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‘Worst time of the year for me to be covered in scabs’: Amber Heard’s Alleged Ex Cara Delevingne Revealed Her Psoriasis Struggle Made Kate Moss Scream…

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Supermodel Cara Delevingne (29) has openly talked about her struggles with the autoimmune skin disease Psoriasis in the past. During Fashion Week in 2017, Kate Moss helped her by recommending a good doctor.

Recently in May, Delevingne made a Met Gala appearance where she was topless and she did not shy away from revealing her scabs. Fans and Netizens alike praised the supermodel for her confidence in showing off her skin condition rather than hiding them.

The Valerian actress has always been vocal and open about her skin condition. Cara Delevingne has shared her struggles with Psoriasis, a skin condition where the affected person gets rashes and scabs on the skin. It was not only a big inconvenience for her but also once left her questioning her profession. In an interview with The Times, Cara Delevingne shared about her struggle saying,

People would put on gloves and not want to touch me because they thought it was, like, leprosy or something.

Also during the 2017 fashion week, her Psoriasis condition worsened. The Paper Town actress shared with the W magazine what went down during that fashion week, she told,

It only happened during Fashion Week! Which is, of course, the worst time of the year for me to be covered in scabs. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease, and Im sensitive. Kate [Moss] saw me before the Louis Vuitton show at 3 a.m., when I was being painted by people to cover the scabs. She said, This is horrible! Why is this happening? I need to help you. She got me a doctor that afternoon; Kate gives really good advice,

Around the same year at the peak of her career, the model was questioning herself and her profession due to the autoimmune disease she struggling with.

Also Read: Teenagers can be very, very cruel: Amber Heards Alleged Ex-Girlfriend Cara Delevingne Reveals Traumatic Childhood, Was Bullied For Being Flat-Chested Despite Being British Aristocrat

The Paper Town actress who suffers from chronic Psoriasis has opened up about it several times in the past. And recently in May 2022, she appeared at the met Gala topless with a gold color painted on her. The model refused to cover her Psoriasis flare-ups. Being topless, her skin condition was visible on the front and the back of her arms. This was appreciated and praised by fans and Netizens. One fan wrote,

If Cara Delevingne can go on the red carpet in front of millions and show her psoriasis flare-up, then I can go out in my small town and show my lupus scars. We are both still beautiful,

Another Twitter user reacted,

ok like I dont really care too much about celebrities but Cara Delevingne leaving her psoriasis visible in her met gala look is so validating to me (Ive been SO embarrassed by severe eczema I developed on my hands).

The Supermodel is working on an eco-thriller movie project at the moment. The film is based on true events concerning Environmental protection and is titled The Climb.

Also Read: Margot Robbie and Cara Delevingne Attacked By Paparazzi in Argentina, Left Harley Quinn Actress Nearly Hanging in the Car Clutching For Dear Life

Source: geo.tv

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'Worst time of the year for me to be covered in scabs': Amber Heard's Alleged Ex Cara Delevingne Revealed Her Psoriasis Struggle Made Kate Moss Scream...

Bitcoin fails to rally with stocks as $940 million of the crypto is pulled from exchange favored by institutions – CNBC

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Crypto industry players who are bullish on bitcoin point to various reason why they think the digital currency will go up, including rising inflation and increasing institutional investor participation. But an uncertain regulatory environment continues to prove a headwind for bitcoin.

STR | NurPhoto via Getty Images

On Tuesday some 48,000 bitcoins moved off Coinbase Pro, a favored exchange among institutional investors, according to data provider CryptoQuant.

The outflow was the biggest among crypto exchanges since crypto's big crash in June of this year and the second-largest of all time. Exchange outflows suggest investors are withdrawing their crypto from exchanges and shifting from selling mode to accumulating mode.

The value of the crypto moved Tuesday totaled about $940 million and the transactions were partially split into batches of 122 bitcoins, which is a familiar pattern that came to fruition several times in the 2021 bull run, according to Maarten Regterschot, a CryptoQuant contributing analyst.

He also said the transactions were likely done in over-the-counter trading desks, and therefore might not affect the price of bitcoin.

Bitcoin was traded 1.5% lower Tuesday at $19,233.71. Ether was down 1.7% to $1,301.46. Both have been trading steadily sideways for about a month.

Meanwhile, while bitcoin's correlation with stocks has fallen from its all-time high last month, it remains at historic highs and its price is still largely driven by macro triggers points, like key economic data reports and central bank policy. Its uncharacteristically low volatility, however, has been top of mind for the crypto market in recent days.

"Bitcoin has failed to make any significant moves since early June, with prices bouncing between an increasingly narrow range," said Kaiko's director of research, Clara Medalie. "Considering bitcoin's current low price levels, trade volumes have remained relatively resilient since last year's all-time highs. There is no discernable decrease in volumes since September despite the increasingly low volatility."

Elsewhere, the major stock indexes were making solid up moves on Tuesday morning. Crypto equities were mostly in the green with the exception of "crypto bank" Silvergate, whose earnings amid the recent apathy in crypto came in weaker-than-expected Tuesday, according to FactSet.

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Bitcoin fails to rally with stocks as $940 million of the crypto is pulled from exchange favored by institutions - CNBC

Bitcoin Leads The Hunt For A Green October In Crypto – NewsBTC

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Bitcoin might be returning to the bottom of its current range; trapped for months, BTC might be unable to push higher. Driven by macroeconomic forces and uncertainty, the sideways price action has decreased volatility across global financial assets.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $19,400 with sideways movement across all timeframes. Earlier today, the cryptocurrency hinted at more gains, but bulls have been unable to sustain momentum, surrendering BTCs profits from last week.

According to Arcane Research, Bitcoin has seen no clear direction in October. The cryptocurrency has been the best-performing asset in terms of assets moving sideways over this period.

The chart below shows that the benchmark cryptocurrency recorded a 0.6% profit over the past 30 days, while other crypto assets trended slightly to the downside. Smaller tokens were the worst performers, with a 5% loss in October.

Smaller cryptocurrencies often suffer the most in a choppy and uncertain market; investors usually take shelter in Bitcoin and stablecoins, measured by the BTC Dominance and the USDT Dominance. These metrics have been trending upward after seeing a massive decline in mid-October.

The spike in stablecoin and BTC dominance hint at more sideways price action as the crypto market enters another stage of uncertainty until the subsequent macroeconomic event triggers an explosion in volatility. Arcane Research noted the following on BTCs current price action:

Still no clear trend in October, as the crypto market stays flat. Bitcoin and ether are gaining market shares relative to the other large caps this week, while small caps are struggling (). The crypto market is still highly aligned with the stock market this month. Both Bitcoin and Nasdaq are up 1% in October, with the correlation staying at record highs.

Additional data from research firm Santiment indicates that Bitcoin whales might be accumulating BTC at its current levels. The cryptocurrency is moving near its 2017 all-time high. Historically, these levels have provided long-term investors the best opportunity to increase their holdings.

As BTCs price trends sideways, Bitcoin addresses holding between 10,000 to 100,000 BTC reached their highest level since February 2021. At that time, the cryptocurrency was preparing to re-enter price discovery mode following a major bull run that took it from below $20,000 into the low $30,000.

The research firmnoted:

() addresses holding 10 to 100 $BTC have reached their highest amount of respective addresses since Feb, 2021. As the number of addresses on a network rise, utility should follow suit.

