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Is Bitcoin the Future of Higher Education Financing? How this university is testing the idea.

Bitcoin is a digital currency – or cryptocurrency – that is not backed by any government or central bank.
The University of Austin, a new school set to open later this year, has launched what it says is the first long-term endowment held in bitcoin, a unique involvement of the cryptocurrency in higher education financing.
The donation is organized in collaboration with Unchained, an Austin-based bitcoin financial service, whose founder and CEO, Joseph Kelly, donated the first two bitcoins to launch the campaign, equivalent to $138,000.
After securing it initial approval for launch by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Council in November, the university plans to open this fall in the Scarborough Building downtown with 100 students. The private institution first announced plans to open in November 2021, positioning itself as a school against cancel culture and censorship and an innovative alternative to a national higher education model that it says And broken.
The university seeks to challenge higher education norms, including by establishing an endowment in bitcoin, a form of digital currency that can be sold and traded without a bank. The decentralized model requires that most of the bitcoin network approves transactions and that transactions are stored on a digital record called a blockchain.
What is it worth? Bitcoin price today. How BTC is doing.
Chad Thevenot, senior vice president for advancement and communications at Austin University, said the new school is increasing its endowment resources and that this endowment will be part of a diverse portfolio with other titles and assets to support the future of the ‘university.
The new endowment will go toward general funding for the university but will be held in bitcoin for at least five years, he said.
The idea came about when he and Kelly, whose office is across the street from the university building, met to chat over coffee and lunch. When Thevenot heard Kelly’s talk about the endowment, he thought it was a great way to engage the bitcoin community.
“Bitcoin as an idea, as a phenomenon, captures the imagination of people at the university; it captures the imagination of our students,” he said. “In that sense, there is a natural formation.”
The story continues
The spirit of UC Austin fascinated Kelly, especially how the university wants to help students become entrepreneurs. The partnership, she said, can “build a bridge between communities.”
“The more I’ve heard about what they’re trying to do in terms of really keeping the light on areas of censorship or problems (in) the higher education system, a lot of people in the bitcoin community that we serve would also really benefit from hearing that message or taking advantage of knowing that UATX exists,” he said. “And then, like me, he might get excited (and) contribute.”
Is cryptocurrency reliable?
Universities have been accepting cryptocurrency for years but they typically liquidate it to avoid volatility in its value. But by holding the endowment in bitcoin, the university will demonstrate belief in its value as an asset, Thevenot said.
“We’re not worried,” he said about the potential fluctuation in market value. “Every bitcoin we get is worth more than $0. Because the alternative is zero bitcoin.”
What to know: The 10 best cryptocurrencies of 2024
David DeMatthews, an associate professor at the University of Texas College of Education who specializes in education policy, said the use of bitcoin as an endowment asset is new to him but not surprising, as endowment portfolios typically consist of an number of different types of goods. resources.
The $5 million “is not a substantial sum, considering how much it might cost to open a university, but it could be seen as a way to market bitcoin and other types of cryptocurrencies,” DeMatthews said.
Cesare Fracassi, a UT associate professor of finance who researches and teaches about cryptocurrency, said endowments held in bitcoin offer the advantage of attracting donors interested in cryptocurrency, but could face fluctuations in value over time similar to other technology stocks.
“Investing in bitcoin is as volatile as investing in Tesla,” Fracassi said. But he added that donating bitcoin has a tax advantage for donors over cash, similar to donating stocks and bonds to universities.
While bitcoin’s value has dropped significantly in the past, it has also increased significantly, said Shimon Lazarov, Unchained’s marketing director.
“Bitcoin is volatile, but it also has a huge upside,” Lazarov said. “I think $5 million over five years can definitely easily increase 10 or 20 times if you look at bitcoin’s past.”
What is the future of bitcoin in Texas?
Carla Reyes, an associate professor of law at Southern Methodist University who specializes in blockchain technology and former president of the Texas Work Group on Blockchain Matters, who sent a 84 page report of recommendations to the Legislature in 2022, said Texas is considered a top state in the industry, largely thanks to tech hubs like Austin.
