Why CES Panelists Believe The Blockchain Will Benefit The Creator Economy

DIGIDAY

The Consumer Electronics Show, which just ended in Las Vegas, featured a few sessions on the blockchain after this exciting technology made so much progress last year. A large increase in consumers got their first NFTs and cryptocurrency investments while businesses consider how they can incorporate these assets into business models. There are still many issues to address in the early phases of blockchain, such as how to achieve greater mass adoption from users and what else can be done with NFTs or smart contracts. Those were some of the questions addressed at sessions like "NFT WTF" and "Creator Economy in the Context of Crypto." where I listened for about an hour before going into my own session on Emerging Trends in Blockchain Economy.

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SEC delays decisions on Bitwise and Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETFs

COINTELEGRAPH

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has extended the deadline for a second time to make a decision on Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds, as it continues its deliberation process. Bitwise and Grayscale are both awaiting approval from the SEC before announcing their ETFs. If approved, these funds will offer investors exposure to Bitcoin without having any of it themselves which could lead them toward greater profits. The SEC has confirmed that it will announce a decision on whether or not to approve Bitwise's Bitcoin ETF by February 1st. It is also expecting Grayscale bitcoin ETF for approval soon after.

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NFT marketplace OpenSea valued at more than $13bn

BBC

Following a fresh investment of $300 million, OpenSea, an NFT marketplace, claims it is now worth $13.3 billion. The platform enables the trade of non-fungible tokens, unique pieces of digital code that may be linked to a digital asset such as a piece of digital art. Many NFTs have been sold for millions of dollars. OpenSea claims that volumes on the platform exploded by 600 times last year, but some experts believe the valuation is too high. One of the cofounders at OpenSea characterized NFTs as "the fundamental building blocks" for new peer-to-peer economies. However, others claim that rapidly rising valuations reflect a lack of available investment opportunities and not necessarily innovation per se.

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Crypto scammers took a record $14 billion in 2021

CNBC

According to new data from a blockchain analytics firm, scammers scooped up a stunning $14 billion in cryptocurrency in 2021, thanks largely to the growth of decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. Thefts and scams drove an increase in crypto-related losses of 79 percent last year. The majority of theft occurred as a result of hacking into cryptocurrency firms. The firm states that DeFi is an important component in both cases, adding to concerns over those who dabble in this budding sector of crypto. “DeFi is a very exciting part of the wider cryptocurrency ecosystem, with tremendous possibilities for both entrepreneurs and cryptocurrency users alike,” according to the report.

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JPMorgan Says Ethereum’s DeFi Dominance at Risk Due to ‘Sharding’ Delays

COINDESK

Ethereum’s dominance of decentralized finance (DeFi) is at risk as to the scaling of the network, which is needed to maintain its dominance, may arrive too late, JPMorgan said in a report. The bank's strategists wrote in the note published on Wednesday that, while progress is being made, the final stage of sharding, which is crucial for scaling the network, will not be complete until next year. The bank warned of the potential for significant losses if the Ethereum network continues to lose market share and that, while full scaling is at least a year away, the danger is that during that time, competing networks will take market share.

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