Crypto News Updates

Tesla’s latest filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) shows that the fair market value of the company’s bitcoin holdings was $191 million at the end of 2022. In addition, billionaire Elon Musk’s electric car company recorded $204 million of impairment losses resulting from changes in the prices of bitcoin. Tesla’s Digital Assets and Its Bitcoin’s Fair Value Elon Musk’s electric car company, Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA), filed its annual report for the year ended Dec. 31, 2022, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday. The filing shows that the fair market value of Tesla’s BTC holdings was $191 million at the end of 2022 while their carrying value was $184 million, as Bitcoin.com News previously reported . “As of December 31, 2022, and 2021, the carrying value of our digital assets held was $184 million and $1.26 billion, which reflects cumulative impairments of $204 million and $101 million, each period, respectively,” the company detailed, e

The Amesbury, Massachusetts-based Bankprov, a subsidiary of Provident Bancorp, has announced that it will no longer provide loans secured by cryptocurrency mining rigs. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (EX-99.1), Bankprov stated that revenue from its digital asset loan portfolio will continue to decrease as the company has discontinued new loan originations backed by mining equipment. Bankprov’s Portfolio of Cryptocurrency Collateralized Loans Decreased by 65% Bankprov disclosed that it holds approximately $41.2 million in cryptocurrency-collateralized loans, with about $26.7 million of the debt backed by crypto-mining equipment. Collateralized loans secured by application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) mining rigs became a popular investment vehicle in 2021, but the crypto winter resulted in significant pressure on the industry. By the end of June 2022, Luxor executive Ethan Vera estimated that about $4 billion in loans backed by mining machines we

On Monday, Alameda Research Ltd. filed a legal complaint against Voyager Digital LLC and HTC Trading Inc. in the U.S. bankruptcy court. The complaint alleges the defendants received preferential transfers of property from Alameda Research and the plaintiffs are seeking to recover approximately $445.8 million from Voyager and HTC. Legal Battle Erupts Over Crypto Asset Transfers Reportedly Made by Alameda Research A newly filed complaint in the FTX bankruptcy proceedings shows Alameda Research, the defunct quantitative trading firm created by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), is seeking close to $446 million from bankrupt exchange Voyager Digital and HTC Trading. Lawyers for Alameda claim the company paid off outstanding loans after Voyager filed for bankruptcy protection in July. The complaint also claims the transfers are recoverable as an administrative priority under sections 503 and 507 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. “The collapse of Alameda and its affiliates amid allegations that Alame

Bitcoin fell below $23,000 on Jan. 31, following a recent move to a five-month high over the weekend. Market volatility has since increased, as traders prepare for a big few days of economic data from the United States. The conference board will release its consumer confidence report later today, with the Federal Reserve holding its policy meeting on Wednesday. Ethereum also moved lower today. Bitcoin Bitcoin ( BTC ) retreated from a recent five-month high on Tuesday, with prices falling below the $23,000 mark in today’s session. BTC /USD fell to a low of $22,657.58 earlier in the day, less than 24 hours after hitting a high at $23,296.53. The move comes as traders appear to have secured gains from recent surges in price, and ahead of the upcoming Federal Reserve policy decision. As can be seen from the chart, today’s drop saw BTC move closer to a price floor at $22,500, with the relative strength index (RSI) hitting a floor of its own. Currently, the index is now tracking at 6

The fate of the Panamanian crypto bill project, which was approved by the Panamanian National Assembly last year, now depends on the decision of the supreme court of the country. The sanction of the project, which was vetoed by President Laurentino Cortizo, is now in the hands of the court after Congress rejected the veto measure. Panamanian Law Still Has Opportunity of Being Approved The Panamanian cryptocurrency bill, which was introduced in 2021 to the National Assembly and passed by the institution last year, has the opportunity of being re-examined and sanctioned even without presidential support. The destiny of the document lies now in the hands of the Supreme Court of Panama, which will have to weigh the arguments in favor and against the sanction of the regulatory framework. President Laurentino Cortizo, who received the document on Jan. 18 to sanction the proposed bill, delivered it to the court instead after issuing heavy objections to its form. The institution, that will

