Category Archives: Cryptocurrency

Roughly 14% of the U.S. population owns cryptocurrency. This translates to 21.2 million U.S. adults ... [+] who own cryptocurrency.

I didnt plan to write about Gemini, the large, well-respected cryptocurrency exchange, on the same day that China announced its ban on trading of Bitcoin and digital assets. This piece is also in the wake of the new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair, Gary Gensler, calling for heightened regulatory scrutiny of this space and prognosticators portending the demise of this asset class.

It's apropos that this coincidentally happened. Bitcoin and the crypto sector has a history of wild, volatile swings. The professionals in this area have become accustomed to the jarring ups and downs. They take the long-term view, and dont worry too much about the daily gyrations.

The history of Gemini can be traced back to a volatile situation. Undeterred by Mark Zuckerberg allegedly taking advantage of fellow Harvard classmates Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, by running with the Facebook concept and cutting them out of the project, the twin brothers ultimately proved themselves as successful businessmen.

The Winklevoss twins accepted a multimillion-dollar settlement in the matter and used some of the proceeds to buy bitcoin, ether and to build the Gemini Trust Company in 2014. The cryptocurrency exchange and custodian provides customers the platform to buy, sell, trade and store digital assets. It is regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

The company is built upon the belief that digital assets and blockchain technology offer the power to change the world. They are mission-driven to achieve this goal. The crypto exchange is working toward wider acceptance. Its Gemini Pay mobile app is accepted at about 30,000 retailers. It offers interest on digital assets and is rolling out a branded credit card with Mastercard with a 300,000 waiting list.

Jonathan Tamblyn, the director of talent at the exchange, has his work cut out for him. Hes actively searching for over 200 people to join the company. His needs run the gamut. They range from software engineers to compliance, marketing and business development.

Tamblyn says that job seekers dont need to have crypto-related experience. He looks for people who are interested and passionate about this new and fast-growing asset class. Since the company is still relatively new, there is a large amount of upside potential for employees. Possessing an entrepreneurial mindset is important, as the company will keep innovating with new products and services.

The head of talent acquisition has a refreshing and progressive take on hiring and retaining people. While most human resources professionals want to be the point person for rsums and introductions, Tamblyn says that candidates who are interested in working at the company should reach out to a manager directly. This is a welcome change. A job seeker could then cut through all of the red tape and get right to the decision makers.

As the organization is dynamic and entrepreneurial, it understands that workers may elect to leave after gaining a few years of experience. Tamblyn is realistic about this, recognizing that young, motivated people want to learn, build knowledge and a network of cohorts and then pursue challenges at other places. Theres no hard feeling, as he understands that this mentality is a shift from past generations when it was de rigueur for workers to remain at the same corporations for decades.

Noah Perlman, a long-time Wall Street legal and compliance professional and former Assistant U.S Attorney, is the current chief operating officer at Gemini. He said about the study, "This new research signals a valuable and welcome diversification of crypto's investor base. A broader set of participants establishes a positive long-term evolution of the market."

Perlman added, "Trading platforms that prioritize security and smart regulation, while making it simple for anyone to use, make cryptocurrencies accessible and attractive. We believe digital assets are a strategic part of a well-rounded portfolio and providing crypto education will help remove barriers to entry."

A career in the digital asset space wont be a smooth ride. According to a statement from the Chinese government, it appears that cryptocurrencies and related transactions are now considered illegal in China. The Peoples Bank of China claims that this is needed for national security and social stability. The government cited money laundering and illegal activities, among other reasons for the crackdown.

John Paulson, the billionaire who famously made a fortune shorting the market during the housing bubble in 2008, which led to the financial crisis, said in an interview that cryptocurrencies are in a bubble and a limited supply of nothing. He added, Cryptocurrencies, regardless of where theyre trading today, will eventually prove to be worthless. Once the exuberance wears off, or liquidity dries up, they will go to zero. I wouldnt recommend anyone invest in cryptocurrencies.

