Author: Reuters
Crypto exchange Binance is blocking the accounts of any Russian clients targeted by sanctions, it told Reuters on Monday, but will not freeze the accounts of others after Ukraine called for a block on Russian users at major digital currency platforms. “We’re blocking accounts of those on the sanctions list (if they have Binance accounts) and ensuring that all sanctions are met in full,” a spokesperson for the company said on Monday, declining to give further details. The United States, Britain, Europe and Canada announced new sanctions on Russia on Saturday, including blocking certain lenders’ access to the SWIFT international…
The cryptocurrency’s spectacular rally in 2021 drew thousands of entrants into mining, or producing new coin. As a result the hashrate, or combined computational power used by bitcoin miners globally, has roughly quadrupled over the past six months to blow past 200 million “terahashes” per second. But what’s that got to do with the price of bitcoin? A rising hashrate makes it becomes harder for miners to earn coin and cover their costs of hardware, electricity and staff – so many are more likely to sell, rather than hold, their newly minted cryptocurrency, exerting a bearish force on the market.…
Russia’s finance ministry on Monday said it would take proposals on cryptocurrencies from the country’s central bank into account so long as they do not contradict its own approach, paving the way for legislation governing digital assets. A simmering dispute over cryptocurrency regulation in Russia heated up on Friday as the finance ministry submitted legislative proposals to the government that clashed with the central bank’s demand for a blanket ban. The Bank of Russia has proposed banning cryptocurrency trading and mining due to the threat digital currencies pose to financial stability. But the finance ministry prefers legislation that regulates cryptocurrencies,…
Federal Reserve Board Governor Lael Brainard on Friday laid out a case for the role a U.S. central bank digital currency could play in bolstering financial stability as the use of stablecoins and cryptocurrency grows and other countries issue their own CBDCs. “It is essential that policymakers, including the Federal Reserve, plan for the future of the payment system and consider the full range of possible options to bring forward the potential benefits of new technologies, while safeguarding stability,” Brainard said in remarks prepared for delivery to the U.S Monetary Policy Forum in New York. “A U.S. CBDC may be…
A simmering dispute over cryptocurrency regulation in Russia heated up on Friday as the finance ministry submitted legislative proposals that clashed with the central bank’s demand for a blanket ban. The Bank of Russia has proposed banning cryptocurrency trading and mining due to the threat digital currencies pose to financial stability. The finance ministry disagrees and President Vladimir Putin has called on authorities to find a consensus. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told state TV channel Rossiya-24 on Friday that he hoped disagreements could be ironed out and a bill regulating cryptocurrencies passed by the end of the year. He said…
Coinbase Global (COIN.O) on Tuesday said it is launching a pilot program to allow cryptocurrency recipients in Mexico to cash out their funds in pesos, a move aimed at shaking up the $700 billion global remittance market. Cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are seen as an important way for people to send money to family and friends overseas because of the borderless nature of crypto and fewer intermediaries than traditional currency transfers. Crypto recipients in Mexico can now generate a redemption code on their Coinbase app that can be used to receive cash at 37,000 retail and convenience stores across Mexico, the cryptocurrency…
A team of quantum computing engineers from JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), Toshiba Corp (6502.T) and Ciena Corp say they have successfully shown that a powerful, newly-developed encryption network can be used to protect communications on the blockchain, according to a paper published Thursday. The group of researchers say it is the first time that a quantum key distribution (QKD) network, a super-secure two-way communication network powered by quantum physics, has been tested as a way to protect the blockchain from quantum computing attacks. Quantum computers, which can process information and calculations at a radically faster rate than classical computers, are still being…
Global markets have had a rocky start to the year as the prospects of tighter monetary policy prompted investors to ditch risky assets – but the fast-growing world of “metaverse” investing has been running on its own timeline. Metaverse-related assets such as currencies which can be used in virtual worlds, and NFTs representing virtual land, took only a small hit as risk appetite dropped in January, while the broader market for digital goods has seen volumes surge. Facebook changing its name to Meta Platforms Inc (FB.O) proved a bigger driver of investment in the metaverse than broader financial market conditions. Non-fungible tokens…
Feb 16 (Reuters) – Charlie Munger, the longtime business partner of Warren Buffett, on Wednesday said it is “massively stupid” for tensions to escalate between the United States and China, and separately said cryptocurrency should have been banned, calling it “beneath contempt.” Munger, 98, spoke while fielding nearly two hours of questions at the annual meeting of Daily Journal Corp (DJCO.O), the Los Angeles newspaper publisher and provider of software to courthouses that he chairs. He is better known as vice chairman of Buffett’s conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) since 1978. Munger is a longtime bull on China, spearheading Berkshire’s investment in electric…
President Nayib Bukele on Wednesday asked U.S. senators to stay out of El Salvador’s “internal affairs” after they called for an investigation into the economic risks the United States faces due to the Central American country’s adoption of bitcoin as legal tender. Senators Jim Risch, Bill Cassidy and Bob Mendez asked the State Department to submit a report on the implementation of bitcoin in El Salvador with the purpose of assessing the risks it poses to the U.S. economy. “Ok boomers… You have 0 jurisdiction on a sovereign and independent nation,” Bukele, 40, said in a tweet, referring to the…