Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Ripple and Youtube had ended a legal battle initiated in April last year amid allegations related to crypto-related scams. The U.S. blockchain company sued the video platform for negligence in acting against crypto scams that impersonated Ripple. Terms of the Resolution Are Confidential During a Twitter thread , Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced both parties have now “come to a resolution to work together to prevent, detect and take down” XRP scams streamed on Youtube. Garlinghouse clarified terms of the settlement are confidential, as the blockchain firm revealed no major details. He added: Social platforms are starting to acknowledge their role in allowing crypto scams to persist and recognize the need to be part of the solution. Some like @xrpforensics are helping detect/track stolen funds, but platforms need to lead the charge or it’s still just whack-a-mole. Ripple’s anger against Youtube woke up on April 2020, when the firm filed a lawsuit against the video platf

Over the last few months, the non-fungible token (NFT) space has heated up and NFTs have become a topical conversation in the cryptocurrency community. Many supporters believe that NFTs are going to be huge and transform everything from the art industry to online gaming. Others believe that NFTs are completely worthless and nothing more than the hype seen during the initial coin offering (ICO) phase in 2017. Non-Fungible Token Assets and Reliable Immutability Data shows that to-date, more than 5.3 million non-fungible token (NFT) asset sales have been recorded on nonfungible.com ’s market history. Out of all these sales, artists, blockchain firms, and NFT dealers have sold $414.5 million worth of NFTs. Out of all 5.3 million sales recorded on nonfungible.com’s list, NFTs sell for an average of $76 per unit. Furthermore, NFTs have gathered mainstream attention and on March 11, 2021, the popular NFT artist, Beeple, sold his work at the world-famous Christie’s auction house. The Chri

During the last few months, a great number of businesses have been adding cryptocurrency support to their payment systems. On Tuesday, the luxury hotel group called The Kessler Collection announced it is now accepting digital currency payments for accommodations. The Kessler Collection’s support means eight luxury hotels will be able to accept payments in crypto assets like bitcoin, ethereum, bitcoin cash, and more. The Kessler Collection Now Accepts Digital Currency Payments at 8 Luxury Hotels While crypto-assets continue to accrue value, it has sparked numerous merchants and businesses to start accepting digital assets for payment. On March 9, 2021, the Florida-based luxury hotel group The Kessler Collection announced it has partnered with the Atlanta company Bitpay in order to accept crypto-asset payments. The acceptance means that eight luxury hotels in the U.S. now accept bitcoin ( BTC ), bitcoin cash ( BCH ), ethereum ( ETH ), dogecoin (DOGE), and several more assets includi

The highly popular right-wing commentator devoted a 15-minute Youtube video to inform his followers of the merits and potential that bitcoin, and cryptocurrencies, in general, as an anti-government monetary system. The grassroots embracement of bitcoin is the first of its kind in the alt-right American universe. Crypto Adoption is Taking a Surprising Right Turn in the American Political Landscape On March 7, 2021, Ben Shapiro, a prominent American conservative political pundit, released to his Youtube channel a video titled “ Bitcoin: The Future of Finance or Fool’s Gold? ”. In three days the video accumulated more than 800,000 views, suppressing Aatonop’s flagship video, “ Introduction to Bitcoin: what is bitcoin and why does it matter? ” that took four years to get to his current 733,000 views. This is the first time Shapiro discusses bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, or finance in general. The 15 minute Shapiro video is vastly different from Andreas Antonopoulos’s. While Antonopoulos

The NFT industry has been exploding recently with all types of artists, sports brands and gaming companies joining the party. As a result, the top 100 NFT tokens by market cap are now worth well over $7 billion. However, many of the options in the segment offer simplistic game mechanics and a rather shallow experience. VulcanVerse shows how an NFT based game should be done, with amazing graphics, entertaining gameplay, a play-to-earn economy and a rich lore backed by professional authors. Enter the VulcanVerse for Next Level NFT Gaming VulcanVerse is an AAA fantasy decentralized universe that bridges the gap between normal blockchain sandbox games to MMO (massively multiplayer online) game functionality. It offers complex building tools as well as fight, forage and spy mechanics embedded into the game world. VulcanVerse encompasses a 3km by 3km virtual environment set in a Greco-Roman fantasy theme. The game is developed by Vulcan Forged , a multi-dApp platform, game studio, launc

