Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

A Brazilian federal court ordered the sale of a bitcoin stash worth $1.1 million. The sale was conducted by the largest regulated exchange in the country, Mercado Bitcoin. The Federal Police seized the bitcoin sold from Tradergroup, a company that allegedly was operating as a Ponzi scheme, under the facade of being a cryptocurrency investment company. This is the first time a Brazilian court order initiated a bitcoin sale from seized assets in the country. Brazilian Court Ordered to Sell Tradergroup’s Seized Bitcoins A federal court in Espirito Santo ordered the sale of $1.1 million worth of bitcoins that were seized by Federal police back in 2019 from Tradergroup, an alleged Ponzi scheme that was operating under the cover of a cryptocurrency investment company. The company was intervened as part of the “Madoff” operation, where 43 Federal Police officers executed five searches and seizure warrants in Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Acre. The proceeds of this sale will be d...

Digital assets have seen great success as investment tools in recent years, but payment adoption is unfortunately still lagging behind. Alchemy Pay is well on its mission to change this by enabling millions of merchants to accept crypto payments and get paid in their local currency. At the same time, Alchemy Pay also opens up investments in the DeFi space to fiat investors. Pay With Crypto at the Bar or Online With Alchemy Pay Alchemy Pay is a hybrid fiat and digital currency gateway solution for businesses and investors. It already operates in 18 countries and regions around the world and has touchpoints with more than 2 million merchants through partnerships with industry giants such as Shopify, Arcadier, QFPay, Binance and more. By enabling businesses to accept crypto clients and get paid in local fiat currency Alchemy Pay solves a major problem for the crypto economy. Crypto payments adoption is vital for the long term and sustainable growth for the industry, but traditional ...

Youtube superstar and rapper KSI, also known as JJ, says he is “really into crypto.” Emphasizing that “Bitcoin is the future,” he said a lot of people do not understand that crypto “is a long-haul thing.” KSI Is ‘Really Into Crypto’ Famed rapper and popular Youtuber KSI talked about bitcoin and cryptocurrency in an interview with GQ magazine published Friday. KSI, whose real name is Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, is also known as JJ. He was ranked second by The Sunday Times in its list of the top 100 U.K. influencers in 2019. He is also part of the British Youtube group known as the Sidemen. Responding to a question about the first thing he would do if he were prime minister, KSI said: I’d give everyone £100 worth of bitcoin – like a bitcoin stimulus package for all. I’m really into crypto. I think Bitcoin is the future. “It’s definitely going to be long term, but in ten years’ time, people who invested will be laughing,” he added. KSI proceeded to compare bitcoin...

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a longtime bitcoin skeptic, has shared her view of the benefits of cryptocurrencies. While noting that “The biggest upside to cryptocurrency could be expansion or democratization of access to the financial system,” she warned that the crypto industry may need federal bailout if something goes wrong, such as “a run on crypto.” Senator Elizabeth Warren Discusses the Biggest Upside and Downside to Cryptocurrencies Senator Elizabeth Warren was asked about what she thought the U.S. cryptocurrency regulation should look like in an interview with Bloomberg last week. “If people are going to be out there trading it, there needs to be a cop on the beat,” she began. “Because when there’s not a cop on the beat in any market, then it’s the small traders who get cheated, and that’s what always worries me.” The senator from Massachusetts continued: “This is about putting some basic rules in place so that anyone can trade with just some basic confidence that the big...

The founder of the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, is still concerned that governments could outlaw cryptocurrencies. Nonetheless, he sees bitcoin as digital gold and owns some for diversification. Ray Dalio Worried About Government Outlawing Cryptocurrencies Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio is still concerned that governments may outlaw cryptocurrency. Dalio now serves as the firm’s chairman and co-chief investment officer. Bridgewater Associates’ clients include endowments, governments, foundations, pensions, and sovereign wealth funds. Dalio voiced his concern in an interview with CNBC last week, stating that there is “a reasonable chance” that cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, could eventually be outlawed by the federal government. He pointed to the time when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Gold Reserve Act in 1934, transferring all of the country’s privately held gold titles and certificates to the U.S. Treasury as an example. The exe...