Bloomberg reported that the Biden administration intends to nominate Saule Omarova, a vocal cryptocurrency critic, to head a key banking regulatory agencythe Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Gensler, the newly installed head of the SEC, is emerging as a crypto critic. While the industry doesnt consider digital assets as securities, it looks like he disagrees and plans to assert his authority over this sector. In a new interview with the Washington Post, Gensler said that he doesnt believe the crypto market has a long-term future, stating, History tells us that private forms of money dont last long.

Over the years, this industry has weathered many storms, including hacking, claims of harming the environment and tax avoidance. In the face of adversity, this marketplace keeps moving forward with new ideas and projects. Despite the challenges, this still represents an exciting growth opportunitywith some turbulence along the way.

Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter and Square, believes bitcoin is the answer to the worlds problems.

At a conference in July, the chief executive touted bitcoin as the solution to world peace. Dorsey stated, Elon [Musk] said it earlier. We have all these monopolies of violence, and the individual doesnt have power. The amount of cost and distraction that comes from our monetary system today is real, and it takes away attention from the bigger problems, some of the bigger problems that Elon is trying to solvelike getting us to multiplanetary humanity. All these distractions that we have to deal with on a daily basis take away from all those bigger goals that affect every single person on this planet, increasingly so. It may sound a little bit ridiculous, but you fix that foundational level and everything above it improves, in such a dramatic way. Its gonna be long term, but my hope is definitely peace.

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Bitcoin And Cryptocurrency Exchange Gemini Is Growing Fast And Aggressively Hiring - Forbes

Decentralized finance is the future. Cryptocurrency helps people live in a community without the traditional middleman expenses. It provides equal opportunities for everyone. Ider-Od, co-founder of IHC.

Mongolia is a landlocked developing country, sandwiched between two giant neighbors China and Russia, located in the center of the Asian continent, far away from seas, oceans, and most importantly, from international trading networks. It is also the 17th largest country by its territory, with a land richly endowed with natural resources. Nevertheless, its unfavorable geographical position has prevented the country from becoming an export-oriented economy and achieving sustainable economic growth. Moreover, Mongolias economy, which is the 132nd largest based on its gross domestic product, has experienced the worst setback since its economic transition in the early 1990s due to the strict COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the government over the past two years.

Five entrepreneurs, Ider-Od Bat-Erdene, Erkhembayar Byarsaikhan, Gantig Bayarmagnai, Munkhjin Otgonbaatar, and Munkh-Erdene Burenjargal, are seeking innovative solutions for achieving economic growth and alleviating poverty by making cryptocurrency the main driving force for generating and bringing wealth into the country.

Cryptocurrency is borderless. It is the key solution for countries like Mongolia for tackling economic issues. We want to empower the powerless by keeping big money, government, and federal banks in check to provide equal opportunities for everyone. Gantig, co-founder of IHC.

With over 100 billion token orders fulfilled after its launch at 11 a.m. on August 25, the Inflation Hedging Coin (IHC), a new cryptocurrency created by tech-savvy entrepreneurs, broke the internet. Within just 30 seconds, thousands of enthusiasts invested 10 million USD in the newly created tokens, making it one of the fastest-selling cryptocurrencies in the world.

IHC released 100 billion tokens with 25 billion equally placed on four different cryptocurrency exchanges: coinhub.mn, trade.mn, complex.mn, and dax.mn. IHC has a total supply of one trillion coins, of which 100 billion are now publicly owned. It took only 11 seconds on DAX, 43 seconds on Coinhub, 1 hour on Complex, and Trade for people to buy up all the available tokens, with two of the platforms crashing and overwhelmed by over 100 thousand visitors.

Based on blockchain technology, Inflation Hedging Coin aims to introduce an ecosystem of financial services, including seamless transactions. IHC founders share a vision for creating a decentralized solution to combating inflation.

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A New Cryptocurrency Has Everyone Buzzing in Mongolia 10 Million USD Within 30 Seconds - NewsBTC

How can investors track stock markets around the world?

Using the MSCI All Countries World Index Investable Market Index (MSCI ACWI IMI), investors can benchmark their portfolios to a comprehensive group of developed and emerging markets. With over $4.2 trillion in assets benchmarked to the ACWIabout 4% of all managed assets globallythe index is widely quoted.

In this graphic from MSCI, we explore a geographic breakdown of the MSCI ACWI IMI index, and how it has changed over time.

