Deloitte and NYDIG set up alliance to help businesses adopt Bitcoin

June 21, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Banks

Deloitte wants to enable blockchain and digital asset-based services across many areas involving Bitcoin products like banking, rewards programs and others.

Professional services giant Deloitte is getting increasingly serious about Bitcoin (BTC) amid the ongoing market downturn, setting up a major initiative to promote BTC adoption.

Deloitte has partnered with the Bitcoin-focused financial services firm, New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG), to help companies of all sizes implement digital assets.

According to a joint announcement on June 21, NYDIG and Deloitte are launching a strategic alliance to create a centralized approach for clients seeking advice in order to adopt Bitcoin products and services.

The companies will work together to enable blockchain and digital asset-based services across multiple areas involving Bitcoin-related products, including banking, loyalty and rewards programs, employee benefits and others.

According to the announcement, global financial institutions and banks have been facing an increasing demand to provide trusted exposure to Bitcoin. The alliance between Deloitte and NYDIG aims to help accelerate adoption while ensuring compliance, Deloitte's digital assets banking regulatory practice lead Richard Rosenthal said, adding:

"The future of financial services will center around the use of digital assets, and we are focused on advising our clients on ways to engage in a regulated and compliant way.”

The news comes months after NYDIG launched a benefits program allowing employees to convert a portion of their paychecks into Bitcoin in February 2022. The company previously raised $1 billion in equity investment in late 2021, bringing NYDIG’s valuation to roughly $7 billion.

One of the “Big Four” accounting firms, Deloitte has been growing more interested in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in recent years, actively exploring the role of Bitcoin and other digital assets in the global economy.

In June, Deloitte published a survey that found that 75% of retailers in the United States planned to accept crypto or stablecoin payments within the next two years. Deloitte published another study in March highlighting the potential of Bitcoin as a base to create a cheaper and faster ecosystem for electronic fiat or central bank digital currencies.

Nearly 75% of US Merchants Plan To Accept Crypto or Stablecoins Within Two Years, According to Deloitte Survey

June 11, 2022 The Daily Hodl

Deloitte Survey: 85% of Merchants Say Enabling Crypto Payments Is High Priority

June 10, 2022 Bitcoin.com

75% of retailers eyeing crypto payments within 24 months: Deloitte

June 9, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Coin Telegraph

Improving customer experience, increasing the customer base and a hope their brand is perceived as “cutting edge” were the biggest reasons given for a desire to adopt crypto payments.

Three quarters of United States retailers plan to accept crypto or stablecoin payments within the next two years according to a new survey.

It also found that more than half of large retailers with revenues over $500 million are currently spending $1 million or more building the required infrastructure to make it happen.

The information was revealed in Deloitte’s “Merchants Getting Ready For Crypto” report released in collaboration with PayPal on June 8.

A large majority, around 85%, of the surveyed merchants said they anticipate that cryptocurrency payments will be ubiquitous in their respective industries in five years.

The survey polled 2,000 senior executives at U.S. retail organizations between Dec 3 and Dec 16, 2021 when crypto prices were still riding high, but the results have only just been revealed. The executives were distributed equally among the cosmetics, digital goods, electronics, fashion, food and beverages, home and garden, hospitality and leisure, personal and household goods, services, and transportation sectors.

Small to medium sized companies are also getting into the acts with 73% of retailers with revenues between $10 million and $100 million investing between $100,000 to $1 million to support the needed infrastructure.

*Source: Merchants Getting Ready for Crypto: Merchant Adoption of Digital Currency Payments* *Survey*

According to Deloitte the spending won’t stop there and is only expected to increase over 2022. More than 60% of retailers said they expect budgets of more than $500,000 to enable crypto payments in the next 12 months to December.

Consumers push for crypto payments

Consumer interest is driving merchant adoption with 64% of merchants signalling their customers have expressed significant interest in using crypto for payments. Roughly 83% of retailers expect interest to increase or significantly increase over 2022.

Nearly half expect their adoption of cryptocurrency will improve the customer experience, around the same amount believe it will increase their customer base and 40% hoped their brand woudl be perceived as “cutting edge”.

Retailers optimistic on digital currencies

Of the retailers already accepting cryptocurrency, 93% have reported a positive impact on their customer metrics.

Carriers and challenges to adoption cited by merchants include the security of the payments system (43%) changing regulations (37%), volatility (36%) and a lack of a budget (30%).

The complexity of integrating cryptocurrencies with legacy systems and the complexity of integrating multiple cryptos was the greatest challenge according to 45%.

Deloitte said it expects “continued education” would create further clarity for regulators, allowing wider adoption across a broader set of products and services.

Spanish Retailer El Corte Ingles Launches Crypto Exchange in Partnership With Deloitte

March 27, 2022 Bitcoin.com

Bitcoin a Starting Point for Developing Central Bank Digital Currency, Says Big Four Firm Deloitte

March 21, 2022 The Daily Hodl

Bitcoin well positioned to help governments create cheaper CBDCs: Deloitte

March 15, 2022 Coin Telegraph

Analysis

Deloitte analysis shows how Bitcoin can help traditional fiat currency improve drastically in terms of speed, security, efficiency, cross-border payments.

