• The cryptocurrency market has seen some interesting movements in the last 24 hours, with XinFin (XDC), JOE (JOE), and HEX (HEX) standing out in terms of price performance.
• XinFin is up 21.37% and aims to facilitate cross-border trade finance, supply chain finance, and other business processes through its hybrid blockchain model.
• JOE enables the creation and trading of limited-edition NFTs linked to real-world collectibles, while HEX is a blockchain-based certificate of deposit that allows users to stake their tokens and earn interest on their holdings.

Cryptocurrency Market Movers

The cryptocurrency market has seen some interesting movements in the last 24 hours, with three digital assets standing out from the rest regarding price performance. These include XinFin (XDC), JOE (JOE), and HEX (HEX). Let’s take a closer look at each coin individually.

XinFin

XinFin is up 21.37% in the past 24 hours, with a 30-day increase of 58.09%. The platform aims to facilitate cross-border trade finance, supply chain finance, and other business processes through its hybrid blockchain model. At the time of writing, the market capitalization of XinFin stands at $598 million — with a 24-hour trading volume of $12 million. Its all-time high (ATH) was achieved on May 8th 2021 at $0.19451 — currently down by 78% from that peak.

JOE

JOE is up 19.94% over the past day — with a 7-day increase of 75.82% and a 30-day increase of 45.25%. It is decentralized platform for creating and trading limited edition NFTs which are linked to real world collectibles; aiming to address lack authenticity and scarcity present in NFT markets by linking each individual asset to unique physical items such as rare coins or sports memorabilia. Its market capitalization currently stands at $136 million — with a 24-hour trading volume of $86 million; reaching an ATH on March 11th 2021 at $5.05117 — currently down 92% from that peak value .

HEX

HEX has risen 16

• The Pokémon Company International is looking to develop a metaverse, leading to fan backlash.
• The Corporate Development Principal job listing detailed the role, requiring knowledge of and experience with Web 3, blockchain technologies, and NFTs.
• Fans are apprehensive about the potential implications of these plans for the beloved franchise.

Pokémon’s Plans to Develop a Metaverse

The Pokémon Company International is looking to develop a metaverse, which has sparked debate among fans regarding its potential implications for the beloved franchise. A job posting was published for the position of Corporate Development Principal at the company based in Washington, U.S., detailing the role to develop „brand new Pokémon experiences“ via „unique technologies.“ This requires sourcing and researching potential strategic partners, assessing technological trends, and designing and building a platform to house the project’s development. To be eligible for this post applicants must have over 12 years of work experience, with a minimum of 7 years in corporate development or corporate venture capital at a technology, gaming, media or entertainment company; furthermore they must have deep knowledge and understanding of Web 3 including blockchain technologies and NFTs as well as metaverses.

Fans‘ Reactions to Pokémon’s Plans

The reactions from fans were divided following news of these ambitious plans. Some expressed their apprehension that such moves could lead to a drop in interest and eventually kill off the franchise due to being associated with extreme price volatility and scams associated with Web3 platforms; citing recent high-profile cases such as FTX collapse as examples illustrating their wariness around such projects. On the other hand however some expressed optimism towards these prospective changes noting how Nintendo had not openly discussed Web3 or NFTs until recently when Analyst David Gibson broke rank during an investor call saying „We do have interest in this area. We feel the potential in this area but we wonder what joy we can provide and this is difficult to define right now.“

What Could This Mean?

The job listing has sparked much debate among fans regarding what it could mean for their beloved franchise if it does indeed move ahead with its ambitions plans for metaverses powered by Web3 technology; it remains unclear exactly what form these changes will take yet it seems clear that whatever direction they choose will shape future generations experience with Pokemon going forward. It is also possible that Nintendo may opt out altogether depending on public opinion so only time will tell how far they will go down this path.

