Author: NBTC

Europe’s competition regulator has opened a formal investigation into tech giant Meta over policy changes that allow the company’s own AI chatbot to operate on WhatsApp while blocking rivals from doing the same. The European Commission announced Thursday it’s examining whether Meta violated antitrust rules by effectively reserving WhatsApp’s AI chatbot access for itself.  The action targets updated business terms WhatsApp rolled out in late October, which ban third-party AI companies from distributing chatbots through the messaging app when AI is their core offering.  Under the updated WhatsApp Business Solution Terms, AI providers are “strictly prohibited” from using the…

The Russian government could be adding $30 million worth of assets seized from Georgy Satyukov to its treasury. The former Ministry of Internal Affairs employee is believed to have accepted bribes worth $30 million and used them to buy various luxury assets. Russian prosecutors are seeking to seize property worth over 2.1 billion rubles from former Ministry of Internal Affairs official Georgy Satyukov, who allegedly accepted $184 million in Bitcoin and $30 million in Ethereum in bribes. How did a Russian police official become a millionaire? A former Ministry of Internal Affairs employee named Georgy Satyukov was identified by Russian…

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is promoting a new mechanism to mitigate sudden spikes in transaction costs on the network. His latest proposal outlines a trustless, on-chain prediction market designed to help users secure future gas prices and manage volatility rather than react to it. Buterin Backs Ethereum Gas Pricing Market On December 6, Buterin argued that Ethereum needs a market-based signal for future demand for block space. The structure would trade exposure to the network’s Base Fee by letting participants buy or sell gas commitments tied to a future window. According to him, the aim is to give developers and…

Get ready for a game-changing development in the crypto world! Naver Financial, in partnership with blockchain investment firm Hashed, is launching a new stablecoin wallet next month. This innovative stablecoin wallet aims to make digital currency management safer and more accessible for everyone in South Korea and beyond. What Makes This Stablecoin Wallet Special? The wallet, named Bidan Jumeoni (meaning Silk Pouch), represents a significant step forward in cryptocurrency adoption. Developed through a joint venture that includes the Busan Digital Exchange, this stablecoin wallet has completed its initial development phase. Currently, it’s undergoing final verification to ensure seamless performance before…

A groundbreaking legislative move in Indiana could soon allow the state’s pension funds to tap into the cryptocurrency market. A new bill proposes permitting these massive retirement pools to invest indirectly in digital assets through crypto ETFs. This represents a significant shift in how traditional finance views cryptocurrency, potentially opening the door for billions in institutional capital. What Does the Indiana Crypto ETF Bill Actually Propose? Introduced by Republican state Representative Kyle Pierce, the legislation creates a clear but cautious pathway. The bill would explicitly allow public pension funds to gain exposure to cryptocurrencies. However, there’s a crucial limitation: they…

Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, has joined forces with Komainu to give institutional clients the ability to trade around the clock without having to park assets directly on an exchange. The partnership plugs Bybit into Komainu’s collateral management network, Komainu Connect, allowing delegated assets to remain in regulated, third-party custody while still being tradable on Bybit’s order books. The move is aimed squarely at institutional concerns about counterparty and settlement risk. Under the agreement, clients can trade 24/7 while their holdings are held in on-chain, bankruptcy-remote segregated wallets managed by Komainu. Regular, automated off-exchange settlement removes…

According to metrics, the tally of ETH burned from fees has sailed past the 6 million mark, meaning that as of Dec. 7’s exchange rates, more than $18 billion in value has effectively gone up in smoke since the London hard fork on Aug. 5, 2021. ETH Bonfire Surpasses 6M ETH Since 2021’s London Upgrade Just recently, Ethereum rolled out its Fusaka upgrade, which dramatically expanded the network’s data and gas capacity (think higher block gas limits and far larger blob space), allowing each block to haul more call data and rollup blobs. The Fusaka upgrade reshaped layer two (L2)…

Major financial players are changing how they look at crypto. BlackRock, JPMorgan and HSBC say tokenized, yield-bearing real-world assets (RWAs) could have more long-term potential than stablecoins. This is a big shift and could change how investors use blockchain technology. The banks highlight that these assets not only store value but can also generate steady returns over time. Offering a more sustainable path for crypto adoption and institutional investment. Why Big Banks Are Interested Stablecoins have been popular because they are easy to use and maintain a steady value. But they do not generate returns. Banks now focus on tokenized…

India’s top anti-smuggling agency has sounded the alarm on the rising use of crypto and stablecoins in drug and gold trafficking, enabling rapid, untraceable international fund transfers that bypass formal financial oversight. The warning comes from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence’s Smuggling in India Report 2024-25, released Thursday, which points out that digital assets enable “faster and anonymous settlement, minimal oversight, and weak anti-money laundering compliance.” “Cryptocurrency has emerged as a potent tool for smuggling syndicates due to its decentralised, pseudonymous, and borderless nature,” the report states, noting how digital assets are now widely used to route illicit payments and move…

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is rapidly expanding his influence in the prediction market space. He introduced a new prediction market on BNB Chain, while Trust Wallet, which he owns, added prediction trading features for its 220 million users. These developments continue BNB Chain’s October integrations with Polymarket and the launch of the Opinion mainnet. Together, these moves aim to position BNB Chain as a key hub for decentralized forecasting markets, following October’s record $7.4 billion in prediction market volumes. CZ Highlights New Prediction Platform with a Disclaimer On December 4, CZ posted on X about a new prediction market…