Circle announced on Thursday it will go public this year via a merger deal with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Concord Acquisition
CEO Jeremy Allaire told CNBC: "We think that this set of transactions and becoming a public company really sets us up to be a trusted platform in this in this digital currency industry."
The fintech firm is known for co-founding and governing the U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) along with Coinbase
Here is the rest of the week in review:
Sygnum Bank announced it will become the first bank to offer Ethereum 2.0 staking to clients. The Swiss bank said it will allow clients their Ether (ETH) through the bank by using its institutional-grade banking platform currently generating an annual yield of up to 7%. Thomas Eichenberger, Head of Business Units at Sygnum Bank, said: "Ethereum is the second largest blockchain protocol, and Ethereum staking is a core element for digital asset portfolios which can now be accessed in a convenient, secure and regulated setting." The new staking service will offer a fully integrated and user-friendly setup for clients who want to stake their Ether directly from existing wallets. The staked tokens will remain in clients' wallets, ensuring full segregation and security. The digital asset bank already offers staking for Tezos (XTZ) and a yield-generating fixed term deposit on its Digital Swiss Franc stablecoin (DCHF). The amount of Ether being staked on the ETH 2.0 platform continues to climb as investors seek yield, recently reaching 6.1 million ETH with over 185,000 validators, or equal to over $14 billion.
Sotheby's announced Friday it sold a rare 101.38-carat diamond for HK$95.1 million or $12.3 million worth of cryptocurrency to an anonymous buyer in a Hong Kong auction. The premier British auction house said the historic sale of the gemstone shows a "milestone was reached in the adoption of cryptocurrencies." Wenhao Yu, deputy chairman of Sotheby's Jewelry in Asia, said: "By introducing this innovative payment option to our luxury sale, we open up new possibilities and expand our reach into a whole new clientele, many of whom are from the digitally savvy generation." Named "The Key 10138" and sourced from leading diamond firm Diacore, the diamond is the second-largest pear-shaped one to appear in public. The auction house did not disclose which crypto assets the buyer used to pay for the diamond, though it previously said it would accept Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether. Coinbase Commerce is processing the transaction.
Crypto prices edged down to $1.4 trillion this week. For the majors, only Binance Coin (BNB) ended in the green, while Dogecoin (DOGE) plunged. In the top 100, the biggest losers were Telcoin (TEL), down 30%, XinFin Network (XDC), down 24%, and WAVES, down 18%. The biggest gainers were Axie Infinity (AXS), up 103%, KuCoin Token (KCS), up 76%, and FLOW, up 68%. Next week traders will watch Bitcoin's key $30,000 level.
The author owns a small amount of BTC.
