Aurelia Butler

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    in Economy

    Trump’s new crypto coin sparks ethics concerns

    PARIS/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s launch of a crypto token shortly before his inauguration on Monday creates new conflict-of-interest concerns, ethics experts and industry insiders said.  Trump has pledged to hand management of his assets to his children, but the crypto asset is raising particular concerns due to its ability to quickly attract billions of speculative dollars with little transparency.The companies behind the “meme coins” $TRUMP and $MELANIA, for first lady Melania Trump, said they are not investments or securities but are an “expression of support.”The tokens follow Trump-branded non-fungible tokens, sneakers and a Bible, among other items he has launched. Ethics advisors and industry experts say this investment is different because his administration will regulate an industry in which he has a stake through the new token, and one where any value is arguably tied to his presidency.The companies behind the Trump token, CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of the Trump Organization, and Fight Fight Fight LLC, co-owned by CIC Digital, collectively own 80% of the tokens, meaning that Trump-linked businesses could have gained $8 billion worth of crypto over the weekend.Danielle Brian, head of the watchdog group Project On Government Oversight, said Trump’s moves into crypto are concerning given the industry’s loose oversight. Besides being “a blatant financial conflict of interest on behalf of the president … it is deepening his engagement in a world that raises real national security concerns,” she said.Trump’s office did not respond to a request for comment.Prominent crypto investor Nic Carter said on social media the creation of personal meme coins “opens the door to secretive foreign buyers trying to curry influence with our leaders.”Some Democratic U.S. lawmakers echoed the national security concerns and conflict-of-interest worries.”Anyone globally, even individuals who have been sanctioned by the U.S. or banned from our capital markets, can now trade and profit off of $TRUMP through various unregulated platforms,” U.S. House Financial Services Committee top Democrat Maxine Waters (NYSE:WAT) wrote.Meme coins typically refer to small, extremely volatile, cryptocurrencies, often named after online jokes or trends. While supporters hope the tokens will rise as the memes go viral, most have little value.Both the Trump tokens’ websites avoid using the word cryptocurrency – referring instead to “fungible crypto assets” and marketing them as memes.University of Sussex finance professor Carol Alexander said the Trump and Melania tokens were functioning more like fan tokens that took off in 2021 and would likely become a barometer for support of the couple.Crypto markets were buoyant on Monday, with bitcoin hitting an all-time high as investors anticipated Trump’s crypto-friendly policies.Some said Trump’s coin was a game-changer.”The fact that a president is doing this brings some sort of legitimacy to the space, and I think just means that the industry is moving ahead in a way it hasn’t for the last 10 years,” said Paul Howard, senior director at crypto market-maker Wincent. More

  • 138 Shares129 Views

    in Economy

    Russia’s budget deficit widens to $34.4 billion after late spending spree

    (Reuters) -Russia recorded a budget deficit of more than 3 trillion roubles for the third year running in 2024, the finance ministry said on Monday, with both spending and revenue rising sharply as Moscow ploughed economic resources into the war in Ukraine.According to the ministry’s preliminary estimate, the overall deficit stood at 3.49 trillion roubles ($34.4 billion), with revenues increasing 26% to 36.71 trillion roubles and spending climbing 24.2% to 40.19 trillion roubles.The shortfall narrowed as a percentage of gross domestic product to 1.7% from 1.9% in 2023, the data showed, but was significantly wider than the ministry’s initial plans for a deficit at 0.9% of GDP, or 1.6 trillion roubles.Excluding crucial revenues from oil and gas, however, the deficit widened to 7.3% of GDP from 7% of GDP in 2023.Spending rose sharply in December to 7.15 trillion roubles, exceeding the value of similar year-end expenditures in 2022 and 2023. That jump involved some advance spending for this year, the ministry said. This could give it greater flexibility this year, when federal budget liabilities may increase if the Bank of Russia raises its key interest rate again. The central bank held rates at 21% in December, surprising analysts who had forecast a sharp hike, a day after President Vladimir Putin publicly called for a “balanced” decision. Moscow expects spending this year to increase to 41.47 trillion roubles, of which 41% will be spent on the army, police and secret services. Rising tax revenues are seen narrowing the fiscal deficit to 0.5% of GDP. In 2024, the ministry adjusted its plans twice as the need for more spending arose.($1 = 101.4955 roubles) More

  • 175 Shares139 Views

    in Cryptocurrency

    Here’s How Much 1 BTC Sold for on This Date 15 Years Ago: Details

    In January 2010, Bitcoin was still in its infancy, with little awareness and a low price. Launched a year earlier, in January 2009, by its pseudonymous creator(s) Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin at the time was a niche innovation discussed exclusively among cryptography enthusiasts and a few early adopters.The first known Bitcoin transaction occurred in May 2010, when programmer Laszlo Hanyecz famously paid 10,000 BTC for two pizzas. Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market cap, has come a long way from its humble beginnings.Fast forward to the present, and Bitcoin’s worth has skyrocketed. From a price of $0.50 15 years back, Bitcoin has reached all-time highs, with prices reaching six figures. At the time of writing, BTC was trading above $106,000.At the time of writing, BTC was up 2.21% at $106,960, according to CoinMarketCap data.On-chain analytics firm Glassnode indicated that as Bitcoin approached a new all-time high above $109,000, long-term holder NUPL has crossed the 0.75 threshold, associated with the euphoria/greed phase of the market cycle.A recapture of the short-term holder’s profitability momentum was observed, as expressed by BTC’s STH MVRV, currently at 1.16 — above the one-year trendline of 1.1. A notable uptick in Bitcoin’s Futures Perpetual Funding Rate was also observed, reaching around 0.035%, the highest level since Dec. 5.This article was originally published on U.Today More

