Fortnightly Crypto Insights 18/10/2023

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Do you know what caused the price of Bitcoin to surge?
Or that you can now buy a luxury car using crypto? 😲

Well, so much happened over the past fortnight, and we are here with our fortnightly market insights to keep you up to date with all of it!

Read the full details below and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn to keep up with the latest developments across crypto.

Fortnightly Insights

False Bitcoin ETF Approval

A false report of a Bitcoin spot ETF approval caused the price of the coin to surge to $30,000 before it dropped by almost $2,000 as it was revealed to be fake. The announcement had been made on Cointelegraph’s X account and was quickly deleted.  

Binance to no longer accept new UK users

Binance UK has announced that it will no longer be onboarding new UK users, in order to comply with new advertising standards. This has impeded the company’s plans to further expand its UK user base, with the standards being some of the harshest to exist. 

Mastercard wrapped CBDC trial successful 

In a collaboration between Mastercard, Cuscal and Mintable, a recent experiment successfully demonstrated how a CBDC can be wrapped onto different blockchains. The aim of this includes providing more opportunities for commerce in Australia, and minimising the potential for fraud. 

Crypto reforms proposed in Australia

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers has announced that he plans to hold crypto and digital asset platforms to existing Australian financial service laws, including mandating platform operators to obtain a financial services license. These proposed plans would be put in place to protect the around 25% of Australians who own some form of digital assets.

China CBDC could see the possibility of being programmable 

A spokesperson for China’s foreign exchange regulatory body has suggested that its CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) may potentially include a programmable feature. This feature would help with monetary policy, allowing the central bank further macroeconomic management tools. 

Ferrari now accepting crypto payments

Partnering with BitPay, Italian sportscar company Ferrari is now accepting Bitcoin, Ether and USDC for its products in the U.S. Despite its competitor Tesla’s discontinuation of Bitcoin payments due to environmental concerns, Ferrari’s Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer Enrico Gallier explained that the company felt comfortable with its decision as it recognised new sustainability initiatives within the crypto market.