Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Europol, the EU law agency, cracked down on Vitae, a Belgian Ponzi scheme. Europol raided 17 locations related to the website, promoted as a social media site with its own cryptocurrency. The company operated in Switzerland under the name VITAE AG. Law enforcement officials recovered €1.1 million in cash and €1.5 million in cryptocurrency during this action. Europol Shuts Vitae Down Europol took action against a group of individuals that used the Vitae platform to run an alleged Ponzi scheme. The European law enforcement agency coordinated the actions with the Belgian Federal Judicial Police under the jurisdiction of the Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office to organize a joint criminal investigation. This joint force raided 17 houses related to the case, mainly in Antwerp, West Flanders, and Limburg. According to reports, Swiss police conducted other searches. Five people were arrested for their alleged participation in the Vitae scheme. Europol also closed the Vitae website and re...

In a hint that Tanzania might soon reverse its 2019 crypto ban, an unnamed spokesperson of the Bank of Tanzania (BOT) recently suggested the apex bank is “working on the directives given.” The remarks by the spokesperson follow Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s call on the country’s finance chiefs to prepare for cryptocurrencies. BOT Move Commended In a speech delivered shortly after El Salvador made bitcoin legal, President Hassan pointed to the inevitability of cryptocurrencies. However, as one report explains, the central bank spokesperson did not reveal whether or not the BOT is planning to adopt existing cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin or if it wants to issue its own digital currency. Still, even with this lack of clarity, some members of Tanzania’s blockchain and crypto community have welcomed the reports. For instance, Abdulmajid Nsekela, the chairman of the Tanzania Bankers Association commends the reports that are attributed to the BOT’s spokesperson but warn of...

PRESS RELEASE. June 2021, leading Crypto service comparison site – Cryptowisser, attempts to dissipate the cloud of confusion surrounding tax regulations on crypto currencies around the world. As the tax season comes to a close and a record amount of crypto traders are holding, how do you legally save your crypto? It is no surprise that as the recent surges and as alt coins continue flooding the market, more and more people are seeing it as a potential way of making money. And the once fabled mysterious currency, is well, becoming more regulated. Like anything else, regulatory boards are catching on and impicating tax laws. As the Cryptowisser tax essentials report states, the majority of crypto tax either comes from Income Tax or Capital Gains tax. Tax free crypto conditions still exist – The report clarifies Geo advantageous spots for crypto traders- Malaysia for example, does not tax crypto trading unless it is a registered business. Other crypto transactions such as donation...

The former CEO of Gyft and the cofounder of the project Civic, Vinny Lingham has been called an ‘oracle’ at times for correctly predicting the future price of bitcoin. On various occasions all the way back to 2016, Lingham has made correct bitcoin price calls over the years. Even though bitcoin’s price has been lower in recent weeks after shedding over 40% in the last three months, Lingham has an optimistic outlook if “$30k continues to hold.” Vinny Lingham’s Recent Bitcoin Predictions Show Optimism Vinny Lingham is talking about bitcoin (BTC) price predictions again and when he does a number of people listen. Lingham has been giving price forecasts for years now, and people have referred to him as the “oracle” for guessing correctly a lot more than most people. Bitcoin ( BTC ) 1-week chart against the U.S. dollar on June 27, 2021. Bitcoin tapped a high of $64,895 on April 11, 2021, and tapped a low of $28,600 on June 22, 2021. The cofounder of the project Civic’s bitcoin pre...

Ricardo Salinas Pliego, Mexico’s third-richest man and founder of Grupo Salinas, sees bitcoin as an asset with extraordinary properties, describing the cryptocurrency as “gold for the modern world.” He recommends bitcoin, thinks that fiat money is a fraud and the idea of the U.S. dollar being a hard currency is a joke. Mexico’s Third-Richest Man Sees Bitcoin as Asset With ‘Extraordinary Properties’ Ricardo Salinas Pliego talked about bitcoin and fiat money in an interview with José Rodríguez, published last week. He explained that he considers bitcoin a financial asset so it is not important to him whether BTC is a currency or not. The billionaire pointed out that precious metals are also not currencies, noting: “You cannot go to a store with a gold coin and buy a computer. You have to exchange the gold for fiat and then you buy the computer.” Citing a number of advantages, including divisibility, ease of transfer, and the simplicity of storage without counterparty risk, the bill...

