Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The federal government in Moscow has permitted regions to determine local electricity tariffs for the population, a measure that will affect crypto mining at homes. Subsidized household electricity in Russia is often used to mint digital currencies in basements and garages. Regions in Russia Granted Permission to Increase Costs for Home Mining Russians mining cryptocurrencies at their homes may expect higher electricity bills as a result of a reform allowing regional authorities to limit the electrical energy supplied at preferential rates. The move comes after local utilities requested powers to set thresholds for the amount of subsidized electricity available to the general population while complaining about the spread of crypto mining in residential areas. Private customers will have to pay more for consumption exceeding these thresholds, the Russian business daily Kommersant reported. Most Russian regions are yet to adopt new pricing schemes, with the exception of Crimea where ...

SWIFT, the Belgian-based cooperative that serves as an intermediary and settlement executor of financial transactions between banks worldwide is planning to experiment with asset tokenization in 2022. In a blog post about the subject, SWIFT notes that it will be working with firms like Clearstream, Northern Trust, and SETL to explore “the feasibility and benefits” of using SWIFT as an interconnector to tokenization platforms. Financial Intermediary SWIFT to Be Used as a Tokenization Interconnector The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication ( SWIFT) , has been studying cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology for quite some time. For instance, SWIFT published a report in September 2020, that noted criminals preferred cash for money laundering in contrast to using crypto for illicit transactions. Over a year later, SWIFT is still focused on this technology and revealed in a blog post published on December 1, that it was participating in an asset tokenization te...

The number of recorded non-fungible token (NFT) sales during the last 30 days consisted of roughly 362,374 sales. During the past 30 days, the leading NFT marketplace Opensea processed $2.39 billion, up 22.88% since last month. Decentraland volume jumped 192% since last month reaching more than $28 million in sales. NFT and Metaverse Steam Continues With Big Volume and Expensive Collectibles During the last month of the year, the metaverse and non-fungible token (NFT) hype has continued to remain strong. Over the last week, Decentraland and The Sandbox processed a significant amount of sales. Seven-day metrics indicate The Sandbox saw $19.3 million in sales while Decentraland did $6.6 million. 30-day stats show Decentraland’s $28 million in sales pushed it up closed to 200% more than last month. While Opensea sales spiked 22.88% this past month, Solana’s Magic Eden marketplace saw $148.86 million in monthly sales, up 86.9%. Superrare’s $26 million in 30 day sales pushed it up 15% ...

The Indian government has not introduced the cryptocurrency bill that was listed to be taken up in the winter session of parliament. Former Finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg says he has no confidence in the ability of the Indian government to figure out crypto. Garg headed the inter-ministerial committee that drafted the original crypto bill that proposes banning cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. India Fails to Introduce Crypto Bill in Parliament Again The Indian government has failed to introduce the cryptocurrency bill that was listed to be taken up in the winter session of Lok Sabha, the lower house of India’s parliament. The session ended Thursday. Commenting on the government’s failure to introduce the crypto bill, former Finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg told IANS publication Thursday that “he had no confidence in the ability of government to figure out the complexities of this new crypto phenomenon,” the news outlet conveyed. He was further quoted as saying: I expr...

‘Tis the season of giving and Bybit , one of the world’s fastest growing cryptocurrency exchange and trading platforms , wants to give back to its users. Users can now celebrate Christmas with Bybit through Jolly Jamboree, where they can win amazing prizes by completing a series of simple tasks. The festive assortment of gifts in Bybit’s sleigh includes Amazon gift cards, an iPhone 13, and the best prize of all — a Tesla Model 3. It’s easy for users to add a little more Christmas sparkle to their holiday haul. From Dec. 22, 2021, 10AM UTC to Jan. 12, 2022, 10AM UTC, all they have to do is to start clearing different tasks to unlock attractive rewards like $100 in USDT while collecting special Christmas reward cards. There are a total of 3 Christmas cards. Once all cards are collected, users will be automatically enrolled into the Jolly Jamboree grand lucky draw for a chance to drive off with a Tesla Model 3. Join the Jolly Jamboree today and start trading to win big! https://ww...

A crypto working group has held its first meeting at Russia’s parliament. Its members have been tasked to put forward legislative proposals designed to comprehensively regulate cryptocurrencies and related matters in the Russian Federation. Working Group Gathers at State Duma to Draft Crypto Regulations Lawmakers, government officials, and experts have met at the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, the State Duma , to discuss and propose new legislation aimed at regulating the circulation of cryptocurrencies in the country, the head of the working group, Alexey Gordeev, announced to the media. Gordeev, who is also deputy speaker of the Duma, remarked that authorities in Moscow are well aware of the existence and the development of the crypto industry in the country. He noted, however, that proper regulations for the sector are yet to be introduced. While cryptocurrencies were partially regulated with the law “On Digital Financial Assets” which went into force in January...

Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, a smart contract-enabled cryptocurrency platform, announced yesterday he would fly to space next year to fulfill one of his childhood dreams. The space trip will be done in a Blue Origin spaceship, the company owned by Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, which also made an inaugural flight last July. Sun Also announced he will carry 5 unknown individuals with him. Justin Sun Plans for Space Travel Tron founder Justin Sun announced yesterday he had plans to fly to space next year to fulfill one of his childhood dreams. The trip, that would take the crypto entrepreneur out of the earth’s atmosphere, would be done using Blue Origin’s services, the space company owned by Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon. Sun also revealed that he had been the unnamed winner of an auction to be in the inaugural flight of the company with Bezos. He paid $28 million to be part of the launch. On this, Sun stated: I won the auction 6 months ago but missed the launch. However, thi...