Daily Crypto News | July 17th, 2022

Welcome to Barmy’s Daily Crypto News – July 17th, 2022

1. India Encourages G20 Countries To Bring Crypto Within The “Automatic Exchange of Information” Framework

Nirmala Sitharaman, India’s finance minister, discussed cryptocurrencies on Friday at the G20 Ministerial Symposium on Tax and Development in Bali, Indonesia.

She noted that “considerable progress has been made with the Automatic Exchange of Information in respect of financial accounts” in the area of “tax transparency,” and stated that investigations had revealed tax evaders frequently create complex webs of entities to hide their unreported assets.

AEOI, or Automatic Exchange of Information, seeks to lower international tax avoidance. AEOI information standards include the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). The Council of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) authorized it in July 2014 after it was created in response to a G20 request.

2. ECB Executives See Digital Euro As A More Efficient Payment Method Than Crypto

In a new paper arguing for a digital euro, top officials at the European Central Bank noted that unbacked cryptocurrencies are not an effective form of payment and stablecoins are susceptible to runs. The project’s administrators have identified several goals, including giving Europeans “easy access to central bank money” in the digital age.

Financial stability is dependent on maintaining access to central bank funds as payments move more and more online. According to Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), and Fabio Panetta, a member of its executive board, the digital euro can do that.

In a piece posted this week on the bank’s blog, the high-ranking members of the eurozone’s monetary authority expressed their support for Europe’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), noting that the “successful paradigm for payments” that endured for many years is now under threat.

3. Bank Of England Jon Cunliffe Believes Crypto Is “Prone To Collapse”

This week at the house of the British High Commissioner in Singapore, Sir Jon Cunliffe—the Bank of England’s (BOE) deputy governor for financial stability—discussed the dangers and rules associated with cryptocurrencies.

Executive of the Bank of England issued this warning: “Financial assets with no intrinsic value … are only worth what the next buyer will pay. They are therefore inherently volatile, very vulnerable to sentiment and prone to collapse.”

Because cryptocurrencies may not be “integrated enough” into the rest of the financial system to constitute a “immediate systemic risk,” the British central banker noted that recent volatility in the cryptocurrency markets has not created a risk to the entire financial system.

4. Accused Bitcoin Launderer Bitfinex Allowed To Get Employed

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) detained a couple on February 8, 2022, on suspicion of laundering 94,636 bitcoins taken from Bitfinex in 2016. Ilya Lichtenstein, a digital entrepreneur, and his wife Heather Morgan are accused by the DOJ of planning to launder bitcoin worth billions of dollars. If found guilty, the pair could spend 25 years in federal prison. A story from five months later claims that Morgan has been permitted to “engage in legitimate employment” by a federal judge.

After being given permission to work while her legal case is pending by a judge, Heather Morgan will be able to obtain a standard employment. Morgan was formerly a tech journalist for Forbes. Morgan, who also performed as the “Crocodile of Wall Street” or “Razzlekhan,” a New York street rapper, is charged with a “alleged conspiracy to launder” 94,636 bitcoins, which are valued $1.95 billion at the time of writing at the current BTC exchange rates. The bitcoins from the 2016 Bitfinex breach, which were the subject of Morgan and her husband’s arrest at the beginning of this year, were originally valued at $4.5 billion.

5. Billionaire Thomas Peterffy Plans To Buy Bitcoin When It Hits $12k

In an interview with Forbes last week, billionaire Thomas Peterffy discussed his predictions for bitcoin and the American economy. Peterffy founded Interactive Brokers, an internet trading company, and serves as its board chairman. According to Forbes’ list of billionaires, his current net worth is $18.4 billion. Trading in cryptocurrencies is offered through Interactive Brokers.

In case fiat currency falls to “hell,” the billionaire advised investors in January to keep 2 to 3 percent of their personal wealth in cryptocurrencies. He disclosed that he owns some Bitcoin in July of last year, saying that “you have to play the odds” because there is a “small chance” that it will become a major currency.

Despite the recent decline in the value of cryptocurrencies, he just told Forbes that he still thinks bitcoin will eventually be quite valuable. He stated that if the price of bitcoin reaches $20,000, he will buy more. He is still holding some bitcoin. At the time of writing, the price of one bitcoin is $20,739.