Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The Central Bank of Russia would agree to the legalization of cryptocurrency mining, provided the proceeds from the activity are converted to fiat outside of Russia. The regulator’s latest position on the matter comes after it softened its stance on the possible use of cryptocurrencies for payments, even if only internationally. Central Bank of Russia to Accept Legalization of Cryptocurrency Mining The monetary authority in Moscow is now ready to back the legalization of crypto mining under the condition that Russian miners are obliged to sell the coins they obtain in the process outside the country. That’s according to a recent statement by Kirill Pronin, head of Bank of Russia’s Financial Technologies Department. The central bank has been the hardline voice in the ongoing discussions on the future of cryptocurrencies in Russia, proposing a blanket ban on most related activities earlier this year, including mining. However, facing opposition from other government institutions and...

India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), sees cryptocurrencies as “a clear danger.” However, the financial stability risks posed by crypto assets currently appear to be “limited.” RBI on Crypto’s Danger and Financial Stability Risks The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the 25th issue of its Financial Stability Report (FSR) Thursday. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das wrote: Cryptocurrencies are a clear danger. Anything that derives value based on make believe, without any underlying, is just speculation under a sophisticated name. The RBI chief further opined: “While technology has supported the reach of the financial sector and its benefits must be fully harnessed, its potential to disrupt financial stability has to be guarded against.” The Indian central bank’s report explores financial stability risks posed by crypto assets, citing various studies, including the work by the Financial Stability Board (FSB). The report states: The risks from cryptoassets to finan...

The host of Mad Money, Jim Cramer, claims that “With the immolation of crypto, the Fed’s job is almost complete.” He stressed that “one front in the war on inflation that’s been an outstanding total victory for the Fed” is the battle against financial speculation. Jim Cramer on Fed’s Policy, Inflation, Crypto Jim Cramer discussed crypto and the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation on CNBC’s Mad Money show Thursday. Cramer is a former hedge fund manager who co-founded Thestreet.com, a financial news and literacy website. He began by stating, “crypto does not hedge you against anything — at all,” including stock prices, noting that it has recently performed even worse than the stock market. The Mad Money host called cryptocurrency “the last bastion of rampant speculation,” noting that it is something “the Federal Reserve is trying to wipe out in order to tame inflation.” While acknowledging the Fed’s efforts against inflation, he said, “we’ve still got lots of inflation out th...

Bits.media, a leading news outlet in Russia’s crypto space, has been blocked by Russia’s telecom and mass media watchdog, Roskomnadzor. The site is now inaccessible through most Russian internet providers, the online edition announced, stating it intends to contest the measure. Roskomnadzor Denies Russians Access to Bits.media Crypto news website Bits.media became unavailable to most of its readers in Russia this week and its team found that the Russian media censor Roskomnadzor is to blame. The government agency has added an unspecified number of its pages to a register of internet sources disseminating banned information. The block results from a ruling by the Volzhsky District Court of the city of Saratov in a lawsuit initiated by the local prosecutor’s office on March 31. The judge granted the prosecutor’s request on April 24 after considering the case in the absence of the media outlet’s owners, Bits.media explained in a post. According to the published decision, five URLs w...

Warba Bank, a Kuwait-based Islamic bank, recently became the latest corporation from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to enter the metaverse. The bank now occupies two sites in the metaverse, one Decentraland and another one on Sandbox. Pioneering Digital Transformation In what has been described as a first for an Islamic bank, the Kuwait-based Warba Bank recently said it now occupies two sites in the metaverse, one on Decentraland and another on Sandbox. The bank’s presence in the metaverse is expected to bolster its communication with the young generation. In his remarks following the confirmation that Warba Bank has entered the metaverse, Anwar Bader Al-Ghaith, the financial institution’s VP for Support Services and Treasury said : Warba Bank’s interest in entering this virtual reality comes within the framework of digital trends to transform into a [Web3]. The world of virtual reality is used in several advanced fields, including services, education, health and others....