Despite this data, the current macroeconomic conditions might be unfavorable for a Bitcoin rally leading the cryptocurrency into long periods of accumulation and consolidation around the 2017 ATH and its yearly low of $17,600.

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Bitcoin Leads The Hunt For A Green October In Crypto - NewsBTC

Bitcoin is higher to start the week but continues holding sideways pattern – CNBC

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Cryptocurrencies were higher on Monday after recovering from a sharp drop in the previous week.

Bitcoin rose 1.5% to $19,555.00, according to Coin Metrics, while ether traded 2.4% higher at $1,328.34.

Prices have held steady since rebounding from a big drop that followed the release of the latest reading on the consumer price index, a key inflation gauge. YuyaHasegawa, crypto market analyst at Japanese crypto exchangeBitbank, said the dip wasn't deep enough to induce panic, however.

"It had been another tough week for the stock market until the CPI, so Thursday's rebound will likely trigger unwinding of the recent risk off sentiment, which could have a positive effect on the price of bitcoin," he said. "If the price recovers the $20,000 psychological level with a substantial trading volume in the next few days, bitcoin could test $23,000 next week."

Despite a recent divergence in volatility, activity in bitcoin and ether trading remain closely tied to that of risk assets more broadly. Cryptocurrencies rose Monday along with the major stock indexes.

While October is typically a strong month for crypto trading, crypto has never been in such a strongly macro driven bear market and it remains to be seen how prices will fare by the end of the month.

"Hovering around yearly lows in trade volumes, bitcoin and ether are crying out for the next crypto-specific catalyst that will kickstart another bull run and a decoupling from equities," Conor Ryder, an analyst at Kaiko, told CNBC. "The Merge proved yet again that macro is king and we saw that last week with a volatile reaction to CPI."

Bitcoin climbed as high as about $19,900 in its big rebound last week. Ryder agreed that a substantial break above $20,000 could usher in a new level higher.

"Crypto markets have staged a respectable recovery since the initial reaction to the inflation reading and investors are now eyeing up the psychologically important $20,000 level for bitcoin, which should result in a climb higher if breached," he said.

However, "it looks as if crypto and stocks will move in tandem for the rest of the year, both likely tracking sideways until there is a hint that the Fed will start to reverse the recent regime of monetary tightening," he added.

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Bitcoin is higher to start the week but continues holding sideways pattern - CNBC

Bitcoin Joins The Guinness Book Of World Records – Bitcoin Magazine

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Bitcoin has officially entered the Guinness World Records for a number of entries, the first of which is being recognized as the first decentralized cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin was developed as a solution to the challenge of regulating a digital currency without any centralized organization, reads the entry.

Indeed, Bitcoin does offer decentralized consensus through proof-of-work, as Guinness mentions, though the record keeper does seem to still be learning how Bitcoin works.

Each node (i.e.,computer) represents a validator, also called, in the case of PoW, a miner, the entry continues.

However, this depiction of nodes and miners is not accurate. A node does validate transactions, but miners are separate entities that help organize the data held in the blocks on the blockchain. A full node cannot propose new blocks to the blockchain like miners can.

Still yet, it is a notable thing to see so many firsts in the world of Bitcoin to be recognized by Guinness. For instance, a Bitcoiner favorite, the first commercial bitcoin transaction where Laszlo Hanyecz paid 10,000 BTC to order $25 worth of pizza.

Additionally, El Salvador received recognition for being the first nation-state to recognize bitcoin as legal tender. Bitcoin was also recognized as the most valuable cryptocurrency, as well as the oldest.

Furthermore, and contrary to popular belief, Guinness noted that the first non-fungible token (NFT) was created on Bitcoin. In a more light-hearted fashion, an entry was also made for the first bitcoin economy on a Minecraft server, allowing mined resources to be traded for fractions of a bitcoin.

While some entries may have some definitions mixed up or some of the semantics of the Bitcoin ecosystem misinterpreted, it is still interesting to see some of the most notable achievements of Bitcoin being recognized by Guinness.

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Bitcoin Joins The Guinness Book Of World Records - Bitcoin Magazine

October is a historically strong month for bitcoin, but price action this month has been oddly lackluster – CNBC

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

The month of October, celebrated as "Uptober" by long-time crypto investors, has historically churned out some big gains for bitcoin. In seven of the last 10 years, bitcoin has posted a positive month. Most recently, it notched a 40% gain 2021 in, after posting 28% and 10% increases in 2020 and 2019, respectively. That's according to spot exchange closing prices tracked by data provider CryptoQuant. For four of the last six years, ether has ended the October trading month higher, according to Kaiko. This October, however, price action has been lackluster. Bitcoin hasn't broken out of the $19,000 level meaningfully in weeks, and with crypto in a bear market, the possibility of posting a losing October is greater than usual. Bitcoin was lower for the month by 0.3% as of Tuesday, while ether was down 1.4%, according to Coin Metrics. "Crypto market volatility has dipped to multi-year lows over the past month, with bitcoin's 20-day volatility now equal to that of the Nasdaq equity index," Kaiko head of research Clara Medalie told CNBC. "Throughout October, bitcoin broke $20,000 just once on the 6th, before retracing, at one point dipping below $18,000," she added. "Overall, daily trade volumes in October are on average less than what was observed last October, which was the month before bitcoin broke all-time highs above $60,000." Katie Stockton, a charts analyst and founder of Fairlead Strategies, said bitcoin is retesting its 50-day moving average, adding that said she remains bearish in the intermediate term citing elevated risk of a breakdown that could take bitcoin to near $13,900. Despite oversold conditions, long-term momentum is still negative, she said, noting there's no evidence yet of a long-term low. Macro risks and retail investors The price action may feel a bit stuck to some, but many are celebrating bitcoin's relative stability and have noted that while stock averages fell again to retest their summer lows, bitcoin held steady even if it was 70% below its November all-time high. Part of the reason for the uncharacteristically and consistently low volatility as of late is that crypto traders began pricing in the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes earlier than equities investors did, according to GregMagadini, CEO of Genesis Volatility. "Crypto had its meltdown back in May and June," he said. "The crypto space has been ahead of the curve and is now taking a breather, while equities are now having their moment worrying about federal rate hikes." Bitcoin's outperformance in the first and third quarters of the year has also helped validate the idea that crypto's big crash in the spring was primarily the result of the fallout of the Terra project and the contagion that spread to Three Arrows, Voyager, Celsius and others. Some are beginning to wonder if bitcoin could be at the beginning of its decoupling from stocks, which many trace back to the beginning of the year, after institutional investors started to enter the market and the Fed introduced its rate hiking plan. It remains to be seen how cryptocurrencies, currently flat for the month, finish October. Investors are looking for a new use case or catalyst to bring new interest to crypto, but many have come to terms with the fact that crypto is largely macro driven for now. "Crypto could be more sensitive to longer-term yields crawling any higher than they are right now," said Callie Cox, U.S. investment analyst at eToro. "While the stock market could find some momentum in a better-than-expected earnings season, crypto could be held down by the belief that a resilient economy could encourage the Fed to swing its hammer harder. Interest-rate sensitivity has been a big differentiator in sector and asset class returns lately." She also added that, despite the wave of institutional investment that has joined the market this and last year, cryptocurrencies are still largely retail-driven and therefore more sensitive to retail investors wanting to cut risk from their portfolios this year. "We haven't seen much of that yet, but we are seeing investors become more defensive because they're increasingly concerned about the economy," Cox said. "People invest when they have cash on hand, and if retail pulls back on investing because they need to pay bills or build up an emergency fund, we could see the after-effects in riskier markets like crypto."

