Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Erik Voorhees has publicly criticized Revolut, claiming the fintech company shut down his account due to his interactions with cryptocurrencies. Despite not using Revolut’s crypto service and funding his account via fiat from an exchange, Voorhees experienced a freeze on his account for three weeks, followed by termination. This incident occurred even after […]
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Liberty Dollar vs. Bitcoin: Why the US Government Shut Down One but Not the Other
The U.S. government successfully shut down the Liberty Dollar, a private currency created by Bernard von NotHaus, while Bitcoin, established by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto, continues to thrive outside governmental control. This discrepancy highlights the stark differences between the centralized creation of the Liberty Dollar and the decentralized nature of Bitcoin. Contrasting Currencies — The […]
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Paraguayan Authorities Shut Down 2,700 Miners in Largest Anti-Illegal Bitcoin Mining Intervention to Date
Paraguayan authorities detected and shut down an illegal bitcoin mining farm that had over 2,700 miners connected directly to the country’s power grid. The operation, carried out in the city of Saltos de Guaira and situated near a national power facility, was deemed by authorities as the largest operation of its kind. Paraguayan Authorities Bust […]
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US Presidential Candidate Outlines Plan to Shut Down FBI if Elected — ‘This Is Much More Practical Than It Sounds’
Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has outlined his plan to shut down the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) if he is elected President of the United States. “56% of the bureau that are professional bureaucrats should be fired immediately,” he stressed, adding that 44% of FBI employees are special agents and intelligence analysts who “should be reassigned to serve under the narrow focus of other federal law enforcement agencies doing the same specialist work.”
’This Is Much More Practical Than It Sounds’
U.S. presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy outlined how he would shut down the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) if he is elected President of the United States in several posts on social media platform X.
“We need to cure the cancer that is the administrative-police state,” the presidential hopeful explained, adding that the FBI is among the “toxic” government agencies that he will shut down. Emphasizing that the bureau cannot be reformed, he wrote on X Saturday:
Shut down the FBI. And yes, this is much more practical than it sounds.
The FBI can’t be “reformed.”
The right answer is: Shut It Down.
Yes, the President can do it.
I will.
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 31, 2023
Noting that the FBI has about 35,842 employees, the presidential hopeful stated that “56% of the bureau that are professional bureaucrats should be fired immediately.” He added: “Just 44% of FBI employees are special agents and intelligence analysts — these 15,770 specialists should be reassigned to serve under the narrow focus of other federal law enforcement agencies doing the same specialist work.”
Ramaswamy then highlighted where some FBI specialists and analysts should be transferred to. Firstly, he said 821 should be reassigned to the U.S. Marshals Service to fight crimes against children, and 4,159 should be transferred to work at the Department of Defense’s Intelligence Agency.
Moreover, 4,663 should be transferred to the Department of Homeland Security to focus on national security and terrorism while 856 should be reassigned to the U.S. Secret Service to fight “political corruption,” the presidential candidate stated.
Furthermore, 2,555 FBI specialists and analysts should be transferred to the Department of Justice, “within a specialized sub-agency rather than a sprawling investigative bureaucracy,” the presidential candidate emphasized. They should be reassigned to focus on “civil rights, organized crime, violent crime, science and technology, including crime laboratory analysis across agencies,” Ramaswamy described. Lastly, 856 should join the Department of the Treasury and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to fight “white collar crime,” he noted.
Ramaswamy recently unveiled his crypto policy. He has promised that if he is elected President of the U.S., he will ensure that innovative sectors, including crypto, are “liberated from the shackles of the unconstitutional shadow government.” He expects to rescind most, if not all, of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations that apply to cryptocurrencies.
Do you think the FBI should be shut down? Let us know in the comments section below.
Africa-Focused Remittances Fintech Zazuu Shut Downs After Failing to Secure Additional Funding
An Africa-focused remittances firm, Zazuu, has become the latest fintech startup to close shop after it failed to raise extra funding. Zazuu and other African fintechs’ funding problems are said to be linked to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in the U.S.
Zazuu Shuts Down Just Over a Year After Raising Million
Zazuu, an Africa-focused cross-border remittances fintech startup, recently said its inability to secure additional funding had forced it to shut down. The startup’s decision to close shop come just over a year after it raised million from investors that included Launch Africa, Founders Factory, and rapper Tinie Tempah.
