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Traditional banks are not going away and decentralized finance is here to stay, writes Edan Yago of Sovryn. Here’s how an amalgam of the two can take shape.

Top blockchain and crypto news: Bandwidth bust in Kazakhstan. Binance chief CZ tops rich list. Digital yuan app adoption grows.

Attorneys for Ripple Labs Inc. filed a response with a federal judge Monday asserting the U.S.  Securities and Exchange Commission is misapplying a recent ruling in another case in an attempt to deprive Ripple of an affirmative defense in the ongoing lawsuit, SEC v. Ripple Labs Inc.  Fast facts In Monday’s letter, Ripple argued the […]

The Enforcement Directorate in India seized assets of a businessman worth around US$4.9 million in a money laundering case involving a crypto scam, according to a press release on Monday.  Fast facts Nishad K and his associates allegedly perpetrated a crypto scam in which some 900 investors were cheated out of approximately US$162.4 million. The […]

Internet blackouts are partially restored but access remains unpredictable to support full crypto mining, industry players say.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is now the richest Asian person with an estimated net worth of US$96 billion, even without counting his crypto fortune, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Fast facts The daily index ranks the world’s 500 richest people, a list on which the 44-year-old Canadian founder would place 11th, according to the […]

China’s top economic planning body has officially designated crypto mining as “obsolete,” reinforcing government efforts to stamp out the industry entirely.  Fast facts

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will reiterate his pledge to prevent entrenched inflation, in testimony released before his Senate nomination hearing on Tuesday.  Fast facts “We will use our tools to support the economy and a strong labor market and to prevent higher inflation from becoming entrenched,” he said in a statement prepared for delivery. […]

The CFTC is asserting greater regulatory powers over the crypto industry than ever before. But does the agency have the statutory backing to do so?

Sega, the Japanese gaming giant, has vowed to backtrack on its NFT (non-fungible tokens) plans if fans continue to criticize the project. Fast facts (Update removes mention of Mortal Kombat)

Limited restoration of internet access in Kazakhstan is not enough to bring the world’s second-largest crypto mining hub back fully online, according to internet tracker NetBlocks.  Fast facts Last week, internet access in the central Asian nation was shut off after protests over fuel prices spread across the country, resulting in more than 100 deaths […]

What’s behind the crypto cheerleading by U.S. mayors? Are their city coins savvy moves — or will the bespoke crypto end up worthless?

Bitcoin hashrates tumble as miners unprepared for an outage, experts say.

Have you already made your first Bitcoin trade? Perhaps you already have and would like to know more about other digital assets. This Forkast.News video explainer explores what investors can hold in their portfolios as alternatives to cryptocurrency. What you’ll learn: What digital assets can you invest in other than Bitcoin and altcoins? What are […]

Bearish concerns over Federal Reserve rate hikes show a continued correlation with traditional markets, but industry watchers see changing dynamics at play.

Top blockchain and crypto news: CBDCs at the crossroads. A token gesture from Samsung. NFTs survive in China.

Rachel Mayers sees corporate and institutional interest in crypto and blockchain create an explosion in use cases and a whole new way of demonstrating consumer loyalty.

NFTs are finding novel uses across many sectors, from fashion to real estate. What industries stand to benefit most from this technology in the year ahead?

The Chinese government published a draft regulation on Dec. 31 stating that no organization or individual is allowed to provide internet marketing for illegal financial activities, which include cryptocurrency transactions. Fast facts The regulation, drafted by the People’s Bank of China — China’s central bank — and other Chinese government institutions stipulates that any organization or […]

Looking beyond this year’s headlines like El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption, here are the key developments in blockchain technology that will have lasting impact in the new year and beyond.

It’s a myth that crypto transactions are anonymous, writes Warren Paul Anderson of Discreet Labs. Confusing anonymity with privacy is what causes trouble.

Countries acted to encourage — or discourage — cryptocurrency and other blockchain-based assets, sending markets wildly up and down.