A new study from financial services giant Deloitte highlighted the potential of Bitcoin (BTC) as a base to create a cheaper, faster and more secure ecosystem for electronic fiat currency or central bank digital currency (CBDC).

Deloitte’s analysis, titled State-Sponsored Cryptocurrency, pointed out the need for a complete redesign of the traditional fiat ecosystem to overcome impending issues of being “slow, error-prone and expensive relative to performance in other high-tech industries.”

However, the report pointed out five key areas where Bitcoin can help traditional fiat currency improve drastically — speed, security, efficiency, cross-border payments and collaboration with other payment participants:

“With the potential to [...] do it without the day-to-day operational need for a centralized organization, whether commercial or federal, the result could truly be transformational.”

Similarities and differences between CBDCs and Bitcoin. Source: Deloitte

While stating the various difference between BTC and state-issued CBDCs, Deloitte’s analysis reiterates one of the major inflationary traits of fiat currency, stating that CBDCs have no cap on money supply contained on the ledger and that centralized governments can define the value of the CBDC.

According to the analysis, governments that are first to roll out a nationwide CBDC will have an early-bird advantage in influencing the use of their local currency in international markets and trades.

In a CBDC environment, Deloitte envisions crypto exchanges to retain their current position as a facilitator that will be used to convert “users’ cryptocurrency to paper currency when transacting across different currencies, and charges an exchange fee in return.” In such a scenario, banks will act as custodians of the distributed ledger who will compete with other miners to process transactions and collect the reward.

On an end note, the analysis states that while CBDCs will not serve as a one-to-one replacement for BTC and other cryptocurrencies, the mainstreaming of CBDCs will open up an additional option for users to choose the most appropriate medium of payment, concluding:

“[Bitcoin] could ultimately spawn a series of new opportunities that would [...] transform the current payments system into one that is faster, more secure, and less expensive to run.”

While many jurisdictions have joined race to implement in-house CBDCs, one the key factors for its successful implementation is widespread adoption.

In this effort, Jamaican prime minister Andrew Holness announced that the first 100,000 Jamaican citizens to use the country’s CBDC, Jam-Dex, will be given a free $16 payment in the hopes of promoting widespread adoption.

Finance Minister @NigelClarkeJa demonstrates use of the CBDC to pay his barber Paul during the #BudgetDebate2022. @CentralBankJA #JamDEx pic.twitter.com/izfRqX58Cy
— JLPJamaica (@jlpjamaica) March 8, 2022

As Cointelegraph reported, approximately 17% of the Jamaican population remains unbanked, and with the launch of CBDC, the Jamaican government plans to encourage low and middle-income citizens to join the national banking system.

Crypto.com Coin Rallies Another 25% as Firm Aims for Mainstream Adoption

November 24, 2021 The Crypto Briefing

Avalanche pushes out Dogecoin from top-10 after AVAX price soars 100% in November

November 21, 2021 Coin Telegraph

Altcoin

The market cap of AVAX touched $30.32 billion for the first time in history.

Avalanche (AVAX) is now the tenth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization after more than doubling in price since the start of November.

AVAX entered the top-10 crypto index after pushing out Dogecoin (DOGE). In doing so, its circulating market valuation reached $30.60 billion for the first time compared to Dogecoin's $30.30 billion.

*AVAX circulating market cap. Source: CoinMarketCap*

AVAX price hits another record high

AVAX price climbed while ignoring price corrections elsewhere in the crypto market after Nov. 10.

Notably, Bitcoin (BTC) plunged by nearly 20% from its record high of $69,000, and Ether (ETH) — the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap and Avalanche's top competitor — slipped by 19% from its all-time high at around $4,867.

Nonetheless, their downside sentiment failed to impact AVAX over the past 10 days. The Avalanche token rallied by more than 64% in the period of Bitcoin's and Ethereum's price correction, hitting one record high after another, as shown in the chart below.

*AVAX/USD daily price chart versus BTC/USD and ETH/USD. Source: TradingView*

On Nov. 21, AVAX reached $141.50, its best level to date, after rising by nearly 25% in two days.

Deloitte FOMO

AVAX broke its positive correlation with BTC and ETH in the days leading up to "Big Four" accounting firm Deloitte's decision to build its disaster relief platforms atop the Avalanche blockchain platform.

According to Deloitte's press release published on Nov. 17, the "Close as You Go Service" aims to simplify "disaster reimbursement applications for victims of natural disaster, by aggregating and validating the documentation required for funding."

The high-profile partnership prompted analysts to anticipate higher demand for AVAX, which operates as a basic unit of account between the multiple subnetworks on the Avalanche platform and as a currency that users could stake on the network to earn passive incomes.

