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Showing posts from May 6, 2021

Coinbase Announces San Francisco HQ Shutdown by 2022

Coinbase, the most prolific U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, has announced it will close the doors of its former San Francisco HQ by 2022, in its push to go 100% remote. Earlier the company had announced its intention of ditching the traditional office-based model to decentralize its operations and instead impulse work from home politics as part of its response to Covid-19. Coinbase to Shutdown Former San Francisco HQ Office by 2022 Coinbase has announced today it would shut down its former San Francisco HQ office via its official Coinbase News Twitter account. The company is transitioning from a traditional work model to a remote-first company since the Covid-19 epidemic last year. This move is yet another action that the exchange is taking to show its compromise with decentralization, stating that no location is more important than the others. Coinbase stated: Closing our SF office is an important step in ensuring no office becomes an unofficial HQ and will mean career outco...

Almost twice as much ETH locked in DeFi as on exchanges: Glassnode

While the amount of ETH locked in DeFi protocols is up 75% since the start of 2020, the sum of Ether held on centralized exchanges has fallen by 30% over the same period. Ether is being locked up in decentralized finance contracts at an accelerating rate this year, while the amount held on centralized exchanges continues to fall. On May 7, on-chain analytics provider, Glassnode, shared a chart comparing the number of Ether deposited in Ethereum-based smart contracts to the number of ETH held on centralized exchanges over the past 17 months. Since the start of 2020, the share of supply represented by Ether on centralized exchanges has dropped more than a quarter, from roughly 17% to 12%. Over the same period the percentage of ETH locked in smart contracts has increased by three quarters, from 13% to 22.8%, showing that DeFi is steadily eating into centralized exchanges’ profits from Ethereum trading fees. Ether supply in smart contracts vs Ether on centralized exchanges: Glassno...

7th Global Blockchain Congress by Agora Group on June 21 and 22, 2021

The seventh edition of the world-renowned flagship Global Blockchain Congress by Agora Group is taking place on June 21 and 22, 2021, in Dubai. The seventh edition of the world-renowned flagship Global Blockchain Congress by Agora Group is taking place on June 21 and 22, 2021, in Dubai. This edition’s theme is “Celebrating DeFi and NFTs” and will boast an amazing line up of speakers including keynote addresses by His Excellency Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman and CEO of Dubai Multi Commodities Centre; Hubertus Thonhauser, chairman of the board at the Tezos Foundation; Fiorenzo Manganiello, partner at Lian Group and many others. The event is an exclusive closed-door congress that can be attended by invitation only. Agora will be hosting more than 100 investors and 30 sponsors. The ﬁrst six editions of the Global Blockchain congress were a tremendous success, and we were able to host more than 450 investors and more than 90 blockchain startups and were able to raise...

TimeCoin(TMCN) Is a DeFi and NFT Project With Esports, VTuber, Sharing and Gig Economies

PRESS RELEASE. TimeCoinProtocol is a blockchain project operated by TimeTicket GmbH, a company based in Switzerland and fully owned by TimeTicket Inc. Japan. The project issued its crypto currency called TimeCoin(TMCN) which is traded at more than 250 USD per TMCN on several exchanges such as BitForex , BitMart , and BiKi . The TimeCoinProtocol is the sharing economy protocol which aims to replace the centralized sharing economy systems, such as YouTube and Twitch video streaming systems. The project operates several applications including TimeTicket , a skill sharing economy service with more than 500,000 users and generates more than several million dollars in annual revenue and is growing its business at a rapid pace. It also operates eSportStars , the esports gamer matching service which can add more than 4,000 games and 30 languages. eSportStars plans to add a lot of attractive features like DeFi and NFT this year. The project was initially financed by a few investors w...

Latam Based Exchange Bitso Gets Unicorn Status After $250 Million Funding Round

Bitso, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in Latam, has reached unicorn status after a funding round that managed to raise $250 million with the participation of some big names in the cryptocurrency world. The company announced it would use these resources to expand its operations and keep growing in its core markets, including remittances. Bitso Reaches Unicorn Valuation After Series C Funding Round Mexico-based exchange Bitso has become the first LATAM cryptocurrency unicorn, after getting a valuation of $2.2 billion on its Series C funding round. The round got participation from important names in the investing sphere, being led by New York-based privately-owned hedge fund Coatue Management LLC and Tiger Global, another top investment firm. The round managed to raise $250 million and included other investors like Pantera Capital and Paradigm. The company declared that it would use these resources to strengthen its core business in Latam and expand to other markets. Bit...

