Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Off the coast of the Irish Sea, humans have lived on the Isle of Man since before 6500 B.C. The island has a robust history of Viking Age treasures. According to a recent announcement from Manx National Heritage, a heritage agency located there, an amateur treasure hunter recently discovered a hoard of Viking silver on the island. U.S.-based researcher and numismatist, Dr. Kristin Bornholdt-Collins, said the unearthed Viking silver hoard was similar to today’s cryptocurrency and embodied a 1,000-year-old comparison to Satoshi Nakamoto’s Bitcoin. Viking ‘Hack’ Silver Hoard Was Modern-Day Equivalent to a Cryptocurrency Just recently, an amateur treasure hunter searching for trinkets on the Isle of Man found a hoard of Viking silver otherwise known as “hack silver.” Manx National Heritage disclosed that the stash of ancient money contained 87 silver coins, 13 pieces of silver arm-rings, and a small fraction of other numismatic artifacts. The Viking stash was discovered in April when Ka

Core Scientific, a major blockchain hosting and digital asset mining company, is going public through a merger with Power & Digital Infrastructure Acquisition Corp. The deal values the combined company at approximately $4.3 billion. Core Scientific to List on Nasdaq Core Scientific Holding Co., one of the largest blockchain hosting and digital asset mining companies in North America, announced Wednesday its plan to go public on Nasdaq via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The crypto firm has entered into “a definitive merger agreement” with Power & Digital Infrastructure Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: XPDI), a publicly traded SPAC backed by the world’s largest asset manager, Blackrock. Under the agreement, XPDI will acquire Core Scientific. The combined company is expected to operate as Core Scientific Inc. and remain a publicly listed company on the Nasdaq stock market. The announcement states: The transaction [acquisition] values the combined company at an imp

China’s first insurance policy using the digital yuan for settlement has been issued in Shenzhen, local media reported. The new product, targeting medical personnel exposed to coronavirus risks, is offered by the country’s largest insurer, Ping An. The financial giant also has fintech and healthtech entities under its umbrella. Ping An Teams Up With Bank of China to Offer Digital Yuan Insurance Policy In what has been described as another major step towards wider deployment of China’s central bank digital currency ( CBDC ), the first digital yuan-settled insurance policies have been launched in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. They come as the result of cooperation between the local subsidiary of Ping An Property Insurance and the Bank of China’s branch in the city, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported . The new insurance product is oriented towards medical staff in Shenzhen’s Nanshan district. The policy provides 300,000 yuan (over $46,000) in coverage for death resulting from C

Three U.S. senators have urged the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee to forbid American athletes from receiving or using digital yuan during the Beijing Olympics. Raising many concerns, including privacy, they warned, “Olympic athletes should be aware that the digital yuan may be used to surveil Chinese citizens and those visiting China on an unprecedented scale.” US Senators Raise Concerns About China’s Digital Yuan Three U.S. senators wrote a letter to Susanne Lyons, the chairman of the board of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), Monday with concerns regarding the digital yuan. Senators Marsha Blackburn, Roger Wicker, and Cynthia Lummis wrote: “We write to express our concerns with the communist Chinese government’s plans to officially launch the Digital Currency Electronic Payment, commonly referred to as the digital yuan, prior to the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.” They clarified: Specifically, we urge the United States Olympic &am

The HOPR protocol provides network-level and metadata privacy for every kind of data exchange. Designed to be better than TOR, the mixnet protects the identity of both sender and recipient by routing data via multiple intermediate relay hops that mix traffic. Now the project launches staking with NFT rewards and you can earn over 18.25% APR. The HOPR Staking Program HOPR , the first-ever open incentivized communication mixnet where users earn tokens for running nodes, is launching a gamified staking program. The contract is available for staking deposits from July 20th, rewards will start to pay out from July 27th and the program will run for 175 days. The contract will be deployed on xDAI Chain and the staking token will be xHOPR. To stake and lock tokens you can simply send xHOPR to the contract address from the address you want to stake from. Rewards will be paid out in wxHOPR, the project’s wrapped token. The developers will also provide an interface to manage your stake, rewar

The European Commission has proposed legislation to “ensure full traceability of crypto-asset transfers, such as bitcoin,” in order to prevent and detect “their possible use for money laundering or terrorism financing.” Moreover, “anonymous crypto asset wallets will be prohibited.” New EU Rules Ban Anonymous Crypto Transactions and Wallets The European Commission presented a set of legislative proposals Tuesday aimed at strengthening the EU’s anti-money laundering and countering terrorism financing (AML/CFT) rules. Among the proposals is a revision of the 2015 Regulation on Transfers of Funds “to trace transfers of crypto-assets.” The proposals take into account “new and emerging challenges linked to technological innovation,” including “virtual currencies, more integrated financial flows in the Single Market and the global nature of terrorist organisations,” the Commission explained. At the heart of the proposed legislative package is the creation of a new “EU-level Anti-Money La

