Bitcoin News and Finance: What You Need to Know

Europe’s first bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) is set to launch in July after a 12-month delay caused by the crypto winter. The fund has been authorized in Guernsey, a more flexible jurisdiction, which will ostensibly help to avoid some of the regulatory challenges associated with the European Union. Europe to Have Its First Bitcoin ETF Listed After Year-Long Delay The first bitcoin exchange-traded fund in Europe is expected to be publicly listed by the end of this month, a full year after its initially planned launch, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. The ETF was first announced by Jacobi Asset Management in July 2022. The asset manager wanted to list it on the Euronext exchange last year but decided that “the time wasn’t right” after a string of negative events in the crypto space like the crash of the terra-luna project and the bankruptcy of cryptocurrency exchange FTX . The issuer now says “demand has shifted since last summer” and the ETF is “on track.” All exchang...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not seen any specific proposal on a common BRICS currency. However, the IMF acknowledges the presence of “slow-moving trends” indicating shifts in the currency composition of reserves and trade. The Fund’s statement followed reports that the BRICS economic bloc is planning to launch a gold-backed currency. IMF on BRICS Currency The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was asked during a press conference on Thursday about its position on the proposed BRICS currency following media reports that the BRICS nations are launching a gold-backed currency that will be formally announced at the economic bloc’s upcoming leaders’ summit in August. The BRICS nations comprise Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Julie Kozack, director of IMF’s Communications Department, replied: “With respect to the way countries, or the currencies in which countries conduct trade, we view that as a decision of the participants involved in the individual transa...

U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) has explained that President Joe Biden is “preparing for a ground war with Russia” by signing an ex ecutive order to mobilize reserve forces to augment Operation Atlantic Resolve. Multiple people have accused Biden of starting World War III. Biden Preparing for Ground War With Russia, Says Kennedy Jr. U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) has slammed President Joe Biden over his executive order to mobilize select reserve forces in order to augment Operation Atlantic Resolve. Kennedy is a son of former U.S. Attorney General and Senator Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy. Operation Atlantic Resolve was launched in 2014 following Russia’s invasion of the Crimean Peninsula. Kennedy tweeted Friday: President Biden just called up 3,000 reservists to augment U.S. troops in Europe as part of ‘Operation Atlantic Resolve.’ I want people to understand what this troop mobiliza...

Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki has warned that a giant crash is coming, emphasizing that the end of fiat money, including the U.S. dollar, is near. Noting that the USD “will die,” he urged investors to buy gold, silver, and bitcoin. His warnings came as the BRICS economic bloc is discussing creating a common currency that could be backed by gold. Robert Kiyosaki’s Giant Crash Warnings The author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, has issued more warnings about the U.S. economy and the U.S. dollar. 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. More than 32 million copies of the book have been sold in over 51 languages across more than 109 countries. Kiyosaki tweeted Wednesday: Giant crash coming. Fake money, aka fiat currency, to die. BRICS meeting in S. Africa [on] August 22 to put nail in coffin of fiat…fake money. Get into real gold, silver & bitcoin asap. Tak...

A Zimbabwean economist has said authorities should consider paying a portion of government employees’ salaries with gold coins. The economist said partially paying government workers with gold coins can “help curtail the black market dominance” in the country’s currency market. Dollar Shortages and Rising Inflation A Zimbabwean economist, George Nhepera, has urged authorities in the Southern African nation to consider paying a portion of government workers’ salaries with gold coins. According to the economist, paying part of the workers’ salaries with gold coins can “help curtail the black market dominance” in the country’s currency market. Nhepera’s call for measures to cushion government workers with gold coins follows the local currency’s sharp depreciation in June. The currency’s plunge on the parallel market is reported to have sparked a wave of steep price hikes which eroded the purchasing power of salaries denominated in local currency. While workers have in some cases dema...

