There is some rumblings going around that did not seem to get a lot of publicity. It appears the SWIFT network has decided not to support transfer from banks to cryptocurrency exchanges for under $100,000. This means that any financial institution that is part of SWIFT will not receive notification if it engages in such transactions.
This caused Signature Bank to stop its support of Binance. Of course, the exchange is now scrambling to find another bank to handle the transactions.
Here is a point of vulnerability for the cryptocurrency industry. We always knew the on and off ramps to fiat currency were a weak spot. There is nothing that can be done since that is firmly in the hands of the banks and regulators.
Ultimately, this move could prevent smaller investors from getting involved in cryptocurrency. Obviously, $100K is a lot of money, out of the reach for most investors. It will limit the ability to buy cryptocurrency only to the larger players. Hence, we see another move for Wall Street to take over.
Now we must state all is not lost. To start, not all banks are part of SWIFT. There are other services out there which the banking industry utilizes. The move also does not affect the purchase of cryptocurrency via credit card.
However, if this is the case, we could see a setback for the cryptocurrency industry in terms of investing.
Of course, this might be a good thing.
Getting Down To Building
There is little doubt the world of cryptocurrency was infected by the antics and excessive speculation placed by those who were only concerned about Lambos and mooning. Most focus upon the monetary and market pricing aspect while ignoring the entire process of development. This is not how a successful industry is forged.
Of course, the bear market helped from this perspective as a lot of the weaker hands were washed out. This left us with a period where the builders were reigning supreme. With each down tick in the markets, more code was being written. This is vital since we are still at the stage where a lot of infrastructure is being created.
If this SWIFT situation is true, we will see the amount of money rolling in through exchanges diminishing. That likely means the focus of the industry will have to shift. In some ways, this can be great news.
Ultimately, we will move from price appreciation to focusing upon projects based upon value. Here is where we can see building becoming a center point.
Hive Ahead Of The Curve Again
What happens in a world where people potentially could have difficulty buying cryptocurrency?
We need to think about that for a second. If the amount of fiat currency from retail investors dries up to a large degree, how will things look?
To start, there is still the opportunity to swap crypto-for-crypto. This is an area we discussed in the past. Eventually, this is likely where most trading happens. It also is a reason to develop and promote DEX as opposed to centralized exchanges. The latter should only be utilized for fiat transactions if possible.
The other aspect to this is the ability to earn cryptocurrency. Hive is a blockchain where many applications are already built which enable individuals to get rewarded in coins and tokens. We could quickly see this becoming the way the average person gets involved.
Cryptocurrency might move from something that people look to speculation upon into something that is earned and utilized.
Cryptocurrency As An Asset
The problem is that the entire industry, over the last half decade, framed cryptocurrency as an separate asset class, no different than stocks or bonds. This is something that we discussed whereby the properties of most coins and tokens makes it more akin to a digital asset as opposed to a currency. In short, they suck as a medium of exchange.
We can see how this mindset was promoted. The idea of mooning and Lambos only feeds into this. If many believe something is going to massively appreciate in price, they are not going to use it for payments. We see this with $HIVE and HBD.
At the same time, people failed to see what the individual cryptocurrency represents. When the focus is upon market action, the project itself means little. In fact, to many, it has no impact. This is just another asset to utilize for maximum profit.
Failing to see what the cryptocurrency stands for has affected both investors and developers. The former doesn't look at the validity of what is being created while the latter simply engaged in a money grab. This started in the ICO craze, evolved, and was still with us at the beginning of the bear market.
The problem is looking at cryptocurrency, overall, as an asset class instead of realizing we are building infrastructure whereby every asset class will end up tokenized.
Perhaps a shift in focus as a result of SWIFT will happen.
Hive Backed Dollar
Over the past 18 months or so, we had a lot of discussions about the Hive Backed Dollar (HBD). We could be embarking upon a time where this coin becomes even more important.
If there is a reduction in fiat currency, monetary expansion, along with value, will have to come from somewhere other than the trading platforms. This means that, in addition to development, we need to facilitate the industry with more currency.
HBD could fill this role.
Of course, the danger is people thinking that simply creating more tokens will solve the issue. That is not the answer simply because there is no value in this.
However, when we look at the discussions we had here, if we start to build the value of HBD employing some of the suggestions presented, then we have a currency that is standing on its own. Without the concentration of fiat currency, value creation suddenly is the priority.
Here is where Hive steps in. As stated in the past, the $HIVE coin, like most, are value capture. They represent the value generated within a platform, protocol, or ecosystem. Hence, the greater the value created on that network, the more that is captured by the main coin.
This is crucial for HBD since it is backed by $HIVE. Naturally, this uses the USD as the measurement so market price is essential. Nevertheless, under these circumstances we can see how network effects can have a significant impact upon how people view Hive. At the same time, the fact the coin is really an access token further moves demand away from market demand and, instead, is driven by utility needs.
In Conclusion
The ability to get rewarded and earn cryptocurrency could be vital in the future. We could see this becoming the main mode of distribution of coins and tokens. Those projects that cannot tap into this could end up having to rely upon crypto-to-crypto transactions. While this is still a viable approach, the possible move by SWIFT could have a major impact.
A coin like HBD can help greatly with the liquidity of the industry. This is a way to increase the elasticity at a time when we might be seeing the opposite happen with the reduction in fiat currency. Having the focus shift to building value on Hive will help both coins compliment each other.
Of course, this move could also harken the advancement of commercial development. One way to get around the problem is to avoid fiat currency as much as possible. Hence, the ability to pay for goods and services using a coin like HBD will go a long way of providing another off ramp for people. While this does not appear to be affected, we can not overlook moves that might be made in the future.
Creating resiliency within our cryptocurrency economies is crucial. SWIFT is part of the established system. Hence it is just something else to develop around.
If you found this article informative, please give an upvote and rehive.