The fees sting but Uniswap v3 sees more volume on launch day than v2's first month

Several users have aired complaints about the new version, especially its higher gas fees. The founder of Uniswap, Hayden Adams, has reported that the launch day of Uniswap’s v3 iteration was more successful than its predecessor in terms of volume. In a tweet on May 6th, Adams declared the launch of Uniswap v3 the day before a resounding success. He noted that over its first 24 hours of going live v3 had already processed more than twice the volume that v2 saw in its first month. Dividing Uniswap’s volume by total value locked, or TVL, Adams asserted the platform is operating with greater efficiency than its v2 form. While v2 saw $1.1 billion in volume and $8.1 billion in TVL during its first day for an efficiency ratio of 13%, v3 hosted $150 million in volume and $300 million in TVL for an efficiency ratio of 50%, according to Adams. It's been ~24hrs since the launch of @Uniswap v3 Initial stats: v3 24hr vol: $150m v3 tvl: $300m vol/tvl (efficiency) = 50% v2 24hr v...

Ivanka Trump's luxury Miami apartment block accepting crypto for condos

With the cheapest condo listed for more than $10 million, Miami’s Arte Surfside luxury apartments are now aimed at crypto millionaires and billionaires. Luxury Miami apartment Arte Surfside will now accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment for its remaining luxury residences — including the Villa Nove penthouse, currently listed for $38 million. The firm has partnered with trading platform SolidBlock, allowing potential buyers to pay in multiple cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ether. The region’s "most exclusive" condominium is already home to Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, as well as fashion blogger Arielle Charnas from Something Navy. It’s now attempting to appeal towards crypto millionaires and billionaires attracted by Miami's Bitcoin-friendly reputation. According to the announcement, the cheapest condo available starts at $10.3 million with spaces ranging from three to five bedrooms, with access to a 75-foot indoor pool, meditation pond, rooftop ten...

Ripple sold twice as much XRP in the last quarter, as demand grows for its ODL service

Ripple’s XRP sales are up 97% in Q1, with the firm attributing the growth to its focus on RipplesNet’s On-Demand Liquidity service. Despite the ongoing legal battle with the Securities Exchange Commission , Ripple reported a 97% increase in sales of XRP for Q1. Ripple posted its Q1 markets report on May 6th and revealed that total sales net of purchases had gone from $76.27 million in Q4 2020, to $150.34 million in Q1 this year. Ripple noted the surge in sales was led by the growing demand for RippleNet’s working capital service On-Demand Liquidity or ODL: “The increase in XRP sales can be attributed to deeper engagement from key ODL customers. For well over a year, Ripple has not sold programmatically.” The firm added: “Ripple continued to engage in sales to support ODL and key infrastructure partners as part of providing increased XRP liquidity to improve the ODL experience of certain customers, eliminating the need for pre-funding and enabling instant global payments.” Accor...

FBI Puts Warning Signs on Bitcoin ATMs in This US County Following a Scam

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is putting up warning signs on bitcoin ATMs in Cuyahoga County of the U.S. state of Ohio to warn residents not to fall for scams asking victims to send money to scammers via bitcoin ATMs. FBI Putting Warning Signs on Bitcoin ATMs The Cuyahoga County Scam Squad in Cleveland and the FBI are collaborating to alert the public about scams involving bitcoin, News 5 Cleveland reported this week. Old scams ranging from grandparent’s scam, explained Sheryl Harris, Director of the Cuyahoga County Department of Consumer Affairs. FBI Special Agent Vicki Anderson warned that once the victims sent bitcoin, “it’s almost impossible to get it back so the best we can do is prevention and that’s why we’re trying to get the word out.” The news outlet described that “Signs will soon be put up on bitcoin ATMs across the county,” noting that “The signs are intended to make people think twice before going through with a transaction because they could be caught in...

