Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The new chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, has shared his view on how the SEC plans to regulate cryptocurrencies, particularly bitcoin. He calls bitcoin “a digital, scarce store of value” and stresses the need to put in place some investor protections for this asset class. New SEC Chairman Talks About Bitcoin, Crypto Regulation SEC Chair Gary Gensler talked about cryptocurrency policies and bitcoin in an interview with CNBC Friday. Gensler taught classes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in financial technology, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology. He was confirmed as the new SEC chairman last month. Replying to a question about how he would regulate cryptocurrencies, the chairman replied, “To the extent that something is a security, the SEC has a lot of authority.” Noting he will refer to cryptocurrencies as “crypto tokens,” the former MIT professor emphasized that “a lot of crypto tokens … are indeed securities.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking a court order to immediately shut down the operations of cryptocurrency exchange Coinseed. The attorney general previously filed a lawsuit against the crypto exchange but the platform allegedly continued to operate and dupe investors. US Authorities Take Urgent Action Against Coinseed The Office of Attorney General Letitia James announced Friday that the attorney general “has taken legal action to immediately halt the continued illegal and fraudulent operations of the cryptocurrency trading platform Coinseed Inc.” A motion was filed late Thursday “asking the court for a temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction, and the appointment of a receiver to immediately block Coinseed and its CEO from making any further unauthorized trades and safeguarding investors’ monies,” the notice reads. The receiver will “oversee all assets in an effort to safeguard investments as Attorney General James’ lawsuit proceeds.” James filed a l

Ethereum Classic, a seemingly forgotten cryptocurrency, reached the attention of many this week when its price skyrocketed out of the blue, but there might be some reasons behind it. Also, Bitcoin Cash and other Bitcoin-based forks enjoyed a healthy week in the green, alongside Dogecoin, whose price boosted on the news of Elon Musk appearing on SNL, the famous comedy sitcom, on May 8th. Ethereum Classic Soared This Week Ethereum Classic, the sibling fork of Ethereum, enjoyed a price revival this week when its price soared more than 200% to become the cryptocurrency that led the way of the bull market. Ethereum classic (ETC) started the week with a price of $36, and slowly crawled its way up to $160 on Thursday, to then experience a correction that took it to $118 at the time of writing this article. But what were the reasons that led to it? Ethereum Classic has not been the trustiest cryptocurrency out there. Just during the last year, it suffered several 51% attacks that compro

Public documents show the wealth manager Vaneck has applied for an ethereum based exchange-traded fund (ETF). Vaneck Digital Assets’ Form S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was filed on May 7, while the company’s bitcoin-based ETF is still under review. While Waiting for Approval for Its Bitcoin ETF, Vaneck Files With the SEC for an Ethereum Fund The ETF and mutual fund manager Vaneck and its digital assets management subsidiary have filed with the SEC on Friday for an ethereum-based ETF. The filing mentions the ETF will be called the “Vaneck Ethereum Trust,” and the company hopes to list shares on the Cboe BZX Exchange. So far in the United States, the SEC has yet to approve a bitcoin-based ETF filing, but there’s been a flurry of applications in 2021 with Vaneck’s bitcoin ETF included. Cboe is also mentioned as the listing exchange for Vaneck’s BTC application. The trust will hold ethereum ( ETH ) as share value will be based on the MVIS Cryptocompare

A recent ban imposed by the South Korean National Police Agency will bar particular officers from purchasing additional cryptocurrencies. The announcement coincides with a report revealing a heightened domestic availability of digital coins, in comparison to the global marketplace. South Korea to Penalize National Police Agency Officers Who Fail to Disclose Crypto Holdings Officers with certain investigative and inspective responsibilities have been prohibited from buying additional cryptocurrency. Reporting on the Friday announcement suggests that Korean National Police Agency ( KNPA ) officers will be obliged to make additional disclosures on any held digital assets. The country’s main law enforcement agency stressed penalties for non-compliance, without any indication to their severity. Domestic sources suggest the move aims to introduce additional transparency to sensitive KNPA departments, after a last-month announcement from the South Korean government that it would crackdow

