Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The cryptocurrency lender, Nexo, has agreed to pay $45 million to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and several state regulators after charges were levied against the firm for failing to register the company’s Earn Interest Product (EIP). Nexo detailed that the settlements are on a “no admit, no deny” basis and that the arrangement “closes all multi-year-long inquiries into Nexo.” Nexo Pays $22.5 Million to SEC, $22.5 Million to Several State Regulators for EIP Offering On Jan. 19, 2023, Nexo announced that it has agreed to settle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) and several state regulators, including the Office of the New York Attorney General, over an unregistered offering. According to the SEC, around June 2020, Nexo started to offer the company’s Earn Interest Product (EIP), an interest-earning product that allows investors to earn interest on deposited crypto assets. The U....

NYU Professor Nouriel Roubini, aka Dr. Doom, has warned that “99.99% of crypto is a scam, a criminal activity, a total real-bubble Ponzi scheme that is going bust.” He advised investors to “absolutely stay away” from crypto, claiming that most people in the crypto space are “all crooks.” Dr. Doom Warns Nearly 100% of Crypto Is a Scam Economic professor Nouriel Roubini, aka Dr. Doom, warned about cryptocurrency in an interview with Yahoo Finance Live Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Roubini is a professor of economics and international business at New York University (NYU) Stern School of Business. He also serves as chairman of Roubini Global Economics, a global macroeconomic and market strategy research firm that he co-founded. He told the news outlet: Literally, 99.99% of crypto is a scam, a criminal activity, a total real-bubble Ponzi scheme that is going bust. Dr. Doom also shared his opinion on the collapsed crypto exchange FTX and its disgraced ...

PRESS RELEASE. INTERNET CITY, DUBAI, Jan 19, 2023 – LBank Exchange, a global digital asset trading platform, has listed CPCoin (CPC) on January 19, 2023. For all users of LBank Exchange, the CPC/ USDT trading pair is now officially available for trading. CryptoPerformance is disrupting the crypto industry through its internal and highly developed blockchain, the CPCx0 Chain, its native coin CPCoin, and a buy and hold platform – which together ensure a one-stop-shop for all crypto users and high-quality products and services. Its native coin CPCoin (CPC) has been listed on LBank Exchange at 9:00 UTC on January 19, 2023, to further expand its global reach and help it achieve its vision. Introducing CryptoPerformance Group CryptoPerformance Group is a one-stop solution for all crypto-related needs, setting it apart from competitors by offering multiple digital solutions and products to individuals and corporations. It has built and financed its own in-house developed blockchain the ...

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has announced the rollout of the Global Collaboration Village, its own metaverse platform, for this year. Klaus Schwab, chairman of the WEF, plans to leverage this representation of Davos to allow people and leaders to meet in virtual worlds and coordinate global collaboration efforts efficiently. WEF to Promote Metaverse-Based Collaboration The World Economic Forum (WEF) has announced the rollout of its own metaverse platform, dubbed the Global Collaboration Village. The digital world, designed to look like the actual town of Davos in which the organization meets once every year, will supposedly allow for more efficient collaboration between world leaders. According to Klaus Schwab, chairman of the organization, the WEF plans to leverage this new world as a way of turning Davos meetings, which usually last just a week, into a project that will allow for interviews and conversations between world leaders all year round. Schwab is optimistic about thi...

The ministers of finance of the countries in the eurozone reaffirmed their support for efforts to prepare for the potential launch of a digital euro. Meanwhile, the single currency area’s monetary authority sought to reassure future users that the new currency will be “preserving privacy by default and by design.” Eurogroup to Remain Involved in Digital Euro Development, Says Many Decisions Are Political Finance ministers of the EU member states that have adopted the common European currency, the Eurogroup , met on Monday in Brussels to mark Croatia’s accession to the eurozone and discuss current matters — from the economic situation to the fiscal policy coordination in the euro area. One of the topics discussed was the advancement of the initiative to issue a digital version of the euro. In a statement adopted by the forum, the government officials vowed to continue their involvement, with Paschal Donohoe, the president of the informal format, quoted as saying: What we plan to d...

