Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

At 3.5 million people, the United Arab Emirates is home to the largest population of Indian migrants globally, making the UAE the top source of remittances for India. Recognizing a need to enhance the cross-border payments experience in one of the biggest remittance corridors in the world, LuLu Exchange, a leading Abu Dhabi-based financial services … Continued The post LuLu Exchange and Federal Bank Enhance Cross-Border Payments Experience into India with RippleNet appeared first on Ripple. http://dlvr.it/RsXfN7

Players who enjoy the best-selling video game Minecraft will be able to transfer blockchain-based non-fungible token (NFT) assets into the game. Microsoft and the company Enjin have issued Minecraft-compatible NFTs in order to celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. Minecraft-Compatible Non-Fungible Tokens The video game Minecraft is the most popular game today and the creators have sold 200 million+ copies since it was launched by Mojang Studios. According to the announcement , the latest blockchain-based items are meant to “champion women in science and technology.” The firm Enjin explained that the program leverages the latest NFTs to reward “inclusive behavior.” “Taking this partnership forward, we are delighted to collaborate with Microsoft on the occasion of 6th International Day of Women and Girls in Science, with the Azure Space Mystery game— an educational initiative that awards special-edition digital badges powered by the Enjin Platform,” the blog

The official Twitter account of Belgium’s Minister of Energy was the recent victim of a high-profile hacking incident. Tinne Van der Straeten’s profile was hacked to promote a bogus giveaway of ethereum tokens. Hacked Twitter Accounts Whoever was behind the incident changed the minister’s verified profile to “Ethereum Foundation” to make it look legit. First reports indicated that a fake giveaway of 50,000 ETH started to spread out over Van der Straeten’s account. But no tweets were seen at the time the minister’s staff restored the account. However, her Twitter profile’s activity during the incident showed that the hacker liked tweets published by bitcoin investor Cameron Winklevoss and venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya. Quoting Van der Straeten’s spokesperson Jonas Dutordoir, The Brussels Times reported that they contacted Twitter immediately. Also, all passwords were changed by the cabinet accordingly. Dutordoir added: An investigation is ongoing to understand how th

Ever since the infatuation between Elon Musk and the meme-based cryptocurrency dogecoin, a number of people have looked at the asset critically. News.Bitcoin.com recently reported on the mysterious dogecoin wallet that absorbed more than 27% of the coin’s supply since February 6, 2019. This week, the dogecoin wallet with $3 billion worth of the crypto asset has been creating odd transactions with binary messages, further adding to the speculation that the address might be Musk’s wallet. Cryptic Binary Code, Elon’s Birthday, and Transaction Gibberish The cryptocurrency dogecoin has catapulted seeing ‘much value’ and shibes everywhere have been saying “wow.” The founder of Tesla, Elon Musk, has been one individual who has created a lot of hype around the meme-based crypto asset. But Musk hasn’t been the only one, as people have placed signs in Times Square in New York telling people in the city they should “buy DOGE.” On social media, there are many dogecoin fans shilling the token

As bitcoin has touched new price highs on Thursday nearing the $50k handle, people have been curious as to where the price will go in the future. Meanwhile, despite the gains so far, a number of luminaries, analysts, executives, and proponents from the crypto space believe the leading crypto asset will reach between $60k to six-digits this year. Mike Novogratz Predicts $100K Bitcoin: ‘Other CFOs and CEOs Are Saying, What Should We Be Doing?’ Satoshi Nakamoto’s invention has gained mass appeal in recent times as the leading digital asset bitcoin ( BTC ) has reached its highest value ever in 2021. On Thursday morning (EST), BTC spiked to an all-time high (ATH) at $48,697 per unit. Earlier in the morning at around 2 a.m., bitcoin was exchanging hands for $44,485 and saw an 8.98% increase since then. At the time of publication, at 6:30 p.m. (EST) on February 11, 2021, bitcoin (BTC) is swapping for $47,821 per coin. With BTC so close to the $50k mark, people have been forecasting

