The Friday Focus: Issue 15

Jan 07, 2022

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Weekly happenings

The activity in the crypto industry has certainly been heating up as we entered 2022 - especially when it comes to deals. A recent funding round values NFT Marketplace OpenSea at $13.3B, while Metaversal - another NFT-focused company - raises $50M. Kevin O’Leary-Backed DeFi Platform WonderFi purchases Bitbuy for $162M. The two largest crypto M&A shops expect the crypto deal-making frenzy to increase and have decided to merge.

On the regulatory side, SEC again delays its decision on NYDIG’s Bitcoin ETF, while El Salvador moves one step closer with issuing their Bitcoin Volcano Bonds. In India, authorities raided crypto exchanges after alleged tax evasion.

Institutions are proving that they are long-term bullish on Bitcoin, as Goldman Sachs stated that they expect bitcoin to take further market share from gold, and BTCS will pay dividends in bitcoin. Aave Arc will provide 30 financial institutions access to private pools of DeFi liquidity. Retail traders are also active, as Gamestop surges after NFT announcement.

Bitcoin miners in Kazakhstan were forced offline as the government shut down the internet, and Kosovo joined the list of countries hostile to mining as they banned the activity. The US Congress is organizing an oversight hearing on bitcoin mining’s environmental footprint, so be prepared for a ramp-up in the bitcoin energy consumption debate.