Former U.S. President Donald Trump gave a more detailed account of his finances including proceeds from his non-fungible token (NFT) collection. The cryptocurrency balance of an Ethereum wallet has also been declared as part of $1 billion in income received from various sources. Donald Trump Details Income From NFTs, Speaking Fees, Hotel Sale The 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, has provided more information about his financial state, detailing income earned from speaking fees, the sale of his Washington, D.C. hotel and digital collectibles, Bloomberg reported. In a revised disclosure, filed with the Office of Government Ethics, he reveals the exact sums for more than $1 billion in income received from these and other sources that he had previously declared only in broad terms to the Federal Election Commission. In the earlier disclosure submitted in April, Trump, now running for a second, non-consecutive term in the 2024 election, was allowed to indicate broad r...

Russia is discussing using national currencies in trade settlements with 10 Southeast Asian countries, members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has revealed. The move comes as more and more countries worldwide are seeking to de-dollarize. Russia and 10 Southeast Asian Nations Explore National Currency Usage in Trade Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov revealed his country’s efforts to settle trade with 10 Southeast Asian countries in national currencies in an interview with Indonesian national newspaper Kompas. The interview was published in English on Wednesday, with the aid of Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. ASEAN members comprise Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Lavrov explained that Russia does not see the current international situation as a “new cold war.” He emphasized that the country is focused on the development of a multip...

A legal expert has warned that the district court ruling on XRP “rests on very shaky ground.” Expecting an appeal, he cautioned that Ripple’s victory “may be a short-lived victory,” claiming that the judge “got the law wrong.” Lawyer on Ruling of SEC v Ripple Case Lawyer Bryan Jacoutot shared his analysis of the ruling in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple case on Twitter Thursday. Jacoutot is an attorney at Election Law Group and Taylor English Duma; his practice centers on general litigation and election law. He began: I’ve reviewed the district court ruling on XRP and it rests on very shaky ground. Expect an appeal. He explained that the court did rule that Ripple’s sale of XRP to institutional investors amounted to an unlawful security sale. Noting that Ripple received nearly a billion dollars from these XRP sales, the lawyer predicted that the crypto firm “will presumably be required to return/disgorge,” as well as pay penalties and fines. In ...

Bank of America has come under scrutiny after a Coinbase user claimed that the bank closed his account over Bitcoin transactions. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong quickly addressed the issue, asking other users if they have encountered the same problem with Bank of America. Coinbase’s CEO Raises Concerns Over Account Closures at Bank of America Bank of America (BOFA) came under scrutiny on Wednesday when Muneeb Ali, co-founder of Stacks, a Bitcoin layer for smart contracts, revealed on Twitter that the bank unexpectedly closed his bank account, which he had been using for 15 years, without giving a reason. He strongly suspects that the closure was due to him using the bank account for bitcoin transactions through Coinbase. “This is a war on bitcoin & crypto,” he tweeted. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong responded to the tweet, asking if other Bank of America customers have encountered similar issues. “If so, not ok,” the Coinbase boss tweeted. He subsequently conducted a Twitter poll ,...

U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres has called for an investigation into the special purpose broker-dealer (SPBD) license given by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to Prometheum, a cryptocurrency exchange platform. In two letters sent to U.S. Comptroller General Gene Dodaro and SEC Inspector General Deborah Jeffries, Torres calls for investigation of the “backroom deals” allegedly brokered between the SEC and Prometheum. U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres Requests Investigation Into Prometheum’s License Ritchie Torres, a U.S. representative for New York, is requesting an official investigation on the licenses the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave to Prometheum, a digital assets trading platform that Torres states “does not trade digital assets.” On July 13, Torres sent two letters to U.S. Comptroller General Gene Dodaro and SEC Inspector General Deborah Jeffrey to request an independent review of the failure of the SEC to provide a workable path for crypto exchanges t...

Spot and futures trading volumes on centralized crypto exchanges (CEXs) have increased in June, a new report shows. At the same time, website traffic to major trading platforms for digital assets continued to decline, according to the study which also tracks its geographical distribution. Spot Volume on Leading Exchanges Jumped by Over 10% in a Month Spot trading volume on major centralized platforms for cryptocurrency exchange rose 10.4% in June over the previous month, according to data from Coingecko compiled by Chinese crypto journalist Colin Wu, also known by his Twitter handle ‘Wu Blockchain.’ The highest increases were registered by Bitmart (61%), Upbit (48%) and Bybit (35%). Those with the most negative rates were Crypto.com (-18%), Huobi (-17%) and Mexc (-11%), Wu detailed in a blogpost published earlier this week. The futures trading volumes on these exchanges climbed by a similar percentage last month (9.5%). The top three change rates were Bitmart (46%), Deribit (15%...

