Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Visa, the multinational payments giant, has announced it is planning to bring cryptocurrency services to traditional banking platforms in Brazil. The company also announced that it is working with several cryptocurrency companies in the country to bring cryptocurrency payment cards to the market and hinted at a possible direct integration of bitcoin in payments. Visa Gears Up for Crypto Integration in Brazil Credit card giant Visa has announced it plans to integrate cryptocurrency solutions into traditional banking platforms. Eduardo Abreu, Visa’s vice president of new business in Brazil, stated the company has plans to develop applications (APIs) to unite traditional banks with cryptographic products. In this way, it would be possible to make investments in cryptocurrencies and ETFs within banking platforms with no intermediates. Visa also announced it is working with several national companies to issue cryptocurrency cards. Among these are Zro Bank, Alterbank, and Rippio, which ...

The European Central Bank (ECB) says it is “starting to investigate” a digital euro by launching a two-year investigation. ECB President Christine Lagarde believes the ECB should be ready to respond to people’s demands for digital currencies and come up with a European-based solution that “does not jeopardize the whole banking system.” Lagarde Unveils ECB’s Plans to Respond to Digital Currency Demand With Digital Euro The president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, talked about central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), particularly the digital euro, in an interview last week with Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum. Following the interview, Lagarde tweeted: “We at ECB believe that we should be ready and have the technology available to respond to people’s demands. That’s why we are launching a two-year investigation into a digital euro.” The ECB’s website states: We are now starting to investigate what a digital euro migh...

Kim Kardashian has been singled out by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for pumping a crypto token that could put investors at risk. With 250 million Instagram followers, the FCA chairman said that Kardashian’s cryptocurrency promotion “may have been the financial promotion with the single biggest audience reach in history.” Kim Kardashian Promotes Crypto Token That Could Put Investors at Risk, Said Regulator The chairman of the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), Charles Randell, singled out celebrity Kim Kardashian in a new warning about crypto scams. Kardashian is an American media personality, socialite, model, and businesswoman. She married the pro-bitcoin rapper Kanye West but filed for divorce earlier this year. In his speech Monday at the Cambridge International Symposium on economic crime, Randell discussed “The risks of token regulation” and the “rules which protect people from investment fraud and scams.” When d...

Bitcoin will become legal tender in El Salvador on Tuesday, Sept. 7. The Salvadoran government has started buying bitcoin ahead of the law taking effect. The first 200 coins have been purchased and “a lot more” are coming, said President Nayib Bukele. El Salvador Begins Mass Buying Bitcoin Ahead of Bitcoin Becoming Legal Tender El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, announced Monday: “El Salvador has just bought its first 200 coins. Our brokers will be buying a lot more as the deadline approaches.” At the current BTC price of $51,691, the 200 bitcoins are worth about $10.34 million. Bukele also tweeted, “Tomorrow, for the first time in history, all the eyes of the world will be on El Salvador.” The country’s Bitcoin Law, passed in June, will enter into force on Tuesday, Sept. 7. It will make bitcoin legal tender in the country alongside the U.S. dollar. The government recently published a video explaining what to expect. In preparation for bitcoin becoming legal tender, El Sal...

PRESS RELEASE. Baanx, the fast growing B2B2C “Better than a Banking Platform” specializing in fintech services & lending, becomes the third-largest shareholder in the United States regulated Maxwell State Bank in a multi-million-dollar deal to enhance cybersecurity and banking access to communities throughout America. Maxwell State Bank is a fintech bank and VISA Principal Member established circa 1943 in Iowa. With total assets of $29,655,000 and deposits of $25,058,000 Maxwell has been FDIC certified since 1943 for insured deposits. Maxwell was acquired by serial fintech entrepreneur Ronald Ingram, founder of multi-billion dollar fintech programs and companies. He has ambitious plans to make this bank the most secure and future-proof bank in America by expanding their services. He plans to achieve this by working with fintech leaders in cybersecurity, cryptography, tokenization and private/public key infrastructure companies. Baanx has rapidly become a market leader in secure ...

The Ethereum 2.0 contract now has more than 7.4 million ether worth over $29.3 billion using today’s ether exchange rates. According to statistics, the smart contract address is the largest holder of ethereum out of all the wallets in existence. Ethereum 2.0 Contract Nears $30 Billion In the early days, the Ethereum ( ETH ) protocol was a 100% proof-of-work (PoW) blockchain but in more recent times, Ethereum is now a mix of proof-of-stake (PoS) and PoW. In time, the digital currency and smart contract network will be 100% PoS and this will be the main consensus algorithm that keeps Ethereum chugging along. On November 6, 2020, Bitcoin.com News reported on the co-creator of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, adding $1.4 million worth of ether into the Phase 0 smart contract. Since then, the ETH 2.0 contract has swelled significantly. In July 2021, Bitcoin.com News reported on the Ethereum 2.0 contract exceeding six million ether. At the time on July 2, the six million ether was worth $12...