Potential Benefits

A move towards using Web3 technology could potentially unlock many exciting opportunities within Pokemon games allowing players access features like buying virtual items using cryptocurrency or creating custom content using NFTs which could open up an entirely new avenue of engagement with players across all ages groups given cryptocurrency’s popularity amongst younger generations today. Additionally developers would benefit from more robust security measures protecting them from online scams given blockchain’s decentralised nature meaning data stored on there cannot be altered without consensus from all users involved making them less vulnerable than traditional web-based systems such as those used by banks etcetera today .

Conclusion

In conclusion while many fans remain uncertain regarding Pokemon’s plans concerning developing metaverses powered by Web3 technology there are some interesting prospects that may come out should they choose proceed further down this path; only time will tell if Nintendo decide whether or not pursue this route but either way one thing is certain – any decisions made here will shape future generations experiences with Pokemon going forward so it’ll certainly be worth keeping an eye on!

• NFT trading volume increased to $2 billion in February, reaching its pre-LUNA crash levels.
• Ethereum remained the top blockchain by NFT trading volume with $1.8 billion in February.
• Blur triumphed over OpenSea in terms of trading volume, facilitating over $1.3 billion throughout the month.

NFT Trading Volume Returns to Pre-LUNA Crash Levels

The non-fungible token (NFT) market’s trading volume increased to $2 billion in February, according to DappRadar’s Industry Report. This marks a 117% spike from January’s $956 million and is the highest since May 2022, when the LUNA crash happened.

Ethereum Dominates as Top Blockchain by NFT Trading Volume

Ethereum (ETH) remained the top blockchain by NFT trading volume, recording $1.8 billion for February — a 174% increase from January’s $659 million and representing 83.36% of the entire NFT market. Solana (SOL) came second with $75 million in trading volume, but this still marked a 12% decrease from January’s figure of $86 million; Polygon (MATIC) was third with an impressive 147% increase to reach $39 million from last month’s total of just 16 million dollars.

Blur vs OpenSea

Blur proved more popular than OpenSea when it comes to trading volume; Blur facilitated over 1.3 billion dollars worth of trades throughout February while OpenSea recorded 587 million — indicating that Blur accounted for 64.8% of the whole NFT market and OpenSea 28%. X2Y2 and LooksRare followed behind with 39 and 29 million respectively — making up 1.9% and 1.4%.

Profit Chasers vs Art Lovers

Even though Blur has more impressive trade numbers than OpenSea, OpenSea still has more users — 96 856 on Blur compared to 316 199 on OpenSea at present time — meaning that profit chasers are outnumbering art lovers at least for now!

Conclusion

Despite a 31 46 % decrease in sales count from 9 2 million in January down to 6 3 million this month, overall it looks like Non Fungible Tokens are growing both in popularity and value — making them an interesting investment option for those looking for something new!

Summary

• Montana’s state senate passed a bill on Feb. 23 in order to protect the right to engage in cryptocurrency mining.
• The bill seeks to prevent higher electricity rates and additional taxes on cryptocurrencies, as well as ensuring firms can operate in industrial zones and individual miners can operate in residential areas.
• The bill was backed by Dennis Porter, CEO and co-founder of the Satoshi Action Fund.

Montana Passes „Right To Mine“ Crypto Bill

On Feb. 23, Montana’s state senate passed a bill to protect individuals‘ and businesses‘ right to engage in cryptocurrency mining. The bill specifically aims to prevent the government from imposing higher electricity rates on crypto miners or additional taxes on cryptocurrencies. It also ensures that mining firms can operate in industrial zones and individual miners can operate in residential areas (with an exception for noise complaints). The bill passed with 37 votes in favor and 13 votes opposed, backed by Dennis Porter, CEO and co-founder of the Satoshi Action Fund.

Missoula County Law Affects Mining

The pro-crypto bill may counteract an earlier Missoula County law that has introduced new environmental zoning regulations and affects mining. Montana appears to be a reasonably popular destination for industrial crypto miners — firms such as Madison River Equity, Marathon Digital, Atlas Power, Bitzero, and Project Spokane have operated or attempted to operate there.

