Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The Switzerland-based bank Sygnum revealed on Tuesday that the firm now allows Ethereum 2.0 staking. The FINMA-approved company’s customers can access the Ethereum-based staking services via Sygnum’s banking platform. Sygnum’s Banking Platform Offers Ethereum 2.0 Staking Last November, Sygnum Bank AG revealed that it is partnered with the company Taurus Group , a firm that also works with SEBA bank and other Swiss fintech services. The financial services company also detailed at the time that Sygnum would offer customers crypto staking accounts. The partnership with Taurus also revealed the staking accounts available would leverage the Tezos network, a proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain. Now Sygnum is allowing customers to stake ethereum (ETH) via the fintech firm’s banking platform. Sygnum considers itself the first FINMA-approved bank to enter into the ETH 2.0 staking space. “Ethereum is the second-largest blockchain protocol, and ethereum staking is a core element for digital a...

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the country’s central bank, has shut down a software firm over suspected involvement in cryptocurrency transactions. The central bank also warned organizations not to “provide premises, commercial display, advertising … and other services for cryptocurrency-related business activities.” China’s central bank warned companies on Tuesday against assisting cryptocurrency-related businesses as it shut down a software firm over suspected involvement in crypto transactions, AFP reported. The Beijing office of China’s central bank ordered the closure of a software firm called Beijing Qudao Cultural Development. The central bank alleged that the company had been involved in providing software services for cryptocurrency transactions. The central bank claims that the shutdown was necessary “to prevent and control the risk of speculation in virtual currency transactions, and protect the safety of the public’s assets.” The bank also warned organizations not...

Troubles at cryptocurrency exchange Binance continue as the platform is now reportedly suspending euro deposits via SEPA bank transfers. Binance says the suspension is temporary and it is due to events beyond its control. Binance’s Troubles Extend to SEPA Transfers Binance users reported Tuesday that they have received a notice from the exchange about the suspension of euro deposits via Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) transfers. According to the notice shared on social media by several people, Binance explained: Due to events beyond our control, we are temporarily suspending EUR deposits via SEPA bank transfers from 8am UTC on July 7, 2021. You are still able to deposit EUR and/or buy cryptocurrencies via credit or debit cards on Binance. The notice continues: “We are working hard to find a solution with our partners and thank you for your patience … Any deposits attempted via SEPA in the meantime will be returned within 7 working days.” The Financial Times also reported the n...

Payment service provider Allied Payment Network has partnered with New York Digital Investment Group, the bitcoin subsidiary of $10 billion asset manager Stone Ridge. Financial institutions using Allied’s platform will be able to offer their customers the option to buy, sell, and hold bitcoin. Furthermore, Allied will keep bitcoin on its balance sheet. Allied Payment Network (Allied), a digital payment service provider for financial institutions, announced Tuesday it has partnered with New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG), a bitcoin technology and financial services firm. NYDIG is a subsidiary of Stone Ridge, a $10 billion alternative asset manager. “The partnership enables financial institutions to offer their customers the ability to buy, sell and hold bitcoin,” the announcement explains, claiming that “Allied is the first bill pay provider in the industry to embed this service in its platform and offer it to financial institutions.” The announcement adds: Along with thi...

Following the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) explaining the misuse of cryptocurrencies is a national priority last week, the bureau announced on Tuesday it hired its first-ever chief digital currency advisor. FinCEN’s acting director Michael Mosier detailed that Michele Korver will be the bureau’s new crypto expert and she brings “a wealth of digital currency expertise.” FinCEN Enlists Former DOJ Digital Currency Counsel as New Chief Digital Currency Advisor FinCEN, the U.S. regulator that combats domestic and international financial crimes, has announced the organization has hired the first chief digital currency advisor (DCA). Michele Korver will be FinCEN’s first DCA after she worked for the Department of Justice (DOJ) and as a former federal prosecutor for 20 years. Korver will serve as the DCA to the director of FinCEN and she aims to “advance FinCEN’s leadership role in the digital currency space by working across internal and external partners.” FinCEN is rea...

