Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

The Syrian foreign minister says the U.S. imposes sanctions on Syria and Russia to steal their assets and keep them under its hegemony. The U.S. is “the biggest beneficiary of wars and fueling global conflicts, with the aim of maintaining the dominance of the dollar in the global economy and trade,” said a Russian official. US Sanctions Aimed at Stealing Assets and Keeping Targeted Nations Under Its Hegemony, Says Syrian Official The Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Faisal Mekdad, met with Alexander Yakovenko, the Rector of the Diplomatic Academy at the Russian Foreign Ministry on Thursday. During their meeting in Damascus, Mekdad slammed the U.S. and its Western allies for imposing unilateral sanctions on his country and several other nations, according to the Syrian government-controlled news agency, SANA. He explained that the West is attempting to maintain its dominance over the world by creating rules that align with its own objectives and ambitions, regard...

Russia has warned that existing and new anti-Russia sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other Western countries will lead to a global economic crisis. “Both the current sanctions that have been imposed against our country and the new additional steps that Brussels and Washington are probably thinking about now will hit the global economy hard,” the spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin said. Sanctions Will Lead to Global Economic Crisis, Says Russian Official Russian President Vladimir Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters on Friday that anti-Russia sanctions will have a detrimental impact on the global economy, with the potential to spark a global economic crisis. “We proceed from the fact that in any case, both the current sanctions that have been imposed against our country and the new additional steps that Brussels and Washington are probably thinking about now will hit the global economy hard,” Putin’s spokesperson was quoted by Tass publication as s...

Last year in July, it was widely reported that the now deceased, enigmatic tech magnate John McAfee’s body was still in a Spanish morgue for a full year after his untimely demise. McAfee’s widow, Janice, has taken to social media to voice her distress over the extended delay in the release of his remains. It is a matter of great frustration to her that, even after an incredible 670 days, she is still unable to grant her beloved husband a proper burial. John McAfee’s Widow Demands Answers on Delay in Releasing His Remains On April 23, 2023, Janice McAfee tweeted about her late husband, John McAfee, insisting that he had been in a morgue for 670 days. In July 2022, Bitcoin.com News reported on McAfee’s remains sitting in the morgue for a year. Janice is still complaining about the issue and asking why there is a holdup. “670 days since John’s ‘suicide,'” Janice tweeted . “670 days and his remains have still not been released. 670 days and his autopsy report has still not been rel...

In the midst of a turbulent week for the crypto market, non-fungible token (NFT) sales have shown resilience, experiencing a surge of 7.74% in weekly sales, totaling $181.82 million. Data also reveals that there has been an increase of 41% in NFT buyers over the course of the week, surpassing the number of buyers recorded in the previous week. Despite Crypto Market Drop, NFT Sales Increase by Nearly 8% Of the total sales this week, the Ethereum ( ETH ) blockchain contributed a significant portion, amounting to $124.7 million, while $22.66 million came from the Solana (SOL) blockchain. While ETH-based NFT sales experienced a slight drop of 1.75%, SOL-based NFT sales swelled by 88.19%, according to cryptoslam.io metrics . The top five chains which recorded the highest NFT sales over the last seven days include ETH , SOL, MATIC, BNB , and Immutable X. Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) emerged as the top-performing NFT collection this week, with sales reaching $16.38 million. BAYC sales ros...

Bitcoin proponents eyeing fiat failures are in no shortage of news on the topic as of late, as multiple officials, economists, authors, and analysts from around the world have been weighing in on “de-dollarization” in a prolific fashion. Author and libertarian Jeffrey Tucker said recently: “The dollar’s just not going to be king,” and Russia’s foreign minister says a flight from the U.S. dollar “is sure to accelerate.” In related news, the historic fall of Italy’s Medici bank could shed some light on movements being witnessed in the global banking sector over 600 years later. Jeffrey Tucker on De-Dollarization: USD Will No Longer Be King, We’re at Turning Point for US Dollar Jeffrey Tucker says we are at the turning point for the U.S. dollar, citing a growing de-dollarization trend. “The dollar’s just not going to be king,” he warned, adding that history will record recent events “as the turning point for the dollar.” Read More De-Dollarization Trend Irreversible, Flight From US...

