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Showing posts from October 15, 2021

New SEC Filings Give the Impression US Regulators Approved a Bitcoin Futures ETF

The price of bitcoin jumped over 8% during the last 24 hours after a number of documents stemming from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) web portal indicated that the Proshares Trust exchange-traded fund (ETF) could be listed as soon as next week. Proshares filed a post-effective amended prospectus on Friday that shows the firm’s intention to launch on Monday, October 18 on NYSE Arca. Bitcoin’s Price Spikes as Strong Signals Suggest Bitcoin Futures ETF Could Launch Next Week The crypto community watched the price of bitcoin (BTC) jump awfully close to the crypto asset’s all-time high on Friday afternoon. During the late afternoon trading sessions, BTC tapped a daily high of $62,945 per unit at around 5:30 p.m. (EST). The reason for this increase is likely due to a number of documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) seeming to strongly indicate a bitcoin ETF is launching soon. The first signal was from James Seyffart, an analyst at Bloombe...

South African Regulator ‘Welcomes’ Binance’s Decision to Terminate Certain Services in the Country

A South African regulator, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), says it welcomes Binance’s decision to stop offering some of its services to South Africans. Productive Consultations In a statement , the FSCA suggested that the move by the cryptocurrency exchange came after it held “productive consultations” with the regulator. As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, Binance announced it was terminating some of its services in South Africa in order to comply with regulations. In its initial warning that prompted Binance to act, the FSCA alleged that the crypto exchange had contravened certain financial sector laws including the Financial Markets Act (FMA) as well as the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, 2002 (FAIS Act). Therefore, as part of the corrective actions that were demanded by the FSCA, Binance informed South African residents on October 8 that they will not be able to open new accounts for trading derivatives. At the same time, the exchange ...

Estonia Considers Revoking Crypto Licenses as Government Mulls Tougher Regulations

Authorities in Estonia are working on new legislation expected to stiffen the rules for the country’s cryptocurrency sector. The Baltic nation’s regulator for the industry is considering whether to revoke previously issued crypto licenses and restart authorization from scratch. Licensed Crypto Companies Register Millions in Turnover, Estonia Gets Little With only around 1.3 million people, Estonia is one of the least populated member states of the European Union and the Eurozone. However, the small nation has become a magnet for a large number of crypto companies attracted by the friendly regulatory regime it established a few years ago. These firms process transactions for more than 20 billion euros, equal to over 40% of the cross-border transfers in the local banking sector, according to an interview with Matis Mäeker who heads the Estonian Financial Intelligence Unit ( FIU ). Only one in 10 companies has a bank account in the country. The Estonia-licensed crypto businesses ...

Price analysis 10/15: BTC, ETH, BNB, ADA, XRP, SOL, DOT, DOGE, LUNA, UNI

Hopes of a BTC ETF approval sent Bitcoin charging toward a new all-time high and several altcoins are also breaking out of bullish setups. Bitcoin ( BTC ) rose within a few steps of $63,000 today for the first time since April 18. The recent surge in the price may have been caused after various documents pointed to the eventual approval of a futures-based BTC ETF by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. According to these documents, the regulator may be close to green lighting the application to list Valkyrie’s Bitcoin Strategy exchange-traded fund ETF for listing on Nasdaq. Analysts pointed out that gold’s price had risen sharply leading up to the launch of the first U.S.-based gold ETF in 2004. Thereafter, the rally continued and gold’s price rose more than 300% since the ETF was approved, before forming a major top. The similarity between gold and Bitcoin being stores of value appear to have generated huge excitement for the launch of a Bitcoin ETF. ...

Putin: Still Early but Crypto Can Be Used for Oil Trade Settlements, Store of Value

Accusing the U.S. of undermining the dollar through money printing and sanctions policy, President Vladimir Putin has admitted that cryptocurrency can be utilized for settlements in the future, although it’s too early to do that in oil trade. While noting that it lacks backing, the Russian leader assumed crypto could be used to store value one day, too. U.S. Cutting the Branch It’s Sitting on, Putin Says U.S. dollar-denominated settlements are declining and countries are scaling down their dollar reserves, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with CNBC this week. Speaking after his participation in the 20th annual Russian Energy Forum in Moscow on Wednesday, Putin criticized Washington’s monetary and international policies stating that “the United States is cutting the branch it is sitting on.” The dollar’s status as an international reserve currency is a major competitive advantage, the Russian head of state noted but warned that U.S. authorities are undermining ...

Valve removes blockchain games, tells users not to publish content on crypto or NFTs

“Steam's point of view is that items have value and they don't allow items that can have real-world value on their platform,” claimed one game developer. Video game corporation Valve has informed users no content related to cryptocurrencies or nonfungible tokens will be allowed through its Steam marketplace. As reported by game developer SpacePirate on Oct. 14, Steam has updated its guidelines for what content creators are allowed to publish on the platform. According to Steam, no applications built on blockchain technology that “issue or allow exchange of cryptocurrencies or NFTs” are permitted in its onboarding process for partners. The rule appears alongside guidelines prohibiting hate speech, sexually explicit images, and libelous or defamatory statements. Though the new guideline would seemingly ban all traditional games from including content on crypto or NFTs, it has also reportedly stopped blockchain game developers from publishing to the platform. SpacePirate sai...

