PDAXScope : Tether, Blackrock, and More.

Crypto News:

Tether Enters Transaction Surveillance Partnership with Chainalysis as Regulatory Pressure Mounts

Tether, issuer of the largest stablecoin USDT, said Thursday it has teamed up with blockchain surveillance company Chainalysis to monitor transactions with its tokens on secondary markets. The surveillance system includes international sanctions compliance and illicit transfer detection that could be associated with activities like terrorist financing, and would help Tether identify crypto wallets that could "pose risks or may be associated with illicit and/or sanctioned addresses". The action comes as pressure from regulators and policymakers globally is mounting on Tether for USDT's alleged role to circumvent international sanctions and facilitate illicit finance. A United Nations report earlier this year said the stablecoin plays a key role in underground banking and money laundering in East Asia and Southeast Asia.

Link: https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/05/02/tether-enters-transaction-surveillance-partnership-with-chainalysis-as-regulatory-pressure-mounts/

BlackRock Sees Sovereign Wealth Funds, Pensions Coming to Bitcoin ETFs

The coming months could see financial institutions such as sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and endowments start to trade in the spot ETFs, Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets for BlackRock said in an interview. The firm is seeing “a re-initiation of the discussion around bitcoin,” which turns on the topic of allocating to bitcoin (BTC) and how to think about it from a portfolio construction perspective. BlackRock also filed for an ether (ETH) ETF back in November of last year, followed by CEO Larry Fink talking up the potential of tokenization, the representation of traditional assets on blockchains. But an ether ETF raises the question of how BlackRock would go about educating clients, given the complexity of the Ethereum blockchain ecosystem.

Link: https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/05/02/blackrock-sees-sovereign-wealth-funds-pensions-coming-to-bitcoin-etfs/

Global News:

Traders prep for another round of yen whack-a-mole

Japan's attempts to shore up its currency are putting trading desks across the globe on high alert and dealers are taking no chances ahead of a long weekend in London and Tokyo that might offer authorities another opportunity to bolster the frail yen. Traders suspect the authorities stepped in on at least two days this week and data from the BOJ suggests Japanese officials may have spent almost $60 billion in doing so -- roughly what they spent on three bouts of intervention over September and October 2022. The blueprint for what they believe is intervention now includes operating in a near-vacuum of market liquidity, and a series of Japanese public holidays plus Monday's holiday in the UK - the world's biggest FX trading center - could present a possible window.

Link: https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/traders-prep-another-round-yen-whack-a-mole-2024-05-02/

Fed's Powell says looming US election will not sway rate decisions

The looming U.S. presidential election will not influence the Federal Reserve's interest rate decisions, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said on Wednesday, adding that policymakers were "at peace" with keeping political considerations out of their decision-making process. Powell, speaking in a news conference after the end of the U.S. central bank's latest policy meeting, said Fed policy decisions will be guided by "what we think the right thing for the economy is," repeating a long-held stance of ignoring politics in the central bank's economic analysis. The issue of the Fed's independence jumped back into the spotlight last week when the Wall Street Journal reported that allies of former President Donald Trump are drafting proposals that would attempt to erode the central bank's independence and give Trump more influence over the Fed if he wins the Nov. 5 election.

Link: https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds-powell-says-looming-election-wont-sway-rate-decisions-2024-05-01/

Local News:

Peso strengthens vs dollar after Fed policy decision

The Peso performed better yesterday against the Dollar after the US Fed kept rates unchanged at its policy meeting; closing at 57.535 vs the previous close of 57.76. The dollar fell after the US Federal Reserve signaled it is still leaning toward eventual reductions in borrowing costs, but repeated that it wants to gain “greater confidence” that inflation will continue to fall before cutting rates. The statement was largely as expected while Mr. Powell also said at a press conference that it is unlikely that the US central bank’s next move will be a hike, easing some concerns about the Fed potentially pivoting to a more hawkish stance.

Link: https://www.bworldonline.com/banking-finance/2024/05/02/592457/peso-strengthens-vs-dollar-after-fed-policy-decision/