Weekly Flip Thru: Goldman Sachs Looking at Discounted Crypto Companies for Sale, iPod Designer Delivers Style to Crypto Wallets
Salutations, crypto soothsayers and skeptics alike! All are welcome to delve into the latest headlines from across crypto country. The big news this week includes institutional buyers scouting out deals for discounted crypto firms following the collapse of FTX, and a crypto wallet manufacturer tapping into the design pedigree of Tony Fadell. In case you don’t know Fadell by name, he helped create a little device called the iPod. Ever heard of it?
Here are the top crypto headlines for the week of December 12, 2022.
Institutional Buyers Like Goldman Sachs Eye Discounted Crypto Companies (Yahoo! Finance)
Never let an opportunity go to waste. That is the strategy behind institutional investment firms reportedly looking to purchase beleaguered crypto firms in a post-FTX world. As contagion from FTX’s bankruptcy ripples through the crypto industry, well-heeled buyers like Goldman Sachs might find an array of companies seeking bailout money. An infusion of capital from established (some might call them traditional finance, or TradFi) firms like Goldman might come at the right moment for a list of crypto-forward companies feeling crunched by the dual pressures of FTX’s meltdown and murky conditions on the macroeconomic front.
‘Father of the iPod’ Designs New Crypto Hardware Wallet (CNBC)
Can serious design credentials capture crypto investors’ hearts? That’s the question at hand for French crypto wallet manufacturer Ledger since they unveiled designs for their latest product, the Ledger Stax. The sleek, credit card-sized crypto wallet boasts a touchscreen, USB type C port, and Bluetooth connectivity. Resemblance to certain iconic Apple devices isn’t coincidental – Ledger asked the iPod’s original designer, Tony Fadell, to help with their newest hardware wallet offering.
Hardware wallets like the new Ledger Stax are poised to take advantage of heightened awareness around the risks that come with leaving funds on exchanges. Following the collapse of popular crypto exchange FTX, the practice of self-custodying your crypto has become a hot topic. The design pedigree of the new wallet might tempt those investors who are on the fence about practicing self-custody of their crypto, but that elevated look of the Ledger Stax comes with an elevated price tag as well: the wallet is listed for sale at $279 on the Ledger website, making it about 3.5x more expensive than Ledger’s most basic crypto wallet.
Nigeria Bans ATM Cash Withdrawals Above $225 in Central Bank Digital Currency Push (Cointelegraph)
Nigeria is trying to usher in a cash-less future for its citizens. Part of that initiative includes capping the amount of cash that Nigerians can withdraw from ATMs to $225 per week. Any withdrawals above that limit would be met with a 5% service fee. The Nigerian government is pushing adoption of the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), known as the eNaira.
Crypto adoption is booming in Nigeria. According to a July 2022 report by Morning Consult, more than half of Nigeria’s adult population engages in buying and selling cryptocurrency at least once per month. Other sub-Saharan African nations are experimenting with centralized digital currencies, including an ambitious plan in the Central African Republic to build a crypto city powered by a CBDC called Sango Coin.
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