Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

A virtual currency cannot be circulated in the market as a currency, therefore a vehicle sale contract wherein parties agreed that the buyer would pay with a privately issued digital currency is invalid, a Chinese court has ruled. The court asserts that a virtual currency does not have the same legal status as national fiat currency. Not Protected by Law A Chinese court has ruled that a vehicle sale contract, in which the parties agreed that the buyer would pay via a virtual currency, violated mandatory provisions of laws and administrative regulations and is therefore invalid. According to the court, a virtual currency “cannot be circulated in the market as [a] currency.” As stated in one Chinese language report , the Shanghai court’s ruling was made after an aggrieved vehicle buyer sought the court’s intervention. According to the report, a buyer only identified as Huang had signed a sale agreement with Shanghai Automobile Service Co Ltd in May 2019. As part of the agreement, Hu

Decentralized finance (defi) has been hit hard by the recent crypto market rout as the total value locked (TVL) across 118 different blockchains has slipped below the $100 billion mark to today’s $74.27 billion. The TVL in defi today is down more than 70% from its December 2, 2021, all-time high (ATH) at $253.91 billion. Moreover, since December 2021, the top smart contract platform tokens have lost 70% in value against the U.S. dollar as well, sliding from $823 billion to today’s $245 billion. Defi Continues to Get Slammed by the Market Carnage, Top Smart Contract Platform Tokens Record Significant Losses While a great number of cryptocurrencies including the leading crypto asset in terms of market valuation, bitcoin ( BTC ), slid significantly in value, smart contract platform tokens and decentralized finance (defi), in general, suffered a great deal. While Terra’s LUNA and UST fallout primed the flames, issues with Celsius , Three Arrows Capital (3AC) , and the lack of trust

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and several state regulators are reportedly investigating the decision by crypto lender Celsius Network to freeze withdrawals. U.S. Securities Regulators Investigate Celsius’ Withdrawal Freeze The U.S. SEC and securities regulators in Alabama, Kentucky, New Jersey, Texas, and Washington are investigating the decision by crypto lender Celsius Network to freeze withdrawals, Reuters reported Thursday. Texas’ director of enforcement Joseph Rotunda explained that officials representing the five state securities regulators met Monday morning to begin the investigation following Celsius’ withdrawal freeze announcement Sunday night. Noting that the investigation is a “priority,” Rotunda said: I am very concerned that clients – including many retail investors – may need to immediately access their assets yet are unable to withdraw from their accounts. “The inability to access their investment may result in significant financial conseque

PRESS RELEASE. EverStart , a DAO-controlled multi-chain launchpad built on the Everscale blockchain network and Revoland, a blockchain-based MOBA & Battle Royale video game , are partnering for an initial DEX offering. In the IDO, participants will be able to acquire REVO, a governance token that provides a payment and settlement method to interact with Revoland’s ecosystem. Revoland is the first blockchain-based MOBA game on Huawei Cloud, developed and published by Chain X Game, and backed by a solid set of investors and partners such as Alameda Research, HashKey Capital, Polygon, SEAGM, KhalasPay, and Huawei to name but a few. The Revoland team is completing its busy community development schedule with a series of IDO events on multiple exchanges, platforms and launchpads. EverStart is a decentralized launchpad based on Everscale smart contracts. It has reached an agreement with Chain X Game to run the IDO on its platform. Running an IDO for Revoland is an important mil

Two Kenyan students accused of hacking credit cards and using the ill-gotten funds to buy bitcoin have been arrested by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, a statement from the law enforcement agency has said. After converting the cryptocurrency to local currency, the two students would use the fraudulently acquired funds to sustain their lavish lifestyle. The Students’ Lavish Lifestyle A Kenyan law enforcement agency, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said it has arrested two university students it accuses of hacking credit cards and using these to “purchase bitcoins and convert them to Kenyan currency.” In a statement, the agency said the so-called notorious gang of two was nabbed in Milimani, an affluent neighborhood in Kenya’s fourth-largest city, Nakuru. In a Twitter thread explaining how the offense was carried out, the DCI revealed that the two — Francis Maina Wambui aka Nick, 26, and Zellic Alusa, 25 — had resorted to a growing criminal practice. The

