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Showing posts from March 16, 2021

MLB Team Washington Nationals Partners With Terra Blockchain Community, Ballpark Plans to Accept UST

On February 9, the American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals, announced the team has partnered with Terra, the open-source blockchain platform and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The Washington Nationals detail that the team is a “leading innovator” and is “consistently introducing new technologies to enhance the fan experience.” Washington Nationals Ink Long-Term Deal With Terra Major League Baseball (MLB) team the Washington Nationals has partnered with the blockchain platform and DAO Terra, according to an announcement published by the team on Wednesday. The deal with Terra follows a slew of sports-related deals with crypto firms, but the MLB team will be the first to partner with an open-source blockchain project. In addition to the partnership, the algorithmic stablecoin UST that’s issued on the Terra blockchain will be “accepted as a payment method at Nationals Park as early as next season.” “The Nationals continue t...
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South Korean Tax Agency Identifies Over 2,400 Evaders Who Used Cryptocurrencies to Bypass Taxation

South Korean authorities seem to be focusing on strengthening measures to combat tax evasion across the nation. The country’s tax watchdog profiled thousands of evaders that relied on cryptocurrencies to hide assets worth billions of Korean won. Evaders Hid a Total of $32.24 Million in Assets Per the Korea Herald , the National Tax Service of South Korea (NTS) identified 2,416 individuals who reportedly hid their assets in cryptos to bypass taxation. The agency stated that evaders used bitcoin ( BTC ), ethereum ( ETH ), ripple ( XRP ), among other cryptos, to avoid being scrutinized by the tax authorities. According to the officials, assets involved in the tax evasion account for a total of 36.6 billion won ($32.24 million). Also, the NTS clarified they mainly targeted people owing over 10 million won ($8,800) in taxes. Still, the tax authorities managed to recover hidden assets in cash and bonds. At the same time, they launched an investigation against 222 of those who allegedly ...
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Bitcoin mine heat-recycling firm MintGreen closes seed round led by CoinShares

Coinshares is teaming up with MintGreen to recycle heat waste from Bitcoin mining. Sustainable crypto mining firm MintGreen has completed its seed investment round, with top digital asset manager CoinShares leading the round. A portion of the funds will likely be used to support two pilot projects intended to showcase how MintGreen’s proprietary technology can improve the energy efficiency of Bitcoin mining. MintGreen has two pilot projects slated to commence next quarter. The first involves selling heat waste generated from Bitcoin mining to the Vancouver Island Sea Salt facility, where the heat being used to boil water and distil salt flakes. Heat waste will also be repurposed by Canadian whiskey company, Shelter Point Distillery, in their production process. A March 17 announcement from CoinShares notes the firms will work together to recycle heat waste from crypto mining into hot water and heating services — which will be sold to industrial clients. The companies hope thei...
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TNC Launches UAE-Based Exchange Platform Aladdin Exchange

PRESS RELEASE. TNC Group, the global blockchain entity responsible for massive projects in the blockchain and crypto space, recently launched the Aladdin Exchange — a UAE-based cryptocurrency exchange. The TNC team moves closer to realizing their vision of pushing forward more blockchain technology adoption in the world as the exchange garnered much support even before its launch. Before the launch of the Aladdin Exchange, the team conducted a pre-registration event . In this event, the platform amassed 1.5 million users, which is already a massive success according to the group. “We are expecting more users as they have many rewards in store for those who register,” the team announced. By the end of March, qualified users can participate in Aladdin Exchange’s 1 million USD event. In this event, users have a chance to win various prizes that the team prepared to celebrate the launch. TNC also integrated the Aladdin Exchange with their existing project, the Aladdin Pro wallet. As...
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Retail traders buying more Bitcoin than institutions: JPMorgan

Retail traders have been buying large amounts of BTC through PayPal and Square. According to research by strategists at leading U.S investment bank, JPMorgan Chase, retail traders are flocking to buy Bitcoin from mainstream fintech firms. JPMorgan’s data suggests that retail investors have purchased more than 187,000 Bitcoin this quarter using PayPal and Square. Retail investors are even out-buying institutions, with JPMorgan’s analysts estimating institutions have purchased 173,000 BTC over the same period. JP Morgan has analyzed fund flows from retail platforms and institutional vehicles such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, as well as announcements from large funds on BTC purchases to inform its findings. Senior market analyst at Oanda Corp, Ed Moya, attributed the retail activity to social media, the current NFT craze, and stimulus payouts. He told Bloomberg : “Now, with the Reddit-fueled meme stock craze cooling and novelties such as digital artwork setting records, r...
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Bitcoin's price doubled in 75 days — How long until the next 100% leg up?

