Major cryptocurrency holdings of Digital Currency Group are seen dropping in value drastically and there are speculations in the market that the group may be dumping these tokens before filing for bankruptcy. Which are these DCG tokens and should you be worried? Let’s find out.
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What is DCG?
Digital Currency Group is a digital currency-focused venture financing firm and is based in the beautiful city of New York. They finance businesses related to bitcoin and blockchain. DCG assists these businesses by utilizing its network, insights, and finance access. With more than 150 investments across more than 30 countries, DCG has been a prominent seed investor throughout the digital currency sector.
In addition, DCG is the owner and operator of Grayscale Investments, the greatest provider of virtual currency asset management services, Genesis Trading, the market’s top bitcoin brokerage company, and CoinDesk, the leading media and events platform in the blockchain field.
Who Founded DCG?
The CEO, as well as Founder of Digital Currency Group, is Barry Silbert. Barry positioned himself in the year 2012 as among the initial and most prominent investors in the bitcoin business, making him a pioneer in the field. He established DCG in 2015, and it is now one of the most active investors in the sector, supporting hundreds of businesses globally.
Prior to founding DCG, Barry served as the founder and CEO of the venture-backed technology firm SecondMarket, which Nasdaq later purchased. In addition to being selected as Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young plus Crain’s, and also being chosen for Fortune’s renowned “40 under 40” list, Barry has won several honors and distinctions. Barry was an investment banker in the city of New York prior to starting his own business.
About Genesis and GreyScale
The largest trading desk for experienced investors on the Bitcoin exchanges is called Genesis. In 2013, Genesis opened the initial OTC bitcoin trading desk, and since then, it has developed into one of the biggest and most seasoned suppliers. Their locations in New York, London, and Singapore offer clients assistance and coverage around-the-clock. Genesis is a company that connects institutional investors to markets for digital assets. Every month, it conducts trades, transactions and loans worth billions of dollars in digital currency.
Through their platform, users can access trading in digital assets, derivatives, borrowing, lending, custody, as well as prime brokerage activities from one location. The company’s workforce combines years of expertise working at prestigious Wall Street investment firms with a comprehensive knowledge of the cryptocurrency markets.
For people, businesses, and institutions who are new to the world of cryptocurrencies and want to participate in Bitcoin without actively managing it, Grayscale® Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), the investing trust that is listed on the stock market, is a fantastic choice.
GBTC is comparable to a cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund (ETF), since it pools investors’ money to buy Bitcoin and levies a management fee on investors who choose to invest in the fund.
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust raises funds from institutional investors, typically in the form of U.S. dollars (USD), and utilizes those funds to purchase Bitcoin directly. This BTC are kept in the Grayscale fund, therefore making the Grayscale institution the true owner of the BTC rather than its investors. So, you can indirectly own Bitcoin by purchasing shares of GBTC.
What’s going on with DCG?
The Digital Currency Group (DCG) and its associates stated that the suspension of repayments was due to liquidity issues, which also momentarily prevented consumers from withdrawing their money.
The creator of the crypto behemoth Digital Currency Group, Barry Silbert, has joined a growing group of industry titans in an effort to calm investors’ worries following the abrupt demise of FTX. However, his efforts seem to go in vain.
To make sure that neither of its users remain vulnerable to DCG liquidity concerns, Bitvavo, in contrast, chose to prefund all locked assets.
The firm assured consumers that there will be no service interruptions by stating that the present condition at DCG isn’t having any influence on the Bitvavo platform. As per Bitvavo, DCG plans to reveal a strategy for gradually repaying the unpaid deposits.
In the past, there was a significant sell-off on the cryptocurrency market. NEAR, Ethereum Classic, Filecoin and other investment products of Digital Currency Group (DCG) as Grayscale saw losses of over 10% on average, raising concerns that the company was liquidating its holdings.
The crypto market decreased by 5.4% throughout the reporting period to $838 billion, according to Coingecko. According to Coinglass data, the sector had a $237.86 million liquidation. As of the time of publication, the price of Bitcoin fell by 4.3% down $16,710, whereas the price of Ethereum fell by 7.6% to $1,180.
Numerous DCG-related assets, including Filecoin, Ethereum Classic, Near, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, etc., have experienced losses as discussed. Significant red candles were also seen for tokens backed by Binance like Trust Wallet Token, BNB, etc. Throughout the sell-off, the value of other cryptocurrencies like Cardano, Algorand, Avalanche, Chainlink, and Solana fell sharply.
Also read: Grayscale launched an institutional-grade DeFi fund and index
Due to growing concerns over its holdings, Binance, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the market, also saw a spike in withdrawals. During the peak of the run, the exchange saw withdrawals of about $5 billion, according to BeinCrypto.
Will Clemente, a co-founder at Reflexivity Research, stated that many investors are speculating about whether the selling had been caused by DCG itself. He supported his claim with illustrations of how some of these altcoins’ prices have performed.
Karl, a different expert, said he wouldn’t be shocked if such a sell-off is a last-ditch effort to unload any remaining assets before declaring bankruptcy soon.
The investment company also disclosed a $2 billion obligation, the majority of which is payable to Genesis. The growing discount at which Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) assets have already been trading has only heightened investors’ concerns.
What should users do?
Exchanges are to face a severe liquidity crisis as a result of consumers actively looking into self-custody alternatives as a way to protect their money. It will be best for users to look around for better alternatives rather than wasting time and effort. It is also advised for users to not panic and worry about DCG. Users must focus on listening to the top advisors and analysts that can help them invest better.