Features TheBitTimes.com

After FTX collapsed, the incident prompted many major crypto exchanges to publish proof-of-reserves and lists of known addresses so users can verify the solvency of the trading platforms. While the veracity of these proof-of-reserve lists and asset dashboards is debatable, they do provide some insight into the large sums of cryptocurrency held in custody by major exchanges. For example, Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange by trade volume, manages $66 billion in crypto assets, which is more than 6% of the entire cryptocurrency economy’s net value of $1 trillion. An Inspection of 5 Proof-of-Reserves Lists That Provide Insight into Large Cryptocurrency Holdings It has been more than 80 days since Coindesk published a story about Alameda Research’s balance sheet, which showed the quantitative trading desk owned a large amount of ftx token (FTT). Then, on Nov. 6, 2022, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) revealed that his exchange would be selling its FTT holdings. Since...

Statistics show over the course of 54 days, the number of wrapped bitcoin (WBTC) hosted on the Ethereum network has decreased by 40,156. This equates to a more than 18% redemption of the circulating supply of WBTC since Nov. 27, 2022. WBTC Remains Largest Operation in Terms of Bitcoin Custody Despite Recent Redemptions The Bitgo-backed Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) project has been officially in operation since the end of January 2019 and has grown significantly since its launch. At the time of writing, it is the largest operation in terms of the number of bitcoin (BTC) custodied to back the WBTC token value. On January 20, 2023, WBTC is the 19th largest crypto asset by market capitalization, valued at $21,278 per unit. WBTC’s market valuation on Friday afternoon Eastern Time was around $3.8 billion. According to the project’s website and transparency dashboard, at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Jan. 20, 2023, there were approximately 180,197 WBTC in circulation on the Ethereum cha...

The cryptocurrency market hoards several assets in its ecosystem ranging from meme coins to metaverse tokens. Despite Bitcoin’s dominance over the industry, a metaverse token was making headlines throughout the week. Decentraland’s MANA was the talk of the town following a 93% increase in its price over the last fourteen days. At press time, MANA was trading for $0.6223 with a 5.80% daily drop. However, following a 42% surge this week, MANA MANA ged to rise to a high of $0.75. This level was achieved after the asset briefly breached its resistance level of 0.74. Source The above chart indicates that MANA moved past a prominent resistance level of $0.43 last week. However, if the asset plummets from its current zone, it could drop down to $0.365 which has been a major support level for the crypto currency. In addition, the Relative Strength Index [RSI] indicator highlighted how MANA was being overbought. On-chain analytics firm, Santiment recently revealed tha...

The bitcoin price is up 0.4% at $20,910, recovering somewhat from a $1,000 plunge after a crypto exchange co-founder was arrested on Wednesday, and weak US data pointed to an economic hard landing. Although there was good news on wholesale inflation in the US yesterday, the shock retail sales figures reminded market participants that a recession is coming, if not already here. That, combined with weak factory output data, capped off a week that  sees US manufacturing  Slowing growth is bad for stocks – and that has rubbed off on crypto today. The S&P 500 is down 1% at 3,889 and the Nasdaq off 1.08% to trade at 10,836. Bitcoin price can break free from current resistance zone bby pushing above $22,500 Bitcoin and all other crypto assets have been highly correlated to other risk assets such as stocks over the past 12 months, so what happens in equities spills over into crypto.  The bellwether crypto asset is currently battling in an area of res...

FinCEN placed Binance next to the darknet market Hydra as a major counterparty receiving Bitcoin from Bitzlato. The United States Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the Treasury Department, has argued that Binance is linked to the illegal cryptocurrency platform Bitzlato. In an order published on Jan. 18, FinCEN stated that Binance cryptocurrency exchange was among the “top three receiving counterparties” of Bitzlato in terms of Bitcoin (BTC) transactions. According to the authority, Binance was among the biggest counterparties that received Bitcoin from Bitzlato between May 2018 and September 2022. Other such counterparties included Russia-connected darknet market Hydra and the alleged Russia-based Ponzi scheme known as “TheFiniko,” FinCEN noted. On the other hand, FinCEN did not mention Binance as the top three sending counterparties in the order. According to the document, the biggest Bitcoin senders to Bitzlato between May 2018 and September 2022 were Hydr...

Find out how blockchain technology can aid in preventing deforestation from the ground up. Block chain Technology has long been a part of the revolution in global Supply Chain management and the agricultural business. However, as the world continues to face the adverse effects of global warming and the increasing need to change how companies approach natural resources, this Technology has an even larger role to play. Deforestation is one of the main contributing factors to the rapid increase in the net global temperature. Forests make up an essential part of the flora and biological diversity of the planet, and as industrialization and urbanization set in, deforestation is becoming an evident problem. Blockchain technology and AgTech can play a significant role in helping slow down the rates of deforestation globally. What’s more, companies and businesses are starting to take notice, and more entrepreneurs are utilizing this type of technology at the very core of their operations. Su...

The Shark Tank star said all unregulated exchanges are seeing “massive outflows” right now, and rightly so. Unregulated crypto exchanges will continue to fall like dominoes post-FTX, with plenty more “meltdowns” to come, warns Shark Tank star and investor Kevin O’Leary. O’Leary, a former spokesperson and proponent for the now-bankrupt FTX exchange, told Kitco anchor David Lin in a Jan. 17 interview that the collapse was just one in a long line of “unregulated exchanges” likely to fail: “If you’re asking me if there’s going to be another meltdown to zero? Absolutely. 100% it’ll happen, and it’ll keep happening over, and over and over again.” Unregulated exchanges are those that aren't subject to regular auditing, aren’t registered and regulated by a securities commission, and don’t operate under rules similar to traditional stock exchanges and brokerages. “Well, all of these exchanges, all the unregulated exchanges are having massive outflows right now. Smart money has got the joke...

