Fintech Focus For March 8, 2021

Quote To Start The Day: Life itself is your teacher, and you are in a state of constant learning.

Source: Bruce Lee

One Big Thing In Fintech: Although it’s still early in the transition, it appears the Biden administration will nominate former Ripple advisor and former U.S. Treasury Department official Michael Barr to head the OCC. In the short term, Trump’s SEC appointee, Commissioner Hester Pierce, will continue her notoriously crypto-friendly approach to the securities market. But the Biden administration is reportedly considering former CFTC chairman Gary Gensler to soon lead the SEC.

“The new SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has been pretty outspoken with his views on Facebook’s project Libra, as well as Ripple. It’s his opinion that those are securities and should be regulated by the SEC,” said attorney Hailey Lennon, a crypto-focused partner at Anderson Kill law firm. “In the next year or two, I hope some of the litigation we are seeing and new leadership in the SEC, will result in greater clarity so that down the road there are less enforcement actions. Clarity will help companies to know what to avoid.”

Source: TechCrunch

Other Key Fintech Developments:

• Celsius Network sees massive growth.
• Selling clients on bitcoin diversification.
• Sell-side has to automate middle office.
• NFT platform Curio eyes $1.2M round.
• Robinhood tapping Nasdaq for its IPO.
• Broadridge LTX gets a protocol patent.
• Plaid tested payroll authentication tech.
• Eco raises $26M for personal banking.
• Dorsey mints tweet on an ETH service.
• Betterment targeting WealthSimple US.
• Polkadot’s bid to offer ETH alternative.
• Invesco will consolidate tech offerings.
• How to use DLT, NFTs for added value.
• MX adds a business officer and a CFO.
• Snoop Dogg’s fintech stakes see gains.

Watch Out For This: 29-year-old physician assistant and cancer survivor Hayley Arceneaux is the latest member to join SpaceX’s all-civilian crew. Her age makes her the youngest American woman to ever go into space—and that’s only one of the things that makes her a badass.

Source: Jalopnik

Interesting Reads:

• Palihapitiya sells Virgin Galactic stake.
• Law firms’ battle for PE market growth.
• UWM CEO talked about stock volatility.
• Lawmaker says Cuomo should resign.
• State Of Mobility: Trends, Investments.
• Big tech critic joins Biden White House.
• Coursera files to go public after growth.
• Tesla plans to launch a social platform.
• John McAfee indicted over ICO frauds.

Market Moving Headline: U.S. stock index futures ended last week mixed.

Key Takeaways:

- U.S. Senate passes $1.9T relief package.

- COVID-19 vaccination timeline is sped up.

- Equities are recipients of $12B in inflows.

- Treasury yields aren’t at worrisome levels.

- VIX term structure suggests no real panic.

- Real GDP growth to be over 6% this year.

In the coming sessions, participants will want to pay attention to the VWAP anchored from the $3,959.25 peak, the $3,720.50 minimal excess low, as well as the $3,837.75 high-volume area (HVNode).

In the best case, the S&P 500 opens and remains above the $3,837.75 volume area. Auctioning above the VWAP anchored from the $3,959.25 peak would suggest buyers, on average, are in control and winning since the February 15 rally high.

Any activity below the VWAP anchored from the $3,959.25 peak may leave the $3,837.75 HVNode as an area of supply — offering initiative sellers favorable entry and responsive buyers favorable exit.

Source: Physik Invest