Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Chinese authorities in Rong County recently said they have prosecuted eight individuals accused of being the masterminds behind the Magic Data Chain (MDC) pyramid scheme. The pyramid is thought to have handled transactions with a total value of over $147 million. Virtual Currency Pyramid Scheme Authorities in China’s Rong County, Zigong City, recently prosecuted eight people accused of orchestrating the MDC virtual currency pyramid scheme, a local report has said. According to the report, the prosecution of the case was handled by the Rong County People’s Procuratorate, and was only carried out some ten months after the arrest of MDC’s 12 core members. According to a report from the Sichuan Provincial Public Security Department, the MDC pyramid scheme was initially cracked in May 2021. Subsequent investigations by authorities in Rong County then determined that the scheme had been in existence since July 2019. MDC’s 2 Million Registered Members In the report, authorities said t

PRESS RELEASE. Algoracle has recently announced the close of its seed round for $1.5 million (USD) to help accelerate the development and launch of Algorand’s native decentralized oracle network. Algoracle’s seed round was led by Borderless Capital , with major contributions from the Algorand Foundation , Valhalla Capital , and Big Brain Holdings , and rounded out by strategic investors Xpand Capital , Parea Capital , OrcaDAO , GMI Capital , and EXA Finance . Thanks to the support provided by all of these organizations, the seed round was a resounding success and generated the aforementioned amount of $1.5 million, much to the delight of the community. “We are excited to back Algoracle and their vision of bringing data on-chain in a decentralized fashion. This will help developers to build more powerful and sophisticated applications and smart contracts, enabling innovative and disruptive new use cases on top of the Algorand blockchain” said David Garcia, CEO and Managing

Tesla and Spacex CEO Elon Musk says that the U.S. economy is probably in a recession and it could be “tough going” for 12 to 18 months. He added: “The honest reason for inflation is that the government printed a zillion more money than it had.” Elon Musk on U.S. Recession and Inflation Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and Spacex, talked about the U.S. economy on the All-In podcast, published Monday. Commenting on whether the U.S. economy is in a recession, Musk said: We probably are in a recession and that recession will get worse but these things pass and then there will be boom times again … It’ll probably be some tough going for, I don’t know, a year, maybe 12-18 months. He added that 12 to 18 months is roughly the amount of time for a correction to happen. Recession fears have escalated recently as the Federal Reserve tightens monetary policy to help cool down inflation. Musk explained that in his opinion, recessions are not necessarily a bad thing, emphasizing that he’s been t

South Korea’s top financial regulators have launched an emergency investigation into the collapse of cryptocurrency LUNA and stablecoin UST. The authorities have asked domestic cryptocurrency exchanges to provide information relating to transactions and investors of the two coins. South Korea’s Emergency Investigation Into LUNA, UST South Korea has launched an “emergency” investigation of domestic crypto exchange operators following the collapse of the terrausd stablecoin (UST) and terra (LUNA) cryptocurrency, Yonhap News reported Tuesday, citing unnamed sources. Last week, UST lost its peg to the U.S. dollar, sending its price and the price of terra (LUNA) into free fall. At the time of writing, UST is trading at less than $0.09 while LUNA is near worthless. South Korean top financial regulators, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), have asked local cryptocurrency exchange operators to share information relating to UST and LUNA, sou

Since last week’s Terra implosion and the demise of the blockchain project’s native token LUNA — and the algorithmic stablecoin terrausd (UST) — crypto tokens based on the Cosmos ecosystem have seen significant losses. Two months ago, the top Cosmos ecosystem coins collectively were worth $61.6 billion and since then, the Cosmos economy has lost more than 75% in value, dropping to $15.2 billion. Terra’s Fallout Stirs Cosmos Token Ecosystem The blockchain project Terra is a Cosmos-based network, which leverages the consensus protocol Tendermint, the Cosmos SDK, and the Inter-Blockchain Communication protocol (IBC). Terra’s network has a native token called LUNA and a suite of algorithmic fiat-pegged tokens such as terrausd (UST). Last week, UST lost its $1 parity and after the de-pegging event, LUNA’s value dropped well below a U.S. penny per unit. Terra’s fallout not only rippled across the crypto economy, but it wreaked significant havoc across the Cosmos ecosystem tokens built wi