The Turkish government has prepared a bill designed to implement new regulations for the country’s crypto space. The legislation, which will be filed in the parliament this fall, will introduce taxation for crypto holdings and specific capital requirements for companies operating with digital assets. New Legislation to Regulate Turkey’s Crypto Market Following in the footsteps of the West, Turkey is planning to soon put its crypto space in order. The work on a draft law aiming to strengthen investor protection, prevent dirty money laundering, and improve control over cryptocurrency trading has been completed, the Deputy Minister of Treasury and Finance Şakir Ercan Gül announced. Quoted by the Sabah daily, Gül noted that the Turkish regulations will be similar to those that are being introduced in Western Europe and the United States, although a “little more stringent,” the official remarked, citing the country’s free-floating exchange rate regime as a factor. Speaking to the parli

FTX Trading Ltd. announced the firm has closed the largest capital raise in crypto exchange history in a Series B funding round for $900 million. The financing gives FTX a valuation of around $18 billion and the crypto firm aims to expand its global presence. FTX Closes Largest Capital Raise in Crypto Exchange History FTX has seen a number of partnerships and growth in 2021 and following the firm’s Series A financing round last year, the company raised $900 million from over 60 investors for its Series B. The company details that since the last funding round, FTX revenues have increased tenfold and it now has over one million users. Investors that participated in the $900 million Series B include Paradigm, Sequoia Capital, NEA, Coinbase Ventures, Willoughby Capital, the Paul Tudor Jones family, Izzy Englander, Alan Howard, Vaneck, Hudson River Trading, and Circle Financial. The newly injected funds will be dedicated to expansion and increasing both FTX users and products. FTX will

As Georgia seeks to bring its millennia-old wine industry into the 21st century, it is collaborating with blockchain platform Wiv to put the nation’s winemakers in front of a global audience of wine collectors, producers, and merchants. Move Brings Wines and Accompanying Provenance to Blockchain Although not well-known on the global wine stage, Georgia has a long and storied history of wine production that dates back more than 8,000 years. Much of the winemaking techniques remain unchanged for millennia, with producers still employing traditional methods that involve clay storage vessels during the maturation process, known as a kveri, instead of wooden barrels. Today, the country boasts approximately 525 grape varietals and more than 1,800 producers, with wine exports reaching 94 million bottles in 2019. To modernize the industry and engage with the growing global community of wine producers and consumers, the Georgian government has selected Wiv to bring its wine industry into t

PRESS RELEASE. 20th July 2021, SINGAPORE – Leading DeFi and NFT gaming platform Seascape Network is working with Binance NFT, enabling the integration of BSC for exclusive NFTs from their upcoming Zombie game series on the brand new Binance NFT Marketplace . Binance NFT Mystery Boxes The limited edition zombie slayer character Wichita will be exclusively available only through Binance NFT patented Mystery Boxes and will be available in 5 qualities. Higher quality NFTs are extremely rare and bring players higher rewards when using them in Seascape’s upcoming 5th game. With a finite number of the rare NFTs minted, serious players are encouraged to try and acquire them via the NFT Mystery Boxes to start staking them for competitive rewards. Seascape tops DeFi games category This news comes after a series of high points for the growing gaming network this summer. All of its DeFi games earned top 10 spots in BSC’s DeFi games category , and their original NFTs Scapes were Number

A documentary project called “Ethereum: The Infinite Garden” has raised 1,036 ether to complete its fundraising proposal. The project will use these funds to finance the first feature-length Ethereum documentary, that will cast members from the community and key individuals from the Ethereum Foundation, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. The initiative aims for a 2023 release. ‘Ethereum: The Infinite Garden’ Documentary Project Gets Funded “Ethereum: The Infinite Garden,” a project that aims to produce the first documentary about how the smart contracts project was conceived, fulfilled the goal of its recent fundraising campaign. The initiative managed to raise 1,036 ether from more than 600 backers in just three days, an amount bigger than what they established as their goal in the first place (750 ether). The team is now entering the preproduction phase by establishing connections with people from the Ethereum Foundation. The project proposal states that “Ethereum:

Beleaguered Mirror Trading International (MTI) investors have been told to ignore unsolicited offers from individuals claiming to have the ability to trace and recover their missing bitcoins. This warning from the court-appointed liquidators was made after reports emerged that several MTI investors had received such bogus offers from individuals claiming to be agents for cryptocurrency organizations. Fake Agents According to a report , these so-called agents have been asking MTI investors that may be interested in their services to pay them in bitcoins. However, in his warning to investors, MTI joint liquidator Adriaan van Rooyen dismisses the agents’ claims. He said: We have information that MTI members are being contacted by people purporting to be agents with access to MTI’s database. These agents are falsely claiming they can recover bitcoin deposited by members into MTI. This is clearly yet another attempt to defraud members of the MTI. Only the provisional liquidators have a