Clifford Smith Jr., better known by his stage name Method Man from the rap supergroup the Wu-Tang Clan, announced plans to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) collection called “Tical World.” The tokenized comics and Killa Beez-centric art was designed by the New York artist Alex Smetsky. Wu-Tang Member Method Man to Launch Killa Beez-Centric NFTs The popular member of the rap supergroup Wu-Tang Clan, Method Man has revealed he’s stepping into the non-fungible token (NFT) industry. Method Man is releasing an NFT comic series called the “Tical World” chronicles and “Part 1: The Origin,” which offers a slew of features from the Wu-Tang rapper. The NFT will include never-before-released music from Method Man, 3D animations, and apparel. The well known member of the rap supergroup Wu-Tang Clan, Method Man. Essentially, in terms of apparel, the NFT owner can get a VIP rewards card from the American rapper’s clothing line Tical Athletics . Last year, Method Man also launched a cannabis...

The notorious dogecoin has seen double-digit gains this past week as statistics show the meme-crypto asset has gained 19.66% during the last seven days. Out of the top ten digital currencies in terms of market capitalization, dogecoin has outshined the competition, even surpassing ethereum’s 18% weekly gains. Dogecoin’s Weekly Gains Outshine the Competition, Google Trends Data Shows DOGE Interest Dive-Bombed After May At the time of writing, both the topic dogecoin and the hashtag #dogecointothemoon have been trending on social media Sunday afternoon. As far as interest is concerned, Google Trends (GT) data shows that the search queries for the terms “dogecoin” and “doge” have dropped very low. #DogecoinToTheMoon — Vikash Rao 🇮🇳🇦🇪 (@Vikash17971677) August 8, 2021 During the first week of May, the term “dogecoin” topped the highest score on GT with a score of 100, while the term “doge” hit a 29. Today, the query score for “dogecoin” is only 6 and the search term “doge” i...

U.S. Senator Mike Lee has raised concerns that adopting the crypto tax provision in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill will stifle innovation and make Americans poorer. He explained that cryptocurrencies are not like securities and cannot be regulated with the same policies, noting that to do so would drive innovation offshore. Senator Mike Lee Warns Passing Unproven Legislation Will Stifle Innovation While outlining concerns he has about numerous provisions in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill during the Senate session Saturday, U.S. Senator Mike Lee from Utah drew attention to the provision about cryptocurrency, which he described as “an industry that’s rapidly developing within the United States.” He noted that the crypto provision “seeks to require those who buy and sell cryptocurrency to treat it the same way as they would the exchange of securities.” However, the senator argued that cryptocurrencies are “very different than securities.” He added: “These aren’t just s...

The chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, says that Satoshi Nakamoto’s innovation is real. “It has been and could continue to be a catalyst for change in the fields of finance and money,” he said. Satoshi Nakamoto’s Innovation Is Real SEC Chairman Gary Gensler talked about bitcoin and cryptocurrency regulation last week at the Aspen Security Forum where he outlined his plans to regulate the crypto space. He began by referencing the Bitcoin whitepaper and its creator, the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto. “His innovation spurred the development of crypto assets and the underlying blockchain technology,” Gensler said about Satoshi, adding that “the crypto asset class has ballooned” and is now worth about $1.83 trillion. Noting that when he was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) prior to being confirmed as the head of the SEC, he researched, wrote, and taught on the subject of bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology. Ge...

Last month, the popular bitcoin analyst and creator of the stock-to-flow price model, Plan B, explained that he believed the “bull is not over.” On August, 6, Plan B is still showing confidence in his forecast and reconfirmed his message from last month. Meanwhile, bitcoin prices have been able to bounce back and on Sunday, bitcoin prices tapped a high of $45,355. Plan B Shows Confidence in Previous Forecast While Bitcoin Prices Tap Fresh Highs Bitcoin ( BTC ) has been on a tear lately and oddly enough in the face of regulatory uncertainty in the United States. BTC has gained over 11% during the last seven days and 30-day stats show the leading crypto asset is up 31% against the U.S. dollar. Since the opening trading sessions on August 5, at $39,734 per BTC , the crypto asset has gained 12.97% in three days. Moreover, following the bullish action, the infamous pseudonym leveraged by the Twitter account @100trillionusd, also known as “Plan B,” seems more confident the bitcoin bull...

