Tether to Allocate 15% of its Profits to Buy Bitcoin

Marina Meza
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<strong>Tether to Allocate 15% of its Profits to Buy Bitcoin</strong>

The latest news from Tether is that the company behind the market-leading USDT stablecoin is looking to allocate a portion of its profits to buy Bitcoin, as the objective is to diversify the reserves of the largest stablecoin in the market.

The “investment strategy is aimed at further strengthening its reserve portfolio,” Tether said in a press release issued Wednesday and announced that the process of Bitcoin purchases will begin this month.

According to Tether, this change in strategy is part of its conservative and prudent approach to investment decisions aimed at strengthening, growing, and diversifying its reserves. By implementing this framework, Tether aims to increase transparency and provide a clearer view of the company’s performance and its capital allocation strategy,” they add.

On its Twitter account on May 17th,Tether published this note “Starting this month, Tether will regularly allocate up to 15% of its net realized operating profits towards purchasing Bitcoin. These Bitcoin shall be considered on top of the minimum reserves assets that 100% back tether tokens.” Source. @Tether_to

Tether Seeks to Diversify and Strengthen its Reserves

Tether’s reserves included USD 1.5 billion in BTC as of March this year, and the new purchases aim to strengthen and diversify these reserves.

Tether announced in October 2022 that it had reduced the commercial role of its reserves to zero. Instead, it increased investments in US Treasury bills to ensure that the 1:1 backing of USDT to USD had the safest reserves.

According to its calculations, the company expects that the current and future holdings of BTC in its reserves will not exceed the accumulated shareholders’ equity. According to company transparency documents, as of the end of March 2023, Tether already had approximately $3.4 billion in gold in its reserves.

Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s CTO, noted in a statement that the decision to invest in BTC was due to the strength and potential of the benchmark cryptocurrency as an investment asset.

He pointed to Bitcoin’s resilience and the fact that “digital gold” is now seen as a long-term store of value. Beyond that, it has shown significant growth potential, with fundamental factors such as limited supply, decentralized nature, and widespread adoption positioning it as an investment asset of choice for a growing number of institutional and retail investors.

Ardoino commented about Tether’s BTC move that this has to do with investing in Bitcoin is not only a way to enhance our portfolio performance, but also a method to align ourselves with a transformative technology that has the potential to reshape the way we do business and live our lives.

Although the company will allocate up to 15% of its earnings to regular BTC purchases, total Bitcoin holdings in USDT reserves will not grow to exceed the stablecoin issuers’ shareholder capital cushion. Tether will also not have custody of its Bitcoin with any external but takes control of its holdings as part of the “Not your keys, not your Bitcoin” philosophy.

Tether posted a net profit of $1.48 billion in the first quarter of the year; double that of the same period last year. USDT’s market capitalization now exceeds $82.8 billion.

                                                                              By Marina Meza

Tether Buys $222 Million Worth of Bitcoin

Audy Castañeda
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<strong>Tether Buys $222 Million Worth of Bitcoin</strong>

With a $222M Bitcoin investment, USDT issuer Tether increases the capacity of its stablecoin.

The company behind the USDT stablecoin, Tether, announced a recent purchase of $222 million worth of Bitcoin. With this new step, the company seeks to maintain the 1-to-1 correlation of its stablecoin with the US dollar.

The most recent certification report indicates that 15% of the monthly net profits will be allocated for said purpose. The company stated that this is a new approach to diversify internal treasury.

With this new investment announcement, the world’s largest stablecoin issuer reaches $1.5 billion worth of BTC. It is clear from this that the company is betting with all its might to maintain the correlation of its currency. It is worth mentioning that this asset is present in practically all major exchanges and brokers.

Tether Buys Bitcoin to Bolster Its New Focus

The Bitcoin bought by Tether is not transferred into custody to third parties. Instead, Tether is responsible for maintaining its own funds. In 2022, the firm announced the hiring of a new audit house to monitor its reserve reports.

In any case, relying on Bitcoin becomes a measure to access greater solidity. “The decision to invest in Bitcoin, the world’s first and largest cryptocurrency, is based on its strength and potential as an investment asset,” said the company’s CTO, Paolo Ardonio.

Although Tether is regularly the target of accusations about its solvency, the reserves of the Bitcoin it buys seem to give it solidity. Its main currency, USDT, remains the first of its kind and the third of the entire market in capitalization. In this case, it is only surpassed by Bitcoin itself and by Ethereum.