Ordinals, a new way of using and getting content using Bitcoin, are enabling creators to harness the utility of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) directly from the blockchain, essentially creating native Bitcoin NFTs. This has stirred the pot in some circles, which are now discussing if this is the way in which Bitcoin’s blockchain should be used, and how this new use case will affect bitcoin nodes and fees in the future. Ordinals Enable Bitcoin NFTs Courtesy of Taproot A newfound use case for the Bitcoin chain is now being tested by individuals that have found a way of getting content directly to the blockchain. The project, called Ordinals , and launched just a few days ago, has enabled anyone to create Bitcoin NFTs (called inscriptions) as part of its functionality. This opportunity was inadvertently opened by the Taproot upgrade that the network underwent in November, which extended the length of Bitcoin transactions to almost the whole size of a block. This has been key for what’s c

Russian crypto traders have been looking to obtain unrestricted accounts for global exchanges as their access to such platforms is limited. Over the past year, the offering of such accounts on the dark web has increased significantly, cybersecurity experts told the Russian press. Supply of Crypto Exchange Accounts for Russian Users Doubles in a Year of Sanctions More and more ready-to-use accounts for cryptocurrency exchanges are being sold to Russian residents. While this is not a new phenomenon — such accounts are often employed by fraudsters and money launderers — the current growth in supply has been attributed to the restrictions imposed by the trading platforms on customers from Russia, as a result of compliance with sanctions over the war in Ukraine. Russian residents have been buying these accounts despite the dangers, including the risk that whoever created them could maintain access after the sale, the Kommersant reported. But they are inexpensive and offers on darknet ma

Seven months ago, current Twitter owner Elon Musk said, prior to acquiring the social media giant, he would integrate cryptocurrency payments. According to sources, a team is working on the infrastructure for a payment platform, and Twitter is proceeding with regulatory approvals and registrations. Elon Musk’s Plan for Twitter Payment System Advances, Adding Cryptocurrency Later Elon Musk appears to be proceeding with plans to integrate a payment system into Twitter. According to sources cited by the Financial Times (FT), Elon’s lieutenant, Esther Crawford , is working on logistics and has formed a small team. Musk has previously stated his intention to create a payment system, and in mid-June 2022, the current Twitter owner mentioned the integration of cryptocurrencies. “I think it would make sense to integrate payments into Twitter so that it’s easy to send money back and forth, and fiat currency as well as crypto — essentially, whatever somebody would find useful,” Musk detai

Last month, statistics showed that the Crypto Fear and Greed Index (CFGI) had a score of 25, indicating “extreme fear.” Thirty days later, with a 39% increase in bitcoin prices against the U.S. dollar, the current CFGI score on Jan. 30, 2023, is 61, reflecting “greed.” Crypto Fear Index Jumps to ‘Greed,’ Etoro Market Analyst Attributes Bitcoin’s Rise to Shift in Investor Expectations Records show bitcoin (BTC) saw significant value growth in the first month of 2023, with a 39% increase against the U.S. dollar. On Jan. 29, 2023, BTC reached a 30-day high of $23,954 per unit, with prices ranging from that value to a low of $22,988 over the past 24 hours. This rise has significantly raised the Crypto Fear and Greed Index (CFGI) hosted on alternative.me, moving it from the “extreme fear” zone to the “greed” range in the course of the month. Last week, CFGI records showed a score of around 50, indicating “neutral,” according to alternative.me. Seven days later, the CFGI score rose t

The metaverse is making inroads in job recruiting fronts in Japan. According to local reports, a mega metaverse job fair was organized on Jan. 27, with more than 2,000 students taking part in the experience. The students used avatars to communicate and review the job previews available in different booths controlled by several companies. Japan Embraces the Metaverse for Recruiting Metaverse tech is starting to change the landscape of job hunting and recruiting in Japan. More than 2,000 students attended a metaverse job fair, that allowed them to use digital avatars to communicate with recruiters and examine the possibilities of each job offer available. Due to the anonymity in the metaverse, participants were allowed to ask questions on delicate matters concerning these job offerings, according to reports of the Asahi Shimbun. 179 companies participated in this effort, which was organized by Neo Career Co., which took care of the job-related activities, and X Inc., which carried t

