Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Mobile payments are thriving in Argentina, leaving behind other traditional payment methods, including credit and debit cards. According to the central bank’s monthly report on retail payments, this kind of payment has thrived, representing 60% of the payments operations made, while plastic-based payment media has stagnated, registering a fall in use. Mobile Payments Keep Growing in Argentina Electronic contactless payments have been thriving in several countries of Latam, given the penetration of mobile cell phones in the area. The latest monthly report on retail payments issued by the Central Bank of Argentina has found that mobile payments are thriving in the country, leaving behind legacy payment media. According to the report, mobile devices are being more greatly leveraged to make payments due to the rise of banking apps and mobile wallets. Just in October, 162 million of these transactions were made, registering an increase of 7.1% when compared to the transactions made dur...

U.S. Congressman Tom Emmer has called on the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, to testify before Congress and “answer questions about the cost of his regulatory failures.” The lawmaker stressed: “Gensler has repeatedly dodged Congress at the expense of investors … leaving us to learn about the SEC’s crypto investigations, like the one into FTX, through the media.” Lawmaker Wants SEC Chair Gensler to Testify Regarding Crypto Regulation U.S. Congressman Tom Emmer (R-MN) wants the chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler, to testify before Congress about his failures, particularly in regulating the crypto industry. The congressman from Minnesota tweeted Friday: Gensler has repeatedly dodged Congress at the expense of investors … leaving us to learn about the SEC’s crypto investigations, like the one into FTX, through the media. He noted that the SEC chief “hasn’t publicly appeared before the House Financial Se...

On Dec. 13, 2022, the Southern District of New York (SDNY) prosecutor’s office and SDNY attorney Damian Williams revealed that the FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been indicted for “fraud, money Laundering, and campaign finance offenses.” SDNY attorney Williams said that the case was not an issue of “mismanagement or poor oversight” but of “intentional fraud, plain and simple.” SDNY Prosecutor’s Office and Attorney Williams Charge SBF With 8 Financial Crimes A federal grand jury in Manhattan unsealed an indictment on Dec. 13, 2022, tied to the disgraced former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), and the SDNY Department of Justice (DOJ) press release details detail that SBF is accused of “conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to defraud the Federal Election Commission and commit campaign finance violations.” The SDNY DOJ indictment says SBF ...

On Monday, Dec. 12, 2022, the Maryland-based bitcoin mining company Terawulf announced that the firm has raised $10 million in capital to pay down debts. The firm also said that it restructured a deal with Bitmain which will enable the company’s self-mining capacity to expand and fully leverage the 160 megawatts of Terawulf’s available mining capacity. Terawulf Raises $10 Million in New Capital, Restructured Bitmain Deal Will Give the Firm 8,200 ASIC Mining Rigs Bitcoin miners have been struggling this year as the price of bitcoin (BTC) has reduced profits for every mining participant worldwide. On Dec. 12, the publicly-listed Terawulf Inc., (Nasdaq: WULF ) revealed the company has managed to raise $10 million in capital to repay debts. “The company intends to use the aggregate net proceeds to repay the advance with Yorkville and simultaneously issue a notice to Yorkville to terminate the accompanying SEPA entered into on June 2, 2022, and for other general corporate purposes,” Te...

Blackrock, one of the largest asset management companies in the world, has warned that 2023 will be a year of recession different from other recessions in the past. As part of its recently issued 2023 Global Outlook report, Blackrock states that a new economic playbook is required in a world defined by a supply-based economy and high levels of inflation. Blackrock Predicts Recession and Persistent Inflation Blackrock, an asset management and investment company, has presented its predictions for what the next year might bring to financial markets. The company, which is estimated to hold $8 trillion in assets under management, foresees a period of recession caused by the policies of central banks directed at controlling inflation. However, according to its 2023 Global Outlook report , this recession will be different from previous downturns. The report explains: Recession is foretold as central banks race to try to tame inflation. It’s the opposite of past recessions: Loose policy ...

Nvidia, a graphics processing unit and artificial intelligence (AI) company, believes that 2023 could mark the start of a metaverse-driven age in the automotive industry. As part of this new conception, automotive companies will start to include metaverse tech and implement it in their industrial and retail operations. Nvidia Believes Metaverse Tech Will Be Part of Automotive Industry in 2023 Nvidia, one of the largest AI and graphics companies in the world, predicts that 2023 will be the year in which many automotive companies start integrating their operations with the metaverse. The company believes there are two different ways in which this integration will be done. First, the implementation of metaverse tools will allow companies to monitor the whole production process of their vehicles, allowing them to propose improvements. This is possible thanks to the inclusion of “digital twins” in the factories where these cars are being built. The design processes will also benefit f...

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has revealed that he wants to start another business in the hope of earning money to repay FTX customers. “I would give anything to be able to do that. And I’m going to try if I can,” he said. SBF Wants to Start a New Business Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), former CEO of the collapsed crypto exchange FTX, was asked in an interview with the BBC, published Saturday, whether he planned to start a new business venture to earn the money to pay FTX investors and customers back. The former FTX boss replied: I would give anything to be able to do that. And I’m going to try if I can. He added: “I’m going to be thinking about how we can help the world and if users haven’t gotten much back, I’m going to be thinking about what I can do for them. And I think at the very least I have a duty to FTX users to do right by them as best as I can.” FTX filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11 and an estimated one million customers and investors lost billions of dollars in t...