Historical analysis suggests that the amount of time it takes for the Bitcoin price to double may accelerate during this bull run. The price of Bitcoin has doubled in the past 75 days, prompting some analysts to question whether the market is approaching over-extension . However, historical analysis from Bitcoin monitoring team CaseBitcoin suggests the Bitcoin markets could accelerate further, noting that BTC’s “doubling time” — the time taken for price to increase by 100% — shrunk down to just 12 days just before the peak of the 2017 bull run . 3/ How low can it get? In 2017, the fastest doubling pace - 12 days - happened on December 7th, nine days before the 3yr peak: pic.twitter.com/CgyIjDBJwU — CaseBitcoin (@case4bitcoin) March 16, 2021 CaseBitcoin notes the fastest doubling time recorded during the current market cycle was on Jan 7th, with BTC surging from $21,000 to $42,000 in just 22 days.  The firm suggests there are similarities between January’s market action and...
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Hedge Fund Manager Says Sell-off in US Treasury Bonds a Threat to ‘High-Flying Assets’ Like BTC

Hedge fund manager Bob Prince has warned that the recent sell-off in the U.S. government bond market could accelerate and this could “threaten high-flying assets” like cryptocurrencies and blank cheque companies. Prince, who is the co-CIO at Bridgewater Associates, links this looming downturn in the $21 trillion Treasury market to the improving economy as well, as growing inflation pressurizes. These two factors according to Prince could “push the Federal Reserve to consider reeling back its stimulus measures.” Still, as one report explains, the Federal Reserve policymakers are “brushing off the Treasury sell-off as a healthy reaction to the budding U.S. economic recovery.” However, Prince asserts that this “surge in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin is a manifestation of that environment created by the loose monetary policy of the US central bank and stimulus provided by the U.S. Congress.” Meanwhile, the report says U.S. inflation expectations have picked up this year, hitti...
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Nifty News: Ja Rule’s Fyre Fest NFT, Trump tweet auction, Tezos muscles in

Nifty News is a round-up of all the NFT news that's fit to print. Today: Ja Rule flogs Fyre Festival painting, dance moves are tokenized, and a new record price recorded for licensed NFT sports memorabilia. The latest celebrity to suddenly realize the immense artistic significance of tokenized art (or 'cash in on' depending on your perspective) is rapper and Fyre Festival co-founder Ja Rule — who is auctioning off a 48-inch-by-60-inch, oil-painting of the Fyre Fest's corporate logo with accompanying NFT. The auction, which has a reserve price of $600,000 kicks off today on Flipkick. The Fyre Festival was a much-hyped 2017 luxury festival in the Bahamas featuring $100,000 ticket packages that turned into a legendary disaster. Co-founder Billy McFarland landed in prison for six years over a $28 million fraud, but Ja Rule was cleared of any wrongdoing. He clearly still harbors ill feelings though. "Fuck this painting" he writes in his notes about the NFT and ...
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Inflation Concerns Supersede Covid-19: 220 Investors Managing $650B Say Economy’s Biggest Risk Is Inflation

As mainstream media pundits like the Bloomberg economics editor Peter Coy tell Americans to “tune out the hyperinflation hype,” fund managers from a recent Bank of America survey who collectively manage $630 billion, believe inflation is the biggest risk to markets right now. Instead of the former concern over Covid-19, the current number one risk to markets is inflation, as federal stimulus spending has invoked worry among investors. While Inflation Concerns Grow, Mainstream Media Publications Tell Americans Not to Worry Just recently, Jerome Powell , the Federal Reserve Chairman, showed little concern about rising inflation and never really said when the Fed’s monetary easing policies would end. After Powell did an interview at a Wall Street Journal Jobs Summit and showed no signs of worry, 10-year U.S. bond note markets saw a massive sell-off . Following the market carnage on March 4, 2021, a number of mainstream media publications simply wrote off people who are concerned abou...
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Digital asset investment products hit record $4.2B inflows already this quarter