Other States Regulations On Crypto Mining

In mid-2022, New York passed a bill to restrict crypto mining; meanwhile Mississippi passed a bill earlier this year to prevent discriminatory mining laws.

Satoshi Action Fund Support

The pro-crypto Montana law was supported by Dennis Porter, CEO and co-founder of the Satoshi Action Fund. Porter wrote today that the bill must now pass through the house before being signed by the governor into law.

Conclusion The Montana State Senate passing this pro-crypto legislation provides greater protections for those engaging in cryptocurrency mining activity within the state of Montana while potentially countering other states‘ more restrictive measures against it.

• Push Protocol (formerly EPNS) has just launched on BNB Chain, resulting in its PUSH token jumping 41% over the past 24 hours.
• The goal is to expand its reach and appeal across different ecosystems with the launch on BNB Chain.
• This spike in price marks the highest for PUSH since June 2022 and comes as Bitcoin soars up 10% to hit a new year-to-date high of $24,314.

Push Protocol (EPNS) Launches on BNB Chain

Push Protocol (formerly EPNS,) the blockchain messaging and communications protocol, launched on BNB Chain on Feb. 15th, as its PUSH token jumped 41% over the past 24 hours. The goal is to „expand its reach and appeal across an ever-diverse list of ecosystems“ following its prior launches on Ethereum and Polygon.

BNB Chain Partnerships & Collaborations

BNB Chain has seen a slew of partnership and collaboration announcements over the past month as Uniswap deployed to the chain, the introduction of the Greenfield decentralized storage system, and OpenSea added support for BNB Chain NFTs. Alvin Kan, Director of Growth at BNB Chain said “The launch of Push Protocol on BNB Chain will bring a whole new level of accessibility to its easy-to-use communication interface powered by decentralized notifications and messaging.“

PUSH Token Jumps 41%

While Bitcoin soared up 10%, through $23,000, to hit a new year-to-date high of $24,314, PUSH rose to $0.44 from a daily low of $0.31. The token remains down 92.88% from its all-time high but today’s move marks the highest price for PUSH since June 2022.

Project Lead & Founder Weighs In

Harsh Rajat, project lead and founder of Push Protocol said: „Launching on BNB Chain helps Push get closer to its vision of onboarding one billion users to web3.“

Conclusion

The launch of PUSH combined with bullish market sentiment saw year-to-date highs for this token that could pave way towards achieving their goal if more partnerships are struck in future months ahead

• Lido’s staking deposits across all chains have grown, with Ethereum on the Beacon Chain reaching 5.05 million ($8.32 billion).
• The value of assets locked (TVL) in Lido has increased by 5.5% over the last seven days and its native token, LDO, surged 18%.
• Frax Ethereum’s TVL rose 77% in the past month and its native token, FXS, surged 30% in the last 24 hours.

Lido Crosses 5M Staked Ethereum

Lido reported that its staking deposits across all chains have grown, with Ethereum on the Beacon Chain reaching 5.05 million ($8.32 billion). This led to their native token, LDO, surging 18% to $2.45 as of press time. Additionally, the total value of assets locked (TVL) in Lido has increased by 5.5% over the last seven days and it currently holds 29.3% of the market share for liquid staking protocols and 17.31% of DeFi protocols‘ market share overall.

Frax ETH On The Rise

The ecosystem for Frax Ethereum (frxETH) has also seen significant growth recently; its TVL increased by roughly 77%, bringing it to a total value of $144 million according to data aggregator DeFillama. Additionally, its supply grew by 70,000 ETH within three months according to Blockchain analytics firm Nansen making it one of the largest ETH LSDs available today. To add to this news Frax Share (FXS), frxETH’s native token also saw an increase with prices rising 30% in just 24 hours and 120% over a span of 30 days according to CryptoSlate data .