Privacy-focused altcoins soar after Bitcoin’s ETF news sparks a market-wide rally

Altcoin projects focused on privacy caught a bid today as the bullish sentiment building over a possible Bitcoin ETF approval spreads across the market. Traders and the market are showing extreme optimism on Oct. 15 after rumors and an assortment of documents suggest that the path toward a Bitcoin ETF approval has fewer obstacles lying ahead. Following the positive news, the price of Bitcoin ( BTC ) rallied to nearly $63,000 for the first time since April and multiple altcoins saw their prices book triple-digit gains. Top 7 coins with the highest 24-hour price change. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that the biggest gainers over the past 24-hours were NuCypher (NU), Keep Network (KEEP) and Orchid (OXT). NuCypher partners with Keep Network NuCyper is a protocol focused on creating decentralized encryption, access control and key management system services for public blockchains by offering end-to-end encrypted da...

BREAKING: ProShares follows Valkyrie in approval for listing Bitcoin Strategy ETF

Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart reported the crypto futures ETF would be listed with the ticker symbol BITO possibly as early as Oct. 18. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has accepted the registration request for ProShares’ Bitcoin Strategy ETF, with the shares to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange’s Arca. According to an Oct. 15 notice from the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, the agency has accepted the registration of securities from ProShares Trust’s Bitcoin ( BTC ) Strategy exchange-traded fund, which offers exposure to the crypto asset with futures contracts. In addition, ProShares filed a post-effective amendment prospectus, which states its ETF could launch as early as Oct. 18. The assets will be listed on the NYSE Arca should the SEC officially approve the application. Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart reported that ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF would be listed with the ticker symbol BITO with 95 basis points. Related: Nasdaq listing hints...

Four Venture Capitalists Just Over-Subscribed Ertha’s Seed Funding Round in One Day

Ertha’s metaverse, built on Binance smart chain, has just concluded a seed funding round. The project has garnered interest from the venture capitals and ended with an oversubscribed seed round which was considered an excellent achievement for the projects’ fundamentals. Ertha has collected funding from 4 venture capitalists. Investors who backed the project seed funding round: Mars4 Terranova X21 Momentum 6 NFTs have been gaining a lot of attention over the current year and have attracted investments from both individuals and institutions. A Little About Ertha Ertha is a game that will encompass a real-world simulation where people will be getting jobs, creating states, building industries, waging wars, and much more. Check Erthas’ whitepaper to learn more about the concept and core mechanics of the game. ERTHA is an economical, social MMO with a world consisting of 350,000 HEX land plots, which are for sale as an NFT. Owning a HEX plot means you will earn fees for eve...

Traders celebrate Bitcoin's impending ETF, but options markets are less certain

Everyone is cheering for the BTC ETF, but options markets data shows that the implied probability for Bitcoin trading above $70,000 on Oct. 29 is just 25%. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, is expected to rule on Oct. 18 whether to approve an application from asset manager ProShare Capital Management for a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). As previously reported by Cointelegraph, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler recently suggested that the regulator is more inclined to approve indirect-exposure Bitcoin futures ETFs under the Investment Company Act of 1940. On Oct.15, the Nasdaq Stock Market certified the registration of Valkyrie's Bitcoin Strategy ETF shares for listing. The deadline for the SEC to officially approve Valkyrie's ETF application is Oct. 25, but this could be extended to Dec. 8. $70,000 call options see their implied probability hit 25% Two weeks ago, it would have been a daunting task to find an investor willing to bet on a $70,000...

CFTC Fines Stablecoin Issuer Tether and Crypto Exchange Bitfinex $42.5 Million

On Friday, October 15, 2021, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced that it had ordered the company Tether Holdings Limited and Ifinex Inc., the parent company of Bitfinex, to pay fines totaling $42.5 million. The CFTC accuses Tether of “making untrue or misleading statements and omissions of material fact in connection with the U.S. dollar tether token ( USDT ) stablecoin.” CFTC Issues Two Fines to Tether and Bitfinex, CFTC Expects ‘Honesty and Transparency in the Developing Digital Assets Marketplace’ The stablecoin issuer Tether and Ifinex have been charged by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the two firms have been ordered to pay $42.5 million . Tether is accused of “making untrue or misleading statements and omissions” in regards to the stablecoin the firm issues. The U.S. regulator also claims that the crypto exchange Bitfinex “engaged in illegal, off-exchange retail commodity transactions in digital assets with U.S persons on t...

