Day: January 8, 2020

ECB’s Lagarde: We Want to Develop Digital Currencies but Won’t Discourage Private Initiatives

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The European Central Bank is eager to expand its role in developing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), but that doesn’t mean private enterprises can’t join the party, said President Christine Lagarde. In an interview Wednesday with French business magazine, Challenges, Lagarde reiterated the ECB wants to play an active role in cryptocurrencies. As businesses and individuals make more cross-border payments round the clock, Lagarde said the bank would continue looking into “the feasibility and merits of a CBDC.” Lagarde, who previously said the ECB should be “ahead of the curve”…

ECB’s Lagarde: We Want to Develop Digital Currencies but Won’t Discourage Private Initiatives

boss

The European Central Bank is eager to expand its role in developing central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), but that doesn’t mean private enterprises can’t join the party, said President Christine Lagarde. In an interview Wednesday with French business magazine, Challenges, Lagarde reiterated the ECB wants to play an active role in cryptocurrencies. As businesses and individuals make more cross-border payments round the clock, Lagarde said the bank would continue looking into “the feasibility and merits of a CBDC.” Lagarde, who previously said the ECB should be “ahead of the curve”…

Kraken Lists USDC the Day After Binance Drops It

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Kraken has listed the USD Coin, which it described as the “world’s fastest-growing stablecoin,” the day after rival Binance removed it from its platform because of low trading volume. Kraken said deposits and trading would go live Wednesday for USDC trading pairs with bitcoin, ether and tether, as well as the U.S. dollar and euro. The exchange added the stablecoin enjoyed “unparalleled” support from more than 100 companies and 60 exchanges in the crypto industry. “In December, USDC became the second stablecoin to ever have its market cap cross $500…

A Russian Nuclear Plant Is Renting Space to Energy-Hungry Bitcoin Miners

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UDOMLYA, Russia – A state-owned nuclear power plant in Russia may soon fuel a bitcoin mining hub. Late last month, Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation opened a mining farm near the Kalinin nuclear plant in Udomlya, 200 miles northwest of Moscow. The company spent more than $4.8 million building the 30-megawatt facility, according to Sergei Nemchenkov, the head of data centers and digital products at Rosenergoatom, a Rosatom subsidiary. Rosenergoatom isn’t planning to mine itself, Nemchenkov said. Rather, it will capitalize on the opportunity to sell additional electricity to heavy…

MARKETS DAILY: Geopolitical Impacts and Cars Paying Cars in Crypto?

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With geopolitical events reverberating and bitcoin continuing its upward trend, CoinDesk’s Markets Daily is back with news and analysis. No time to listen? scroll down for the complete episode transcript… More ways to Listen or Subscribe: On Today’s episode, International and Industry News Roundup, Cars paying each other for right of way and a new report on Crypto Liquidity It’s JANUARY 8, 2020, and you’re listening to Markets Daily, I’m Adam B. Levine, editor of Podcasts here at Coindesk, along with our senior markets reporter, Brad Keoun, to give you…

Bitcoin, Oil and Gold Jump because of U.S.-Iran Tensions

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Bitcoin hit its record yesterday coming to $8,400. However, the reasons for that are not as nice as it might seem. There is something to do with the current U.S.-Iran political tensions. Yesterday political situation came to its climax when the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps confirmed that it conducted rocket attacks on the Al Asad base in western Iraq that hosts American troops. Right immediately after this news was outlived, all “safe haven assets” jumped sky-high. But let’s go from the beginning. It all started earlier on Wednesday when Islamic…

Join CoinDesk Tonight in Las Vegas

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Hey, Las Vegas crypto lovers, see you tonight at G.O.A.T. for our first On Tap meetup in Las Vegas. Join us for an evening of brews, bitcoin and blockchain. The event will be held at G.O.A.T. Sports Bar in Las Vegas and starts at 6 p.m. on Jan. 8. We’ll close up at around 8 p.m. but we’ll be around to chat after the event. There is no formal agenda, just some networking. The G.O.A.T. is at 3805 West Sahara Avenue. If you’d like to join us please RSVP. We’re also looking…

10M Bitcoins Haven’t Moved in More Than a Year, Highest Since 2017

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“HODLing” has returned to a major milestone: The total number of bitcoins that haven’t changed hands in more than a year has crossed the 10 million mark.  About 10.7 million bitcoins haven’t moved in more than 12 months, according to Digital Assets Data, a fintech company building crypto data feeds.  Considering the total number of bitcoins in circulation is 18.14 million, this also means nearly 60 percent of the coins remained dormant and only 40 percent participated in the price action seen in 2019. The percentage of bitcoins lying dormant…

Crypto Tax Reporting Failures Can Be Expensive, Even Criminal

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The Internal Revenue Service is aware that millions of cryptocurrency transactions may still remain unreported. Taxpayers may think they will not be caught, and many Coinbase users may have thought their information would be protected until the John Doe summons proved otherwise. The best way to avoid penalties is to disclose and report as accurately as you can, showing that you did not have a willful intent to avoid taxes.  Otherwise you could face large penalties and even potential criminal investigation. Anyone convicted of tax evasion, for example, may face…

Bitcoin Price Will Be Golden in 2020 Thanks to Limited Supply, Increasing Use: Bloomberg Report

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Increasing global uncertainties and a weak dollar will likely push more investors into bitcoin as it becomes recognized as a store of value. The cryptocurrency’s fixed supply will further drive price increases throughout the year, Bloomberg analysts predict. Bloomberg’s 2020 crypto outlook report, published Monday, predicts bitcoin’s price could move to the top of its 2019 range and retest the $14,000 high at a time when a weak dollar and stock market volatility continue and geopolitical tensions increase. “Bitcoin’s initial reaction to the [Jan. 3] U.S. airstrike that killed one…