Government officials in Kazakhstan have approved regulations that will govern interactions between authorized coin trading platforms and traditional financial institutions. The new rules will allow registered cryptocurrency exchanges to have bank accounts in the country. Pilot Project to Develop Kazakhstan Into Regional Crypto Hub Regulations allowing crypto exchanges registered at the Astana International Financial Center ( AIFC ) to be serviced by second-tier banks in Kazakhstan have been adopted by a working group comprised of representatives of the Ministry of Digital Development, the central bank, financial regulators, as well as members of the financial and digital asset sectors, the ministry announced. The initiative is part of a project aimed at introducing a regulatory framework that will facilitate the development of Kazakhstan’s potential as a regional crypto hub. It will be implemented as a pilot throughout 2022 with the participation of crypto trading platforms licens

PRESS RELEASE. Bastyon as the Web 3.0 Social Platform Most crypto projects are nothing but cones of a few successful coins. Bastyon, on the other hand, is a fast-growing social platform that combines elements of Youtube, Twitter and Torrent; it recently passed four hundred thousand users and growing fast. Bastyon is built on the premise that social media should be Web 3.0, decentralized with an open-source code, distributed node infrastructure and no corporate entity to control it, like the Bitcoin model. In Bastyon the users enjoy the content and moderate that content based on transparent rules, while bloggers and node operators earn Pocketcoin (PKOIN). Bastyon can be accessed on Bastyon.com, but the most censorship resistant way is to use the Bastyon desktop app, which can be downloaded here: https://bastyon.com/applications Integration of Tor Network into Bastyon desktop app The desktop app does not rely on centralized DNS servers or Web 2.0 domains but instead connects direct

Rock band Kiss’ lead singer Gene Simmons has revealed that he owns 14 cryptocurrencies and has not sold any since the crypto market downturn. Gene Simmons Says ‘I am a Hodler’ Gene Simmons has reaffirmed that he is a hodler and has not sold any of his 14 cryptocurrencies since the crypto market downturn. Simmons is an Israeli-born American musician, singer, songwriter, actor, and producer. He was the frontman, bassist, and co-lead singer of Kiss, the rock band he co-founded with lead singer and guitarist Paul Stanley. According to IMDB, Simmons has appeared in films and TV 121 times. He tweeted Wednesday that he is a hodler, adding: “I have not sold a single position since the downturn. I believe in the future. The near future.” In a follow-up tweet, he said he owns litecoin ( LTC ) and 13 other cryptocurrencies. While Simmons did not reveal on Wednesday which cryptocurrencies he owns, he said in February last year that he owned bitcoin ( BTC ), litecoin ( LTC ), ether ( ETH ),

Doubleline Capital CEO Jeffrey Gundlach, also known as the “bond king,” says he would not be surprised at all if the price of bitcoin falls to $10K. “We’ve already seen around the edges some blowups in parts of the crypto world, and that could be foreshadowing some problems,” he explained. ‘Bond King’ Jeff Gundlach Discusses Bitcoin Falling to $10K Billionaire investor Jeff Gundlach shared his bitcoin outlook in an interview with CNBC Wednesday. Gundlach is the CEO of Doubleline Capital, which has over $137 billion in assets under management (AUM). He is sometimes referred to as the “bond king” after he appeared on the cover of Barron’s in 2011 as “The New Bond King.” Institutional Investor named him “Money Manager of the Year” in 2013 and Bloomberg Markets named him one of “The Fifty Most Influential” in 2012, 2015, and 2016. According to Forbes, his net worth is currently $2.2 billion. The billionaire bond king explained that when the price of bitcoin fell below $30K, its chart

