Bitcoin

A South African High Court recently granted a provisional liquidation order against Mirror Trading International (MTI) following an application for relief by two investors who failed to withdraw their bitcoin. According to a statement released by lawyers of one of the aggrieved investors, this provisional order paves the way for the appointment of a liquidator to take control of MTI’s assets and liabilities. Provisional Order The order by the Cape Town court came after the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) reported receiving complaints from investors who failed to withdraw invested funds. The court’s decision also follows reports that Johann Steynberg, the CEO of the alleged online bitcoin scam platform, had skipped the country. At the same time, a statement released by MTI management alleges that Steynberg, who is no longer communicating with fellow executives, blocked his colleagues from accessing the company’s funds. The management team says it is now working with law

The prominent darknet marketplace, White House Market, has dropped bitcoin payments and now accepts monero only. The darknet marketplace administrators detailed that there was an issue with a payment processor blocking Tor exit nodes, but the full transition to monero was always planned. A number of crypto proponents have reported on the darknet marketplace, White House dropping bitcoin ( BTC ) payments in order to exclusively support monero ( XMR ). On December 28, one individual on Twitter wrote: “[One of the] largest darknet markets, White House Market, drops bitcoin support, now only uses monero.” News.Bitcoin.com confirmed the payment system change by visiting the White House market’s onion URL. The White House admins detail the issues with bitcoin ( BTC ) support stemmed from a third party service. “Bitcoin payments are no longer accepted,” the White House admins stressed. “The [third] party exchange API we used (Morphtoken) has suddenly decided to block access from Tor exit

China has the largest concentration of bitcoin miners worldwide with estimates noting the country captures anywhere between 50-65% of the global hashrate. Xinjiang, the autonomous region of the People’s Republic of China, ostensibly accommodates 35% of the hashrate. This week a regional report from China and statements from the head of operations at Genesis Mining, indicate that Chinese miners are migrating from the area to Nordic countries like Sweden and Norway. Just recently, news.Bitcoin.com, reported on the electrical issues in China that bitcoin miners in the country are currently dealing with due to the shortage of coal. In the report, it noted that the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (CBECI) map shows China still commands 65% of the hashrate today. However, a team member from the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) explained to news.Bitcoin.com that the CBECI map is not up-to-date and will be updated in 2021. Back in July, it was said that Chin

After successfully launched a bitcoin exchange-traded product in Europe, Vaneck has now filed a new proposal for a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Under former chairman Jay Clayton, the SEC never approved a bitcoin ETF. However, Clayton has resigned from his post and changes may be coming from the incoming Biden administration. First Bitcoin ETF Filing After Clayton’s Departure New York-based investment management firm Vaneck filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Dec. 30 to list and trade the Vaneck Bitcoin Trust. According to the filing, the sale of the fund’s shares will commence “As soon as practicable after the effective date of this registration statement.” “The Vaneck Bitcoin Trust (the ‘Trust’) is an exchange-traded fund that issues common shares of beneficial interest (the ‘Shares’) that trade on the Cboe BZX Exchange Inc.,” the filing describes. “The Trust’s invest

PRESS RELEASE. Securypto trade will open on Bilaxy on 1 January, 2021 and all indicators say that it will start off strong given the high demand for it alongside the low circulation of the coin as pointed out by Securypto team. There will be only 410,000 coins available for sale when it starts trading on Bilaxy. On top of that, another 750,000 coins have been recently burned on 28 December, 2020. This news alone has made investors pay more attention to the potential Securypto has on the market especially since the SCU coin is one of the few coins that actually has a use case. Taking in consideration the scarcity of the coin, it is expected by the Securypto telegram community that the value of the coin will increase by time in both short and long term in their recent poll. Securypto has raised almost $100,000 before the exchange opening which is an astonishing feat on its own these days, long past the days of ICOs. This signal clearly shows how strong the community and investors

