Ben Strack

<div id="highlights-block_61b08d5a6c0b0" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Executives from Bitfury, Paxos, and Stellar Development Foundation will also testify at hearing of US House Committee on Financial Services</li>
 <li>Circle Co-founder Jeremy Allaire to recommend that “the US should aggressively promote the use of the dollar as the primary currency of the internet”</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Executives of some of the largest crypto companies in the world are set to testify before the US House Committee on Financial Services on Wednesday.



The hearing — called Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States — will feature testimony from FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire and Alesia Haas, the CFO of Coinbase Global.



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The other crypto firm leaders set to testify include Bitfury CEO Brian Brooks, Paxos CEO Chad Cascarilla and Denelle Dixon, the chief executive of Stellar Development Foundation.Though some might interpret the invitation as US legislators taking a hostile approach towards digital assets, it should rather be seen as a positive signal, said Mikkel Morch, executive director at crypto hedge fund <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__ark36.com_about-2Dus_-23our-5Fteam&amp;d=DwMF-g&amp;c=sWW_bEwW_mLyN3Kx2v57Q8e-CRbmiT9yOhqES_g_wVY&amp;r=FUTyxn_53i67ILzDMW5BFG24i77vq3UgLHm1MQBAppk&amp;m=F2xft-K7lbChauYoIcnSMDrgQHVZWAilDTCEYvi8Lnk&amp;s=4TvW1zxaA07sth7ycoEiAHuILYioqhRAnu0CpSFeqrU&amp;e=" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ARK36</a>.



“Cryptocurrencies have been on the radar of top US politicians for a long time now, yet the Congress hasn&#8217;t yet decided to take any substantial regulatory action towards it,” Morch said.&nbsp;



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“One should hope the committee is a sign that US congressmen and congresswomen are willing to learn more about this burgeoning and extremely innovative market sector before taking any action that could potentially cripple it.”</blockquote>



Martha Reyes, head of research at digital asset prime brokerage and exchange <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__bequant.io_&amp;d=DwMF-g&amp;c=sWW_bEwW_mLyN3Kx2v57Q8e-CRbmiT9yOhqES_g_wVY&amp;r=FUTyxn_53i67ILzDMW5BFG24i77vq3UgLHm1MQBAppk&amp;m=F2xft-K7lbChauYoIcnSMDrgQHVZWAilDTCEYvi8Lnk&amp;s=dowhZcTdB6r7C_aqJIkkDmqvYIufW4NNrBpEaluPZDk&amp;e=" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BEQUANT</a>, said in an email that it is key for politicians to understand the implications of any crypto-related laws they may enact. She added that the hope is that the US becomes the first major crypto-friendly economy.



Morch said he doesn’t expect the US to follow China’s approach to crypto. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/bitcoin-breaks-below-30000-on-china-concerns/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">told the country’s key financial institutions</a> in June to block all cryptocurrency transactions, and its regulators have intensified a ban on bitcoin in recent months.



But, Morch added, he believes there will be tighter regulation related to stablecoins, noting that it is becoming more likely that the US government will seek to “severely restrict” what entities will be able to issue stablecoins.



Circle launched its stablecoin, USD Coin (USDC), in September 2018.



“In a world where money becomes a core feature of the internet, the US should aggressively promote the use of the dollar as the primary currency of the internet, and leverage that as a source of national economic competitiveness, security and a major upgrade needed for more efficient and inclusive financial services,” Allaire, Circle’s co-founder, said in <a href="https://www.circle.com/blog/circle-ceo-to-congress-u.s.-at-pivotal-moment-on-digital-assets" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a blog post </a>published Tuesday.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Allaire will also be speaking about the expanding use cases for stablecoins across both institutional and startup businesses, according to a Circle spokesperson, including small business payments, international low-cost, high-speed remittances and efficient payments for remote workers.



“Even though the road will be a long one, the sector is hopeful that these Congressional meetings will make a difference in the long term,” Reyes said. “While this continues, players in the industry such as ourselves must continue to act with clients&#8217; best interests at heart and aim to become recognized and regulated in other jurisdictions while the US decides how it will move forward.”



