Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The European Central Bank (ECB) decided to hike three of its key interest rates by 50 basis points (0.5%) as part of its ongoing war against inflation. The organization stated that further increases are likely to happen “because inflation remains far too high and is projected to stay above the target for too long.” ECB Follows Federal Reserve, Hiking Interest Rates by 50 Basis Points The European Central Bank (ECB) has explained its economic policy in its war against inflation. The governing council of the body decided to hike the interest rates on its main refinancing operations, its marginal lending facility, and its deposit facility by 50 basis points (bps) across the board. In a press release , the organization explained that this rise is part of a plan to ensure a “timely return” to the 2% levels of inflation formerly faced by the bloc. This hike is similar to the one applied by the U.S. Federal Reserve on Dec 14, when it also hiked its interest rates by 50bps. Inflation lev...

As blockchain developers compete for traffic and resources for their respective dapps (decentralized applications), the downside to this, according to some in the industry, can be a poor user experience which in turn undermines the mass adoption cause. Therefore, unless current blockchains — both Layers 1 and 2 — can overcome niggling issues like high gas fees or poor network speed, it will be difficult to convince traditional organizations that they need the tech, according to Ankr’s Josh Neuroth. Overcoming Blockchain Scalability Challenges In cases where an attempt to improve a blockchain’s transaction throughput is made, history has shown that compromises that might affect the chain’s security may have to be made. Alternatively, developers can consider overcoming this problem, known as the blockchain trilemma, using sidechains or application-specific blockchains (Appchains). As Josh Neuroth, head of product at the decentralized Web3 infrastructure platform Ankr explained, the ...

The Central Bank of Russia has introduced measures to protect entities working with digital assets from sanctions pressures. These businesses will be exempted from some reporting requirements as part of a regulatory relief intended to minimize the burden on financial organizations. Russia’s Central Bank Eases Supervision of Digital Asset Platforms Amid Sanctions The Central Bank of the Russian Federation ( CBR ) has allowed issuers of digital financial assets (DFAs) not to disclose information sensitive in the light of sanctions risks. The exemption, valid until July 1, 2023, concerns data revealing the beneficial owners of such entities. According to an announcement quoted by Russian crypto media, the temporary reporting relief is part of a package of measures meant to help persons and organizations operating within the Russian financial market infrastructure. While Russia is yet to regulate cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, the existing law “On Digital Financial Assets” permits co...

Two U.S. senators, including Elizabeth Warren, have introduced a bipartisan bill for the regulation of cryptocurrency. The bill, titled “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act,” is “the most direct attack on the personal freedom and privacy of cryptocurrency users and developers we’ve yet seen,” according to crypto advocates. Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2022 Launched U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced new legislation to regulate the cryptocurrency sector Wednesday. Their bill , titled “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2022,” seeks to crack down on money laundering in the crypto industry. Senator Warren tweeted Wednesday: By closing some loopholes and applying some common-sense rules, we can crack down on the ways rogue nations, oligarchs, and drug lords use crypto to launder billions, evade sanctions, and finance terrorism. I’ve got a bipartisan bill for that. The legislation directs the Treasury Department’s Fin...

PRESS RELEASE. Crypto enthusiasts are constantly looking for new options to get passive income with crypto, but this task has become quite challenging recently. Making money on the coins’ growth is not easy when the market is down, while to manage assets by yourself, you need to have in-depth knowledge of investment strategies and a huge amount of time. With all the geopolitical developments and the prolonged bear market, one might wonder: what is the best way to accumulate more crypto, store it safely and get the highest possible return? HEXN.IO HEXN.IO is a crypto lending platform that unites habitual and advanced approaches to money lending to help people make their crypto work. The company offers a wide selection of 48 cryptocurrencies, high interest rates, and regular weekly payouts. One of HEXN’s distinctive features is that it offers a wide range of stablecoins for those who do not want to take risks trying to capitalize on volatile crypto assets during this severe winter...

Germany’s financial watchdog has issued a call for global regulation of the crypto industry in the aftermath of the FTX collapse. The hands-off approach was wrong, the head of the agency says, insisting it’s time to protect consumers as the sector expands links with traditional finance. Bafin President Convinced Self-Regulation Won’t Work for Crypto The man at the helm of the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority of Germany ( Bafin ) has urged for global regulation of the cryptocurrency space. This would ensure better protection for consumers, prevent money laundering and preserve financial stability, according to Mark Branson. A hands-off approach that would “just let the industry grow as a playground for grownups” was the wrong tactic, the executive told reporters in Frankfurt on Tuesday, shortly after U.S. authorities charged Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of failed crypto exchange FTX , with fraud and other crimes. A “crypto spring” may follow what has been a “crypto winter” bu...

Decentralized applications (dapps) are prone to data tampering because they “are largely built on top of centralized databases and services,” the CEO of Space and Time Nate Holiday has said. The CEO also shared a list of data tampering risks which he said are specific to data warehouses. Companies Relying on Centralized Databases and Services According to Nate Holiday, the CEO of decentralized data warehouse Space and Time, the recent draining of funds on the defi (decentralized finance) lending platform Lodestar Finance, and Axie Infinity’s Ronin network attack before that, are key events reminding users that decentralized apps (dapps) are prone to data tampering. Although he concedes that many dapps are powered by blockchain, Holiday nevertheless claimed many of these applications “are largely built on top of centralized databases and services.” As recently reported by Bitcoin.com News, the hacker behind the siphoning of $6.9 million from Lodestar Finance had tampered with “the...

