Over 1 million Ether (ETH) worth $2.1 billion has now been withdrawn from Ethereum’s Beacon Chain within the first four days of the Shapella hard fork and Ether has pushed over $2,100 for the first time in 11 months. The 1.03 million ETH withdrawals have come from 473,7000 withdrawal requests, with Saturday, April 15 being
A “temperature check” proposal to deploy the decentralized exchange (DEX) Aave on the zkSync Era Mainnet has passed with overwhelming support from the Aave community. When voting closed on April 16 more than 99% of Aave (AAVE) token holders voted in favor of launching the third version of the lending and borrowing protocol on the
Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of the most relevant crypto and economic development news from Latin America during the last week. In this issue: Inflation in Argentina goes over 100%, El Salvador issues its first digital assets licenses, and the crypto-linked corruption probe in Venezuela is still ongoing. Argentina Registers 104.3% Inflation In March,
Blockchain technology needs a benchmark communications standard that can be easily integrated by every network in order for a complete transition from Web2 to Web3 to occur, industry commentators say. Many expect there will be multiple blockchains and such an ecosystem requires communication protocols similar to the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) used on the
More Freedom of Information Act requests seeking information on recently closed crypto-friendly banks have been submitted by cryptocurrency advocacy group the Blockchain Association to two regulators. On April 14, the association said that it had filed Freedom of Information Law requests to the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the New York Department of Financial Services,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Gensler could be facing unemployment after United States Representative Warren Davidson declared he would introduce legislation to fire the SEC boss. In an April 15 tweet responding to Coinbase’s legal chief, Paul Grewal, the crypto-friendly Representative announced his intention to have Gensler removed from his role after the
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s chief adviser on foreign policy, Celso Amorim, says China and Brazil “are coming closer together” and they could play important roles in building a less centralized world with no hegemony. Commenting on de-dollarization, he stressed: “I think it’s very important that we are free from the dominance of
Recent turmoil in the banking sector has shown that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) can withstand a shaky economy, outperform other asset classes and function like gold, says ARK Invest chief executive Cathie Wood — though one long-time investor still isn’t sold. Wood explained in an April 15 interview that Bitcoin’s resilience throughout the most
Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers has expressed concerns that a rising number of countries, including China, Russia, and the Middle East, are aligning themselves and gaining global influence. “I think [it] is a huge challenge for the United States,” he cautioned. Larry Summers on Countries Banding Together Against the US Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers
Kosovo police have seized dozens of crypto mining devices from residents of a majority Serb region in the north of the country. Authorities in Pristina and Belgrade exchanged accusations over the move, which has the potential to raise tensions in the ethnically divided, partially recognized Balkan state. Kosovo Government Cracks Down on Crypto Mining in
During the weekend, discussions about central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, trended on social media as many people believe the idea will result in increased financial surveillance and a totalitarian monetary system. In a recent interview, Lynette Zang, the chief market analyst at ITM Trading, warned that CBDCs will “take the world into a full
Amid the banking chaos of the 21st century, some are looking back more than 600 years ago, to the Medici Bank — one of the most powerful banks of its time. It established its business and became one of the most respected banks in Europe during its prime, and the prominent Italian family of bankers
Statistics recorded on April 15, 2023, show that the number of coins in circulation for the stablecoin BUSD dropped below the 7 billion range to 6.68 billion, marking the lowest number of BUSD in circulation since April 2021. Furthermore, data indicates that the supply of BUSD has shrunk by 19.8% over the past 30 days.
In crypto news this week, the Ethereum network’s long awaited Shapella upgrade took effect, unlocking staked ether. In the broader financial world, economist Harry Dent has predicted a massive crash to hit by mid-June, bank lending plummeted by a record $105 billion in two weeks, and the USD’s ability to maintain its value even in
Prosecutors investigating failed blockchain firm Terraform Labs have found out that its Singapore office sent millions of U.S. dollars to lawyers just before the crash of its cryptocurrencies. According to Korean media, the transfers suggest that co-founder Do Kwon was aware of the imminent collapse. Terraform Labs Transferred Large Amounts of Money to South Korean
Nigerian economic experts have said the country’s five-year-old currency swap agreement with China has not eased the pressure against the Nigerian currency. According to one expert, implementation of the swap arrangement is being held back by the size of the trade imbalance between Nigeria and China Easing Pressure on the Naira According to experts on
The United States House Committee on Financial Services a.k.a the Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing on April 19 to discuss stablecoins’ position as a means of payment and whether or not the ecosystem needs supporting legislation. The Financial Services Committee issued a memorandum to announce an upcoming hearing titled “Understanding Stablecoins’ Role in
On April 14, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the Southern District of New York revealed that the hacker responsible for the Silk Road marketplace breach had been sentenced to a year in prison for wire fraud charges. James Zhong stole more than 50,000 bitcoin from the darknet marketplace (DNM) in September 2012. DOJ
Digital art auction house Sotheby’s has altered its latest art sale significantly after receiving community feedback regarding a lack of diversity, meanwhile a novice player in Illivium: Beyond has made a staggering profit of 140,525% by finding the most elusive character in the game yet. Sotheby’s reboot Glitch Digital Art Sale after addressing diversity concerns
The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors have agreed that crypto regulation cannot be confined to one part of the world, said India’s finance minister. “Any action on crypto assets will have to be global,” she stressed, adding that the G20 finance chiefs’ discussion on crypto was “very substantive.” G20 Finance Chiefs on Crypto