Day: July 16, 2021

Following the largest mining difficulty drop in Bitcoin’s history, this weekend will once again see another slide, but less than 6% of the difficulty will be shaved. Statistics show Bitcoin’s hashrate has been able to climb higher since the difficulty drop two weeks ago, and climbed above 100 exahash per second (EH/s) this week. This weekend’s upcoming bitcoin mining difficulty drop will be the only time in history the difficulty slipped four times in a row. 2021’s Consecutive Difficulty Drops Come Awfully Close to 2011’s Records After China cracked down…

Payments giants Visa and Mastercard say they are monitoring Binance’s regulatory compliance developments as more regulators come after the global crypto exchange for operating in their countries without authorization. Visa, Mastercard Monitoring Binance’s Regulatory Troubles Visa and Mastercard have not severed ties with cryptocurrency exchange Binance despite rising regulatory scrutiny. The two payments giants have not blocked Binance and cardholders can still use Visa and Mastercard to deposit funds into their accounts at the exchange. Visa told the Financial Times Friday that it was “aware of the recent FCA statement…

The working group involved with the research and development of the digital yuan for the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has published a paper describing the digital currency’s progress. The PBOC initiated a task force dedicated to the creation of a digital yuan in 2014, and the recently published document is the project’s first white paper released in seven years. China’s Digital Yuan Is No Different Than Physical RMB After the creation of Bitcoin and a few years after the cryptocurrency economy started getting recognized, the PBOC was one of…

PRESS RELEASE. Position Exchange’s Team is pleased to announce the launch of its new Decentralized Trading & Exchange Community driven platform. What is Position Exchange? Position Exchange is the new Decentralized Trading & Exchange platform, powered by a virtual Automated Market Maker (vAMM) and operating on Binance Smart Chain (BSC), aiming to bridge the gap between people and the cryptocurrency markets and enhance trading experiences. The platform is designed to deliver all the advantages of Decentralized Finance whilst bringing the traditional Centralized Finance experience and tools onboard. Position Exchange offers…

Over the last few weeks, cryptocurrency markets have fallen in value as most of these assets reached all-time price highs three months ago. Despite the price drops, 2021 has still been an explosive year for crypto gains and fiat-pegged stablecoins have grown massively as well. 53 days ago, the entire capitalization of fiat stablecoins crossed the $100 billion mark, and the stablecoin market valuation continues to grow, swelling 13% since the end of May. Stablecoin Market Valuation Grows by 13% in 30 Days, Tether Issuance Slows Stablecoins have made their…

The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice program is offering a reward of up to $10 million “for information on foreign malicious cyber activity against U.S. critical infrastructure.” The department further said that “Reward payments may include payments in cryptocurrency.” The U.S. Department of State announced Thursday that its Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program is offering a reward of up to $10 million “for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting at the direction or under the control of a foreign government, participates…

Binance’s regulatory troubles continue with Lithuania being the latest country to issue a warning about the cryptocurrency exchange. Lithuania’s announcement came one day after Italy issued a similar warning. Lithuania Warns Binance Lithuania’s central bank announced Friday that it has issued a warning to Binance UAB about its unlicensed investment services provided in Lithuania. The central bank also “ordered the company to ensure that its publicly available information is not misleading.” The central bank explained that it has assessed publicly available information and found that Binance is “acting as a…

PRESS RELEASE. BXX listed on the MEXC Global exchange, and jumped from $0.15 at listing, to $0.50, before settling down to the mid. $0.30s- a more then 100% increase over the course of its first few hours of trading. Pools are also now available on Uniswap 2.0 in both USDT and ETH. Imagine a world where you can borrow for free, remit money across the globe for free, and even earn digital asset rewards from your daily spending- this is the world of the Baanx Group’s platform, a digital assets-as-a-service…