Cryptocurrencies can be used for international payments if they don’t penetrate the Russian financial system, the head of Bank of Russia has stated. The governor also insisted that the digital assets should not be traded on platforms operating inside the country. Bank of Russia Chair Ready to Accept Cryptocurrency Payments for International Settlements Cryptocurrencies can be employed in international payments if they do not “penetrate” the financial system of the Russian Federation, according to Elvira Nabiullina, governor of the Central Bank of Russia ( CBR ). The official added that these digital assets are subject to high price fluctuations and emphasized: Cryptocurrency should not be traded on organized marketplaces because this asset is too volatile, too risky for potential investors. Quoted by RBC Crypto, the banker said that digital coins listed on Russian exchanges must be compliant with all regulations designed to protect investors. Hence, the projects behind the trade

PRESS RELEASE. GensoKishi, a new fantasy world economy with blockchain technology by incorporating elements of NFT and GameFi on the Metaverse is pleased to announce its 2nd commemorative NFT Auction to be held from June 15th, 2022 at 18:00 (UTC+8) to June 22nd, 2022 at 17:59 (UTC+8) ! The 2nd round NFT auction will feature a wide range of Cosplay Equipment NFTs, from Legend-class NFTs, which will all be one-of-a-kind exclusive items, to SuperRare-class, Rare-class, and Normal-class items. As we had a number of bids during the 1st NFT Auction, we expect to see many more attendees during the 2nd NFT Auction. And for the first time the auction bidding currency will be in MV instead of USDT , so if you plan on participating in the NFT Auction, please make sure you have MV available in your wallets before the auction period starts. NFT Auction Round2 The Official GensoKishi NFT Auction Round 2 website here How to make a bid The bidding screen is available at the bottom of the aucti

A report issued by Globant, an Argentinian software company, has discovered that people feel the metaverse is close and accessible to them. The report, titled “How the metaverse is transcending digital limits and reinventing our place in the physical world,” found that the metaverse is perceived as being accessible by 73% of the people consulted, but only 26% have had metaverse experiences. Metaverse Perceived as Accessible, Globant Found The metaverse and its tech have become popular subjects for companies to do research around, learning about how people perceive this new sector. A recent report completed by Globant, an Argentinian software company, has revealed that people are actually feeling much closer to the metaverse than experts suggest. The document, titled “How the metaverse is transcending digital limits and reinventing our place in the physical world,” studied the opinion of 834 members of Globant’s database of technology professionals from around the globe. The report

Amid the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies in Kyrgyzstan, the country’s central bank has reminded citizens about the risks associated with the digital assets. The monetary authority also warned that crypto payments are illegal in the Kyrgyz Republic. National Bank of Kyrgyzstan Urges Caution With Cryptocurrency Cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets are increasingly spreading in Kyrgyzstan, the nation’s central bank recently noted. The regulator reminded that using them to buy or sell goods and services is still against the law, with the Kyrgyzstani som remaining the only legal tender in the country. Quoted by local media, the monetary authority also issued a warning regarding the risks linked to decentralized digital currencies. “No one, as a rule, is liable for cryptocurrency. It does not have financial support. It has no real value due to the fact that it is not tied to any currency or other asset,” it said. This creates high risks of exchange rate volatility and loss o

The billionaire founder and chairman of Equity Group Investments, Sam Zell, says he is staying away from bitcoin at all costs. He explained that he does not understand the cryptocurrency and believes that a currency without the backing of a government is unlikely to work. Sam Zell Remains Skeptical of Bitcoin While a growing number of billionaires and hedge fund managers are embracing bitcoin, Sam Zell, the founder and chairman of Equity Group Investments, said he is staying away from the cryptocurrency. Zell, whose net worth is estimated to be $5.8 billion, reiterated his anti-bitcoin stance Thursday in an interview with CNBC. Responding to a question about whether bitcoin is more attractive to him now that its price has fallen to the $21K level, he stressed: I’ve basically stayed away from bitcoin at all costs. The billionaire investor explained that the reason he does not invest in BTC is simply because he does not understand it. “I do not understand its security … I don’t

