Newly launched cryptocurrency HUH Token grew by 1000% on PancakeSwap recently, catching the eye of the crypto community. However, Coinbase angered many of its customers by locking them out of their accounts to fix a technical issue, reports CNBC. Occurring in mid-November, affected cryptocurrencies were stablecoin GYEN and Ethereum token POWR, which was created for energy trading. GYEN, initially pegged to the value of 1 Japanese yen, unexpectedly leapt almost 8 times above its fiat equivalent, leading to a sharp increase in trader activity on Coinbase. It reached its $122 million peak on November 18th. As euphoric investors rushed to collect their riches, they discovered that Coinbase had disabled buying, selling, trading, and receiving of GYEN and POWR. Although the coins have since resumed trading, some Coinbase customers allege to still be locked out of their accounts. That’s 2 weeks after the incident happened.
Although Coinbase are yet to release information detailing the numbers of affected users, one dissatisfied customer started an online petition which now has over 1,600 signatures. The petition demands Coinbase to take accountability for its glitch that resulted in financial losses. Adding to customers’ frustration is the fact that some were able to withdraw their crypto off the centralized exchange platform before accounts were locked.
CNBC is attributing GYEN investors’ losses to stablecoin being less volatile than is believed to be and the lack of regulation surrounding crypto. However, this might not be the full story. While crypto gives buyers more financial freedom in an age where banks are largely untrusted, centralized exchange platforms (CeFi) contradict this because coin ownership is controlled by the platform completely. By acting as a third party between buyer and seller, customer funds could get caught up in any issue the company experiences. Therefore, there’s still an element of trust in using CeFi – one that crypto should be aiming to eliminate.
As crypto is a new asset which beginners struggle to navigate, CeFi is the popular choice among most investors. Yet Coinbase’s glitch demonstrates that investors can experience losses at the hands of the companies’ mistakes. But alternatives, such as decentralized exchange platforms, might be the solution for crypto investors worried by the Coinbase incident.
UniSwap and PancakeSwap are two of the most popular DeFi platforms enjoyed by investors. Estimated to be the largest DeFi platform today, UniSwap is one of the bigger names in the game. Using smart contracts, the protocol allows for automatic transactions between cryptocurrency tokens on the Ethereum blockchain. The main money-grabbing tactic for investors is to become a liquidity provider and make a fund which facilitates UniSwap’s trades. In exchange, they receive pool tokens which can be redeemed for a share of UniSwap’s trading fees.
PancakeSwap is quickly establishing itself as the most secure decentralized finance system on the Binance Smart Chain. Started by ex-Binance employees, PancakeSwap gives its investors more opportunities to profit than just by storing and liquidity pooling. By connecting their wallets to BEP-20 CAKE, users can earn over 60% a year in rewards deriving from other blockchain developers’ advertising fees, a CAKE lottery, CAKE transaction fees and issuance of new CAKE to encourage adoption. Unlike Uniswap, however, PancakeSwap rewards users who stake its own BEP-20 token, CAKE. At a 1:1 ratio, you get SYRUP when you stake CAKE. SYRUP holders are entitled to 25% of the CAKE emissions, which are divided proportionally to holders.
Investors have therefore been flocking to PancakeSwap. When picking a crypto to invest in, newly launched HUH Token looks promising given its growth of 1000% in only 48 hours. With their first 24 hours witnessing $2.5 million of liquidity and $27 million market cap, its sought-after feature is its referral system. If a buyer refers a friend, they receive 10% off their first purchase. The referee gets a 20% to 10% reduction on sales fees.
