Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

An Indian national has pleaded guilty in a case involving “the largest single cryptocurrency and cash seizure” in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) history. The defendant “is designated as a Consolidated Priority Target, which makes him one of the most significant drug trafficking threats in the world,” the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) described. This Case Involves Largest Single Cryptocurrency and Cash Seizure in DEA History, Says DOJ The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday that a 40-year-old Indian national, Banmeet Singh, has pleaded guilty to “running a dark web narcotics conspiracy.” Specifically, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The announcement details: According to the DEA, this case involves the largest single cryptocurrency and cash seizure in DEA history; the defendant has forfeited cryptocurrency accounts that ultimately became worth $...

Veteran trader Peter Brandt has highlighted a bitcoin price pattern that frequently appeared in past major bull runs. “It is the Hump …Slump …Pump… Dump [HSPD] that keeps a bull trend healthy,” he explained, emphasizing: “Study past major bull runs in bitcoin and you will discover they were replete with HSPDs.” Bitcoin Bull Runs and HSPD Pattern Veteran trader Peter Brandt shared his observation about bitcoin’s price pattern he called the “Hump, Slump, Pump, Dump” (HSPD) on social media platform X Sunday. “The old ‘Hump with a Slump then a Pump and a Dump’ is back — and this is the price behavior that separates Chumps from their money,” the trader described. “Study past major bull runs in bitcoin ( BTC ) and you will discover they were replete with HSPDs. The Chumps FOMO [fear of missing out] buy the Pump only to puke out their purchases with the Dump.” Brandt opined: It is the Hump…Slump…Pump…Dump that keeps a bull trend healthy. Let’s see if HSPD works its magic once again. B...

A new Binance survey has found that 73% of European respondents are optimistic about the future of crypto, with 55% exclusively using cryptocurrencies for everyday purchases. “We are delighted to see the high level of optimism amongst European crypto users, reflecting the growing interest in crypto and blockchain technologies,” said Binance’s CMO. Europe ‘Actively Paving the Way for Mainstream Adoption of Digital Assets’ Cryptocurrency exchange Binance recently surveyed its European users in France, Spain, Italy, and Sweden to understand their crypto investing habits. The survey was conducted between Oct. 14 and Nov. 8, 2023, with 10,498 participants. The results were released on Jan. 24. According to the results, 73% of respondents are optimistic about the future of cryptocurrency, with 55% exclusively using cryptocurrencies for everyday purchases and 24% making over half their trades in crypto. Beyond everyday spending, the survey reveals diverse crypto uses: 34% for long-term tr...

The Stellar Development Foundation wishes to put a hold on the upcoming Protocol 20 upgrade of the Stellar blockchain network, originally scheduled for January 30. This decision follows the discovery of a bug that could impact the Soroban smart contract transactions. Stellar Development Foundation Wants to Hit Pause on Protocol 20 Upgrade Due to Critical Bug The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) has announced a delay in the Protocol 20 upgrade of the Stellar blockchain, originally scheduled for January 30. The decision follows the discovery of a bug in Stellar Core v20.1.0, which could potentially impact Soroban transactions. The SDF, in a blog post dated January 27, expressed its commitment to ensuring the network’s readiness for the upgrade, but also the importance of consensus within the ecosystem. “We are not an ecosystem of one,” the post read, emphasizing the collaborative nature of the decision-making process. The bug , identified on January 25, affects fee-bumped Sorob...