[ad_1]
It has been another busy week in the crypto world, from El Salvador adopting bitcoin as legal tender to a CryptoPunk NFT selling for a record amount.
In case you missed it, here are seven things to know about what happened in crypto over the past week.
1. FBI recovers $ 2.3 million in bitcoins paid in Colonial Pipeline ransom
The Justice Department announced on Monday that it had successfully recovered $ 2.3 million in bitcoin paid by Colonial Pipeline to ransomware hackers in April.
The news caused confusion online, some speculated that bitcoin had been “hacked” and on Tuesday the price of bitcoin appeared to drop due to concerns about the security of the cryptocurrency.
Although it is not known exactly how this was done, experts claim that the FBI’s ability to recover the bitcoin ransom was due to the criminals’ storage of their private keys, rather than any vulnerability with the crypto. – currency itself.
2. El Salvador passes law to adopt bitcoin as legal tender
El Salvador passed a new law on Wednesday to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, being the first country to do so.
This allows bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market value, to be used as a means of payment for goods and taxes. Businesses can price their goods in bitcoin and exchanges will not be subject to capital gains tax, CNBC reported.
Following the news, the price of bitcoin jumped 6% to over $ 37,000 on Thursday.
3. Senator Elizabeth Warren calls for crypto regulation
During the Senate Banking Committee’s hearing on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) on Wednesday, Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Called for cryptocurrency regulation in the United States.
“Cryptocurrency has created opportunities to rip off investors, help criminals and worsen the climate crisis,” she said on Wednesday. “The threats released by the crypto show that Congress and federal regulators cannot continue to hide, hoping that the crypto disappears. It doesn’t. It’s time to face these issues head-on.”
However, Warren had a different view of the possibility of a digital dollar backed by the Federal Reserve.
“The digital currency of central banks is very promising,” she said. “… But for these benefits to materialize, the digital version must be secure, stable and accepted everywhere.”
4. Bitcoin 2021 conference attendees report positive test for Covid-19
Several attendees at the 2021 Bitcoin conference in Miami, Florida last weekend tested positive for Covid-19.
There was no mask warrant and no requirement for proof of vaccination to attend.
The Miami mayor’s office told CNBC on Friday that speculation about attendees contracted Covid-19 at the conference was unconfirmed: “We have no reason to believe the conference was a ‘Super Spreader “,” the office wrote in a statement. “At this point, with the information we know, this characterization of the event is not only unfair, but also irresponsible.”
5. CryptoPunk NFT Sells for Record $ 11.7 Million at Sotheby’s Auction
A rare CryptoPunk sold Thursday at Sotheby’s for more than $ 11.7 million. The 7-figure sale set “a new world auction record for a single CryptoPunk,” according to Sotheby’s.
Nicknamed “Covid Alien”, CryptoPunk 7523 is an NFT, or non-fungible token, to collect. He’s one of nine “alien punks” in the entire series, and he’s the only one with a mask.
The buyer, Sotheby’s told CNBC Make It, is billionaire Shalom Meckenzie, DraftKings’ largest shareholder.
6. The first bitcoin upgrade in four years has been approved
Taproot, the first bitcoin upgrade in four years, was approved on Saturday.
It will go into effect in November and improve the blockchain in several ways. First, it will increase the confidentiality and efficiency of transactions. Additionally, the upgrade will also enable smart contracts, which can power applications like DeFi, or decentralized finance, which is already a key part of the ethereum blockchain.
“The most important thing for Taproot is … smart contracts,” Fred Thiel, CEO of cryptocurrency mining specialist Marathon Digital Holdings, recently told CNBC. “Smart contracts essentially give you the ability to really build applications and businesses on the blockchain.”
7. Elon Musk suggests Tesla accepts bitcoin as a payment method again
[ad_2]
picture credit