Pay No Attention to the Price of Bitcoin and Ethereum – Decrypt

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Crypto is totally dead latelyif you're only looking at the price action.

Yes, Bitcoin is down 72% from its all-time-high price in November 2021, almost one full year ago. Ethereum is down the same, 72% from its own high of $4,878. Woof.

Crypto advocates point out that it's not just crypto, stocks have been hammered too. And they're right: everything is down right now. But that's cold comfort for crypto believers, whoI'll let you in on a little crypto media trade secretdo not care to read any crypto news when crypto prices are down. ConsenSys CEO Joe Lubin put on a brave face last week when talking to me about the technological success of the Ethereum merge, but ETH is down a disheartening 21% since the event.

For a better temperature check on how crypto is doing, look at the major recent signs of mainstream adoption. In the past two months, we got a string of indications that major financial institutions and tech companies believe crypto is here to stay. You'd be excused for having missed these news stories while the global economy was collapsing all around us.

In August, BlackRock,the largest asset manager in the world, launched a spot Bitcoin private trust to give its customers exposure to the current price of Bitcoin. (As a reminder, the SEC has staunchly refused to greenlight a publicly-traded spot Bitcoin ETF, allowing only Bitcoin futures ETFs; but BlackRock can offer its own clients whatever service it wants.) BlackRock also said it's seeing substantial interest in crypto from its institutional clients, and that it's exploring stablecoins and tokenization. Wow. Bitcoin didn't budge on that news, a sign of just how much the economy is weighing on every type of asset.

This past week brought two more big shows of faith.

Google announced it will start accepting crypto as payment for its cloud services early next year by plugging into Coinbase. As part of the deal, Coinbase Commerce will move its "data-related applications" from Amazon Web Services over to Google. So not only is this Google Cloud welcoming crypto, but also a form of tie-up between Google and Coinbase.

On the same day, 239-year-old Bank of New York Mellon launched its own Bitcoin and Ethereum custody service. The bank will hold clients' private keys and provide accounting on their crypto portfolios. This follows BNY Mellon becoming the custodian for the cash reserves that back Circle's USDC stablecoin in March. And last year, BNY Mellon launched a Bitcoin custody service in Ireland.

All of this might look to sneering crypto-skeptics like a sad attempt at rationalization. The favored mantra of Web3 builders, "bear markets are for building," gets so oft-repeated at times like these that it has become clich. That doesn't mean it's untrue.

I first wrote about Bitcoin in 2011. I've witnessed the freezing crypto cycles of 2014, 2018, and now. Some of the best-known crypto companies and platforms were built during those "winters."

Lubin says crypto is "the tail being wagged by a very sick dog" right now and that it won't get better until the economy improves. Solana founder Anatoly Yakovenko thinks it could take 12-18 months.

Meanwhile, they're all still building, as signs of future adoption quietly multiply.

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Pay No Attention to the Price of Bitcoin and Ethereum - Decrypt

Bitcoin reverses lower after Thursday’s big rally but remains in the $19,000 level – CNBC

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Photo illustration of Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange website.

Dado Ruvic | Illustration | Reuters

Cryptocurrencies were little changed on Friday as investors sought to extend the previous day's rally.

Bitcoin was lower by 1% at $19,175.00, and ether gained 1% to trade at $1,299.66. Both assets ended their fourth down weeks in the last five.

Crypto jumped Thursday, following the movement of stocks after the consumer price index came out showing higher-than-expected inflation. That reading initially sent risk assets down sharply before they reversed and soared, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average staging a historic 1,500-point rally.

"Yesterday we saw a knee jerk reaction lower in all markets which was algo-driven, then short-covering and real buying stepped in, which was the right response to the CPI data," said Jeff Dorman, chief investment officer at Arca. "Markets aren't concerned with inflation, they are concerned with the Fed's expected response to inflation, and nothing changed yesterday: 75 basis points was baked in, it was confirmed further by the CPI data."

October tends to be an up month for bitcoin, according to Bespoke Investment Group. Bitcoin's never been in a bear market like this one, however, and some remain cautious.

The cryptocurrency's third-quarter return of 6% and ether's 25% return outperformed other asset classes, and both have held up fairly well, trading within the $19,000 level for much of the past month, due to the uncertain macro environment. However, "the subdued volatility relative to other assets on continued declining volumes has the potential to lead to downside," Compass analyst Chase White said in a note Friday.

It had been a tough week for markets before the CPI data was released. YuyaHasegawa, crypto market analyst at Japanese crypto exchange Bitbank, said the rebound could trigger an unwinding of recent risk-off sentiment in stocks.

That "could have a positive effect on the price of bitcoin," he said. "If the price recovers the $20,000 psychological level with substantial trading volume in the next few days, bitcoin could test $23,000 next week."

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Bitcoin reverses lower after Thursday's big rally but remains in the $19,000 level - CNBC

Cryptoverse: Flurry of funds bet on bruised bitcoin’s allure – Reuters

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Oct 18 (Reuters) - A growing number of funds are betting on the long-term appeal of bitcoin and ether, a gritty gambit in the depths of a crypto winter.

Unfazed by a collapse in prices over the past 11 months, investment firms have unleashed a flurry of exchange-traded funds, anticipating that elite cryptocurrencies and their underlying technology will eventually prevail.

Of more than 180 total active crypto exchange traded products (ETPs) and trust products globally, half have launched since the bitcoin bear market started, Morgan Stanley said in a note published this month. The proliferation came even as the total value of assets in the market slumped 70% to $24 billion in that period as crypto prices tanked.

About 95% of those 180 funds are focused on the top two coins, bitcoin and ether , Morgan Stanley said.

"Naturally when the market is slower, prices are lower, people have lost money, the intensity of the appetite does diminish," said Chen Arad, co-founder of crypto risk monitoring firm Solidus Labs. "But it's not the case in the long run. As a whole, I don't think anyone is giving up."

The attraction of ETPs is that they provide exposure to digital assets on a regulated stock exchange, so retail and institutional investors don't have to worry about securely storing their crypto and eluding hacks and heists.

In terms of money, cryptocurrency investment products have attracted about $453 million in net inflows this year with much of it going into bitcoin and investment vehicles that include the biggest cryptocurrencies, according to a report from digital asset manager Coinshares.

"There is more asset allocation towards baskets that combine the top five or 10 crypto assets by market cap. It's a flight to quality compared to alternative assets in the crypto industry," said Eliezer Ndinga, director of research at 21shares.

Other major cryptocurrencies include solana , cardano and ripple .

A bitcoin representation is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo

Most active crypto ETP products are registered outside the United States, though, with Switzerland, Canada, Australia and Brazil racing ahead with spot crypto offerings.

One reason is that U.S. regulators have turned down several applications for spot bitcoin funds, which mirror the cryptocurrency's price movements tick-by-tick, citing multiple reasons including a lack of surveillance-sharing agreements with regulated markets relating to the spot funds' underlying assets.

Investors in futures-based funds must often shoulder the additional cost of the futures rollover as contracts approach settlement day, to maintain their position.

