Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Singapore’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has given Coinbase “in-principle approval” allowing the crypto exchange to “offer regulated digital payment token products and services in the island state.” Coinbase stressed: “Today’s announcement underlines our commitment to Singapore as a regional hub.” Coinbase Committed to Making Singapore Its Regional Hub The Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange Coinbase announced Monday that it has received “In-Principle Approval (IPA) as a major payments institution license holder from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).” The announcement details: This license will allow us to offer regulated digital payment token products and services in the island state. “Today’s announcement underlines our commitment to Singapore as a regional hub,” Coinbase stressed. “Singapore serves as the hub for Coinbase’s APAC institutional business … Gaining this in-principle approval from MAS is an important step, as we plan to launch our fu...

On October 11, the U.S. Treasury department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it has settled charges with the cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex. The crypto exchange was accused of sanctions violations and failure to “implement effective sanctions compliance controls” between March 2014 and December 2017. Crypto Exchange Bittrex Charged With US Sanctions Violations, Washington State Trading Platform Agrees to Settle The Washington State-based crypto asset exchange Bittrex has been charged by FinCEN and OFAC over “116,421 apparent violations of multiple sanctions programs.” According to the regulators from the U.S. Treasury department, the violations stemmed from transactions that were from “persons apparently located in the Crimea region of Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria.” U.S. officials say that the transactions added up to $263.45 million worth of crypto transactions that were in violation of America...

Google Cloud has announced a partnership with Coinbase to drive Web3 innovation that includes using the crypto exchange to accept cryptocurrency payments. “We are excited Google Cloud has selected Coinbase to help bring Web3 to a new set of users and provide powerful solutions to developers,” said Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. Google Cloud Partners With Coinbase Alphabet Inc.’s Google Cloud and the Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange Coinbase announced Tuesday “a new, long-term strategic partnership to better serve the growing Web3 ecosystem and its developers.” Under the agreement, Coinbase will use Google Cloud to build its advanced exchange, grow data services, and process blockchain data at scale. The exchange will also leverage Google’s fiber-optic network to enhance the global reach of its crypto services. In addition, Coinbase will build its global data platform on Google Cloud’s infrastructure and leverage the internet giant’s data and analytics technologies to provide Coinbase ...

On October 11, the publicly-listed bitcoin miner Cleanspark announced that it has completed the acquisition of Mawson Infrastructure Group’s Georgia-based bitcoin mining facility. Following the acquisition, Cleanspark says it now manages 220 megawatts (MW) of bitcoin miners with a hashrate of over 4.7 exahash per second (EH/s). Cleanspark Hashrate Moves Closer to 5 Exahash, Firm Obtains 6,500 Mining Rigs From the Facility Acquisition Cleanspark (Nasdaq: CLSK ) revealed on Tuesday that the mining firm has finished the acquisition of Mawson’s Georgia-based bitcoin mining facility located in Sandersville. The acquisition, Cleanspark says, included 6,500 mining rigs or roughly 560 petahash per second (PH/s) of hashpower. According to Cleanspark, the Sandersville site is the publicly-listed bitcoin miner’s fourth facility in Georgia. The other locations Cleanspark operates are located in Washington, College Park, and Norcross. “Mawson has built a world-class facility, staffed by an inc...

Ethereum fell to a nine-day low during Tuesday’s session, as the U.S. dollar rose to a two-week high. The decline comes ahead of this week’s U.S. inflation report, which is expected to show consumer prices falling by 0.2% month-on-month. Bitcoin was also in the red during today’s session, moving below $19,000. Bitcoin Bitcoin ( BTC ) fell below $19,000 for the first time in over a week in today’s session, as the U.S. dollar rose in strength. USD climbed to its highest point in nearly two weeks versus several of its G7 counterparts, ahead of Thursday’s inflation report. As a result, BTC /USD slipped to an intraday low of $18,984.66 earlier in the day, which is its weakest point since October 3. Looking at the chart, today’s drop in price sees the token fall marginally below its key support point of $19,300. In addition to the price, the 14-day relative strength index (RSI) also dropped below a floor of 45.80, and as of writing, is tracking at 44.67. Bitcoin bulls have since reen...

NTT Docomo, the largest telecom carrier in Japan, has launched a new division that will be dedicated to directing its metaverse push. The unit, named Qonoq, is already operating and has a staff of 200 people, researching and developing software and hardware solutions directed to integrate extended reality products for customers of the Japanese carrier. NTT Docomo Gets Into the Metaverse Telecom companies around the world are interested in the metaverse and the new services this digital world can bring to their customers. NTT Docomo, the biggest wireless telecom carrier in Japan with more than 80 million customers, launched its own metaverse division earlier this month — the first move of the company into the metaverse market. The unit is named Qonoq and has a staff of 200 employees that will be dedicated to building software and hardware-based products for users and customers of the company. The estimated budget that this newly formed unit will have is around $412 million and wil...

A Kenyan bitcoin mining company, Gridless, recently revealed how it is helping local communities reduce electricity costs by using excess generated power to mine bitcoin. The Gridless model has been hailed because it potentially helps to decentralize bitcoin mining as well as move some hashpower to Africa. Using Wasted Energy to Mine Bitcoin Gridless, a Kenya-based crypto mining company, has said the excess electricity from mini-grid hydro generators is now being used to mine bitcoin. The revenue generated from bitcoin mining helps to reduce or subsidize the cost of electricity. In a recently issued statement, Gridless said while mini-hydropower plants that generate below 100 KW (kilowatts) are being used so far, the company’s objective is to work with larger plants which can generate 500 KW. The bitcoin mining company said: We’ve been working with mini-grid hydro generators in Kenya on how to use their excess capacity for Bitcoin mining, which also significantly reduces the cost...

Bitbase, a Spanish cryptocurrency ATM company, is planning to keep expanding its services in 2023. The company, which received investments from Dextools and Woonkly, two Web3-based decentralized companies, aims to reach 200 cryptocurrency ATMs installed in Spain. Bitbase is also working to obtain licenses to begin operating in countries like Italy, England, Germany, and the Netherlands, and in Latam countries like Venezuela. Bitbase Receives Major Investments Bitbase, a Spain-based cryptocurrency ATM company with offices all around the world, is now aiming to further expand to new territories for next year. The company, which already has 100 crypto ATMs in Spain, received investments from two decentralized Web3 companies that could help it keep growing into new markets. Dextools, a company offering a series of tools dedicated to the handling of tokens in decentralized exchanges, acquired 22% of the company, while Woonkly, another decentralized exchange, and NFT marketplace, is now...