Tech Adoption Friday
Hey everyone,
Welcome to Tech Adoption Friday: your five-minute zero-knowledge rollup of crypto tech and adoption news. Each Friday, you receive the most relevant news from the last week to stay on top of how far along the adoption curve we have come.
In this week’s issue:
- EToro CEO considers Bitcoin ETF an adoption signal
- Binance case sparks debate about money laundering
- JPMorgan working on its own blockchain
- BIS claims CBDCs are no danger to privacy
EToro CEO Yoni Assia said in an interview with Cointelegraph that he believes Bitcoin ETFs could be a significant driver of adoption. They could bolster the legitimacy of Bitcoin in the eyes of institutional investors. The availability of a Bitcoin ETF could support the asset’s price as it represents a familiar and institutionalized form of investment. He also emphasized the importance of user-friendly platforms and diverse investment portfolios in onboarding more retail users into the crypto market.
Our take:
While Bitcoin ETFs may increase institutional interest, crypto still lacks easily accessible and understandable entry points for regular users. Intuitive user experiences and decentralized finance applications are key to driving sustainable mainstream adoption.
Read more here.
A recent settlement involving Binance, a crypto exchange, has sparked debate about the different treatment of traditional financial institutions and crypto firms by the US government. Critics argue that traditional firms also facilitate money laundering, while supporters praise Binance for its contribution to financial inclusion. Meanwhile, an investigation has found that major banks have allowed trillions of dollars to be laundered by criminals.
Our take:
Banks have enabled illicit activities too, yet seem to draw less scrutiny. However, the crypto industry should resist playing the victim and instead focus efforts on bolstering compliance and security standards.
Read more here.
JPMorgan and Apollo are collaborating on a tokenized enterprise mainnet through the MAS Project Guardian pilot project. This will allow for seamless investment and management of digital assets, including intraday repo trades. The mainnet also has a first-mover advantage in offering tokenized investment instruments and provides scalability for adding applications. The MAS has also laid down measures for Digital Payment Token service providers to discourage speculation in cryptocurrency investments.
Our take:
Enterprise blockchain adoption sounds promising on paper, but private, closed-loop networks undermine crypto’s ethos of openness and transparency. Tokenizing assets also risks stoking irresponsible speculation without proper governance.
Read more here.
CBDCs have raised privacy concerns, but central banks have no interest in personal data according to BIS official Cecilia Skingsley. The BIS is working on CBDC research projects and addresses concerns about privacy, stability, and bank runs. Wholesale CBDCs could benefit cross-border payments and a new project will propose privacy solutions for retail CBDCs.
Our take:
Privacy represents a valid concern with CBDCs that central banks appear to be hand-waving currently. While mass surveillance may not be an objective today, states have a mixed track record in resisting mission creep down the road without checks and balances.
Read more here.
And that’s a wrap! Will CBDCs really benefit payments? Let us know in the comments!
