report

Digital Canadian dollar fails to impress despite high awareness

People who were aware of CBDCs were more reluctant to adopt the technology when compared with those who didn’t know about it.

A recent public consultation on Canada’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiative revealed an overall negative sentiment from Canadians, confirming the Bank of Canada’s concerns around its country-wide adoption.

Through the “Digital Canadian Dollar Public Consultation Report,” the Canadian central bank intended to identify a place for CBDCs in a world dominated by digital fiat payments and credit cards. However, in a survey that amassed 89,423 responses, Canadians demanded regulations requiring merchants to accept cash as payment.

*Awareness of a digital Canadian dollar. Source: bankofcanada.ca*

The Bank of Canada’s report shows that nearly 95% of the respondents either heard or were familiar with the concept of a digital Canadian dollar.

*Canadians demand regulation for cash acceptance if CBDCs were to be introduced. Source: bankofcanada.ca*

Of the respondents, 93% primarily make paper cash payments daily but also use credit and debit cards and other modes of online payments.

Revolut not happy with how fintech deals with audit red flags: Report

Revolut reportedly issued a public statement and hired lawyers in March in order to prove the “misreporting” of the audit opinion by BDO.

Crypto-friendly fintech Revolut is reportedly having some issues related to its recently released annual report for the year ending December 2021.

Revolut, a British–Lithuanian neobank that allows customers to buy and sell crypto, reported its first-ever full year of profit on March 1, 2023. The firm said it generated a revenue of 636 million British pounds ($769 million) in 2021, which was a significant surge from 220 million pounds ($266 million) in 2020.

The financial report was reviewed by independent auditors from the global accounting network BDO, which confirmed that Revolut’s financial statements provided a “fair view of the state of the group’s and of the parent company’s affairs” as of Dec. 31. The auditors stressed that the report was correct “except for the possible effects of the matters described in the basis for the qualified opinion section” of the report.

In the opinion section, BDO argued that the accounting firm was unable to get enough information related to the “completeness and occurrence of certain revenues” for 2021, stating:

“We have concluded that where the other information refers to revenue or related balances these may be materially misstated for the same reason.”

Revolut has reportedly responded to BDO’s remarks, insisting on the validity of its annual report. The Financial Times reported on March 30 that Revolut issued a public statement and hired lawyers in March in order to prove the “misreporting” of the audit opinion by BDO. The company argued that the $769 million in revenues have been “independently verified” and were “not in question.”

The public statement has apparently been since taken down by Revolut as some board members reportedly felt it was an “overreaction” and showed a lack of understanding of what BDO’s opinion meant, according to sources cited by the Financial Times.

The statement “was written by people who probably didn’t fully understand the nuancing of an audit opinion,” said one source. It also contained “inaccuracies,” another source claimed. The sources also alleged that it was possible that Revolut’s true revenues could either be higher or lower than stated in the report because some transactions could be missing.

Revolut declined to comment on the matter to Cointelegraph. The firm also didn’t respond to Cointelegraph’s query to share the statement about BDO’s opinion section, as it appears to have been taken down.

Magazine: Best and worst countries for crypto taxes — Plus crypto tax tips

Bitcoin ATM decline: Over 400 machines went off the grid in under 60 days

Between December 2020 and January 2022, more than 1,000 crypto and Bitcoin ATMs were installed each month.

Crypto ATMs — one of the key infrastructure pillars for the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies — have seen a drastic reduction this year. In the first two months of 2023, the net cryptocurrency ATMs installed globally reduced by 412 machines.

Since 2014, the total number of crypto ATMs has maintained a steady upward trajectory while catering to millions of users worldwide for seamless crypto-fiat conversions. For over a year, between December 2020 and January 2022, more than 1,000 crypto and Bitcoin (BTC) ATMs were being installed every month. However, the bear market had an immediate impact on its growth.

*Net crypto ATM installations worldwide. Source: Coin ATM Radar*

September 2022 was the first time in history when total crypto ATMs saw a net decline. However, 2023 marked a new low by recording a decline in total crypto ATM installations for two consecutive months.

In January 2023, the global crypto ATM network shed 289 machines, further dropping by 123 machines in February. While the ongoing decline was initially purely attributed to geopolitical tensions, revenue losses and a prolonged bear market, service providers have been trying out cheaper alternatives for operations.

Recently, crypto ATM provider Bitcoin Depot converted its 7,000 physical machines to BitAccess software. The move helped reduce operational costs related to software licensing fees, which cost $3 million annual.

Do you have an ATM in your area and are unsure how to use it? Check out Cointelegraph’s beginner’s guide to learn everything about Bitcoin ATMs.

On the other hand, payments giant Mastercard partnered with Binance to launch a card for crypto payments in Latin America.

