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Showing posts from July 26, 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...

Africrypt Bitcoin Heist: Contradicting Reports About the Directors Whereabouts Surface

In a new twist to the Africrypt saga, two different reports have made contradicting claims about the whereabouts of Raees and Ameer Cajee, the two directors of the collapse bitcoin investment firm. However, both reports suggest the Cajees brothers had planned their escape prior to the alleged hacking incident in April. Vanuatu or Tanzania In its report , the UK outlet Daily Mail claims to have seen documents suggesting that Raees had purchased Vanuatu citizenship for about $131,000 (£95,000) back in October 2020. About three months later, Ameer would make a similar purchase. The same report quotes Cajees brothers suggesting that their disappearance had been prompted by fears that a criminal gang wanted to harm them. Interestingly, the claims by the brothers that they fled South Africa to avoid being harmed by an organized criminal syndicate appear to be corroborated by a Moneyweb report. In this report , the Cajees brothers are quoted claiming that they had received death threats f...

Institutions continue offloading BTC exposure despite price rebound

Bitcoin funds are still in decline as institutional sentiment remains bearish. Investments in institutional Bitcoin products have continued to decline this past week. In its July 26 Digital Asset Fund Flows report , CoinShares notes institutional crypto products have experienced outflows for the third consecutive week, with $28 million exiting the sector during the week ending July 23. As such, the week saw a 170% increase in outflows compared to the $10.4 million for the previous seven days. The findings revealed that Bitcoin-based funds saw the largest outflows with $24 million, or 85% of combined outflows from crypto products. Monthly outflows for BTC are now at $49 million, although year-to-date flows remain positive at $4.1 billion. CoinShares stated: “Last week’s outflows suggest negative sentiment still pervades the asset class despite more recent constructive comments from key industry players.” Ether products also saw outflows of $7.3 million over the week, while multi...

Binance and Russian museum to tokenize Da Vinci and Van Gogh paintings

Masterpieces from Leonardo da Vinci, Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Giorgione will be tokenized for auction via Binance’s NFT marketplace next month. Binance’s NFT marketplace has announced it is teaming up with the Saint Petersburg-based State Hermitage Museum to issue tokenized collectibles depicting the works of renowned artists including Leonardo da Vinci and Vincent van Gogh . On July 27, Binance revealed it is partnering with the museum to create and issue the nonfungible tokens at the end of August. All Binance users will be able to participate in the auction. The blog post attributes the idea to tokenize the artworks to The Hermitage, with the auction slated to launch limited edition NFT copies of Da Vinci’s Madonna Litta , van Gogh’s Lilac Bush , Claude Monet’s Corner of the Garden at Montgeron , and Giorgione’s Judith . Two NFT copies will be created of each masterpiece, one of which will be auctioned via the Binance NFT marketplace, while the second tokens will b...

Chicago Bulls team up with Shopify to launch NFT series

The Chicago Bulls have launched an NFT drop via Shopify, with the e-commerce platform having recently integrated Sweet's NFT marketplace. The NBA’s Chicago Bulls have launched NFTs depicting six championship wins from the 1990s via leading e-commerce platform Shopify. Shopify is a multinational firm that provides website-based storefronts and payments infrastructure. Shopify president, Harley Finklestein, announced the NFT drop on Twitter earlier today. If you’ve spent 1 minute on the internet this year, you’ve seen a lot about NFTs. @Shopify we are making it easier for our merchants to sell NFTs directly through their stores, with one of the first being the @ChicagoBulls NFT store. https://t.co/Qv2wKO7RCS — Harley Finkelstein (@harleyf) July 26, 2021 According to Finklestein, the Chicago Bulls franchise is one Shopify's first partners to launch an NFT storefront on the platform, with Shopify's president noting the service will only be available to a “select few...

Kaseya recovers data stolen in ransomware attack with mysterious decryption tool

The IT firm denies that it paid a ransom to the Russian hacker group in exchange for the decryption tool. IT software provider, Kaseya, has announced it is providing its clients with a decryption tool to recover customer data that was locked in a ransomware attack earlier this month. In a July 26  notice on its website, the global technology firm stated it has been assisting its customers with the restoration of their encrypted data in partnership with cybersecurity company Emsisoft. It has been issuing a mysterious “decryptor” tool enabling customers to access data that had been locked by the malware disseminated in the July 2 attack. “The decryption tool has proven 100% effective at decrypting files that were fully encrypted in the attack.” The company has denied paying the $70 million in Bitcoin to the Russian hacker group, REvil — which took responsibility for the attack. Kaseya did not disclose how it came across the decryption software either, stating only that has no...

