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Financial technology (fintech) has exploded during the last two years and cryptocurrency and blockchain firms have bolstered the billion-dollar industry. A recently published study by Utility Bidder indicates that the industry is predicted to surpass $382 billion by 2027. Moreover, fintech firms that are blockchain-specific are projected to be worth over $67.4 billion by 2027. The recent study also highlights that Kraken is the most influential blockchain company of 2021. Kraken Named 2021’s Most Influential Blockchain Company Numerous research studies have shown the fintech universe continues to grow exponentially and digital currency and blockchain solutions are a big part of this trend. This week, researchers at Utility Bidder analyzed 50 fintech firms that were selected in Forbes’ 2021 Fintech 50 report. Utility Bidder’s study broke the selected firms down into four factors, with a normalized score out of ten for each factor. Factors included total funds raised, the latest known valuation, number of Twitter followers, and the global searches stemming from Google Ads Keyword Planner between August 2020 and July 2021. According to the study, blockchain-specific firms will represent $67.4 billion by 2027, or 17.64% of the aggregate $382 billion estimate. The report’s findings detail that the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken was considered the most influential blockchain company of 2021. The exchange got a rating of 5.64/10 in the influence ranking and was followed by Gemini. The Gemini exchange has a blockchain score of 2.33/10 and a valuation of around $5 billion compared to Kraken’s valuation of $20 billion today. Only 16% of the 50 Fintech Firms Listed Are Associated With ‘Blockchain and Bitcoin’ The two exchanges are followed by Blockfi, Paxos, Chainalysis, Anchorage, Fireblocks, and Alchemy respectively. In terms of financial technology as a whole, the top five fintech firms include Robinhood, Stripe, Kraken, Klarna, and Wise. The payments firm Wise is followed by Current, Chime, Gemini, Carta, Blockfi. While Kraken’s valuation is $20 billion it is higher than Robinhood’s $11.7 billion but smaller than Stripe’s $95 billion valuation. The lowest valuation on the blockchain list in the fintech company rankings, Alchemy has a valuation of around $505 million today. Only eight companies out of the list of 50 were noted as being associated with “blockchain & bitcoin” in terms of categories. The blockchain firms mentioned are amidst fintech companies that specialize in investing, personal finance, payments, B2B-lending, insurance, real estate, and enterprise solutions. What do you think about Utility Bidder’s study that mentions the eight blockchain firms and the study listing Kraken as the most influential blockchain company of 2021? Would you agree with the findings in this fintech study? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. Moledao, a social platform for blockchain enthusiasts, announced today its upcoming Web 3.0 Hackathon. This pioneering global hackathon will be held in the metaverse, and take place from 15th November 2021 to 9th January 2022. Web 3.0 is the vision for the next internet generation that is decentralized, verifiable and secure. Participants are invited to work on real-life solutions related to the main hackathon theme of Web 3.0 with the three recommended tracks: Multi-chain Decentralized Applications (dApps) – create cross-chain interoperability solutions Metaverse – create a purpose-built metaverse or build on top of existing metaverses Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) – build and govern truly community-owned DAO initiatives Participants will have the opportunity to obtain VC institutional investment, industry mentorship and win a total of $100K in grants and prizes. Moledao, a global blockchain ecosystem builder, wants to bring the best developers together to turn innovative blockchain ideas into reality and is hosting the Web 3.0 Hackathon to bolster this goal. Web 3.0 Hackathon is supported by Bybit, BitDAO, Web3 Collective and Blockchain Infrastructure Alliance, which includes established organizations like EthSign, Mask, Torus, Biconomy, Polygon, PingCAP, and Alchemy Pay. The hackathon aims to be a platform that empowers developers to create projects that are innovative, user-friendly and applicable in real-life. Bybit co-founder and CEO Ben Zhou explained, “Web 3.0 is an exciting space to be in. We now have an opportunity to wrestle back power from the few Web 2.0 giants and return it to the greater internet community. We are delighted to support Moledao’s hackathon, and help encourage and empower developers to build the Web 3.0 future together.” Co-founder of EthSign (Web3 Collective Initiator, a consortium of Web 3.0 projects) Potter Li commented, “Blockchain innovations that make low-cost decentralized computing and storage possible give rise to Web3 applications that have user experiences as frictionless as Web2 applications. EthSign is built on this vision. We wish to partner with leading Web3 projects to push forward the development and adoption of the decentralized internet.” “Our goal is to solve the key infrastructure problems to help advance the entire blockchain industry. The vision of Alchemy Pay and BIA are quite aligned with Moledao’s Hackathon. We believe in blockchain and crypto services that provide utility and benefits readily accessible to the rest of the world and look forward to more innovations in these areas,” said John Tan, Founding Partner of Blockchain Infrastructure Alliance (BIA). New and exciting things are gradually shaping the future, which brings our reality closer to the Web 3.0 dream. Register now for the hackathon and free exclusive Web 3.0 related workshops here. About Moledao Moledao is a social platform for all blockchain enthusiasts to learn about the latest in blockchain, grow and contribute to build more innovative ideas with the help from experienced blockchain pioneers and innovators. It aims to bring blockchain to everyone and grow the ecosystem through education and global hackathons. For more information, visit http://moledao.io or follow @moledao_io on Twitter. Contact Media, Partnerships & General Enquiry: hello@moledao.io Related Links Registration: https://www.moledao.io/#/hackathon Event communication channel: https://discord.gg/5m4w49uXJg General community discussion: t.me/moledao This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

Authorities in China are continuing to crack down on activities linked to cryptocurrencies which they consider illegal. The country’s top economic planning body has clearly indicated it intends to go after large-scale cryptocurrency mining taking place at government-operated industrial facilities. State Firms Mining Crypto in China to Face Higher Electricity Bills China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) announced Tuesday it plans to concentrate on the “comprehensive rectification” of state-run industrial enterprises involved in the extraction of digital currencies. The initiative is part of an ongoing crackdown on crypto-related operations that are banned in the People’s Republic. The economic planner cited concerns over energy waste associated with crypto mining as well as financial activities linked to cryptocurrencies, reiterating these are deemed illegal in China. Virtual currency does not have the same status as legal currency, the commission emphasized, quoted by CGTN, the international arm of the national broadcaster, CCTV. The NDRC noted that the disruption of crypto mining activities at state-owned companies will facilitate the optimization of China’s industrial structure. The commission also believes this will boost energy conservation and the reduction of emissions while helping the nation to achieve its carbon neutrality goals on schedule. Digital coin minting consumes a lot of energy, the planning body further remarked. In order to discourage government-run entities from spending a lot of power on it, those that are now using subsidized electricity for crypto mining may face higher electricity rates in the future. Meng Wei, a spokesperson of the NDRC, revealed at a press conference that the commission intends to study the possibility of levying “punitive” tariffs as part of its preventive measures. In early October, the National Development and Reform Commission proposed to add cryptocurrency mining to the country’s latest draft of the “Negative List for Market Access,” jointly released with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. The move would make the industry off-limits to investors. The 2020 edition of the list consists of 123 industries, as Bitcoin.com News reported. China banned cryptocurrency trading in 2017 but authorities did not interfere with crypto mining until earlier this year. In May, the State Council, the cabinet of ministers in Beijing, clamped down on the sector following President Xi Jinping’s pledge for the country to achieve carbon neutrality in the next four decades. In September, the People’s Bank of China reiterated its hardline stance on cryptocurrencies. Along with the signing of the infrastructure bill by U.S. president Joe Biden, which concerns crypto taxation, the latest announcement by the NDRC in China has likely influenced cryptocurrency markets, which shed billions of dollars in capitalization. Major cryptocurrencies fell on Tuesday, when the coin with the largest market cap briefly dipped below $60,000. Bitcoin (BTC) is trading at a little over $60,500 at the time of writing. Do you expect China to continue its crackdown on cryptocurrency mining? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