It’s a big day for El Salvador this Tuesday, as the country’s new legal tender law will be enforced. A great number of bitcoin supporters have plans to purchase $30 worth of bitcoin to show support for the upcoming implementation of the bitcoin tender law. The $30 increment was conceived because Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele has promised $30 worth of free bitcoin to every Salvadoran citizen with a government wallet. In Less Than 24 Hours, El Salvador Is Officially Adopting Bitcoin as Legal Tender On Wednesday, September 7, 2021, El Salvador’s bitcoin tender law will come into play. The monetary shift has the whole world focused on the small Latin American country, because people are very curious as to what will happen after bitcoin becomes legal tender. On June 25, Bitcoin.com News reported on the Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele telling citizens that anyone with a government-backed digital currency wallet will receive $30 worth of free bitcoin. Bukele said at the time: It w...

One of the Big Three credit rating agencies, Moody’s Corporation, often referred to as Moody’s, has listed an employment opportunity for a “crypto-asset analyst.” Moreover, Moody’s job listing shows the company is very interested in the “wide-reaching impact of decentralized finance(defi).” Moody’s Is Hiring a Crypto Analyst, Candidate Needs to Grasp Defi Moody’s is hiring a crypto-asset analyst according to a recent job listing posted to linkedin.com’s employment listings . According to the job description, the newly hired crypto analyst will join the company’s “Blockchain C4E team” and leverage the research and development the team has put together. “You will be part of a team of individuals responsible for supporting successful project deliveries for our C4E,” the Moody’s job listing notes. “The role also includes advocating for operational and process changes to move towards a more data-driven organizational paradigm.” The analyst can work remotely if they qualify but Moody’s w...

Bitcoin surpassed the $52K handle on Monday morning, as crypto-asset markets have been moving northbound and gathering more fiat value. The overall crypto economy is around $2.45 trillion and it has gained 3.5% during the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, bitcoin charts show a pending golden crossover which to many means the overall market outlook looks bullish. Bitcoin Hits Resistance Above the $52K Handle Digital asset markets are in the green today and many crypto assets have seen single to double-digit gains during the last 24 hours. At the time of writing, the entire crypto-economy of 10,000+ cryptos in existence is around $2.45 trillion on Monday. Bitcoin ( BTC ) has gained more than 3.5% today and 6.3% during the last seven days. On Monday morning (EST), BTC surpassed the $52K zone reaching $52,230 per unit. Many assume BTC ’s next few months will be bullish and a pending golden cross chart signal indicates this may be the case. Bitcoin ( BTC ) tapped a high of $52,230 on Monday, ...

PRESS RELEASE. Leading Crypto service comparison site – Cryptowisser deep dives into the environmental future of cryptocurrency . Despite major scrutiny from traditional media and press, cryptocurrency possibly remains more environmentally friendly than traditional banks, just no one is reporting it. Crypto community anticipates a green future. With the crypto world under constant scrutiny from a variety of sources, the last thing they need are accusations for ruining the earth. While mining bitcoin is very energy intensive, the crypto community are constantly working to improve their carbon footprint. As far as environmental revelations are concerned, the future seems to lie in the use of Proof of Stakes systems Vs Proof of Work. Although several coins have already migrated over from Proof of Work systems, many still exist. The Cryptowisser report details how Proof of Work systems and specifically their security measures require an astronomical amount of energy. The principles...

A Nigeria-based research and development economist, Gospel Obele, has called “for a unified regulatory mechanism for cryptocurrency trading.” He adds that such regulation of cryptocurrencies can potentially “complement an African digital currency,” hence this needs to be considered. Cryptocurrencies Show the Way In remarks published by Joy Online, Obele insists that cryptocurrencies have already shown how a single currency must function. The economist explained: Crypto has been able to build a level of singular markets when it comes to digital currency use and trade across borders, and this is a significant philosophy which the [African Continental Free Trade Area] originates. One of the significant issues that the AFCTA presents is an important opportunity for a singular currency in the African Market. We all know because of the different development stages of financial markets in respective member states. Obele, however, concedes that the adoption of a single digital currency...

Sunacrip, the Venezuelan cryptocurrency watchdog, and the Intelligence Police (CICPC) issued a warning for the general population about cryptocurrency scams. The institutions gave a series of recommendations to avoid being scammed by cryptocurrency Ponzi schemes involving the national cryptocurrency, petro (PTR), advising users to always keep their accounts’ passwords secure. This is the government’s answer to a series of crypto scams that have been happening in the country in the last few days. Venezuelan Regulator and Intelligence Police Warn Users The cryptocurrency watchdog, Sunacrip, and the Venezuelan intelligence police have issued a warning on social media about general cyber security, advising users to take a series of basic steps to avoid being victims of crypto-related scams. The information was shared using the Instagram account of the information related crime division of the Intelligence police, where the institution stated: We inform the community to avoid being vi...

A meetup in a vehicle warehouse in Houston served as an encounter point for oil producers and bitcoin miners to talk about possible on-site crypto mining opportunities last week. More than 200 investors attended the meeting to talk about an alliance, that would allow oil producers to make more efficient management of their resources and miners could take advantage of direct sources of energy that would be wasted otherwise. Oil Producers and Miners Meet to Talk Bitcoin Mining Several oil producers and bitcoin miners met last week in Texas to talk about the possibilities of on-site mining that Texas energy producers could bring for them. The meetup, that happened in a vehicle warehouse in Houston, served as a point of encounter to examine these possibilities. Oil wells that are not so big to build pipelines into their operations usually burn the natural gas pockets encountered on site. However, bitcoin ( BTC ) mining can provide a better solution. This natural gas can be used to powe...