncertainty Keeps Investors on Edge (Reuters): Oil prices fell as uncertainty over U.S. tariffs, concerns about American economic growth, rising OPEC+ production, Saudi price cuts and deflationary pressures from China weighed on sentiment.

Trump Declines to Rule Out Recession (The Wall Street Journal): In a Sunday interview, the U.S. president acknowledged his policies, including tariffs and budget cuts, may cause near-term instability but maintained they would strengthen the economy over time.

Japan 10-Year Yield at Highest Since 2008 on Bets for BOJ Hikes (Bloomberg): Strong wage growth and weak demand at a recent government debt auction strengthened expectations for a Bank of Japan interest-rate increase, with markets pricing in an 85% chance by July.

In the Ether

L’adoption du règlement MiCA marque une étape historique dans l’encadrement des cryptomonnaies au sein de l’Union européenne. Présentée comme une avancée significative, cette réglementation ambitieuse vise à instaurer un cadre harmonisé pour les prestataires de services sur actifs numériques (PSAN) et à protéger les investisseurs tout en favorisant l’innovation. Cependant, sous ses allures de progrès, MiCA laisse entrevoir des failles susceptibles d’entraver le développement de l’écosystème Web 3 en Europe.

Cet article vous est proposé en partenariat avec Law4Code.

Un encadrement strict des stablecoins : le frein à l’innovation ?

Le régime imposé aux stablecoins par MiCA est sans doute l’un des aspects les plus discutés. En exigeant des réserves strictes et des obligations de liquidité élevées, la réglementation risque de pénaliser les acteurs européens face à des concurrents hors UE, moins contraints. Par exemple, l’obligation de garantir chaque jeton par des actifs liquides nuit à la flexibilité des émetteurs. Cela pourrait ralentir l’adoption des stablecoins dans les paiements transfrontaliers.

De plus, l’exclusion des stablecoins algorithmiques du cadre réglementaire crée une incertitude juridique, freinant l’innovation dans ce secteur prometteur. Pourquoi ne pas envisager une régulation plus nuancée, capable de s’adapter à l’évolution rapide des technologies et d’accompagner les initiatives européennes ?

NFT et MiCA : une ambiguïté qui persiste

La décision d’exclure les NFT du périmètre de MiCA apparaît comme un soulagement pour certains. Néanmoins, cela soulève également de nombreuses interrogations. En effet, le flou autour de la définition des NFT, combiné à l’absence de critères clairs permettant de distinguer les NFT utilitaires des actifs financiers, crée une zone grise propice aux interprétations divergentes.

Cette ambiguïté pourrait inciter les États membres à adopter leurs propres régulations, contredisant l’objectif d’harmonisation poursuivi par MiCA. Une clarification s’impose pour éviter une fragmentation du marché européen. In fine, il s’agit d’assurer une sécurité juridique indispensable aux acteurs du Web 3.

PSAN : des obligations disproportionnées pour les petits acteurs

MiCA impose des exigences rigides en matière d’enregistrement et de conformité pour les prestataires de services sur actifs numériques. L’objectif de protéger les investisseurs est parfaitement légitime. Cependant, les coûts induits par ces obligations risquent de décourager les petites structures innovantes au profit des géants du secteur.

L’obligation de divulguer des informations financières détaillées et de respecter des normes de gouvernance contraignantes pourrait pénaliser les start-ups européennes. Or, elles sont déjà fragilisées par des levées de fonds plus complexes que leurs homologues américaines ou asiatiques.

Une régulation pensée avant l’essor des nouvelles tendances

MiCA repose en grande partie sur des consultations et des études menées entre 2018 et 2020. À cette époque, les enjeux de la DeFi, des DAO et des ZKP (Zero-Knowledge Proofs) étaient encore balbutiants. Or, l’écosystème des cryptomonnaies évolue à une vitesse vertigineuse. Ainsi, les défis liés à la finance décentralisée ou aux solutions de confidentialité n’y sont pas suffisamment abordés.

