TokenPost reporter
Mark Jason Alcala
Stories by Mark Jason Alcala
- Bitcoin soars past $31K while Ethereum approaches 2K as crypto market rallies on Monday
The crypto market’s rally on Monday appears to be driven by global investors as crypto prices rose alongside European and Asian equity markets.
· Insights & Views
- Bitcoin could go as high as $250K driven by women’s retail spending, says Tim Draper
Retailers can save a lot on fees paid to credit card companies by promoting the use of BTC as a payment method.
· Insights & Views
- Some crypto investors made huge profits by closing their positions way before LUNA’s crash
Pantera Capital earned a 100-fold return on its $1.7 million investment in the LUNA crypto.
· Insights & Views
- Russia eyes the use of crypto for international settlements to mitigate the impact of sanctions
Russia is reportedly mulling on the possibility of using cryptos such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) for international settlements as the country faces restrictions due to Western sanctions for its invasion of Uk…
· Regulation
- Sumitomo Mitsui partners with crypto exchange Bitbank to offer custodial services to institutional clients
The crypto services will be offered through the establishment of Japan Digital Asset Trust (JADAT), a trust company designed to facilitate the entry of institutional players into the country’s digital assets market.
· Business
- Crypto adoption for both institutional and retail investors in Eurozone countries is on the rise
A recent survey published by the European Central Bank (ECB) shows that more than half of institutions have some exposure to crypto-assets while around 1 in 10 households have invested in digital currencies.
· Insights & Views
- Bitcoin to recover after Terra’s collapse and rise “into the millions,” says Michael Saylor
While others believe that Bitcoin might not be the best crypto to use for payments, Saylor argued that it’s going to change soon with the introduction of the Lightning Network.
· Insights & Views
- Majority of American crypto owners acquired them for investment and not for use in transactions
A Fed report reveals that 12 percent of U.S. adults held or used cryptocurrencies in 2021 but only 2 percent used crypto to buy something.
· Insights & Views
- Crypto payments will eventually be legalized in Russia, says official
Russian Federation’s Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov says crypto legalization will happen sooner or later.
· Regulation
- Crypto investors’ interest will eventually recover after Terra’s collapse
Huobi Global Du Jun believes that this slow down will only be short-term and that demand for cryptos such as Bitcoin (BTC) as a hedge against inflation will soon pick up
· Insights & Views
- South Korean regulator eyes new crypto regulations targeting token issuers
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) released a report that recommended a new licensing system for token issuers and exchanges to enhance investor protection.
· Regulation
- Luna Foundation’s 80K BTCs down to 313 after it sold $3B in Bitcoin to defend UST
The LFC almost depleted its Bitcoin reserves to unsuccessfully defend the UST.
· Business
- Nigeria SEC issues new crypto rules confirming digital assets are securities
The development is seen as a step toward the legitimacy of cryptos such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) and could promote further adoption in Nigeria, one of the leading countries for digital currency adoption.
· Regulation
- Bitcoin bull Bill Miller remains bullish despite the recent crypto market correction
The value investor said that he hasn’t heard a good argument about why you wouldn’t put 1 percent of your liquid net worth in Bitcoin.
· Insights & Views
- Crypto exchange Binance stops support for LUNA and UST on Binance Earn but reinstates their spot trading
In a recent announcement, Binance said that spot trading for LUNA/BUSD and UST/BUSD trading pairs has resumed on 2022-05-13 at 14:00 (UTC).
· Investing
- Crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried says the market has stabilized
Major cryptocurrencies have recovered with Bitcoin (BTC) trading at $30,492.40, up 9.24 percent for the past 24 hours while Ether is up 8.97 percent to $2,075.13.
· Insights & Views
- Australia’s first crypto ETFs launched allowing investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum
The historic debut of the ETF was met with a lukewarm reception from Australian investors as their launch coincided with the market decline that sent Bitcoin dropping to as low as $26,292 and Ether to as low as $1.792…
· Investing
- Ether and Bitcoin whale transactions spiked on Wednesday suggesting the bottom might be close
On Wednesday, Ether whales made a total of 2,956 transactions with a value of over $1 million while Bitcoin whales also made the largest one-day transfer of BTC to exchanges on the same day.
· Investing
- Crypto exchange Coinbase reports a $430M loss but remains bullish
Coinbase's CEO sees the current crypto market decline as an opportunity for the company to better position itself for the next growth cycle.
· Business
- Instagram to pilot NFT feature that allows select US creators and collectors to post their digital collectibles without charge
Instagram's pilot will initially support NFTs minted on the Ethereum and Polygon networks but support for Solana and Flow-based NFTs will be coming soon.
