World’s Largest Asset Manager BlackRock Launches New Crypto-Focused Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF)

Investment management behemoth BlackRock is launching a new crypto-focused exchange-traded fund (ETF) that aims to track cutting-edge blockchain firms. According to a recent company announcement, the $10 trillion asset management company is launching the iShares Blockchain and Tech ETF (IBLC), a global fund that would allow investors to gain exposure to emerging technology centered around digital assets. “The iShares Blockchain and Tech ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of US and non-US companies that are involved in the development, innovation, and utilization of blockchain and…

Singaporean investors’ appetite for crypto is key to mainstream adoption — Survey

As Singapore continues to play an active role in boosting crypto adoption across the Asia-Pacific region, the country’s first licensed crypto exchange Independent Reserve conducted a retail-focused survey to better understand the underlying potential of the regulated market. Independent Reserve’s survey — conducted across all age groups and genders of the Singapore population — revealed a strong affinity for various financial opportunities brought forward by decentralized finance (DeFi) and other investment opportunities. As explained by Raks Sondhi, managing director of Independent Reserve Singapore, the country’s rapid crypto adoption is driven…

NFT traders STEPN to a new groove — Is move-to-earn the future of fitness or another fad?

Axie Infinity was a pioneer of the play-to-earn movement and the project inspired new Web3 applications that aspire to apply the earning model to their respective ecosystems.  The latest project to join the move-to-earn movement is STEPN, a Solana-based Web3 application where owners of the NFT sneakers earn as they walk. STEPN has programmed a few factors that determine just how much a person can make with its sneakers and the Green Satoshi Token (GST) is STEPN’s in-game token that currently trades for $7.30. Over the last 30-days the token…

The NFT sector is projected to move around $800 billion over next 2 years: Report

Although NFTs have been a part of the cryptocurrency market since 2014, interest and adoption ha risen rapidly over the last two years. At their height in August 2021, the total trading volume of NFTs rose to over $5 billion, kickstarting what briefly came be to known as “NFT Summer”. According to a report by Coingecko, the NFT market is now expected to move more than $800 billion in the coming two years. The report, which mostly utilized investors from Asia and the Pacific, highlighted that of 871 respondents, around 72%…

A Deep Dive Into the Portfolios of the World’s Largest Ethereum Whales – Bitcoin News

While there’s a number of bitcoin whales that often get caught by blockchain parsers and written about in media reports, ethereum whales get a lot less attention. According to statistics in 2022, there are a lot more ethereum whales than holders with large sums of bitcoin. In fact, while the top 100 richest bitcoin addresses control 14.08% of the circulating supply, the top 100 richest ethereum addresses hold 39.81% of all the ether today. Data Shows Ethereum Still Has a Large Concentration of Whales in 2022 Ethereum, the second-largest crypto…

NYDFS calls for crypto firms to use blockchain analytics

In a letter published on Thursday, the New York State Department of Financial Services, or NYDFS, recommended that all virtual currency companies operating under New York banking law adopt blockchain analytics to trace transactions. In supporting the decision, the regulatory agency wrote: “Wallet addresses are typically pseudonymous, with nothing on the face of the transfer tying back to the originator, beneficiary, or underlying beneficial owners.” Therefore, as told by NYDFS, it is vital that such class of firms use blockchain analytics to prevent illicit transactions, such as money laundering or…

‘Ready, steady, NFT:’ Ukrainian government accepts NFT donations

Mykhailo Fedorov, Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, tweeted that the Ukrainian government will accept war effort contributions in the form of nonfungible token (NFT) donations and purchases. Via the official “Aid for Ukraine” crypto fund, individuals can donate cryptocurrency, fiat and now NFTs. So far the initiative has raised over $60 million, according to the website.  All funds go toward supplying Ukrainians with weapons, medical gear, medical kits and other expenses outlined on the Aid for Ukraine website. Total expenses amounted to $45,103,538 by…