L’absence d’un cadre spécifique pour ces nouvelles technologies pourrait entraîner une fuite des talents et des projets vers des juridictions plus accueillantes comme Singapour ou Dubaï.

Si le règlement MiCA constitue une avancée indéniable vers une régulation harmonisée des actifs numériques au sein de l’Union européenne, ses lacunes risquent d’entraver l’essor de l’innovation et de réduire l’attractivité du marché européen. Pour éviter une régulation figée et dépassée, il est indispensable de prévoir des mécanismes d’ajustement réguliers, capables de répondre aux évolutions rapides de l’écosystème Web 3.
L’Europe doit choisir : imposer une régulation rigide au risque d’étouffer l’innovation, ou adapter ses règles pour rester compétitive face aux autres grandes places financières internationales.

[contact-form-7]

L’article Réglementation MiCA : Des lacunes qui freinent l’innovation ? est apparu en premier sur Journal du Coin.

Toujours plus profond. Le secteur des NFT fait partie de ces hypes crypto qu’il est très simple d’inscrire dans le temps. Car leur succès a beaucoup de mal à survivre à la folie spéculative du marché haussier de 2121/2022. Une situation qui ne fait que s’aggraver au fil de temps, malgré quelques collections populaires et sursauts passagers. Cela au point de voir son marché s’effondrer de 60 % depuis décembre dernier. L’intelligence artificielle (IA) serait-elle la solution ?

NFT : un marché dans une position compliquée

Le marché des NFT a connu une année 2024 des plus difficiles. En effet, il a enregistré sur cette période ses performances les plus catastrophiques depuis 2020. Cela au point d’entraîner une chute de plus de 60 % depuis décembre, en corrélation avec la baisse du marché des cryptomonnaies.

Une situation mesurée par les analystes du site DappRadar. Et les chiffres publiés dans leur dernier rapport permettent de mesurer l’étendue des dégâts. Car au cours de l’année dernière le volume de trading n’a pas dépassé les 13,7 milliards de dollars, avec moins de 50 millions de ventes au total.

Volumes du secteur des NFT – DappRadar

« La baisse des prix de la crypto-monnaie a laissé sa marque sur le secteur de la NFT, reflétant la tendance plus large du marché. Alors que les NFT montraient des signes de retour ces derniers mois, leur élan a ralenti depuis le début de l’année. »

DappRadar

Sur le seul mois de février, le volume total des transactions NFT a chuté à 498 millions de dollars. Ce qui représente une baisse de 50 % par rapport au mois précédent, alors que les ventes totales ont reculé de 16%. Mais cette situation critique n’est pas pour autant désespérée.

Une activité en baisse, mais des tendances émergentes

Malgré la baisse générale affichée, certains segments du marché des NFT continuent de prospérer. En effet, les collections populaires de type profile picture (PFP) ont généré 243 millions de dollars de volume de trading en février. Avec en seconde place, le gaming qui affiche 41 millions de dollars.

Secteurs NFT – DappRadar

En ce qui concerne les ventes, c’est le secteur des NFT sportifs qui a dominé en termes de transactions, avec 659 097 opérations enregistrées. Avec un leader de longue date Sorare qui continue de prospérer. Cela malgré l’arrivée d’un nouveau concurrent CricSage, mélangeant NFT et trading d’opinion.

Mais le véritable fait notable est l’arrivée de l’intelligence artificielle (IA) dans cette équation. Car son intégration croissante dans les projets NFT pourrait permettre de stimuler le marché. Et Selon l’analyste de DappRadar Sara Gherghelas, cette tendance vers des actifs numériques plus dynamiques et interactifs pourrait favoriser l’adoption à long terme des NFT dans le Web3.

« Au-delà de la tendance plus large de l’IA qui domine le Web3, le secteur NFT a également connu un intérêt croissant pour les actifs alimentés par l’IA. L’intégration croissante de l’intelligence artificielle dans les projets NFT signale un changement vers des actifs numériques plus dynamiques et interactifs avec une utilité accrue. »

DappRadar

Alors que le marché global des NFT est en baisse, certaines catégories montrent encore les signes d’une certaine vitalité. Une situation face à laquelle l’intégration de l’IA apparaît comme un moteur d’avenir. Car l’option airdrop mise en place par le projet Pudgy Penguins semble avoir déjà démontré ses limites.