Incentives Now Live

On top of this news Lido said their February incentives program is now live with 1.95 million tokens set aside for rewards from stakers who are able participate within their network .

Growing Interest In Liquid Staking Protocols

It is clear that there is an increasing amount of interest being directed towards liquid staking protocols like Lido & Frax which are providing users with more options when it comes to earning returns on their crypto investments while at same time providing networks with extra security through additional validators .

Conclusion

Overall these developments show a positive trend towards liquid staking that could bring more people into DeFi space as well as provide new opportunities for those already invested in cryptocurrency markets

• Canto is a Layer-1 decentralized token that recently experienced a sudden rise in price.
• Some investors are speculating that this could be due to an increase in the volume of Note, a quasi-stablecoin issued by Canto and pegged to USDT/USDC.
• However, members of the Canto discord community have dismissed this speculation, noting that Note is 100% collateralized, in contrast to the TerraUSD/UST algorithmic stablecoin which collapsed in 2022 due to a lack of collateral.

The digital asset industry has experienced a surge of activity in recent months, with many projects gaining widespread adoption and their respective tokens experiencing significant gains in value. One of those projects is Canto, a Layer-1 decentralized token running on the Ethereum Virtual Machine, which provides Tendermint consensus secured by validator nodes with EVM executions via Cosmos SDK. Canto’s has developed a business model it calls “Free Public Infrastructure”, which is likened to free parking on a city street, and which includes a zero-fee DEX for liquidity providers and a Canto lending market (CLM) for users.

However, some investors have been concerned about the sudden rise in Canto’s price and have speculated that it could be due to an increase in the volume of Note, a quasi-stablecoin issued by Canto and pegged to USDT/USDC. This speculation has caused some to suggest that Note may not be as healthy as it appears, given the similarities to the TerraUSD/UST algorithmic stablecoin, which collapsed in 2022 after its peg fell short resulting in a run on nearly $45 billion worth of assets.

However, members in the Canto discord community have downplayed these concerns and reassured the community that Note is indeed healthy and secure. They note that unlike the TerraUSD/UST algorithmic stablecoin, Note is 100% collateralized, which provides a higher level of security and stability. Furthermore, Canto’s decentralized trifecta of offerings, which includes its DEX, lending market, and Note, provides users with a comprehensive suite of financial services that is secure and reliable.

Ultimately, Canto’s recent rise in price is likely due to the overall increase in activity in the digital asset industry, as well as investors’ recognition of its comprehensive suite of offerings. The community’s confidence in the health and security of Note should also help to allay any fears or concerns that the rise in price could be attributed to any instability in the quasi-stablecoin. Overall, Canto’s growth is an encouraging sign for the digital asset industry and a testament to the power of decentralized infrastructure.

• Investors were betting against Bitcoin as the price teetered above $16,000.
• CryptoSlate analysis found that those shorting Bitcoin were not in as strong a position as investors first thought, due to the purchase of roughly $200 million in Bitcoin on spot trading markets.
• This purchase forced massive short liquidations due to dwindling volume and a short squeeze that took Bitcoin from $16,800 to over $21,000.

As the new year welcomed investors, Bitcoin was teetering above $16,000 and those betting against it rose to some of the highest on record. Bears were seemingly in complete control of the price action, however, CryptoSlate analysis found that those shorting Bitcoin were not in as strong a position as investors first thought.

The purchase of roughly $200 million in Bitcoin on spot trading markets was enough to force massive short liquidations due to dwindling volume. This purchase of Bitcoin was accompanied by several large trades executed on major exchanges which was enough to create a brief short squeeze that took Bitcoin from $16,800 to over $21,000.

The below chart shows the futures long liquidations dominance (i.e., long liquidations / (long liquidations + short liquidations)). The 50% mark in the middle of the chart represents an equal amount of long and short liquidations. Values above 50% indicate more longs liquidated, and values below 50% indicate more shorts being liquidated.

