Can Decentralized Finance Replace Traditional PaymentsThere’s a lot of talk about DeFi (decentralized finance) these days.If one were to believe all the hype, it would seem that DeFi is a foregone conclusion – it’s not a matter of if complete decentralization will happen, but rather a matter of when.Admittedly, it does appear that things are heading in that direction. The potential, the market need and the technology are all there.While some infer that we could make the switch right now, that’s beyond optimistic.It’s true that decentralization is dependent on blockchain technology, and you’d be hard-pressed to find people who will argue that blockchain doesn’t work.Even naysayers, when pushed, will concede that the technology itself is solid and has the potential to disrupt finance as we know it.But just because blockchain technology has proven itself doesn’t mean that DeFi is a necessary inevitability.DeFi will almost certainly play a role in the future of finance. But I can see at least three major roadblocks that need to be overcome before DeFi has a chance of overcoming traditional payments.Consumer buy-in and trustOur current centralized systems have been in place for a long time. They’re accepted because they’re familiar – and for the most part, they work very well.People are resistant to change, particularly when they don’t see a clear benefit.Even when shown the upsides, many will distrust a new way of doing things, taking refuge behind an ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ mentality.One of the chief arguments for DeFi is that it removes the middleman. But that doesn’t take into account that some people would rather pay a third party to perform a service.We generally accept that – like attorneys or CPAs – financial professionals know more than we do about their specialty and will do a better job.More importantly, when professionals provide a service, they also take on the accompanying risk.Consumers will be even more hesitant to accept a new system if it also means losing protection and accepting liability.This was effectively proven at the dawn of the credit card age. Payment card usage did not gain wide-scale acceptance until 1974, when stronger consumer protection mechanisms were put in place.Acceptance increased once consumers knew they had a safety net if they were scammed or defrauded.Even then, though, it still took decades for credit cards to become a dominant payment preference.People needed formalized assurance that card payments worked across the board. That required at least some degree of centralization, as would any consumer protections used with DeFi.Banks and financial institution acceptanceFinancial organizations are understandably dragging their feet over a move to DeFi.Our existing banking model is deeply rooted in the most basic tenet of capitalism – being paid to perform a service. In this case, arranging financial transactions on behalf of the customer.As we’ve seen, decentralization empowers users to do the work without a go-between, and consumers may not go for that. For the financial industry, however, DeFi could be devastatingly disruptive.Services that are currently integral to their business could become obsolete, meaning banks stand to lose the biggest revenue source they have.DeFi could also potentially expose financial institutions to increased fraud risk.Currently, US banks are legally required to use KYC (know your customer) protocols to identify the individual attached to a transaction.That won’t work with blockchain – in a completely decentralized blockchain system, users can remain strictly anonymous.If actual names and other personal information aren’t used, it’s exponentially more difficult to determine if people or organizations are engaged in illegal activity.Money laundering, market manipulation and bank fraud are serious concerns.That’s something that could impact the institutions in question, as well as the account holders and merchants they work with.Lack of clarity regarding government oversightWhile proponents of DeFi like to emphasize the absence of government regulations, that’s actually one of the challenges in achieving wide acceptance.Without a centralized system, legislation like the aforementioned KYC rules would be nearly impossible to enact. To some, that may sound like a feature, rather than a bug.However, legislators are not going to see the situation in the same light.The same goes for any government mandates and agencies that protect consumers, including the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) – and even the government itself could be a target.Since transactions are extremely difficult to trace to an individual, it would theoretically be simple for a person to understate the amount of taxes owed or avoid paying them altogether.Faced with the likely increase in criminal activity and an associated drop in government revenue, oversight legislation is almost inevitable. That means at least some centralization will be mandated.So, finance can only really be as decentralized as lawmakers will allow it to be, and it’s unclear how they will respond.DeFi and CeFi (centralized finance) – can this be a ‘yes, and?’ situationNone of this means DeFi isn’t viable. Rather, it means that some amount of centralization is probably necessary to make it work on a wide scale.And in fact, we’re already seeing de facto centralization popping up, even in arenas considered fully decentralized.Stable coins, for example, remain stable by requiring a centralized issuer who backs sales by legal tender.CBDCs (central bank digital currencies), while controversial, are still in the works. Even Bitcoin mining is seeing centralization become a point of contention in the community.That may be splitting hairs, as far as what we call centralization, but the crypto market is growing. The bigger it gets, the more likely we’ll see centralized regulation from FIs, the government or both.We’ll also see combined efforts to sell the benefits of crypto to the public.Individual brands will promote themselves, naturally, but advertisers, marketers and even lobbyists will recognize that selling the entire concept will also be necessary.It would be hard to do that effectively without centralization. Again, that doesn’t make DeFi a complete impossibility.The two systems are in competition, to some extent, but they are not mutually exclusive.DeFi and CeFi – striking a balanceAs convenient as it may be, trying to characterize this issue as a ‘good guys versus bad guys’ battle isn’t in our best interest.Neither centralization nor DeFi are inherently bad.One could argue that it would be easier to stick with the traditional way of doing things, but that genie is already out of the bottle.Going backwards isn’t really an option, even if fully realized DeFi is unlikely to materialize.The next generation of development, DeFi 2.0, is already addressing some of the challenges of decentralization, including scalability and seamless cross-chain interoperability.But widespread acceptance is still a ways away.There are multiple layer two solutions, and as with any decentralized service, that raises questions as to how well they work and how safely any given code performs.Can we have two competing ecosystems existing side-by-side? Probably not indefinitely – one or the other would eventually triumph.But a better question might be – why would we want to?DeFi is going to continue to evolve in parallel to traditional payments. It would make sense to eventually work toward a single, fully realized solution that combines the best elements of both models.A payments ecosystem that benefits from the speed, privacy and egalitarian ethos of DeFi, with the security and institutional legitimacy of TradFi (traditional finance).The trick is to pull this off without losing sight of the main goal – safe, secure transactions, high efficiency and enhanced customer experience.The future of DeFi will depend on how we strike that balance between maximizing benefits and still enjoying the protections of centralization

