From a Bitcoin volume spike in Russia and Ukraine to an institutional giant’s push to support digital assets, here’s a look at some of the stories breaking in the world of crypto.
Crypto Volume Surges in Ukraine and Russia
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has triggered a rise in Bitcoin and stablecoin volume in both countries, according to the enterprise market data firm Kaiko.
A new analysis of trading volume shows that on February 27th, BTC also traded at a 6% premium against the Ukrainian hryvnia on Binance.
Bitcoin is up about 4.8% at $41,950 after the US Treasury Department rolled out new sanctions against Russia, designed to block people in the US from transacting with Russia’s central bank.
US Custody Giant Prepares to Boost Bitcoin and Crypto
One of the biggest asset management firms on earth is ready to add custodial support for Bitcoin and the altcoin market.
The head of State Street Digital, Nadine Chakar, tells Bloomberg that “the minute we get the nod” from regulators, the firm will be ready.
“We think a custodian bank like State Street can continue to do what it’s best at, which is keeping order and safety into the system… It’s my personal mission to prove that elephants can truly dance.”
State Street has $4.1 trillion under management and US $43.7 trillion under custody and administration.
Ebay Considering Crypto Support
The e-commerce titan eBay is evaluating future support for cryptocurrency.
EBay CEO Jamie Iannone tells The Street that although it does not support crypto assets, the company is planning to “go deeper on all of these things, payments, advertising, our focus categories” beginning on March 10th.
The company added support for NFTs in May of last year.
Originally Published Here