Exploring the Future of Online Gambling: The Rise of Cryptocurrency Casinos

Published 4:44 pm Friday, December 22, 2023

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In the dynamic realm of online gambling, a revolutionary trend is reshaping the industry: the advent of cryptocurrency casinos. This evolution is not merely a fleeting fad, but a substantial shift in how players engage with online betting platforms. Cryptocurrency, with its promise of greater security, anonymity, and faster transactions, is not just infiltrating the gambling world; its poised to overhaul it.

Blockchain technology combines traditional gaming excitement with cryptocurrency casinos as the experimental artists of gambling. This synergy has attracted a new generation of tech-savvy gamblers at Lucky 7even Casino as well as set a benchmark for online betting in the future. These casinos are redefining the norms, making waves with their innovative approaches to security, game fairness, and user experience.

In this comprehensive exploration, we delve into this burgeoning domain, dissecting the facets that make cryptocurrency casinos a beacon of the future. Well examine the technologies driving this change, the evolving landscape of online gambling, and how players and operators alike are navigating this new era. Our journey into the heart of this digital revolution starts here, at the crossroads of traditional gambling and the digital frontier.

Innovative Gaming Experiences: The integration of blockchain technology in games ensures fairness and transparency.

Cryptocurrency casinos are built on the bedrock of blockchain technology, a decentralized ledger that records all transactions across a network of computers. This technology is not just a backbone but the lifeblood of these casinos, ensuring transparency and fairness in every game. Smart contracts automate and enforce the rules of casino netiss, eliminating the need for intermediaries and reducing the possibility of manipulation.

Cryptocurrency casinos have revolutionized the player experience in several key aspects:

Regulating cryptocurrency casinos presents a complex challenge. The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies poses unique regulatory hurdles, and authorities worldwide are grappling with how to integrate these casinos into existing legal frameworks. The dynamic regulatory landscape requires operators to constantly adapt and innovate, balancing compliance with the inherent freedom of cryptocurrencies.

Cryptocurrency casinos are not just coexisting with traditional online casinos; they are compelling them to evolve. The rise of digital currencies has sparked a technological arms race in the gambling industry, with traditional platforms increasingly integrating cryptocurrencies to stay relevant. This competition is fostering a wave of innovation, benefiting players with more choices and better experiences.

Online gambling has evolved dramatically since the rise of cryptocurrency casinos. Rather than merely integrating digital currencies, this trend heralds a new era of gaming, where traditional methods and technology come together for more immersive, fair, and secure play. Online gamblings future is here, and its more exciting than ever in this digital age.

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Exploring the Future of Online Gambling: The Rise of Cryptocurrency Casinos - Smithfield Times Exploring the Future ... - Smithfield Times

5 Cryptocurrency Predictions for 2024: Charting the Future of Digital Assets  Investing Haven

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5 Cryptocurrency Predictions for 2024: Charting the Future of Digital Assets - Investing Haven

In the relentless and dynamic waves of the cryptocurrency market, the resilience and adaptability of key players hold the essence of value growth.

Amidst the volatile realm of digital currencies, three distinct names illuminate the landscape with their strategic moves and operational prowess. These companies, symbolic of the crypto industrys dynamism, exhibit remarkable growth trajectories. They deftly maneuver through Bitcoin mining complexities, infrastructure enhancements, and savvy treasury management. Their recent performances, detailed in the article ahead, reveal the critical tactics these titans employ to thrive in cryptocurrency.

Each entity navigates the crypto landscape with unique approaches, from the first ones bolstered Bitcoin production and sales efficiency to the second ones strategic infrastructure expansions and the third ones scaled mining capacities and treasury management. The article unveils the strategies of these crypto titans as they harness the relentless surge in the digital currency space.

Source: Venomous Vector/Shutterstock

Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT) exhibited a21%increase in Bitcoin production from October 2023 to November 2023. This consistent growth suggests the companys operational prowess and efficiency in Bitcoin mining operations. Despite a 9% increase in network difficulty, Riot Platforms boosted its production, demonstrating its resilience and adaptability to industry challenges.

Fundamentally, the surge in average Bitcoin produced daily saw a 25% increase from October 2023 to November 2023. This surge highlights Riots enhanced mining efficiency, likely due to improved hardware, enhanced mining algorithms, or operational optimizations to increase the output of mined Bitcoins.