What is the New Crypto Company Scheme Looking for?

Teher’s new scheme, with Bitcoin at its center, has a particular goal in terms of the use of its profits. Thus, the equity placement approach would use only the earnings from the users’ investments. Meanwhile, it would not take into account unrealized gains from crypto market price increases.

Previously, the company had focused on placing a portion of its reserves in commercial paper. The latter is a type of short-term unsecured debt issued by companies. However, commercial paper is considered a very risky type of investment compared to other types of debt. This motivated Tether to reduce its reserves in this form of debt and replace it with US government debt securities.

By February 2023 the company’s reserves in commercial paper were brought to zero. The latter leads Tether to turn towards Bitcoin and from there, it announces the purchase of large amounts of that digital currency.

If this trend continues, it could be assumed that the company is taking steps to move away from government securities. Recently, Circle, the issuer of Tether’s closest stablecoin competitor USDC, announced rough measures such as supporting its reserves in Treasury bonds, but in the short term.

Tether has been under constant pressure for some time due to doubts about its reserves. Nonetheless, the company has managed to maintain the value of its primary stablecoin.

By Audy Castaneda

Elizabeth Warren Criticizes Bank Executives for Profiting from the Crisis

Audy Castañeda
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Elizabeth Warren Criticizes Bank Executives for Profiting from the Crisis

US Senator Elizabeth Warren has criticized SVB and Signature executives for maintaining compensation. The top management of the banks made $60 million by ignoring the risks. Warren wants to restore stricter regulations for smaller banks.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren wants to recover bonuses paid to bank executives whose mismanagement of risk allegedly caused the recent banking crisis.

Warren asked the bank executives if they would return the $60 million they earned after implementing weaker controls. She said it was wrong for others to pay for risky activities that executives used to enrich themselves.

Warren: Executives Ignored Risks to Win $60 Million

Silicon Valley Bank executive Gregory W. Becker reportedly made $40 million after Congress allowed the bank to take on more risk.

In addition, the bank ignored 17 warnings from the Federal Reserve (Fed) addressing liquidity risk management, weak governance and capital planning while Becker allegedly enriched himself. Becker confirmed that he has earned $40 million since 2019.

Warren also asked former Signature Bank president Scott Shay, a cryptocurrency friend, if he would return the $20 million he earned while ignoring liquidity problems that resulted in a $2.5 billion bailout of the Federal Corporation of Deposit Insurance (FDIC). Shay said he did not plan to return the funds.

Senator Lummis also accused Shay of shifting blame onto regulators and digital asset depositors for the bank’s liquidity crisis in March. Depositors withdrew money from Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank after cryptocurrency flagship Silvergate Bank closed its doors. Both banks sold securities at significant losses to create liquidity for withdrawals. Later, the FDIC stepped in to insure the deposits.

The crashes shook confidence in the US banking system and sent jitters through crypto platforms. Circle’s USDC stablecoin lost its peg after it disclosed frozen deposits at SVB. Investment platforms MaiCapital and Digital Asset Capital Management were forced to bring in offshore banking partners.

Politicians Launch Projects to Enforce Strict Rules

Several politicians, including Warren, attribute the failures to relaxed capital and liquidity requirements for smaller banks. In 2019, 50 Republican and 17 Democratic senators voted to repeal certain aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act, allowing smaller banks to take on more risk.

According to Warren, Becker aggressively lobbied Congress to repeal elements of the Dodd-Frank Act and allow Silicon Valley Bank to take on more risk. Consequently, Massachusetts Senator and US Representative Katie Porter introduced a new bill to restore stricter regulations.

The new Safe and Viable Banking Act would force banks with $50 billion or more in assets to come under the supervision of the Federal Reserve and comply with Dodd-Frank stress tests. Warren confirmed that she and three other lawmakers have also introduced a bill to limit “crazy paychecks.”

US Representative Andy Barr argues that low long-term interest rates and excessive government spending fueled the inflation that led to the collapse. Barr told Fox Business on March 14 the following:

“The underlying causes [were] basic fiscal and monetary policy errors and a failure, not because of a lack of regulation, but because of inadequate banking supervision. Regulators need to do some soul-searching about the extracurricular political errands they find themselves in rather than basic supervision of banks.”

Warren’s bill will likely face opposition from House Republicans and intentional prolongation of the bill’s debate by Senate Republicans.

