Bitcoin halving searches on Google is at its highest point ever

The level of interest in the ‘Bitcoin halving’ on Google has soared to its highest point of all time, with predicted data pegging it at more than double that of the last halving in 2020.

Search interest for the term ‘Bitcoin halving’ has already reached a score of 45, according to Google Trends data — with Google predicting it will reach an estimated score of 100 by the end of this month.

Google Trends notes that a value of 100 translates to “peak popularity” for the term.

The halving is currently slated to occur around 4am UTC on April 20, per the Cointelegraph countdown timer.

Google Trends shows the Bitcoin halving saw the most interest from Nigeria, Netherlands, Switzerland, and Cyprus.

#news #btc #google #halving

PAXG hit new high on Middle East tensions, raising questions about Bitcoin

A gold-backed digital asset from Paxos spiked to an all-time high over the weekend amid a backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East, leading to some questioning Bitcoin's value as a geopolitical hedge.

The PAXG gold-backed crypto token hit $2,855 on April 13 as Bitcoin prices conversely tanked $5,000 in a matter of hours from over $67,500 to bottom out at around $62,700 in a 7.5% daily rout, according to data from CoinGecko.

“Bitcoin may be many things, but it is not a geopolitical hedge,” commented Bob Elliott, the co-founder and CEO of Unlimited Funds and former executive of Bridgewater, in a post on X.

Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East were ramped up over the weekend following an Iranian drone and missile attack on Israeli targets.

The former Bridgewater Associates research head added that this weekend was another good empirical test as BTC traded with a “near-perfect negative correlation over the last day to PAXG.”

#news #paxos #btc

Paraguay to reconsider Bitcoin mining ban, mulls selling energy to miners

Paraguayan senators have halted progress on the proposed cryptocurrency mining ban introduced last week, with officials now considering the benefits of selling excess energy from its Itaipu hydropower plant to miners instead of exporting it to Brazil and Argentina.

A debate will be held in an April 23 public hearing to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of Bitcoin mining in the country, Senator Lilian Samaniego confirmed in an April 10 senate session.

It comes about a week after lawmakers introduced a draft law on April 4 to at least temporarily ban Bitcoin mining for 180 days, claiming illegal cryptocurrency mines have been stealing power and disrupting the country’s electricity supply.

However, days later, Paraguayan lawmakers approved a declaration to support local and foreign investment infrastructure four days later on April 8 — which Senator Salyn Buzarquis hopes will push the Paraguayan Ministry of Industry to study the economic advantages of selling excess energy to Bitcoin miners instead

#news #mining #law

SEC defers decision on Bitwise, Grayscale Bitcoin ETF options

The United States securities regulator has delayed its decision on whether to allow the New York Stock Exchange to offer options trading on spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs.

According to the April 8 filing, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s pushback will impact options trading on the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) and any other trust that holds Bitcoin on the NYSE.

“The Commission finds it appropriate to designate a longer period within which to take action on the proposed rule change so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposed rule change,” the securities regulator said.

The next deadline for the SEC to either approve, deny or delay the proposed rule change on the NYSE is on May 29.

The securities regulator reached the same outcome for Nasdaq last month, which requested options trading on BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).

Options are derivative products that provide traders leverage and let them make directional bets on the market.

If a trader thought Bitcoin’s price would rise, they could pay a premium, buy a “call option,” and agree to buy 1 BTC at today’s price in a month’s time while putting down less money than would be needed to buy 1 BTC.

If Bitcoin rises over the month, the trader could use their option, buy Bitcoin at the lower price, and maybe sell it for a profit. If it sinks, they’d likely just let the contract expire and forfeit the premium paid.

#news #sec #etf #us

Coinbase cleared in lawsuit over crypto transactions

Coinbase crypto exchange has achieved a significant victory in an ongoing lawsuit. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of Coinbase, confirming that secondary sales of cryptocurrencies on its platform do not violate the Securities Exchange Act.

The court’s decision affects a nationwide group of people who traded tokens on Coinbase from Oct. 8, 2019, to March 11, 2022. At the heart of the dispute was whether cryptocurrencies traded on Coinbase met the criteria for securities.

The plaintiffs lodged federal claims under Sections 5, 12(a)(1) and 15 of the Securities Act 1933, alongside Sections 5, 15(a)(1), 20(a) and 29(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. They also presented state law claims related to securities legislation in California, Florida and New Jersey, representing a nationwide class of individuals.

The plaintiffs contended that Coinbase’s actions amounted to offering and selling unregistered securities. Furthermore, they accused it of violating various provisions of securities laws.

However, Coinbase argued that secondary crypto asset sales didn’t meet securities transaction criteria, disputing the relevance of securities regulations. The court examined various aspects, ultimately overturning some of the lower court’s decisions while upholding others.

The court determined Coinbase’s potential liability under Section 12(a)(1) of the Securities Act for vending unregistered securities. However, it rejected the plaintiffs’ Securities Exchange Act claims, citing insufficient proof of transaction-specific contracts needed for rescission under Section 29.

#news #law #coinbase #us

Binance ends support for Bitcoin Ordinals

Binance is winding down support for Bitcoin
BTC

tickers down nonfungible tokens (NFTs) just a few months after introducing it to its marketplace.

In a blog post on April 4, Binance announced efforts “to streamline product offerings” on the Binance NFT marketplace. As part of these efforts, the exchange’s marketplace is ceasing support for trades and deposits of Bitcoin Ordinals on April 18.

In addition, the Binance NFT marketplace will cease to offer airdrops, benefits, and utilities related to Bitcoin NFTs after April 10, 2024.

Bitcoin Ordinals, also known as Bitcoin NFTs, allow for the inscription of digital content like art, text, or video directly onto the Bitcoin blockchain. Data embedding has been part of the Bitcoin protocol for some time, but its popularity increased with the advent of Ordinals in late 2022. This protocol, created by Casey Rodarmor, allows unique digital arts to be directly embedded into Bitcoin transactions, similar to Ethereum’s nonfungible tokens (NFTs).

Binance specifically noted that users of Runestone NFT who meet the conditions for the airdrop are advised to withdraw their tokens by April 10.

“Users are advised to withdraw these NFTs by 2024-04-10 10:00 (UTC), to ensure they still have the opportunity to receive any associated tokens, utilities, and benefits after 2024-04-10,” reads the blog post.

The decision came as a surprise to the community. Binance added support to Bitcoin NFTs just a year ago, in May 2023, extending its ecosystem to the Bitcoin network and promising more opportunities to collectors.

The high volume of NFT transactions has clogged the Bitcoin network several times since its inception, increasing fees and slowing processing times as more transactions are validated on-chain.

According to data from Dune Analytics, the network has over 64 million inscriptions to date, and generated over $423 million in transaction fees.

#news #binance #nft