Ben Hunt, founder of Second Foundation Partners and lead author of the Epsilon Theory blog, is convinced institutional adoption poses an existential threat to Bitcoin's identity as an instrument of financial freedom. As investment funds, banks and tech companies continue getting involved in the space, Bitcoin's (BTC) fundamental properties — permissionless access and censorship resistance — are becoming increasingly marginalized, Hunt told Cointelegraph in an exclusive interview. “What we are seeing is the Facebook-ization of Bitcoin. And it becomes absolutely controlled and in service to Wall Street and the government,” said Hunt. According to Hunt, institutions have created “securitized,” “permissioned” …

Australians’ knowledge of cryptocurrency could use some improvement, as more than half of them think that Elon Musk created Bitcoin (BTC), according to a new survey. Finder, Australia’s most visited comparison website, conducted a survey of 1,004 Australians to find out more about what they know about crypto, The Australian reported on Wednesday. According to the survey results, 56% of Australians are unaware of mysterious Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto, believing that Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Musk is the founder of the world’s largest cryptocurrency. A significant number of respondents also did not know that the Bitcoin supply is limited …

Mercado Libre, the largest e-commerce platform in Latin America, has announced to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it acquired $7.8 million in Bitcoin in the first quarter of 2021. It stated in the report: “As part of our treasury strategy this quarter we purchased $7.8 million in Bitcoin, a digital asset that we are disclosing within our indefinite-lived intangible assets”. The purchase makes the Argentinean company the first large Latin American company to acquire Bitcoin for its treasury and sees it join an exclusive club of companies such as MicroStrategy and Tesla, which have previously announced to …

Betterment, a major financial advisory company providing robo-advising and cash management services, has not yet decided whether it will introduce cryptocurrencies to its platform. Betterment is still researching a potential expansion of its services to include digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC), CEO Sarah Levy said. “We’re believers that if we can provide the right kind of context and advice, that it’s OK to participate in some of these newer asset classes,” Levy said in a Tuesday interview at Bloomberg’s Wealth Summit. “I’d like us to find a way to responsibly offer crypto, but I can’t say that we’re there yet. …

Although the crypto space has been around for more than a decade, William Stromberg, CEO of mainstream investment management outfit T. Rowe Price, thinks the asset class is still finding its sea legs. "It's early days,” Stromberg told the Baltimore Business Journal in an interview when asked if “T. Rowe Price will ever start investing in cryptocurrencies.” “We have some research going on around it,” the CEO added. “Some companies, just really a handful, have tried to put together products where one can buy and own crypto-related currencies.” So far, a crypto-free strategy is working for Stromberg. Quarter one of …

The year 2020 was certainly lonely for many people around the world, as the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the cancellation of almost all social events and gatherings. As a result, online events have become the new normal for almost every industry. While some may view this as an innovative development, many industries have struggled to exist due to a lack of ticket sales for events. For instance, the billion-dollar concert and event promotion industry has seen a decline in revenue at an annualized rate of 11.5%, reaching $17.1 billion in 2021. Data further shows that this decline is a direct …

Crypto wallet provider Exodus recently received the green light from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission to sell shares of its operation. According to a public statement from Exodus on Thursday: “Exodus Movement, Inc., a Delaware corporation that has developed a leading non-custodial cryptocurrency software platform, received notice that the Securities and Exchange Commission has qualified its offering of Class A common stock under Regulation A.” The shares hit the market last night in the U.S. and are available through the wallet itself. For many years, Exodus has existed as a desktop wallet for crypto users, compatible with an …

Non-fungible token-focused investment firm Polyient Games is launching a new online tournament to introduce mainstream gamers to the crypto space. In an announcement today, Polyient Games said it would be partnering with esports tournament platform Community Gaming for a $100,000 series featuring games using non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. The esports games will reportedly “function as a method of introducing mainstream gamers to the world of cryptocurrency and blockchain assets” by allowing players to acquire digital collectibles and use NFTs as in-game items. "The marriage between decentralized technology and gaming will be one of the most significant themes of the coming …

Major Cineplex Group, the largest operator of movie theaters in Thailand, has reportedly enabled some of its customers to buy tickets with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). According to a Thursday report by local news agency Siam Rath, Major Cineplex has announced the launch of its cryptocurrency payment pilot project in a move to support innovation and new technologies. In order to unlock the new payment option, the company has partnered with local crypto exchange Zipmex and lo digital payment startup RapidZ. Major Cineplex debuted the new feature at Bangkok’s Major Cineplex Ratchayothin movie theater on March 4, allowing customers to …

Charlie Lee, the creator of major cryptocurrency Litecoin (LTC), believes that the ongoing spike in popularity of the nonfungible token, or NFT, industry has much in common with the 2017 initial coin offering, or ICO, mania. Lee provided at least five similarities between 2021’s NFT popularity and 2017’s ICO mania, also comparing both to the altcoin craze in 2013 in a tweet on Tuesday. According to the Litecoin creator, all three cryptocurrency phenomena look very similar, as they are easy to create “with no barriers” and simple to understand and explain. Lee noted that NFTs, ICOs and 2013’s altcoins also …

The world’s largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), is at a defining moment in history, according to analysis from United States investment bank Citigroup. Bitcoin is now at a “tipping point” to either become the preferred currency for international trade or face a “speculative implosion,” Citi analysts reportedly said. According to a Reuters report Monday, Citi analysts are confident that Bitcoin is on the cusp of going mainstream. According to the report, Bitcoin’s tremendous potential has been fueled by recent big Bitcoin moves by companies like Tesla and Mastercard. Citi analysts wrote, “There are a host of risks and obstacles that stand …

American electric car giant Tesla has seen some massive gains from its Bitcoin (BTC) investment, reportedly having made up to $1 billion in profit, according to a new report. An analyst at Wedbush Securities, a private investment firm in the United States, has calculated that Tesla has made “roughly $1 billion” in the aftermath of its $1.5 billion Bitcoin investment. Daniel Ives estimated Tesla’s Bitcoin profits in an investor note on Saturday, CNBC reports. Amid Bitcoin’s parabolic surge to become a $1 trillion asset, Ives said, “Tesla is on a trajectory to make more from its Bitcoin investments than profits …