Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Major Portuguese banks have started closing or refusing to open accounts for cryptocurrency platforms such as exchanges, according to media reports. The move threatens to tarnish the country’s image as one of Europe’s most crypto-friendly destinations, a haven for bitcoin enthusiasts. Portuguese Crypto Firms Hit by Bank Account Closures Portugal, a leading European crypto hub, is risking the loss of its attractiveness for crypto businesses and talent working in the industry as some of its largest banks are now closing accounts of companies operating with digital currencies. Last week, the nation’s biggest listed bank, Banco Comercial Portugues, and another major institution, Banco Santander, shut down all the accounts of Lisbon-based Criptoloja, Bloomberg reported, quoting the exchange’s co-founder and CEO Pedro Borges. The development follows the decision of two smaller banks to close the platform’s accounts. No official explanation was provided in either of these cases, the cryp...

Top cryptocurrency exchange , LBank, gave its various communities across the world a July to remember. With a lineup of activities, the trading platform kept it interesting, interactional and most importantly, educational for its users. In addition, the exchange supported several philanthropic projects that helped the less fortunate in different regions. While the month was jam-packed with activities, LBank Labs, LBank’s investment division, was hard at work, identifying new businesses to incubate. It also hosted an end-of-the-month “Fintech Meetup,” bringing all budding experts to discuss crypto regulation and the next-generation innovative financial solutions. Without exception, this month’s globalisation and inclusion campaigns of the top exchange were felt in India, Turkey, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nigeria, Kenya, Tunisia, and many other regions. A Four-city India Event Presented by LBank: The LBank Show                 The LBank Sho...

U.S. senators have introduced the “Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act of 2022” to empower the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) “with exclusive jurisdiction over the digital commodities spot market.” Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), John Boozman (R-AR), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and John Thune (R-SD) introduced Wednesday the “Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act of 2022.” The bipartisan bill aims to give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) “new tools and authorities to regulate digital commodities,” according to the announcement of the bill by the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Senator Stabenow commented: One in five Americans have used or traded digital assets — but these markets lack the transparency and accountability that they expect from our financial system. Too often, this puts Americans’ hard-earned money at risk. “That’s why we are closing regulatory gaps a...

Skybridge Capital’s founder says bitcoin’s fair market value is about $40,000 based on adoption, wallet size, use cases, and growth of wallets. The asset management firm also estimated ethereum’s fair market value at around $2,800. Skybridge Capital on the Fair Values of Bitcoin and Ethereum Anthony Scaramucci, founder and managing partner at global asset management firm Skybridge Capital, shared his firm’s predictions on the fair market values of bitcoin ( BTC ) and ether ( ETH ) in an interview with Marketwatch, published Tuesday. He believes that the worst of the crypto bear market has passed and bitcoin has already bottomed. His comments followed bankruptcy filings by a number of crypto firms, including Celsius Network and Voyager Digital . “We believe that the leverage has been blown out of the system,” Scaramucci said. While recognizing that BTC could still slide, he emphasized: “I don’t think it’s going below the low that was reached for this cycle, which would be at arou...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has modified the crypto question asked on Form 1040, the tax form used by all U.S. taxpayers to file an annual income tax return. New Crypto Tax Question The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a draft of Form 1040 for the 2022 tax year last week. Form 1040 is the tax form used for filing individual income tax returns in the U.S. The crypto question on the front page of Form 1040 now reads: “At any time during 2022, did you: (a) receive (as a reward, award, or compensation); or (b) sell, exchange, gift, or otherwise dispose of a digital asset (or a financial interest in a digital asset)?” The new question expands on its previous version on Form 1040 for the tax year 2021, which states: “At any time during 2021, did you receive, sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of any financial interest in any virtual currency?” In March, the IRS published a notice stating: “All taxpayers filing Form 1040, Form 1040-SR, or Form 1040-NR must check one box...

Stock and cryptocurrency markets on Thursday saw volatility, after experiencing fluctuations during the tensions between China and Taiwan on Tuesday and Wednesday. Major indexes like the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and NYSE have shed a few percentages today, while the global cryptocurrency market capitalization lost 2.5% in 24 hours, dropping to just above the $1.1 trillion range. Precious metals, on the other hand, traded higher as U.S. president Joe Biden’s administration declared that the Monkeypox virus a public health emergency in the United States. China and Taiwan Tensions and Monkeypox Reports Cause Stock and Crypto Prices to Fluctuate, Precious Metal Markets Rise Catching ‘Safe-Haven Demand’ Stock and crypto traders faced some headwinds on August 4, the day after the American representative from California, Nancy Pelosi, visited Taiwan to discuss democracy with the Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen. Global markets saw some fluctuations before the U.S. diplomat visited Taipei a...

