Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have been extremely popular in recent times as a great number of collections have been dropped and billions of dollars worth of NFTs have been exchanged. Just recently, a collection of NFTs stemming from the Smartbch protocol called “Poolside Puffers” was introduced to the Bitcoin Cash community. The entire collection of 2,100 Puffers sold out in less than three days and all proceeds are being donated to an orphanage in Vietnam. Meet Poolside Puffers — 2,100 Unique Generative Art Collectibles Built With Smartbch The Smartbch protocol has been gathering traction as people are minting a myriad of tokens, leveraging decentralized exchange (dex) platforms like Misty Lake ( lake.mistswap.fi ) and Benswap , as well as discussing new Smartbch ideas across a variety of forums. While blockchain NFT collections like Cryptopunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and others have been all the rage lately, a Smartbch-minted NFT collection sold out in three days this week. The NFT...

Leading yield farming platform DeFi Yield Protocol (DYP) has collaborated with KyberDMM to boost DYP token liquidity on Avalanche blockchain. As part of the partnership, $300,000 worth of DYP and KNC tokens have been made available as liquidity mining rewards. A major milestone for DYP The collaboration between DYP and KyberDMM represents a major milestone for the DYP as it continues to make inroads within the DeFi ecosystem. The two protocols have agreed to run joint liquidity mining campaigns to increase the number and liquidity of key token pools and incentivize liquidity providers with attractive yields. KyberDMM is an innovative and capital-efficient DEX protocol that enhances liquidity with amplified pools and optimizes returns for liquidity providers with dynamic fees. As a result, DYP holders can maximize the use of their capital on KyberDMM DEX and access amplified liquidity pools and dynamic fees within a secure platform. Liquidity providers can add any amount of liquidi...

On October 5, the youth fashion and retail brand Pacsun announced the company is now accepting cryptocurrencies via Bitpay’s payment services. Pacsun says the company has a youthful audience that is “very tech-oriented” and the firm has seen an “increasing desire towards cryptocurrency.” Pacific Sunwear of California Goes Crypto The American retail clothing brand, Pacific Sunwear of California, LLC, otherwise known as Pacsun, is now supporting crypto-asset acceptance. Founded in 1982, Pacsun has roughly 400 stores in all 50 states and in Puerto Rico. The company has partnered with the crypto payments firm Bitpay and disclosed it will accept 11 different crypto assets including bitcoin ( BTC ), bitcoin cash ( BCH ), ethereum ( ETH ), wrapped bitcoin (WBTC), dogecoin (DOGE), and litecoin ( LTC ). Five different stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar will also be accepted by Pacsun. “With digital sales doubling since last year, we understand the continued importance of creating an exc...

The U.S. has launched the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, an initiative of the Department of Justice (DOJ), to tackle and prosecute “criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, particularly crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money laundering.” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said, “The point is to protect consumers.” DOJ’s New Crypto Enforcement Initiative U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced the creation of a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) during a virtual speech at the Aspen Cyber Summit Wednesday. The aim of the initiative is “ to tackle complex investigations and prosecutions of criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, particularly crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money laundering infrastructure actors,” the Department of Justice subsequently detailed. “The team will also assist in tracing and recovery of assets lost to fraud and extortion, includ...

The CEO of the world’s largest movie exhibition company, AMC Entertainment, has announced “huge news” for dogecoin fans. While his company works on accepting cryptocurrencies, he said that customers can now “buy AMC Theatres digital gift cards … with dogecoin and other cryptocurrency.” AMC Accepts Cryptocurrencies for Gift Cards After announcing that AMC will “figure out how to” accept dogecoin by year-end alongside four other cryptocurrencies, CEO Adam Aron tweeted Tuesday that he had “huge news” for dogecoin fans. AMC Entertainment Holdings is the largest movie exhibition company in the U.S., Europe, and the world. As of March 31, AMC owned or operated approximately 950 theaters and 10,500 screens globally. The executive wrote: “Huge news dogecoin fans! As we work to accept online crypto payments, now you can buy AMC Theatres digital gift cards (up to $200 per day) with dogecoin and other cryptocurrency using a Bitpay Wallet. Accepted on our website, mobile app, and in theatres...

Spellfire , a legendary card-based NFT game powered by Ethereum and incorporating some unique features, has successfully completed its seed funding round. Terranova, x21 and Autonomy Capital have led 360,000 USD investment into the project, with more investors eyeing spellfire’s incoming private round. Spellfire has some unique features which make it stand out among its peers in the industry. NFTs acquired are digital and physical, making it the first NFT based game that allows owners to touch their NFTs. Special NFTs have an “Augmented Reality” feature allowing the owners to interact with their NFTs using gestures. NFTs will be upgradable. Players can create their own NFTs with unique characteristics. Spellfire includes a P2E mechanic which allows owners to generate revenue from their NFTs and from playing the game, with 200,000,000 tokens being distributed through in-game rewards: Tournaments, Special collections, Achievements, and 90 percent of NFT generated profits goin...

