Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The Kenyan fintech startup Kotani Pay has raised $2 million in a pre-seed funding round which was led by P1 Ventures. The capital raised will be used to fund the startup’s expansion into five African countries. Felix Macharia said his firm is working with central banks, some of whom “are actually getting excited about some of these use cases and are getting involved.” New Capital to Fund Kotani Pay’s Africa Incursion The Kenya-based digital currency on- and off-ramp service provider, Kotani Pay, recently raised a $2 million pre-seed funding round, a report has said. The round was led by the San Francisco-based seed investor P1 Ventures with the participation of Digital Currency Group/Luno and Flori Ventures. According to a Techcrunch report , Kotani Pay will use the capital raised to fund its expansion into five African countries: Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, and Tanzania. The successful capital raise also enables Kotani Pay to make good on its promise to make cross-borde

Digital asset exchange Coinbase will be offering cryptocurrency loans to institutions in the United States. With the new service, the leading U.S. crypto trading platform seeks to fill the market gap opened by the collapse of companies like Celsius, Genesis, and Blockfi. Crypto Exchange Coinbase Starts Offering Crypto Loans to Institutions Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has launched a crypto lending service targeted at large institutional investors in the U.S., Bloomberg reported, noting that the move is aimed at capitalizing on the void left by the bankruptcies of major platforms in this sector. According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), $57 million have been invested already in the lending program by customers of Coinbase Prime, the exchange’s brokerage platform that allows institutional players to execute trades and custody assets. “With this service, institutions can choose to lend digital assets to Coinbase under standardized terms in a p

The Ethereum Foundation has announced the completion of its grants program to finance projects related to implementing ERC-4337, the account abstraction standard. 18 projects were selected to be part of this batch of grants, which feature different functionalities, including creating educational material on the issue and software that can design operations based on the requirements of other apps. Ethereum Foundation Announces 18 Grants for Projects Implementing Account Abstraction Features The Ethereum Foundation, a nonprofit organization in charge of funding and expanding the Ethereum ecosystem, has announced that it will issue grants to 18 teams developing projects built around the ERC-4337 standard, also known as account abstraction. The initiative seeks to empower these projects to grow and become a significant part of the Ethereum ecosystem in the future. About the significance of these grants and the projects that received help from them, the Ethereum Foundation stated: Ea

European Central Bank (ECB) executive board member Fabio Panetta has warned about stablecoins issued by private providers, such as Paypal. He also provided an update on the progress of the digital euro. “At the ECB, our investigation phase is now in its final stage, preparing the ground for the Governing Council to decide whether to move to the next phase of the project,” he said. ECB Executive Board Member on Digital Euro and Stablecoins Fabio Panetta, member of the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB), discussed stablecoins and the digital euro on Monday during his introductory statement at the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament. Noting that the ECB officially launched the digital euro investigation phase in October 2021, he said, “We have made considerable progress since then.” Panetta added: At the ECB, our investigation phase is now in its final stage, preparing the ground for the Governing Council to decide whether to move to

The B2BinPay team has just announced the release of B2BinPay v17, a substantial update that polishes and perfects the crypto payment experience. As one of the industry leaders, B2BinPay has been a global go-to facilitator for crypto transactions. B2BinPay’s crypto solutions are celebrated for their simplicity of integration, allowing businesses worldwide to adopt cutting-edge crypto solutions without hassle. The V17 version of the B2BinPay platform has further innovated on existing functionalities, introducing many new features, quality-of-life updates and fixes to accommodate the diverse requirements of merchants and enterprise clients. Introducing the EUROC and TUSD Settlement Options As the crypto landscape continues to be volatile and unpredictable, stablecoins ensure stability and reliability. Before v17, B2BinPay provided customers with five major settlement options: BTC , USDT , USDC, USD and EUR. However, as the crypto landscape evolves rapidly, the v17 upgrade decided to