According to the Chinese journalist Colin Wu, otherwise known as “Wu Blockchain,” the cryptocurrency company Huobi may lay off 30% of the firm’s staff due to “a sharp drop in revenue.” Furthermore, the reporter claims that Huobi’s co-founder Leon Li is reportedly looking to sell a large stake in the digital assets company. Colin Wu Reports Layoffs Are Coming to Huobi and the Alleged Sale of 50% Stake On June 28, 2022, Colin Wu , the local cryptocurrency and blockchain journalist from China, explained that Huobi “will start layoffs, which may exceed 30%.” Layoffs have been plaguing the crypto industry as companies like Blockfi , Coinbase , Gemini, Bitso, Buenbit , Rain Financial, Bybit, and 2TM have let employees go. The crypto winter and volatile markets have been the main reason why executives have decided to cut workforce numbers. Wu detailed that “the main reason” why Huobi is laying off staff is because of “the sharp drop in revenue after the removal of all Chinese users.”...

On Saturday, Ethereum transaction fees tapped a low not seen since November 2020 as the average network fee dropped to 0.0016 ether or $1.67 per transfer. Average fees on Saturday have been as low as 32 gwei or $0.69 per transfer as Ethereum gas fees have been steadily dropping since May 11, 2022. Ethereum Fees Drop to the Lowest Range Since November 2020 Ethereum’s average gas fees tapped a low on July 2, 2022, not seen in 19 months or November 12, 2020. Essentially, the gas or network fee is a quantity of ethereum ( ETH ) that is required to push a transaction on the blockchain network. Like the Bitcoin ( BTC ) network, ETH gas fees compensate the network’s mining participants in order to reward them for verifying transfers. In the early days, ETH transfers were negligible and from August 2015 to July 2016 , the average gas fee was less than a U.S. penny per ETH transfer. Between July 2016 to May 2017, Ethereum network fees were between $0.01 to $0.10 a transfer. Nowa...

Meta Platforms, formerly Facebook, has announced the end of its crypto project Novi. Users are advised to withdraw funds as soon as possible. The announcement followed the introduction of a digital wallet for the metaverse, announced by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Crypto Project Novi Ending Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc. (Nasdaq: META) announced Friday that its crypto project pilot Novi “is ending soon.” According to its website: Novi will no longer be available for use after September 1. In Friday’s announcement, Meta explained that starting July 21, users will no longer be able to add money to their Novi accounts. In addition, starting Sept. 1, both the Novi app and Novi on Whatsapp will no longer be available and users will not be able to log into their Novi accounts. The company has advised users to withdraw their Novi balances before Sept. 1. Any remaining funds after that date will be transferred to the bank accounts or debit cards listed on their Novi accounts. From ...

The Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has insisted that it does not sell “proprietary customer data” after reports surfaced that its Tracer product is providing “historical geo tracking data” to the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Coinbase Responds to Reports of It Selling Customer Data to U.S. Government Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase came under fire last week when reports surfaced accusing the Nasdaq-listed company of selling customer data to the U.S. government. Coinbase Tracer, the analytics arm of the cryptocurrency exchange, has signed a contract with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that would allow the government agency access to a variety of data, including “historical geo tracking data,” according to a contract obtained by watchdog group Tech Inquiry. However, Coinbase clarified on Twitter Thursday: “We want to make this incredibly clear: Coinbase does not sell proprietary customer data.” “Our Coinbase Tracer tools are de...

Representatives of key European Union (EU) institutions and member states reached an agreement on the Markets in Crypto Assets regulatory proposal. The progress in the negotiations over the comprehensive legal framework for the Union’s crypto space comes after earlier this week European officials agreed to adopt a set of anti-money laundering rules for cryptocurrency transactions. EU Parliament, Council, Commission Agree to Tame ‘Wild West’ Crypto Market Negotiators representing the major institutional bodies of the European Union agreed to implement the landmark Markets in Crypto Assets ( MiCA ) legislation across the 27-strong bloc. It will introduce licensing for crypto companies and safeguards for their customers. The agreement follows a consensus on anti-money laundering regulations for cryptocurrencies. Behind the deal are the European Parliament, Commission, and Council, the three participants in the EU’s complex legislative process. To become law, MiCA will now need the ap...

