Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has outlined new reasons to terminate the $44 billion deal to buy Twitter in a new filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Citing a whistleblower report, Musk’s lawyer said the allegations, known to the social media giant but undisclosed to Musk, indicate “far-reaching misconduct at Twitter.” Elon Musk Presents More Reasons to Terminate Twitter Deal in New SEC Filing Tesla CEO Elon Musk has found more reasons to terminate his $44 billion offer to buy Twitter Inc. Musk’s lawyer filed a letter he sent to Twitter with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Monday to provide additional notice of termination of the agreement. Musk officially terminated his offer to buy Twitter on July 8. Twitter subsequently sued the Spacex boss to force him to close the deal, prompting Musk to countersue the social media giant. In the letter sent to Twitter Chief Legal Officer Vijaya Gadde, Musk’s lawyer detailed: Allegations regarding certain...

The host of Mad Money, Jim Cramer, has advised investors to avoid cryptocurrency and other speculative investments. “Don’t get memed. Don’t get SPAC’d. Don’t get crypto’d,” Cramer stressed, warning of “a giant washout of all things that are speculative.” Jim Cramer Advises Investors to Avoid Crypto The host of CNBC’s Mad Money show, Jim Cramer, offered some advice Tuesday regarding what to invest in the current market condition. Cramer is a former hedge fund manager who co-founded Thestreet.com, a financial news and literacy website. The Mad Money host has urged investors to stay away from speculative assets including cryptocurrencies. He warned that these investments will struggle as the Federal Reserve continues its hawkish stance to combat inflation. “Look, Fed chief Jay Powell told us that we need to stop doing stupid things with our money. That was the thrust of his speech on Friday,” Cramer said, referring to Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The central banker warne...

This week, Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. revealed the company will give event organizers the ability to mint non-fungible token (NFT) tickets via the Flow blockchain. Last November, Ticketmaster said it was working with Polygon but since Super Bowl LVI, the ticket sales and distribution behemoth started working with the Dapper Labs-managed Flow. Ticketmaster Has Minted More Than 5 Million NFTs Using Flow’s Technology On August 31, 2022, a sportsbusinessjournal.com report detailed that Ticketmaster will allow event organizers to issue NFTs using the Flow blockchain. Organizers will be able to mint NFTs before, during, or after an event and they can represent tickets or memorabilia, VIP access and rewards as well. The report notes that the ticketing agency has already minted 5 million NFTs via the Flow network. Clients that have issued NFTs include The Black Crowes, the Apollo Theater, and Gavin DeGraw. Ticketmaster originally said it would use Polygon but in February the world’s...

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has issued a public service announcement about exploits attackers have recently used to steal cryptocurrency from investors that put money on decentralized finance (defi) platforms. The organization also advised crypto investors to do their own research and verify that the decentralized finance platforms chosen were audited by independent parties. Defi Platforms Under the Eye of the FBI The FBI has begun to notice the attention scammers are giving to decentralized finance (defi) platforms in order to exploit their operations. The bureau has issued a public service announcement warning investors and defi platforms about this development, and issuing recommendations to try and prevent these exploits from happening. The FBI has observed three recent hacks, by which attackers have managed to compromise these decentralized finance protocols: initiating flash loans, exploiting signature verifications to empty cross-platform bridges...

El Zonte, a beach in El Salvador rebaptized as “Bitcoin Beach” due to its adoption of the cryptocurrency, will receive infrastructure investments as part of a strategic plan of the government of El Salvador. Surf City, another beach location in the La Libertad region, will also receive road improvements and other upgrades. ‘Bitcoin Beach’ to Benefit From Infrastructure Investments Bitcoin Beach, a beach in El Zonte, El Salvador, is getting a set of infrastructure upgrades from the country’s government. The beach is iconic due to its adoption of bitcoin to build a circular economy in the area. These investments will be directed toward building a new set of facilities for tourists to better enjoy the location. Regarding the execution of these investments, President Nayib Bukele stated : El Zonte for many is known as Bitcoin Beach; we are going to fix an area of 15,000 square meters, where there will be a shopping center, parking, beach club, treatment plant, to revitalize the area...