As the dominance rose to the highest level in over two years, those betting against Bitcoin lost out as long liquidations became dominant. This shows that the purchase of Bitcoin on spot trading markets and the large trades executed on major exchanges was enough to overwhelm those betting against it, and cause a short squeeze that pushed the price of Bitcoin up significantly.

Overall, this shows that the purchase of Bitcoin on spot trading markets can have a significant impact on the crypto markets, and it is important to take these factors into account when trading. In addition, it is important to keep an eye on the long liquidations dominance as this can provide an indication of which direction the market is heading.

• The number of active wallets holding GUSD returned to 2020 levels, while BUSD volume on exchanges shrank by 96% in the last seven months.
• Glassnode data analyzed by CryptoSlate shows that the U.S.-based crypto exchange Gemini and its stablecoin Gemini Dollar (GUSD) are starting to lose followers and the community’s trust as metrics fall to all-time lows.
• The name Gemini has been on the headlines since the Terra-Luna collapse.

Recent data has revealed that the crypto exchange Gemini and its stablecoin, the Gemini Dollar (GUSD), are experiencing a significant drop in active wallets and exchange volume. According to analysis conducted by CryptoSlate, the number of active addresses that hold GUSD has returned to its 2020 levels, while BUSD volume on exchanges has shrunk by 96% in the last seven months.

This comes as a major blow to the exchange and its associated coin, as it serves as a sign that the community’s trust in the platform is waning. This is especially concerning in light of the recent Terra-Luna collapse, which has left many in the crypto space questioning the security of their funds.

Glassnode data reveals that the number of wallets holding GUSD started to increase at the end of 2020 and reached almost 1200 towards the end of 2021. However, active addresses that hold GUSD soon fell by 91.6% and returned to its original levels of 100 in January 2023.

This trend is further demonstrated by the BUSD balance held on exchanges, which started to grow exponentially in July 2021 and breached 300 million in May 2022, just before the FTX collapse. Since then, the BUSD volume has steadily decreased, falling from around 260 million to just above 10 million in January 2023.

The decrease in active wallets and exchange volume serves as a worrying sign for the Gemini exchange and its associated coin, as it suggests that the community is starting to lose trust in the platform. This is especially concerning in light of the recent Terra-Luna collapse, and it remains to be seen if the exchange can recover from this setback.

• MetaMask recently warned the crypto community of a new type of scam called ‘address poisoning’.
• This scam exploits absentmindedness when copying and pasting wallet addresses.
• Address poisoning attacks rely on user carelessness and haste, as scammers attempt to dupe users into sending funds to their own ‘vanity’ addresses.

MetaMask recently issued a warning to the cryptocurrency community about a new type of scam called ‘address poisoning’. This scam exploits users’ absentmindedness when copying and pasting wallet addresses. It relies on carelessness and haste from users in order to dupe them into sending funds to the scammers’ own ‘vanity’ addresses.

Cryptocurrency wallets typically generate long, hexadecimal addresses that are difficult to remember and easy to mix up with other similar addresses. As a result, many wallet providers, including MetaMask, feature a one-click function to copy an address. This is where the scammers take advantage, as they observe and track transactions of particular tokens, with stablecoins commonly targeted. The scammers then use a ‘vanity’ address generator to create an address that is identical or very similar to the address of the user they are targeting.

The scammer then waits for the user to copy and paste the address they are sending funds to, as they would normally do. However, the user will unwittingly paste the scammer’s address instead of the intended address, allowing the scammer to take possession of the user’s funds.

MetaMask urges users to take extra caution when copying and pasting wallet addresses and double-check addresses before sending funds. Users should also be aware of any messages from their wallet provider informing them of a suspicious address.

The cryptocurrency community should remain vigilant against all types of scams, not just address poisoning. While this scam may be ‘rather innocuous compared to other scam types’, it still has the potential to cause significant financial losses. Therefore, it is essential that users remain alert and take all necessary measures to protect their funds.