Fundamentales Investieren ist in Kryptowährungen lebendig und gut

Ironischerweise könnten digitale Assets eine der besten Anlageklassen für eine echte fundamentale Investmentanalyse sein, meint unser Kolumnist.

Nach den jüngsten Bewegungen bei den Aktien von GameStop (GME) und AMC (AMC) sowie den Token DOGE und XRP stellen Investoren auf der ganzen Welt zu Recht die fundamentale Investmentanalyse in Frage. Während Kryptowährungen oft als Spielwiese für Zocker angepriesen werden, ist die Ironie, dass digitale Vermögenswerte eine der wenigen Anlageklassen sein könnten, die für eine echte fundamentale Investmentanalyse übrig sind.

Jeff Dorman, ein CoinDesk-Kolumnist, ist Chief Investment Officer bei Arca, wo er das Investmentkomitee leitet und für die Portfoliogröße und das Risikomanagement verantwortlich ist.

Ideen gibt es wie Sand am Meer. Was gute von schlechten Investitionen unterscheidet, ist die Art und Weise, wie man diese Ideen umsetzt, um die Vorteile zu maximieren und die Nachteile zu minimieren. In den Jahren 2011-2012 haben beispielsweise viele sehr kluge Investoren nach Wegen gesucht, um dieselbe Idee auszudrücken: dass es eine Double-Dip-Rezession geben würde und dass die Bitcoin Code Inflation nach beispiellosen geldpolitischen Interventionen überhand nehmen würde (natürlich war das Konjunkturprogramm von 2009 ein Kinderspiel im Vergleich zu den rücksichtslosen Staatsausgaben von heute, aber vor 10 Jahren war das Konjunkturprogramm eine große Sache).

Welche Instrumente nutzten die meisten Investoren, um diese Ansicht zum Ausdruck zu bringen?

• Leerverkäufe von US-Aktien (zu Beginn einer 10-jährigen Hausse)
• Leerverkauf von spanischen, italienischen und griechischen Staatsanleihen (die Renditen liegen jetzt bei oder unter 0 %, nachdem die Europäische Zentralbank die Schulden dieser Länder in den letzten zehn Jahren im Wesentlichen verstaatlicht hat)
• Kauf von Gold (das sieben Jahre lang direkt nach unten und dann seitwärts gehandelt wurde, bevor es nach dem COVID einen erneuten Anstieg verzeichnete)
• Die Entsendung von Teams notleidender Analysten nach Europa, um europäische Bankschulden zu kaufen, die theoretisch von diesen notleidenden Banken zu Pfennigen pro Dollar angeboten werden sollten (was nicht funktionierte, da die Banken diese Schulden einfach zum Nennwert in ihren Bilanzen behielten und am Ende nie verkauften)

Wie Sie sich wahrscheinlich vorstellen können, hat keine dieser Investitionen funktioniert, auch wenn die Idee gut war. Tatsächlich stellte sich heraus, dass eine der besten Investitionen, um das Thema Geldpolitik und Rezession zu nutzen, der Kauf von Bitcoin war. Leider war dieses Instrument für die meisten Investoren noch nicht in ihrem Spielbuch.

Die meisten uninformierten Investoren glauben immer noch, dass alle digitalen Vermögenswerte eine Nachahmung von Bitcoin und anderen Kryptowährungen sind, aber die Realität ist, dass das heutige investierbare Universum der digitalen Vermögenswerte sehr vielfältig, einzigartig und idiosynkratisch ist. Als solches hat sich das Spielbuch erweitert, und so auch die investierbaren Themen, die ein Investor ausdrücken kann. Wenn Sie zum Beispiel ausdrücken wollten, dass der Coinbase Börsengang (IPO) bei der Notierung um 100% steigen wird, gibt es eine Vielzahl von Möglichkeiten, wie Sie diese Ansicht ausdrücken können:

• Kaufen Sie private Coinbase-Aktien auf dem Sekundärmarkt
• Kaufen Sie Aktien von ähnlichen börsennotierten Unternehmen (Galaxy, Voyageur, etc.), die von einem relativen Wert profitieren sollten
• Kaufen Sie Token anderer Börsen (BNB, FTT, VGX, etc.), die neu bewertet werden sollten, nachdem das Coinbase S-1 Details darüber liefert, wie das Unternehmen Einnahmen generiert
• Kaufen Sie Bitcoin oder Ethereum als Marktproxy, um das erneute Interesse an digitalen Assets zu repräsentieren.

Nicht alle dieser Investitionen werden unbedingt funktionieren. Aber der Punkt ist, dass es weniger wichtig ist, auf die Idee selbst zu kommen, als den besten Weg zu finden, diese Ansicht auszudrücken. Die Bitcoin-Investitionsthese von Paul Tudor Jones aus dem 2. Quartal 2020 ist ein gutes Beispiel für diesen Denkprozess, da es sich dabei gar nicht um eine Bitcoin-Investitionsthese handelte. Es war eine Inflationsthese. Bitcoin war nur eine von vier Möglichkeiten, die Tudor wählte, um diese Ansicht auszudrücken (die anderen waren a) Long im Nasdaq 100, b) Long in Gold und c) Kauf eines 2s/10s Treasury Steepener.

Harvard professor Kenneth Rogoff says he doesn’t think Bitcoin will succeed, barring extenuating circumstances.

Often touted as a store of value or a hedging asset, Bitcoin (BTC) has gained significant widespread adoption in recent months. However, Kenneth Rogoff, professor of public policy and economics at Harvard University, doubts the asset’s success.

Some Russian officials are required to sell their cryptocurrencies before April 2021

“I can see bitcoin being used in failed states,” Rogoff said in an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday, adding:

“It’s conceivable, you know, it could have some utility in a dystopian future, but I think governments are not going to allow large-scale pseudonymous transactions. They’re just not going to allow them. The regulation will go into effect. The government will win. It doesn’t matter what the technology is.”

Bitcoin has withstood its fair share of criticism over its 12-year history. Gold advocate Peter Schiff often comments against the technology, investor, Warren Buffett, once referred to the asset as “probably rat poison squared” and financial commentator Dennis Gartman expressed skepticism toward Bitcoin in late 2020, just to name a few examples.

U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee says cryptocurrencies have potential to improve the financial system

However, Bitcoin adoption has continued to grow despite skeptics. The asset surpassed previous all-time price highs, reaching a recent peak near USD 42,000 after several large major companies revealed their BTC purchases in 2020.

“I certainly think I agree that it’s speculative,” Rogoff said of Bitcoin.

He added:

“I’ve been a Bitcoin skeptic, and certainly, the price has gone up, but there’s sort of a fundamental question of what’s the use. Is it valuable because people think it’s valuable? That’s a bubble that will burst.”

“I think, in the long run, if there is no use, yes, the bubble will burst,” Rogoff posited. “I hope there’s not as valuable a use, but I guess it’s a hedge against dystopia.”

New York financial regulator to host crypto industry contest for real-time financial data

By contrast, crypto industry leaders have portrayed Bitcoin as a hedge in less abnormal circumstances.

DeVere Groupin toimitusjohtaja Nigel Green myi puolet Bitcoin-omistuksistaan ​​joulun aikana, koska “sitä tulisi nyt kohdella kuten mitä tahansa muuta sijoitusta – myydä korkealla ja ostaa uudelleen laskussa” äskettäisen mukaan blogipostaus.

“Uskon Bitcoiniin”

Selvitystyön aikana Bitcoinin hinta oli juuri ylittänyt 20 000 dollaria ja tulostanut uuden korkean yli 24 000 dollaria seurantojen mukaan. Epävarmuuden välttämiseksi Nigel sanoi, että hänen päätöksensä ei johtunut siitä, ettei hän uskonut kryptovaluuttaan.