Square’s earnings 2.5X expectations, Bitcoin revenue up 1000% in 12 months

Square’s quarterly earnings beat out expectations by more than double thanks to Bitcoin’s dramatic rally. U.S.-based financial services firm, Square Inc, reports that its quarterly earnings doubled analyst expectations amid booming demand for crypto assets. Global financial data provider Refinitiv had predicted Square would see earnings of 16 cents per share in Q1 2021, but the firm ended up earning 41 cents per share. Square saw $5.06 billion in revenue, dwarfing Refinitiv's prediction of $3.36 billion. Bitcoin alone drove $3.5 billion in revenue, an astonishing increase of 1,000% in just 12 months. Square’s quarterly gross profit also surged 79% year-over-year to tag $964 million. More than half of the firm's profits can be attributed to its crypto-friendly payment application, Cash App, which drove $495 million in gross profits — a 171% increase when compared to Q1 2020. While Bitcoin turnover was in the billions, the cryptocurrency represented 2% of the firm’s total ...

Paypal Crypto Shows ‘Really Great Results’ Amid Strongest Quarter Ever, CEO Says

The CEO of Paypal has revealed that the company’s cryptocurrency business is showing “really great results.” The first quarter was Paypal’s best quarter ever overall and the strongest year in the history of the company, the CEO emphasized. Paypal Sees ‘Really Great Results’ in Its Crypto Efforts Payments giant Paypal reported its first-quarter earnings Wednesday. During the company’s earnings call, President and CEO Dan Schulman said his company “generated $6.033 billion of revenue in Q1, growing a record 31% spot and 29% on an FXN basis.” He said this is the strongest year in Paypal’s history and Q1 was the “strongest quarter ever with record financial and operating results.” He also noted that Venmo continued its strong performance in Q1 with $51.4 billion of total payment volume, up 63% year over year. The executive reiterated that the company “ launched the ability for Venmo customers to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrencies” during the quarter. “Both cryptocurrencies and cent...

Shanghai Man: VeChain on TV, DOGE flips BTC volume, Hotbit hack and more ...

DOGE leading in volume and search hits, VeChain’s blockchain solution on state run CGTN, and HOO launches a smart chain of its own This weekly roundup of news from Mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong attempts to curate the industry’s most important news, including influential projects, changes in the regulatory landscape, and enterprise blockchain integrations. Will DOGEmania ever stop? Dogecoin has officially flipped Bitcoin in a few categories here in China, with DOGE trading volume on leading Chinese exchange Huobi surpassing that of leading assets ETH and BTC. On May 6th, according to CoinGecko, DOGE volume made up more than 15% of total exchange volume, whereas BTC and ETH were around 8% each. Searches for ‘Dogecoin’ on WeChat surpassed searches for Bitcoin, with 2.3 million versus 1.7 million on May 5th. Dogecoin has become increasingly appealing to the Chinese retail community since earlier this year as many are attracted to the virality and get-rich-quick potential of the...

Bitcoin clips $58K as Dogecoin stalls and adoption news fuels bulls

New allocations from big business come as momentum behind the latest altcoin rally seems to shift away from familiar names. Bitcoin ( BTC ) touched $58,000 on May 6 as the latest phase of its comeback seemed to come at the expense of altcoins. BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: Tradingview Bitcoin claws back lost limelight Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD return to battle familiar resistance near old all-time highs on Thursday. The move builds on strength from earlier in the week. As Cointelegraph reported , Wednesday saw $57,000 and 5% daily gains. As analysts began to note , however, altcoins are facing increasing pressure from a newly-invigorated Bitcoin, which just days before had itself been left in the shade by their performance. Thursday thus saw 4.4% growth on BTC/USD, while Binance Coin ( BNB ) and Dogecoin ( DOGE ), previously the week’s high flyers, were both flat. Other altcoins did manage to deliver impressive ret...