Binance, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges worldwide, has reached a trending topic status in the Twitter social network sphere in Venezuela. The trend before the weekend, shows just how important cryptocurrency topics are for the citizens of the country at the moment. Cryptocurrencies are extremely useful tools for Venezuelans to save their purchasing power and Binance is currently the most popular exchange in the country due to its robust peer-to-peer market. Interest in the company and its services has been peaking in the country. Binance Becomes Trending Topic in Venezuela To the surprise of many, Binance became a trending topic in Venezuela this Friday, with more than 200k tweets directed to several topics including the use of this popular exchange and its services in the country. While most of the tweets praised the exchange and the plethora of options it offers to its customers to manage cryptocurrencies, there was also confusion for some users related to how this s

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are steadily becoming a serious discussion among governments globally, with Kazakhstan as the latest country unveiling its plans. The National Bank of Kazakhstan is making preparations to launch a CBDC pilot program soon. The National Bank Released a Public Consultation Paper According to the announcement published on their website, the bank expects to pilot its prototype of a digital tenge within the private companies of the financial industry in the first stage. The participants will adopt the CBDC to provide payment services via a two-tier architecture where the digital currency will be built. That said, to guarantee the proper official launch of Kazakhstan’s digital tenge, the National Bank looks forward to conducting “a comprehensive study of the benefits and risks with the definition of the tasks solved by the digital currency, the method of its emission and distribution, the technology used, the impact on monetary policy, financial s

The cryptocurrency industry in South Korea keeps facing regulatory challenges, and it seems that dust is far from settling. Now, crypto miners will be required to pay taxes, following the same path as digital assets traders. Ruling to Take Place Starting 2022 According to a report published by Donga, miners should be accountable for paying taxes by deducting the amount from their earnings. Expressly, officials from the South Korean Ministry of Strategy and Finance are set to apply a new rule for those who earn tokens over $2,220 annually by imposing a 20% tax rate. However, regulators clarified that crypto miners would be able to deduct their electricity from the taxable income total in the filings, as those are considered as “necessary expenses.” An official from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance cited by Donga commented on the matter: You have to prove how much you have mined the virtual currency by putting your computer in a specific place and how much the electricity bil

Bitcoin and the crypto economy have been making their way into the world of real estate these days. A recently published report shows that Realtor.com data indicates that people selling property for crypto assets have risen a great deal. Statistics show that there are 14.3 crypto accepting listings per 100,000 homes in the company database. Real Estate Listings Are Seeing More Bitcoin Acceptance for Homes and Properties According to a report from Yahoo Money, the housing market and bitcoin are starting to “collide.” The report talks with real estate agent Whitney Pannell who listed a renovated home for $300,000 and wrote in the listing: “Sellers are accepting Bitcoin for this home.” Pannell says that she is a “firm believer in bitcoin” and told Yahoo Money contributor Janna Herron that she believes “it will be the future.” Bonnie Heatzig, a South Florida MLS realtor, has also seen an increased amount of real estate listings for crypto in the Sunshine State. “It’s certainly indica

The NFT ecosystem is in full bloom, with several renowned names entering the playing field. As more and more artists and creators join the cash-strapped world of NFTs, we’ve got you covered with the latest announcements and launches of the week that are taking the world by storm. Hashmasks Introduce a Passive Opportunity to Earn Two of the biggest creative platforms, Terra Virtua and Hashmasks , recently collaborated to launch a unique set of NFTs called the Vflect Hashmasks. Setting a new benchmark in the NFT industry, Terra Virtua and Hashmasks have joined hands to implement a “rolling royalty” framework where Hashmasks NFT owners will be entitled to royalties and proceeds from the forthcoming Vflect Hashmasks Collection sale. Hashmasks owners need to apply to license their Hashmask to be eligible to earn royalties. With over 16,000 unique Hashmasks and hundreds of special features of each Vflect collectible, this collaboration can generate millions of possible combinations.

The publicly-listed Canadian firm Nuvei Corporation announced the acquisition of the cryptocurrency company SimplexCC Ltd in an all-cash deal for $250 million. The deal is pending regulatory approval and Nuvei expects Simplex to “enhance” the firm’s portfolio of alternative payment method solutions. Nuvei Acquires Crypto Payments Provider Simplex On May 6, the Canadian company Nuvei (TSX: NVEI), a global payment technology firm, revealed the acquisition of the crypto asset payment operation Simplex. The digital currency startup offers fiat to the crypto on and off-ramps alongside the ability to provide Visa cards to crypto consumers. The company notes that it “processed approximately $500 million of total volume” last year and estimates it will process $2 billion this year. “We expect Simplex to enhance and expand Nuvei’s steadily growing portfolio of alternative payment methods, adding turnkey simplicity to the process of buying and selling cryptocurrency and converting it back to

