A buyer paid the entire value of a property still under construction with Bitcoin. Although cryptocurrencies can solve problems of transactions involving cash, the demand is still low.

An Argentine real estate company recently sold an office still under construction in Bitcoin. The property, which measures approximately 500 square inches, will be ready for use in June 2023.

The co-founder of that company Patricio Rozenblum confirmed that the buyer paid the total value of the property in BTC. They received the assistance of cryptocurrency exchange SatoshiTango to be able to settle the operation.

Regarding the transaction, Rozenblum stated that it was simple and there were no future fees to pay. He said the deal would have been complex if the payment had been in installments due to the volatility of Bitcoin. In that case, they should have resorted to using a stablecoin like Tether (USDT).

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies offer an opportunity for buyers of any property or product to make payments more easily. A growing number of companies are accepting Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), XRP, Cardano (ADA), Dogecoin (DOGE), and USD Coin (USDC), among others.

Of course, the possibility of paying with Bitcoin depends on whether the seller accepts payments with the cryptocurrency. Many people have reported that those transactions eliminate the risk of criminals snatching the cash away from them.

The Demand for Cryptocurrency Payments is Still Low but Has a Future

Rozenblum stated that the interest of customers in cryptocurrency payments is still a rarity. Despite the low demand, the businessman considers that cryptocurrencies could effectively solve problems of transactions involving cash. The latter frequently implies that the client must mobilize a lot of money, which can hinder negotiations.

The businessman was also optimistic about the future of crypto assets in the real estate industry. However, he noted that there needs to be a regulatory framework, mainly for administrative issues. Concerning the purchase of the office mentioned above, it was an exchange of assets, as they currently know cryptocurrencies in Argentina.

The Purchase and Sale of Real Estate and Cryptocurrencies in Argentina

Many Argentines purchase properties still under construction as an investment method to hedge against inflation. Another name that this system receives in the South American country is that of a future functional unit.

The buyer must pay an advance and subsequent installments, which can extend for several years, for a property still under construction. When the work is ready, he can choose between living in it, renting it, and managing it.

It is not the first time that a real estate company has resorted to using cryptocurrencies in Argentina. Various e-commerce platforms display property offers that people can buy with Bitcoin or stablecoins. Those transactions include purchases through real estate companies and private sellers.

Cryptocurrencies offer the advantage that users do not need to carry large amounts of cash to buy a product. In addition, those assets allow them to protect their privacy by not depending on third parties to conduct their transactions. Many retailers are aware of those benefits, which is why they are currently accepting payments with Bitcoin.

By Alexander Salazar

Users in the crypto Twitter community speculated that the XRP reinstatement was a plan by Coinbase to confront regulators.

The largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States of America, Coinbase, went through an unusual failure that once again introduced Ripple’s XRP token to the platform’s commercial listing.

On Thursday night, various users arrived on Twitter to express that the platform had re-listed XRP. Coinbase had removed the token from its platform in January this year for fear of a regulatory crackdown.

The news generated great enthusiasm among some users in the crypto community. The situation even created a boost in the price of the cryptocurrency.

However, the excitement soon met its end when Coinbase released a statement explaining that a technical glitch had allowed XRP to become visible on the platform but, it was not available for trading.

Coinbase shut down XRP trading earlier in the year after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against the Ripple company and its staff of executives.

 The legal battle with the regulator generated fear among various exchanges, who opted for a suspension of  XRP trading.

Technical Glitch or a Message for the SEC?

The recent glitch that put Ripple’s token back on Coinbase’s trading listings is that it comes just a few days after the exchange received a warning from the SEC for an alleged regulatory breach.

The coincidence of events has pushed community users to hint that XRP and its momentary reinstatement might have been a company stunt to confront regulators after the threat.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong got to Twitter on Wednesday to make the community aware of the threats that came from the federal agency.

He explained that the exchange was ready to launch a loan product that leveraged the USDC stable coin to yield returns to its holders. However, the SEC warned that the product could disrupt federal securities law.

The Violation of Federal Securities Law and Other Relevant Policies

The legal battle between the US regulator and Ripple has its basis on the allegations the SEC filed against the company due to violation of securities law in carrying out the XRP sale. Ripple has defended itself by pointing out that XRP is not a security.

Armstrong and his transparency about the communication the company sustained with regulators generated sympathy among members of the bitcoin community.

These sympathizers had fun with the interpretation of the XRP re-entry movement and the possibility of Coinbase starting a legal fight with the SEC.

Regardless of whether the momentary listing of XRP on the platform was part of a Coinbase plan to challenge regulators or simply a technical glitch, many users arrived on Twitter to have fun speculating around the first scenario.

Some even claimed that they had rushed to trade XRP as a strategy to support Coinbase against the SEC. In contrast, other users suggested that more than a technical error, the addition of the token might have been a manipulation to disrupt the market.

The XRP had reached a new peak after various reports via Twitter, but then the currency returned to the downtrend. The cryptocurrency has fallen 4% in the last 24 hours and more than 16% this week; It is currently trading at $ 1.07.

By: Jenson Nuñez

The procedure was conducted in La Castellana, in the metropolitan area of Caracas. Shasta had suspended its operations due to measures from the banking regulator.

The Spanish tech developer and entrepreneur, Alex Sicart Ramos, got detained in the Caracas metropolitan sector, in Venezuela, by officials of the Scientific and Judicial Police (CICPC for its initials in Spanish).

The 22-year-old technologic professional and founder of the app for sending remittances, Shasta, received various accusations that include fraud, money laundering, and criminal association.

The information came from Commissioner Douglas Rico, national director of the police force, who highlighted that Sicart got arrested in August in the La Castellana urbanization, Chacao municipality, Miranda State. The case is under the magnifying glass of the 26th Court of the Public Ministry.

Rico explained the legal actions the police applied during the police deployment. The authorities unveiled a Jeep brand vehicle, Cherokee Sport model (AE659JM plates), a computer, and one cell phone. It is unclear whether these assets were seized and placed at the order of the prosecution.

Currently, the Shasta application is not operational due to administrative actions from the Superintendency of Institutions of the Banking Sector (Sudeban for its initials in Spanish). The Venezuelan regulatory entity issued, in early August, the procedure for 30 days due to irregularities in the administration of access to the platform.

The procedure led by the CICPC and the accusations against Sicart might not be related to the Sudeban investigation. After 30 days of the administrative action, the application remains shut down. Right after acceding the Shasta website, the following message appears on the screen.

Legal Procedures against Sicart in Spain and Venezuela

The procedure against Sicart in Venezuela adheres to the one followed in Spain for revealing secrets, going against intellectual property, the market, and the customers.

 In Europe, a group of former employees of the CryptoSolarTech project highlighted that they revealed the startup’s open-source code before leaving the project.

On the other hand, Sicart refuted the allegations and assured that nothing in the lawsuit was true. The developer clarified that his project with Shasta had no relationship with CryptoSolarTech.

CryptoSolarTech is an initiative to set the mining of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies by using solar energy as a source to empower mining devices.

Sicart acquired more relevance in the technological world because of his inclusion by Forbes magazine as one of the great promises with less than 30 years of age. In addition, the newspaper El País described the developer as the “child prodigy” of technology.

After the developer arrived in Venezuela, he encouraged his proposal with Shasta as an app for sending and receiving remittances and as a means of payment in dollars or euros.

The application received the complete approval of the banking regulator in 2020. The software remained active for about a year before stopping its operations due to the administrative measure imposed. Sudeban reported that users with healthy balances could withdraw their funds.

By: Jenson Nuñez