Thursday, February 7, 2019

$446 million profit was the low estimate 😮

February 7, 2019

POWERED BY

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"So my view's quite clear. I believe cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin is the first example, I believe they're going to change the world."

- Richard Brown

MARKET

COIN	PRICE	24H

BTC	$3,414.50	+ 0.17%

XRP	$0.294000	+ 0.67%

ETH	$105.07	+ 1.39%

EOS	$2.35	+ 0.90%

BCH	$116.53	+ 2.15%

*Information as of 10:00 AM EST

EXCHANGE

Binance Brought in $446 Million in Profits Despite Bear Market

Back in July, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao estimated that his crypto exchange would pull anywhere from $500 million to $1 billion in profit in 2018.

According to analysis by The Block, he missed that mark, but still ended the year $446 million in the black.

Why lower than estimates?

Binance's profit has been dropping alongside trading volumes for the past year.

The Block found that nearly 71% of the exchange's profit was made in the first half of the year. Then, following the midway mark, profit only continued to drop month after month.

Alongside volume woes, Binance has been heavily investing in decentralized exchanges, foreign fiat to crypto exchanges, personnel and more - further helping declining profit.

The numbers are still remarkable

But even though $446 million is not what CZ was hoping for, it's quite remarkable for an exchange less than two years old.

For reference, NASDAQ brought in $734 million in profit in 2017, but the world's second largest stock exchange also employs 4,700+ people - about 14.6x as large as Binance's team.

Within crypto, Binance has already secured its spot as the top exchange by volume with a whopping 10 million users on its platform.

HACK

Police in New Zealand Say "Excellent Progress" Has Been Made in Cryptopia Investigation

Earlier this month, New Zealand-based exchange Cryptopia fell victim to a $16.1 million hack that left the company without air.

Shortly after the hack, Cryptopia announced it was closing and immediately engaged in an investigation with the local police force.

Things are looking up

According to Detective Inspector Greg Murton, the hacked funds are "being actively tracked by Police and specialists worldwide" along the blockchain.

Eventually, the investigation would like to find and arrest the perpetrators. But that might be a long way down the road.

For now, the investigation is watching the funds closely to see if the hacker tries to sell them on an exchange.

RESEARCH

Korea's Central Bank Finds State Digital Currency Could Harm Economy

Researchers at the Bank of Korea (BoK) detailed a report that shows how a central bank digital currency (CBDC) could actually hurt financial stability.

The BoK explained what could happen after issuing a CBDC:

Deposits and reserves at banks fall
Less cash means less money to loan
Less money to loan means high interest rates

The report continued:

"This has negative effects on financial stability, which increases the likelihood of bank panic in which commercial banks are short of cash reserves to pay out to depositors."

Extra measures

The report is not a be all end all but it is a warning for central banks.

The BoK does state that if a CBDC is issued, extra measures should be taken to avoid this problem.

SPONOSORED

Bitit Launches EUR Deposits and Withdrawals

France's leading cryptocurrency broker, Bitit, has added support for EUR Deposits and Withdrawals.

The EUR Wallet feature lets customers from the 35 European nations & territories deposit Euros into their Bitit account for use towards the 25 cryptocurrencies offered on the platform. Non-European customers also have the ability to create their Bitit EUR Wallet, although there are some particular requirements for them.

Users get instant access to an individual and unique EUR IBAN in their name. The EUR Wallet can be used as a source of funds to make instant and high-volume crypto purchases for only 0.25% per trade, 24/7, anytime, anywhere, with more speed and more autonomy!

BITS

But wait, there's more...

😲 New movement asks Mt. Gox to reboot with "Gox Coin" being paid to creditors.
🏥 The private hospital that the QuadrigaCX CEO passed away at releases statement.
🚨 Two suspects have been arrested in Germany for stealing electricity to mine cryptocurrencies.

MEME