Olá, Brasil! #Binance Card has just launched in Brazil – another step towards crypto adoption pic.twitter.com/UJRmpMhpbQ

— Binance (@binance) January 30, 2023

In a press release shared with Cointelegraph, Guilherme Nazar, Binance Brazil’s general manager, stated:

“Payments is one of the first and most obvious use cases for crypto, yet adoption has a lot of room to grow.”

Moreover, at launch, the card offered up to 8% cash back in crypto on eligible purchases and zero fees on some ATM withdrawals.

DCG losses top $1B on the back of 3AC collapse in 2022

The crypto conglomerate reported that falling crypto prices and the fallout from Three Arrows Capital’s loan default to Genesis affected its results.

Cryptocurrency venture capital conglomerate Digital Currency Group (DCG) has reported losses of over $1 billion in 2022 due largely to the contagion relating to the collapse of the crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC).

DCG reportedly lost $1.1 billion last year, according to its Q4 2022 investor report, and said the results “reflect the impact of the Three Arrows Capital default upon Genesis” along with the “negative impact” from falling crypto prices.

Genesis is the lending arm of DCG and the firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late January. Genesis is 3AC’s largest creditor, as the company loaned the now-bankrupt hedge fund $2.36 billion. 3AC filed for bankruptcy in July 2022.

DCG’s fourth-quarter losses came to $24 million, while revenues came in at $143 million.

Full-year 2022 revenues for DCG came in at $719 million. The firm held total assets of $5.3 billion with cash and liquid holdings of $262 million and investments — such as shares in its Grayscale trusts — amounted to $670 million.

The remaining assets were held by divisions of its asset management subsidiary Grayscale and DCG’s Bitcoin (BTC) mining business Foundry Digital.

Its equity valuation came in at $2.2 billion with a price per share of $27.93, which the report said was “generally consistent with the sector’s 75%-85% decline in equity values over the same period.”

DCG declared on Nov. 1, 2021, that its valuation was more than $10 billion, following the sale of $700 million worth of shares to companies like Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company.

However, the company said it “hit a milestone” with the restructuring of Genesis.

The agreement proposed earlier in February would see DCG contribute its equity share in Genesis’ trading entity and bring all Genesis entities under the same holding company and see its trading entity sold off.

DCG would also exchange an existing $1.1 billion promissory note due in 2032 for convertible preferred stock. Its existing 2023 term loans with an aggregate value of $526 million would also be refinanced and made payable to creditors.

A Genesis creditor said the plan “has a recovery rate of approximately $0.80 per dollar deposited, with a path to $1.00” for those owed money by the firm.

Crypto investors spent $4.6B buying ‘pump and dump’ tokens last year

Nearly 10,000 tokens launched on BNB and Ethereum last year are suspected to have been created just to dump on investors, according to Chainalysis.

Cryptocurrency investors funneled as much as $4.6 billion into crypto tokens suspected to be part of “pump and dump” schemes in 2022.

A Feb. 16 report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis “analyzed all tokens launched” in 2022 on the BNB and Ethereum blockchains and found just over 9,900 bore characteristics of a “pump and dump” scheme.

A pump-and-dump scheme typically involves the creators orchestrating a campaign of misleading statements, hype, and Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) to persuade investors into purchasing tokens while secretly selling their stake in the scheme at inflated prices.

Chainalysis estimated investors spent $4.6 billion worth of crypto buying the nearly more than 9,900 different suspected fraudulent tokens it identified.

The most prolific purported pump and dump creator Chainalysis identified — who was not named — is suspected of single-handedly launching 264 such tokens last year, with the firm explaining:

“Teams launching new projects and tokens can remain anonymous, which makes it possible for serial offenders to carry out multiple pump and dump schemes.”

Chainalysis classified a token as being “worth analyzing” as a potential “pump and dump” if it had a minimum of 10 swaps and four back-to-back days of trading on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) in the week after its launch. Of the 1.1 million new tokens launched last year, only over 40,500 fit the criteria.

If a token from this group saw a price decline in the first week of 90% or greater Chainalysis deemed it likely the token was a “pump and dump.” The firm found that 24% of the 40,500 tokens analyzed fit the secondary criterion.

*A table showing the analytic breakdown and number of tokens purported to be fraudulent. Source:* *Chainalysis*

Chainalysis estimated that only 445 individuals or groups are behind the suspected pump-and-dump tokens — suggesting creators often launch multiple projects — and made $30 million in total profits from selling their holdings.

“It’s possible, of course, that in some cases, teams involved with token launches did their best to form a healthy offering, and the subsequent drop in price was simply due to market forces,” the firm added.