Reyes said the university’s announcement is “very interesting” and rare because the endowment will be held in bitcoin.
“Universities are very risk averse and very wary of accepting donations or even granting cryptocurrency money in general, so I think it’s probably great for them to accept it and commit to holding it for five years,” Reyes said, adding that management of the endowment fund from Unchained should ensure the security of payments, which she says is often a concern among universities.
Reyes expects Texas will continue to innovate in blockchain technology and currencies because both the state and the industry share “an entrepreneurial and innovative spirit” and Texas lawmakers, industry professionals and researchers are interested in seeing its progress . He hopes the announcement will encourage other universities to form similar partnerships.
“Tokens and cryptocurrencies have a bad reputation, which they don’t deserve,” Reyes said. “And I think if universities don’t look beyond that to the real value of the technology and commit to finding partnerships… they’re going to miss the opportunity to grant money.”
With Bitcoin, Thevenot said, “we want to take this kind of risk and integrate with this kind of community in Austin.”
“It’s not just a resource,” he added. “It’s an ethic.”
This article originally appeared in the Austin American-Statesman: Cryptocurrencies to strengthen university resources? New private university experiment
News
Ether Drops Further After ETF Launch

Key points
- Spot ether ETFs began trading in the U.S. today, with the funds initially having more than $10 billion in collective assets under management.
- Analysts expect the launch of spot ether ETFs to have a net negative impact on the underlying price of ether in the near term, due to expected outflows from the pre-existing Grayscale Ethereum Trust.
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to see strong inflows, with BlackRock’s IBIT alone seeing more than $500 million in inflows on Monday.
- Franklin Templeton, a spot ETF issuer on bitcoin and ether, has invested in a project that intends to bring Ethereum technology to Bitcoin.
Nine-point ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs)) started trading on the stock market on Tuesday, but all the optimism ahead of their approval did not translate into gains for the cryptocurrency markets.
Ether (ETH), the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, dropped less than 1% around the $3,400 level as of 1:30 PM ET, while Bitcoin (BTC) fell more than 2% to around $66,000.
Ether ETFs’ Debut Isn’t as Flashy as Bitcoin ETFs’
Spot ether ETFs began trading at just over $10 billion assets under management (AUM)), according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart, most of that money is in the current Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE) which has now been converted into an ETF.
“In the long term, Grayscale will simultaneously have the highest and lowest fees in the market. The asset manager’s decision to keep its ETHE fee at 2.5% could lead to outflows from the fund,” Kaiko Research said in a note on Monday.
Outflows from ETHE, if they occur, would be similar to those faced by Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) after spot bitcoin ETFs began trading in January of this year, most likely due to high fees for the two original funds. Grayscale’s existing fund charges 2.5% fees, while a new “mini” ether ETF will charge 0.15% and commissions for other ETFs are set at 0.25% or less.
Such outflows could impact the price of ether and market sentiment.
“There could be a pullback shortly after the launch of Ethereum spot ETFs, i.e. outflows from Grayscale Ether Trust could dampen market sentiment in the short term,” Jupiter Zheng, a partner at Hashkey Capital’s liquid fund, told The Block.
But Grayscale remains optimistic.
“Compared to the splashy debut of spot bitcoin ETPs in January, the launch of ethereum ETPs has been relatively muted,” said Zach Pandl, Grayscale’s head of research, adding that investors may be “undervaluing” ether ETFs that are “coming to the U.S. market in tandem with a shift in U.S. cryptocurrency policy and the adoption of tokenization by major financial institutions.”
Bitcoin ETF Inflows Continue to Rise
As for bitcoin, there is clearly no lack of demand for spot ETFs, such as BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBITS) recorded its sixth-largest day of inflows in its short history on Monday, at $526.7 million, according to data from Farside Investors. Daily inflows for the overall spot bitcoin ETF market also hit their highest level since June 5.
In particular, asset manager Franklin Templeton, which has issued both bitcoin and ether ETFs, appears to have decided to cover its back when it comes to Ethereum by investing in Bitlayer, a way to implement Ethereum technology on a second-layer Bitcoin network, according to CoinDesk.
