Learn

Coinbase Is Going Public: Everything You Need To Know

Ollie LeechFeb 26, 2021

Coinbase has decided to go for the faster direct listing approach as opposed to an IPO.

Coinbase

Coinbase CEO Armstrong’s Net Worth Is Between $7B and $15B: Report

Nathan DiCamilloFeb 27, 2021

The Coinbase CEO is among the world’s 500 richest people, per Bloomberg.

DeFi

DeFi Transaction Batching Tool Exploited for $14M

Nathan DiCamilloFeb 27, 2021

The exploiter used a fake contract to trick the dapp into thinking it was an Aave v2 update.

Grayscale

Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust Premium Follows Bitcoin Sibling Into Flipping Negative

Nathan DiCamilloFeb 27, 2021

GBTC’s premium flipped negative one day earlier.

Regulation

3 US Regulators Probing Robinhood’s Actions Amid GameStop Trading Craze

Daniel PalmerFeb 27, 2021

FINRA, the SEC and the New York Attorney General’s Office are all making enquiries with the trading app provider.

Cardano

Cardano’s ADA Is Now the Third-Largest Cryptocurrency by Market Cap

William FoxleyFeb 26, 2021

The cryptocurrency rose to $1.30, beating out its previous all-time high set in January 2018.

Internet 2030

The Future of Bitcoin: 12 Scenarios From Bullish to Bearish

Jeff WilserFeb 26, 2021

Global reserve currency? Attacked from all sides? Bitcoin on Mars? Here are 12 ways Bitcoin could evolve.

Dapper Labs

NBA Top Shot Overwhelmed by Demand in Record $1M Pack Drop

Danny NelsonFeb 26, 2021

Over 200,000 collectors waited in line Friday, hoping to buy into Dapper Labs' runaway NBA hit.

Podcasts

Governments Couldn’t Ban Bitcoin Even if They Wanted

Nathaniel WhittemoreFeb 28, 2021

A reading of Human Rights Foundation CSO Alex Gladstein’s latest essay.

Podcasts

Funding Culture and Empowering Artists With NFTs, Feat. Lethabo Huma and Cuy Sheffield

Feb 26, 2021

Can NFT technology break open the "Old Boys Club" of the art world, empower artists and let each of us speculate on (and monetize) culture? The short answer is YES.

Podcasts
Podcasts

The Heretic’s Guide to Bitcoin Debating, Feat. Brett Scott

Ben SchillerFeb 28, 2021

The author and activist on how Bitcoin arguments go bad (and how they can be better).

Newsletters
Newsletters

CoinDesk Newsletters Get an Upgrade

Pete PachalFeb 28, 2021

From the latest crypto market movements to thought-provoking commentary, CoinDesk’s Newsletters bring the future of money to your inbox.

Opinion
Opinion

Where Value Is Going in Blockchain Networks

Amos MeiriFeb 27, 2021

Will wealth flow to Layer One or Layer Two? It depends on the use case, says a long-time observer and investor.

Coinbase
Coinbase

Coinbase: DeFi Could Hurt Us and US Regulations Make It Hard to Fight Back

Brady DaleFeb 25, 2021

Caught between megabanks and food-branded DEXs, how does Coinbase compete?

Coinbase
Coinbase

Coinbase Has Set a High Bar for Crypto Firms Looking to List, Says Institutional Rival

Ian AllisonFeb 26, 2021

CEO of LMAX Group David Mercer says Coinbase’s “gutsy” listing sets a benchmark for risk management and operational disclosure.

Recent

MIT Media Lab

MIT’s Digital Currency Initiative Raises $4M for Effort to ‘Harden’ Bitcoin

Daniel Kuhn

Prominent backers include CoinShares’ Meltem Demirors, Twitter’s Jack Dorsey and MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor.

Podcasts

Are Beeple’s $6.6M Sale and Christie’s Auction a Turning Point for NFTs?

NFTs had a major week, with Christie’s Auctioning off its first-ever digital art exclusive and a different NFT selling for $6.6M.

Market Wrap

Market Wrap: Bitcoin Heads for Worst Week Since March as Prices Hold Around $46.5K

Muyao Shen

“Cash is king in times of distress, not bitcoin,” said one market watcher.

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust

Grayscale Bitcoin Premium Flips Negative as BTC Stays Below $50,000

Zack Voell

The gap between the GBTC share price and the implied price of the underlying bitcoin has collapsed to a 4% discount from a 35% premium late last year.

Transaction Fees

A Guide to Saving on Bitcoin’s High Transaction Fees

Alyssa Hertig

The average bitcoin transaction fee is $23. Luckily, there are ways to cut costs.

Privacy Coin

Privacy Coin Firo Temporarily Disables Protocol to Investigate ‘Suspicious Transactions’

Benjamin Powers

Core devs have activated their emergency switch to temporarily disable Lelantus.

SEC

SEC Inspectors Outline Crypto Examinations Playbook in Compliance Notice

Danny Nelson

The notice did not appear targeted at any one instance of digital asset impropriety.

Ghana

Ghana to Prioritize Blockchain Projects in New Regulatory Sandbox

Sandali Handagama

The sandbox will target a wide range of financial service innovations and hopes to improve financial inclusion.

Podcasts

Why Cathie Wood Thinks Bitcoin Could Replace Bonds

Nathaniel Whittemore

The ARK Investment founder discussed bitcoin’s replacement as a substitute store of value at the Bloomberg Crypto Summit.

Learn

Recent

Nigeria

Bitcoin Is Trading at a 46% Premium on Luno Nigeria After Central Bank Ban

Sandali Handagama

The premium rose after the Central Bank of Nigeria reminded banks they could not provide crypto exchanges with financial services.

YouTube

YouTube Suspends CoinDesk’s Channel (UPDATED)

Danny Nelson

"Content that encourages illegal activities or incites users to violate YouTube's guidelines is not allowed," the platform said, without elaborating.

ETPs

Digital Assets Under Management in ETPs Rose 50% to $43.9B in February: Report

Tanzeel Akhtar

Even with the increase in AUM, average ETP volumes in February dropped 37.8% to $936 million.

Opinion

Money Reimagined: COVID Economy Shows Monetary Failure

Michael J. Casey

The growing divide between financial and real worlds points to the need for a new form of money. Plus: a special podcast about NFTs.

Explainers

Crypto Tax 2021: A Complete US Guide

Ollie Leech

With April 15 on the horizon it's a good idea to start getting your crypto taxes in order.

Coinbase

Blockchain Bites: Coinbase’s Competition, Bitcoin ETF Inflows Slow

Daniel Kuhn

Coinbase's SEC filing provides insight into crypto's increasingly competitive arena.

NFTs

OpenSea Adds ‘Collector Drops’ to NFT Marketplace With Shawn Mendes Wearables

Danny Nelson

The new series puts OpenSea in competition Nifty Gateway, which has cornered the celeb NFT market to date.

Bitcoin Price Index

Bitcoin Looks Indecisive After Sell-off in Bonds, Tech Stocks

Muyao Shen

The largest cryptocurrency has failed to hold above $50,000 amid a downdraft in traditional markets.

Podcasts

Bitcoin News Roundup for Feb. 26, 2021

With bitcoin dipping below $45K overnight and new insights as Coinbase prepares to go public, CoinDesk’s Market Daily is back with the latest news roundup.