Bitcoin has lost 17% in the past three months, while ProShares Bitcoin Strategy's ETF , which tracks bitcoin futures, has shed about 21%. The world's largest bitcoin fund, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC.PK), is down 34% in the same time.

ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, has seen assets under management (AUM) shrink to just over $600 million as of the end of September, according to Refinitiv Lipper data. At its debut a year ago it pulled in over $1 billion in a matter of days.

At Grayscale's Bitcoin Trust, the AUM have tumbled to $12.2 billion from over $30 billion at the end of 2021, data from the firm showed.

Will Peck, head of digital assets at WisdomTree, whose spot bitcoin ETF was blocked by U.S. watchdogs last week, said he wasn't surprised by the decision, but expressed hope that an agreement could be reached.

"I think we'll ultimately get there. But we'll be in a holding pattern for the foreseeable future."

Reporting by Medha Singh and Lisa Pauline Mattackal in Bengaluru; Editing by Vidya Ranganathan and Pravin Char

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Construction of Navarro County Bitcoin Mining Site Met by Protesters – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

A groundbreaking was held Tuesday for what is being touted as the largest bitcoin mining facility in the world.

Operated by company Riot Blockchain, the facility will be located on a 256-acre site seven miles outside Corsicana in Navarro County.

The company has boasted a $333 million investment in the local economy and 270 jobs to start.

Were very excited about this project. We think the impact its going to have throughout this region will be positive, said John Boswell, Economic Development Director for the city of Corsicana and Navarro County.

Not everyone is pleased.

Protestors stood outside Tuesdays groundbreaking voicing concerns about the strain on local resources.

We do not want Riot building here, said Jackie Sawicky with the group Concerned Citizens of Navarro County.

Mining for bitcoin is a 24-hour operation that requires enormous quantities of power and water two resources in tight demand in Texas.

We believe we can meet the water needs, but we dont know what the final number will be, Boswell said, adding he does not foresee any updates to the current water system.

Set to become the largest taxpayer in Navarro County and one of the top employers, the site is expected to be up and running in 2023.

Boswell said his office has not done an economic analysis on the project, but say it will open the door for more high-tech companies to move to the area, along with new housing and retail.

To date, he said the company has not applied for any local tax abatements.

Sawicky says she and others will continue to voice their concerns, demanding transparency from local leaders.

We still do not know some of the most basic, fundamental questions from day one, said Sawicky.

Were all on a learning curve on Bitcoin. Its a pretty new project but its not anything to be scared of, said Boswell.

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Construction of Navarro County Bitcoin Mining Site Met by Protesters - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

What The Bitcoin Revolution Can Learn From The American Revolution – Bitcoin Magazine

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

This is an opinion editorial by Frank Nuessle, previously a T.V. executive, university professor and publishing entrepreneur.

This is the seldom told story of Samuel Adams, and how he became a paradigm-buster, even though hed never heard of a paradigm.

Most of us only know Samuel Adams as a Boston beer or as the cousin of the famous John Adams who became the second President of the U.S. in 1797.

Samuel Adams was a total failure until middle life, when at the age of 41, he proceeded to become, as Thomas Jefferson described him as, truly the man of the Revolution.

On a wet night in the winter of 1770 in a Boston Tavern where local farmers gathered, Samuel Adams proved his political, paradigm-bending genius. It was there that he argued successfully that Britain would soon begin to tax horses, cows and sheep and that it was better to rebel sooner rather than later.

Starting in the mid-1760s, Adams began railing against British Imperial overreach. Then in 1768, two regiments of British soldiers debarked in Boston Harbor. This occupation gave Adams the moral high ground.

Adams began advertising every misstep of the British troops, both real and fictional. Soon women and children began to ridicule the British occupiers blasting them with all the abusive language they could muster. Tension mounted.

On the evening of March 5, 1770, Boston was a tinderbox with armed British soldiers in assembly and a rowdy Boston crowd of over a thousand shouting obscenities at the British. Tempers flared. Chaos reigned as the soldiers leveled their guns.

When the smoke cleared, five men lay dead with many more wounded.

Although Samuel was no orator, on March 6, he gave dignity, morale authority and harmony to his argument that nothing would restore Boston to order but the immediate removal of the British troops.

Within months, the British troops were gone.

That the British backed down gave hope and a moral foundation to the evolving American Revolution which culminated with the British defeat by exhaustion in 1783.

Samuel Adams created the story of the Boston massacre with his rhetoric, his logic and his deeply held idealism, which led him to becoming one of the first to advocate for American independence.

Image source: Boston.com

You could say that he replaced the public perception that the British Empire could not be defeated with the possibility of American independence.

I would argue that Samuel Adams was Americas first marketing genius, the first to seize and shape the popular American imagination.

Adams knew that people are governed more by their feelings than by reason; yet with rigorous logic, he tugged at Americas emotions and opened the Colonies to the possibility of American independence.

The idea of American independence spread because it was a paradigm buster whose time had come.

A paradigm, as I define it, is an internally coherent system of thought, a story, that results in useful insights but that is also only half right because it finds it difficult to escape its own assumptions. The concept of a paradigm was formulated by the philosopher Thomas Kuhn in 1970 and has become a foundational idea.

Up to the 1770s the colonists believed that the British Empire was too powerful to challenge, and that they would be better off acquiescing to British rule. They were living within a mindset, a paradigm that the British could not be defeated.

It took Samuel Adams and others over a decade to change the mindset of enough people in the Colonies so that the American Revolution became possible.

The American Revolution began with an idea just as the bitcoin revolution began with an idea.

The tale of Samuel Adam and the American Revolution shows that Bitcoiners can break through Americas common perception that the Federal Reserve cartels government-controlled fiat money is the only money system that can be trusted.

The brilliance of the design of Bitcoin has proven its resilience over its 13-year lifespan, but bitcoin as sound money needs to evolve further so that it becomes more than someones get-rich-quick scheme.

A survey of 1,000 Americans found that 62% of cryptocurrency investors believe they'll get rich. That is not enough.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be well-off. I certainly hope that bitcoin helps to secure my financial freedom, yet my nuance is a different, and I think, a more profound objective than simply getting rich.

Getting rich is the rallying cry of the current oligarchic, take-make-waste, economic paradigm.

America has been living this get-rich paradigm under steroids since Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas in the 1987 movie, Wall Street, proclaims that Greed is good. In the movie, Gekko goes on to say that greed will save the, malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A.

Evaluate for yourself how much greed has improved America in the 35 years since this movie.

Most people do not want to think about the money system itself, but when they think about the money in their pocket, they live in fear that they will not have enough money to comfortably live out their life. I know that fear and have found myself bankrupt twice.

Because our current paradigm about money drives fear while also being rife with greed, deception and get-rich-quick schemes, we are left with a seriously deteriorating American society.

Under a mental paradigm where greed rules, there is never enough.

As Robert Breedlove brilliantly points out in his intro to D.C. Schindlers book on Plato, Force and fiat are shown to be incompatible with human reason, and thus generative of a collapse into relativism where anyones truth is only as credible as the threat of force backing it.

Doesnt this seem a good description of America pulling itself apart today?

Have you ever thought of the possibility that our money system itself could be creating the fear and the social isolation that so many Americans suffer?

Money is a critical social system, and, like all social systems, it must be judged by the results it produces.

As Jeff Booth suggests, the dominance of money as a social system can be shown because money has historically trumped the law with the laws always changing over time to favor money. This is not a healthy outcome.