News
Spot Ether ETFs Start Trading Today: Here’s What You Need to Know

Key points
- Spot ether ETFs will begin trading on U.S. exchanges on Tuesday. Nine ETFs will trade on Cboe BZX, Nasdaq and NYSE Arca.
- Ether ETFs offer investors exposure to the price of their underlying assets.
- Commissions on these new ETFs generally range from 0.15% to 0.25%.
- These ETFs do not provide exposure to Ethereum staking.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially approved nine ether spots (ETH)exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for trading on U.S. exchanges. Trading for these new cryptocurrency investment vehicles begins today. Here’s everything you need to know.
What new ether ETFs are starting to trade today?
Spot ether ETFs starting trading today can be found at Quotation, NYSE Arkand Cboe BZX. Here’s a breakdown of each ETF you can find on these three exchanges, along with the fund tickers:
Cboe BZX will list the Invesco Galaxy Ethereum ETF (QETH), the 21Shares Core Ethereum ETF (CETH), the Fidelity Ethereum Fund (FETH), the Franklin Ethereum ETF (EZET) and the VanEck Ethereum ETF (ETHV).
Nasdaq will have the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) created by BlackRock, which also operates the largest spot bitcoin ETF under the ticker IBIT.
NYSE Arca will list the Bitwise Ethereum ETF (ETHW) and the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE). The Grayscale Ethereum Mini Trust (ETH), which will begin trading on the same exchange.
How does an ether ETF work?
Spot ether ETFs are intended to offer exposure to the price of ether held by the funds. Ether is the underlying cryptocurrency of the Ethereal network, the second largest crypto network by market capitalization.
ETF buyers are buying shares of funds that hold ether on behalf of their shareholders. Different spot ether ETFs use different data sources when it comes to setting the price of ether. Grayscale Ethereum Trust, for example, uses the CoinDesk Ether Price Index.
None of the ETFs launching today include pointed etherwhich represents a potential opportunity cost associated with choosing an ETF over other options such as self-custody or a traditional cryptocurrency exchange.
Ether staking currently has an annual return of 3.32%, according to the Compass Staking Yield Reference Index Ethereum. However, it is possible that the SEC will eventually approve Ether staking held by ETFs.
How can I trade Ether ETFs?
ETFs can simplify the trading process for investors. In the case of cryptocurrencies, instead of taking full custody of the ether and taking care of your own private keysSpot ether ETFs allow investors to purchase the cryptocurrency underlying the Ethereum network through traditional brokerage accounts.
Today, not all brokers may offer their clients spot ETFs on cryptocurrencies.
What are the fees for ether ETFs?
The fees associated with each individual spot ether ETF were previously revealed In the S-1 OR S-3 (depending on the specific ETF) deposit associated with the offerings. These fees are 0.25% or less for all but one.
The Grayscale Ethereum Trust, which converts to an ETF, has a fee of 2.5%. The Grayscale Mini Ethereum Trust has the lowest fee at 0.15%. These fees are charged on an annual basis for the provider’s management of the fund and are in line with what was previously seen with spot bitcoin ETFs.
Brokers may also charge their own fees for cryptocurrency trading.
News
Kamala Harris Odds Surge Amid $81M Fundraise. What Does It Mean for Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies?

Market odds and memecoins related to US Vice President Kamala Harris have soared as the latest round of donations tied to the Democratic campaign raised $81 million in 24 hours, bolstering sentiment among some traders.
The odds of Harris being declared the Democratic nominee have risen further to 90% on cryptocurrency betting app Polymarket, up from 80% on Monday and setting a new high.
Previously, in early July, bettors were only betting on 8%, but that changed on Saturday when incumbent President Joe Biden announced he would no longer run in the November election. Biden then approved Harris as a candidate.
Polymarket traders placed $28.6 million in bets in favor of Harris, the data showsThe second favorite is Michelle Obama.
Somewhere else, Memecoin KAMA based on Solanaa political meme token modeled after Harris, has jumped 62% to set a new all-time high of 2 cents at a market cap of $27 million. The token is up a whopping 4,000% from its June 18 low of $0.00061, buoyed primarily by the possibility of Harris becoming president.