The MSCI ACWI IMI is a leading global equity index. It tracks the performance of a basket of securities that are intended to represent the entire global stock market. Altogether, it covers:

Using a standardized approach, the index includes businesses of all sizes from small to large market capitalization.

The MSCI ACWI IMI Index is broken down into broad regions and specific markets, such as North America and the U.S. respectively. Below, we show the specific market weights of the index as of July 31, 2011 and July 31, 2021. We also show how much these weights have increased or decreased over the last 10 years.

Note: numbers may not sum to 100 due to rounding. EM stands for Emerging Markets, and EMEA stands for Europe, Middle East, and Africa.

Over the last decade, the UKs index weighting has halved. Brexit uncertainty caused British stocks to underperform relative to other markets. In addition, the UKs public equity marketing has been shrinking, with the number of listed companies falling by 21% in just eight years.

Japan saw its weighting decline by more than two percentage points. The country has faced a very slow recovery since the asset price bubble in 1989, and the stock market has yet to surpass its previous peak.

On the other hand, Chinas weighting in the MSCI ACWI IMI has increased over the last 10 years. This is primarily due to two factors:

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from this data is the increasing dominance of the U.S. stock market, which now makes up almost 60% of the index. What implications does this have on the MSCI ACWI IMI indexs diversification?

As it turns out, the index is more diversified than it may seem at first glance. American companies have international operations, and earn revenue from many different markets. This makes the revenue exposure of the index much more spread out across each region.

Note: numbers may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Countries included in Other are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Bulgaria, Bahrain, Benin, Botswana, Cote DIvoire, Estonia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Croatia, Iceland, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Lithuania, Morocco, Mali, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Palestine, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Senegal, Togo, Tunisia, Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, Vietnam and Zimbabwe.

On a revenue exposure basis, North Americawhere the U.S. is by far the largest markethas a weighting of just over 30%. Emerging markets take the top spot, making up over a third of the indexs revenue exposure. This presents an opportunity for investors, as these markets are projected to have higher GDP growth compared to North America.

For investors looking to capture the worlds stock market performance, the MSCI ACWI IMI can be a good benchmark. The index offers comprehensive and diversified exposure to various markets. Through regular reviews and rebalancing, it also adjusts to market movements. This ensures it continues to accurately reflect the composition of the global stock market over time.

While investors cant invest in the index itself, they can invest in a product that tracks the indexand be poised to take advantage of opportunities around the globe.

Excerpt from:
Visualizing the Rise of Cryptocurrency Transactions - Visual Capitalist

The cryptocurrency market continues to grow across the world as new products make it easier for people to invest, sell, and trade with cryptocurrency. But without changes to the mindset of regulators, many of these products will fail to make it to consumers.

Look no further than Coinbase, which last week stopped plans to offer its new lending product due to threats of legal action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The "Lend" program would have allowed users to earn interest on their holdings if they held specific types of cryptocurrency. The SEC rationale for the lawsuit is that the Lend program violated longstanding security regulations, even though it's more akin to a traditional savings account.

This is unfortunate. Not only does it stall financial technology innovation, but it also denies consumers the ability to earn high interest rates at a time of rising inflation. There's a better way to deal with innovative financial products than through threatening lawsuits. They're called regulatory sandboxes, and the SEC should take after forward-thinking states and adopt one.

A sandbox is an alternative regulatory structure to deal with products that come with regulatory uncertainty. Companies that have such products can apply to test their products for a set period of time as long as they still comply with consumer protection standards. If they are accepted into the sandbox, they can offer it to consumers. When the testing period ends, they either comply with existing regulatory standards or they work with regulators to change those standards based on their experience in the sandbox.

The first regulatory sandbox was deployed in the United Kingdom in 2014. It's had 700 participants since 2015 with approximately 80 percent of those companies still in existence, a much higher rate than non-sandboxed firms. Companies in sandboxes were also more likely to raise money, raised more venture capital funding, and made it to market faster.

There are now 70 different sandbox programs in 57 jurisdictions and countries. Arizona was the first state to adopt a sandbox in 2018, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has recently updated its sandbox program at the federal level. The most common type of sandboxes across the world are within financial technology. There are 27 companies in financial technology sandboxes across Arizona, Hawaii, and West Virginia, with the CFPB sandbox granting regulatory relief across 10 different financial products.

