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☆ Grayscale Bitcoin Trust could double by midyear, Ned Davis Research says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Crypto is off to a hot start in 2023, and an embattled bitcoin fund gives investors a tool to squeeze more out of this rally, according to Ned Davis Research. Pat Tschosik, a senior portfolio strategist at the firm, said in a note to clients that the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) could give investors a 100% return by midyear. Bitcoin has rallied more than 25% to start the year and is trading above $20,000 again. The discount means that the fund's shares are priced below the bitcoin holdings they represent. However, Tschosik pointed out that the NAV discount for the Grayscale fund has been closing in recent weeks after some activist investors got involved.

☆ New Year, new rally: Why bitcoin is up 26% this month after a tumultuous 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

"The most important macro data investors are focussing on is the weak services PMI and the trending down of employment and wage data. 'Whales' buying BTCLarger purchasers of digital coins known as "whales" may be leading the latest rally in bitcoin, according to Kaiko. Several bitcoin miners have been flushed out by the drop in prices. Bitcoin miners, who use power-intensive machines to verify transactions and mint new tokens, have been squeezed by the slump in prices and rising energy costs. That's historically a good sign for bitcoin, according to Ayyar.

☆ 11 podcasts that busy venture capitalists and founders say they trust right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Robin Madell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Investors at JetBlue Ventures, Mighty Capital, and other VC firms shared their favorite podcasts. Another recommendation is "Origins" by partners at the biotech VC firm Notation Capital. Here are 11 great options, recommended by VCs, founders, CEOs, and other industry insiders. "The main thing about the VC world is building relationships, and Harry is an example of a great networker," Gershfeld said. "BTC is the single-most important asset in the world, and that podcast gets to the heart of why that is."

Silbert is the founder of Digital Currency Group (DCG), a crypto conglomerate that includes the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust and trading platform Genesis. Winklevoss, along with his brother Tyler, co-founded Gemini, a popular crypto exchange that, unlike many of its peers, is subject to New York banking regulation. Winklevoss and Silbert were linked through an offering called Earn, a nearly two-year-old product from Gemini that promoted returns of up to 8% on customer deposits. With Earn, Gemini loaned client money to Genesis for placement across various crypto trading desks and borrowers. Silbert has avoided responding directly to Winklevoss' latest accusation, though the company has taken up his defense.

☆ From the Shanghai upgrade to U.S. regulation: Watch these 5 events to see where crypto markets are heading in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Unlike in previous crypto winters, however, macro forces outside the crypto industry are the biggest drivers of the market. The Shanghai upgrade Ethereum developers are gearing up for the network's next big upgrade, the "Shanghai" upgrade, which has a target release of March 2023. "The problem right now is if you stake ether into the network, your ether will be locked until the Shanghai upgrade," Lau said. "There will be more liquidity of ether after the Shanghai upgrade," he added. Gox but the expected distribution of the bitcoin recovered from the exchange's 2014 implosion could be a near-term headwind for bitcoin investors.

☆ BlockFi's CEO cashed out $9 million from the crypto platform just after FTX gave it a multimilllion-dollar support loan
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Zahra Tayeb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

BlockFi CEO Zac Prince withdrew over $9 million from the company thanks to an FTX support loan, the Block reported. He cashed out the millions in order to pay US federal and state taxes, according to a company presentation. Collapsed exchange FTX loaned BlockFi $400 million last year in an effort to save the struggling firm. His assets with the company fell to $3.04 million in April 2022 from $13.15 million the previous month, the figures show. The firm told The Block: "Like many BlockFi clients, Zac deployed his own personal assets on BlockFi's platform.

Failing to report crypto activity to the IRS could result in an audit. Report any crypto income on Form 1040Aside from your crypto capital gains and losses, you may have also received additional income from your crypto holdings. In these cases, you'll need to report the crypto as income rather than a capital gain or loss. What happens if I don't report crypto on my taxes? "But if you don't file anything and the IRS discovers this — and they're aware that you didn't report it — it's tax evasion," he says.

In addition to exchanging crypto for government-issued currency, trading one crypto for another type of crypto creates a taxable event. Accordingly, investors need to pay capital gains taxes on their profits from selling or exchanging crypto. Important: While selling, trading, or exchanging crypto triggers a taxable event, buying it does not. However, you wouldn't owe money on the capital loss — in fact, you can use the capital loss to offset some of your capital gains on other assets. How to calculate crypto taxesCalculating crypto taxes can be daunting, especially if you're active in the markets.

The events of the year took many investors by surprise and made the task of predicting bitcoin's price that much harder. The crypto market was awash with pundits making feverish calls about where bitcoin was heading next. When asked about his $250,000 target earlier this month, the Draper Associates founder told CNBC $250,000 "is still my number" — but he's extending his prediction by six months. The entrepreneur says he's also done making bitcoin price predictions. Buehler said lack of risk management in the crypto industry, missing regulation and fraud have also been major factors affecting prices.

