STABLECOINS
US House Committee to Discuss Stablecoins Regulation
The US House Committee on Financial Services will conduct a hearing on April 19 to evaluate stablecoins’ position as a means of payment and whether the payment ecosystem needs supporting legislation. Circle's chief strategy officer and head of global policy, Dante Disparte, will testify at the hearing, which will focus on various stablecoins and their use in the payments landscape. A draft bill providing a framework for stablecoins in the United States was recently published in the House of Representatives document repository.
Paxos Identifies Key Opportunities During Crypto Winter
Blockchain infrastructure provider Paxos has published a report identifying opportunities for crypto projects during the current market conditions, including seeking solutions and partnerships. The report highlights the usefulness of stablecoins while acknowledging the need for greater transparency. Partnerships with businesses addressing real-world needs were also deemed important. The CEO of the Stellar Development Foundation suggested that regulating stablecoins may be necessary to maintain a strong dollar, while a recent Bank of International Settlements report deemed stablecoins a less preferable form of tokenized money.
DeFi Hackers Mint $11.6M in Stablecoins
Blockchain security firm PeckShield identified a hack that allowed an attacker to mint over 1 quadrillion Yearn Tether and then swap it for other stablecoins worth $11.6M. The attacker also managed to transfer 1,000 ETH to the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash. DeFi protocols Yearn.finance and Aave have confirmed that their current contracts and protocols were not affected by the exploit.
Stablecoin Depeg Event Reveals Risks to DeFi and Traditional Finance
Recent failures of established financial institutions, such as Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, have highlighted the potential for distress to spread to the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. The depegging of stablecoins, including Circle's USD coin (USDC), has also brought governance risks related to the custody of reserve assets to the forefront. Moody's anticipates that regulators could increase their scrutiny of stablecoins and require greater counterparty diversification.
Australian Senator Proposes Digital Asset Regulation Bill
Senator Andrew Bragg has proposed a Digital Assets (Market Regulation) Bill 2023 to regulate cryptocurrency services in Australia. The bill recommends stablecoin regulations, licensing of exchanges, and custody requirements to protect consumers and promote investment.
White House Report Casts Doubt on Cryptocurrencies
The White House's Economic Report includes a chapter questioning the benefits of cryptocurrencies, with 35 pages dedicated to debunking them. It argues that crypto assets fail to deliver on their promised benefits, and that they are too volatile to be a stable store of value or reliable medium of exchange.
Moody warns of stablecoin adoption risk
Moody's Investors Service has warned that the recent turmoil in the traditional banking sector and USDC losing its peg could negatively impact stablecoin adoption and increase calls for regulation. The credit rating agency believes that fiat-backed stablecoins like USDC could face new resistance, limiting their stability and potentially causing a run on banks holding Circle's assets, which could lead to the depegging of other stablecoins.
Depegging of USDC and DAI Saves Borrowers $100 Million
The depegging of USD Coin (USDC) and Dai (DAI) from the US dollar resulted in more than $2 billion in loan repayments on decentralized lending protocols Aave and Compound, with borrowers saving a total of over $100 million. USDC and DAI started heading back toward their peg, and repayment activity tapered off in the following days.
Overnight collapse of two traditional banks triggers chaos
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank caused major chaos, resulting in stablecoins depegging from the U.S. dollar. The federal government has taken action to protect depositors, and President Joe Biden has vowed to hold those responsible accountable.
FTX Continues to Move Funds Amid Ongoing Investigations
Addresses associated with FTX and its subsidiary, Alameda Research, have reportedly transferred $145 million in stablecoins to various platforms, as the cryptocurrency exchange faces demands to return funds to different groups of investors amid ongoing investigations and lawsuits.
Binance converts remaining $1 billion in Industry Recovery Initiative to native crypto amidst concerns around stablecoins
Binance co-founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao, announced on March 13 that the exchange will be converting the remaining $1 billion funds in its Industry Recovery Initiative to native crypto amid concerns surrounding stablecoins. This decision was made following the depegging of the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin caused by the failure of three major crypto-friendly banks - Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), Silvergate Bank, and Signature Bank.
Aave Freezes Stablecoin Trading Amid Price Volatility
Lending protocol Aave has temporarily halted trading of stablecoins and set the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio to zero due to the recent price volatility on USD Coin (USDC) following its depegging on March 11. Aave's decision was based on an analysis by decentralized finance risk management firm Gauntlet Network, which recommended a temporary pause of all v2 and v3 markets. The LTV ratio determines how much credit can be secured using crypto as collateral and is calculated by dividing the amount of credit borrowed by the value of the collateral.
USDC Holders Panic Sell Amid Solvency Concerns
On March 10, concerns about the solvency of USD Coin (USDC) led several holders to panic sell their holdings and switch to other stablecoins. One user lost over 2 million USDC in a failed attempt to exchange them for Tether (USDT) using KyberSwap's decentralized exchange aggregator. Tron founder Justin Sun reportedly withdrew 82 million USDC and exchanged them for Dai (DAI) using Aave v2, while IOSG Ventures sold 118.73 million USDC for 105.67 million USDT and 2,756 Ether (ETH). The USDC price has since slowly recovered, and Circle, the company behind USDC, disclosed holding $3.3 billion at the Silicon Valley Bank.
Banks increase risks to stablecoins
The death of the Terra ecosystem triggered a bear market in 2022, causing losses in billions, affecting investor sentiment, and intensifying the regulatory spotlight over cryptocurrencies. Recently, Circle's disclosure that Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) did not process its $3.3 billion withdrawal request led to the depegging of its USD Coin (USDC). This event caused Binance CEO CZ to believe that traditional banks are a risk to stablecoins that are usually pegged 1:1 with fiat currencies, like the U.S. dollar.
US Federal Reserve to Create Cryptocurrency Team Amid Concerns Over Unregulated Stablecoins
The US Federal Reserve is planning to establish a specialized team of experts to keep up with developments in the cryptocurrency industry, specifically focusing on stablecoins. The move comes amid concerns that unregulated stablecoins could put households, businesses, and the broader economy at risk. While acknowledging the transformative potential of cryptocurrencies, the Federal Reserve believes that appropriate guardrails need to be in place to ensure that the benefits of innovation can be realized.
