Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Apple stock jumps after CEO reveals it's investing in the Metaverse

Apples stock price jumped in after hours trading after CEO Tim Cook said during the companys Q1 2022 earnings call that he sees considerable potential in the Metaverse space.　　When asked on Jan. 27 during the call about Apples opportunities within the Metaverse, Cook responded “we see a lot of potential in this space and are investing accordingly.”　　“Were always exploring new and emerging technologies and Ive spoken at length about how its very interesting to us right now.”　　The Metaverse is an interoperable virtual universe created in part by users, offering socialization, gaming and even live concerts. Although it can be accessed with a browser, the experience is better with virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR).　　APPL had dropped about 3% to $159.22 during regular trading hours, but has since jumped up 8% to $167.23 in after hours trading. The Metaverse was just one of the topics discussed on the call.　　Appleinsider reported that in the Jan. 27 call, Cook pointed out that Apple (APPL) already has a bevy of 14,000 apps on its App Store that have been designed using the AR developer platform ARKit. Apps designed using ARKit could help users gain access to the Metaverse.　　Whereas Meta has leaned toward using

2022-01-28Deep Dive

Flushing it: $8B New York commercial bank to offer Bitcoin services

“As part of our ongoing digital transformation, we recognize the importance of staying current with emerging market trends,” said Flushing Financial Corporation CEO and president John R. Buran.　　Flushing Financial Corporation, the parent company behind New York-based Flushing Bank has partnered with crypto firm New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) to offer Bitcoin (BTC) services to its customers.　　The bank was founded in 1929 and according to its Q4 report it held more than $8 billion worth of assets at the end of 2021, with a net income of around $200 million.　　According to an announcement, the partnership with NYDIG will enable the bank to offer its customers BTC buying, selling and holding services in a “safe and secure environment.”　　Flushing Bank stated that it aims to launch its BTC-related services later this quarter and will divulge further details of its roadmap soon.　　Flushing Financial Corporation CEO and president John R. Buran attributed the firms BTC adoption play to its desire to keep up with growing trends in financial markets:　　“As part of our ongoing digital transformation, we recognize the importance of staying current with emerging market trends and consumer demand for alternate financial services.”　　NYDIG is a heavyweight in the crypto sector that primarily provides BTC-related

2022-01-28Deep Dive

Doge Temple creator says the Metaverse is out, the Microverse is in

Niche “Microverse experiences” are the future of the Metaverse. According to the CEO of virtual party platform Party.Space Yurii Filipchuk,　　According to the founder and CEO of virtual party platform Party.Space, niche “Microverse experiences” will be the future of the Metaverse.　　Rather than “building a big Metaverse and selling some land there,” Yurii Filipchuk says that Web3 creators should focus their efforts on “exploring the best way to interact online” with online communities.　　The idea is that each online community builds its own Microverse, which connect in a shared network to form a Metaverse.　　Party.Space launched in May 2020 with the idea to gameify video chats. They now work with 65 corporate clients to host conferences, end of year parties, team building events and workshops.　　One of Filipchuks “Microverse” creations is the “Doge Temple,” a virtual space for fans of the Doge meme to socialize. It was launched by the virtual party platform Party.Space in November 2021.　　It was the site this week for the afterparty for Product Hunts seventh annual (and second virtual) Golden Kitty Awards ceremony. Doge Temple was a semi-finalist in the Product Demo video category, but missed out on snagging an award.　　ConsitutionDAO took home the Golden Kitty Award for the best Web3

