Vietnam Intends to Encourage a legal framework for Digital Currencies

Jenson Nunez
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Vietnam Intends to Encourage a legal framework for Digital Currencies

The deputy prime minister of Vietnam commands the initiative to make crypto legislation for the country.

Vietnam has been one of the Asian regions with a robust anti-crypto stance. In 2018, it reinforced its prohibition on Bitcoin, a matter that the Central Bank had already studied the previous year. He had previously suggested citizens not invest in digital currencies. Instead, the administration was interested in making its own central bank digital currency, CDBC, last year.

But now, it seems to change the course of the prohibition to establish clear policies, that is, legal tender.

According to reports led by various media outlets, Vietnam is founding a legal framework for digital assets. The current deputy prime minister, Le Minh Khai, ordered the Ministries of Finance, Justice, and Information and Communications to join efforts with the central bank and other financial entities to enforce this new package of crypto policies.

The deputy prime minister specifically commanded the Ministry of Finance to determine mutual points and agreements with other regulators and the central bank for specific policies and legislative actions that need to get revised, supplemented, and suggested at a particular time to get applied.

The legality intended for digital assets will get founded to comply with the details expressed in Decision 1255, filed by the Vietnamese Prime Minister on August 21, 2017. Decision 1255 consents to a strategy to create a legal basis to help manage virtual assets, digital assets, and virtual currencies.

Some schemes to regulate digital assets came to the public eye in November 2018. Still, there is no final decision yet because there was no mutual agreement, and essential sectors were betting on the prohibition.

Bitcoin.com recalls that according to a government highlight on the application of Decision 1255, the Ministry of Finance had created a study team focused on crypto-assets intending to make valuable suggestions on the legal framework aimed at the supervision of crypto trading and other activities.

This situation has not obstructed the use of crypto-assets in the nation. According to Bitcoin.com, cryptocurrency ownership in Vietnam has increased on a considerable scale.

The studies and research implemented by that outlet presented that more than 5.9 million people, or 6.1% of the total population of Vietnam, currently own digital assets. A survey conducted by Finder.com shows that, comparatively, Vietnamese respondents have the highest percentage of cryptocurrency ownership.

CBDC Pilot Program

According to a report in 2021, the digital currency pilot would get designed to help the Vietnamese government understand the cryptocurrency industry better.

In this regard, the deputy director of the Innovation Institute of the University of Economics, Huỳnh Phước Nghĩa, said that while cashless payments increased in Vietnam, the recognition of digital currencies by the bank would be crucial to boosting a move towards a more digital economy.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Bank of Spain Thinks that those citizens Who Dare to Invest in Bitcoin Don’t Know about the Risks this Investment Implies

Jenson Nunez
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Bank of Spain Thinks that those citizens Who Dare to Invest in Bitcoin Don’t Know about the Risks this Investment Implies

The current representative in charge of the Bank of Spain shared some thoughts during the release of the PWC report. The official reinforced her opinion about the side effects of cryptocurrencies on financial equilibrium.

The current representative leading the Central Bank of Spain, Margarita Delgado, thinks that it is unclear whether citizens from Spain who currently invest their funds in Bitcoin and other digital assets are aware of the risks such investments imply. These thoughts got expressed in her speech during the release of the PWC report adhered to the European Banking Union.

The official highlighted the financial regulator’s worries about the consequences of the increasing adoption of digital assets in a country like Spain. According to her, the widespread use of digital currencies represents a serious risk to financial equilibrium in the country, and These activities must get regulated and supervised by a proper entity.

Delgado also reflected on a Finder survey, according to which 12% of adults in Spain have bitcoin or other relevant digital assets.

In this sense, the representative highlighted that it is a requirement for European financial regulators to constantly release statements spotting the risks that this financial activity represents for Spaniards. In her presentation, she assured that bitcoin and digital assets do not fit as an investment, nor as a method of payment or exchange for most retail consumers.

Although the nature of these statements tends to clash with small investors’ stances regarding the Bitcoin market, Margarita Delgado’s approaches are still in parallel with that of the Bank of Spain.

On the other hand, the current governor of the Spanish banking regulator, Pablo Hernández de Cos, also directed his interest to the monitoring, and constant supervision of the active crypto market this last month.

Reports about Bitcoin

The consulting firm PwC, one of the most prominent global consulting firms, released its 9th report called “Banking Union, a climate of change,” where it focused a complete section on the role digital assets are actually playing in the world economy.

The report highlights that bitcoin and other virtual assets “are consolidating themselves as a niche surrounded by profits for the financial sector, despite initial doubt from financial institutions.”

Experts noted increasing interest from traditional financial entities in investing in cryptocurrencies, given their “high profits” and the demand fluctuation among their users, especially young citizens and those with a robust economic system. However, it also reflects on the lack of regulation and risks these activities imply.

