cryptocurrencies
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change calls cryptocurrency CO2 emissions a ‘growing concern’
The United Nations arm aimed at assessing the science related to climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, has named crypto among technologies that may require greater energy demands. According to a report released on Monday, the IPCC said cryptocurrencies, as part of the infrastructure around data centers and information technology systems related to blockchain, had the potential to be a “major global source” of carbon dioxide emissions. The group said that estimated CO2 emissions between 2010 and 2019 suggested there was only a 50% probability of limiting the rise of the average temperature of Earth by 1.5°C, based on the remaining carbon budget from 2020. “The energy requirements of cryptocurrencies is also a growing concern, although considerable unce...
SEC chair: retail crypto investors should be protected
Gary Gensler, chair of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, said the agency’s protections that apply to investors of traditional assets should extend to those in the crypto market. In prepared remarks released Monday for the Penn Law Capital Markets Association Annual Conference, Gensler said he had requested SEC staff to explore getting crypto platforms registered, having them subject to the same regulatory framework as exchanges. In addition, the SEC chair said the agency’s staff could be working towards addressing regulatory clarity in the crypto space by considering how to register platforms “where the trading of securities and non-securities is intertwined” and whether retail crypto investors should be afforded the same protections as those in traditional markets. “Cr...
Here’s how pro traders use Bitcoin options to profit even during a sideways market
Bitcoin (BTC) price swings might be impossible to predict, but there is a strategy frequently used by pro traders that yields high returns with minimal cost. Typically, retail traders rely on leveraged futures positions which are highly susceptible to forced liquidations. However, trading Bitcoin options provide excellent opportunities for investors aiming to maximize gains while limiting their losses. Using multiple call (buy) options can create a strategy capable of returns six times higher than the potential loss. Moreover, these can be used in bullish and bearish circumstances, depending on the investors’ expectations. The regulatory uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrencies has long been a significant setback for investors and this is another reasons why neutral market strategies...
Indonesia to impose 0.1% crypto tax starting in May: Report
The Indonesian government is reportedly planning to charge a 0.1% capital gains tax on crypto investments as well as a value-added tax, or VAT, on digital asset transactions starting from May 1. According to a Friday Reuters report, Hestu Yoga Saksama, a spokesperson for Indonesia’s tax office, said the country will be imposing “income tax and VAT” on crypto assets “because they are a commodity as defined by the Trade Ministry” and “not a currency.” The government is still reportedly considering how to implement such taxes, but legislation passed in response to the pandemic laid the groundwork for collecting revenue on cryptocurrency transactions. Indonesia’s Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, also known as Bappebti, confirmed a report that in February 2022, crypto transactions i...
Bitcoin recovers the $46K level, but several factors could prevent a stronger breakout
After dropping below $45,000 on March 31, Bitcoin (BTC) surprised investors with a quicker-than-expected recovery to the $46,500 level. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that bears managed to drop BTC to an overnight low of $44,210 before bulls showed up in force to lift the price back above $46,500 by midday. BTC/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView Here’s what several analysts are saying about the short-term outlook for Bitcoin moving forward and what developments could present headwinds for the top cryptocurrency as a new month gets underway. The macro environment continues to impact BTC price Events in the global financial market continue to have a large impact on cryptocurrency markets and are likely to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Accord...
Astar (ASTR) price doubles as the network prepares to add 15 new projects in April
Following the successful completion of its initial parachain auctions, the Polkadot (DOT) ecosystem has begun to gain traction with the cryptocurrency community as the first chains begin to come online and integrate with Ethereum (ETH). Astar (ASTR) is one such Polkadot-based project that finished off the month of March on a hot streak after the multi-chain smart contract platform attracted the attention of retail and institutional crypto investors. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $0.107 on March 22, the price of ASTR has climbed 104% to a daily high at $0.208 on April 1 as demand for the token increased 20-fold. ASTR/USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView Three reasons for the rally include the completion of a $22 million funding...
