Economy
Bitfinex Targets Emerging Markets to Drive Crypto Adoption
By Adedapo Adesanya
One of the earliest cryptocurrencies in the world, Bitfinex, has said amid a global shift, it will be focusing on emerging markets and exploring new ways to bring financial services to those who need them most.
This was made known by the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Bitfinex, Mr Paolo Ardoino, in a chat with Business Post.
“We believe this year will be focused on greater innovation, more transparency, freedom for everyone not served by traditional technologies and financial systems, and an end to practices that have tarnished our industry and obscured the promise that it holds.
“We will also be focusing on the long-term development of the Bitfinex Securities platform. We believe Security Tokens represent the next generation of capital markets,” he explained.
“By matching the technology of the digital asset industry with clearly defined issuer obligations, investor protection, and regulatory oversight, STOs offer investors and issuers a faster, cheaper, and lower friction way to invest, raise capital, and trade. This sets the stage for an exciting 2023 for both Bitfinex Securities and STO markets more broadly,” he added.
The CTO noted that the company had worked relentlessly to educate customers about the benefits and attributes of Bitcoin and the blockchain while providing a technically superior environment to buy, hold, and sell tokens.
“We believe that Bitcoin provides a technology and a payment solution that meets the need for a fast, efficient, and private service. With no centralized servers and unnecessary intermediaries – and at near zero cost – it enables financial inclusion and financial freedom,” he said.
“We are also inspired by the Bitcoin ethos of decentralization to develop peer-to-peer solutions that enable freedom of speech and are proud to be a major shareholder in Holepunch, which has pioneered distributed systems.
“We strongly believe that mass acceptance of crypto is most likely to occur because of its permissionless features and ability to create a more open and equitable world. Bitfinex was born at the dawn of the Bitcoin revolution, and everything we do is focused on creating simple, dependable, and accessible technology that promotes freedom,” he added.
However, he noted that the crypto space has come with many challenges, just as the market continues to evolve.
“Periodically, a new wave of speculation comes accompanied by new cryptocurrencies, which focus more on leveraging trending technologies than necessarily truly understanding them. Part of my role has been to educate and speak about the difference between bitcoin and stablecoins versus other more speculative coins.
“I believe crypto has a lot of potentials to help the unbanked population as long as it’s understood as a freedom tool rather than a quick rich scheme. Myself, and everyone at Bitfinex, is driven by the ethos of Financial Freedom, and we take on the challenge to educate the whole community about this,” he said.
To this end, Mr Ardoino said Bitfinex is at the forefront of promoting cryptocurrency adoption.
“In many Emerging Markets, particularly where there is currency volatility, Bitcoin provides a store of value, a form of remittance, and a gateway to financial freedom,” he added that there are 2 billion people who do not have a bank account because they are too poor and the banks do not want the costs of maintaining those accounts.
To this end, “With Bitcoin, it can be stored for free on the blockchain and can be sent around the world at zero or very low costs. We are also committed to providing a wide range of applications that enable the use of Bitcoin beyond just a savings tool.
“The impending launch of the Volcano Token will set another precedent demonstrating how emerging markets can use Bitcoin to tap access to capital and create a whole new economy,” Mr Ardoino said.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) experienced a pullback of 0.69 per cent as a result of profit-taking by investors, with shares in the banking and energy sectors mostly affected.
Data harvested by Business Post showed that the energy index was down by 4.58 per cent during the session, and the banking space lost 2.14 per cent.
They brought down the All-Share Index (ASI) by 1,402.56 points to 201,156.85 points from 202,559.41 points and shrank the market capitalisation by N900 billion to N129.126 trillion from N130.026 trillion.
Customs Street ended in red at midweek despite three of the five key sectors finishing in green. The consumer goods counter expanded by 1.19 per cent, the industrial goods index improved by 0.46 per cent, and the insurance sector grew by 0.43 per cent.
Red Star Express declined by 9.98 per cent to N25.70, Aradel Holdings went down by 9.68 per cent to N1,210.30, Presco lost 9.30 per cent to trade at N1,701.10, Living Trust Mortgage Bank crashed by 8.40 per cent to N4.80, and DAAR Communications dropped 7.50 per cent to end at N1.85.
On the flip side, Secure Electronic Technology gained 10.00 per cent to settle at N1.32, Guinness Nigeria rose by 9.92 per cent to N423.20, John Holt increased by 9.72 per cent to N11.85, Sovereign Trust Insurance surged by 9.57 per cent to N2.06, and Linkage Assurance chalked up 9.33 per cent to trade at N1.64.
Investor sentiment was weak yesterday after the bourse registered 33 price gainers and 38 price losers, indicating a negative market breadth index.
Market participants bought and sold 6.1 billion stocks valued at N130.1 billion in 58,562 deals compared with the 1.8 billion stocks worth N88.1 billion traded in 62,654 deals on Tuesday, representing a shortfall in the number of deals by 6.53 per cent, and a spike in the trading volume and value by 238.89 per cent and 47.67 per cent apiece.
