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Iran to lift Bitcoin mining ban in September

Iran will once again allow Bitcoin and crypto miners to operate in the country from the last week of September. According to a report by Iran’s Financial Tribune, Tavanir, the country’s power generation organization, made the decision known earlier in August. As previously reported by Cointelegraph, Iran’s government banned Bitcoin (BTC) and crypto mining operations back in May. At the time, the decision was reportedly made to prevent miners from overburdening the grid during the hot summer months.

2021-09-03 23:58:45

Upbit reportedly first crypto exchange to file with Korean regulators

Major South Korean cryptocurrency company Upbit has reportedly submitted a business report with the Korean Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). Upbit reported its digital asset business to the FIU, which operates under South Korea’s top financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Upbit’s operator, Dunamu, announced the news on Friday, The Korea Economic Daily reported. Upbit is one of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges alongside Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit, and reportedly makes up more than 80% of the local cryptocurrency market. FSC vice chairman Doh Gyu-sang said that the authority will be ready to accept more reports from the most popular South Korean exchanges in the near future. The official said that the FSC expects one or two more crypto exchanges to have filed reports by the end of August.

2021-09-03 23:58:45

FTX buys name rights to Cal Memorial Stadium for 10 years in $17.5M deal

Crypto derivatives exchange, FTX, has purchased the naming rights to California University’s Cal Memorial Stadium with a view to introducing its own branding. The Sam Bankman-Fried owned derivatives exchange is delving deeper into sports after signing a 10-year, $17.5 million naming rights deal with the university. The stadium's home team, the Cal Golden Bears, will now play their games on newly rebranded FTX Field this football season, according to Bloomberg. The $17.5 million will also be paid to the university in the form of crypto assets.

2021-09-03 23:58:44

Chinese province to cut off Bitcoin miners from hydropower stations

Regulators from Yingjiang County in Yunnan, China have issued strict warnings to hydroelectric plants against supplying power to enterprises involved in Bitcoin (BTC) mining. A recent report claimed that the Office of the People’s Government of Yingjiang County issued notice to hydropower plants to strengthen oversight on Bitcoin mining operations. According to the announcement, the power plants have been given until Tuesday, Aug. 24, to delist mining companies from their grid’s “illegal” supply. After the given deadline, the county reportedly plans to “forcibly dismantle” the power supply to Bitcoin mining establishments within its jurisdiction.

2021-09-03 23:58:43

Xiaomi India needs regulatory clarity to embrace crypto, says exec

Xiaomi India, the subcontinent’s branch of the major mobile phone manufacturer, is interested in the cryptocurrency industry but needs regulatory clarity from the government. The firm’s managing director, Manu Jain, said in an interview with The Economic Times, “We will want to wait for all the regulatory things. Of course, crypto is an area, which is extremely interesting, and is the biggest buzzword and is doing exceptionally well. But, we would want to understand more on the regulation side.” Jain’s latest remarks come after the company’s financial service business returned to growth in 2021, seeing a 35% year-on-year surge in the first quarter due to expanding into more financial products.

2021-09-03 23:58:42

Publishing platform Substack now accepts Bitcoin payments

An integration with payment processor OpenNode will allow content platform Substack to accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments on-chain and use the Lightning Network. In a Monday announcement, OpenNode said it had partnered with Substack “to make it easy for writers and publications to get paid in Bitcoin.” According to OpenNode and Substack, the integration will only be available to “a select group of crypto-focused publications” on the platform. The publishing platform, which allows writers to send their work directly to readers, has more than 500,000 paid subscribers, with the most popular writers reportedly earning more than six figures annually. The select Substack readers will be able to pay for their subscriptions in Bitcoin, with certain publications allowed to keep their earnings in crypto as well.

2021-09-03 23:58:41

Binance denies allegations of market manipulation

Major cryptocurrency exchange Binance is pushing back against allegations of market manipulation and working against the interest of its users. In a Monday Twitter thread, Binance seemingly laid the blame for any claims of manipulating the crypto market on publications spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt, as well as certain individuals impersonating employees at the exchange. The firm said it “reserves the right to take legal action to protect its interests,” but was not opposed to “responsible whistle-blowing that protects the trust of our community.” “Binance has never traded against our users nor manipulated the market, and we never will,” said the exchange.