Israeli law enforcement recently raided the offices of a company accused of producing software used by criminals to defraud crypto investors of millions of dollars. Some six suspects were arrested following the raid on a company that is reportedly operated by the country’s infamous crime families. ‘Sting Software’ The Israeli police’s National Cyber Crime Unit recently raided an IT company whose so-called “sting software” has helped criminal syndicates to steal millions of dollars from crypto investors. According to a Ynet News report , six individuals were arrested while dozens were taken in for questioning. According to the report, the raided company is believed to be operated by the country’s infamous crime families. In his remarks following the raid, Dudi Katz, the head of Lahav 433’s National Cyber Crime Unit, said: “We were able to stem the tide of this crime wave and bring down hundreds of call centers. This operation spanned internationally and was unique in scope, includi

Investors led by Andreessen Horowitz have backed a company that has set out to help content creators monetize their work in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). The tech firm intends to employ blockchain technology to track remixes and mashups that have been spreading online since the invent of AI tools like Chatgpt. Investors Pledge $54 Million to Support Story Protocol’s Plan to Help Copyright Holders in AI Age U.S. blockchain company Story Protocol has won the support of a group of investors led by American venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz for its plan to help content creators track and monetize their work in the times of generative AI , Bloomberg reported. Against the backdrop of low investor interest in crypto startups, the San Francisco-based tech firm managed to raise $54 million. Among those who offered funding for its project are also Hashed, Endeavor, Samsung Next, TPG Capital founder David Bonderman, and Paris Hilton’s 11:11 media. Besides receiving equity i

In mid-August, Bitmain revealed its intention to launch a new Antminer featuring an efficiency rating of 1X joules per terahash (J/TH). Three days after this disclosure, Canaan also announced plans to unveil a novel product but with little details. Canaan has since offered more information, indicating that their upcoming release will belong to the Avalon 14 series, alongside equaling the efficiency level of 1X J/TH. Upcoming Next-Gen Bitcoin Mining Rigs Will Boast 1X J/TH Efficiency At present, the leading application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) bitcoin miners produced today possess an efficiency rating of 20 joules or higher per terahash. Yet this status quo may shift within the month as two rival bitcoin mining rig manufacturers intend to introduce a new generation of mining products. For example, the 2023 World Digital Mining Summit (WDMS) occurring in Hong Kong from September 22 to 23 will showcase Bitmain’s innovative mining product. This apparatus or series of devices

Global investment bank JPMorgan expects the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve multiple spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) at once, instead of giving one company the advantage of being the first. The bank’s analyst explained that if the securities regulator wants to defend its denial of Grayscale’s bitcoin ETF conversion proposal, it would have to retroactively withdraw its previous approval of bitcoin futures ETFs. “Such a retroactive withdrawal would be very disruptive and embarrassing for the SEC,” he cautioned. JPMorgan Expects to See Several Spot Bitcoin ETFs Approved JPMorgan analyst Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou explained in a note last week that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may be forced to approve several spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) after a court ruled in favor of Grayscale Investments regarding the crypto asset manager’s proposal to convert its bitcoin trust into a spot bitcoin ETF. “The court ruling on the Graysc

Economist Peter Schiff has warned that the U.S. cannot afford to decouple from China. “Our entire standard of living rests on the support of China,” he stressed, adding that “If we lose that support, it’s going to collapse.” He also predicted the collapse of the U.S. dollar as the USD loses its world’s reserve currency status. Peter Schiff on US-China Decoupling, Dollar Collapse Economist and gold bug Peter Schiff discussed various economic topics, including the relationship between the U.S. and China, in an interview with NTD News last week. Commenting on the recent statement by Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo stating that “Decoupling is neither in our economic or national security goals,” Schiff stressed: We can’t afford to decouple because you have to recognize that China is both our biggest supplier and our biggest banker. The Chinese loan us the money to buy the stuff that they produce that we can’t, and our entire standard of living rests on the support of China. “If we

