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The Trumps love them some web3.

While former U.S. President Donald Trump has already demonstrated he’s a fan of selling NFTs that glorify both his and America’s image, it’s Melania Trump’s turn, again.

Only a few days away from the U.S. celebrating Independence Day on July 4, the former first lady announced she is selling “The 1776 Collection,” a batch of three thousand digital tokens which cost $50 a piece. Potential buyers can use a host of digital wallets or a credit card, according to the website where they are available.

If all are sold, the collection would raise $150,000.

Family business

This is not the first time Melania and her husband have offered NFTs to the public. The most successful thus far has been the first edition of the “Trump Digital Trading Cards” collection, which featured cartoonish representations of the former president doing things like standing on the moon or brandishing boxing gloves and a cowboy hat.

The first edition of the collection generated more than 14,200 ETH ($26.3 million) in trading volume since last December, according to the NFT marketplace OpenSea, while the second edition has generated about $2.7 million.

Lesser known and less successful collections created by Melania Trump, which include “The American Christmas Collection” and “The POTUS Trump NFT Collection,” can be purchased from USA Memorabilia, a company which bills itself as “the premiere NFT platform featuring United States memorabilia.”

Another collection linked to the former first lady, called “Melania’s Vision,” launched in December 2021 and has so far generated about $15,000 in trading volume, according to OpenSea.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Asset management giant Fidelity is rejoining the mad rush for a spot bitcoin ETF, according to a Thursday filing set for U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It follows other firms like BlackRock, WisdomTree and Invesco, which have all made similar filings in recent weeks.

A 19b-4 filing posted by Cboe on its website shows the new plans for the fund. Called Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, FD Funds Management LLC is the sponsor of the Trust, while Fidelity Digital Assets Services will be responsible for custody of the trust’s bitcoin, according to the filing.

“A meaningful portion of our customers are interested in and own digital assets,” a Fidelity spokesperson said in an emailed response to questions from The Block. “Fidelity remains committed to providing customers with a portfolio of solutions that offer choice, accompanied by education and support as they leverage products to meet their financial needs and objectives.”

The latest filing, along with the others, will be widely watched, as the SEC has so far refrained from approving a spot bitcoin ETF. Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment and 21Shares have been trying since 2021 to register a spot bitcoin fund, while the SEC has previously rejected a proposal from Grayscale to convert its flagship GBTC fund into a spot ETF.

The latest Fidelity filing mentions a so-called surveillance sharing agreement mechanism that was a key addition to BlackRock’s recent filing. 

Fidelity first filed for the Wise Origin bitcoin ETF in 2021. A separate S-1 filing from Fidelity was not immediately visible on the SEC’s Edgar website.

Bitcoin surges with new ETF filings 

Bitcoin’s price has surged since news of BlackRock’s filing on June 15. The world’s biggest crypto by market capitalization rose 2.2% on Tuesday, after The Block reported that Fidelity’s filing was imminent. It’s up 10% over the past month and is currently trading around $30,549, according to CoinGecko. 

The institutional interest has “pulled traders back into crypto,” Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said in a note on Tuesday. The wave of filings could create “an intriguing and potentially volatile second half to the year as we await the outcome of that and the action brought against various exchanges from the SEC,” Erlam added.

“Gradually, then suddenly” is a term expressed in Bitcoin circles for rapid mass adoption, and it’s been a good analogy for Fidelity. The firm earlier this month joined a handful of other major financial institutions to back EDX Markets, a new cryptocurrency exchange that will offer trading in bitcoin, ether, litecoin and bitcoin cash.

Earlier this year, Fidelity Digital Assets quietly opened access to Fidelity Crypto and gave millions of users the ability to trade bitcoin and ether commission-free on the platform

The asset manager, one of the largest financial-services companies in the world, is also building out a new crypto research team.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Separately Managed Accounts (SMAs) are a good way for FAs to manage digital assets, but advisors should fully understand the trade-offs.

The layer 2 blockchain pioneered by Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange Coinbase has detailed the security testing taken ahead of its public launch later this year.

Derivatives exchange CME Group plans to launch ether/bitcoin (ETH/BTC) ratio futures on July 31, if approved by regulators, the company announced Thursday.

A 19b-4 filing posted by Cboe on its website Thursday shows plans for a Fidelity spot bitcoin ETF. 

Called Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, FD Funds Management LLC is the sponsor of the Trust. Fidelity Digital Assets Services will be responsible for custody of the trust’s bitcoin, according to the filing.

“By using professional custodians and other service providers, the Trust provides investors interested in exposure to bitcoin with important protections that are not always available to investors that invest directly in bitcoin, including protection against insolvency of non-qualified custodians, cyberattacks, and other risks,” the filing reads.

“If U.S. investors had access to vehicles such as the Trust for their bitcoin investments, instead of directing their bitcoin investments into loosely regulated offshore platforms (such as loosely regulated centralized exchanges that have since faced bankruptcy proceedings or other insolvencies), then countless investors could
have protected their principal investments in bitcoin and thus benefited,” it continues.

Fidelity bitcoin ETF

A separate S-1 filing from Fidelity was not immediately visible on the SEC’s Edgar website. Fidelity did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

The Block reported earlier this week that Fidelity was close to submitting its own filing for a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund, joining a long list of issuers keen to be first to market with such a product.

Fidelity first filed for the Wise Origin bitcoin ETF in 2021. The SEC has yet to approve a spot fund. 

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Asset manager Fidelity filed paperwork TK WHEN with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) which will be traded under the name TK.

Toronto-based digital asset manager 3iQ will start offering ether (ETH) staking in its Ether Fund and Ether ETF, making it the first ETF issuer in North America to allow for this investment strategy, the company announced Wednesday. The feature will be available on or about Aug. 28.

Circle Internet Financial, the issuer of the USDC stablecoin, has appointed former Goldman Sachs executive Craig Broderick to its board of directors. 

Broderick worked for Goldman Sachs for more than three decades, which included serving as the investment bank’s chief risk officer. In that role, part of Goldman Sach’s management committee, he also served as co-chair of the “Firmwide Risk Committee along with other control-related committees,” according to a statement announcing the appointment. 

During his long Goldman Sachs career Broderick also oversaw various areas including “credit, market, liquidity, operational, model, counterparty and insurance risks,” the statement also said.

Circle bolstering risk management 

While risk management in stablecoin issuance is important for many reasons, it is especially crucial for ensuring price stability and complying with regulations.

“Strong risk management is essential to Circle’s efforts to make USDC the safest, most trusted and transparent digital dollar on the internet,” Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of Circle, said in the statement. “Craig’s deep knowledge and experience as the long-time risk management leader for one of the world’s largest and most successful financial institutions will be an important asset as we continue advancing our regulatory-first business approach.”

Broderick’s appointment comes on the heels of Circle hiring former Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman Heath Tarbert as chief legal officer and head of corporate affairs earlier this month. Circle recently also received its Major Payment Institution license in Singapore for digital payment token services as it eyes growth in Asia. “We see enormous demand for digital dollars in emerging markets and Asia is really center of that,” Allaire said earlier this week.

Circle’s USDC is the second largest stablecoin in the market, behind Tether’s USDT, with a total supply of over 26 billion tokens, according to The Block’s Data Dashboard.

© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.