Crypto.com：加密貨幣支付成新趨勢 - 20210222 - 經濟
料未來更多法規出台
有傳支付服務巨頭PayPal、電動車大廠Tesla等擬接受加密貨幣支付，刺激比特幣價格持續破頂，於昨日升至5.7萬美元的歷史高位。劉偉經表示，加密貨幣支付行業的發展仍處於初步階段，不少國家正關注加密貨幣的發展走勢。隨着行業逐步發展，料未來會有更多政策法規出台，以及新機構投資加密貨幣支付平台。
金融科技發展方面，劉偉經指香港及大灣區內，不乏微信支付和支付寶等較普及的支付平台，甚至有來自其他國家的用戶，認為行業發展相對迅速。而市民普遍對於新興的金融科技態度保守，對金融科技產品的私隱及安全欠缺信心。
劉偉經坦言，目前沒有一個完美的解決方案，若公司要跟用戶建立信任，則要將私隱與安全的議題放於首位。
私隱安全放首位 增用戶信心
至於香港的虛擬銀行不時發生事故，劉偉經指出，由於虛擬銀行提供「全天候」服務，需要與雲端服務等第三方機構合作，或使銀行增添多一重危機。惟他認為，最重要的因素仍在於金融科技機構本身。公司需專注於內部培訓、程序控制等，且不能仍源用傳統的一套手法，才可以更快應對世界各國日新月異的法規。
Crypto.com to Burn 70B CRO Tokens Ahead of Full Blockchain Launch Next Month
Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) – Reflation trades reached a fever pitch in Australia’s bond markets Monday in a burst of activity that will be hard for global policy makers to ignore.Ten-year yields climbed the most since the height of the market dislocation in March 2020, while benchmark three-year yields inched further above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s 0.1% target. And this was after the RBA ended a two-month hiatus by stepping back into the market to purchase A$1 billion ($790 million) of the shorter-date debt.The moves underscore the challenge to central banks as they strive to keep borrowing costs low for years to come while investors position for a more immediate return of inflation. Global vaccination programs and talk of another commodities supercycle have put Australia at the forefront of bets for rebounding growth and rising prices, making the RBA’s job particularly difficult. But it’s unlikely to be unique.“Commodity prices are showing us a clear reflationary environment,” said Chris Rands, a portfolio manager at Nikko Asset Management in Sydney. “This is all about a global reflation story – the flow of positive vaccine news is saying that ‘this isn’t crazy’.”Expectations of more economic stimulus from the Biden administration and positive signs on containing Covid-19 are pushing rates higher globally, with the U.S. benchmark 10-year yield hitting a one-year high of 1.39% in Asia trading.Australia’s three-year yield edged up to 0.13% Monday while the 10-year yield jumped 17 basis points to 1.6%, a level last seen on March 19. Excluding that day, it’s the highest 10-year yields have been since mid 2019. While the central bank has signaled that rates won’t begin rising for at least three years, money markets are now pricing in about a 30% chance of a hike by mid next year.“It’s entirely reasonable for markets to start pricing in some risk of the RBA hiking rates,” said Prashant Newnaha, senior rates strategist at TD Securities in Singapore. “Markets are going to price in increasingly higher odds of the RBA having to pull the trigger before their three years are up.”Global DimensionEurope has also been caught up in the bonds selloff, with German 10-year yields, the region’s benchmark, climbing to the highest since mid 2020.As the euro area’s yields track those on Treasuries higher, it faces an “undesirable tightening of monetary conditions,” according to Erik Nielsen, group chief economist at Unicredit SpA.If they continue to climb in coming weeks, “it’ll leave the ECB no choice but to step up their purchases,” Nielsen wrote in an investor note Sunday. “I would be surprised if we don’t hear the first warning shots from key members within the next couple of weeks.”Some Fed officials, though, are willing to accept the rising yields as a sign of optimism in the recovery. That’s the view of Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams, as explained in an interview with CNBC Friday.And Australia’s policy makers may yet disappoint rates traders preparing for a shift.“The central banks fear that the bond market is jumping at what will be a transitory hike in inflation over the months ahead,” said Shane Oliver, chief economist at AMP Capital Investors Ltd. in Sydney. “They would rather look through any short term spike in inflation, and allow the recovery to use up spare capacity and generate higher wages growth before tightening – and this may still be several years away.”What Bloomberg Economics Says…“Rising yields are likely to pressure further enlargement of the RBA’s recently-expanded bond purchase program, in an effort to limit further currency appreciation. There is also an increased risk of an earlier than planned announcement of a switch the yield target to the November 2024 bond..”– James McIntyre, economistFor the full note, click here.Read More: Bond Traders Can See RBA Yield Curve Control’s Use By DateStill, Australia’s success in containing Covid-19 has rapidly restored sentiment among households and businesses. That’s helped unemployment fall more than a percentage point from its pandemic peak of 7.5%, and rising property prices and cashed-up consumers are a potent mix for economic expansion.This prompted Westpac Banking Corp. economist Bill Evans to last week raise his forecast for Australia’s 10-year yield to 1.9% by the end of this year, from 1.55% earlier.In addition to purchases to control the three-year yield, the RBA is still conducting regular purchases of longer-dated bonds under quantitative easing, and bought another A$2 billion of them on Monday.(Updates with Europe, U.S. in paragraphs 8-11.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Hannah Akuiyibo: Nigeria’s Crypto Ban Fuels Mistrust
Nigeria is committed to building its digital economy, but the central bank’s recent cryptocurrency prohibition counteracts this goal and fuels mistrust of the government.