The most active equity on Wednesday was eTranzact with 5.2 billion units sold for N24.3 billion, Wema Bank exchanged 111.4 million units worth N3.1 billion, Coronation Insurance transacted 96.4 million units valued at N303.9 million, Dangote Cement traded 75.2 million units for N56.5 billion, and Access Holdings exchanged 61.5 million units valued at N1.6 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira stumbled against the Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Wednesday, March 18, by N8.96 or 0.67 per cent to trade at N1,353.00/$1, in contrast to the previous day’s rate of N1,344.04/$1.
Also, the local currency weakened against the Pound Sterling in the spot market at midweek by N6.06 to sell for N1,801.93/£1 compared with Tuesday’s value of N1,795.87/£1, and lost N4.75 against the Euro to quote at N1,556.22/€1 versus the preceding day’s N1,551.46/€1.
However, the Nigerian currency gained N2 against the greenback yesterday at the GTBank forex desk to close at N1,363/$1 versus the N1,365/$1 it was exchanged for a day earlier, and traded flat in the parallel market at N1,395/$1.
Nigeria’s external reserves fell by $178 million over three consecutive international payments recorded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), settling at $49.83 billion from $50.008 billion, indicating that there have been some interventions in the FX market for stability and liquidity.
While the wider outlook for the Naira is positive, potential disruptions to global oil supply have increased volatility in energy markets and could spike inflation with higher oil prices.
In the cryptocurrency market, Bitcoin (BTC) slipped below $71,000 on Wednesday as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell flagged rising oil prices amid the war in Iran as a new inflation risk. It sold at $70,538.58.
The US central bank held interest rates steady as expected, but during his post-meeting press conference, Mr Powell acknowledged that the recent surge in energy prices is already feeding into the central bank’s outlook.
He said rising oil prices “for sure showed up” in policymakers’ higher inflation outlook for this year, lifting their forecast to 2.7 per cent from 2.4 per cent.
Further, Ethereum (ETH) lost 6.3 per cent to trade at $2,178.56, Cardano (ADA) fell by 6.1 per cent to $0.2714, Dogecoin (DOGE) dropped 5.7 per cent to close at $0.0096, Solana (SOL) dipped 4.8 per cent to $89.83, Ripple (XRP) slumped by 3.8 per cent to $1.46, and Binance Coin (BNB) declined by 3.7 per cent to $648.61.
However, TRON (TRX) appreciated by 0.4 per cent to $0.3037, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Brent crude moved higher by 4.27 per cent to $112.00 per barrel on Wednesday as Iran attacked several energy facilities across the Middle East, creating a major escalation in its war with the United States and Israel.
Also, the US West Texas Intermediate grew by 2.73 per cent to $98.95, as the Middle East conflict continues to escalate, and energy infrastructure is targeted across the Gulf, as Iran hit energy infrastructure across the Middle East in retaliation for earlier strikes on its South Pars gas field.
Qatar confirmed that Iranian missile strikes had caused “extensive damage” around the Ras Laffan industrial complex, the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility and a cornerstone of global gas supply.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) suspended operations at its Habshan gas facility after missile-related incidents, with debris from intercepted projectiles reportedly affecting additional energy infrastructure, including the Bab oil field.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and Bahrain continue to be targeted by Iran, with Saudi Arabia reporting that air defences had destroyed a total of 19 drones in the Eastern Province and four missiles launched toward Riyadh.
Earlier on Wednesday, Iran issued an evacuation warning for several energy facilities across Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, saying they would be targeted by strikes “in the coming hours.”
Shipping also remained under threat, with the UK’s maritime security agency reporting that a vessel east of the Strait of Hormuz caught fire after being struck by an “unknown projectile.”
The war has halted shipments via the Strait of Hormuz, which handles 20 per cent of global oil and LNG supply. Total oil output cuts in the Middle East are estimated at 7 million to 10 million barrels per day, or 7 per cent to 10 per cent of global demand.
To ease worries, the administration of US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a 60-day waiver of the Jones Act shipping law, temporarily allowing foreign-flagged vessels to move fuel, fertiliser, and other goods between US ports.
It is also working on measures that could help slow the surge in fuel prices in the US, but are unlikely to have much of an effect on global energy prices.
In Iraq, the North Oil Company said crude exports from Iraq’s Kirkuk fields to Turkey’s Ceyhan port have resumed via pipeline, after Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government agreed to restart flows. The company said exports would resume with an initial capacity of 250,000 barrels per day.
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said crude inventories rose by 6.2 million barrels to 449.3 million barrels in the week ended March 13.
-
Feature/OPED6 years agoDavos was Different this year
-
Travel/Tourism10 years ago
Lagos Seals Western Lodge Hotel In Ikorodu
-
Showbiz3 years agoEstranged Lover Releases Videos of Empress Njamah Bathing
-
Banking8 years agoSort Codes of GTBank Branches in Nigeria
-
Economy3 years agoSubsidy Removal: CNG at N130 Per Litre Cheaper Than Petrol—IPMAN
-
Banking3 years agoSort Codes of UBA Branches in Nigeria
-
Banking3 years agoFirst Bank Announces Planned Downtime
-
Sports3 years agoHighest Paid Nigerian Footballer – How Much Do Nigerian Footballers Earn