Publicly Traded Crypto Companies Aren't Resting On Their Laurels

While crypto prices make a comeback, public companies – a.k.a. crypto stocks – are taking advantage of the uptick in market momentum with several splashy announcements.

In today’s issue, we’ll overview each big move…

Galaxy Digital (GLXY)
Crypto fund manager Galaxy Digital, Deutsche Bank’s DWS Group, and Dutch market maker Flow Traders are planning to issue a euro-denominated stablecoin.

The partnership weaves the traditional and digital asset sectors together at a time of increased regulatory clarity in the EU following the newly adopted Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCAR). More MiCAR ripple effects below. 👇️ 

• Why it matters: The stablecoin business, as we’ve covered countless times over the years in CoinSnacks is a boring but highly-profitable business model. If successful, this partnership gives Galaxy yet another diversified revenue stream.

Robinhood (HOOD)
Less than 24 hours after we highlighted Robinhood as a sneaky backdoor play, the firm came out with a splashy announcement allowing commission-free crypto trading in the European Union (EU).

The platform will provide EU investors access to more than 25 cryptocurrencies. To add, a unique cashback-like loyalty program will be introduced, offering users a percentage of their monthly trading volume in Bitcoin.

Block Inc. (SQ)
Block, the payments company led by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, announced last week that Bitkey, a physical device on which customers can store Bitcoin, was officially open for preorders in more than 95 countries.

The Bitcoin wallet will ship in early 2024 and cost $150 in the U.S., a purchase price that includes the actual wallet, a charging cable, a mobile app, as well as recovery tools.

• Why it matters: There’s a reason why the company changed its name from Square to Block in 2021 – to signify the firm’s commitment to integrating Bitcoin into its core business. The opening of Bitkey to the general public continues Dorsey and Block’s commitment to Bitcoin across the company’s business verticals, despite the cryptocurrency’s lack of centrality to Block’s current quarterly revenue.

Coinbase (COIN)
Another week, another wave of growth initiatives from the determined executives over at Coinbase. Here’s all that went down:

• SEAM, the governance token of Base, launches: SEAM becomes the first and only native Base-based project's token listed on Coinbase.

• Crypto <> Italian banks: Coinbase partners with Conio, a wallet company with over 400,000 customers, to introduce a diverse array of digital assets to Italian banks and financial institutions.

  • The bigger picture: A wave of confidence in crypto is sweeping across Europe’s banks and institutions, largely driven by the inception of Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCAR) and an increased general interest in tokenization.

• Welcomes spot trading of BTC and ETH outside the US: Starting tomorrow, Coinbase’s international exchange will allow institutional customers to trade bitcoin and ether against the USDC stablecoin. (Retail investors will have to wait a few more months to do the same)

  • Reminder: Thanks to the lack of regulatory clarity within U.S. borders, Coinbase continues to make big strides overseas. It’s international exchange just launched in May of this year, but only offered derivative trading up until this point.

• Project Diamond launches: A smart contract-powered platform that allows institutions to create, manage, and exchange native digital assets on-chain.

  • Details: Think of it as the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs). It can offer speedier settlements, cheaper operation and more transparency compared to old-school financial plumbing. Project Diamond takes tokenization to the next level, creating digital assets directly on the blockchain instead of crafting token versions of an already existing instrument.

Hut 8 (HUT)
Fresh off a strategic merger with US Bitcoin Corp. (USBTC), yesterday Hut 8 announced plans to snatch up four Canadian power plants and a new bitcoin mining site.

Last week, we discussed how important it was for bitcoin miners to have flexibility, cost efficiency, and revenue diversity to survive after the halving (when block rewards will be cut in half). The recent merger, plus this recent array of energy acquisitions allow Hut 8 to sell energy to the market, mine bitcoin, or power high-performance computing applications, such as those related to AI.

• Read more: Anthony Power, an analyst at Compass Mining, just released another comprehensive update on all the North American bitcoin mining powerhouses. Lots of updates, graphs and tables.