Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Ukrainian deputy minister praises role of crypto in his country’s plight, explains canceled airdrop

As the Ukrainian people endures the ongoing Russian invasion, support has been coming from all over the world, including in the form of crypto donations. Ukraines Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Alex Bornyakov has praised the role that cryptocurrencies played in helping his country.　　Mr. Bornyakov discussed cryptocurrency donations and other crypto-related topics during a conversation at Yahoo Finance Live on March 7.　　Emphasizing the importance of quick response times in moments such as these, he argued that the traditional banking systems were too slow to provide the required financing for the military and humanitarian aid.　　Crypto, Bornyakov said, provided the necessary flexibility to quickly deliver the required supplies. To make this happen on the ground, the ministry partnered with a private exchange and created infrastructure that connects the Defense Ministry, banking systems, and companies that deliver the goods.　　He also commented on the failed airdrop that the Ukrainian government had promised as a form of reward for its crypto donors. Mr. Bornyakov explained that:　　“There were a lot of people that donated a very small amount and they just wanted to get rewarded. But I dont think this is the time to make profits and use the airdrop as a means of profit, so

2022-03-09Deep Dive

VanEck Launches Crypto Mining ETF

VanEcks Digital Assets Mining ETF (DAM) opened for business Wednesday, offering targeted exposure to those companies in the crypto asset mining industry.　　The exchange-traded fund will invest at least 80% of its total assets in securities of crypto miners that generate or have the potential to earn at least 50% of their revenue from mining activities or related technologies. The fund will track the MVIS Digital Assets Mining Index and will a have net expense ratio of 0.5%　　“Blockchains introduce transparency, efficiency and lower costs compared to traditional centralized databases and processes, but without miners, blockchain transactions cannot be verified and audited, making their role absolutely essential,” VanEck Head of Product Management Ed Lopez said in a statement on Wednesday.　　The ETF launch comes just a month after asset manager Valkyrie launched its Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI), focusing on miners that primarily rely on renewable energy. That fund fell more than 10% since its inception on Feb. 8, roughly in line with declines in other miners and the price of bitcoin (BTC).　　Its a “compelling time” for VanEck to launch the fund, said Lopez, as the crypto mining sector is still in the early stages of growth, and he expects high levels of demand

2022-03-09Deep Dive

Canada Shuts Down Numerous Crypto Scams

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has clamped down on cryptocurrency scams, according to a report by The Vancouver Sun.　　The Canadian authorities have blocked several fraudulent crypto platforms that have been luring unsuspecting into parting ways with their money.　　The crackdown, which has been in the works for several years, is the result of a slew of complaints received from victims.　　The fraudulent websites in question would entice users with flashy ads promising exorbitant returns. Some of the victims who were leery of the legitimacy of such offering eventually ended up falling into the trap after being repeatedly targeted with aggressive ads.　　The police urged investors to be cautious when dealing with cryptocurrencies due to the proliferation of such scams.　　The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) issued a cryptocurrency-related alert last month, urging investors to ignore any unsolicited recommendations to invest in cryptocurrencies.　　The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has estimated that the number of cryptocurrency-related scams has grown more than 5,600% since 2015.　　Earlier this month, local media outlets reported that an Ontario man had lost his entire life savings after falling victim to a crypto scam.　　For more blockchain news, please download WikiBit - the Global Blockchain Regulatory Inquiry APP.

2022-03-09Deep Dive

Bipartisan bill: Lock down Russia’s gold reserves, U.S. may stop oil imports

Sanctions against the Russian Federation are hitting hard on the Russian nation and its businesses, financial- and payment systems, and citizens alike. More and more nations and institutions are lining up to impose sanctions, and it seems as if deeper and wider sanctions are coming.　　Russia has been on a mission to de-risk its dependence on the U.S. dollar used in the countrys foreign trade, decreasing its holdings of dollars and looking to Chinese yuan, euro, and gold. However, there are no signs Russia might be using cryptocurrencies.　　As a result, Russia has one of the largest gold reserves in the world, and most of it is deposited inside Russia. It may be the last straw for the Russian economy to cling to. Russia holds around $132 billion in gold reserves.Bill would apply secondary sanctions to any American　　As a measure to cut this last significant straw, a bipartisan bill is being introduced to Congress, as reported by Axios. The bill introduced by Senators Angus King (I-Maine), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H) would target Russia‘s ability to sell its gold reserves. The bill would apply secondary sanctions to any American entities knowingly transacting with or transporting gold from

2022-03-09Deep Dive

President Biden could sign crypto executive order this week

Amidst the pressures on crypto companies to discontinue their services in Russia, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, will soon sign an executive order thatll pave the way for crypto regulations, according to a Bloomberg report.　　The order, which is expected to come midweek, will give the Treasury, Justice Department, and other federal agencies the go-ahead to research cryptocurrencies. Crypto regulations in the United States to become clearer　　Theyll examine ways to regulate it and determine whether a digital dollar is a good idea. The executive order was first announced last year when the White House said it was considering an oversight of the crypto market.　　The order will ask the Justice Department to see if a new law is necessary to issue a new currency. Other agencies such as Consumer Financial Protection Commission and Federal Trade Commission will study how it could affect consumers. 　　Other agencies will also study the impact of crypto on competitiveness, the infrastructure needed, the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining, etc.　　The order will set a 180-day deadline within which the federal agencies will provide reports on the future of money and cryptos role in that future. According to the source, the President could sign the order