PRESS RELEASE. AscendEX , a global cryptocurrency financial platform with a comprehensive product suite, is excited to announce the Port Finance token (PORT) under the pair USDT/ PORT on Aug 9 at 2 p.m. UTC. Port Finance is a money-market, non-custodial liquidity protocol on Solana. They aim to provide a comprehensive suite of lending products, including variable-rate lending, fixed-rate lending, and interest rate swap. Their idea is to take advantage of the growth in size and capability of the Solana network. Port Finance brings interest rate markets to the Solana ecosystem. It leverages the Solana blockchain’s high speed and low latency with a product suite that includes variable rate lending, fixed-rate lending, and interest rate swaps. Port Finance takes a three-step approach; they provide a baseline lending protocol similar to Compound and Aave on Ethereum. Secondly, they launch a fixed rate lending protocol that utilizes the Serum order book. And finally, they build out an in...

British bank Standard Chartered will offer cryptocurrency broker services in Ireland through its Zodia Custody subsidiary. The digital asset custodian will focus on signing up institutional investors in the Republic which has become a European base for many financial institutions and crypto companies. Standard Chartered to Provide Crypto Custody to Institutions in Ireland Zodia Custody, the Standard Chartered Bank’s crypto brokerage, is planning to offer its services to institutional investors in Ireland, the Irish daily Independent revealed on Sunday. The company operates as an exchange and brokerage for cryptocurrencies and other digital assets. The crypto custodian platform was established late last year by the U.K. bank’s SC Ventures subsidiary and U.S.-based wealth and asset management firm Northern Trust. Both parent companies have already invested heavily in blockchain services in the past few years, the newspaper noted. The joint venture specializes in managing investment...

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has notified several providers of digital payment services that they will be licensed to operate in the city-state. The move, which comes after the approval of a crypto exchange for a license, secures Singapore’s status as Asia’s crypto hub, industry observers say. Digital Payment Service Providers to Be Authorized to Operate in Singapore The central banking authority of Singapore has informed digital payment service providers that it’s going to license them to operate under its jurisdiction. MAS told “several” out of 170 applicants it’s “prepared to grant them payment services licenses,” as long as they implement measures to meet its requirements, the regulator confirmed to South China Morning Post’s ‘This Week in Asia’ edition. Two applications have been rejected so far and another 30 withdrawn for failing to meet anti-money laundering standards. Monetary Authority of Singapore. The news comes after the Australian cryptocurrency excha...

The quantity of monthly USD value transferred from seven leading non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces has reached a total of $356 million during the first week of August. Currently, the project Cryptopunks is leading the pack when it comes to NFT project sales. Meanwhile, the marketplace Opensea captures the lion’s share of transferred value as the trading platform commands 97.19% of the monthly value settled. Opensea’s Tidal Wave of Monthly Sales Captures Lion’s Share of USD Value Transferred At the time of writing, the most prominent non-fungible token project this week is Cryptopunks as statistics from nonfungible.com show the project has seen 1,018 sales worth over $166 million during the last week. Cryptopunks is followed by Art Blocks ($61M) and Meebits ($27M) and Superrare ($6.8M) respectively. Additionally, Cryptoarte ($3.5M), Hashmasks ($2.8M), and the Sandbox ($2M) have also contributed to the past week’s 67,538 NFT sales recorded on Saturday, August 7, 2021. Seven-d...