By Audy Castaneda

Woo Network (WOO) and Mina Protocol (MINA) Experience Variable Downtrend as Yachtify (YCHT) Consolidates Growth

Audy Castañeda
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<strong>Woo Network (WOO) and Mina Protocol (MINA) Experience Variable Downtrend as Yachtify (YCHT) Consolidates Growth</strong>

Yachtify is rising in value and on its way to becoming the next top-of-the-line crypto. investment platform.

Filtering through the many price activities taking place in the cryptocurrency market, we take a look at the sharp price decline of Woo Network (WOO) and the relative downtrend of Mina Protocol (MINA).

Woo Network (WOO) and Mina Protocol (MINA) provide a typical case study for the general slippage path of many cryptocurrencies on the market right now. However, Yachty’s rise in value could see it become the next top-of-the-line crypto.

Yachtify (YCHT) Experience Exponential Rise as It Prepares for Launch

Investors are rallying around the Yachtify project, after discovering the huge growth potential the project holds. Currently, in its pre-sale phase, Yachtify is expected to become the world’s first investment platform based on the Blockchain network, providing investors with the opportunity to invest in the yachting industry by buying, selling, chartering, and owning yachts. luxury yachts, jet skis, and more.

Currently, at the price value of just $0.10 per YCHT token, investors can own a Yachtify token, which has shown high growth potential of up to 4,000% in the near future.

The Yachtify project is backed by SolidProof Network by passing their pre-launch audit. To ensure the safety of investors’ assets, liquidity will be locked up for life.

Bear Action for WOO Network (WOO)

In the last 24 hours, WOO Network (WOO) has lost -13.7% in price value. This confirms a bearish trend for WOO Network, which has not seen any price rally in the last three weeks.

WOO Network lost -15.4% in the last 7 days. Also, in the last 14 days, WOO Network lost another -14.7% in price value. The coin started the year on a positive note, hitting $0.33 on April 16. However, since then, the coin has not made significant progress.

WOO Network is currently trading at $0.22 with a 24-hour trading volume of $41 million. WOO is ranked 95th in coin market cap with a live market capitalization of $376 million. There are over a billion WOO Network coins in circulation.

Slightly Negative Price Action for Mina Protocol (MINA) Confirms an Extended Bear Run

After losing 5% in the last 24 hours, Mina Protocol (MINA) suggests a prolonged downtrend. This comes after it suffered a -14.8% loss in price value over the last 7 days.

Over the past 14 days, Mina Protocol has lost 18.4% in price value, pointing to unfavorable market forces for the token. MINA crossed the $1 prediction back in February, sparking rumors that the coin could exceed expectations this year. However, the coin’s price trend since then has left cryptocurrency enthusiasts concerned, with many revising their earlier predictions that the coin would break above $5 for the year. Meanwhile,

MINA is currently trading at $0.55 with a market capitalization of $489.27 million. Mina Protocol’s (MINA) 24-hour trading volume is $20.64 million. MINA has a circulating supply of 897.52M.

By Audy Castaneda

Bitcoin Mining: Riot and Rhodium Start Legal Battle

Audy Castañeda
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<strong>Bitcoin Mining: Riot and Rhodium Start Legal Battle</strong>

Companies engaged in the Bitcoin mining business are preparing for a legal confrontation over accusations of non-receipt payments.

According to a recent report, the Riot Platforms company would have filed a lawsuit against Rhodium Enterprises for alleged non-payment of fees. The lawsuit alleges that the firm owes a total of $26 million to the former Riot Blockchain. The latter also seeks to terminate some hosting agreements that the two Bitcoin mining companies have up to now.

This attempt to recover the funds, supposedly owed, becomes the new objective of the Riot company. This firm, in its most recent quarterly earnings report, accuses its counterpart of having broken a contract established between them. This new episode becomes the most recent that the mining industry is resorted to within the United States.

In particular, the issue between the two mining pools centers on the hosting of ASIC equipment. Riot accuses Rhodium of not paying services corresponding to fees for hosting equipment at Whinstone’s Bitcoin mining centers. The latter are made up of a subsidiary, which is wholly owned by Riot.

Bitcoin Mining Companies Will Terminate Their Hosting Contract

As already noted, the $26-million-dollar issue is reason enough to damage Riot’s trust in its partner. In this sense, the company wishes to conclude its accommodation contract with the defendant, as requested in its court case.

The company points out that the possibility of recovering the payment for the fees at this time is not entirely guaranteed. “Because this litigation is still in this early stage, we cannot reasonably estimate the probability of an unfavorable outcome or the magnitude of such an outcome, if any,” Riot said.

