Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China, has added more cities to test its digital currency. According to the latest official data, the digital yuan has more than 261 million users. PBOC Adds More Cities to Test Its CBDC The Chinese central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), said Saturday that it is adding more pilot cities to test its central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan (e-CNY). The new pilot cities are Tianjin, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen, and six cities in the Zhejiang province that will host the 2022 Asian Games in September. The six cities are Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Shaoxing, Jinhua, and Huzhou. The digital yuan is already being tested in 10 major cities: Shenzhen, Shanghai, Suzhou, Xiong’an, Chengdu, Hainan, Changsha, Xi’an, Qingdao, and Dalian. It was also tested at the Winter Olympics in Beijing. Commenting on its digital currency, the Chinese central bank stated: Policies must be designed to stimulate creativity and enthus...

PRESS RELEASE. The leading virtual currency exchange, Bitcoin of America, is announcing its return to BTC 2022 in Miami. Bitcoin of America made headlines last year at Bitcoin 2021 for promoting females in the cryptocurrency space. This year the company is back and bringing even more of its female team, including its top women executives. The company has been vocal about making cryptocurrency inclusive to women and getting more females into the industry. Mayor Francis Suarez has become a staple in the cryptocurrency space with his immense support of Bitcoin and its importance in the emerging tech hub, Miami. Suarez spoke last year at the Bitcoin 2021 conference. This year, he is welcoming the all-women team from Bitcoin of America. “I am excited that Miami is hosting the largest Bitcoin conference for the second year. We don’t see very often promoting women in the cryptocurrency industry, and it’s refreshing to see a top operator like Bitcoin of America sending its all-female exec...

Coinbase is focusing on growing the crypto and Web3 ecosystem in India. “Combined with India’s world-class software talent, we believe that crypto and web3 technology can help accelerate India’s economic and financial inclusion goals,” said CEO Brian Armstrong. Coinbase Expanding in India With Web3 and Crypto Push The Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase revealed its plan for India Monday. “India has built a robust identity and digital payments infrastructure and implemented it at rapid scale and speed,” CEO Brian Armstrong described, adding: Combined with India’s world-class software talent, we believe that crypto and web3 technology can help accelerate India’s economic and financial inclusion goals. The CEO continued: “Coinbase Ventures has already invested $150 million in home-grown Indian technology companies in the crypto and web3 space, and is constantly identifying new opportunities to help Indian founders scale.” He added that Coinbase’s Indian tech hub, launc...

The U.K. government has unveiled a detailed plan to make the country a global crypto hub and “a hospitable place for crypto.” The plan includes establishing a dynamic regulatory framework for crypto, regulating stablecoins, and working with the Royal Mint to create a non-fungible token (NFT) to be issued by the Summer. U.K. Wants to Be ‘the Very Best Place’ to Start and Scale Crypto Companies The British government unveiled several initiatives Monday as part of its plan to make the U.K. “a global cryptoasset technology hub.” They include regulating stablecoins, legislating for a “financial market infrastructure sandbox” to help firms innovate, holding a Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)-led Cryptosprint, working with the Royal Mint on a non-fungible token (NFT), and establishing an engagement group to work more closely with the crypto industry. The British chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, commented: It’s my ambition to make the U.K. a global hub for cryptoasset technol...

Since September 18, 2021, close to 250 Casascius physical bitcoins were redeemed over the last 198 days. On that day six months ago, there were 19,920 Casascius physical bitcoins left active and today, there are approximately 19,676 left to peel. 19,676 Casascius Physical Bitcoins Left to Peel During the last six months, approximately 244 Casascius physical bitcoins were redeemed for their digital value. The Casascius physical bitcoin collection created by Mike Caldwell is one of the most popular physical BTC collections. The rare coins are often sold for more than the digital face value and today, there are 19,676 physical coins left unredeemed or active, according to casasciustracker.com stats. Each physical bitcoin has a different fraction of digital BTC , as some coins carry .5 in BTC value while some hold a single BTC . Caldwell also made gold bars with bitcoins loaded onto them like the popular 100 BTC gold bar . There are Casascius physical bitcoins that hold 25 BTC and...