Additionally, Riot Platforms has managed to maintain a steady increase in Bitcoin holdings, with a7%year-over-year increase in Bitcoin holdings in November 2023. The company can accumulate and retain a significant volume of Bitcoin, leveraging it for future strategic initiatives or capitalizing on favorable market conditions.

Similarly, the surge in Bitcoin sales by 23% from October 2023 to November 2023 resulted in a substantial increase in net proceeds. This significant rise in revenue from Bitcoin sales underscores Riots capacity to capitalize on market opportunities. Likewise, it also suggests efficiency in converting its mined bitcoins into substantial financial gains.

Finally, the impressive increase of 28% in the average net price per bitcoin sold from October 2023 signals Riots adeptness in maximizing revenue from bitcoin sales. This achievement likely stems from strategic timing in the selling process or market positioning. Therefore, it allows Riot to command higher prices for its Bitcoin holdings and drive growth in its market valuations.

Source: shutterstock.com/Unknown man

The mining company Bitfarms (NASDAQ:BITF) supports rapid growth potential through strategic investment in infrastructure expansion. Bitfarms has strategically allocated its capital investments to optimize returns and position itself advantageously for the Bitcoin halving in April 2024. The company has prudently expanded its operations, focusing on upgrades and new projects aligning with its ROI hurdle.

In detail, there is an expansion in operating capacity from6.1 exahashper second in September 2023 to 6.3 exahash per second in October 2023. The company is achieving 32% growth in operating capacity, reaching 240 megawatts in October 2023 compared to a year ago.

Additionally, the company is contracting low-cost energy totaling 573 megawatts, with only 42% placed into operation, indicating significant future development potential. Also, Bitfarms is initiating expansion in Paraguay with acquisitions of hydropower agreements for 50 and 100 megawatts, with construction expected to be completed in Q1 2024.

Bitfarms focuses on sustained and predictable operational costs, evident in the companys ongoing efforts to optimize existing facilities. The company focuses on reducing direct costs per bitcoin, a strategic goal that can lead to improved profitability and increased margins.

Furthermore, the company expanded the Argentina-based facility in Ro Cuarto, and the operational capacity improved from 50 megawatts to 54% beyond the original design. Hence, the facility added 800 petahash per second and achieved over 1.6 exahash per second in October 2023.

Finally, Bitfarms is demonstrating significantly reduced energy costs in Argentina during the summer months, estimating costs below $0.03 per kilowatt-hour compared to higher costs during the winter. Therefore, the facility aims to become one of the lowest-cost operating facilities in the industry.

Source: FabrikaSimf / Shutterstock.com

To begin with, Cipher Mining (NASDAQ:CIFR) expanded its self-mining capacity to 7.2 exahash per second during Q3 2023. It has a total capacity in service or under contract of 8.4 exahash per second after acquiring Bitmains latest generation of S21 rigs.

Additionally, the acquisition of Black Pearl in Texas provides conditional Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) interconnection approval for up to 300 megawatts. This is expanding the potential hash rate to 23.5 exahash per second by the end of 2025. Fundamentally, the significant increase in mining capacity positions Cipher Mining to capitalize on the growing demand for bitcoin mining. This substantial growth trajectory reflects the companys ability to scale its operations efficiently.

Furthermore, Cipher Mining boasts an electricity cost of approximately $0.027 per kilowatt hour, accounting for most operating expenses, and this low electricity cost contributes to its best-in-class unit economics. The company manages its Bitcoin treasury by selling enough monthly to cover operating expenses and existing CapEx commitments. Beyond these sales, it may sell more bitcoin for expansion opportunities or hold excess to strengthen its overall treasury balance.

Looking at individual site developments, such as Alborz, it is receiving ERCOT approval for a supplemental grid connection so that the company can increase operational uptime significantly. These site-specific initiatives demonstrate Cipher Minings strategic focus on optimizing existing operations. Therefore, the company expands its capabilities at various locations, ensuring value growth through potential revenue diversification.

On the date of publication, Yiannis Zourmpanos did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.comPublishing Guidelines.

Yiannis Zourmpanos is the founder of Yiazou Capital Research, a stock-market research platform designed to elevate the due diligence process through in-depth business analysis.

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3 Cryptocurrency-Related Stocks to Ride the Next Crypto Wave - InvestorPlace

Solana (SOL) has become the fifth-largest cryptocurrency following the recent market-wide rally.