L’article NFT : Un marché qui pourrait renaître grâce à l’IA ? est apparu en premier sur Journal du Coin.

L’eldorado NFT vire au désert glacé : 13,7 milliards de volumes envolés, un krach digne des plus belles illusions numériques. Qui misera encore sur ces mirages ?

L’article 13,7 milliards partis en fumée : Les NFT coulent avec le marché crypto est apparu en premier sur Cointribune.

Animoca Brands’ most recent year-end financial report shows a shift in the company’s focus, with the web3 giant run reporting that its Digital Assets Advisory has edged out its traditional revenue source.

The firm’s advisory unit generated $165 million in 2024, a 116% year-over-year increase. According to a release, this division provides web3 projects with token advisory, tokenomics, marketing, listing advisory, node operation, and trading services.

Animoca said it generated $110 million in bookings from web3 businesses – its traditional territory of gaming and NFTs – while $39 million came from investment gains and venture management fees.

This change in its web3 business reflects an approximately 40% year-over-year drop from the $182 million it reported last year.

Overall, the company looks to have strengthened its balance sheet in 2024, holding $293 million in cash and stablecoins, $538 million in digital assets, and $2.9 billion in off-balance-sheet token reserves.

Its minority investments totaled $564 million across 540 companies, reflecting a 67% increase in cash reserves and a 165% rise in digital asset holdings.

While the number of portfolio investments increased to 540 from 450 noted, Animoca’s private investment holdings dropped 18%, falling from $690 million to $564 million, due to token unlocks, equity exits, and asset write-downs weighed on valuations.

Late last year, Animoca opened a large new office in Hong Kong – bucking a trend in the city that saw TradFi firms downsizing and reducing headcount as well as square footage.

One might think that virtually all Bitcoiners would be thrilled about the notion of the U.S. government acquiring BTC (and perhaps a basket of other cryptoassets) and effectively ratifying it as a global asset of consequence. However, I count myself among the few holdouts who don’t see the development as positive for either Bitcoin or the U.S. government itself. Here’s eight reasons why I don’t support the policy.

What is easily done is easily undone

If Bitcoiners want a reserve to last, they should want Trump to seek Congressional authorization for a purchase (as is customary for any large outlay). If it is done solely by executive fiat, the next administration will not feel bound by the policy and could trivially reverse it (and nuke the market in the process). If Bitcoiners sincerely believe it benefits the U.S. to acquire bitcoin and hold it for a long period of time, then they would have no issue insisting that the government pass a law authorizing spending for the Reserve, rather than having Trump enact the policy unilaterally.

The fact that many Bitcoiners are hoping that Trump makes the policy without asking Congress for approval shows that they are chasing a short-term pump, rather than actually being sincere about the long-term value of the Reserve for the U.S. A future Democratic administration will have no qualms about immediately divesting the Reserve.

The global reserve issuer should not disrupt itself

The U.S. is the issuer of the global reserve currency. We still don’t know how the Crypto Reserve will be positioned – as simply an investment fund, or something more inherent to the dollar such as a new commodity-based currency system like the old gold standard.

If the Crypto Reserve is contemplated as providing a new backing for the dollar, I believe this will cause significant unease in dollar and Treasury markets. Effectively, the government will be signaling that it believes it no longer has faith in the dollar system as it currently exists, and a radical change is needed. I imagine that this would cause already-high rates to rise, as the market starts to wonder whether the U.S. is contemplating a default on its debt. The government should be focused on shoring up investors’ faith in its ability to sustain its debt obligations by pursuing pro-growth and deficit-reducing policies, not toying with the entire structure of the dollar system.

Many Bitcoiners don’t buy this line of reasoning and simply want to accelerate the collapse of the dollar. I view this as a kind of financial terrorism. I don’t believe in financial accelerationism nor do I think bitcoin – or any other cryptoasset – is ready to serve as the backing of a new commodity standard for the dollar.

