Crypto
Wazupnaija – Naija Entertainment blogs & Forums – Business – Crypto
Honduras attracts crypto investor tourists with Bitcoin Valley
A small tourist town in Honduras has begun accepting Bitcoin payments as part of the “Bitcoin Valley” initiative designed to increase tourism revenue across 60 local businesses. Some locals of Santa Lucia, like shopping mall owner Cesar Andino, expect the initiative to open up more opportunities for shops in the area and “attract more people who want to use this currency,” according to a report from Honduran news outlet La Prensa. Andino added: “Accepting Bitcoin will allow us to open another market and win more customers. We have to globalize. We cannot close ourselves off from technology, and we cannot be left behind when other countries are already doing it.” The program started on July 28, allowing patrons of local area shops to pay with United States dollars, Honduran Lempira, or Bitc...
Israel puts the brakes on cash to spur digital payments
Authorities in Israel on Monday has in put in place further restrictions on cash payments as a means to combat illegal activity and spur digital payments in the country. Since January 2019, Israeli businesses and consumers have been subject to limits on cash payments under the Law for the Reduction in the Use of Cash. It’s aimed at shifting the country’s citizens and businesses toward digital payments, allowing authorities to more easily track tax evasion, black market activity, and money laundering. From August 1, the limits on cash payments have been tightened to 6,000 Israeli Shekel (NIS), equivalent to $1,760 United States dollars (USD) for business transactions and NIS 15,000 ($4,400 USD) in personal transactions. Further restrictions are expected to follow in the future, prohib...
Facebook’s metaverse will ‘misfire,’ says Vitalik Buterin
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin doesn’t believe that any of the existing attempts by corporations to create a Metaverse are “going anywhere,” pointing to Meta as being one he believes will “misfire.” Responding to a tweet from Dialectic co-founder Dean Eigenmann, who believes venture capitalists may be wrong about what constitutes an ideal metaverse, Buterin said that while he believes “The metaverse is going to happen,” he doesn’t think any of the current attempts from corporates such as Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta are “going anywhere.” The “metaverse” is going to happen but I don’t think any of the existing corporate attempts to intentionally create the metaverse are going anywhere. https://t.co/tVUfq4CWmP — vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) July 30, 2022 The Metaverse...
Best monthly gains since October 2021 — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week
Bitcoin (BTC) starts a new week and a new month on a cautiously positive footing after protecting crucial levels. After an intense July in which macro factors provided significant volatility, BTC price action managed to provide both a weekly and monthly candle favoring the bulls. The road to some form of recovery continues, and at some points in recent weeks, it seemed like Bitcoin would suffer even harder on the back of June’s 40% losses. Now, however, there is already a sense of optimism among analysts, but one thing remains clear — this “bear market rally” does not mean the end of the tunnel yet. As Summer 2022 enters its final month, Cointelegraph takes a look at the potential market triggers at play for Bitcoin as it lingers near its highest levels since mid-June. Spot price snatches ...
Top 5 cryptocurrencies to watch this week: BTC, BNB, UNI, FIL, THETA
Bitcoin (BTC) has made a strong comeback in the month of July and is on track for its best monthly gains since October 2021. The sharp recovery in Bitcoin and several altcoins pushed the Crypto Fear and Greed Index to 42/100 on July 30, its highest level since April 6. Investors seem to be making the most of the depressed levels in Bitcoin. Data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode shows that Bitcoin in exchange wallets has dropped to 2.4 million Bitcoin in July, down from the March 2020 levels of 3.15 million Bitcoin. This has sent the metric to its lowest level since July 2018. Crypto market data daily view. Source: Coin360 Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone highlighted that the United States Federal Reserve’s indication to consider rate hikes on a “meeting...
Pro traders may use this ‘risk averse’ Ethereum options strategy to play the Merge
Ether (ETH) is reaching a make-it or break-it point as the network moves away from proof-of-work (PoW) mining. Unfortunately, many novice traders tend to miss the mark when creating strategies to maximize gains on potential positive developments. For example, buying ETH derivatives contracts is a cheap and easy mechanism to maximize gains. The perpetual futures are often used to leverage positions, and one can easily increase profits five-fold. So why not use inverse swaps? The main reason is the threat of forced liquidation. If the price of ETH drops 19% from the entry point, the leveraged buyer loses the entire investment. The main problem is Ether’s volatility and its strong price fluctuations. For example, since July 2021, ETH price crashed 19% from its starting point within 20 d...
