Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

On September 17, 2021, Solana protocol fans were introduced to the launch of the Wormhole Network’s ethereum – solana bridge, which means assets between each chain can be intermingled. The launch announcement notes that Saber, the Solana-fueled protocol with more than $4 billion total-value locked (TVL), will support migration from Wormhole V1 to V2. Wormhole Launches Ethereum – Solana Bridge Solana has risen 5,504% in value during the last year and today, solana (SOL) is a top ten crypto-asset holding the seventh largest position in terms of market capitalization. At the time of writing, the overall solana (SOL) market valuation is $48.4 billion and there’s a circulating supply of 296,830,872 SOL, according to Coingecko data . On Friday, the Wormhole Network announced the launch of the Wormhole Token Bridge. “Today we’re incredibly excited to announce the launch of our Wormhole Token Bridge starting with Ethereum and Solana,” the Wormhole Network’s Twitter account said . “First u...

Binance’s troubles with regulators grow as U.S. authorities are now reportedly investigating the exchange for possible insider trading and market manipulation. The investigation involves the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Justice Department (DOJ) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have also been investigating Binance on a separate issue. Binance Probed for Possible Insider Trading, Market Manipulation U.S. authorities are now investigating Binance for possible insider trading and Market manipulation to ascertain whether the company or its staff profited by taking advantage of its customers, Bloomberg reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. Binance was quoted saying: At Binance, we have a zero-tolerance policy for insider trading and a strict ethical code related to any type of behavior that could have a negative impact on our customers or industry. The review involves the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) investigators, who have b...

Paypal has completed the first international expansion of its cryptocurrency offering outside of the U.S. Paypal Crypto is now available to customers in the U.K. allowing them to buy, hold, and sell four kinds of cryptocurrencies. Paypal Crypto Now Available to All Eligible UK Customers Payments giant Paypal Inc. announced Friday that it has completed the rollout of its crypto offering in the U.K. The rollout began in late August when the company announced the launch of its crypto service in the U.K. The official account of Paypal U.K. tweeted: We are delighted to share that all eligible customers in the UK can now buy, hold and sell cryptocurrencies bitcoin, ethereum, bitcoin cash & litecoin from their Paypal account. The company’s website explains that the crypto service in the U.K. is provided by Paypal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., a credit institution supervised by Luxembourg’s financial regulator, Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier. However, the cryp...

While bitcoin continues to become more scarce every day, the most popular set of physical bitcoins, crafted by Mike Caldwell from 2011 to 2013, have become far scarcer than their digital counterparts. As of September 18, 2021, there are now less than 20,000 active bitcoins from the Casascius physical bitcoin collection. Casascius Physical Bitcoin Collection Grows Scarcer Bitcoin has become a well-known technology and in the early years a number of people and companies deployed concepts called “physical bitcoins.” Essentially, a group or individual would fabricate a coin with the bitcoin symbol etched on it and the coin would also hold digital BTC hidden within the coin’s body. It’s safe to say that the Casascius physical bitcoin collection created by Mike Caldwell is the most popular collection to date, and these rare physical bitcoins are sold for much more than the face value of the digital bitcoin they hold. Casascius bitcoins sport a holographic tamper-resistant sticker on o...

PRESS RELEASE. Social media dream builder Charlie Rocket and Dreamr Labs announce 2nd nationwide tour with $1 million traveling giveaway kicking off at Life is Beautiful Festival in Las Vegas, 9/17 Click to tweet : Hit the road with Charlie Rocket and @dreamr_app as they travel the country building dreams and giving away $1 million in DMR tokens! Download the Dreamr app at https://www.dreamr.app/ and declare your dream. No dream is too small. LAS VEGAS (SEPTEMBER 11, 2021) – Dreamr , the community-driven app platform and ecosystem created for users to declare their dreams that recently went viral (as seen with Oprah , TMZ, Entertainment Tonight, and more), and Dreamr social media sensation Charlie “Rocket” Jabaley announce the return of its nationwide Dream Machine Tour – a 45-day traveling tour that will make stops in multiple cities, kicking off locally in Las Vegas at Life is Beautiful Festival this weekend. Launching Friday, September 17th, Charlie Rocket and the “Dream Ma...

In mid-September, the total-value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance (defi) continues to climb higher, as the value held on Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Avalanche, Solana, and more blockchains has risen dramatically to $171 billion today. On the Ethereum network, there’s 270,783 bitcoin held in TVL worth more than $13 billion and $15 billion has been swapped across 14 different Ethereum-based decentralized exchange (dex) platforms. $23.8 billion has been swapped across a variety of blockchain protocols, according to a recently published defi weekly report. Defi Growth Remains Exponential A number of crypto assets like bitcoin ( BTC ) and ethereum ( ETH ) have increased in value during the last month, but for the most part, crypto-assets like solana (SOL) and avalanche (AVAX) stole the show during the last 30 days. Across 14 different Ethereum-based dex platforms, there’s been $15 billion in swaps during the last seven days. Data recorded by Dune Analytics. Decentralized fin...