The U.S. already has plenty of exposure to Bitcoin

American funds and individuals hold more Bitcoin than the citizens of any other country on the planet – almost certainly by a large margin. The U.S. government already benefits from this state of affairs. When Bitcoin goes up, those Americans who realize their gains owe taxes to the government – either 20% or 40% of their gains based on how long they have held the position.

This is a meaningful point not to be overlooked. The U.S. already benefits when Bitcoin goes up, through tax realizations – more than any other country. In light of this, do we really need to pick a massive fight and insist that the U.S. government gain direct exposure for these assets, too? No one is pushing for the U.S. government to acquire Apple or NVIDIA stock. Why Bitcoin?

There is no “strategic” value in a crypto reserve

Generally, assets and commodities that the U.S. acquires at the government level are things that might be required in a pinch, and have to be accumulated ahead of time. The Petroleum Reserve is a good example, as oil is clearly an essential commodity, and in a crisis, we might not be able to acquire all the oil that we need.

We also maintain reserves of other sorts of strategic assets, such as medical supplies and equipment, rare earth minerals, helium, metals like uranium and tungsten, and agricultural commodities. These all have a clear and obvious purpose: creating a reserve that can be dipped into in a time of emergency.

We also stockpile foreign FX, in case we need to make interventions into currency markets, although these interventions are increasingly rare. There is no obvious strategic use for bitcoin (and certainly not Cardano or Ripple). Ordinary Americans do not need a “supply” of bitcoin or any other cryptoasset to support their quality of life. This might change if the entire financial system runs on a blockchain and we need the tokens for gas (the one analogous « industrial” use I could think of), but that’s not the state-of-play today. The only “strategic” use for bitcoin is simply going “long” the asset at the state level and selling it later, but you could accomplish this with any other financial asset. There’s nothing unique about bitcoin (or any other cryptoasset) in this regard.

Of course, if you’re going to ultimately back the dollar with bitcoin in some kind of neo gold standard, then it would have a strategic use (in which case you should refer back to point #2). But I don’t think that is the intent right now.

A Crypto Reserve dilutes the value proposition of Bitcoin

Mixing Bitcoin in with rival cryptoassets Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, and XRP and giving them all an equal government imprimatur devalues Bitcoin and makes it look undifferentiated from these assets. Bitcoin is the only one of the bunch with a credible supply schedule and genuine decentralization at the protocol level. A crypto reserve confuses the issue and devalues Bitcoin in the public eye. Principled Bitcoiners should push for an all-or-nothing approach; either just Bitcoin, or no reserve.

Bitcoin does not need the government

I wonder what early libertarian Bitcoiners from 2012-16 would think of 2025 Bitcoiners pushing for the government to backstop the value of their coins. Beyond the confusing ideological evolution that the Bitcoin community has undergone, another point remains. Bitcoin has been one of the best performing investments in history, monetizing from nothing in 2009/10 to trillions of dollars in aggregate value in 2025. It has done all of this without government support, and, indeed, in many cases, despite overt hostility from powerful nation-states. A Crypto Reserve would transform bitcoin from an apolitical asset into the plaything of the government, subject to Washington’s political cycles. Bitcoiners were never ones to hitch their wagon to the government, and they shouldn’t start now.

It would turn Americans against Bitcoiners

Only a fraction (somewhere between 5-20%) of Americans own bitcoin, and even fewer own other cryptoassets. Many Bitcoiners are extremely wealthy due to their historical investments in the coin and others. At a time when government spending is under the microscope, using taxpayer dollars – regardless of how mechanically they are apportioned – to bolster the price of Bitcoin and other cryptoassets will be politically unpopular. Biden’s proposed student loan amnesty was met with great resistance, despite potentially applying to 43 million borrowers. Bitcoiners are a smaller bunch and even less in need of financial support from the government. This policy would undoubtedly cause an unnecessary backlash in broader society against the crypto community.