The crypto asset bitcoin has seen a phenomenal year gaining 261.5% over the last 12 months and the second leading crypto asset, ethereum, rose by 819.9% since mid-November 2020. However, a slew of digital currencies saw much larger gains during the last 12 months and a dozen crypto assets have gained anywhere between 7,000% to a whopping 27,000% in value. 12 Crypto Assets That Spiked 7,000% to Over 27,000% in Value Since Mid-November 2020 On Wednesday, November 17, 2021, the crypto economy with its 10,870 coins and 523 exchanges, is worth over $2.7 trillion. Meanwhile, during the last year, bitcoin (BTC) spiked more than 261% and its $1.1 trillion market valuation represents 41.3% of the crypto economy. Ethereum (ETH), on the other hand, is the second-largest market capitalization with just over $500 billion in value or 18.2% of the $2.7 trillion. ETH has risen 819% during the last 12 months, but 12 different crypto assets outpaced both BTC and ETH’s 12-month gains combined. The biggest gainer this year is Axie Infinity (AXS) which has spiked 27,232% since November 16, 2020. AXS is one of the native tokens tethered to the blockchain video game called Axie Infinity and was crafted by a team called Sky Mavis. The digital collectibles platform ecomi.com’s ecomi (OMI) token has climbed 16,545.52% in 12 months. The third-largest gainer during the last year is the token called conscious value network (CVNT) which has spiked 16,326.89% since mid-November 2020. The fourth biggest gainer this past year is terra (LUNA) as the digital asset has jumped 13,701 over the last year. The fifth-largest token rise belongs to fantom (FTM) as the crypto asset spiked 11,178% since mid-November 2020. FTM is followed by kadena (KDA) +10,801%, solana (SOL) +9,855%, hydro (HYDRO) +9,708%, sandbox (SAND) +9,007%, polygon (MATIC) +8,793%, dogecoin (DOGE) +8,053%, and rubic (RBC) +7,325%. The top ten crypto coins that lost over 90% in values since mid-November 2020, include tokens like cherry (CHERRY) -99.64%, hyperion (HYN) -99.08%, genesis vision (GVT) -98.70%, empty set dollar (ESD) -97.94%, exchange union (XUC) -91.87%, blockmason (BCPT) -91.80%, and lien (LIEN) -90.99%. What do you think about the top 12 gainers during the last year? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Mt Gox claimants may see restitution soon as a recent filing from the Tokyo District Court’s trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi explains that the rehabilitation plan is now “final and binding.” The document published on Tuesday notes that an announcement will follow that discloses the “details of the specific timing, procedures, and amount of such repayments.” Mt Gox Creditors May See Bitcoin Returned Soon On Tuesday, Nobuaki Kobayashi published a notice of confirmation that the rehabilitation plan has been finalized. $Over 9 billion worth of bitcoin (BTC) may find its way back to the original owners who lost money during the Mt Gox hack and bankruptcy that followed. Since 2014, thousands of former Mt Gox users have tried to get their funds back and have been met with a myriad of obstacles over the years. Kobayashi’s filing says that the Tokyo court revealed the draft rehabilitation plan in May and on October 20, 2021, it was “approved by a large majority of rehabilitation creditors.” The court filing does not disclose when the funds will be disbursed and if the funds will be paid directly in bitcoin (BTC). “An announcement will be made to rehabilitation creditors on the details of the specific timing, procedures, and amount of such repayments,” Kobayashi said. Mt Gox was one of the largest bitcoin exchanges before it went under in 2014, which saw close to 24,000 customers affected. The exchange was operated by Mark Karpelès and originally the exchange lost 850,000 BTC but Karpelès managed to locate some of the bitcoin from cold storage. Reports detail that there’s roughly 150,000 BTC that Kobayashi reportedly will distribute to Mt Gox creditors. Creditors Must Use the Mt Gox Online Filing System — A Large Number of Inquiries May Delay Reply Times The court filing published on Tuesday further explains that the trustee expects “all the rehabilitation creditors” to register information such as bank account info using the online filing system. The website details that the period for filing proofs tied to claims ended on October 22, and since then users can no longer file proofs of rehabilitation claims via the online filing system. Kobayashi adds that the trustee and court will not respond to direct inquiries or emailed inquiries concerning the claim process. Moreover, those who leverage the online filing system may still have to wait a bit longer as Kobayashi explained that a large number of inquiries may delay reply times. What do you think about the latest Mt Gox reimbursement filing? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Staples Center, one of the most iconic and globally recognized sports and entertainment arenas in the world, is changing its name to Crypto.com Arena. Crypto.com has also become an official cryptocurrency platform partner of the Los Angeles Lakers and the LA Kings. Staples Center’s New Name Is Crypto.com Arena AEG, the owner of Staples Center, and Crypto.com “have launched a historic, 20-year naming rights agreement that will rename the AEG-owned and operated Staples Center,” both companies independently announced Tuesday. Located in downtown Los Angeles, the 20,000-seat, award-winning arena described itself as “one of the most iconic and globally recognized sports and entertainment arenas in the world.” It serves as the official home of the National Basketball Association (NBA) teams Los Angeles Lakers and LA Clippers as well as the National Hockey League (NHL) team LA Kings and the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team Los Angeles Sparks. Crypto.com has agreed to pay more than $700 million for the naming rights, according to reports. The announcement details that the name change will be effective on Dec. 25, adding: AEG and Crypto.com will unveil the newly named Crypto.com Arena on Christmas Day … This agreement also makes Crypto.com an official cryptocurrency platform partner of the Los Angeles Lakers and the LA Kings. The new agreement includes “official designations across Crypto.com Arena, L.A. LIVE, Microsoft Theater, The Novo, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the LA Kings,” the announcement adds. “Each year, the world-class venue hosts over 240 major high-profile events of national and international distinction and over 4 million guests,” the announcement further states. Events range from professional sports, concerts, family and award shows, and special events, including the Grammy Awards, NBA All-Star Games, and NHL All-Star Games. Todd Goldstein, chief revenue officer of AEG, commented: This partnership represents the fastest-growing cryptocurrency platform and the biggest sports and live entertainment company in the world converging to drive the future of sports and live entertainment as well as the incredible legacy of this arena for decades to come. In October, Crypto.com partnered with famous Hollywood actor Matt Damon on its first global campaign called “Fortune Favours the Brave.” Earlier this year, the exchange partnered with an F1 team. What do you think about Staples Center changing its name to Crypto.com Arena? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. EURST will be listed on fmfw.io starting November 17th. The Euro representative digital coin you can purchase with FMFW.io with BTC and ETH pairs. Introduction to EURST Stablecoins, which have arisen due to the digital world’s development, are secured with assets, thus minimizing its price volatility. Simone Mazzuca took another initiative and created EURST, a currency that meets European needs. EURST is a digital currency that is based on USD assets and which represents 1 Euro in USD. Its strength is to meet the applicable requirements of the governmental legal framework, by using a third-party reputable custodian for the funds backing the coins, and implementing an industry leading live attestation system in place. Operating on the Ethereum blockchain (ERC20) enables fast and secure transactions. Smart contracts, which are responsible for digitizing deposited funds kept by the holder in an account, allow transactions to be made without high costs and long waiting times. EURST allows you to secure money without losing the value of the Euro, deposit funds on cryptocurrency exchanges, and make international transfers without drastically high fees. What are the backbones of EURST? The EURST Team has pointed out core things that they follow while developing the coin: Value – “Transparency and quality mark the proper ground for new payment habits.” Goal – improving communication with the community. Mission – spreading awareness of blockchain usage to make its benefits more available. Sustainability – bridging the gap between