Fed Raises Interest Rates, New Marketplaces + Quiz

GM, folks, this is the BitDegree Insider, thanks for tuning in.

Today's topics:

• Fed Raises Interest Rates
• Instagram to Launch NFT Marketplace
• Telegram Steps Into Web3
• Quiz Thursday
• Selected Meme of The Day
• Bite-Sized News

FED RAISES INTEREST RATES

While we await for October CPI data, we're left with no other choice than to face the fact that currently, Inflation remains at four-decade high at 8.2%.

Inflation refuses to be tamed, and continues presenting itself as a tour-de-force, if you will.

Fed's chair Jerome Powell doesn't like that. So the Fed has raised interest rates. For the sixth time this year.

The interest rate was hiked by 0.75 percentage point (for the fourth time in a row), and currently is at 4%.

Central Banks Wage War On Inflation. New Web3 Marketplaces Open + Quiz

Powell's speech did not promise anything optimistic.

"It's too early to think of any kind of pause yet," said the chief.

Against this background, Bitcoin showed a slight drop, but there was no strong rollback. That's actually hella good news though. The main coin is less and less dependent on external factors.

So, summa summarum, Fed's current interest rate is 4% against 8.2% inflation. Sounds rough, but way more grounded than the Euro zone's situation.

ECB's inflation rate is 2%. Yet the inflation rate is… 10.7%.

In addition to that, The Bank of England just announced that they're hiking their own interest rates as well.

They increased them by 75 basis points to 3%. Also a record. The UK hasn't seen interest rates that high for 33 years.

TL;DR: Inflation remains at four-decade high at 8.2%. The Fed just hiked their interest rates by 75 basis points to 4%. Bitcoin showed signs of sturdiness as the news broke.

INSTAGRAM TO LAUNCH NFT MARKETPLACE

Meta announced a new feature on Instagram. It will allow you to independently create NFTs and sell them, both on Instagram and beyond.

For minting, the platform will use the Polygon blockchain.

PSA: Minting an NFT translates to publishing it on a blockchain. Turning a JPG into a unique cryptographic entity.

Meta will first test the new feature with a small group of digital artists in the US. Gradually, the service will spread to other countries and users.

Apart from that, the platform will expand the list of NFTs that can be displayed on Instagram.

There will be dynamic NFTs (moving pieces, video stuff), as well as art tokens on the Solana blockchain. For purchases, users will be able to connect the Phantom wallet.

Instagram also announced that they're about to implement tools to allow people to learn more about NFT collections.

To do so, IG will take metadata from OpenSea and other marketplaces. The name of the collection and other information will appear below the tokens.

TL;DR: Instagram is about to make NFTs more accessible via their own marketplace. But firstly, it will be tested with a small group of US-based digital artists.

TELEGRAM STEPS INTO WEB3

The messaging app found their own way of approaching the trend.

It was announced that Telegram is launching their own, new marketplace. It's built on the Telegram Open Network blockchain (TON).

It's going to function like a platform to buy and sell… rare Telegram handles. Cool sounding usernames.

For example, the @auto username was sold for 900k TON (about $1,4 million). The @bank username was sold for 850,000 TON ($1.35 million).

You can check out what usernames are available right here. And for what prices. It's quite an experience.

Spoiler alert: you may get the urge to buy the '@game' username for over $200k.

Yeah. Recession may be here. Bear market may be here. But people with luxurious to-buy lists are also here.TL;DR: Telegram started selling blockchain-encrypted unique usernames. They can get quite expensive.

QUIZ THURSDAY

Okay. Let's try something different today.

Here's a brain breaker for you guys. See if you can solve it.

Answer the poll below, and once you've clicked on one of the options, you'll be provided with an extra window to type your answer to this puzzle!

Tune in tomorrow to see what was the solution!

SELECTED MEME OF THE DAY

BITE-SIZED NEWS

Binance Announces Its Partnership with Hardware Crypto Wallet Ledger. Go hardware or go home.

Visa and Crypto.com to Host NFT Auction Before FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. NFTs stand for 'New Football Talismans' if you try hard enough.

Bitcoin and Ethereum Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF) To Be Delisted in Australia. Latest news from the Land Down Under.

Bitcoin Lightning Network Releases Emergency Update. Even giants stub their toes.