Kraken CEO David Ripley Says Spot Bitcoin ETFs Will Help Grow the Overall Crypto Industry – Here’s WhyThe Daily HodlKraken CEO David Ripley Says Spot Bitcoin ETFs Will Help Grow the Overall Crypto Industry – Here’s WhyRhodilee Jean Dolor January 18, 2024The CEO of US-based crypto exchange Kraken says the introduction of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will have a bullish impact on the crypto industry.Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) greenlighted BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, VanEck, Bitwise, Franklin, Valkyrie, Hashdex, Ark Invest, WisdomTree and Invesco Galaxy to offer spot Bitcoin ETFs.In a new interview on Bloomberg Crypto, David Ripley says the launch of the investment product helps with Kraken’s mission to grow cryptocurrency adoption.“It’s yet another access point. It’s an easier path for some to get into cryptocurrency, to get their first exposure to Bitcoin.”He says the development will also have a positive effect on the whole crypto industry as digital asset exchanges offer services that consumers do not get from ETFs such as directly holding Bitcoin in custody.“That’s going to grow the overall ecosystem. Exposure and awareness is going to grow and these things grow the overall industry in total. It’s possible that some newer individuals to crypto may first go and buy an ETF as opposed to going to Kraken or Coinbase, some of our peers, but that’s entirely fine.”Ripley also explains why Kraken has no plan to cut fees to compete with the Bitcoin ETFs.“We view the offerings, the products different enough such that they’re really not direct substitutes, if you will. There’s a different price point for that product, but it’s a different product. and so we don’t have any plans to adjust fees or anything of the like due to this introduction. Like I said, we offer different products and services that differ in a lot of ways from the ETF.”

Top Crypto Trader Says Ethereum Challenger Solana Gearing Up for a Double-Digit Rally – Here Are His TargetsTargetsA widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader is expressing bullish sentiment on Ethereum (ETH) competitor Solana (SOL).The analyst pseudonymously known as Bluntz tells his 237,000 followers on the social media platform X that Solana might soar more than 39% from its current value.“I think SOL might be gearing up for a leg up to $140-plus. This downtrend has been tested too many times now for me to consider bearish and can’t ignore the clear three-wave move down from the highs looking corrective. Looks like the past two-week range has been a base, send it.”Bluntz practices the Elliott Wave theory, a technical analysis approach that attempts to predict future price action that tends to manifest in waves. According to the theory, a bullish asset goes through a five-wave rise followed by an ABC corrective move before starting its next leg up.Looking at the trader’s chart, he seems to predict that Solana will ignite a new five-wave surge after completing an ABC correction.Solana is trading for $100.62 at time of writing, up nearly 4% in the last 24 hours.Next up, the trader says memecoin dogwifhat (WIF) is set up for a breakout after a period of price consolidation around the $0.33 level.“Very healthy consolidation range beneath prior ATH (all-time high) on WIF. You better believe once we get out of this range it’s going to full send.”WIF is trading for $0.42 at time of writing, up more than 59% in the last 24 hours.The trader also believes that decentralized exchange (DEX) project Maverick Protocol (MAV) is undergoing a massive rally after breaking out of an ascending channel.“Now that is a monster daily MAV breakout. We’ve entered the parabola phase.”MAV is trading for $0.67 at time of writing, up more than 2% in the last 24 hours.