A recently published survey by Bankrate reveals that there is a 3-in-5 likelihood of a recession occurring in the United States within the next year. Bankrate’s survey of economists firmly indicates that the chances of a recession taking place in the U.S. are greater than the chances of it not happening. Bankrate Survey: 3-in-5 Chance of U.S. Recession in Next Year According to economists surveyed by Bankrate, the probability of a recession occurring in the U.S. is significant. The survey, published on July 12, 2023, reveals that Bankrate’s experts estimate a 59% chance of a recession taking place by July 2024. Bankrate states that the expert forecasts “suggest a downturn is more probable than not.” “Illustrating those odds even more, most respondents (78 percent) indicated that the percentage chance of a recession was greater than 1-in-2, while 28 percent said the odds were 70 percent or higher,” Bankrate’s Sarah Foster writes. Bankrate’s most recent poll is not the sole survey ...

Ripple Labs’ chief legal officer has broken down Thursday’s ruling on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple case. Emphasizing that the landmark ruling is “a huge win” for the crypto firm, he stressed that “as a matter of law – XRP is not a security.” In addition, he noted that crypto sales on exchanges are also not securities. Ripple Lawyer on SEC v Ripple Case Ruling Ripple Labs’ chief legal officer, Stuart Alderoty, explained the ruling in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple case in a series of tweets on Thursday. The lawyer wrote: A huge win today — as a matter of law — XRP is not a security. Also a matter of law — sales on exchanges are not securities. Sales by executives are not securities. Other XRP distributions — to developers, to charities, to employees are not securities. “The only thing the court found constitutes an investment contract is past direct XRP sales to institutional clients. There will be further court pro...

Two weeks ago, Bitcoin.com News used six artificial intelligence chatbots to predict the price of bitcoin ( BTC ) by the end of 2023. After the release of Anthropic’s Claude 2 in July, we conducted another experiment, tasking Claude with predicting the prices of the top 40 cryptocurrencies on Jan. 1, 2024. Along with providing a projected price list of 40 crypto assets, Claude also detailed the reasoning behind the forecasts. An AI Chatbot’s Comprehensive Crypto Predictions for 2024 The AI firm Anthropic recently unveiled its second iteration of Claude , rivaling the likes of Google’s Bard and Openai’s Chatgpt 4. Claude can handle substantial data, consuming nearly 75,000 words via Anthropic’s large language model. Therefore, our news desk put Claude to the test, supplying it with the top 40 cryptocurrency assets by market capitalization, along with the assets’ one-hour, 24-hour, and seven-day performance and daily volumes in a single prompt. Before supplying Claude with the inform...

The Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has relisted XRP following a landmark ruling in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple Labs case. Several other crypto exchanges have also resumed trading of XRP . Crypto Exchanges Bring Back XRP Trading Following the landmark ruling in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple Labs case regarding XRP , multiple cryptocurrency exchanges have relisted the cryptocurrency. The Nasdaq-listed crypto exchange Coinbase tweeted Thursday afternoon: Our XRP-USD trading pair is now in full-trading mode on Coinbase Exchange, Coinbase Pro, and Advanced Trade. Limit, market, and stop orders are all now available. Coinbase explained earlier: “Once sufficient supply of this asset is established trading on our XRP-USD, XRP- USDT , and XRP-EUR trading pairs will launch in phases. Support for XRP may be restricted in some supported jurisdictions.” Crypto exchange Kraken has also made XRP trading avail...

On Thursday, following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) suing the insolvent crypto lender Celsius, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) divulged a settlement with the firm and imposed a $4.7 billion fine for “duping consumers.” Nevertheless, the penalty will be deferred to enable Celsius to return its remaining assets to consumers in bankruptcy proceedings. FTC’s Settlement to Be ‘Suspended to Permit Celsius to Return Its Remaining Assets to Consumers in Bankruptcy Proceedings’ The now-defunct crypto lender Celsius has incurred a fine from the FTC for allegedly hoodwinking investors and “squandering billions in user deposits.” The company contended that it possessed “more than enough” assets to safeguard customer deposits, but according to the FTC, this was a spurious claim. The platform and its affiliated entities are indefinitely barred from managing customer assets, and three executives have been charged. Per the FTC, the case against Alexander Mashinsky, former ...