ShapeShift hopes to create ‘rarest and most historical’ NFTs with 80% trading card supply burn

According to the exchange, it plans to retain 16 cards from the blockchain-based game Spells of Genesis to sell before 2022 and give the remaining 16 to its DAO. Non-custodial cryptocurrency exchange ShapeShift has burned hundreds of themed collectible “cards” from the blockchain-based mobile game Spells of Genesis. The team said that the remaining cards in its possession will be placed under the control of its new decentralized autonomous organization, or DAO, and unlocked in limited tranches over the coming two years. According to on-chain data, ShapeShift has burned at least 817 of the digital cards titled “ShapeShift the Wanderer.” This follows an Oct. 12 announcement that the exchange intended to burn the majority of cards to make those in circulation “among the most rare [Spells of Genesis] cards in existence and among the oldest NFTs in existence.” “These are some of the earliest NFTs (circa 2015) that were minted by Spells of Genesis and given to ShapeShift as part o...

Bitcoin all-time highs 'just a matter of time' after a BTC ETF approval looks certain

Bitcoin price spikes above $61,800 as the promise of a BTC ETF approval reignites the discussion on whether the top-ranked cryptocurrency will hit $100,000 by the end of the year. Optimism is bordering euphoria in the cryptocurrency market after a trove of documents pointing toward the eventual approval of Valkyrie's Bitcoin ( BTC ) ETF application by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission before the end of the month. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that the price action for BTC spiked in the early trading hours on Friday with bulls managing to rally to an intraday high at $61,880, marking the first time BTC has surpassed $60,000 since April. BTC/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView Here’s what traders and analysts are saying about what comes next for Bitcoin now that the price is back above $60,000 and the long-awaited Bitcoin ETF look ready to become a reality. On the precipice of a massive breakout According to cryptocurrency analys...

NFTs allow people to ‘interact with crypto in a hands-on way’ — Shaq

NFT art and sales dominated headlines all throughout 2021, and now that crypto has gone mainstream, Shaq says the sector is primed for expansion. Nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, have been a revolutionary force in the crypto, arts and sports industries, not only because of the financial liberation successful projects offer to creators but also their ability to bring art lovers closer to creators and bring athletes closer to their fans. Prior to 2021 — and a few blockbuster sales from Beeple — NFT-based art was relatively obscure. And while OpenSea was in existence, the massive trading volumes seen in the last six months were unimaginable. The success of Dapper Labs’ NBA TopShot NFTs proved that digital collectibles have wide-ranging appeal, and to date, more than $780 million in collectibles have been bought and sold on the platform. In late September, Dapper Labs raised an additional $250 million in funding, validating the fact that big businesses realize the marketing and sales ...

How will DOJ’s new crypto enforcement team change the game for industry players, good and bad?

In a bid to catch up with cybercriminals, the Justice Department is pooling all crypto expertise in one place. On Oct. 6, the United States Department of Justice, or DOJ, announced the creation of a specialized unit, the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, or NCET, tasked with prosecuting criminal misuses of digital assets and crypto infrastructure, as well as tracing and recovering the ill-gotten cryptocurrency. The move continues the U.S. authorities’ push to disrupt the corners of the crypto ecosystem that are thought to facilitate illicit activity , such as ransomware attacks. What does the government’s crypto enforcement ramp-up hold for the larger digital asset space? Pooling crypto expertise The new unit will operate according to the principles articulated almost exactly one year ago in DOJ’s Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework . The document, for one, asserts the Department’s broad jurisdiction over criminal activity that affects financial or data storag...

G7 Finance Ministers and Bankers Adopt Guidelines for Central Bank Digital Currencies

Any digital currency issued by a central bank must support financial and monetary stability, finance leaders from G7 member states have insisted. State-issued coins should also ensure privacy, transparency, and data protection, the officials stated. The forum adopted 13 public policy principles for retail digital currencies and stressed that “CBDCs are not ‘cryptoassets.’” CBDCs Must ‘Do No Harm’ to Stability, G7 Finance Chiefs Say Recognizing the potential benefits of innovation in digital money and payments, finance officials from the Group of Seven ( G7 ) major economies addressed relevant public policy and regulatory issues at their latest meeting which also produced over a dozen guidelines for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). In a released statement , the participants reaffirmed: Any CBDC should be grounded in our long-standing public commitments to transparency, the rule of law and sound economic governance. A sovereign digital currency designed to be used by house...

Flow integrates Filecoin storage services to make NFTs more decentralized

Filecoin has become the official storage partner of the Flow Blockchain, with the firm working to provide decentralized storage for NFTs minted on Dapper Lab's network. Filecoin has officially become the storage collaborator for the Flow Blockchain. Filecoin said in an Oct. 13 announcement that the move was a part of a push to ensure holders' and issuers' NFTs are "securely available everywhere." The announcement follows from a previous move in August in Which Dapper Labs was working to integrate Filecoin’s storage services with the Flow Blockchain. The collaboration enables Flow users to mint NFTs, leverage InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) content addressing, and store the tokens in decentralized storage hosted by Filecoin. According to Filecoin, IPFS content addressing is a solution to location addressing which retrieves online information from specific locations on the web, such as from behind URLs. Filecoin asserts that this method has “obvious downs...