The governing body of the major professional soccer league in Italy, Lega Serie A, will release a special collection of NFTs in commemoration of Cup of Italy’s last match this year. The 2021 Coppa Italia Final is viewed as a historic event as Juventus and Atalanta prepare to clash for the trophy for the first time. Italian Soccer League to Offer Collectibles for Cup of Italy Final The winner will be determined in a game on May 19, when the two teams meet at the Mapei Stadium in Reggio Emilia. After a successful year in the Italian soccer championship, Bergamo-based Atalanta will now challenge the Italian grand Juventus for the Cup of Italy. With 13 title wins so far, Turin’s Juve is the tournament’s most successful club. Lega Serie A wants to commemorate the game with a special NFT collection, including the official trophy and match highlights. The non-fungible tokens (NFTs) will be launched in partnership with the payment and cryptocurrency platform Crypto.com after the two sides

Marathon, one of the biggest bitcoin mining dedicated companies in the U.S. and Canada, has mined the first OFAC compliant bitcoin block, only accepting transactions that comply with the directives of this government office. This has caused a stir in libertarian circles, that argue this can be the start of censorship in the bitcoin blockchain at a mining level. Marathon Mines the First OFAC Compliant Bitcoin Block Marathon, a North America-based mining company, has mined the first OFAC compliant bitcoin block yesterday, that only included KYC validated transactions and excluded transactions from addresses coming from sanctioned subjects. The block was found five days after Marathon completed the transition from its other pools to its completely compliant mining pool on May 1st. Since that day, the whole 10.37 EH/S are assigned to only mine KYC/OFAC compliant transactions. While still somewhat new, in 2018 the OFAC started including cryptocurrency addresses associated coming from

PRESS RELEASE. AscendEX, formerly BitMax, an industry-leading digital asset trading platform built by Wall Street quant trading veterans, has announced the listing of the NIOX Token (NIOX) under the pair USDT/NIOX on May 5 at 1:00 p.m. UTC. The NIOX Foundation and the Autonio trading platform are launching the NIOX suite to address the technical complexity, secrecy, and exclusivity found on existing trading platforms. The Suite’s goal is to provide users with a simple infrastructure for engaging with digital asset markets. The NIOX Suite is an accessible, decentralized and comprehensive set of financial tools for the digital asset economy. The platform makes it easier for traders to conduct analyses, deploy trading algorithms, and exchange digital assets. The NIOX flagship service is Autonio, an artificial intelligence trading platform that democratizes access to advanced trading algorithms. In addition, the NIOX foundation is launching a sentiment analysis tool and decentra

Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA) says the country needs a more encompassing approach that enables it to leverage other regulators’ expertise when testing crypto assets. Kenyan Crypto Interest Also, the Kenyan body, which favours a joint financial sector regulatory sandbox, says it is keen to forge “a common stance and joint-messaging with the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK)” when it comes to cryptos. The CMA’s latest commentary on cryptocurrencies follows the release of the Capital Markets Soundness report of Q1, 2021. According to the quarterly report, which itself relies on the Chainalysis 2020 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report, Kenya “is the top 5 in global crypto-trading activity.” The country’s interest in cryptos is also reaffirmed by a Blockchainnenter.net report which places Kenya’s bitcoin search interest at 94.7%. Investor Protection Mandate Yet, despite this acknowledgment of crypto assets’ growing popularity, the Kenyan regulator insists it still has an in

The now-deceased and former lead guitarist for the Grateful Dead, Jerry Garcia, will have a rare piece of his artwork sold as a non-fungible token (NFT) collectible asset. The NFT is a digital piece called “Gift” and is being sold by the Jerry Garcia Foundation, a nonprofit that supports “environmental, artistic and humanitarian causes through the beauty of music and art.” ‘One Man Gathers What Another Man Spills’ On May 5, The Jerry Garcia Foundation released a newly minted NFT for auction called “ Gift ,” a piece of artwork crafted by the late Grateful Dead guitarist. The Grateful Dead was a well known American psychedelic rock band that formed in 1965 and toured up until 1995 playing approximately 2,350 shows. Moreover, the Dead had a massive following known as “Dead Heads,” as thousands of individuals followed the group around the world. The Dead’s lead guitarist Jerry Garcia was not only an extremely popular musician, but he also dabbled in fine art as well. The NFT called t