Singapore’s state-owned investment fund Temasek does not plan to put money into crypto firms amid the current regulatory uncertainty, according to a top executive. The statement comes months after Temasek lost $275 million from its involvement in the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Temasek to Refrain From Investments in Crypto Companies for Now The sovereign wealth fund Temasek , owned by the Singapore government, is not currently looking to invest in companies dealing with crypto asserts due to the regulatory uncertainty in the industry, its Chief Investment Officer, Rohit Sipahimalani, said in an interview on Tuesday. Speaking with CNBC, he elaborated: There’s a lot of regulatory uncertainty in this environment. And I do think that be very difficult for us to make another investment and exchange in the middle of all this regulatory uncertainty. Sipahimalani’s comments come at a time when the crypto sector finds itself under heightened pressure from regulators around the wo...

Binance’s U.S. platform has rejected rumors regarding its bitcoin cash ( BCH ) reserves, reassuring customers that their funds are safe. On Sunday, the exchange restored BCH withdrawals after a brief suspension attributed to a technical issue with the automated system managing deposit flows. Binance US Restores BCH Withdrawals Amid More FUD The American subsidiary of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance US , addressed what it described as FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) about users’ bitcoin cash holdings. “Binance US maintains 1:1 reserves, which means for every BCH you hold on our platform, we maintain a BCH in reserve,” the company said. In statement posted Tuesday on Twitter, the exchange explained a pause in BCH withdrawals last week citing a technical issue in its deposit sweeping system. “Under normal conditions, our systems based on predetermined thresholds automatically sweep funds from our customers’ individual deposit wallets into our platform’s h...

The state-owned financial institution Bank of China has revealed a partnership with China Unicom and China Telecom in order to test SIM cards and near-field communication (NFC) payments tethered to the renminbi. The Bank of China explains that the pilot will be tested by selected users and areas and it currently only supports Android phones. China Taking Digital Yuan Usage to SIM Cards and Contactless Transactions China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) called the “e-CNY,” otherwise known as the digital yuan or renminbi continues to see infrastructure growth. On July 10, the Bank of China announced that the country’s CBDC is being tested with SIM cards and NFC payments. Presently, the testing is being rolled out to select users and it will be gradually promoted in “selected pilot areas in the near future.” The Bank of China reveals it has partnered with China Unicom and China Telecom in order to streamline the digital yuan toward “unlocking new capabilities.” The SIM card har...

Russia’s second-largest bank’s chairman says by imposing sanctions on Russia, the West has “demolished the global trade system and caused an inflation surge.” Pointing to the U.S. banking crisis as an example, he stressed: “This is virtually the largest financial and banking crisis since 2008, and it is already spreading to Europe.” ’Sanctions Against Russia Are a Double-Edged Sword’ Andrey Kostin, the chairman of state-controlled VTB, Russia’s second-largest bank, talked about the U.S. banking crisis and the effects of Western sanctions on Russia in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. Kostin told Putin: We are actively creating a new payments and settlements infrastructure involving rubles and currencies of friendly states. “We have the necessary expertise and infrastructure for this because we are present in major Asian countries, such as China and India, and we are present in the CIS [Commonwealth of Independent States] countries. We are therefore work...

On Wednesday, July 12, 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released the Consumer Price Index report for June, showing a 3% increase in inflation, the lowest level since March 2021. The U.S. inflation rate has fallen for 12 consecutive months, with the index rising 0.2% on a monthly basis. Labor Department’s CPI Data Shows 3% Inflation Rate for June Inflation in the United States continues to cool, according to the latest Consumer Price Index report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released Wednesday. Inflation has fallen consecutively each month since June 2022. The inflation rate in June 2022 was 9.1%, but the latest CPI statistics show it has dropped to 3%. “The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.2 percent in June on a seasonally adjusted basis, after increasing 0.1 percent in May,” the CPI report details . “Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 3.0 percent before seasonal adjustment.” Stocks performed well after the news ...