Cosmos rose for a fourth consecutive session to start the weekend, as prices edged closer to a resistance point. While cosmos ( ATOM ) extended gains, tezos ( XTZ ) rebounded following a streak of recent losing sessions, with bulls seemingly buying this weeks’ dip. Cosmos ( ATOM ) Cosmos ( ATOM ) extended its recent bullish run on Saturday, as prices have now risen for four consecutive sessions. The token rose to an intraday peak of $8.33 to start the weekend, as prices have so far increased by over 12% in today’s session. This latest move saw ATOM /USD move closer to its resistance level of $8.90, which seems to be the last remaining hurdle in the way of the $10 level. As of writing this, prices have fallen from earlier highs, with ATOM now trading at $8.12, which is still 11.75% higher than Friday’s low at $7.29. Looking at this chart, today’s gains began to ease as the 14-day RSI indicator hit a ceiling at 51, and is currently tracking at 49. Following a four day win streak...

Bitcoin moved closer to its long-term support level of $18,800 to start the weekend, as prices of cryptocurrencies were once again lower. While bitcoin has now fallen for seven straight sessions, ethereum also saw similar declines, and as of writing is down 2.40% from yesterday’s high. Bitcoin The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization bitcoin (BTC) was once again in the red on Saturday, as prices edged closer to a key support level. Following a high of $19,590.12 on Friday, BTC /USD rallied to an intraday low of $19,027.08 to start the weekend. This move sees bitcoin hover slightly above its recent support point at $18,800, which was hit earlier in the week. Despite three recent moves below this level, breakouts have been mainly false, however bears could be set to attempt a more sustained drop in upcoming days. Should we see a move below this point, the $17,500 mark will likely be the price target for those shorting the token. In order to get there, relativ...

As July begins and markets remain bearish, there’s still no shortage of dynamic developments in the crypto space. In this week’s Bitcoin.com News Week in Review, ‘sleeping bitcoins’ from 2010 make moves, Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki says he is waiting for bitcoin to test $1,100, Russia denies debt default allegations, and Mark Zuckerberg discusses the opportunities of the metaverse. String of 200 ‘Sleeping Bitcoins’ From 2010 Worth $4.27 Million Awakens A large number of so-called ‘sleeping bitcoins’ have awoken from slumber as four block rewards were spent at block height 742,183. The old coins spent last week were block rewards mined on September 15, 16, 26, and October 29, 2010. During that time frame, bitcoin miners received 50 BTC for every block found in contrast to the 6.25 BTC per block reward miners get today. Read More Rich Dad Poor Dad’s Robert Kiyosaki Says He’s Waiting for Bitcoin to Test $1,100 to Buy More The famous author of the best-selling book R...

Indira Kempis, senator of the Mexican Congress, has proposed a bill that would make bitcoin legal tender in the country. The bill bases its action on the hardships that Mexican citizens are facing went trying to access financial products and education. However, the Central Bank of Mexico has been against the introduction of bitcoin into the financial system of the country. Bill Proposes to Make Bitcoin Legal Tender in Mexico Mexico is another of the countries in Latam that is taking a look at what bitcoin might bring when introduced to its economy. This week, Senator Indira Kempis introduced a bill that would amend the current monetary law of Mexico to introduce bitcoin as legal tender in the country. The bill, which seeks to mimic the action of El Salvador, the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, mentions that this might help to change the financial literacy of many citizens. The document puts the basis of its proposal on the fact that Mexico is one of th...

The latest data from Cryptocompare shows that assets under management (AUM) of crypto investment products reached record lows during the month of June. The data also shows 21 Shares Short Bitcoin ETP as the only digital investment product that registered a positive 30-day return (30.8%) as of June 23. Three Arrows Capital Insolvency Factor The AUM of crypto investment products dropped to record lows in the month of June 2022, the latest data from Cryptocompare has shown. According to the regulated benchmark administrator and digital asset data firm, this drop in the AUM was primarily caused by the uncertainties surrounding the future of crypto lending companies like Three Arrows Capital. As the data shows, crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs) had the most significant drop, a 52.0% decline to $1.31 billion in AUM. On the other hand, trust products which account for 80.3% of the market fell by 35.8% finishing the month at $17.3 billion. Exchange-traded commodities (ETCs) and exchang...