The CTO at Bitfinex Paolo Ardoino has pushed back against rumours that the company’s Tether stablecoin may be the next target of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Bitfinex executive insists that the Tether stablecoin, whose market capitalization has now surpassed $20 billion, is a properly registered and regulated crypto. The Alleged Misinformation Campaign The CTO said while responding to rumours circulating on social media that the USDT stablecoin might fall into a predicament similar to that of Ripple’s XRP token. Immediately after the SEC filed to sue Ripple for allegedly violating the Securities Act, the XRP token’s value tumbled . Additionally, many crypto exchanges that are wary of the implications of the lawsuit have delisted the token. However, in his reply to Ki Young Ju, the CEO at Cryptoquant, Ardoino dismisses the rumours and accuses the former of spreading misinformation. The CTO goes on to claim that the company’s stablecoin adheres to regul

Gold bug Peter Schiff has been publicly confronted by his 18-year-old son, a bitcoin proponent, on the topic of value. Calling his dad’s understanding of money “Flawed,” Spencer Schiff made the statement in defense of TV Personality Max Keiser, who was having an argument with Peter on Twitter. ‘Your Understanding of Money is Flawed’ Gold bug Peter Schiff was confronted by his son, Spencer Schiff, on Monday after he accused TV personality and bitcoin proponent Max Keiser of not understanding the concept of fiat money. “According to Max Keiser, I oppose bitcoin because I’m a fiat addict. In the bizarro world of bitcoin, gold is the new fiat,” Peter Schiff tweeted. “Clearly, Max Keiser doesn’t understand the concept of fiat, or how it differs from legitimate currency or actual money. That explains his bitcoin fixation.” At the time of this writing, his tweet got 354 comments and was liked 877 times and retweeted 67 times. Among those who commented was his son, an 18-year-old bitcoin

The crypto world is full of malicious hackers and other serious threats to your digital assets. CyberGhost VPN, which is trusted by over 36 million users globally, can help protect your security when making online transactions and payments. The service accepts bitcoin and you can now save over 80% from the regular price with a CyberGhost VPN New Year’s offer . Make Online Security Your New Year’s Resolution The incredible wealth stored in digital assets has attracted to the crypto world some of the smartest hackers out there. They plague both companies and individuals using sophisticated methods such as spear phishing, trojans and SIM-swapping, and security breaches have become the norm. For this reason, maintaining excellent online security is an absolute must for crypto users and having a VPN (virtual private network) is considered a vital tool for achieving this. Using a VPN for encrypting your data when you trade makes it more difficult for hackers to spy on transactions. It al

A major South Korean TV series with crypto and blockchain-related topics is set to launch its production stage at the beginning of 2021, directed by Gemstone Film, in collaboration with firms in China and the United States. South Korean Crypto-Related TV Drama Series ‘Pumping Time’ Is Set to Start in 2021 According to Financial News , “Pumping Time,” the tentative name for the drama series, is planned for a total of 10 seasons with 20 episodes per each one. The producers estimate that each episode will have a duration of 30 minutes. Gemstone Film will allocate an ambitious budget of $2.7 million per episode. Although they didn’t provide full details on the drama series’s stories, the producers gave some hints about the topics to be featured, such as crypto-related frauds, blockchain technologies, and central bank digital currencies (CBDC). K-Play Content financially backs the production, and the producers already hired Choi Wan-kyu, a well-known drama writer in South Korea, who wi

The Nasdaq listed Greenpro Capital Corporation has revealed plans to set up a bitcoin fund using $100 million in borrowed funds. In addition to the borrowed funds, Greenpro, through its subsidiary Cryptosx, says it plans to use its own cash resources to acquire the digital asset. The financial services firm which has its headquarters in Hong kong joins the growing list of banks, hedge funds, insurance companies and institutions holding bitcoin. In a statement announcing plans to set up the fund, Greenpro shares its “belief that bitcoin, as the world’s most widely-adopted cryptocurrency, is a reliable future store of value.” The statement also adds: We believe the strategic management of our balance sheet, combined with the implementation of our BTC Fund and crypto strategy will produce significant future value for the company. Furthermore, according to the statement released on December 28, the firm’s CEO CK Lee has already instructed Greenpro’s “investment bankers to raise deb

