Weekly Recap March 22nd, 2021 – March 28th, 2021 Welcome to our 4th weekly recap for March. Overview    Crypto News [1] Brazil Approves First Bitcoin ETF in Latin America Digital asset manager QR Capital reveals that it received the green light to launch the first-ever Latin American Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). [2] Experts say new South Korean crypto rules will create a monopolized market Blockchain industry members claim that smaller-scale startups have struggled to forge partnerships with local banks in South Korea and are therefore unable to register under regulators’ new requirements. [3] Institutions Grab $800 Million in Bitcoin, While Miners Stop Dumping BTC and Start Accumulating According to a chart from analytics company CryptoQuant, on March 23, financial institutions bought and withdrew from Coinbase a staggering amount of crypto: 14,600 BTC. [4] Tesla Starts Accepting Bitcoin Tesla is now running bitcoin nodes and “internal and open source software” to accept bitcoin for payments according to Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO. [5] Filecoin integrates with Chainlink to offer advanced decentralizedContinue reading »

Weekly Recap March 16th, 2021 – March 23rd, 2021 Welcome to our 3rd weekly recap for March. Overview    Crypto News [1] Report all crypto transactions or face 5-year jail term in South Korea South Korea’s cryptocurrency regulatory space is set to become even more tightly regulated with the incoming laws on financial reporting for crypto businesses in the country. [2] Litecoin Completes MimbleWimble Code for LTC Scaling and Privacy The Litecoin Foundation has completed the code for its MimbleWimble Extension Block (MWEB) which will enhance scaling and privacy for the cryptocurrency. [3] Grayscale Launches Five New Digital Asset Trusts, Said Investors Want Diversification Grayscale Investments, the largest digital asset manager, launched five new digital currency trusts, the company announced Wednesday. [4] Visa Looking to Enable the Purchase of Bitcoin on its Credentials, Says CEO Al Kelly Visa CEO, Al Kelly revealed the company’s plans to enable the buying of bitcoin using its credit cards during his recent podcast with Fortune’s ‘Leadership Next’. [5] Deutsche Bank Says Bitcoin Is NowContinue reading »

Weekly Recap March 9th, 2021 – March 16th, 2021 Welcome to our 2nd weekly recap for March. Overview  Crypto News [1] Ripple Officially Ends Its Partnership with MoneyGram Last month, MoneyGram suspended trading on Ripple’s platform after the blockchain company got sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, but both parties were anticipating to resume their collaboration given that a multi-year contract between them was still in place. [2] Chinese social media Weibo suspends Huobi, OKEx and Binance accounts Chinese Twitter-alike social media Weibo has suspended the official accounts of Huobi, OKEx, Binance and MXC in what appears to be an effort targeted on crypto exchanges. [3] Bitcoin price sheds 5% after Oracle keeps quiet on $4B BTC allocation rumors Claims that Oracle would announce a 72,000 Bitcoin buy-in on Wednesday were left unsubstantiated by executives as Bitcoin fell from local highs of $57,300. [4] Grayscale Will Be Cashing Out Bitcoin to Get Back $250 Million of Its Shares, Peter Schiff Believes In one of his recent tweets, aContinue reading »

Weekly Recap March 1st, 2021 – March 9th, 2021 Welcome to our 1st weekly recap for January. Overview  Crypto News [1] Stablecoin Issuer Tether Says It Is a Victim of a 500 BTC Ransom Demand Infoleak Threat Just days after the conclusion of its long-running feud with the Office of the Attorney General of New York, Tether says it is now a victim of an extortion attempt. According to the stablecoin issuer, the blackmailers are threatening to release documents they claim “will harm the bitcoin ecosystem” if their demand for the payment of 500 bitcoins is not met. [2] Crypto Bank Expands in India — Confident Government Will Approve Legitimate Use of Cryptocurrencies Crypto bank Unicas, a joint venture between Cashaa and United Multi State Credit Cooperative Society, has expanded its operations by opening another physical branch. The bank believes that the Indian government will introduce positive crypto regulation and not impose an outright ban on cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. [3] Goldman Sachs Brings Back Bitcoin Trading Desk as theContinue reading »

