KRAKOW, POLAND - 2018/12/25: Bitcoin stock market value is seen on a mobile phone. (Photo by Omar ... [+] Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The crypto market experienced one of its worst days in history with a nearly 50% one-day drop in the price of bitcoin. Economic uncertainties from the coronavirus pandemic and liquidity crunches have caused massive selloffs of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Alt coins and DeFi platforms are experiencing similar issues as well. Not all hope is lost however. A downturn like this presents unique tax saving opportunities, especially in the cryptocurrency space. A brief lesson in the tax code could help you save thousands or more when you file your 2020 taxes.

It is extremely important to know that, claiming losses for tax purposes is different than having a loss in your portfolio. In most cases, the tax code only allows you to deduct realized losses.

It is likely that most of your cryptocurrency positions are in the red. For tax purposes, you can not deduct mere decrease in market value of your positions because they are unrealized. When you sell your position, these losses become realized and you can deduct the losses on your taxes.

For example, lets say David bought 1 bitcoin (BTC) at $10,000 on January 15, 2020. On March 11, 2020, the price of BTC drops to $3,000. In financial terms, he has lost $7,000 worth of value. However, from tax point of view, even though he has lost $7,000 worth of value, he has not realized this loss because he has not sold the position yet. If he were to keep this position without selling, he would NOT be able to deduct any losses for tax purposes despite having a financial loss.

Converting unrealized losses into realized losses allows David to get a deduction when he files his 2020 taxes. In order to realize his losses, he simply has to sell his positions that are at a loss. He also has an option to buy back into the same positions at a much lower price (without compromising the ability deduct losses) because wash sale rules are not applicable to cryptocurrencies under current guidance. Some crypto tax software helps you harvest tax losses.

Realizing some of your losses is super important to offset unexpected capital gains arising from margin liquidations. If you are a margin trader, it is likely that your initial margin has been liquidated due to large swings in prices. If you are trading on high leverage, even slight market fluctuations can trigger liquidations, and may result in capital gains taxes.

For example, assume Jennet deposited 1 BTC into her margin account on February 10, 2020, when the price of BTC was $9,000. She originally obtained this BTC in 2010 at a price of $1,000. She sets the leverage to be 5X so her notional buying power is 5 BTC (1 BTC x 5) or $45,000 ($9,000 x 5). Lets say Jennet goes long on ether with her full notional value of $45,000. At 5X leverage, if the $45,000 position goes down by 20% (notional value down to $36,000) her initial 1 BTC deposit will be liquidated by the exchange.

Assuming the BTC price is $9,000 at the time of the liquidation, she would end up having to pay taxes on $8,000 ($9,000 - $1,000) of capital gains. This is a tricky situation where Jennet actually owes capital gains taxes despite losing her investment.

Under the tax code, you can claim a maximum of $3,000 of capital losses on your tax return. However, the good news is that losses in excess of $3,000 can be carried forward indefinitely to future years. These losses can be used to offset future gains arising from crypto and stock transactions. To get advantage of this provision you need to realize your losses as explained above.

Knowing these simple tricks and executing them before the end of the year can help you get significant tax relief when you file for taxes. For the most part, the tax code only cares about your realized losses, not your real world loss in economic value. Use this to your advantage to reduce your taxes.

Disclaimer: this post is informational only and is not intended as tax advice. For tax advice, please consult a tax professional.

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How To Make Money When The Cryptocurrency Market Is Tanking - Forbes

William Mougayar, a CoinDesk columnist, is the author of The Business Blockchain, producer of the Token Summit and a venture investor and adviser.

We should stop trying to define or classify cryptocurrency as if it were a beast from another planet. Rather, we just need to accept it as the future of money. It is a currency, not a security, and it shouldn't be governed by securities laws. The dollar, euro, yuan, pound are not regulated by securities authorities.

There is little value in attempting to define, box-in, segment or categorize cryptocurrency as something that needs to be continuously examined, questioned and analyzed. Instead, lets focus on promoting cryptocurrencys adoption because it is here to flourish and stay.

