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Predictions of Rising Potential for Bitcoin and Ethereum in 2020

A recent Forbes article provides insights into what could be building up for cryptocurrencies in the upcoming year. Clear indications are driven by the prospects of improved regulation for virtual asset service providers and the halving of Bitcoin.

To begin with, Alexander Schell, Executive Director of the Crypto Valley Association, expects reports of the FATF to clarify understanding of how Virtual Asset Services Providers (VASP’s) operate and as a result help cryptocurrency adoption rates. To be specific, he believes that “Increased clarity from the FAFT on its position relating to VASPs globally will be particularly helpful… As the industry focuses on innovation and enterprise adoption, it is imperative that regulators do not implement a policy that will create obstacles and stifle the development of the industry.”

To reiterate Alexander’s point, Nick Cowan, CEO of the Gibraltar Stock Exchange Group, equally weighs in on the importance of regulation in the future of digital currencies. On the basis thereof, the rising interest of Central banks and their adoption of blockchain technology could also ameliorate this growth. To quote, “We have also seen many Central Banks looking into the creation of their digital currencies and implementation of blockchain technology in their legacy financial ecosystems.

Furthering this point is Florian Glatz, Co-founder of Fundament Securities as well as Benoit Coeure of Bank for International Settlements. The latter asserts the advantages of digital currencies and the building appetite amongst the central banks, specifically the European Central Banks (ECB) and their involvement in financial intermediation. Moreover, the expectations following the launch of the digital yuan by the People’s Bank of China will create speculation on digitizing the Euro.

The price volatility surrounding digital assets in 2019 will see a decline. A un – optimistic Vaibhav Kadikar of CloseCross suggests that “In the new decade, the high volatility of the asset will become a distant memory. Price stabilization will spur a renewed interest from institutional investors to enter the space”.

Showing a slightly more doubting outlook is Dave Hodgson, Director of NEM Ventures. To quote accurately, “In 2019, we saw an increase in governments, regulators and central banks engaging with blockchain and crypto in general – sometimes positively and sometimes not so positively. Notably, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations around Know Your Customer (KYC) continues to have an impact on how crypto exchanges operate; the Libra association continues to divide regulators, customers, and the crypto industry, and the launch of the first Security Tokens by both major institutions (Societe Generale) and national markets, such as Germany (BitBond), is making waves”. With that being said, he is still open to see where trends such as Bitcoin’s halving and the events following it will do to grab the public attention.

The final points to consider are the releases of predominant technology upgrades by bigger chains, for example, ETH 2.0 and NEM with Catapult. With that considered, there remain hesitations on many of these factors following through with certainty and whether a stabilized year is ahead to come for the cryptocurrency market.

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Binance Invests $200M in Forbes ahead of SPAC IPO

Binance cryptocurrency exchange, the largest in terms of trading volume worldwide, is investing as much as $200 million in Forbes, through a new venture that will see the media unicorn go public in a merger with Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) Magnum Opus.

As announced by Forbes, the company has already inked a partnership with Magnum Opus to establish a business combination that will see Forbes go public listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ‘FRBS’. The public listing deal is expected to close before the end of the first quarter, and the Binance investment will position the trading giant as a key adviser in digital assets and Web3.0 strategy.

“Forbes is committed to demystifying the complexities and providing helpful information about blockchain technologies and all emerging digital assets,” said Mike Federle, CEO, Forbes. “With Binance’s investment in Forbes, we now have the experience, network, and resources of the world’s leading crypto exchange and one of the world’s most successful blockchain innovators. Forbes, already a resource for people interested in the emerging world of digital assets, can become a true leader in the field with their help.”

The new company will pursue more innovative products and services beyond the platform’s regular publications. With a number of product offerings in the works and the terms of the deal, Patrick Hillmann, Chief Communications Officer for Binance and Bill Chin, Head of Binance Labs, the Venture Capital Arm, and Incubator of Binance, will join the Forbes Board of Directors upon the successful closing of the business combination transaction.

The blockchain and emerging Web3.0 innovation are becoming too big to ignore, and Binance’s investment in the proposed company between Forbes and Magnum Opus will help advance the scope of blockchain educating as all hands work toward pushing the industry into its next phase of the adoption cycle.