Sen sijaan hän selittää, että kyse oli enemmän voiton ottamisesta.

Nigel toteaa sen löysä Rahapolitiikka, joka on välttämätöntä hallitusten tarpeelle tukea talouksia, pakottaa sijoittajat Bitcoin Revolution, työkaluun, joka on noussut vaihtoehdoksi kullalle suojauksena inflaatiolta.

Lisäksi Wall Streetin megaliittien ja maailmanlaajuisten maksuyritysten pääsy on arvokasta salaukselle ja lisää kuluttajien kiinnostusta:

”Jotkut maailman suurimmista laitoksista – muun muassa monikansalliset maksuyhtiöt ja Wall Streetin jättiläiset – kasaavat kryptovaluuttoihin ja tuovat mukanaan heidän laajan asiantuntemuksensa ja pääomansa. Tämä luonnollisesti lisää kuluttajien kiinnostusta. Kun hallitukset tukevat edelleen talouksia ja korottavat koronaviruskriisin aiheuttamia menoja, sijoittajat pitävät yhä enemmän Bitcoinia suojauksena oikeutettua inflaatiohuoltoa vastaan. “

Bitcoinin hintarata on kiistatta ylöspäin

Lokakuun loppupuolella PayPal ilmoitti virallisesti pääsyltään kryptovaluuttaan sanomalla, että se tukee useita kryptovaluuttoja, mukaan lukien Bitcoin.

BTC-hinta keräsi tämän uutisen, muodostaen perustan mahdolliselle yli 20 000 dollarin ylittymiselle. Siitä lähtien BTC / USD-pari on noussut useiden myyntiseinien yläpuolelle ja saavuttanut 34,7 000 dollaria 3. tammikuuta.

Seurantojen mukaan hinnat ovat sittemmin kääntyneet laskien kaikkien aikojen korkeimmilta noin 31 000 dollariin.

Nykyisen supistumisen myötä se voi tarjota Nigelille uuden mahdollisuuden ladata lisää BTC: tä halvalla, koska “Bitcoinin pitkän aikavälin hintapolku on kiistatta ylöspäin”.

DeVere Groupin viimeisimmän tutkimuksen mukaan 75 prosenttia korkean nettovarallisuuden omaavista sijoittajista sijoitetaan kokonaan kryptovaluuttoihin ennen vuoden 2022 loppua. Kolikon sisäisten ominaisuuksien ja institutionaalisen tulon lisäksi BTC / USD-hinta voi nousta pitkällä aikavälillä.

El precio del bitcoin se ha disparado en los últimos meses.

En el momento de la prensa, la moneda se está negociando por más de 30.000 dólares, aunque ha caído unos 2.000 dólares desde su reciente máximo histórico de unos 33.000 dólares, y para los analistas de JPMorgan, probablemente sean buenas noticias.
JPMorgan: Un precio de seis cifras para Bitcoin sería difícil de manejar

La compañía financiera ha elaborado recientemente un informe que sugiere que si Crypto Cash llegara a un territorio de seis cifras, esto no sería algo bueno. ¿No suena extraño al principio? ¿Bitcoin llega a los 100.000 dólares, y se supone que no debemos ser positivos o felices por eso? ¿Qué podría ser tan malo?

El informe dice que aunque alcanzar tal número es ciertamente una posibilidad para la moneda – especialmente considerando lo bien que le ha ido últimamente – este tipo de salto sería “insostenible”, y que el activo finalmente incurriría en una importante corrección poco después.

El informe menciona:

Si bien no podemos excluir la posibilidad de que la actual manía especulativa se propague aún más, empujando el precio del bitcoin hacia la región del consenso de entre 50.000 y 100.000 dólares, creemos que esos niveles de precios serían insostenibles.