“Governments and businesses all over the world are realizing the powerful potential usability of blockchain… Nigeria, however, is lagging due to the government institutions’ sore-footedness and refractory approach to this undeniably ingenious innovation.”
Hannah Akuiyibo is an Associate at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C
So states the draft National Blockchain Adoption Strategy released by Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in October 2020. The strategy makes the case for Nigeria’s adoption of blockchain technology, including digital currencies, to build a digital economy.
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Yet, on February 5, many Nigerians were surprised and angered when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced a ban on the exchange of cryptocurrency by financial institutions and directed banks to close accounts trading in crypto.
Although CBN said its policy is a reiteration of a 2017 circular warning financial institutions about virtual currencies’ risks, this announcement is at odds with its efforts toward digital transformation. Following the announcement, the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) paused its regulatory review of crypto pending CBN clarification. Meanwhile, the Senate has invited the heads of CBN and the SEC to brief them on this decision.
Restrictions on foreign spending have led some banks to limit monthly foreign transactions to as low as $100 a month. Direct remittances to Nigeria also dropped over 97% between January to September 2020, increasing the squeeze on forex.
CBN devalued the Naira twice last year, and the high cost of moving money into Nigeria has led Nigerians to seek alternatives through cryptocurrency. Nigeria is the world’s second-largest peer-to-peer (P2P) bitcoin market and the largest in Africa. Crypto trading, which totaled $566 million from 2015-2020, has increased yearly since 2015, with a jump of 30% in 2020.
The high cost of moving money into Nigeria has led Nigerians to seek alternatives through cryptocurrency.
Driving the crypto market’s growth is users tapping into crypto as a payment, investment, and trading tool amid increasing difficulties in accessing forex and the desire to hedge the value of funds. While the COVID-19 pandemic likely plays a significant role in the remittance decline, members of the diaspora are increasingly turning to cryptocurrency to send money and avoid stiff fees and the high CBN exchange rate that reduces the value of the exchange by up to 20-30%.
The crypto exchange platform, Yellow Card, reported growth of 1,840% in remittances processed on its platform in 2020, with Nigeria making up more than 50% of its users. This increase in cryptocurrency usage tracks with the overall growth of Nigeria’s Fintech sector.
Nigeria’s digital transformation
In Nigeria, the government has made concerted efforts toward streamlining and developing policy frameworks and national strategies to advance its digital transformation. President Buhari redesignated the Ministry of Communications as the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy (FMoCDE) in 2019 and moved the National Identity Management Commission to this ministry.
Crypto ban
In light of Nigeria’s efforts to advance its digital economy agenda, the crypto decision seems counterproductive and reactive. While the crypto ban has led to an initial chill, with banks closing accounts and some owners withdrawing their funds, it is unlikely to impact crypto’s growth.
Instead, users may move to P2P trading platforms that facilitate trading without an intermediary and allow non-fiat payment methods. Already, there has been an almost 16% jump in Bitcoin usage for P2P lending since the announcement, and Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange platform, recently introduced a new P2P option for Nigerians. Many Nigerians have attributed the decision to the CBN’s urgent need to inject and retain forex in the economy by any means. But if the goal was to increase forex or promote transparency, pushing users to P2P platforms undermines these aims.
Trust in government institutions has also taken a hit. Some view this as bureaucratic stifling of innovation or a desire to increase control and cut off a means of livelihood for many young Nigerians facing a projected unemployment rate of over 30% in 2021. The frustration expressed by Nigerians taps into a broader dissatisfaction with a government perceived as corrupt and non-responsive. The lack of public or industry consultation or policy coordination has reinforced this viewpoint, and Nigerians on Twitter launched a #WeWantOurCryptoBack campaign.
Others noted that political influence could be driving the decision after some #EndSARS protestors turned to cryptocurrency to raise funds when the government froze their bank accounts. CBN explained the decision by the need to protect consumers and counter the use of cryptocurrencies for criminal activities while emphasizing that the decision does not detract from the bank’s commitment to developing the fintech sector.