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says crypto is an asset class that is 100% based on the Greater Fool Theory. The billionaire also mocked Bored Ape NFTs, stating: “Obviously, expensive digital images of monkeys are going to improve the world immensely.” Bill Gates on Crypto and NFTs Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates talked about cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) at this year’s Techcrunch Sessions: Climate 2022 event Tuesday. Referring to the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs, Gates sarcastically said: “Obviously, expensive digital images of monkeys are going to improve the world immensely. That’s so incredible.” He clarified, “I’m used to asset classes like a farm where they have output or a company where they make products,” describing crypto as: An asset class that’s 100% based on some sort of Greater Fool Theory that somebody’s going to pay more for it than I do. The Greater Fool Theory suggests that there will always be a greater fool in the market ready to pay a price ba

The CEO of the Nasdaq-listed software company Microstrategy has debunked the rumor that his company is facing a margin call for a bitcoin-backed loan and will be forced to sell some coins. If the price of the cryptocurrency “falls below $3,562 the company could post some other collateral,” the executive explained. Microstrategy Hasn’t Received a Margin Call Microstrategy CEO Michael Saylor debunked the rumor that his company is close to having to liquidate its bitcoin to meet a margin call for a bitcoin-backed loan. The rumor intensified as the price of BTC continued to plummet after the weekend sell-off. However, Saylor tweeted Tuesday: When Microstrategy adopted a bitcoin strategy, it anticipated volatility and structured its balance sheet so that it could continue to hodl through adversity. Microstrategy’s Q1 2022 presentation details that the company took out a three-year term loan of $205 million from Silvergate Bank against 19,466 bitcoins. Saylor revealed in a May 10

PRESS RELEASE. GAIMIN has solved a key issue for gamers – re-usable, purchased in-game assets that are not lost when a game closes or the gamer wants to play a different game. With GAIMIN’s world first NFT xg , a gamer can now securely invest in their gaming experience and retain ownership of a cross-game asset inventory. GAIMIN’s NFTxg delivers true cross-game, cross-device, interoperable utility NFTs to moddable AAA games, enabling a gamer to own and retain full ownership their in-game asset purchases, re-using their NFTs across different games with utility relevant to the specific game in which they are being used. A gamer can now build up an in-game repository through purchase and other acquisition methods and have an immediately available repository for a new game. Martin Speight, CEO of GAIMIN stated, “ I am delighted to announce GAIMIN’s NFT xg , a world first in the development of a interoperable, cross-game, utility NFT. In releasing the NFT xg we have solved the gamer’

The executive power and the ruling party in South Korea have urged the cryptocurrency industry for what officials describe as voluntary regulatory measures, a Korean media report revealed. The call was issued during a consultative meeting devoted to crypto assets. Government Asks South Korean Crypto Sector for Regulatory Proposals Representatives of the South Korean government and the ruling People Power Party met on Monday to discuss issues related to the crypto space. The consultations were held in the aftermath of last month’s collapse of the terrausd (UST) algorithmic stablecoin and its sister coin terra (LUNA) that affected many South Koreans. Aiming to prevent the negative consequences of such crashes and better protect investors, Korean officials and lawmakers are now considering the adoption of a new law for blockchain-based platforms, Arirang unveiled. They also urge the crypto industry to come up with its own regulations that would include safety mechanisms. The report

Confiant, an advertising security agency, has found a cluster of malicious activity involving distributed wallet apps, allowing hackers to steal private seeds and acquire the funds of users via backdoored imposter wallets. The apps are distributed via cloning of legitimate sites, giving the appearance that the user is downloading an original app. Malicious Cluster Targets Web3-Enabled Wallets Like Metamask Hackers are becoming more and more creative when engineering attacks to take advantage of cryptocurrency users. Confiant, a company that is dedicated to examining the quality of ads and the security threats these might pose to internet users, has warned about a new kind of attack affecting users of popular Web3 wallets like Metamask and Coinbase Wallet. The cluster, that was identified as “Seaflower,” was qualified by Confiant as one of the most sophisticated attacks of its kind. The report states that common users cannot detect these apps, as they are virtually identical to th