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has asked the regulators overseeing crypto assets to “act quickly to ensure there is an appropriate U.S. regulatory framework in place” for stablecoins. U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Public Affairs announced Monday the outcome of the meeting of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG) which Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen convened to discuss stablecoin regulation. The meeting , which took place Monday, was joined by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). “In the meeting, participants discussed the rapid growth of stablecoins, potential uses of stablecoins as a means of payment, and potential risks to end-users, the financial system, and national security,” the announcement details, adding: The Secretary underscored the need to act quickly to ensure there is an appropriate U.S. regulatory framework in place … The PWG expects to issue recommendatio

JPMorgan says a lot of its asset and wealth management clients think cryptocurrency is an asset class and they want to invest in it. “Our job is to help them to put their money where they want to invest,” said the CEO of J.P. Morgan Asset & Wealth Management. A Lot of JPMorgan Clients Consider Cryptocurrency an Asset Class Mary Callahan Erdoes, J.P. Morgan Asset & Wealth Management’s CEO, talked about her firm’s approach to cryptocurrencies in an interview with Bloomberg Wealth, published Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase’s asset and wealth management line of business is one of the world’s largest investment managers and private banks, with $3.4 trillion in client assets. Erdoes, who joined the firm 20 years ago, was asked what she would do if a client came to JPMorgan and said that they wanted to invest in cryptocurrency. Specifically, she was asked: “Do you say you shouldn’t do it? do you facilitate it? or are you still evolving your position?” The chief executive replied by firs

Payments giant Mastercard has announced that its crypto card program is being enhanced for cryptocurrency wallets and exchanges. The company said, “Making the process simpler will allow more banks and crypto partners the opportunity to offer their consumers the choice of paying with cryptocurrency.” Mastercard Making It Simpler to Convert Cryptocurrency to Traditional Fiat Currency Mastercard announced Tuesday that “it will enhance its card program for cryptocurrency wallets and exchanges,” making it “simpler for partners to convert cryptocurrency to traditional fiat currency.” The company elaborated: Mastercard and its partners will test this new capability to enable more banks and crypto companies to offer a card option to people wanting to spend their digital assets anywhere Mastercard is accepted. The enhancement to Mastercard’s existing crypto card program involves a suite of key partners. Evolve Bank & Trust and Metropolitan Commercial Bank will issue cards, while Upho

On July 20, the CEO of Circle Internet Financial LLC., Jeremy Allaire, published a blog post that explains the firm’s dollar-pegged stablecoin is backed by “prioritized trust, transparency, and accountability.” Allaire’s blog post follows a letter from the Centre Consortium’s accountant, Grant Thornton explaining that the stablecoin’s reserve account information matches the accompanying reserve account report, which is “correctly stated.” Circle Publishes Stablecoin Reserve Transparency Blog Post, Letter from Grant Thornton, and the Latest Reserve Attestation At the end of May, the cryptocurrency community started discussing the stablecoin usd coin (USDC) as the project’s reserve backing attestations were running late. At the time, USDC’s token issuance was swelling rapidly and at the end of the month, the Centre Consortium partner Coinbase revealed interest-bearing USDC accounts with 4% APY. A few days later, Circle disclosed that the project expanded to the Tron network, and p

An amended prospectus filed yesterday by Robinhood indicates the company is aiming to get a valuation of up to $35 billion in its upcoming IPO. The fee-free options, cryptocurrency, and stock trading service is expecting to sell up to 55 million shares and raise more than $2 billion when the IPO launches next week. Robinhood Aims for $35 Billion Valuation Robinhood, the fee-free, trade-it-all exchange, is aiming to achieve a valuation as high as $35 billion in its upcoming IPO, according to an amended prospectus filed with the SEC on Monday. The exchange, which is reportedly going public as soon as the next week, expects to sell about 55 million shares in its IPO to raise more than $2.3 billion in the process, with a share price in the range of $38 to $42. The exchange, whose self-imposed mission is to democratize access to investment products, reached a valuation of $11.7 billion last September. At the time, Robinhood raised $460 million in an extension of its Series G funding r

On Tuesday, the company that owns the brand of male grooming products, Axe, announced the launch of a dogecoin-themed and “crypto scented” body spray. The release was limited and currently, the body spray featuring the image of the cartoon Shiba Inu is no longer available to U.S. residents. ‘Much Disappointment’ — Doge-Themed Body Spray Is No Longer Available Around 1,000 lucky Americans entered a giveaway of a limited edition dogecoin-themed body spray called “The Dogecan.” The body spray was released by the brand of male grooming products, Axe, a subsidiary of the firm Unilever. Axe scents are created for young male consumers and the Dogecan product allegedly contains a “crypto scent,” which lasts up to 48 hours. We’re Going To The Moon!!!! @AXE #DogeCan 👃🏽 Thanks For The Gift @AXE #DogecoinRise 🐕🪙🚀 pic.twitter.com/a3aIyWe31w — Dogecoin Rise 🐕🪙📈🚀🌕 (@DogecoinRise) July 19, 2021 The Dogecan product was released to U.S. residents only, as Axe is branded “Lynx” i