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Indeed, holders big and small are taking "self-custody" of their funds, moving them from crypto exchanges and trading platforms to personal digital wallets. As a percentage of total bitcoin supply, wallet addresses holding under 10 bitcoin now own 17.4%, up from 14.4% a year ago. "If you're just going buy and hold for the next 10 years, then it's probably worth making the investment and learning how to custody your assets really, really well." The stampede has been turbocharged by the FTX scandal and other crypto collapses, with large investors leading the way. David Wells, CEO of Enclave Markets, said trading platforms were extremely cautious of the risks of storing the investors' assets with a third party.

Power giant Orsted aims to build a huge offshore windfarm to help the country meet renewable goals. Last year the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which regulates offshore energy activity, concluded that large crossovers between such ventures were unfeasible with current technology. This largely unreported clash risks undermining Britain's drive to meet its climate goals, according to the companies involved and a North Sea green transition expert. The BP-Orsted showdown could also presage similar disputes elsewhere in an increasingly crowded North Sea, the experts told Reuters. There is hope on the horizon for wind and CCS projects that share ground, say regulators and industry experts.

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Bitcoin is on the charge in 2023, dragging the crypto market off the floor and electrifying bonk, a new meme coin. Few crypto tokens have benefited more than bonk, which was launched at the end of December on the Solana blockchain and had rocketed 5,000% by early January. Other meme tokens are also up, with dogecoin and Shiba Inu up 19% and 27% respectively in 2023. The Solana token has now indeed jumped as bonk has gained traction: it's up 131% in 2023, the biggest gainer among major cryptocurrencies. The dollar value of bitcoin trading volumes on major exchanges over a 7-day period jumped to $151 million, the highest in nearly two months, according to data from Blockchain.com.

☆ Cryptoverse: Bitcoin digs in for a bumpy new year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Lisa Pauline Mattackal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Bitcoin are seen in this illustration picture taken September 27, 2017. The overall global crypto market cap has risen 5% to $871 billion since Jan. 1, but it's still down over 57% from this time last year. Bitcoin itself has gained 4.3% since the start of 2023, though stuck in a narrow range between $16,500 and $17,300. For some market players, though, subdued sounds pretty good after the bitcoin bloodbath of 2022. Reuters GraphicsTHE BULL'S TALEMarcus Sotiriou, analyst at digital asset broker GlobalBlock, pointed to tightening Bollinger bands - a technical indicator tracking price and volatility - on bitcoin charts.

"As counterintuitive as it may sound, this layoff left me in a really good position," the 24-year-old said. U.S. tech giants including Meta, Microsoft (MSFT.O), Twitter and Snap (SNAP.N) have purged more than 150,000 staff, according to Layoff.fyi, which tracks technology job losses. Day One Ventures, an early stage venture fund in San Francisco, launched a new initiative in November to fund startups founded by people who had been laid off from their tech jobs, touting the slogan "Funded, not Fired". Silicon Valley investor U.S. Venture Partners and Austrian VC firm Speedinvest have meanwhile earmarked a similar amount for newly founded companies. Fong told Reuters that experience in Big Tech firm gave founders a "strong brand that can be leveraged to meet investors, potential customers, and recruit team members".

☆ Ukraine's parallel war on corruption to unlock door to West
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Dan Peleschuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

The activity reflects a parallel war Kyiv is waging against high-level graft, according to Reuters interviews with half a dozen Ukrainian anti-corruption monitors and officials. It had been repeatedly opened and closed for two years due to procedural errors and shortcomings, SAPO prosecutors said at the time of the hold-ups. New anti-corruption cases include a probe launched in October into a former tax chief suspected of taking more than $20 million in kickbacks. SAPO prosecutors, for instance, earn at least $2,500 per month, or six times more than the Ukrainian monthly average. Kateryna Butko, a civic activist serving on the SAPO selection committee, acknowledged that Ukraine's fight against graft is often plodding.