Deep tech: Why C-suite execs are pursuing blockchain

Blockchain and cryptocurrency are among the top priorities of enterprises pursuing deep tech solutions, a new survey reveals. Blockchain is seen as a major area of interest by enterprises looking to invest in deep tech solutions, a new report suggests. An industry-wide survey conducted by quantum computing firm Seeqc revealed that 67% of executive decision-makers feared falling behind competitors when it comes to emerging technologies. With this in mind, 57% of large enterprises are actively developing deep tech solutions in order to solve specific business problems, and blockchain is among their top five areas of interest. Deep tech is a term applied technology which aims to solve previously insurmountable problems using new scientific techniques. The report by Seeqc reveals machine learning and artificial intelligence to be the main area of interest for firms pursuing deep tech solutions, with 50% of respondents naming it their number one concern. The next most common deep tech...

In crypto, sometimes the best thing you can do is nothing

Sit on those paper hands until they turn into diamonds. There exists a meme in the crypto world that goes something like this: “Whenever I buy, the market dumps, and whenever I sell, the market pumps.” Like a cliche, the widespread status of a meme is a sign that it contains an element of truth, as anyone who has spent five minutes on a trading site will have learned with great pain. Those who hold onto a dying coin for too long are considered delusional, while those who sell too soon are derided as having “paper hands.” In between are the estimated 1%–3% of day traders who actually make a profit. A confessional by one trader on social media site Reddit painted a vivid picture of paper hands at play on Thursday. A user by the name of u/wheelzoffortune told the story of their failure to reap life-changing profits from cryptocurrency investments because they continually sold too early. The Redditor revealed how they once owned tens of thousands of Dogecoin ( DOGE ) but sold t...

E-Commerce Giant Mercadolibre Buys Bitcoins Worth $7.8 Million for Treasury

Mercadolibre Inc., Latin America’s leading e-commerce company with almost 70 million users on its marketplace, has bought bitcoins worth almost $8 million for its treasury. With this move, the company has joined a growing list of corporations with the cryptocurrency on their balance sheets. Mercadolibre Holds Bitcoin on Balance Sheet Mercadolibre Inc. reported its first-quarter financial results Wednesday declaring that the company is holding bitcoin on its balance sheet. An Argentine company incorporated in the U.S. that operates online marketplaces dedicated to e-commerce and auctions, Mercadolibre is listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol MELI. As of Wednesday, its market cap was $76.3 billion. The company’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) states: As part of our treasury strategy this quarter we purchased $7.8 million in bitcoin, a digital asset that we are disclosing within our indefinite-lived intangible assets. Last week, the Latin America...

South Korean Bitcoin miners can deduct electricity costs from crypto tax filings

Crypto miners will be able to deduct electricity costs as business expenses when filing cryptocurrency taxes starting in 2022. Crypto investors involved in cryptocurrency mining may enjoy a significant tax break when the country’s virtual currency tax regime commences in 2022. According to a report by Pulse News, South Korea’s Ministry of Economy and Finance on Wednesday announced additional details of the country’s impending crypto tax law which included a provision for crypto miners to report operating expenses as tax deductibles. These expenses cover electricity bills with miners needing to prove how much electricity they utilize in their operations. While South Korea is not a major crypto mining hub, there have been reports of a significant uptick in cryptocurrency mining activities in the country. Back in March, local news sources revealed an increase in mining hardware imports especially via Incheon, the country’s most popular air terminal. Cryptocurrency mining hardware ...

Osprey Polkadot Trust Arrives as Institutional Interest in Altcoins Swells

The newest investment trust tracking polkadot echoes other moves by the fund manager to make cryptos accessible via traditional equity markets and satisfy growing investor demand as interest in ETPs mounts. Low-Fee Offering to be Launched on OTCQX Market Bitcoin may have been the first crypto to make a splash in traditional financial markets via CME futures listing and the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, but other coins are quickly following suit as investors increasingly appreciate the utility of blockchain-based tokens. The fanfare that has accompanied the rise of polkadot (DOT) has not been lost on more traditional financial markets as new products arrive to help investors gain exposure to the increasingly prominent altcoin. Polkadot, created by Ethereum co-founder Dr. Gavin Wood , aims to build a much more scalable, secure, and affordable framework of interconnected chains to support dApps by utilizing the Substrate development framework. So far, the idea’s success is abundantly appa...

