Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is currently seeking additional commentary from the public, as the regulating body ponders the Vaneck bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) decision. In a notice published on Wednesday, the SEC thinks “interested persons” should provide comments on the proceedings. SEC Is Looking for Comments Concerning Vaneck’s Proposed Bitcoin ETF Listing In December 2020, New York-based investment management firm Vaneck filed with the SEC to list a bitcoin ETF. Following the original filing, in March 2021, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (Cboe) applied to list the Vaneck Bitcoin Trust. Then at the end of April, as the U.S. regulator was determining whether or not it would reach a conclusion on the Vaneck ETF, the SEC gave itself 45 more days to decide. The SEC’s order detailed that the notice of designation has been postponed to June 17, 2021. The regulator could increase it to a “longer period up to 90 days” the notice said. “As the Commissio

The Iron Titanium token (TITAN) value has quaked a great deal after the project suffered from what the team called “the world’s first large-scale crypto bank run.” After touching a high of $64 per token on Wednesday, the project slid to near zero and remained worthless on Thursday afternoon. Iron Finance Claims Project Suffered from a ‘Bank Run’ The world of decentralized finance (defi) is exciting but it also comes with major risks stemming from smart contract exploits, flash loans , and alleged bank runs. That was the case for the Iron Finance project, as the team’s native token lost all of its value in a matter of hours. On Wednesday, the Iron Finance team explained what happened on Twitter and then followed up with a post mortem on Thursday. “Dear community, please withdraw liquidity from all pools. We will share a post-mortem as soon as we have a better understanding of this bank run,” the official Twitter account noted on Wednesday. “USDC collateral is available for redempt

The World Bank has refused to provide technical assistance to El Salvador in implementing bitcoin as legal tender. The bank cited bitcoin’s “environmental and transparency shortcomings” as the reason. World Bank Won’t Help El Salvador With Bitcoin Law The World Bank said on Wednesday it cannot help El Salvador implement the law making bitcoin legal tender. A World Bank spokesperson told Reuters, “We are committed to helping El Salvador in numerous ways including for currency transparency and regulatory processes,” elaborating: While the government did approach us for assistance on bitcoin, this is not something the World Bank can support given the environmental and transparency shortcomings. El Salvador has become the first country in the world to make bitcoin legal tender after its congress passed President Nayib Bukele’s bitcoin bill last week. On Wednesday, The finance minister of El Salvador, Alejandro Zelaya, said that the country has sought technical assistance from the

The House Republicans’ campaign arm said on Thursday that it will be accepting cryptocurrencies using the payment processor Bitpay. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is a lobbyist organization aimed at supporting the election of Republicans to Congress, via direct financial contributions to candidates and the Republican Party. NRCC to Accept Crypto Donations but Funds Will Be Converted and Deposited in US Dollars Republican bureaucrats are willing to accept donations in digital assets to help fuel their political elections. On June 17, the NRCC revealed it would be taking financial contributions in the form of cryptocurrencies, but the funds will be immediately converted into U.S. dollars before the money enters the NRCC’s treasury. Bitpay will facilitate the process according to the announcement, and even though the group is not officially receiving the crypto assets to hold, the NRCC believes it makes the payment process more seamless. Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Min

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published a research report that reveals crypto asset ownership has increased a great deal. According to the study, crypto ownership spiked more than 27% since last year as the FCA’s estimates show 2.3 million adults hold digital currencies, up from 1.9 million in 2020. United Kingdom’s Regulator Publishes 2021 Crypto Consumer Report The financial regulatory body in the United Kingdom that oversees 58,000 financial services firms and financial markets has published a report that covers the crypto asset economy. Not only does it show crypto ownership has increased a great deal since last year, but the study also shows people consider digital currencies an “alternative to mainstream investments.” The consumer research notes that attitudes toward cryptocurrencies have changed. “38% of crypto users regard them as a gamble (down from 47% last year),” the FCA report discloses. “By contrast, the level of overall understanding of cryptocurr

