Fed Hikes Benchmark Bank Rate by 75 bps, Elizabeth Warren Says Central Bank Could ‘Trigger a Devastating Recession’

On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points (bps) in order to tame inflation and stabilize the American economy. The recent rate hike is the U.S. central bank’s third rate increase after increasing the benchmark rate by 50 bps last March. Fed Hikes Rate by 75 bps for … Read more

Bitcoin Miners Reach the Halfway Point to the Next Block Reward Halving

On May 5, 2022, at block height 735,000, the bitcoin mining pool Poolin mined the 105,000th block reward since the last halving. The mined block also represents the halfway point to the next halving that is estimated to take place on or around April 27, 2024. Block 735,000 follows the network issuing over 19 million … Read more

IMF Warns Ongoing War in Europe Will Have a ‘Severe Impact on the Global Economy’

In a report published on Saturday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that an ongoing war in Europe and associated sanctions will have a “severe impact on the global economy.” The IMF’s report says there is “extraordinary uncertainty” in the air, and the international financial institution believes “economic consequences are already very serious.” IMF’s … Read more

Global Central Bank Gold Holdings Rose to 36,000 Tons in 2021, Increase Attributed to Dollar’s Decline

The total quantity of gold held in reserves by central banks topped 36,000 tons for the first time since 1990, data from World Gold Council has shown. This increase follows growth in the banks’ reported holdings of the asset by 4,500 tons over the past decade. Dollar’s Decline a Boon for Gold The amount of … Read more

New Zealand Fund Invests 5% in Bitcoin— CIO Says You ‘Can’t Really Discount Bitcoin’

A New Zealand hedge fund, NZ Funds Management, which had $350 million worth of assets under management at the end of December 2020, says five percent of its money is invested in bitcoin. According to the firm’s CIO James Grigor, ​bitcoin is also set to be featured in more of its Kiwisaver investment schemes within … Read more

Hedge Fund Manager Says Sell-off in US Treasury Bonds a Threat to ‘High-Flying Assets’ Like BTC

Hedge fund manager Bob Prince has warned that the recent sell-off in the U.S. government bond market could accelerate and this could “threaten high-flying assets” like cryptocurrencies and blank cheque companies. Prince, who is the co-CIO at Bridgewater Associates, links this looming downturn in the $21 trillion Treasury market to the improving economy as well, … Read more

Dropping GBTC Premium: Anonymous Group Claims Blockfi Facing Solvency Issues Due to Exposure to the BTC Trust

An anonymous group has claimed that Blockfi, which has an estimated $1.8 billion in customer assets invested in Grayscale Investment’s GBTC, is facing potential insolvency issues associated with the negative premium on the GBTC shares. Using the negative premium of minus 7.89% on the GBTC shares to illustrate the extent of the problem, the anonymous … Read more

Steve Forbes Says Bitcoin’s Fixed Supply Limits Its Ability to ‘Meet the Needs of a Growing Economy’

American publisher Steve Forbes has attacked bitcoin’s fixed supply saying this feature actually curbs the ability of the crypto to “meet the needs of a growing economy.” He also argues that bitcoin cannot replace the dollar because it is presently too volatile to function as money. Forbes insists that money only works best if it … Read more

Visa Exec Says ‘Opt Out With Bitcoin’ Slamming Fed’s Policy Change Toward Inflation

On Thursday, 17 top Federal Reserve officials explained that the committee plans to let inflation run hotter than usual, or above the benchmark 2% rate for a duration of time. Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech was considered a “major policy shift” and a number of economists commented on the central bank’s move. Senior director of … Read more

Bitcoin Reacts to Fed’s 0% Rate Drop, Reserve Requirements Removed, $700B in Stimulus

On Sunday, the U.S. Federal Reserve slashed the benchmark short-term rate by 100 basis points bringing it to zero. In addition to the rate cut, the Fed promised $700 billion in bond purchases and eliminated all reserve requirements for smaller financial institutions. However, the Fed’s rate cut didn’t help financial markets as stock markets and … Read more