Coindesk

Galaxy Digital UK, the subsidiary of Mike Novogratz-led digital asset financial services firm's application for a license to execute derivatives trading in the U.K. has been approved by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).The firm's Investment Banking arm will also use Galaxy Digital UK’s FCA authorization to provide capital raising and investment banking services, according to a statement on Wednesday. The Galaxy U.K. subsidiary will also support its asset management business with fund distribution activities.Galaxy Digital UK is on the FCA's investment firms register, which is for firms authorized to perform MiFID investment services or activities. Galaxy also joined the FCA's crypto register in 2021.“London is a critical financial hub, and this authorisation allows us to deepen our presence in the...

It started with a noisy desk. The desk was a wooden cubicle in a lab at Northumbria University, in northern England, where a young AI researcher began his PhD track. This was in 2015. The researcher was Ben Fielding, who had built a large machine stuffed with early GPUs to develop AI. The machine was so loud it annoyed Fielding’s lab-mates. Fielding crammed the machine beneath the desk, but it was so big he had to awkwardly stick his legs to the side.Fielding had some unorthodox ideas. He explored how “swarms” of AI — clusters of many different models — could talk to each other and learn from each other, which might improve the collective whole. There was just one...

FDUSD, the stablecoin issued by Hong Kong-based First Digital, has wobbled from its $1 price peg as investor concerns mounted over its reserves, though the company said Wednesday that it was "completely solvent."FDUSD has dropped to 0.87 against Tether's USDT stablecoin and 0.76 against Circle's USDC on Binance, the main exchange where FDUSD is listed. The token has stabilized around $0.98 later, still trading below its supposed price anchor.The sudden price action happened as CoinDesk earlier Wednesday reported that some of the TrueUSD stablecoin's reserve assets were stuck in illiquid investments, according to filings. Tron founder Justin Sun bailed out the issuer company. First Digital Trust, a trust company affiliated to First Digital, was appointed to manage TUSD reserves. "First...

Avalanche's AVAX token is poised for major gains in coming years that should outpace already bullish outlooks for both bitcoin and ether, according to Standard Chartered's Geoff Kendrick.“The unique thing about Avalanche is how it is attempting to achieve scale. Unlike Ethereum or Solana, Avalanche (AVAX) uses a set of subnets, or sidechains,” Kendrick said in a note on Wednesday, initiating coverage on AVAX with a $55 price target for the end of 2025, $100 for 2026, $150 for 2027, $200 for 2028 and $250 by the completion of 2029.“While it is still too early to tell whether the new subnet approach will work, we think the fact that one-quarter of active subnets are already Etna-compatible is encouraging.”He also pointed...

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) may be well off their frothy heights, but don't tell that to Jupiter. Solana's top DeFi exchange just brought digital collectibles platform DRiP Haus into its orbit.The acquisition is part of Jupiter's push to become what Jupiter's Kash Dhanda calls the "Solana super app:" a home not only for traders of financial instruments like swaps and perps, but for digital culture connoisseurs too."We don't believe it," Dhanda said of the NFT doomsayers. "We think NFTs are here for the long term."Built from the bricks of the short-lived Solana store, DRiP Haus survived the NFT market's brutal downturn as a digital collectibles distribution hub. Instead of trading it focuses on disseminating: Startups across Solanaland spin up and send...