Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

On March 16, Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Bitmex, published a blog post called “Energy Cancelled,” which describes the economics behind the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Hayes explains in his 26-minute long opinion piece that historians may point to February 26, 2022, as the time in history when the “Petro Dollar / Euro Dollar monetary system” ended. Speculation Concerning an Independent International Monetary and Financial System Free From the Petro Dollar and Euro Dollar Monetary System There’s been a lot of economic calamity since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as financial conditions worldwide have tightened and Russia has been sanctioned by a large swathe of countries. Analysts and economists believe the war and sanctions could have negative effects on the global economy and on March 5, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned the “economic consequences are already very serious.” A few days after the IMF warning, U.S. lawmakers int...

PRESS RELEASE. Meme coins have been trending for a while now in the crypto space and most of them are animal related. Dogs, in particular, are the most popular meme element used in global meme coin community. From Dogecoin to Shiba Inu (SHIB), the success of numerous meme coins has been witnessed by the vast majority of crypto investors and enthusiasts. And now, this everlasting trend of using animal as the major meme coin element might just come to an end, with the inception of a new meme created by a prodigy. Recently, random (RND), a 12-year-old primary school student’s new project, once again set off a “meme boom” and caused a sensation in the crypto community. After receiving widespread attention, it’s now listed on LBank Exchange to provide opportunities for more people who are interested in investing RND. Meme and the Prodigy On February 6, an extensive discussion occurred in the crypto space, all because a 12-year-old child released a video tutorial of smart contract on bi...

Several European regulators have issued a joint warning on crypto assets. “These assets are not suited for most retail consumers as an investment or as a means of payment or exchange,” they stressed. EU Supervisory Authorities Warn About the Danger of Investing in Crypto Assets Three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) issued a joint statement warning about the risks of crypto assets Thursday. The European Banking Authority (EBA), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) “warn consumers that many crypto assets are highly risky and speculative.” Their statement also outlines “key steps consumers can take to ensure they make informed decisions.” The regulators explained that their warning followed “growing consumer activity and interest in crypto assets and the aggressive promotion of those assets and related products to the public, including through social media.” The supervisory authorities st...

Kenyans are believed to have lost as much as $120 million to cryptocurrency scammers in the last financial year, a government official has said. The official, however, suggested the number of Kenyans losing funds this way can be reduced if the media helps by disseminating the right information. Media Told to Offer Guidance A Kenyan cabinet secretary has claimed his fellow countrymen lost about $120 million to crypto scammers in the last financial year. The secretary, Joe Mucheru, added that many Kenyans are getting scammed because they lack the proper information. In his remarks while speaking at a conference focused on law and order, Mucheru suggested the number of those suffering after losing funds to criminals can be reduced if the media plays its part. He explained: I think even as you report and investigate these issues, you can also be giving people guidance on the direction, where they need to invest, how they need to protect themselves. Mucheru also encouraged the shar...

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed the law “On Virtual Assets” which aims to regulate the crypto market in Ukraine. The approval comes as his country is increasingly relying on cryptocurrency donations to fund its defense and deal with humanitarian problems amid an ongoing Russian invasion. Law Regulating Cryptocurrencies Approved by Ukraine President Zelenskyy Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed into law a bill establishing rules for cryptocurrency transactions. The law “On Virtual Assets” will allow crypto platforms to operate in the country which has been using digital assets to finance its defense efforts and help its civilian population in the face of Russia’s military assault. “Ukraine has legalized the crypto sector,” the Ministry of Digital Transformation tweeted on Wednesday. “From now on, foreign and Ukrainian cryptocurrency exchanges will operate legally and banks will open accounts for crypto companies,” added the department, which has been involv...

As the Russia-Ukraine conflict continues, blockchain surveillance companies have discussed and implemented ways to combat sanctioned countries from using digital assets. Last week, Chainalysis revealed screening tools for crypto firms that aim to comply with international sanctions. On Monday, the CEO of Elliptic published a blog post describing the company’s work to combat sanction evasion. Elliptic CEO Speaks on the Company’s ‘Work to Combat Sanction Evasions in Crypto’ This week, Simone Maini, the chief executive officer of the blockchain surveillance firm Elliptic, published a blog post concerning how the company deals with sanction evasions tethered to crypto assets. Maini’s blog post stresses that “the war in Ukraine has demonstrated that powerful technologies such as cryptocurrency can be used in both positive and negative ways.” The Elliptic CEO details how funds were raised for the Ukrainian government and other Ukraine-based NGOs. On the other hand, Maini’s blog post no...