Farms mining cryptocurrency at oil wells in Russia account for 85 megawatts (MW) of energy capacity, experts have estimated. Investors are considering projects for another 200 MW despite constraints stemming from Western sanctions, a report reveals. Annual Income From Crypto Mining With Associated Gas in Russia to Exceed One Billion Rubles Data centers mining cryptocurrencies in Russia’s oil fields have a combined power rating of 85 megawatts, which is 23% of the market, according to analysts at Vygon Consulting, an independent consultancy working on the development of the Russian fuel and energy complex. These crypto farms are supplied with electricity generated by small power plants burning associated petroleum gas ( APG ), a by-product of the extraction of black gold, that oil companies are required to dispose of. While it costs them almost nothing, they can sell it to miners. Russian oil producers use around 17 billion cubic meters of APG annually to power facilities at drilli...

A constitutional court in the Central African Republic has reportedly ruled that the Touadéra government’s offer of land and citizenship to buyers of the sango coin is unconstitutional. The court said the sango-coin-for-citizenship scheme must be stopped because the country’s “nationality has no market value.” Offering Land and Minerals to Sango Coin Investors Ruled Unconstitutional In a ruling likely to derail the Central African Republic (CAR)’s crypto ambitions, a constitutional court has ruled that the government’s plan to offer full citizenship to investors in its sango coin cryptocurrency is illegal. In addition, the court said the government’s offer of land and access to minerals such as gold to sango coin buyers is unconstitutional. According to the court, the country’s “nationality has no market value,” hence President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s government must stop promising citizenship to investors that buy sango coins worth $60,000. Government Says It Respects Court’...

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned about scammers exploiting investors’ fear of missing out (FOMO) on social media. “If a crypto investment ‘opportunity’ sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” the SEC cautioned. SEC Says Scammers Often Use Social Media to Defraud Investors The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published an Investor Alert titled “Social Media and Investment Fraud” Monday. The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy warned that “fraudsters often use social media to scam investors.” Encouraging investors to be skeptical and “never make investment decisions based solely on information from social media platforms or apps,” the securities regulator described: Fraudsters may exploit investors’ fear of missing out to lure investors on social media into ‘crypto’ investment scams. “If a crypto investment ‘opportunity’ sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” the SEC stressed. “Promises of high investment returns, wi...

Dubai, Tuesday, August 30th – Zogi Labs Ltd. officially releases The Legends of Bezogia Beta to global audiences seeking to experience an NFT crypto-based MMORPG like never seen before. The Legends of Bezogia takes the crypto gaming industry to new heights with next-level graphics, a rich and deep backstory, countless quirky characters & villains and a massive open world. Players can rent, own & sell their own NFT Bezogi characters and kit them out with NFT weapons that add unique flavor to the gameplay never seen before in an NFT crypto-based massive open-world game. “Following on from a year of hard work, devotion and creative passion we’re extremely excited to finally launch The Legends of Bezogia Beta after an overwhelmingly positive response & signup count. With the aim of taking the NFT crypto gaming industry by storm, the game will give users all around the world a totally new experience in crypto gaming which is fitting for 2022. Gone are the days of crypto games...

The chief global strategist of JPMorgan Asset Management has advised investors to focus on valuations, invest in value stocks, sell crypto, and steer clear of bitcoin. “The Federal Reserve is overestimating the strength of the U.S. economy as it feels guilty about the fact that inflation went up under their watch,” he said. JPMorgan Strategist’s Recommendations JPMorgan Asset Management’s chief global strategist, David Kelly, has some advice about what investors who are worried about a hawkish Federal Reserve should invest in. Following the speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell Friday at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, he was quoted as saying : The economy has got one foot into a recession and the other on the banana peel now. “We are taking forceful and rapid steps to moderate demand so that it comes into better alignment with supply, and to keep inflation expectations anchored. We will keep at it until we are confident the job is done,” Powell said last week. Warning of m...

