PayPal, Visa, and BlackRock Headline Big Week For Crypto

Collective Shift

Join Matt and Nick as they discuss how Bitcoin put in its strongest September in over a decade. They also cover U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris’ first comments about blockchain; crypto announcements from Visa and PayPal; altcoins; and more.

Key Takeaways

• Bitcoin (BTC) put in its strongest September in over a decade. We now enter Q4, which is BTC’s best quarter based on past performance.
• BNY Mellon, the world’s largest custody bank, received approval from the U.S. SEC to custody the spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. It was also granted an exemption from SAB 121, essentially making it commercially viable for BNY Mellon to start offering crypto custody services.
• U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said she wants the country to “remain dominant” in blockchain and other emerging technologies. While it is somewhat encouraging to see Harris finally mentioning crypto, we still lack any clear details about her crypto policies would be if she wins November’s election.
• PayPal and Visa each announced their latest crypto offering, a promising sign for adoption.
• While FTX distributions are likely to start in Q4, the process will likely extend into 2025. This story is not as bullish as many are making it out to be.
• Among the altcoin updates covered: Celestia’s $100M funding round, EigenLayer’s EIGEN token becomes transferable, and Ethena’s new stablecoin tied to BlackRock’s BUIDL fund.