Bitcoin continues to hold steady around US$28,000 and is headed for its best quarter performance since 2021, with a ~70% quarterly gain outperforming ether (ETH ~50% quarterly gain), gold (~7% quarterly gain), and the Nasdaq Index (~15% quarterly gain). Experts attribute much of the record quarter to speculation on the traditional banking sector and rate increases by the US Federal Reserve.
More good news: UpDown Options have been fully rolled out to all eligible US users. UpDowns allow users the ability to potentially profit by forecasting how a coin’s price will move, whether it’s up or down. The benefits include risk control, lower costs, and hedging against price dips. Navigate to the UpDown Options tab in the Crypto.com App or find out how they work here.
Market Spotlight
Note: Market prices captured in US$ at the time of reading. Explore more on Crypto.com/Price.
News Snaps
UAE’s CBDC Deal
The United Arab Emirates’ central bank takes another step forward in its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) strategy by signing a deal with infrastructure and technology providers of the CBDC implementation.
Sony Ventures Into Web3
Sony has filed a patent that would make NFTs transferable between different games and consoles. This would allow users of Sony products, such as its flagship PlayStation console, to have an interoperable Web3 gameplay experience.
Immutable X Polygon
Web3 gaming platform Immutable is partnering with Polygon to accelerate the development of Web3 gaming. Immutable plans to power its platform using Polygon’s zero-knowledge technology to simplify the process of onboarding game studios and developers in Web3.
Your NFT Tickets, Please
US-based ticketing agency Ticketmaster is implementing NFT-enabled ticket sales. In partnership with rock band Avenged Sevenfold, fans will be able to use NFTs to secure access to exclusive tickets and seating options. The new capability has been piloted for the band’s upcoming shows in New York and Los Angeles.
Crypto Philanthropy Keeps Giving
According to Pat Duffy of The Giving Block, more nonprofits than ever before are gifting and fundraising in crypto. The nonprofit sector has been one of the industries leading crypto adoption, with half of the Forbes Top 100 Charities fundraising via crypto and NFTs.
What’s Ahead
Nasdaq Goes Crypto
Stock exchange Nasdaq is reportedly planning to launch cryptocurrency custody services by the end of the second quarter this year.
The global securities marketplace has applied for a limited-purpose trust company charter from the New York Department of Financial Services and is planning to initially offer services for Bitcoin and Ether.
Research & Insights
Monthly Feature Article | OpFi: Options-Powered DeFi
Still in its nascent stages, ‘Options-powered DeFi’ (OpFi) is an innovation in the decentralized finance space that utilizes options to power DeFi.
OpFi aims to remove the complexity that typically comes from trading options. It can potentially address some of the challenges faced by DeFi functions (e.g., forced liquidations and high fees for token swaps).
Key Takeaways:
- The use of options can potentially help to address some of the challenges in DeFi functions, such as, but not limited to, forced liquidations of collateral in lending and leveraged products, high fees for token swaps, and uncertainty around the direction of prices when speculating on volatility.
- OpFi has been discussed in the crypto space since the start of this year, especially following the success of decentralized derivatives protocols like GMX and Gains Network. One of the projects pioneering OpFi is Dopex, with its suite of solutions like Atlantic options, Atlantic straddles and insured perps, synthetic option perps, put-based lending, and stablecoin option vaults.
This Monthly Feature Article is exclusive to our Private members.
Interested to know more? You can do so by signing up as a Private member, joining our Crypto.com Exchange VIP Program, or collecting a ‘Loaded Lions’ NFT.
NFT Spotlight
Human experience. An interconnectedness of the intangible physical, emotional, rational, volitional, and spiritual aspects of human existence. For Graffiti on Grave, a self-taught 3D artist, experience on an artistic level began at the age of 12, when he was introduced to traditional painting. It was then where he connected, and, as he learned over time, realized that he wanted to pursue art for the rest of his life, eventually finding the endless possibilities brought by various 3D software.
Have your own 3D experience this coming Monday, April 3, with Graffiti on Grave’s latest NFT drop ‘FEEL’, a collection characterized by its focus on capturing the complexities and nuances of the human experience. He uses his art — and in this case, gold — to illuminate, and thereby overcome past traumas; the pieces resonate on a deep, emotional level — for the viewer to feel seen…and understood.
It is a human experience that also features 🪂 NFT airdrops. It’s got all the feels.
Gold being the prominent color in the pieces, I believe it represents the value and beauty of the emotions I am trying to convey with this collection.
Graffiti on Grave, illuminating
FEEL golden. Or go searching through Graffiti on Grave’s Collections.
Product Picks
7 New Tokens on Target Price Orders
VELO, SYN, SUDO, and more have just been added to Target Price Orders in the Crypto.com App. With Target Price Orders, you can now automate orders at your preferred price without having to monitor the market. Set your Target Price Orders now.
UpDown Options for US Users, Available in the Crypto.com App
The first regulated crypto derivatives product, UpDown Options, gives users the ability to potentially profit by forecasting how a coin’s price will move. Some benefits include allowing users to gain control over risks, trading with lower costs, and hedging against price dips. Learn more about UpDown Options here.
Crypto Level Up
How do you move tokens between blockchains?
There are a ton of cryptocurrencies that exist on multiple blockchains. As a result, users might occasionally need to move their holdings over from one network to another to transact or for opportunities on the blockchain they’re eyeing. Here are two main methods that can be used to migrate tokens from network to network:
Centralized Crypto Bridges
This requires the use of a cryptocurrency exchange, like the Crypto.com App, and is perfect for beginners or those who want a hassle-free solution. The user simply needs to deposit their tokens on the exchange and withdraw it to the supported network of their choice. However, they’ll need to first check if the platform supports multiple blockchains for that particular token.
Smart Contract Bridges
This is the decentralized version of a crypto bridge. Users send their assets on one blockchain to the bridge’s smart contract, which executes and sends the equivalent amount to the wallet on the other blockchain. If users prefer a peer-to-peer option, they can use atomic swaps. This requires two parties on two different blockchains to interact with a smart contract.
Learn All About Moving Tokens Between Blockchains
Crypto IRL
A fantastic array of colors, featuring the Crypto.com Ruby Steel Visa Card. This refreshing experience is brought to you by our friend @Savin0x.
Hashtag #CryptoIRL with your Crypto.com Visa Card on your social profiles to get featured! Your 15 minutes of fame in the #CROFam awaits you!
Decoder
Bitcoin Pizza
Bitcoin Pizza refers to the well-known Bitcoin transaction involving the purchase of two pizzas for 10,000 BTC in 2010.
On May 22, 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz, an early Bitcoin adopter, purchased two Papa John’s pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins. This purchase equated to about US$40 back in 2010 and would have been worth north of US$680 million in November 2021, when Bitcoin hit its all-time high.
The crypto community now uses Bitcoin Pizza as a metric to track how far Bitcoin has evolved in price and market capitalization. May 22 has been celebrated as ‘Bitcoin Pizza Day’ since then.
This Week in Crypto History
Ripple Donates US$29 Million of XRP to US Public Schools
In late March 2018, American tech firm Ripple donated US$29 million of XRP to over 16,000 public schools in the US. The company funded every classroom project request listed on the website of nonprofit organization DonorsChoose. At that point, it was the largest donation that DonorsChoose had received, funding learning resources like books and school supplies.
Later that year, Ripple announced a US$50 million fund to support blockchain and cryptocurrency research around the world. The initial list of universities it collaborated with included the Australian National University College of the Law, Korea University, Stanford University, and the National University of Singapore.
That’s it for this week’s Snapshot. Want more? Head over to our Insta feed for bite-size crypto lessons.