According to a recent report, the venture capital firm founded by Alexis Ohanian, Seven Seven Six, is planning to raise $177 million for a new crypto-centric fund. The new Seven Seven Six fund called Kryptós will concentrate on investing in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum. Seven Seven Six Launches Cryptocurrency Fund Kryptós — Plans to Go Live in October On August 29, 2022, The Information reporter Kate Clark published a report that noted Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six is raising money for a new crypto-focused fund called Kryptós. The company has been behind a number of investments tethered to the crypto and Web3 industry. For instance, Seven Seven Six led the Ethereum Web3 wallet platform Rainbow’s $18 million funding round . In mid-December 2021, Seven Seven Six teamed up with Polygon to launch a $200 million social media Web3 fund. On Monday, The Information’s report says the fund Kryptós is looking to raise $177 million and it will invest in cr...

Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox brand, believes that the metaverse has been with us since 30 years ago, when digital gaming was largely introduced. However, Spencer criticized play-to-earn (P2E) models, stating that they create a workforce out of a kind of gamer who needs to monetize the time spent playing. Xbox Boss Phil Spencer Believes the Metaverse Has Been Here for Some Time The metaverse and its current conceptions have been the subject of debate and criticism. The current head of the Xbox brand and CEO of gaming at Microsoft, Phil Spencer, offered his skeptical take on how the metaverse, an alternate world, is currently being presented. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that the metaverse is nothing new and that it is related to what gamers have already been doing for some time. He explained : My view on metaverse is that gamers have been in the metaverse for 30 years. When you’re playing games, these 3D shared worlds that people have been playing in for years a...

In November 2020, Colorado banned gas flaring, venting, and the release of raw gas into the atmosphere. While the centennial state has a large number of well sites, a recent report shows that roughly a half dozen Colorado oil and gas companies are leveraging gas-to-bitcoin flare mitigation systems and these firms are raking in a lot of bitcoin. Report Shows at Least a Half Dozen Colorado-Based gas and Oil Firms Are Leveraging Gas-to-Bitcoin Mitigation Solutions On August 29, 2022, the Colorado Sun author Mark Jaffe reported on Colorado-based gas and oil companies teaming up with bitcoin miners and explaining how “they’re making quite a bit of coin.” Jaffe details that there are at least a half dozen oil and gas refiners using gas-to-bitcoin flare mitigation systems in the natural gas-rich state of Colorado. The growing number of bitcoin flare mitigation sites in Colorado is interesting because the state’s regulatory watchdog, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC...

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has urged investors to buy commodities now and worry about a recession later. The firm’s analysts see commodities as “the best asset class to own during a late-cycle phase where demand remains above supply.” Meanwhile, “equities could suffer as inflation stays elevated and the Fed is more likely to surprise on the hawkish side,” Goldman noted. Goldman Sachs’ Recommendation: Buy Commodities Now Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has recommended investors buy commodities. In a note titled “Buy commodities now, worry about the recession later,” published Monday, Goldman wrote: “Our economists view the risk of a recession outside Europe in the next 12 months as relatively low.” The firm’s analysts, including Sabine Schels, Jeffrey Currie, and Damien Courvalin, explained: With oil the commodity of last resort in an era of severe energy shortages, we believe the pullback in the entire oil complex provides an attractive entry point for long-only inv...

PRESS RELEASE. Jackson, Wyoming (August 29, 2022) – Gala Games , the leading pioneer in web3 entertainment and blockchain gaming, today announced that Spider Tanks , the first Web3 PvP esports brawler, will launch on October 31, 2022 as the debut game on Project GYRI, Gala Games’ proprietary games-first blockchain. In anticipation of the launch, starting today Gala is kicking off a limited time sale for its Spider Tanks Planetary Nodes. Planetary Nodes will be operated by community members who have purchased licenses in this sale. In return for using their computing resources to power the decentralized Spider Tanks ecosystem, Node operator-owners will earn regular rewards. More information about Planetary Nodes can be found at Gala.Games . Developed by award-winning Netherlands-based GAMEDIA, this futuristic esports tank game is free to play, but also incorporates a variety of play-to-earn mechanics that center around skill-based competition, resource collection, and a player-dri...