One of the most interesting companies to be granted participation in a sandbox is BlockFi. Like the product Coinbase proposed, BlockFi offers interest-bearing cryptocurrency accounts in the Hawaiian sandbox. But BlockFi has also run into trouble with attorneys general in other states for the same product. New Jersey, Vermont, Alabama, Texas, and Kentucky have ordered cease-and-desist or show-cause orders to the company over its interest-bearing product.

It's likely that these attorneys general and financial regulators didn't have a regulatory structure to deal with this new kind of financial product. Rather than allowing permissionless innovation, they opted to shut down the products entirely because of some nonzero risk of consumer harm. As the SEC attempts to grapple with the cryptocurrency industry, it almost certainly made the same calculation.

But this need not be the case. The CFPB and states have shown that sandboxes can deal with new financial products by having regulators and companies work together to spur innovation, all while protecting consumers. The revamped CFPB sandbox has issued eight no-action letters in 2020, giving companies certainty that they can provide their new products. Some products include small-dollar loans that provide cheaper rates than payday lending, allowing earned wages to be made available before they are paid, and autosave programs for employees. These programs all have pro-consumer benefits; they just needed regulatory certainty to get off the ground.

The cryptocurrency industry quickly evolved from a little-known technology 10 years ago to a market worth an estimated $2 trillion, with hundreds of companies across the world providing services to consumers. An estimated 46 million Americans own bitcoin (to say nothing of alternative cryptocurrencies). El Salvador's recent recognition of bitcoin as legal tender and other reforms were controversial, but they show a growing acceptance of cryptocurrency. Whether the SEC wants to admit it or not, changes to our financial system are already here.

What is happening now with Coinbase will certainly happen to more financial technology companies down the road. Threatening to sue every company with a new cryptocurrency product is not only a poor use of taxpayer resources, but it also causes the United States to fall behind on blockchain and cryptocurrency technology.

The SEC should follow the lead of the states and CFPB and adopt a regulatory sandbox for cryptocurrency. In the meantime, states should continue to lead the way and bring some much-needed regulatory federalism to financial technology and other industries.

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Regulators Threaten Coinbase and Cryptocurrency Innovation Reason.com - Reason

We are experiencing the next frontier of digital assets with a peer-to-peer system called Bitcoin, founded in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto and various brave internet visionaries. Today, bitcoin and cryptocurrency have taken over the financial market space. The next generation of internet investors are flocking to this metaverse called Web 3.0 to build and create wealth beyond our wildest imaginations.

At this years Root Institute, we brought together some of the leading voices educating and inspiring our community to embrace modern finance as a means to build residual income and opportunity. In this emerging entrepreneurship and fintech panel, we were joined by Lamar Wilson, Founder of Black Bitcoin Billionaire, Olayinka Odeniran, Founder of Black Women in Blockchain Council, and Teri Ijeoma, Founder at Trade and Travel platform.

When we talk about Bitcoin and the Black community, theres no denying how underrepresented we are in the Web 3.0 space. At yet, surprisingly, a recent Harris poll survey released in August 2021 found that 30% of Black and 27% of Hispanic investors own cryptocurrencies, compared with just 17% of White investors. This same Harris survey found that the majority of crypto investors are under 40 and do not have college degrees; two-fifths are women and/or investors of color. Cryptocurrency and token projects main appeal to underrepresented groups is that it is a more accessible financial investing option with faster returns.

This is the precipice of the new creator economy, a currency for the internet, and the booming NFT (non-fungible token) market. The idea is that creators can sell their art on the Ethereum, Solana, or Polygon blockchains as a smart contract and get paid in minutes. An opportunistic investor can then relist the art they bought from the creator for a higher price with the creator founders fee attached to the value of the art to make residual income.

For Black creators, this is huge when it comes to making a living off of your passions, but the concept still involves various moving parts that even the government is trying to grapple with. Moreover, we must not ignore the volatility of Bitcoin and its negative representation of being the currency for online scammers and hackers.