A lot has happened since the idea of Penguin Karts was first conceived. Who would have thought that a nostalgic memory would spawn the development of a blockchain project, let alone one that has been gaining steam like this. Today, we wanted to highlight what we believe makes Penguin Karts special and (if you’ll excuse the pun) how it really drives forward the blockchain gaming scene. The Game For those who don’t know, Penguin Karts is an immersive 3D battle-racing game built on the blockchain . Essentially, it takes the arcade-style kart racing you know and love and seamlessly introduces NFT dynamics alongside a Play-to-Earn system. Here’s what that means for you, as the player: you race against up to eight opponents across a selection of tracks while earning prizes and NFTs , which can be used in game (skins for your character and kart, for example) or sold for profit . There are also leaderboards to contend with, tournaments to take part in and even a wager system to...

The Indian government has told parliament that it does not have a plan to issue cryptocurrency to be regulated by the central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The government also clarified that India’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), that the RBI will launch this financial year, is “a digital version of traditional paper currency.” Indian Parliament Asks Government About ‘RBI Cryptocurrency’ The Indian ministry of finance answered some questions Tuesday in Rajya Sabha, India’s upper house of parliament, regarding “RBI Cryptocurrency.” Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh asked the finance minister to state “whether it is a fact that [the] government is planning to introduce a cryptocurrency that will be regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).” Pankaj Chaudhary, the minister of state in the ministry of finance, replied: “No sir.” Singh further asked whether the government is aware that cryptocurrency “is unregulated and free from government intervention.” Minister Ch...

The famous author of the best-selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, has predicted the end of the U.S. dollar. Furthermore, he said that the Russian-Ukraine war has given rise to crypto as “a safer haven asset than government fake fiat money.” Robert Kiyosaki on War and Bitcoin The author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, discussed bitcoin, the Russian-Ukraine war, and the end of the U.S. dollar in a series of tweets Tuesday. Rich Dad Poor Dad is a 1997 book co-authored by Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter. It has been on the New York Times Best Seller List for over six years. More than 32 million copies of the book have been sold in over 51 languages across more than 109 countries. Citing that many Russians are using bitcoin as a lifeline after the Russian ruble collapsed , he wrote: “Ukraine/Russian war giving rise to crypto as a safer haven than government fake fiat money.” Kiyosaki also tweeted Monday that the Biden administration and the Federal Reserve “want infl...

PRESS RELEASE. Vancouver, Canada – MetaBlox has completed their seed round and have raised over $2 million ​​from some of the most highly regarded firms in Web3. The seed funding is co-led by Synergis Capital and CollabCurrency, followed by NFT Technologies, SNZ holdings, Future Life, Slope, CrowdCreate, and multiple technology and few crypto-focused family offices. While MetaBlox secured funding, they are also ecstatic that they have developed partnerships and relationships with some of the most prominent figures in the space today. The funds Metablox has raised will accelerate their Network Protocol roll out. They are hiring a team to work on MetaBlox full time. They will use the initial funds to focus on marketing their network and garnering as much exposure to the crypto community as a user-centric network. Once they have the initial exposure established, MetaBlox will reward its users with passive income and income generating capabilities. The team at MetaBlox believes the f...

Gladstone Arantes, a director of the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), gave new details about the progress of the Brazilian Blockchain Network, a project that has been in development since 2018. The network will be created on top of the Hyperledger Besu 2.0, which uses a proof-of-authority consensus mechanism. The final goal of this project is to move public spending to the network in order to increase the transparency of these fund movements. Brazilian Blockchain Network Advances The Brazilian Blockchain Network, a project that was conceived back in 2018, is now in its development phase. Gladstone Arantes, head of blockchain initiatives at the Development Bank of the country (BNDES), revealed new insights about the development and the technical data of the project. At the Ethereum.Rio event, Arantes stated the project had selected Hyperledger Besu 2.0 to be its base platform, and that the network would also be using a proof-of-authority consensus system. Proof-of-authority mean...