El año 2020 ha sido considerado durante mucho tiempo como el año en el que bitcoin alcanzó su máximo. La moneda se disparó en más de un 300% desde principios de año, en gran parte debido al nuevo apoyo institucional de empresas como MicroStrategy y Square. Además, parece que la actitud hacia el cripto y el bitcoin ha cambiado un poco en los últimos meses.

Inicialmente, el bitcoin se veía simplemente como un activo especulativo en el que valía la pena invertir si uno estaba dispuesto a arriesgarse y perder su dinero. Ahora, parece que el BTC es visto como una especie de herramienta de cobertura; algo que puede proteger la riqueza de uno en tiempos de conflicto económico.

JPMorgan, sin embargo, afirma que aunque las cosas están en gran medida al alza para bitcoin, tendría que alcanzar la capitalización del mercado del oro si va a ser considerado un activo que vale la pena. En su mayor parte, JPMorgan sigue considerando a bitcoin como una moneda “alternativa” que está subiendo en gran medida gracias a la actividad milenaria. Su capitalización de mercado es de 575.000 millones de dólares, lo que parece sólido sobre el papel, pero aún no se compara con los 9 billones de dólares del oro.

Es necesario que ocurran demasiados cambios

Si bitcoin llegara a este nivel, una unidad del activo tendría que estar cotizando a unos 146.000 dólares, según el informe de la compañía, y aún tendría que ser mucho menos volátil de lo que es ahora, lo cual JPMorgan no ve que ocurra de inmediato. El documento dice:

Por lo tanto, no es realista esperar que las asignaciones a bitcoin por parte de los inversionistas institucionales coincidan con las del oro sin una convergencia en las volatilidades. Es poco probable que una convergencia en las volatilidades entre el bitcoin y el oro ocurra rápidamente y es, en nuestra mente, un proceso de varios años.

Early adopters who saw Bitcoin’s potential in the last decade have been waiting this year for their entire life as crypto-investors.

The recent volatile corrections in Bitcoin’s volatile prices (BTC) could evoke images of the 2017 crash in their minds, or even the crash caused by COVID-19 in March of this year. But the fact that Bitcoin has reached $20,000 for the first time in history is no reason to raise the alarm.

Despite the fact that the price of the world’s most valuable crypt currency has gone up by more than 225% this year, the current rally we’re experiencing doesn’t look like the Bitcoin bubble we saw in 2017. Far from it. There are four key reasons for this:

• Institutional investment in space is at an all-time high.
• There is little or no media attention catapulting the price tag this time around.
• Central banks and governments are beginning to see what is written on the wall.
• Retail investors in emerging markets are investing in what they hope will be a revolution.

These four reasons aren’t just relevant now; they’ll all continue to play a role in Bitcoin’s future growth. Consider this breaking news. Bitcoin no longer lives in a bubble, and soon, the traditional financial world is the only thing that’s going to explode.

Institutional Investment in Bitcoin Soars in 2020

Bitcoin is no longer just for young tech-savvy millennials. Governments, central banks and large corporations can no longer ignore its value. That’s exactly why some historic investments by Bitcoin’s major sponsors made headlines in 2020.

A publicly traded business consulting firm called MicroStrategy now owns 38,250 Bitcoin, currently worth just under $640 million. The BTCs were originally purchased for about $250 million earlier this year. Thanks to the huge scale of the purchase and its profitability so far, company CEO Michael Saylor has become a true Bitcoin evangelist. Aside from large investment funds, no company owns more Bitcoin than MicroStrategy.

Saylor and his company join Square CEO Jack Dorsey in his enthusiasm for Bitcoin. Dorsey bought about $50 million of the crypto currency for his company. What’s more important than that $50 million investment, however, is that estimates suggest that both Square and its payment competitor PayPal are swallowing more than 70% of the newly mined Bitcoin that goes into circulation. Square allows customers to use cryptomoneds as payment; PayPal allows customers and sellers to buy Bitcoin directly from their PayPal accounts. Both portals are currently creating a windfall for Bitcoin market capitalization.