digital currencies and fiat money, focusing on interoperability and increasing blockchain’s scalability, speed, and security of transactions. Statement from FMFW.io “The goal of FMFW.io is not only to enable the purchase of digital currencies but also to increase awareness and the possibility of operating between currencies. Our remarkable appreciation to the EURST team prompted us to venture into listing the coin on our exchange. We believe that we can all raise the accessibility of this digital world” says Danish Chaudhry, CEO of FMFW.io. Statement from EURST Simone Mazzuca, Director of Wallex Trust says, ​​”As one of the fastest-growing exchanges, we believe that the listing on FMFW.io Exchange will spearhead EURST into the global crypto space. With the ease of crypto and the stability of fiat, EURST is bridging the gap between fiat currency and the crypto world, giving users a reliable currency to transact anytime, anywhere, hassle-free.” About EURST EURstablecoin is a stablecoin created by the Wallex Trust and based on the ERC20 token standard of the Ethereum network. Token issuance/redemption transactions are recorded in the chain, and off-chain transactions and reserve balances will be regularly disclosed to the public and additionally to the third-party audits. The presence of a physical, real-time controlled, and convertible USD reserve determines the market value of EURST with a real-time USD value of EUR 1. For more information, visit the website here. About FMFW.io The mission of FMFW.io is to empower people from all over the world to trade cryptocurrencies with ease and confidence, from first-time traders to advanced trading professionals. With high liquidity, 24/7 multilingual support, and dozens of trading pairs complemented with a high level of security, we offer an attractive platform for trading any cryptocurrency. Within one year since launch, on average, our exchange has been visited by more than 500K active traders per month, and this number continues to grow. This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

Nearly half a million e-naira wallets have been downloaded a few weeks after the central bank digital currency (CBDC) was officially launched by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, the central bank has said. E-Naira’s Initial Trade Volumes In addition to the 488,000 wallets that have been downloaded, Osita Nwanisobi, who is the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s spokesman, is quoted confirming that a total of 78,000 merchants from 160 countries have now enrolled to become a part of the e-naira ecosystem. Despite the CBDC’s seemingly early success, a report by Bloomberg quotes Nwanisobi confirming that only $150,000 (62 million naira) worth of the digital currency has been traded since launch. Yet, on the other hand, Nigerians have traded some 60,215 bitcoins, which are currently valued at over $3.6 billion, between 2017 and 2020. This traded volume, which according to the report is the largest outside the United States, suggests the cryptocurrency has become an important alternative to the depreciating naira. As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, some Nigerians working abroad now prefer to send money back home via bitcoin. Others are using the top cryptocurrency to make cross-border payments, while some now use BTC to hedge against inflation. Continuing Attempts to Restrict Cryptocurrency Use However, as part of an effort to restrict the further growth and interest in cryptocurrencies, the CBN initially directed financial institutions to cut off cryptocurrency entities from the banking system. The launch of the e-naira, which is Africa’s first CBDC, is the latest attempt by the CBN to entice Nigerians away from cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Yet in spite of these efforts, a study by Chainalysis still found that Nigeria has one of the largest proportions of retail users that conduct cryptocurrency transactions that are under $10,000. What are your thoughts about this story? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

Are you addicted to following the crypto markets? Are you new to the game and just want to know what’s going on? In just 59 seconds each day, this shot of crypto espresso gives you everything you need to know! Bitcoin.com News has launched a brand new TikTok channel just for you, bringing information related to the crypto world to the much-loved social media platforms of today. The new channel features an informational show dedicated to pushing out news and price updates to viewers from around the world. Called “Daily Price Update,” the one-minute or less per episode show gives a price update, plus a bit of price-related news to followers. The show runs Monday to Friday, with Japanese holidays off. Episodes go live around 6:45 am EST, giving people waking up in different parts of the world a chance to listen in for their morning dose of crypto price “espresso.” The episodes are subtitled and auto-captioned, giving viewers the chance to catch up anywhere, anytime, even with their mobiles on silent! The show is also available on Facebook and YouTube. Click on any of the links below to get a peek at the latest episode. Socials TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bitcoin.com_news Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/buy.bitcoin.news/videos YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BitcoincomOfficialChannel/videos This is a sponsored post. Learn how to reach our audience here. Read disclaimer below. View the full article

Authorities in Kyrgyzstan have uncovered and shut down a large crypto mining farm in the north of the country. Law enforcement officials claim the illegal coin minting facility has inflicted “colossal damage” to the nation’s power grid and that they are still trying to estimate the losses. Underground Crypto Farm Busted in Kyrgyzstan The region of Central Asia, including the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, has become a hotspot for cryptocurrency mining lately. Companies involved in the extraction of digital coins have been attracted by its low energy rates amid an ongoing crackdown on the industry in China. The influx of miners has been blamed for electricity shortages and some countries have been moving to mitigate a growing power deficit. In early October, reports revealed that the Kyrgyzstan government had raised the electricity tariff for crypto mining enterprises, among other consumers, citing the energy-intensive nature of their operations. Lawmakers in neighboring Kazakhstan have proposed a similar measure. The authorities in Bishkek have also been going after underground cryptocurrency miners. In May, law enforcement agents seized 2,000 mining devices from a number of facilities minting digital currency outside the law at several locations in the capital city and Chuy region. During a similar operation recently, the State Committee for National Security (GKNB) has busted a large illegal mining farm in the town of Druzhba, Issyk-Ata region. Its officers have confiscated another 2,500 mining machines, a media report has unveiled. According to a press release issued by the department and quoted by Sputnik Kyrgyzstan, the data center — which was running in a greenhouse — has been operated by foreign nationals. The GKNB further notes that their illegal activities have “caused colossal damage to the electric networks of Kyrgyzstan.” Investigators are now working to evaluate the losses for the state and establish whether the mining hardware has been legally imported into the country. The committee added that it’s also trying to identify all individuals involved in the undertaking. Kyrgyzstan has been taking steps to regulate its growing crypto mining sector. In August 2020, the Ministry of Economy put forward a bill introducing taxation for mining activities. The legislation proposes a 15% tax levy on the cost of electricity consumed to mint digital currencies. The law also obliges mining companies to register with regulatory bodies in order to obtain permission to operate in the country. Do you expect Kyrgyzstan to continue its crackdown on illegal crypto mining operations? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The cryptocurrency firm FTX Trading Ltd. announced on Tuesday that the Major League Baseball (MLB) legend Shohei Ohtani also known as “Shotime” has joined the company’s global ambassadors. According to the announcement Ohtani will be paid in cryptocurrencies and will acquire an equity stake in the crypto company. Angels’ Shotime Joins FTX At the end of June, seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady and his wife Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen joined FTX as global ambassadors. At the beginning of September, Brady and Bündchen starred in a $20 million ad campaign for FTX. Just before the deal between FTX Trading Ltd. and Brady, the crypto exchange preceded by inking a long-term partnership with MLB. Two months after the ad campaign with Bündchen and Brady, the company has announced that the MLB pitcher, designated hitter, and outfielder for the Los Angeles Angels, Shohei Ohtani, is joining FTX’s ambassadors’ list. The announcement notes that Ohtani will get all of his compensation in FTX equity and cryptocurrencies. The statements sent to Bitcoin.com News further details that the crypto payment acceptance illustrates the MLB player’s “strong belief in both FTX and the crypto industry.” Ohtani, also called “Shotime,” became the first MLB player in 88 years to become an All-Star as both a pitcher and hitter during the Midsummer Classics. The deal between Ohtani and FTX notes that the MLB player will serve as a spokesperson for the crypto firm. FTX believes Ohtani as a global ambassador will “further elevate the FTX brand, increasing awareness of the company’s platform.” Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and CEO of FTX, explained in a statement sent to Bitcoin.com News that the firm is always looking for partners that share the company’s vision. “Shohei has become a transcendent player in baseball in just a short period of time and this, combined with his support of digital assets, made it an easy choice to enter into a partnership with him,” Bankman-Fried said. The FTX CEO added: Off the field, Shohei has a passion for bettering the global community, something both he and FTX share, and we’re excited to partner with Shohei on various charitable initiatives, particularly with a focus on helping animals. While FTX has made deals with Ohtani, Brady, Bündchen, and the MLB, it has also acquired a naming deal with the professional esports organization TSM and won the naming-rights for the arena of the NBA’s Miami Heat. No one knows if FTX’s deep dive into the world of sports is working for the firm, in terms of garnishing more clients, but the crypto exchange holds one of the top positions in the industry today, in terms of global trade volume. Statistics from coinmarketcap.com indicate that FTX has seen around $22.7 billion in 24-hour global trade volume, while Coingecko.com metrics indicate that FTX.US, the company’s platform for Americans, has around $686.9 million. The company offers both spot market cryptocurrency exchange and derivatives and holds the second-largest market in terms of crypto derivatives in the world, below Binance’s $14.8 billion in open interest. During the last day, FTX saw $9.3 billion in crypto derivatives open interest among 170 perpetuals and 627 futures markets. What do you think about Shohei Ohtani joining FTX as a global ambassador? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Bank of Russia is preparing for a prolonged trial of the digital version of the national fiat to ensure this is a “full-fledged ruble,” the head of the monetary authority has emphasized. The regulator has put forward some conditions for the implementation of the new currency project. Bank of Russia Sets Conditions for Digital Ruble Currency The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR) may test a digital ruble for more than a year before it finally launches the CBDC, the bank’s chair, Elvira Nabiullina, said during a meeting of the important Financial Market Committee at the State Duma, the lower house of parliament. The head of the regulator insisted that the digital ruble project will be realized only if it meets certain criteria. The monetary authority’s first requirement is that the digital currency be freely convertible to the other two forms of Russian fiat, cash and bank money, at a one-to-one ratio. Responding to a question regarding the risks of introducing the coin, Nabiullina stressed that the matter pertains to monetary circulation and that financial authorities need to be very careful. Quoted by the business portal Finmarket, she elaborated: It should be a real, full-fledged ruble. There will be no discounts or anything like that. The central bank’s top executive further explained that the prototype of the digital ruble will likely be launched at the beginning of next year, before conducting trials for at least another 12 months to see how the CBDC works. The governor also remarked that another key condition for the success of the digital ruble is to make sure it does not accelerate inflation. Bank of Russia would like citizens to genuinely choose to use the digital ruble, just like they are increasingly opting for non-cash payment solutions which have increased from 30% in 2014 to 75% in the third quarter of 2021. The task, Nabiullina emphasized, is not to mint a lot of digital rubles, but rather to use this new currency to lower the cost of transactions. “Technologies now allow us to do that. And for us, this will be the criterion of success, not the volume of digital rubles,” she pointed out. In June, the Russian central bank formed a digital ruble pilot group with the participation of over a dozen banks and other institutions. The authority plans to complete the development of the platform’s prototype in December 2021 and start testing the CBDC in January 2022 in trials to be held in several stages. Russian officials are planning to amend 13 laws and codes to accommodate the digital currency. Do you expect Russia to eventually issue a digital ruble? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Valkyrie Investments, one of the biggest cryptocurrency asset managers, has announced it will launch a so-called on-chain defi fund next week. This new fund would be substantially different than other, similar offerings, due to the location of the assets that will be available to earn yield in several protocols. $100 million has already been put up for this initiative. Valkyrie Debuts On-Chain Defi Fund Valkyrie Investments has announced the launch of their first on-chain defi fund yesterday, which will hold a portfolio of defi blue chips. The difference between this fund and similar offerings lies in the location of its funds. While other funds track the prices of assets passively, Valkyrie is proposing to hold the assets on-chain. This means that they will be able to use them to earn yield and passive income from positioning these assets in different protocols. Wes Cowan, Valkyrie’s managing director of defi, stated: This allows us to participate in the upside while also gaining additional yield from lending, liquidity pools, farming, and staking in the defi ecosystem. We get the appreciation plus the compounded yield generated from on-chain defi participation. The fund will start with $100 million coming from several investors and the general partners of the firm. Exotic Chips and Stablecoins The decentralized finance environment is a large and diverse movement that’s present on several cryptocurrency chains. While other investors are mostly positioned to invest in established protocols like Ethereum, Valkyrie’s proposal seems to be a more adventurous one. Cowan confirmed this when he enumerated the chains that this fund is looking to invest in. Cowan declared: We see a lot of opportunities on blockchains including Ethereum, Avalanche, Solana, Binance Smart Chain, Matic, and Fantom. While this mention might not mean that they will invest in native tokens in these environments, the mention of some of these options is interesting and a testament to the growth of some of these chains. However, the composition of the portfolio, regarding which tokens and in what proportion they will be held, is still undefined. Cowen acknowledged that stablecoins might play an important role in the portfolio, adding: Though even when in stablecoins, they are always deployed on-chain to generate yield. The launch of this fund could start a trend inspiring other players to deploy their assets on-chain to earn yield from positioning them, but it also introduces new risks to those investing in the fund. What do you think about this new on-chain defi fund from Valkyrie? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

Last week, the popular Tezos-based non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Hic et nunc discontinued its services following the market’s rise into the top twenty NFT marketplaces by sales volume. After the market’s founder Rafael Lima stepped back, the community decided to take the project into their own hands and has begun transitioning Hic et nunc into a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). Tezos Community Bands Together Around NFT Marketplace Mirror On November 14, Bitcoin.com News reported on the Tezos fueled NFT marketplace Hic et nunc shutting down its services. At the time, Hic et nunc’s founder Rafael Lima explained on Twitter that Hicetnunc.xyz was now “discontinued.” The founder’s Twitter handle “@hicetnunc2000” also left a message on social media that shared the market’s smart contract address. At the time, users were extremely confused about the situation and speculation started to rise. Days later, it seems the Hic et nunc has banded together around a clone of the original marketplace called “Hicetnunc.art.” Statements sent to Bitcoin.com News detail that the founder Rafael Lima has decided to step back and leave the project in the hands of the community. The announcement discloses that the original website is still unavailable and “still remains in the hands of the founder and developer.” As the Tezos community banded together around the mirror, the Tezos infrastructure provider Teztools is now the “caretaker” of the Hic et nunc smart contract until a DAO is functional. Hic et Nunc Founder Lowers Fees to the Lowest Level the Smart Contract Will Permit Furthermore, Lima has lowered the platform’s fee to 1%, according to recent statements. “Hic et nunc founder Rafael Lima has been in communication with some of the admin team and reduced the existing HEN contract fee to 1%,” the hicetnunc-community Twitter account wrote. “In turn, DNS.xyz have transferred the ownership of the mirror Hicetnunc.art to the community care of Teztools.” Moreover, the generative artist and creative coder, Matt DesLauriers, published a blog post about the subject on November 13, called “Hicetnunc and the Merits of Web3.” In the blog post, DesLauriers explained that despite the original Hic et nunc website shutting down, “its users and their content are able to transition seamlessly to alternative platforms and online spaces, because the website was merely acting as a thin interface atop the decentralized blockchain contracts and peer-to-peer file hosting.” What do you think about the Tezos community banding together around a Hic et nunc mirror and the community transitioning the project into a DAO? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The beta version of Ethair Market that launched on Monday, November 8th allows sellers to list their items early and get buyers acquainted with the site before their full release. Ethair has no listing fees and is currently available in the U.S & Canada, soon expanding to the other continents. In an effort to entice sellers, Ethair is currently running a giveaway for the first 1,000 sellers to sign up and list an item on the platform. Out of the 1000 entries 10 sellers will be randomly chosen to win $500 each, and have their item displayed in the ‘Featured Listings’ carousel on the home page. Giveaway runs until January 31st, 2022. What makes Ethair special? Ethair Market is focused on improving user’s e-commerce experiences. The platform natively supports transactions made with both cryptocurrency and traditional fiat. Combined with low fees, no insertion costs and plans for future crypto additions, the platform is working hard to stand out from the competition. Ethair offers two different types of listings: Market which are new fixed price items, and “Buy Offer Bid” (referred to as BOB on the platform) which includes new and used auction items that customers can buy outright, make an offer on, or bid on like in traditional auctions. These listings allow for maximum flexibility for both buyers and sellers. Ethair’s motto is: You sell, you choose. Another feature of Ethair is the secure escrow account for listings that accept crypto. It makes the transaction process easier for both buyers and sellers. The funds remain in escrow until the item is received. If the buyer is satisfied with their purchase they release the funds to the seller. The benefits of this marketplace don’t stop there. For every ‘Final Value Fee’ Ethair gives both sellers and buyers points. These points can be used in various ways by both buyers and sellers from subsidizing the cost of purchasing an item to offering extra points in a listing to incentivize buyers. Users may exchange, or mint, their points for Ethair’s ETHR token. This is an Ethereum based smart contract token that will give its holders even more benefits. These benefits include reduced fees when purchasing an advertising spot on the site for their item listing and no transaction fees when purchasing goods with the token. Furthermore, users which hold the token on Ethair Market will have the governance power to vote on certain important matters regarding the utilities and distribution of the token. The first vote took place during the first week of the beta ending on November 15th, 2021. Token holders voted to list ETHR on an exchange with details to be provided soon. Supported cryptocurrencies The cryptocurrencies Ethair currently supports are: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Stellar, Ethereum Classic, Dogecoin, USDC, and Ethair’s ETHR Token. This list includes the early blockchains along with trending coins like Dogecoin. The remaining two are the only tokens. USDC offers a dollar-like cryptocurrency experience and ETHR Token which offers platform specific benefits. Company goals & expansion Ethair’s goal is to become the go-to option as a more customer-friendly platform. It aims to improve what a marketplace can offer to its users. The site strives to operate as a marketplace with the primary goal of supporting its sellers and their businesses. With the Stripe payment integration, Ethair is already looking to expand into 45 countries, while staying compliant with local laws and regulations. One big development that’s in the works is the implementation of the NFT marketplace. The way Ethair hopes to tackle NFT’s is a hybrid method of on-chain and off-chain states allowing for cross-chain, feeless and instantaneous transactions while bringing the technology closer to the masses with unique use-cases. Another long-term goal is to expand into warehouses to be able to provide even more convenience for their users. Ethair aims to lead the future of digital marketplaces and cement itself amongst current platforms as a household name. Socials https://www.ethair.com https://twitter.com/EthairMarket https://twitter.com/ETHRtoken https://www.facebook.com/EthairMarket/ https://www.t.me/EthairMarket This is a sponsored post. Learn how to reach our audience here. Read disclaimer below. View the full article

The founder and chief investment officer of Hayman Capital Management, Kyle Bass, has warned that governments will start to really clamp down on bitcoin. He predicts that “intense” crypto regulation will come out of the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) next year. Fund Manager Expects ‘Intense’ Crypto Regulation Next Year Kyle Bass, founder and chief investment officer of Hayman Capital Management, talked about bitcoin and the outlook for cryptocurrencies in an interview on the Investor’s Podcast Network, published Saturday. Bass is a hedge fund manager who made winning bets on subprime loans in 2007. While acknowledging that “Millennials love private crypto” and “people like to think it’s a perfect substitute or a great substitute for gold and/or an inflation protector,” Bass said: I tend to think that you’re going to see authoritarian governments and Western democracies alike start to really clamp down on bitcoin. He referenced China which has been cracking down on crypto activities. “I know China first kicked the miners out and then banned private crypto. They did that a year earlier than I expected them to do it,” he opined, adding: I think next year, you’re going to see intense regulation come from the US Treasury and the IRS. He also discussed “discount rates” and how to protect against “this insidious inflation.” “I know bitcoin has done well. I know that the returns have literally been off the charts for many, and there are many newly minted billionaires out there in bitcoin land,” he noted. However, he warned: “I think the easy money has been made … I think from here on out, it’s going to be really difficult to make money there.” Bass further shared: “I own a couple of private positions in big firms that are trading, lending against, and developing bitcoins and NFTs [non-fungible tokens] and all of the digital universe of alphabet soup things that are out there.” He concluded: “I think that the blockchain, I think that NFTs, those things are all very much here to stay. Private crypto, I put a question mark by over the long run. I’d be careful with that now.” The investment manager also does not think we are in a bubble. “I don’t believe we’re in a bubble today, as far as ratios are concerned and leverage in the system is a concern,” he said. What do you think about Kyle Bass’ comments? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Ripple has published a proposal for a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies called “A Real Approach to Cryptocurrency Regulation.” CEO Brad Garlinghouse explained that his company’s “proposed policy framework is a three-pronged approach of what can be done now,” noting that it is the result of Ripple’s “direct interactions with regulators and bipartisan policymakers.” Ripple’s ‘Real Approach to Cryptocurrency Regulation’ Ripple published a proposed regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies Tuesday. The proposal is the company’s “vision for how existing financial regulatory frameworks can be used to advance innovation and enhance consumer and market protections,” Ripple detailed, elaborating: Today, we were proud to release our vision for ‘A Real Approach to Cryptocurrency Regulation,’ a framework designed to offer an immediate and pragmatic approach to cryptocurrency and digital asset regulation in the United States. The company explained that it believes “the best public policy outcomes can be achieved by public-private collaboration, adapting existing regulatory frameworks, and fostering crypto innovation sandboxes.” These are three key recommendations outlined in the proposal. “Ripple believes that our proposal will ensure the U.S. succeeds in nurturing crypto innovation within its borders while also maintaining the strong consumer and investor protections it’s known for,” the company wrote. Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple’s CEO, described: Our proposed policy framework is a three-pronged approach of what can be done now to provide clarity to one of the fastest-growing industries in the U.S. It’s also the result of our direct interactions with regulators and bipartisan policymakers. “The crypto industry is stepping up to the plate for public-private collaboration on policy – no question about it – and we will continue to seek to work together on the optimal path forward,” he added. “All of the proposed measures discussed in this framework seek to provide legal clarity to industry, markets, and consumers in a way that an ad hoc, regulation-by-enforcement approach simply cannot,” Ripple concluded. The proposal can be found here. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been criticized for taking an enforcement approach to crypto regulation. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce criticized her own agency in August for taking this approach to regulating the crypto sector after the SEC announced an enforcement action against cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex. Many people have also asked the SEC for more clarity on crypto regulation but to no avail. Meanwhile, Ripple is still in an ongoing lawsuit with the SEC. The securities regulator sued the company, CEO Garlinghouse, and co-founder Christian Larsen over the sale of XRP which it considers a security offering. Ripple is not the only one that has come up with a proposal for crypto regulation. The Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has also proposed a crypto framework, with four key recommendations. CEO Brian Armstrong has been meeting with regulators to convince them that the U.S. should have just one single federal regulator overseeing the crypto space. Currently, Coinbase said it has 53 regulators in just the U.S. On Tuesday, Binance also called for global regulatory frameworks for crypto markets. The exchange launched an ad campaign titled “Crypto Is Evil,” featuring “10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users.” What do you think about Ripple’s proposal for crypto regulation? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has called for “global regulatory frameworks for crypto markets.” The company has also launched a “Crypto Is Evil” ad campaign featuring “10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users.” Binance Pushes for Global Crypto Regulation, Introduces ‘Crypto Is Evil’ Ads Cryptocurrency exchange Binance called for “global regulatory frameworks for crypto markets” Tuesday with a publication of “10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users” and several crypto ads in major newspapers. The 10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users “can serve as a guiding hand in regulatory discussions and development of global frameworks for crypto markets,” the company explained. The exchange believes that they “will serve as a guiding point to launch more productive conversations with the larger industry, including other exchanges, blockchain innovators, policymakers and world leaders.” Noting that “The future of crypto needs to be user-focused,” Binance detailed: The customer rights, as described in a series of advertisements published today globally, are meant to ensure safe access to emerging technologies, liquidity, and secure platforms among other steps to ‘protect users without limiting growth and innovation.’ The same ad titled “Crypto Is Evil” appears in major publications, such as the Washington Post, the New York Times, and the Financial Times. A portion of the ad reads: “When it comes to crypto, don’t let the headlines fool you. There’s a world beyond bitcoin and dogecoin, one where financial opportunity is accessible to everyone, not just the privileged few. Crypto belongs to all of us.” It also lists all 10 Fundamental Rights for Crypto Users, which can also be read here. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao commented: Regulation and innovation are not mutually exclusive. We want to do everything possible as an industry to work with regulators and world leaders to identify what is going to be the effective regulatory policy that, most importantly, protects users and spurs innovation. Many regulators worldwide have warned about Binance operating without authorization in their jurisdictions, including the U.K., Netherlands, South Africa, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, Lithuania, Italy, Singapore, and Canada. U.S. authorities are also investigating Binance for possible market manipulation and insider trading. What do you think about Binance calling for global crypto regulation and launching the “Crypto is Evil” ad campaign? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is selling cryptocurrency worth $56 million that was seized from the “number one promoter” of Bitconnect, the largest crypto fraud scheme ever charged criminally. Investors were fraudulently induced to invest over $2 billion. The Bitconnect promoter faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. US Selling Crypto Worth $56M Seized From Bitconnect’s ‘Number One Promoter’ The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that it is selling $56 million in seized cryptocurrency to compensate victims of the Bitconnect fraud scheme. The Justice Department noted that “The Bitconnect scheme is the largest cryptocurrency fraud scheme ever charged criminally.” U.S. District Judge Todd W. Robinson granted a request from the DOJ and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California on Friday “for authority to liquidate approximately $56 million in fraud proceeds seized from the self-described ‘number one promoter’ of Bitconnect, a cryptocurrency, who consented to the seizure.” According to the Justice Department: This liquidation is the largest single recovery of a cryptocurrency fraud by the United States to date. Glenn Arcaro, 44, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty on Sept. 1 to “participating in a massive conspiracy to defraud Bitconnect investors in the United States and abroad, in which investors were fraudulently induced to invest over $2 billion.” The government is “seeking to make whole victims of the Bitconnect scheme by selling the cryptocurrency and holding the proceeds in U.S. dollars,” the DOJ detailed. “The government will maintain custody of the seized proceeds in cryptocurrency wallets and intends to use these funds to provide restitution to the victims pursuant to a future restitution order by the court at sentencing.” Arcaro is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2022, the DOJ noted, adding that he “faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.” What do you think about the DOJ selling cryptocurrency seized from Bitconnect’s promoter? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. Shopping.io, an innovative crypto e-commerce platform, announces its first ever Crypto Tuesday event, taking place on Tuesday, November 30, 2021. Crypto Tuesday is the first-of-its kind discount event that happens online through the Shopping.io platform right after Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Shopping.io is an innovative way for consumers to shop for anything they want from Amazon, eBay, Walmart and Etsy using over 200+ Cryptocurrencies with international shipping. For this Crypto Tuesday event, everything purchased through the Shopping.io platform will have up to a 50% discount. How Does it Work? To participate in the event, users will need to make an account on the platform (Also a free account is available). For the Crypto Tuesday event, users will be able to spin the Fortune Wheel at check out and win 5% to 50% off their shopping cart. Users can shop for anything they want from Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Home Depot, and Etsy using the platform, and pay using Bitcoin, Ethereum, DogeCoin, and any other crypto held in their digital wallet. The Crypto Tuesday discount will then be applied to the total order. In addition to the Crypto Tuesday savings, users who hold $SPI or $GSPI (Shopping.io native tokens) on the Dynamic or VIP package will get an additional discount. This means total savings can be as much as 60% off. Sign up not to miss the event at: https://shopping.io/crypto-tuesday/ About Shopping.io Shopping.io was launched in December 2020, founded by dropshipping veterans with a vision to change how we make purchases with crypto. This unique shopping platform allows consumers to make purchases online from thousands of different products using their favorite cryptocurrencies while simultaneously receiving rewards on the platform, along with a variety of token-specific discounts. Future API integrations to allow previously unsupported tokens to be able to participate in crypto E-commerce by allowing them to make purchases online with their cryptocurrencies. $SPI and $GSPI are Shopping.io’s native tokens that allow you to unlock plan discounts and benefits up to 10% discounts on Shopping.io, including free international shipping. The mission of Shopping.io is to innovate and revolutionize how the world does business with crypto. Contacts For more information on this event or Shopping.io, please feel free to contact us on our live chat directly on our website or through support@shopping.io https://twitter.com/shopping_io https://t.me/shoppingio https://discord.com/invite/4dG2bM2 https://www.youtube.com/c/Shoppingio/featured https://m.facebook.com/shopping.io https://www.instagram.com/shopping.io_official/ This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

