[Coinlive] Daily Digest - 15th August 2022

Policies

▌ Bitcoin Archive: Iran Allows Bitcoin Mined to be Used to Pay for International Transactions

The Bitcoin Archive tweeted that Iran allows mined bitcoins to be used to pay for international transactions, but prohibits the trading of bitcoins for domestic payments.

Cryptocurrency

▌ Aave: Responds to Blocking Addresses over Tornado Cash Clampdown

On August 14, Aave posted on social media that after the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) included Tornado Cash on the Sanctions List (SDN), the Aave team urgently integrated the blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs on the front end of IPFS. Lab’s API to filter and block addresses that interact with sanctioned Tornado Cash contracts. TRM's API risk parameters can identify all wallets that have interacted with Tornado Cash contracts after sanctions, even addresses that received 0.1ETH transfers from Tornado Cash. These wallet holders may have problems with the Aave application (one of the frontends of the Aave protocol). Aave said it was aware that the API may have made erroneous calls to which wallets should be included in the blocked list, affecting addresses that received 0.1 ETH transfers from Tornado Cash without consent. The Aave team has lifted the ban on the address and said it will continue to evaluate responsible and reasonable risk mitigation measures in the event of an emergency.

▌Wall Street Journal: North American Pension Funds are still Bullish on the Crypto Market in a Bear Market

Despite the losses caused by the bear market, pension funds across North America remain bullish on crypto, an interest particularly reflected in asset manager VanEck, according to the Wall Street Journal. Other pension funds see the bear market as an opportunity for further investment. The investment director of a Virginia-based pension fund told the Wall Street Journal that in the crypto winter, fewer people are willing to invest in cryptocurrencies and the yields are more attractive. However, not all pension funds can withstand the volatility of cryptocurrencies. A $300 billion pension fund for California teachers is avoiding investing in the crypto market due to high stakes.

▌Binance Executive: Retail Investors Flock to Bitcoin and Crypto

According to a new report from Reuters, Binance’s head of Latin America, Maximiliano Hinz, said that rising global inflation is driving investors to buy BTC and other Digital assets, as a means of protecting wealth. Binance is seeing a surge in new users due to inflation and a stronger dollar, Hinz said. Argentina is one of the crypto exchange giant’s best-performing markets, with an annual inflation rate of 71 percent as of July this year. Brazil and Mexico are also Binance’s largest markets. Regulation is a framework, but unregulated things aren't always negative. If something isn't banned, then it's legal.

▌FTX.US President Says Crypto Winter Fading Away

According to a recent interview, the president of FTX.US claimed that the transaction indicated that the crypto winter is starting to thaw, noting the outsized impact of institutional demand on crypto assets. He claimed that now is the time to build in order to have the tools and capital ready for investors to start trading cryptocurrencies again. Harrison also pointed out that the rising prices of crypto assets across the market mark the end of forced liquidations and crypto company failures. The combination of rising prices and positive sentiment seems to have contributed to the narrative that the crypto winter is coming to an end.

▌Uniswap Front-End Begins Blocking Addresses Received 0.1 ETH from Tornado Cash

Twitter user OKHotshot tweeted that the Uniswap front-end has now started blocking addresses that have received 0.1 ETH from Tornado Cash-related addresses. The Uniswap’s alert reads "This address is blocked on the Uniswap Labs interface because it is associated with one or more blocked activities." In addition, Uniswap has provided a channel for complaints.

▌Michael Saylor: Bitcoin Is Going to Demonetize Gold Gradually

Former MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor predicted that Bitcoin will eventually demonetize gold over time. Gold will not be adopted as money in the 21st century, he added. Instead, bitcoin will emerge as an institutional investment-grade asset that is embraced by major investors, regulators, and lawmakers.

Key Economic Events

▌Bank of America: If the Job Market Report Is Strong Again, It Will Be Difficult for the Fed Not to Raise Interest Rates by 75 Basis Points in September

The Federal Reserve is about to publish the minutes of its July monetary policy meeting after two weeks of volatility on Wall Street, which could offer clues as to what factors could push the Fed to step up its tightening efforts yet again in September. The Fed raised interest rates by 75 basis points for a second straight month in July, marking the fastest pace of policy tightening since the early 1980s. Financial markets are now betting between 50 and 75 basis points on a rate hike in September after reports showed a stronger-than-expected labor market and inflation below forecasts. Bank of America’s Head of US Economics Michael Gapen said that from a cost-benefit analysis if the Fed is inclined to go for smaller rate hikes, the inflation data may help them; but if the labor market report is strong again, the Fed may find it difficult not to raise interest rates by 75 basis points.