This is the May 2022 monthly market insights report by Bitcoin.com Exchange . In this and subsequent reports, expect to find a summary of crypto market performance, a macro recap, market structure analysis, and more. Crypto Market Performance May got off to a rough start as the Federal Reserve confirmed a hawkish bias on the back of lingering inflation. Markets reacted by going risk-off. The collapse of LUNA and UST added fuel to the fire, with the result that crypto markets saw historically large drawdowns. BTC reached a low of $25.4k USD, which is 60% off its all-time high of $65k. ETH saw a comparable drawdown. Other large-cap coins fared even worse, with AVAX and SOL being down over 75% and 80% respectively from their all-time highs. During the first week of the month, gaming (play-to-earn) saw the worst performance across crypto sectors, followed by top assets (large caps) with losses of 9.6%, and Web3, which was down 8.9%.   Macro Recap: Quantitative Tightening (QT)

The Luna Foundation Guard, the entity in charge of safeguarding the peg of UST, the stablecoin of the Terra ecosystem, has revealed how it used the available Bitcoin reserve before the recent debacle involving the Terra ecosystem. The organization sold part of the bitcoins owned directly, while another part was traded on different dates to try and stabilize the value of UST. The reserve was comprised of more than 80,000 BTC . Luna Foundation Guard Clarifies Reserve Movements The Luna Foundation Guard (LFG), the organization tasked with safeguarding the dollar peg of UST, the algorithmic stablecoin of the Terra ecosystem, has broken its silence to explain the use of the assets it had under its custody. The institution had amassed more than 80K BTC , which was to be used in case of market imbalances affecting the value of terrausd (UST). According to reports on social media, the foundation spent almost all of its BTC reserves in a failed attempt to save UST. This was made in three

Portugal, one of the countries considered a crypto tax haven due to its absence of crypto-related taxation, is preparing to change this policy. Fernando Medina, minister of finance of Portugal, stated that the country is working on a framework to allow the taxation of cryptocurrency income gains following the principles of “justice” and “efficiency,” and declared that there cannot be gaps for any income gains to be obtained without taxation. Portugal to Tighten Cryptocurrency Taxation Policy Portugal, one of the countries that has been touted as a crypto haven due to the absence of taxation in this regard, is working on the establishment of laws that will allow it to tax these digital assets. The statements on the subject were made by the minister of finance of the country, Fernando Medina, during a state budget discussion. Medina explained: Several countries are building their models regarding this matter and we are going to build ours. I do not want to commit myself to a date

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has reportedly proposed banning public figures, including celebrities and sportsmen, from advertising and endorsing crypto products. The regulator also proposed that public figures be held liable for any law violations when promoting crypto products. SEBI’s Crypto Advertising and Endorsement Proposal The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the country’s securities and commodity market regulator, has proposed prohibiting public figures, including celebrities and sportsmen, from endorsing crypto products, Businessline reported last week. In addition, the regulator proposed requiring advertisers to disclose possible law violations. SEBI recently shared its view on the subject with India’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance when it was questioned about various crypto issues, sources told the publication. The regulator subsequently submitted a detailed written response to the committee. The Indian Ministry of Finance

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence has reportedly blocked almost 10,000 bank accounts over suspicious foreign currency and cryptocurrency transactions. The action was carried out in collaboration with the country’s central bank. 9,219 Bank Accounts Blocked Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence issued a statement Saturday stating that it has blocked a number of bank accounts due to suspicious foreign currency and cryptocurrency transactions, local media reported. The ministry detailed: A total of 9,219 bank accounts belonging to 545 individuals were blocked. The statement adds that the total transaction value blocked was over 60 trillion Iranian tomans, which is approximately $2 billion based on the daily dollar exchange rate in the Iranian open market. Iran’s currency recently hit a four-month low against the U.S. dollar. However, the ministry did not provide any details on the accounts or how much of the turnover was in digital currency. The Ministry of Intelligence’s action was carri