SOL emerged as the top gainer among the leading 100 cryptocurrencies in the past 24 hours with a 14.4% surge. The asset is trading at a 20-month-high of $86.4 at the time of writing.

Solanas market cap surged to $36.95 billion, flipping Ripples XRP to become the fifth-largest digital currency. SOLs daily trading volume also recorded a 120% rally, surpassing the $4.2 billion mark.

Since the markets bottom in December 2022, Solana has recorded a 618% surge. Of particular note is that the SOL mark cap dropped to as low as $3.5 billion in mid-December, making it the 16th-largest crypto, then falling behind Shiba Inus (SHIB) $4.4 billion market cap and XRP, which then had a total market value of roughly $17.5 billion.

One of the main drivers of the SOL price rally, analysts speculate, is the arrival of the first memecoin on the Solana network, BONK. Following BONKs impressive gains, Solana-based meme coins gained traction and more tokens have been added to the layer-1 blockchain.

Another key driver could be the massive sale of the Solana Sage smartphones. Solana Mobile officially announced on Dec. 15 that Saga phone owners could claim an airdrop of 30 million BONK coins.

However, popular tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) gave the worst smartphone of 2023 award to Solanas first-ever web3-focused phone.

According to a post by Santiment, Solana has become one of the top trending cryptocurrencies, along with Stacks (STX) and NEAR.

The surge of the three mentioned tokens could be the mainstream conversations around the asset on social media platforms. Santiment claims that investors should take a cautious approach since the fear of missing out, or FOMO, could potentially create price tops.

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SOL records a 600% annual rally, becomes 5th largest cryptocurrency - crypto.news

The cryptocurrency total market cap has reached 18-month highs at $1.65 trillion capitalization. Meanwhile, some cryptocurrencies are showing overbought signals and should be avoided trading next week.

Interestingly, this current bull market started in January 2023 with a 115% surge in the total market cap. Previously, TradingViews index for total capitalization lost its current value 18 months ago, in May 2022, during the bear market.

In the meantime, Finbold retrieved data from CoinGlasss Relative Strength Index (RSI) heatmap on December 22 to spot overbought cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency traders should avoid trading these projects next week as part of a solid risk management strategy.

Particularly, Oasis Network (ROSE), BakeryToken (BAKE), and Injective (INJ) offer extra risks for traders with current data.

The Oasis Network native token, ROSE, is trading at $0.1229 by press time, up 22.46% in the day.

However, its RSI shows an overbought status in both the 4-hour, 24-hour, and 1-week time frames. Respectively, the index punctuates at 82.71, 77.31, and 95.56 for each time frame.

Meanwhile, BAKE, a decentralized exchange token, shows a lower overbought status than ROSE, but it is still relevant enough to avoid trading the BakeryToken next week.

Essentially, BAKE has 73.38, 76.41, and 82.19 RSI in the 4-hour, 24-hour, and 1-week time frames, respectively. The token trades at $0.441 by press time, up 15.59% in the last 24 hours.

As of writing, Injective was trading at $38.61, down 3% in the day, while presenting an interesting RSI divergence.

Notably, INJs weekly Relative Strength Index is the highest among other cryptocurrencies, at 97.33 points. However, the 4-hour RSI marks 52.3, smaller than the markets average of 57.56 points.

This short-term neutral RSI amid one of the highest mid-term overbought statuses suggests a massive retracement is around the corner for INJ. Therefore, investors should avoid trading Injective for now until it consolidates a new trend.

Usually, cryptocurrencies in an overextended bullish trend are likely to retrace for usual market correction. Nevertheless, even overbought assets can continue to go up in price, which increases the risk of trading such tokens.

Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.

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3 cryptocurrencies to avoid trading next week - Finbold - Finance in Bold

Cryptocurrency-based crime has metastasized into many forms. Because of the ease with which cryptocurrency ignores borders and enables multinational crime rings to quickly obtain and launder funds, and because of widespread confusion about how cryptocurrency functions, a wide range of confidence scams have focused on convincing victims to convert their personal savings to cryptoand then separate them from it.

Among these sorts of organized criminal activities, none seem as pervasive as pig butchering (from the Mandarin term, sha zhu pan, coined to describe the activity). Most of these scams use dating applications or other social media to lure victims into what they think is a budding romantic or platonic relationship, and then introduce a fraudulent scheme to make money together. In some recent cases we found the scammers using generative AI to write messages to their targets to make them more convincing.