Disgraced FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has been arrested in The Bahamas, according to local reports citing the country’s attorney general Ryan Pinder. According to Pinder, SBF’s arrest “followed receipt of formal notification from the United States that it has filed criminal charges against SBF and is likely to request his extradition.” **Editor’s note: This article’s final paragraph was updated at 8:10 p.m. (ET) on Dec. 12, 2022, to reflect a report from the New York Times that says Southern District of New York prosecutors confirmed SBF had been charged. FTX Co-Founder Sam Bankman-Fried Is in Custody in The Bahamas Following the collapse of FTX and Alameda Research last month and the bankruptcy filing on Nov. 11, 2022, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has been arrested. On Dec. 12, 2022, The Tribune reported that attorney general (AG) Ryan Pinder disclosed the news to the press. The news follows the Bahamian AG insisting that FTX was subject of an “active and ongoing investig...

On Dec. 9, 2022, Twitter’s owner Elon Musk told the public that the social media company plans to purge 1.5 billion accounts. Musk further added that the deletions would be obvious accounts that have no tweets or they haven’t logged in for years. However, after Musk announced this plan, a great number of cryptocurrency proponents have grown concerned that Hal Finney’s account would be among the purged names. Finney, who passed away in Aug. 2014, was the first to mention bitcoin in a tweet on the public forum. Bitcoiners Ask Twitter’s Elon Musk to Preserve Computer Scientist Hal Finney’s Twitter Account Cryptocurrency supporters have been worried that computer scientist Hal Finney’s Twitter account will get deleted. The reason people have been fretful about the deletion of Finney’s account is because Elon Musk said Twitter plans to delete 1.5 billion inactive accounts. “Twitter will soon start freeing the name space of 1.5 billion accounts,” Musk wrote on Dec. 9, 2022. “These are ob...

Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit has announced upcoming changes to its know-your-customer (KYC) policy that will limit certain operations for unverified customers. The stricter requirements concern coin purchases with fiat money, NFT transactions, and withdrawal limits. Bybit to Limit Services for Traders Who Have Not Passed Identity Verification Crypto exchange Bybit will restrict some services that are currently available to users who are yet to pass its verification procedure. The crypto trading platform, one of the largest with global reach, announced the enhanced KYC requirements on Thursday and later adjusted the timeframe for their implementation. Verification is now needed to access the Bybit Launchpad and use Earn products. Passing individual KYC will be compulsory for acquiring crypto through fiat deposits, peer-to-peer (P2P) trading and the One-Click Buy option starting from Dec. 15, 2022. On the same date, identity verification will become mandatory for clients who wan...

Ben Bernanke, former chairman of the Federal Reserve and also the winner of the 2022 Nobel Prize in economics, has recently blasted the concept of cryptocurrencies. In an interview with Dagens Nyheter, one of the biggest Swedish journals, Bernanke remarked that cryptocurrencies have not proven they have any economic value at all. Ben Bernanke Blasts Crypto The demise of certain cryptocurrency companies like FTX, which was one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, and also crypto lenders such as Celsius and Blockfi, has made analysts reassess the real contribution that cryptocurrencies have on the field of economics. Ben Bernanke, one of the most renowned economists and co-winner of the 2022 Nobel Prize in economics for his research on banks and financial crises, recently stated his opinion on cryptocurrency in the wake of the current situation the market is facing. In an interview published by the Swedish journal Dagens Nyheter on Dec. 7, Bernanke stated he does not think cry...

Several small investors have manifested that the constant blackouts in several parts of Cuba have made cryptocurrency mining unsustainable, leaving them unable to operate their rigs. The blackouts also affect telecommunications, leaving some of these operations that rely on off-grid power plants without the internet needed to complete mining tasks. Cryptocurrency Mining in Cuba Not Feasible Under Current Conditions Cryptocurrency has reached a notable level of functionality in Cuba, as citizens use it as an alternative to getting services that they would be unable to get otherwise, including international shopping, mobile and internet top-up services, and even sending and receiving remittances. However, cryptocurrency mining is facing problems to reach the same level of popularity. While crypto mining was once considered a smart investment by Cubans, this idea has been demolished by the current state of the Cuban power grid, which puts mining operations in jeopardy due to the cons...

Residents of the United States, South Korea and the Russian Federation have been the most frequent users of centralized exchanges this year, according to a new study. The finding comes after the spectacular crash of FTX, one of the largest such platforms, amid tightening regulations and fewer new users. U.S. Leads by Number of CEX Users, Turkey and Japan Are Also in the Top in Terms of Traffic The U.S., South Korea and Russia together account for 22% of all visits to centralized exchanges (CEX) for cryptocurrencies, according to the 2022-2023 “Global Crypto Industry Overview and Trends” annual report produced by Huobi Research. The estimate is based on data from the top 100 CEXs on active users, trading depth, trading volume, and reliability. With a share exceeding 9%, the United States is the pronounced leader in terms of absolute number of crypto users generating CEX traffic. South Korea, Russia, Turkey, and Japan are next with 7.4%, 6.1%, 5.6% and 3.8%, respectively. The driv...