Residents of Ukraine will be able to legally keep, exchange, and spend cryptocurrencies once the new virtual assets law is adopted. The legislation will comprehensively regulate the crypto space, possibly lower taxes for Ukrainians and create conditions for new services, a government official revealed. New Regulations to Create Market for Crypto Services for Ukrainians Ukrainians owning cryptocurrency will benefit from the law “On Virtual Assets” as it will introduce investor protection and allow them to legally exchange and declare their crypto holdings. The legislation will make virtual assets “a completely legal and common phenomenon for the government and the society,” Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation, Oleksandr Bornyakov, said in an interview with the financial news portal Minfin . Oleksandr Bornyakov The official expects to also see a whole new market for services allowing coins to be stored, exchanged, and used in payments. Although the draft states tha...

The president of Fidelity Digital Assets, the crypto arm of Fidelity Investments, says that crypto is “its own unique asset class.” He revealed, “We and others are very engaged with regulators … to bring this asset class into the mainstream.” Fidelity Sees Long-Term Interest in Crypto Assets Among Institutional Investors Fidelity Digital Assets President Tom Jessop shared his view on the future of cryptocurrency in an interview with Yahoo Finance Thursday. He also discussed his firm’s efforts to engage with regulators to bring the asset class mainstream. Fidelity is one of the largest traditional money managers. It has about 37 million individual investors, 83.4 million customer accounts, and $10.4 trillion in managed assets as of the end of March. The company established Fidelity Digital Assets in 2018 to provide cryptocurrency products and services, including bitcoin, to institutional investors. “What’s apparent are two things,” Jessop explained: This is seen as its own unique...

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken its first enforcement action involving decentralized finance (defi). The commission has charged a defi platform and its executives for unregistered securities sales of more than $30 million and misleading investors. SEC’s 1st Enforcement Action Involving Decentralized Finance The SEC announced Friday that it has taken the first enforcement action involving decentralized finance (defi). The case involves “securities using defi technology.” The regulator charged two Florida men — Gregory Keough and Derek Acree — and their Cayman Islands company, Blockchain Credit Partners, for “unregistered sales of more than $30 million of securities.” The three were also charged “for misleading investors concerning the operations and profitability of their business Defi Money Market.” They used smart contracts and defi technology to sell two types of digital tokens: mtokens and DMM governance tokens (DMG). The former promised to pay 6.25%...

According to data on August 7, there’s 253,510 bitcoin-pegged or wrapped tokens worth more than $11 billion in value on the Ethereum blockchain. Out of the seven different bitcoin-pegged projects, the Wrapped Bitcoin protocol has 194,023 bitcoin-pegged ERC20 tokens in circulation. Over 250K Tokenized Bitcoin In Circulation Split Between 7 Ethereum Projects, Binance Smart Chain’s Bitcoin-Peg Reaches 73K Issued Ethereum (ETH) jumped over the $3K zone in value on Saturday, as the protocol successfully upgraded on August 5. ETH ’s market valuation has gained a significant amount of dominance in terms of the $1.78 trillion crypto-economy capturing 20% of that value on Saturday. The crypto asset has also gained more than 700% against the U.S. dollar during the last 12 months. Much of this has been attributed to decentralized finance (defi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and a myriad of decentralized exchange (dex) platforms over the last year. The number of tokenized bitcoin on Ethere...

The well known luxury auction house Christie’s has announced the company’s first non-fungible token (NFT) art sale in Asia on September 17. According to the announcement, the NFTs will feature Cryptopunks by Larva Labs, Meebits, and Bored Apes. Christie’s Reveals First NFT Auction in Asia Founded in 1766 by James Christie, the British auction house Christie’s has been auctioning luxury goods, artwork, clothing, and jewelry for well over 100 years. Christie’s got into the cryptocurrency and blockchain scene last year and sold its first NFT for $131,250. The first NFT the auction house sold was Robert Alice’s “Block 21 (42.36433° N, -71.26189° E) (from Portraits of a Mind).” During the second week of May, Christie’s held a Cryptopunks auction where the auction house sold nine punks for over $16 million . Christie’s was also instrumental during the Beeple NFT sale which sold for a whopping $69 million and is the most expensive NFT to date. In July, the artist “Fewocious” raked in ov...