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has charged Mirror Trading International (MTI) and its operator with a $1.7 billion fraud involving bitcoin. This action is the regulator’s largest fraud scheme case involving the cryptocurrency. CFTC Takes Action Against MTI The CFTC announced Thursday that it has charged a “South African pool operator and CEO with $1.7 billion fraud involving bitcoin.” The regulator added: This action is CFTC’s largest fraud scheme case involving bitcoin. The derivatives watchdog has filed a civil enforcement action, charging Cornelius Johannes Steynberg and Mirror Trading International Proprietary Ltd. (MTI) with “fraud and registration violations.” From approximately May 18, 2018, through March 20 last year, “Steynberg, individually and as the controlling person of MTI, engaged in an international fraudulent multilevel marketing scheme … to solicit bitcoin from members of the public for participation in a commodity pool operated by MTI,” ...

Coincoinx, a cryptocurrency exchange, will reportedly launch a service that will allow users to skip trading crypto for fiat to make payments in Venezuela. The service, which is called Coinpago, will allow users to make payments in every store and retailer in the country that accepts Pagomovil, a banking service that allows seamless fiat transfers between banks in the country. Coincoinx to Ease Crypto Payments in Venezuela While cryptocurrency is slowly going mainstream, becoming more popular in many locations around the world, there are still many retailers and service providers that are not accepting cryptocurrency as a means of payment. However, services that combine traditional bank-based payments and crypto are growing, and bringing functionality to crypto users. Coincoinx, a cryptocurrency exchange in Venezuela, has announced the launch of a service that will combine crypto and fiat for traditional payments. The service, called Coinpago, aims to allow customers of the exchang...

After the downfall of the two most popular crypto assets on the Terra blockchain, the digital currencies terrausd (UST) and luna classic (LUNC) increased a great deal in value against the U.S. dollar in recent times. During the last seven days, LUNC has risen 96.3% and the once-stable coin UST has increased 472.4% this week. Luna Classic and the Once-Stable Coin UST Rise Significantly Against the US Dollar It’s pretty well known in the world of digital currencies that some crypto assets never die. That seems to be the case with the two notorious crypto assets luna classic (LUNC) and terrausd (UST), a former stablecoin that is sometimes referred to as terraclassicusd (USTC). LUNC took the name luna classic because Terra’s new token is now referred to as LUNA. UST was once stable and held the $1 parity from October 2020 up until May 9, 2022. When UST depegged it dropped below a U.S. penny, and tapped a low of $0.006 per unit on June 18, 2022. However, since the $0.006 per unit low, ...

PRESS RELEASE. Crypto investment platform Midas Investments has reported that it has created an infrastructure that is designed with built-in, automated tools and strategies that don’t require investors to master the nature of trade within the volatile decentralized finance market. Traditional CeFi refers to centralized finance mechanisms such as crypto lending and borrowing, which have been used to generate moderate passive yields for investors from as far back as 2016. Contrary to DeFi, CeFi is different in that security measures are strict and investor activity is closely regulated by measures like KYC/AML. Human involvement is also vital, being pertinent to network processes, as established on original platforms like Crypto.com. CeDeFi bridges the gap between the centralized and decentralized finance worlds. Midas Investments reports that it is built upon a similar model as CeFi platforms like Nexo and combines it with algo and DeFi strategies together to offer hybrid yields st...

The Argentinian Tax Agency, the AFIP, has ramped up the seizures of digital wallets of taxpayers in the country. The institution managed to seize more than 1,200 digital wallets of taxpayers that had debts and didn’t have a bank account, or other properties available to be collected by the courts. While the organization has yet to order crypto-related seizures, this could be possible in the future. Argentinian Tax Agency Seizes More Than 1,200 Digital Wallets Tax regulators around the world are becoming more and more aware of the different ways in which taxpayers can hide their funds to avoid paying taxes. The Argentinian tax agency, the AFIP, has been busy taking control of the digital wallets of debtors to the institution. These digital wallets are custodial services provided by fintech companies to third parties, that in some ways are not directly related to banks. The basis for the seizures was established in February when the AFIP included these in the list of seizable assets....

