The main news on the cryptocurrency market.
Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit is leaving the French market
Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit announced its exit from the French market. Starting today, August 2, local users will not be able to open new positions or buy any assets. This was reported by the company's press service.
It is noted that the suspension of services is due to regulatory difficulties. The crypto exchange failed to obtain a license under the new rules, and for this reason Bybit is shutting down all operations.
“In light of recent developments related to regulation by the French authorities, Bybit will no longer be providing our products and services to French citizens and residents. We look forward to serving you again in the near future, once we have the appropriate licenses in place to do so,” the statement reads.
Starting August 13, the exchange will liquidate all open positions, and users will only be able to withdraw funds, blocking all other functions.
Bahamas Authorities Pass Cryptocurrency Law
The Bahamas Parliament has officially approved the Digital Assets and Registered Trading Platforms Act (DARE 2024). The local regulator announced the bill's adoption.
The law aims to strengthen regulation in the cryptocurrency sector following the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange in November 2022. It is worth noting that the headquarters of the bankrupt company was located in the Bahamas.
According to the document, crypto companies are now required to comply with a number of requirements, including investor protection and the need to undergo the Know Your Client (KYC) procedure. In addition, the regulator has tightened the requirements for disclosure of information and financial reporting.
It is reported that the new law covers a wider range of activities of crypto firms, including consulting and management services, derivatives trading and staking.
“DARE 2024 introduces a first-of-its-kind disclosure regime for customer-owned staking digital assets. In addition, the new rule applies to the management of a staking pool,” the document says.
The law clearly defines the concept of “stablecoin”, provides for the registration of this asset class and establishes requirements for the storage, management and reporting of reserves. It is noted that the release of algorithmic stablecoins is “categorically prohibited.”
Tether’s net profit for the first half of the year reached $5.2 billion
Tether, the company that issues the USDT stablecoin, received a record net profit of $5.2 billion for the period January-June. This was reported by the company's press service.
Operating profit amounted to about $1.3 billion, mainly as interest income from US Treasury bonds.
The volume of direct investments in these instruments exceeded $80.9 billion, and taking into account cash and other equivalents, including indirectly through repo agreements, reached $97.6 billion.
According to this indicator, Tether exceeded the value of Germany, the UAE and Australia, taking 18th place. In terms of the pace of purchases of US Treasuries, the company came in third place after the UK and the Cayman Islands. Management sees the potential to achieve leading positions, says the press release.
The issuer received part of the net profit of approximately $3.9 billion due to the increase in the value of positions in Bitcoin ($4.7 billion) and gold ($3. 8 billion).
Tether's equity capital increased to $11.9 billion. By March 31, the figure was 11.37 billion. The level of excess reserves decreased from $6.26 billion to $5.3 billion.
The issuer also reported an increase in supercollateralized loans in the second quarter from $4.7 billion to $6.6 billion.
The volume of USDT issued in the second quarter increased by $8.3 billion to $118.4 billion.
Ripple to allocate $10 million to tokenize US Treasury bonds
Ripple has announced a $10 million investment in tokenized US government bonds. The company intends to use its XRP Ledger (XRPL) product, a decentralized, open-source platform designed to quickly and inexpensively transfer fiat currencies and digital assets, for this purpose.
The company said that the launch of tokens on XRPL is a successful example of how to incentivize institutional access to the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector through tokenized real-world assets (RWAs).
Ripple will direct the investment into short-term US Treasury bonds and reverse repurchase agreements (repos). Tokenization platform OpenEden will add T-bills and short-term debt obligations backed by the US Treasury Department to the XRP Ledger for the first time.
“The addition of bonds to the OpenEden-backed XRPL solidifies Ripple’s position as one of the leading blockchains for the tokenization of real-world assets,” said Ripple Senior Vice President Marcus Infanger.
As of August 1, 2024, the amount of funds locked in tokenized US Treasuries reached $1.93 billion.
Cryptocurrency to dollar exchange rate
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