Like many large-cap coins, Dogecoin (DOGE) has witnessed a significant surge in price following the recent market rally. Investors are again excited about the prospect of the leading meme coin experiencing a rally that could push its price above the $1 mark, but is that possible? DOGE Price Action The leading meme coin, DOGE, currently trades at $0.0840. The asset’s price has increased by 0.39% in the past 24 hours. That might not necessarily seem much, but DOGE still trades above the broader market, which has retracted by 0.53% in the same period. At the moment, the broader market appears to be cooling off after several days of consistent gains. Of course, this doesn’t mean that gains can’t still be recorded down the line. On the technical front, DOGE is doing quite well. The crypto asset trades above all its major moving average (MA) indicators, from the 10-day MA of $0.08366 to the 200-day MA of $0.08378. The asset’s ability to rise even higher should he...

Source: Pixabay Prices of major cryptoassets could explode higher if US economic data this week indicates that the Federal Reserve could soon be done with their interest rate hikes. After a strong week for bitcoin (BTC) and many other cryptos last week, traders are now looking for any clues of what could fuel the next leg higher. And with a massive release of important US economic data expected this Wednesday, the positive trigger traders are looking for could come sooner rather than later. Data releases expected on Wednesday. Source: Forexfactory.com Most important of the data expected on Wednesday will be the Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures the change in prices paid to producers of goods in the US. It differs from the better-known Consumer Price Index (CPI), which is the change in prices paid by consumers, but still gives a good indication of what is happening with inflation. The number is expected to come in at -0.1, and any reading lower than that cou...

The Nigerian Debt Management Office (DMO) contravened the law when its borrowings exceeded the set limit which is equivalent to $2.2 billion, Adetilewa Adebajo, an international financial markets expert has reportedly said. Adebajo also suggested that the Central Bank of Nigeria governor Godwin Emefiele should be probed for his role in allowing the DMO’s borrowings to balloon to more than $48.8 billion. DMO Accused of Contravening the Fiscal Responsibility Act According to Adetilewa Adebajo, an international financial markets expert, Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO) violated the law when its borrowings exceeded $2.2 billion (1 trillion nairas). In remarks reportedly made during an interview with Arise TV, Adebajo argued that the DMO can be sued for contravening both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act and the Fiscal Responsibility Act. Although the DMO is allowed to borrow domestically without a mandate from the country’s National Assembly, the agency’s borrowings which...

Solana price prediction has turned bullish at $22.45 following a gain of nearly 35% in 24 hours and almost 70% in the previous seven days. This surge in the price of Solana can be attributed to the increasing demand for decentralized finance (DeFi) projects and the growing popularity of the Solana blockchain network.  The Solana blockchain provides a high-speed, low-cost platform for developers to build decentralized applications (dApps). Its scalability, speed, and affordability make it an attractive option for DeFi projects that need to process large amounts of transactions quickly and at a low cost.  With its recent surge in price, many investors are now looking at Solana as an attractive investment opportunity. On-chain analytics firm Santiment speculates that a "short squeeze" may have contributed to Solana's meteoric price increase. A "short squeeze," in layman's terms, is a sudden surge in the price of an asset due mostly to heavy ...

Disclaimer: The Industry Talk section Features insights by crypto industry players and is not a part of the editorial content of Cryptonews.com With the wave of sentiment surrounding artificial intelligence being higher, Fetch.AI’s FET token has seen a massive wave of support. The digital asset is currently trading at $0.23, an uptrend of 19.21% in the past 24 hours.  However, as the token’s price witnesses an unprecedented rise, is this the perfect time to buy?  FET Price Action  The FET token has recently been among the best market performers. Even in a market currently witnessing a 2.63% bump in value, the surge in FET’s price has been nothing short of impressive. FET is close to delivering a 100% gain in the past week, making it easily one of the best-performing assets in the market.  With its impressive price action, it is no wonder that FET is doing well on the technical front. The crypto asset is handily beating all its m...

The entire world is witnessing the ordeal that followed suit after the collapse of FTX . As Sam Bankman-Fried sits under house arrest and pens down an elaborate blog post, media houses across the globe were evidently curious. Back in December, SBF was granted a $250 million bail. It has been recognized as the highest pre-trial bail bond in the history of the United States. Considering the magnitude of the bail, the judge reportedly asked two other individuals of “considerable means” to sign the bond. However, the identities of these guarantors were undisclosed. Contesting the same, eight media houses including the Associated Press, Bloomberg, CNBC, Dow Jones, The Financial Times, Insider, and the Washington Post wrote a letter to the New York District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan. Attorneys from Davis Wright Tremaine LLP were representing these media houses. According to the letter, the attorneys argued that the public entailed the right to know the guarantors of SBF . The...

The cryptocurrency market has risen by a healthy 3% in the past 24 hours, teaching a total cap of $922 billion as investors optimistically await fresh US inflation data. Its current level represents a 7.5% increase in a week and a 3.5% rise in a month, as the 2022 bear market gives way to some New Year bullishness. While the market as a whole has done well today, a variety of altcoins have performed particularly well, beating averages. This articles compiles them in a list of best crypto to buy today, while also including a number of exciting new tokens holding their presales and/or about to list on exchanges. Meta Masters Guild (MEMAG) Having launched its presale yesterday, Meta Masters Guild has raised more than $50,000 in its first 24 hours, revealing significant market excitement for the new play-to-earn crypto games platform. In particular, it's a mobile-focused gaming guild that will develop a range of Web3 and play-to-earn games, starting with Meta Kart R...