The French government will auction 611 bitcoins that were seized from hackers next week. There will be two sales comprised of 478 lots altogether. Each lot consists of between 0.11 and 20 bitcoins. Paris-based auction house Kapandji Morhange will auction 611 bitcoins on March 17. The company says this is the first auction of seized bitcoin by the French government. At the current price, this amount of bitcoin is worth almost $34 million. According to the auctioneer’s website, two sales will be conducted: one at 9 A.M. and the other at 2 P.M. The first sale consists of 437 lots of between 0.11 and two bitcoins. The second sale consists of 41 lots of between five and 20 bitcoins. The bitcoins were seized from hackers in 2019 and 2020 by France’s Agency for the Recovery and Management of Seized and Confiscated Assets (AGRASC). Most of the bitcoins to be auctioned were seized by the courts in connection to an attack on the cryptocurrency platform Gatehub, local news outlet Cybe

A Colombian entrepreneur has joined forces with a Venezuelan teenager to launch a cryptocurrency in Boyacá, Colombia. The region is now known in the local crypto industry as the home of the most popular emerging local crypto in the country. Over 5,000 People From Other Countries Currently Hold The “Bitcoin Boyacense” Kmuschicoin, popularly known as “bitcoin boyacense,” was created by Germán Viasus, a local environmental engineer, and José Carmelo Campos, a Venezuelan programmer. The creators of the “bitcoin boyacense” say that kmuschicoin can be considered the first “environmental cryptocurrency” globally. Currently, it’s also the most valuable Colombian cryptocurrency in the market. In fact, Viasus pointed out in an interview with local TV program Testigo Directo that it was initially created to sell stocks from the company Tierra Viva. The firm is a Boyacá-based entrepreneurship that transforms solid waste into organic compost through beetles. About the name of the Colombian c

Crypto adoption keeps spreading among the real estate industry in Europe, specifically in Spain. Recently, a leading agency in the Canary Islands announced it would start accepting cryptocurrency payments. Firm Praises Bitcoin’s Decentralized Nature According to Digital Sevilla , Piso Barato Inmobiliaria, a Tenerife-based real estate firm, has enabled the feature that allows customers to acquire properties by paying with bitcoin ( BTC ). Although they mentioned the word “cryptocurrencies,” the firm talked mostly about BTC throughout the announcement. Piso Barato Inmobiliaria argues that a group of experts stated that bitcoin is becoming the “primary currency” of exchange globally, and thus, the firm became interested in digital assets. Future owners of properties, through the real estate agency, can purchase any property in Tenerife. The Tenerife-based agency pointed out: The evolution of expert agents in the real estate market has been so constant that buying a flat in Teneri

Financial services company Etc Group on Tuesday launched its centrally-cleared ethereum exchange-traded product (ETP) on the Deutsche Borse’s Xetra marketplace . Etc Group Launches Ethereum Exchange-Traded Product The listing follows the success of the firm’s bitcoin ETP , which was launched on the same exchange in June 2020. That bitcoin exchange-traded product now has $1 billion assets under management (AUM), it said. In a press release, London-based Etc Group revealed that the ether exchange-traded product (primary ticker: ZETH), tracks the price of ethereum ( ETH ) and is 100% physically backed by the cryptocurrency. ETPs allow investors to gain exposure to an asset, in this case ether, but without having to buy it directly themselves. Approved by Bafin, the German financial regulator, each unit of ZETH is backed by ethereum stored at custody services provider Bitgo Trust Company, “giving the investor a claim on a predefined amount of the underlying ETH ,” said the company.

