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Sudbury woman saved from Potential cryptocurrency scam

One woman was in the right place at the right time, which kept her from becoming the latest victim of a cryptocurrency scam.

How a woman was stopped from being the last victim

The elderly woman is believed to have withdrawn approximately $30,000 from her bank account. He then headed to a bitcoin ATM in the city of Sudbury. There, she was directed, over the phone, by someone claiming to be on the Microsoft support team. They were giving you instructions on how to transfer the money through the machine and send it to a specific address.

Area police say what most merchants probably already know… that the caller was not from Microsoft. They were actually a scammer looking to get some cryptocurrencies they didn’t earn. Sudbury Police Spokesperson Lieutenant John Perodeau explained in an interview:

She was hacked. Fortunately, we were able to intervene and she was able to deposit the money into her account.

Crypto scams have increased in volume in recent years as the prices of many assets, despite recent declines, have risen sharply from two years ago. Perodeau says the woman fell victim to ransomware that ended up causing all files on her computer to be encrypted and locked. They gave him a phone number that he thought was Microsoft support. He called the department for help without realizing that this was all part of the scam.

He was instructed over the phone to buy bitcoins through the machine and send the funds to “Microsoft”. Perodeau explained:

As soon as you provide the code, the money will disappear.

Bitcoin ATMs are becoming much more common. On the one hand this is not a bad thing as it contributes to the growing legitimacy and popular appeal of digital currencies, but it has also led to the resurgence of crypto crime as with so many ATMs it is much easier to scam people and steal your digital funds.

Seniors are often targets of these types of scams because they don’t realize the breadth of today’s new technology. They also tend to have limited knowledge of cryptocurrencies and digital finance.

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El Salvador buys The Dip, has 2,381 Bitcoins in the Treasury

El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele announced that the country has purchased an additional 80 BTC, resulting in a total treasury of 2,381 BTC valued at around $46.1 million.

El Salvador bought the dip and acquired 80 BTC at an average price of $19,000.

Two days ago, MicroStrategy also bought the drop worth 480 BTC.

Nation-states and institutions remain dollar-averaged while a contagion effect upsets a rocky bear market.

President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador announced last night that the country bought the dip with another 80 BTC added to the national treasury for an average cost of $19,000.

In total, El Salvador has a total bitcoin hoard of 2,381 BTC, currently valued at around $46.1 million. The nation-state has been slowly accumulating bitcoin since its first bitcoin purchase on September 6, 2021, when it purchased 200 BTC and became the first country in the world to hold bitcoin on its balance sheet three months after declaring bitcoin currency.

Lately, Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency ecosystem in general have witnessed what is known as “contagion” in which cascading failures of one institution mixed with another amid market corrections. Due to this effect, institutional and state holders in the bitcoin ecosystem have come under scrutiny for continuing to hold bitcoin under the circumstances, with El Salvador being one of the criticized holders.

Likewise, Michael Saylor was interviewed to discuss whether or not he regretted the bitcoin strategy his software analytics company, MicroStrategy, chose to adopt. In light of Bukele, however, Saylor continues to buy on the downside and remains steadfast in the spirit of dollar cost averaging: the continuous accumulation of an asset over time, regardless of price.

As prominent figures like Bukele and Saylor continue to accumulate large amounts of bitcoin over time, they will continue to be criticized when the price fails to rise. However, the important thing to note is that they are not trading bitcoins. If the goal was to buy and sell bitcoins in a short period of time, criticize the bad timing. But as things stand, El Salvador and MicroStrategy clearly continue to look at a longer time horizon than is generally believed.

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TikTok Star Khaby Lame to be Binance Spokesperson

Binance has partnered with popular TikTok content creator Khaby Lame to spread awareness about cryptocurrencies.

From TikTok to Web3

The Italian-Senegalese viral content creator will be Binance’s new global brand ambassador to increase awareness and adoption of Web3. Khaby Lame is known for his hilarious, silent videos in which he debunks popular misconceptions and calls out cryptic modern tricks. Khaby became the most followed content creator on TikTok (145 million followers) because of his “nonsense” attitude and straightforward sense of humor. Speaking about partnering with Khaby, Vice President of Global Marketing at Binance, James Rothwell commented:

“With so much nuance around Web3 and misinformation in the world, it was a perfect match to have Lame on board to help debunk some of the myths surrounding that space.”