The Sandbox is a decentralised, community-driven gaming ecosystem where designers and artists can create, share and monetise NFTs and gaming experiences on the Ethereum blockchain and is partnered with many industry giants, such as Square Enix and Atari. Its popular virtual real estates, known as LANDs, are taking over the NFT world. Exclusive Bitcoin.com giveaway For a chance to become a LAND owner next to the Gemini ESTATE for free, all you have to do is create an account through this tracking link and press “Sign In” in the top right corner and create your account with your preferred login method. What are LANDs? A LAND is a digital piece of real-estate in The Sandbox’s metaverse, each one is a unique, non-fungible ERC-721 token on the Ethereum blockchain. Amongst other things, these LANDs can be developed upon by their owners and monetised. For example, a game, diorama or an art gallery could be built on these LANDs, to give just three examples. A group of adjacent LANDs co

Iran’s information technology minister has pitched the idea of transforming the Persian Gulf island of Kish into an international center for cryptocurrency exchanges. Iranian authorities plan to create a financial free zone in the territory which has already attracted cryptocurrency miners. Iran ICT Minister Says Gulf Island of Kish Has What It Takes to Be a Crypto Exchange Center Muhammad Javad Azari Jahromi, the Islamic Republic’s minister for information and communications technology, made the crypto-friendly proposal during a recent visit to Kish. The 91-square-kilometer island, situated off the Persian Gulf coast in Southern Iran, already hosts one of the country’s free trade zones. The official was quoted by IRNA news agency as saying: Kish has the infrastructure to emerge as a hub for international crypto exchanges in the region. Authorities need to start talks with neighboring countries. Kish Island is a popular travel destination in the Persian Gulf, with numerous shopp

As part of an initiative that seeks to build the crypto and blockchain space talent base, the Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO1), a community-led protocol, will be holding a major collaborative computer programming or a hackathon. Organizers are hoping this event will help to create a buzz about cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. To understand more about the hackathon , Bitcoin.com News’ columnist Terence Zimwara reached out to Leo Gordon, the Chief Strategist at DAO1. Below are Gordon’s responses to a set of written questions. Terence Zimwara (TZ): Could you start by explaining what the DAO1 Hackathon is all about? Leo Gordon (LG): The DAO1 hackathon is an initiative to promote innovation in the crypto space. We encourage the community to submit their next big product ideas and even work on them, while we provide them with the necessary resources to turn such ideas into reality. The DAO1 hackathon is more of an outreach program with incentives for participants.

As the decentralized finance movement proves its staying power and resilience, one of the world’s largest decentralized autonomous organizations, Bitdao, has concluded a private fundraising round to promote mass adoption of open finance. DAO to Allocate Capital Towards Improving Defi R&D, Funding, & Liquidity As decentralized finance (defi) slowly regains its footing following the May decline in total value locked, there is no shortage of investment capital chasing after the idea’s tremendous potential. Bitdao , a decentralized autonomous organization focused on defi, is launching following the successful conclusion of a $230 million private funding round. The private capital raise featured participation from more than 20 institutions and defi partners, including hedge fund manager Alan Howard, well-known entrepreneur Peter Thiel, Dragonfly Capital, Fenbushi, Founders Fund, Jump Capital, Pantera Capital, and Spartan Group, among others. To resolve the Bitcoin network’s per

The Beijing-based ASIC mining rig manufacturer Canaan announced the sale of 10,000 bitcoin mining machines to the firm Genesis Digital Assets Limited. Canaan plans to deliver the 10,000 A1246 and A1166 Pro Avalonminers by the end of the month. Canaan to Deliver 10,000 Bitcoin Miners to Genesis Digital Assets The company Canaan (Nasdaq: CAN) has been making lots of business moves in 2021, as the ASIC mining rig manufacturer believes it will see around $250 million in revenue at the end of the second quarter. The larger share of expected revenue is due to a number of mining rig orders placed in 2021 from a variety of companies purchasing thousands of Avalonminers. On Wednesday, the firm announced that Genesis Digital Assets had settled a purchase order for 10,000 A1246 and A1166 Pro Avalonminers. According to Canaan, the mining rig shipment to Genesis Digital Assets will be delivered in full by June 30, 2021. Both companies have an existing relationship as Canaan sold $93 million

Crypto trading platforms in South Korea are delisting certain digital currencies as they move to comply with stricter rules for the industry. The trading of some high-risk coins has been either halted or completely suspended on several Korean exchanges this week. South Korean Exchanges Wipe Trading Lists of Risky Digital Assets Trying to meet Seoul’s tougher new rules for the cryptocurrency sector, Korean exchanges are now purging their trading lists of high-risk assets. According to a report by Arirang, a number of crypto trading platforms have temporarily halted or ended the exchange of some digital coins, while warning customers to be cautious of other currencies. Out of 20 exchanges that have already obtained Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification , 11 have made such changes, the publication reveled. Among them are some of Korea’s leading crypto exchange providers, with observes reading the move as an attempt to meet new requirements for government approva