Bitcoin dominates but Ethereum is growing in popularity for institutional investment products. According to digital asset investment manager, CoinShares, institutional-grade crypto asset investment products inflows have already reached record levels so far in 2021. According to Coinshares’ March 15 Fund Flows Weekly report first quarter inflows into cryptocurrency funds are up 7.7% and already total $4.2 billion, smashing the quarterly record of $3.9 billion set in Q4 2020. There are now five digital asset investment providers with over a billion dollars in assets under management, or AUM: Grayscale, CoinShares, 3iQ, ETC Issuance, and 21Shares. The newly launched Purpose Bitcoin fund is in sixth place with $517 million in AUM according to the report. Crypto asset investment funds closed on Friday, March 12 with a record $55.8 billion in assets under management following bullish price action for the week, the report noted. These investment product types saw a $242 million inflow...
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NYDIG head says major firms will announce Bitcoin ‘milestones’ next week

“I know starting more or less next week, you’re going to see an absolute drumbeat of pretty game-changing milestones from some of these firms.” — Stone Ridge co-founder We are on the brink of Bitcoin’s mass adoption, says the CEO of Bitcoin investment firm NYDIG Robby Gutmann.  Gutmann, also the co-founder of $10B asset manager Stone Ridge, told the “On the Brink" podcast on Mar. 15 that we can expect to see announcements from some of the firm’s strategic partners that will drastically change the traditional financial landscape. “I know starting more or less next week, you’re going to see an absolute drumbeat of pretty game-changing milestones from some of these firms.” On March 8, NYDIG completed a $200 million growth capital round led by multiple major finance firms including Morgan Stanley, New York Life, MassMutual, Soros Fund Management, and FS Investments. Other NYDIG partners include fintech firms Kasasa, Nymbys, and Moven. Gutmann didn’t say which partners will be m...
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Elon Musk Is Selling an NFT — Offers Pour in Worth Millions of Dollars

Telsa’s new Technoking, Elon Musk, said that he is selling a song about NFTs as a non-fungible token (NFT). Many people have expressed their interest in buying it on social media. Artist Beeple made him an offer for $69 million and bids for his tweet on Valuables are up to $1.121 million. Elon Musk Selling an NFT Elon Musk, the new Technoking of Tesla , announced via Twitter Monday that he is selling a song about NFTs as an NFT. At the time of writing, his tweet has garnered 42.7K comments and has been liked 176.2K times. His 2:20-minute-long video has been viewed more than 8.5 million times. Musk’s techno song briefly describes the nature of NFTs. The video shows a rotating rocket-to-the-moon trophy, displaying repeating words at the base: “HODL” and “Computers never sleep.” More words circling the trophy brightly flash “Vanity Trophy,” and the lyrics repeat: NFT, for your vanity. Computers never sleep. It’s verified. It’s guaranteed. I’m selling this song about NFTs as an...
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RTX 3060 Ether mining accidentally unlocked by Nvidia’s own update

Nvidia's own software update inadvertently removed the RTX 3060's Ether-mining hash rate limiter. A software update released by Nvidia inadvertently bypassed the Ether ( ETH ) mining block the firm placed on its own GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card. A spokesperson for Nvidia confirmed on Tuesday that the latest 470.05 driver update was mistakenly released with code intended for use only by Nvidia developers, which allowed for the removal of the hash rate limiter. “A developer driver inadvertently included code used for internal development which removes the hash rate limiter on RTX 3060 in some configurations,” said an Nvidia spokesperson, as reported by The Verge. In February, Nvidia decided to intentionally hamper the Ether-mining effectiveness of its RTX 3060 series graphics cards to prevent a demand-induced shortage caused by crypto miners. A three-way handshake between the hardware, the software and the computer firmware was supposed to ensure the card recognized when...
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Bank of Japan governor says CBDC preparation can't wait until hour of need

In fresh remarks, Bank of Japan Governor Kuroda Haruhiko said that experiments with a domestic central bank digital currency will begin in spring 2021. Japan is taking a measured but attentive approach to global interest in central bank digital currency issuance. In his latest remarks published on March 16, the Bank of Japan's governor, Kuroda Haruhiko, noted that the institution has not changed its stance and still does not currently have a concrete plan to issue a CBDC. However, this non-commitment does not mean inactivity on the CBDC research and development front by any means. In Oct. 2020, Japan's central bank pledged to begin the first of several testing phases for its own CBDC proof-of-concept. Haruhiko has now confirmed that these are due to begin this spring. The governor underscored that, as per a Bank of International Settlements report, 86% of central banks globally are currently exploring the benefits and downsides of CBDCs. Of these, 60% are already at an e...
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Belarus tech innovation zone may take on regulatory role for crypto business