A Reddit post that predicted Tesla’s $1.5 billion purchase of bitcoin on Monday has been revealed as a hoax, after the New York Post tracked down the user. Reddit User Says He Was High on Acid When Writing It Tesla’s record-breaking bitcoin purchase stunned the markets earlier this week, causing the price of bitcoin to spike to a new high of over $48,000 per coin. Predicting a purchase of this size would require amazing foresight or insider knowledge, something which Reddit users were keen to figure out following a now-removed post from Jan. 2 by a user known only as Tslainsider. But the identity of that poster has now been revealed by the New York Post, in an article which includes a rather shocking revelation from the 24-year-old political science student stating he was “high on acid” when he wrote it. In an email sent on Tuesday, he told the New York Post: If you want to know the truth: I am a young German guy and I was on acid while I did this post in the last month. I had

Apple Inc. is well position to offer cryptocurrency trading, according to an analyst with global investment bank RBC Capital Markets. Not only will Apple gain instant market share in the crypto space, but the move could also generate the Iphone maker well over $40 billion in annual revenue. In addition, the analyst says that Apple should follow Tesla’s example and add bitcoin to its balance sheet. Analyst Says Apple to Benefit From Offering Crypto Trading, Should Add Bitcoin to Treasury RBC Capital Markets analyst Mitch Steves believes that Apple Inc. has a “clear opportunity” to offer the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies, which he says would result in the company immediately gaining market share. Getting into the crypto exchange business will also bring Apple a sizable revenue stream annually, he detailed. His comments followed the news of Elon Musk’s Tesla putting $1.5 billion into bitcoin. The analyst predicts that the Iphone maker could create a sizable new market for gro

Payments giant Mastercard has announced that it is preparing to allow a number of cryptocurrencies to move through its network directly. Customers, merchants, and businesses will no longer need to convert cryptocurrencies into fiat currencies to transfer through the Mastercard network. Mastercard Prepares to Let Cryptocurrencies Move Through its Network Mastercard announced Wednesday that it will start “bringing crypto onto its network.” In a blog post on the company’s official website, Raj Dhamodharan, Executive Vice President of Digital Asset and Blockchain, explained that “digital assets are becoming a more important part of the payments world.” He noted that customers are using Mastercards to buy cryptocurrencies, especially during bitcoin’s bull runs, elaborating: We are preparing right now for the future of crypto and payments, announcing that this year Mastercard will start supporting select cryptocurrencies directly on our network. This is a big change that will require a

Following Tesla’s move to invest $1.5 billion in bitcoin, analysts are predicting that a flood of other companies will follow suit. Mad Money’s Jim Cramer thinks that all companies should put bitcoin in their balance sheets, and Twitter reveals that it is already looking into doing that. Other Companies Will Follow Tesla’s Bitcoin Example, Say Analysts Following the groundbreaking move by Elon Musk’s Tesla to put $1.5 billion of the company’s cash reserve into bitcoin, many people are expecting other companies to make a similar move. Mad Money host Jim Cramer applauded Elon Musk and Tesla for doing more with their cash and being at the forefront. He said Tuesday: Treasurers of all companies should be thinking about diversifying. Have some money in bitcoin. Tesla’s bitcoin buy announcement has also inspired retail traders worldwide to buy bitcoin, including in India where local crypto exchanges have been seeing heavy spikes in cash deposits, new registrations, and trading volu

The president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, has clarified whether central banks will start holding bitcoin now that a growing number of companies, like Tesla, are embracing the cryptocurrency. Lagarde remains skeptical about bitcoin, having recently said it “has conducted some funny business.” ECB Chief Christine Lagarde Denies Central Banks Will Hold Bitcoin Following Elon Musk’s Tesla investing $1.5 billion in bitcoin, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, has clarified whether central banks will hold bitcoin. During a conference call hosted by The Economist Wednesday, Lagarde said that she did not consider bitcoin to be a real currency, emphasizing that central banks won’t be holding it as a reserve currency. She was quoted by Business Insider as saying: It’s very unlikely. I would say it’s out of the question. Lagarde recently called on all countries, particularly the G7 or the G20 nations, to impose more regulations o

One of Malaysia’s top investment banks has bought a 19% stake in a local crypto exchange via its private equity arm. The Kenanga Investment Bank announced its inception into the crypto business by investing in Tokenize Xchange. Tokenize Xchange Is One of the Three Malaysian Licensed Crypto Exchanges Per the official announcement , the bank made the transaction through Kenanga Private Equity Sdn Bhd via a conditional agreement to purchase 19% equity interest in the trading platform. Hong Qi Yu, chief executive officer of Tokenize Xchange, founded the firm in 2018. Since its launch in Singapore, the exchange has gathered a customer base of over 100,000. On April 1, 2020, the company went live as a licensed crypto firm in the country. Tokenize Xchange is one of the three licensed (DAX) exchanges approved by the national regulatory body, the Securities Commission Malaysia. Datuk Chay Wai Leong, group managing director of Kenanga Investment Bank, commented on the move and what the ban