The National Power Administration of Paraguay has proposed to set a special mining fee for cryptocurrency mining operations in a decree project directed to the national economic team. Due to the immense losses the organization has faced, it has stopped supplying energy to some mining operations that were evading the payment of power bills, being illegally connected to the grid. National Power Administration to Change Power Billing Structure for Mining Operations in Paraguay The National Power Administration is proposing a new way of charging cryptocurrency companies for the electricity used in mining operations in Paraguay. The company has brought a new decree proposal to the national economic team that would collect the payments for these services in advance in U.S. dollars, and with an annual adjustment. This proposal would also create a new billing group for these activities. The head of the East Regional Management Division, Alfredo Argüello, stated that while inspecting diffe...

A new study has ranked Nigeria as the country most curious about cryptocurrency post the April crypto market crash. The same study findings show Kenya as the second-highest ranked African country. According to Bobby Ong, co-founder of Coingecko, the countries topping the list seem more interested in buying the dip and this highlights “their long-term outlook for cryptocurrencies.” Nigerian Solana Searches Third Highest Globally After the cryptocurrency market crashed in April, a new study found Nigeria as the number one ranked country among English-speaking countries that are most interested in cryptocurrency. According to the findings of a study undertaken by Coingecko, Nigeria’s score of 371 surpasses that of second-ranked United Arab Emirates (UAE) by 101, and that of third-placed Singapore by 110. Elaborating on Nigeria — whose central bank directed financial institutions to block crypto entities from the banking ecosystem — a report released by the crypto price tracker Coing...

Several solutions can potentially improve cross-border payments significantly and central bank digital currency (CBDC) could be the “holy grail,” according to the European Central Bank (ECB). In a new report, the eurozone’s monetary authority also claims stablecoins, among other options, are “problematic.” ‘Holy Grail’ of Cross-Border Payments in Reach Through CBDC, European Central Bank Insists Cross-border payments should be immediate, cheap, universal, and settled in a secure medium, the European Central Bank remarks in a recently published report . For the first time, the “holy grail” of such transactions is within reach, thanks to declining data transfer costs, the birth of innovative concepts, and global collaboration aiming to enhance these payments, the regulator says in the recently published paper. The review, co-authored by ECB’s Director-General for Market Infrastructure and Payments Ulrich Bindseil and economist George Pantelopoulos, explores various ways to achieve th...

The number of Ethereum Name Service (ENS) domains is nearing the two million mark as 1,888,209 ENS names have been etched into the Ethereum blockchain to date. The project recently detailed that July saw the largest monthly rise in revenue scoring 5,400 ether worth roughly $2.48 million during the course of the month. ENS Registrations Spiked Last Month with 378K Names Etched Into the Ethereum Blockchain ENS names are nearing the two million mark this week as registrations have steadily risen during the few months. Data from Dune Analytics indicates that after 67,095 ENS registrations in February, the following month the number kicked up to 85,272 ENS registrations. May saw a significant spike reaching 365,652 registrations or 328% higher than the month prior. The month of June saw a much lower count of ENS registrations as statistics show 122,327 names were registered that month. July, however, was an entirely different story as 378,804 ENS registrations were logged during the 3...

Mastercard sees cryptocurrency as more of an asset class than a means of payment, according to the payments giant’s chief financial officer. Mastercard’s crypto strategy “has been fairly successful ever since crypto environments came up,” he added. Mastercard’s CFO on Crypto as Asset Class vs. Means of Payment Mastercard Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sachin Mehra shared his view on cryptocurrency in an interview published Tuesday by Bloomberg. He was asked how successful Mastercard’s crypto strategy has been. “In the crypto world, we play the role as an on-ramp, with people using our debit and credit products to buy crypto. And we act as the off-ramp: When people want to cash it, we help them gain access to be able to use their crypto balances everywhere Mastercard is accepted,” he detailed, elaborating: That’s a revenue-generating capability which has been fairly successful ever since crypto environments came up. The company previously explained that it has plans to develop p...