Crypto adoption is a hot topic in South Korea, and recent figures have been proving it. However, crypto mining activity is also starting to gather interest across the country, per the latest reports from local media outlets. A Single Rig Should Worth $150 ‘or Less’ to Be Considered for Personal Use According to Kyungin Ilbo , custom officials in one of the biggest ports of South Korea, Incheon, are reporting a boost in mining rig hardware imports. The port is also the most prominent air terminal in the nation. During October 2020 and January 2021, authorities from the Incheon Headquarters Customs had intercepted 41 shipments with mining rigs. Although the number is not so high compared to other countries’ reports, in 2019, South Korea had just one case of crypto mining-related shipment interception. Officials believe that the crypto prices plunge seen in 2019 could be the reason behind the little interest among South Korean crypto miners. However, with the current bull-run, miner

Following in the footsteps of Tesla, the home warranty company American Residential Warranty (ARW) says it will accept cryptocurrency payments for its services. In addition, the company also plans to acquire and hold bitcoin as part of its strategy “to expand its investment portfolio and boost returns on cash.” In his statement following the announcement, Josh Brauser, the company’s chief revenue officer said that by adopting crypto payments, ARW is demonstrating that it is a “tech-forward company that adapts quickly to emergent technologies.” “As businesses around the world embrace this new era of global currency, at American Residential Warranty we are proud to continue being an innovator in the home warranty space with plans to accept bitcoin payments from our increasingly tech-savvy customers,” added Brauser. Concerning the Boca Raton-based company’s plan to add bitcoin (BTC) to its balance sheet, the statement reveals that ARW, which offers its services in all of the 50 U.S

On March 10, the hip-hop artist Lil Pump announced the multi-platinum-selling artist has partnered with the non-fungible token (NFT) platform Sweet. The American rapper will drop three unique NFT collectibles in total and he’s also releasing a one-of-a-kind “digital jewelry collectible NFT” collection. Lil Pump Launches Non-Fungible Token Assets via Sweet The multi-platinum-selling hip-hop recording artist, Gazzy Garcia, known professionally as Lil Pump has jumped into the non-fungible token (NFT) assets game by partnering with the company Sweet . Lil Pump got mainstream recognition back in 2017 with the hit single “Gucci Gang” and the single was certified five-times platinum by the RIAA. Since then he’s released the albums like the self-titled “Lil Pump” and the record “Harverd Dropout.” On Wednesday, Lil Pump detailed that he’s collaborated with Sweet, a scalable NFT platform dedicated to the top music, entertainment, and consumer brands. According to the recent announcement, t

In October 2020, the entertainment software company Atari launched a digital currency and later revealed plans to join the Ethereum virtual reality game Sandbox. On March 8, Atari announced that the company is now launching a casino in Decentraland, another metaverse built on Ethereum. According to the announcement, the firm’s gaming platform in Decentraland will showcase classic video games and Atari-themed non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as well. Software Firm Atari Partners With Decentral Games, Plans to Host a Casino on Decentraland’s Metaverse Back in 1972 and into the early eighties, the brand name Atari was a well known video game console and software firm that created numerous trends. The brand has passed through several owners since its peak in popularity, and Atari Interactive is now a subsidiary of the French publisher called Atari SA. Over the last few years, the company has been planning a comeback and while doing so it discovered blockchain technology and cryptocurrency s

There are now three bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in North America, all approved within the past month by Canada’s securities regulators. They are currently trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The latest approved bitcoin ETF, backed by Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital, began trading Tuesday. 3 Bitcoin ETFs in Canada Canada’s securities regulators have approved three bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) within the past month. The first approved North American bitcoin ETF was Purpose Bitcoin ETF , followed by Evolve Bitcoin ETF . Both are now trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). The third one is CI Galaxy Bitcoin ETF, which started trading on the TSX exchange Tuesday. This bitcoin ETF is trading under the ticker symbols BTCX.B and BCTX.U. The former trades unhedged in Canadian dollars while the latter trades in U.S. dollars. The announcement describes: BTCX’s management fee of just 0.40% represents the lowest management fee of any bitcoin ETF in the world today.

How can you make sure that your memories and private data are transmitted reliably to the future? Security, durability, respect for integrity: these are all essential components for ensuring the transmission of data. However, the process is often complex , in particular in the event of death. The various steps are not only long and tedious but also expensive. Based on this observation, the French startup Capsule Corp. has had the idea to create Ternoa. Ternoa to Redefine Data Transmission Designed to securely store and transmit data, Ternoa uses the blockchain and all the benefits it brings to redefine data transmission. To achieve this, Ternoa allows its users to create time capsules whose opening and reception procedures are decided by their creators. Entirely open source and decentralized, the Ternoa blockchain is based on Polkadot, a protocol focusing on interoperability by linking several specialized blockchains into a single unified network. This interoperability is th