The Argentine peso has fallen consistently against the U.S. dollar this month, losing almost 12% since Jan. 1. The behavior of the exchange rate for the informal “blue” dollar keeps bringing concerns about a possible escalade in inflation rates, that are predicted to reach almost 100% this year, similar to the rates registered in 2022. Argentine Peso Keeps Falling Argentina is currently submerged in a devaluation scenario that has the possibility of causing an escalation in prices this year. The value of the Argentine peso against the U.S. dollar has fallen by almost 12%, reaching a record-high rate of 386 pesos per dollar on Jan. 27 in its ‘ blue ‘ variation. The exchange rate has been constantly rising since December, when it reached 356 pesos per dollar, breaking a record low for the peso at that time. The government has made movements to maintain its stability, injecting dollars to satisfy the demand of registered importers into the market and announcing a purchase operation

PRESS RELEASE. VICTORIA, Seychelles — Bitget , a leading cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, has announced the winners and conclusion of its Hero Trader Awards 2022 competition. The event was organized to select the best 15 copy traders with high moral standards and professional qualities through community voting. The Hero Trader Awards 2022 commemorated the advancement of copy trading based on transaction data from Bitget’s One-Click Copy Trade in 2022 , which was used to select 75 Star Traders who participated in the contest. Bitget is a pioneer in crypto copy trading thanks to the way it works to improve products through innovation. One-Click Copy Trade is Bitget’s flagship offering of crypto copy trade, and as of Jan 19th, 2023, the product has amassed more than 80,000 traders and over 380,000 followers, along with 42,000,000 profitable copy trades since its launch. Recently, Bitget has become the first cryptocurrency exchange to launch copy trading in the spot market. The

Lawmakers in Nur-Sultan have approved the final version of the law “On Digital Assets in the Republic of Kazakhstan.” The new legislation, including several other bills, regulates the circulation of cryptocurrencies in the country and introduces a licensing regime for crypto miners and exchanges. Senate Votes on Crypto Law, Sends It to President of Kazakhstan Kazakhstan’s Senate has adopted a bill designed to regulate cryptocurrencies and related activities in the Central Asian nation. Along with additional legal documents, the new law “On Digital Assets in the Republic of Kazakhstan” creates conditions for establishing a crypto ecosystem in the country, local media reported. Members of the upper house of parliament considered the comprehensive package earlier in January and decided to propose certain amendments to the Mazhilis, which had already approved its version of the legislation. However, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev dissolved the lower house on Jan. 19 and called early e

A U.S. lawmaker has introduced a resolution that encourages Capitol gift shops to accept cryptocurrency payments. He stressed that lawmakers “should increase accessibility and signal our support for the burgeoning cryptocurrency industry to those who visit Capitol Hill.” US Senator Advocates Crypto Payments U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) announced Thursday that he has reintroduced the Adopting Cryptocurrency in Congress as an Exchange of Payment for Transactions (ACCEPT) Resolution. Cruz first introduced this resolution in November 2021. The senator from Texas said: Cryptocurrency is generating new jobs, encouraging entrepreneurs to invent new values and creating new hedges against inflation, and presenting new opportunities. It is also increasingly being used as a secure form of payment for goods and services. “This is precisely why we, here at the United States Capitol, should increase accessibility and signal our support for the burgeoning cryptocurrency industry to those who

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren has called on Congress to ensure regulators, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), have the tools to regulate the crypto industry effectively and crack down on crypto money laundering activities. “The current legal structure essentially holds up a giant sign over crypto that says, money laundering done here,” the lawmaker stressed. Senator Urges Congress to Crack Down on Crypto Money Laundering U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said in an interview with Politico’s Morning Money Wednesday that cracking down on money laundering activities is her “main focus” in terms of crypto-related legislation. The senator confirmed that she will reintroduce her bill titled “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2022.” Originally introduced in December last year, this bill is “the most direct attack ” on the personal freedom and privacy of crypto users, according to experts in the field. Warren explained that money laundering is “not nearly as

The Bitcoin blockchain recorded another difficulty increase on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023, at block height 774,144. The network’s difficulty increased by 4.68%, from 37.59 trillion to an all-time high of 39.35 trillion. Bitcoin Difficulty Reaches New All-Time High as Mining Gets Tougher Bitcoin’s difficulty reached another all-time high, surpassing the record set two weeks ago, after rising 4.68% on Sunday. The increase occurred at block height 774,144 , at 6:10 a.m. (UTC). The difficulty is now at 39.35 trillion, close to surpassing 40 trillion. The next adjustment is due Feb. 11, 2023. The rise makes mining blocks more difficult, following a 4.68% jump after the 10.26% increase on Jan. 15, 2023. Jan. 29 statistics show a hashrate of 279.7 exahash per second (EH/s) over the last 2,016 blocks, currently at 283.55 EH/s dedicated to the Bitcoin blockchain. Statistics from macromicro.me on Jan. 28, 2023, estimate the cost of BTC production at $21,176 per unit. On Jan. 29, the spot p