Ben McMillan, chief investment officer at IDX Digital Assets, said the rising popularity of blockchain-based tools including decentralized exchanges and decentralized finance had also been an important development this year. "We could see bigger allocations to digital assets once risk appetite resumes in 2023." Bitcoin and other tokens took a hammering, slumping by over half in just 49 days from the end of May. On a single day in June, bitcoin fell over 15%, its worst day since March 2020 when COVID chaos roiled financial markets. Bitcoin fell by a quarter in less than four days as Bankman-Fried scrambled for funds to bail his exchange out.

☆ Germany's half-a-trillion dollar energy bazooka may not be enough
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Christoph Steitz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Almost half a trillion dollars, and counting, since the Ukraine war jolted it into an energy crisis nine months ago. The money set aside stands at up to 440 billion euros ($465 billion), according to the calculations, which provide the first combined tally of all of Germany's drives aimed at avoiding running out of power and securing new sources of energy. That equates to about 1.5 billion euros a day since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Energy rationing is a risk in the event of a long cold spell this winter, Germany's first in half a century without Russian gas. There's no security in sight either, with the push to build up of two alternatives to Russian fuel - liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewables - years away from targeted levels.

Bitcoin balances on crypto exchanges - where retail investors typically transact - have fallen to around 2.3 million from its 2020 all-time high of 3.1 million, exchange Bitfinex said. "There are signs that a significant number of retail investors have been discouraged to the point of exiting crypto entirely," Bitfinex analysts said. DAVID VS GOLIATHCrypto retail investors losing money is nothing new. A study from the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), conducted between 2015 and 2022, estimated that 73% to 81% likely lost money on their investments in cryptocurrencies. Eloisa Marchesoni, a trader who said she had about $2,000 on FTX she was unable to withdraw, is sure crypto will retain its attraction for smaller investors.

☆ Inside China's fight over the future of zero-COVID
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

After nearly three years, a significant loosening of zero-COVID measures has been signalled by senior government officials and public health experts. Vice Premier Sun Chunlan said on Thursday that China's health system had "withstood the test" of COVID, allowing further adjustments to state policies. "You can have zero-COVID, but you can't have a healthy economy, and you can have a healthy economy, but you can't have zero-COVID." Laura Yasaitis, a public health expert at the Eurasia Group think-tank who follows China's zero-COVID policies, said fear of the virus likely varied widely across the country, as well as within cities or provinces. Officials have repeatedly said that China's health system would be unable to cope with a surge in cases, with medical resources unevenly distributed across the country.

Interest in this niche breed of cryptocurrencies, typically linked to sports teams like Barcelona or Brazil, has been charged up by the soccer World Cup which began on Nov. 20. The token of Lionel Messi's Argentina side slumped 25% to $5.26 following the team's shock defeat by Saudi Arabia in their opening World Cup game. The broader crypto market malaise is partly to blame for price drops, according to researchers who said the flighty assets were wilting as investors shunned risk. "But the first perception should never be that you're buying the fan token from a profit-generating standpoint." It facilitates trading of most fan coins, describing buying such tokens as joining a loyalty scheme with exclusive benefits and prizes.

[1/2] Chinese Yuan and U.S. dollar banknotes are seen behind illuminated stock graph in this illustration taken February 10, 2020. His contract manufacturing business with Russia has been small in the past, but now he's preparing to invest in warehousing there. He sees a win-win situation in Chinese exporters reducing their currency risks and payment becoming more convenient for Russian buyers. The U.S. Treasury declined to comment on the yuan's growing presence in Russia. ($1 = 7.2074 Chinese yuan renminbi)Editing by Vidya Ranganathan and Pravin CharOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Nov 22 (Reuters) - As the crypto castle crumbles, some true believers say the answer is to double down on DEX. Decentralized exchanges, that is. "It is now clear that there can be risk associated with holding assets in a centralized entity," said Varun Kumar, CEO of decentralized crypto exchange Hashflow. "Data is showing that users are turning to decentralized trading solutions." Many market participants see both centralized and decentralized exchanges coexisting.