Market Strategist Says Bitcoin’s Best Days Are Ahead, Won’t See Restrictive Fed Policy Anytime Soon

The founder of investment management firm Michael Lee Strategy says that “the best days of bitcoin are definitely ahead of it,” expecting the cryptocurrency to “make all-time new highs.” The strategist further says that it will be a long time “before we see any sort of taper or any sort of restrictive policy from the Fed” or other central banks worldwide. Market Strategist Expects Bitcoin to Make All-Time New Highs Michael Lee, founder of Michael Lee Strategy, shared his outlook for bitcoin in an interview with Fox Business Monday. Michael Lee Strategy offers wealth planning and investment management as an investment adviser representative through Compass Financial. Lee is a former vice president in the Institutional Middle Markets group at Morgan Stanley. Commenting on the price of bitcoin hitting $60,000 earlier this year, Lee said that “it is just a side effect of endless money printing that’s going on.” He dismissed the theory that the BTC price increase Monday resulted from ...

Amazon denies rumored plans for Bitcoin support

Despite rejecting rumors the e-commerce giant will soon support Bitcoin payments, a spokesperson for Amazon has said the firm is still interested in the crypto space. Amazon has refuted recent speculation it may be readying to support Bitcoin payments, asserting it currently has no plans for BTC. According to a Reuters report on July 27 citing a spokesperson from the firm, Amazon remains interested in the crypto industry but has no specific plans to onboard digital assets for payments just yet: “Notwithstanding our interest in the space, the speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies is not true.” However, the spokesperson did not deny that Amazon is researching crypto payments, adding: “We remain focused on exploring what this could look like for customers shopping on Amazon.” On July 22, Amazon posted a job opening for a digital currency and blockchain product lead. Four days later, London’s City A.M. newspaper ran a story citing an “insider” wh...

Tesla Reveals Bitcoin Holdings Worth $1.3 Billion in Q2, $23 Million BTC Impairment

Elon Musk’s electric car company, Tesla, is holding bitcoin worth $1.311 billion. The company did not buy or sell any bitcoin during the second quarter but recorded bitcoin-related impairment of $23 million. Tesla’s action reaffirms Musk’s prior statement that neither he nor Tesla had sold their coins. Tesla’s Q2 Bitcoin Holdings Elon Musk’s Tesla released its second-quarter earnings report Monday. The company’s Q2 2021 unaudited balance sheet shows a net digital asset value of $1.311 billion as of June 30. Tesla’s Q2 unaudited balance sheet showing the company’s net digital assets. Source: Tesla Tesla Neither Purchased Nor Sold Bitcoin in Q2 Tesla did not buy or sell any bitcoin in the second quarter. The company’s Q2 unaudited statement of cash flows still shows that the only cryptocurrency purchase made was the $1.5 billion BTC purchase in Q1. The cash flow statement also shows that the only time Tesla sold its bitcoin was in Q1 for $272 million. Tesla CEO Elon Musk previ...

Tesla reports record $1B income for Q2 despite $23M impairment loss on BTC

Tesla’s latest earnings report showed that the firm conducted no digital asset purchases or sales in Q2, but reported an impairment loss of $23 million on its BTC holdings. Electric vehicle and clean energy firm, Tesla, has reported $1.14 billion in net income for the second quarter. The firm’s July 26 earnings report showed that total revenue grew by 98% year on year (YOY) for Q2, increasing from $6 billion in 2020 to $11.9 billion this year. Tesla attributed the bulk of its growth to a surge in demand for its electric vehicles, stating: “In the second quarter of 2021, we broke new and notable records. We produced and delivered over 200,000 vehicles, achieved an operating margin of 11.0%, and exceeded $1B of GAAP net income for the first time in our history.” The firm also generated quarterly profits of $1.02 per share. The firm stated that total revenue was partially offset by growth in operating expenses and a Bitcoin-related impairment loss of $23 million. As Tesla holds it...

Goldman Sach's new 'DeFi' ETF is anything but

Goldman Sachs has filed for a “DeFi” ETF that will track major stocks including Nokia, Google, and Fujitsu. The proposed fund , dubbed the Goldman Sachs Innovate DeFi and Blockchain Equity ETF, strives to track the Decentralized Finance and Blockchain Index from German financial indices provider, Solactive. The fund will invest at least 80% of its assets into securities, stocks, and depository receipts featured in the index. The filing asserts the index seeks to offer exposure to firms aligned with two key narratives: “the implementation of blockchain technology,” and “the digitalization of finance.” As of July 23, the top stocks included in Solactive’s decentralized finance index included Nokia, Facebook, Google, Accenture, and Fujitsu — each of which represented between roughly six and seven percent of the index. The likes of PayPal, Microsoft, Visa, and Overstock comprise smaller shares of the index, with Solactive also tracking China’s Alibaba, Tencent, and Baidu among the 2...

