The US dollar is starting to be exposed to digital assets
More crypto companies are looking to capitalize on demand for digital assets denominated in US dollars. The company behind Tether (USDT) stablecoin recently announced Tether, a synthetic dollar backed by gold and pegged to the US dollar.
The move comes just days after Assymetry released its synthetic dollar afUSD based on market conditions.
Since the launch of Ethena's artificial dollar USD, new tokens that mimic the US dollar have been added. The protocol, launched in February 2024, has raised more than $3.4 billion in total locked-in assets in four months, Defilama said.
Etena's artificial dollar has shaken stable coin players and underscored strong global market demand for dollar-denominated cryptocurrencies. Another similar move is seen in the amount of tokenized funds that offer exposure to US Treasuries.
BlackRock recently launched the US Dollar Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) in 2018. With more than $462.7 million in assets as of June 19, the Franklin Templeton OnChain US Government Fund ( FOBXX ) had $357.6 million in assets. In total, $1.5 billion has now been written into US Treasuries – most of it in the past few months.
As traditional finance moves onchain, this week's crypto biz also includes a Hashdex filing for the integrated space Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF), Coinbase's pre-launch market, Ripple's challenges with regulators in the US, as well as exits from Europe. A very stable coin.
Hashdex files for SEC-linked spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs
Hashdex has filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch a combined position Bitcoin and Ether ETF on the Nasdaq exchange. This ETF aims to track daily market movements based on the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index, holding a composition of approximately 70.54% Bitcoin and 29.46% Ether. Both Coinbase and BitGo act as custodians for BTC and ETH assets. Hashdex is still required to file and receive SEC approval on an S-1 filing.
Coinbase International has announced support for the pre-launch market
Coinbase International has announced support for the pre-launch market, which will allow users to trade the future of tokens and coins on the exchange. This new feature allows for early trading activities before these digital assets officially launch, allowing traders to pre-participate with upcoming tokens. The feature is available to institutional investors through Coinbase International and retail traders through Coinbase Advanced. Pre-launch market assets are held with an initial margin of 50% or 2x leverage and a notional position limit of $50,000 per token. In its move, Coinbase follows in the footsteps of centralized exchanges such as Binance, Bybit, Bitget and OKX, offering similar services.
The SEC shot down Ripple's argument for a lower penalty
The SEC has criticized Ripple's request for a lower fine in their ongoing legal battle. Ripple has argued for a significantly reduced fine of no more than $10 million, citing the SEC's previous agreement with Terraform Labs as a benchmark. The SEC suggested that Ripple would be fined $102.6 million instead of the proposed $10 million, based on Ripple's gross profit and assuming a similar ratio to the Terraform case. In total, the SEC is seeking nearly $2 billion from Ripple, including $198.2 million in prejudgment interest, $876.3 million in civil penalties and another $876.3 million in disgorgement.
Keep USDT and five stablecoins listed until July 1st, citing MCA
Digital asset platform Uphold has announced that it will cancel six stablecoins on July 1 due to the implementation of the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation. This move is part of a wider trend among cryptocurrency platforms that are adjusting their operations to comply with new regulatory requirements set by the MCA. The six stablecoins are USDT, Dai (DAI), Frax (FRAX), Gemini dollar (GUSD), Pax dollar (USDP) and TrueUSD (TUSD). Users holding these stablecoins must switch to a different cryptocurrency before June 28. Otherwise, they will be converted directly to USD Coin (USDC).
Before you go: More than $100 billion has been raised for cryptocurrency startups since the end of May 2014. Looking back over the past four years, the ceiling and floor have risen, although peaks and troughs have continued.
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