☆ Cellnex says inflation has shut down European phone masts market, Financial Times reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A telecom antenna of Spain's telecoms infrastructures firm Cellnex are seen under main telecom tower, known as "Piruli", in Madrid, Spain, March 10, 2016. REUTERS/Sergio Perez/File PhotoMADRID, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The European mobile towers market is "pretty much closed" as rising inflation makes it harder for companies to finance new deals and the availability of assets declines, the chief executive of Cellnex (CLNX.MC) told the Financial Times. Material, inorganic growth, for the next 24 months is over," Tobías Martínez Gimeno told the newspaper in reference to the overall market. When interest rates were low and debt was cheap, mobile towers were among the most attractive assets in telecoms. But since June, the share prices of most tower groups have fallen as rising rates have driven up costs.

SummarySummary Companies IAEA says Ukraine plant rocked by 12 blastsPlant is controlled by Russian forcesRussia says Ukraine shelled the plant'You're playing with fire!' - IAEA chiefLONDON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is under Russian control, was rocked by shelling on Sunday, drawing condemnation from the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog who said such attacks risked a major nuclear disaster. An IAEA team on the ground said there had been damage to some buildings, systems and equipment at the plant, Europe's largest nuclear power station. "Explosions occurred at the site of this major nuclear power plant, which is completely unacceptable. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has six Soviet-designed VVER-1000 V-320 water-cooled and water-moderated reactors containing Uranium 235, which has a half-life of more than 700 million years.

☆ Cristiano Ronaldo is in 'spectacular' form, says Portugal's Neves
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Fernando Kallas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AL-SHEHANIYA, Qatar, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal team mate Ruben Neves says his captain is in "spectacular" shape as the team prepare for their opening World Cup match against Ghana on Thursday. Wolves midfielder Neves, one the leaders of the changing room, dismissed any speculation that 37-year-old Ronaldo was not in peak form, saying he looked like his old self in training. "From what I've seen in training, he's in spectacular shape," Neves told a news conference in tournament host Qatar on Sunday. "If we're good as a team, Cristiano will be phenomenal." "Sure, it's impossible for us to walk around without been asked about the controversy, but I don't think there's any controversy at all between us in the changing room," added 25-year-old Neves.

☆ Israeli far-right's demand for defence post hinders Netanyahu's coalition bid
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Maayan Lubell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JERUSALEM, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu's efforts to swiftly form a government faltered on Sunday as a prospective far-right coalition partner demanded the cabinet role of defence minister. But fissures have emerged between Likud and the powerful Religious Zionism party whose hard-line settler leaders oppose Palestinian statehood and want the occupied West Bank annexed - views in direct opposition to successive U.S. administrations. I hope this will be worked out soon," Likud lawmaker Miki Zohar told Kan radio, adding that defence was "the most important portfolio" for Likud. Even the finance role would present problems for Netanyahu, who had said before the election that Likud would keep the big three portfolios: defence, finance and foreign affairs. Whichever portfolio Religious Zionism lands, the incoming government looks to be the most right-wing in Israel's history, forcing Netanyahu into a diplomatic balancing act between his coalition and Western allies.

[1/2] A general view shows Pearl Island, an artificial island spanning nearly four square kilometres, ahead of the FIFA 2022 World Cup soccer tournament at Katara Cultural Village in Doha, Qatar November 17, 2022. "What happens when the World Cup is over? I know gay men in workers' camps wouldn't be able to live the same way." Qatari organisers of the World Cup have warned visitors against public displays of affection but say that everyone, no matter their sexual orientation or background, is welcome at the event. The furore has been fuelled by comments from public figures including former Qatar player and World Cup ambassador Khalid Salman who told a German broadcaster that homosexuality was "damage in the mind".

Any crunch for Britain's small businesses, which often lack the scale to pass on cost rises to customers as easily as bigger rivals, could deliver a new economic body blow. "How are we going to get out of this hole if it's not small businesses? "But there's no question that small businesses now have less capacity to increase their borrowing because you've got a slowing economy." Indeed small companies in Britain see their access to credit at its worst level since 2015, according to a quarterly survey by the FSB of 1,383 small business owners. Many small companies have also yet to repay state-backed loans extended to prop them up during COVID lockdowns, making their credit profiles increasingly unattractive.