Wechat, the Chinese messaging app, has reportedly suspended accounts that are linked to non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The objective of the crackdown is to stop the use of the affected accounts in promoting NFTs. The Widening Crackdown on Digital Assets The Chinese messaging app Wechat recently acknowledged it had suspended some accounts which are said to be linked to non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The suspension of the accounts, according to a BBC report, is aimed at stopping such blacklisted accounts from engaging in NFT market promotional activities that help to drive up prices. The targeting of NFT-promoting accounts by Wechat appears to suggest that China, which currently does not have specific regulations against NFTs, is widening its crackdown on digital assets that began in 2021. As explained by multiple reports published by Bitcoin.com News, Chinese authorities have been clamping down on bitcoin miners and cryptocurrency exchange platforms since mid-2021. The crackdown is beli...

The Indonesian government has decided to tax capital gains income from crypto investments at 0.1% starting in May. In addition, value-added tax (VAT) of the same rate will be levied on crypto purchases. Indonesia to Start Taxing Crypto Income at 0.1% The Indonesian Directorate General of Taxes, the Ministry of Finance, has set income tax (PPh) on capital gains from crypto investments and value-added tax (VAT) on crypto purchases at 0.1%. Hestu Yoga Saksama, director of tax regulations for the Ministry of Finance, told CNN Indonesia Friday: That’s right, 0.1% PPh and 0.1% VAT (for crypto), all of which are final. He added that both the income tax and VAT on crypto purchases will be imposed starting May 1. According to the director, the Indonesian government has levied income tax and VAT on crypto purchases because the central bank, Bank Indonesia, and the Ministry of Trade consider crypto a commodity, not a means of payment. He clarified: Crypto assets will be subject to VAT...

PRESS RELEASE. To help traders earn more cryptocurrency, leading crypto derivatives exchange Bexplus has launched a 100% deposit bonus promotion to all traders. If you deposit 1 BTC , 2 BTC will be credited to your account. Every user can get up to 10 BTC for each deposit. Bitcoin’s high volatility has made a comeback and currently presents more opportunities for traders to make profits. Taking advantage of the price swings and leverage offered by brokers, trading can easily generate 100% or even 1,000% ROI. It’s important to point out only traders who know what they are doing can get to these returns consistently.Because leveraged trading is both high-yield and high-risk. How Does Leveraged Trading Work? Assume we use 1 BTC to open a long contract when Bitcoin is trading at $40,000. Please note that with 100x leverage, 1 BTC can open a contract worth 100 BTC . One day later, the price of Bitcoin increase to $45,000.The profit will be ($45,000 – $40,000) * 100 BTC /$45,000...

A lawsuit against Binance accusing the cryptocurrency exchange of selling unregistered crypto securities has been dismissed. The plaintiffs listed nine cryptocurrencies in the lawsuit. Binance’s Lawsuit Dismissed U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter dismissed a lawsuit against cryptocurrency exchange Binance Thursday. The motion to dismiss was filed by Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ). The lawsuit (case no. 20-02803) was originally filed in April 2020 in the U.S. district court in the Southern District of New York. Binance is accused of violating U.S. securities laws by selling cryptocurrencies that are allegedly unregistered securities. The exchange is also accused of failing to register as a securities exchange or broker-dealer with U.S. regulators. The case involves nine cryptocurrencies — EOS , QSP, KNC, TRX , FUN, ICX, OMG, LEND, and ELF — which the plaintiffs bought through Binance’s online exchange starting in 2017. However, the coins soon lost significant value. The pl...

It’s been another bustling week full of colorful stories in the crypto world, with Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki talking about the U.S. dollar imploding, and advocating people buy bitcoin, ethereum, and solana — not to mention talk of Spacex founder and CEO Elon Musk potentially starting his own free speech-focused social media network. On top of all this, the Ukrainian government has launched a “Museum of War” NFT collection, and massive amounts of sleeping bitcoin are on the move. So, without further ado, here’s your bite-sized digest of the week’s hottest crypto news. Robert Kiyosaki Warns US Dollar ‘About to Implode’ — Advises Buying Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana The famous author of the best-selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, has warned that the U.S. dollar is “about to implode.” Among the investments he suggested are cryptocurrencies bitcoin, ethereum, and solana. Read More Elon Musk Giving ‘Serious Thought’ to Creating Social Media Platform With Free ...