I am convinced that a sound money bitcoin economy that stimulates fair trade will change everything.

Civilization began because of fair trade. It is time to take that next evolutionary journey into a sound money system that stimulates fair local trade, societal well-being and environmental sustainability.

Americas blind spot about the money system is a direct result of our living under an outdated mental construct, a paradigm, a story about money that is outdated and that needs to evolve.

But first, we each must acknowledge that to some degree, each of us are living under and are influenced by this existing fiat money paradigm that drives both fear and greed in us.

It is time to move up the evolutionary ladder and develop a more sophisticated worldview now that we know the limits of our planet; limits that the current money paradigm does not acknowledge.

The current corporate sustainability fad called environmental, social and governance (ESG) is simply lipstick on the pig.

To fight the current fiat money paradigm is futile if we cannot offer an inspiring alternative.

That means we need a new paradigm, a new story, a new way of looking at money one that serves the whole, and not just the small self.

Bitcoin is the technological innovation of this revolution. But what is the social innovation? It must begin with a new story. How do we articulate the new sound money paradigm?

The second part of this essay will explore ideas about a new sound money story, call it a sound money paradigm-shifter, that can speed the evolution of the vibrant Bitcoin Economy we all know is somewhere invisibly over the horizon.

This is a guest post by Frank Nuessle. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.

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What The Bitcoin Revolution Can Learn From The American Revolution - Bitcoin Magazine

Record Billion USD in Bitcoin Transferred as This Report Says Bitcoin May Begin Rising Soon – U.Today

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Yuri Molchan

Anonymous whales have shifted nearly billion USD in BTC within one hour, here's what may be behind this

Popular crypto tracking service Whale Alert, which traces big crypto transactions, has shared that just recently, four consecutive transactions shifted a whopping 47,846 Bitcoins in four lumps.

In the meantime, a recent Santiment report shows thatBitcoin has been showing signs of a price revival, and the Bitcoin hashrate has reached another all-time high, despite the price staying low.

Nearly 48,000 BTC wereshifted in four transactionsthree of them carrying nearly 13,000 BTC each. In total, these four transfers were evaluated at $939.8 million.

All of the transactions were sent from different wallets to different addresses, with not a single address being used more than once. It seems that the whales have been redistributing their holdings.

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Meanwhile, a recent report published by Santiment data aggregator shows that the long-term metrics of Bitcoin have been demonstrating signs of a reverse for several months already, even though the price remains in the lows.

The indicators that are showing signs positive for Bitcoin are MDIA (no distribution of BTC has been occurring for a long time now) and MVRV, social volume and weighted sentiment, and network-realised-profit-loss (NRPL).

On Oct.17, Weiss Crypto, a cryptocurrency-focused arm of Weiss Ratings agency, stated that despite the unimpressive market performance over the weekend, the flagship cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, may be on the verge of a breakout, judging by the behavior of technical indicators.

The report stated that Bitcoin is "very bullish in the technical sense."

Besides, the fact that the BTC hashratereached a new peak the other dayalso confirms theprobability of a breakout happening soon.

At the time of this writing, the leading digital cryptocurrency is changing hands at the $19,537 level, up 1.49%in the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap. Bitcoin is trying to regain its recent losses after it dropped from the $19,800 peak a few days ago on Oct.14.

This rise followed a dump of the price down to the $18,183 zone a day before that, following therelease of October CPI data, which was higher than expected. This means that the Federal Reserve is likely to continue raising interest rates in an attempt to break the back of the rising inflation.

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Record Billion USD in Bitcoin Transferred as This Report Says Bitcoin May Begin Rising Soon - U.Today

Bitcoin Miners Are Pivoting in Search of ProfitsAnd Hedging Their Bets – Decrypt

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Bitcoin miners and hosting companies staying afloat in this market have had to venture outside the blockchain industry.

At current prices and Bitcoin network difficulty, only Bitcoin miners with the newest, most efficient rigs and very competitive power rates are able to break even. That is, if theyre only relying on Bitcoin mining for their revenue. The firms keeping their heads above water have had to find other ways to generate cash with their hardware fleets.

As a recent example, Applied Blockchain CEO Wes Cummins walked a thin line during a recent earnings call.

The datacenter company is hoping a name change, to Applied Digital, will signal that theyre not just focused on Bitcoin miners. The change wont be official until shareholders approve it at the companys annual meeting in November, but the company has already updated its website, Twitter account, and logo.

Out with blockchain; in with high-performance computing, or HPC.

Cummins said on the call that the company sees a much larger market opportunity pertaining to high-performance computing applications relating to image processing, graphics rendering, artificial intelligence and machine learning.

But Applied still counts Bitmain, F2Pool, and GMR among its largest customers. And soon that list will include publicly traded miner Marathon Digital (MARA), which just signed a 5-year, 200-Megawatt hosting contract.

I think Marathon is one of the best counterparties, if not the best of the publicly traded miners in the industry, Cummins said on the call Tuesday.

In this market, that means MARA is down less bad than its other publicly traded mining competitors.

On Tuesday, MARA was trading for $11.27 per share. Thats a 46% drop from six months ago. Over the same period, Riot Blockchain (RIOT) has fallen by 60% and Bitfarms (BITF) by 70%.

Hut 8 Mining (HUT), another miner thats outperforming its competitors, was trading at $1.89 on Tuesday, down 56% from six months ago.

In a September mining operation update filed with the SEC, Hut 8 said all of the Bitcoin it mined during the month had been deposited into custody, per its HODL strategy.

Its a timely flex for a company to say that its keeping all the Bitcoin that it mines.

Earlier this year, beleaguered Bitcoin miners were selling more than they mined. And that selling spree has kept Bitcoin mining reserves at a 12-year low of 1.9 million BTC for most of 2022.

But Hut 8s Bitcoin fervor tapered as CEO Jamie Leverton said the company was growing its HPC business, which includes potentially leveraging our GPU machines to provide AI, machine learning, or VFX rendering services to customers, and mining the next most profitable proof of work digital asset during idle time.

Other mining companies have turned the plight of their competitors into opportunities for mergers and acquisitions. CleanSpark has already spent close to $100 million buying Georgia mining facilities from Mawson and Waha Technologies and 10,000 discounted Bitmain Antminer S19j Pro rigs.

But its a precarious time to be bringing new rigs online.

The Bitcoin network difficulty, or how many guesses it takes a mining rig to solve the cryptographic string that allows it to add a block to the chain, jumped by 14% on Monday to 35.6 trillion. Thats an all-time high for the network.

That means miners with the newest mining rigs and access to electricity at a rate below $0.07 per kilowatt are squeaking by on about $6 per day for each rig theyre running, Luxor head of research Colin Harper told Decrypt.

But there are ways to predict when the difficulty might experience a big swing up or down. Thats why Luxor just launched a Bitcoin mining forward contract.

The derivative, which is available to accredited investors, allows miners to hedge against thinning margins. Harper explained that a miner with 100 rigs who wants to lock in a $7 per day profit for each machine could sell a 30-day derivatives contract for the computing power it takes to run those rigs.

If BTC mining profitability goes down over this timeframe, then youve hedged that downside and made a profit, he said, but if profitability goes up, then youve lost money.

In this market, thats a gamble Bitcoin miners might very well be willing to take.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.