Following the rumors and speculation surrounding the crypto lending firm Celsius, a Wall Street Journal report, quoting “people familiar with the matter,” explains that the company is reportedly hiring restructuring lawyers. Basically, hiring restructuring and insolvency attorneys is one of the first stages of fixing a company’s financial hardship by essentially attempting to avoid insolvency. Report Says Celsius Is Looking for Help From Investors or a Well Known Restructuring Law Firm On June 13, 2022, Bitcoin.com News reported on the lending platform Celsius shutting down specific operations such as withdrawals, swaps, and account transfers. Those operations are still not available to Celsius customers, and a recent report published by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) explains that Celsius may be seeking help from a restructuring law firm. The report notes that the crypto company may be leveraging the bankruptcy and restructuring law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. Th

PRESS RELEASE. Gather up your partner, family, and friends to come and be a part of the genesis XOXO NFT collection, known as the “XOXO Love stories”. 101 Exclusive non-perfect couples, that were handpicked by the Devirs, with a one-of-a-kind background love story. Each piece has a special narrative written individually by Maya and Yehuda themselves. All of the 101 NFT holders will receive a physical book with all 101 Love Stories from the collection, signed by Yehuda and Maya according to the purchased NFT’s story number. An extra airdrop of 1 XOXO NFT from the main collection and additional unique perks will be revealed by Maya & Yehuda in a private online meeting soon. The decision to split the main collection into two stages with different types of sale options was a bold one for the highly expected project, one that came after plenty of feedback from both the XOXO community and social media. The Devirs assured their fans that these steps were taken after listening to the

Bank of Canada’s senior deputy governor says the central bank does not want to wait until crypto “gets a lot larger” before it brings regulatory controls in place. “This is an area that is still small, but it’s growing really rapidly,” the official said. Bank of Canada’s Official Stresses the Importance of Crypto Regulation Bank of Canada Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers talked about cryptocurrency regulation in an interview with Reuters Thursday. “This is an area that is still small, but it’s growing really rapidly. And it is largely unregulated,” she explained, adding: We don’t want to wait until it gets a lot larger before we bring regulatory controls in place. The total crypto market capitalization has fallen to below $1 trillion following Monday’s sell-off. According to data from Bitcoin.com Markets , the total market cap of the entire crypto market is approximately $918 billion at the time of writing. According to Canada’s central bank, the share of Canadians who ow

A new Bank of America survey shows that out of more than 1,000 U.S. adults, 90% plan to buy crypto in the next six months. Moreover, nearly 40% of respondents revealed that they use cryptocurrency as a means of payment. Bank of America’s Crypto Survey Bank of America (BOA) analyst Jason Kupferberg shared his crypto outlook in an interview with CNBC Monday. He was asked about a recent Bank of America survey that showed sustained interest in cryptocurrencies. The analyst explained that the survey was conducted early this month, which was after the collapse of cryptocurrency terra (LUNA) and stablecoin terrausd (UST). He added that over 1,000 U.S. adults participated, noting that the sample size was “pretty significant.” Kupferberg opined: It was interesting to see that 90% of respondents said they do plan to buy some amount of crypto in the next six months. He continued: “That was actually the same percentage who reported having actually bought some crypto over the prior six mon

The governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, has reiterated his warning about cryptocurrency investing after U.S. crypto lender Celsius abruptly froze withdrawals. He stressed that investors should be prepared to lose all their money, emphasizing that crypto has no intrinsic value. Bank of England’s Governor Warns About Cryptocurrency Following Celsius’ Withdrawal Freeze Bank of England (BOE) Governor Andrew Bailey reiterated his concerns about cryptocurrency investing to the British parliament’s Public Accounts Committee Monday. Responding to a question on how regulators’ duty to protect consumers could clash with the government’s plan to promote financial innovation, he was quoted by Reuters as saying: If you want to invest in these assets, okay, but be prepared to lose all your money. “People may still want to buy them because they have extrinsic value,” he continued, adding that “people value things for personal reasons.” The Bank of England chief cautioned: But t

