Today during early trading hours, Bitcoin and Ethereum posted significant gains as Tether (USDT) dropped nearly 4 percent to trade at an 18-month low. As USDT corrected, traders frantically exited their positions as it became more expensive to purchase Bitcoin and Ethereum. This explains why Bitfinex, OKEx, Binance, and Huobi saw significant premiums on BTC and ETH. As USDT continued to fall, Bitcoin peaked at $7,788 on Bitfinex. Analysts are now beginning to suggest that USDT’s decline could be healthy for the cryptocurrency market as this will provide opportunities for traders to use regulated stablecoins like Paxos (PAX), TrueUSD (TUSD) and Gemini Dollar (GUSD).

In other news, Bitfinex announced that fiat deposits will resume in 24-hours and today OKEx will list Paxos (PAX), TrueUSD (TUSD) and Gemini Dollar (GUSD). Investors can deposit each of the stablecoins today and they will be tradable against BTC and USDT starting tomorrow.

1) Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange has launched its first Fiat-to-Crypto Exchange in Uganda. While Binance is also working on offering similar services in Singapore, Malta, and Lichtenstein, Binance Uganda is the first one to open to the public. The exchange has begun its standard Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures, and will start accepting deposits and withdrawals of Ugandan Shillings on October 17. Initially, the exchange will only support Bitcoin and Ethereum. (Read More)

2) Bitcoin (BTC) made a huge price leap from $6,700 to $7,500 on some exchanges and BTC’s price went as high as $7,788 on Bitfinex. At the same time, Tether (USDT) took an immense hit, losing a whopping 4.56 percent to trade at a new 18-month low of $0.943984. USDT continues to decline and the most popular explanation is that traders are dumping USDT to purchase Bitcoin and Ethereum. As one would expect, major altcoins are following BTC, and Ethereum (ETH) gained more than 10 percent over the past 24 hours. (Read More)

3) Barclays, the UK leading banking firm, is reportedly dropping its plan to launch a crypto trading desk. According to a report by Financial News London, project head, Chris Tyler, left in September after Barclays decided to put the project “on ice.” It remains unclear if this move is due to Barclays bowing to pressure from regulators or simply the lack of demand by hedge funds for crypto-associated services. In May, Barclays CEO Jes Staley denied that the bank would launch a crypto trading desk. She cited the use of cryptocurrency in illegal activities. However, Barclays could still be deeply interested in cryptocurrency as the bank filed crypto-related patents with the USPTO in July. (Read More)