BITCOIN

Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of Latin America’s most relevant crypto and economic news during the last week. In this issue: The portfolio of bitcoin investments of the Salvadoran government went into black numbers, Brazil will discuss using digital currencies for financial transfers in the Group of 20 (G20), and Venezuela alleged Exxonmobil financed Essequibo’s ballot opposition with cryptocurrency. El Salvador’s Bitcoin Investments Go Black The bitcoin investment strategy of El Salvador has started to pay its dividends, as the country’s holdings went into black numbers with the recent rise in the price of bitcoin. President Nayib Bukele shared a post on social media explaining that the country had finally reached this point after being ridiculed and targeted by hit pieces due to their calculated losses while making these investments. However, Bukele stated that the country had no intention of selling the bitcoin it owns, estimated to be around 2,381 BTC by different t

During Q4 of 2023, the stablecoin supply available to invest in crypto assets was $3.8 billion. This is the first time the net supply of the top five stablecoins has turned positive in nearly two years. In 2023, zero-knowledge (ZK) technology became one of the most consistent talking points in the crypto space. Stablecoin Inflows Outpacing Outflows After six consecutive quarters of negative net supply, the top five stablecoins recorded a positive net supply of $3.8 billion in Q4, according to a new study by Binance. The last time the stablecoin supply was positive was in Q1 2022 when it exceeded $17 billion. As explained in the study report , stablecoin supply indicates the amount of capital that is ready and available to buy crypto assets. The study data shows that Q2 2022 had the largest negative net supply of $15.6 billion, while Q3 of the same year had the lowest negative net supply during the period. However, since the last quarter of 2022 when it topped $9.9 billion, the stab

Financial services giant Fidelity recently met with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding its spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) application. Like Blackrock, the world’s largest asset manager, Fidelity appears to be pushing to use the in-kind creation model for its spot bitcoin ETF. Fidelity’s Meeting With SEC Officers from financial services giant Fidelity met with staff from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Trading and Markets and the Division of Corporation Finance on Thursday to discuss the firm’s application for Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, a spot bitcoin ETF, according to a memorandum posted on the SEC website. The memorandum states: The discussion concerned Cboe BZX’s proposed rule change to list and trade shares of the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust under Cboe BZX Rule 14.11(e)(4). Based on the presentation attached to the memorandum submitted to the SEC by Fidelity during the meeting, the two parties discussed using the in-k

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has renewed its warning that investments in crypto assets can be “exceptionally risky.” The regulator stressed that crypto-related investments “continue to be replete with fraud, including bogus coin offerings, Ponzi and pyramid schemes, and outright theft where the project promoter simply disappears with investors’ money.” SEC’s Crypto Investment Warnings The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy reiterated its warnings about investing in crypto assets on social media platform X on Friday. “Investments in crypto asset securities can be exceptionally risky and are often volatile,” the authority wrote. Investments in #crypto asset securities can be exceptionally risky and are often volatile. Learn more in our Investor Alert: https://t.co/Qd9ps9BPvm pic.twitter.com/dTlk9LE2KV — SEC Investor Ed (@SEC_Investor_Ed) December 8, 2023 The SEC’s investor education office also shared