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Bitcoin Miners Are Pivoting in Search of ProfitsAnd Hedging Their Bets - Decrypt

3 emerging crypto trends to keep an eye on while Bitcoin price consolidates – Cointelegraph

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

This week, Bitcoins (BTC) price took a tumble as a hotter-than-expected consumer price index (CPI) report showed high inflation remains a persistent challenge despite a wave of interest rate hikes from the United States Federal Reserve. Interestingly, the markets negative reaction to a high CPI print seemed priced in by investors, and BTCs and Ethers (ETH) prices reclaimed all of their intraday losses to close the day in the black.

A quick look at Bitcoins market structure shows that even with the post-CPI print drop, the price continues to trade in the same price range it has been in for the past 122 days. Adding to this dynamic, Cointelegraph market analyst Ray Salmond reported on a unique situation where Bitcoins futures open interest is at a record high, while its volatility is also near record lows.

These factors, along with other indicators, have historically preceded explosive price movements, but history will also show that predicting the direction of these moves is nearly impossible.

So, aside from multiple metrics hinting that a decisive price move is brewing, Bitcoin is still doing more of the same thing its done for the past 4.5 months. With that being the case, it is perhaps time to start looking elsewhere for emerging trends and possible opportunities.

Here are a few data points that Ive continued to be intrigued by.

ETHs price has lost its luster in the now post-Merge era, and the asset now reflects the bearish trend that dominates the rest of the market. Since the Merge, ETHs price is down 30% from its $2,000 high, and its likely that a good deal of the speculative capital that backed the bullish Merge narrative is now in stablecoins looking for the next investment opportunity.

Aside from ETH being an asymmetrical performer in the last four months, Cosmos (ATOM) also defied the market downtrend by posting a monster rally from $5.40 to $16.85. As covered thoroughly by Cointelegraph, oversold conditions, along with the hype of Cosmos 2.0, backed the bullish price action seen in the altcoin, but this chart continues to capture my imagination.

According to the revised Cosmos white paper, the current supply of ATOM will dynamically adjust based on the supply and demand of its staking. As shown in the chart above, when Cosmos 2.0 kicks in for the first 10 months, issuance of new ATOM tokens is high, but after the 36th month, the asset becomes deflationary.

From the vantage point of technical analysis, ATOMs price appears to have hit a local top as the months leading up to Cosmos 2.0 were a buy the rumor, sell the news type of event, but it will be interesting to see what transpires with ATOMs price as the market approaches month 20 in the diagram above.

Related: Price analysis 10/14: SPX, DXY, BTC, ETH, BNB, XRP, ADA, SOL, DOGE, MATIC

Since the Ethereum Merge, Ether emissions have dropped by 97%, and while the price has pulled back significantly, over the coming months, investors might keep an eye on Ethereum network activity, developments with ETH staking across decentralized finance (DeFi) and institutional products, along with any spikes in gas (connected to network activity).

While the price could succumb to bearish pressure in the short term, if the market begins to turn around if new trends trigger increased use of DeFi products, its possible that ETHs price could react positively to those developments.

While new trends across various altcoins may emerge, its important to remember the wider context in which crypto assets exist. Global economies are on the rocks, and persistently high inflation remains an issue in the United States and many other countries. Bond prices are whipsawing, and a looming debt crisis makes its presence known on a daily basis. Risk-on assets like cryptocurrencies are incredibly volatile, and even the strongest price trends in crypto (whether backed by fundamentals or not) are subject to the whimsy of macro factors such as equities markets, geopolitics and other market events that impact investors sentiment.

Keeping this in mind, Bitcoin remains the largest asset by market capitalization within the crypto sector, and any sharp moves from BTCs price are bound to support or suppress the micro trends that might be gaining traction in the market. There is still the possibility of a sharp downside in Bitcoins price, so traders are encouraged to calculate investment size according to their own appetite for risk, and while multiple metrics might support opening long positions in various crypto assets, it still seems too early to fully ape in.

This newsletter was written by Big Smokey, the author of The Humble Pontificator Substack and resident newsletter author at Cointelegraph. Each Friday, Big Smokey will write market insights, trending how-tos, analyses and early-bird research on potential emerging trends within the crypto market.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.

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3 emerging crypto trends to keep an eye on while Bitcoin price consolidates - Cointelegraph

Regulation Is Coming And Bitcoin Will Benefit – Bitcoin Magazine

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

This is an opinion editorial by Shane Neagle, the editor-in-chief of The Tokenist.

The continued discussion about the need for a comprehensive U.S. regulatory framework to identify opportunities and risks within the rapidly growing Bitcoin sector has caught the attention of the wider public.

Rostin Behnam, chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), said recently that proper regulation of the cryptocurrency space could have significant positive effects on market growth, particularly for bitcoin.

Growth might occur if we have a well-regulated space, Behnam said during his appearance at New York University School of Law.

Behnam also said, Bitcoin might double in price if theres a CFTC-regulated market, which made headlines around the globe. His comments arent surprising given that he has emphasized the need for regulatory clarity in the Bitcoin market several times before.

Earlier this year, representatives of the Senate Agriculture Committee, which oversees the CFTC, proposed a new bill that would make the CFTC the primary regulator of the digital assets industry and strengthen its control over cryptocurrency spot markets. The bill would also require trading companies to register with the CFTC. Behnam voiced his support for the bipartisan bill, which would also allow the CFTC to charge fees on regulatory entities and reinforce its financial power.

We are [currently] appropriated money by Congress, and it has put us in a position where we feel like were constantly on edge about how much money we will be appropriated, Behnam added during the NYU School of Law event. We are still feeling the wounds and scars from about five or six years of flat funding.

Behnam added that its modest financial budget and other headwinds have also prevented the agency from putting up a proper fight against crime involving bitcoin and other digital assets. Because the CFTC has no jurisdiction, the agency lacks traditional surveillance services and market oversight solutions to appropriately oversee trading platforms and other intermediaries, Behnam further noted.

These remarks come roughly a month after the former CFTC chairman, Timothy Massad, called for the CFTC and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to come together and address the current crypto regulatory gaps by establishing a self-regulatory organization (SRO).

Massad argued that neither CFTC nor the SEC has the necessary power to regulate bitcoin and other digital assets. At the moment, there is a significant gap when it comes to regulating what he called the cash market for crypto assets. This includes bitcoin trading activities on exchanges like Coinbase or Kraken. While the U.S. Congress has attempted to address this issue through several bills, Massad believes that the solution lies in an SRO.

Earlier this month, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said that he supports the idea of handing the CFTC the role of top non-securities cryptocurrency regulator, though Congress shouldnt overlook the SEC if that happens. He stressed that its important to make sure that securities laws regulating the $100 trillion capital markets must not be undermined as these laws have made capital markets the envy of the world.

At the moment, the CFTC is responsible only for regulating cryptocurrency derivatives, though many in Washington and the bitcoin-centered industry seem to support the idea of handing the reins of cryptocurrency regulation to the agency.

The idea that a well-established regulatory framework could lure more institutional investors and boost bitcoin market adoption is a stance prompted by many within the industry. Behnam also argued that digital asset firms see significant potential for institutional inflows that will only occur if theres a regulatory structure around these markets.

Behnam added that Bitcoin projects thrive on regulatory certainty and the organization hopes to have more clarity in the near future that will allow these companies to continue delivering innovative products that change peoples lives. Again, this stance is not surprising as Behnam has consistently argued for the need to provide market participants with regulatory clarity something that many in the industry have argued is lacking.