We first began investigating pig butchering scams in 2020 in connection with fake cryptocurrency-trading mobile apps that device users had downloaded at the direction of someone the user had been contacted by more often than not through a dating app or website. We dubbed these CryptoRom apps, and have continued to research the scam rings, and how they evade platform security on mobile devices. One method that has become prevalent over the past year is to leverage the weaknesses of legitimate cryptocurrency applications through their ability to be linked to web applications.

Recently, I shared the details of a scam case in which an individual victim (whom we referred to as Frank) lost over $20,000 USD in a fake mining pool. Based on the details Frank provided, we were able to uncover a much larger set of scams using over a dozen different domains. The infrastructure of these domains was built on five different controlling contract wallets that directed cryptocurrency from victims wallets to other wallets for laundering. This set of scams appears to have interacted with over 90 victims. We have high confidence that the scam was run by three sets of affiliates connected to a multinational Chinese-language crime organization.

Looking back to the beginning of 2023, I found these contract wallets had moved $1.22 million worth of Tether (USDT) cryptocurrency from targeted wallets to destinations laundering the stolen crypto between January 1 and November 20. They appear to have been run by three separate threat activity groups using identical fraudulent decentralized finance (DeFi) app sites, suggesting that they are part of or affiliated with a single organized crime ring.

The ring is potentially much larger. I found traces of two other domains that matched our fingerprint for the site that had been deactivated before I could collect contract data. Examining the wallets that received the funds for laundering, I found additional contract wallets that were moving scammed funds from other victimssome pointing to additional laundering wallets. I continue to analyze the data to identify further scam operations.

In total, the wallets involved in the scheme moved nearly $2.9 million worth of cryptocurrency this year as of November 15, coming from the scams we tracked and other illegal activity.

During our investigation of the scam targeting Frank, I tracked the flow of cryptocurrency from his wallet. The scammers trap was a fake decentralized finance app hosted on the domain allnodes[.]vipa site registered through and hosted by Alibaba.

The app created a smart contractpaid for in Ethereum provided by the scammer in Franks case, and likely in all other scams run by this ringthat gave another wallet address a virtually unlimited allowance, allowing its owner to see the balance of the wallet being linked and to transfer Tether tokens deposited in the linked wallet. This remote addressthe contract walletnever moved cryptocurrency to itself but instead transferred balances to other wallets under control of the scammers using the smart contract authority by authorizing transactions on the blockchain.

Looking at transactions for the control node, I was able to determine that our victim was not the first targeted by this particular scam configuration. The control node was first active on April 5, making what may have been a test transfer of $55 worth of Tether to check the fake DeFi apps configuration; the first victim appears to have had funds transferred the next day, being hit over the following two weeks for a total of $15,400 worth of cryptocurrency. In total before the node went quiet in early August, at least 7 targets would be fleeced by the scammers for amounts ranging from $2,000 to over $50,000totaling $177,560.

Using characteristics of this scam, I went hunting for additional sites that were similar. And it quickly became clear that this was connected to a much larger operation.

By examining domain registry data, I found another domain using the same branding (allnodes[.]xyz) also registered and hosted through Alibaba at a different IP address. The sites were identical in appearance and in underlying HTML and JavaScript code. The sites shared not just the same appearance, but the same script file names and used the same JavaScript-based in-site chat service (tawk[.]to). However, the app at the .xyz domain used a different contract wallet for its smart contract payload.

I expanded my search by examining the web requests from each of these sites and searching for sites with the same JavaScript and filenames. Based on those fingerprints, I found 11 additional domains hosting the same exact code, some sharing the same contract wallets in their configurations.

In total, I found four addresses acting as control nodes across 14 domains. I also found two domains that had ceased operation but matched all characteristics in historical telemetry and third-party data. Examining the sites, I discovered distinct groupings of domains using similar naming conventions, domain registrars and hosts, suggesting different sub-groups were operating identical scam kits simultaneously. This is similar to what we found when investigating pig butchering fake exchange sites, where dozens of sites were using the same code but with different associated wallet addresses.

(US $)

As shown in the table above, two groups of domains had shared contract wallet addresses. And through examining transaction data, I found that both allnodes domains, despite having separate contract wallets, routed cryptocurrency to the same destinations.