Stocks, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies rallied during the first month of the year, and market strategists are saying that markets could retract in the near future if the U.S. Federal Reserve keeps hiking rates and maintaining a broader tightening policy. In three days, on Feb. 1, 2023, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is set to convene. While the market expects rate cuts, some analysts think the Fed will continue raising the federal funds rate. Chris Vermeulen, the founder and chief investment officer of The Technical Traders, insists the S&P 500 is due to slide 37% lower than its current position. Strategist Predicts Potential Market Correction as Powell’s Re-tightening of Financial Conditions is Anticipated Markets are closely watching the next Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, scheduled to occur on Wednesday, Feb. 1, three days from now. Last week, Bitcoin.com News reported on how investors are closely following the decision of Jerome Powell, the 1

Trends show that artificial intelligence (AI) will be a major topic in 2023, as data indicates a surge in interest. Since interest peaked and Microsoft invested billions into Chatgpt, demand for AI-focused cryptocurrency projects has risen dramatically. For example, the crypto project Fetch.ai has seen its native token FET rise 212% in the past 30 days, and another AI project, Singularitynet, has seen it’s token AGIX increase 293% against the U.S. dollar. There’s Been a Surge in Interest in AI-Focused Cryptocurrency Projects During the week of Jan. 22-28, 2023, the worldwide Google Trends score for the term “AI” was 94 out of 100. In the first week of Dec. 2022, the search term reached its highest Google Trends score of 100. It’s safe to say that the world has become increasingly focused on artificial intelligence (AI) since the release of AI-infused art platforms like Dall-E, Deep AI, Jasper Art, Starry AI, Nightcafe, and others. In the past two months, the Openai platform Chatgpt

The Ghanaian and Nigerian central banks have invited financial innovators that wish to be included in their respective regulatory sandboxes to submit applications. The Bank of Ghana said its sandbox will also support innovations that attempt to solve the financial exclusion challenge. Solving the Financial Exclusion Challenge The Ghanaian central bank has called on registered financial institutions and unlicensed fintech startups to apply for admission into its regulatory sandbox. In a press statement issued on Jan. 26, the bank said the process to admit the first cohort of participants will open on Feb. 13 and close on March 14. According to the Bank of Ghana (BOG), the sandbox will support innovations that include “new digital business models not currently covered explicitly or implicitly under any regulation.” The sandbox will also support innovations that attempt to solve the financial exclusion challenge as well as “new and immature digital financial service technology.” As

A new survey shows that institutional investors expect “a strong year ahead for bitcoin” and are confident about the cryptocurrency’s long-term valuation. In addition, 65% of institutional investors surveyed agree that bitcoin could reach $100,000. ‘Strong Year Ahead for Bitcoin’ Nickel Digital Asset Management published the results of a survey Thursday showing how high institutional investors expect the price of bitcoin to reach. The London-based investment manager is registered with the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The survey, commissioned by Nickel and conducted by market research company Pureprofile this month, interviewed 200 institutional investors and wealth managers across the U.S., U.K., Germany, Singapore, Switzerland, UAE, and Brazil. The respondents collectively managed around $2.85 trillion in assets. Sharing the results of the survey, Nickel detailed: Professional investors are forecasting a strong

The White House has published a “roadmap to mitigate cryptocurrencies’ risks.” The roadmap calls for authorities to “ramp up enforcement where appropriate” and Congress “to step up its efforts” to regulate the crypto sector. It also notes that legislation should not greenlight mainstream institutions “to dive headlong into cryptocurrency markets.” ‘The Administration’s Roadmap to Mitigate Cryptocurrencies’ Risks’ The White House published a blog post titled “The Administration’s Roadmap to Mitigate Cryptocurrencies’ Risks” Friday under the National Economic Council (NEC), an Executive Office of the President (EOP) established to advise the president on U.S. and global economic policy. The roadmap is authored by four White House advisors: NEC Director Brian Deese, Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Director Arati Prabhakar, Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) Chair Cecilia Rouse, and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. The CEA is charged with providing objective eco