One thing to take away from this panel is the need for Black people to build and be a part of the teams ( or DAOs) innovating within the blockchain and Web 3.0 sectors. If this is your first time hearing about bitcoin, cryptocurrency, or blockchain, welcome! The power of blockchain and the concept of decentralized and open-source platforms can have a positive influence and impact on our communities if we take facets of the technology and apply them to real-life issues, like generating wealth and equity, or much bigger problems like solving world hunger.

G/O Media may get a commission

For access to free training on blockchain, you can sign up on http://www.bwbc.io. To learn more about the NFT space, read my Crypto in the City column here. To join a community of bitcoiners, check out BBB here. To develop an investment strategy, check out Trade and Travel here.

For this and more in-depth conversations, visit us here, and share your thoughts with us online in social media by following the hashtag #RootInstitute.

Disclaimer: This panel is not financial advice. Please do your own research.

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The Root Institute 2021: Cryptocurrency and The New Creator Economy - The Root

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You can find online courses for everything from how to buy a car to how to invest in the stock market. Naturally, cryptocurrency is no exception.

But there are some caveats to consider before you opt into a course on the latest investing trends. If youre going to pay anyone for financial advice, make sure you know exactly what resources and education youre getting, especially for an industry as new and dynamic as cryptocurrency. In general and with crypto, its a good idea to stick with conventional financial advisors who have a certified financial planning (CFP) certification.

Cryptocurrency courses can range from high-level overviews of blockchain technology to in-the-weeds explainers about how to trade altcoins. We dont think either of these approaches is where beginner crypto investors should start.

Thats because theres plenty of free cryptocurrency information that gives beginning investors what they need to understand the market and how crypto can fit into their portfolio.

The crypto world, by definition, is an open architecture. Most information is free, says Theresa Morrison, a CFP with the Beckett Collective. Sometimes, though, paying for the cliff notes version is worth it. Just know what you are getting in exchange for your money.

But if a module or course-style teaching is how you learn best, and a cliff notes version sounds right for you, here are a few factors to consider when choosing a cryptocurrency course:

In a space thats rife with fraud, scammers, and theft, it can be difficult to find legitimate sources of information, especially as a beginner.

The truth is, you dont need a course on cryptocurrency to get started investing. We researched 10 popular courses, and found most skew heavily toward in-depth trading analysis and technical deep-dives into blockchain technology and its future potential. And then there are the get-rich-quick zealots who are prime examples of the old saying that if something seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

But we did find a couple courses that might be helpful for beginners looking to learn more about cryptocurrency in general and long-term investors looking for strategies to add crypto as a speculative diversifier to their overall portfolio. The first one is free, while the second one has a fee:

We found two courses that offer good cryptocurrency knowledge and basic investing advice. One you can take for free (youll get all of the course material for free, but not a few extras like graded assignments) and is a bit more in-depth. The other comes at a cost, but succinctly explains what you need to know about cryptocurrency. Both courses are well-reviewed and rated by users.

This Coursera course is taught by Jessica Wachter and Sarah Hammer, two professors at the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School of Business. The course consists of four modules that each take one to two hours to complete.

You can audit the course for free, which means you get access to all of the videos and course materials. Youll need a paid Coursera account to get access to extra features like graded assessments and a shareable certificate. When you first navigate to the website, youll be prompted to pay, but look for a link to audit course and youll be able to access the free version.

This course is more in-depth than a quick explainer, and also devotes a whole module to cryptocurrency as an asset class, which is helpful for people interested in how crypto can fit into an investment portfolio. The module goes through the risks and returns of cryptocurrency investments and how Bitcoin can have a place in a more stable and predictable portfolio.

We like that this course dedicates an entire module to Cryptocurrency as an Asset Class in which youll examine whether cryptocurrency has a place in individual investment portfolios, according to the course site. Youll also dive into thinking about cryptocurrency through a traditional investing lens, and learn about the capital asset pricing model and concepts of modern portfolio theory.

Only the paid version of the course gives you access to the quizzes, but youll still have access to accompanying PDFs and reading material if you do the free version.