In a Linkedin post explaining the “difficult news,” Zazuu said it had worked hard to make cross-border money transfers “fair.” However, the funding climate ultimately made it impossible for the startup to continue operating.
“With the support of our investors and team, we made huge strides – securing regulatory approvals, building our products, and laying the groundwork for future growth.
However, due to a tough funding climate, we failed to secure [a] growth funding
round. We explored every option before making this decision,” Zazuu said in a statement.
According to a Techcabal report, Zazuu is the latest fintech startup in 2023 to cite funding challenges as the primary reason for closing shop. Lazerpay, Paystack, and Vibra are some of the fintech firms which have either shut down or scaled down operations due to funding challenges.
African Fintechs ‘Need Favourable Funding’
Meanwhile, in his reaction to Zazuu’s announcement, Linkedin user and entrepreneur Ogar Phil Blaize suggested that the closure could be linked to the demise of the Silicon Valley Bank. Before its collapse, the bank had primarily focused on supporting tech businesses both in and outside the U.S. However, in his Nov. 20 post, the Linkedin user implied that there has been no bank focused on supporting African fintechs since Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse.
Therefore, in order to end the cycle of African fintechs shutting down due to lack of funding, Blaize said:
“Many startups affected with this dilemma, especially African startups will need favourable funding again to stand up else now or later we will be hearing more shut down.”
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Report: Africa-Focused Crypto Trading App Shut Down — Co-Founder Says Only Nigerian Users Affected
The Africa-focused crypto trading app Vibra has reportedly stopped working in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria. Reports that the app is not working in the three countries contradict the co-founder’s claim that only users from Nigeria are affected.
Resign or Get Fired
An Africa-focused crypto trading app, Vibra, has reportedly been stopped in Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria. Vincent Li, the co-founder of African Blockchain Labs — the organization behind the app — insisted however that the measure only affected users in Nigeria. He also added that the suspension would be temporary.
Nevertheless, an Oct. 18 Techcabal report quotes current and former employees who have confirmed the app’s stoppage in all African markets. The employees, who did not wish to be identified, also told the publication that they had been asked to resign or be fired. Another former employee suggested that Vibra has not been generating enough revenue.
“The company may have also closed because they could not work out how to get commensurate turnover from the user education we were doing,” an unnamed former employee said.
Crypto Winter Impact
Meanwhile, the co-founder’s claims that only Nigerian users will be affected are reportedly undercut by messages on Vibra’s telegram channel which suggest otherwise.
Like other ambitious African crypto startups that fell by the wayside in 2023, the suspected demise of Vibra has been attributed to the so-called crypto winter. During this period, crypto and fintech startups that raised millions of dollars have either scaled back or have been forced to end operations.
However, as the case of the Ghanaian startup known as Dash has demonstrated, the demise of these startups is also attributed to corporate governance failures and acts of fraud by founders. In the case of Dash, not even the more than million capital that was raised in five years could save the startup.
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Ukraine, US Shut Down 9 Cryptocurrency Exchanges
Supported by U.S. law enforcement, police in Ukraine have disrupted a network of crypto exchange services suspected of laundering criminal proceeds. The platforms were allegedly processing dirty money obtained from ransomware attacks and various fraud schemes.
Cyberpolice, US Investigators Bust Crypto Exchanges in Ukraine
Officers from Ukraine’s Cyberpolice unit and Main Investigative Department, working with the Prosecutor General’s Office, have seized nine cryptocurrency exchanges, the National Police of Ukraine announced. Representatives of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also took part in what Ukrainian authorities described as a “multi-level international operation.”
The web platforms offered anonymous exchange of cryptocurrencies. They were employed to facilitate the legalization of illicit funds, a press release explained. Through these exchanges, criminals channeled digital assets obtained as a result of malware attacks and online fraud. Their services were advertised on closed hacker forums.
The network’s infrastructure, located on servers in the United States, a number of European countries and Ukraine, has been blocked during the operation. Investigators are now trying to identify all individuals involved in the criminal activities.
Visitors to 24xbtc.com, 100btc.pro, pridechange.com, 101crypta.com, uxbtc.com, trust-exchange.org, bitcoin24.exchange, paybtc.pro, and owl.gold now get a message stating the the domains have been seized by law enforcement.
