There has been a lot of media coverage and chatter in the crypto community over the concept of “decentralized” exchanges, but much of it is misplaced.  For example, after the recent hack of CoinCheck there were a series of articles, such as one from Bloomberg, that promotes “decentralized” exchanges as a solution to the security … Continue reading Is the term “Decentralized Exchange” an Oxymoron?

SEC Presentation on Crypto Market Structure This presentation was delivered to a combined audience of SEC staff from Trading & Markets, Corporation Finance, & Enforcement.   The discussion was wide ranging and covered many of the topics in the slides. My conclusion from the meeting is that the SEC is being thoughtful and measured in its … Continue reading Crypto Regulation: Discussion with SEC Staff, Feb 15, 2018

The news flow over the past few days has been kind to CoinRoutes.  We have been validated on three fronts.  First, on Monday morning, we learned that the concept we introduced first,  "dark liquidity aggregation," was valued by blockchain investors to the tune of over $30 million.  Next, we were pleased to see that the … Continue reading Validation is always nice…

  The headlines describing the "crash" in bitcoin prices are predictable, considering that the price has more than halved over the past several weeks, but I don't think that the word "crash" is particularly appropriate.  What has not been reported is the simple fact that the decline in prices over the past week, for example, … Continue reading Rout? Perhaps, BUT it’s More Orderly than the Rally…

  (the following is not investment advice or recommendations to buy or sell securities, commodities, or investments of any kind.  It is meant to be instructive on market microstructure only) The recent price behavior of BitCoin vs US Dollars is quite instructive on the importance of understanding market micro-structure.  Over the past week, as it … Continue reading BitCoin “Distribution” Phase?

This morning, we were treated to an unprecedented event in the history of market regulation:  a joint OpEd written by the heads of the two most powerful market regulators in the U.S.   The reason for this piece is clear, in their opinion the practices of the crypto community during the current crypto boom have gone … Continue reading The Regulators Up their Crypto Game

This morning in the gym, I noticed the first of (likely) many “warnings” on CNBC about Crypto-assets emanating from Davos.  This should surprise no one, as that confab, which includes the most powerful financiers in the world, is primarily about consolidating and maintaining the power they hold as modern-day aristocrats. While I am not a … Continue reading Warnings from Davos on the “Risks” of Crypto are right on schedule…