Officials have revealed that Ukraine intends to implement the crypto market rules approved by the European Parliament. While the government is already moving in that direction, the tax service has issued a clarification regarding the taxation of income resulting from cryptocurrency transactions. Ukraine Set to Incorporate EU Crypto Regulations Into National Law A regional leader in crypto adoption, Ukraine now plans to follow in the footsteps of the global leader in crypto regulation, the European Union. Statements in Kyiv have indicated that Ukrainian authorities are going to incorporate the new EU norms into their country’s legal framework. On Thursday, European lawmakers gave their final approval to the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) package. It is the world’s first comprehensive attempt to regulate the crypto space. It introduces licensing for crypto service providers and mechanisms for investor protection. “This is a truly historic event, I am sure Ukraine will be one of th...

China has urged the U.S. and other developed nations to assess the spillover effects of their economic and financial policies. “The economic and financial policies of the U.S. pose the biggest challenge to global financial stability,” according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. China Cautions About U.S. Economic and Financial Policies Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed concerns over the state of the global economy at a press conference Thursday. Commenting on the recent International Monetary Fund (IMF) Global Financial Stability report pointing out that the turmoil in the U.S. banking sector has increased the risk of global financial stability, the Chinese official said: “Global financial stability bears on the recovery and development of the world economy and the common interests of all countries, and requires the world’s common efforts.” Emphasizing that “The notable global financial risks have much to do with the aggressive...

Economist Peter Schiff has warned that a death blow is coming for the U.S. dollar and the USD will lose its global reserve currency status in this financial crisis. “People are still reluctant to call it a financial crisis, but that’s exactly what it is, except it’s bigger in scale and it’s going to be far more impactful than the 2008 crisis,” Schiff stressed. Peter Schiff on U.S. Dollar’s ‘Death Blow’ Economist and gold bug Peter Schiff explained that a death blow is coming for the U.S. dollar as a global reserve currency in a recent interview with Commodity Culture, which he shared this week. Regarding whether de-dollarization is happening and whether it’s a real threat to the U.S. dollar’s global reserve currency status, Schiff said: “The only thing that’s surprising about the dollar’s reserve status is that it still has it. Despite everything that we’ve done, we still haven’t lost that privilege.” He elaborated: I think the current financial crisis which just started is going...

Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki has shared why he loves bitcoin and when he began investing in the cryptocurrency. Expecting to see $100K per bitcoin, he emphasized that the crypto does not need the Fed or government bailout because it’s “people’s money.” Why Robert Kiyosaki Loves Bitcoin The author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, shared on Twitter Thursday why he loves bitcoin. He expects to see the price of BTC hit $100K. Rich Dad Poor Dad is a 1997 book co-authored by Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter. It has been on the New York Times Best Seller List for over six years. Over 32 million copies of the book have been sold in over 51 languages across more than 109 countries. Kiyosaki tweeted Thursday explaining that years ago, he watched the price of the largest cryptocurrency climb to $20,000 and then shed almost all of its value. At the time, he thought bitcoin was finished. However, when BTC slowly climbed to $6,000, he bought “lots” of it. His reasoning was that pe...

In the aftermath of a downturn in the wider crypto market, the top crypto assets bitcoin and ethereum have each risen modestly, between 1.2% to 1.6%, over the past 24 hours. However, the meme token pepe (PEPE) has surged 77% against the U.S. dollar, and its market capitalization has swelled to $141 million, just $24 million shy of its all-time high valuation. Other top meme coin assets, including dogecoin and shibu inu, have risen by 1.2% to 1.4% today, while baby doge coin has experienced a 10% increase in value over the past day. While the Meme Coin Market Is Down, Pepe and Babypepe Tokens Jump in Value The meme coin market has declined 3.1% against the U.S. dollar over the past 24 hours and currently stands at $18.9 billion. On Saturday, eight of the top ten meme coins saw daily gains, with the new crypto asset pepe (PEPE) leading the way. PEPE has risen 77% in the last day and is now 513.15% higher than the meme coin’s all-time low of $0.000000055142 per unit, which was record...

Attorneys defending the co-founder of Terraform Labs, Do Hyeong Kwon, also known as Do Kwon, have presented their argument that says the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has no jurisdiction in the matter. The legal team asserts that U.S. law precludes regulators “from using federal securities law to assert jurisdiction over the digital assets in this case.” Terraform Labs Co-Founder’s Legal Team Claims SEC Lacks Jurisdiction Over Digital Assets in Terra Case As per Bloomberg , Kwon’s lawyers have filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, citing that the SEC’s case relies on outdated regulations and that the agency’s definition of digital assets as securities is far from clear . In fact, Patrick McHenry (R-NC), the House Financial Services Committee chairman, recently expressed that there is “a great deal of uncertainty” regarding the SEC’s enforcement actions. Kwon’s lawyers capitalize on this ambiguity to assert that the SEC’s attempt to categorize all cryptocurrencies a...