Ripple has hit back at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), accusing it of creating more uncertainty and failing in its duty to protect the crypto community. In panning the SEC’s decision to designate its XRP token as a security, the company claims the regulator’s lawsuit against it amounts to an attack on the entire crypto market in the US. XRP Token Holders Affected The latest comments by the Ripple team follow reports of the delisting of the XRP token by Coinbase. In a short statement released on December 29, the firm, which is promising another “response in a few weeks to address these unproven allegations against Ripple”, starts by claiming that the public and the media are currently only aware of the SEC’s narrative. The Ripple team then assails the SEC’s $1.3 billion lawsuit against the company arguing that it has affected “innocent XRP retail holders.” Since the announcement of the lawsuit, the XRP token has now lost more than 50% of its value and the

Spacex and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, widely believed to be the man taking humanity to Mars and building a permanent settlement there, tweeted his approval of the idea that Mars’ economy will run on cryptocurrency. Elon Musk Envisions Mars’ Economy Run on Cryptocurrency Elon Musk believes that Mars’ economy will be run on cryptocurrency. He said early this month that he is “highly confident” that his company Spacex will land humans on Mars “about six years from now.” He further noted that it could even come as early as 2024 “if we get lucky.” Musk previously said that his aim is to set up a “self-sustaining city on Mars as soon as possible.” The subject of cryptocurrency running Mars’ economy briefly came up on Twitter last week. AI researcher Lex Fridman tweeted, “Mars economy will run on crypto.” In response, Twitter handle Elon’s World suggested, “Marscoin.” Musk himself replied with just a “Yes.” It is not clear if Musk was referring to the cryptocurrency called “marscoin” that wa

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a warning that alerts financial institutions in the United States about increasing ransomware attacks against coronavirus vaccine research organizations. US Treasury Warns of Ransomware Attacks, Phishing Schemes Targeting Covid-19 Vaccine Research Institutions According to the alert , FinCEN says that fraud, ransomware attacks, and “similar types of criminal activity” target the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, which could affect their supply chains if proper actions are not taken on time. The alert reads as follow in regards to ransomware campaigns: Cybercriminals, including ransomware operators, will continue to exploit the Covid-19 pandemic alongside legitimate efforts to develop, distribute, and administer vaccines. FinCEN is aware of ransomware directly targeting vaccine research, and FinCEN asks financial institutions to stay alert to ransomware targeting vaccine delivery operations as wel

On December 30, the decentralized finance (defi) platform Detoken and the firm General Protocols announced the launch of Anyhedge, the first public defi product built on the Bitcoin Cash network. Detoken users will be able to hedge or long their bitcoin cash and earn a funding premium while holding their keys in a noncustodial fashion. This week, bitcoin cash ( BCH ) users will get a chance to leverage the first public defi product built on the BCH blockchain. The team from Detoken and the organization General Protocols recently launched the Anyhedge protocol and Detoken, a noncustodial, browser-based wallet. Essentially, Detoken describes itself as a “trust-less and secure way to access peer-to-peer financial products from anywhere in the world.” “The first product available on Detoken is the Anyhedge BCH-USD futures contract,” the announcement details. “This is a smart contract which allows users to Hedge or Long their BCH while earning funding premium. Users also retain contr

Bitcoin miners have been yielding a very profitable year in monthly revenues, as the latest onchain data shows significant figures at its highest levels since 2019. Hourly Bitcoin Mining Revenues Hits 2019 Highs According to Glassnode , BTC miners are currently earning $1 million per hour, meaning an increase of 185% since the halving happened in mid-May when the bitcoin network cut the number of BTC that miners earn for processing transactions in half. The last time miner’s revenue was hovering around such highs was in July 2019, stated Glassnode, adding that “block rewards were twice as high than today.” The figures are impressive but not surprising at all, considering that 2020 has been characterized by a pandemic that hit the world and, consequently, the markets. However, the recent crypto bull-run, especially with bitcoin skyrocketing to all-time highs above the $28,000 threshold, helps increase the activity on the Bitcoin blockchain, which is something that miners take a