The Vanguard Articles

If you’ve ever felt like the system is rigged against you, you’re right. And no one embodies that right now more than Gary Gensler, head of the SEC in the US. The man in charge of regulating America’s financial markets, Gensler has launched a full-scale assault on...

Big names in banking are jumping on the crypto train. As the FT reports, Standard Chartered, Nomura, and Charles Schwab are gearing up to play in the same sandbox as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Standard Chartered want to focus on establishing a cryptocurrency brokerage and...

At Vanguard, we’ve never been more bullish about the long-term fundamentals of Crypto. This year, we’ve seen huge development on the Ethereum platform, which has made it faster, greener and more competitive with existing financial and trust platforms. To give a sense...

It's happening! MiCA, the landmark new crypto rules, were signed off on Tuesday by European Union finance ministers. (Bear with me, this is more exciting than it sounds). The EU’s Council, who represent 27 member states, unanimously approved the Markets in Crypto...

Imagine a land where innovative technologies are embraced, banks and fintechs work together, and the financial system is given a much needed overhaul. This isn't some utopian fantasy. It's the vision Brian Armstrong has for the UK's crypto sector. Armstrong is the CEO...

If you are bullish about the long term potential of crypto, and we certainly are. And if you plan to sit on your favourite coins for the long term, then you might consider “staking”. Staking is one of the most popular ways to earn money in crypto. It is a stress free...

Twitter changed its iconic blue bird logo to the Dogecoin symbol today. You can see it on the screenshot below (top left): This isn't a delayed April's Fools joke, this has actually happened. And it a symbol that something's rotten in the world of Web2. What is...

It’s a $220 billion industry… Every day millions of people around the world immerse themselves in virtual gaming worlds. And they spend billions on in-game items and experiences: A football player for their favourite team… a magic sword for their fantasy adventure… a...

The most important concept to understand in crypto is the blockchain. This is the foundation on which the whole system is built. In last week’s Vanguard, Tom spelt out exactly why this technology is so useful. As he said, it’s a secure and efficient way to establish...

Imagine you are playing a game of "pass the message"... (Or 'Chinese Whispers' as it used to be known. You whisper something to the person next to you, they whisper it to the person next to them, and so on. By the time the message gets to the end, it’ll likely be very...

At Vanguard offices, we’ve been pouring over a fresh new report. It spells out the big breaking investment stories for 2023, according to Cathie Wood and her crowd at Ark Invest. Cathie Wood has a complicated reputation. She believes that we are witnessing a step...

At The Vanguard, we all have different views on the crypto boom is going to play out. Tom Wake thinks that we have found a new engine for trust in society. We no longer have to rely on a human to judge the validity of a payment, a contract or an art work…we can simply...

In 1999, David Bowie was interviewed by Jeremy Paxman on Newsnight. They were talking about the internet, which completely baffled Paxman at the time. “You don’t think people are making outrageous claims about this thing?”, he asked. “No, I don’t,” says Bowie. "I...

He sounds like the archetypal Silicon Valley billionaire… A guru who - from his impossibly beautiful mansion - rhapsodises about mindfulness, beard hair and ice baths. Rumour has it he eats just one meal a day. This is someone who, you might imagine, enjoys the smell...

It's one of the biggest complaints in crypto… Energy consumption. And it's not something to sweep under the carpet. Last year Ethereum's power consumption alone was roughly equivalent to that of Chile's. But in two days time a MAJOR event is taking place. Galaxy...

“Crypto Inferno” screams the front cover of The Sunday Times magazine… “How more than $2 trillion went up in flames”. 14 years on and crypto’s still tarred with the same narrative. The sinister internet casino that lures unsuspecting sheep and spits out financial...

When was the last time you paid for something with cash? I mean actual notes or coins: have you reached into your wallet and pulled out a note to pay somebody recently? I bet you are doing it less and less. During the pandemic, we practically stopped using paper money...

Today I wanted to do a quick Q&A for anyone who's newer to the crypto space. I know the lingo can seem alien at first but please don't worry. Once you get your head around the basics it's very straightforward and we're right here to help guide you. Let's dive...

There was a collective shaking of heads… The same old crypto naysayers leapt onto the story: “DeFi is dead! Crypto’s a scam!” And the headline figures looked bleak… 1.7 million users and $2 billion in funds at risk. Today I want to talk about the great Celsius...

The crypto market has been recovering in recent weeks. It’s hard to say, yet, if this will be a sustained rally or whether we will see another leg down in the market. But if you are investing for long term, then that may not matter. Buy ETH now, and yes, it may drop...

I hope you're surviving this tropical heat. It's like a funeral for drones in here... All the curtains are closed while tiny desk fans blast us from every angle. (Don't worry, I'll keep today's article short so we can go back to gazing longingly at the fridge). I came...

The pandemic has changed everything. We stopped commuting... we stopped using cash... we fled cities and jobs. Society has changed for good and we are not going back. Even this far into the pandemic, offices are running at just a third of their capacity before Covid...

Before 2018 a lot of the buzz around crypto was still speculation. The technology was groundbreaking for sure… But beyond Bitcoin there was nothing tangible, yet. We weren’t paying for the weekly shop using crypto and there were no flying cars running off Ethereum. To...

We needed a good purge... and we are getting one. In the last month, the crypto market has washed out, with many coins falling 70 to 80% in a matter of weeks. Some of these coins won’t survive. And that’s not a bad thing. Every few years, the crypto market goes...

Volatility. It’s both beautiful and terrifying. One minute crypto is soaring up in value in a seemingly endless stream of infinite profits... The next negative news stories start to snowball and the price implodes. The trouble is, as we’ve said before, the mainstream...

Why do people place their faith in crypto? It’s a great question. Especially now... when the prices are fluctuating wildly from one week to the next. As far as we’re concerned, it’s a question of trust. Around the world, people are losing faith in traditional money,...

What is the point? We already have banks that store our money… And apps on our phones that let us zap it between accounts. It all feels pretty seamless, so why do we need Bitcoin? All the arguments about convenience and “sticking with what we know” make sense. It’s...

As this is one of our first entries for The Vanguard we just wanted to take a moment to introduce ourselves. Frank O’Brien is our resident economist. He has been editor of The Home Trader newsletter for over 6 years and has been heavily invested in crypto since 2017....

It will be one of the biggest changes to society we'll see in our lifetimes... A way to automate trust between complete strangers. Right now, the crypto market is going through one of is periodic corrections. And at times like this it goes against your best instincts...

Magic money beans… That’s what most people think when they first hear about crypto. A crazy, ‘scratch-card’ investment that’s made a few people fabulously wealthy because they got in early… And early adopters have made astonishing returns from crypto. We’re talking...