The 78th United States secretary of the treasury, Janet Yellen, is very concerned about tax evasion, according to statements she made during an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that aired on October 5. Yellen claims there’s an “enormous tax gap” and she insists financial information concerning where income derives from can get “hidden.” Janet Yellen Says ‘Collection of Information Is Routine’ The U.S. secretary of the treasury wants lawmakers to push Biden’s “American Families Plan Tax Compliance Agenda” in order to solve the issue. The proposed legislation, if passed, would require banks to report all inflows and outflows of at least $600 to the IRS. In mid-September, Bitcoin.com News reported on Janet Yellen and IRS commissioner Charles Rettig asking lawmakers to pass the “American Families Plan Tax Compliance Agenda.” The proposed legislation aims to get all financial institutions to report deposits and withdrawals of $600 or more to the American tax agency, regardless of tax...

American politicians have been clamoring about the U.S. facing a significant debt crisis and the debt ceiling putting the country at risk of default. Joe Biden spoke about the debt ceiling and told Republicans to “just get out of the way” when it comes to the decision. Meanwhile, a number of U.S. bureaucrats are floating the idea of minting a $1 trillion platinum coin in order to magically bolster the treasury with cash. Trillion-Dollar Coin Concept Strongly Considered by US Politicians, Former US Mint Director Says Platinum Coin Can Be Minted in Mere Hours Simply creating new fiat out of thin air these days is an extremely popular trend, and it seems that many politicians worldwide have not considered the history of economies that have been destroyed by excessive monetary expansion. In the U.S., public officials have been discussing the country’s debt ceiling and whether or not America will default on what it owes. Speaking at a White House news conference, U.S. president Joe Bid...

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler says that the SEC has no plan to ban cryptocurrencies as China has done. He noted that it would be up to Congress to make such a decision. Recently, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell similarly said that the Fed had no intention to ban or limit the use of cryptocurrencies. SEC Won’t Ban Cryptocurrencies The chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, answered a question about whether there is a plan to ban cryptocurrency during a hearing before the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services Tuesday. The four-hour virtual hearing titled “Oversight of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: Wall Street’s Cop Is Finally Back on the Beat” was hosted by Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters and Ranking Member Patrick McHenry. During the meeting, Rep. Ted Budd from North Carolina asked Gensler if he had any plans to ban cryptocurrencies. The congressman began by stating: “China has been on a warpath against cryptocurrencie...

A coordinated strike involving Europol, Interpol, and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has led to the arrest of two “prolific” ransomware operators allegedly responsible for ransom demands of up to 70 million euros. In addition, $1.3 million in cryptocurrencies were seized. Ransomware Operators Arrested, Crypto Seized The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) announced Monday: Two prolific ransomware operators suspected of carrying out a string of attacks, demanding ransoms of up to EUR 70 million [$81 million], have been arrested in Ukraine. The arrests followed “a coordinated strike between the French National Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale), the Ukrainian National Police (Національна поліція України) and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), with the coordination of Europol and Interpol,” the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol) explained. The arrests took place on Sept. 28. The authorities condu...

Ertha is a new P2E game with an exciting backstory launching on Binance smart chain, unlike anything else. The game will encompass an accurate life simulation on a massive scale where players will be able to micromanage their companies and countries in a satisfying and rewarding way. The new metaverse will require players to consider their economic, infrastructure, and military development to advance and dominate other players. Ertha will encompass multiple features that make it detail-oriented, making player decisions dynamically impactful in the metaverse. The game is diverse between MMORPG and strategy genres and reminiscent of old-school games in its rich content. ERTHA is a token and an in-game currency. Players will be rewarded using this token which can be achieved using multiple revenue systems. 3 Features Never Before Seen in an NFT Game The world depicts actual planet earth and is divided into HEX plots, where players will decide to carve out their country in a real...

Digital currencies backed by central banks are the most reliable form of digital money, according to IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva. At the same time, to think of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin as money is difficult, believes the chief executive of the international financial institution. IMF Chief Georgieva Marks Top Issues for Policymakers Exploring CBDCs Among the members of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), 110 countries are exploring central bank digital currencies ( CBDCs ), the fund’s chair and managing director Kristalina Georgieva revealed at an event hosted by Bocconi University in Italy. Speaking remotely to the audience, she noted that the key challenge for monetary authorities now is to guarantee the interoperability of these currencies. According to Georgieva, a major consideration is whether state-backed digital currencies can serve as a means of exchange trusted by the public, Reuters reported on Tuesday. Other questions policymakers need to answ...