At a recent DLD 2020 panel, entitled "Virtual Currencies & the Global Financial System," the first question from the moderator consisted of defining cryptocurrencies. Each of the three panelists (painfully) took a shot at suggesting their own definitions. Another panel from Davos 2020, "From Token Assets to a Token Economy," discussed tokens as a type of cryptocurrency. In both panels, the definitions tried to depict tokens and cryptocurrency as a new type of animal.

Is there a point trying to classify the various types of cryptocurrencies, really?

Cryptocurrency is just like any currency, except with more powerful properties. It is that degree of power that is scaring incumbents while exciting new participants.

Over the long term and in the end-state, cryptocurrency is going to be as pervasively used as todays currency, but with a rivaling variety. Today we see cryptocurrency as the future of money, but tomorrow it will be an integral part of money.

Email was new until it wasnt.E-commerce was a novelty until it no longer was. Filing taxes electronically or renewing licenses online was a rarity until it became routine and sometimes the only option. Online banking was innovative until it became routine. Meeting friends online was extraordinary until it became very common. Reading online news was a parallel activity to printed newspapers until it became the norm for billions of people.

Today, cryptocurrency is an anomaly whose usage and understanding are in the hands of the few. Soon enough, it will permeate our society, habits, business, government, and become second nature.

The rabbit hole of classifications

If you go down the rabbit hole of classifications, you quickly realize the resulting madness and confusion from the nomenclature jargon: stablecoins, staked currency, utility tokens, security tokens, native coins, digital rights tokens, non-fungible tokens, etc.

There are stablecoins and market-driven coins. Stablecoins, like the name implies are coins with less volatility (supported by algorithmic or asset-backing stability), whereas non-stablecoins are subject to market supply/demand price fluctuations.

Cryptocurrency can be government or non-government backed. Government-backed cryptocurrency is still a rarity, and the subject of more discussion than action. As an aside, it will end up as a centrally controlled digital currency rather than being decentralized, programmable and native to a given blockchain.

Sadly, we have invented many of these classifications to please regulators.

We also have tokens that are in essence cryptocurrencies with a purpose. Then we enter the legal sphere, where tokens get labeled a utility, or security, based on how they were initially created, who received them and their ultimate functionality. For most tokens, there is a blurred line in demarcating the distinction between exclusive utility and their security-like properties of tokens.

Somewhere between a utility and security, we also have non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that are representations of unique ownership of a digital asset that has no physical equivalent (such as a CryptoKitty or a games related artifact like a special tank or sword.)

Sadly, we have invented many of these classifications to please regulators. With tokens, regulators and governments get agitated because companies can now issue tokens as currency, whereas issuing money used to be the sole right of sovereign governments. But companies have been issuing stock for decades. A stock is another form of value that cryptographic tokens mimic when they function as a security.

Then, we enter discussions about the functionality of these tokens: can they be earned? Sold? Bought? Spent? Awarded? Are they a payment unit? Or a right to a privileged action (like voting or getting access to information). Will their value increase if you dont use them and just store them? Are they native to a blockchain network, or grafted on top of an existing platform or singular application?

The above classifications are what we currently see, and there may be new representations we havent seen yet. While some of these functions are distinct from one another, many of them overlap with each other. That is why classifying cryptocurrency is not that useful, because we are still in the formation stages.

Reality check. Stop defining.

Time for a reality check. Do we still attempt to define the internet? Not anymore. But in its early days, we diduntil we didnt anymore.

Do we define money by its use cases, like something you buy groceries or pay a toll with? Or do we, rather, define money by its properties?

Moneys key properties consist of being a unit and a store of value that is transferable, fungible, verifiable, divisible and scarce.