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand has issued new regulations on custodied cryptocurrencies. Companies offering crypto custody services are now required to “establish a digital wallet management system to accommodate efficient custody of digital assets and keys and ensure safety of clients’ assets,” the regulator described. Thai SEC’s New Crypto Rules Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced Tuesday that it has issued new rules on the “management of digital wallets for custody of digital assets and keys.” The new regulations went into effect on Jan. 16. The Thai SEC explained that businesses that provide custody services for clients’ digital assets must: Establish a digital wallet management system to accommodate efficient custody of digital assets and keys and ensure safety of clients’ assets. They must also have a “policy and guidelines” in place for the management of “digital wallets and keys as well as communication to clarify such...

South Korea’s financial regulator is developing new tools to regularly monitor crypto risks. The regulator warned that while the impact of the crypto market on the traditional financial system is still low, the risks posed by crypto to the country’s financial stability could increase sharply in the future. Korean Regulator Developing Crypto Monitoring Tools South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is planning to develop crypto monitoring tools and regularly inspect the risks associated with crypto assets, FSS Governor Lee Bok-hyun reportedly revealed Monday at a conference on the interconnectedness between the crypto market and the traditional financial market. He was quoted by local media as saying: The Financial Supervisory Service is planning various initiatives for the risk management of the virtual asset market this year. Regarding the crypto monitoring tools, Lee explained that the supervisory authority currently lacks data to identify potential risks from crypto ...

Japan has reportedly urged other countries, including the U.S., to regulate crypto exchanges like they do banks. A top official at the Financial Services Agency explained that the recent FTX implosion wasn’t brought on by crypto technology but by “loose governance, lax internal controls, and the absence of regulation and supervision.” Bank-Level Cryptocurrency Regulations Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA), the country’s top financial regulator, has urged regulators globally to subject cryptocurrency exchanges to bank-level regulations, Bloomberg reported Monday. Mamoru Yanase, deputy director-general of the FSA’s Strategy Development and Management Bureau, was quoted as saying: If you like to implement effective regulation, you have to do the same as you regulate and supervise traditional institutions. The FSA has called for stronger crypto regulation following the collapse of crypto exchange FTX and subsequent fraud charges filed against its former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (...

While the second-largest crypto asset by market capitalization, ethereum, has risen 27% against the U.S. dollar in the last two weeks, the network’s average and median-sized gas fees have increased by more than 50%. On the first day of 2023, the average fee to spend ether was around $2.93 per transfer, but today the average cost is 54% higher at $4.52 per transfer. Rise in Ethereum Value Leads to Increased Onchain Transaction Costs Sending ethereum (ETH) is becoming more costly as the crypto asset’s value has risen greatly over the last 14 days. At the time of writing, ether is trading at $1,542 per unit, after reaching a high of $1,606 per unit during the same 24-hour period on Jan. 18, 2023. As ethereum’s value in U.S. dollars has increased, the cost to move ether and the myriad of ERC20 tokens has also risen. Data from bitinfocharts.com indicates that on Jan. 1, 2023, the average ether gas fee was $2.93 per transfer. 18 days later, the average fee to send ethereum is 54% highe...

Cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato, better known to the Russian-speaking segment of the market, has been taken down as part of an “international cryptocurrency enforcement action,” the U.S. Justice Department announced. The Russian owner of the platform has been arrested for his role in the alleged transmission of illicit money. Bitzlato claimed it was hacked. US, France Hit Cryptocurrency Exchange Bitzlato, Russian Co-founder Detained in Miami U.S. authorities have apprehended Anatoly Legkodymov, a resident of China, on charges that his Hong Kong-registered crypto trading platform, Bitzlato, processed illicit funds worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The Russian, a co-founder and majority owner of the exchange, was arrested by three e FBI in Miami on Tuesday, a high-ranking official from the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) revealed. Speaking during a press conference, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said that Justice Department agents and prosecutors, working with t...