Ethereum was game-chaging at its 2015 launch, but today it’s showing its age. As Eth2 upgrades slowly unfold, who are the top rivals trying elbow out the #2 blockchain?

From China’s ban to FATF’s travel rule, crypto regulations have been top of mind this year. How might regulatory impulses and current trends play out?

2021 will go down as the year the DeFi giant woke up, writes Derek Alia of Futureswap. What lies in store for decentralized finance in the year to come?

As 2021 draws to a close, what are this year’s milestones and trends to watch in the year ahead? Forkast.News consults experts to find out.

While increasing crypto adoption was predictable, 2021 also saw much that was unexpected. Here are the events that shocked even crypto natives.

Alex Tapscott of Ninepoint Partners also shares with Forkast.News his predictions for stablecoins and NFTs in 2022.

Global shifts are underway in crypto regulations, writes Huong Hauduc of Bequant. How might the political and market forces play out next year?

Dennis Delgado, co-founder of a blockchain developer for supply chain management sees an explosion in new blockchains in 2022 for industry, logistics and manufacturing.

Who in the crypto world deserves Santa love this year, and whose chimney should be snubbed? The elves at Forkast.News help the big man with his list.

China tries to stamp out Bitcoin mining while increasing its influence over blockchain technology and preparing the digital yuan for launch. What lies in store for 2022?

Which blockchain sector will flourish, and what’s not yet ripe for mass adoption just yet? FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried offers his crystal ball in a special Forkast.News video.

Liquidity mining plays a unique role in the DeFi ecosystem. How does it work?

Of the Big Four central banks, including those of the EU, UK and Japan, only the Federal Reserve has not progressed beyond research mode in central bank digital currencies.

Japan’s financial conglomerate SBI Holdings announced a joint investment in Singapore’s virtual asset exchange Coinhako with Switzerland-based Sygnum Bank. Fast facts The investment is made through a fund formed in Singapore named the SBI-Sygnum-Azimut Digital Asset Opportunity fund. SBI expressed certainty in supporting Coinhako’s international expansion and other startups that have growth potential in the […]

Blockchain promotes trust and can greatly cut transaction costs, writes Edmund To of GSBN. So why is the shipping industry still clinging to paper documents?

Not yet done with your holiday shopping? Here are ideas for all the loved ones on your list, whether they are tech-savvy or merely crypto-curious.

Asia’s gaming giant Nexon’s US subsidiary supports cryptocurrencies for players in buying items inside its popular online games.

In a contract dispute case, a Beijing court in Chaoyang district on Wednesday ruled a legal arrangement for Bitcoin mining to be invalid, signaling how China’s legal system may view future crypto-related disputes. Fast facts In May 2019, the plaintiff, Fengfu Jiuxin company, signed purchases and services contracts with blockchain technology company Zhongyan Zhichuang, with the latter […]

While China continues to stamp out cryptocurrency mining, the mining rig producers continue raking in the deals. The latest: Canaan, a Chinese crypto mining rig maker, has secured a follow-on contract from Genesis Digital Assets for 30,000 units of Avalon Bitcoin mining machines, with another 150,000 units to be executed. Fast facts Back in August, […]

After two weeks of a downward price spiral, the market showed some signs of life this morning, with most coins managing to rise about 5% coming into business hours Asia time. AVAX, however, the native token of the Avalanche blockchain, gained almost 25% overnight to reach a two-week high of US$106.87 and finding itself in […]

The National Basketball Association has been ahead of the game in crypto adoption, but after a week of major developments, the league is now way out in front.

Top blockchain and crypto news: Can stablecoins bankroll democracy? Nike swooshes into the metaverse. Animoca and Bored Apes venture deeper into the gaming jungle.

The report says the country’s crypto industry could swell by up to 30 times its current size in the coming decade.