The administration of Belarus Hi-Tech Park is the best authority to regulate the crypto market in the country, First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov said. The Belarusian government has proposed to appoint the Hi-Tech Park Administration as a supervisory authority for local crypto exchanges and digital tokens, First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov announced on March 16.  “The government has proposed to make the Administration of the Hi-Tech Park a supervisory body for crypto-exchanges and digital tokens. The President supported the government’s idea. I believe that such a decision will be made shortly,” Snopkov said. According to Snopkov, the government is currently trying to choose an appropriate government agency to supervise local crypto platforms in line with pan-European rules.  Snopkov said, “It is logical that the HTP Administration is the most proficient, with the best expertise in this field.”  “I am sure that the HTP Administration will come up...
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Bitcoin is now worth more than Visa and Mastercard combined

The largest cryptocurrency also recently beat the world's three biggest banks by market cap, data confirms. Bitcoin ( BTC ) did more than hit $60,000 per coin last week — it also became worth more than the world’s three biggest banks combined. According to publicly available data, the largest cryptocurrency surpassed the three highest-valued global banking giants by market capItalization. Bitcoin market cap blasts past financial stalwarts At its all-time highs of $61,700, Bitcoin’s market cap was roughly $1.15 trillion. The combined market cap of JPMorgan, Bank of America and The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is $1.08 trillion. The achievements do not stop there — Visa and Mastercard, the biggest payment networks, have a combined market cap of $871 billion, also now significantly less than Bitcoin. Since then, BTC/USD has seen a slight pullback , bringing its market cap down to $1.03 trillion, still holding the significant trillion-dollar-asset title. That...
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New Details About India Banning Cryptocurrency Emerge — Crypto Community Sees Mixed Messages

New details have emerged suggesting that the Indian government will go ahead with banning cryptocurrency, in contrast to what the crypto community believes. In her latest interview regarding cryptocurrency legislation, India’s finance minister said that there will be a window for experimentation for cryptocurrency, blockchain, and fintech. Reports of India Banning Cryptocurrency The Indian crypto community is closely watching whether the government will ban cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin. A cabinet note regarding cryptocurrency legislation is being finalized and will soon be submitted to the cabinet. The latest information regarding the Indian crypto ban comes from Reuters which reported Sunday night that “India will propose a law banning cryptocurrencies, fining anyone trading in the country or even holding such digital assets.” The publication cited an unnamed senior government official who claims to have direct knowledge of the plan. He said that bill “would criminalise pos...
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'Inhospitable to capitalism' US can target those ditching dollar for Bitcoin — Ray Dalio

Investors should reduce dollar exposure, the billionaire says, as MicroStrategy's Saylor describes Bitcoin as the "obvious solution." The United States and other countries could “impose prohibitions” on Bitcoin ( BTC ) as part of “shocking” tax changes, investor Ray Dalio has warned. In his latest article on LinkedIn, Dalio, a recent convert to Bitcoin as an investment opportunity, laid out a stark future for U.S. investors. Dalio: Prepare for "shocking" tax changes With the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic, bonds have become all but redundant for preserving wealth. In an attempt to claw back some of the huge amounts of debt created as its response, the U.S. government plans to raise taxes — and their impact could be much worse than many realize. This, Dalio thinks, will become a “new paradigm.” “If history and logic are to be a guide, policy makers who are short of money will raise taxes and won’t like these capital movements out of debt assets and int...
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Staking app support tops 700% weekly gains for new cryptocurrency top 100 entrant

The Orbs token burst into the market cap top one hundred after 75% overnight growth compounded 700% gains for the week. A new entrant climbed into the cryptocurrency market cap top 100 on March 16, after a 75% overnight surge compounded 700% weekly growth for blockchain enterprise project Orbs (ORBS). One day previously, Orbs had been announced as the latest addition to Moonstake’s staking wallet, which returns interest to users who stake their cryptocurrencies. The partnership between Orbs and Moonstake will also see the pair combine to increase the adoption of blockchain technology in the banking and finance industry, according to a March 15 announcement . From a starting price in the $0.168 range, the value of the Ethereum-based Orbs token increased 75% across 24 hours, briefly hitting a new all-time high of $0.295, according to data from CoinMarketCap . Orbs struck new all-time highs all week, soaring past its previous top of $0.04 on the way to 704% growth over seven days. Th...
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European crypto company Bitpanda raises $170M