On June 12, the crypto community celebrated the fact that the Bitcoin network locked in Taproot support in order to activate the largest upgrade the protocol has seen in four years. 24 days later, Taproot support via Bitcoin nodes has only reached 27.55% and upgrade supporters are pleading with the community to update their nodes. It’s Your Duty to Upgrade Nodes, Say Numerous Bitcoin Taproot Threads Data stemming from the Twitter account called Taproot Signal shows that Taproot-supporting nodes only represent a touch over 27% of the known public node count. 72.45% have not updated their Bitcoin nodes to support the upcoming activation period in November. The upgrade, however, is a soft fork which means nodes don’t necessarily have to upgrade to remain within Bitcoin’s ruleset. Similarly, the soft fork Segregated Witness (Segwit) suffered from a lack of node adoption as well, when it was activated in 2017. Bitcoin Node Taproot Support: 27.55% 🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧 🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧...

While the proportion of senior management roles held by women over the past five years has grown, women of color are still greatly underrepresented in leadership positions. In 2020, Hispanic women only held 4.5% of total management positions in the U.S. In a recent panel discussion hosted by the Women and LatinX at Ripple Employee … Continued The post LatinX and Women Empowerment Through Leadership appeared first on Ripple. http://dlvr.it/S3Bjnw

Free TON , a decentralized proof of stake blockchain powered by its community and STASIS , a EU compliant EURS stablecoin project, partnered to make DeFi more functional and affordable for everyone. The STASIS team will be deploying their protocol to the Free TON ecosystem, so that their stablecoin EURS can be minted natively on Free TON. This partnership will be implemented in two stages: Farming: Addition of EURS-WTON pair to native Free TON DEX – TonSwap.io , developed by Broxus , a multi-level turnkey platform for crypto exchanges, e-commerce, trading platforms. Sound TON rewards will be applied to users, providing liquidity to that pool. EURS deployment on Free TON: porting EURS smart-contract to Free TON, so that users can natively receive EURS on Free TON in exchange of their EUR. The partnership will allow users both from Free TON and STASIS EURS ecosystems to access highly scalable, stable, and on-chain money with low transaction costs and high TPS. “I am thrilled...

Claudio Oliveira, owner of the Bitcoin Bank in Brazil and known as the ‘King of Bitcoin,’ was arrested yesterday for his alleged participation in a fraud scheme involving $300 million. According to inquiries from federal authorities, Oliveira faked a Bitcoin hack back in 2019 in which his company lost a significant amount of bitcoin. More than 7,000 customers lost their funds in this fake hack. ‘King of Bitcoin’ Apprehended in Brazil The Federal Brazilian Police apprehended Claudio Oliveira yesterday for his supposed involvement in a $300 million fraud scheme. Oliveira, who owned the Bitcoin Bank, reported a bitcoin hack on his company back in 2019. But according to police investigations, this was a staged crime to cover the withdrawal of these cryptocurrencies. Brazilian police also seized eight luxury cars and jewels. Operation Daemon, which cracked down on the Bitcoin Bank scheme, resulted in the arrest of four more individuals. The police searched 22 locations in one of the b...

After a long break, monthly purchasing data shows that central banks are buying gold again. The World Gold Council says throughout March and April, the organization recorded a higher level of central bank monthly gold purchases and the latest data from May shows the exact same trend. Gold Rises After Data Shows Central Bank Gold Purchases Trend Higher The price of gold per ounce is hovering just above the $1,800 zone, after seeing some fresh gains following the weekend. Gold’s value jumped above its 100-day moving average and is changing hands for the highest price in two weeks. In late June, gold dipped to a two-month low and since then, the precious metal has gathered 3% in gains. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve plans to release the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes from the latest committee meeting and the outcome could shake markets. The mid-June gold price drop took place when the Fed revealed its hawkish interest rate changes and the U.S. dollar gathered some s...

Hedge fund firm Marshall Wace, with $55 billion in assets, is reportedly gearing up to launch a portfolio investing in the crypto sector. London-headquartered hedge fund firm Marshall Wace is planning investments in the crypto sector, the Financial Times reported Tuesday. Founded by Sir Paul Marshall and Ian Wace in 1997, Marshall Wace currently manages $55 billion in assets. The firm is launching a digital finance portfolio that will invest in privately owned, late-stage digital finance companies, the publication detailed, citing people familiar with the plan. It will target investments in areas such as blockchain technology, payments systems for digital currencies, and stablecoins. A particular area of focus for the firm is the infrastructure around stablecoins. Marshall Wace is currently talking to potential investors for the new portfolio, which will be headed by Amit Rajpal, CEO of Marshall Wace Asia and co-founder of Indian fintech firm Niyogin. Marshall Wace has ...