Despite the concerning statistics, in a separate report, the firm noted revenues from crypto scams were cut almost half in 2022 largely due to depressed crypto prices.

Crypto investors spent $4.6B buying ‘pump and dump’ tokens last year

Nearly 10,000 tokens launched on BNB and Ethereum last year are suspected to have been created just to dump on investors, according to Chainalysis.

Cryptocurrency investors funneled as much as $4.6 billion into crypto tokens suspected to be part of “pump and dump” schemes in 2022.

A Feb. 16 report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis “analyzed all tokens launched” in 2022 on the BNB Smart Chain and Ethereum blockchains and found thatover 9,900 bore characteristics of a “pump and dump” scheme.

Chainalysis estimated investors spent $4.6 billion worth of crypto buying the nearly more than 9,900 different suspected fraudulent tokens it identified.

The most prolific purported pump and dump creator Chainalysis identified — who was not named — is suspected of single-handedly launching 264 such tokens last year, with the firm explaining:

“Teams launching new projects and tokens can remain anonymous, which makes it possible for serial offenders to carry out multiple pump and dump schemes.”

If a token from this group saw a price decline in the first week of 90% or greater, Chainalysis deemed it likely the token was a “pump and dump.” The firm found that 24% of the 40,500 tokens analyzed fit the secondary criterion.

Chainalysis estimated that just 445 individuals or groups are behind the suspected pump-and-dump tokens — suggesting that creators often launch multiple projects — and says they made $30 million in total profits from selling their holdings.

Despite the concerning statistics, in a separate report, the firm noted revenues from crypto scams were cut almost half in 2022 largely due to depressed crypto prices.

Key takeaways from Circle’s $44.5B USDC reserve report

Circle has released its reserve report for December 2022, highlighting overcollateralized asset holdings currently backing 44.5 billion USDC tokens in circulation.

USD Coin (USDC) issuer Circle has released an accountant-verified report of its treasury reserve holdings backing more than $44.5 billion worth of tokens currently in circulation.

Circle’s December 2022 reserve report, reviewed by Grant Thornton accountancy group, breaks down the current make-up of the stablecoin issuer’s reserve vault. According to Circle, 44,553,543,212 USDC is currently backed by $44,693,963,701 U.S. dollars held in custody accounts.

It is worth noting that a significant portion of the latter amount is invested in various U.S. treasury bonds. As per Circle’s vice president of accounting Timothy Singh, the fair value of assets in the USDC reserve is the total balance of U.S. dollar-denominated assets, including a mix of cash and treasury bonds.

Circle’s reserve fund is registered as a government money market fund. The equity interests in the fund are wholly owned by Circle and include 14 different U.S. treasury bills valued at over $23.5 billion. The fund also holds $48.9 million in cash, while a further $33 million is due to the fund, offset by “timing and settlement differences.”

Another two U.S. treasury securities valued at $10.5 billion are reported in a separate reserve assets category, alongside another $10.5 billion in cash held by several financial institutions on behalf of Circle.

U.S. banks holding Circle’s cash reserves include the Bank of New York Mellon, Citizens Trust Bank, Customers Bank, New York Community Bank, Signature Bank, Silicon Valley Bank and Silvergate Bank.

Circle and payments platform Ripple were notable attendees that participated in cryptocurrency and blockchain-focused workshops at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2023.

Circle’s vice president of global policy, Corey Then, said the organization had discussions with policymakers, traditional companies, tech firms and humanitarian organizations to unpack the possibility of using USDC as a payment solution.

Over the past two years, Circle’s position as a stablecoin issuer has consistently grown, leaving USDC as the second-most-used USD-backed stablecoin, behind Tether (USDT).

Metaverse to possibly create $5T in value by 2030: McKinsey report

The success of Metaverse will rely on a greater focus on maximizing the human experience aimed at delivering positive experiences for consumers, end-users, and citizens.

While the 2022 bear market grazed off the excitement around the budding crypto sub-ecosystems such as nonfungible tokens (NFTs), the Metaverse remains well-positioned for long-term disruption. Considering the myriad consumer and business-centric use cases the metaverse could cater to, a McKinsey & Company report highlights the technology’s potential to generate up to $5 trillion in value by 2030.

For the Metaverse to reach its full potential, the report highlighted the need for four technology enablers — devices (AR/VR, sensors, haptics, and peripherals), interoperability and open standards, facilitating platforms and development tools. However, the success of Metaverse is weighed by a greater focus on maximizing the human experience aimed at delivering positive experiences for consumers, end-users, and citizens.

*Metaverse impact by 2030. Source: McKinsey & Company*

To date, metaverse initiatives around marketing, learning and virtual meetings have seen the highest adoption level across various industries. However, a majority of initiatives around Metaverse have seen low-medium adoption, according to an April 2022 survey on senior executives conducted by McKinsey.