The Parliament and the European Commission are approving a law that will rule over digital assets trading in the 27 nations that are part of the EU. The project, named the MICA Law, received the approval of MEPs and went to the next level of debate.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Crypto Ownership among Norwegian Women Doubles and mirrors Tendencies Worldwide

Jenson Nunez
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0
Crypto Ownership among Norwegian Women Doubles and mirrors Tendencies Worldwide

According to a recent survey led by Arcane Research, Norwegian women who own digital assets have doubled their number from 3% to 6% in just one year.

According to a new survey led by Arcane Research, the number of women in Norway who owned some digital currency doubled in 2021.

Arcane Research and Ernst & Young surveyed a group of Norwegian citizens to determine that the female citizens possessing crypto assets in Norway ran from 3% in 2021 to 6% on March 30. The survey covered the interview of at least 1,000 Norwegians over the age of 15 and int happened in contribution to NORSTAT, one of the pioneering data gatherers for market research in Northern Europe.

Nearly two-thirds of all women respondents expressed that they had purchased digital assets in 2021. The gender breach regarding crypto ownership in Norway had expanded; the request made by women was 3% from 2019 to early 2021. Meanwhile, male crypto ownership reached a new peak, going from 6% in 2019 to at least 14% in 2022.

Surveys in Norway

The survey also determined that about 10% of the Norwegian population now possesses some digital assets representing a doubling of the current crypto ownership occurring in Norway since 2018.

Norway isn’t the only nation where women’s role in the crypto industry has reached a high point. A study led by Australia-based crypto exchange Independent Reserve determined that the Australian women willing to invest their funds in digital assets had also doubled, going from a low 10% in 2020 to a high 20% in 2021.

A 2022 survey carried out in Turkey and released in March by KuCoin, highlighted a more distributed performance between male and female crypto users.

A Turkish Survey for Crypto Curious Users

In that Turkish survey, women marked almost half (47%) of all crypto users currently investing in the assets, and they take part in 63% of the “crypto-curious” citizens.

While the tendency towards equal involvement in the crypto industry seems optimistic, there are still dominant breaches in various industry sectors. In the NFT section, female creators play a minor role by registering at only 5% of total market sales.

Ownership of digital assets worldwide continues to expand its dominion. Hardly half of the German population highlighted that they are eager to invest in digital assets, with women approaching 53% of that total amount.

Research led by Grayscale in 2019 presented that women used to be more risk-averse investors. That behavior gets often highlighted to explain the gender breach between the number of female and male users who venture into crypto investment.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Terra Purchases at Least $140 Million Worth of Bitcoin to Increase its UST Reserves

Jenson Nunez
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Terra Purchases at Least $140 Million Worth of Bitcoin to Increase its UST Reserves

Terra Labs currently houses at least 1.4 billion in Bitcoin, which helps to support the project’s algorithmic stablecoin, UST.

After Terra founder Do Kwon revealed his desire to back the UST stablecoin with Bitcoin (BTC) reserves, the market observed many whale moves.

According to a series of reports, the Terra wallet has just received a deposit valued at 2,943 BTC, which equals approximately $139.2 million. The Twitter profile in charge of following the behavior of large Blockchain transactions, Whale Alert, highlighted the acquisition. Kwon answered with an emoji expressing that it was an address under his complete control.

According to various media outlets, About a week ago, the founder of Terra shared his plans to acquire $10 billion worth of Bitcoin to aid the project’s algorithmic stablecoin, TerraUSD (UST). This action would make UST supported by both LUNA and significant crypto reserves.

Unlike other stable coins, USDT does not receive support from reserves holding cash to keep that asset pegged to the dollar. Instead, it gets connected to LUNA, Terra’s native asset. Each UST gets handled by burning $1 worth of LUNA, making the supply of that coin decline as more stablecoins get created.

 USD 3 Billion in BTC

In a tweet post made a few days ago, Kwon highlighted that the short-term goal is to acquire at least $3 billion worth of Bitcoin and start strengthening UST reserves. The founder expressed that Luna Foundation Guard (LFG) had already gathered $2.2 billion to begin purchasing the asset to achieve this goal.

The collection took effect through over-the-counter sales of LUNA tokens, as revealed by the leader behind the network. On the other hand, LFG is a non-profit organization based in Singapore that operates on the Terra blockchain.

Terra has been gathering massive amounts of Bitcoin. The project’s wallet address got identified for having its first acquisition on March 22 with 1,500 bitcoins, currently valued at $70.9 million. However, a Twitter user determined that the wallet had received these currencies since January.

According to BitInfoCharts, the wallet that got injected first possessed almost 10,000 bitcoins on January 21. The entity then consolidated another series of purchasing operations in March and hasn’t put for sale a single satoshi. The address holds 30,727 BTC, worth $1.4 billion as of press time.

The amounts imply that Terra still has a few significant acquisitions estimated at $1.5 billion more in BTC to achieve the goal the entity pursues.

A Boost in Bitcoin and LUNA Prices

As a result of the latest acquisitions, the project ranks itself as one of the most prominent whales in the digital world. According to data collected by BitcoinTreasuries, and highlighted by outlets like Cointelegraph, Terraform Labs will soon bypass electric car maker Tesla as the second-largest Bitcoin holder. The next position on the list goes for MicroStrategy, which currently houses over 120,000 BTC.