Ternoa to List on AscendEX

PRESS RELEASE. AscendEX , a global cryptocurrency financial platform with a comprehensive product suite, is excited to announce the Ternoa token (CAPS) listing under the pair USDT/CAPS on July 27 at 1 p.m. UTC. AscendEX and the Ternoa team will jointly launch two limited-time promotional events to celebrate the CAPS listing. The activities will consist of airdrop rewards tasks and a trading competition taking place between July 27, 1:00 a.m. UTC to August 3, 12 a.m. UTC, offering users a chance to win a share of pooled rewards worth 80,000 USDT ! Ternoa is an NFT-based decentralized data transfer blockchain protocol. Ternoa provides long-term secure data storage and transfer to third parties. It relies upon the innovative use of NFTs to encrypt, segment, and store data on decentralized storage infrastructures. In addition, oracles allow for automated, programmable data transfers. Ternoa also offers a Software Development Kit (SDK) to facilitate the development of mobile and web a...

Thorchain Trolled by Hacker After Two Successful Seven-Figure Exploits

Thorchain, a popular defi protocol, has been compromised twice in the last two weeks, resulting in losses of over $10,000,000. The hacker responsible for the latest exploit left behind a message detailing the measures that should be undertaken to protect users. Hacker Returns to the Scene to Lecture on Security In another blow against the Thorchain protocol, the defi network has found itself the victim of another hack after the equivalent of 4,000 ethereum (ETH) was stolen just days earlier. Thorchain, which features an automated market maker (AMM) and decentralized exchange (dex), is known for its liquidity pooling, with total value locked (TVL) currently around $101.75 million. This time, the attack was perpetrated against the ETH Router contract to target the Thorchain Bifrost component, resulting in more than $8 million in losses for the protocol. According to the hacker allegedly behind the move, the vulnerability was known before the latest attack and was entirely preventa...

Bitcoin price drop to $37K has analysts wary of calling a ‘trend change’

Bitcoin price sold off below $37,000 shortly after topping $40,500, leading analysts to caution that bears still have a few tricks up their sleeves. Bull market optimism returned to the cryptocurrency market on July 26 after Bitcoin ( BTC ) price rallied above the $40,000 level for the first time in over six weeks. Today's rally to $40,581 was a continuation of the July 25 breakout which saw BTC price rocket to $48,110 at Binance af a short squeeze resulted in nearly $500 million in shorts being liquidated in just two minutes.  Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that BTC spiked to an intraday high at $40,581 on Monday before pulling back to $37,500 as bulls look to flip this resistance zone back to support in preparation for a further move higher. BTC/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView While the move higher has the mark of a trend change and has prompted some analysts to proclaim the bull market is back on track, on-chain data and the perpetua...

IMF issues veiled warning against El Salvador’s Bitcoin law

Making any cryptocurrency a national currency “is an inadvisable shortcut” to more inclusive financial services, according to two IMF officials. The International Monetary Fund is warning that some of the consequences of a country adopting Bitcoin as a national currency “could be dire.” According to IMF marketing department financial counsellor and director Tobias Adrian and legal department general counsel and director Rhoda Weeks-Brown, a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin ( BTC ) may catch on in countries without stable inflation and exchange rates, and provide unbanked people with the means to make payments. However, the cost to an economy could be significant. The two IMF officials alleged that countries adopting cryptocurrencies as national currencies or “granting cryptoassets legal tender status” risked domestic prices becoming highly unstable, and assets being used contrary to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism measures, in addition to having issues su...

Fed Faces Double Inflation as Supply Chain Falters, Economists Question Spending, Biden ‘Not Worried’

Reports show a vast majority of the American populace has been worried about rising inflation and as the weeks roll by, the financial situation continues to look grim. US Senator: ‘There’s No Justification for the Fed to Maintain Its Purchases’ A few analysts believe the upcoming two-day meeting held by the U.S. central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will give markets clues on whether or not the Federal Reserve plans to taper quantitative easing and raise interest rates. Meanwhile, Joe Biden’s administration has dismissed inflation and Biden claimed at a recent CNN Town Hall that he doesn’t know anybody “who’s worried about inflation.” On Monday, Reuters reported that the U.S. central bank is divided over the rising inflation and now the country’s monetary managers are dealing with double inflation due to supply chain complications. To further the problems the U.S. 10-year Treasury note yields slipped lower on Monday morning as investors are concerned about this week’...