Cryptocurrency inherits all these properties, in addition to adding unique functions that money doesnt have: its immutability is digital (the physical is gone), it can be fungible or non-fungible, its policy governance doesnt need to be centralized, it has very powerful programmable capabilities with imbedded logic (if-this-then-that), and its transferability is peer-to-peer (without central intermediaries). In essence, cryptocurrency is money on steroids.

Let us start using cryptocurrency according to its most common features first, the ones that it shares with the money we know. Then we can evolve from there. Just like early websites were glorified brochures on a screen, then we evolved way beyond that monochromatic use case into e-commerce, e-business, two-way communications, social interactions and much more.

Using cryptocurrency hasnt been easy for the average person, and thats a valid challenge. But it is getting better.

It is time to give cryptocurrency the place it deserves. If it is to claim a position as the new money, then we need to increase its usage, starting with the easier use cases and gradually increasing the variety and complexity.

We need to bring cryptocurrencies to the fore and make them as popular as regular currency and web are.

Let us stop defining and segmenting cryptocurrency in ways that limit it. Rather, lets start using it in ways that open up the possibilities and allow it to cement itself in our lives and businesses so it is accepted, welcomed and not feared.

Cryptocurrency is the new money and the new currency. It is time it enters the bloodstream of the mainstream.

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

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Defining Cryptocurrency Is the Best Way to Kill It - CoinDesk - Coindesk

Some members of the Libra Association are now backing a rival project called Celo, which has its own blockchain and cryptocurrency. Over 50 major companies have pledged their support, each pursuing a diverse set of use cases. The project claims that the combined reach of all members exceeds 400 million people.

Also read: Bitcoin Legal in India Exchanges Resume INR Banking Service After Supreme Court Verdict Allows Cryptocurrency

The Celo Foundation announced on Wednesday 50 founding members of the Celo Alliance for Prosperity. Celo is an open platform that makes financial tools accessible to anyone with a mobile phone, its website describes. The project offers a way for developers to build mobile apps based on Celos Ethereum-based blockchain with a stablecoin.

The effort is designed to deliver humanitarian aid, facilitate payments and enable microlending through a cryptocurrency called the Celo Dollar, which is scheduled to launch in April, Bloomberg reported. Chuck Kimble, who heads the Alliance for Prosperity, said in a phone interview with the publication:

The value of the Celo Dollar will be pegged to the U.S. dollar and backed by a reserve of other cryptocurrencies It will be available in the U.S., but the alliances focus is on Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia.

Citing that Today less than .5% of global citizens benefit from the speed, transparency, utility, and low cost of using blockchain technology, the foundation detailed, The Alliance members have a plan to change that and are committed to leveraging the power of Celos innovative blockchain technology to create solutions that work across devices, carriers, and countries.

Alliance members are pursuing a diverse set of use cases, including powering mobile and online work, enabling faster and affordable remittances, reducing the operational complexities of delivering humanitarian aid, facilitating payments, and enabling microlending, the foundations announcement explains. Their combined reach is over 400 million people.

The project is dubbed by some as a rival to Facebooks Libra project, which has been scrutinized by regulators worldwide since it was first announced. The Libra project is currently considering redesigning as several key members have left the project, including Paypal, Visa, Mastercard, Stripe, Mercado Pago, Ebay, and Vodafone.

Kimble claims that There are some similarities [with Libra] in terms of mission, which is why there are some people who have joined both alliances. Some Celo Alliance for Prosperity members that are also Libra supporters include Anchorage, Bison Trails Co., Coinbase Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and Mercy Corps. However, the Celo project does not have the massive userbase that Facebook has.

Payments in the Celo Dollar stablecoin can be sent to peoples phone numbers rather than complicated addresses, Tech Crunch noted, asserting that The goal is to make delivering utility via blockchain easier by building a flexible network of applications that doesnt scare regulators like Libra has.

Kimble claims, We have met with governments around the globe as well as central banks, we are continually engaging with governments in the many countries which we hope to serve. Diogo Monica, president of Anchorage, which is a part of both the Libra project and the Celo Alliance for Prosperity, said in a statement:

Celo and Libra each have unique focuses and approaches, but they share a goal that Anchorage strongly believes in: banking the unbanked.

