Riding The Wave News Summary 80
Biden's anemic crypto framework offered nothing new, 1M Aussies will enter crypto over the next 12 months — Swyftx survey, & more
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1M Aussies will enter crypto over the next 12 months — Swyftx survey
Urbit Courts DAOs, Crypto Teams in Quest to Make Internet P2P Again
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Biden's anemic crypto framework offered nothing new
The long-awaited cryptocurrency regulation framework released by President Joe Biden’s Treasury Department this month attempted to outline a plan for managing the burgeoning crypto industry. Unfortunately, the department’s assessment failed to embody more substance than a mere mission statement.
While Biden’s administration appears to be taking a “whole-of-government approach” toward overseeing the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector and its ripple effects on the traditional economy, they are focused predominantly on defending against negative events — such as financial crime — and failing to facilitate positive events, such as the wealth-building opportunities that crypto offers to Americans excluded from the traditional big-banking system.
The Biden framework literature suggests digital currency is key to securing America’s future as an economic leader. But if it grants power over crypto to the same authorities who wield power over traditional finance, the status quo isn’t going to change. Instead of establishing the U.S. dollar’s “digital twin,” the government would be better off finding a way to coexist with alternative currencies.
For example, keeping medical records on a blockchain — like Estonia’s highly advanced e-health system already does — would streamline and secure each person’s health data from birth through death, with each doctor or pharmacist along the way accessing an accurate history to make the best decision. Collecting anonymized, uncorrupted medical data is going to lead to better research, better treatments and more cost-effective health care.
Similarly, putting property and business records on a blockchain would lead to more accountability for big, opaque corporations that make bold claims of charity and sustainability. Such transparency would allow consumers to make more informed decisions about who they buy from — and bank with.
1M Aussies will enter crypto over the next 12 months — Swyftx survey
Approximately one million Australians will purchase cryptocurrency for the first time over the next 12 months — bringing total crypto ownership in the country to over five million — according to a newly released survey.
The findings came from the second Annual Australian Crypto Survey by Australian crypto exchange Swyftx, which was conducted by research firm YouGov.
The survey questioned 2,609 Australians over 18 years of age in early July, with 548 of the survey sample identified as current holders of cryptocurrency.
The report stated that despite the current “Crypto Winter” which has seen approximately $2 trillion in assets wiped from the digital assets market over the course of the last year, Australian crypto ownership has grown 4% year-on-year, reaching 21% in 2022.
This finding is broadly in line with recent data from a bitcoin processor suggesting the crypto winter isn’t holding back widespread adoption and comments from crypto exchange CoinJar’s head of content Luke Ryan claiming that sports sponsorship is helping legitimize crypto in Australia.
Honan said the rate of adoption may slow over the next 12 months before recovering again as market conditions improve.
“The bear market has knocked confidence [...] Confidence can take the stairs up and the lifts down, so we are going to have to wait and see how quickly the market takes to stabilize," he noted.
In a comment to Cointelegraph Swyftx co-CEO Ryan Parsons said the report shows there's clear demand among Australians to purchase and use crypto, but that a "material factor" for crypto hesitancy remains regulation.
With people growing more cautious due to the economy and increasing concerns around employment, I would expect more people to start investing, but overall this inflow to not be noticeable in the short term for crypto due to many people investing small amounts into crypto. Once the economy clears up a bit and people have more surplus cash to invest, I would expect this new inflow of investors to matter as they will increase the amount of money they are investing.
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