Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Warner Bros., the American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate has announced the launch of non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles for the upcoming film “The Matrix Resurrections” after dropping official Space Jam NFT collectibles. The Matrix NFT program will start on November 30 as Warner Bros. plans to drop 100,000 Matrix Resurrections’ NFTs. ‘You Take the Blue Pill…the Story Ends — You Take the Red Pill…You Stay in Wonderland, and I Show You How Deep the Rabbit Hole Goes’ The entertainment giant Warner Bros. is knee-deep in the non-fungible token (NFT) industry these days after launching the official Space Jam NFTs with the Miami-based firm Nifty’s, Inc. The NFTs stemmed from the recently released “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” which starred a cast of famous Looney Tunes characters and the NBA star LeBron James. Warner Bros. has joined a number of big-name entertainment firms like Fox , Lionsgate , Dolphin , and ViacomCBS. The entertainment companies WWE and UFC

PRESS RELEASE. 3air is using an ISP platform built on Cardano to provide internet to the most unconnected regions in Africa. November 2nd, 2021, Dubai, UAE – Today, 3air , a blockchain-based startup, announced it will leverage the power of decentralization to provide internet connectivity to consumers in Africa and provide the physical infrastructure to support this through its partnership with K3 Telecom. Only 20% of people on the African continent are active internet users, with less than 1% having access to broadband. Compare this with the 60% of the world population that are active internet users and it quickly becomes evident that African nations have quite a distance to go in order to fully benefit from the world wide web. The lack of internet in this region not only means it has been more difficult to implement successful COVID-19 containment methods, but there is also a social and economic impact including the way citizens interact with their government, with businesses,

Paytm, one of India’s largest payments companies, is open to offering bitcoin services if the crypto asset becomes legal in the country, according to its chief financial officer. If bitcoin “was ever to become fully legal in the country, then clearly there could be offerings we could launch,” he said. Paytm Open to Bitcoin Offerings Paytm Chief Financial Officer Madhur Deora has indicated that his company is open to offering bitcoin services if the crypto asset becomes legal in India, local media reported Thursday, citing his recent interview with Bloomberg TV. Deora was quoted as saying: Bitcoin is still in a regulatory grey area if not a regulatory ban in India. At the moment Paytm does not do bitcoin. If it was ever to become fully legal in the country, then clearly there could be offerings we could launch. In August last year, Paytm reportedly froze Paytm Payments Bank’s customer accounts suspected of crypto trading. Paytm is currently India’s second most-valuable interne

U.S. lawmakers have called on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Since the SEC has approved the trading of bitcoin futures ETFs, the lawmakers said it “should no longer have concerns with bitcoin spot ETFs and should show a similar willingness to permit the trading of bitcoin spot ETFs.” Lawmakers Urge SEC to Permit Trading of Bitcoin Spot ETFs U.S. Representatives Tom Emmer and Darren Soto sent a bipartisan letter to the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, Wednesday regarding bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). So far, the SEC has approved two bitcoin futures ETFs but has yet to approve any bitcoin spot ETF. Rep. Emmer said: The SEC’s approach to cryptocurrency regulation has been unacceptable. While the trading of bitcoin futures ETFs is a great step forward for the millions of American investors who have been demanding regulatory clarity, it does not make sense that bitcoin sp

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has introduced a resolution that would position Congress to lead in the area of cryptocurrency by having congressional cafeterias, vending machines, and gift shops accept crypto payments. “Congress is typically slow to adopt new technology,” he said. Senator Pushes for Crypto Adoption in Congress U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has introduced a resolution titled “Adopting Cryptocurrency in Congress as an Exchange of Payment for Transactions Resolution,” also referred to as “ACCEPT Resolution,” in the Senate Monday. The resolution proposes cryptocurrency be accepted at “restaurants, vending machines, and gift shops in the Capitol Complex.” According to the text of the resolution: The Architect of the Capitol, the Secretary of the Senate, and the Chief Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives shall each … solicit and enter into contracts to provide food service and vending machines in such Capitol Buildings with persons that will accept digital assets as p