Former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke says the main use of bitcoin is “mostly for underground economy activities and often things that are illegal or illicit.” He added, “I don’t think bitcoin is going to take over as an alternative form of money.” Ben Bernanke on Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency Former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke shared his view on bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in an interview with CBNC Monday. Bernanke is an economist who served two terms as the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, from 2006 to 2014. He oversaw the Fed’s response to the late 2000s financial crisis during his tenure as chairman. Noting that the values of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies change minute-to-minute, he said Monday: They’ve been successful as a speculative asset. However, he pointed out that “They were intended to be a substitute for fiat money,” adding that “in that respect, they have not succeeded.” He continued: “If bitcoin were a substitute for fiat money, you

Grayscale Investments has announced the launch of an exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Europe. The company’s Future of Finance UCITS ETF will list on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Borsa Italiana, and Deutsche Börse Xetra. Grayscale Launches ETF in Europe Grayscale Investments, the world’s largest digital asset manager, announced Monday the launch of its first European exchange-traded fund (ETF) called Grayscale Future of Finance UCITS ETF (ticker: GFOF). It will list on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Borsa Italiana, and Deutsche Börse Xetra, the company said. The announcement details: GFOF UCITS ETF tracks the investment performance of the Bloomberg Grayscale Future of Finance Index and seeks to offer investors exposure to companies at the intersection of finance, technology, and digital assets. UCITS ETFs are products domiciled in European markets that are subject to the Undertakings for the Collective Investment in Transferable Securities regulation. The GFOF UCITS ETF is G

David Marcus, former cryptocurrency head at Meta, is launching Lightspark, another payments company that will use crypto as its central payment tool. The startup, which will have Marcus at the helm as CEO, also features some of Meta’s former employees and will explore the possibilities of using the layer 2 Lightning Network (LN) as a vehicle for bitcoin payments. Meta’s Former Crypto Boss Kickstarts Lightspark David Marcus, former cryptocurrency project boss at Meta, is doubling down on the importance he thinks crypto might have for payments in the future. Marcus announced this week on social media he and others were launching a cryptocurrency company called Lightspark that aims to harness the capabilities of crypto for the payments area. Marcus is not alone in this task. He took on some of the former Meta employees for this startup. While the details of the company are still scarce, Marcus explained that Lightning Network (LN), the second layer scalability protocol for Bitcoin,

The Tezos Foundation recently said it has committed $1.23 million to a fund that will be used to collect non-fungible tokens (NFTs) created by African and Asian artists. Photographer Misan Harriman has been selected as the curator of the foundation’s permanent art collection. Supporting a New Generation of Artists The Swiss non-profit organization, Tezos Foundation, recently said it has committed about $1.23 million (£1 million) to a fund, which will be used to collect non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of upcoming artists from Africa and Asia. The artists’ works will be curated by Misan Harriman, a renowned photographer and one of the pioneers in the making and collection of NFTs. As per The Art newspaper report , Harriman — the chair of London’s complex of artistic venues, Southbank Center — will also focus on acquiring the works of artists from regions with less representation in the NFT community. Commenting on his role as the curator of Tezos Foundation’s so-called permanent art coll

A soccer referee’s decision to toss a bitcoin before the start of a recent match between Istanbul giants Beşiktaş and Fenerbahçe has sparked controversy in Turkey. The country’s football authority is trying to establish why a crypto coin was used for the ritual when that role should have been reserved for the Turkish lira. Bitcoin Coin Toss at Soccer Game Under Investigation in Turkey The latest clash between Istanbul soccer clubs Beşiktaş and Fenerbahçe ended in a 1-1 draw but it’s not the tight game that drew the most attention, the Turkish daily Hürriyet wrote in article about the sports event. With photos posted on social media showing the referee flipping a Bitcoin-branded coin, it’s the kick-off ceremony that came to the forefront, the newspaper notes. Before every soccer match, the referee would flip a coin to determine which team is going to start with the football. The Turkish Football Federation ( TFF ) is now examining the case as according to its rules, referees are on