This Udemy course is a quick-hit introduction to the basics of cryptocurrency. The course is made up of three sections, 19 lectures, and is 1 hour and 45 minutes long. It costs $94.99, but does frequently go on a significant discount (it was recently available for $15.99). Wed recommend holding off on paying the full price, but keep an eye out for promotions that knock it down to the $15-$20 range, ideally.

The instructor is George Levy, the chief learning officer at the Blockchain Institute of Technology. The courses content covers everything from what is a cryptocurrency to how to convert your crypto into fiat money.

Along with the lectures, you also have access to PDFs and guides that you can read and reference after, including a cryptocurrency exchange starter guide. There are knowledge check quizzes throughout the course to check that you have understood key terms and concepts. These add-ons can help make this course worth the cost, if you think theyll be helpful for you long-term.

The course also addresses a critical checkpoint for investors should you even invest in cryptocurrency in the first place? It is not the right choice for everybody. How can you participate in this space? And more importantly, should you even participate? And if you do, how do you do so safely? We will cover all that, says Levy in one video.

Cryptocurrency is a speculative asset, and even the most well-known like Bitcoin and Ethereum fluctuate wildly in value on a regular basis. Thats why investing experts advise not to put more than 5% of your total portfolio into cryptocurrency, and to never invest more than youre OK with losing.

Buying and selling different currencies is not the best approach if you are investing in crypto as a long-term store of value, as experts recommend. Not to mention, your tax obligations can quickly get messy the more actively you trade. Instead, the best strategy for long-term investors is purchasing an amount of cryptocurrency you can afford and would be OK losing, and holding onto it.

Many crypto courses do skew more toward the complex trading of different cryptocurrencies that can sometimes, though unreliably, turn a quick profit. We dont think this is a good or safe approach, so wed only recommend courses that include how to buy and hold cryptocurrency as long-term investments, the same way as you would other long-term investments.

Crypto courses vary in price, and there are definitely a few free options out there. We dont think theres any great reason to pay for a cryptocurrency course when so much good information can be found for free (Shameless plug: Heres our entire catalog of cryptocurrency coverage.) There are other courses available that may offer free trials, super discounts, or an option to audit for free.

Definitely do not pay for a cryptocurrency course if its out of your budget, and remember that crypto is an asset class that you should be OK with losing whatever youre putting in, so really consider before you spend money on online education.

If youre up for a more self-guided approach, there are plenty or free resources available to teach you all of the basics. Here is NextAdvisors guide to getting started in cryptocurrency investing:

Original post:
The Best Crypto Courses of September 2021, for Investors Who Like a Guided Approach - NextAdvisor

A University of California San Diego student named Richard Yuan Li was indicted on August 26th for a SIM swapping scheme that involved stealing phone numbers and accounts and extorting at least 40 people for cryptocurrency and other payments, according to a new release the US Department of Justice shared on Monday.

According to the indictment (PDF), Li convinced Apple customer service in 2018 to send him a replacement iPhone 8 for one he claimed was lost in the mail. Li and others then convinced carriers to port victims phone numbers to the iPhone 8 to take control of their accounts and in some cases, drained their crypto wallets directly.

Li and his co-conspirators contacted victims and demanded that they pay ransoms in order to avoid further harm, including additional account compromises, the loss of additional cryptocurrency, and the release of victims confidentiality information the conspirators obtained, the DOJ writes.

If Li is convicted for all counts, including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to engage in interstate communication with intent to extort and to commit computer fraud and abuse, he could serve 20 years in prison and pay a fine up to $250,000, among other possible charges.

SIM swapping is the practice of stealing someones identity by assuming their phone number. Typically, numbers from unsuspecting victims are ported over to burner phones often by asking carriers to do it and then scammers use those phones to impersonate the victim and seize control of their online accounts. Lis case is an unfortunate reminder of how common SIM swapping is. In 2019, it even happened to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.

Phone numbers being the key ingredient for identity theft has a lot to do with the common way two-factor authentication is set up. By default, many online services offer two-factor authentication but use a mobile phone as the second method for identifying someone. With stolen phone numbers, that can just as easily become a foothold to taking over someones account.