On Tuesday, one of the Big Four accounting organizations, Deloitte announced a strategic partnership with Ava Labs, the team behind the blockchain network Avalanche. According to the announcement, Deloitte’s new cloud-based platform leverages Avalanche in order to “improve security, speed and [the] accuracy of Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursements.” Deloitte to Utilize Avalanche Protocol to Enhance Newly Launched Close as You Go Platform During the last few years all four of the Big Four accounting networks, PWC, Ernst & Young (EY), KPMG, and Deloitte have been involved in blockchain consulting, research, and development. On November 16, Deloitte announced a strategic alliance with Ava Labs in order to “improve state and local governments’ recovery from natural disasters and public health emergencies.” The Avalanche blockchain will be leveraged to improve the firm’s new cloud-based solution. According to Deloitte, the company’s newly launched Close As You Go (CAYG) platform is meant to help state and local governments streamline disaster reimbursement applications. These applications go specifically to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The CAYG’s cloud-based platform leverages Avalanche (AVAX) in order to provide a decentralized and transparent system that “empowers both grantmakers and funding recipients.” Alex Haseley, principal, Deloitte & Touche LLP, and Deloitte’s government and public services crisis management portfolio leader says CAYG plays a “critical role” in helping bolster these types of federal emergency efforts. “When disaster strikes a community, state and local officials must act swiftly and deliberately to respond,” Haseley said. The Deloitte executive added: Our new Close As You Go platform can play a critical role in helping these leaders be prepared to aggregate and validate the documentation necessary to demonstrate eligibility for funding and reduce the risk of adverse audit findings down the road. Avalanche Protocol Aims to Provide a Secure Environment for Federal Disaster Claims Meanwhile, the Avalanche (AVAX) ecosystem has seen exponential growth during the last year, and the native currency AVAX is up 2,522% year-to-date. Defillama.com metrics show that Avalanche holds the fifth-largest number of total-value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance (defi) on November 16, with $10.15 billion TVL. During the first week of November, the Avalanche Foundation announced the launch of Blizzard, a $200 million fund dedicated to financing developers working on innovative Avalanche-based platforms. On Tuesday, Ava Labs president John Wu said that the organization was “proud to work closely with Deloitte to offer this new, secure and beneficial technology for communities across the country.” The melding of CAYG and the Avalanche blockchain will create a secure environment for federal disaster claims, the Avalanche team claims. According to the announcement, Deloitte also chose to leverage Avalanche because it’s an “eco-friendly platform, which aligns with Deloitte’s commitment to green technology.” What do you think about the alliance between the Big Four accounting organization Deloitte and Ava Labs? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Inflation has continued to make the price of goods and services in America rise as the U.S. dollar’s purchasing power is not what it used to be. Meanwhile, the Obama administration’s former economic advisor, Larry Summers, recently told the press that “We’re going to see inflation of a kind we haven’t seen in 30 years.” Despite the gloomy forecasts, the White House doesn’t believe these predictions and U.S. Treasury secretary Janet Yellen is blaming inflation on the Covid pandemic. Former Economic Advisor for Obama Predicts Red Hot Inflation Will Rise Higher — White House Rejects Idea Infrastructure Funds Will Keep Inflation Going Americans are forking over more and more dollars to pay for gas, rent, homes, food, healthcare supplies, medicine, vehicles, and more, ever since the U.S. government expanded the money supply like at no other time in history. President Joe Biden seems to think that the trillion-dollar infrastructure bill will help alleviate inflation even though economists are doubting this prediction. Speaking with CNN, Larry Summers, the American economist who served as the 71st United States Treasury secretary, said: “We’re going to see inflation of a kind we haven’t seen in 30 years.” NBC's Peter Alexander: "Americans are seeing their dollars, their paychecks stretched right now. Why should Americans not be concerned that injected another $1.57 trillion or more would raise inflation?" Psaki: "B/c no economist out there is projecting that[.]" Um, wut? pic.twitter.com/Cz4vcguSvs — Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) November 15, 2021 However, when White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked about inflation soaring by an NBC journalist who kept pressing her, the secretary rejected such predictions. Fox News contributor Joe Concha made fun of the press secretary’s commentary on Twitter and said: “There are too many economists to count who say trillions in new spending will only raise inflation further. These Psaki-Bombs are beyond comical at this point,” Concha added. Treasury Secretary Yellen Blames Inflation on Covid Pandemic While economists are predicting a drawdown in the U.S. economy, U.S. Treasury secretary Janet Yellen told the press on Sunday that the inflation America faces is due to Covid-19. “It’s important to realize that the cause of this inflation is the pandemic,” Yellen said. “It led to a dramatic increase in demand… for products,” she continued. “And although the supply of products has increased in the United States and globally, not as much as demand.” Gold bug and economist Peter Schiff mocked Yellen’s statements about Covid-19 causing inflation. Schiff highlighted in a tweet that he believes the Federal Reserve is to blame for the loss of purchasing power. “According to Yellen, inflation resulted from a dramatic increase in consumer demand to buy products,” Schiff tweeted. “But where did consumers get the money to buy those products? From the government, which in turn got the money from the Fed. The Fed caused the inflation.” When Yellen spoke on Sunday she did not get into the highly chastised government mandates the U.S. government has enforced over the last two years. American officials across the entire nation shut down businesses, created terms like “essential workers,” crafted vaccine mandates, enforced a rent moratorium for well over 16 months, and pumped more USD into America’s monetary supply than in the first three-quarters of the country’s entire history in less than two years. On Sunday, however, Yellen’s statements on the CBS broadcast “Face the Nation,” indicate that she believes the virus, not the central planners, has been holding the reigns of the U.S. economy. “The pandemic has been calling the shots for the economy and for inflation,” Yellen concluded. “And if we want to get inflation down, I think continuing to make progress against the pandemic is the most important thing we can do.” Minneapolis Fed President Also Blames Supply Disruptions, Covid Virus — Biden Advisor Mentions Vaccinating Children Will ‘Comfort American Families’ The day before Yellen spoke on CBS, Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank president, Neel Kashkari, explained that inflation will likely keep rising during the next few months. “The math suggests we’re probably going to see somewhat higher readings over the next few months before they likely start to taper off,” Kashkari said. Similar to Yellen, Kashkari stressed that supply chain issues and the Coronavirus pandemic are the main reasons why inflation persists. “We’re seeing both a surge of demand because Congress has given a lot of money to families and businesses to get through the pandemic, but we’re also seeing supply disruptions at the same time because of the Covid virus,” Kashkari further remarked. Additionally, the director of the National Economic Council serving under president Joe Biden, Brian Deese, told the press that addressing Covid would help ease inflation. When ABC News correspondent George Stephanopoulos asked Deese if “there [is] anything president Biden can do” to address inflation, Deese responded by saying: “Number one: We have to finish [the] job on Covid…getting those shots out to 5-11-year-olds is gonna provide a lot of comfort to American families.” What do you think about the rising inflation in America and the different viewpoints about the loss of purchasing power from U.S. officials and economists? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

