Digital Assets Monthly Report – January Edition

January was a promising month which showed the continued adoption of digital assets.  Not only have multiple companies announced upcoming capital raises, but exchange listed Bitcoin funds have continued to thrive.  While these events have shone a light on digital assets as a whole, the digital securities sector in particular has continued to develop the infrastructure needed to realize its promising future.  This edition of ‘The Digital' highlights a few these industry developments.

Regulation

Enough governments and regulatory bodies have commented on ‘CBDCs' and ‘Stablecoins' by now that it is obvious each will play a significant role in finance moving forward.  With an eye on this digital future, the following articles highlight steps being taken by both rule makers, and industry participants.
OCC Interpretive Letter #1174 Allows Banks to Act as Blockchain Nodes & Develop/Utilize Stablecoins

BitMex and ShapeShift Taking Different Approaches Towards KYC

Digital Securities

With Bitcoin being the first major cryptocurrency, it is natural that it is the most well-known digital asset, boasting the highest levels of adoption.  The digital securities sector is much younger, but aiming for this same recognition.  The following articles highlight developments over the past month which may help it to do so.

Digital Securities Sector Continues Development, As Spotlight Shines on Cryptocurrencies

‘Exodus' Mulls Over DSO Capital Raise – Will It Become a Hub for Digital Securities?

Thought Leaders

The Future of Securities Trading

Are digital securities the future of investing? We think so, and so does Douglas Borthwick, CMO of INX Services.  In this article, Borthwick highlights a few of the key reasons behind this belief.  From a millennial mindset, downtime, efficiency, and KYC, digital securities are the way forward.  Read More

“The future of securities is now.  With regulators, issuers and consumers all seeing advantages to tokenization, and with the pathway to tokenization now lit by pioneers like INX Limited, it's only a matter of time before this stream turns into a torrent.” – Douglas Borthwick, CMO of INX Services

A Call for the Cryptocurrency Industry to Reject Extremists

Warranted or not, digital assets continue to suffer from an unfortunate association with criminals.  It is a stereotype typically perpetuated by those that do not understand digital assets, or are stuck with a viewpoint formed in the early days of Bitcoin.  It is an association which needs to be dissolved if digital assets are to truly go mainstream.  This article highlights why the industry as a whole needs to condemn, and distance itself from harmful extremism and illegal activity.  Read More

“This industry does not need to be the last bastion for those who require decentralized services to hide their nefarious activities.  We need to stand together, and tell the extremists that we do not want to be associated with them.  Only when the industry comes together to push out conmen, hustlers, and extremists can we finally be widely accepted by the global community.  If we want true market adoption, then we need to play our part.” – Antoine Tardif, CEO of Block Ventures

Education

The Best Hardware Wallets to Keep Your Crypto Safe in 2021

One of the prime benefits of digital assets, is their ability to transfer power/control back to their holders.  This transfer of power results in increased responsibility surrounding the security of such assets.  For investors new and old, this article highlights a few of the most trusted hardware wallets for securely storing digital assets.  Read More

Interviews

Michael Godsey, GM and Head of Product at Infura

The flexibility, and smart-contract capabilities of Ethereum have allowed the network to become one of the largest of its kind.  Infura sees this popularity as an opportunity, and developed its own service which allows developers to run apps on the network, without their own node.  Read More

Chrissa McFarlane, Founder and CEO of Patientory Inc.

As the COVID-19 pandemic persists, inefficiencies in healthcare are being highlighted.  Patientory was/is ahead of the curve though – It is working with blockchain to develop a means of unifying health data across a platform interoperable with both healthcare providers and patients alike.  Read More

Around the Web

Bitcoin Trust Fully Invested on First Day of Trading – GlobeNewswire

If looking for an example which highlights the increased interest in Bitcoin by institutional investors, look no further than the success of exchange listed funds based on the leading digital asset.  On its first day of trading, the brand new ‘Bitcoin Trust' from Ninepoint achieved 99% funding.  Read More