Good morning people! It’s November, and everything has been looking up on the crypto charts recently, after a long slumber. Did it have something to do with the fact that former FTX CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, was finally found guilty of all fraud charges against him? Is it the usual crypto pattern of recovery after a few years? Let’s dig in, shall we?
Crypto chart today
| 1 |  BitcoinBTC | $34,924.97 | 0.27% | 1.84% |
| 2 |  EthereumETH | $1,895.22 | 1.03% | 5.16% |
| 3 |  Tether USDtUSDT | $1.00 | 0.08% | 0.00% |
| 4 |  BNBBNB | $252.46 | 3.83% | 11.10% |
| 5 |  XRPXRP | $0.694 | 2.82% | 21.23% |
| 6 |  USDCUSDC | $1.00 | 0.01% | 0.00% |
| 7 |  SolanaSOL | $41.42 | 3.58% | 14.34% |
| 8 |  CardanoADA | $0.3571 | 4.69% | 18.48% |
| 9 |  DogecoinDOGE | $0.07477 | 5.50% | 7.96% |
| 10 |  TRONTRX | $0.09723 | 0.03% | 1.02% |
As you can see, the numbers are doing great. If you have been following the trends. Bitcoin prices had taken a tumble for a long time, going below 20K in 2022 and sticking in the 20K ranges all year until recently. On October 24th, it surged 14% hitting $35K. At this point, pundits said this was mostly due to expectations that the US would soon approve the first spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) focused on direct investments in cryptocurrency. This would add a new legitimacy to digital assets.
One coin that is suddenly seeing a unusual spike this week is XRP. This has been attributed to two things: dismissal of all charges against its executives in an ongoing lawsuit brought by the SEC and its involvement in government CBDC projects, like the central bank of Georgia.
The case for stablecoins
Closer home, stablecoins have gained significant traction as a reliable alternative to local currencies, which have continued to depreciate. Crypto enthusiasts and traders have increasingly turned to stablecoins as a means of preserving the value of their assets and mitigating the risks associated with unstable fiat currencies. Stablecoins include USDT and USDC as seen in the chart above.
https://x.com/kahome_steve/status/1721163620816753115
Furthermore, stablecoins offer a solution to the challenges we face in accessing traditional banking services. For instance, receiving cross-border payments can now be facilitated efficiently using stablecoins, reducing transaction costs and improving the speed of fund transfers.
What else has caught our eyes recently?
- The Blockchain Association of Kenya (BAK)’s strides: Last week, BAK appeared before the National Assembly Committee on Finance and National Planning to discuss digital asset regulation for the second time. What’s significant about this appearance is that the committee has asked BAK to propose a draft bill to help parliament understand and regulate the digital assets space.
- MiniPay is now available to Kenyan users. MiniPay is a digital wallet integrated into Opera Mini. It allowd you to store your funds in cUSD – a stablecoin by Celo. Quite an interesting play on the local currency volatility we just talked about above. We are watching this space closely!
- In case you missed it, we’re offering you a chance to win a ticket to Latitude59 Kenya edition! Learn how you can participate here.
See you next week or give us a shout on our socials!