According to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the United States government is prepared to take the steps necessary to ensure its financial system remains the world’s strongest and safest. Yellen said that the U.S. government will not hesitate to punish Chinese companies that violate its Russian sanctions policy. U.S. Ready to Shore up Its Financial System The U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said while her country’s financial system is still in good shape the United States government is still prepared to take “any necessary steps” to ensure it remains the most dominant, a report has said. In her speech at the Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, Yellen also touted the recent actions taken to shore up the financial system by U.S. authorities following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. The comments by Yellen come amidst a growing chorus for the adoption of an alternative reserve currency. As has been reported by Bitcoi...

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud discussed potential collaboration between Saudi Arabia and the BRICS on Friday. In addition, Putin and the Saudi Crown Prince “expressed satisfaction with the level of coordination at OPEC Plus aimed at ensuring the global oil market stability,” the Kremlin press service details. Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Discuss Key Bilateral Issues, Including BRICS Collaboration Russian President Vladimir Putin and Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud of Saudi Arabia discussed several important bilateral issues during a phone call on Friday, Russian news outlet Tass reported, citing a statement released by the Kremlin press service after the call. The statement details that Russia and Saudi Arabia are satisfied with the level of coordination in the OPEC+ framework, stating: The parties expressed satisfaction with the level of coordination at OPEC Plus aimed at ensuring the global oil ma...

Telegram users can now buy, sell, and send bitcoin, as the leading cryptocurrency has been integrated into the Wallet bot on the popular messaging application. The bitcoin support follows the wallet’s recent tether integration, which enables users to transact with the stablecoin as well. Over a Billion Telegram Users Can Now Transfer Bitcoin in Chats On Friday, April 21, the @wallet bot on Telegram announced the addition of bitcoin (BTC) support to its web interface. The development team explained that previously, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization was only accessible in the text bot. “Now, all @wallet users will be able to take full advantage of our web interface,” the announcement on Telegram details. Telegram is extremely popular among cryptocurrency users, and according to a report from April 2023, the messaging app has an estimated 1.068 billion users. Bitcoin.com News confirmed that BTC has been added, as our publication tested the @wallet bot on Telegram...

On April 20, the American toy manufacturing company Mattel announced an update to its virtual collectibles platform, which will go live on April 27. The peer-to-peer platform, called Mattel Creations Virtual Collectibles, will coincide with the Hot Wheels NFT Garage Series 5, featuring some of Hot Wheels’ most popular car designs. Mattel Creations Virtual Collectibles Platform to Launch Peer-to-Peer Market Feature The toy manufacturer Mattel, Inc. (Nasdaq: MAT ) is continuing to expand into the non-fungible token (NFT) realm with the latest update to its Mattel Creations Virtual Collectibles platform. The addition is a peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace powered by the NFT company Rarible . Mattel collaborated with the wallet-as-a-service provider Magic and its blockchain partner Flow . The P2P marketplace launch will coincide with the launch of the Hot Wheels NFT Garage Series 5, a collection of digital collectibles designed by the same team that created the Hot Wheels die-cast cars. ...

Elvira Nabiullina, governor of the Bank of Russia, has affirmed the bank has stockpiled reserves in assets that are not susceptible to being affected by U.S. sanctions. The official clarified that Russia has built a “safety cushion” in these assets while it continues working on creating new reserves in non-U.S. sanctioned assets. Russia Built Bank Reserves out of Non-Sanctioned Assets Russia has managed to create a so-called safety cushion for its economy, based on assets that are not susceptible to being blocked by U.S. sanctions, according to Elvira Nabiullina, governor of the Bank of Russia. According to reports from the Russian news agency TASS, Nabiullina stated that since the country was affected by a wide package of sanctions due to its involvement in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the bank has focused on piling up this kind of resource. Nabiullina stated the country could “relax” due to the existence of this reserve, and explained the country would keep stockpiling such asset...

PRESS RELEASE. The team behind Worker or Sheikh is excited to announce the launch of their groundbreaking Play-to-Earn game, designed to provide players with an immersive and sustainable gaming experience. With its unique economic model, easy-to-learn gameplay, and AI-driven optimization, Worker or Sheikh is set to redefine the Play-to-Earn landscape. Worker or Sheikh offers players two distinct roles within the game: Workers, who extract oil barrels from the wells, and Sheikhs, who act as investors and receive a passive income from the Workers’ efforts. This dual-role system promotes an inclusive gaming environment that caters to players with different investment capacities and gameplay preferences. One of the standout features of Worker or Sheikh is its sustainable economics, designed by experts and optimized using artificial intelligence. The game employs systems for deflation, dividends, staking, burning, and more, ensuring a stable and sustainable gaming ecosystem over time. ...

