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        <title>Matt Thomas</title>
        <link>https://paragraph.com/@matt-thomas</link>
        <description>Lead NeuGroup's Digital Assets Working Group of top corporates with projects in flight / in the pipeline. Covering AI, ML, &amp; Latin America.</description>
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            <title><![CDATA[Crypto can't solve capital controls. Nor should it. ]]></title>
            <link>https://paragraph.com/@matt-thomas/crypto-can-t-solve-capital-controls-nor-should-it</link>
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            <pubDate>Wed, 21 Dec 2022 22:24:36 GMT</pubDate>
            <description><![CDATA[Heads up, the moral of the story: no - crypto cannot get your money out of "(name your country)" Legal frameworks exist. Frequently - there is a concept peddled for a fully universal system of payments/money. One that works in all instances and in all concepts. Bitcoin was this theory brought into reality. Though, we now can transact across borders using various digital currencies from Ethereum to USDC. The fundamental technology does not change the legal frameworks for monetary policies glob...]]></description>
            <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Heads up, the moral of the story: no - crypto cannot get your money out of &quot;(name your country)&quot;</strong></p><p><strong>Legal frameworks exist.</strong> Frequently - there is a concept peddled for a fully universal system of payments/money. One that works in all instances and in all concepts. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://river.com/learn/what-is-the-byzantine-generals-problem/#:~:text=The%20Byzantine%20Generals%20Problem%20is,agree%20on%20a%20certain%20truth%3F">Bitcoin was this theory brought into reality</a>. Though, we now can transact across borders using various digital currencies from Ethereum to USDC. <strong>The fundamental technology does not change the legal frameworks for monetary policies globally.</strong></p><p><strong>Nation states still matter.</strong> We see in nations that attempt to enact capital controls a move towards Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nigeria-currency/explainer-why-nigerias-central-bank-wont-ease-its-grip-on-the-naira-idUSKBN2BL1MH">help institute the monetary policy regime</a>. When we look further into the laws that govern Capital, and its movement of it, there is a very real reason why regimes are intended to change their reserve framework, to properly trap and enact the monetary policy. We see this most in the eCNY, which has not picked up use by retail but <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/econographics/a-report-card-on-chinas-central-bank-digital-currency-the-e-cny/">has been enacted throughout mainland China as a means to fully implements the CNY and have full transparency</a>. This eCNY still is in a closed China-based system, while almost all CBDC projects are in closed systems, the eCNY is one of the handful also accessible to everyday citizens. (with data sharing and all) <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://cbdctracker.org/">CBDC Tracker</a></p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/20b384c305852888532f624968142ea9bc6af31c555deee2f1889d3e20059123.png" alt="Atlantic Council, Project Hamilton 2022" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="">Atlantic Council, Project Hamilton 2022</figcaption></figure><p>When it comes to other conceptions of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2022/02/09/sp020922-the-future-of-money-gearing-up-for-central-bank-digital-currency">digital currencies,</a> the interactions of stablecoins and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://usa.visa.com/about-visa/newsroom/press-releases.releaseId.17821.html">currencies issued for settlements transacting,</a> there has been great progress in this technology. But, still accounting and legal frameworks still is weighed into account. For instance, one could custody an account in Nigeria, do business as such, and have a central account in the U.S., technologically speaking you can send the assets from one to the other. But, if this is not a service/product being paid for or a legally approved transaction (OFAC, FDIC, OCC, or local regulator) you still cannot transmit. Various laws would have been broken.</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://overcast.fm/+5AWMmubRo">Bloomberg Odd Lots: Younger and Menand Explain How We Got the Modern Banking System</a></p><p><strong>Technology is amazing.</strong> As long as we continue to regulate and grow with it. As there is a great value added to implementing new technologies. The weighing of data protection is a huge piece, in Europe, there is much more of a focus on both sides of data protection. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://gdpr.eu/">https://gdpr.eu/</a> <em>(Great read if you haven&apos;t)</em></p><p>More simplistically, can the funds be transferred legally speaking? If not, crypto isn&apos;t your solution, just an accounting headache. <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/07/29/two-soccer-teams-transfer-a-south-american-player-using-usdc-but-theres-collateral-damage/">Two Soccer Teams Transfer a South American Player Using USDC, But There’s Collateral Damage</a></p><p>What digital currencies bring is real-time pre-cleaned data for modeling and simulation, and instant transactions for approved transactions. <strong>Crypto and digital currencies are not magic bullets, but rather a tool to build with.</strong></p><br>]]></content:encoded>
