As the October 1 deadline approaches, the risk of a U.S. government shutdown has intensified, pushing investors to seek safety in gold, silver, and Bitcoin. Prediction markets like Polymarket now price the likelihood of a shutdown at 85%, reflecting growing concern as political disputes between Republicans and Democrats over healthcare and budget spending remain unresolved. … Read more
Visa has unveiled a pilot program integrating stablecoins into its Visa Direct network, aiming to transform cross-border transactions. Traditionally taking several days, payments could now be settled in just minutes using Circle’s USDC and EURC instead of traditional fiat pre-funding. This approach ensures recipients are paid instantly in their local currency, while companies gain faster … Read more
In a dramatic turn of events, Zhimin Qian, also known as Yadi Zhang, has pleaded guilty to her involvement in one of the largest cryptocurrency laundering cases to date. The Southwark Crown Court heard her admission of possessing nearly $7 billion worth of illegally obtained Bitcoin, stemming from a fraudulent investment scheme that deceived tens … Read more
The United Nations has launched a blockchain-based identity verification system to modernize operations within its Joint Staff Pension Fund (UNJSPF). The initiative replaces outdated manual processes prone to errors, aiming to boost efficiency and strengthen data protection. The system, built on the Digital Certificate of Entitlement (DCE) using self-sovereign identity (SSI), gives participants full control … Read more
In a move that underscores the ongoing volatility of the cryptocurrency market, Michael Saylor’s company, Strategy, continues to expand its Bitcoin reserves even as its own stock faces downward pressure. The firm’s latest purchase reaffirms its long-standing approach of buying and holding digital assets, though the broader investment climate remains challenging as market swings affect … Read more
Bitcoin Core developers have unveiled version 30, a major update expected to roll out by late October, igniting heated discussions across the crypto community. The update introduces several technical changes, with the most controversial being the expansion of the OP_RETURN field, which increases the current data limit from 80 bytes to nearly 4 megabytes. This … Read more