As such, Harris has yet to publicly comment on cryptocurrencies or her strategy for the growing market. On the other hand, Republican candidate Donald Trump has expressed support for the cryptocurrency market and is expected to appear at the Bitcoin 2024 conference on Saturday.
However, some expect Harris or the Democratic Party to mention the sector in the coming weeks, which could impact price action.
“While he has not yet received the official nomination, there is consensus that last night’s development is in line with current Democratic strategy,” cryptocurrency trading firm Wintermute said in a Monday note emailed to CoinDesk. “Keep an eye on Democrats’ comments on this issue in the coming days.
“The prevailing assumption is that Harris will win the nomination and any deviation from this expectation could cause market volatility,” the firm added.
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Top 30x Cryptocurrency and Coin Presales Today: Artemis Coin at #1, Others Are: BlockDAG, 99Bitcoin, eTukTuk, and WienerAI

The cryptocurrency market has seen a lot of growth and imagination lately, with new ventures popping up regularly. A critical pattern in this space is the rise of crypto pre-sales, which give backers the opportunity to get involved with promising projects early on. Artemis is a standout option for crypto investors looking to expand their portfolios amid the many pre-sales currently underway.
Cryptocurrency presales, commonly referred to as initial coin offerings (ICOs), allow blockchain ventures to raise capital by offering their local tokens to early backers before they become available on open exchanges. Investors can take advantage of these presales by purchasing tokens at a lower price. If the project is successful and the token’s value increases, investors stand to receive significant returns.
>>> Explore the best cryptocurrency pre-sales to buy now <<
The Ultimate List of the Top 5 Cryptocurrency Pre-Sales to Invest In
- Artemis: The aim of Artemis (ARTMS) will become the cryptocurrency equivalent of eBay or Amazon. The upcoming Phase 4 will see the launch of the Artemis Framework, which will serve as a stage for digital money exchanges where buyers, sellers, specialized organizations and those seeking administration can participate in coherent exchanges.
- DAG Block: uses Directed Acyclic Graph technology to increase blockchain scalability.
- 99bitcoin: operates as a crypto learning platform
- WienerAI uses AI-powered trading bots for precise market analysis.
- eTukTuk focuses on environmentally sustainable transportation options, such as electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
We have determined that Artemis is the best new cryptocurrency presale for investment after conducting extensive research. It presents itself as the unrivaled cryptocurrency presale choice currently open.
>> Visit the best cryptocurrency pre-sale to invest in now <<
Top 5 Crypto Pre-Sales and Best Cryptocurrencies for Investment Today
Artemis (ARTMS) is attempting to establish itself as the cryptocurrency version of eBay or Amazon. The Artemis Crypto System, which will act as a platform for cryptocurrency transactions, will be launched in Phase 4. Buyers, sellers, service providers, and requesters will all benefit from seamless trading with this system. Customers will be able to purchase things, such as mobile phones using digital money, as well as sell products such as involved bicycles and get paid in cryptocurrency. Additionally, crypto money can be used to pay for administrations such as clinical consultations, legitimate care, and freelance work. Artemis Coin will act as the main currency of the ecosystem, with Bitcoin and other well-known cryptocurrencies from various blockchain networks backing it.
Artemis Coin has increased in price from 0.00055 to 0.00101 from 0.00094. Artemis may be attractive to individuals looking to recoup losses in Bitcoin, as predicted by cryptocurrency analysts. At this point, it seems to present an interesting presale opportunity.
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The world of digital currency pre-sales is an exciting and exciting opportunity that could open the door to game-changing blockchain projects. Projects in this article, like Artemis Coin, offer the opportunity to shape the future of various industries and the potential for significant returns as the industry develops.
However, it is imperative to approach these investments with caution, thorough research, portfolio diversification, and awareness of the risks. You can explore the digital currency pre-sale scene with greater certainty and increase your chances of identifying and profiting from the most promising venture opportunities by following the advice and methods in this article.
>>> Join the best cryptocurrency pre-sale to invest in now <<
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