*Recommendations for Metaverse implementation. Source: McKinsey & Company*

“The metaverse is simply too big to be ignored,” read the report as it highlighted the impact it can have on commercial and personal lives. McKinsey estimated that over 50 percent of live events could be held in the metaverse by 2030, potentially generating up to $5 trillion in value.

Metaverse is well positioned to host modern-day romantics, as one-third of surveyed singles showed interest in dating in the virtual world. According to a recent survey conducted by Dating.com, an online matchmaking platform:

“With advancements in dating app technology and the metaverse, more daters are open to making connections that span different cities, countries and even continents.”

With Metaverse in the picture, singles are open to dating people from different geographical locations.

Be ‘very wary’ of crypto proof-of-reserve audits: SEC official

SEC’s acting chief accountant Paul Munter said that investors shouldn’t place too much confidence in a company holding up a proof-of-reserves audit.

A senior official from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission has warned investors to be “very wary” about relying on a crypto company’s “proof-of-reserves.”

“We’re warning investors to be very wary of some of the claims that are being made by crypto companies,” said SEC’s acting chief accountant Paul Munter in a Dec. 22 interview with The Wall Street Journal.

A number of crypto firms have commissioned proof-of-reserves audits since the collapse of crypto exchange FTX, aiming to quell concerns over their own exchange’s financial soundness.

However, Munter said the results of these audits isn’t necessarily an indicator that the company is in a good financial position:

“Investors should not place too much confidence in the mere fact a company says it’s got a proof-of-reserves from an audit firm.”

He further added that these proof-of-reserve reports “lack” the sufficient information for stakeholders to determine whether the company has enough assets to meet its liabilities.

Munter also recently spoke at the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants Conference in Washington, D.C. on Dec.12, where he reportedly expressed frustration about the constantly evolving structure of crypto firms.

Munter noted to WSJ that if the SEC uncovers “troublesome” fact patterns, it may refer the matter to the division of enforcement for further review.

Earlier this month, John Reed Stark, former chief of the SEC of Internet Enforcement, raised a “red flag” on Twitter over Binance’s proof-of-reserve report via Twitter on Dec. 11.

He said that Binance’s proof-of-reserve report didn’t address the effectiveness of internal financial controls, nor does it express an opinion or assurance conclusion, nor does it vouch for the numbers.

It was revealed on Dec. 16 that French auditing firm Mazars Group, discontinued its section on its website dedicated to crypto audits.

The firm had worked with several prominent crypto exchanges including Binance, KuCoin and Crypto.com.

Ben Sharon, co-founder of digital asset management firm Illumishare SRG previously told Cointelegraph on Nov. 19 that a proof-of-reserve audit is still a viable step to review the financial health of crypto exchanges, but it’s not enough by itself.

Investors have lost millions over the past twelve months with major crypto firms going bankrupt including Three Capital Arrows, Celsius and most recently cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

Metaverse experience to sway real-world travel choices in 2023: Survey

A survey participated by 24,179 respondents across 32 countries reveal that nearly half, or 43% of the respondents, intend to use virtual reality to inspire their choices.

As borders open up following prolonged COVID-19-induced travel restrictions, the metaverse, one of the latest sub-crypto ecosystems, is set to help travelers decide on the destinations they want to experience in person, reveals a new survey conducted by Booking.com personally.

Popular online travel agency Booking.com surveyed 24,179 respondents across 32 countries, which revealed travelers’ strong interest in virtually exploring destinations as they decide on their itinerary. Out of the lot, people most likely to try out travel experiences in the metaverse were Gen Z (45%) and Millennials (43%).

Nearly half, or 43% of the respondents, confirmed their will to use virtual reality to inspire their choices. Among this group, around 4574 participants believe in traveling to new places only after experiencing it virtually.

Moreover, over 35% of the respondents are open to spending multiple days in the Metaverse to get the hang of the surroundings offered across popular destinations. According to Booking.com, supporting technologies such as haptic feedback will help improve this experience by allowing users to experience sandy beaches and tropical sun without stepping outside.

*Most popular type of vacation. Source: Booking.com*

However, 60% of the respondents believe that the experiences the Metaverse and virtual technologies offer don’t come close to in-person experiences. Some of the most popular destinations for 2023 include São Paulo (Brazil), Pondicherry (India), Hobart (Australia) and Bolzano (Italy).

Tech giant Microsoft’s plan to step into the metaverse business hit a massive roadblock after the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sought to block the acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

The acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $69 billion would have played “a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” according to Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella. However, the FTC pointed out Microsoft’s anti-competitive practices, wherein the company limited the distribution of console games after acquiring rival gaming companies.