Analyst Says Ethereum-Based Altcoin Set To Skyrocket by Over 100%, Updates Outlook on Chainlink and Fetch.aiA widely followed crypto analyst and trader is bullish on a top-100 altcoin by market cap.The analyst pseudonymously known as Altcoin Sherpa tells his 205,600 followers on the X social media platform that he feels “very strongly” that the native token of the non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace and aggregator platform Blur (BLUR) will exceed its all-time high of $1.40, about 110% below the current price, reached in February of 2023.“BLUR is one of the few ways you can bet on the entire NFT industry going up. Bullish on a lot of NFT infrastructure.”BLUR is trading at $0.667 at time of writing.Turning to Chainlink (LINK), Altcoin Sherpa says that he is “still very bullish” on the blockchain oracle as a “solid long-term project” though it is unlikely to offer “mind-melting returns” due to its relatively high market capitalization.Based on Altcoin Sherpa’s chart on the 12-hour time frame, LINK is likely to trade in a range between roughly $13.50 and $17 in January and February.Chainlink is trading at $15.80 at time of writing.Next up is the decentralized artificial intelligence platform for applications Fetch.ai (FET). According to the pseudonymous analyst and trader, FET appears “pretty strong” this year though it is currently undergoing consolidation.Based on Altcoin Sherpa’s charts, the current support level for FET on the weekly chart is around $0.608 while the closest resistance level is at $0.779.According to Altcoin Sherpa, FET is currently more suitable for medium-term trading as opposed to short-term.

Here’s When Bitcoin Could Hit a New All-Time High, According to VanEck’s Head of Digital Assets ResearchThe head of digital assets research at investing giant VanEck Matthew Sigel is expressing bullish sentiment on Bitcoin (BTC).In an appearance on the Unchained podcast, Sigel says that Bitcoin could soar above the all-time high of around $69,044 this year.“So this year looks like a solid year. We think Bitcoin will make an all-time high in Q4 like after a contentious election. A record number of global citizens are voting in elections this year, more than nearly 50%. It’s an all-time high – 200 years of history with these elections comes a lot of opportunity for change, disruption and more kind of pro-Bitcoin policies.”Bitcoin is trading at $42,660 at time of writing.According to Sigel, various factors were responsible for the gains Bitcoin recorded late last year.“Our view is that this bull cycle is very much ahead of us, that the November and December rally was as much about the weaker dollar as it was about those exchange-traded funds (ETFs) flows. And there were so many macro contributors to that weak dollar narrative with the BRICS group expanding [with] five more countries joining the BRICS.You had Nigeria reversing its previous bank bans – banks weren’t allowed to do business with crypto companies. Now they are.You had the Saudi cleric who acknowledged that Bitcoin was permissible [under Islam] in this new declaration.And then the Argentina momentum where Bitcoin is for all intents and purposes like legal for contract settlement.”