John McAfee was reportedly hiding out in a Spanish “ghost hotel” with a bitcoin mining farm in the basement prior to his arrest. Clues from images and messages the antivirus tycoon posted on social media point to a semi-abandoned hotel owned by a Russian. ‘Ghost Hotel’ With Bitcoin Mining Farm After John McAfee was reportedly found dead in his prison cell in Spain, reports have emerged that the antivirus tycoon’s hideout place was a secret bitcoin mining farm. The place was a semi-abandoned hotel in Cambrils called Daurada Park Hotel, El Pais publication reported Friday. Cambrils is a coastal town in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain. The hotel is dubbed “a ghost hotel” by the Spanish publication El Confidencial because reservations were pretty impossible to make as no one answered the phone even when the hotel was still operational. The publication tried to contact the hotel about the McAfee story back in 2018 but to no avail. There are few reviews of the hotel on Trip...

The chairman of International Banking Law and Finance at the University of Edinburgh, professor Emilios Avgouleas, says that tighter crypto regulation will benefit the industry in the long run. He is bullish about the prospects of cryptocurrencies becoming widely used around the world. Tight Regulation Good for Crypto Industry Professor Emilios Avgouleas talked about how strict regulations are beneficial to the crypto industry in an interview with the Insider last week. The chairman of International Banking Law and Finance at the University of Edinburgh, professor Avgouleas is also a senior research fellow at crypto technology company IOHK. According to the university, he is “a leading international expert on financial reform, fintech policy and regulation, banking theory and regulation, capital markets regulation, law and finance, and global economic governance.” Professor Avgouleas described that governments’ efforts to regulate the crypto industry should make cryptocurrencies m...

Boston Federal Reserve president Eric Rosengren discussed stablecoins in a recent presentation on June 25. Rosengren stressed that stablecoins could be a “disruptor” to prime money market funds and the Boston Fed president remarked that the exponential growth of stablecoins is concerning. Rosengren: ‘We Should Be a Bit Concerned About Stablecoin Markets Growing Very Rapidly’ Members of the Federal Reserve are quite aware of stablecoins and the massive market these pegged-assets have created. Today statistics show there’s $111 billion in stablecoin capitalization amongst the long list of these types of tokens. Out of all that money, on Sunday, June 27, there’s $63 billion in reported stablecoin trade volume out of the $96 billion in crypto swaps recorded globally. Boston Fed president Eric Rosengren has noticed the growth and the banker thinks it could pose a problem to short-term money markets. The chart above is from a Boston Fed presentation slide show during a speech on “Fina...

CME Group’s(Chicago Mercantile Exchange) micro-bitcoin futures have already traded more than one million contracts. This instrument allows institutions and retail traders to invest in the crypto asset at a lower price point of 0.1 bitcoin. The contract has only been available for seven weeks, and demand shows there is still room for new derivatives in the crypto market. CME Micro Bitcoin Futures Sell Big When the CME launched a new set of bitcoin derivatives contracts directed to smaller investors almost two months ago, it didn’t expect so much buzz around it. But, according to volume numbers, it seems to have nailed a need in the market for a more granular bitcoin exposure. Now, as more than a million micro-bitcoin futures contracts have changed hands, it’s a big milestone for a very young instrument. That’s an even bigger achievement, considering cryptocurrency is still a niche market. According to Tim McCourt , CME Group’s global head of equity index and alternative investment...

While the price of bitcoin is more than 40% lower than it was 90 days ago on March 29, the number of bitcoin held on exchanges has also been reduced. Last year on the same day in June, 2.79 million bitcoin was retained on crypto trading platforms and a year later roughly 28.67% of the bitcoin held left crypto exchanges. The decreasing quantity of bitcoin kept on centralized exchanges suggests the coins are being held in long-term storage rather than being prepared for trading. Data Suggests Bitcoins Are Being Removed From Exchanges and Into Noncustodial Wallets for Long Term Storage On March 29, 2021, the price was 42.93% higher but there was also 9.54% more bitcoin ( BTC ) held on centralized exchanges. Moreover, the price of BTC was $9,165 per unit, and today as BTC hovers above $33K per unit the price is 262% higher than last year. Interestingly, there was a whole lot more bitcoin on exchanges on June 26, 2020, with statistics showing 2.79 million bitcoin was held in exchange...