Activity for the scam sites and their contract wallets, some of which appeared to be testing the scripts associated with contract wallets, dated back to February. Most of the actual scam activity associated with the sites occurred in the summer months, as shown below by the volume of cryptocurrency moved through each of the primary contract wallets:

Further examining the transaction data for the wallets receiving fraudulent withdrawals, I discovered additional contract wallets sending crypto following the same pattern. They were using the same destination wallets as two of the above groups:

The Ada subgroup used a single wallet to launder funds from both its associated contract wallets. This group of sites was active beginning in March, but the wallets showed signs of scam activity as early as February, suggesting another domain was part of the group.

The Trust threat activity cluster appears to have been active the longest. One of its contract wallets was highly active in January, indicating that another scam site was active in 2022. That wallets activity fell off completely in March, with other wallets connected to newer sites becoming more active. As of November, the Trust cluster was still active, but far less than during the peak of the scam sites I identified.

The Allnodes cluster was the one associated with the Frank case. It started later than the others and shut down activity tied to the infrastructure we identified shortly after we were contacted by the victim and began alerting wallet developers and exchanges of its presence. No further cash out activity was seen on the wallets associated with this threat group after August.

Despite being relatively short-lived, the Allnodes group managed to bring in over $352,000 before its lifecycle was endedmost of which was cashed out through Hong Kong bank accounts.

Figure 8: The funds cashed out by each of the threat activity clusters, from January 2023 to November 2023

In total, the groups using the liquidity mining scam kit brought in over $2.9 million over the course of the year. Its likely that they continue to run other, similar scams with new infrastructure. And there are many other scam operations using similar tactics, tools and practicesas I found investigating tips I received from other scam victims during the course of this research.

Following the same methodshunting for domains that used DeFi and cryptocurrency names or borrowed branding from legitimate cryptocurrency-related brandswe found multiple additional scams. One, I identified, fronted by the domain eth-defi[.]xyz, yielded another contract wallet address: 0x2e7e4df940a2c999bf5b5cdcd15a738b8bb462d5.

Between August 18 and November 28, that contract wallet had pulled $115,820 worth of Tether cryptocurrency from victims. The majority of those funds were cashed out through Binance.

As I investigated these rings, I saw a shift in tools and tactics by other scam operationswhich in part appears to be driven by the response of exchanges and wallet developers to share threat data, enabling them to block scams at the app level. Scam tool developers are taking measures to block harvesting of contract node data, controlling which wallets could be used for the scam, and taking greater care to evade geolocation and analysis. These more cautious scam deployments spanned hundreds of domains.

One example of this variation in scam site toolingrelated to a scam hosted at phpsqo[.]topcame from a victim. The target, a student in Poland, was approached through WhatsApp by someone claiming to be a Chinese woman living in Germany. The interaction led to the target connecting her mobile wallet to a contract wallet through that domain: 0x63809823AD21B6314624621172bAf4532c5B8b72

The target put $1,177.79 worth of USDT in the wallet and saw daily deposits until the entire balance was pulled about a week later.

This contract wallet was extremely active, with over 950 transactions between March 26 and November 15, so manual analysis of the total number of victims and cryptocurrency transferred is still in progress. But drawing from a random sampling of the transactions, I estimate the contract wallet transferred at least $200,000 worth of cryptocurrency over that period.

Getting that data would have been difficult without the victim providing her wallet address, as the site uses JavaScript to detect the web agent connecting and disallows desktop browsers in addition to checking for cryptocurrency wallet connections.:

I also identified through DNS hunting another set of about 100 sites using yet another mining scam kit. This one allows someone to connect to the site with a browser-based wallet but checks the wallet balance before allowing a connection to the contract wallet. Still others use an API from WalletConnect to obscure the contract wallet address and keep out visitors without a specific set of mobile wallets compatible with that service.

When compared to last years investigations, it is clear that liquidity mining scam operations have matured in their techniques, tools, and practices, and that scam decentralized finance app kits have made these operations simpler to scale upwhile being more accessible to less technically-capable cybercriminals. The shifting tactics in newer kits suggest significant technical efforts are being made by tool developers in the employ of the Chinese organized crime operations that back these scam rings.

Because these scams use legitimate applications that have been enabled to connect to decentralized finance applications, the best defense against these ever-maturing scams remains public awareness of the scams and healthy skepticism toward online interactions. Because victims of pig butchering-style scams such as these are often isolated and targeted through emotional appeals, wide public outreach is the only way to prevent or reduce loss.

