Author: NBTC

The Hong Kong government declared to the OECD Global Forum that its regulators plan to implement a crypto asset reporting framework to combat cross-border tax evasion. Regulators plan to complete the necessary legislative amendments before 2026. In the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Global Forum on Transparency and Effective Exchange of Information in Tax Matters on Dec. 13, representatives from the Hong Kong government vowed to implement a framework that would make crypto asset reporting mandatory for tax calculations. According to a press release shared on the government site, the framework is meant to improve global tax transparency and…

Microsoft shareholders are set to decide on the firm’s Bitcoin investment stance on December 10. The digital asset’s cruise to $100k has been fueled by support from the United States President-elect Donald Trump and Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk. However, Microsoft has yet to commit. The deadline for the decision will come later this week as stakeholders take a vote in a Tuesday meeting to decide. According to its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Microsoft stakeholders will determine if it will add Bitcoin to its balance sheet. However, the board members are against the proposal, noting…

Ethereum (ETH) is poised for a resurgence in 2025 as it rides a wave of emerging trends to capitalize on a $100 trillion opportunity in tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs), according to a letter shared with investors by Bitwise’s senior investment strategist, Juan Leon. The document highlighted that the crypto market was marked by two narratives this year: Bitcoin’s (BTC) new all-time high, driven by spot exchange-traded funds (ETF) approval in the US, and Solana’s (SOL) meteoric popularity as retail investors piled into memecoin speculation. As a result, Ethereum’s 66% year-to-date return paled when compared to BTC’s 130% gain and SOL’s…

Ripple’s long-anticipated journey toward becoming a publicly traded company has kept the XRP community on edge. Although discussions around a $30 billion valuation have circulated for over a year, the path to accessing stocks remains a point of interest — and controversy. One of the most debated methods involves purchasing synthetic pre-IPO shares through third-party services. These services, while increasingly popular, have sparked concerns about their legitimacy and potential risks. Recently, the XRP community has been abuzz with discussions about the ethical and legal implications of these synthetic products. Critics argue that investing in such offerings resembles speculative gambling, with…

The market valuation of tether (USDT) has now ballooned to a staggering $140 billion. On Dec. 16, this stablecoin’s market cap makes up 3.75% of the colossal $3.73 trillion crypto universe. Tether’s Market Share Soars in 2024 The journey of the dollar-pegged digital economy has been quite the adventure since stablecoins first hit the scene, and tether (USDT) has emerged as the undisputed heavyweight. This week, the stablecoin’s valuation has soared to $140 billion, and exactly one year ago, on Dec. 16, 2023, its supply was at 90 billion coins. That’s a hefty increase of $50 billion in just 12…

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has released its final guidance on Tuesday to help member states implement the impending rules. ESMA published its final report on reverse solicitation, systems, what crypto may constitute as a financial instrument and draft technical standards on market abuse prevention. The European Union’s Markets in Crypto Asset (MiCA) rules – bespoke rules for the crypto sector – are meant to come into force by December 30 across the bloc of 27 nations. But some countries are yet to put in place legislation to implement MiCA. Portugal’s central bank even told CoinDesk on Monday…

Bitpanda, a European crypto platform, has obtained in-principle approval from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This was achieved in less than eight months after submission. Once fully licensed, Bitpanda will operate as Bitpanda Broker MENA DMCC, marking its first official expansion outside Europe. Bitpanda Expands Beyond Europe According to the firm, the approval reflects Bitpanda’s strategy to grow beyond Europe and establish itself in the global digital asset market. The UAE has become a notable hub for cryptocurrency trading and digital finance. Launching Fusion, Targeting MENA Earlier this year, Bitpanda set up an…

The 2024 bitcoin halving event sparked major changes in the mining scene, according to the latest “State of the Network” report by Coin Metrics and analyst Matías Andrade. Battle for Hashrate Dominance The April 2024 halving, which slashed block rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, severely impacted miner earnings. Coin Metrics’ new report reveals a sharp fall in BTC-denominated revenue per terahash per second (TH/s) of mining power right after the event. However, a thrilling jump in bitcoin’s price to over the $105,000 range cushioned some of the blows, boosting USD-denominated revenue per TH/s. Even so, profitability still lags…

A widely followed crypto analyst says Ethereum (ETH) looks primed to move higher after exhibiting price stability during the last two weeks. In a new strategy session, pseudonymous crypto trader Rekt Capital tells his 519,700 followers on the social media platform X that ETH may be gearing up for more rallies after maintaining $4,000 as support on the weekly chart. “ETH: the post-breakout retest was successful. And indeed, it enabled a challenge into $4,000 (red). In fact, Ethereum has been holding the $4,000 (red) area as new support for the second week in a row. Continued price stability here [means]…

Despite limited progress in reducing inflation in November, federal funds futures show a nearly 100% probability that the Fed will cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points at its Dec. 17-18 meeting, analyst Megan Leonhardt said. Although a December rate cut appears imminent, Leonhardt warned that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell could accompany that decision with guidance suggesting a pause in rate cuts early next year. “Don’t be surprised if next week’s rate cut is combined with Powell’s statement that the Fed will pause rate cuts at the beginning of the year,” Leonhardt added, noting the directional challenges policymakers…