Cryptocurrency has turned on another Wall Street veteran after former Morgan Stanley executive Kevin Lepso launched a new platform for decentralized finance (DeFi). His new company, Infinity Exchange, has secured seed funding to boost adoption of DeFi among institutions. In his promise to build “DeFi 2.0,” Lepso has revealed one of DeFi 1.0’s biggest pain points — and one you probably haven’t heard of. As you can see, if you want institutions to adopt your products and services, you need to provide them with a set of products they know. Until then, DeFi offers a value proposition obscured by risk and inefficiencies.
This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter explores Leapson’s solution to DeFi risks. We also break down the latest news involving microstrategy and firewalls.
A former bank executive said to create fixed interest rates DeFi 2.0 for institutions
Lepsoi Infinity Exchange has raised $4.2 million to continue building its institutional fixed income protocol, which will introduce floating rates with zero bids. In other words, Infinity Exchange is trying to bring interest rate mechanics and risk management practices of traditional finance to DeFi. According to Lepso, giving institutional investors access to a full suite of rate products, including fixed-to-floating rates, could be key to increasing the adoption of defin. Although most of us are aware of DeFi’s boom-and-bust cycles, Lepso says the sector’s biggest challenge is the disconnect between floating-rate and fixed-rate markets. It’s not exactly intuitive, but it’s a compelling move, nonetheless.
Microstrategy to reinvest $500M in stock sales into Bitcoin: SEC filing
Michael Saylor’s business intelligence firm MicroStrategy plans to buy a lot more Bitcoin (BTC), which shouldn’t surprise anyone at this point. In a recent filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, MicroStrategy revealed that it has partnered with agents Cowen & Company and BTG to raise $500 million through a stock sale, with the proceeds going to acquire more BTC. The business intelligence firm is doubling down on the Bitcoin gambit despite being down more than $1 billion in its current position. With BTC moving towards $20,000 and analysts expecting further declines in the short term, will MicroStrategy really buy the bait this time or will the price continue to decline after the buy?
Microstrategy is set to reinvest as the company’s stock suffers a total loss of $1 billion in value. https://t.co/rr8eqW7Xen
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) September 10, 2022
Institutional investors headed to an important point in crypto: Apollo Capital
Investing in crypto as an “occupational risk?” Remember when it’s supposed to. But now that doesn’t seem to be the case. Investing in digital assets is the biggest reputational risk of all. What changes in a year? According to Apollo Capital’s Chief Information Officer Henrik Andersen, institutional investors may soon “overturn” their conservative approach to digital assets. In an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph, the crypto fund manager said that institutional interest in digital assets is gradually increasing. Some major institutions, such as pension funds, may be waiting for others to make the first move because no one wants to be the first and be wrong. However, once the floodgates open, underclassification is considered a major career risk.
Fireblocks records $100M+ revenue in subscriptions amid bear market
The crypto industry has crowned dozens of unicorns in the past two years, but how many of these companies have a viable business model? Blockchain infrastructure provider FireBlocks announced this year that it has achieved more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue, a significant milestone given the current market conditions. Web3 startups, payment service providers, consumer brands, and gaming companies have all contributed to Firefox’s massive ride, showing that the blockchain industry is attracting steady interest despite a bear market.
Don’t miss it! Will the Ethereum merger change crypto history?
The integration of Ethereum has been described as a historic event for the blockchain industry as the largest smart contract platform begins a major change in its governance structure. While most traders are fixated on the price of Ether (ETH), there is much more at stake. Will the merger change the direction of the crypto industry, which is heavily dependent on Ethereum? Or will it have a negligible effect in the long run? In this week’s Market Report, analysts Marcel Pechman, Benton Yaun and Joe Hull discuss this issue. You can watch the full replay below.
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