Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The Bank of Spain has given approval for the launch of a pilot program involving the issuance and usage of euro-pegged stablecoins. The program, which MONEI, a fintech institution, is launching, will allow users to issue digital euros with fiat deposits in order to experiment with these in payment applications, increasing their transparency. Bank of Spain Authorizes Digital Euro Token Tests Europe is becoming a hotspot for stablecoins and CBDC (central bank digital currency) experimentation. On Jan. 19, the Bank of Spain greenlighted a pilot program that involves the issuance of euro-pegged digital tokens. The project, which is being spearheaded by MONEI, a regulated fintech payments company, will allow users to issue their own euro stablecoins for different purposes. Using Ethereum and Polygon blockchain technology, the eurm token will be issued with deposits coming from users, with each token being backed by real euros. The test, inscribed as part of the actions in the financial...

Philippine authorities say that they have rescued alleged victims of a “crypto trafficking ring” who were recruited to work in a call center in Cambodia and scam people out of their cryptocurrencies. The authorities are also investigating government employees who may have assisted crypto trafficking syndicates. Alleged Victims of ‘Crypto Trafficking Ring’ Rescued The Philippine Bureau of Immigration (BI)’s travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU) announced Friday that it has rescued six alleged victims of a “cryptocurrency trafficking ring,” the Philippine government-owned news agency reported. Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Norman Garcera Tansingco explained that BI officers intercepted the alleged victims as they were about to board a plane to Phnom Penh on Jan. 15. Noting that these passengers had fake return tickets, the commissioner said they gave “inconsistent answers” to questions asked by BI officers, “which raised suspicions that they were merely disguised as tourist...

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says it has seized bitcoin worth millions of dollars from overseas scammers targeting the elderly. The scammers posed as members of U.S. law enforcement agencies and tricked the victims into transferring money to them for “safekeeping.” FBI Says It Has Seized Bitcoin From Scammers Overseas The U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut and the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced Friday that bitcoin and other digital assets have been seized in connection with a fraudulent scheme targeting the elderly. They detailed: An investigation of a fraud scheme targeting vulnerable victims has resulted in the forfeiture of approximately 151 bitcoins, as well as other digital assets. The case is being investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, and the U.S. Marshals Service. At the time of writing, the value of the allegedly seized bitcoin totaled approximately $3.5 ...

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have charged an alleged attacker who stole $116 million from crypto trading platform Mango Markets. The defendant has been arrested and is currently detained in Puerto Rico. Mango Markets Manipulator Arrested, Detained The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced Friday that it has charged Avraham Eisenberg with “orchestrating an attack on a crypto asset trading platform, Mango Markets, by manipulating the MNGO token.” The regulator noted that the crypto token was offered and sold as a security. The defendant is a 27-year-old U.S. citizen who is facing “parallel criminal and civil charges” brought by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), respectively, the SEC added. The CFTC filed a civil enforcement action against Eisenberg on Jan. 9. He has been arrested and detained at MDC Guayn...

The financial monitoring agency of Ukraine has restricted access to a number of online crypto exchangers operating out of Russia. Some of the coin trading platforms are working with sanctioned Russian banks, the regulatory body announced in a report. Ukrainian Financial Authorities Target Russian Crypto Exchange Websites and Wallets The State Financial Monitoring Service (SFMS), a unit of Ukraine’s financial intelligence, has issued a special report on the results of its operations in 2022. Besides its peacetime activities such as combating money laundering, the agency revealed it has contributed to the country’s defense effort as part of the ongoing conflict with Russia. In the document published this week, the watchdog announced its employees have joined forces with colleagues from the Ministry of Digital Transformation and leading Ukrainian crypto experts. Together, they were able to identify Russian crypto exchanges associated with Russian financial institutions placed under ...

A Kenyan fintech that digitizes credit unions, Kwara, is reported to have raised $3 million via a seed extension round that was backed by DOB Equity, Globivest, and Willard Ahdritz. The latest round brings to $7 million the amount of capital that the fintech has now raised via this funding round. Kwara’s Client Base Kwara, the Kenyan fintech targeting the financially excluded, has reportedly raised a $3 million seed extension and has signed a digital solutions distribution agreement with an organization representing Kenyan cooperatives. The fintech, which more than doubled its client base in 2023, said it hopes to fund its growth with the capital raised. According to a Techcrunch report , existing investors participating in the startup’s seed extension round include DOB Equity, Globivest, and Willard Ahdritz. Also joining the fintech’s latest funding round were One Day Yes and Base Capital. The chief financial officer of Revolut, Mikko Salovaara, is reported to have joined this rou...