The worst places to keep your crypto wallet seed phrase
Under the mattress, in the seams of a piece of luggage or even rolled into a cigar, what are the worst and best ways for keeping a seed phrase safe? The key to unlocking and recovering cryptocurrency, a seed phrase, should be secured and safe. Especially now that prices are low and the crypto tourists have checked out, it might be time for a crypto security spring clean. Security starts with a seed phrase, sometimes called a recovery phrase. There’s no denying it: Bitcoin and the crypto space writ large are in the clutches of a bear market. Since Do Kwon’s Terra experiment went up in smoke, a crypto contagion has choked the most reputable of exchanges, causing many self-sovereignty advocates to chant, “not your keys, not your coins.” Indeed, hardly a day goes by that another “trusted...
Blockchain technology can help create safe and inclusive adult platforms
The cryptocurrency market is no stranger to speculation. Consider that despite this industry’s growth, many continue to view these assets and associated technologies as a bubble that is about to burst. As history has proven, overcoming the technology adoption curve comes down to a major use case, or the so-called “killer app.” Although there is no clear frontrunner, the adult entertainment industry has proven to significantly advance new technology iterations in the past and presents an interesting proposition for the future of cryptocurrencies. The adult entertainment industry is believed to be worth billions of dollars, giving it significant influence over the world’s leading technologies. Although it doesn’t create these new technologies, it is ...
Crypto contagion deters investors in near term, but fundamentals stay strong
The past six-odd months have been nothing short of a financial soap opera for the cryptocurrency market, with more drama seemingly unfolding every other day. To this point, since the start of May, a growing number of major crypto entities have been tumbling like dominoes, with the trend likely to continue in the near term. The contagion, for the lack of a better word, was sparked by the collapse of the Terra ecosystem back in May, wherein the project’s associated digital currencies became worthless almost overnight. Following the event, crypto lending platform Celsius faced bankruptcy. Then Zipmex, a Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange, froze all customer withdrawals, a move that was mirrored by crypto financial service provider Babel Finance late last month. It is worth noting that si...
Bitcoin due ‘one of greatest bull markets’ as July gains circle 20%
Bitcoin (BTC) spoofed a breakout to fresh six-week highs into July 31 as a showdown for both the weekly and monthly close drew near. BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView “Bart Simpson” greets traders into BTC monthly close Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD canceling out all its gains from early in the weekend, dropping from $24,670 to $23,555 in hours. The resulting chart structure was all too familiar to long-term market participants, creating a “Bart Simpson” shape on hourly timeframes. Liquidations nonetheless remained manageable, with the cross-crypto tally totaling $150 million in the 24 hours to the time of writing, according to data from analytics resource Coinglass — less than on previous days. Crypto liquidations chart. ...
6 Questions for Kim Hamilton Duffy of Centre
We ask the buidlers in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector for their thoughts on the industry… and throw in a few random zingers to keep them on their toes! This week, our 6 Questions go to Kim Hamilton Duffy, director of identity and standards at Centre Consortium — an open-source technology project designed to create a more inclusive global economy. Kim is a leader in the emerging decentralized identity field and has architected successful open-source projects such as Verite, Blockcerts and the Digital Credential Consortium toolkit. 1 — Which countries are doing the most to support blockchain, and which ones will be left behind? Rather than assessing this through the narrow lens of whether certain crypto transactions are taxed, I think about whether countries are supporting innovati...
Charles Schwab’s asset management arm launches crypto-linked ETF
Schwab Asset Management, the asset management arm of financial giant Charles Schwab, has launched an exchange-traded fund (ETF) with exposure to firms linked to cryptocurrencies. In a Friday announcement, Schwab said its Crypto Thematic ETF was expected to be available for trading on the New York Stock Exchange’s Arca under the ticker STCE on Aug. 4. The fund tracks Schwab’s Crypto Thematic Index, providing an investment vehicle with exposure to companies “that may benefit from the development or utilization of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets.” Likely because the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, has not given the green light to ETFs providing direct exposure to Bitcoin (BTC), the Schwab fund will indirectly invest in crypto through companies. Schwab...