Pseudonymous market analyst Seq tweeted a rocket emoji to indicate its long-term bullish outlook for AVAX, adding that Deloitte's partnership with Avalanche would enable more exponential parternships.

"It can be difficult to grasp the scope of Avalanche," wrote Seq, adding that the project has witnessed "incredible growth" despite launching just one blockchain.

Deloitte, the largest professional services firm in the world, spanning 150 countries & 20K professionals, provide consultancy & delivering solutions for enterprises, including 90% of the Fortune 500

This is not only a big partnership, but one that will enable exponentially more https://t.co/Y005ZPzr5w
— Seq (@CryptoSeq) November 20, 2021

In detail, Avalanche aims to feature multiple chains, with some performing core functions while others being more application-specific. Meanwhile, all non-core blockchains (called subnets) must depend on validators that stake AVAX on any of Avalanche's three base platforms, dubbed P-Chain, X-Chain, and C-Chain.

*Avalanche network in a nutshell. Source: Avalanche Documentation*

There is "only the C-Chain," wrote Seq, noting that it is just one blockchain "in [one] of an infinite number of subnets that are possible." The analyst added:

"We are just scratching the surface of its potential, and has only been 14 months since mainnet! Avalanche is just getting started!"

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Avalanche soars to new highs after Deloitte adoption — But risks emerge for AVAX price

November 18, 2021 Coin Telegraph

Adoption

The "Big Four" accountant announced that it would leverage Avalanche's blockchain for a new project.

Avalanche (AVAX) rose to a new price high on Nov. 18 and posted weekly gains after its developer, Ava Labs, entered a partnership with "Big Four" accountant firm Deloitte.

The AVAX price reached a little over $110 after rising circa 16% week-to-date (WTD), with its circulated market cap hitting $23.76 billion, almost 0.93% of the total crypto market cap.

In contrast, AVAX's top rival tokens, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), fell by over 13% and 12.50% WTD, respectively.

*Top 15 crypto tokens and their performance in the past seven days. Source: TradingView*

AVAX adoption FOMO

AVAX picked its bullish cues from Deloitte's decision to use the Avalanche blockchain for building a disaster relief platform.

The deal, according to Avalanche's founder Emin Gün Sirer, would "help state and local governments easily demonstrate their eligibility for federal emergency funding." Avalanche's blog post further noted that their blockchain solutions would assist Deloitte in "minimizing fraud, waste, and abuse," which is prevalent in existing disaster management solutions.

In detail, AVAX works as an in-house payment method for Avalanche, i.e., a basic unit of account between the multiple subnetworks created on the Avalanche platform. Users also employ AVAX to earn passive income by staking their coins on the network.

AVAX's potential use case in the upcoming Deloitte disaster management systems prompted traders to make bold bullish calls. Newsquake, a Cointelegraph Markets Pro service, successfully identified the bullish sentiment as a potential market-moving event in real-time ahead of the AVAX price boom.

*VORTECS™ Score (green) vs. AXS price. Source:* *Cointelegraph Markets Pro*

Meanwhile, the Cointelegraph Markets Pro's VORTECS™ Score flipped green on Nov. 12, prior to AVAX climbing to new highs. The VORTECS™ Score is an algorithmic comparison of historical and current market conditions derived from a combination of data points including market sentiment, trading volume, recent price movements and Twitter activity.

AVAX technical outlook

Pseudonymous market analyst "Seq" tweeted a rocket emoji sign to indicate their long-term upside bias for the Avalanche token based on the Deloitte adoption.

Probably nothing, only Deloitte, the largest accounting firm in the world that provides services to nearly 90% of the Fortune 500 choosing Avalanche for a federally approved disaster recovery platform to help state and local governments with federal emergency funding!$AVAX https://t.co/GHzIWuSjfx
— Seq (@CryptoSeq) November 16, 2021

Another analyst, Nico, noted that AVAX's latest price climb accompanied a rise in trading volumes, proving that the current climb had strong momentum behind it, adding:

"Looking for it to HODL around the ATH area, aiming for a retest/flip as continuation. If happens, then looking for $210k+"

Nevertheless, AVAX's climb this week also made it an overbought asset based on its relative strength index (RSI) signals. As a result, AVAX became overheated.

The AVAX price dropped by more than 10% on Nov. 18 after hitting its record high of $110. Furthermore, the selling pressure intensified as the Avalanche token tested its upward sloping resistance trendline (dotted) that constituted a rising wedge in conjugation with the lower ascending trendline support below (the black trendline).

*AVAX/USD three-day price chart. Source: TradingView*

Ideally, the AVAX price may continue rising until/ahead of hitting the apex (the point at where its two trendlines converge). Then, it would risk dropping lower by as much as the maximum height between the two trendlines. That roughly puts AVAX en route to $90.

A clear bearish divergence between a rising AVAX price and its falling RSI also hints at the token's weakening upside momentum.

Deloitte