Singapore’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), is contemplating imposing stricter rules on retail crypto investors. “MAS regards cryptocurrencies as unsuitable for use as money and as highly hazardous for retail investors,” said the central bank chief. New Rules May Be Coming to Retail Crypto Investors in Singapore Ravi Menon, the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Singaporean central bank, talked about cryptocurrency regulation at the Green Shoots seminar Monday. He outlined five areas of risk in digital assets that the central bank’s regulatory approach is focused on. They are combating money laundering and terrorist financing risks; managing technology and cyber-related risks; safeguarding against harm to retail investors; upholding the promise of stability in stablecoins; and mitigating potential financial stability risks. The central bank chief noted: MAS regards cryptocurrencies as unsuitable for use as money and as hi...

An increasing number of financial and crypto pyramids targeting Russian investors have been opening physical offices in the country. The Central Bank of Russia has recently expressed concern over the trend which is seen as an indication that the fraudsters expect growing demand. Russian Crypto Scams Launch Offices to Lure More Investors In-person, Bank of Russia Says Financial pyramids and illegal forex dealers in Russia, many of which now specialize in offering crypto investment and settlement opportunities, are moving offline, the daily Izvestia reported quoting the Central Bank of the Russian Federation ( CBR ). For the first time in recent years, the organizers of such scams are opening offices where they try to convince potential victims to invest in virtual money or suggest services to bypass foreign sanctions and government restrictions. In-person contact is always more effective for that purpose, experts say. They also warn that sharing information with dubious platforms o...

On August 19, a group of loving volunteers visited Hospital Universitario Antonio Patricio de Alcalá (HUAPA) in Cumaná, Venezuela. Wearing costumes and acting as cartoon characters such as Spider-Man and Elsa popular with children, they shuttled between pediatric wards while carrying books and toys as gifts to sick children in the hospital. This is a charity event meticulously planned by CoinEx Charity, a global charity, for kids suffering from illness in Venezuela. During the event, the organization hired actors to play cartoon characters and provided sick kids with gifts, including 500 cakes, 300 fruit packages, and 130 toys. CoinEx Charity hopes that the warmth and fun brought by the cartoon characters and gifts could ease their pain and help them forget about their illness for a while. On the day of the event, children welcomed their special “friends” and received toys and gifts. They also got to play games with their favorite cartoon characters, filling the wards with laughter ...

The Dubai virtual assets regulator, the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA), has unveiled digital assets marketing and promotion guidelines that are applicable to any entity using Dubai-based media sites and publishing channels. The guidelines will “ensure factual accuracy, explicitly demonstrate any promotional intent, and in no way mislead on the guaranteed nature of their returns.” Guidelines Applicable to Dubai Licensed VASPs Dubai’s regulator of virtual assets, the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA), recently announced the guidelines governing the marketing and promotions of digital assets. According to a Khaleej Times report , the guidelines reflect the regulator’s mission to provide a legal framework that brings economic opportunities without compromising the market’s security. As per the report, the VARA guidelines encompass “all forms of outreach, communications and advertising, including publication of information, awareness building, customer engagement, and...

Morgan Report founder David Morgan foresees a supply crunch for silver, and says that in ten years’ time, it will be one of the best investments of the decade. One analyst, however, says if the precious metal falls below $18, it’s “very possible that we could see silver get absolutely smoked.” In other news this week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has issued a crypto-related cease and desist order to popular cryptocurrency exchange FTX US, and four others. All this and more, in the latest Bitcoin.com News Week in Review. Analyst Says if Silver Dips Below $18, Precious Metal Could ‘Get Absolutely Smoked’ — Morgan Report Founder Expects a Supply Crunch Silver has lost more than 28% against the dollar during the last 165 days or since March 8, 2022. Despite the lower prices, David Morgan, the founder of The Morgan Report, believes silver is expected to see a crunch in supply. In ten years’ time, Morgan thinks silver will be one of the best investments of the decade...