Asset management firm Bernstein has predicted that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve its first spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) between mid-October and mid-March next year. The firm’s analyst believes that “the crypto ETF opportunity won’t just stop at bitcoin but will extend into multiple crypto assets.” Bernstein’s Spot Bitcoin ETF Prediction Gautam Chhugani, managing director and senior analyst of Global Digital Assets at asset management firm Bernstein, has predicted that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve its first bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by mid-March next year. He explained in a note on Monday that the court ruling in favor of crypto asset manager Grayscale Investments last week regarding the firm’s proposed bitcoin ETF conversion is a “game changer.” Calling the ruling “a landmark win against the SEC,” he emphasized: “The ruling went beyond the GBTC conversion, but laid unambiguous principles for reg

This week, the crypto community is abuzz with discussions about Bitcoin’s 21 million supply cap and the potential for its alteration. On September 4, in a social media exchange, software developer and Bitcoin Core contributor Peter Todd expressed his belief that in “10-20 years the idea of a hard fork to add a small tail emission may not be so controversial any more.” Todd’s remarks ignited a flurry of reactions from crypto aficionados who took issue with his statement. Rethinking Bitcoin’s 21 Million: A Controversial Crypto Conversation Many firmly hold that Bitcoin’s 21 million supply cap is unchangeable, yet recent chatter suggests otherwise. A discussion ignited on the social media platform X (previously known as Twitter) when Cake Group’s CEO, Dr. Julian Hosp, penned an X post declaring , “Bitcoin is neither scarce nor rare … it is limited.” The discourse then shifted to remarks Peter Todd made during a chat with Peter McCormack on the What Bitcoin Did podcast. Back in 2019, To

China is pushing for universal national adoption of the digital yuan, with People’s Bank of China’s (PBOC) officials stating the currency should be available for all retail payment scenarios. The recent introduction of a standard for QR-based payment codes is part of this move, which also seeks to make wholesale payments interoperable with the digital yuan. China Aims for Digital Yuan Ubiquity in Payments China is seeking to make the digital yuan, its central bank digital currency (CBDC), more usable by allowing citizens to pay with it everywhere. Last week, Chinese local media reported the implementation of a QR code-based interoperable payment standard that would be compatible with popular payment methods such as Alipay and Wechat, but also with the digital yuan wallet. The system intends to increase the low usage and popularity of the digital yuan by giving Chinese citizens more ways of spending it, letting them know the CBDC can be used in most retail stores. Mu Changchun, h

The government in Seoul intends to submit new legislation tailored to facilitate the tracking and freezing of crypto used to fund the weapons programs of North Korea. A bill has been drafted after extended consultations between ministries with the aim to make South Korean sanctions more effective and improve the country’s cybersecurity. South Korean Government Takes Aim at DPRK’s Stolen Digital Assets A bill that will allow the Republic of Korea to better track and freeze assets obtained through crypto theft by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is expected to be submitted by the government in Seoul, the Korea Joongang Daily reported. The legislation was initially announced by the South’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) in November but President Yoon Suk Yeol sent it back for revision, demanding “practical measures to bolster national security,” the publication noted, quoting sources familiar with the matter. The draft law has been revised during months-long cons

A recent report by The Miner Mag suggests bitcoin mining orders might have sped up Huawei’s development of its new Kirin smartphone chip. The chip, which powers Huawei’s new Mate 60 Pro smartphone, was produced by China’s Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC) using its N+2 7nm process. Research Suggests Bitcoin Mining Boosted Huawei’s Chip Development, Reducing China’s Dependence on Western Tech The Miner Mag reported that bitcoin mining companies were among the first to buy SMIC’s N+1 process, ordering wafers and providing the volume that helped SMIC improve its 7nm production. The Miner Mag is a blog and data publication by Blocksbridge Consulting focusing on the bitcoin mining industry. Guess who was among the first batch of companies that did tape-out and production on SMIC's N+1 7-nm chips that later proved to power Huawei's comeback? #bitcoin https://t.co/XXbBMWxdvw pic.twitter.com/MHxvcaDaXn — TheMinerMag (@TheMinerMag_) September 4, 2023