2021-09-03 23:58:40

El Salvador president announces infrastructure already being built ahead of country's Bitcoin adoption

Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador and the principal figure behind the country’s adoption of Bitcoin (BTC), said residents will have the opportunity to convert their crypto to fiat immediately after Bitcoin is recognized as legal tender. In a Sunday announcement on Twitter, Bukele said 4.5 million adults in El Salvador would have the option of HODLing their Bitcoin once the country officially accepted the cryptocurrency as legal tender or “withdraw[ing] it in cash at any of the 200 ATMs.” According to the El Salvador president, there will also be 50 branches capable of withdrawing or depositing fiat for residents to hold crypto or immediately liquidate their salaries. Bukele previously said that the government would be building the infrastructure to support a state-issued Bitcoin wallet, called Chivo. The president claimed that “Chivo ATMs” will eventually be “everywhere” and allow El Salvadorans to withdraw cash 24 hours a day without paying commissions on their holdings, but no one will be forced to use them.

2021-09-03 23:58:39

CFTC commissioner says agency has broad enforcement authority on crypto derivatives

Dawn Stump, one of four commissioners currently serving at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or CFTC, has released a statement clarifying the agency's authority with respect to digital assets. In a Monday statement, Stump said the CFTC is empowered with both regulatory and enforcement authority for commodities. She did not specifically say that digital assets were cash-like commodities in the eyes of the regulatory body, but “even if a digital asset is a commodity, it is not regulated by the CFTC.” According to the commissioner, however, the agency is within its power to regulate derivatives on digital assets, “such as the futures contracts on Bitcoin and Ether listed for trading on various CFTC-regulated exchanges.” U.S. government agencies including the CFTC, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) are largely responsible for handling digital asset regulation and enforcement in the country. However, each has different jurisdictional claims regarding crypto, often leading to confusion for companies trying to operate within the law.

2021-09-03 23:58:38

Institutional investors bet big on Solana while BTC outflows persist

Institutional investors are loading up on Solana (SOL), with one-third of inflows to crypto investment products being invested in instruments tracking Solana this past week. According to CoinShares’ Aug. 23 Digital Asset Fund Flows Weekly report, $7.1 million flowed into Solana investment products between Aug. 15 and Aug. 20. While the price of SOL gained a megre 1.4% on the spot markets over the same period, SOL has gained 110% from $35.58 since the start of August to trade for $75 as of this writing.

2021-09-03 23:58:37

Crypto ‘not protected by law,’ rules provincial high court in China

Yet another blow has been dealt to China’s cryptocurrency community, with news of a new high court ruling in the Shandong province that has drawn out the consequences of crypto’s lack of legal status in the country. As the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, the case in question was an appeal against a ruling this January by an intermediate court in the city of Jinan. The plaintiff in the case had lost 70,000 yuan (roughly $10,750) by investing in unnamed crypto tokens back in 2017, which friends of his had reportedly endorsed. Following the People’s Bank of China’s doubling down on its anti-crypto measures in 2018, the involved accounts were closed, leading to the loss of the tokens. Shandong’s high court has now ruled this weekend against the plaintiff's case, which rested upon allegations of fraud, by affirming that “investing or trading cryptocurrency isn’t protected by law.”

2021-09-03 23:58:35

Visa invests $150,000 in NFT CryptoPunk Asset

Credit card giant Visa has made a substantial splash on its emergence into the nonfungible token (NFT) space with a $150,000 acquisition of a CryptoPunk, the collective of digital artworks that pioneered the mainstream culture of the space back in 2017. In a blog post announcement released on Monday, Cuy Sheffield, head of crypto at Visa and self-proclaimed NFT enthusiast, shared his views on the value of purchasing NFT assets in the digital economy, the vast growth of the market in the past few years, as well as Visa’s commercial incentives in this investment. Sheffield claimed, “To help our clients and partners participate, we need a first-hand understanding of the infrastructure requirements for a global brand to purchase, store, and leverage an NFT.”

2021-09-03 23:58:35

DeFi protocol BENQI hits $1B TVL days after launching

Liquidity market protocol BENQI has reached $1 billion in total value locked, or TVL, less than a week after launching on the Avalanche (AVAX) network, a major milestone that highlights the explosive growth of decentralized finance (DeFi) lending services. Benqi Finance announced the milestone on Twitter late Sunday, where it thanked its community for the overwhelming support. Absolutely speechless...Thank you everyone for the overwhelming support. @avalancheavax #AvalancheRush #Avalanche $QI pic.twitter.com/36zRSrvHSs

2021-09-03 23:58:34

Crypto exchange Bybit signs esports deals with Astralis and Alliance

Bybit has secured new contracts with esports organizations Astralis and Alliance that will see the cryptocurrency exchange expand its footprint in the video game industry. Bybit will have its logo featured on gaming jerseys and twitch.tv streams as part of a broader strategic initiative targeting more expansive player engagements, carbon neutrality initiatives and financial education programs, the exchange announced Monday. Ben Zhou, co-founder and CEO of Bybit, said his company “is in it for the long run,” referring to esports. He believes there is a “special connection” between the esports and cryptocurrency communities for their high degree of competitiveness and rapid adoption curves.