Microstrategy (MSTR) has “outperformed every asset class and big tech stock” since the company adopted a bitcoin strategy and started accumulating the cryptocurrency in its corporate treasury, says CEO Michael Saylor. The pro-bitcoin executive will be stepping down as the CEO of Microstrategy and take the role of the company’s executive chairman to focus on bitcoin. Microstrategy’s Performance Since Adopting Bitcoin Strategy The Nasdaq-listed software company Microstrategy Inc. (Nasdaq: MSTR) released its Q2 financial results Tuesday. CEO Michael Saylor tweeted Wednesday: Since adopting a bitcoin strategy, MSTR has outperformed every asset class & big tech stock. He added that the price of bitcoin increased 94% during that time period while the S&P500 rose 23% and Nasdaq climbed 13%. In contrast, gold, bonds, and silver are down 13%, 14%, and 29%, respectively. Microstrategy adopted a bitcoin strategy in the third quarter of 2020. He explained in a different tweet: Si...

A South African professor, Steven Boykey Sidley, has branded as “balderdash” claims by the South African central bank deputy governor that “90% of cryptocurrency transactions” are illicit. The professor also accused the senior central bank official of spreading inaccurate information that “does immeasurable damage to an important new industry.” Only 0.15% of Crypto Transactions Are Tied to Illicit Activity A South African university professor and author, Steven Boykey Sidley, has slammed Kuben Naidoo, the country’s central bank deputy governor, for claiming that “90% of cryptocurrency transactions” are illicit. Describing Naidoo’s claims as “balderdash,” Sidley insisted the “real stats are continuously assembled and reported by numerous data analytics companies” and prove that only a tiny fraction of crypto transactions are tied to illicit activities. In an opinion piece published by the Daily Maverick, Sidley accuses the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) deputy governor of spread...

Socios.com, a company dedicated to the development of fan engagement tokens for sports organizations, has revealed that it will invest $100 million in the digital business of soccer team FC Barcelona, Barca Studios. The investment will give Socios.com 24.5% of the stake in the digital division of the club and will allow it to reshape the metaverse and Web3 strategies of the division to include more revenue streams. Socios.com to Invest in FC Barcelona Metaverse Division Sports clubs are now trying to diversify their revenue streams by getting into the metaverse, grabbing the attention of VC firms in the process. Socios.com, a company that designs fan engagement tools for sports clubs, announced it will invest $100 million into the metaverse, NFT, and Web3 division of the soccer club FC Barcelona, called Barca Studios. With the investment, Socios.com will receive a 24.5% stake in the mentioned company, as the club announced , and it will allow it to “accelerate the club’s audiovisu...

Singapore-based Vauld will have some breathing space after the country’s High Court gave its parent company creditor protection for the next three months. The decision comes as the troubled crypto lending platform seeks acquisition by rival Nexo. Vauld to Have 3 Months for Restructuring, Due Diligence by Nexo The Singapore High Court has granted the parent company of crypto lender Vauld, Defi Payments Ltd., a three-month protection from creditors, Bloomberg reported, noting this would allow Vauld to restructure and prepare for a potential acquisition by competitor Nexo, a major player in the crypto lending market. Justice Aedit Abdullah approved a moratorium until Nov. 7 during a court hearing on Monday. During said period, Vauld’s 147,000 creditors will be barred from taking legal action against it. It had asked for three more months but the judge expressed concerns that that a six-month protection would not ensure “adequate supervision and monitoring.” Nevertheless, the moratori...

The New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) has fined Robinhood Crypto $30 million for “significant failures in the areas of bank secrecy act/anti-money laundering (‘BSA/AML’) obligations and cybersecurity.” Robinhood Crypto Settles With the DFS The New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) announced Tuesday that Robinhood Crypto LLC (RHC) will pay a $30 million penalty to New York State for “significant failures in the areas of bank secrecy act/anti-money laundering (‘BSA/AML’) obligations and cybersecurity.” The failures resulted in violations of the department’s Virtual Currency Regulation, Money Transmitter Regulation, Transaction Monitoring Regulation, and Cybersecurity Regulation, the DFS detailed. Superintendent of Financial Services Adrienne A. Harris commented: As its business grew, Robinhood Crypto failed to invest the proper resources and attention to develop and maintain a culture of compliance — a failure that resulted in significant violat...

