On Thursday, the cryptocurrency market experienced another roller-coaster day, with some coins declining. One such example is Bitcoin which fell 5.9% to $39,432 when writing these words. The bitcoin market is still bearish, with prices dipping below $40,000 today. This comes after a slew of positive news about US President Joe Biden’s executive order that will likely focus more on the crypto sector. The crypto markets were not looking very promising today, with Bitcoin declining heavily and many other coins dropping as well. For example, Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, fell as much as 4.4% to $2,589.  Related Reading | TA: Ethereum Trims Gains, What Could Spark A Fresh Increase It’s still too early to tell if this will have any long-term effects on the industry, but the market has seen enough sell-offs already where people might want investments in other cryptocurrencies or even just gold until things calm down again. Bitcoin rose as much as 11% on Wednesday following an executive order from Biden that appears to frame digital assets in a positive light. However, those gains proved fleeting, and traders soon realized the news didn’t live up to their expectations. As a result, Bitcoin is once again trading near its average price over the recent two months ($39,000). The cryptocurrency markets were not immune to the bearish trend that has plagued US stocks over recent weeks. As a result, Bitcoin’s price took another leg lower, mirroring developments in traditional financial markets just as futures on both S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes turned negative sound the same time. This is not surprising, considering how closely correlated cryptocurrencies are with major indices like SP500 or NDX100. Related Reading | TA: Bitcoin Corrects Gains, Why Dips Could be Attractive In Short-term Bitcoin Performance Against Others It’s been a rough year for cryptocurrencies thus far, with Bitcoin outperforming Ethereum and falling 17.6% while NASDAQ has dropped 17.1%. However, in 5 days, BTC has continued its strong performance against Ethereum but underperformed against NASDAQ. On March 9th, Google searches for “Bitcoin” shot up dramatically, but in the last 24 hours, they’ve steadied and declined slightly. The trade volume, too, went down, resulting in a crash of BTC below $40,000 per coin. According to a recent survey, most people think that Bitcoin will be worth more than $60,000 by the end of 2022. However, there is a lot of fear right now surrounding Bitcoin crashes and the possibility of regulations. Only 5% of people surveyed by JPMorgan believe that BTC will be worth more than $100,000 by the end of 2022. Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com

A former Citi executive becomes COO of crypto custodian Copper.co

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The former co-head of digital assets said he wanted to assist in the maturation of the crypto market via a new venture

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Russia's unprovoked war on Ukraine is shaking up crypto in unprecedented ways.

JPMorgan may be the first bank to open in a virtual world, but Quontic Bank won’t be far behind. The $1 billion Quontic is building a metaverse bank after going fully digital following the shutdown of its New York City brick-and-mortar presence in August 2021. The metaverse, which refers to a network of 3D worlds […]

Many of the largest employers in the country are changing how they approach offering training and education benefits to their employees. In some cases ...

According to Goldman Sachs, the Metaverse market might be worth $8 trillion (1).  While tech behemoths like Meta, Apple, and Microsoft are expected to dominate Metaverse’s infrastructure, it remains to be seen whether the vision will catch on. Even still, the race to produce and manage the digital products that will serve meta-consumers is already […]

Crypto markets have been unable to sustain their rallies from last week. Bitcoin reached highs of around $45,000 last week before falling to lows of around $37,000 as recent as yesterday, currently trading at around $39,000. Crypto markets appear to be unable to shrug off their correlation to equity markets. Moreover, prospective regulation could be […]

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A recently published Reuters poll suggests the European Central Bank (ECB) may wait until the last quarter of the year (Q4) to raise its first interest rate in over ten years. The poll’s author details that after the conflict in Ukraine, “fewer economists” predict the ECB will raise the benchmark bank rate earlier. Moreover, a […]

In Asia Pacific (APAC), the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce has fueled demand for cross-border payment capabilities and embedded financial solutions as small, online businesses embrace digital technologies to broaden

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The number of brands seeking to gain a foothold in the metaverse has risen exponentially in recent months, with the likes of Nike and Disney conducting a recruitment drive to employ metaverse specialists. According to JPMorgan, annual metaverse revenue opportunities through social commerce, live events and advertising could soon surpass $1 trillion. SandStorm, the world’s largest weekly metaverse event, is determined to capitalize on this trend by paving the way for brands to establish a presence in virtual reality. The project has unveiled a new multi-chain platform to connect established and emerging brands with the top builders in the metaverse. Here Come the Brands Having recently closed a $2.5m seed round, SandStorm will debut the beta version of its live platform and NFT marketplace at next week’s South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas. Built on the Polygon and Ethereum blockchains, the platform enables brands that have yet to make their presence felt in the metaverse search through a directory containing hundreds of verified Web3 builders. SandStorm will also provide white-glove service to bring brands into the metaverse and build experiences for them within popular open-world environments such as The Sandbox. “As a growing number of brands are entering the metaverse through The Sandbox, we’re seeing an increased need for a platform to connect them to Builders, Agencies, Architects, Designers, Community Managers and thousands of providers in this open ecosystem,” says the game’s co-founder and COO Sebastian Borget, who invested in SandStorm’s recent seed round alongside a swathe of VC funds. “SandStorm offers a decentralised solution for matching these needs and providing visibility to projects through meet-ups and social events in the metaverse.” Although several brands have already planted a flag in the metaverse, many remain daunted by the steep learning curve that awaits them. SandStorm intends to help such companies overcome their reservations by bridging the education gap and exploring revenue-raising opportunities via NFTs and virtual experiences. The Sandbox has been one of the runaway success stories in the burgeoning metaverse space. Primary sales of virtual land parcels in the game generated $12 million in Q4 of 2021 while secondary sales volume grew 1,685% compared to the previous quarter. Several major brands have already purchased land in The Sandbox, including luxury fashion house Gucci which is developing what it calls an interactive fashion experience “inspired by childhood memories of the search for beauty.” Reflecting on SandStorm’s vast creators’ community, CEO Steve McGarry said, “We’ve seen metaverse builders mint everything from skyscrapers and avatars to custom headphones on the platform already. We’re hyper focused on the one-of-one NFTs that take creators weeks to construct. We’re not interested in the 1,000+ collections.” Metaverse Marketing The arrival of SandStorm’s platform comes at a time when consumer brands are reinventing marketing in the metaverse. Decentraland, a rival of The Sandbox, is currently gearing up to host a virtual fashion week featuring designers such as Dolce & Gabbana, Tommy Hilfiger, Dundas and Etro. McDonald’s, meanwhile, has filed no fewer than 10 trademark applications including one for a virtual restaurant that delivers to customers’ homes. According to McGarry, SandStorm already reaches over 3 million users each month and has attracted 50 brands and over 500 builders ahead of launch. The latter have been onboarding since the platform’s Builders Program launched last October. Brands can leverage the metaverse in numerous ways, such as by releasing limited-edition digital collectibles, advertising on billboards seen by gamers, and hosting virtual experiences and rewards programs. Many commentators believe that brands who ignore the metaverse risk being left behind, invoking the cautionary tale of Blockbuster Video – a company that once turned down the chance to buy Netflix for $50 million.  

Designers and researchers are working on creating a new metaverse-based, scientifically accurate virtual models of Ice Age animals for museum-goers to view digitally. Led by Dr. Matt Davis and colleagues at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and La Brea Tar Pits, a team has recreated Ice Age animals published recently in Palaeontologia […]

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