Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried believes billionaires should pay more taxes—including himself

In an interview with CNN, Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of FTX, supports the newly proposed wealth tax in the United States.　　Speaking from FTXs headquarters in the zero-tax Bahamas, he said that it was “reasonable” to reform the existing tax code and collect more taxes from billionaires—including himself.“The best need to pay their fair share—and maybe more”　　When asked what his thoughts were on the proposed wealth tax in the U.S., which would target the wealthiest 0.0005% of Americans, Bankman-Fried said introducing these reforms would be “reasonable.”　　“I‘m supportive of the idea that the best should pay their fair share—and maybe more,” he told CNN’s Julia Chatterley.　　Despite his general sentiment regarding President Joe Bidens ambitious tax plan being positive, he noted that there were still a lot of holes to be patched before it could actually be applied. He explained that the public should particularly vary of versions of the law that could lead to people owing more in taxes than the amount of money they have.　　What Bankman-Fried was referring to is the controversial unrealized gains tax, which would impose hefty taxation on the assets held by Americas richest—real estate, stocks, art, etc.—even if they never convert them for cold, hard cash.　　And while

2021-12-18Deep Dive

Russia’s central bank wants to prohibit crypto investments

The central bank of Russia (Centrobank) is reportedly seeking to bar the country’s residents from buying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, two anonymous financial market sources revealed to Reuters today.　　Per the report, Centrobank is concerned about potential risks to the countrys financial stability that “the rising number of crypto transactions” could present. Currently, cryptocurrencies are somewhat legal in Russia as residents can legally own and trade them—but not use crypto as means of payments.　　According to one of Reuters sources, Centrobank is currently “in talks with market players and experts about a possible ban.” If approved, it can outlaw new purchases of crypto in Russia—but will not have a retroactive effect on digital assets bought in the past.　　Another source told the outlet that Centrobanks current position was a “complete rejection” of all cryptocurrencies.Shooting yourself in the foot　　On the other hand, a potential blanket ban would not only hinder law enforcement agencies with their crypto-related investigations but is just “completely pointless,” according to Sergey Mendeleev, СЕО of a crypto-focused financial services startup InDeFi SmartBank.　　“Cryptocurrencies were specifically designed to work even under a complete ban. For example, China banned them, so what？ Are the Chinese using less crypto？ Of course not. Its just that

2021-12-17Deep Dive

UK watchdog bans seven crypto ads failing to highlight potential trading risks

In a bid to promote ethical crypto trading in the country, the UKs advertising watchdog has banned seven cryptocurrency advertisements of leading crypto companies due to their inability to “illustrate the risk of the investment.”　　Leading crypto companies such as Etoro, Exmo, Coinburp, and Luno had to face ASAs crackdown for:　　“Irresponsibly taking advantage of consumers inexperience” and failing to explain the potential risks associated with cryptocurrency trading. ASAs crackdown on crypto companies　　This is not the first time when ASA had imposed an outright ban on crypto ads failing to highlight crypto investment risks. The UK watchdog had earlier banned Floki Inu advertisements quoting “irresponsible promotion.”　　The seven crypto ads banned were mostly produced by crypto companies themselves in a bid to attract more users. This was the case for Coinburp, Luno, Exmo, and Etoro. However, ASA also banned marketing campaigns of ad firms Europe and Payward for displaying ads for American crypto exchanges Coinbase and Kraken. 　　In Krakens case, a complaint was filed due to a digital poster that the exchange had put up in the London underground station. Even though the exchange had issued a disclaimer with the advertisement, ASA was quick to conclude that “consumers would not have had the

