DeFi - short for Decentralized Finance - has started to become a real buzzword in recent months, with investments in the space growing by leaps and bounds. It's doing so despite being notoriously complex and risky to actually work with - requiring users to understand complex technologies like MetaMask while doing borrow-lending in a space that features absolutely no FDIC … [Read more...] about Is DeFi the Next Big Thing for Crypto? Not Quite Yet
Cryptofinance
Traditional Finance Moves Closer to Cryptofinance
As U.S. and international financial regulators debate how to regulate cryptocurrencies, financial institutions make business moves toward crypto legitimation. State Street, the Boston-based custodian bank and second oldest in the U.S., announced the formation of a new digital asset unit, with a bitcoin notice on its home page. "We are striving to totally re-imagine and … [Read more...] about Traditional Finance Moves Closer to Cryptofinance
IRS Takes Aggressive Posture on Crypto Taxes
For nearly a decade now, Bitcoin and other digital assets have flown somewhat under the radar when it comes to tax law. While the IRS officially registers them as property, with profits on their sale falling under capital gains taxes, the very nature of how exchanges are set up has historically made profits in this space very difficult for the IRS to track. Enforcement … [Read more...] about IRS Takes Aggressive Posture on Crypto Taxes
Banking on Stablecoins
FinTech news this week spread out over the ecosystem, with no one theme dominating my view of the financial media. Here are some of the reports that caught my fragmented attention during the week after the holiday that marks the beginning of summer in the U.S. "Can traditional banks keep pace with FinTech challengers?," The Financial Brand asks. Traditional financial … [Read more...] about Banking on Stablecoins
May 2021 in FinTech: Crypto’s Wild Ride
Finance's continuing shift to digital is moving more and more from a potential future to a day-to-day reality. FinTech investments have more than doubled in the first quarter of this year, and while Bitcoin continues to rise and fall in a spectacularly volatile fashion, mainstream banking's new focus on the sector speaks to an institutional core that cryptocurrencies have never … [Read more...] about May 2021 in FinTech: Crypto’s Wild Ride
FinTech Funding Doubles; Crypto Prices Plunge
Private and public investments in FinTech firms surged in the first quarter of 2021. Research firms are predicting that 2021 will set a record for FinTech funding. Understanding what sectors and regions receive venture funding provides perspective to traditional financial institutions, notes The Financial Brand in its coverage. "Seeing where venture capital money is flowing. … [Read more...] about FinTech Funding Doubles; Crypto Prices Plunge