In this conflict between Bitcoin mining companies, Rhodium has until May 30 to answer for Riot’s accusations. This company ensures that the non-payment of taxes by the defendant has had a significant impact on its income, as well as its growth prospects.

Riot’s Impressive Growth on the Stock Market

Although Riot affirms that Rhodium’s non-payment of commissions significantly affects its business prospects, the results do not seem to be expressed in its financial health. In this way, the aforementioned earnings report for the first quarter of 2023, published in May, shows a solid company on its foundations.

In that report, Riot Platforms posted revenue of $73.24 million for the first three-month tranche that ended in March of this year. Consequently, the results beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate, which pointed to a quarterly loss of $0.17 per share. Contrary to this, the company reported a $0.04 earnings per share (EPS).

It’s worth mentioning that the company has beaten consensus earnings per share twice over the past four quarters. Likewise, its shares have grown no less than 237.5% since the beginning of 2023, according to data from Yahoo Finance.

Given these facts, the company presents itself as one of the favorites among investors in the cryptocurrency sector linked to mining. Currently, the company is focused on expanding operations by increasing its hashrate capacity in its infrastructures.

It is important to note that the company reported a new all-time high in its computing power. Thus, it would have reached 10.5 EH/s during the first quarter of this year.

By Audy Castaneda

Venezuelan Hacker Investigated in PDVSA-Crypto Corruption Case Dies

Audy Castañeda
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<strong>Venezuelan Hacker Investigated in PDVSA-Crypto Corruption Case Dies</strong>

Juan Almeida’s death adds to a series of controversies and accusations of torture by the Venezuelan authorities in relation to those detained in this PDVSA corruption case.

Juan Almeida, involved in a case of corruption of the PDVSA oil company with cryptocurrencies, has died in custody of the Maduro regime. His death joins that of Leoner Azuaje, who allegedly committed suicide on April 20. Almeida, known as the “hacker” of Tareck El Aissami, a former member of the Chavista government, was arrested for his participation in the corruption scheme that affects the Venezuelan state oil company.

According to the attorney general of the Chavista regime, Almeida suffered from a terminal illness, liver cirrhosis, and was under house arrest for humanitarian reasons at the time of his death. Almeida, along with his brothers, was designated as a technological operator in the corruption scheme called “PDVSA-Crypto”.

The information was released by Attorney General Tarek William Saab, who tweeted the following:

“The Public Ministry reports the death of citizen Juan Almeida who suffered -for a long time- from a terminal illness diagnosed as cirrhosis of the liver: at the time of his death, he was at his residence: after being granted the humanitarian measure of house arrest, as being one of those investigated for the PDVSA/Crypto plot.”

PDVSA-Crypto Controversy Continues: Cryptocurrencies Are More Than Involved

The case of corruption in the PDVSA oil company, known as “PDVSA-Crypto”, has generated a great commotion in Venezuela. This scandal involves a massive corruption scheme at the state oil company, where high-ranking officials and businessmen took advantage of their position to divert billions of dollars through fraudulent operations.

One of the main highlights, in this case, is the role that cryptocurrencies played. According to investigations, cryptocurrencies were used as a tool to circumvent international sanctions imposed on Venezuela and facilitate money laundering.

Corruption through cryptocurrencies is no longer a surprise. In particular, it is mentioned that Juan Almeida, also known as “N33” or Tareck El Aissami’s “hacker”, played a key role in this plot. He is credited with the ability to break into, boycott, and clone social networks, especially those whom El Aissami wanted to spy on or keep under surveillance. In addition to his computer skills, Almeida was accused of being involved in fraudulent cryptocurrency transactions for the benefit of himself and other corrupt officials.

Millions of Dollars Diverted by Corruption Through Crypto Operations

In the case of PDVSA, it is estimated that billions of dollars were diverted through cryptocurrency operations. allowing those involved to make illicit profits and circumvent restrictions imposed by international sanctions.

The “PDVSA-Crypto” case has generated deep outrage in Venezuela, as corruption in the state oil company has led to the collapse of the country’s oil industry and has contributed to the economic crisis it is going through. In addition, it has highlighted the need for greater regulation and supervision in the use of cryptocurrencies to prevent money laundering and other illicit activities.

The Venezuelan authorities have promised to carry out thorough investigations and prosecute those responsible for this corruption case. However, the lack of transparency and opacity of the Maduro regime raises questions about true accountability and justice in this matter.

By Audy Castaneda

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