Ukrainian government agencies have been working to improve their expertise on crypto assets. A report revealed in March that employees of the Cyberpolice, the Asset Recovery and Management Agency, and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attended training classes organized by the world’s leading crypto exchange, Binance.
In November 2022, the cybercrime-combating unit dismantled a crypto fraud scheme allegedly making over 0 million a year. Its organizers lured investors through a chain of representative offices and call centers throughout Europe. A million Russian crypto pyramid was taken down in April.
Do you think Ukraine will expand its cooperation with the United States in law enforcement operations in the crypto space?
Uniswap Founder: People Rooting For Crypto To Be Shut Down Are Cringe
Hayden Adams, the founder of Uniswap, thinks people rooting to have crypto shut down are “incredibly cringe.”
Uniswap Founder: Let People Be
In a tweet on January 26, Hayden emphasized that no one has forced anybody to use crypto, buy coins, or keep up with the latest events in the industry. He also added that no one asks for the “dumb” global fiat system to be shut down.
Instead of opposing technology and infringing on people’s rights, he recommends that opposers let people do what they want and chill.
People rooting for crypto to be shut down are incredibly cringe. Like no one is trying to shut down the dumb fiat system you use, no one is forcing you to buy crypto; no one is forcing you to read crypto news or follow crypto Twitter. Let people do what they want and chill.
It is not immediately clear what triggered Hayden to vent his frustrations on Twitter. However, what’s known is that no-coiners, individuals who are against crypto, hold no coin, or show no desire to participate, have been shooting down blockchain and crypto proponents.
Tackling Nocoiners
Over the years, crypto’s volatility has been called into question, with many regulators and heads of agencies slamming top cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Billionaire Warren Buffet and economist Nouriel Roubini, nicknamed Dr. Doom, lead the pack.
In the aftermath of the FTX collapse, while attending the Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Nouriel said Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, was a “ticking time bomb,” and he was surprised that Binance had been allowed to operate in the Gulf state. He wants regulators across the world to “think carefully” about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
As of January 27, the price of Bitcoin was changing hands at around ,000.
Like Warren, Dr. Doom says cryptocurrencies, with which Hayden made a platform for easy trading, hold no intrinsic value. He always insists that crypto is the biggest scam in financial history. Nouriel mainly blames regulators in the United States for being “lenient”.
Crypto is the biggest scam ever in financial history. Their true value isn’t 0; it is rather negative, given their negative externalities. 100s of celebrities handsomely profited by peddling criminal shit coins and crypto scams, shafting suckers. The current fines are only a slap on the wrist. They should be prosecuted.
Uniswap is a leading cryptocurrency exchange, allowing for the trustless exchange of various tokens and NFTs. Founded in late 2018, the exchange, under Hayden Adams, has grown to be one of the world’s largest DEXes, serving millions of users across the globe.
DeFiLlama data shows that the DEX has a total value locked (TVL) of .8 billion as of January 27.
Bitcoin ATMs Shut Down In Singapore After MAS Curbs Crypto Advertising
Financial service regulator – Monetary Authority of Singapore has issued fresh guidelines to limit crypto trading by the public. It has also taken a firm stance and asked cryptocurrency companies to eschew advertising or showcasing their products to the general public. MAS substantiated their decision by stating reasons which were purely risk-oriented.
The guideline stated and clarified that Digital Payment Token service providers “should not portray the trading of DPTs cryptocurrencies in a manner that trivializes the high risks of trading in DPTs, and should not promote their DPT services in public areas in Singapore or through any other media directed at the general public in Singapore”.
“Highly Risky And Not Suitable For The General Public”
The Central Bank affirmed that such services are “highly risky and not suitable for the general public”. It implied that the broadcasting of cryptocurrency through traditional media such as newspapers and magazines must also cease to exist.
On Tuesday, MAS declared that it would be outlawing crypto-to-cash terminals, thus, sealing all crypto ATMs in Singapore. Daenerys & Co, which is one of the biggest crypto ATM operators with five crypto ATMs spread across the city had acted in accordance with the guidelines. Another rival ATM operator, Deodi also complied with the Central Bank’s order and ceased its only ATM.