How ambitious young projects are connecting Distributed Ledger Technology and music
Blockchain is simple to understand at a basic level, existing as a distributed database, where different devices distributed across the network must verify the entries posted. As a result, blockchain is most well-known for decentralization, anonymity and security, all of which are evident in the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC). While many are quick to associate Bitcoin with blockchain, this is only one of the possible use cases for the technology. One of the most notable use cases right now is the music industry, where creators have gained new opportunities to connect with their fans directly, further eliminating the need for an intermediary. Today, the music industry is plagued with several overarching concerns, including the burden that record labels seem to place on the musicians th...
Galaxy Digital delays BitGo acquisition to later on in 2022
Cryptocurrency investment firm Galaxy Digital has not managed to finalize the acquisition of the digital asset custodian BitGo in the first quarter of 2022 as the firm originally planned. Galaxy Digital has made some changes to the terms of its acquisition of BitGo, CEO Mike Novogratz announced in an earnings call on Thursday. “We’ve adjusted the deal some, for progress that BitGo has made,” Novogratz said, noting that BitGo has hired about 150 people since the firms originally signed the deal in May last year. He added that Galaxy remains committed to “integrating BitGo and becoming an institutional crypto platform” and the companies will continue to work on integration. According to an official statement, Galaxy Digital and BitGo have renegotiated the acquisition to happen “immediately f...
‘The cryptocurrency world will help in this war’: Kuna CLO breaks down Ukraine’s digital asset law
While many parts of Ukraine are still facing threats from Russia’s military, some residents, industry leaders and government officials are turning to digital assets for help in relocating people, funding humanitarian aid projects and getting supplies to its own soldiers. On Feb. 17, exactly one week before Russian forces began their attack on Ukraine, the country’s legislature adopted the “On Virtual Assets” bill. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later signed the bill into law, establishing a legal framework for Ukraine to operate a regulated crypto market. Ganna Voievodina, chief legal officer of Ukraine-based crypto exchange Kuna and one of the bill’s authors, told Cointelegraph that the ramifications of the legislation came at a critical time when the country needed legal a...
Binance becomes official crypto exchange partner of 64th Grammy Awards
The Recording Academy, a major music recording company famous for its annual music awards Grammy Awards, has inked a partnership with Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volumes. According to a joint announcement on Thursday, Binance became the first-ever official crypto exchange partner of the 64th Annual Grammy Awards and Grammy Week events to bring various Web3 technology solutions and experiences to the organization’s events and projects. The partnership was announced just a few days before the 64th Grammy Awards ceremony, which will take place on April 3 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Recording Academy co-president Panos Panay specified that the agreement envisions the development of new monetization avenues for the Recording Academy and the crea...
Omnichain developer LayerZero Labs raises $135M
On Wednesday, LayerZero Labs, a firm that develops protocol to enable omnichain decentralized applications, or dApps, to span multiple blockchains, announced that it raised $135 million in its latest funding round. The deal values LayerZero Labs at $1 billion and will accelerate the development of its namesake protocol. The round was led by notable venture groups and investors such as Sequoia Capital, FTX Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and with participation from Coinbase Ventures, PayPal Ventures, Tiger Global, Uniswap Labs, and more. It aims to unite applications such as gaming, nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, marketplaces, media apps, etc., so they are operable across multi-chain realms. Potential new use cases via LayerZero include: decentralized finance applications utilizing trading, bo...
DeFi sector TVL rises as investors return to a bullish crypto market
The month of March has been a tale of two halves for the cryptocurrency market and the weakness seen since the start of the year has began to fade. Bitcoin’s (BTC) strong move above the $40,000 level is helping to lift sentiment across the sector, and DeFi tokens are also beginning to move upward. Crypto Fear & Greed Index. Source: Alternative.me Data from cryptocurrency market intelligence firm Messari shows that a majority of the top tokens in the DeFi sector have posted double-digit gains over the past 30 days, led by THORChain (RUNE), which has increased by 199.81%, and Aave (AAVE), which has seen its price increase 53.95% Top 12 DeFi assets. Source: Messari Here’s a rundown of the state of DeFi as the sector attempts to get back to its former glory and kickstart a new ...