Star Financial Bank (Star Bank) says it has become the first bank in the U.S. state of Indiana to offer bitcoin services to customers. The services will be offered through the New York Digital Investment Group and Alkami platform. Customers will have the ability to buy and sell bitcoin via the Star Mobile Banking App. ‘First Bank in the State of Indiana to Offer Bitcoin Trading Services’ Star Financial Bank (Star Bank) announced Tuesday: Star is excited to offer customers the ability to buy and sell bitcoin via the Star Mobile Banking App. “We’re launching this new offering as a closed beta,” the bank added. Star Bank is an Indiana-based community bank. Its parent company, Star Financial Group, has $2.80 billion in assets with 36 locations in central and northeast Indiana, according to its website. The bitcoin services are provided by the New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) via Alkami, a cloud-based digital banking solutions provider for U.S. banks and credit unions. NYD

Russian institutions have responded to a call from а public movement for joint efforts to identify cryptocurrency transfers related to drug trade. The anti-drug organization, Stopnarkotik, recently asked the interior ministry and the central bank to investigate alleged connections between U.S.-sanctioned crypto exchange Suex and a darknet market operating in the region. Russian Authorities Respond to Stopnarkotik’s Request for Action Against Drug Trade The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation (MVD) and Bank of Russia have agreed to cooperate with the All-Russian Public Movement Stopnarkotik on identifying financial flows involving cryptocurrencies obtained as a result of drug sales. The Russian online news portal Lenta.ru reported on the agreement, quoting a letter from a high-ranking MVD official. The letter signed by Major General Andrei Yanishevsky, head of the Drug Control Department at the Interior Ministry, has been issued after a working meeting with re

At the end of October, the product comparison website finder.com published new survey data about price predictions concerning the leading crypto asset ethereum. On November 1, Finder’s researchers published price predictions for the ethereum competitor solana, as Finder’s panelists predict the digital asset is expected to reach $235 by the year’s end and $1,178 by the end of 2025. Solana Expected to Hit $1,178 by 2025 During the course of 2021, finder.com, an investing companion application and product comparison website, has been covering a number of popular crypto assets to survey what people think about future crypto prices. Finder researchers have covered price forecasts for digital assets like bitcoin ( BTC ), ethereum ( ETH ), and litecoin ( LTC ). On November 1, the company published a survey that polled 50-expert panelists stemming from the fintech and crypto industry about the crypto asset solana (SOL). Solana has seen a significant increase in value and has recently posit

On April 1, Bitcoin.com News published an in-depth report on the Smart Bitcoin Cash (Smartbch) protocol and its compatibility with Ethereum’s EVM and Web3 API before any Smartbch projects were seen in the wild. Seven months later, Smartbch has matured a great deal and metrics indicate that between three decentralized finance (defi) protocols, there’s roughly $12.8 million total value locked on the Smartbch-based applications. Defillama Tracks Smartbch, $12.8 Million Locked Across 3 Dex Protocols It’s been an active year for decentralized finance (defi) applications as the total value locked (TVL) in defi surpassed $250 billion this week. Meanwhile, the top defi blockchains like Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Solana, Polygon, Avalanche, Terra, and more continue to see TVLs rise. Alongside this, smaller defi networks like Zilliqa, Algorand, and Smartbch have seen TVLs expand as well. The Bitcoin Cash-based Smartbch protocol has expanded a great deal since Bitcoin.com News first rep

PRESS RELEASE. The latest strategic investment in emerging SocialFi startup Torum from KuCoin Labs will empower the development of a SocialFi Metaverse powered by VR and Web3.0 technologies. 4th November 2021, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — Following the strategic investment of Huobi Ventures and 20 other prominent crypto VCs, Torum SocialFi platform is excited to announce that the project has secured a strategic investment from KuCoin Labs, the $50M incubator and research arm of KuCoin. The Torum KuCoin Ecosystem Torum is a SocialFi Metaverse ecosystem that is specially designed to connect cryptocurrency users and projects. The Web 3.0 ecosystem is built with a social media platform with over 120,000 users at its core, integrated with an interactive yield farming platform, an NFT marketplace, and lastly the world’s first PFP Metaverse identity – Torum Avatar NFT. Everything started when Torum announced the ambition to expand into the Metaverse and NFT on 27th September 2021. The S