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Watch Replay</h3>



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Blockchain Industry Executives Set to Testify Before Congress

Sam Reynolds

<div id="highlights-block_6193ea1f49ad2" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Panelists at Blockworks’ DAS London event discussed the future of the metaverse, and agreed that it is more than profile pics with unsustainable valuations</li>
 <li>But with Facebook’s push into the Metaverse via its rebranding, panelists wonder if that’s the right direction to build the industry while capturing the ethos of Web3</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



<a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/events/das-london/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Digital Asset Summit 2021, London</a> — Don’t think NFTs are just limited to Bored Apes, Chubby Penguins, and CryptoPunks, panelists said during an NFT and Metaverse-themed discussion at Blockworks’ DAS London event. These are merely the first examples of digital ownership.



“It&#8217;s not super sustainable to have profile pics traded at hundreds of thousands of dollars or even millions. NFTs are very early on in their journey,” Alex Svanevik, the CEO of crypto analytics firm <a href="https://www.nansen.ai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nansen</a> said on stage.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“We’ve only scratched the surface of what we can invest in so far.”</blockquote>



Svanevik argued that the uses for NFTs are nearly infinite, and applicable with any circumstance where you need to prove ownership and identity.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg" alt="Alex Svanevik, Nansen" class="wp-image-11251" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=386 386w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=392 392w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=329 329w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9264-1024x683.jpg?w=1200 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Alex Svanevik, Nansen; Source: Ian Walton for Blockworks</figcaption></figure></div>



Matteo Perruccio, Partner at Wave Financial Group gave an example from Korea, where the city of Seoul is building out a virtual replica of itself in the Metaverse. The reason? To reduce burden on the city’s infrastructure by encouraging citizens to do some things virtually and reducing urban congestion. Perruccio gave the example of going to court virtually, and having subpoenas or evidence delivered as an NFT.



“To properly represent these things virtually you would need an NFT as it’s non-fungible and can provide a true record of ownership,” he said.&nbsp;



Martha Reyes, head of research at Bequant, added that NFTs are the first example of virtual property rights and title — both things that were important to the historical development of the non-virtual economy.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg" alt="Martha Reyes, Bequant" class="wp-image-11252" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=386 386w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=392 392w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=329 329w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9006-1024x683.jpg?w=1200 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Martha Reyes, Bequant; Source: Ian Walton for Blockworks</figcaption></figure></div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Will Facebook’s meta move help or hinder the industry?</h3>



Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/zuckerberg-says-facebooks-new-name-will-be-meta/">rebrand social networking giant Facebook to Meta</a> in October could be seen as the ultimate vindication of the broader Metaverse thesis. But, at the same time, Meta-Facebook might also hinder its development.&nbsp;



Min Teo of Ethereal Ventures argued that this presents a “trade-off” that’s worthy of an industry-wide debate.&nbsp;



“The connecting pipes of Web3 can be quite brittle, but the benefit is you actually own them,” she said.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg" alt="Min Teo, Ethereal Ventures discussing digital ownership" class="wp-image-11250" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=386 386w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=392 392w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=329 329w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/IW5_9063-1024x683.jpg?w=1200 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Min Teo, Ethereal Ventures; Source: Ian Walton for Blockworks</figcaption></figure>



Meta is sure to make this a sleek user experience that could easily scale, but that comes with a cost —&nbsp; it will be Zuckerberg’s walled garden.&nbsp;



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“Imagine if Zuckerberg owned your house and decided to take it away from you. That’s a pretty horrible experience,” she continued. “What’s the trade-off, is it worth it?”</blockquote>



Perruccio believes that the play by Facebook to rebrand as Meta is a desperate cry for help from the company, which is seeing younger users migrate away from its social apps.&nbsp;



“It&#8217;s counter-intuitive; Web3 was built around decentralization. I don’t see it being adopted by the very audience that’s creating the Metaverse. It’s going to be full of middle-aged people,” he said.&nbsp;



But Facebook isn’t the last company to announce a Metaverse strategy. Bequant’s Reyes thinks that while it’s a defensive move driven by a need for the company to constantly reinvent itself, she points to the fact that so many other fashion and tech companies are doing just the same.



“Every brand will have a Metaverse strategy,” she said.



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