Finally, putting bitcoin under the supervision of the CFTC could put the entire securities discussion to bed. This increased clarity and visibility could then pave the way for more institutional players who insist on having a clear framework regulating digital assets to increase their exposure to bitcoin.

However, while many are calling for more regulatory clarity, some analysts believe that a comprehensive regulatory framework could hurt some of the biggest businesses in the U.S., including Coinbase. Wells Fargo analysts initiated research coverage on Coinbase at an underweight rating, citing, among other factors, the risk of a more restrictive government stance toward digital assets.

A tougher regulatory environment as well as continued macro headwinds, could materially impact Coinbases volumes and revenue in 2023, analysts wrote in the initiation note.

Regulation in particular will be a challenge for COIN, for example, note the recent discussion coming from the SEC about cryptos as securities (e.g., for staked assets), Wells Fargo analysts added.

For years, the CFTC and the SEC have squabbled for the role of top regulator of the cryptocurrency industry. Both have been reluctant to issue much in the way of formal guidance for Bitcoin companies, choosing instead to set a regulatory precedent through enforcement actions.

While some industry experts arent supportive of the creation of a comprehensive regulatory framework for Bitcoin, many continue to stress the importance of having more clarity in this area. While many Bitcoin natives are still against any regulation, the added clarity could further accelerate the evolution of the asset.

This is a guest post by Shane Neagle. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc. or Bitcoin Magazine.

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Regulation Is Coming And Bitcoin Will Benefit - Bitcoin Magazine

Major Bitcoin Price Advance Expected This Month, Analyst Says | Bitcoinist.com – Bitcoinist

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

Bitcoin, in October last year, registered an average closing price of $58,051. It enters the first day of the same month this year with far less value, trading at $19,358 as of this writing, according to tracking from CoinGecko.

But even with that huge value discrepancy, some experts believe that the maiden cryptocurrency might be on the verge of a significant price movement as it enters October a month noted to be favorable for the asset.

Source: CoinGecko

After all, it was in this month last year that Bitcoin attained one of its highest prices before hitting its all-time high in November 2021 when it traded briefly at over $68,000.

In October 20, 2021, the digital asset closed at $66,109. It was priced above the $60K mark for 16 straight days beginning in October 15.

In light of this, its safe to say that Kitco News Analyst Jim Wyckoff was on to something when he said the crypto is bound to make noticeable leaps in value this month.

The U.S. dollar is currently on a rampage, dominating some of its fellow global fiat currencies. It demonstrated strong showing against the British Pound, the Euro, Japanese Yen, Canadian Dollar and Swedish Krona.

This level of dominance showcased by the greenback made crypto frontrunner Bitcoin stand out as an alternative, viable hedge.

That development, according to Wyckoff, stabilized the price of Bitcoin as it attempts to sustain the $19,000 level before making a big price movement.

The forecasts, however, are still far from what the digital asset accomplished in October last year.

Bitcoin had a dismal month of September this year, only managing to set a high of just around $20,000.

This month, crypto trading expert Michael Van de Poppe said the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization could be looking at a price of $19,600 provided it is able to hold on at the $19,300 level.

But the crypto community is sounding more optimistic, saying Bitcoin can close out October 2022 with a value of $22,857.

The digital asset can attain that if it becomes successful in its push to exit the bear market and somehow start a bullish rally.

For now, Bitcoin is focusing on regaining the $20,000 level as it has experienced difficulties in climbing and staying there.

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Major Bitcoin Price Advance Expected This Month, Analyst Says | Bitcoinist.com - Bitcoinist

Top Coinbase Executive Says Institutional Crypto Adoption Moving Very Fast, Believes Bitcoin ETF Inev… – The Daily Hodl

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

A high-ranking executive from top US crypto exchange Coinbase says institutional adoption of digital assets is moving quicker than most realize.

In a new interview with SALT Talks, John DAgostino, a senior advisor at Coinbase, says he understands how though it may not look like it, by conventional standards institutional crypto adoption is actually moving fast.

These things just take time. Institutional inertia is a very real thing. I had a hedge fund where one of the guys who worked for me picked up his monitor and threw it through a window because the colors on his OMS, his order management system, changed. Just his colors. These are creatures of habit. Theres a lot of switching costs associated with adding new assets.

So for me, for someone who spent 15 years trying to get commodities to be mainstream, its actually moving fast. But I do understand why for somebody in the heat of the moment feels its glacial. But for institutional I think its moving very, very fast.

DAgostino says US regulators have slowed the growth of the crypto market, but he expects more favorable regulations in the future including the approval of Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded spot funds (ETF).

I think the regulators have been complacent to the point of harming the USs positioning with regards to the growth of this technology. Im sympathetic to their point of view. Im sympathetic to the notion that they feel they have to protect retail investors from volatile assets.

I think thats going to change. Despite the delay, an ETF is inevitable. I cant tell you when its going to happen. But I know at some point its going to happen.

With the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejecting several ETFs already, pressure is mounting for an eventual approval.

Crypto asset manager Grayscale recently took legal action against the SECs rejection of the firms ETF application.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Eky Rima Nurya Ganda

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Top Coinbase Executive Says Institutional Crypto Adoption Moving Very Fast, Believes Bitcoin ETF Inev... - The Daily Hodl

UKs Brexit divorce bill stood at 36.7bn in 2021, EU audit reveals

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

The UKs Brexit divorce bill stood at 41.8bn (36.7bn) in 2021, according to the EUs official auditors.

The European court of auditors annual report revealed that the UK was expected to make 10.9bn in payments to the EU during 2022.

The Brexit divorce bill was down from 47.5bn (41.7bn) in 2020, reflecting payments made by the British government.

Tony Murphy, the president of the European court of auditors, said the final amount the UK pays to the EU was not expected to change much. Overall its pretty stable; there could be some adjustment, but I dont think it will be that significant.

EU estimates of the Brexit financial settlement have tended to be higher than those of the British government, which forecast Brexit spending commitments between 35 and 39bn.

The Treasury, however, in July revised the Brexit bill upwards by 5bn, from 37.3bn to 42.5b, blaming the rising cost on meeting the UKs obligations to pay EU staff pensions.

The Brexit financial settlement largely consists of EU projects the UK agreed to co-fund during its time as a member state, a category worth 28.6bn, according to the court of auditors. The second largest component, 14bn, is the cost of EU staff pensions, reflecting liabilities incurred during Britains 47 years of membership. Smaller elements include loan guarantees offered by EU member states, including the UK, to countries such as Ukraine.

When Britain left the EU on 31 January 2020, it had agreed a way to calculate the divorce bill, but not a figure. The final total depends on variables such as projects being cancelled, actuarial estimates changing, and EU loans going bad.

The report was published amid an improvement in EU-UK relations. Liz Truss, in contrast with her domestic troubles, smoothed relations with European neighbours last week by attending a European summit in Prague that brought together EU and non-EU countries to discuss the war in Ukraine.

Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning

EU diplomats, however, say they have few illusions about her stance on the EU. The governments emollient tone on the Northern Ireland protocol is attributed to its domestic troubles and turbulence on financial markets, which are seen as reducing appetite for a trade war with the EU.

A UK government spokesperson said: These figures were originally published in the EUs 2021 annual accounts and are consistent with the Treasurys latest estimates. We recognise the importance of ensuring that taxpayers money is well spent and are committed to transparency we regularly report these figures to parliament.