2022-01-28Deep Dive

Never-before-seen Picasso art to become 1,010 NFTs in rare auction

Who doesn‘t want to own a Picasso？ Did your heart skip a beat when you read the name Picasso？ Yes, you read it right, a ceramic piece sculpted by the one and only Picasso is set to become a collection of 1,010 NFTs. The hand-painted work is described as fun-loving and joyful by his descendants who are organising the auction with Sotheby’s auction house.　　The granddaughter of Picasso, Marina Picasso, and her son, Florian Picasso, will be releasing 1,010 NFTs of a hand-painted ceramic work by Picasso. The Sothebys auction in March will feature both the original physical work, which dates to 1958, and NFTs of it.　　“Were trying to build a bridge between the NFT world and the fine art world,” Florian told the National.Subheading here　　Picasso‘s great-grandson also suggested that this release was the first of many NFTs to be extracted from the family’s collection of the master‘s work. Additionally, Florian’s own contributions will accompany each NFT. Florian, who is a DJ, made a track in collaboration with the singer John Legend and the rapper Nas. A family spokesperson told the National that the NFTs were meant to introduce Picasso to a younger generation.　　An NFT is a unique digital representation that

2022-01-28Deep Dive

S.Korean gaming giant Netmarble to issue own cryptocurrency

South Korean game developer Netmarble announced its crypto and play-to-earn (P2E) strategies at a press conference on Thursday, including plans to issue its own cryptocurrency.Fast facts　　Netmarble CEO Kwon Young-sik said the company is preparing to issue and list a crypto token that would act as a key currency for Netmarble games.　　Netmarble has a market capitalization of almost US$10 billion, and is among a growing list of local video game developers that are diving deeper into blockchain gaming and the metaverse. 　　Kwon added that Netmarble is aiming to relist ITAM CUBE, the cryptocurrency of blockchain game developer ITAM Games which Netmarble acquired earlier this month, as the crypto was delisted from the nations largest exchange Upbit earlier last year. 　　The game company aims to launch the P2E game Everybodys Marble: Metaworld this year to the global market, while it is not serviceable in its native South Korea.　　The upcoming P2E game will not be available in South Korea as local regulations restrict the release of P2E games in the country.

2022-01-28Deep Dive

US SEC investigates crypto firms for offering lending products

According to the Bloomberg report, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is scrutinizing three crypto companies, Celsius Network, Voyager Digital, and Gemini Trust, as a part of a broader investigation against cryptocurrency lending platforms. The report detailed that the investigation of the regulator is focused on checking if the crypto lending companies should register their offerings as securities, citing anonymous sources.　　The US SEC did not accuse the companies of any wrongdoings or brought charges yet.　　Crypto lending companies mostly operate more like commercial banks: they take cryptocurrencies of customers as deposits and offer interest on them. These lending companies then loan these deposited cryptocurrencies to institutions to cover their crypto trading positions. Though the crypto lending companies are facing a federal investigation now, several U.S. state regulators have already moved against them for violating state securities laws. New Jersey, Texas, Alabama, Kentucky, and a few other states brought enforcement actions against Celsius and BlockFi and even threatened to block their business. However, the US SEC did not accuse any of these firms of any wrongdoing or brought charges against them yet.　　The securities regulator did not officially confirm its latest probe.　　SEC did not officially confirm its latest probe, but all

2022-01-28Deep Dive

Biden Administration Sees Crypto Regulation as a Matter of National Security

President Joe Bidens administration has plans to task various federal agencies with regulating crypto assets as a matter of national security. The executive order is expected within weeks.　　Biden to Task Agencies with Proposing Crypto Regulations　　Cryptocurrency regulation is an important component of national security, according to the Biden administration.　　Per a Barron‘s source, the White House will order government bodies to conduct analyses on digital assets including cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and non-fungible tokens for the purpose of creating a regulatory framework. According to the source, the administration’s goal is to take a holistic look at crypto assets in order to “develop a set of policies that give coherency to what the government is trying to do in this space.”　　The White House, nevertheless, has no plans to issue recommendations of its own but rather would require government agencies to put forth their own proposals, for which the White House would synthesize and bring together.　　The Barron‘s source emphasized the administration’s desire for the “harmonizing” of regulations, particularly globally and between nations since “digital assets dont stay in one country.”　　Many parts of the government are set to be involved, including the State Department, Treasury Department, Council of Economic Advisers, National Economic Council, and the White House