The Colombian tax authority, DIAN, has reminded taxpayers that they need to start registering cryptocurrencies in their statements starting this year. The director of the DIAN, Lisandro Junco, reminded cryptocurrency users that this kind of asset is taxed as any other asset held by citizens. Colombia has already collected $1 billion in digital economy-related taxes. Colombian Citizens Must Start Including Crypto in Their Tax Statements The Colombian tax authority has reminded taxpayers about their duty of declaring cryptocurrency assets in their tax statements starting this year. In a consultation made by local media, the organization informed the public that it is empowered to perform verifications on the received data from taxpayers to ensure the correct application of the tax laws of the country. The director of the tax authority, Lisandro Junco, informed about crypto assets and their tax status in Colombia. He declared: You have to pay taxes even if it is an element of the d...

Members of the team of the now defunct Turkish crypto exchange Thodex may receive thousands of years in prison, if the court backs the prosecutor’s plea in the case. The trading platform’s CEO has been missing for the past year since Thodex suspended activities in a suspected exit scam. Turkey Seeks up to 40,000 Years Jail Time for Thodex Defendants Faruk Fatih Ozer, founder and chief executive of the crypto exchange Thodex, and another 20 people involved in its operations, should each get up to 40,564 years of jail time, according to a Turkish prosecutor. The indictment was quoted by Demiroren news agency and Hurriyet, about a year after the platform stopped trading. The defendants are accused of establishing a criminal organization, fraud, and laundering of proceeds from illicit activities. The 28-year-old Ozer has been missing since last year and is still wanted on a red notice from Interpol, despite efforts by Turkish law enforcement to locate him in several countries. He was ...

A high-ranking representative of the Ministry of Finance in Moscow sees no point in banning crypto mining in Russian households as it would be hard to restrict the activity. The top official also revealed that the department is currently finalizing regulations for the mining sector as part of efforts to legalize Russia’s crypto space. Russia Prepares to Legalize Cryptocurrency Mining Trying to prohibit at-home crypto mining makes no sense as it would be difficult to impose such a ban, according to Alexey Yakovlev, deputy director of the Financial Policy Department at the Ministry of Finance of Russia. He made the statement at a round table discussion devoted to the legalization and regulation of the industry. The ministry is now finalizing new provisions that would bring this crypto-related activity into the legal field, Yakovlev announced during a video conference call, quoted by the crypto news outlet Forklog. Russian authorities intend to put an emphasis on ensuring that activi...

A recent poll conducted by NBC News indicates that one in five Americans has used cryptocurrencies by either investing or trading digital assets. The findings suggest that crypto assets continue to become more popular as 21% of the 1,000 participants surveyed have “dabbled” in crypto assets. Survey Says 1 in 5 Americans Has Used Crypto Assets in Some Capacity Digital currencies have seen significant growth during the last year as the crypto economy is currently valued at $2.2 trillion at the time of writing. According to an NBC News poll , one in five American residents hass used cryptocurrencies in some fashion, and the popularity among men was significant. Male participants held the largest share of all the demographics surveyed as 50% of men between the ages of 18 and 49 said they have either invested in or traded crypto assets. The polled participants had different views about cryptocurrencies and the industry, and 56% of the surveyed individuals explained they were neutral or...

The head of Defiance ETFs says she is “completely bullish on bitcoin.” Noting that it is a “good time” to get into the cryptocurrency, she explained why she believes the price of bitcoin will reach $100K. CEO of Defiance ETFs Bullish on Bitcoin Sylvia Jablonski, chief executive officer, chief investment officer, and co-founder of Defiance ETFs, explained her bullishness on bitcoin despite recent price declines in an interview with CNBC Thursday. Defiance ETFs is an exchange-traded funds (ETFs) sponsor and registered investment advisor focused on thematic investing. Jablonski told the media outlet: I remain completely bullish on bitcoin. I think the short-term activity is just noise. She noted: “It looks as though, in terms of what we’ve seen for the last six months to a year or so, is that bitcoin is correlated with risk assets and equities specifically.” The executive explained that when investors see the crypto market rallying for a couple of days, they pile back into bitco...

