Scenarios that could influence a decision to issue a digital shekel include a decision by the U.S. or the European Union to issue CBDCs. A decline in cash usage, significant use of stablecoins, competition in the domestic payment system, and significant technological developments in payments systems could also sway the central bank’s decision to issue one. Source
The federal financial regulatory agency of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced that it will start receiving licensing applications for firms that want to provide virtual asset services within the country. The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) said in a press release that all virtual asset service providers (VASPs) operating in the country must submit an application and obtain a license from the regulator, with the exemption of those licensed in the country’s financial free zones. Meanwhile, digital asset companies operating within the emirate of Dubai will still have…
Per Bernstein, the new crypto cycle is still not fully appreciated, with a number of positive factors lining up. These include macro catalysts, a new bitcoin mining cycle, the continued successful upgrades of the Ethereum blockchain, and the success of Ethereum scaling ecosystems such as Arbitrum. Source
Failing to utilize tax loss harvesting is one of the biggest mistakes people make on their tax returns, according to Danny Talwar, the head of tax at crypto tax software firm Koinly. Speaking to Cointelegraph ahead of the April 18 United States tax deadline, Talwar said that for those investors who experienced losses in the market over 2022, this is the last chance to report the loss and “try and get some of that benefit” by offsetting it against any gains made in the previous year. Tax-loss harvesting occurs when…
Crypto exchange ByBit has opened its global headquarters in Dubai, nearly an year after it had revealed plans based on an in-principle approval to move its global headquarters to the city. Source
A four-year-old video of United States Securities an Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Genser giving praise to smart contract platform Algorand (ALGO) is circulating on Twitter following the SEC declaring ALGO is an unregistered security. In the video, Gensler referred to Algorand as a “great technology” while he was contemplating whether a “high performance” smart contract network would be capable of integrating an Uber or Lyft-like application on its platform. ALGO is one of six tokens that Gensler claimed was an unregistered security in the SEC’s lawsuit against crypto trading…
TBD and the Africa-focused cryptocurrency exchange platform Yellow Card recently partnered to launch a fiat on and off-ramp that enables payments in some 16 African countries through Bitcoin rails. The objective of this arrangement is to make cross-border payments not only more affordable and accessible, but compliant as well. Hedging Against Inflation With BTC TBD, a bitcoin developer-focused entity owned by Jack Dorsey’s Block, has joined hands with the crypto exchange platform Yellow Card to launch a platform that enables fiat on and off-ramps and payments in 16 African countries.…
“Meme coins are huge parts of the crypto trading landscape, whether we like it or not,” James Wo, founder at crypto fund DFG, told CoinDesk at the heights of one such meme obsession. “While the biggest currencies like bitcoin and ether have very low volatility, it’s only natural that traders will look for opportunities elsewhere.” Source
On a permissionless chain, while the authorities could require banks to freeze accounts, if the person in question withdraws assets to a self-custody wallet, the authorities cannot seize the assets. On a permissioned chain, the authorities could seize those assets. Source
The ETHGlobal Tokyo hackathon drew to a close on Sunday, as builders from around the world competed for $375,000 in prizes. The event was kicked off with the first-ever ETHGlobal “Pragma” summit, sponsored by Verse, among others. Engineers and representatives from Bitcoin.com also took part in the summit and hackathon, and shared their thoughts on the event and its significance for crypto and economic freedom right now, and in the near future. A Pragmatic Start: From Summit to Hackathon The first-ever “Pragma” summit took place on April 13 in Tokyo,…