Coinbase crypto exchange to close San Francisco headquarters in 2022

Coinbase is taking measures to ensure that no office becomes an unofficial headquarters. Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is going completely remote and closing is its head offices in San Francisco. Coinbase announced Wednesday that it will shut down its former headquarters in the Golden Gate City in 2022 as part of its commitment to “being remote first.” “We’ve committed to having no HQ, and it’s important to show our decentralized workforce that no one location is [more] important than the another,” Coinbase noted. According to the company, the upcoming closure will be an important step in ensuring that no office becomes an unofficial headquarters. “Instead, we will offer a network of smaller offices for our employees to work from if they choose to,” the firm stated. Coinbase CEO and co-founder Brian Armstrong officially announced the firm's intention to become remote-first and decentralized in February 2021. At the time, 52% of Coinbase employees were thos...

Bitcoin Cash price jumps 68%: Looming hard fork to boost BCH user base?

Bitcoin Cash is on the march ahead of its upcoming network upgrade. Bitcoin Cash ( BCH ) burst back into the market capitalization top 10 rankings on Thursday after a 36% overnight surge compounded 68% growth for the week. The per coin valuation of BCH climbed from $1,068 to $1,462 in under 24 hours leading into May 6, adding to a notable increase from its weekly low in the $800 range. The resurgence of what was once a mainstay of the top-10 lineup comes just over a week ahead of Bitcoin Cash’s scheduled bi-annual hard fork on May 15, which will introduce two small, but not insignificant tweaks to the network. One sees the removal of Bitcoin Cash’s unconfirmed transaction chain limit, allowing for more micro-transactions to be broadcasted without having to wait for a block confirmation. Blocks are mined every 10 minutes on Bitcoin Cash, and the old unconfirmed chain limit was capped at 50 transactions. This allowed for high-volume applications to make 50 near-instant transaction...

Kazakhstan opens public consultation for central bank digital currency

The potential national digital currency in Kazakhstan is not intended to replace either cash or cashless payments, the central bank stressed. Kazakhstan’s central bank is planning to examine the potential benefits and risks of adopting a state-backed digital currency. The National Bank of Kazakhstan, or NBRK, published Wednesday a report on a digital tenge pilot project and opened a public consultation on the potential central bank digital currency, or CBDC. According to the report , the digital tenge would be a new form of money issued by the NBRK to enable the “further development of the national payment system and reduce reliance on cash settlement using unique technical features.” The bank emphasized that the CBDC is not intended to replace either cash or cashless payments, but would rather be an alternative used in parallel with existing payment solutions. The NBRK noted that the digital tenge would improve competitiveness in the payment market, strengthen the stability of t...

South Korean regulators tell banks to open the books on cryptocurrency exchanges

Authorities are looking to tighten their grip on the cryptocurrency industry. Financial regulators in South Korea have asked banks to provide information on their dealings with cryptocurrency firms, a local outlet reported on Wednesday, as authorities seek to determine how many cryptocurrency exchanges operate within the country’s borders. An unnamed regulatory body has requested that banks reveal the corporate accounts of cryptocurrency exchanges that haven’t already implemented real-name accounts for its cryptocurrency customers. Only the four largest exchanges in South Korea have thus far set up real-name accounts, while the rest have until now been operating under the radar. “Currently, cryptocurrency exchanges can operate without permission from the government, which is why it is difficult to identify the exact number of cryptocurrency exchanges. One way to find out is to track corporate bank accounts that collect customers’ funds,” an anonymous exchange official explained to ...

Vietnam Plans to Regulate Digital Currencies After Commissioning a Crypto Research Group

Vietnam is treading waters into the cryptocurrency industry, as the government recently commissioned a research group for the purpose. The Vietnamese Ministry of Finance is conducting an in-depth study of cryptocurrencies for regulation purposes. One Million Vietnamese Are Reportedly Crypto Users According to ASEAN Briefing , the ministry seeks to gather enough data to clearly see how a regulatory process can be made in the country. The research comes in the wake of virtual currencies booming globally in terms of popularity, says the announcement. The government believes there is an estimated one million Vietnamese already using digital assets, and the expectations are bullish with a 30-fold increase by 2030. Vietnam is also witnessing increasing cashless solutions for payments, such as QR codes, e-wallets, and mobile apps. Such technology adoption was boosted after the government’s pushing via the prime minister since 2017, who was expecting to reduce cash transactions by 90% in ...