Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Crypto Ban Notice Issued by Nepal Bankers' Association

The Nepal Bankers Association, an organization of chief executive officers of the countrys commercial banks, has warned that cryptocurrency transactions and marketing are illegal in a notice issued earlier today, according to a report published by The Himalayan Times.　　The umbrella organization has cautioned private individuals and businesses against taking part in such activities, claiming that it will take action in accordance with the existing laws. Apart from Nepalis, sanctions will also apply to foreigners who reside in Nepal.　　Last week, the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the central bank of Nepal, issued a statement clarifying that cryptocurrencies are not legally recognized in the country and urging Nepalis to refrain from any activities associated with them. It raised the alarm over the proliferation of cryptocurrency-related scams as well as illegal capital outflows. The central bank published a similar notice last September.　　The NRB imposed a blanket ban on Bitcoin back on Aug. 17, 2017. Local industry participants slammed the central bank for being “fearful” and “reactive” without engaging in any significant research.　　Last week, three men were arrested by Nepalese authorities for trading cryptocurrencies.　　Nepal, a communist South Asian country located in the Himalayas, is one of the few jurisdictions in the world where it is

2022-01-27Deep Dive

Elon Musk Will Eat a Happy Meal on TV if McDonald’s Accepts DOGE – the Crypto Jumped 10%

Serial entrepreneur and serial crypto-tweeter Elon Musk seems to have been the catalyst for a double-digit bounce Tuesday for his favorite crypto pet project — Dogecoin (DOGE).　　On Tuesday, Dogecoin was up more than 10% at one time following a 7:30 a.m. tweet when the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX stated, “I will eat a happy meal on tv if @McDonalds accepts Dogecoin.” Almost immediately following that tweet at 7:34 a.m. the price of the meme coin spiked sharply. The reason being that if a major food chain, such as McDonalds, decided to accept Dogecoin as payment, that would be a significantly bullish signal toward broader adoption for DOGE and the entire crypto-sphere.　　As additional context, Musk‘s tweet was a direct response to a message that McDonald’s posted to its Twitter feed Monday afternoon. The global fast food chain decided to poke fun at crypto investors on Twitter when it asked this question, “how are you doing people who run crypto twitter accounts？”　　The playful jab was a response to a series of discussions on Twitter and Reddit forums over the past few days where crypto traders joked about having to apply for a “real job” at the Golden Arches because of the

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Indonesia Bans Crypto Operations for Financial Firms

The Financial Service Authority of Indonesia has warned numerous financial firms about the limitations of cryptocurrencies as the digital assets trading industry keeps on growing in Southeast Asias largest economy, per Reuters.　　Regulators have prohibited financial institutions from almost all operations with cryptocurrencies, including using, marketing and facilitating digital assets trading, according to the official statement on Instagram.　　The reason behind the further regulation of operations with digital assets is the volatile nature of cryptocurrencies. The regulators main goal is to reach out to amateur investors that could potentially underestimate risks tied to investments in cryptocurrency.　　The regulator has also warned citizens to beware of allegations of Ponzi scheme scams in crypto.　　Previously, the central banks of Thailand and Singapore released similar warnings for their citizens.　　Trading of cryptocurrencies and digital assets in Indonesia was on the rise since 2021. The transactional volume on the countrys market has reached almost $60 billion, or 859 rupiahs. Back in 2020, the trading volume for the digital assets market in the country in 2020 was staying at approximately 60 trillion rupiahs, per ministry data.　　Officially, Indonesian financial regulators allow sales of cryptocurrency assets on a commodities exchange. The process of exchange is supervised by the trade ministry and the

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Myanmar Military Government Proposes to Jail Digital Currency and VPN Users