The British Treasury Department has affirmed its commitment to regulate stablecoins after the collapse of terrausd (UST) and terra (LUNA). “This will create the conditions for issuers and service providers to operate and grow in the U.K., whilst ensuring financial stability and high regulatory standards,” said an HM Treasury spokesperson. Regulation of Stablecoins in the UK HM Treasury, the U.K. Treasury Department, is moving forward with plans to regulate payment stablecoins despite a crypto market meltdown last week, The Telegraph reported Saturday. The affirmation followed the collapse of Terra which saw algorithmic stablecoin terrausd (UST) lose its peg to the U.S. dollar and terra (LUNA) fall to near zero. A HM Treasury spokesman said: Legislation to regulate stablecoins, where used as a means of payment, will be part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill which was announced in the Queen’s Speech. “This will create the conditions for issuers and service providers to

The effect of Terra’s demise continues to shine a light on the fragility surrounding the decentralized finance (defi) ecosystem. Things have changed a great deal following Terra’s aftermath, as the total value locked (TVL) in defi has plummeted from $231 billion to today’s $112.29 billion, losing 51.38% in 42 days. Defi TVL Plunges More Than 50% Since April 3, Terra Implosion Impacts Defi Economy the Most The total value locked in defi today is just above the $100 billion mark at $112.29 billion. While the TVL has been sliding since almost reaching an all-time high on April 3, last week’s Terra chaos removed most of the TVL held in decentralized finance protocols. In addition to commanding a $231 billion TVL 42 days ago on April 3, the Terra blockchain held $30.45 billion or 13.15% of the $231 billion aggregate at that time. Terra held the second-largest TVL in defi and today, Terra is in the 14th position with only $500.38 million. Out of Sunday’s $112.29 billion, Ethereum domina

With the nightmare nosedive of Terra’s LUNA and UST, the Shanghai High People’s Court declaring that bitcoin is virtual property protected by Chinese law, a surge in Bitcoin Obituaries, and some hoping for a rare triple top to appear for BCT, the past week has been full of shock, questions, speculation, and broader market resilience in the crypto community. Without further ado, this is your bite-sized digest of the week’s hottest crypto news. Uncovering Terra’s Implosion — Terraform Labs’ Big Name Backers and ‘Zero Exposure’ Claims Terra’s founder Do Kwon revealed a plan on Wednesday, but after some brief healing, Terra’s native tokens LUNA and UST continued to plummet. Now people are beginning to wonder who backed this popular crypto project, and which crypto firms had a lot of exposure to the failing assets. Read More Shanghai High Court Declares Bitcoin Virtual Asset With Economic Value Protected by Chinese Law The Shanghai High People’s Court has declared bitcoin to be a vi

Since the outbroke of the Russian-Ukrainian war, many celebrities, social activities, and visual artists joined the league of supporting Ukraine by cryptocurrency and NFT artworks. And the trend just doesn’t stop. Now, a group of top-notch artists bring the support and devotion to a brand-new level with long-lasting impact – the avatar NFT series. The absolutely stunning visuals, the breathtakingly painful images, the suffocatingly realistic resemblance of the ongoing cruelty, and the undying power of resilience truly set these artworks apart and earn them a solid place in the contemporary NFT art world. Avatars for Ukraine + MetaHistory A group of top video game industry professionals, credited for game hits Rainbow Six , Warframe , S.T.A.L.K.E.R. , and a billion-downloaded Asphalt franchise, together with the most talented Ukrainian digital artists created a charity NFT collection to help Ukraine. The collection will be released MAY 19 2022 on MetaHistory , an official Ukrai

An African regulator has told members of the six-nation Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) that a ban on cryptocurrencies is still effective. The regulator said the prohibition is designed to ensure financial stability is maintained within the economic bloc. COBAC to Set Up System to Identify Crypto Transactions An African regulator, the Banking Commission of Central Africa (COBAC), has reminded members of a regional economic bloc that includes the Central African Republic (CAR) that its ban on cryptocurrencies remains in effect. The regulator’s latest warning follows the CAR’s recent decision to adopt bitcoin as the country’s “currency of reference.” According to a Reuters report , COBAC — a regulator of the banking sector in CEMAC — believes the prohibition will ensure financial stability. In a statement issued after it held a special meeting on May 6, the regulator reportedly said it will also take steps to identify and report crypto-related transactions.

