Bitcoin trading above Rs 28 lakh

Cryptocurrencies traded in the red early today on May 8. The global crypto market cap is $1.60 trillion, a 3.36 percent decrease over the last day. The total crypto market volume over the last 24 hours is $80.16 billion, which makes a 12.97 percent decrease. The total volume in DeFi is currently $9.10 billion, 11.35 percent of the total crypto market 24-hour volume. The volume of all stable coins is now $74.84 billion, which is 93.35 percent of the total crypto market 24-hour volume. Bitcoin's price is currently Rs 28.08 lakh, with a dominance of 41.60 percent. This was a 0.12 percent increase over the day. Read full here

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman flags anonymity as 'inherent risk' in use of blockchain

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on May 7 flagged anonymity as an "inherent risk" in blockchain technology and called for taking precaution in future with a rise in the use of this technology. The finance minister made it clear that using the distributed ledger technology (DLT), which is also called as blockchain, is absolutely imperative and the government also supports the use of the same. The minister's remarks come ahead of the launch of the budgetary announcement of central bank digital currency (CBDC) which is based on the blockchain technology itself and is billed as being similar to the paper currency carried in our wallets. "The anonymity is what … one unknown element in this whole thing. The anonymity of the person or whoever or the robot is the one which we have to be absolutely readying ourselves as a future challenge, Sitharaman said, addressing an NSDL event here. Read details here

SEC: Nvidia failed to disclose crypto as revenue generator

Nvidia, a major tech company that has expanded aggressively into gaming, will pay a $5.5 million penalty for failing to disclose that cryptomining was a significant source of revenue growth from the sale of graphics processing units that were produced and marketed for gaming, AP reported. Cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said that the Santa Clara, California company did not disclose to investors in 2018 the potential future risks of such sales. Nvidias disclosure failures deprived investors of critical information to evaluate the company's business in a key market, said Kristina Littman, Chief of the SEC Enforcement Divisions Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit. The company has also agreed to a cease-and-desist order, the SEC said. Nvidia did not admit or deny the SECs findings, and declined to comment. (AP)

Binance registers with France crypto regulator, advances European plans

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has registered with France's market regulator, Chief Executive Officer Changpeng Zhao said in a tweet, advancing the company's plan to make Paris its European base, Reuters reported. "It's a real stamp of quality," said Binance France's General Manager David Prinçay, referring to the registration with the regulator, AMF. He said Binance France was now seeking a formal licence from the French markets regulator to open a regional headquarters in France. Binance claimed it was the country's top cryptocurrency exchange even before the registration. France is the first European Union country to register Binance, which is also seeking registration in Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Netherlands, Portugal and Austria, Prinçay said. (Reuters)

California moves to embrace cryptocurrency and regulate it

California, which would have the world's fifth-largest economy if it was a country, became the first United States state to formally begin examining how to broadly adapt to cryptocurrency and related innovations, following a path laid out by President Joe Biden in March, AP reported. Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order for state agencies to move in tandem with the federal government to craft regulations for digital currencies. It also calls for officials to explore incorporating broader blockchain computer coding into the government operations of the state where much of the world's technological innovation is born. Dee Dee Myers, a senior advisor to Newsom and director of the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development said, "there are a lot of opportunities, she said. There’s also a lot of unknowns in the industry and so that’s another reason we want to engage early." (AP)