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GBTC Discount Hits All-Time Low as SEC Mulls Bitcoin ETF

GBTC is a private-placement trust that trades like a stock and allows investors to get exposure to Bitcoin without actually having to buy the asset. The firm takes care of the custody in exchange for an annual management fee of 2%, while buyers acquire shares in the fund.

A massive discount to NAV may seem like a bargain, as it allows investors to buy “shares” in Bitcoin below the actual market value, however, it also comes with a catch, as GBTC has a six-month lockup period.This means that the fund’ existing holders are running at a loss as the only way for them to cash in is to sell shares.According to Grayscale’s website, GBTC currently holds $18.3 billion in assets under management.

Fashion giant Gucci to start accepting crypto payments

Italian high-end luxury fashion house Gucci is looking to add crypto as a payment option in some of its U.S. stores from late May, with plans to expand the pilot to all its North American stores by summer 2022.According to a May 4 report, Gucci will accept in-store crypto payments by emailing customers a link comprising a QR code. After scanning the QR code, customers will be able to complete the transaction through their crypto wallets.

The first Gucci stores to accept crypto payments are Wooster Street in New York, Rodeo Drive in Los Angeles, Miami Design District, Phipps Plaza in Atlanta, and The Shops at Crystals in Las Vegas.The company will accept more than ten cryptocurrencies for payments. These include Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum (ETH), Wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC), Litecoin (LTC), Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE), and five stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar.

VanEck Announces Launch of NFT Collection Powered by Ethereum

VanEck has partnered with South Korean creative NFT agency for the launch of is new NFT collection.Global investment manager VanEck has announced the launch of a community NFT based on the Ethereum in partnership with the South Korea-headquartered creative NFT agency, NUMOMO. This is the first such initiative unveiled by the firm and involves the release of 1,000 VanEck NFTs.

According to the official press release, the community NFTs are designed to demonstrate the real-world utility inherent in the NFT structure and will be based on a fictional character, Hammy (modeled after Alexander Hamilton). While explaining more on the character, JP Lee, VanEck Community NFT Co-Founder, said,VanEck plans to release a total of 1,000 NFTs which will be categorized as – commons (which will total 750), rare (approximately 230), and legendary (approximately 20).

Coinbase Cloud Collaborates With Acala Foundation in Support of Liquid Staking

Web 3 and blockchain infrastructure provider Coinbase Cloud has announced a new partnership with Acala Foundation, the DeFi hub of Polkadot, by first bringing KSM liquid staking on Karura. KSM is the native token of the Kusuma network, a public pre-production environment for Polkadot.

According to the official blog post, Coinbase Cloud is “powering allowlisted validators that receive delegations from the community.” On Karura, which enables users to stake KSM for LKSM, users are not restricted by an unbonding period – usually ranging from 7 to 28 days in the Polkadot network – and can, for instance, deposit their LKSMs on Terra’s Anchor protocol to earn yields.The latest developments come on the heels of Coinbase Cloud, having worked on Polkadot and Kusama since their earlier testnets.

Cautiously bullish on #ETH here. Pretty clear inverse H&S pattern on low timeframe!

I also think that tomorrows FOMC meeting results are already priced in, so there shouldn't be a dump this week on stocks. If so, we'll see $40k level on #BTC and $3k on #ETH pretty soon!

Alex Jones receives $1 million in Bitcoin from an anonymous donor

An anonymous donor has sent more than $1 million in Bitcoin to a cryptocurrency wallet controlled by Alex Jones and publicized on his Infowars website, casting doubt over Jones’ financial situation despite.Prior to the large Bitcoin transfer, Jones’ wallet had an estimated $37,000 in Bitcoin. It was also one of four wallets he used to publicly seek contributions on his Infowars website.

It was discovered that on April 23, an unknown entity transferred 26 Bitcoins — each worth approximately $40,000 at the time — to a crypto wallet thought to be operated by Jones, according to blockchain data, investigated by the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hatewatch blog and published on April 29.

Samsung’s Investment Arm To Pursue Asia’s First Blockchain ETF

Samsung Group’s investment arm is reportedly pursuing Asia’s first blockchain ETF in a bid to capitalize on growing demand.South Korea’s Samsung Asset Management will attempt to launch the fund sometime within the first half of 2022 on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, The Korea Economic Daily reported Thursday.

It’s the first time an Asia-based ETF of its kind – that includes crypto – will be listed in the region. The vehicle is expected to track a basket of major blockchain tech companies.The move follows the asset manager’s acquisition of US ETF provider Amplify Holding Company in late March, in which it took a 20% stake via a special purpose vehicle. The investment arm is Amplify’s exclusive ETF partner in Asia, according to a press release.

Binance Blocks Accounts Linked to Relatives of Senior Russian Officials

Digital asset exchange Binance has blocked accounts tied to relatives of government officials in Moscow. Amid mounting international penalties over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the trading platform said it will continue to check for users associated with sanctioned individuals.

Binance, the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, has blocked several accounts linked to relatives of some high-ranking members of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s administration, Bloomberg reported. The move comes as sanctions continue to rain on Russia in response to its military assault on neighboring Ukraine.Among the users who have been denied access in the past two months since the Russian troops crossed the Ukrainian border.

Coinbase Changes Listing Policy for New Tokens After Allegations of Front-Running

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong yesterday addressed concerns that traders have been taking advantage of the company’s listings process, writing in a blog post that the company will be adopting new policies and features in the coming months.

Armstrong’s message was seemingly a reaction to recent allegations that an Ethereum trader was able to gain access to a list of coins that Coinbase was considering adding to its exchange before that list had been made public in a company blog post. The trader was able to buy up $400,000 worth of the tokens that were on the Coinbase shortlist, which had then increased in value by 42% over the next day.