2022-01-28Deep Dive

IRS Special Agent on Crypto: 'We See Mountains of Fraud in This Area'

A special agent with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says the tax agency is “seeing mountains and mountains of fraud” in the cryptocurrency space. The IRS criminal investigation unit is trying to train all of its agents on crypto and non-fungible token (NFT) issues because “this space is the future,” he stressed.　　 IRS Special Agent Says Crypto Is Rife With ‘Mountains and Mountains of Fraud’　　A special agent in charge of the IRS criminal investigation division in Los Angeles, Ryan Korner, talked about cryptocurrency at a virtual event hosted by the USC Gould School of Law Tuesday. He was quoted by Bloomberg as saying:　　“Were just seeing mountains and mountains of fraud in this area.”　　He explained that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and crypto in general are prone to market manipulation, adding that high-profile individuals could influence crypto prices with just one tweet.　　Noting that celebrities are not immune to the tax authority‘s criminal probes, the special agent clarified: “We’re not necessarily out there looking for celebrities, but when they make a blatant or open comment that says ‘Hey, IRS, you should probably come look at me,’ thats what we do.”　　Korner detailed that a range of crypto-related activities are of concern to law enforcement agencies,

2022-01-28Deep Dive

COINBASE: The best Crypto exchange according to Wikibit rankings

By: Damian Okonkwo　　COINBASE the largest crypto exchange in US has emerged the best rated Crypto exchange market according to Wikibit rankings. However, this Crypto exchange was found not to have a physical office based on the findings of Wikibit visiting agents　　A. Wikibit Ranking of Coinbase.　　Following the usual Wikibit investigations and rankings of various Crypto currency exchange platforms, Coinbase has emerged the number one most recommended Crypto exchange by Wikibit based on the quality of services they offer and positive assessments from clients who have engaged their services for the past 10 years in which they were founded. COINBASE has scored 9.57/10 and with this high score emerged the best Crypto exchange according to Wikibit rankings.　　B. Regulation　　COINBASE Crypto exchange is regulated by multiple regulators such as: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA in UK), Security and Economic Commission (SEC in US), Nation wide multi-states License System (NMLS) and New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS).　　C. Foundation of Coinbase.　　Coinbase Global, Inc., which had been branded Coinbase, is an American exchange company that was founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam.　　This exchange would turn out to become the preferred exchange by US citizens thus by March 2021 it was discovered to be

2022-01-28Deep Dive

Sunacrip Revokes Licenses Of Two Cryptocurrency Exchanges In Venezuela

Sunacrip, the Venezuelan cryptocurrency watchdog, has suspended the operating licenses of two exchanges for lack of compliance with current regulations. The announcement was made by Joselit Ramirez, superintendent of Sunacrip, who also mentioned the exchanges that are approved by the institution, leaving some big names like Binance off of the list.　　 Sunacrip Tightens Compliance Requirements For Exchanges In Venezuela　　Sunacrip, the institution in charge of the regulation of all things crypto in Venezuela, has announced it has revoked the trading licenses of two exchange platforms on January 26. The superintendent of the organization, Joselit Ramirez, made the announcement via Twitter, stating:　　“WE INFORM all our users that two general operating licenses of the exchange houses Criptomundo and Cave Blockchain have been REVOKED, for not complying with the rules established by Sunacrip to operate in our country.”　　While Ramirez didnt disclose the specific reasons for these licenses being revoked, he did mention all of the exchanges that were still authorized by Sunacrip to conduct exchange operations in the country. Among these are Criptoactivos Amberes Coin, Asesoría Financiera IO, Criptoex, Criptoven Trade, Digital Factoring, Venecrip, and the Patria Platform, which is operated by the government.　　Other exchanges authorized by Sunacrip, but that are not operating due

2022-01-28Deep Dive

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