· Business
- El Salvador buys 500 BTCs as Bitcoin briefly plunges to a 10-month low
With its recent purchase, El Salvador’s Bitcoin reserve rose to 2,301 BTCs, worth around $73.4 million at current prices.
· Investing
- Bitcoin plunges to a 10-month low and briefly trades below $30K
The last time Bitcoin fell below $30,000 was on July 20, 2021, when BTC traded at $29,301.
· Investing
- SEC fines Nvidia $5.5M for inadequate disclosures on crypto mining’s impact on its gaming business
According to the SEC, Nvidia failed to disclose that demand from the crypto mining sector was a significant element for the spike in the sales of its gaming graphics processing units (GPUs) during consecutive quarters…
· Regulation
- DeFi firm Qredo is now a registered Bitcoin services provider in El Salvador
The central bank’s recognition of Qredo as a registered Bitcoin services provider will also allow the firm to start offering BTC custodian services, wallets, payment services and act as a crypto exchange.
· Regulation
- Crypto exchange Binance is now a registered Digital Asset Service Provider in France
The crypto exchange is now listed as a Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) by the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), allowing the company to start offering its trading and custody services for Bitcoin and other …
· Regulation
- LGT Group to add Bitcoin and Ether trading and custodial services
LGT Bank’s BTC and ETH investment services will initially be available to selected client groups of LGT Bank, Liechtenstein.
· Business
- Crypto exchange Coinbase becomes the first borrower to avail of Goldman Sachs’ Bitcoin-backed loan
Using Bitcoin and other cryptos as collateral is common in decentralized finance protocols but traditional finance has been hesitant to join the bandwagon until now as crypto is viewed as too risky and volatile to be …
· Business
- Bitcoin and crypto donations will no longer be accepted by Wikipedia
The Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) is among the first organizations that started accepting crypto donations as it started accepting Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ether (ETH) in 2014.
· Digital Currency
- Crypto exchange Binance blocks accounts of Russians linked to Kremlin officials
Binance reportedly blocked the crypto accounts of Elizaveta Peskova, the daughter of President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov as well as Polina Kovaleva, the stepdaughter of foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
· Regulation
- Panama to allow Bitcoin, Ether, and 7 other cryptos as a means of payment for transactions
The bill treats crypto assets as foreign-source income, which means that crypto earnings won’t be subject to capital gains taxes based on Panama's territorial taxation system.
· Regulation
- Bitcoin is now legal tender in the Central African Republic
The country legalized cryptocurrencies and made Bitcoin legal tender alongside the existing CFA franc.
· Regulation
- Goldman Sachs extends its first Bitcoin-backed loan
Global banking giant Goldman Sachs just set a major milestone by granting a credit facility backed by crypto, the first of its kind granted by the Wall Street financial institution.
· Business
- Bitcoin miner Riot Blockchain to add up to 1GW in mining capacity with new Texas facility
Riot announced that development has started for its large-scale, 1-gigawatt facility located in Navarro County, Texas, which will expand the crypto miner’s Bitcoin mining and hosting capabilities.
· Digital Currency
- Stablecoins could undermine local currency, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority
The HKMA warned stablecoins could enable easier capital flight in a financial crisis undermining a central bank’s control over the economy or undermine payment integrity due to financial or operational failures.
· Regulation
- Cuba to start requiring crypto licenses for VASPs next month
The license for crypto service providers will be valid for a year and will be granted to both national and foreign firms and individuals.
· Regulation
- Crypto to overtake traditional investments as digital currencies reach mainstream adoption within a decade
Eighty-eight percent of institutional respondents and 75 percent of retail investors believe that crypto could attain mainstream adoption within 10 years.
· Insights & Views
- Brazil’s Bitcoin bill gets approval from Senate
The Bitcoin bill was first proposed in 2015 by Federal Deputy Aureo Ribeiro.
· Regulation
- Fidelity to offer Bitcoin exposure to 401(k) plan holders later this year
Fidelity’s new product would still allow employees to gain exposure to Bitcoin without having to open a separate account on an exchange.
· Digital Currency
- Crypto exchange Kraken is set to become the first platform to offer direct trading in UAE dirhams against Bitcoin, Ether and other digital assets
The Middle East is one of the fastest-growing crypto markets in the world and now accounts for up to 7 percent of global trading volumes.
· Regulation
- Bitcoin payments to become mainstream, says Morgan Stanley
The bank pointed out that the recently announced partnership between payments company Strike with points-of-sales supplier NCR and payments firm Blackhawk Network would soon allow a large number of U.S. stores and res…
· Insights & Views