The chaos we’ve experienced in global markets this year — global geopolitical upheaval magnified by the confluence of broken supply chains, inflation and heavy national debt loads — seems to signal the beginning of a new era. All of this is within the context of the United States dollar serving as the primary global reserve currency, currently accounting for about 40% of global exports. But monetary history tells us that multiple global reserve currencies can exist at one time. Many countries are actively seeking a reserve settlement that is insulated from global political strife. Bitcoin (BTC) may fit the bill, …

A key set of crypto tax reporting rules is being delayed until further notice under a decision made by the United States Treasury Department. The rules were supposed to be effective in the 2023 tax filing year, in accordance with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in November, 2021. The new law requires that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) develop a standard definition of what a “cryptocurrency broker” is, and any business that falls under this definition is required to issue a Form 1099-B to every customer detailing their profits and losses from trades. It also requires these firms …

Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly dose of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights — a newsletter crafted to bring you significant developments over the last week. Uniswap, one of the leading decentralized exchange platforms, is integrating debit and credit card support for its users. It will allow Uniswap users to buy cryptocurrency directly with their cards. An ex-employee caused Ankr protocol’s recent $5 million hack. The DeFi protocol alerted relevant authorities and is seeking to prosecute the attacker while shoring up its security practices. A Web3 developer has claimed that many crypto ecosystem projects would rather get hacked than pay …

Bitcoin (BTC) is on track to end the year with a loss of about 65%. This would mark the third negative year for Bitcoin with the other two being 2014 and 2018. In comparison, the S&P 500 has fared much better but that is also down close to 20% in 2022. Although cryptocurrency prices have seen deep cuts this year, traders have continued to plow money into the space. An online survey conducted by Blockchain.com shows that 41% of the respondents bought crypto this year and 40% plan to purchase crypto in the next year. However, a sustained recovery in …

Nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace OpenSea has been banning artists and collectors from Cuba, citing United States sanctions as the key reason behind its action. According to a report published by Artnet, 30 artists and collectors have been banned from the popular NFT marketplace until now. The most noted artist to face the axe includes well-known Havana-based artists Gabriel Guerra Bianchini and Fábrica de Arte Cubano. OpenSea marketplace has mentioned in its terms of service that it explicitly prohibits sanctioned individuals and individuals in sanctioned jurisdictions. The NFT marketplace's adhesion to U.S. sanctions was widely known and included countries such as …

Wrapped XRP (wXRP) is a crypto asset pegged to XRP (XRP) and can be used on blockchains other than Ripple’s native XRP Ledger. Ripple is a blockchain-based global payments system providing crypto solutions for businesses, and XRP is the native currency of the Ripple network. Identical in value, its wrapped version, wXRP, can be used in financial payments and settlements on other blockchains. This article will discuss why we need wXRP, how to buy wXRP, use cases of wXRP, and the purpose and safety of wXRP tokens. What are wrapped cryptocurrencies? Wrapped cryptocurrencies are tokens that are used as cryptocurrencies …

While 2022 has been a year to forget for most crypto investors, the daunting task of filing crypto tax returns before the end of December remains. Many investors worry about unrealized losses on their crypto portfolio, while a failure to report crypto assets and transactions on tax returns could land North American investors into hot water with the IRS. To aid in filing your crypto taxes, cryptocurrency portfolio tracking and tax platform Accointing by Glassnode offers an easy solution to instantly import and review all crypto transactions and fill your crypto taxes in just a couple of clicks. What is …

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) could potentially find some mutually beneficial interactions with central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), according to one industry executive. While crypto is often associated with financial freedom, the concept of CBDC is frequently seen as the exact opposite. But this doesn’t mean that there cannot be a balance between the two, according to Itai Avneri, chief operating officer and deputy CEO at the crypto trading platform INX. CBDCs and regulated cryptocurrencies could potentially complement each other in the future as the two types of digital currencies have their own benefits, Avneri said in an interview with Cointelegraph …

The last year has been an eventful one for the crypto space. The collapse of the Terra ecosystem and its TerraUSD (UST) algorithmic stablecoin saw $50 billion wiped off the market in a flash. And more recently, FTX, an exchange many thought was “too big to fail,” came crashing down. There’s been no shortage of drama in the space, which has seen name-stay businesses and projects disappear along with investors’ funds. Given the events of this year, it’s inevitable that serious government attention is coming for the space, in every major jurisdiction — and on the time scale of a …

Jair Bolsonaro, the President of Brazil set to leave office on Dec. 31, has signed off on a bill aimed at legalizing the use of crypto as a payment method within the country. In a Dec. 22 publication of the official journal of the federal government of Brazil, Bolsonaro’s office said the president had signed bill 14.478 into law following approval from the country’s Chamber of Deputies. The legislative body sent the bill to the president’s desk on Nov. 29 as the final step in recognizing crypto payments. According to the text of the bill, Brazil’s residents will not be …

According to a new press report published by South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS), North Korean hackers have stolen more than 800 billion Korean won ($620 million) worth of cryptocurrencies from decentralized finance, or DeFi, platforms this year. The agency also revealed it blocked a daily average of 1.18 million attackers perpetrated by national and international hacking organizations in November. However, a NIS spokesperson revealed via local news outlet Kyunghyang Shinmun that all of the $620 million stolen by North Korean hackers through DeFi exploits occurred overseas, adding: "In Korea, virtual asset transactions have been switched to real-name transactions and …

Cryptocurrencies are often dismissed as vehicles for speculation — an asset class that lacks intrinsic value. But this is a naive, underdeveloped, and misinformed argument, especially when you consider how digital assets are being used as a modern tool for financial education. Jay-Z and Jack Dorsey recently teamed up to launch "The Bitcoin Academy," with dedicated classes for children aged 5 to 17. All of this is very exciting, and it's only the beginning. There are big opportunities for crypto to revamp financial education in the world's classrooms — and compelling applications that extend far beyond telling youngsters who Satoshi …