The funding round was led by Valar Ventures and partners from DST Global. Austria-based cryptocurrency firm Bitpanda has closed a $170 million funding round to further the firm's international growth. The latest Series B funding round was led by Valar Ventures, a venture capital firm backed by PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, Bitpanda announced on Tuesday, and featured partners from Yuri Milner’s investment firm DST Global, which is known as a major investor in American crypto-friendly stock trading app Robinhood. While DST is a new investor in Bitpanda, Valar previously led a $52 million Series A round in September 2020. According to Bitpanda, the new funding round has made the firm “Austria’s first unicorn” by raising the company’s valuation to $1.2 billion. With the new funding, Bitpanda is looking to further expand its services across Europe, and plans to set up tech hubs and offices in Madrid, Barcelona, London, Paris and Berlin. In addition to its Austria headquarters, B...
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Texas securities board takes action against hoax ‘Binance’-branded scheme

The Texas State Securities Board has entered an emergency cease and desist order against a shape-shifting, fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme using the Binance brand to lure investors. Texan regulators have, for some time now, viewed cryptocurrency investment schemes as a risk to Main Street investors , and have continued to issue public warnings against possible crypto-related scams during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The latest move from the Texas State Securities Board, or TSSB, is action not words — an emergency cease and desist order against an entity misappropriating the Binance name.  According to an announcement on March 15, the target of the order is a business claiming to operate from the United Kingdom, which has previously been subject to an advisory warning from securities regulators in the Philippines. They had already warned that Delta Crypt was “illegally offering securities paying ‘ridiculous’ returns,” cautioning the public to stay away.  Since then, the...
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Report all crypto transactions or face 5-year jail term in South Korea

Strict reporting rules for crypto businesses in South Korea are set to come into effect with existing firms given six months to comply or face stiff penalties. South Korea’s cryptocurrency regulatory space is set to become even more tightly regulated with the incoming laws on financial reporting for crypto businesses in the country. According to Korea JoongAng Daily, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has amended its financial reporting rules to include the cryptocurrency sector. This amendment mandates all crypto businesses — exchanges, asset managers, wallet providers, and custodial platforms — to file records of their transactions with the Financial Intelligence Unit. The FIU is an arm of the FSC responsible for Anti-Money Laundering oversight across South Korea’s financial ecosystem. South Korea’s crypto reporting regulation will come into effect from March 25. Existing virtual asset service providers in the country will have six months to comply with the new regula...
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Signal encrypted messenger now accepts donations in Bitcoin

Encrypted messaging app Signal has started accepting donations in 12 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin and Ether. Users of major privacy-oriented messaging app Signal can now support the project with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin ( BTC ). Signal officially announced Monday that the platform has started accepting crypto donations as a form of support for the Signal Technology Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind the app. “As a nonprofit organization, we depend on your support. If you've been patiently waiting for Signal to accept cryptocurrency donations, you no longer need to hodl back your generosity,” Signal wrote. Cryptocurrency donations are now part of Signal’s “Donate” section on its official website specifying that the new feature is enabled via a major crypto donations platform, The Giving Block . Signal accepts 12 cryptos including Bitcoin, Ether ( ETH ), Litecoin ( LTC ), Bitcoin Cash ( BCH ), Gemini Dollar (GUSD) stablecoin, Basic Attention Token (BAT), Z...
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Report: Covid-19 Caused 50% of Adults Aged Between 35 and 44 to Embrace Cryptocurrencies

A new study, which was undertaken by the Slovakian internet security company Eset, finds 50% of 35 to 44-year-olds have become involved in cryptocurrencies since the pandemic. The figure, the highest for any age group, underscores the role Covid-19 restrictions had in forcing citizens from six countries into embracing crypto assets. Changed Habits and Preferences According to Eset’s press release, a total of about 10,000 consumers participated in the study, and from that figure, 2,000 came from the United States. The rest of the respondents were from the U.K., Australia, Japan, Mexico, and Brazil. As the findings of the so-called Eset Global Fintech Study suggest, the changed habits and preferences may have been prompted by the “lack of access to physical banks during the Covid-19 lockdowns.” In addition to fueling the use of cryptocurrencies, the pandemic lockdowns also contributed to the rise of banking practices that adhere to social distancing regulations. “(About) 30% of Ame...
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