Today in crypto, Staff at the US Securities and Exchange Commission clarified that broker-dealers can apply a 2% “haircut” to their stablecoin holdings without objection from the SEC. Meanwhile, Bitcoin miner Bitdeer liquidated all Bitcoin holdings and Robinhood’s head of crypto says that crypto investors are exploring more cryptocurrencies despite the market downfall.
SEC allows broker-dealers to take 2% 'haircut' on stablecoins
Staff at the US Securities and Exchange Commission clarified that broker-dealers can apply a 2% “haircut” to their stablecoin holdings without objection from the SEC.
The clarification, in the form of an FAQs posting, means broker-dealers can hold stablecoins without worrying about excess net capital requirements, and can treat the tokens similarly to money market funds, vehicles that hold low-risk cash equivalents like US Treasurys and certificates of deposit.
Previously, broker-dealers were uncertain whether to apply a 100% haircut to their dollar-pegged stablecoins, meaning that they did not count the tokens toward their net capital under existing regulations.
In response, Commissioner Hester Peirce said: In my view, a 100% haircut would be unnecessarily punitive given the underlying reserve assets that back payment stablecoins.”
Bitcoin miner Bitdeer dumps entire BTC reserves, holdings drop to zero
Bitcoin mining firm Bitdeer has sold all of its corporate Bitcoin holdings, reducing its treasury balance to zero, according to the company’s latest operational update.
In its latest weekly report, Bitdeer disclosed that its “pure holdings,” excluding customer deposits, have fallen to 0 Bitcoin (BTC). The report shows the company produced 189.8 BTC during the period and sold the full amount, alongside an additional 943.1 BTC, which was liquidated from its existing treasury reserves.
In its earlier update on Feb. 13, the miner still held 943.1 BTC, selling 179.9 BTC out of 183.4 BTC mined that week, leaving its treasury intact despite routine sales of newly mined coins.
Mining firms commonly sell a portion of production to fund electricity, hosting and equipment costs, but they also maintain a treasury balance to keep exposure to Bitcoin’s price appreciation. Fully liquidating reserves is less typical.
Crypto investors' interest moves ‘pretty wide’ beyond majors as dip drags: Exec
Crypto investors are increasingly exploring beyond the top three cryptocurrencies as the market downturn continues, according to Robinhood's head of crypto, Johann Kerbrat.
“I think what we see from our customers is that they actually see it as an opportunity,” Kerbrat told Cointelegraph during an exclusive interview, adding that they are seeing it as “an opportunity to buy the dip.”
“So we actually see a lot of customers continuing to trade crypto and diversifying, not just on the top two or three assets, but actually going pretty wide,” he said, referring to the largest two cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, Bitcoin and Ether.
It signals that investors are potentially becoming more comfortable with crypto as an asset class, including its volatility and market swings.