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has shared a dogecoin video on Twitter in a conversation about bitcoin mining on April 1. He says, “this video explains everything.” Elon Musk Shares Dogecoin Video Tesla and Spacex CEO Elon Musk shared a video about the meme cryptocurrency dogecoin (DOGE) on April 1 in reply to a tweet about bitcoin by Brett Winton, Ark Invest’s director of research. In the tweet, Winton quoted a conversation about bitcoin mining where he seems to be having difficulty explaining to his mom on April Fools’ Day that bitcoin miners are computers. Replying with a meme video titled “Ð is for Ðogecoin” on the same day, Musk wrote: “Just show her this video explains everything.” The short video features the DOGE mascot on a journey to the moon. The shiba inu on a rocket passed bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies as the price of DOGE soared. Winton replied to Musk: “A meme too far for her I’m afraid. (On the other hand, my 5-year-old is now frantically agitating to set up a Coi...

Shiba Inu, the meme-coin project that mimicked dogecoin, has announced it is launching its own take on the metaverse. The project, called “Shib: The Metaverse,” will introduce more than 100K plots of land to be unlocked at different times. The Shiba Inu team also announced the prices of the plots, which depend on their location, detailing that they will be sold for ether instead of the metaverse’s native token. Shiba Inu to Launch Puppy Metaverse Shiba Inu, one of the meme-tokens launched mimicking the idea of dogecoin, the first meme-coin, has now announced the development of its own metaverse initiative. The project, which is called “Shib: The Metaverse,” will have direct integration with Shiboshis, a series of NFTs the project issued before. The team specified that this project would be developed by a yet-unnamed third-party game studio. According to an announcement issued by the project team: Shib : The Metaverse is the culmination of our history as a community, virtually d...

A study undertaken by two assistant professors at American University in Cairo (AUC) has suggested that an increase of 10% in the crypto market cap causes the market value of “African micro-entities” to drop by 0.76%. Crypto Market Growth Hurts Less Competitive Sectors According to the findings of a study undertaken by Mina Sami and Wael Abdallah, each time the cryptocurrency market cap grows by 10%, there is a corresponding 0.76% drop in the market value of African micro-entities. The study findings also suggested that firms in less competitive sectors are “more likely to get hurt by the cryptocurrency market’s expansion.” For instance, the two authors conclude in their report that the cryptocurrency market has “a considerable effect on Africa’s energy, financial, industrial, and consumer services sectors.” In contrast, the real estate and the information technology sectors are less affected by the growth of the crypto market, the authors said. Meanwhile, the authors claimed tha...

With sanctions cutting off Russia from global finances, Moscow’s motivation to establish a domestic market infrastructure for digital assets grows, a top official at the Russian finance ministry has noted. The comment comes as Russians are losing access to foreign crypto platforms. Russia Recognizes Need for Local Crypto Assets Market Amid expanding international sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine, Russia has been turning its attention to cryptocurrencies while concerns in the West are growing that the country may use them to circumvent financial restrictions. The penalties have also affected the crypto space, and Russians are finding it harder to cash out their digital holdings. The incentives to build the Russian infrastructure for the cryptocurrency market have increased, as sanctions have led to restrictions for Russian nationals on foreign exchanges. The remark was made by Ivan Chebeskov, director of the Financial Policy Department of the Ministry of Finance, during the I...

Bandai Namco, a game developer and publishing company involved in the production of toys from several intellectual properties (IPs), has revealed more information about its $130-million metaverse gambit. The company says this new initiative will be based on its Gundam IP, being one of the first instances in the announced IP Axis strategy of the company, which envisions a multi-IP hub of multiverses. Bandai Namco Begins Building Its Metaverse With Gundam Bandai Namco, a Japanese game developing and publishing company, has given more details about the future of its $130-million metaverse investment. The company has confirmed that the first IP that will receive the metaverse treatment will be Gundam, the popular giant robot universe with several videogames, manga, and anime adaptations. First being hinted at in an announcement last month, the company took advantage of the third Gundam conference to reveal this news worldwide. According to Bandai Namco: [This metaverse will be a] pl...