Top financial regulators in England and Japan have independently issued warnings on Binance for offering crypto exchange services to residents of the two countries without being registered with the regulators as required by law. Japanese Regulator’s Warning Japan’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), issued a warning notice to Binance Holdings Ltd. and CEO Changpeng Zhao on Friday. The notice states that Binance has been providing crypto exchange services to Japanese customers without registration. Under Japanese cryptocurrency regulation, companies wanting to provide crypto exchange services in Japan must register with the FSA. This was not the first time Binance received such notice from the FSA. The regulator issued the same warning to Binance in March 2018. In May, the FSA issued a similar warning to Bybit Fintech Ltd. and its CEO, Ben Zhou. British Regulator’s Warning Britain’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), iss...

Several Indian banks have reportedly halted services to customers dealing in cryptocurrencies despite the central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), informing them that the banning circular is no longer valid. The latest bank to join the fray is IDFC First Bank. IDFC First Bank has become the latest bank to halt services to crypto companies, Livemint reported last week, citing industry sources. The publication conveyed: IDFC First Bank over the past week temporality stopped services, as it is doing enhanced due diligence regarding banking support to crypto exchanges. This followed the RBI clarifying to financial institutions that its April 2018 circular which banned banks from providing services to crypto businesses is no longer valid and should not be cited or quoted. The central bank added that banks may “continue to carry out customer due diligence processes” in compliance with existing regulations. Other banks that have kept their distance from clients dealing in cry...

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance will no longer provide services in the Canadian province of Ontario. The decision comes amid ongoing regulatory pressure on digital asset trading platforms that has already affected the operations of several exchanges. Crypto Exchange Binance Exits Canada’s Ontario Binance, which is one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges by daily volume, has updated customers on a change that concerns crypto traders in Ontario. The Canadian province is now a restricted jurisdiction, the company announced this week. In a press release, Binance explains the move is part of its continuing compliance efforts. “Binance has updated its Terms of Use to provide that Ontario (Canada) has become a restricted jurisdiction, effective 2021-06-26 at 3:59:59 AM (UTC),” the exchange said, adding: Regrettably, Binance can no longer continue to service Ontario-based users… We apologize for any inconvenience caused. The platform advised cryptocurrency traders in Cana...

As the spotlight turns once again towards the environmental impact of blockchain technologies, support for the Crypto Climate Accord has come from curious corners of the industry, raising questions about its signatories’ motives. Authenticity of CCA’s Support Remains Debatable With concerns surrounding blockchain’s environmental impact garnering a lot of attention, the alarms have grown so loud that crypto mining was the hottest topic of discussion during this year’s UN World Environment Day. This echoed increased support for initiatives designed to restore the natural ecosystem, proposed by several prominent personalities and environmentally-conscious investors. For instance, this year’s mid-May crypto market crash started when Elon Musk suddenly tweeted that Tesla won’t be accepting Bitcoin as payment due to ‘environmental concerns.’ While blockchain is a powerful and transformative technology that can support real-world cases across a growing range of sectors, its energy footpr...

According to new reports, Raees and Ameer Cajee, the two young directors of the recently collapsed crypto investment firm, Africrypt, have “categorically denied” allegations they fleeced clients. Instead, the brothers insist their company is the victim of a hack while also claiming that the media may be overestimating the value of the missing bitcoins. These fresh denials by Africrypt directors come as doubts over the actual number of stolen bitcoins continue to mount. Africrypt Directors Have Little Life Experience Responding to an inquiry from BBC, John Oosthuizen, the lawyer representing Cajees suggested that accusations against his clients had no foundation and lacked “merit.” Still, when asked if his clients had made a police report following the hacking incident, Oosthuizen said “no.” Still, the lawyer suggests that his clients, who are thought to be aged 18 and 20, have “very little life experience.” As a result, when they started receiving death threats, their “first react...

A court of appeals in France has upheld the verdict in the case against BTC-e operator Alexander Vinnik. His lawyers vowed to continue the legal struggle against Vinnik’s return to Greece in order to avoid a likely extradition to the U.S. Court Confirms Vinnik’s 5-year Sentence for Money Laundering The Court of Appeals of Paris has confirmed the first instance decision in Alexander Vinnik’s trial, Russian media reported. In late 2020, the IT specialist, and alleged cybercriminal, was sentenced to five years in prison for money laundering. Vinnik’s defense team now plans to file a cassation appeal within five days as required by French law, the leading Russian business daily Kommersant wrote, quoting Vinnik’s lawyer, Frédéric Bélot, who also commented: If we summarize what happened, we have to regrettably admit that the court made a “lazy decision.” The judge did not want to investigate the money laundering charges, despite that the prosecution’s evidence is far from certain. B...