"There's now a big push to get nature into sovereign debt markets," said Simon Zadek, executive director at NatureFinance, which advises governments on debt-for-nature swaps and other types of climate-focused finance. At that level, it would be the biggest debt-for-nature swap struck to date. The combined value of swap deals to date is $3.7 billion, according to the data. Securing the buy-in of development banks is usually key for the economics of a deal. The WWF has projects in Central and South America where they are monitoring deforestation by tracking jaguars, said Brenes, who has worked on debt-for-nature swaps for the last 25 years.

Nov 15 (Reuters) - Solana, a poster coin of the crypto future, is in trouble. "In the current crypto shakeout, the most unfortunate innocent victim is the Solana ecosystem," said Stefan Rust, CEO of blockchain wallet company Laguna Labs. Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko tweeted that development company Solana Labs didn't hold any assets on FTX and had enough financial runway for around 30 months. Ether's market cap has fallen 21% to $150.7 billion, while bitcoin's has fallen 18% to $319 billion. The collapse of the company has seen more than $190 billion wiped from the value of the overall crypto market.

☆ Exclusive: Tesla has considered exporting EVs from Shanghai to U.S., Canada
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Tesla's evaluation has included consideration of whether parts made by Tesla's China-based suppliers would be compliant with regulations in the United States and Canada, they said. Tesla would not be the first U.S. automaker to ship made-in-China vehicles to the United States. Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory has the capacity to produce 1.1 million electric vehicles per year after an upgrade earlier this year, making it Tesla's most productive manufacturing hub. The Shanghai plant makes Model 3 sedans and Model Y crossovers to sell in China and for export to markets including Europe, Australia and Southeast Asia. That means Tesla vehicles could potentially be exported to North America at a competitive price.

☆ FTX says investigating 'unauthorized transactions'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 12 (Reuters) - Collapsed crypto exchange FTX said on Saturday it had seen "unauthorized transactions", with analysts saying millions of dollars worth of assets had been withdrawn from the platform. FTX U.S. general counsel Ryne Miller said in a tweet shortly after 0700 GMT on Saturday that the firm had "expedited" the process of moving all digital assets to cold storage "to mitigate damage upon observing unauthorized transactions." loadingCold storage refers to crypto wallets that are not connected to the internet to guard against hackers. Earlier on Saturday, Miller said in a tweet that he was "investigating abnormalities with wallet movements related to consolidation of FTX balances across exchanges." "FTX has been hacked," an account administrator in the FTX Support Telegram channel wrote in a message, according to CoinDesk.

☆ Some countries have resisted 1.5°C goal in COP27 text, U.S. says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Valerie Volcovici | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] John Kerry, U.S. Special Envoy for Climate speaks as he attends the opening of the American Pavilion in the COP27 climate summit in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt November 8, 2022. REUTERS/Mohammed SalemSHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov 12 (Reuters) - A few countries have resisted mentioning a global goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in the official text of the COP27 summit in Egypt, U.S. Special Climate Envoy John Kerry said at the conference on Saturday. There are very few countries, but a few, that have raised the issue of not mentioning this word or that word," Kerry said when asked about opposition by some governments to mentioning the 1.5C target. Many developing countries have demanded the establishment of a "loss and damage" fund that could disperse cash to countries struggling to recover from disasters. Kerry said the United States would not support establishing such a fund, and instead believed existing platforms should be used.

Nov 12 (Reuters) - Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes should spend 15 years in prison and pay $800 million in restitution to investors defrauded in the blood testing start-up, U.S. prosecutors recommended late on Friday. The Department of Justice recommendation, made in a court filing, came as Holmes prepares to be sentenced next week. "Considering the extensiveness of Holmes' fraud... the sentencing of 180 months' imprisonment would reflect the seriousness of the offenses, provide for just punishment for the offenses, and deter Holmes and others," the prosecutors said. Holmes earlier urged U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California not to send her to prison. Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 at the age of 19.

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