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Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
Bitcoin news
- US tech giant Apple could create for itself "a clear multi-billion dollar opportunity" if it were to develop its Apple Wallet into a crypto exchange, Mitch Steves, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, suggested, as reported by Bloomberg. According to the analyst, Apple could also consider adding bitcoin (BTC) or another digital currency to its balance sheet: "This would send even more users to 'Apple Exchange'."
- Bitcoin mining difficulty, the measure that shows how hard it is to compete for mining rewards, has reached a new all-time high of 21.43 T on February 6, having gone up 2.9%. It increased by 1% on January 23. (Learn more: Bitcoin Mining in 2021: Growth, Consolidation, Renewables, and Regulation)
- The Panama-based crypto exchange Cryptobuyer has expanded the scope of its fast-growing reach in Venezuela by unveilings its first BTC ATM in Caracas. In a YouTube video posted to its channel, Cryptobuyer explained that the ATMs had been installed in supermarkets in the capital. One is located in the flagship branch of the Excelsior Gama chain in the La Trinidad district, with the other in the 2doce store, in Las Mercedes, one of Latin America’s biggest shopping and leisure districts. The machines arrive after two years of planning and legal obstacles that slowed the exchange’s progress.
Investments news
- Bitfarms, a Canadian listed BTC mining operation, said it raised CAD 40m (USD 30m) in a private placement in the United States. This additional financing will allow the company to further grow their miner count and expand infrastructure, they added.
- Ledn, a digital asset savings and credit platform, said it raised USD 2.7m in a financing round led by White Star Capital’s Digital Asset Fund, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, among other investors. The company claims it's already profitable, "with registered clients growing at 25% per month."
Exchanges news
- Japanese securities giant the Monex Group is continuing its crypto charge, adding a new company to its Coincheck crypto exchange portfolio. In a press release, Coincheck claimed it had bought up a 100% stake in Metaps Alpha, a blockchain firm that launched the on-chain non-fungible tokens (NFTs) marketplace Miime in September 2019. The firm has now become an official Coincheck subsidiary. Monex and Coincheck have been growing increasingly keen on NFT trading platform development as the industry starts to gain momentum in Japan. A number of manga and J-pop themed tokens have already won over fans and Coincheck also stated last week that it would list sport-themed NFT offerings by Chiliz and Socios on its own NFT trading platform.
- The South Korean crypto exchange DBX said it has become the first overseas trading platform to establish a legally recognized subsidiary in China. Per Money Today, the firm said that it has been granted an operating license and would open its Chinese branch, named Tabi, “no later than” March. DBX added it was given conditional permission in late December 2020, a decision that was formalized this month – despite the fact that crypto exchanges based in China are forbidden from offering crypto-to-fiat and crypto-to-crypto trading services. DBX said it intends to “establish corporations and exchanges in the United States, Singapore, Indonesia, and Cambodia.”
