Cryptocurrency update: Solana jumps 4.3%; Cardano gains 1.4%

Solana registered the highest gain of 4.39% among its peers and was trading at $99.39. It has moved two spots higher and has become the eight largest cryptocurrency in the world pushing USD Coin and Polkadot to ninth and tenth positions respectively. Also, Cardano increased by 1.45% to  $2.86 in the last 24 hours. The biggest and the oldest cryptocurrency Bitcoin slipped by 0.91% to $48,606.71 levels, while the second largest virtual token, Ethereum also decreased by 1.40%  to $3,214.25. Others like Dogecoin, XRP, Binance Coin and Plokadot were trading in red on August 30.

Cryptocurrency Prices

*All prices as of 30 August 2021, at 8:22 AM, Table Source: Coinmarketcap.com. Conversion rate for the USD to INR used was $1=Rs 73.47

Dallas Mavericks gives free e-gift cards to customers buying merchandise using cryptos

Free e-gift cards are being issued to those who purchase merchandise of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team using select cryptocurrencies, Business Insider reported.

In a move to promote cryptocurrencies, the National Basketball Association (NBA) team has dubbed the giveaway as Mavs Cryptomania. The team recently added Dogecoin to its list of accepted coins for payment of tickets and merchandise.

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said the team had completed more than 20,000 transactions in Dogecoin, after the announcement was made. The NBA team is now the largest merchant of the meme-based cryptocurrency. Fans can also buy lower level tickets with cryptocurrencies, he added.

Also, BitPay from Bitcoin, Ether, Bitcoin Cash, Doge and USD Coin is used by the team to process cryptocurrency purchases.

Raghuram Rajan on cryptocurrencies

While speaking at the Reuters Global Markets Forum, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said cryptocurrencies have fluctuating values, but have a potential future. They might find a way to become an effective means of payment, he added.

The former RBI governor was more positive on well-regulated stable coins. He also called for an appropriate regulation for stable coins.

He also added that cross border payments is one area that can be explored, because of the huge transaction costs involved in making such transactions. For cryptocurrency prices to keep rising these digital assets needs to find a proper use case, he said.

However, Reuters reported that the Rajan was not clear on the fundamentals that were driving the valuations of cryptocurrencies. This is because cryptos are being valued as assets, and not as a means of payments, he added.

In India many crypto exchanges are urging the government to define cryptocurrencies not as a currency but as digital assets. This would help the government to address all the legitimate concerns with regards to financial risks associated with cryptos, according to industry experts.