Author: NBTC

Privacy is not a crime. Yet when it comes to the crypto industry, projects and coins that enable users to tread lightly on-chain are facing higher levels of scrutiny than ever before. In 2024, government-led efforts to combat the use of coin-mixing services continued apace as developers behind Bitcoin Fog, Tornado Cash, and Samouri Wallet all faced challenges in court. Meanwhile, so-called privacy coins faced hurdles as some exchanges stopped supporting them. With Bitcoin’s pioneers drawing inspiration from the Cypherpunk movement, privacy and crypto have been intertwined since the industry’s beginnings as a means of internet-based resistance. But that link,…

Bitcoin price bounced back on Wednesday, ending a two-day retreat that pushed it near the $90,000 level. Bitcoin’s (BTC) rebound happened after a major court victory by Tornado Cash, a crypto mixer. In a ruling, a three-judge bench said that it was wrong to sanction its smart contract. Coinbase, the biggest crypto exchange in the US was part of the companies that supported the company. Privacy wins. Today the Fifth Circuit held that @USTreasury’s sanctions against Tornado Cash smart contracts are unlawful. This is a historic win for crypto and all who cares about defending liberty. @coinbase is proud to…

Solana Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs) have experienced a surge in market capitalization, reaching $8 billion in 2024. This marks substantial growth in the sector over the past two years. Despite Solana’s 60% staking ratio, only 6% of staked tokens are from liquid staking solutions. This leaves significant capital unused for decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. Dominant players in the space, such as JitoSOL, mSOL, and jupSOL, have fueled this expansion. JitoSOL alone holds 41.5% of the market share. BREAKING: The Total Market Cap of @Solana Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs) surges to $8 billion.Top LSTs by market share:•⁠ ⁠$JitoSOL: 41.5% •⁠ ⁠$mSOL:…

The IRS will allow crypto holders on centralized exchanges to bypass strict tax regulations in 2025, preserving flexibility in reporting and tracking digital asset sales. IRS Announces Temporary Relief for Some Crypto Holders The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a temporary relief measure, which is expected to benefit cryptocurrency holders using centralized finance (cefi) exchanges next year. Shehan Chandrasekera, Head of Tax Strategy at Cointracker, explained the update on social media platform X Tuesday, stating: “The IRS just issued a temporary relief notice that is good news for crypto holders interacting with cefi exchanges in 2025!” This relief addresses…

According to a recent research report published by OKG Research on Tuesday, crypto markets felt the reverse of the Trump trades, which began during the presidential election period. The report outlined the significant drop in BTC prices from an all-time high of over $99,000 to around $93,000. OKG Research noted that the drop, which was 6%, was one of the greatest declines the coin faced during the bull market. The report further highlighted the possibility of recent geopolitical news suggesting a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel to have caused the decline. Other commodities, including gold and crude oil, also plunged…

Attorney and XRP supporter John Deaton recently shared that it’s hard to truly measure the damage the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple and XRP has caused to Ripple’s business. Back in 2012, when Ripple’s founders created XRP, stablecoins didn’t exist, and the global payments market was wide open for innovation. At the time, Ripple was deciding whether to focus on smart contracts or payments. In the end, Ripple chose to focus on cross-border payments, which he thinks made sense given the size of the market and the lack of stablecoins back then. In 2019, Coinbase listed XRP and promoted it as…

HashKey recently announced that it allocated 300 million tokens to team incentives with a 36-month unlocking period after the launch of its native token HSK. How does this impact investors? On Dec. 5, HashKey posted an official statement that explains the allocation of HSK tokens for team members. The notice stated that HashKey allocated 30% of its 1 billion token supply for the internal team which follows an unlocking period that consists of a minimum 3-month lock-up period and a 35-month linear release. “We’d like to clarify key aspects of HSK’s tokenomics and team incentives structure: HSK has a total…

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers believes cryptocurrency can modernize the country’s financial system. RBA Governor Skeptical of Bitcoin Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers says cryptocurrency can help modernize the country’s financial system and should not be hindered by excessive regulation. While acknowledging legitimate concerns about crypto’s use by criminals, Chalmers noted that Donald Trump’s re-election has prompted a reevaluation of the sector’s importance. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Chalmers suggested cryptocurrency could play a key role in revamping Australia’s financial system. However, his comments contradict those of Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Gov. Michele Bullock, who stated that cryptocurrencies like bitcoin…

Key highlights: EOS mainnet gains institutional-grade custody support from Ceffu, Binance’s custody partner, offering secure asset management. MirrorX integration allows fund managers to leverage Binance’s liquidity while tapping into decentralized finance protocols. Updates to EOS’s tokenomics and ecosystem emphasize its growing utility and appeal to institutional investors. EOS ecosystem drives institutional collaboration The EOS Network Foundation (ENF) has announced a partnership with Ceffu, the institutional custody platform associated with Binance, which now supports the EOS mainnet. This collaboration brings secure custody services to EOS token holders and unlocks CeDeFi strategies through Binance’s MirrorX. Ceffu’s advanced multi-party computation (MPC) and customizable…

Illegal crypto ads remain widespread as the FCA struggles to crack down, data shows. The British Financial Conduct Authority has failed to remove all illegal crypto ads as nearly half of flagged promotions still online, the Financial Times has learned, citing data obtained through a freedom of information request. Between October 2023 and October 2024, the FCA issued over 1,700 alerts about illegal crypto ads, apps, and websites. However, less than 55% were taken down. The FCA has the power to fine or prosecute companies that break new rules requiring crypto ads to be approved by the regulator or an…