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US crypto exchange Coinbase leads a $2.5 billion race with Mastercard to acquire the stablecoin startup BVNK. That’s according to a report by Fortune, which cited sources familiar with the matter as saying the two companies have held advanced talks with BVNK on the acquisition. The terms and winning bidder have not been finalized yet with the sale price expected to be between $1.5 and $2.5 billion. Three of the sources said Coinbase appears to have an edge over Mastercard. If a deal is reached, it could be one of the largest acquisitions of a stablecoin firm to date. Citi Buys Stake In BVNK BVNK’s core technology is a blockchain-payments rail that facilitates stablecoin transactions globally. It also allows customers to seamlessly move funds between fiat and stablecoins. The reported talks between Coinbase, Mastercard and BVNK comes hard on the heels of news that banking giant Citi has acquired a stake in the stablecoin infrastructure firm.  Excited to announce...

Pro-crypto US Senator Cynthia Lummis has confirmed that the process to acquire funds for the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) could “start anytime” as regulatory red tape delays the fund’s creation. In an X post , Lummis said that the regulative side of things is still a “slog.” She added, however, that “the acquisition of funds for an SBR can start anytime” thanks to crypto-friendly US President Donald Trump.  Trump Signed An Executive Order For The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Earlier This Year Trump signed an executive order to create the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve earlier this year.  Seven months have since passed and the concrete formulation of the SBR is yet to be confirmed. More specifically, there have not yet been any clear details regarding how exactly capital for the SBR will be raised. The official government fact sheet says that the SBR will initially be “capitalized with Bitcoin owned by the Department of Tre...

Last week was one of the most impressive periods for crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs), in particular Bitcoin (BTC). BlackRock was one again ahead of its rivals, recording $446 million worth of BTC inflows on Thursday, October 2, and another $791.55 million on Friday, October 3, according to data retrieved by Finbold from SoSoValue To put things into perspective, Fidelity, for example, saw only $69.58 million added on Friday, while Ark’s net assets rose by $35.48 million. Out of 12 spot Bitcoin ETFs, only five saw no changes at the week’s close, while the rest were in the green. However, the numbers become more staggering when we consider that BlackRock’s net additions were more than four times higher than those of its competitors combined ($193.5 million). Spot BTC ETFs. Source: SoSoValue The overall daily inflows on October 3 were thus at $985.08 million, bringing the weekly total to $3.24 billion. New BlackRock Bitcoin ETPs  The world’s largest...

Crypto exchange Gemini, founded by billionaires Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, has secured Nasdaq as both a listing partner and an investor ahead of the company’s proposed initial public offering (IPO). Gemini aims to debut on the Nasdaq this Friday under the ticker “GEMI,” a timeline that is still dependent on market conditions, according to a Reuters report that cited sources familiar with the matter. Nasdaq will buy $50 million worth of the crypto exchange’s shares in a private placement at the time of the IPO, which aims to raise more than $300 million. That’s after Gemini said last week that it plans to selling 16,666,667 shares of its Class A common stock at between $17 and $19 per share. The exchange will also grant underwriters a 30-day option to buy an additional 2,396,348 shares.  The exchange’s arrangement with Nasdaq will extend to giving Nasdaq’s clients access to Gemini’s custody and staking services.  Meanwhil...

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only. Ringfence ,  the first generative AI platform to ensure creators are paid for the use of their original work within AI-generated content (AIGC), has announced the successful closing of its $1.5 million seed round.  The round was led by Rarestone Capital and Morningstar Ventures with participation from Spark Digital Capital, Curiosity Capital, Noir Ventures and other leading funds and angel investors. Ringfence is the first platform dedicated to ensuring web3 and Generative AI work in the favor of creators . Currently, courts are struggling with how to apply intellectual property laws to generative AI.  The platform provides the infrastructure for creators to store and protect various media including photos, images, videos, documents, and music. Creators who want to monetize their content can verify owners...

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has criticized the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulation by enforcement approach, questioning the agency’s crypto jurisdiction. Meanwhile, Gary Gensler, the chair of the SEC, has asked Congress for more funding to increase the agency’s oversight of the unregulated cryptocurrency market. Funding, the commission said, is for them to execute their mandate of protecting investors and ensuring markets are fair and efficient. Garlinghouse blasts SEC’s “political power play”  Garlinghouse called out Gensler for what he perceives as inconsistent crypto regulation.  He also said that the SEC had not provided clear guidance to the industry, which has led to uncertainty and confusion. In a tweet on July 23, Garlinghouse argued that relying on enforcement actions rather than legislative clarity only adds to the confusion plaguing web3 market participants and fails to protect retail investors....

Crypto traders chase after neutral-to-bullish options as Bitcoin price targets $20,000 and the total crypto market cap surges above $900 billion. The total cryptocurrency market capitalization reached its highest level in over two months on Jan. 13 after breaking above the $900 billion mark on Jan. 12. While the 15.5% year-to-date gain sounds promising, the level is still 50% below the $1.88 trillion crypto market cap seen before the Terra-Luna ecosystem collapsed in April 2022. Crypto markets total capitalization, USD. Source: TradingView “Hopeful skepticism” is probably the best description of most investors' sentiment at the moment, especially after the recent struggles of recapturing a $1 trillion market capitalization in early November. That rally to $1 trillion was followed by a 27.6% correction in three days and it invalidated any bullish momentum that traders might have expected. Bitcoin (BTC) has gained 15.7% year-to-date, but a different scenario has emerged for altcoin...