In a post-mortem issued shortly after it lifted the freeze on bitcoin withdrawals, Binance has identified the “repairing of several minor hardware failures on wallet consolidation” as the incident that ultimately forced it to pause withdrawals. To fix the problem and to stop this from recurring, Binance said it changed the logic “to only take successful UTXO from consolidation transactions or successful withdrawal transactions.” Minor Hardware Failures Binance has said bitcoin withdrawals on its Bitcoin network have resumed just hours after “a stuck on-chain transaction” forced the exchange to freeze withdrawals for about three hours. According to a Twitter thread in which it seeks to reassure users, the exchange claimed that users’ deposits were unaffected. It added that users had an option to withdraw via other networks during the down period. In its post-mortem of the events that forced the exchange to halt withdrawals, Binance claimed that the “repairing several minor hardwar

Anthony Scaramucci, the founder of Skybridge Capital, a $3.5 billion asset management firm, has some advice for crypto investors on how to survive a bear market and a crypto bloodbath. Scaramucci on How to Survive Crypto Bear Market Skybridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci shared his bitcoin outlook and advice on how to survive the crypto market sell-off in an interview with CNBC Monday. “We are in a bloodbath,” he said. “This is my eighth bear market. I expect to survive this one as well.” Scaramucci opined: I am encouraged by the fact that bitcoin is above 50% of the overall crypto market cap right now, which is another sign that there is a flight to quality there. “Of course, Celsius is putting pressure on it — the same way that the LUNA terra situation put pressure on it about six weeks ago,” he continued. Crypto lending platform Celsius announced Sunday night that it has frozen withdrawals while cryptocurrency terra (LUNA) and stablecoin terrausd (UST) imploded in ear

PRESS RELEASE. BOSO TOKYO announce the launch of NFT project “BOSO TOKYO” , an identity defining brand in the Metaverse To commemorate its launch, BOSO TOKYO has launched a giveaway campaign for their NFT. Check out the details here for a chance to win a BOSO TOKYO NFT by completing a few simple tasks. ABOUT BOSO TOKYO BOSO TOKYO is an NFT brand that aims to build avatars that can be used as a common identity in multiple metaverses. As a generative NFT, BOSO TOKYO uses algorithms to create random combinations for each avatar’s body, face, clothing, accessories, and other parts. BOSO TOKYO is an original brand of avatars from Tokyo. Unlike the many Japan inspired anime and video game inspired NFTs on OpenSea, BOSO is aspiring to bring forth a completely original collection. Hidetaka Tenjin , the illustrator of Gundam , Star Wars mecha illustrations,has joined BOSO TOKYO as the main designer and is working on creating the avatars. Afromance , Co-Founder of Burning Japan and f

On Monday, the cryptocurrency lending company Blockfi announced that “market conditions” have had a “negative impact” on the firm’s business and it will be laying off “roughly 20%” of its staff. The message written by Blockfi co-founders Zac Prince and Flori Marquez follows a slew of well known crypto firms cutting back employees due to the bear market. Blockfi to Lay off ‘Roughly 20%’ of Its Workforce Digital currency values are not that hot these days, and the crypto economy slipped below the $1 trillion region on June 13. The entire crypto economy shed more than 14% in USD value during the past 24 hours. Crypto prices have steadily dropped for weeks on end and Monday’s market rout was quite gruesome. The leading crypto asset bitcoin (BTC) slid to a low of $22,600 on Monday, and a myriad of other alternative digital assets saw deeper losses. Amid the last few weeks of the crypto economy’s bear market downturn, digital currency companies have been laying off staff . On June 13, B