“As Web 3 and blockchain technologies move forward and the crypto market comes of age we know that media is an essential element to build widespread consumer understanding and education. We look forward to bolstering Forbes’ Digital initiatives, as they evolve into a next-level investment insights platform,” said Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, Founder and CEO, Binance, shunning the earlier brawl he had with one of Forbes’ reports that claimed the trading firms strategically evade tax obligations.

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19 Crypto Billionaires Rank among Forbes’ Annual World’s Billionaires List, Increased by 58% from Last Year

The number of crypto billionaires increased from twelve in 2020 to nineteen in 2021, according to the Forbes’ Annual World’s Billionaires list.

In 2021, the 58.3% surge in crypto billionaires was fuelled by Web3 innovations, the exponential growth of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and the attainment of all-time high (ATH) prices by various cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

The top-three spots are dominated by crypto exchange founders, with Changpeng Zhao “CZ” of Binance taking the helm based on a net worth of $65 billion. CZ is followed by Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and CEO of FTX, and Brian Armstrong, the founder and CEO of Coinbase, with a net worth of $24 billion and $6.6 billion, respectively.

Based on Forbes findings, CZ owns 70% of Binance as the 19th richest person globally. Binance dominance in the crypto space continues to be felt, given that it facilitated nearly two-thirds of all trading volume made by centralized exchanges. As a result, generating nearly $16 billion in revenue.

The newcomers on the crypto billionaire list include Nikil Viswanathan and Joseph Lau, the co-founders of Web3 infrastructure company Alchemy, with a $2.4 billion net worth each.

The others are Devin Finzer and Alex Atallah, the co-founders of the leading NFT marketplace OpenSea, with a $2.2 billion net worth apiece.

Some notable names also on the list include Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss of Gemini, Michael Saylor of MicroStrategy, and venture capitalist Tim Draper.

MicroStrategy, a leading business intelligence firm, has been leading the race in crypto institutional investment. At one time, Saylor opined that MicroStrategy was more inclined towards Bitcoin because it provided the best returns compared to other assets like precious metals, real estate, derivatives, stocks, and government debt.

Crypto exchange Gemini recently released “The Global State of Crypto Report”. It noted that cryptocurrency reached a tipping point in 2021 because it evolved from a niche investment into a globally established asset class.

Nearly 30% of the Top 65 World’s Wealthiest People Invested in Crypto: Forbes Survey

The world’s wealthiest individuals are also jumping on the crypto bandwagon because approximately 30% of the top 65 globe’s rich people have directly or indirectly invested in cryptocurrencies, according to a Forbes survey.

Per the report:

“Nearly 30% are either directly or indirectly invested in cryptocurrencies, a rate that is higher than among non-billionaire investors.”

Therefore, this represents a change of tune among the world’s wealthiest people because some have been heavy crypto critics. The survey noted:

“Of the billionaires surveyed, about 18% reported having at least 1% of their fortune in cryptocurrencies. Of that group, most are investing as a small side experiment.”

“3.2% of the billionaire respondents said they have more than half of their fortunes poured into crypto. The study added that another 10% said they hadn’t directly invested in cryptocurrencies but had backed crypto-focused companies,” the study added.

Despite some of the world’s leading billionaires having openly opposed crypto, many of them have cast their nets wider by looking at alternative currencies. Some of them have also made a paradigm shift from their previous tough stance about cryptocurrencies.

For instance, billionaire investor and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has emerged as one of the famous converts because he was a previous critic. He once said that he would rather have bananas than Bitcoin.

Cuban has enhanced his portfolio to include Bitcoin (BTC), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and Ethereum (ETH), among others. He pointed out:

“It’s no different than investing in stocks, bonds, and other assets. Interest rates go up, and risk assets go down. My tech stocks have performed worse than my crypto has.”

Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO and co-founder of crypto exchange FTX, was also one of the billionaire respondents, and he acknowledged that 76% to 100% of his $20.6 billion net worth was wrapped in crypto.

The other individual among the world’s super-rich who has dipped his toes in crypto includes John Sobrato, a real estate billionaire who took part in a crypto fund undertaken by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), a Silicon Valley venture capital firm.

Omid Malekan, an associate professor at the Columbia University Business School, pointed out that the general surge in crypto acceptance and availability was causing a shift among the world’s richest.