Nearly a month after Do Kwon’s arrest by Montenegro law enforcement, local prosecutors have now indicted the co-founder and CEO of Terraform Labs. The decision to indict Kwon is likely to delay attempts to extradite him to South Korea and the United States where he faces several charges. Local prosecutors have reportedly asked a court to extend Kwon and his associate’s detention. Kwon’s Hideout Seized by Local Law Enforcement Prosecutors in Montenegro have reportedly hit Terraform Labs co-founder and CEO Do Kwon with charges of using a fake passport and other identification documents when he attempted to flee the Balkan state on March 23, 2023. According to a DL News report, Kwon’s indictment is likely to complicate efforts to extradite him to the U.S. and South Korea where he faces multiple charges. As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, Kwon and his associate Han Chang-Joon were arrested while attempting to leave for Dubai via a private jet. At the time of his arrest, Kwon...

A University of Tehran professor and member of Iran’s Presidential Delegation to China has stressed the importance of de-dollarization for the international community. “The dollar has been used as a weapon by the U.S. against different countries. It is unreliable and it is dangerous,” the professor warned. Iranian Professor Stresses the Importance of De-Dollarization Professor Mohammad Marandi discussed de-dollarization and Iran’s relations with Saudi Arabia and China in an interview with Chinese government-owned news outlet Global Times, published Wednesday. He is an Iranian American academic who is the University of Tehran’s Vice President for International Affairs and a member of Iran’s Presidential Delegation to China. Commenting on the de-dollarization trend in several parts of the world, Marandi emphasized: De-dollarization is very important for the international community, because the dollar has been used as a weapon by the U.S. against different countries. It is unreliabl...

Bloomberg Intelligence’s senior commodity strategist, Mike McGlone, has warned that the U.S. economy is “heading towards a severe deflationary recession,” emphasizing that the Federal Reserve is still tightening. “Typically, when you have commodities collapsing at this velocity in the past, the Fed has already been easing, and they’re still vigilant against that,” he cautioned. Strategist Says We’re ‘Heading Towards a Severe Deflationary Recession’ Mike McGlone, a senior commodity strategist for Bloomberg Intelligence (BI), the research arm of Bloomberg, warned in an interview with Yahoo Finance Live last week that the U.S. economy is heading towards a severe deflationary recession. He described: I see what we’re doing is heading towards a severe deflationary recession, as indicated by commodities, by the Fed still tightening. “Now we have a pretty serious credit crisis going on with just pulling back of deposits from the major banks. That means it’s just starting to get started...

Fewer nations are willing to hold the U.S. dollar as America’s share in the global economy becomes smaller while China’s role in international trade expands, billionaire Ray Dalio noted. The founder of the world’s largest hedge fund also said that Western sanctions on Russia have highlighted new risks of keeping dollar assets. ‘Dollar Is Debt,’ Central Banks Are Less Inclined to Hold It The importance of the U.S. fiat in international trade is decreasing and as a result the dominance of the dollar is fading, billionaire investor Ray Dalio said in recent interviews on Youtube. He also pointed out that sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine have exposed new threats for governments keeping assets in the American currency. Central banks around the world are less inclined to hold the greenback, the founder of Bridgewater Associates remarked on the Julia La Roche Show last week. “Dollars are debt. In other words, when one holds a dollar — a central bank — they hold a d...

A new token named after Pepe the Frog, the infamous meme, and cartoon character created by Matt Furie, has entered the meme coin economy. The token is called Pepe (PEPE), and at the time of writing, it has become the sixth-largest meme coin asset in terms of market capitalization, valued at just over $130 million. However, amidst the fast rise, both the website coinmarketcap.com and the Web3 security startup Gopluslabs have warned that the contract owner may have the ability to modify the transaction tax and blacklist function. PEPE Market Booms Despite Warnings of Contract Modification Doge and the other dog friends in the meme economy have a new companion, but this time, the newcomer is a frog, specifically Matt Furie’s Pepe the Frog. The coin pepe (PEPE) has not been around for long, appearing on the scene on April 18, 2023. According to current statistics, PEPE is up more than 400% from the coin’s all-time low on the day it started trading. Two days later, on April 20, PEPE’s m...