It looks self-interested

It’s no secret that Trump and his cabinet and inner circle have ownership in various cryptoassets. Trump himself has launched, or is affiliated with: an NFT project built on ETH, more than one memecoin built on Solana, and, of course, World Liberty Financial which holds an array of crypto assets. What we need from Trump is reasonable crypto policy, and based on his appointments at Treasury, Commerce, SEC, CFTC, OCC and others, it looks like he is delivering that.

However, using government resources to directly increase the value of coins that Trump (and many in his inner circle) hold leaves a sour taste. Most of us in the crypto industry have simply been asking for reasonable policy and fair rules of the road so that we can do business in the U.S. Trump is proposing going much further than this and using taxpayer dollars to speculate on the coins themselves, potentially enriching himself and his associates.

To Trump’s critics, this appears corrupt. It also makes the remainder of Trump’s pro-crypto policymaking and regulatory efforts look self-interested, rather than letting it stand on its own as good policy. A future administration could choose to throw the baby out with the bathwater, reversing all the progress the U.S. has made on crypto. The existence of the Reserve gives future regressive efforts an easy moral justification.

À la fin du mois de janvier, Mark Uyeda a pris le poste de président de la SEC par intérim, remplaçant Gary Gensler. Celui-ci a depuis créé une task force ayant pour mission de créer un cadre réglementaire pour les cryptos. Depuis, les annonces ne cessent de se multiplier.

La SEC abandonne toutes ses actions en justice avec des entreprises crypto

Au cours des dernières années, la SEC a été la bête noire des entreprises crypto aux USA. En effet, l’agence américaine a multiplié les enquêtes et les poursuites judiciaires.

Toutefois, le changement de présidence semble avoir eu un effet positif pour les entreprises crypto.

En effet, la SEC a abandonné de nombreuses affaires. Cela a commencé avec l’abandon de son enquête sur la plateforme de trading de NFT OpenSea fin février.

Dans la foulée, c’est l’exchange Uniswap qui a vu l’enquête qui la visait abandonnée. Puis Consensys.

Même Kraken, qui elle faisait l’objet d’une plainte et non seulement d’une enquête, a vu la SEC se rétracter. 

La SEC abandonne son enquête sur Yuga Labs

Finalement, nous venons d’apprendre un nouvel abandon du côté de la SEC. Cette fois, c’est l’enquête qui portait sur Yuga Labs qui a été mise sous le tapis par la SEC.

Pour rappel, Yuga Labs n’est autre que le studio à l’origine de collections de NFT emblématiques tels que les Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC).

« Après plus de trois ans, la SEC a officiellement clos son enquête sur Yuga Labs. C’est une grande victoire pour les NFT et tous les créateurs qui font avancer notre écosystème. Les NFT ne sont pas des titres. »

En effet, Yuga Labs faisait l’objet d’une enquête depuis 2022. Comme dans le cadre de la plupart de ses enquêtes, la SEC cherchait à savoir si les ventes de NFT ne seraient pas une émission illégale de valeurs mobilières (securities). Le jeton APE lancé en mars 2022 était également dans le collimateur.

Ainsi, il semblerait que pour la SEC, les NFT ne soient pas des securities. Et ce n’est pas le seul actif crypto qu’elle ait catégorisé. En effet, après avoir failli à statuer sur la nature des cryptomonnaies depuis plus de 10 ans, la SEC est au cœur d’une nouvelle dynamique.

La semaine dernière, elle a annoncé que les memecoins n’étaient, eux aussi, pas des securities. En effet, ces derniers tombent dans la catégorie des objets de collection.

L’article Après OpenSea, Uniswap ou Kraken la SEC abandonne son enquête sur Yuga Labs (BAYC) est apparu en premier sur Journal du Coin.

Les équipes de Zora ont dévoilé que les utilisateurs de son layer 2 spécialisé dans les NFT seront éligibles à un airdrop au printemps. Que savons-nous sur ce nouveau token ?

L’article Zora annonce son airdrop — Quelles sont les dates clés à retenir ? est apparu en premier sur Cryptoast.

The new chief counsel of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) freshly-created Crypto Task Force is a crypto lawyer.