The ruthless plan to support UST with Bitcoin reserves also appears to be creating a sudden effect on the market. The price of the leading cryptocurrency reached new peaks in recent days to regain $48,000. Overall, Terra’s purchasing trend seems to be bringing positive sentiment among Bitcoin traders, who are encouraged by the latest acquisitions.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Hackers Managed to Steal around 35 NFT after a phishing Campaign Spread on Twitter

Jenson Nunez
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0
Hackers Managed to Steal around 35 NFT after a phishing Campaign Spread on Twitter

Hackers took control of verified Twitter accounts to spread fake links to the ApeCoin Airdrop. The attack led to the theft of NFTs belonging to collections such as Bored Ape, Mutant Ape, and Bored Ape Kennel Club.

Data revealed by the Blockchain analysis company, Elliptic, exposed that, during the last week, at least 35 NFTs belonging to highly reputable collections got extracted after a medium-scale phishing attack (data theft) in which many accounts got hacked from Twitter.

The report revealed by Elliptic details that the people behind the attack in question managed to extract an estimated amount valued at USD 900,000 in NFT, highlighting that at least five of the stolen items belonged to collections such as Bored Ape, Mutant Ape, and Bored Ape. Kennel Club.

The Strategy Behind the Robbery

The attack in question happened within the launch of the ApeCoin tokens, organized by the company Bored Ape Yacht Club, which distributed part of the coins through an Airdrop. Here the attackers found a breach to compromise some verified associated and related Twitter accounts, through which they spread false links that guided to a clone site of the release of the digital asset.

Those who clicked on the fake links offered private data, got malware installed, and gave the criminals total access to personal wallets. Victims highlighted that their NFTs got stolen, and according to Elliptic, even high-profile personalities got damaged by these actions.

How to Be Careful and Protect the Items

Although this action might cause a significant impact on the crypto environment, the truth is that the method these criminals use is part of a prevalent type of scam usually applied through social networks. This scam uses topics and interest campaigns linked to the digital currency sector to attract unsuspecting people.

The curious aspect was that the criminals managed to invade those verified accounts on Twitter that echoed these fraudulent links. The social network representatives have not offered details on how the activity could be possible.

On the other hand, those who trade with NFTs should be aware of this case and be cautious since these assets have gained importance in recent months. They have become a goal for attackers and deceivers. For example, there is what happened with the OpenSea platform; hackers took advantage of an exploit to enter some users’ accounts and take control of their digital collectibles, selling them at a price well below their estimated value.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Authorities in the Netherlands confiscate NFT for the First time During an Ongoing Investigation

Jenson Nunez
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0
Authorities in the Netherlands confiscate NFT for the First time During an Ongoing Investigation

The investigation executed by the authorities of the Netherlands had been following criminals who extracted a significant amount of personal data. Among the holdings were crypto and NFT funds traded in vast markets.

The authorities in the Netherlands executed a procedure against a group of cybercriminals, in which they seized digital assets and, for the first time, digital collectibles (NFT) under attackers’ control.

The information got revealed in a statement filed by the local police forces. The officials highlight that they confiscated said digital currencies as part of an ongoing investigation. They managed to find those responsible after relating them to the illegal trade of private data.

Data, Cryptocurrencies, and NFTs Seized

During the confiscation, two individuals, 23 and 19 years old, were captured and suspected of selling private data for scams and fraud. The authorities also highlighted that they found a vast amount of data, so the captured people had been committing this crime for years.

Regarding crypto funds, although the investigation does not unveil enough details about the total value of the assets, it showed that among the virtual belongings, there were also many NFTs. Authorities did not bring further information on the latter, but they did express that such items got quoted at a juicy price in their respective markets.

Very Valuable Items

Regarding NFTs, the authorities said that this was the first time they had ever confiscated this item in a routine procedure. In the region, only the United Kingdom has done something similar in an operation carried out this year, just as they were investigating tax fraud in which USD 1.9 million got extracted.

Experts think local and regional authorities will now be much more alert to the possession and marketing of such assets, especially given how lucrative their market is today. Last year the NFT environment experienced a trading volume of at least $23 billion in buy/sell trades, with some highly sought-after collections such as the CryptoPunks and the Bored Ape Yacht Club.

A non-fungible token (NFT) is a data unit housed on a blockchain or a digital ledger that can serve as an item ideal for selling and trading operations. NFTs may arrive as files created in digital such as pictures, videos, audio files, or artwork because each item possesses a unique identification. NFTs are not the same as blockchain crypto-assets.

NFT ledgers maintain they bring a public ownership certification, but the legal rights shifted by an NFT might be unclear. NFTs don’t pose restrictions over the sharing the digital files and do not transfer the copyright of items such as digital files.

NFTs have a slight potential to become speculative assets and have received many negative reviews due to the energy cost and carbon footprint linked to blockchain transactions procedures.

By: Jenson Nuñez

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