2021-12-17Deep Dive

The majority of millennial millionaires invest in cryptocurrencies

A CNBC survey revealed that most millennial millionaires invest in cryptocurrencies, and a significant portion has more than 50% of their fortune in crypto.　　The preference towards the use of cryptocurrencies as an investment and store of value continues to maintain a generational gap, with Millennials at the forefront in the use of decentralized technologies – especially millionaire investors. According to the latest edition of the CNBC Millionaire Survey, the majority of millennial millionaires have invested in cryptocurrencies and expect to increase their holdings in the upcoming months.　　Millennials think of inflation as a major threat to the economys growth.　　The CNBC survey gauges the market sentiment in various areas of the economy. The results show that inflation is the primary concern among millennials, who see the phenomenon as a threat to the growth of the economy. The second most significant risk is the US Governments dysfunction. Both factors share 23% of the total vote. The survey revealed that 83% of millennial millionaires own cryptocurrencies, with 48% expecting to buy even more in 2022. Only 6% expect to reduce their holdings. The results also showed that 53% of millennial millionaires own more than 50% of their wealth in cryptocurrencies.　　The interest of millennials in

2021-12-17Deep Dive

BoE becomes first major bank to raise interest rates, what it means for crypto?

The growing inflation around the globe is no secret as consumer price indices have hit new highs in both England and the United States. While the U.S feds decided to keep the interest rates unchanged and accelerate bond tapering, the Bank of England (BoE) has a different mindset.　　The inflation in the UK hit a 10-year high and the BoE responded by hiking the interest rates as a measure to contain the growing inflation. It also became the first major bank to increase interest rates since the pandemic began. The nine-member Monetary Policy Committee voted 8-1 to raise Bank Rate to 0.25% from 0.1%, with external member Silvana Tenreyro providing the only dissenting voice.　　Governor Andrew Bailey said,“We‘re concerned about inflation in the medium term. And we’re seeing things now that can threaten that. So thats why we have to act,”　　The no-change in interest rate by the Feds on Wednesday helped the crypto market trade-in green as the majority of the crypto assets recovered to daily highs. With BOE‘s increase in interest rate, the crypto market didn’t really react much it lost the gains from Wednesday.　　Can the Omicron variant trigger the next bull rally？　　The crypto market had turned bearish in terms of

2021-12-17Deep Dive

Jack Dorsey Unveils The New 500 Bitcoin Trust Board

After a long search for the perfect three-board member to manage a Bitcoin charity trust set up by Jack Dorsey and Jay-Z, the former Twitter C.E.O finally unveiled the new board team on Thursday.　　Although Jack had initially announced only 3 slots, it is not quite clear why they settled on four candidates. The new member shall include South Africa‘s Carla Kirk-Cohen, Abubakar Nur Khalil, a Bitcoin core contributor, Obi Nwosu, and Nigeria’s Ojoma Chai.　　In his introductory note, Jack expressed his satisfaction at the concluded selection process stating, “Im so grateful for you all and so inspired.”　　“Theyll now work towards defining the operating principles as they think about how to best distribute the 500 bitcoin towards development efforts.” He added.　　In early February this year, Jack and Jay Z had announced the creation of a new endowment fund named Bitcoin trust that would see 500 BTC go into funding Bitcoin development, starting with teams in Africa.　　In actualizing this vision, Dorsey had stated that the fund would need 3 board members to manage it and they would be tasked with setting up the fund as a blind irrevocable trust which would be completely independent of the actual contributors to the fund.　　The selection process

2021-12-17Deep Dive

UK Inflation Hits 10-Year High After Bank Of England Warns Bitcoin Could Become Worthless

The inflation rate in the UK has risen 5.1% to hit a 10-year high.　　Crypto enthusiasts proffer Bitcoin to hedge against inflation.　　The UK central banker, The Bank of England, remains unreceptive to Bitcoin, however.　　The United Kingdom has been hit by surging inflation figures. According to data published by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS), the inflation rate is at a 10-year high. For November, the consumer price index, which is a key measure of inflation, climbed 5.1% month-on-month, up from 4.2% in October.　　The major causes for the rise that the ONS points to for the larger than normal rate spike were increases in the price of transportation, food, clothing, and footwear.　　The inflation figure has been published at a time when the Bank of England‘s (BoE’s) Monetary Policy Committee is scheduled to meet to decide if it is going to move to tighten its monetary policy. It remains uncertain if a decision will be reached to begin quantitative easing in the economy as the meeting was planned for before the emergence of the Omicron variant, hence analysts are split over what the BoEs decision should be.　　Bitcoin can come to the rescue　　Meanwhile, Bitcoin proponents have taken the rising inflation rate to point

