Weekly Headlines 2022.12 W5
“Get a single digit percentage point of your investable assets in bitcoin and do not look at it for 5-10 years. Thank me later.” – Antoni Trenchev, the CEO of crypto lender Nexo
Weekly News Report:
News
1. Italian Parliament Approves 26% Crypto-Gains Tax in 2023 Budget
– Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s new bill also includes an incentive for those declaring crypto for tax purposes.
2. Fiji elects pro-Bitcoin prime minister Sitiveni Rabuka
– Fiji elects a pro-Bitcoin prime minister, signaling a positive future for Bitcoin adoption in the pacific island nation.
3. Anonymous Twitter User Leaks 3Commas API Database
– The leak comes after 3Commas repeatedly told users that they had been “phished” after widespread hacks.
4. Binance’s Cloud Mining affected by extreme weather conditions in North America
– Users’ subscriptions to cloud mining products have been extended for three days due to the power outage.
5. FTX customers file class-action lawsuit to get priority reparations
– Customer class members don’t want to stand in line alongside the creditors of a failed crypto platform.
6. FTX Users Sue for Priority Repayment and Damages in Bankruptcy Proceedings
– The class-action lawsuit accuses the bankrupt crypto exchange’s executives of intentionally misappropriating customer funds to fund risky strategies and their lavish lifestyles.
7. Wife of Hal Finney announces Bitcoin charity event
– She said that the event seeks to raise funds to provide assistance for victims of ALS.
8. FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Borrowed From Alameda to Buy Robinhood Shares
– Alameda took out a loan pledging those same shares as collateral.
9. Argo Blockchain Suspends Trading in US Shares for 24 Hours
– The company said earlier this month it was close to restructuring without having to declare bankruptcy.
10. Japan to lift the ban on foreign stablecoins like USDT in 2023: Report
– None of the 31 crypto exchanges registered with Japan’s Financial Services Agency are currently offering trading in stablecoins like USDT or USDC.
11. Bitcoin Miners Powered Off as Winter Storm Battered North America
– Computing power on the Bitcoin network dropped about 40% over the weekend.
Institution
1. Over 1,400 Chinese firms operating in blockchain industry, national whitepaper shows
– Despite partial crypto bans, the Chinese Government has included blockchain technology in official state development policy.
2. Turkish Central Bank Runs First CBDC Tests
– The monetary authority said it will conduct further trials in the first quarter of 2023.
3. Fidelity plans NFT marketplace and financial services in the metaverse
– Newly filed trademark applications outline a long list of possible avenues for the firm in the metaverse.
4. Russia’s largest bank issued gold-backed digital financial assets
– The issuance became the second major operation of the bank with the new class of assets.
Market
1. ‘Everything bubble’ bursts: Worst year for US stocks and bonds since 1932
– While the crypto markets have taken a bashing in 2022, it hasn’t exactly been rosy for US stocks, bonds and real estate either.
2. Bitcoin price would surge past $600K if ‘hardest asset’ matches gold
– The coming decade could be Bitcoin’s time to copy gold’s 1970s breakouts, says Capriole Investments.
3. Bitcoin, Ether Did Better Than You Think in 2022
– CoinDesk research shows that per unit of risk, bitcoin and ether performed significantly better than bonds and had similar results to equities in 2022.
4. No, Advisors, Crypto Is Not a Ponzi Scheme
– While the FTX debacle has many Ponzi-like characteristics, most cryptocurrencies don’t resemble the infamous schemes.
5. Digital Dollar Will Come Eventually, Lobbyist Says
– Michael Greco, policy research director at the Digital Dollar Project, says the Fed needs Congress to pass the right law first.
6. MicroStrategy Added 2,500 Bitcoins for $45M in Last 2 Months
– The software company also sold a small amount of cryptocurrency for the first time.
7. El Salvador Boosts Bitcoin Education, Expanding Reach to 250,000 Students by 2023
– Even in the difficult occasions of the “crypto winter”, El Salvador is targeted on popularizing Bitcoin adoption as a result of training.
8. Bitcoin ASIC miner prices hovering at lows not seen in years
– ASIC miners’ price per terahash has fallen more than 80% from its peak in 2021 as Bitcoin mining machines continue to flood the marketplace.
9. Bitcoin accumulation addresses near record 800K despite whale selling
– Someone has been accumulating BTC throughout the 2022 Bitcoin bear market, and the trend shows no sign of reversing.
NFT
1. NFT Market Will Bounce Back With Lower Interest Rates, Digital Artist Says
– Ovie Faruq, also known as OSF, says the sector is tied to cryptocurrencies, which in turn are correlated with Nasdaq.
2. China to Launch First National ‘Digital Asset’ Marketplace
– While trading digital collectibles has been popular amongst Chinese collectors through heavily regulated marketplaces, this is the country’s first official foray into NFTs.
3. NFTs Are Securities and It’s Great
– Artist and lawyer Brian Frye writes about why non-fungible tokens represent investment contracts in social clout.
4. Pudgy Penguins NFTs Break All-Time Highs With Holiday Rally
– A fast-rising floor price caps the once written-off collection’s banner year.
5. Solana’s Top NFT Projects DeGods and Y00ts to Migrate Chains
– DeGods will go to Ethereum, while its sister project, Y00ts, will move to Polygon with a grant from layer 2’s partnership fund.
6. Italy to create the crypto art Renaissance: NFT market report
– Research and Market’s latest NFT market report for Italy predicts a 47.6% growth in the country’s NFT market by the end of 2022.
Web3
1. Web3 Is Being Used to Preserve History Threatened by Wars
– Theresa Kennedy, founder of Black History DAO, says with blockchain technology, data can be stored in many different places, making it harder for it to be destroyed.
2. The Next Wave of Institutional Digital Asset Adoption
– Once you build decentralized access control, Web3 and the traditional world of finance can finally be brought together.
December 30, 2022