At least three Federal Reserve governors have said that they do not see a reason for the Fed to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The Fed is currently putting together a report on a digital dollar to be released in the near future. Fed Governors Doubt Need for Digital Dollar Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman said last week that she does not see much of a reason for the Fed to issue a U.S. central bank digital currency given the safety and efficiency of the U.S. payment system. She said: I’m not really sure that I understand or see the business case for creating it. The Fed is currently putting together a report discussing the pros and cons of issuing a digital dollar. The report is expected to be released soon. Another Federal Reserve governor who is skeptical about the Fed issuing a digital dollar is Randal Quarles. He said on Oct. 20 at a Milken Institute conference that he does not understand the arguments in favor of issuing a central bank digital currency. Quarles, who is set to resign in December, opined: Until somebody answers me the question why, I don’t understand why we would devote the enormous amount of resources and the technological risk and the significant disruption to the current operation of the financial system that would come from the central bank saying we are going to provide this digital currency. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller also doubts whether the Fed should issue a digital dollar. He explained in October during a discussion hosted by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) that a digital dollar would put the Fed in direct competition with commercial banks. “With a central bank digital currency, you’re asking a very direct question. Should the central bank be more involved in processing payments for households and firms in a way that allows them to circumvent the banking system? That is what a CBDC account is doing,” Waller said. “So, should you compete with the banking system or not?” In August, the Fed governor noted: I remain skeptical that a Federal Reserve CBDC would solve any major problem confronting the U.S. payment system. Do you think the Fed should issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC)? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Cryptocurrency markets have dropped significantly in value during the last 24 hours as the entire market capitalization of all 10,000 crypto assets in existence has dropped below the $3 trillion mark to $2.77 trillion on Tuesday morning (EST). After tapping $66K on Monday, bitcoin’s price slid below the $60K handle to a low of $58,563 per unit. After the steep fall, bitcoin’s price has recovered some losses, rising back above the $60K range and has started to show some consolidation. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Top Cryptos See Double-Digit Losses in 24 Hours Digital currencies are down in value on Tuesday as the market capitalization of the entire crypto-economy shed billions during the last 24 hours. Bitcoin (BTC) is down 7.5% during the last day and has fallen 10.2% for the week. At the time of writing, BTC is swapping for $60,563 per unit and has an overall market valuation of $1.14 trillion. BTC has $48 billion in 24-hour trade volume on Tuesday and 52.43% of those trades are paired with tether (USDT). This is followed by USD (18.75%), BUSD (6.61%), JPY (4.79%), EUR (4.45%), and KRW (2.70%). Bitcoin’s drop from the $66K handle to just above $60K has also caused the myriad of alternative crypto asset markets to falter. Ethereum (ETH) has shed 9.2% during the overnight, and weekly stats show ether has lost 11.6%. While BTC has a dominance score of 41.5%, ethereum’s market is 18.3% of the entire crypto economy. Most digital currency markets suffered decent losses but coins like ecomi (OMI), nexo (NEXO), huobi token (HT), wonderland (TIME), and helium (HNT) have seen very little losses. However, crypto assets like spell token (SPELL), kucoin token (KCS), near (NEAR), kadena (KDA), arweave (AR), dash (DASH), and zcash (ZEC) have lost between 15% to as high as 22.4% during the last day. Ark36 Executive: ‘Drop Results in a Leverage Shakeout Which Contributes to a Healthier Market’ Meanwhile, as bitcoin, ethereum, and a slew of crypto markets suffer deep losses, the crypto assets hedge fund Ark36 executive Mikkel Morch told Bitcoin.com News that the drawdown is normal. “Yet again, bitcoin has done what it does best – defy expectations,” Morch said. “After hitting an all-time high near the 69K level last week, the overall investor expectation was that the trend would immediately continue. Instead, we saw a largely sideways trend culminating in an almost 8% drop yesterday. Such a price decrease may seem disappointing or even concerning given the sweeping wave of enthusiasm the markets experienced just last week.” Morch continued: However, it is vital to remember that an 8% drawdown is considered a normal market move in the crypto markets. At the moment, the overall bullish market structure remains largely intact. In fact, a sudden price drop results in a leverage shakeout which contributes to a healthier market that is better set up for an uptrend continuation in the medium term. Huobi Global: Indicators Show ‘High Bearish Sentiment in the Market’ Bitcoin market fundamentals from Huobi Global indicate that there are many factors that show market sentiment is currently bearish. “All EMAs steeply downward, Bollinger band opening significantly expanded, the current indicators are indicating a high bearish sentiment in the market,” Huobi Global told Bitcoin.com News on Tuesday morning. “From the daily level, BTC is now in a long negative line, the short-term uptrend has broken, daily volume is enlarged, the short-term trend may continue to move downward, pay attention to the support below,” Huobi added. In a similar market outlook report, Huobi noted that ethereum (ETH) market signals also indicate a “high bearish sentiment in the market.” ETH/USD chart indicators using a 4-hour time frame show EMAs and the K-line are all running downhill. “From a daily perspective, the upside channel of ETH may be broken, and this retracement falls below the short-term support level, and the follow-up continues to look for whether there is effective support below,” Huobi Global’s bitcoin and ethereum market outlook concluded. What do you think about the downturn in crypto markets and the crypto economy shedding billions during the last 24 hours? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Bank of England’s deputy governor for financial stability, Sir Jon Cunliffe, has warned that cryptocurrency is getting closer to posing a threat to global financial stability due to the sector’s rapid growth. Crypto is also being integrated into the traditional financial system at a rapid rate. He urges regulators to take action now. Bank of England’s Jon Cunliffe Warns Crypto Is Closer to Becoming a Threat to Global Financial Stability Sir Jon Cunliffe, Bank of England’s deputy governor for financial stability, talked about bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general on BBC’s Today program Monday. He warned that cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, are getting closer to becoming a threat to global financial stability due to their rapid growth. Cunliffe said: My judgement is they’re not, at the moment, a financial stability risk, but they are growing very fast, and they’re becoming integrated more into what I might call the traditional financial system. The Bank of England official warned that crypto assets’ volatility could soon spill over into traditional markets. He urges regulators to take action, stating: So the point at which they pose a risk is getting closer. I think regulators and legislators need to think very hard about that. In July, Cunliffe said that crypto assets were “not of the size that they would cause financial stability risk, and they’re not connected deeply into the standing financial system.” He also explained Monday that companies such as Meta, formerly Facebook, are launching their own stablecoins, such as Diem. “There are proposals for new players who are not banks, including some of the big tech platforms and some of the social media platforms, to come into the world and issue their own money. But I think that those proposals don’t yet exist at scale, so I don’t think we’re behind the curve here,” Cunliffe opined. The deputy governor for financial stability also commented on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). “The reason why we might consider, why we’re actively exploring introducing the digital pound, digital form of Bank of England cash, is that the way we live and the way we transact is changing all the time,” he described. “The question is whether the public at large, businesses and households, should really have the option of using and holding the safest form of money — which is Bank of England money — in their everyday lives. That’s the question that we’ll explore in this taskforce between the Treasury and the Bank of England over the next year,” he added. In October, Cunliffe warned that crypto could collapse, citing its lack of intrinsic value and extreme price volatility. He then urged regulators to urgently establish rules for crypto assets. The Bank of England also issued a report in October stating that crypto assets pose “limited” direct risks to the financial stability of the U.K.’s financial system. “Cryptoasset and associated markets and services continue to grow and to develop rapidly. Such assets are becoming increasingly integrated into the financial system. The FPC [Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee] judges that direct risks to the stability of the U.K. financial system from cryptoassets are currently limited.” What do you think about Jon Cunliffe’s comments? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article