Russian authorities have detained a woman in St Petersburg on suspicion of orchestrating an explosion in a café in the centre of the city that killed a prominent pro-war blogger. Maxim Fomin, known publicly as Vladlen Tatarsky who was one of the most vocal supporters of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, was killed on Sunday afternoon
Bitcoin (BTC) market liquidity has dropped to a 10-month low, despite a bullish quarter in terms of price gain. The liquidity dry-up is partly attributed to the bank run in the United States and the ongoing regulatory actions against crypto companies. The liquidity situation in crypto is worsening after the banking fears this month I
The government of India has announced that it will facilitate the settlement of international transactions using its national currency, the rupee. As part of its foreign trading policy framework implemented on April 1, the country introduced this measure to facilitate payments for countries experiencing a U.S. dollar crush. India to Offer Rupee-Based Settlement Options for
Paris Blockchain Week celebrated its fourth edition in spring 2023 against a backdrop of riots, protests and general civil malaise. The builders in the Bitcoin (BTC), crypto, and Web3 spaces were unfazed by protesters chanting and dancing on the doorstep of the conference venue. The event took place against the backdrop of ongoing protests in
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin wants to see zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machines (zk-EVMs) built on Ethereum’s first layer to speed up the verification process on the base blockchain. Buterin explained in a March 31 post that it’s possible to integrate a zk-EVM on the base layer without compromising on decentralization and security. The technology enables Ethereum
The Central Bank of Russia has added crypto asset holdings of households to its survey of consumer finances. The statistics reveal that Russian families keep more money in cryptocurrency wallets than in gold investment accounts or mutual funds. Russia’s Central Bank Evaluates Cryptocurrency Holdings of Russian Households The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR)
If you asked a few months ago where the next financial crisis might emanate from, most people probably wouldn’t have said regional banking. Rather, they might have guessed at the shadow banking sector, which has grown dramatically since the global financial crisis of 2008. It remains far less regulated than the traditional banking sector. When
Credit default swaps are a form of insurance against bond defaults. In this story, they feature as instruments of deception rather than “weapons of mass destruction”, the label once applied to all derivatives by Warren Buffett. You can speculate about whether investors were deceived by their own instincts or other factors. This does not change
As Donald Trump prepares to turn himself in over alleged hush money payments, the former president is the focus of other state and federal investigations which pose even more serious legal risks. Trump’s next set of legal problems could arrive in the state of Georgia, where Fani Willis, the Fulton county district attorney, is weighing
Russia’s security services are confiscating the passports of senior officials and state company executives to prevent overseas travel, as paranoia over leaks and defections spreads through Vladimir Putin’s regime. With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine still raging, security officers have tightened up travel requirements within the state sector, demanding the surrender of travel documents from some
Economist Nouriel Roubini has shared his opinion about bank problems in the United States in a recently published opinion editorial. In the article, Roubini insists that “most U.S. banks are technically near insolvency, and hundreds are already fully insolvent.” Roubini: ‘Liquidity Support Cannot Prevent This Systemic Doom Loop’ The renowned economist Nouriel Roubini, also known
A new daily all-time high (ATH) has been recorded for the number of Ordinals inscribed on the Bitcoin (BTC) network due to a recently launched “token standard” for the blockchain. Bitcoin Ordinals reached 58,179 inscriptions on April 2, smashing the previous all-time high (ATH) of 31,692 on March 9 by 83.5% according to Dune Analytics
Crude oil prices surged after Saudi Arabia and other members of the Opec+ group announced surprise production cuts of more than 1mn barrels a day on Sunday, putting Riyadh on a collision course with the US. Oil prices leapt by 8 per cent when trading opened in Asia on Monday morning following news of the
While the non-fungible token marketplace Blur has captured a significant amount of the market share in terms of NFT sales, the market’s native token, BLUR, lost more than 28% in value last month. At present, BLUR tokens are down more than 88% since the crypto asset’s all-time high recorded on February 14, 2023. Blur’s Native
On Sunday, Saudi Arabia and several major oil producers announced their plan to cut oil production by 1.15 million barrels per day, starting in May and continuing until the end of 2023. According to the Saudi Energy Ministry, the move was coordinated with some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and
The market witnessed a major banking crisis in March as Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failed and Silvergate Bank entered liquidation as the result of dire financial distress. In Europe, the government brokered a forced takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS. Still, the United States equities markets and the European stock markets closed the
Finland’s centre-right opposition clinched victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections, inflicting defeat on centre-left prime minister Sanna Marin. The National Coalition party, led by Petteri Orpo, was poised to come first with 48 seats, followed by the eurosceptic populist Finns party on 46, both notching up strong gains, with 99 per cent of the vote counted.
Tens of thousands of finance workers could be exempted from post-crisis rules which hold them personally accountable for failings on their watch as the UK government presses ahead with plans to boost the City of London’s competitiveness. The government vowed to overhaul the old system — known as the Senior Managers & Certification Regime —
Sales of Donald Trump’s digital collectibles surged following the news of his indictment in New York on Thursday. Meanwhile, a report revealed that the market for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has seen its strongest quarter since early last year, reaching a trading volume of $4.7 billion, despite a weaker March. Trump NFTs Spike as Former President
One of Russia’s most influential pro-Kremlin war bloggers, Vladlen Tatarsky, was killed in a blast at a restaurant in St Petersburg on Sunday. The incident took place at around 6pm local time, in the centrally located Universitetskaya Embankment, according to the ministry of internal affairs, which confirmed Tatarsky’s death. St Petersburg governor Alexander Beglov said
Ethereum’s native token, Ether (ETH), eyes a run-up toward $3,000 in Q2 2023 after wrapping the previous quarter with 55% gains. ETH price nears potential breakout The price of Ether has more that doubled after bottoming out in June 2022 at around $880, weathering a slew of negative events, including the FTX exchange collapse, interest