The price of the Axie Infinity (AXS) token has surged by nearly 40% in three days. AXS rallied to over $65, its best level in more than two weeks, as Axie Infinity revealed a revamped reward structure for its player-vs-player (PVP) competition round. In detail, the play-to-earn startup expanded its number of leaderboard slots to 300,000 and boosted the amount of AXS rewards to 117,676 from the earlier 3,000 for the next season. “This will supercharge the competitive Axie scene and create more demand for quality Axie teams in the ecosystem,” Axie Infinity explained, adding that their move would create a $6 million worth of prize pool for Season 20. AXS/USD daily price chart. Source: TradingView Economic revamp boosts AXS demand AXS serves as a governance token for the Axie ...
On Jan. 25, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) directors asked El Salvador to “narrow the scope” of its Bitcoin Law by “removing Bitcoin’s legal tender status.” Adopting a cryptocurrency as the Central American country has done “entails large risks for financial and market integrity, financial stability and consumer protection,” the fund wrote. Why did the IMF ask El Salvador to effectively pull the plug on its cryptocurrency experiment? Surely this small country — ranked 104th globally in gross domestic product (GDP) — is no threat to the international bank’s balance sheet. Moreover, 70% of El Salvador’s populace is unbanked, and one-fifth of its GDP is from United States remittances. Arguably, it could profit from Bitcoin’s (BTC) use. Then again, it’s only been half a year since El ...
A fundamental trait of crypto is as an asset class that transcends jurisdictions. Yet, one of the key hubs driving adoption and innovation is Asia. Since the heady days of Korea’s Kimchi premium and Bitcoin (BTC) arbitrage opportunities, the region is playing a role in defining crypto’s development pathways and anchoring its future. According to Chainanalysis’ report, in the first half of 2021, Asia was already the destination for 28% of the overall global transaction volume — $1.16 trillion worth of cryptocurrency. Central and Southern Asia alone saw crypto transactions grow 706% year-over-year, making it the world’s third-fastest growing region. Last year, headlines from Asia were dominated by developments in China. However, the rest of the region was also abuzz, boosted by the halo of p...
Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) are constantly in the news. NFT platforms are springing up like mushrooms and champions are emerging, such as OpenSea. It is a real platform economy that is emerging, like those in which YouTube or Booking.com gained a foothold. But it is a very young economy — one that is struggling to understand the legal issues that apply to it. Regulators are starting to take an interest in the subject, and there is risk of a backlash if the industry does not regulate itself quickly. And, as always, the first blows are expected east of the Atlantic. In this first article devoted to the legal framework of NFTs, we will focus on the application of the digital asset regime and financial law to NFTs in France. In a second article, we will come back to the issues of liability and c...
It has arguably never been easier to participate in the crypto ecosystem. After centralized exchange powerhouse Coinbase recently began allowing its users to deposit part of their fiat paychecks into the exchange in the form of crypto, more people are beginning to realize the potential of the industry and participate in this ever-growing ecosystem. But, crypto is commonly perceived as fundamentally intricate or lacking the proper interfaces, and whether this is right or wrong, this has been the perception for some time. To some people, the premise of digital currencies will always seem far too complicated. More recently, however, there has been an emergence of easier avenues into the crypto space for those keen to learn more. It’s important to establish just why people should conside...
In the past year, we’ve seen the crypto economy undergo exponential expansion as heaps of money poured into various cryptocurrencies, decentralized finance (DeFi), nonfungible tokens (NFT), crypto indices, insurance products and decentralized options markets. The total value locked (TVL) in the DeFi sector across all chains has grown from $18 billion at the beginning of 2021 to $240 billion in January 2022. With so much liquidity in the ecosystem, the crypto lending space has also grown a significant amount, from $60 million at the beginning of 2021 to over $400 million by January 2022. Despite the exponential growth and the innovation in DeFi products, the crypto lending market is still only limited to token-collateralized loans, i.e. pledge one cryptocurrency as collateral to borro...
Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week Hodlers beware! New malware targets MetaMask and 40 other crypto wallets According to a report from security researcher 3xp0rt, a powerful new malware variant known as the “Mars Stealer,” an upgrade of the information-stealing Oski trojan of 2019, can target more than 40 browser-based crypto wallets, including MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet, along with popular two-factor authentication (2FA) extensions. The nefarious software utilizes a grabber function that steals private keys after it has been downloaded...
Bitcoin (BTC) held above $41,000 into the weekend after a late surge Friday took the largest cryptocurrency to two-week highs. BTC/USD 1-day candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView “The only good bear is a dead bear” Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD maintaining newly re-won ground Saturday, with the pair’s correlation to stock makets firmly in focus. Analysts had highlighted the $39,600 area as a key line to cross and flip to new support in order to secure further upside. In the event, this was no issue for bulls, as Bitcoin “gapped up” in seconds as it neared $40,000 to continue higher. Amid the newfound strength, the mood was conspicuously more buoyant than in recent days or even weeks. Popular analyst Credible Cry...
A young couple from India used nonfungible tokens (NFTs) to digitize their love for each other till eternity over the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. The recently married couple from Pune, India, Shruti Nair and Anil Narasipuram decided to take their court marriage to the next level by hosting a blockchain wedding. According to Anil, the husband: “I read some articles on how people in other countries were doing blockchain marriages and it motivated me.” Other prominent crypto entrepreneurs to follow the trend include Rebecca Kacherginsky, Coinbase’s staff product designer. Most people get married in a place of religious worship, on a beach, or in the mountains. Peter (@_iphelix) and I are NOT most people. We got married on the #blockchain. 1/7 pic.twitter.com/2ExexrlLbZ — Rebecca Kachergi...
2021 will be remembered as the year of nonfungible tokens (NFTs). In a year where names like Beeple and Bored Ape Yacht Club dominated the headlines, it’s estimated that NFTs have generated more than $23 billion in trading volume. The rise of NFTs has ushered in a new generation of investors who spend time scouring platforms like Discord and OpenSea looking for the next 100x opportunity. However, it’s important for the NFT investor of today to keep tax implications in mind. Otherwise, they risk repeating the mistakes of the past. After the 2017 bull run, many crypto traders found themselves in a difficult position. Though they had racked up large tax liabilities while the market was going up, they no longer had the money to pay their tax bills after the crash. Many of these traders simply ...