An internet authority in East China’s Zhejiang province has identified in July 4,699 IP addresses in the province that were involved with cryptocurrency mining, and among them 183 addresses were related to 78 state-owned entities, according to a Tuesday article published on the website of China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), the country’s anti-corruption […]

The National Unity Government recognizes Tether as an official currency, defying the cryptocurrency ban imposed last year.

Dogecoin rallied 31% when Elon Musk tweeted that Tesla will accept it for payment of “merch.”

Crypto 1 will consider acquisition targets worldwide but steer clear of digital assets companies in China and Hong Kong. Are the lights dimming on a major crypto hub?

The billion-dollar intersection of sports and crypto is a big win for all, writes Ben Armstrong, aka BitBoy Crypto. Here’s how to make sense of this seismic cultural shift.

Macroeconomic factors and a spate of bad news override bullish outlook in crypto market as the year lurches toward its end.

One of the most influential cheerleaders for cryptocurrency is named Time’s 2021 Person of the Year for his work on electric cars and space rockets.

Binance withdraws Singapore application meanwhile, Security tokens are on the rise.

Crypto 1 Acquisition Corp., a U.S.-incorporated blank check company, has completed its initial public offering (IPO) with gross proceeds of US$230 million, according to a company statement released Friday. Fast facts The company’s units commenced trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol “DAOOU” on Dec. 7. Acting as a special purpose acquisition […]

Confusion surrounded the Solana blockchain community over the weekend as a sudden drop in transaction speeds was initially believed to be a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, resulting in a lengthy debate as to the cause of the delay. Fast facts Solana-based non-fungible token (NFT) platform Blockasset was one of the first to highlight […]

It’s come full circle: Shiba Inu holders can now spend their SHIB at GameStop — the company that helped trigger the memecoin trend.

Chief business officer of the first SEC-registered digital security says crypto companies got caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

Decentralized autonomous organizations are ripe for robot takeovers, says SingularityDAO’s Marcello Mari. After all, why do decentralized entities need leaders?

Investment banks’ hunger for a new revenue stream is likely to drive up the popularity and registration of crypto derivatives products.

The transaction, using the Hedera Consensus Service network, bypasses intermediaries, lowering fees.

Polygon envisions a world where value can be exchanged without borders. In this Forkast.News explainer, find out how Polygon works and why its MATIC token is defying crypto market gravity — again.

Stablecoins, US dollar primacy and energy consumption were among the topics in the questioning homing in on how to regulate the crypto industry.

OpenSea IPO plans in choppy waters. Crypto markets crumble. Bitcoin mining power struggles.

Gaming giant Ubisoft is launching Ubisoft Quartz, a new platform for players to obtain what it calls “Digits” — essentially non-fungible tokens (NFTs) playable in a mainstream game — according to a company statement. Fast facts The first such NFT will appear in beta with Tom Clancy’s “Ghost Recon Breakpoint” on Ubisoft Connect for Windows […]

As part of a broader attempt to address Australia’s payments industry, the government offers a roadmap to where crypto regulation can lead in 2022.

Iceland, which is suffering from a power shortage, is reducing electricity to some industrial clients and turning away new requests for power from cryptocurrency miners, reported Bloomberg, citing a statement from national power company Landsvirkjun. Fast facts The Nordic island nation is now reducing power supply for heavy consumers, including aluminum smelters, data centers and […]

Crypto ETFs make it easy to invest in digital assets without the complexities, writes Kevin Tai of Linear Finance. Imagine what a crypto index can do.

With suitable regulation in place, DeFi could yet play an important role in the financial system, BIS suggests.

Tourism officials want to attract more crypto-wealthy travelers to Thailand’s shimmering shores. But will the crypto faithful come if Thailand still has a ban on SHIB and Dogecoin?

Experts expect more disruption as the crypto industry matures and a younger generation places different values on status and job security.

A jury cleared Craig Wright of all but one charge in a civil trial brought by the estate of his alleged former business partner, David Kleiman.

On top of China, authorities in Russia and Ukraine are busting underground miners, while U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren presses a New York miner.