Facing an electricity deficit largely blamed on cryptocurrency miners, Kazakhstan is trying to avoid an energy crisis this winter. The president of the country has insisted on the need to maintain power supply for the industry and population, calling for urgent legal regulation of the expanding coin minting sector. President Tokaev Calls for Legislative Regulation of Cryptocurrency Mining in Kazakhstan During a recent meeting with the energy minister of Kazakhstan, Magzum Mirzagaliev, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev criticized his department for allowing a sharp decline in fuel reserves. The head of state also emphasized the need to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity for both businesses and households, and to create additional generating capacities. According to a press release from Tokayev’s office, Mirzagaliev informed the president about steps taken to compensate for fuel shortages and presented a forecast for the development of Kazakhstan’s power generation industry

Chipper Cash, one of Africa’s biggest fintechs, recently concluded a Series C extension funding round in which it raised $150 million, a report by Techcrunch has revealed. New Investors Participate in Latest Round According to the report , this latest funding round — which was led by Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX — comes barely six months after the fintech startup Chipper Cash was able to raise $100 million in the first Series C funding round. Besides FTX, other investors that participated in Chipper Cash’s latest funding round include SVB Capital, which led the first Series C. Also reinvesting were Deciens Capital, Ribbit Capital, Bezos Expeditions, One Way Ventures, and Tribe Capital. The report acknowledges that new investors participated in this series. It states, however, that the names of these investors have not yet been made public. It also reveals that following the $150 million haul, Chipper Cash has now raised over $305 million. The firm is now valued at over $2 billion. The

The Sandbox, a blockchain-based metaverse game, has scored an investment of $93 million to keep expanding its metaverse proposal. The funding round was led by Softbank’s Vision Fund 2, an investment vehicle that puts funds on early tech-based companies. Other investors in the round included Animoca Brands, True Global Ventures, Liberty City Ventures, and Galaxy Interactive, among others. The Sandbox Gets $93 Million in Series B Funding Round The Sandbox, one of the leading blockchain-based metaverse games, has closed its Series B funding round raising $93 million to further expand its virtual world. The funding round was led by Softbank’s Vision Fund 2, which specializes in investing in tech startups. The round also had the participation of Animoca Brands, True Global Ventures, Liberty City Ventures, and Galaxy Interactive, among others. The funds raised in this round will help the game to keep expanding its reach. Sebastien Borget, COO and co-founder of The Sandbox, stated: Thi

Avalanche Foundation, the organization behind the Avalanche chain, has announced the launch of Blizzard, a fund that will entice development and innovation on the Avalanche ecosystem. The Fund, which has $200 million available for its task, is composed of contributions coming from Avalanche Foundation, Ava Labs, Polychain Capital, Three Arrows Capital, among other participants. Blizzard Fund Comes to Avalanche Devs The Avalanche Foundation has announced the launch of a new fund that will help developers to keep launching innovative products on top of the Avalanche blockchain. The fund, called Blizzard, will put $200 million for grabs of devs who want to deploy innovative apps in the ecosystem. Blizzard is made of contributions of Avalanche’s key partners, including Avalanche Foundation, Ava Labs, Polychain Capital, Three Arrows Capital, Dragonfly Capital, CMS Holdings, Republic Capital, R/crypto Fund, Collab+Currency, Lvna Capital, and Finality Capital Partners. According to the l