Elon Musk went after Bitcoin hater Warren Buffett recently, sharing what looked like a bullish crypto quote attributed to the billionaire investor. The tech entrepreneur, whose comments on social media have been moving crypto markets this year, later removed the post with the obviously fake Buffett statement. Elon Musk Finds Buffett’s ‘Best Financial Advice’ Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted a meme of the famous American business magnate Warren Buffett with a quote underneath reading “Find as many coins as you can. And fast!” Musk attributed the statement to Buffett, describing it as his “best financial advice.” The entrepreneur turned-crypto-influencer said he found it on the internet. In just a few hours, Musk’s latest crypto tweet gathered thousands of likes and comments early on Tuesday but the post later disappeared from his Twitter account. The quote in the tweet is most likely fake or wrongly attributed to the 90-year old legendary investor who is a well-known critic of Bitcoin,...

India’s finance minister has provided a status update on the country’s cryptocurrency bill that the government has been working on. “We have done a lot of work on it. We have taken stakeholders’ inputs,” she was quoted as saying. Status of Indian Crypto Bill Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has provided a status update on the country’s cryptocurrency bill in an interview with Businessline published last week. Sitharaman was asked about the status of “the Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill 2021” and when it is likely to be passed. The Indian minister of finance replied: We have done a lot of work on it. We have taken stakeholders’ inputs. The Cabinet note is ready. We have to see when the Cabinet can take it up and consider it so that then we can move it. “From our side, I think one or two indications that I have given is that at least for fintech, experiment and pilot projects a window will be available. The Cabinet will have to take a dec...

On the surface, it looks like Nigeria’s suspension of Twitter operations on June 4 may have been triggered by the microblogging company’s decision to take down a controversial tweet — from President Mohammed Buhari. However, as some observers have noted, the removal of the tweet may have presented the Nigerian government with the perfect excuse for targeting Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey. Nigeria’s Anti-Tech Policies As widely reported , social media mogul Dorsey tweeted his support and endorsement of the EndSars protests back in October 2020. In a tweet that enraged Nigerian officials, Dorsey asked his followers to donate bitcoin to organizers of the protest after the movement’s bank accounts were frozen. Also, in addition to supporting the protests, the CEO recently tweeted and shared articles that call on Nigerian authorities to pursue what he calls the “bitcoin standard.” Therefore, when Twitter deleted the President’s tweet after alleging that it had violated its policies, this pr...

While the U.S. ramps up discussions of a digital dollar and China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) draws near, Japan’s CBDC, otherwise known as the digital yen, is getting closer to its realization as well. Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party member, Hideki Murai, explained in a recent interview this week that more clarity on the digital yen would be revealed next year. Ruling Liberal Democratic Party Member Hideki Murai Says Clarity on the Bank of Japan’s CBDC Is Coming Next Year In recent times, Japan has been discussing the creation of a digital yen and the country’s politicians have been mentioning the subject more frequently. In November 2020, the head of Japan’s Monex Group, Oki Matsumoto, told the press that a Bank of Japan (BOJ) issued digital version of the yen would “significantly enhance the interoperability of cryptocurrencies.” Monex Group purchased the Tokyo-based digital asset exchange Coincheck for $34 million in 2018. Hideki Murai, Harvard graduate, form...

Axie Infinity, an Ethereum based game, is now one of the biggest successes of the play-to-earn model. Featuring NFT’s like the game characters, the game monetizes breeding these characters and selling them. As a result, there is now a growing demand for Axies, whose stats can make them reach high prices in markets. This has incited a bit of an economic boom, generating more revenue than other known protocols last week. Axie Infinity Economy Thrives Axie Infinity, a battling/breeding game in the style of Pokemon, is creating a booming economy that has started to outshine other financially focused protocols. According to DappRadar, Axie Infinity is now the biggest NFT market in crypto. With 50k traders involved in moving more than $80 million throughout the last week, it has surpassed OpenSea and CryptoPunks. Jeffrey Zirlin, co-founder and growth lead of Sky Mavis, the company behind Axie, also gave numbers about this growth. Zirlin stated on Twitter that Axie’s growth had surpasse...