Investment Education

According to BlockBeats, Federal Reserve's Daly stated on May 21 that there is currently no evidence to suggest a need for an increase in interest rates. Daly's comments come amidst ongoing discussions about the state of the economy and potential changes in monetary policy. However, based on the current economic indicators, there seems to be no immediate need for a hike in interest rates. This information is crucial for investors and financial institutions as it can significantly impact their decision-making processes. The Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates often influences the global financial market, and Daly's statement is expected to have a considerable effect on the market's future movements. Despite the ongoing economic uncertainties, the Federal Reserve's current position indicates a stable economic outlook.

Binance's Financial Crimes Compliance (FCC) department recently collaborated with Taiwan's Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau and the Taipei District Prosecutors Office. The joint effort led to the successful resolution of a substantial criminal case involving money laundering through virtual assets, worth nearly NT$200 million. Binance was instrumental in the investigation, providing crucial insight and assistance to Taiwanese authorities. The case revolved around illegal operators who facilitated scam groups in money laundering through virtual assets, using fake customer conversation records, remittance proofs, and falsified identity verification data to appear legitimate. Upon request, Binance cooperated promptly, establishing a cross-border online meeting with the investigating officers and prosecutors, where Binance's seasoned FCC teams furnished valuable recommendations based on cryptocurrency flow analyses. This collaboration helped detect potential suspects more effectively. Prosecutor Lo Wei-yuan of the Taipei District Prosecutors Office indicted nine suspects charged with aggravated fraud, violation of the Money Laundering Control Act, and organized crime prevention regulations. The successful operation underscores the importance of public-private collaboration in combating financial crimes. Binance's cooperation with global law enforcement agencies fortifies its commitment to counter financial crime and safeguard the digital-asset ecosystem. Binance has also assisted with international law enforcement collaborations in the Netherlands and India. In its capacity as an industry leader, Binance remains diligent in user protection and cooperation with global law enforcement to champion the safety of the worldwide digital-asset ecosystem.

According to  Jinshi report: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in April recorded a marginal month-on-month increment in the prices of water, gas, and train tickets. Prices for these commodities rose by 0.1%, 0.1%, and 0.2% respectively, while electricity prices witnessed no change. This price shuffle resulted in a minimal impact on the overall CPI, less than 0.01 percentage point. Alternatively, a year-on-year analysis revealed an increase in the prices of water by 0.9%, gas by 2.4%, and train tickets by 0.5%, while electricity prices remained stable. Amplifying collectively, these price changes caused the CPI to experience a negligible rise of approximately 0.02 percentage points.

In a recent development shedding light on the possible direction of U.S. monetary policy, several Federal Reserve officials have advocated maintaining high interest rates for an extended duration. The statement signifies that Federal officials are not inclined to hasten any rate cuts. According to King Ten, Cleveland Fed President Mester, New York Fed President Williams, and Richmond Fed President Barkin all expressed on Thursday that the process of inflation reaching the 2% target may take more time than anticipated. This viewpoint indicates a stance in favor of keeping interest rates higher for a while as officials wait for stronger evidence of inflation deceleration.  

According to King Ten, CME's "Fed Watch" tool provides insightful data, predicting that the U.S. Federal Reserve is highly likely to keep interest rates the same for the foreseeable future. In June, it forecasts a 91.3% chance that interest rates will remain unchanged and a relatively small 8.7% probability of an interest rate cut of 25 basis points. Looking a bit further, the "Fed Watch" tool also predicts a 68.6% chance of unchanged interest rates until August, a 29.2% probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate cut, and a mere 2.2% likelihood of a more significant cumulative rate cut of 50 basis points. 

In a recent turn of events, a Reuters poll indicates that the market increasingly expects the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) to implement a 25 basis point rate cut in the fourth quarter, lowering the interest rate to 5.25%. This information comes from the Golden Ten report, presenting a shift in expectations compared to April's survey, which had forecasted a rate cut in the third quarter.

According to Blockworks: In a noteworthy development, the U.S. Senate passed Joint Resolution 109 last Thursday, aiming to overturn the controversial digital asset accounting rules under the Employee Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 121, instituted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). SAB 121, proposed in March 2022 and enacted the following month, mandates custodians of digital assets to list liabilities and "matching assets" on their balance sheets for all the cryptocurrencies they hold. This resolution will now proceed to President Joe Biden for review. The White House has previously communicated that the President would exercise his veto power once the resolution gets Senate approval. The staff at SEC has justified the accounting rules, arguing that such measures are crucial to offset "the noteworthy risks and uncertainties inherent in protecting crypto assets." This motion by the Senate underlines the ongoing discourse surrounding the regulatory landscape for cryptocurrencies.          

According to Odaily News: Federal Reserve official, Neel Kashkari, has suggested that it might be prudent to keep interest rates at their current levels for the time being. This approach could provide the necessary time and data to discern the future trajectory of inflation. In addition, Kashkari highlighted that the progression of the Fed's balance sheet reduction is satisfactory and reaffirmed the institution's commitment to achieving its inflation target of 2%.  

As reported by Bitcoin Magazine, El Salvador, the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender, has recently launched a new website dedicated to tracking its treasury's Bitcoin holdings. According to the data displayed, El Salvador currently possesses 5,748.76 BTC, valued at upwards of US$350 million. Further, the website indicates that the country has increased its Bitcoin holdings by 7 BTC in the preceding week. This development further underscores El Salvador's commitment to Bitcoin as part of its national financial strategy. Despite volatility risks associated with digital assets, El Salvador continues to build upon its Bitcoin treasury.

According to Bloomberg, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is exploring the use of tokenized central-bank money for transaction settlement. The institution's wholesale Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), which operates on the infrastructure of Swiss stock-market provider SIX, allows banks to use tokenized central-bank money to settle transactions such as bond purchases on the same platform. This method eliminates credit risk and enables users to leverage digital assets, potentially offering features like programmability. SNB's President, Thomas Jordan, spoke at a Bank for International Settlements conference in Basel on Monday. He outlined two other approaches to transaction settlement with tokenized assets that the SNB is considering. However, he noted that both methods have their pros and cons. The Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) link might limit the potential to enhance the current system, while the backed private token money could pose regulatory challenges as it isn't a direct claim on the central bank but would be used as such. Jordan did not specify whether the SNB's pilot CBDC project would continue beyond its current end-date in June. He previously stated that the project has been successful so far.