☆ Kraken's incoming CEO shares 5 major crypto trends for 2023, including what he believes will be the leading use-cases
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

David Ripley says crypto price drops tend to expose those that aren't following proper protocol. Earlier this year, FTX swooped in to try and save the distressed firms, posing as the blue-chip of crypto companies. David Ripley, COO at crypto exchange Kraken and incoming CEO of the firm, says price drops tend to expose those that aren't following proper protocol. It will take the crypto from being just a global payment mechanism to a fast and low-cost global payment network. As for major providers in the space, trusted and reliable crypto companies will see an increase in their market share to fill the demand, he said.

☆ Crypto winter end in sight as Ethereum looks to shake the chills- analysts
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

J.P.MORGAN:"We believe that the Ethereum Merge and really the Ethereum Surge could be a big factor in terms of increasing the use-cases for blockchain into new areas, including financial services," analysts said in an early December note. The Ethereum Merge was a major software upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain that went live in September and reduced its energy usage by 99.95%, according to developers. "We continue to see the Ethereum Surge as a catalyst for development in the cryptocurrency markets, which appears at least 6-12 months away." "From the China crackdown to the several price crashes in earlier 2022, crypto mining has shown an approximately 1-to-1 price-power relationship. Norwood expects the crypto market to pick up in about six months.

In this article BTC.CM=ETH.CM= Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTKris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com, speaking at a 2018 Bloomberg event in Hong Kong, China. Paul Yeung | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesKris Marszalek wants everyone to know that his company, Crypto.com, is safe and in good hands. While no evidence has emerged of wrongdoing at Crypto.com, Marszalek's business history is replete with red flags. Over the course of 2008 and 2009, Marszalek and his partner were transferred nearly $3 million in payments from Starline, according to the documents. As a result, when the bank forced Starline into liquidation, Marszalek and his partner were forced into bankruptcy as well.

Bankman-Fried could face a host of potential charges – civil and criminal – as well as private lawsuits from millions of FTX creditors, legal experts told CNBC. There are three different, possibly simultaneous legal threats that Bankman-Fried faces in the United States alone, Levin told CNBC. He told CNBC, "prosecutors would have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Bankman-Fried or his associates committed criminal fraud." (Carter was not an FTX investor, and told CNBC that his fund passed on early FTX rounds.) "People should not jump to the conclusion that something is not happening just because it has not been publicly disclosed," Levin told CNBC.

☆ Exclusive: EU embargo diverts Lukoil's Caspian oil to CPC link
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A European Union embargo from Dec. 5 is set to ban European buyers from purchasing and transporting Russian oil. As a major route for Kazakhstan's oil, CPC oil exports are excluded from the ban. "Russian oil is leaving BTC, the reason is sanctions, BTC doesn't let Russian oil in," - one of the sources said. CPC Blend exported via the CPC pipeline currently trades at a significant discount to Azeri BTC oil, which is supplied via BTC. The main exporters of the Azeri BTC oil are Azerbaijan's SOCAR and BP, as well as Hungarian company MOL, Exxon (XOM.N) and Turkey's TPAO.

☆ Binance hires the accounting firm that disavowed Donald Trump's financials to verify its crypto reserves
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Binance is enlisting accounting firm Mazars to verify its cryptocurrency reserves. Mazars' US unit previously worked for former President Donald Trump and his company. Earlier this year, Mazars USA said it no longer stands by 10 years of financial statements for Trump. Mazars will verify Binance's crypto reserves, the report said, as part of the exchange's larger proof-of-reserves system to foster more transparency. Still, Binance has touted its efforts on transparency and released on November 25 its first snapshot of its reserves, which showed holdings of mostly bitcoin.

Barry Silbert, the founder of crypto conglomerate Digital Currency Group, has joined a growing list of industry leaders in trying to settle investors' nerves after the sudden collapse of FTX. Since FTX's rapid winddown two weeks ago, investors have worried about a crypto contagion affecting every corner of the industry. "We have weathered previous crypto winters," Silbert wrote, adding that "while this one may feel more severe, collectively we will come out of it stronger." They've each expressed shock at FTX's apparent deceit of investors and customers and emphasized that client assets are secure. It also absorbed the $1.1 billion debt that the bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital owed Genesis.

☆ The investment case for next-gen trading stocks like Coinbase and SoFi despite crypto contagion
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Nevertheless, crypto trading services such as those offered by Coinbase , SoFi and Robinhood are likely to suffer a lull nevertheless as retail and institutional investors alike exit the market or try and move past their fear of another upheaval. "We are updating our model to reflect a 'lower for longer' assumption, particularly as it pertains to retail trading," Budish said. SoFi in a unique position This week, Democratic senators urged regulators to look into SoFi's trading activity as Washington attempts contemplates acting on FTX's spectacular collapse. SoFi has said its crypto revenue exposure is immaterial, it's compliant with regulators, doesn't do any crypto lending and had no exposure to FTX. However, it's possible that SOFI may find itself more heavily regulated with potential for incremental capital and liquidity requirements."

