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Final Fantasy creator reveals ‘aggressive investment’ in blockchain games
Final Fantasy creator Square Enix is set to double down on blockchain game development despite turbulence in the crypto market, according to a Jan. 1 letter from the Japanese company’s president, Yosuke Matsuda. The letter, titled “A New Year’s Letter from the President,” aimed to recap the company’s major accomplishments in 2022 and explain its plans for 2023. Out of 15 paragraphs, seven were about blockchain gaming, showing that blockchain gaming is a major focus of the company’s investing strategy going forward. ⚔An introduction to SYMBIOGENESIS ①⚔ Starting from today we’ll begin introducing Symbiogenesis, starting from the concept✨ Symbiogenesis is a new franchise by SQUARE ENIX, which brings real game utility ⚔ to 10000 collectible NFT artworks ...
Trouble brewing for the US: Two-thirds of TradFi expects a 2023 recession
The United States economy could be in for an upset. Data from a Wall Street Journal survey revealed financial experts expect the country to face an economic downturn this year. Over two-thirds of economists at 23 major financial institutions that do business with the Federal Reserve believe the U.S. will have a “shallow” or “mild” recession in 2023. Two of the surveyed institutions predict a recession for the following year. The research included big names in the financial services sector, such as Barclays, Bank of America, TD Securities and UBS. Collectively, the Federal Reserve was named as the primary reason for the recession due to it raising interest rates to fight inflation. At the time of writing, the inflation rate in the U.S. is 7%, compared with the Fed’s target desired rate...
Crypto exchange adoption boosts ENS registrations to over 2.2M
2022 proved to be a fruitful year for Ethereum Name Service, with the platform recording 2.2 million registered domains despite unfavorable market conditions for the cryptocurrency space. According to the service, over 80% of the total ENS domains created since the project’s inception were registered in 2022. Data from Dune Analytics shows that ENS has around 2.82 million names registered as of Jan. 2, with 630,340 owners of ENS domains. Happy New Year everyone! 2022 was an incredible year for ENS! Over 2.2m ENS names were registered in 2022 (that’s 80% of ALL names created) If you’re ready for 2023, drop your ENS below ✨ — ens.eth (@ensdomains) January 1, 2023 As Cointelegraph previously explored in an exclusive interview with founder Nick Johnson, ENS allows users to m...
Cameron Winklevoss pens open letter to Barry Silbert about Gemini’s blocked funds
Jan. 2 “marks 47 days since Genesis halted withdrawals,” Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, pointed out in an open letter to Barry Silbert, CEO of the Digital Currency Group — which owns Genesis. Winklevoss went on to make a blunt appraisal of DCG’s business practices. According to the letter Winklevoss posted on Twitter, Genesis owes Gemini $900 million for funds Gemini lent to it as part of the Gemini Earn program. “For the past six weeks, we have done everything we can to engage with you in a good faith and collaborative manner in order to reach a consensual resolution for you to pay back the $900 million that you owe,” Winklevoss wrote, adding: “Every time we ask you for tangible engagement, you hide behind lawyers, investment bankers, and process.” W...
Italy approves 26% capital gains tax on cryptocurrencies
On Dec. 29, 2022, days before the year’s end, Italy’s Senate approved its budget for 2023, which included an increase in taxation for crypto investors — a 26% tax on capital gains on crypto-asset trading over 2,000 euros (approximately $2,13 at time of publication). The approved legislation defines crypto assets as “a digital representation of value or rights that can be transferred and stored electronically, using distributed ledger technology or similar technology.” Previously, crypto assets were treated as foreign currencies in the country, with lower taxes. As reported by Cointelegraph, the bill also establishes that taxpayers will have the option to declare the value of their digital-asset holdings as of Jan. 1 and pay a 14% tax, incentives that are intended to encourage Italians...
Here Are the Biggest Music NFTs in December as Year Ends 95% Down From January
NFTs had a wild 2022. January began with euphoric highs and a record $4.8 billion traded on OpenSea. By contrast, December ended the year with a hangover — volumes down by 95% with just $283 million traded in the month. Still, the crypto winter hasn’t deterred musicians from embracing Web3. December saw an uptick in music NFT activity thanks to legacy artists Armin van Buuren and Styles P, as well as high-profile drops from crypto-native musicians like 3LAU and Daniel Allan. The first “billion club” NFT was released, unlocking streaming royalties in a track with more than a billion Spotify plays. Meanwhile, the independent scene continued to flourish with a seventh-straight month of rising volume on Sound.xyz – the largest platform for independent musicians. Across the 10 biggest music NFT...