Deutsche Bank has predicted that the price of bitcoin will increase nearly 40% from the current level to $28K by the end of the year. The bank’s analysts also warned that “the crypto free fall could continue.” Deutsche Bank’s Bitcoin Price Prediction Deutsche Bank has reportedly predicted that the price of bitcoin will rise to $28,000 by year-end, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing an analysis by the bank’s senior economist and market strategist Marion Laboure and research analyst Galina Pozdnyakova. Based on their analysis, bitcoin’s price will rally 38% from the current price of $20,329 given how closely BTC has been trading with U.S. stocks. They noted that cryptocurrencies have been correlated to benchmarks like the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 and the S&P 500 since November. The S&P 500 is down 21% since the beginning of the year. The Deutsche Bank strategists expect the index to recover to January levels by the end of the year. Laboure and Pozdnyakova liken bitcoin to d...

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has revealed its plan to expand in several European markets. The company is reportedly in the process of registering a crypto exchange in Spain, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. Coinbase Expanding in Europe Coinbase Global Inc. (Nasdaq: COIN) is reportedly planning to expand operations in Europe, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing an interview with Nana Murugesan, Coinbase’s vice president of International and Business Development. Noting that Coinbase is focused on growing its presence in Europe, the executive revealed that the exchange is in the process of applying for a license in various European markets including Italy, Spain, France, and the Netherlands. The Nasdaq-listed company is currently registered in the U.K., Ireland, and Germany, Murugesan confirmed, noting that Coinbase also recently hired its first employee in Switzerland. “In all these markets our intention is to have retail and institutional products,” the executive emphasiz...

The Foresight Ventures founding and partnership team includes veterans of some of the top financial and technology firms dedicated to sourcing and supporting the next generation of disruptive innovations across Web3. They believe the future is multi-chain and thus the chains that find product market fit will all need partners to help expand their ecosystems. They hope to become that partner, investing early and supporting their ecosystems by holding and providing resources for growth. Tony Cheng, general partner from Foresight Ventures , recently joined the Bitcoin.com News Podcast to talk about the market: Tony graduated from Nankai University with a BSc in Applied Mathematics, then went on to the University of Oxford for post-graduate studies resulting in a MSc in Financial Economics. After graduation Tony worked as a management consultant at Oliver Wyman in HK, mainly covering financial services and Fintech clients in the APAC region. After doing many consulting projects for F...

One of the Onecoin co-founders, Ruja Ignatova, otherwise known as the ‘Cryptoqueen,’ has been added to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on Thursday. In addition to adding the Cryptoqueen to the most wanted list, the FBI is offering a reward of up to $100K for tips that lead to the 42-year-old woman’s arrest. Onecoin’s Cryptoqueen Is Now on the FBI’s Top 10 Most Wanted List Ruja Ignatova is well known for her involvement with the Onecoin Ponzi scheme , and it is estimated that the scam allegedly defrauded people out of $4 billion. The pyramid scheme promoted Onecoin as a blockchain project with a native cryptocurrency but there was no blockchain and no real crypto asset behind the scam. However, Onecoin’s management, recruits, and Ignatova promoted the project as if it was a “bitcoin killer.” From late 2014 to March 2016, Ignatova pitched Onecoin sales and recruited members on a regular basis. During the end of the scheme’s functional state,...

On Tuesday, the Canada-based investment firm Cypherpunk Holdings Inc. announced that the company has sold all of its bitcoin and ethereum due to the “risk of further significant drawdowns.” The company has transitioned its treasury to cash after selling 214.72 bitcoin and 205.82 ethereum as Cypherpunk Holdings continues “to see systemic risks propagating” across the crypto economy. Cypherpunk Holdings Sells All of the Bitcoin and Ethereum on Its Balance Sheet Crypto winter has done a lot of damage since the bull run’s price highs, as more than $2 trillion has left the digital currency economy since the first week of November 2021. Today, the crypto economy is worth roughly $945 billion and bitcoin (BTC) is coasting along just above the $20K per unit range. BTC is down more than 70% from the all-time high ($69K) on November 10, 2021, and ethereum (ETH) has lost more than 77% since the ATH ($4,878) recorded on the same day. On June 28, 2022, or eight months later, the publicly li...