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SIM swapper charged in cryptocurrency theft scheme - The Verge

Currently, bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies are beyond the purview of legal regulation in India

Indian investors are waiting in anticipation for the official verdict on cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. Even though El Salvador has embraced the digital revolution in currency, India is still mulling over the issue. Last week, Jayant Singh, Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, said in an online event that the Indian government would take a distinctive approach to regulate cryptocurrencies in India. The statement came at a time when cryptocurrency is still unregulated in the country. India has a strong base of cryptocurrency investors and exchanges. But investors are still in the dark about the future of cryptocurrency.

Is Cryptocurrency Illegal In India?

Currently, bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies are beyond the purview of legal regulation in India. We cannot call them illegal because they are not yet authorised for use by any central authority in the country. Cryptocurrency remains outside the scope of any guidelines, regulations, or rules. This makes Bitcoin and altcoin transactions riskier because disputes arising from these exchanges will not be legally bound.

Cryptocurrency Taxes

Though India hasn't yet imposed regulations on cryptocurrency transactions, it has asked for transparency in all such undertakings. In April, amendments were introduced in the Companies Act for this purpose. Owing to this transparency, digital asset and the gains thereof are likely to be counted as a capital asset, which is bound by taxes under capital gains. But companies are not yet sure how to treat the different types of gains and income in this regard.

Cryptocurrency Bill

The Cryptocurrency Bill is speculated to be tabled during the Parliament's winter session this year. Its aim is to define and classify cryptocurrency according to the technology involved. An inter-ministerial panel on cryptocurrency recently suggested that cryptocurrencies be treated as digital assets and not currency. There are also speculations that government-enforced crypto coins may become the norm.

What If India Bans Cryptocurrency?

A ban on cryptocurrency in India would mean you won't be able to convert local fiat currency to buy cryptocurrency or liquidate HODL-ed cryptocurrencies into cash. Crypto exchanges will also stop. The ban would ensure that the HODL-ed cryptocurrency stays on HODL until the restriction is lifted.

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Cryptocurrency In India: What Can We Expect In The Future? - NDTV Profit

You wont see them chartering private jets or flexing on TikTok in their $17m mansions, but some female cryptocurrency investors have been quietly accumulating millions.

Rachel Siegel was once a substitute teacher in New York living paycheck to paycheck, as she puts it. Now shes a self-described millionaire and content creator who goes by the name Crypto Finally. This all happened over years of me sitting at my computer in my pajamas, she says. I just spent a lot of time learning and I think anyone could achieve it.

According to a 2021 study brokerage eToro Ltd, women account for just 15 percent of Bitcoin traders, but more of them are getting into the game. Even Reese Witherspoon is on board at the beginning of September, the Morning Show actress announced shed got into Ethereum, tweeting: Lets do this #cryptotwitter.

Leah Thompson, also known as Girl Gone Crypto online, fell down the crypto rabbit hole in 2011 after watching a friend mine currencies. I got to experience that really big 2017 bull run, she says, referring to when the cryptocurrency shot up to 21 times the price from the start of the year. And that was just so exciting to see the Bitcoin I had bought went up to $20,000. The Seattle investor had never seen a return that big: I felt hooked.

But investing in crypto is a high-risk, high-stakes endeavour. For every story of success, there are also people losing their savings and homes. Many of the exceptions who do strike it rich are known for expensive cars, holidays and huge mansions selling a dream of extreme wealth, alongside bragging about their incredible portfolios and offering tips on their YouTube channels and social media. These figures, however, tend to be men.

Puerto Rico-based Wendy O says shes already acquired her first million, but adds that she knew shed made it when she realised she could afford to be a stay-at-home mum and never worry about money again. That point came in 2018, when the former HIV/AIDS healthcare worker started paying for groceries and bills from the money she made from trading.

I grew up very, very poor and lost my dad when I was 11, she says. My mum and my two sisters and I shared a one bedroom in a relatives house until I was like 18, but now I take care of my family.

Wendy first invested in 2017, when her daughter was just a year old. She initially planned to trade stocks but didnt have the $25,000 needed to open a brokerage account, so opted for cryptocurrency instead. By the end of that year, she had bought around $1,000 worth of Bitcoin now worth roughly more than three times as much.