PRESS RELEASE. LONDON, ENGLAND – January 18th, 2023 – Neon Link , a new blockchain and ecosystem, is about to launch on mainnet in Q1 2023. Coming out of stealth after over a year of development, many important features are launching throughout this year: the NEON multi-chain Wallet, Decentralised Exchange, Marketplace, Bridge, Block Explorer, NEON Gaming ID (Naming Service), and the $NEON token that powers the entire ecosystem. Alongside the ecosystem, Neon Link has numerous projects in the late stages of development. One of these is a triple-A game, Ascend The End. This game is a 3rd person shooter that delivers a unique experience from its integration with Neon Link’s fast and fee-free network. This includes a variety of game modes and an in-game economy where you can gather resources to craft weapons, ammo, and armour! Ascend the End will offer the opportunity to earn exclusive in-game assets and crypto asset rewards for consistently ranking well in competitive gameplay. Neon...

The city of Shanghai is bringing metaverse activities to 20 urban locations, that will allow citizens to use digital tools in different ways according to the area. The initiative is part of a pilot program of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization to push more metaverse applications to the population. Shanghai Takes the Metaverse to 20 Urban Spots Shanghai, China is quickly moving to integrate the metaverse as part of the lives of its citizens. The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization recently announced a pilot program to turn 20 different urban locations into “major metaverse application scenarios,” that will feature digital tech in several ways. The implementation of this tech will cover various social fields, including business operations, education, branding, and entertainment. The city hopes this will allow citizens to receive smarter services from city facilities in these areas. For example, in the area of healthcare, Ruijin H...

Tehran and Moscow are discussing the possible launch of a stablecoin for international settlements, the Russian press revealed. In order to mint the gold-backed currency, however, authorities would need to first regulate crypto assets, a lawmaker noted. Russian, Iranian Representatives Talk Using Gold-Backed Stablecoin in Foreign Trade Iran’s central bank is considering the possibility of creating, with Russia’s participation, a digital token to facilitate trade in the Persian region, according to a report quoting the head of the crypto industry organization in the Russian Federation. The coin could be accepted as a means of payment in international settlements, the Executive Director of the Russian Association of Cryptoeconomics, Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain (Racib), Alexander Brazhnikov, told the business daily Vedomosti and detailed: It is assumed that the token will be backed by gold, it would be a stablecoin. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies, the value of which i...

On Tuesday, global asset manager Hashkey, which focuses on crypto and blockchain investments, announced that it has closed its third fund at $500 million. The company’s “HashKey Fintech Investment III” is dedicated to developing crypto solutions, blockchain technology, and Web3 concepts. Hashkey Capital’s Fund III to Focus on Web3, Emerging Markets and Crypto Solutions Amid the crypto market downturn, global asset manager Hashkey Capital announced the closing of a new fund, “Hashkey Fintech Investment III,” after raising $500 million. According to Hashkey, the fund “received strong support from institutional investors namely sovereign wealth funds, renowned family offices, and corporations.” Hashkey Capital is one of the largest crypto funds in Asia as it manages more than $1 billion in customer assets. “Hashkey Capital weathered at least three cycles in the industry,” Deng Chao, the head of Hashkey Group Singapore and CEO of Hashkey Capital said in a statement on Tuesday. “From ...

Economists at the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) have recommended three policies regulators worldwide could adopt in order to deal with the risks posed by cryptocurrencies. “Authorities can now consider a variety of policy approaches and at the same time work to improve the existing monetary system in the public interest,” they advised. BIS Economists Discuss Crypto Policies The Bank of International Settlements (BIS) published a bulletin last week titled “Addressing the risks in crypto: laying out the options.” Authored by BIS economists Matteo Aquilina, Jon Frost, and Andreas Schrimpf, the report discusses the risks associated with cryptocurrencies and the various options available to regulators and central banks for addressing these risks. The authors outlined “three potential lines of action.” The first is to “ban specific crypto activities.” Another option is to “isolate crypto from tradfi [traditional finance] and the real economy.” The third is to “regulate the sec...

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s former head of internet enforcement has warned the crypto industry that a “regulatory onslaught is just beginning.” His warning followed several recent enforcement actions the securities regulator took against major crypto firms. ‘SEC Regulatory Onslaught Is Just Beginning’ Former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) official John Reed Stark has warned the crypto industry of an escalating “regulatory onslaught.” Stark founded and served as chief of the SEC Office of Internet Enforcement for 11 years. He was also an SEC enforcement attorney for 15 years where he led cyber-related projects, investigations, and enforcement actions. Stark explained in a tweet Thursday that the SEC “hit Blockfi for failing to register its crypto-lending program, stopped Coinbase from launching its crypto-lending program, and Just hit Gemini/Genesis for its Earn crypto-lending grift.” He warned: Buckle up: An SEC regulatory onslaught is just beginning...