Recently Bitcoin.com News covered the stablecoin tether and how the crypto asset’s market valuation jumped more than 1,500% in just over 500 days. In addition to this exponential increase, the decentralized stablecoin DAI’s market capitalization has also swelled significantly as DAI’s market valuation jumped more than 800% during the last 12 months, increasing from $696 million to $6.3 billion today. Makerdao’s Stablecoin Rises 800% Since September 2020 On Saturday, September 18, 2021, there’s approximately $127.29 billion worth of stablecoins and they currently command $62 billion worth of today’s trade volume. There is no doubt that stablecoins have become huge over the last three years and news outlets and research studies often refer to tether’s (USDT) massive growth . The thing about tether ( USDT ) is that there are humans calling the shots when it comes to the stablecoin project’s operations. The stablecoin DAI, on the other hand, is operated by the Makerdao project which ...

A statue of Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, has been unveiled in Budapest, Hungary. “The statue is made of bronze, the face is made of a special bronze-aluminium composite, thus every visitor can see their own face when looking at Satoshi. We are all Satoshi.” Statue Representing ‘We Are All Satoshi’ in Honor of Bitcoin’s Creator A statue of bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, was unveiled Thursday in the capital of Hungary, Budapest. It is located in Graphisoft Park. According to the initiative’s website: The goal of the statue is to honor Satoshi Nakamoto … his work is truly something to be remembered. Not just because of its significance in the world of IT, but because of its value for humanity in general. “Satoshi’s statue represents a general human figure, since we do not know the gender, race, age, height of the mysterious developer,” the website describes. “Satoshi is wearing a hoodie, with the Bitcoin logo on its chest. The statue is ...

The deadline for cryptocurrency exchanges to meet the requirements to continue operations under new crypto regulations in South Korea is rapidly approaching. A total of 28 cryptocurrency exchanges have reportedly been cleared by the regulators to remain open. However, only four crypto exchanges have met the requirements to offer trading in Korean won. 28 Cryptocurrency Exchanges Meet Regulatory Requirements South Korea’s financial authorities have released a list of 28 cryptocurrency exchanges that have met the regulatory requirements to stay open past Sept. 24 under the country’s new crypto regulations. The amended Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information requires cryptocurrency exchanges to obtain Information Security Management System (ISMS) certification by Sept. 24 and report to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), a division of the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Crypto exchanges that fail to do so must cease operations by Sept. 24. Jeon ...

PRESS RELEASE. INTERNET CITY, DUBAI – LBank Exchange, a global digital asset trading platform, will list NBL on September 15, 2021. For all users of LBank Exchange, the NBL/ USDT trading pair will be officially available for trading at 22:00 (UTC+8) on September 15, 2021. Esports industry has grown rapidly in recent years, and now, crypto space is trying to further reshape it. As a revolutionary new BSC utility token, Nobility (NBL) focuses on disrupting the esports industry with its unique smart contract capabilities, offering the industry a fairer, more balanced, and sustainable revenue system. Nobility’s NBL token will be listed on LBank Exchange at 22:00 (UTC+8) on September 15, 2021. What is NBL? Nobility (NBL) is a revolutionary esports platform and utility token on Binance Smart Chain (BSC). It focuses on revolutionizing the esports landscape by organizing and providing tournaments with large prize pools, helping content creators earn more from playing the game they lo...

A news release published by the New Jersey government web portal indicates that the cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius has been sent a cease and desist order from the New Jersey Bureau of Securities. Furthermore, the Texas State Securities Board has ordered Celsius to appear at a hearing and is also threatening with a cease and desist. Regulators are not taking too kindly to platforms that offer high-yield interest rates on various cryptocurrencies. New Jersey Regulators Send Cease & Desist to Celsius Over ‘Earn Rewards Accounts’ U.S. regulators from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), politicians , and securities watchdogs from single states have targeted centralized exchanges, decentralized finance (defi), and more specifically platforms that offer yields. In recent times, Blockfi had issues with regulators in New Jersey and Vermont , Texas, Alabama , and Kentucky . The state watchdogs had problems with the firm’s Blockfi Interest Accounts (BIA). Even Coinbase...

One of the African continent’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Luno, has told its Nigerian users that it is “in the process of reinstating deposit and withdrawal functions on our platform.” According to an email that was sent to Nigerian users, this reinstatement is expected to happen “in the coming weeks.” Luno Not in Direct Communication With CBN As a report by The Guardian noted, this announcement by Luno is coming some seven months after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directed banks to exclude cryptocurrency entities from the banking ecosystem. Consequently, some users in Nigeria have speculated that this announcement means the CBN is about to reverse this decision. However, Owen Odia, Luno’s country manager for Nigeria, denied that this was the case. He suggested in a statement to Bitcoin.com News that the mere sending of the emails does not mean the exchange is privy to CBN discussions about the lifting of its directive to banks. The Luno manager, however, did ...