Michael Selig, who was named chief counsel of the task force in a Monday announcement from the SEC, was previously a New York-based partner at white-shoe international law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher, where he was a member of the firm’s crypto practice. Before joining Willkie, Selig interned for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

In a Monday X post, former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo, affectionately known as “CryptoDad” by many in the industry, congratulated Selig on his appointment. Giancarlo is also senior counsel at Wilkie Farr, where he leads the firm’s Digital Works practice.

“Proud and excited for my protege, former CFTC intern and Willkie partner Mike Selig to be named chief counsel to the new SEC Crypto Task Force,” Giancarlo wrote.

Last October, Selig wrote an op-ed for CoinDesk laying out his suggestions for how the SEC could move away from the so-called “regulation by enforcement” the agency practiced under former Chair Gary Gensler and instead create a regulatory environment that encourages innovation. Several of Selig’s suggestions — including rescinding the controversial Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 and withdrawing from certain lawsuits – have already been implemented by the new Crypto Task Force.

Selig was one of 14 staff members named in the Monday announcement. His colleagues include several crypto industry natives — Landon Zinda, former policy director at crypto think tank Coin Center, and Veronica Reynolds, a former attorney at Baker Hostetler LLP focused on NFTs and metaverse-related legal issues, both of whom will serve as senior advisors to the task force — as well as career SEC staff. Zinda’s appointment to the task force was announced in February.

“The Crypto Task Force exhibits deep expertise and an enthusiastic commitment to identifying — with the help of other talented staff across the Commission and interested members of the public — workable solutions to difficult crypto regulatory problems,” Commissioner Hester Peirce, the leader of the task force, said in a Monday statement.

Victoire ! La nouvelle tombe comme un coup de tonnerre dans la nuit : la Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) des États-Unis a décidé d’abandonner sa plainte contre Kraken, l’une des plus grandes plateformes d’échange de cryptomonnaies. Cette décision marque une nouvelle victoire pour l’industrie crypto, après une série de concessions similaires de la part de la SEC concernant Coinbase, Robinhood, OpenSea et Uniswap Labs.

Kraken vs la SEC : Une bataille crypto qui se termine sans vainqueur

Dans un revirement inattendu, la SEC a annoncé qu’elle renonçait à poursuivre Kraken pour sa vente non enregistrée de titres via son programme de staking. Ce programme permettait aux utilisateurs de gagner des rendements sur leurs cryptomonnaies en les verrouillant sur la plateforme. La SEC avait initialement accusé Kraken de violer les lois sur les valeurs mobilières, mais l’affaire est maintenant close « sans admission de culpabilité, sans pénalités et sans changements dans nos activités », selon un communiqué de Kraken.

Lancé en 2023, le procès de la SEC contre Kraken faisait partie d’une campagne plus large de l’agence pour réglementer le secteur crypto. Cependant, cette offensive a été largement critiquée pour son manque de clarté et sa tendance à freiner l’innovation. « Cette décision met fin à une campagne politiquement motivée et ouvre la voie à un régime réglementaire plus stable et tourné vers l’avenir », a déclaré Kraken dans son annonce.

Une industrie crypto en plein essor

La décision de la SEC intervient alors que l’industrie crypto continue de croître à un rythme effréné. Des entreprises comme Coinbase et Robinhood ont récemment réussi à faire lever les enquêtes de la SEC, marquant une série de victoires pour le secteur. Même OpenSea et Uniswap Labs, deux géants du marché NFT et DeFi, ont vu les poursuites de la SEC s’effondrer.

Pour Kraken, cette issue est une bouffée d’air frais. La plateforme, fondée en 2011 à San Francisco, est l’une des plus anciennes et des plus respectées dans le domaine. Elle offre une large gamme de services, y compris le trading de centaines de cryptomonnaies, des produits dérivés, et bien sûr, le staking. Avec la menace de la SEC désormais derrière elle, Kraken peut continuer à se concentrer sur son expansion mondiale et l’amélioration de ses services.

L’article Guerre anti crypto : La SEC abandonne sa plainte contre Kraken est apparu en premier sur Journal du Coin.