Russia’s largest social network, Vkontakte, has launched a feature allowing users to upload digital collectibles to the platform. Account holders will also be able to buy and sell them in the future as the company intends to establish a marketplace for non-fungible tokens. Vkontakte Users to Showcase Their NFTs, Set Them as Avatars The leading social media network in the Russian-speaking segment, Vkontakte ( VK ), has introduced an NFT service along with an educational course on non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the crypto page of the Russian business news portal RBC reported, quoting the company. The new features will be available to all users within a few days, VK’s CEO Marina Krasnova and Chief Technology Officer Alexander Tobol announced during a presentation in Moscow. The VK NFT option will allow owners of digital collectibles to transfer them to their accounts. Furthermore, the tokens can be employed as avatars or presented in a special showcase in the profile. In order to do tha...

Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, has told U.S. Congress that he believes the collapsed crypto exchange FTX failed because rival Binance intentionally put it out of business. He said former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) told him that Binance, which owned a 20% equity stake in FTX, refused to comply with regulators’ requests whenever FTX applied for a license in different jurisdictions. Kevin O’Leary Shares Why He Thinks FTX Failed With U.S. Senators Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary shared why he thinks crypto exchange FTX collapsed in a congressional hearing, titled “Crypto Crash: Why the FTX Bubble Burst and the Harm to Consumers,” before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Wednesday. Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) asked O’Leary, “Why do you believe FTX failed?” Mr. Wonderful replied, “I have an opinion. I don’t have the records.” He proceeded to convey what former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) told him after the Shark Tank star noticed that...

At the end of November, an unknown person signed a signature tied to an extremely old block reward mined on Jan. 19, 2009, and the user published a message and verified signature linked to the reward on the forum bitcointalk.org. The message was tied to a bitcoin address associated with block 1,018, a block reward that was minted 16 days after Satoshi Nakamoto launched the network. Upon further investigation, onchain data shows that block 1,018 is linked to a great number of block rewards ostensibly mined by Hal Finney, and the signed block is also connected to the very first bitcoin transaction that derived from block 9. Block 1,018 Signed by ‘Onesignature’ on Nov. 26, 2022, Is Associated With Hal Finney’s Mined Bitcoins and the Very First Bitcoin Transaction On Nov. 26, 2022, a newly created bitcointalk.org forum account called “ Onesignature ” shocked the crypto community when the unknown individual signed a message associated with block 1,018. Onesignature’s message contained a...

Russian authorities are now prosecuting miners extracting cryptocurrency using subsidized electricity for the population, according to a top official from the energy ministry. Power utilities are detecting their increased consumption and trying to make them pay at commercial rates. Amateur Crypto Miners in Russia Under Pressure Despite Lack of Regulation for Home Mining Electricity distribution companies in Russia have started to identify improvised mining farms in residential buildings by the rising volume of energy consumption and higher loads on the grid at substations, Deputy Ministry of Energy Pavel Snikkars revealed to the Russian press. The government official told the daily Izvestia that authorities are going after the “illegal miners.” While crypto mining is yet to be regulated and such activities are not explicitly prohibited right now, utilities can prove in courts that these consumers are not using the electricity for domestic needs. Lawyers interviewed by the newspap...

PRESS RELEASE. As part of their ongoing development, Dvision Network has announced the launch of their upgraded Dvision World 2.0 in Beta mode. The launch will officially commence on 14th December, 2022. Not too long ago, via a collaborative partnership with market leaders Binance NFT and GameFi.org, Dvision Network had unveiled the highly anticipated 4th LAND Sale, which began on October 28th at 06:00 PM, KST. What’s there to know? As stated in the official disclosure, the second iteration of Dvision World will include numerous features which will be released in an unprecedented manner. This includes the long-awaited release of Meta-City Seoul, the PET system known as “Ondoll,” and even a Play-to-Earn (P2E) model attached to their LAND NFTs, ensuring their sustainability and uniqueness. It was indicated that the upgraded version of Dvision’s metaverse will have significantly improved UI and UX, and it has already demonstrated certain aspects of its virtual reality (VR) by reg...

Bitso, a Latam-focused cryptocurrency exchange, has partnered with chat-based payments provider Felix Pagos in order to offer Whatsapp-integrated remittances. The objective of this partnership is to put nearly instant chat-based remittances in the hands of Mexican and US users that might be intimidated by crypto tech otherwise. Bitso to Power Felix Pagos Whatsapp-Integrated Remittances Remittances have been a big use case for cryptocurrency, but the relative lack of knowledge of these tools has slowed adoption in this arena. Bitso, one of the biggest crypto exchanges in Latam, with more than six million users, has partnered with Felix Pagos, a chat-based payments provider, in order to facilitate the use of crypto for remittances using Whatsapp. Through the use of Whatsapp, users of Felix Pagos will be able to send remittances without knowing they are even using cryptocurrencies. This would allow such remittances to reach audiences that are normally not crypto savvy, including the ...

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...