The European law enforcement agency, Europol, has arrested 10 people believed to be members of the criminal gang that stole cryptocurrencies with an estimated value of $100 million. The arrests follow an international investigation into a series of sim swapping attacks that occurred in 2020. According to Europol, this criminal gang had also targeted high-profile victims that are based in the U.S. The Hijacking of Mobile Devices In a statement following the arrests, the law enforcement agency explains that eight members of the gang were nabbed on Feb. 9. The two other members, one from Malta and the other from Belgium, had been arrested earlier. As the statement explains, thousands of victims including “famous internet influencers, sports stars, musicians and their families” have been targeted by the sim swapping gang. Meanwhile, in a brief explanation of how the criminal network operated, the law enforcement agency says: The investigation uncovered how a network composed of a do

PRESS RELEASE. Hidden among a press release published on November 10, 2020 is one of the most significant developments in blockchain history: By partnering with Tilia Pay, Upland.me, a virtual property metaverse that offers true ownership of NFT property parcels mapped to real addresses, has taken a giant leap towards creating the world’s first true digital economy . As the earth’s metaverse, Upland is blurring and ultimately erasing the line between the real world and the digital world. Upland has now been bringing that proposition to life with Property-to-USD. By spending the past two years building a metaverse that offers true ownership of digital assets via blockchain tech, Upland has asymptotically been approaching their goal of building a fully realized market-based digital economy. So far, Upland allowed purchasing of digital assets via fiat or crypto (through UPX) and the in-game resale and trading of those assets. Upland has established a true free market based on supply

An attempt to capitalize on the ongoing hype around Dogecoin has backfired for the crypto wallet app Freewallet after it was called out online in a tweet from Elon Musk. Musk Proclaims ‘Your app sucks,’ In Blunt Tweet Directed at Freewallet Freewallet, riding on the Elon-Doge rocket of publicity, released a tweet telling people to buy and exchange Dogecoin in its crypto wallet app with a tag of the man himself. Tagging Elon Musk comes with its own risk, as apparent from the blunt reply: Your app sucks — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 10, 2021 An hour later, Musk decided to expand on his claim by jumping from his role of executioner to an educator: Any crypto wallet that won’t give you your private keys should be avoided at all costs — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 10, 2021 As expected, Musk’s followers rallied behind him and joined in on the action, leading to an entourage of critical posts being directed towards the crypto app. Full thread here . Musk’s criticism o

The crypto portfolio tracker Blockfolio, owned by the exchange FTX, got its messaging system compromised, as racist notifications started to appear. Blockfolio’s users received the offensive messages with a warning that they’re about to lose all funds. Some Offensive Messages Included a URL Reportedly Linked to Pornography According to the crypto tracker and trading app, they’re almost entirely back with their notification system, and the company issued a public apology: We are incredibly sorry about the offensive messages posted today. No funds/etc were affected; this did not interact with any trading features. Also, Blockfolio said they’ve revoked access to the compromised Signal submitter and removed the racists’ messages . Tracking parts of the app are again coming back progressively, said the FTX-owned app. All the users’ offensive messages seem to be the same ones, with clear grammar mistakes. It reads as follows: Hello we are sad to announce we closure of our services

Winklevoss Twins, Swish DJ Alesso, and 76ers owner Michael Rubin debut digital artworks alongside an all-star celebrity line-up. The non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are a collection of NFTs distributed by the art collective Ethernity. Ethernity Provides a Way for Stars to Support Philanthropic Causes A star-studded line-up of celebrities and influential figures has launched its first collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as part of the celebrity art collective Ethernity , a new NFT project that sells digital artwork endorsed by well-known public figures in the areas of film, TV, music, sports, and cryptocurrency. A token represents each piece of digital artwork featured in the Ethernity collection created by renowned artists. A portion of the funds raised from each sale will be donated to charitable causes. Endorsed by celebrities and created by artists, Ethernity provides a way for stars to support philanthropic causes while participating in events that are close to their hearts.