Ethereum (ETH) Price Prediction 2025-2030 – Experts Recommend Investing in Metacade (MCADE) Instead
Since 2016, Ethereum (ETH) has been the undisputed number two crypto. The Ethereum price prediction for 2025-2030 suggests that it remains a safe investment. However, investors are starting to wonder if there is better value in other market sectors, such as GameFi and play-to-earn (P2E). That may be why so many experts are starting to recommend investing in crypto gaming company Metacade (MCADE) instead. Read on to learn why. About Metacade Metacade (MCADE) is at the forefront of a new generation of gaming companies that are blurring the lines between cryptos, GameFi, trading, earning, and working. As the name suggests, a virtual metaverse and arcade of the best games are at the heart of Metacade. But the company takes things to the next level by acting as a Web 3 community hub for blockch...
Vitalik Buterin highlights what he’s bullish about for 2023
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has shared some bullishness for the year ahead, including reaching a new milestone for rollup scaling as per the Ethereum roadmap. The Ethereum developer also confirmed the rollout of the Ethereum Improvement Protocol (EIP) 4884 sometime in 2023, which had been removed as part of the upcoming Shanghai upgrade package set for March. Responding to a Dec. 31 post from former chief technology officer of Coinbase, Balaji Srinivasan, asking users what they were bullish for in 2023, Buterin said he was looking forward to reaching the “basic rollup scaling” milestone as outlined in the Ethereum roadmap. Reaching the “basic rollup scaling” milestone in my roadmap diagram. That means: * EIP-4844 rolled out* Rollups partially taking off training wh...
Hong Kong brokers line up for SFC approval ahead of new virtual asset trading legislation
Financial services providers in Hong Kong are already taking the first steps to provide services to retail investors, according to local reports. Brokers and fund managers in the region have reportedly asked for advice on licensing requirements ahead of new legislation. Lawmakers in Hong Kong passed an amendment to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance (AMLO) in December 2022, which aligns with the region’s recent stance on broadening the possibility for crypto trading. The amendment introduces a new licensing scheme for virtual asset service providers, which will allow retail investors the ability to trade in virtual assets. Currently, virtual asset trading is restricted to professional investors or traders with proof of at least $1 million in bankable assets...
Bitcoin Core developer hack highlights self-custody risks: Community responds
With one of Bitcoin’s original core developers claiming that his balance got drained by a hacker, the crypto community is at a loss at how “normal people” can succeed at securing their own Bitcoin (BTC). In a recent thread, Luke Dashjr claimed that some alleged attackers had somehow accessed his PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) key, which is from an encryption program that creates cryptographic authentication. Members of the crypto community voiced their concerns about how a Bitcoin core developer who is known for being security conscious could be compromised. Some believe that this makes it difficult for normal people to adopt or secure their Bitcoin. In a post, a Twitter user was shocked by the news, believing that not many would be able to help the developer and that “there’s littl...
US will see new ‘inflation spike’ — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week
Bitcoin (BTC) begins the first week of 2023 in an uninspiring place as volatility stays away — along with traders. After failing to budge throughout the Christmas and new year break, BTC price action remains locked in a narrow range. Having sealed yearly losses of nearly 65% in 2022, Bitcoin has arguably seen a classic bear market year, but for the time being, few are actively predicting a recovery. The situation is complex for the average hodler, who is watching for macro triggers courtesy of the United States Federal Reserve and economic policy impact on dollar strength. Prior to Wall Street returning on Jan. 3, Cointelegraph takes a look at the factors at play when it comes to BTC price performance in the coming week and beyond. Bitcoin traders fear new lows amid flatlining price Bitcoi...
Mati Greenspan’s boss bribed him with 1 BTC to join Twitter: Hall of Flame
Name: Mati GreenspanAnonymous: NoTwitter followers: 48,000Known for: The “face” of eToro for years, Greenspan is a rare moderate voice on Crypto Twitter. Who is this guy anyway? The friendly but cynical Mati Greenspan became a well-known crypto market commentator in publications such as Forbes, Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal as a senior market analyst for eToro until he set off on his own by founding research and advisory firm Quantum Economics in 2019. He’s been on Cointelegraph’s Top 100 Notable People in Blockchain for the last two years. Unlike the talking croissants and anime whales on Twitter, Greenspan is personally accountable for his views, which may explain why he’s a lot less bolshie and provocative than some. With 48,000 followers, Greenspan doesn’t have the biggest acco...