The latest Bank of America’s Global Fund Manager Survey shows that “long bitcoin” is now the second most crowded trade. Moreover, most fund managers believe bitcoin is in a bubble and agree with the Fed that inflation is transitory. Bank of America’s June Fund Manager Survey Bank of America (BofA) released its June Global Fund Manager Survey this week. The survey, conducted between June 4-10, covers 224 fund managers with $667 billion under management. The fund managers were asked about many issues of concern to investors, ranging from where the economy and markets are heading to how much cash portfolio managers are holding and which trades they see as most overdone. “Long commodities” is now the most crowded trade, overtaking “ long bitcoin ” which is now the second most crowded trade. The third most crowded trade is “long tech stock,” followed by “long ESG,” “short U.S. Treasuries,” and “long euro.” Despite the BTC price pullback, 81% of the fund managers surveyed stil

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), which has 15 member countries, will help El Salvador implement bitcoin as legal tender. The CABEI president has expressed his support. “We’re very optimistic,” he said. Central American Bank for Economic Integration Supports El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law The head of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) expressed his support for El Salvador’s bitcoin law Monday. CABEI Executive President Dante Mossi said that the bank will give El Salvador technical assistance to implement bitcoin as legal tender. Last week, El Salvador became the first country in the world to pass a law making the cryptocurrency legal tender. The CABEI has 15 member countries: Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic, Belize, Mexico, Republic of China (Taiwan), Argentina, Colombia, Spain, Cuba, and Korea. The bank’s objective is to “promote the economic integration and the balanced economic and

The CEO of General Motors (GM), America’s largest automaker, says that nothing precludes her company from accepting bitcoin if there is consumer demand for it. “Certainly, we want to make the whole buying and ownership experience as easy as possible,” said the GM chief executive. GM Will Accept Bitcoin if There’s Demand, CEO Indicates Mary Barra, the CEO of General Motors (NYSE: GM), talked about the prospect of the largest automaker in the U.S. accepting bitcoin in an interview with CNBC Wednesday. Referencing Tesla CEO Elon Musk stating last week that his electric car company may start accepting BTC again, Barra was asked whether GM will be accepting the cryptocurrency for payments. She replied: There’s nothing that precludes us from doing that. We will be driven by our customers. Certainly, we want to make the whole buying and ownership experience as easy as possible. We will follow their lead. When Tesla announced in February that it would accept bitcoin for paymen

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday told the public that it has forwarded the time frame for raising interest rates. “Progress on vaccinations will likely continue to reduce the effects of the public health crisis on the economy, but risks to the economic outlook remain,” the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) said in a statement. The Meeting Before the ‘Meeting’ – Fed Expects Two Rate Hikes in 2023 After a number of market players waited for the Federal Reserve to reveal some signals, they got some on June 16, when 13 of the FOMC’s 18 committee members projected a rate hike by the end of 2023. “You can think of this meeting that we had as the ‘talking about talking about’ meeting,” the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell noted on Wednesday. The ‘meeting’ Powell refers to is the one where the FOMC raises interest rates after keeping rates suppressed at zero. The so-called plot of individual member interest rate expectations, shows a possibility of two interest rate hik

Ever since El Salvador passed a bill that was approved by a supermajority in the Salvadoran Congress legalizing bitcoin as legal tender in the nation, the country has remained in the spotlight. Furthermore, there’s an area in El Salvador called “Bitcoin Beach” with a small group of beach villagers that are attempting to leverage bitcoin on a daily basis. El Zonte Beach Town and Surfer Village Attempts to Create a Bitcoin Circular Economy in El Salvador In a region located about 50 miles from the Litoral highway, there’s a small village and a lively surfer community situated in Playa El Zonte beach. After El Salvador legalized bitcoin as a form of tender in the country, this beach village area started gaining lots of attention. Not only will you find a number of hotels, hostels, and local eateries for surfers and backpackers, Playa El Zonte also has a bustling bitcoin community. The community or village calls itself “ Bitcoin Beach ” and people can follow the residents on Twitter.