- Indonesia’s Biggest Tech Firm Enters Crypto With Purchase of Local Exchange: Report
GoTo Gojek Tokopedia (GOTO), Indonesia’s biggest tech company, has entered the cryptocurrency market with the purchase of local crypto exchange Kripto Maksima Koin, Reuters reported Monday.
GoTo paid 124.84 billion rupiah ($8.38 million), according to the report, citing a statement to Indonesia’s stock exchange regulator.
The tech firm, which was formed out of a merger between ride hailing app Gojek and e-commerce platform Tokopedia in 2021, raised over $1 billion in an IPO in April and claims to contribute more than 2% to Indonesia’s GDP of $1 trillion. It wants to become a “diverse money management hub,” according to the report.
Kripto Maksima is one of 25 crypto exchanges registered with Indonesia’s Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, known as Bappebti. The regulator stopped issuing new registration certificates for crypto firms earlier this month, with the aim of making trading activities “transparent, efficient and effective,” Tech in Asia reported, referencing a Bappebti statement.
- Amid Colorado’s Gas Flare Ban, Report Shows Half Dozen Gas and Oil Firms Are Raking in a Lot of Bitcoin
On August 29, 2022, the Colorado Sun author Mark Jaffe reported on Colorado-based gas and oil companies teaming up with bitcoin miners and explaining how “they’re making quite a bit of coin.” Jaffe details that there are at least a half dozen oil and gas refiners using gas-to-bitcoin flare mitigation systems in the natural gas-rich state of Colorado.
The growing number of bitcoin flare mitigation sites in Colorado is interesting because the state’s regulatory watchdog, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), has banned natural gas flaring. Essentially, if any oil and gas company chooses to operate in the state of Colorado, it must connect to a pipeline to mitigate the excess gas.
If an oil and gas firm cannot comply with the regulations, the COGCC will shut the operations down. Jaffe’s report explains that the COGCC is aware of these gas and oil firms leveraging gas-to-bitcoin solutions. A COGCC spokeswoman, Megan Castle, told the Colorado Sun (CS) journalist that “it is definitely on our radar.”
- Crypto Lender Hodlnaut Granted Judicial Management to Organize Restructure
Singapore-based crypto lender Hodlnaut has been granted judicial management by the Singapore High Courts today.
Interim managers Angela Ee and Aaron Loh of EY Corporate Advisors Pte. have been appointed as Hodlnaut’s interim managers, according to the official statement.
Hodlnaut stated in its official Telegram channel that it is not providing any additional details nor has any fixed date for further updates.
The firm first filed for judicial management on August 13 as it sought temporary protection from any legal claims. The application also meant third-party interim managers would join to restructure the company’s operations. This also avoided liquidating crypto holdings such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) at a hefty loss.
Last week, Hodlnaut cut 80% of its staff to save money. More notable, however, were the pending proceedings with the Singapore police and Attorney General, with the crypto lender saying that “these actions are taken in what we believe to be in the best interests of our users.”
https://decrypt.co/108552/crypto-lender-hodlnaut-granted-judicial-management-organize-restructure
- TA: Ethereum Just Reversed and $1,600 is Imminent, Here’s Why
Ethereum found support near the $1,425 zone after a strong decline. ETH formed a base above the $1,425 and $1,440 levels and recently started an upside correction.
There was a clear move above the $1,500 resistance zone. Besides, there was a break above a key bearish trend line with resistance near $1,485 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD. The pair even climbed above the $1,520 level and the 100 hourly simple moving average.
There was a clear move above the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the key drop from the $1,707 swing high to $1,423 low. Ether price is now trading above $1,500 and the 100 hourly simple moving average.
It is facing resistance near the $1,560 and $1,565 levels. The stated resistance is near the 50% Fib retracement level of the key drop from the $1,707 swing high to $1,423 low. The next major resistance is now forming near the $1,600 level.
https://www.binance.com/en/news/flash/7187847
- Iranian businesses get the green light to use crypto for imports
Iran’s Industry, Mines and Trade Ministry has approved the use of cryptocurrency for imports into the country amid ongoing international trade sanctions.
According to local news reports, Trade Minister Reza Fatemi Amin confirmed that detailed regulations have been approved outlining the use of cryptocurrencies for trade and supplying fuel and electricity to Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto miners in the country.
Amin outlined the regulatory change at an automotive industry exhibition on Sunday, just a week after the country had placed a first-ever import order for vehicles to the tune of $10 million, using cryptocurrency as a payment method. The Iranian trade ministry had previously indicated that the use of cryptocurrencies and smart contracts would be widely used in foreign trade by September 2022.
Following the cryptocurrency-funded import, Iran’s Import Association called for clear-cut regulatory parameters to ensure that local businesses and importers are not hamstrung by shifting directives.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/iranian-businesses-get-the-green-light-to-use-crypto-for-imports
- Dubai-Based Virtuzone to Accept Crypto Payments via Binance Pay
Dubai-based business formation services provider Virtuzone has begun accepting cryptocurrency payments using Binance Pay.