The tourism organization in Portorož, a summer resort on the Adriatic coast of Slovenia, has decided to promote the destination using non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The project represents the digital component of this year’s campaign to attract visitors to the region. Tourists in Portorož to Collect NFTs and Win Prizes Shortly after the Slovenian Tourist Board ( STB ) issued a “sLOVEnia NFT” last month, Portorož, in the southwestern municipality of Piran, has now become the country’s first resort with its own non-fungible tokens. The main goal of the initiative is to showcase the two coastal towns as progressive, digital, and sustainable destinations, local media reported. “The door to the metaverse is opening, which will be a new market for future generations,” Alexander Valentin, director of the Portorož Tourist Association, has been quoted as stating during a presentation devoted to the innovations in Portorož. The new “destination NFTs” are meant to win visitors’ loyalty. Tourist

The Nigerian securities regulator has announced new rules that govern the issuing of digital assets. The new rules also include registration requirements for platforms that offer digital assets. Initial Assessment Filing The Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced new rules that govern the issuing of digital assets as securities. The regulations also include rules on the registration requirements for digital assets offering platforms (DAOPs). Virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and digital assets exchanges are covered in the new set of rules that were recently published by the commission. According to the new regulations , individuals or entities seeking to raise funds via a coin offering or a private sale of tokens must first submit an initial “assessment form and the draft white paper.” In the draft white paper, the commission says an entity seeking permission to operate must furnish it with “complete and current information regarding the initial digit

Global market regulators are likely to launch a joint body within the next year to better coordinate cryptocurrency regulations, said a top executive of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). A Global Body to Coordinate Crypto Rules Top executives at the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) discussed cryptocurrency regulation this week. Members of the global organization regulate more than 95% of the world’s securities markets in more than 130 jurisdictions. Emphasizing the need for a global group to align crypto rules, IOSCO Chair Ashley Alder said global market regulators are likely to launch a joint body within the next year to better coordinate cryptocurrency regulations, Reuters reported. Noting that similar setups are already in place for climate finance, including one set up by the G20 countries, Alder described: There isn’t anything like that for crypto at the moment … But I do think now it’s seen as one of the three C’s

A commissioner with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expects to see stricter regulation on stablecoins. However, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says stablecoins are currently “not a real threat” to the country’s financial stability. SEC Commissioner on Stablecoin Regulation The regulation of stablecoins has been a hot topic this week following the Terra fiasco which saw UST losing its U.S. dollar peg and LUNA plunging to near zero. A commissioner with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Hester Peirce, talked about cryptocurrency regulation Thursday during an event hosted by the London-based Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum policy think tank. Peirce, who is known in the crypto community as “crypto mom,” indicated that tighter regulations on cryptocurrency, particularly stablecoins, could be coming soon. She was quoted as saying: One place we might see some movement is around stablecoins … That’s an area that has obviously this we

Officials from the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands have shared data and identified more than 50 crypto-related criminal leads, including one case that could be a $1 billion Ponzi scheme. Officials Share Data on Global Crypto Crime The heads of tax enforcement from the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (J5) countries met in London this week to share intelligence and data to identify sources of illegal cross-border crypto activity, Bloomberg reported Friday. The J5 was formed in response to the call to action from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for countries to do more to tackle the enablers of tax crime. It’s comprised of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), the Fiscale Inlichtingen- en Opsporingsdienst (FIOD), HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). During the meeting, the officials identified more than 50 crypto-related criminal l

The Argentinian Senate has approved a bill that would allow the government to tax non-declared assets held in foreign countries by citizens of the country. This includes stocks, properties, bonds, and even cryptocurrencies. The purpose of the legistlation would be to collect more funds to pay the $45 billion debt that Argentina has with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Asset Tax Bill Approved by the Argentinian Senate The Argentinian Senate has approved a new bill that would allow the government to tax assets held by citizens in foreign countries. The approved text determines that the government will tax all kinds of assets that have not been declared to the tax authorities before, including real estate, stocks, cryptocurrency, and any assets with economic value. The policy establishes these funds collected will be directly managed by the Economy Ministry. Depending on the time period and the goods owned, if approved, Argentinian citizens will have to pay up to 50% on these