Related Reading | Intel To Present Low Voltage, Energy Efficient Bitcoin Mining Chip At Conference
This recent regulatory clamp from the MAS cropped up amidst the growing popularity of the blockchain industry with new investors joining the ecosystem each day. Although MAS quoted that “MAS strongly encourages the development of blockchain technology and innovative application of crypto tokens in value-adding use cases.”; the cryptocurrency market in Singapore continues to reel under a significant number of regulatory milestones.
Recently, Coincub, a fintech start-up in one of their rankings, called Singapore the world’s most friendly cryptocurrency economy. Singapore in the past had been quite liberal in terms of cryptocurrency adoption with an undemanding and positive legislative environment. Currently, the reality looks quite different, so to say.
Bitcoin’s growth is concerning regulators | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com
MAS Believes Bitcoin ATMs Let People Trade “On Impulse”
MAS believes that ATMs facilitated a seamless and convenient transaction of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. This could cause people to trade “on impulse”. This notion caused regulators to mandate the clampdown of ATMs all across the city.
In regards to crypto regulations, Singapore isn’t the only name on the list. In December 2021, Britain outlawed advertisements from seven such crypto firms as they were “irresponsibly taking advantage of consumers’ inexperience and for failing to illustrate the risk of the investment”.
Spain had also led a crackdown on cryptocurrency promotions recently. Singapore’s regulatory escalation comes after Bitcoin’s prices nosedived almost 40% after BTC soared to new heights in November 2021.
Related Reading | Green Energy: In NY, Bitcoin Mining Saved The Oldest Working Hydroelectric Plant
Cryptocurrency is not only a volatile asset but has also enabled a wide spectrum of fraud associated with digital assets. In recent times, cryptocurrency has facilitated money laundering and terrorism funding among other illegal activities.
“Digital payment token service providers in Singapore have to comply with requirements to mitigate such risks, including the need to carry out proper customer due diligence, conduct regular account reviews, and monitor and report suspicious transactions,” stated MAS spokesperson.
Featured image from iStockPhoto, Charts from TradingView.com
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Binance Australia To Shut Down Crypto Futures Trading Amid Regulatory Concerns
As the crypto industry continues to dominate, financial regulators fear criminals will turn to the industry for their illicit activities. This year 2021, has been hot for the crypto industry in terms of regulation. Many financial watchdogs in the USA and other countries pushed harder to regulate the sector.
Some top exchanges, including Binance, saw a lot of pressure from several bodies, especially on many of their products.
The reason was that many of these exchanges could serve as a means of money laundering given the anonymity of the transactions. As a result, some countries keep limiting the operations of crypto exchanges in their markets.
Related Reading | Bitcoin Holders Take Profits As Price Falls, Indicators Remain Bullish?
Binance has seen a lot of pressure from regulators all over the world. Some countries and apex financial bodies such as the Dutch Central Bank have accused the exchange of non-compliance with financial laws against terrorism.
Australia Bans Crypto Futures Trading
Amid the pressure on the largest crypto exchange, the Australian government has banned them from offering their crypto futures and options in their market. So now, traders will no longer access such products from Binance.
The government even warned all their citizens and residents who have invested in futures, options & leveraged tokens to close their position within 90 days. Binance announced this instruction on September 20, 2021.
Based on the available information, all Australian users will not invest in these products starting from Friday, September 24. But they can increase their margin balances against liquidation & margin calls. But from December 24, 2021, all manners of transactions on derivatives will close down.
Related Reading | Did Turkey’s President Say “We Are In A War Against Bitcoin”? An Investigation
In response to this restriction, Binance’s representative stated that they aim to ensure compliance and acceptance for all their products.
As such, they usually monitor the regulatory requirements of the localities wherein they operate. But with the recent development, the company will also try to protect the interests of the users.
Restrictions On Binance Keep Growing
Apart from the recent restrictions in Australia, other countries have been limiting the operations of Binance in their markets. In addition, many global regulators have also been issuing warnings to the exchange.
For instance, last month, the exchange stopped offering its derivative trading services in Brazil. Before that, the Hong Kong government also suspended its operations.
Binance also halted its crypto derivatives trading in many other countries, such as Netherlands, Germany, and Italy. According to the exchange, it has decided to stop those services in European countries.
crypto market is recovering from an abrupt decline | Source: Crypto Total Market Cap on TradingView.com
Featured Image From Binance, Chart From Tradingview.com
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