Debunking Web3 Misconceptions

Khaby’s videos are characterized by him navigating overly complicated “life hack” scenarios without saying a word while doing the famous “Khaby move”. Partnering with Binance will see him address misinformation and misconceptions about Web3 and cryptocurrencies in his signature style, while trying to simplify complex topics in the marketplace. Khaby released a statement about the partnership, saying:

“I consider my followers as my family and I’m always looking for new challenges and interesting content to share with them. I’ve been curious about Web3 for some time now and jumped at the chance to partner with a leader like Binance because it aligns perfectly with what I usually do: making complex things easy and fun for everyone.”

Khaby publishes first video sponsored by Binance

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Coinbase reveals European expansion plan: Seek licenses in Spain, Italy, France and the Netherlands

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has revealed its expansion plan to several European markets. The company is in the process of registering a cryptocurrency exchange in Spain, France, Italy and the Netherlands.

Coinbase expands in Europe

Coinbase Global Inc. (Nasdaq: COIN) is planning to expand its operations in Europe, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing an interview with Nana Murugesan, vice president of International and Commercial Development at Coinbase.

Noting that Coinbase is focused on increasing its presence in Europe, the executive revealed that the exchange is in the process of applying for a license in several European markets, including Italy, Spain, France, and the Netherlands.

The Nasdaq-listed company is currently registered in the UK, Ireland and Germany, Murugesan confirmed, noting that Coinbase also recently hired its first employee in Switzerland.

“In all these markets, our intention is to have retail and institutional products”, emphasized the executive, specifying:

It's almost like an existential priority for us to make sure we can fulfill our mission by accelerating our expansion efforts.

Coinbase is also open to acquisitions that will accelerate its expansion abroad, Murugesan noted.

However, the crypto exchange is shrinking. Earlier this month, CEO Brian Armstrong announced his company’s plan to lay off 1,100 employees, or 18% of its workforce.

Murugesan said Coinbase’s goal is for the international segment to become a “significant” part of its business. He opined:

That's our goal, but just when we get there, all of that, it's a lot of dependencies.

On Monday, global investment bank Goldman Sachs downgraded Coinbase to a “sell” rating. COIN is down more than 85% since it started trading on Nasdaq. At the time of writing, Coinbase Global is trading at $49.75, down over 36% over the past month.

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Cryptocurrency and digital asset issuers are now VAT exempt in Russia

Russia has passed a bill exempting cryptocurrency issuers from Value Added Tax (VAT). This move is to further strengthen its pro-crypto stance through its legislation. The lower house of the Russian legislature, the State Duma, passed this bill.

Allegedly, some other services related to cryptocurrency exchanges will also be exempt. The current tax rate for cryptocurrency companies participating in these digital asset related businesses is 20%. Continued sanction from the West wreaked havoc in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.

Russia has been experiencing a financial crisis and this, in turn, has made it difficult for Russia to carry out international transactions. To boost its economy, Russia has taken a positive stance towards cryptocurrencies to facilitate the growth of the sector.

Crypto VAT exemption details

In addition to the VAT exemption, this bill that has passed states that the income tax rate will be 13% for cryptocurrency exchanges on the first 5 million rubles, currently valued at $93,000 tax base annually, 15% at values ​​that cross the aforementioned level and 15% in general for currency traders.

However, the Central Bank of Russia is on the opposite side of cryptocurrencies, as are other central banks around the world. Despite opposition to cryptocurrencies, the state authorized the first local digital asset platform, Atomyze Russia. After licensing Atomyze Russia, the main lender Sberbank received a license.

Members of the State Duma approved the drafting of the tax law. The bill aims to reduce taxes for cryptocurrency issuers and also helps set tax rates on income received from the sale of the assets. Now, for this bill to become law, the signature of President Vladimir Putin is required.

Once the bill is passed, the details of how digital assets will be managed will be defined. Taxation of digital assets under the bill is analogous to securities taxes at the current time, once the bill is passed some light will be shed on such a position.

Russian banks blocked from the SWIFT system

Russia’s banks have been blocked from the SWIFT system and the G7 Group of Seven countries have recently stopped buying freshly mined and refined Russian gold. This added more pressure on Russia’s financial situation.

In addition, there are other sanctions that have led Russia to default on servicing its external debt. Anti-crypto leaders in the US have the idea that Russia might turn to cryptocurrencies to avoid sanctions, so they insist on a crackdown.

Russia for the first time since 1917 defaulted on its foreign debt. The year 1917 is historic, because in that year the Bolshevik Revolution took place. Russia was given a 30-day grace period but paid no interest on two different bonds.