            <author>matt-thomas@newsletter.paragraph.com (Matt Thomas)</author>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title><![CDATA[New Year New Crypto. Hello 2023.]]></title>
            <link>https://paragraph.com/@matt-thomas/new-year-new-crypto-hello-2023-2</link>
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            <pubDate>Fri, 16 Dec 2022 22:05:32 GMT</pubDate>
            <description><![CDATA[You’ll be reading a lot of this year in review, I am sure, you’ll see the list of mired controversies in crypto… If you look at the chart below provided by Chainalysis, “The data suggests that FTX’s demise hasn’t been investors’ biggest issue this year. Both the depegging of Terra’s UST token and the collapse a few weeks later of Celsius and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) drove much bigger realized losses for investors: $20.5 billion in the case of UST and a whopping $33.0 billion in the case of ...]]></description>
            <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>You’ll be reading a lot of this year in review, I am sure, you’ll see the list of mired controversies in crypto… If you look at the chart below provided by Chainalysis, <em>“The data suggests that FTX’s demise hasn’t been investors’ biggest issue this year. Both the depegging of Terra’s UST token and the collapse a few weeks later of Celsius and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) drove much bigger realized losses for investors: $20.5 billion in the case of UST and a whopping $33.0 billion in the case of Celsius and 3AC, versus just $9.0 billion for FTX.”</em></p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/a485ffe751b3021f56330c17ad8a300952dea5528fccb7cec9014af7aebf6a83.jpg" alt="" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="hide-figcaption"></figcaption></figure><p>‘Crypto is dead.’</p><p>‘Long live crypto.’</p><p>But,</p><blockquote><p>It ain&apos;t about how hard you&apos;re hit, <strong>it&apos;s about how you can get hit and keep moving forward</strong>. How much you can take and keep moving forward. Get up! said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0479143/characters/nm0000230">Rocky</a></p></blockquote><p>Crypto, has weathered countless storms, from the biggest jurisdictions cracking down on <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://overcast.fm/+YN3XqgLR0">currencies to uses on the black market from the dark web</a>. Crypto, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://blog.chainalysis.com/reports/storyline-blockchain-analysis-web3/">brings transparency</a>, what has been seen in the fiascos, depicted in the above graphic, Celsius, 3AC, and FTX. But, the vast majority of investments, and activity in the crypto ecosystem, had not been in broker-liquidity providers, but rather infrastructure, enterprise, and NFT-related activities which are non-correlated to a centralized exchange.</p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/0314dd7be7ddd89590751648ae26c827b9e82977b616dc89598e0821bc5a8bf7.png" alt="The Block, Source 2022" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="">The Block, Source 2022</figcaption></figure><p>Crypto is far from dead. “<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://metaversboi.medium.com/nft-are-dead-cd5975536e40">Long live digital collectible!</a>”</p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/3b2877c726780d891d814631a9d6906e106ca5ff606511bd728259ff0a005cc6.png" alt="" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="hide-figcaption"></figcaption></figure><p>NIKE Leads, the pack - creating #Phygital <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.coindesk.com/learn/lets-get-phygital-combining-the-physical-and-digital-in-web3/">Getting into Phygital</a></p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/fb45a4b18d09370077f5c1bbb29a3a6bee5def50fa4ef0a44f38c776543ef4b3.png" alt="Dune Dashboard from Noah Levine" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="">Dune Dashboard from Noah Levine</figcaption></figure><h2 id="h-sources-and-helpful-links" class="text-3xl font-header !mt-8 !mb-4 first:!mt-0 first:!mb-0">Sources and helpful links:</h2><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://dune.com/kingjames23/nft-project-possible-data-to-use">https://dune.com/kingjames23/nft-project-possible-data-to-use</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://dune.com/kingjames23/ethereum-usdcusdt">https://dune.com/kingjames23/ethereum-usdcusdt</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.nftculture.com/nft-news/chevrolet-partners-with-superrare-and-king-of-midtown-crypt-gallery-to-release-corvette-nft/">https://www.nftculture.com/nft-news/chevrolet-partners-with-superrare-and-king-of-midtown-crypt-gallery-to-release-corvette-nft/</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://nft.porsche.com/">https://nft.porsche.com/</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://stellar.org/developers-blog/how-to-use-stellar-aid-assist-and-the-stellar-disbursement-platform">https://stellar.org/developers-blog/how-to-use-stellar-aid-assist-and-the-stellar-disbursement-platform</a></p>]]></content:encoded>