New York Attorney General Letitia James has urged investors in her state who believe they have been deceived by a crypto platform to contact her office. “Investors were promised large returns on cryptocurrencies, but instead lost their hard-earned money,” she stressed. Letitia James Issues Investor Alert on Cryptocurrency New York Attorney General Letitia James issued an investor alert on cryptocurrency Monday. “Many high-profile cryptocurrency businesses have frozen customer withdrawals, announced mass layoffs, or filed for bankruptcy, while investors have been left in financial ruin,” the alert states. James urged any New Yorker deceived or affected by cryptocurrency platforms to contact the Office of the Attorney General (OAG). In addition, she encouraged anyone in the cryptocurrency industry “who may have witnessed misconduct or fraud to file a whistleblower complaint with her office,” adding that it can be done anonymously. “The recent turbulence and significant losses in the...

Binance’s U.S. platform is delisting crypto token amp after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) declared it a security. Another crypto exchange, Coinbase, disagreed with the regulator, arguing that the token is not a security. Binance Delists AMP ‘out of an Abundance of Caution’ Binance’s U.S. exchange (Binance US) is taking action to ensure that crypto tokens the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has declared to be securities are not listed on its platform. The SEC recently said in a lawsuit against a former Coinbase product manager that nine crypto tokens are securities . They are AMP, RLY, DDX, XYO, RGT, LCX, POWR, DFX, and KROM. Binance US explained: In its suit, the SEC named nine digital assets that it alleges are securities. Of those nine tokens, only amp (AMP) is listed on the Binance.US platform. “Out of an abundance of caution, we have decided to delist the AMP token from Binance.US, effective August 15, 2022,” the crypto exchange announced Monday...

According to Chandler Guo, an influential Chinese bitcoin miner, a proof-of-work (PoW) version of Ethereum is “coming soon.” The news comes as The Merge is expected to be implemented on Ethereum during the week of September 19, and the growing discussions of delaying the highly anticipated proof-of-stake (PoS) transition. Chinese Miner Chandler Guo Says ‘Ethereum PoW’ Is Coming Soon Chandler Guo has stated that an Ethereum proof-of-work (PoW) version will be “coming soon” ahead of The Merge that’s been penciled-in for the week of September 19. Guo is a known Chinese cryptocurrency miner and last week he wrote that he had forked once, and “will fork it again.” However, Guo’s statement is contradictory to how it officially played out in the summer of 2016, when the Ethereum Classic ( ETC ) chain was introduced to the world. I am Chandler Guo, a 51% attack on Ethereum Classic ( ETC ) is coming with my 98G hashrate https://t.co/9VM6vPa8CS — Chandler Guo (@ChandlerGuo) July 24, 2...

The French cryptocurrency hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger is seeking to raise fresh new capital after raising $380 million in June 2021, according to sources familiar with the matter. The hardware wallet company Ledger is reportedly looking to raise at least $100 million from strategic investors. Crypto Hardware Wallet Manufacturer Ledger Is Reportedly Looking to Raise $100 Million in Funding According to Bloomberg, the French crypto hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger is seeking more funds after the firm’s Series C last June. At the time, Ledger raised $380 million in a finance round led by 10T Holdings, and it gave Ledger a post valuation of around $1.5 billion. Founded in 2015 by Éric Larchevêque and Thomas France, Ledger has propelled itself as one of the top crypto hardware wallet manufacturers worldwide. Ledger competes with other popular digital currency hardware wallet makers like Trezor, Ellipal, Coolwallet, Safepal, and Coinkite. The report published on July 30 say...

Imran Khan, a former prime minister of Pakistan and current chairman of one of the largest political parties in the country, has confirmed that his Instagram account was compromised and hackers used it to promote a cryptocurrency giveaway scam. Imran Khan’s Instagram Account Hacked, Used to Promote Crypto Scam Imran Khan, a former Pakistani prime minister and current chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), one of the largest political parties in the country, reportedly confirmed that his Instagram account was hacked Monday. He told Dawn publication that his account was soon recovered with the help of Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram. He explained that he himself monitors the account, which has 7.4 million followers, noting that the hackers posted a cryptocurrency link and a screenshot of a tweet from Tesla CEO Elon Musk to the account. The cryptocurrency link posted on the politician’s account leads to a crypto giveaway site featuring Musk and his company Spacex. Scam...