Circle's public listing ambitions halted by SEC's failure to approve $9 billion SPAC deal

Circle, the stablecoin operator blamed the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the failure of its plan to go public through a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC).

> The company had planned to list in December but said that the SEC's lack of approval was the reason for the deal's failure, rather than market conditions.

Cryptocurrency Exchange Luno cuts 35% of global workforce amid tough market conditions

Cryptocurrency exchange Luno has announced that it will be laying off 35% of its global workforce.

> The London-based company informed employees of the job cuts during a live-streamed meeting on Wednesday.

> The company cited a tough year for the tech industry and the crypto market as reasons for the layoffs, saying that it has not been immune to the negative effects on growth and revenue.

Bitcoin mining hosting providers forced to adapt as power prices increase: Galaxy Digital Report

According to a recent report from Galaxy Digital, the Bitcoin mining hosting landscape is set to change in 2023 and it could spell the end for fixed-rate contracts from hosting providers.

> The report explains that hosting providers have been the most affected in the industry, as they offer fixed costs and are subject to real-time power prices.

> This has led to some of the largest providers, such as Core Scientific and Compute North, filing for bankruptcy.

> The report suggests that instead of fixed-rate contracts, we may see hosting providers adopt a new approach, where they charge clients based on power consumption and offer revenue curtailment benefits.

> Additionally, it highlights the disputes between Core Scientific and Celsius Mining, over the terms of their agreements relating to power cost surges, which ultimately led to Core Scientific shutting down 37,000 Celsius mining rigs. Continue reading.

UK government pledges greater engagement with crypto sector, plans new post-Brexit laws

According to Financial Services Minister, Andrew Griffith, the UK plans to increase engagement with the crypto sector and create new post-Brexit laws.

> In a parliamentary debate on regulating crypto, Griffith stated that there will be "six roundtables with the sector with a variety of sector participants during 2023" in order to "bring forward timely, sensible and balanced regulation in order to allow the safe use of this technology,” while also ensuring regulatory clarity and facilitating financial-technology investment."

> However, he did not provide a specific date for a policy document on crypto rules that were previously promised before the end of 2022. Full report here.

Goldman Sachs reveals it outperforms all other assets in 2022

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has recently reported that Bitcoin has been the best-performing asset in the world this year.

> This comes as a surprise to many, as the bank has been known to be a vocal critic of Bitcoin in the past.

> The report, which shows the year-to-date asset returns, revealed that Bitcoin has outperformed other traditional assets such as the S&P 500, gold, real estate, and Nasdaq 100.

> It has also outdone various indices such as the MSCI emerging markets index, MSCI developed markets, and sectors like energy, information technology, and financials.

> According to the report, Bitcoin holds the top spot in the list with over 27% in total returns and a risk-adjusted ratio of 3.1. Continue reading.

Hackers promote fraudulent Crypto project on Binance Smart Chain through hacked Robinhood twitter account, netting less than $8,000 in purchases

The official Twitter account of Robinhood was compromised by hackers on Wednesday who used it to promote a fraudulent cryptocurrency project.

> The hackers announced the launch of a new token called $RBH, claiming it was available for purchase on the Binance Smart Chain for a low price of $0.0005.

> Data from Blockchain explorer showed that a small number of individuals, around 25, had bought the scam token before the link was removed.

> The total amount of money spent on the fake token was under $8,000. Following the hack, some Twitter users reported seeing transactions being sent to the fake account through Binance Hot Wallets.

> Binance's CEO, Changpeng Zhao, acknowledged the hack and announced that their security team had locked the account while they investigate the situation further. Details here.