Malekan said:

“Now you’re increasingly seeing traditional financial players, fintechs [get involved] … which makes it easier for people on the fence to invest.”

In April, Forbes released the annual world’s billionaires list, and the number of crypto billionaires had increased by 58%, from twelve in 2020 to nineteen in 2021.

Crypto Winter Beats Top Crypto Billionaires from US Ranking – Forbes

The downturn in the broader digital currency ecosystem has hit some notable billionaires in the US, pulling four names out of the wealthiest American’s list, according to Forbes data.

The media outfit said of the 7 names that made the list of the 400 richest last year with a cumulative net worth of $55.1 billion, only 4 are left, and they all command just $27.3 billion.

With both the prices of digital currencies and the valuation of companies plummeting by a very wide range, the networth of all the billionaires profiled have dropped, even though all still rank as some of America’s richest.

The Crypto Billionaires Who Made the List

Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is the richest crypto billionaire in the United States and currently ranks in the 41st position. SBF now boasts of a cumulative networth of $17.2 billion, down from $22.5 billion as of this period last year. Sam is the CEO of FTX Derivatives Exchange and a host of other successful subsidiaries of the trading platform.

The next best-ranked billionaire is Sam’s Co-Founder, Gary Wang, whose networth and ranking are pegged at $4.6 billion and 227, respectively. Wang owned approximately 16% each of both FTX and FTX US.

Ripple Co-Founder, Chris Larsen is the 380th richest American with a total valuation of $2.8 billion (down from $6 billion). Chris’s valuation has been impacted by the price of the XRP coin and the long-protracted lawsuit with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over the status of XRP as a security.

Brain Armstrong, the CEO of Nasdaq-listed trading platform Coinbase Global Inc ranks in the 388th position atop a $2.7 billion (down from $11.5 billion). With the shares of Coinbase plunging remarkably, Brian comes off as the billionaire that has taken the most hit over the past year.

Crypto Billionaires Who Fell by the Wayside

According to the Forbes report, The Winklevoss twin does not make a list this year despite their $2.2 billion networth. As of last year, the Gemini twin was worth $4.3 billion. Jed McCaleb (worth $2.5 billion) and Fred Erhsam (worth $1.1 billion) did not also make the elite list this year.

Binance CEO Responds to Forbes Article on Fund Shuffling

Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, has been in the news recently following a Forbes article that raised concerns about the movement of funds by the exchange. The article highlighted the transfer of $1.8 billion in stablecoin collateral by Binance to hedge funds such as Tron, Amber Group, and Alameda Research between August and December 2022. The article also drew parallels between Binance and the now-defunct FTX, which collapsed due to financial mismanagement.

In response to the article, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao took to Twitter to refute the allegations made by Forbes. He called the article “FUD” and said that the authors did not understand how an exchange works. He emphasized that Binance’s users are free to withdraw their assets at any time they want.

The Forbes article also discussed the failed Voyager bid by Binance.US and the planned legal action by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission against Paxos Trust Company, the issuer of the Binance-branded stablecoin, Binance USD (BUSD). Binance had announced in February 2022 that it would take a $200 million stake in Forbes, but the deal fell through after Forbes’ plan to go public did not materialize.

The New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) also ordered Paxos Trust Company to terminate its issuance of BUSD. In response, Binance announced that it would no longer mint BUSD but would support the stablecoin until its redemption period ends in February 2024. The exchange is now looking into non-USD stablecoins.

Binance has faced regulatory scrutiny in several countries, including the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom. The exchange has been accused of not complying with anti-money laundering and know-your-customer regulations. Binance has denied the allegations and said that it takes compliance seriously. The exchange has also announced plans to set up a regional headquarters in Malta to comply with European Union regulations.

Despite the regulatory challenges, Binance remains one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. The exchange has a wide range of products and services, including spot trading, derivatives trading, and a decentralized exchange. Binance also has its own blockchain, Binance Smart Chain, which has become popular among developers for building decentralized applications (dapps).

In conclusion, the Forbes article has raised concerns about the movement of funds by Binance and its compliance with regulatory requirements. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has refuted the allegations and emphasized that the exchange takes compliance seriously. Binance has faced regulatory challenges in several countries but remains one of the largest and most innovative cryptocurrency exchanges in the world.