Bitcoin hits $40K after a 6-week absence, but on-chain activity is 'somewhat bearish'

BTC price is back above $40,000, but not every data point signals that a bullish impulse move is in the making. Bitcoin ( BTC ) touched $40,370 on July 26 as a solid day of gains saw the return of a major price milestone.  BTC/USD 1-minute candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView BTC price daily gains near 20% Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView  showed BTC/USD touching $40,400 before consolidating nearby later on Monday. The pair had held on to previous gains from the night before throughout the day, circling $38,000 before another surge took hold after the Wall St. open. Amid some understandable excitement from investors who had waited for upside to finally resume, Cointelegraph contributor Michaël van de Poppe cautioned on being overly bullish at current levels. "Bitcoin still showing strength, although sentiment is getting euphoric again while approaching the range resistance," he wrote just before $40,000 hit. "The trend has shifted,...

Jeff Bezos Directs Amazon to Accept Bitcoin and Other Popular Cryptocurrencies: Report

Amazon is reportedly planning to accept bitcoin by the end of the year, after which the company will roll out support for other major cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, the company is exploring launching its own cryptocurrency. “The directive is coming from the very top … Jeff Bezos himself.” Amazon’s Crypto Project ‘Ready to Roll’ Following the news of Amazon seeking to hire a digital currency and blockchain lead , City A.M. publication reported that the company actually has plans to accept bitcoin and other popular cryptocurrencies. Citing “an insider” at the company, the news outlet reported that Amazon is looking to accept bitcoin payments “by the end of the year” and the company is also investigating its own token for 2022. Amazon “isn’t just going through the motions to set up cryptocurrency payment solutions at some point in the future,” the insider claims, adding that its crypto project “is a full-on, well-discussed, integral part of the future mechanism of how Amazon will wo...

Price analysis 7/26: BTC, ETH, BNB, ADA, XRP, DOGE, DOT, UNI, BCH, LTC

Traders are hopeful that Bitcoin’s bounce from $29,000 to $40,000 and the strong rally seen in altcoins is a signal that the bull market has resumed. Bitcoin ( BTC ) soared from $29,482.61 on July 21 to $40,000 today, its highest level since June 16. This sharp rebound shows a possible change in sentiment.  The bulls received a boost on Sunday, following the news from an anonymous source within Amazon proclaiming that the company is planning to accept Bitcoin payments by the end of 2021 and is exploring the launch of its own cryptocurrency by 2022. This news seems to have sent the bears scurrying to the exit, resulting in a short squeeze. Data from Bybt shows about $1.1 billion of liquidations in 24-hours on Monday, the most since May 18. The intensity of the squeeze was such that “$111,000,000 of shorts liquidated in 10 minutes” according to analyst William Clemente III. Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360 Although institutional adoption of digital ...

Global crypto ATM installations increased by 70% in 2021

2021 saw the installation of over 10,000 new crypto ATMs worldwide, with the United States taking the lead. Alongside cryptocurrency’s decade-long adoption drive, the crypto ATMs continue to momentum across the globe. Based on Coin ATM Radar’s latest data , crypto ATM installations in 2021 witnessed a spike of 71.73%, pulling up the numbers from 13,993 in 1st Jan to 24,030 at the time of reporting.  Last year, the global count rose to 13,993 ATMs with a 119.56% growth after 7,620 new machines were installed. 2021 saw the installation of 10,037 ATMs to date. To keep things in perspective,  data suggests that crypto ATMs are being installed at a speed of roughly 52.3 ATMs per day. The United States currently leads this space, having installed nearly 48 ATMs per day based on the data acquired in the last 7 days. As reported by Cointelegraph back in March , the ATM count in the US rose to 177% in just a year, standing at 16,835. Crypto ATMs can currently be accessed across 7...

DeFi cannot be fully regulated, Siam Commercial Bank president says

Dr. Arak Sutivong, CEO of SCB 10X, believes DeFi requires a framework for long-term and sustainable interactions with traditional finance. Dr. Arak Sutivong, the CEO of SCB 10X and the president of Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), has offered an insight into how one of the largest venture capital funds in Southeast Asia views the future of DeFi when it comes to the contentious question of regulation. SCB 10X is the venture arm of SCB, Thailand's oldest bank, and mostly focuses on investing in blockchain-based financial services, such as DeFi and digital assets.  In his opening speech at SCB 10X’s second annual global DeFi virtual summit, REDeFiNE, Dr. Sutivong stressed that by now, DeFi has broken through to the mainstream “by many measures.” In terms of growth, he noted that the sector had seen a ten-fold increase over the past six months, with over $100 billion in total value locked in the DeFi ecosystem this year. By many other metrics – including users, traded volume on exchang...