We continue to do what we can by reporting sites, blocking them through negative reputation scores, and collaborating with hosting providers, law enforcement and cryptocurrency exchanges to get sites and exchange accounts tied to them shut down.

If you believe you are a victim of one of these scams, you should:

A list of the most recently active domains discovered to be associated with these scams and other indicators of the scam operations researched here can be found on our GitHub. Additional domains will be added as we process them.

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Luring with love, a network of pig butchering mining scams robbed millions from victims wallets - Sophos

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.

VC Spectra (SPCT), a newcomer in the crypto space, appears to be shaking things up and setting new performance standards. Positioned as a competitor, the project is taking on established giants like Cosmos (ATOM) and Optimism (OP). It raised $2.4 million in their private sale.

VC Spectracontinues to attract investors in their quest to reshape decentralized finance (defi).

The project aims to empower investors with insights into blockchain and Fintech. The platform uses advanced technology to equip users with tools to identify and seize lucrative opportunities.

It is also committed to community involvement. Allocating 40% of investment gains to quarterly dividends ensures users directly enjoy participation rewards. Investors also get early access to new startups and voting rights.

From stage 1 to 5 of the ongoing presale, SPCT is up 862.5%, rising from $0.008 to $0.077.

Experts are bullish, expecting the token to reach $0.080 in the final presale stage.

After the controversial approval of the ATOM production reduction proposal, Cosmos founder Jae Kwon announced the launch of a network fork called AtomOne on Nov. 26, 2023.

Kwons plan involves integrating ATOM with ATMO/ATMO1, aiming for a more decentralized and inclusive framework than the existing Cosmos Hub (Cosmoshub4).

This move reflects a proactive approach to addressing challenges posed by the production reduction proposal and improving Cosmos network dynamics.

On Nov. 26, ATOM was trading at $9.92. Since then, it has been rising, and the coin is trading at $11.26 as of Dec. 15, adding 13.51%.

Even so, some analysts are bearish, projecting the coin to drop to $10.78 by Dec. 22. The expected 4.26% is due to investor mistrust, notably since Cosmos founder voted against ATOMs production reduction.

On Nov. 14, 2023, Ankr, a web3 infrastructure development company, partnered with Optimism to launch rollup-as-a-service.

This initiative simplifies the deployment of OP Chains on the Superchain for developers and businesses.

The project focuses on an OP Stack-based layer-2, designed to cater to specific user needs.

Following this announcement, the OP price has been on the rise. The token rose from $1.7941 on Nov. 14 to $1.8606, adding 3.71% in 24 hours.

The token is up 25.94% in the past month, moving from $1.7941 on Nov. 14 to $2.2595 on Dec. 14.

Experts are optimistic, forecasting the token to reach $2.30 by Dec. 22, a 1.79% increase.

Learn more about the VC Spectra presale here:

Presale:https://invest.vcspectra.io/login

Website:https://vcspectra.io

Telegram:https://t.me/VCSpectra

Twitter:https://twitter.com/spectravcfun

Disclosure: This content is provided by a third party. crypto.news does not endorse any product mentioned on this page. Users must do their own research before taking any actions related to the company.

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New cryptocurrency likely to outperform Cosmos and Optimism - crypto.news

The cryptocurrency industrys lobbying efforts over the regulation of stablecoins reportedly saw an increase in spending throughout 2023.

Stablecoins, which serve as a bridge between the crypto and traditional financial systems, have attracted interest from the President Joe Biden administration and congressional lawmakers from both parties, Bloomberg reported Wednesday (Dec. 20).

Federal regulation would help legitimize the asset class and promote broader adoption, according to the report.

Tether, the issuer of the largest stablecoin, spent $760,000 on lobbying during the first three quarters of 2023, double the amount spent the previous year, the report said.

Circle Internet Financial, a competitor of Tether, increased its lobbying spending to $300,000 during the same period, per the report.

Digital asset exchange Coinbase spent $2 million on lobbying related to all issues around crypto, with a chunk of it focused on stablecoins, according to the report.

Traditional financial firms like Bank of America and Visa, as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have also funded lobbying efforts, the report said.

The House Financial Services Committee has become a battleground for the stablecoin debate, with negotiations between committee chair Patrick McHenry and top Democrat Maxine Waters expected to resume in 2024, per the report.