Retail investors are no longer just following a mainstream media trend

In 2017, it would have been hard for you not to hear about Bitcoin. Whether a friend or family member told you about it at Christmas, or you heard about it on the news or in TV ads, the fact is that almost all the major media outlets were covering the price boom at that time.

If you look ahead to today, you can take a look at Google Trends to see that searches for the word Bitcoin Trend App have been trending high lately, but aside from specific television programming about the investment world, you don’t hear as much about Bitcoin in the mainstream media, with some exceptions of course.

This means we’ve reached a new milestone in adoption. More and more people know about crypto currencies than ever before, and they’re now following the asset class more closely.

Central banks and governments have no choice but to join the

Russia, China, Canada, the European Union and many other countries are already working on their own digital central bank currencies or publishing White Papers detailing their intentions to do so. Moving away from paper money and plastic credit cards is the next natural step for the world as payment technologies continue to advance. But as crypto-currency enthusiasts know, a digital currency built on a Blockchain owned by a central bank or government is not the same as one built on a decentralized technology.

This is obviously a sign that the powers that be in the old financial world are seeing the writing on the wall. They are doing everything they can to protect a system that favors those in control. But CBDCs and tighter government regulations will only continue to blur the lines between government-supported digital currencies and Bitcoin. It’s only a matter of time before society chooses the latter over the former.

Emerging Market Retailers Count on the Bitcoin Revolution

Not only are Google searches for the word Bitcoin at their highest, but the two countries with the greatest increase in search volume at the moment are Nigeria and South Africa, both developing countries with unique challenges. It turns out that search volume isn’t just a sign of new crypt investors doing research; it’s leading to large amounts of capital flowing into space.

Marcus Swanepoel, CEO of Luno, an exchange serving emerging markets, recently tweeted that purchase volumes at the exchange have tripled among retail investors in Nigeria, South Africa, Malaysia and Indonesia.

While institutional investment is certainly a driving force, pushing Bitcoin’s value higher, people around the world, who can no longer trust the economies they used to depend on, are putting their capital to work and betting on a Bitcoin revolution that will change their future for the better.

The future is bright for Bitcoin

Make no mistake about it. Certainly there are many challenges yet to come for Bitcoin and other crypto currencies. Earlier this month, Coinbase announced the suspension of its margin trading due to a change in government regulations. The news is a reminder that governments will continue to try to regulate everything, and detractors will continue to denounce the fundamental value of Bitcoin.

Still, the future of Bitcoin and all other cryptosystems is bright. Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss believe that Bitcoin will be worth more than $500,000 per coin in the next 10 years. A Citibank advisor sees a $300,000 Bitcoin long before that.

These numbers may seem overly optimistic, but remember, it wasn’t that long ago that a $25,000 Bitcoin seemed impossible, and now we’re almost there. Except that from here on out, the road to mass adoption is no longer about educating new investors, but about getting people, corporations and eventually governments to finally put their capital where the cryptos are – and everyone will do so sooner than you think.

The current Bitcoin events should make the heart of every crypto lover beat faster. Current media reports from China could, however, dampen this positive mood somewhat.

Local sources report that the Baoshan authorities want to completely shut down the power supply to the local miners

On November 30th, the Chinese crypto reporter Colin Wu commented on the current situation via Twitter . According to this, the Chinese government issued a ban stating that the power supply for mining farms in Yunnan should be stopped. Wu is of the opinion that this is more about “economic interests” than about a general ban on crypto mining:

The impact of this incident cannot be overestimated. The attitude of local utilities towards crypto mining changes frequently. It is more of an economic interest demand than political pressure.

JustTRADE is the first German provider to offer an all-in-one solution for trading cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, …) stocks, ETFs and certificates. The website and app are designed to be intuitive, offer many useful features and are suitable for both beginners and advanced traders. The best: there are no transaction costs or network fees.