            <author>matt-thomas@newsletter.paragraph.com (Matt Thomas)</author>
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        </item>
        <item>
            <title><![CDATA[New Year New Crypto. Hello 2023.]]></title>
            <link>https://paragraph.com/@matt-thomas/new-year-new-crypto-hello-2023</link>
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            <pubDate>Fri, 16 Dec 2022 21:23:21 GMT</pubDate>
            <description><![CDATA[You’ll be reading a lot of this year in review, I am sure, you’ll see the list of mired controversies in crypto… If you look at the chart below provided by Chainalysis, “The data suggests that FTX’s demise hasn’t been investors’ biggest issue this year. Both the depegging of Terra’s UST token and the collapse a few weeks later of Celsius and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) drove much bigger realized losses for investors: $20.5 billion in the case of UST and a whopping $33.0 billion in the case of ...]]></description>
            <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>You’ll be reading a lot of this year in review, I am sure, you’ll see the list of mired controversies in crypto… If you look at the chart below provided by Chainalysis, <em>“The data suggests that FTX’s demise hasn’t been investors’ biggest issue this year. Both the depegging of Terra’s UST token and the collapse a few weeks later of Celsius and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) drove much bigger realized losses for investors: $20.5 billion in the case of UST and a whopping $33.0 billion in the case of Celsius and 3AC, versus just $9.0 billion for FTX.”</em></p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/a485ffe751b3021f56330c17ad8a300952dea5528fccb7cec9014af7aebf6a83.jpg" alt="" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="hide-figcaption"></figcaption></figure><p>‘Crypto is dead.’</p><p>‘Long live crypto.’</p><p>But,</p><blockquote><p>It ain&apos;t about how hard you&apos;re hit, <strong>it&apos;s about how you can get hit and keep moving forward</strong>. How much you can take and keep moving forward. Get up! said <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0479143/characters/nm0000230">Rocky</a></p></blockquote><p>Crypto, has weathered countless storms, from the biggest jurisdictions cracking down on <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://overcast.fm/+YN3XqgLR0">currencies to uses on the black market from the dark web</a>. Crypto, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://blog.chainalysis.com/reports/storyline-blockchain-analysis-web3/">brings transparency</a>, what has been seen in the fiascos, depicted in the above graphic, Celsius, 3AC, and FTX. But, the vast majority of investments, and activity in the crypto ecosystem, had not been in broker-liquidity providers, but rather infrastructure, enterprise, and NFT-related activities which are non-correlated to a centralized exchange.</p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/0314dd7be7ddd89590751648ae26c827b9e82977b616dc89598e0821bc5a8bf7.png" alt="The Block, Source 2022" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="">The Block, Source 2022</figcaption></figure><p>Crypto is far from dead. “Long live digital collectible!”</p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="hide-figcaption"></figcaption></figure><p>NIKE Leads, the pack - creating #Phygital <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.coindesk.com/learn/lets-get-phygital-combining-the-physical-and-digital-in-web3/">Getting into Phygital</a></p><figure float="none" data-type="figure" class="img-center" style="max-width: null;"><img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/fb45a4b18d09370077f5c1bbb29a3a6bee5def50fa4ef0a44f38c776543ef4b3.png" alt="Dune Dashboard from Noah Levine" blurdataurl="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=" nextheight="600" nextwidth="800" class="image-node embed"><figcaption HTMLAttributes="[object Object]" class="">Dune Dashboard from Noah Levine</figcaption></figure><h2 id="h-sources-and-helpful-links" class="text-3xl font-header !mt-8 !mb-4 first:!mt-0 first:!mb-0">Sources and helpful links:</h2><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://dune.com/kingjames23/nft-project-possible-data-to-use">NFT Use Case Retailer - Dashboard</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://dune.com/kingjames23/ethereum-usdcusdt">Ethereum USDC/USDT</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://www.nftculture.com/nft-news/chevrolet-partners-with-superrare-and-king-of-midtown-crypt-gallery-to-release-corvette-nft/">Chevrolet Partners with SuperRare and King of Midtown / Crypt Gallery to release Corvette NFT</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="https://nft.porsche.com/">Porsche Enters Web3</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow ugc" class="dont-break-out" href="">How to Use Stellar Aid Assist and the Stellar Disbursement Platform</a></p>]]></content:encoded>
            <author>matt-thomas@newsletter.paragraph.com (Matt Thomas)</author>
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