Aptos, a new startup created by some of Meta’s former employees involved in the Diem project, has announced it has raised $200 million for its upcoming goal of creating a scalable blockchain system. The investment, conducted in a strategic funding round, involves some well-known VC names, including Tiger Global, Katie Haun, Multicoin Capital, 3 Arrows Capital, FTX Ventures, and Coinbase Ventures. Aptos to Propose Scalability Solutions A group of Meta’s ex-employees that worked on Diem, and abandoned the company in December, are now dedicated to developing their own blockchain system aiming for it to be used by millions. Aptos, the startup the group founded, has announced the company raised $200 million in its first funding round, which was qualified as “strategic.” The company had the support of several VC companies in this funding round, including Tiger Global, Katie Haun, Multicoin Capital, 3 Arrows Capital, FTX Ventures, and Coinbase Ventures, putting it at unicorn status. Aptos...

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced that it has received a full license from the Central Bank of Bahrain. “The crypto asset license will allow Binance to provide crypto-asset trading, custodial services, and portfolio management to customers under the supervision of the Bahrain regulators,” said the exchange. Binance Now Licensed in Bahrain Cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced Monday that it has been granted a crypto asset service provider license from the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder and CEO of Binance, tweeted: Binance has been granted the first license for a global crypto-asset provider in The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) by the Central Bank of Bahrain. He added: “The license from Bahrain is a milestone in our journey to being fully licensed and regulated around the world.” The cryptocurrency exchange company received in-principle approval from the central bank in December last year. And in-principle...

Authorities in China recently announced the arrest of ten suspects they say are behind an online pyramid platform that is thought to have stolen millions of dollars from unsuspecting users. The suspects are accused of using the promise of high returns and a regular income to lure more victims. A ‘Unicorn in the Field of Global Applications’ Chinese authorities recently said they had arrested ten individuals behind an online platform which they believe to be a pyramid scheme, a regional report from China has said. The report suggests the scammers may have defrauded unsuspecting investors of more than $15 million or 100 million yuan. According to the report , the arrests of the unnamed suspects followed the completion of a six-month investigation into the activities of the platform. The probe was initiated after authorities reported seeing the initial use of digital currency to implement the pyramid scheme in Shanghai. One of the probing teams, the Economic Investigation Team of the...

PRESS RELEASE. BTC Proxy , the Bitcoin Liquidity Protocol on Polygon, has entered into a strategic partnership with Blockchain.com , one of the world’s largest crypto platforms and an early pioneer of key Bitcoin infrastructure. As part of the partnership, Blockchain.com will add BTC Liquidity into the Proxy ecosystem by Minting BTCpx. Moving Bitcoin to the Polygon network will expand the DeFi ecosystem and provide reward opportunities for users. BTC Proxy believes it has solved a real pain point with Bitcoin by creating a mechanism of interoperability to access stored value from long-term holders without sacrificing safety through the use of qualified custodians. This tokenized volume can then be utilized to provide liquidity and drive value to all the networks involved. BTCpx is the tokenized receipt of Bitcoin ( BTC ) that has been deposited into a qualified custodian. In this arrangement, the BTCpx is used to navigate through carefully crafted and sustainable reward programs ...

Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance is showing its intention of expanding its activities to Brazil. The company announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with a regulated securities brokerage firm in Brazil, with the intention of acquiring it. The company, called Sim;paul Investimentos, offers different investment options to its customers, including various funds and stocks, and is said to be completely compliant with Brazilian laws. Binance Inks Memorandum of Understanding With Sim;paul Investimentos Binance is setting its sights on Latam, specifically Brazil, as the company is making moves to establish a more significant foothold in the country. The exchange announced it has inked a memorandum of understanding with a Brazilian brokerage firm called Sim;paul Investimentos, with the intention of acquiring the company after having cleared the requirements and receiving approval from regulators, including the Bank of Brazil. Binance’s move, according to the pres...