China provides 65 percent of the (assignable) global Bitcoin hash rate . If you calculate this number down to the Yunnan, it comes out that 5.42 percent come from this region. This makes Yunnan the fourth largest mining region in China.

Not the first mining conflict in China

The news comes after Chinese miners complained last month that they could no longer pay their electricity bills . In June 2020, Wu also reported that the Yunnan government closed a total of 64 mining farms after they were suspected of tax evasion. Seven of the closed mining farms were not even completed.

Despite the recent incidents, China is still the global leader in hash rate. However, this could change soon. Due to the tough approach on the part of the government, the local miners are giving more and more shares to other countries. The coming months will show whether this will continue to be the case in the future and whether China will remain at the top of the global market.

Bitcoins pris ramte rekordhøj mandag, da positive markedsfaktorer konvergerede. I mellemtiden betaler ether-optionshandlere høje præmier for aktivets potentiale til også at ramme nye poster.

Bitcoin (BTC (BTC, -2,06%)) handler omkring $ 19.436 pr. 21:00 UTC (16:00 ET). Får 6,6% i løbet af de foregående 24 timer.
Bitcoins 24-timers rækkevidde: $ 18.093- $ 19.850
BTC over sine 10-dages og 50-dages glidende gennemsnit, et bullish signal for markedsteknikere.

Bitcoins pris ramte en højeste tid inden for de sidste 24 timer og handlede så meget som $ 19.850 ifølge CoinDesk 20-data. Prisen dyppede derefter og var på $ 19.436 pr. Pressetid.

Ved tilmelding modtager du e-mails om CoinDesk-produkter, og du accepterer vores vilkår og betingelser og fortrolighedspolitik.

“Institutionel tilstrømning kan have været meget af drivkraften bag dette rally, men det har været detailinvestorer, der har hjulpet Bitcoin Lifestyle med at få damp i de seneste uger,” sagde Zac Prince, administrerende direktør for kryptolångiver BlockFi. ”Saldoen på vores detailkonti er vokset med over 25% i de sidste 30 dage sammenlignet med knap 10% for institutionelle,” tilføjede han.

Større spotbørser, hvor detailkunder tilfældigt køber verdens ældste kryptovaluta, har set et uptick. Kombineret dagligt volumen for Coinbase, Bitstamp, Kraken, Gemini og ItBit var på $ 1,5 milliarder pr. Pressetid mandag, meget højere gennemsnittet på $ 488 millioner de sidste seks måneder.

Den stadige stigning i bitcoins pris siden lørdag fulgte et fald under en markedsferie i USA i sidste uge, hvor bitcoin så lavt som $ 16.242 på torsdag. Prisforøgelsen på $ 3.608 i løbet af den sidste uge viser, hvor flygtig kryptokurrency ofte kan være.

”Bitcoin-investorer, der sidder på sidelinjen af ​​dette nylige rally, fik en Thanksgiving-feriegave, da bitcoin så et fald fra $ 19.500 til $ 16.300,” bemærkede Jason Lau, COO i San Francisco-baserede OKCoin. ”Afledte afviklinger førte til nedturen, da nogle derivatudvekslinger mistede over 20% af den åbne rente,” tilføjede han.

Faktisk havde likvidationer på derivater udveksling af BitMEX, selvom det ikke var så vigtigt for et sted som det engang var, tydeligvis en vis indflydelse på torsdagens fald ($ 10 millioner i afvikling af salg på en time) og mandagens stigning ($ 4 millioner ved likvidationer inden for en time) . En likvidation på BitMEX svarer til et marginopkald, hvorved en long sælges eller en short udløser et køb for at lukke en position, hvis den bevæger sig nok til at udslette margenen.