Myanmars military-ruled government is proposing to enact laws that will see users of virtual private networks (VPN) and digital currencies being jailed for up to three years. In addition, offenders will be made to pay fines of up to $2,800.　　Draft Bill Open for Comments　　Myanmars military-ruled government is proposing to enact a law that outlaws the use of virtual private networks (VPN) and digital currencies in that country. Once enacted, violators of the new law not only face jail time but will be made to pay a fine.　　According to a report published by The Register, individuals caught using VPNs will face a possible jail sentence of between one and three years. In addition, offenders may also be asked to pay a fine of $2,800 or five million Myanmar Kyats. Digital currency users, on the other hand, face a minimum jail term of six months and a maximum of up to one year. They will also be liable to pay fines of up to $2,800.　　Besides targeting digital currency and VPN users, the military governments proposed regulations will compel service providers to provide the personal information of users when requested to do so by authorities.　　A draft bill signed by Soe Thein, the permanent

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Crypto Ban Proposed by Bank of Russia Met With Opposition in Parliament, Government

The central banks push for a restrictive policy regarding cryptocurrencies is not gaining support among members of the Russian government, legislature, or law enforcement. A blanket crypto ban, as proposed by the bank, would make a laughingstock of Russia, lawmakers have warned.　　Bank of Russias Hardline Stance on Crypto Rejected by Other Russian Institutions　　The Central Bank of Russias lobbying for prohibitive legislation on cryptocurrencies has not been met with understanding by other government bodies, Russian media revealed. Last week, the regulator published a consultation paper urging for a wide-ranging ban on crypto activities, including the use, exchange, and mining of digital coins.　　However, the Russian government, parliament, and even law enforcement departments such as the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) and the Federal Security Service (FSB) are not willing to back the proposals of the monetary authority, Lenta.ru reported, quoting two high-ranking members of the State Duma.　　A working group at the lower house of parliament is now discussing proposals to fill the regulatory gaps remaining after the law “On Digital Financial Assets” went into force in January 2021. It comprises representatives of various government institutions and the lawmakers claim that the CBR, with its view on cryptocurrencies, is now in isolation.　　Anatoly Aksakov,

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Metascanning could soon become an everyday part of the metaverse–starting with Everdome

Everdome is a new metaverse project, founded by Metahero CEO Robert Gryn, envisioned as a destination where the next generation of ultra-realistic 3D avatars and real-world scanned objects get a lease on life and interaction.　　Everything in Everdome is about to be hyper realistic–thanks to Metahero (HERO), a platform that uses blockchain, and Ultra-HD Metascanning technology leveraged by Wolf Digital World (WDW).Journey to the new frontiers　　By combining WDWs first-generation metascanning tech with non-fungible token (NFT) smart contracts, Metahero, a recently launched project on Binance Smart Chain (BSC) allows creation of hyper-realistic avatars and digitally rendered real-world objects.　　The projects long-term goal is to create the largest database of 3D scanned real-world objects and people–for which Metahero is willing to pay those who get scanned in their native currency–HERO.　　WDWs metascanner chamber (Wolf Digital World)　　But where are those ultra-realistic meta versions of people and objects going to reside, meet, interact？ In Everdome.　　Everdomes vision is to deliver an entirely new metaverse experience–leveraging a high-tech, immersive, and hyper-realistic virtual environment.Meta settlement on Mars　　Everdomes massive HQ dome will be situated on Mars.　　It will represent the heart of the settlement–a meeting point for those who desire to take part in the mix of meta life.　　Artists, musicians, companies, brands,

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Transaction volume up, users down – is OpenSea challenger LooksRare gmi?

Two weeks since launch, LooksRare, portrayed as a community driven challenger to the NFT behemoth OpenSea, is still printing high levels of transaction volumes. On the surface, it looks like LooksRare has gotten itself a foothold on the market.　　OpenSea has had, and still have, an impressive journey from around $71 million in sales a year ago, to $36 billion today – that’s a 50,000 percent increase in sales, all thanks to the blow-of-top interest in NFTs manifested in the explosion of profile pictures, art, collectables and in-game items. In its latest funding round, OpenSea was valued at $13 billion.OpenSea’s vulnerable underbelly　　There are, however, a couple of things that leave OpenSea vulnerable. One is the fact, or at least a low probability, that OpenSea will ever release a token. Reasons being many, one is securities regulation in the U.S. and that OpenSea is basically synonymous with the whole NFT mania, meaning the centralized, U.S.-based, private company has regulatory eyes on it. And then, there are few incentives for the people involved in OpenSea to release a token.　　Another other obvious vulnerability is that the OpenSea platform is published under an open source license, so anyone can clone it, a third being that

