Author: NBTC

An Oregon retiree who conspired with a Nuveen LLC trader to profit from confidential market orders was sentenced Monday to one year in prison, closing a $47 million insider-trading case. Alan Williams, 79, appeared before U.S. District Judge Paul Gardephe in Manhattan. Williams, who once ran trading at Sutro & Co. in San Francisco, admitted last year that he used insider tips from Lawrence Billimek, a former trader at Nuveen, to place thousands of timely stock bets. Gardephe noted that Williams helped prosecutors build their case against Billimek, but said the sheer scope of illegal trades made a sentence without…

The Supreme Court recently dismissed a petition filed by WazirX users following the platform’s major hack in July 2024. The hack, which resulted in the theft of Rs. 2,000 crore worth of crypto, left over 4.4 million users locked out of their accounts. This incident, and the court’s rejection of the petition, has highlighted the glaring gaps in India’s crypto regulations, leaving users vulnerable and raising questions about the country’s ability to protect digital asset holders. The WazirX Hack: A Blow to 4.4 Million Users On July 18, 2024, WazirX, one of India’s largest crypto exchanges, was targeted in a…

Encode Club strengthens Flare Network by providing high-quality data and launching developer education programs like the Flare Educate Series. Flare Network boosts its infrastructure with Go-Flare v1.10.0 update and plans a major hard fork for better performance. Encode Club is increasingly establishing itself as one of Flare Network’s professional infrastructure partners. Their involvement was officially announced, along with the joining of Nansen and QuickNode. These three names have a major role in providing data and validation services to strengthen the Flare network. In particular, Encode Club brings excellence in developer education and high-quality data integration. . @encodeclub is one of…

Cryptocurrency analysis company Alphractal has highlighted that Bitcoin is at a critical turning point in its latest assessment. According to the company’s analysis, despite the recent rise in prices, no significant change has yet been seen in on-chain data. Emphasizing that Bitcoin currently has a critical point at $92,500, Alphractal stated that this area coincides with the “Short-Term Realized Price” level and that staying above this level is vital in terms of changing market sentiment. “This is a very sensitive area where bulls and bears will fight a tough battle. Both short-term and long-term Realized Market Cap Momentum indicators are…

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent appeared on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Monday morning, offering a wide-ranging update on trade negotiations, global capital flows, and the administration’s economic strategy amid intensifying tariff discussions with China. Bessent reiterated on CNBC that while various branches of the U.S. government remain in contact with Chinese officials, it is ultimately up to China to take steps toward a trade de-escalation. He said that while China sells “five times more to us than we sell to them,” Bessent emphasized that the current 125%–145% tariffs are “unsustainable.” As such, the imbalance gives China a greater incentive to…

Cardano’s decentralized and energy-efficient Ouroboros proof-of-stake system eliminates massive mining farms, offering security without slashing penalties. Its deterministic logic and EUTXO model ensure reliable outputs, boosting blockchain efficiency in high-stakes industries like finance. In an industry often criticized for excessive energy use and centralization, Cardano presents a counter-narrative. Backed by over 3,000 registered stake pools and designed with sustainability at its core, Cardano has built a decentralized structure without compromising on performance. Unlike Bitcoin’s power-hungry model or Ethereum’s historically high gas fees, Cardano achieves efficiency without slashing, without lock-ups, and without centralized chokepoints. The network’s design relies on a unique…

South Korea’s People Power Party has vowed to approve spot crypto ETFs, dismantle a major banking restriction, and overhaul digital asset laws before the end of the year, local media reported Monday. The party revealed its digital asset pledge just weeks after the country’s impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was removed from office for illegally imposing martial law, a political shock that has formed the basis for a fiercely contested snap election on June 3. The PPP’s proposals include abolishing the “one exchange, one bank” rule, which restricts crypto exchanges to a single banking partner —a regulation blamed for entrenching…

On April 25, Bybit, the second-largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world in terms of trading volume, released its latest weekly cryptocurrency derivatives report in collaboration with analytics firm Block Scholes. Despite showing signs of decoupling from U.S. equities earlier, the relief rally caused by President Trump’s positive comments regarding the trade war with China caused leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) to resume trading in tandem with the stock market. However, despite a mostly positive series of events, a closer look at the datapoints collected by Bybit paints a slightly more nuanced picture. Derivatives report shows increased open interest— but Bitcoin puts…

Bitcoin miners with the right infrastructure and management talent can gain substantial value by pivoting into the booming AI and HPC data center market, analysts say. As demand for AI infrastructure grows, crypto miners with access to power and cooling could be well positioned to profit from supporting high-performance computing workloads, according to a Galaxy Digital research report. The analysts believe miners with experienced management teams capable of executing AI and HPC buildouts have a “tremendous opportunity” to bring “significant incremental value to their companies.” The appeal lies in the long-term contracts and strong, steady cash flow models of AI…

Big news is brewing in the blockchain world, especially for those keeping a close eye on how Bitcoin is expanding its reach beyond its foundational layer. The promising Bitcoin Layer 2 network, Bitlayer, has just announced a significant step forward in interoperability, forging a crucial link with the burgeoning Monad ecosystem. What’s Happening: Bitlayer Integrates with Monad Testnet In a move set to enhance cross-chain capabilities, Bitlayer has officially integrated its innovative BitVM Bridge with the Monad Testnet. This announcement, shared via Bitlayer’s official Medium blog, marks a key milestone in connecting the Bitcoin ecosystem with the wider world of…