2021-09-03 23:58:33

Vietnam leads crypto adoption in Finder's 27-country survey

Emerging economies like Vietnam, India and Indonesia are leading the charge when it comes to cryptocurrency adoption, underscoring important use cases for digital assets tied to remittances and financial inclusion. Finder’s survey of 42,000 people across 27 countries revealed that Vietnam had the highest adoption rate, with 41% of respondents claiming they had purchased cryptocurrency. Twenty percent of Vietnamese said they had purchased Bitcoin (BTC), which was the highest among all countries polled. Although Vietnam’s strong outperformance may appear surprising at the surface, Finder’s survey corroborated other data showing that the southeast Asian country is punching above its weight when it comes to crypto adoption. As Cointelegraph reported in June, Vietnam ranked 13th in realized Bitcon gains for 2020 — despite having only the 53rd largest economy based on gross domestic product.

2021-09-03 23:58:32

USDC to consolidate reserves into cash and US treasuries

Coinbase president and COO, Emilie Choi, has announced that the reserves backing the stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) will be consolidated into cash and U.S. government treasuries. An Aug. 22 blog post from CENTRE Consortium, the entity that was collaboratively established by top U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase and blockchain financial services company Circle that issues USDC, stated that USD Coin’s reserves will soon be entirely held in “cash and short duration U.S. Treasuries.” On Twitter, Choi attributed the change in policy to backlash against USDC’s reserves expanding beyond cash, cash equivalents, and U.S. treasuries in May. The changes to USDC’s reserves had not reported until July, exacerbating public concern regarding the stable coin’s backing.

2021-09-03 23:58:32

Reports suggest that a mainstream tech giant holds shares of Coinbase stock

Over the course of 2020 and 2021, the cryptocurrency industry has attracted a notable amount of mainstream attention. In line with the growing awareness of the crypto industry, Intel, a tech company with history dating back to the 1960s, revealed an investment in crypto exchange Coinbase. Although a number of specifics remain unknown such as when the purchase occurred, required Q2 financial disclosure from Intel showed the outfit carrying 3,014 COIN shares at Q2’s conclusion, according to a Friday article from Barron’s. “Intel was obligated to disclose the stake to the Securities and Exchange Commission because it owns more than $100 million in publicly traded investments,” Barron’s noted. The disclosure from Intel went public on Friday, according to the article.

2021-09-03 23:58:31

Wealth managers gain exposure to Bitcoin via Grayscale, according to new SEC filings

New filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, reveal that four wealth management companies have acquired shares of Grayscale’s Bitcoin Investment Trust, offering further evidence of institutional adoption of digital assets. As first reported by MacroScope, a Twitter feed devoted to institutional trading and asset management, the firms disclosed their GBTC holdings in new filings for the period ending June 30, 2021. Clear Perspective Advisors, an Illinois-based wealth manager, revealed direct ownership of 7,790 GBTC shares on Friday.

2021-09-03 23:58:30

Ethereum network's hashrate is 579,333.94 GH/s，mining difficulty is 7,714.93T

According to data from eth.btc.com，ethereum network's hashrate is579,333.94 GH/s，mining difficulty is7,714.93T. ETH's price ：$ 3,307.20 Avg Gas Price：21.20Gwei Pending Txs ：172034

2021-09-03 23:58:29

Treasury to the rescue? Officials to clarify crypto tax reporting rules in infrastructure bill: report

The United States Treasury Department is reportedly seeking to clarify the definition of brokers in the bipartisan infrastructure bill passed by the Senate last week, offering cautious reassurance that the new legislation won’t impact innovation and growth in the blockchain industry. As reported by Bloomberg, the Treasury Department is preparing guidance on what types of crypto companies will be required to comply with new IRS reporting requirements. The report indicated that the definition of “broker” could be narrowed from what many fear would include protocol developers and wallet providers that currently operate in the cryptocurrency industry. A Treasury official reportedly told Bloomberg that developers, miners and wallet providers won’t be subjected to the new reporting requirements, provided they don’t also act as brokers. “The Treasury’s guidance won’t grant blanket exemptions based on how firms identify themselves and instead focus on whether a firm’s activities qualify it as a broker under the tax code,” wrote Christopher Condon and Laura Davidson.

2021-09-03 23:58:28