2021-12-17Deep Dive

Billionaire Ray Dalio Says Bitcoin is the Alternative to Gold for Younger Generations

The former crypto skeptic not only revealed holding a small portion of Bitcoin (BTC) but also commending how far the flagship cryptocurrency has come since its inception. He outlined the fact that it has never been “hacked” or suffered a breach.　　Bitcoin Has Imputed Value　　Calling it an amazing accomplishment for Bitcoin, the billionaire said in a recent interview with MarketWatch that he believes in blockchain technology because it has “earned credibility.”　　Dalio is among the most influential and successful hedge fund managers of all time. However, he was not always a fan of Bitcoin. But now, he admitted having a “little bit” of the cryptocurrency in his portfolio.　　While on the topic of investment portfolios, Dalio also mentioned that Bitcoin is almost a younger generations alternative to Gold and added,　　“..a portfolio should start off with, under a worst-case scenario, what assets protect it and make sure it‘s diversified. It’s almost a younger generations alternative to gold and it has no intrinsic value, but it has imputed value and it has, therefore, some merit.”　　Having said that, Dalio stated that several issues concern Bitcoin. He predicted that some governments may outlaw the cryptocurrency if they feel it threatens the establishment or when it becomes “relatively

2021-12-17Deep Dive

Russia Mulls Crypto Ban: Report

Russias central bank is seeking to impose a ban on cryptocurrency investing, according to a Reuters report that cites sources familiar with the matter.　　Investors will be prohibited from making new purchases, but the ban will not extend to existing crypto holdings, as per the report.　　Earlier this month, the Bank of Russia banned mutual funds from investing in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.　　In July, the central bank asked stock exchanges to refrain from listing both foreign and domestic cryptocurrency-oriented companies due to high volatility, insufficient liquidity and regulatory risks.　　A source cited by Reuters claims that Russias central bank uncompromisingly rejects cryptocurrencies.　　In June, Oliver Hughes, CEO of Russian leading online bank Tinkoff, told CNBC that it could not offer crypto trading to its customers because of the Bank of Russias policies:　　“Theres no mechanism for us to offer that product to them in Russia at the moment because the central bank has got this very tough position.”　　In July 2020, Russian lawmakers banned using cryptocurrencies as a means of payment while also outlining the legal status of the new asset class.　　As reported by U.Today, Alexei Moiseev, Russias deputy finance minister, said there were no plans to ban residents from trading cryptocurrencies in October. At the

2021-12-17Deep Dive

IMF Chief Economist Says Not To Ban Crypto

Gita Gopinath – Chief Economist for the International Monetary Fund – recently said that developing economies should refrain from banning crypto. Instead, she called global regulation of the industry “the need of the hour”.　　The Global Challenge of Crypto　　Gopinath outlined the regulatory difficulties around crypto at an event by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) on Wednesday. She said that global policy on crypto is an urgent need to address the challenges the technology poses to emerging markets.　　Moreover, she said banning them was simply impractical, given the global presence that exchanges possess.　　“Regulating crypto assets and currencies is essential, especially for emerging and developing economies, as banning them may not work as crypto exchanges are located offshore, which makes it easier for an individual to trade in them despite the ban,” she said.　　Gopinath placed emphasis on making a ‘global’ policy around crypto, as cross-border transactions make any single nations regulations against it quite weak. They can be used to evade “exchange rate controls, capital controls, and capital flow measures,” she said.　　Michael Saylor – CEO of MIcroStrategy, the worlds largest owner of Bitcoin – has highlighted this exact property as extremely helpful from a business perspective. Unlike real estate, Bitcoin can

2021-12-17Deep Dive

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