☆ Analysis: Shocked by Ukraine war, Russian neighbour Kazakhstan looks west
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Olzhas Auyezov | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Out of total exports of 68 million tonnes a year, 53 million tonnes of Kazakh oil move through it. The chief executive of Khazakhstan's state oil firm KazMunayGaz said this week that the target of 20 million tonnes was a "medium-term" aim. But getting Kazakh oil to Baku requires either tanker shipments across the sea or the construction of a trans-Caspian pipeline. Smailov said last week that Kazakhstan would start by sending an additional 1.5 million tonnes a year via BTC starting from 2023, gradually rising to 6-6.5 million tonnes. Kazakhstan's Aktau port, the only one equipped to load oil tankers, can handle up to 5.5 million tonnes.

☆ How to keep your crypto safe by moving it offline into your own wallet
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Sofia Pitt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Cold storage can protect your digital assets by taking them offline and harboring your crypto in a digital wallet. If you're interested in moving your crypto into cold storage, here's how to get started. Types of cold storage walletsThere are a number of cold storage wallets you can buy to get started. How to move your cryptocurrency to cold storageIt's important to buy your cold storage wallet directly from the manufacturer. Once you have a pin, you'll be able to add your crypto to your cold storage wallet by clicking receive, which will show you your cold storage wallet's address.

☆ Here's how bitcoin futures ETFs performed in a dramatic week for crypto
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) and Short Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITI) both saw their largest daily trading volumes on record last week. Applications for a true spot bitcoin ETF have been consistently rebuffed by the SEC , but the agency did allow bitcoin futures ETFs to launch. Bitcoin futures do not perfectly track spot bitcoin and the ETFs can carry additional costs for investors, such as the potential for roll costs when the fund swaps out expiring futures for new ones. However, bitcoin futures are also financially settled, meaning there is no bitcoin that changes hands or is held in an account. He added that the roll costs for bitcoin futures have come down sharply since the ETFs launched.

☆ Binance's rescue of FTX shows no crypto company is 'too big to fail,' experts say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Ben Mcshane | Sportsfile | Getty ImagesBinance's agreement to salvage rival cryptocurrency exchange FTX from collapse shows how no one is safe from the chill of crypto winter, according to industry experts. "It shows that no one is too big to fail," said Pascal Gauthier, CEO of crypto wallet firm Ledger. On Monday, the CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, took to Twitter in since-deleted tweets to play down concerns his crypto trading empire was at risk of collapsing. The debacle highlights how the crypto industry is becoming more centralized and straying from its decentralized roots, according to Gauthier. "FTX is a very big warning for everyone," Gauthier said in an interview on CNBC's Squawk Box Europe Wednesday.

Nov 1 (Reuters) - After months of tears and tantrums, bitcoin wants to split up with stock markets. The cryptocurrency, which has been closely correlated with tech stocks for much of its torrid 2022, is staging one of its strongest efforts yet to break away. For some crypto backers, any bitcoin break-up from Big Tech is a sign of strength. Bitcoin and crypto is one of those 'next' growth industries," said Santiago Portela, CEO of FITCHIN, a Web3 gaming ecosystem. Yet it's anyone's guess whether fickle bitcoin will begin to rally, or slide anew, or if it will swiftly rebound to the embrace of technology stocks.

But for the past few months, bitcoin's price has bounced stubbornly around $20,000 in a sign that volatility in the market has settled. Large crypto investors with highly leveraged bets like Three Arrows Capital were floored by the pressure on prices, further accelerating the market's drop. Mastercard announced a service that allows banks to offer crypto trading, having previously launched a new blockchain security tool for card issuers. In a note released Thursday, analysts at the bank said there were parallels with bitcoin's trading in Nov. 2018, when prices steadied for a while before rising steadily. Publicly-traded bitcoin miners sold 12,000 bitcoins in June and only around 3,000 in September, according to Goldman Sachs.

☆ Bitcoin miner Core Scientific issues bankruptcy warning and the stock is down 97% for the year
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Core Scientific, one of the largest publicly traded crypto mining companies in the U.S., raised the possibility of bankruptcy in a statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In the event of a bankruptcy, Core says that holders of its common stock could suffer "a total loss of their investment." Core Scientific mines for proof-of-work cryptocurrencies like bitcoin . Core, which primarily mints bitcoin, has seen the price of the token drop from an all-time high above $69,000 in Nov. 2021, to around $20,500. The Austin, Texas-based miner, which has operations in North Dakota, North Carolina, Georgia, and Kentucky, says that it may "seek alternative sources of equity or debt financing."

☆ Google agrees to compliance reforms to prevent search warrant data loss
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Andrew KellyWASHINGTON, Oct 25 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday it had reached an agreement with Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google resolving a dispute with the search engine giant over the loss of data responsive to a 2016 search warrant. The government said it was a "first-of-its-kind resolution" that would result in Google reforming "its legal process compliance program to ensure timely and complete responses to legal process such as subpoenas and search warrants." The company told a U.S. court it had spent over $90 million "on additional resources, systems, and staffing to implement legal process compliance program improvements." The Justice Department said an independent compliance professional will be hired to serve as an outside third party related to Google’s compliance upgrades. Google will assemble reports and updates regarding the compliance program that will go to the government, the Google Compliance Steering Committee and Alphabet board committees.

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