Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The BRICS nations are set to discuss the feasibility of a common currency at the upcoming leaders’ summit. “It’s a matter we must discuss and discuss properly,” a South African minister stressed, noting that a growing number of countries are saying: “Why can’t we trade in our own currencies? Why are we committed to trading through the dollar?” BRICS Currency to Be Discussed at Upcoming Leaders’ Summit The BRICS countries are planning to discuss the feasibility of introducing a common currency at their upcoming leaders’ summit, which will be hosted by South Africa on Aug. 22 in Johannesburg. While noting that she does not like “preempting BRICS leaders’ discussions,” South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor commented on BRICS currency discussions in an interview with Bloomberg Tuesday. She stressed: It’s a matter we must discuss and discuss properly. “I don’t think we should always assume the idea will work because economics is very difficu...

Economist Peter Schiff expects a lot more banks to fail, warning that “nobody’s money is safe in any bank.” He stressed: “When the Fed sets interest rates too low and prints a lot of money … it unleashes massive inflation, creates tremendous economic imbalances that result in financial crises and depressions when the bubbles burst.” Peter Schiff on Inflation Tsunami, Financial Crises, Depressions, and Bank Failures Economist and gold bug Peter Schiff discussed the U.S. banking crisis and where the U.S. economy is headed in an interview last week on One America News Network. Citing “the mess that the Fed made by keeping interest rates so low for so long,” Schiff explained that it enabled banks to load up on “low yielding, overpriced long-term debt, treasuries, [and] mortgages.” Moreover, he stressed that the government and regulators push banks “into these securities with favorable accounting treatment for government securities or anything guaranteed by the U.S. government.” He warn...

Authorities in Iran have closed down more than 8,000 underground facilities for cryptocurrency mining in the past three years, local media reported. Despite the government’s crackdown, illegal crypto mining continues to account for a serious amount of energy consumption, official figures suggest. Illegal Crypto Miners in Iran Steal 1.8 Billion kWh of Electricity, Official Says Enterprises minting digital currencies outside the law in Iran have stolen 1.8 billion kilowatt hours (KWh) of electricity, according to a spokesperson for the electric power industry, quoted by the English-language Iranian daily Financial Tribune and the Bargh News portal. “About 8,200 unauthorized centers for cryptocurrency mining have been identified and closed in the past three years, in which more than 246,000 active miners were using 680 megawatts (MW) of energy,” said Mostafa Rajabi-Mashhadi. It’s estimated that another 1,200 MW of power capacity is still being occupied by illegal miners in the country...

On May 9, digital currency fund manager Grayscale Investments announced the establishment of the Grayscale Funds Trust and submitted registration filings for three exchange-traded funds with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Grayscale Introduces Grayscale Funds Trust and Files for 3 ETFs As the leading digital currency fund manager, in terms of assets under management (AUM), Grayscale Investments unveiled the Grayscale Funds Trust launch. The trust is a Delaware statutory trust structure designed to strengthen the company’s worldwide asset management capabilities. “A registration statement relating to Grayscale Funds Trust has been filed with the SEC but has not yet become effective,” Grayscale stated on Tuesday. Grayscale highlighted that they had previously established Grayscale Advisors, an SEC-registered investment advisor, which will serve as the new trust’s advisor. Besides the trust, Grayscale has also filed a registration statement for three additional funds. Th...

Bitcoin was hovering close to a key price floor near $27,300 on Wednesday, as markets anticipated the upcoming U.S. inflation report. Consumer prices for last month are expected to remain at 5%, which could be seen as justifying the Federal Reserve’s decision to hike rates last week. Ethereum remained above $1,800. Bitcoin Bitcoin ( BTC ) continued to consolidate on Wednesday, as markets awaited the latest inflation report from the United States. Following a high of $27,824.39 on Tuesday, BTC /USD dropped to an intraday low of $27,375.60 earlier in today’s session. Today’s move pushed bitcoin close to a key support point at $27,300, however prices have since rebounded. Bitcoin chart by TradingView Overall, it appears that the previous drop took place following a breakout on the relative strength index (RSI). Price strength moved below a floor at 43.00, with the index tracking at 42.63 at the time of writing. Bitcoin is now trading at $27,607.96. Ethereum Ethereum also...

Over 1,000 human trafficking victims were recently rescued from a “fraud factory” in Mabalacat, a town located nearly 90 kilometers northwest of Manila, Philippines law enforcement has said. Michelle Sabino from the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group said trafficking victims use social media platforms such as Facebook to lure unsuspecting individuals. Cryptocurrency Scams According to Philippines law enforcement, over 1,000 human trafficking victims were rescued following a recent raid on a compound in Mabalacat, approximately 90 kilometers northwest of the capital, Manila. According to officials, many of the trafficking victims came from Vietnam, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Nepal, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Taiwan. As per a VOA report , the trafficking victims were forced to perpetrate cryptocurrency scams during shifts that lasted up to 18 hours per day. Michelle Sabino, a member of the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group, is quoted in the r...

PRESS RELEASE. Massa’s testnet has become a magnet for more than 16 projects since its launch back in July 2021. Interest towards this innovative blockchain ecosystem has exploded since the beginning of this year. But what is it that makes Massa special? Massa is an innovative blockchain network that aims to combine high performance with true decentralization from the ground up. The Massa testnet allows anyone to experiment with the protocol and witness its continuous improvements first-hand. One of the main reasons why Massa attracted so many web3 pioneers in Q1 of this year is that it solves the common challenges that most Layer 1 blockchains face, such as high fees, low throughput, and centralization risks. Furthermore, Massa enables both developers and users to participate in the network governance and support the vision of a fully decentralized future. The web3 community has clearly recognized the ultimate potential in Massa. The positive feedback from crypto developers refl...