India’s income tax department has reportedly identified about 700 cryptocurrency investors who have failed to pay taxes on high-value crypto transactions. “We have a long list of people who were transacting in crypto assets but were not paying tax,” said an official with the country’s Central Board of Direct Taxation. Indian Tax Authority Going After 700 Crypto Investors India’s income tax department is reportedly cracking down on non-payment of taxes from cryptocurrency gains. The department is examining the high-value crypto transactions of about 700 investors, the Economic Times reported Tuesday, adding that the authority is proposing to issue notices to them. Income tax officials said most of these people have either omitted declaring crypto gains on their tax returns or have not filed tax returns at all. They could face 30% tax, penalty, and interest. A senior official with the Indian Central Board of Direct Taxation (CBDT) told the publication: We have a long list of peopl...

The Ukrainian government has launched an official cryptocurrency donation website to raise funds in support of the Ukrainian armed forces and humanitarian aid programs in the fight against Russia. The donation platform is a collaboration between the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Everstake, and cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Government’s Crypto Donation Website Now Live The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine announced Monday that it has launched the official “ Aid For Ukraine ” website to raise funds in support of the Ukrainian armed forces and humanitarian aid programs in the fight against Russia. The crypto donation platform is in partnership with staking service provider Everstake and cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Mykhailo Fedorov, vice prime minister of Ukraine, tweeted Monday confirming that the official website where anyone around the world can make cryptocurrency donations to Ukraine has gone live. The new donation website describes, “Aid For Ukrain...

The U.S. Better Business Bureau (BBB) says cryptocurrency scams have become the second riskiest. In addition, the organization noted that “Payment made via cryptocurrency that resulted in a monetary loss more than doubled from 2020.” BBB Sees Rising Crypto Scams The U.S. Better Business Bureau (BBB) released its 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report Friday. “This annual report uses data submitted by individuals and businesses to BBB Scam Tracker to shed light on how scams are perpetrated, who is being targeted, which scams have the greatest impact, and much more,” the report explains. Founded in 1912, the BBB is a private, nonprofit organization focused on advancing marketplace trust, its website details. The report states: Cryptocurrency scams rose from seventh riskiest in 2020 to the second riskiest scam in 2021. Online purchase scams maintained the top position as the riskiest, accounting for 37.4% of all scams reported to BBB Scam Tracker in 2021. Employment scams dropped from...

Japan’s top financial regulator has asked cryptocurrency exchanges in the country not to process transactions subject to asset-freeze sanctions. The penalty for unauthorized payments to sanctioned persons includes three years in prison. Japan’s Financial Regulator and Ministry of Finance Ask Crypto Exchanges to Comply With Sanctions Restrictions Japan’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency (FSA), announced Monday that the country will contribute to international sanctions efforts surrounding Ukraine following its attack by Russia. The FSA added that it has received approval by the Cabinet to implement “various measures including payment restrictions under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act.” The financial regulator detailed that it and the Ministry of Finance have made a request to crypto exchanges in the country not to process transactions subject to asset-freeze sanctions against Russia and Belarus. The FSA detailed: All payments, including payments b...

Argentinian citizens involved in the cryptocurrency industry are criticizing a perceived anti-crypto requirement that the recent deal made with the IMF has introduced. The deal, which restructures and gives more facilities to the country to pay the $45 billion owed to the fund, also hints at a series of measures directed at stifling the growth that the crypto industry has experienced in the country. IMF Slips Controversial Crypto Clause Into Argentinian Debt Restructuring Deal An perceived anti-crypto requirement in the newly-approved deal Argentina signed with the IMF has Argentinians talking about the implications it might have on the adoption of crypto in the country. The agreement , which serves to restructure the $45 million in debt Argentina has with the international organization, will give the country a much-needed time period to repay this debt. The debated statement slipped into the law project that approves the aforementioned refinancing of the debt declares: The Nati...

PRESS RELEASE. IHC token team just announced a contest of video content creation with a prize pool of 100 million IHC tokens among Youtubers. All Youtube content creators with above 5k subscribers can compete by posting a full explanatory video on “Inflation Hedging Coin” between March 15 and April 15. The preliminary qualification will be held on April 20, 2022 and the top 30 entries with the most YouTube views will be selected. Then judges will select the five winners on May 1 from the list of 30 contestants with the most views on their entry video. Videos published to YouTube must comply with the fair use of copyrighted materials and they must be either in English or have English subtitles. The video length should be at least 3 minutes and the content should be exclusively about the IHC token. There are no limits to creativity; contestants can even submit multiple entries to the contest. Contestants can register their entry via pressoffice@ihcoin.io e-mail address with the subjec...