In the Daily: Cryptocurrency Payments, Nvidia Losses, Suspended CFD

In the first edition of The Daily this weekend, we focus on a study estimating that 13 percent of people have used digital coins for payments. We also look at the latest financial report from Nvidia indicating losses due to falling demand for chips used in cryptocurrency mining. Lastly, a broker suspends its crypto CFD offering.

Also read: Coinbase Bug Bounty, Tradingview Crypto Dashboard, Bitfinex App Update

Report: 1 in 10 People Use Cryptocurrency for Payments

The popularity of cryptocurrency as a payment method has been increasing despite the falling price of digital assets over the past year. According to a recent study conducted by cybersecurity company Kaspersky Labs, 13 percent of those surveyed have already used crypto to make purchases.

Almost 13,000 people from 22 countries were surveyed. Commenting on the results, Vitaly Mzokov, head of verification at Kaspersky Labs’ Growth Center said:

Despite a fall in cryptocurrency prices, there is still a strong desire for digital transactions amongst consumers. Our consumer research has found that 13% of people have used cryptocurrency as a payment method, which was surprising to see.

The authors of the study also found that more and more businesses from various sectors such as retail and food services have started offering crypto payment options. For example, a growing number of food delivery platforms now accept cryptocurrency, as news.Bitcoin.com reported recently.

Nvidia Sees 24% Drop in Quarterly Revenue

Leading video card manufacturer Nvidia has announced a significant decrease in its quarterly revenue, which fell 24 percent to $2.21 billion from $2.91 billion a year ago. The figure is also down 31 percent from $3.18 billion in the previous quarter, the company reported. However, Nvidia also noted that for fiscal 2019, revenue was $11.72 billion, up 21 percent from $9.71 billion a year earlier.

The drop during the quarter that ended on Jan. 27 has been attributed largely to falling demand for chips used in cryptocurrency mining and gaming applications which weighed on the company’s earnings. Jensen Huang, chief executive officer of Nvidia, commented:

This was a turbulent close to what had been a great year. The combination of post-crypto excess channel inventory and recent deteriorating end-market conditions drove a disappointing quarter.

According to Nvidia’s founder, the company’s fundamental position and the markets it serves are strong, despite the setback. “The accelerated computing platform we pioneered is central to some of world’s most important and fastest growing industries – from artificial intelligence to autonomous vehicles to robotics. We fully expect to return to sustained growth,” he added.

The financial report details that in fiscal 2019 Nvidia returned $1.95 billion to shareholders through a combination of $1.58 billion in share repurchases and $371 million in quarterly cash dividends.

Mtrading Suspends Crypto Offering

Mtrading, a broker regulated in Belize, is suspending its cryptocurrency CFD offering. The decision comes in response to weak demand from clients. Traders with open positions in the affected assets now have a close-only feature, Finance Magnates reported. They will not be able to open new trades with cryptocurrency. According to the publication, the open positions on these instruments will be closed at the company’s market close price on Feb. 28.

“While we believe our trading conditions were very good for crypto trading, the demand for these instruments was not what we had anticipated. We still believe blockchain and cryptocurrency has a place in the future, but for now, better opportunities lie in more traditional instruments,” the company said. Like many other financial brokers, Mtrading started offering crypto-based products when the prices of digital assets were on the rise.

What are your thoughts on today’s news tidbits? Tell us in the comments section.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

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Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Bulgaria, which sometimes finds itself at the forefront of advances it cannot easily afford. Quoting Hitchens, he says: ”Being a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.“ International politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.