What do you think of the Celo project? Do you think regulators worldwide will have a problem with it like they do Facebooks cryptocurrency? Let us know in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the Celo Foundation.

Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here.

A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography.

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50 Companies Back New Cryptocurrency Project Competing With Facebook's Libra - Bitcoin News

Lifting ban will impact entire ecosystem: India well placed to emerge as a leader in blockchain and cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that runs on blockchain technology. This essentially means that no person or entity can control it. Both nationals and internationals can transact with the currency. India is one of the largest growing economies in the world today. The recent developments, about the Supreme Court lifting the ban on use of cryptocurrency in the country, can have a tremendous impact on the overall economy, in the long run. Not only will the new technology boost job creation, but it will also put India on the global map of yet another up and coming industry.

The ecosystem of cryptocurrency users has grown from thousands to over 30 million people now growth that substantially outpaces the early internets growth rate (approximately twice the rate). This growth includes the use of cryptocurrencies as a lower cost and more efficient alternative for certain financial transactions, the digital gold thesis for bitcoin as the ultimate hard asset, and the emergence of the decentralised finance movement (DeFi) that aims to expand financial inclusion and restore user-control over personal finance.

ALSO READ FROM OUR ARCHIVES:Why India can't ignore virtual currency Bitcoins for long

Can we step back and look at Bitcoins again?

Blockchain and tackle

Abroad, cryptocurrencies have been gaining significant recognition and acceptance. Economic behemoths such as the United States and China have been tussling for blockchain and crypto hegemony, exploiting innovational opportunities within the sector by registering an increasing number of patents. Emerging markets in Asia, such as Thailand and the Philippines, have initiated the process of developing regulatory compliances and guidelines to support the growth of their local cryptocurrency markets. They are approving licences for several crypto exchanges and developing frameworks to boost investor protection.

With Indias pool of skilled and trained IT entrepreneurs and developers, the country is well placed to emerge as a leader in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sectors. Globally, over $5.5 billion has been invested into blockchain startups, with Indian companies receiving less than 0.2% of these capital investments. Singapore, on the other hand, has received more than $744 million as a result of capital inflows into the fintech economy.

Cryptocurrencies can not only provide immense benefits for corporations and institutions, but ordinary people stand to gain equally as well. With access to investments in cryptocurrency, the purchasing power of consumers has a potential to surge. Such a boost to the spending power of ordinary citizens in India could have a domino effect across the economy. This would stimulate wealth creation and encourage further consumption demand in the economy. As it stands, retail investors within India have little access to high-performing international markets. With the legitimization of cryptocurrencies as an asset class, 1.3 billion Indians will gain access to a new asset class with the potential to appreciate over time, as well as the ability to hedge against volatility in traditional markets. Cryptocurrencies can enable unbanked individuals to have access to money management services such as savings and lending for the first time, further improving financial inclusion in India.

Cryptocurrencies and blockchain have the potential to complement and enhance the banking sectors operational efficiency, offering benefits such as improved financial inclusion, the creation of more jobs, the attraction of greater investment into the economy, as well as generalised economic growth. The traditional financial sector would also gain from cryptocurrency innovations with added security, convenience, and transparency in payments systems, which would in turn provide better traceability and accountability than legacy infrastructures.

For Indias crypto sector to thrive, the creation of clear guidelines surrounding the process of applying for and meeting compliance requirements to obtain licences for entities and services such as crypto exchanges, financial services, payments processing, and banking can help provide much-needed clarity and consistency for compliance that can protect investors and improve Know Your Customer (KYC) processes that are in accordance to the Securities and Exchange Board of Indias (SEBI) requirements. As such, having a consistent framework across regulatory requirements will go a long way in charting the growth of Indias crypto sector.