Bitcoins seneste stigning skyldtes ikke kun detailinvestorer. Rich Rosenblum, der leder handel med kryptofirmaet GSR, bemærkede, hvor meget mere infrastruktur der er på plads for institutioner at investere i forhold til bitcoins sidste bull run i 2017.

”Handels-, afviklings- og depottjenesterne er alle langt mere sofistikerede og modne, hvilket skaber tillid,” sagde han. ”[Federal Reserve] fortsætter med at blæse flammerne med sin monetære strategi, der ser ud til at forblive på plads i det kommende år. Med så meget overskydende likviditet i systemet bliver den oprindelige investeringssag for bitcoin retfærdiggjort. ”

Etherhandlere, der betaler for bullish indsatser

Den næststørste kryptokurrency efter markedsværdi, ether, handlede mandag omkring $ 605 og klatrede 8,5% på 24 timer fra kl. 21:00 UTC (16:00 ET).

Ether / put-forholdet på Deribit, den største derivatudveksling i kryptoøkosystemet, har været skævt kraftigt mod opkald i løbet af den sidste måned. Put / call-forholdet viser antallet af putter, som er optionsspil til prisnedgang, kontra opkald, som er optionsspil til pris opad.

“I løbet af den sidste måned, når vi ser på put / call-forholdet med hensyn til premium-handlede, kan vi se et unormalt højt forhold mellem opkaldshandel og sætter,” bemærkede Greg Magadini, administrerende direktør for Genesis Volatility.

Den bullish aktivitet er så stærk, at handlende uddeler høje præmier for at foretage bullish væddemål på ether, bemærkede Magadini. ”Handlende var hurtige til at begynde at betale højere priser for opkald,” fortalte han CoinDesk. ”Så meget, at … putter er 25 underforståede volatilitetspoint billigere. Dette niveau af differentiering er sjældent og ganske ekstremt. ”

Government lawyers have suggested that citizens could legally pass on nuclear secrets to North Korea if they followed Griffith’s criteria.

US government classifies Virgil Griffith’s argument to dismiss sanctions charges as “absurd” NEWS

Lawyers representing the US government have entered a legal memorandum opposing the rejection of the accusations of Virgil Griffith, a former Ethereum Foundation researcher accused of conspiring to violate US sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

According to court records filed on November 19 in the Southern District of New York, prosecutors referred to Griffith’s argument on October 22 to reject the charges against him as “ineffective. The legal team is claiming that the former Ethereum Foundation researcher provided a service to the DPRK using an analogy of a U.S. citizen providing nuclear secrets to scientists in the inmate nation:

“A simple hypothesis exposes the absurdity of Griffith’s position. By Griffith’s logic, the [North Korean Sanctions Regulations] would allow an American physicist to travel to the DPRK and explain the science behind nuclear weapons to a conference of North Korean physicists, as long as the science could be found on the Internet, he had received no payment, and the regime’s desire to build nuclear weapons was not economic in nature. ”
The US district court indicted Griffith in January on charges of conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after a presentation he made at a North Korean conference in April. The speech allegedly contained information that North Korean agents could use to circumvent economic sanctions with cryptomime and blockchain technology.

Federal authorities claim that Griffith knew the DPRK was specifically interested in methods to circumvent sanctions using the blockchain. They claim that Griffith sent a text message to an associate, stating that he planned to facilitate the 1 Ether (ETH) transaction “between North and South Korea,” knowing that this would violate the sanctions.

Griffith argued that his presentation was a “highly general speech based on publicly available information,” that he received no fee for his participation, and that the speech was not “economically useful. Therefore, he claims that the charges have no merit and that the speech is protected by the First Amendment.

However, the legal memorandum states that Griffith admitted that he “introduced concepts” about crypto and blockchain to conference participants in his interviews with the FBI in May and November, and some North Koreans probably came out with a better understanding of how to use technology to circumvent sanctions.

The case against Griffith is ongoing. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently out on bail for US$1 million.