Veteran Trader Tone Vays Issues Urgent Bitcoin Warning, Says Bigger Correction Looming – Here Are His TargetsVeteran trader Tone Vays is issuing a warning that Bitcoin (BTC) could soon undergo a much bigger market correction.In a new video update, the seasoned analyst tells his 123,000 YouTube subscribers that Bitcoin could dip into the mid-$30,000 range if it fails to reclaim a key level.“All signs are pointing to a much, much bigger correction. I hope this doesn’t happen. I really hope we go up from here. I don’t want to see us correct. We’ve already dealt with a huge bear market. However, I am going to remain on the sidelines with cash until Bitcoin breaks out above these moving averages. I need to break even the second moving average. I need $44,000. I need a daily close at $44,000 or a move to $36,000. I really need that to go long Bitcoin.There could be something in between. It depends how fast or how slow we go down. It’s possible I may find a good buying opportunity down here at $39,000. But realistically, I am looking for either a move above the moving average of $44,000 or a move all the way down to $36,000 where we have a beautiful combination of the MRI (Momentum Reversal Indicator) support line on the daily chart, the 128-day moving average and the top of the channel.”The trader also says that if Bitcoin soon dips below $40,000 that would not be comparable to the historic dips before pre-halving events, when miners’ rewards are cut in half. The next halving event is expected in April.“Do I think the pre-halving dump has started? No, I wasn’t actually anticipating the pre-halving dump. The pre-halving dump usually happens a few weeks before the halving. It doesn’t happen four months before the halving.”The trader predicts Bitcoin will not revisit the $20,000 range and would only retest the $30,000 level if there was some black swan event.“I don’t see us going into the $20,000s. $30,000 is my absolute bottom low. And in order for us to even get to $30,000 something catastrophic happens.”Bitcoin is trading for $43,222 at time of writing, up nearly 2% in the last 24 hours.

Circle chief executive Jeremy Allaire thinks additional regulatory clarity will pave the way for increased stablecoin adoption in 2024.In a new interview with CNBC International TV, Allaire predicts that the recent approval of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US will act as “the tide that lifts all boats” in the crypto sector.The Circle CEO notes stablecoins remained resilient throughout the crypto space’s turbulence over the past few years.“What I can say about stablecoins and what we’ve seen in the market is really a lot of people were paying attention to a lot of the scandals in this industry, and failures and bankruptcies, but at the same time, we were seeing tremendous progress being made in continued technology development.And this is a little bit like after the dot com boom and bust – people ignored consumer internet e-commerce, but actually the technology continued to develop, and so we saw that happen last year, and we’ve seen stablecoins in particular remain the killer app of blockchain technology and start to see widening usage all around the world.”Circle issues USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap. Last week, the company announced that it submitted a draft registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to a proposed initial public offering (IPO) of its equity securities.

Bloomberg Intelligence has revealed that Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF is experiencing substantial outflows, with a total of about $579 million withdrawn. This figure is particularly noteworthy in the wider Bitcoin ETF market landscape. In contrast, other direct Bitcoin ETFs have seen a surge in investments, totaling close to $819 million.This sharp contrast in investment trends highlights a critical reevaluation of Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF performance following its SEC approval. Although the ETF initially saw a high trading volume of over $2.3 billion on its first day, enthusiasm seems to have waned, as indicated by these recent withdrawals, suggesting a change in investor .Analysts had previously predicted that more than $1 billion might be withdrawn from the fund in the following weeks, a forecast that aligns with the current withdrawal trend from the Grayscale ETF. One factor possibly influencing this outflow is the fund’s relatively steep expense ratio of 1.5%, the highest among Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. Meanwhile, other spot ETFs like BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC have witnessed significant initial inflows of $500 million and $421 million, respectively.The SEC’s recent landmark approval of Bitcoin ETFs introduced a wave of optimism in the sector, but it also sparked various debates and concerns. Industry experts have voiced caution over the potential risks associated with Coinbase’s dominant role as custodian for most ETFs.Furthermore, the immediate market reaction to the SEC’s approval has led to considerable fluctuations in Bitcoin’s price, with the premier cryptocurrency oscillating between $41,000 and $44,000.

$SOL SOLUSD 240CoinbaseSOLANA / UNITED STATES DOLLARSolana is in a triangle between 2 channels, approaching the Apex! It could break either way!Solana could be in a wave 4 of 3 retracement which could last two months from when it started on Christmas at noon if it's length can bet determined by the wave 2, which lasted from July 13th 2023, to Sep 11th 2023 (59 days 20 hours) or we could just be in a calm between two storms! Hard to tell, but the risk / reward on this seems reasonable.To wait for the break, or to not wait for the break? That is the question! You decide!If Solana breaks up, this could be a likely target using Channels, otherwise if it breaks down, probably another month and a half of downward trend to some larger Fib support ($74 -0.238 fib and $53 -0.382 fib)Entry: ~$100 (around)Exit: $180 (around the top of channel)Warning Stop: $90-$92 (Somewhere below the Triangle Bottom, but this could be a fakeout and good entry also) Hard Stop: $84.50 (Slightly below the Jan 3rd Low from the Dump, it's definitely going down if it crosses this)Good Luck and God Bless!