‘How’s Brexit going?’ British politics mocked at home and abroad – Reuters UK

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

ROME, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Britain's political and economic turmoil has been greeted with thinly veiled satisfaction among pro-European and leftist politicians abroad, with some commentators drawing parallels to chaotic Italy.

New British finance minister Jeremy Hunt will set out tax and spending measures on Monday, two weeks earlier than scheduled, as he races to stem a dramatic loss of investor confidence in Prime Minister Liz Truss's government. read more

"How's Brexit going?" tweeted veteran Belgian politician Guy Verhofstadt, an ardent pro-European, on Saturday. "One thing is for sure: the mess didn't start in 2022 but in 2016," he added, in reference to Britain's referendum to leave the EU.

There was a similar hint of schadenfreude in remarks by Spain's Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who slammed Truss's original tax cut proposals as Britain's crisis unfolded last week.

"The neoliberal path failed in the previous financial crisis, created a great deal of suffering and will again lead to failure for those who follow it as we have just seen in the UK," he told the Spanish parliament.

Truss on Friday fired her finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng to replace him with Hunt, and scrapped parts of the government's economic package after it sparked a financial market rout including a steep dive in the value of the pound.

With the Conservative party plunging in opinion polls, social media has been full of memes and jokes revelling in its woes.

"Did you hear Kwasi Kwarteng flew back from the U.S. first class? Apparently they didn't want him near Business or Economy" read one joke doing the rounds on Twitter in reference to Kwarteng's rushed return from Washington to be fired by Truss.

Outside Europe, U.S. President Joe Biden called Britain's plan to scrap the 45% top income tax rate a "mistake".

Biden, a Democrat, frequently criticizes conservative "trickle down" economic policies, associated in the United States with former President Ronald Reagan and Republicans.

"I think that the idea of cutting taxes on the super wealthy at a time when - anyway, I just think - I disagreed with the policy," he told reporters in Oregon on Saturday. read more

Even Britain's staunchly conservative newspaper the Telegraph, which backed the Brexit referendum, acknowledged in a column on Sunday that its economic goals had failed.

"Britain's transformation into the new Italy is almost complete," was the headline of the article which drew numerous parallels between the two countries' economic declines and political instability.

Britain has had four prime ministers in the last six years, a new trend akin to Rome's notorious revolving door governments.

Officials in Washington last week for International Monetary Fund meetings said the upheaval in London could prove a salutary lesson for high-debt Italy, which has just elected a right-wing coalition also promising unfunded tax cuts.

"We have a lesson to learn perhaps, because what happened showed how volatile the situation is and so how prudent we should be with our fiscal and monetary mix," EU Economics Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni, an Italian, told a news conference without naming Italy directly. read more

Other officials in Washington were more open, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"The UK example of how quickly and aggressively markets can turn on you, is likely to keep Italian policy cautious. I am sure Rome is watching carefully what is happening in the UK," one senior euro zone official said.

Additional reporting by John Chalmers and Jan Strupczewski in Brussels, David Latona in Madrid and Jeff Mason in Washington, Editing by William Maclean

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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'How's Brexit going?' British politics mocked at home and abroad - Reuters UK

No, Brexit is not the cause of our economic turmoil – Spiked

Posted on October 19, 2022 by Danzig

The UK economy is in a serious crisis. Inflation is biting, recession is looming and, of course, there is all of the turmoil in the markets. Now that Liz Trusss mini-budget has officially been killed off by new chancellor Jeremy Hunt, the post-mortems can begin. And for Britains hard-of-thinking commentariat and for some meddlesome outsiders all of these problems can be boiled down to one simple cause: the vote for Brexit in 2016.

It is Brexit that sits behind all that has unfolded, claims one Times columnist. Our economic troubles, he says, are the result of the six-year cult of Brexit gripping the Tory Party, driven by the mass sociogenic delusion of the Leave vote, in defiance of the technocratic consensus.

According to a senior French official, Trusss humiliating u-turns represent the ideology of Brexit meeting its dead end. Or as one excitable Remainer activist puts it: Brexit made it okay to sacrifice the economy for ideology despite expert warnings. Brexit was the manifesto of this self-titled jihadist government.

This Brexit Tourettes, this compulsion on the part of the great and good to blame Brexit for everything, is not anything new in itself. Since we left the EU, Remainer commentators have tried to link Brexit to everything from Putins invasion of Ukraine to Britains Covid death toll.

Nevertheless, there is something especially pernicious about the attempts to pin the current crisis on Brexit. What a mini-budget drawn up by a formerly Remain-supporting MP, six years after the referendum itself, has to do with Brexit is not at all clear. More importantly, so many of the decisions that have brought us to the brink of economic ruin were supported not by populist Leavers, but by the technocratic elites.

Given the profound global shocks of the past few years, from the pandemic to Putins war, finding Brexit at fault for our current economic woes is more than a little dishonest. Whats more, how the elite has responded to some of these shocks has made matters much worse.

Take Covid-19 and the lockdown policy. For two years, across the world, industry, trade and transport were either put on ice or severely disrupted and far more so by state-enforced restrictions than by the pandemic itself. Thanks to lockdown, the UK endured its largest fall in GDP in the history of industrial capitalism. Even as the economy opened again, supply chains remained snarled up. Shortages in goods and the means to transport them wreaked havoc, and they did so for months after the lockdowns ended. It is absurd to compare this level of disruption to extra bits of post-Brexit customs paperwork.

Whats more, in order to keep the economy on life support during the pandemic, governments and central banks across the world responded with ultra-loose monetary and fiscal policy. In the UK, public debt rose to over 100 per cent of GDP and the Bank of England pumped almost half a trillion pounds into the economy via quantitative easing. None of these policies was subjected to serious debate. There was a rock-solid elite consensus that there was simply no alternative. Yet these policies have clearly laid the groundwork for our current economic mess.

Then, in February, came the war in Ukraine. It has profoundly destabilised global energy supplies, sending gas prices to record highs. While no one but Russia can be blamed for the invasion, the resulting energy crisis in the UK has been far worse than it ought to have been. Indeed, an energy crisis was already on the horizon back in autumn 2021, triggered in part by economies around the world rebounding after lockdowns.

The Wests long-term embrace of green ideology has left us vulnerable and exposed to these energy shocks. For over a decade now, British politicians have shown a dogged hostility to domestic fossil-fuel production. And they have avoided carbon-free nuclear power. Before the current energy crisis, you would have struggled to find a mainstream politician who would say that our energy needs should come before the concerns of climate activists. Unreliable carbon-neutral energy sources have been subsidised to the hilt, while reliable fossil fuels have been demonised and defunded.

The energy crisis has inevitably forced the UK government to row back on elements of the green agenda. To shore up our future energy supplies, the government is scrambling to issue new oil licences and now says it is open to fracking for gas. This is, at the very least, a partial admission of fault.

Brexit did not plunge Britain into this economic crisis. Brexit did not take a sledgehammer to global supply chains. Brexit did not run up public debt and force us to print half a trillion pounds. And Brexit certainly did not run down our energy supplies. These problems stem from failed elite orthodoxies from the very technocratic elites who are now trying to pin everything on the Leave vote.

We must not let them get away with blaming Brexit for their own profound failings.

Fraser Myers is deputy editor at spiked and host of the spiked podcast. Follow him on Twitter: @FraserMyers

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