During the second week of October, the total value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance (defi) protocols crossed $200 billion, and two weeks later in November, the TVL in defi surpassed $250 billion gaining 25% in value. Meanwhile, Ethereum commands more than 67% of the $253 billion TVL in defi today, gaining 4.65% during the last seven days while Solana’s TVL increased by 5.99% this past week. Defi TVL Increases by 25% in 2 Weeks The total value locked (TVL) in defi has reached an all-time high, tapping $253.94 billion on November 3, 2021. On October 12, Bitcoin.com News reported on the defi TVL surpassing $200 billion and in two weeks the value has expanded by 25%. Value expansion is not only due to more value being added to defi protocols, but crypto assets like ethereum (ETH) , solana (SOL) , and avalanche (AVAX) have seen significant gains. Today, the TVL on the Ethereum blockchain is 67% or $171.24 billion , according to defillama.com stats. The second-largest defi blockcha

PRESS RELEASE. Palo Alto, CA – LTNM, the next generation, insured asset-backed cryptocurrency, is proud to announce an exclusive partnership with OSO ATMs, one of the biggest ATM providers, to help install 100,000 LTNM ATMs across all fifty states in the United States. Developed by Monsoon Blockchain Corporation on behalf of the LTNM Foundation, LTNM is a greener, faster, and more secure version of Bitcoin, capable of managing massive crypto transactions while being highly efficient in terms of cost and scalability. As part of its plan towards crypto-adoption, LTNM has partnered up with various trading platforms to list its native LTNM token for trading. Partnering with a full-service ATM company, OSO ATMs, sets a new journey for LTNM to further span its vision of making crypto easily accessible for everyone. Besides, it’ll help the cryptocurrency to further span its customer reach. As part of the partnership, OSO ATM will help LTNM install 100,000 ATMs across all 50 US states, wher

The leading crypto industry association in Iran has slammed authorities for their passive stance regarding crypto regulation. The government’s inaction is a source of concern, the organization said, offering its assistance to regulators whom it considers not sufficiently qualified to deal with the complex issue. Blockchain Association Proposes Public-Private Partnership on Crypto Rules in Iran Tehran authorities such as the Central Bank of Iran ( CBI ) are not capable of regulating cryptocurrencies, according to the head of the Iran Blockchain Association ( IBA ). Тhe country’s main organization representing members of the crypto sector called for the establishment of an “independent counsel” to take on the job. During a press conference this week, the head of the IBA, Abbas Ashtiani, elaborated: We need a special council of representatives from state bodies and private enterprise to craft regulations for cryptocurrencies. The CBI or the Security and Exchange Organization are not

Mobius Capital Partners founder Mark Mobius says that cryptocurrency is not an investment, calling it “a means to speculate and have fun.” He prefers stocks and believes “the U.S. market is going to continue to prosper and continue to do well.” Mark Mobius Does Not See Crypto as an Investment Mark Mobius, the founder of Mobius Capital Partners, talked about cryptocurrency in an interview with CNBC Wednesday. Prior to starting his own company, Mobius was executive chairman of Templeton Emerging Markets Group. He joined Templeton in 1987 where he managed more than $50 billion in emerging markets portfolios. He founded Mobius Capital Partners in March 2018. “It’s not an investment. It’s a religion,” he said about crypto, elaborating: People should not look at these cryptocurrencies as a means to invest. It’s a means to speculate and have fun. But then you got to go back to stocks at the end of the day. Unlike Mobius, many famous investors and fund managers see bitcoin as a good i

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), the country’s biggest bank, is providing customers with the ability to buy, sell, and hold crypto assets directly through its app. The bank has partnered with crypto exchange Gemini and blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis to provide crypto services. Commonwealth Bank Begins Offering Crypto Services Commonwealth Bank (CBA), also known as Commbank, announced Wednesday that “it will become Australia’s first bank to offer customers the ability to buy, sell and hold crypto assets,” which will be directly through its Commbank app. Australia’s biggest lender explained that it has partnered with New York-based crypto exchange Gemini and blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis to provide crypto services. “Both partnerships have allowed the bank to design a crypto exchange and custody service that will be offered to customers through a new feature in the app,” Commbank detailed. The bank’s mobile banking app is used by about 6.4 million customers. N