Rachel Siegel and Leah Thompson. Photo: courtesy of subjects

In the UK, Sara Trojanowska (AKA AltCoin Sara) believes there are key differences between how men and women invest. The 28-year-old says that while stereotypes online suggest that men are bullish and are rewarded for taking risks, she thinks the opposite is true. I think women are better investors. They take their time, analyse the markets and arent led by ego.

She says that she invested like a man in 2017 after watching her partner get into crypto, and splashed out without knowing enough about the market. It proved to be a learning curve. Now, Sara says shes financially free her next goal is to become a multi-millionaire by 30 and she claims to be on track to hit it.

But for all the joys of financial elevation, women in crypto are often the butt of jokes. Online crypto culture (namely the funny memes) are the the cherry on the cake of the industry, as Sara says, but the sexism that goes alongside it is hard to miss.

Rachel Siegel knows this all too well. In September 2020, she minted a tame selfie of herself in a robe as an NFT. CoinDesk, a cryptocurrency news site, headlined the story Thirst Traps Explode on NFT Platforms, With Predictably Controversial Results and ran it with a picture of her in a bikini from her personal social media. Some days later, she sighs, she tweeted something inane about Ethereum and was told shut up slut in one of the first comments.

Wendy O struggles with the same thing. I've had men call me stupid, since the day I started posting content, all the time. Its a choice female influencers and investors have to make to participate in crypto culture: Do you join in with the sexism that positions women as morons or sexual objects, or do you call it out and attract even more abuse?

I didn't play like one of the guys for a very, very long time, Rachel says. But I've developed a thicker skin now and Ive started hitting back. I've been more accepted because of it.

For now, being a visibly successful woman in crypto is a double-edged sword, but the joke will ultimately be on their detractors. Women like Wendy and Rachel arent buying Lambos or Bugattis with their Bitcoin, but theyve acquired a level of financial freedom unthinkable to many. Arguably, the real flex is never needing to check your bank account.

@RuchoSharma

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The Women Making Millions Off Cryptocurrency - VICE

Ray Dalio, founder of the world's largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, believes regulators would ultimately take control of bitcoin if the cryptocurrency gains mainstream success.

"I think at the end of the day if it's really successful, they will kill it and they will try to kill it. And I think they will kill it because they have ways of killing it," Dalio told Andrew Ross Sorkin Wednesday on CNBC's "Squawk Box" at the SALT conference in New York.

U.S. regulators have stepped up their oversight of the volatile cryptocurrency space as the wild rides in the speculative markets continued to grab attention. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler said Tuesday that Wall Street's top regulator is working overtime to create a set of rules to protect investors through better regulation of the thousands of new digital assets and coins.

Bridgewater Associates Chairman Ray Dalio attends the China Development Forum in Beijing, China March 23, 2019.

Thomas Peter | Reuters

Despite some heavy bouts of volatility, bitcoin has been quite successful as of late. The crypto has more than quadrupled the last 12 months and was around $47,500 on Wednesday. It hit a high above $60,000 earlier this year.

"You haveEl Salvador taking it on and you have India and China getting rid of it. And you have the United States talking about how to regulate it and it could still be controlled," Dalio said.

In June, El Salvador has become the first country to adoptbitcoinas legal tender. Meanwhile, India is expected to propose a law banning cryptocurrencies and penalize miners and traders. China has started cracking down on the crypto markets, ordering miners to shut their operations.

Dalio said bitcoin doesn't have intrinsic value, meaning the asset lacksfundamental and objective worth.

"There are so many things in a historical perspective that didn't have intrinsic value and had perceived value. And then it went hot and it became cold. It could be either way. You just have to know what it is. It could be tulips in Holland," Dalio said.

Still, the billionaire investor said bitcoin makes a good alternative to cash, and he owns a smaller percentage of the digital token compared with his gold exposure in the portfolio.

"I think it's worth considering all the alternatives to cash and all the alternatives to the other financial assets. Bitcoin is a possibility. I have a certain amount of money in bitcoin," Dalio said. "It's an amazing accomplishment to have brought it from where that programming occurred to where it is through the test of time."

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Ray Dalio says if bitcoin is really successful, regulators will 'kill it' - CNBC