Lobbying efforts have extended beyond stablecoins, with the crypto industry spending a record-breaking $19.3 million on lobbying in the first three quarters of 2023, according to the report.

Looking ahead to 2024, industry experts predict that lobbying spending will continue to increase, the report said. The industry is also making political donations in preparation for the 2024 elections, with the hope of influencing policies that favor the sector.

Pro-crypto super political action committee (PAC) Fairshake has raised $78 million, with contributions from companies like Coinbase, Circle, Ripple and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, per the report.

It was reported Dec. 5 that cryptocurrency firms are spending record amounts of cash on lobbying despite the collapse of FTX, which had been one of the biggest spenders.

The increase in lobbying money comes as crypto companies have been trying to restore their reputations in the wake of several scandals.

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Stablecoin Lobbying Efforts Surge Ahead of Debate, Election - PYMNTS.com

As the anticipation of a potential spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval in the United States grows, analysts are cautioning that this development could bring about significant consequences for cryptocurrency exchanges. While some foresee a surge in Bitcoins value and increased market competition, concerns are emerging regarding the potential impact on centralized exchanges.

Speculation is rampant that a spot BTC ETF could initiate trading in early 2024, coinciding with the anticipated block reward halving for Bitcoin in April. Blockstream CEO Adam Back believes this dual event could propel BTC to $100,000, while Jan3 CEO Samson Mow suggests the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the U.S. could drive Bitcoin to as high as $1 million in the days to weeks following the approval.

Also Read: Coinbase Files Lawsuit Against the SEC Over Crypto Regulation

However, the outlook is not entirely positive for centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, according to ETF Store president Nate Geraci and Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. Geraci, expressing his concerns on X (formerly Twitter), indicated that the potential approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF in the U.S. could result in a bloodbath for cryptocurrency exchanges.

Gonna be a bloodbath for crypto exchanges

Geraci highlighted the disparity between retail spot Bitcoin ETF buyers and sellers benefiting from institutional trade execution and commissions, while retail users of crypto exchanges would continue to experience retail trade execution and commissions. He emphasized the necessity for exchanges to enhance their services to compete with the efficiency of a spot Bitcoin ETF. Balchunas echoed this sentiment, underscoring that a spot Bitcoin ETF would carry a 0.01% trading cost, significantly lower than the average fee for ETF trading.

The approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF is anticipated to introduce more price competition to the crypto industry. Balchunas believes this would redirect funds back to investors from exchanges that allocate substantial resources to advertise their services, including high-profile events like the Super Bowl.

In a separate development, the crypto markets recently experienced heightened volatility, resulting in a significant wipeout of $130 million in long positions. Liquidations, triggered when the market moves against traders with leveraged long positions, led to automated sell-offs to cover their positions. The Bitcoin chart indicated a notable correction, with the price dip closely tied to the cascade of liquidations.

Also Read: FTX Reportedly Sold $500 Million Worth of Crypto in December 2023

As the crypto community eagerly awaits the potential approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF, the contrasting viewpoints from analysts underscore the evolving dynamics of the cryptocurrency market. While some envision substantial value gains for Bitcoin, concerns about the potential impact on centralized exchanges and the imperative for enhanced services take center stage. As regulatory decisions unfold, the crypto industry remains in a state of flux, navigating challenges and opportunities within the continually evolving financial landscape.

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Bitcoin ETF Sparks Fears of Cryptocurrency Exchange 'Bloodbath' - Watcher Guru

Elon Musk recently mentioned that he doesnt focus much on cryptocurrency anymore.

During a talk with Ark Invests CEO, Cathie Wood, on December 21, when asked about the influence of Bitcoin on finance, Musk stated that he rarely thinks about cryptocurrency these days.

Elon Musk added, I have thought for a long time about money and the nature of money. What is money? Its really a database for resource allocation.

Musk stated that as long as its rule-driven and the government doesnt misuse it, fiat currency works well as a system for managing resources.

Musk compared the money system to an information system. He explained that we should view money issues in the same way we approach information flow, aiming to reduce disturbances like inflation, which he likened to adding interference to the system.

Also Read: Elon Musk altered Crypto Phrase in Response to Jack Dorsey

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Elon Musk Admits Minimal Thought on Cryptocurrency - Crypto Times