Angel investor Balaji Srinivasan says the collapse of crypto exchange FTX should be treated as “a preview of state failure.” He warned that one day U.S. dollar bank accounts “may be frozen or inflated to worthlessness,” emphasizing that the authorities “will show no interest in prosecuting.” Srinivasan cautioned: “That world is coming and we need alternatives.” Balaji Srinivasan on FTX, State Failure, and U.S. Dollars Becoming Worthless Angel investor Balaji Srinivasan commented on the collapse of crypto exchange FTX in a series of tweets Saturday. Formerly the CTO of crypto exchange Coinbase and a general partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Srinivasan is also the author of The Network State, a WSJ bestseller. “Treat FTX as a preview of state failure,” he wrote, adding: One day, your USD bank account balance may be frozen or inflated to worthlessness. The authorities will show no interest in prosecuting — they’re the ones who ordered it in the first place....

Rock band Kiss’ lead singer Gene Simmons has confirmed that he is still holding crypto despite the crypto winter and the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. “I’m deep in crypto. I believe in it,” the rock legend affirmed. Noting that he has several cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ethereum, Simmons stressed: “Personally, I’m holding, but everybody should do their own due diligence.” Gene Simmons Says He’s ‘Deep in Crypto’ Rock legend Gene Simmons confirmed Thursday that he is still holding cryptocurrencies despite the crypto winter and the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. 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. Responding to a question from Crypto Housewife at his Moneybag Vodka launch event in Alberta, Canada, about whether he is “still hodling” his cryptocurrencies, Simmons said: “Well, I’m no...

It’s been another wild week in crypto, with a claimed FTX insider revealing a controversial document related to former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison’s account at FTX. In related news, Elon Musk has been criticized for suggesting that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) probably donated much more than publicly admitted to Democrats. Morgan Creek Capital CEO Mark Yusko has suggested that SBF was a “pawn” used by higher-ups to punish crypto. These stories and more in this latest edition of the Bitcoin.com News Week in Review. Document Claims Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison’s FTX Margin Position Was Negative $1.3B in May 2022 In a number of recent interviews, the former co-founder of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), explained that he “wasn’t running Alameda” and he “didn’t know the size of their position.” In a more recent discussion with The Block’s Frank Chaparro, SBF explained that auditors were looking at FTX’s corporate financials, but the auditors were “not looking at custom...

Law enforcement authorities in the United Arab Emirates have detained a top Finiko representative, sought for his role in the crypto Ponzi scheme which defrauded thousands of investors around the world. This is the second arrest in the Gulf state of a high-ranking member of the pyramid announced in the past month. Finiko Fraudster Caught by Interpol in UAE, Russia Seeks His Extradition Another individual involved in organizing Russia’s largest financial pyramid in recent years, Finiko, has been placed under custody in the UAE. The detention of Edward Sabirov in the Arab country comes after last month’s news of the arrest of the Ponzi scheme’s co-founder, Zygmunt Zygmuntovich. Both have allegedly played key roles in the embezzlement of millions from the fraud’s victims. Sabirov was put on an international wanted list on Nov. 12, the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office told the RIA Novosti news agency. The National Bureau of Interpol of the United Arab Emirates announced his arrest ...

Ethereum is almost universally credited for kickstarting the Web3 revolution after it brought to life the concept of smart contracts. However, some in the Web3 community, like Astar Network’s Sota Watanabe, believe the protocol cannot “build the innovative future of blockchain alone.” In addition, some critics point to the language obstacle which they argue makes the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) a less-than-ideal place to build. Webassembly Smart Contracts ‘Will Accelerate the Adoption of Web3’ It is this and other limitations of the EVM that led to the creation of an alternative known as Webassembly (WASM). This alternative is said to be a virtual machine of choice for developers, engineers and academics that are frustrated with the EVM. According to Watanabe, for Web2 developers that want to migrate to Web3, WASM seems like a logical choice because it “supports a wide range of languages with native performance and high portability.” To learn more about WASM, Bitcoin.com News re...

Russian citizens and businesses already own cryptocurrencies, which is why a complete crypto ban would be counterproductive, according to a top executive of Rosfinmonitoring, Russia’s financial intelligence agency. At the same time, the regulator supports prohibiting payments with digital coins and their advertising. Rosfinmonitoring Backs Government’s Strategy to Strictly Regulate Cryptocurrencies in Russia The Federal Financial Monitoring Service of the Russian Federation ( Rosfinmonitoring ) supports the adoption of strict rules for cryptocurrencies, as per the regulatory concept approved by the government, the agency’s Deputy Director Herman Neglyad said in an interview with Izvestia. However, the official also indicated to the Russian daily that a full ban is unlikely, elaborating: We understand that citizens and legal entities already own digital currency and in such conditions, it would be counterproductive to introduce a complete ban on the circulation of cryptocurrencies....