According to reports, the founder of the now-defunct Silk Road 2 marketplace has forfeited more than half-million dollars worth of bitcoin to British authorities. White’s Silk Road 2 admin handle was called “Cthulhu,” and he also dubbed himself as “DPR2.” Silk Road 2 Admin Thomas White Forfeits $667K in Bitcoin In April 2019, Bitcoin.com News reported on Thomas White, the lead administrator of the now-defunct Silk Road 2 darknet marketplace (DNM), getting sentenced to five years in prison. The Silk Road 2 (SR2) DNM was the original Silk Road’s successor, after the first Silk Road administrator was taken into custody. The 26-year-old White ran the DNM under the names “Cthulhu” and “DPR2,” and was eventually tracked when he ordered a package from the SR2 marketplace itself. Sky News reports that White has been forced to hand over £490,000 ($667,000) worth of bitcoin from his net proceeds. The prosecutors continued to monitor White’s finances after he was jailed and the National Cri

ADALend is a scalable and decentralized lending protocol governed by a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). ADALend will offer various features that will provide its users with decentralized financial instruments accessible to everyone with access to the internet, without the complicated KYC requirements of the mainstream banking system. The protocol will improve digital assets’ capital efficiency by enabling assets accumulated to fund multiple loan pools. The protocol will utilize the Cardano blockchain to flesh out DeFi potential as a viable replacement to the traditional financial sector. Green Blockchain Blockchains of the future will be required to have a lower impact on the environment, working efficiently without consuming enormous amounts of energy to remain operational. Cardano has been one of the most energy-efficient blockchains in the industry. 1.6 million times lower than bitcoin and well below the average level of high market capitalization coins. Cardano h

This week, U.S. lawmakers are preparing to debate the advance of Joe Biden’s Build Back Better proposal, which is now estimated at $1.75 trillion. The new proposal follows the expansive monetary policy the Federal Reserve engaged in during the last two years expanding the money supply like never before. Meanwhile, U.S. inflation is at a 30 year high and the central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) plans to assess new strategies today. Biden Slims Down ‘Build Back Better’ Plan Last week, U.S. president Joe Biden offered a slimmed-down “ Build Back Better ” proposal from its original $3.5 trillion to the current estimate of $1.75 trillion. The proposal follows the massive monetary expansion that stemmed from the U.S. Federal Reserve adding credit to its member banks’ deposits. In order to deal with the economic disaster caused by the government’s Covid-19 mandates, the Fed’s monetary expansion eclipsed two centuries of USD creation. The latest 1,600-page proposal from the

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is taking a portion of his salary in bitcoin. He also gave away $1 million in the cryptocurrency to his fans in collaboration with Square’s Cash App. “I believe in bitcoin,” he said, adding that “the future is bright.” Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers Takes Part of His NFL Salary in Bitcoin American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), Aaron Rodgers, explained in a video he posted on Twitter Monday that he is taking a portion of his salary in bitcoin. In addition, he gave away $1 million in the cryptocurrency in partnership with Square’s Cash App. Rodgers said: Bitcoin to the moon … That’s why I’m pumped that I recently teamed with Cash App. They have enabled me to take part of my NFL salary in bitcoin for the very first time. He also wrote: “I believe in bitcoin & the future is bright.” The Green Bay Packers and Rodgers signed a four-year, $134 million deal before the start of the

The Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange Coinbase is now letting customers borrow up to $1 million using bitcoin as collateral. The company charges 8% APR but there is no credit check. The exchange said that the bitcoin used as collateral “remains safely held by Coinbase,” emphasizing, “It’s not lent out or used for any other purpose.” Customers Can Borrow up to $1M With Bitcoin as Collateral From Coinbase Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced Tuesday: We’re excited to announce that eligible customers can now borrow up to $1 million USD from Coinbase. On its website, the Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange explained that eligible customers can “Borrow cash using bitcoin as collateral,” noting that borrowers will “Pay just 8% APR with no credit check.” The company explained that customers can borrow as much as 40% of the value of the bitcoin in their account, up to $1 million. “Each month you only need to pay the interest due ($10 min),” Coinbase said, adding that there is no prepayment