On Tuesday, cryptocurrency supporters on social media and forums discussed Blockstream’s Liquid sidechain product as block signing had been down for over 20 hours. While Blockstream had noted the sidechain was undergoing a hard fork upgrade planned for October 5, a number of crypto proponents still scorned the project for being hypocritical toward blockchains like Solana. Blockstream’s Liquid Suffers From Block Signing Issues During Dynamic Federations Upgrade Cryptocurrency proponent Udi Wertheimer razzed the crypto company Blockstream on Tuesday as the Liquid network’s block signing had been down and was initially expected to be for a total of 24 hours. On October 5, Wertheimer said : “Liquid has been down for 15 hours and still no one noticed, good morning.” “Good morning,” or “GM,” has been the latest catchphrase in the crypto community in recent times. Continuing, Wertheimer further mocked the company’s hardcore supporters and employees when he remarked : “‘You don’t need ...

The Central Bank of Uruguay has issued a statement describing a roadmap for the regulation of cryptocurrency assets in the near future. The institution stated it has established a group to examine the best way possible to regulate these assets, considering the realities of the crypto industry. Also, some modifications to current laws could be made to prepare for the upcoming regulation towards the end of the year. Central Bank of Uruguay Hints at Crypto Regulation The Central Bank of Uruguay has issued a statement about virtual assets where it roughly describes the roadmap the institution will follow in the process of regulating cryptocurrencies. The bank has already created a study group to examine how the crypto world functions, and taking this into account, it created a conceptual idea of how this market could soon be regulated. The institution also announced that during Q4 2021 it will be involved in talks with industry actors in the country with the objective of perfecting th...

DeFi continues to show the world that the future of finance will forever change from its old and traditional form, developed by solving problems individuals and institutions face with mainstream banks. ADALend continues the string of innovations in DeFi under the guidance of its GM. Javed Khattak , A qualified actuary (FIA), an award winning C-suite executive, and a successful serial entrepreneur who was awarded CFO of the year in 2018 by Wealth & Finance magazine, listed in the the top 20 individuals behind ICOs in 2017, a track record of financial ingenuity and excellence. The Future of DeFi Leadership ADALend’s GM hails from a better-suited background to tackle the problems facing the DeFi ecosystems plagued by professionals who have more to do with programming and less to do with financing. Individuals who rely on DeFi projects to store and maintain their savings are increasing day by day. Someone who knows about actuarial science leading ADALend is a rare asset, with...

The American company that produces Bazooka chewing gum, candy, and collectibles, Topps Company, Inc., announced the launch of the second series 2021 Topps Baseball NFT collection. The latest non-fungible token products from Topps follow the company’s MLB Inception NFT collection release. The collectibles company Topps says that it’s the firm’s largest MLB NFT launch ever. Topps Launches Series 2 MLB NFT Collection At the end of August, the collectibles firm Topps launched the first series of its 2021 NFT Major League Baseball (MLB) NFT collection called “Inception.” A month later in October, Topps introduced the second series of NFT MLB collectibles via the blockchain protocol Avalanche. The new NFTs are based on the sold-out 2021 Topps Series 2 Baseball physical product and can be obtained via toppsnfts.com . Standard and premium packs of the 2021 Topps Series 2 Baseball NFT collection started selling on October 4 and the NFT collectibles contain card rarities ranging from comm...

US Bank has launched its cryptocurrency custody services. “Investor interest in cryptocurrency and demand from our fund services clients have grown strongly over the last few years,” the bank said. US Bank’s Crypto Custody Services Now Live U.S. Bank announced Tuesday that its cryptocurrency custody services are now live and available to its Global Fund Services clients. U.S. Bancorp, with nearly 70,000 employees and $559 billion in assets as of June 30, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest bank in the country. The Minneapolis-based company serves millions of customers locally, nationally, and globally. U.S. Bank Wealth Management and Investment Services has more than $8.6 trillion in assets under custody and administration and $282 billion in assets under management globally as of June 30. The announcement details: The services are intended for institutional investment managers with private funds in the U.S. or Cayman Islands who would like a safekeeping soluti...