India needs to develop a regulatory framework that governs registration of exchanges, establishment of security procedures, independent audits, mandatory disclosures to customers, maintenance of records and submission of accounts annually to their financial services agency.

Auditing and alteration are not possible, and the transactions remain anonymous. Tax evasion will be impossible as cyber-policing will become stronger. A limit or cap will be placed on the amount of transaction. Transactions need to be thoroughly governed. The RBI cannot intervene in this matter. Cryptocurrency will come under purview of the finance ministry.

Sethurathnam Ravi is founder and managing partner at Ravi Rajan & Co. LLP and former chairman of Bombay Stock Exchange.

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Cryptocurrency is legit: How banking, firms and individuals all stand to gain - Governance Now

Mumbai-based CoinDCX, a cryptocurrency trading platform and liquidity aggregator, has invested $1.3 million in TryCrypto, its own initiative, which is working to make blockchain and cryptocurrency more accessible to mainstream users.

The funds will be used towards educational initiatives, seminars, online courses, roadshows and awareness campaigning, meetups, community events, community engagement, and to product trials.

Founders Neeraj & Sumit

As part of the initiative, CoinDCX will roll out DCXlearn, a full-fledged crypto learning program, on TryCrypto.

Sumit Gupta, CEO and Co-founder, CoinDCX, says,

According to CoinDCX, its education-led approach is geared towards giving first-time crypto users a sufficient knowledge base to help them navigate the cryptocurrency market safely and securely.

DCXlearn will consist of an online learning program along with massive open online courses (MOOCs). The cryptocurrency exchange is already in conversation with a number of top Indian universities to promote crypto education and the TryCrypto initiative within campuses.

In addition to DCXlearn, CoinDCX will also organise meetup events, educational seminars, and consumer campaigns to encourage large-scale cryptocurrency adoption and awareness targeting Indias 50 largest cities in the first iteration of the TryCrypto campaign.

To ensure the success of the TryCrypto initiative, CoinDCX said it will be working with industry partners, including Inblox Network, Amesten Assets, and Cashaa, to promote greater awareness and understanding of digital assets among mainstream audience. It added that leading Indian online media outlets and cryptocurrency news providers such as Cryptokanoon and CoinCrunch have also dedicated themselves to support the TryCrypto initiative.

CoinDCXs investment in TryCrypto follows the landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of India on March 6, which struck down the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) ban on financial institutions providing banking services to cryptocurrency businesses, as well as the announcement that CoinDCX became the first cryptocurrency platform in India to integrate bank account transfers just six hours after the Supreme Court decision was made public.

With one of the youngest populations in the world, India requires solutions which are modern and novel for millennials who are looking for better instruments to manage their finances. Crypto is fast becoming a preferred choice for these young, technologically savvy consumers. However, an initiative like CoinDCX's TryCrypto campaign has the potential to bring the benefits of cryptocurrencies to a larger audience than ever before, said Kashif Raza, Co-founder of CryptoKanoon.

(Edited by Megha Reddy)

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Cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX invests $1.3M in education initiative 'TryCrypto' - YourStory

According to DomainTools senior security engineer Tarik Saleh, the number of coronavirus-themed domain registrations increased following reports of the first cases of COVID-19, and many of these are allegedly scams.

One particular platform, coronavirusapp[.]site, is prompting users to install an Android application for real-time updates on the pandemic. Instead, the app comes bundled with a ransomware aptly called CovidLock.

CovidLock asks for permission to access the lock screen. It then employs a technique known as screen-lock attack, which holds the phone hostage by blocking user access.

The ransomware threatens to erase contacts, pictures and videos on the infected device, as well as leak the victims social media account information and wipe all phone data unless a ransom of $100 is paid in Bitcoin within 48 hours.

Saleh says phones running on the latest Android versions should be fine if the user set a password to unlock the screen.

Since Android Nougat has rolled out, there is protection in place against this type of attack. However, it only works if you have set a password. If you havent set a password on your phone to unlock the screen, youre still vulnerable to the CovidLock ransomware.

