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Latam Insights: Bukele Announces Self-Financed Budget; Salvadoran Coffee Purchase Settled With Bitcoin
23.9.2024
Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of Latin America’s most relevant crypto and economic news from the past week. In this issue, President Nayib Bukele announces a zero debt budget, a batch of Salvadoran coffee gets purchased using bitcoin, and Lightspark eyes the region’s markets....
Nayib Bukele and Elon Musk Discuss AI, Robotics, and Future of Humanity
23.9.2024
El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele met with Tesla and Spacex CEO Elon Musk at the Texas Gigafactory, discussing AI, robotics, and humanity’s future. The two exchanged views on innovation, and Musk praised Bukele’s leadership. Their conversation emphasized how cutting-edge...
US Indicts Two in $260M Bitcoin Heist and Laundering Scheme
23.9.2024
Two individuals have been arrested for orchestrating a large-scale cryptocurrency heist, stealing over 4,100 bitcoins. Their complex laundering operation involved using multiple mixers and VPNs to cover their tracks. With the stolen funds, they lived lavishly, buying luxury cars and other high-end...
BRICS Beats Dollar Dependence: National Currency Settlements Exceed USD Payments
22.9.2024
The BRICS bloc might have already overcome its dollar-dependence problem, as the volume of settlements in the national currencies of its member nations has already surpassed the USD-based exchanges. Using the U.S. dollar can lead to expenses that can be avoided when paying with other currencies...
Bank of Korea to Launch CBDC Payment Trial in Supermarkets
22.9.2024
South Korea’s central bank, the Bank of Korea, will soon allow participants to use digital tokens for payments at supermarkets and convenience stores in a central bank digital currency (CBDC) trial. Starting in December, 100,000 participants will be part of this test. Retail partnerships...
Travala Integrates Solana for Booking Flights and Hotels, Offers SOL Travel Rewards
22.9.2024
Crypto travel booking platform Travala has integrated with Solana, allowing users to book flights and hotels using Solana-based tokens and earn SOL travel rewards. Highlighting Solana’s scalability and affordability, the platform aims to enhance the crypto travel experience and incentivize...
Government of Bhutan Holds $828M in Bitcoin, Arkham Data Shows
22.9.2024
The government of Bhutan is currently holding over $828 million in bitcoin, according to onchain data by Arkham Intelligence. “Unlike most governments, Bhutan’s BTC does not come from law enforcement asset seizures, but from bitcoin mining operations, which have ramped up dramatically...
Robert Kiyosaki Predicts Bitcoin Could Hit $500K by 2025, $1M by 2030
22.9.2024
Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki has shared his expectation that the price of bitcoin could skyrocket to $500,000 by next year and $1 million by 2030. He referenced Jim Rickards’ upcoming book, which warns about the risks AI poses to the global financial system, potentially...
Hamster Kombat Takes Season 1 Snapshot, Reveals Post-Airdrop Direction
21.9.2024
Amidst generalized complaints from users who suffered token slashes for being labeled as cheaters, Hamster Kombat has announced that it has taken a snapshot for its season 1. With this move, the project has already closed the upcoming distribution of tokens, revealing the game’s future steps...
Supreme Court of India’s Youtube Channel Hacked to Promote XRP Scam
21.9.2024
The Youtube channel of India’s Supreme Court was compromised, promoting a scam involving XRP cryptocurrency instead of its usual live hearings. The breach temporarily shut down the channel, but services resumed later that day. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse responded, condemning...
Woman Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison After Failed Bitcoin Murder-for-Hire Plot
21.9.2024
A woman has been sentenced to over eight years in prison after her murder-for-hire plot using bitcoin fell apart. Melody Sasser attempted to use the dark web to hire a hitman to kill an Alabama resident. She paid nearly $10,000 in cryptocurrency and tried to make the murder look like an accident....
‘Microsoft of Blockchains:’ Bitwise Doubles Down on Ethereum’s Fundamentals
21.9.2024
Bitwise, a crypto index fund and ETF provider, believes that ethereum has the fundamentals needed to recover from its bad price performance compared to currencies like bitcoin. Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan compared Ethereum with Microsoft, stating that while it was not as disruptive as other chains,...
Court Orders New York Man to Pay $36M for Forex, Digital Asset Fraud
21.9.2024
William Koo Ichioka has been ordered to pay over $36 million after admitting to a forex and digital asset fraud scheme. His scam, which started in 2018, involved falsifying financial documents and misusing investor funds for personal luxuries like cars and jewelry. In addition to financial...
US Sentences Nigerian Darknet Fraud Leader to Five Years in Prison for $6M Scheme
21.9.2024
A Nigerian national has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for his role in a massive darknet fraud scheme that intended to cause over $6 million in losses, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Using various online aliases, Kaura led a global network selling stolen payment...
FATF Urges India to Strengthen Virtual Asset Regulation
21.9.2024
India has achieved a high level of technical compliance with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards, addressing illicit finance, money laundering, and terrorist financing. In a joint assessment with regional bodies, the FATF praised India’s progress but pointed out areas needing...
US Company Settles Salvadoran Coffee Purchase With Bitcoin
21.9.2024
According to information from the Salvadoran Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Compass Coffee, a U.S.-based coffee company, has completed an international purchase of Salvadoran coffee using bitcoin. Jorge Cruz, the Salvadoran counterpart in this transaction, explained that he received the payment...
Gold’s Bull Rally Continues as Interest Rates Get Deep Cuts
20.9.2024
The gold bull rally continued this Wednesday, as prices in COMEX reached all-time highs, surpassing $2,625 per ounce. Prices slingshotted up after the Federal Reserve announced larger interest rate cuts than some economists expected, lowering the rate by 50 basis points. This behavior had already...
Solana Mobile Unveils Seeker, Its Next Web3 Focused Phone
20.9.2024
Solana Mobile unveiled its next Web3 Phone, the successor to the Solana Saga, its first product. The phone, referred to previously as “Chapter 2,” is now called the Seeker, and has been confirmed to feature a 6.36” display, with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, “a longer...
Impact of Fed Rate Cuts on Crypto Markets, Bybit Executive Weighs In
20.9.2024
Bybit’s head of institution has shared his insights into the possible effects of the Federal Reserve’s rate cuts on the cryptocurrency market. “We anticipate that the recent rate cut could enhance market sentiment and encourage both retail and institutional investors to diversify...
German Authorities Shut Down 47 Crypto Exchange Services in Cybercrime Crackdown
20.9.2024
German authorities have dismantled 47 exchange services involved in facilitating anonymous crypto transactions for criminal activities. These platforms bypassed anti-money laundering protocols, enabling cybercriminals to exchange digital currencies without identity verification. The takedown...