The G20 countries are actively discussing a global framework for crypto assets under India’s presidency, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has revealed. “India’s presidency has put on the table key issues related to regulating or understanding that there should be a framework for handling issues related to crypto assets,” she emphasized. India Says ‘Active Discussions’ on Crypto Are Happening Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman provided an update on the discussions regarding global cryptocurrency regulations under India’s G20 presidency on Tuesday at this year’s Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai. Regarding crypto discussions at the G20, the Indian finance minister emphasized: “India’s presidency has put on the table key issues related to regulating or understanding that there should be a framework for handling issues related to crypto assets.” She affirmed: Active discussions are happening. Sitharaman proceeded to reference various in-depth papers relating to the regulatio

Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, has sounded the alarm about an impending financial crisis. “We have a crisis emerging,” he warned, emphasizing that small business owners will be “cut off at the regional bank level.” He stressed: “You’re going to hear a lot of people crying about this in the next few months.” Kevin O’Leary Warns About Emerging Financial Crisis Shark Tank star and O’Leary Ventures chairman Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, warned about an impending financial crisis in an interview with Fox News, published Saturday. He said: We have a crisis emerging … I’m talking about companies with five to 500 employees, which represent over 60% of our economy. “If you’re in the S&P 500, you have no trouble financing your business. You can’t say that about small business anymore. The cost of capital has gone through the roof,” the Shark Tank star stressed. He explained small business owners will be “cut off at the regional bank level.” He emphasized: “They’

Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the former deputy prime minister and central bank chairman of Singapore, has been elected as the new president of the country. The Singaporean president-elect, who advocates for a single regulatory system for both crypto and traditional finance, wants to make sure that everyone is aware that there is “one regulatory system for everything.” He emphasized: “If you’re outside of the regulatory system, buyer beware.” President-Elect Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s Crypto Stance Tharman Shanmugaratnam, a former deputy prime minister, finance minister, and education minister, has been elected as Singapore’s ninth president. He also served as the chairman of the country’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), from 2011 to 2023. The president-elect has spoken about cryptocurrency and its regulation on multiple occasions before his election. He stated earlier this year that there could only be one regulatory system for both crypto and traditional finance

Martin Shkreli, the former CEO of several hedge funds and pharmaceutical companies, offered updates about the life of Sam Bankman-Fried in prison. Jeremy Lorenzo (aka Flacco Poops), Shkreli’s source on MDC Brooklyn, the center in which Bankman-Fried is being held, stated that he has been facing some troubles due to inmates believing he was a “chomo” (prison slang for child molester) and that he was now moved to another area with Asian inmates. Martin Shkreli States Sam Bankman-Fried Faces Problems in Brooklyn’s MDC Martin Shkreli, a CEO of various hedge funds and pharmaceutical companies who was convicted of securities fraud and conspiracy charges back in 2017, offered insight into the alleged difficulties that Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of FTX, is facing while being held at Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC). Shkreli, also known for telling former Terra CEO Do Kwon that jail was “not that bad,” hosted an X space with Jeremy Lorenzo (Flacco Poops), his alleged source

Drivechain, a Bitcoin improvement proposal that presents a way of scaling Bitcoin using sidechains, level two blockchains that receive bridged tokens from a parent chain, is generating a loud buzz on social media from supporters and detractors. While Paul Sztorc, the author of the Drivechain proposal, states that its concept seeks to drive all innovation toward Bitcoin, some believe it might give rise to complexity and other unintended consequences. What Is Drivechain? Drivechain is the name of an improvement proposal ( BIP 300 ) in development since 2018 that seeks to advance Bitcoin features without modifying its core design. Written and proposed by Layer Two Labs founder and CEO Paul Sztorc, the Drivechain implementation aims to scale Bitcoin through sidechains, adjacent blockchains that would be created and eliminated using Bitcoin code. Drivechain has been purposefully written with minimal changes to the base layer in mind while still requiring a soft fork to be activated. Th