2022-01-26Deep Dive

‘Romantically Involved’ USD 3.8m XRP Thieves Sent to Prison for 7 Years

A couple who stole over some USD 3.76m worth of XRP tokens from a crypto investor in 2017 have been handed seven-year jail sentences after an appeals court in South Korea ruled that the duo should spend the best part of a decade behind bars.　　Chosun Ilbo reported that the court, a branch of the Suwon High Court, heard that the couple, who were “romantically involved” had hatched a scheme by pretending to be brokers in order to get their hands on a stash of XRP 20.25m (USD 12m).　　The unnamed couple, named by the media for legal reasons as A and B, first decided to prey on their victim (named by the media as C) in January 2016, when C created a digital wallet and purchased XRP through A, who was working as a crypto broker at the time, receiving commissions from his customers.　　A then slowly began to introduce B into the picture. B made their money by “managing” crypto investments and wallets for customers, and the duo had begun a “romantic relationship.”　　A introduced B to C, telling the latter that B was an exceptional crypto broker who could help safeguard Cs funds. Eventually, C decided to place their trust in

2022-01-26Deep Dive

Elon Musk puts McDonald’s on the spot, wants the fast-food giant to accept DOGE

Tesla and SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk urged McDonalds to accept Dogecoin as payment, posting a tongue-in-cheek dare on Twitter.　　The pressure is on, with all eyes on the fast-food chain now, which, thus far, hasnt been accepting crypto payments–outside of El Salvador.Committing to a happy meal on tv　　“I will eat a happy meal on tv if McDonalds accepts Dogecoin,” wrote the self-proclaimed Dogefather on Twitter.　　Musks dare caused the price of Dogecoin to jump over 6% in a matter of minutes.Dogecoin to USD Chart (CoinMarketCap)　　The meme coins price witnessed a similar mini pump recently–shortly after Tesla announced accepting Dogecoin for merch payments.　　Crypto investors on Twitter turned to memes and humor for easing the drama of the market downturn–president of El Salvador amongst them.　　Nayib Bukele recently changed his profile picture–joking about his next career if his Bitcoin plans fail to materialize.　　McDonalds responded on Twitter, acknowledging its brand becoming the hallmark of crypto market crashes.　　“How are you doing people who run crypto twitter accounts,” wrote the food chain, already entangled in another conversation on Twitter–the one about DOGE payments–spurred by Billy Markus, the founder of Dogecoin.Pushing DOGE mainstream　　Musk became broadly known for his open support of the meme coin in the past.　　Recently

2022-01-26Deep Dive

YouTube’s CEO Says the Company Will Explore NFT Features for Video Creators

YouTube is exploring adding non-fungible token features for its video creators, Chief Executive Officer Susan Wojcicki wrote to the sites broadcasters on Tuesday. 　　Although Wojcicki didn‘t say exactly what her team is planning, or when, it marks the first time Alphabet Inc.’s Google, YouTube‘s owner, is becoming involved with the cryptocurrency collectibles. Several of YouTube’s rivals have already jumped on the trend. Twitter Inc. began letting users post NFTs as profile photos and Instagram is reportedly working on a similar offering, according to the Financial Times. 　　NFTs are digital assets, such as art, that people can buy or sell. YouTube, home to the largest creator economy, has spent several years building ways for its video stars to earn money beyond advertising, adding tools like fan payments and e-commerce. Wojcicki told creators her company was looking to web3, an umbrella term for internet models built around crypto, as a “source for inspiration.”　　“We‘re always focused on expanding the YouTube ecosystem to help creators capitalize on emerging technologies, including things like NFTs, while continuing to strengthen and enhance the experiences creators and fans have on YouTube,” she wrote in her annual letter to creators this week. A YouTube spokeswoman declined to share more

2022-01-25Deep Dive

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