PRESS RELEASE. The Moxy.io team has built a team consisting of several veterans from the video game industry to take gaming to a whole new level by bringing blockchain technology to mainstream games. The team began their adventure in 2021, when a band of blockchain enthusiasts joined up with a group of video gaming industry experts to revitalise ‘Play to Earn (P2E).’ Having said that, Moxy.io is offering a new paradigm: ‘Play & Earn (P&E)’. As such, the team is made up of video game industry veterans who were responsible for founding the sector and generating hundreds of popular games and #1 titles over the course of the industry’s existence. Moxy.io will be able to push P&E into the mainstream by using the knowledge, skills and expertise of these professionals. The team includes seasoned veterans like Nolan Bushnell (Chief Knowledge Officer), Lawrence Seigel (Executive Chairman), Stewart Bell (President of European Operations), Matt deFouw (Chief Executive Officer), D...

India’s government is consulting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and Indian regulators in order to form the country’s crypto policy. “We have reached out to institutional stakeholders within the country and outside. We are taking inputs from the IMF and the World Bank and incorporating these,” said an official from the Indian ministry of finance. Indian Government in Talks With IMF, World Bank, RBI, SEBI on Crypto Policy Indian finance ministry officials are discussing a framework for cryptocurrency with various stakeholders including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Mint publication reported Thursday. “We have drafted a consultation paper on cryptocurrency,” one of the officials revealed, elaborating: Now, we have reached out to institutional stakeholders within the country and outside. We are taking inputs from the IMF and the World Bank ...

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has introduced legislation to prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly to individuals and competing with the private sector. The senator from Texas warned that not only would this CBDC model centralize financial information, leaving it vulnerable to attack, but it could also be used “as a direct surveillance tool into the private transactions of Americans.” Senator Cruz Introduces Bill to Prevent the Fed From Issuing Digital Dollar to Retail Consumers U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced legislation Wednesday “to prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly to individuals,” an announcement posted on his official website describes. The bill was co-sponsored by Senators Mike Braun (R-IN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA). ‘‘No Federal Reserve bank may offer products or services directly to an individual, maintain an account on behalf of an individual, or issue a central ban...

Chinese authorities have jailed four individuals that were accused of kidnapping one person and demanding “hundreds of bitcoins” as a ransom payment. While the alleged kidnapping is reported to have occurred in the Philippines, the cooperation between the two countries eventually led to the arrest and eventual sentencing of the Chinese kidnappers. A Ransom Demand Four Chinese citizens accused of kidnapping and demanding bitcoin as ransom payment have been jailed, China’s Embassy in the Philippines has said. Two of the accused — namely, Liu and Zhang — were handed prison terms of eight and 12 years, respectively. The remaining two, Cong and Jia, were sentenced to life in prison. According to a statement released by the Embassy, the four are believed to have kidnapped an individual identified as “Su” in the Philippines in August 2019. For Su’s safe return, the kidnappers demanded “hundreds of bitcoins” which are equivalent to over $3.1 million or more than 20 million yuan. The kid...

Authorities in Japan are planning to introduce tougher new rules for crypto operators as part of efforts to prevent Russia from using cryptocurrencies to evade sanctions. The legislative initiative comes after Tokyo asked digital asset exchanges to strengthen transactions monitoring this month. Government of Japan to Close Loopholes for Russians in Crypto Space Amid concerns that Russia and its elites may employ cryptocurrencies to circumvent international sanctions, Japanese authorities are going to stiffen regulations for cryptocurrency exchanges. The platforms will be required to verify if recipients of transactions are subject to financial sanctions imposed in response to Moscow’s decision to invade Ukraine. To obligation will be introduced through amendments to the country’s foreign exchange and trade law, according to government sources quoted by Japan Today. The revision aims to also deprive sanctioned individuals and entities of opportunities to transfer crypto assets to a ...