- PayPal plans to launch own crypto token
Tech giant PayPal is preparing to launch its own crypto token, the company confirmed after signs of the move was found on its iPhone app. The company is looking at creating a stablecoin – a cryptocurrency backed by the value of a fiat currency or commodity. PayPal’s move to create a stablecoin was discovered in its payment app by developer Steve Moser, who broke the news to Bloomberg. According to his findings, the coin is called ‘PayPal Coin’ and would be backed by the dollar. This is not the first step towards embracing crypto technology for PayPal, which recently launched new features to buy, hold, and pay with digital coins.
- Bitcoin heading for worst yearly start since at least 2012
Bitcoin dipped below $40,000 for the first time since September, putting it on pace for its worst start to a year since the earliest days of the digital alternative to money. Bitcoin was created in the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis by an anonymous individual or group that went by Satoshi Nakamoto. It first began trading in 2009 and pricing information from during the early days is limited. “Cryptocurrencies are likely to remain under pressure as the Fed reduces its liquidity injections,” said Jay Hatfield, chief executive of Infrastructure Capital Advisors. “Bitcoin could end 2022 below $20,000.”
- Government Report Suggests Tightening Regulations on Crypto ATMs
In a new study released Monday, the GAO – a government agency that provides auditing and investigative services for Congress – highlighted that the kiosks, also called crypto ATMs, were partly responsible for this surge because the machines are less regulated than crypto exchanges and transactions are more difficult to trace. The report examined the use of cryptocurrencies in global trafficking operations and how U.S. agencies, including the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are countering the rise in crypto-facilitated crime. The agency suggested that the IRS and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) should work together and take a firmer hand in regulating the kiosks.
- Avalanche, Polygon See Slight Gains as Crypto Markets Remain Flat
Avalanche (AVAX) and polygon (MATIC) rose 4% in the past 24 hours to post the largest gains among major cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin (BTC) rose 0.4% and ethereum (ETH) rose 0.5% in the same period. Major cryptocurrencies held support levels after last week’s drop to post slight gains on Monday morning after a largely flat weekend. AVAX reached as high as $92 in early Asian hours on Monday before traders took profits to bring to it $88 at the time of writing. AVAX was trading near its major support level of $85, with a drop to $80 should that level not hold.
- Elrond Foundation Acquires Crypto Payments Firm Utrust
Elrond, an Ethereum competitor touting throughput on the order of 100,000 transactions per second, is acquiring Utrust, a Portugal-based cryptocurrency payments firm. llowing online payments to take advantage of Web 3, the next generation of the internet built around decentralized applications, is the stated goal of Elrond and Utrust. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Both platforms have tokens, and the firms said the combined community will be updated early this year on the final mechanics of the deal from a tokenholder perspective. The plan is to transform payment processing services from a cost for merchants into an income stream, the companies said Tuesday.
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/01/11/elrond-foundation-acquires-crypto-payments-firm-utrust/
- Crypto CEO becomes one of the world’s richest billionaires
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who runs the crypto exchange Binance, has joined the ranks of the world’s top billionaires, with an estimated net worth of at least $96 billion, according to new calculations from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index published Monday. Last year, other crypto founders also enjoyed huge gains as the value of virtual coins rallied, with ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin and Coinbase founder Brian Armstrong both becoming billionaires. Zhao’s projected fortune now rivals that of Oracle (ORCL) founder Larry Ellison and surpasses that of Mukesh Ambani, the Indian tycoon whose fortune has also soared over the last two years.
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/01/11/business/binance-changpeng-zhao-net-worth-intl-hnk/index.html
- China officially labels crypto mining as ‘obsolete’
China’s top economic planning body has officially designated crypto mining as “obsolete,” reinforcing government efforts to stamp out the industry entirely. According to business consultancy Dezan Shira & Associate, the obsolete label refers to technologies that would be banned from seeking investment and would need to be phased out in China within a certain time period. The National Development and Reform Commission made the designation on Monday as an update to a 2019 policy document that spelled out how the country would shift its economy to a model that favored cleaner, less resource-intensive industries.
- Cardano (ADA) Holders Currently Can’t Send or Receive Crypto on Coinbase
Reddit forums have been chattering over the weekend that Coinbase holders of Cardano (ADA) are unable to send or receive that specific crypto to or from any digital wallets. When you try to send that specific cryptocurrency to another of digital wallets, a pop-up notification appeares that states Cardano “send/receive” functions have been temporarily disabled. Centralized crypto exchanges — such as Coinbase — typically provide a handful of services to users including crypto storage or custody, staking of crypto to earn interest, buying and selling crypto, and seamlessly enabling the transfer of funds into and out of e-wallets.
- Big Tech stocks will benefit from metaverse and crypto but Apple least likely to grow, analyst says
Large U.S. tech stocks will shrug off inflation and keep on rising this year thanks to several emerging technologies, according to Cyrus Mewawalla, head of thematic research at data analytics and consultancy firm GlobalData. Tech firms will benefit from the metaverse, Web 3.0, cryptocurrencies and quantum computing if they operate in those areas, Mewawalla told CNBC’s “Street Signs Europe” Monday. Big Tech firms are investing billions into new technologies that have the potential to fundamentally change the way we live and work. At the end of last year, Facebook changed its name to Meta to reflect its focus on the so-called metaverse: a virtual world where humans would interact with one another.
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/10/metaverse-crypto-and-quantum-will-benefit-big-tech-analyst-says.html
- $ADA: Cardano Foundation Reaches Goal of Planting 1 Million Trees — All Recorded on Blockchain
A reforestation effort launched by Cardano ($ADA) has reached its initial goal of planting one million trees “of different species native to areas across different parts of Madagascar, Indonesia, Nepal, Kenya, Senegal and Haiti.” In a Twitter thread, the CEO pointed out the reforestation effort will “support local ecosystem development activities in Mombasa, Kenya.” Every tree planted, he added, will be “recorded on the Cardano blockchain for enhanced transparency and serve as public proof of land restoration activities.” As CryptoGlobe reported, Samsung Electronics America recently partnered with Veritree to plant two million trees in Madagascar by the end of the first quarter of the year.
