Crypto On LYO: The Blend — Ras Al Khaimah to Launch Digital Assets Oasis, Crypto Market Surges to $1.1 Trillion in 2023, NFTs Make a Comeback

What happened in the crypto world in the last week? Let’s see some interesting news together!

Ras Al Khaimah To Launch RAK Digital Assets Oasis

Ras Al Khaimah’s government plans to launch a free zone for digital and virtual asset companies as the UAE continues to attract a number of companies from this industry, drawing more foreign direct investment and positioning itself as a global tech centre.

The RAK Digital Assets Oasis will be a purpose-built, innovation-enabling free zone for non-regulated activities in the virtual assets sector and will start accepting applications in the second quarter of 2023, according to a government statement on Monday.

“We are proud to further the UAE’s position as a primary destination for innovation with the launch of RAK Digital Assets Oasis”, said Sheik h Mohammed Al Qasimi, chairman of RAK ICC, the operator of the free zone.

Cryptocurrency Market Surges to $1.1 Trillion in 2023

The cryptocurrency market is off to a much better start this year than most had expected with the token universe up 42% year to date to $1.1 trillion, Bank of America said in a report.

“We expect 2023 to be the year of token price divergence,” the report said, “with tokens that provide utility and a call on cash flows outperforming meme and governance tokens.”

The bank views cryptocurrencies that power smart contract-enabled blockchain platforms, on which developers can build applications, as growth assets exposed to the same risks as growth stocks. It notes that these cryptocurrencies and small-cap liquid tokens have led this year’s rally.

NFTs Make a Comeback – Traders Benefit from Lower Fees and Increased Liquidity

After a steep decline in user activity towards the end of 2022, total gas consumption by non-fungible token (NFT) transactions has risen by 97% for two consecutive months.

This suggests that activity around NFTs is approaching levels seen during the NFT boom, according to a report by blockchain analytics firm Glassnode.

The report further states that NFT traders are currently benefiting from lower fees, increased liquidity, and improved price discovery in the NFT market due to increased competition and a shift in focus.