Key takeaways

• Standard Chartered predicts that Bitcoin’s price could hit $500k before Trump leaves office.
• Dogizen’s ICO has surpassed $4m and is now in its sixth stage. 

BTC to hit $500k in 2028: Standard Chartered

Bitcoin is trading close to $100,000 following its excellent performance last year. However, Standard Chartered’s Geoffrey Kendrick expects it to reach the $500,000 mark by the end of 2028, driven by improved investor access and a decline in long-term volatility.

According to the analyst, the current choppy market conditions might not hamper Bitcoin’s long-term outlook. Kendrick added that access to the crypto market is improving under Donald Trump, which could inject fresh capital into Bitcoin. 

What is Dogizen?

With Bitcoin expected to hit $500k in four years, altcoins could go on an even bigger run during that period. One altcoin that is building a strong community and use case is Dogizen.

Dogizen sets the record as the first Telegram ICO. This unique project allows investors to partake in the ICO via the Dogizen Telegram mini app. It is a tap-to-earn project that directly competes with Catizen, the popular cat-themed game on the Telegram app. 

According to their whitepaper, Dogizen will keep friends connected and together through Telegram. In the game,m players can collect Treatz (Dogizen coins), connect with friends through refurrals, fetch flights, and retrieve passport stamps as they explore new destinations. The team is currently working on map expansions and new mini-games. 

Dogizen ICO nears completion

According to the Dogizen website, the ICO ends in roughly 28 hours, after which the token will list on centralised and decentralised exchanges. As the first Telegram ICO, Dogizen is working to provide exclusive perks for players and seamless deployment for developers.

Its native $Treatz token will power various activities within the ecosystem. Users can spend their coins in multiple game worlds. Furthermore, with a large audience on an active game (over 1 million active players), Dogizen has already started delivering on its roadmap and is taking things to the next level. 

By building a strong community, Dogizen ensures its presale is a success. It will also leverage its community to ensure further roadmap progression is successful. In the second phase, Dogizen will unveil its launchpad, expand the Dogizen gaming arcade, and introduce the developer SDK. 

Dogizen’s ICO hits $4m

The Dogizen ICO is currently in its sixth stage and is set to end soon. The project has raised over $4 million from investors. According to the website, investors can purchase the $Treatz token using various cryptocurrencies, including Ether, USDC, USDT, BNB, and SOL. Dogizen also has a card option for those who wish to pay using fiat currencies. 

In the current stage, $Treatz is going for $0.000089 and is set to increase to $0.000094 in the next stage. Dogizen lets investors purchase the $Treatz token via the Dogizen Telegram mini-app. Simply access the Dogizen mini-app on Telegram, navigate to the buy menu, enter the amount, confirm the purchase, and complete the transaction. 

Is it too late to buy the $Treatz token?

No, it is not. The Dogizen ICO is still ongoing and represents an excellent opportunity for investors to invest early in the project. As the first Telegram ICO, Dogizen is working to expand beyond its current tap-to-earn feature. The developers are working to introduce the Dogizen launchpad, expand the gaming arcade, and launch the developer SDK.

Dogizen is a dog-themed memecoin that will offer various utilities to users. Its native $Treatz token could surge higher once it lists on exchanges and is used to power activities within the Dogizen ecosystem.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has announced a public roundtable to re-evaluate its regulatory stance on prediction markets.

This move, which could significantly affect platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, comes after the CFTC’s recent request for information on event contracts.

CFTC Chair Calls for Common-Sense Regulation

Acting Chair Caroline D. Pham, who took over leadership after the resignation of Rostin Behnam, has been outspoken in her criticism of the commission’s previous stance. She described it as a “sinkhole of legal uncertainty” that has hindered innovation in prediction markets.

According to the official press release, discussions will focus on the legality of event contracts under the Commodity Exchange Act. The round table will address consumer protection concerns and potential regulatory amendments.

“Unfortunately, the undue delay and anti-innovation policies of the past several years have severely restricted the CFTC’s ability to pivot to common-sense regulation of prediction markets,” Pham said in the statement.

The roundtable, which will be held at the CFTC headquarters in Washington, D.C., will provide a platform for stakeholders to express concerns and suggest regulatory reforms. According to the regulator, public comments and participation requests are due by February 21.

These plans come after the CFTC intensified its scrutiny of event contracts and unregistered platforms under the Biden administration. The former Chair, Rostin Behnam, expanded oversight of crypto derivatives and decentralized finance (DeFi).

Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated designated contract market, has faced significant regulatory roadblocks. Among them is the commission’s decision to block its proposal for election-related contracts. Polymarket, a blockchain-based prediction market platform, was fined $1.4 million for offering unregistered swaps.

When the CFTC targeted Kalshi five months ago, Polymarket’s activity dropped by 40%. This highlights the direct impact of regulatory actions on the sector.

The commission’s past actions have also included issuing a subpoena to Coinbase four weeks ago amid its investigation into Polymarket. The FBI also seized Polymarket CEO ShayneCoplan’s electronics following the platform’s election success.

This move signaled the regulator’s commitment to enforce compliance within the emerging prediction market.

Industry Response and Market Sentiment

Meanwhile, the CFTC’s regulatory reach has also extended to sports betting contracts, as evidenced by its recent review of Crypto.com’s Super Bowl betting contracts. Before that, it had also compelled Robinhood to halt the rollout of Super Bowl betting contracts.

“The CFTC says it has spotted several key obstacles to balanced regulation of prediction markets, but the list that follows suggests they have instead identified a boatload of stuff,” remarked Geoff Zochodne, a sports betting reporter.

The comments highlight regulators’ complexity in creating policies that encourage innovation while ensuring consumer protection.

Despite the regulatory clampdown, however, prediction markets get support from high-profile industry figures. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently defended platforms like Polymarket. As BeInCrypto reported, he asserted that categorizing them as gambling is a misunderstanding of their role.

“Prediction markets are interesting because they’re a social epistemic tool: the public gets a view of how important certain events are and what kinds of things are likely to happen,” Buterin wrote.

Notwithstanding, even if the CFTC finds a balanced approach to Polymarket, regulatory challenges persist globally. Thailand recently announced measures targeting Polymarket for crypto-based betting. Similarly, the prediction market is facing legal troubles in Singapore and France, reflecting the broader scrutiny prediction markets face worldwide.

Meanwhile, this latest development follows the CFTC’s recent announcement of public roundtables to discuss the crypto market structure. It indicates a broader push for stakeholder engagement in digital asset regulation.

The outcome of both roundtables could play a pivotal role in shaping the sector’s future, given the regulator’s push for consumer protection.

BlackRock is going to list a Bitcoin ETP in Europe and likely launch the product in Switzerland. The firm recently launched a BTC ETF in Canada, but this marks its first offering like this outside North America.

Bitcoin’s price has proved volatile after a major rally in November, but BlackRock has consistently shown complete confidence in it. This ETP offering may substantially impact European markets.

BlackRock to Offer ETP in Europe

BlackRock has undergone substantial changes since becoming the world’s biggest Bitcoin ETF issuer. Its IBIT product has been hailed as the “greatest launch in exchange history,” and the firm holds 2.7% of the entire BTC supply.

BlackRock recently launched an ETF in Canada, and it’s continuing these expansion plans with a Bitcoin ETP in Europe.

“Being able to gain Bitcoin exposure via the ETP wrapper has proven to be a compelling combination for investors,” Samara Cohen and Jay Jacobs, BlackRock’s Chief Investment Officer of ETFs and Index Investments and US Head of Thematic and Active ETFs, respectively, wrote in a blog post last month.

According to reports, BlackRock is likely to domicile this new ETP in Switzerland. Over the past few years, the country has become a hub for friendly crypto regulation, with its “Crypto Valley” in Zug attracting much acclaim.

While Switzerland may have friendlier laws than the EU, it will need to comply with the MICA regulations to do business in the region.

For BlackRock, this European ETP is a strong signal of its executives’ confidence in Bitcoin. The asset’s price has been on a roller coaster for the past few months, generally holding onto gains from Trump’s election in November.

Still, these price wobbles are not enough to deter BlackRock’s new ETP strategy. Last December, IBIT boasted higher AUM than over 50 European ETFs, and it’s been growing since.

Recently, it also saw huge trading volumes despite continued tumult in Bitcoin. Ethereum ETFs recently overperformed their underlying asset by large margins; perhaps this will happen for BTC.

BlackRock may begin marketing this Bitcoin ETP in as little as one month. The company hasn’t made any public statements or responded to press requests, but a few employees spoke off the record.

Overall, the firm has a huge amount of capital and market influence, and this offering may substantially shake up EU markets. This plan may reap huge rewards.