Laos has authorized a series of cryptocurrency mining and trading projects in the country, looking for another source of income to supplement the losses caused by the drop in tourism due to COVID-19 related measures. Six companies have been authorized to start cryptocurrency trading and mining operations in the country, according to the office of the prime minister. Laos Embraces Digital Currencies Laos has authorized mining and trading operations in its territory, contradicting policies from its central bank that issued warnings against crypto just a month before. The move comes as the small Asian nation tries to find alternative income sources to deal with the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. The office of the prime minister stated that six companies were now authorized to conduct cryptocurrency-related activities in the country. Now, according to reports, the government will start work to regulate these activities. Laos could also be trying to attract some of the miners oust...

Binance, the leading cryptocurrency exchange, has announced it is preparing changes to be able to work with regulators more closely. Its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, stated the company is ready to apply the needed revisions to transform the exchange into a regulated financial institution in the future. This is Binance’s answer to a series of regulatory issues it has been facing with regulators from all over the world. Binance Readies Regulator-Friendly Changes Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange by trade volume, has announced it is preparing changes to better fit the requirements of regulators. The statements were made by Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, in an interview with the South China Morning Post published on September 16, where he hinted at a change in how the institution will treat regulatory matters. He stated: As we run a centralized exchange , we have come to realize that we need to have a centralized entity to work well with regulators. This is a clear depar...

PRESS RELEASE. Pledge Finance is launching a cross-chain decentralized finance ecosystem, purpose-built for the financial sector following a successful private round in which it raised more than $3 million. Hong Kong – Pledge Finance, an algorithm-driven, multi-chain decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem, is announcing the launch of an NFT-powered structured collateralized lending platform targeted at the traditional financial sector. The Binance Smart Chain (BSC) based platform will be fully interoperable with other public chains, meaning other DeFi platforms will be able to interact with Pledge’s numerous product and service offerings. Pledge Bridges the Gap Between DeFi and Finance Pledge Finance will include liquidity pools which will act as money markets so that users can exchange cryptocurrencies without the need for a centralized exchange. The interest rate for staking to provide liquidity to these money markets will be algorithmically fixed and determined by the supply a...

The cryptocurrency-infused financial tech company Revolut has announced it has purchased a Wework office with bitcoin. Revolut detailed that the office space in Dallas, Texas will house 300 employees to prepare for the company’s U.S. expansion. Revolut Pays Bitcoin for Wework Property in Texas On September 16, 2021, Revolut, the fintech firm that offers users cryptocurrency services and aims to provide the world with a “global financial superapp” announced a deal with Wework. According to the announcement, Revolut will be leveraging the Wework workspace at 6900 Dallas Parkway in Dallas, Texas. Revolut details that the payment for the workspace was settled in bitcoin ( BTC ). The company said on Thursday: Revolut will also be Wework’s first enterprise member to sign new space using cryptocurrency, specifically bitcoin, as it establishes its largest office yet in the U.S. While the move aims to bolster Revolut’s U.S. expansion, Revolut said it is also introducing a concept called...

All of the ‘Big Three’ credit agencies have said that El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin could affect the country’s credit rating in a negative manner. After both Moody’s and Fitch Ratings published reports on the matter in El Salvador, S&P Global said that the bitcoin adoption has had “immediate negative implications for its credit rating.” S&P Global Joins Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Casting Criticism Down on Salvadoran Bitcoin Adoption On August 17, 2021, Bitcoin.com News reported on Fitch Ratings detailing that El Salvador adopting bitcoin ( BTC ) as a legal currency may push the country toward “regulatory and operating risks.” Moreover, Fitch said that the adoption of bitcoin would negatively affect the insurance system in the Latin American country. Fitch Ratings’ report in August followed Moody’s downgrade in June, after the ‘Big Three’ credit agency dropped the country to a Caa1 from a B3 rating and highlighted a “deterioration in the quality of policymaking.” S&P ...

As the floodgates are opening for large businesses and corporations to enter the crypto market, you see increasing demand for an established digital asset management platform. Luckily, Unido is among just a few who fits these criteria, but with all the noise in the crypto space now, it is crucial to compare similar products and projects to understand the options and differences between platforms better. Among the very few options today, this article will look at Fireblocks to analyze the different product offerings against the Unido ecosystem. Fireblocks is a digital asset management platform with similar product offerings as Unido, such as Multi Party Computation (MPC), DeFi integration, DeFi APIs, complete control over governance, and a thoroughly robust security system for digital assets. Fireblocks vs. Unido Fireblocks was founded in 2018 and is an end-to-end blockchain security platform that protects, stores, transfers, and issues digital assets to the blockchain/s while usin...