Regulators from the CVM, the securities watchdog of Brazil, have approved the first Ethereum-based ETF in Latin America (Latam). The product, presented by blockchain investment company QR Asset, aims to simplify the task of getting Ether exposure for retail and institutional investors. It will be traded with the QETH11 ticker on the B3 stock exchange. Brazil to Debut First Ethereum ETF in Latam Brazil will be the first country in Latam that will trade an Ethereum-based ETF. The Brazilian securities regulator has approved the proposal of QR Asset, a blockchain…

A non-governmental organization (NGO), Save Tigray, has announced it will be using the proceeds from the sale of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to support its goal of averting famine in Ethiopia’s war-torn Tigray region. According to Save Tigray, the NFTs, which are “based on interpreted photos of the tragedy,” will be sold on the charity organization’s NFT marketplace. Making NFTs Based on Photos of Tragedy According to a statement released on July 13, 2021, proceeds from the NFT sales will be donated to organizations that include the World Food Program, International…

Authorities in Hong Kong have arrested four people suspected of money laundering a total of $155 million through cryptocurrency wallets and bank accounts. The city’s customs agency said this was its first case in which virtual money had been used to launder dirty cash. Money Laundering Syndicate Recycles $155 Million in Crypto and Fiat Transactions The criminal group is believed to have processed illegal funds for a total of 1.2 billion Hong Kong dollars ($155 million), Hong Kong Customs announced Thursday. In an operation code-named “Coin Breaker,” officers detained the…

Founded on July 1, 2014, Shapeshift has been offering global trading of a variety of digital assets for seven years. Following the company’s recent anniversary, it announced Shapeshift is evolving into a community-owned decentralized platform. Shapeshift founder Erik Voorhees explained in a blog post that the firm airdropped FOX tokens to over a million customers in order to “facilitate decentralized governance.” Shapeshift Is Shifting Shapeshift is changing, according to a recent blog post from its founder, and the company’s announcement about an airdrop of the platform’s native FOX tokens to…

In a recent twitterstorm, Dogecoin founder co-founder Jordan Palmer stated he wouldn’t return to the cryptocurrency world. Palmer unleashed harsh criticisms of the cryptocurrency industry, calling it “hyper capitalistic,” and managed by “powerful cartels” of wealthy figures. Palmer created Dogecoin along with Billy Markus back in 2013 as a joke, making fun of the crypto community. Dogecoin Co-Founder Slams Crypto Industry Dogecoin co-founder Jordan Palmer is really upset about the road the cryptocurrency industry has taken. In a recent tweetstorm, the Australian programmer took shots at the cryptocurrency world, criticizing…

Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) is reportedly helping Crypto Valley Venture Capital (CVVC), a blockchain business incubator, set up an office in South Africa. According to SECO, this move fits with Switzerland’s policy of supporting private firms that seek to help African blockchain start-ups. Funding for Successful Applicants According to a Swissinfo report, CVVC will fund the best blockchain start-ups “in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda, Congo and other countries.” The report adds that the initial five successful applicants will each receive $125,000 (CHF114,000) from the incubator while…

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says his viewpoint on bitcoin “has evolved a little bit.” While he personally does not want to have bitcoin in his portfolio, he says if people want to buy the cryptocurrency, “that’s perfectly fine.” Mnuchin Says It’s ‘Perfectly Fine’ if People Want To Buy Bitcoin Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin talked about bitcoin, cybersecurity, and the U.S. economy in an interview with CNBC Wednesday. He was asked whether his viewpoint on bitcoin has evolved since the last time he was interviewed by the media…

Award-winning director Spike Lee has teamed up with bitcoin ATM operator Coin Cloud on a multimillion-dollar crypto campaign. “Digital currency is viable for not just people of color, but anybody who has been historically excluded from traditional financial systems,” said the famed director. Spike Lee Directs Short Film for Bitcoin Company Coin Cloud, a digital currency machine operator with more than 2,000 machines, announced Wednesday a multimillion-dollar campaign with a short film starring and directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Spike Lee. The Las Vegas-based company explained that the campaign features a…