Weekly Recap February 22nd, 2021 – Feb 29th, 2021 Welcome to our 4th weekly recap for Febuary. Overview  Crypto News   [1] US Secretary of Treasure Yellen Says Bitcoin is Inefficient for Transactions Cryptocurrencies could succeed if properly studied, but bitcoin is a highly speculative and inefficient asset, said US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.   [2] Can’t beat ‘em? Join ‘em: Mastercard and Visa make a case for Bitcoin On Feb. 10, Mastercard announced that it would start supporting a select few cryptocurrencies on its payment network. According to the payments giant, the inclusion of cryptocurrencies will allow customers to “save, store and send money in new ways” while opening up new opportunities for merchants as well.   [3] MoneyGram suspends trading on Ripple, citing SEC lawsuit Global money transfer service MoneyGram says it has changed its relationship with blockchain payments firm Ripple amid the latter’s litigation with the Securities and Exchange Commission.   [4] India’s Financial Regulator Orders Against Crypto Holdings: Report The Securities and Exchange Board of IndiaContinue reading »

Weekly Recap February 15th, 2021 – Feb 22nd, 2021 Welcome to our 3rd weekly recap for February. Overview    Crypto News   [1] NYDIG Registers for a Bitcoin ETF, Morgan Stanley Named a Participant in SEC Filing Just recently, during Microstrategy’s “Bitcoin for Corporations” event, Stone Ridge Asset Management and New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) founder, Ross Stevens, explained that he sees a “wall of money” entering the bitcoin space. A week later after that statement, NYDIG has revealed that the company has filed for a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) and is hoping for regulatory approval. [2] Dubai Government Licensing Entity Now Accepts Bitcoin for Payments A government-owned entity in Dubai has started accepting bitcoin, ether and tether as payment for its services, according to local media reports. [3] Publicly-Listed Chinese Lottery Firm Acquires Bitcoin Mining Pool Btc.com A U.S. publicly-listed Chinese sports lottery firm is extending its arms into the crypto industry by announcing another related maneuver. 500.com Ltd announced it has acquired Btc.com, the well known bitcoinContinue reading »

Weekly Recap February 8th, 2021 – Feb 15th, 2021 Welcome to our 2nd weekly recap for February. Overview  Crypto News   [1] Uber CEO Says the Company Will Accept Bitcoin If There’s a Need For It Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has said that the company will accept bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as a form of payment if there is a benefit and a need for it. [2] World’s Largest Custodian Bank Moving Into Crypto, Considering Issuing Cryptoassets The oldest bank of the United States, Bank of New York Mellon (NYSE: BK), has revealed it will start financing bitcoin and other digital currencies through the rollout of a new cryptocurrency custody service. [3] Bitcoin ETF Receives Green-light From Ontario Securities Regulator The Ontario Securities Commission has approved a bitcoin exchange-traded fund, according to public records published Thursday. [4] India to Ban Cryptocurrency Investment Completely BloombergQuint reported the news on Thursday, citing an unnamed “senior Finance Ministry official.” The ban won’t be imposed overnight, according to the official, who said the governmentContinue reading »

Weekly Recap February 1st, 2021 – Feb 8th, 2021 Welcome to our 1st weekly recap for February. Overview  Crypto News   [ELON] Elon Musk Supports Bitcoin, Says BTC on the Verge of Broad Acceptance Spacex and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has clarified his position on bitcoin and dogecoin. He confirmed that he supports bitcoin, stating that it is “a good thing.” [1] US Federal Reserve Seeking Manager to Research CBDCs and Stablecoins The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) has posted a job advertisement that seeks to hire a role related to stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDC). The Fed is looking for a research manager to join its team to assess the “benefits and risks” of digital assets. [2] Swiss Companies Issue First Tokenized Asset for Trading Under New National Blockchain Rules New legal provisions on distributed ledger technology (DLT) went into effect on Feb. 1 in Switzerland. After the implementation, two local companies announced that they had issued the first tokenized asset under the brand-new law. [3] Paypal LaunchesContinue reading »

Weekly Recap Jan 25th, 2021 – Feb 1st, 2021 Welcome to our 5th weekly recap for January. Overview  Crypto News   [1] Publicly-Traded Firm Buys $150,000,000 in Bitcoin, Says Holding BTC Superior to Holding US Dollar Following in MicroStrategy and Square’s footsteps, Bitcoin mining company Marathon Patent Group is now investing a large portion of its treasury reserve in BTC. [2] As Robinhood Shuts Down GameStop Shares, Demand Emerges For Decentralized, Censorship-Resistant Trading With the ongoing saga of Gamestop shares surging as a result of the r/wallstreetbets subreddit, Robinhood and other trading platforms such as WeBull and Apex Holdings (the clearing firm for among others, Public.com) has refused to allow for the buying of more GameStop GME +19.2% shares. [3] Reddit partners with Ethereum Foundation to boost scaling and resources Popular social media network Reddit, which counts over 1.7 billion monthly visits, is deepening its ties with the Ethereum Foundation in what it has formalized as its first-ever blockchain partnership. [4] Ripple Files Legal Response to SEC’s Lawsuit Blockchain companyContinue reading »