“Virtuzone’s decision to accept cryptocurrency payments and integrate Binance Pay into its systems raises the bar for innovation and demonstrates the way forward when it comes to setting up businesses in the UAE,” said Nadeem Ladki, executive director of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships at Binance, in a Monday press release.
Binance Pay, a contactless cryptocurrency payment service designed by crypto exchange Binance, supports more than 40 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and USD coin (USDC). The platform is intended to enable instantaneous international money transfers and user-to-user transfers, eliminating third-party transaction fees.
Aiming to become a crypto hub, Dubai in recent months established a Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) and adopted a number of crypto-friendly laws. Among the developments is Dubai’s push to grant operating licenses to several prominent cryptocurrency exchanges, which may have hastened companies’ adoption of crypto payments across the emirates.
- Mergers and Acquisitions Innovation for DeFi and Web3 Pushed Forward, Crypto Collapse Phoenix
Mergers and Acquisitions Innovation for DeFi and Web3 Pushed Forward, Crypto Collapse Phoenix
In 2021, the global cryptocurrency market was valued at US$ 1,782 Billion. Sectors like DeFi and NFTs allowed individuals to earn high yields on their investments and create unique collectables as web3 introduces decentralized and permissionless ownership of assets to individuals.
Acquire.Fi is creating the first-of-its-kind Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) marketplace for web3, crypto, blockchain, and NFT companies or IPs. The platform is equipped with crowdfunding and fractionalized ownership through NFTization.
The project is steadfast in enabling all investors to participate in wealth-building M&A opportunities using cryptocurrency.
A Platform to Access Exclusive M&A Deal Flows
Web3 M&A deals originate only in the back channels among trusted parties, the crypto founders, promoters, advisors, or influencers. M&A alpha is highly sensitive, intricate, and confidential.
CoinSwitch didn’t immediately respond to a request for further comment.
- FBI Issues Warning Over Vulnerable DeFi Platforms
The Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a new warning Monday focused on attacks against decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms, saying that cybercriminals are exploiting vulnerabilities in the smart contracts that govern them.
“Between January and March 2022, cyber criminals stole $1.3 billion in cryptocurrencies, almost 97 percent of which was stolen from DeFi platforms,” the agency says, citing an April 2022 report by blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis.
The agency points to three tactics that cybercriminals have used to launch attacks:
Initiating a flash loan, such as in the case of the November 2021 attack on the Ethereum DeFi Project bZx where thieves made off with $55 million in digital assets.
Exploiting a vulnerability in the DeFi platform’s token bridge, as seen in the case of the Nomad token bridge earlier this month.
Manipulating cryptocurrency prices by exploiting a series of vulnerabilities, including the use of a single price oracle, such as in the case of the April 2022 Deus Finance exploit where thieves made off with $13.4 million.
https://decrypt.co/108542/fbi-issues-warning-over-vulnerable-defi-platforms
- Crypto ATM Company BitBase to Launch Services in Venezuela
Bitbase is a cryptocurrency store and ATM company which has now decided to launch its ATM operations in Venezuela this year.
Bitbase is currently planning to hire employees for its stores and the crypto ATMs that are to be introduced.
This could make the ATM company one of the first international exchanges that have planned to open an office within the country.
At the moment, Latin American countries have been chosen as a lucrative destiny for cryptocurrency exchanges and companies owing to how prevalent crypto assets have become in those countries.
Latem countries also have been facing economic problems which include high levels of inflation and devaluation too. Bitbase is a Spain-based cryptocurrency ATM and store company.
These conditions have made the country a productive ground for the growth of the industry as a whole.
Bitbase has been optimistic that this growth would continue in the country and it also looks forward to opening other stores.
https://www.binance.com/en/news/flash/7187787
- Binance Pay partnership allows UAE entrepreneurs to repay loans using crypto
Binance marked its presence among the Middle East investors by running various licensed operations in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and other regions. Targeting efforts in United Arab Emirate’s (UAE) mainstream corporate sector, Binance partnered with business lender Virtuzone, allowing new entrepreneurs to repay loans using cryptocurrencies.
Virtuzone joins the list of mainstream businesses in the UAE, such as JA Resorts and Hotels and Majid Al Futtaim, to officially accept cryptocurrencies after integrating Binance Pay into its payment gateway. In addition, by providing businesses the option to repay seed and other forms of funding through cryptocurrencies, the company intends to reduce barriers to entrepreneurship and support the startup communities.
With blockchain venture capital funding going down over 43% in July, entrepreneurs are on the lookout for obtaining funds for new crypto ventures amid an ongoing bear market. In addition to serving this need, Virtuzone also revealed plans to expedite Web3 adoption in the Middle East. On this note, speaking to Cointelegraph, Richard Teng, head of Binance Middle East and North Africa (MENA), stated:
“The market that is developing in the UAE around the Web3 industry, thanks to a number of government initiatives, is one that will become a global hub for investors in digital assets.”