DomainTools researchers say theyve already reverse-engineered the decryption key and plan to share it publicly. They are also monitoring the transactions in the Bitcoin wallet used by the ransomware.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Immersion Imagery

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Cyber Thieves Using Coronavirus Fears to Steal Bitcoin (BTC) and Cryptocurrency - The Daily Hodl

Binance, the worlds largest cryptocurrency exchange by adjusted trading volume, has announced that Binance.US, the trading platforms US-based division, will begin listing Tezos (XTZ) on March 16, 2020 at 9:00 AM EST.

As mentioned on the exchange operators official website, Binance.US will support trading for the XTZ/USD and XTZ/Binance USD (BUSD) trading pairs.

Binance.US may deposit US dollars, BUSD (the exchanges stablecoin), or XTZ tokens to their exchange wallets before trading for the supported pairs goes live on Monday.

The XTZ token is trading at $1.47 at the time of writing.

Founded in 2014 by Arthur and Kathleen Breitman, the Tezos project raised $232 million through an initial coin offering (ICO) back in July 2017. At the time, it was the largest ICO ever conducted, but was later overtaken by Filecoin.

Last month, Tezos XTZ crypto token hit a yearly high of about $3.90, having outperformed most other altcoins.

Binance continues to expand its operations across the globe.

Changpeng Zhao, CEO at Binance, revealed recently that the exchange will introduce a fiat gateway for South African cryptocurrency traders, which will allow them to make deposits in Rands.

The announcement was made during the Blockchain Africa Conference, which is being held in Johannesburg.

Zhao said that South African crypto traders will soon have the option to make Rand deposits on the platform via Binances official website.

Zhao noted:

Africa illustrates one of the largest demands and instrumental use cases for cryptocurrency, notably for financial access. According to the World Bank, approximately 66 percent of sub-saharan Africans are listed as unbanked. So instead of trying to bank the unbanked, lets try and Bitcoin the un-Bitcoined.

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Cryptocurrency Exchange Binance to List Tezos (XTZ) on Binance.US, to Support Trades with Binance USD, and US Dollars - Crowdfund Insider

Mar 16, 2020 at 16:33 // News

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently issued well-filtered recommendations to the public especially the investors not to participate in cryptocurrency investments related to Covid19 through an official website.

Watch out for scams related to Covid19, the FCA notes.

It further said that susceptible participants stand more chances of being beleaguered.

Beware of investments that appear to be too good to be true, it adds. If you decide to invest in something offering a high return or in a cryptocurrency, you should be prepared to lose all your money.

As the Corona19 epidemic continues to spread around the world, many criminals commit fraud against the underprivileged by borrowing names such as insurance, pensions and high-yielding investments, and the cryptocurrency should be careful on such projects in order not to fall victims and lose their hard-worked-for money or stashes.

Since February 2020, the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) has tracked around 21 scams involving Covid19, some of which have been recorded as Bitcoin (BTC) extortions. Of these, losses from non-encryption fraud totaled to approximately 800,000 pounds ($983,700 United States Dollars).

Accordingly, the FCA advises digital currency venture capitalists to pay much attention to the investment info presented in social media ads and emails, and not to excessively disclose personal data. In addition, the British financial newspaper 'FINTECH FUTURES' said that other financial watchdogs including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (U.S.SEC), an agency responsible for monitoring monetary assets including Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, has issued similar investment warnings before in early last month.

When investing in any firm, including firms that claim to focus on Covida19-related products and services, it wrote at the time, carefully research the investment and keep in mind that investment scammers often exploit the latest crisis to line their own pockets.

Actually, we talk about people making massive losses through investing in fake cryptocurrency projects, we mean it. We have seen investors lose billions and billions of in onecoin project, fake ICO activities, pyramid, ponzi, as well as pump-and-pump projects.

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UK FCA Warns the Public Not to Invest in Coronavirus-Related Cryptocurrency - Coin Idol