2022-03-09Deep Dive

Thailand Eases Crypto Tax Rules to Promote Industry Development

Thailands ministry of finance has decided to ease tax rules for crypto investments and traders, Reuters reported on March 8. The announcement from the Thai finance cabinet stated that due to an upsurge in crypto trading, it had decided to implement rules to promote investment in digital assets.　　Crypto trader tax exemption　　This comes after the ministry previously dropped the 15% tax rate after receiving pushback from the public. According to Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, crypto traders will be exempt from the 7% value-added tax (VAT) when trading on government-authorized exchanges.　　Crypto traders will also now be able to offset annual losses against gains for taxes due on cryptocurrency investments and include trading of their retail central bank digital currency. The new tax exemption takes effect from April 2022 until December 2023.　　Cryptocurrency trading has become massive in Thailand, with the second-largest economy in South East Asia nearly 10x the number of active trading accounts. The market saw a near 600% increase in transaction volume from November 2020 to April 2021 according to data from the countrys Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).　　New laws for investors　　Besides just giving tax breaks to crypto traders, the ministry has also approved breaks for direct and indirect investments in

2022-03-09Deep Dive

Binance Launches Bitfinity, a Payments Company Targeting the Web3 Economy

Bitfinity Launches to Help Merchants Accept Crypto　　Binance, one of the largest exchanges by volume traded, recently announced the launch of Bitfinity, its own payments technology company. Bitfinity will become the de facto fiat-to-crypto payments processor of the exchange, supporting more than 50 currencies and all major payment methods, including Visa and Mastercard.　　This new processor also aims to make merchant onboarding easier, with merchants being able to use Bitfinitys API to receive cryptocurrency-based payments directly. Binance stated that another objective is to present users with a more friendly system for crypto payments. On the launch of Bitfinity, Helen Hai, President of Bitfinity, stated:　　As the crypto and the Web3 economy continue to grow, we see greater demand to build improved fiat-to-crypto on-ramps to bridge the gap between the traditional finance industry and the decentralized and centralized crypto economy.　　Bitfinity is already partnering with a series of wallets and blockchain services to provide fiat-to-crypto payment processing services.Web3 Is the Target　　Binance wants to position Bitfinity as a strong contender in the Web3 payments economy, which the company believes will be powered by cryptocurrencies eventually. For this purpose, the newly created company has inked partnerships with Paysafe and Checkout.com, two established payments processors that are already

2022-03-09Deep Dive

How Will Joe Biden’s Executive Order on Crypto Regulations Change Due to the Russia-Ukraine War?

After a brief delay caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine, US President Joe Biden is expected to sign the executive order about cryptocurrency regulations this week. In it, sources said Biden would cooperate with other allies to ensure they were all on the same page.　　The Delay of the Executive Order　　CryptoPotato reported on February 20 the anticipation in regards to Bidens latest executive order, which concerned the regulations in the cryptocurrency space. It was supposed to occur in the following week but plans changed when the Russian Federation launched a “special military operation” against Ukraine.　　Instead of getting directly involved in the conflict, the US and its Western allies decided to take another approach and incorporated countless sanctions against Russia, its president, oligarchs, and everyone in between.　　Amid those measures came the role of cryptocurrencies. On the one hand, reports claimed that Russians (and Ukrainians) turned to digital assets while their national currencies tumbled as the trading volumes skyrocketed. On the other, global watchdogs raised concerns that Russian oligarchs could employ the asset class to bypass the sanctions.　　While that seems highly unlikely, at least according to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, Biden postponed the signing of the

2022-03-09Deep Dive

Justin Sun Spoke of ‘Cooperation with Russia’ After Donating Funds to Ukraine

The Tron (TRX) founder, soon-to-be astronaut, and World Trade Organization (WTO) diplomat Justin Sun is “playing both sides” of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, social media users have remarked – after Sun posted what appeared to be news of talks with a senior Russian diplomat.　　Sun took to his Chinese-language Twitter account and Weibo channel to post news of his recent meeting with Russia‘s WTO Ambassador Dmitry Lyakishev. Sun himself is Granada’s WTO Ambassador.　　In the Chinese-language posts, Sun wrote that in a video call with his Russian counterpart, they had discussed ways that technology “could be used for humanitarian cases for Russia‘s development,” including the “use of blockchain technology to help citizens who don’t have access to the financial system.” He concluded by writing:　　“[We/I] hope to strengthen future cooperation with Russia!”　　The post caused no shortage of confusion among Suns followers – particularly as the Tron founder has been so vocal in social media about his support for Ukraine.　　Last month, he posted about how his talks with his Ukrainian counterpart at the WTO had confirmed addresses for crypto donations.　　And just over a week ago, he was urging the Tron community to “keep showing how crypto can do for good” – by

2022-03-08Deep Dive

Crypto-Staking: An Easy Way to Make Profits for the Beginner traders in Nigeria

By: Damian Okonkwo　　What is Crypto- Staking？　　Staking is a passive way of earning rewards for holding a particular cryptocurrency over a long period of time without trading them. Staking allows an investor to commit their holdings of a given crypto assets into a pool known as the “staking pool” and earn a certain percentage-rate for them over a period of time.　　Very often staking helps to support a blockchain network and confirm transactions. Thus, through staking, many crypto currency blockchains are able to verify their transactions and in return offers participants some rewards for submitting their cryptos into the pool. Staking is very common and required for cryptocurrencies that uses the proof-of-stake model to process payments.　　Staking can be a great way to use your cryptocurrency to generate passive income, especially with those cryptocurrencies offering high interest rates for staking.　　The reason your crypto earns rewards when staked is because the blockchain puts it to work. Cryptocurrencies that allow staking use a “consensus mechanism” called Proof of Stake; which is the way they ensure that all transactions are verified and secured without a bank or payment processor in the middle. Thus, whenever you submit to stake your cryptocurrency it becomes a part of that

2022-03-08Deep Dive

...

297299

...

737