PRESS RELEASE. (Victoria, Seychelles, 17 Jan 2023) – Leading crypto derivatives exchange Bitget announces to be the first exchange to launch copy trading in the spot market . As the first exchange for offering copy trading for derivatives in 2020, Bitget has honed its highly liquid, highly innovative flagship product, One-Click Copy Trade, to deliver a similarly intuitive experience for spot traders in 2023. Copy trading provides a good starting point for beginners to shadow their trading portfolio with a more experienced trader and increase their chance of profitability. Also, users are entitled to more transparency and flexibility as the feature discloses detailed information on the traders’ ROI, buy and sell time and price, portfolio, and P&L records, together with personalized Maximum Investment, Stop Loss and Take Profit options. One-Click Copy Trade is Bitget’s flagship product, simplifying trading for beginners by allowing them to copy sophisticated futures trading st...

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has published an article predicting how metaverse tech will evolve and how it will be introduced in different sectors. For the organization, the biggest impact of the implementation of this tech will be observed in industrial environments, where it will contribute to carrying out more tasks and reducing expenses. WEF Believes Metaverse Tech Will Impact Industry First The World Economic Forum (WEF) believes that the metaverse will be first applied in industrial environments, instead of being adopted first by consumers. In an article published on Jan. 13, the organization predicts that the implementation of the metaverse will be done at an industrial level first, helping different companies to complete designing and monitoring tasks in a more efficient way. Two of the metaverse technologies that will become integral for the industry in this new phase are digital twins and extended reality. Implementing digital twins, the digitalization of a group of el...

After months of research, the Tanzanian central bank announced recently that it had chosen a more cautious and risk-based approach towards the adoption of its central bank digital currency (CBDC). During the research phase, the central bank said it paid particular attention “to risks and controls associated with issuance, distribution, counterfeit and usage of currencies.” Finding the Right CBDC Technology The Bank of Tanzania (BOT) announced on Jan. 14 that it had “adopted a phased, cautious and risk-based approach to adoption of CBDC [central bank digital currency].” The bank also said it will continue with its efforts aimed at finding “a suitable and appropriate use and technology for issuance of Tanzanian shillings in digital form.” According to a statement on the bank’s website, the BOT said it chose a more cautious approach after spending months researching and exploring the pros and cons of issuing the digital currency. During this period, the BOT said it found that other c...

The central bank of Georgia intends to publish a document detailing the concept of a national digital currency in the coming months. Other participating parties will use it to finalize their proposals for the pilot which the monetary authority plans to initiate in the first half of the year. Financial Authorities in Georgia Gear Up for Digital Currency Trials The National Bank of Georgia (NBG) is going to release a ‘digital lari’ whitepaper, allowing potential partners to fine-tune their proposals for the test phase of the project. A pilot version of the central bank digital currency ( CBDC ) was initially expected in 2022 but the NBG postponed the trials for this year. “In the first half of 2023, we will publish the document and soon after that, together with the winning partner, we will discuss how long it would take to implement the project,” Deputy Governor Papuna Lezhava explained in an interview with the Rustavi 2 TV channel. Several alternative approaches to testing the di...

Authorities in Germany, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Cyprus have taken down a cryptocurrency scam network in collaboration with Europol. “The suspects used advertisements on social networks to lure victims to websites covertly operated by the criminals, which offered seemingly exceptional investment opportunities in cryptocurrencies,” Europol detailed. Authorities Cracking Down on Cryptocurrency Scams Europol announced Thursday that authorities from Bulgaria, Serbia, Cyprus, and Germany, in collaboration with Europol and Eurojust, have taken down “call centers selling fake crypto.” The criminal network, operating through call centers, “lured victims into investing large amounts of money into fake cryptocurrency schemes,” Europol explained, elaborating: The suspects used advertisements on social networks to lure victims to websites covertly operated by the criminals, which offered seemingly exceptional investment opportunities in cryptocurrencies. Fifteen people have been arrested in t...