On Tuesday, a new Draper Goren Holm incubated company called NFT.FAMILY has announced the launch of a new generative non-fungible token (NFT) collection called “Boring Stone.” The new company stems from community members from Fameladysquad, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and Blockchain & Booze. ‘Utilizing Technologies to Build and Empower Our Own Community’ Non-fungible token (NFT) assets are very popular in 2021 and a group of community members from Blockchain & Booze, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Fameladysquad have formed NFT.FAMILY. The new company is backed by Draper Goren Holm , a blockchain venture studio founded by Alon Goren and Josef Holm. The members wholeheartedly believe that digital currencies and NFT communities are very important. A member of the team dubbed ‘Theehustlehouse’ explains that “Crypto is all about community.” “We’re utilizing these new and exciting technologies to build and empower our own community,” Theehustlehouse detailed. “This is just the start;...

PRESS RELEASE. LAS VEGAS & ULAANBAATAR – On Saturday 9 October, Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder will be defending the United States’ honor once more. Known for being the first American World Heavyweight Champion since 2004, which was the longest period of time in boxing history without an American Heavyweight Champion, Wilder will rise to the occasion once more. When he steps into the ring at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to take on the WBC World Heavyweight Champion, Tyson Fury, Wilder will be fighting for the outsider – and a group of rebel crypto-warriors who look to shake up the financial world. In fight trunks sponsored by Inflation Hedging Coin (IHC) , a new crypto asset developed by a group of visionary Mongolian entrepreneurs, Wilder seems to have found the perfect sponsor. IHC has been built to exploit the potential of blockchain to stave off the inflationary effects inherent in the oversupply of fiat currencies. “Wilder’s ongoing crusade for social justice is par...

As bureaucrats across the globe continue to ask the common citizenry for access to every financial decision they make, politicians and celebrities worldwide are hiding large amounts of wealth in tax havens according to the Pandora Papers. While American politicians like the Biden administration claim to be against tax corruption, some people view the U.S. as the world’s “main tax lagoon.” Pandora Papers Expose Hypocrisy Among Bureaucrats Worldwide, US Public Officials Manage to Escape Investigation During the last month, the Biden administration and other U.S. politicians have been discussing proposed legislation that aims to address tax evasion by the so-called billionaire class and corporate entities. One proposal aims to give the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) access to bank account information, regardless of tax liability. If enacted, financial institutions across the country would have to report accounts with at least $600 worth of transactions or more. Another proposal ...

Privacy activist and whistleblower Edward Snowden says that bitcoin is up about 10 times since he tweeted about buying it. Bitcoin is stronger “despite a coordinated global campaign by governments to undermine public understanding of — and support for — cryptocurrency,” he said. Edward Snowden Says Bitcoin Stronger Despite Governments’ Anti-Crypto Campaign Former computer intelligence consultant for the National Security Agency (NSA) and contractor for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Edward Snowden, tweeted about bitcoin Sunday. It references another tweet he made last year that reads, “This is the first time in a while I’ve felt like buying bitcoin.” “Sometimes I think back to this and wonder how many people bought bitcoin then,” Snowden wrote Sunday. “It’s up [about] 10x since, despite a coordinated global campaign by governments to undermine public understanding of — and support for — cryptocurrency. China even banned it, but it just made bitcoin stronger.” The price of...

Bank of America’s Global Research has begun covering crypto, debuting with a report stating that “digital assets are too large to ignore.” Noting that digital assets are “creating a whole ecosystem of new companies, new opportunities, and new applications,” the bank said, “This is growing, this is mainstream, and it’s not just bitcoin.” Bank of America Debuts Crypto Research Bank of America announced Monday the launch of its “digital asset research” with the publication of a report titled “Digital Assets Primer: Only the first inning.” The bank wrote: Report finds digital assets are too large to ignore. The announcement explains that “The primer provides an investment framework for the digital asset landscape.” The topics it covers include smart contract applications, stablecoins, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Bank of America’s crypto research team was formed in July. It is led by Alkesh Shah, the bank’s head of Global Cryptocurrency a...

Aureo Ribeiro, a federal deputy in Brazil, stated that bitcoin might become a recognized currency in Brazil soon, during an interview with local media. The politician stated that Brazilians may be able to purchase houses, cars, and even fast food at McDonald’s with cryptocurrency in the near future. Bill 2.303/15, which regulates cryptocurrencies, might approve the legal use of the asset, similar to El Salvador. Bitcoin Might Become Regulated Currency in Brazil Bitcoin might become a regulated currency for payments in Brazil in the near future, according to statements given by Aureo Ribeiro, a federal deputy. Ribeiro stated that with the future approval of Bill 2.303/15, which regulates cryptocurrencies, new uses would be open for crypto holders, such as buying houses, cars, and even food in restaurants like McDonald’s. These comments are the product of the approval of the so-called Brazilian “Bitcoin Law” for presentation in the Plenary of the Chamber of Deputies, after being stu...