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    in Cryptocurrency

    XRP Price Soars Amid Bullish Divergence Versus Bitcoin (BTC)

    In market terms, such a signal is often interpreted as a precursor to an upward move or the strengthening of an ongoing trend. The divergence aligns with what XRP has already demonstrated: a strong performance that outpaces much of the market, including Bitcoin.XRP has been on a roll lately. Since November, it has surged almost 500%, which is pretty impressive compared to most other assets. In fact, in its pairing with BTC, XRP has climbed 260% in the same period. Right now, it is valued at around 0.00031 BTC per XRP, which shows steady progress for this altcoin.The trend does not just stop with Bitcoin. XRP has also been strong against the U.S. dollar and stablecoins. In fact, XRP has surged by more than 10% in just one day, bouncing back from a slight dip in the previous session. That little dip was short-lived, as buyers stepped in quickly, pushing the cryptocurrency back to levels near its all-time high against USD.Still, history provides perspective. The peak of XRP’s value versus Bitcoin remains untouched since May 2017. That milestone sits roughly 700% higher than current levels, a reminder of both the scale of the past and the potential for the future.The situation is anything but ordinary. XRP’s ability to bounce back and keep growing shows a market that is confident in its trajectory. Traders see the bullish signals as part of a bigger story — a cryptocurrency finding strength where others stumble.This article was originally published on U.Today More

  • 138 Shares199 Views

    in Cryptocurrency

    Schiff Reveals How His Predictions Moved People to Buy Bitcoin (BTC)

    The message was clear: “You’ve been wrong about everything for over 15 years. Why does anyone still listen to you?” Schiff’s response offered an interesting take on why some people, even if they do not agree with him on Bitcoin, still find value in his views.He said that even if he has been wrong about Bitcoin, he has been right about a lot of other things in the financial world. Schiff says that his track record of getting things right — like gold prices and broader economic trends — is what made a lot of people decide to buy BTC in the first place. These people trusted his other insights and relied on his overall understanding of the financial markets, even if they did not agree with the expert’s thoughts on cryptocurrency.Considering how much of a gold advocate he has been all along, and the fact that the cryptocurrency is perceived as “digital gold” by many, including Fed head Jerome Powell, everything Schiff attributed to the precious metal in terms of inflation could be extrapolated to Bitcoin as the same financial tool.In this case, Schiff’s comments about inflation and how to save money when it is skyrocketing may have prompted some to buy Bitcoin.This article was originally published on U.Today More

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    in Cryptocurrency

    100,000,000 XRP in 48 Hours, Here’s What Happened

    At the current exchange rate, this amount of Ripple-affiliated coins is valued at $327,484,478 as the XRP is changing hands at $3.27 per coin.According to the chart, over the two previous days, whales sold a significant amount of XRP: “Whales bought over 100 million $XRP in the last 48 hours.”These 100 million XRP were purchased as the third biggest cryptocurrency by size of the market capitalization plunged, losing more than 10% – from approximately $3.27 to $2.92. Today, XRP witnessed a massive increase of more than 14% as it skyrocketed from $2.92 to the $3.33. XRP followed the Bitcoin price trajectory as the largest cryptocurrency reached a new all-time high of $109,114. By now, BTC has shed some of its today’s profits and is trading at $107,468.While the community took this deposit as a bullish sign, Bithomp XRP-focused data platform revealed that the transfer had in fact been conducted by a wallet associated with Binance. Therefore, it was an internal crypto transaction.This article was originally published on U.Today More

  • 100 Shares149 Views

    in Cryptocurrency

    You can now pay with $TRUMP at McDonald’s

    The crypto, which was launched on January 20, experienced a substantial trading volume that contributed to its rapid ascent, while Bitcoin also reached a record high just hours before Trump’s inauguration.The “meme coin,” as it is colloquially known, witnessed a meteoric rise from under $10 on Saturday morning to a peak of $74.59, although it later retracted some of those gains. The launch included branding that features an image from a July assassination attempt on Trump, marking an expansion of his ventures into the cryptocurrency space through World Liberty Financial.In related news, Melania Trump introduced her own cryptocurrency, $MELANIA, on Sunday. It too experienced a significant price surge, quickly achieving a market capitalization exceeding $1 billion. The majority of $Trump tokens, about 80%, are held by CIC Digital, which is affiliated with Trump’s business endeavors, and another entity named Fight, Fight, Fight. The official website for $Trump states that the coins represent “an expression of support for, and engagement with, the ideals and beliefs embodied by the symbol ‘$TRUMP'” and clarifies that they should not be considered an investment or a security.The crypto payment app Oobit announced that $Trump is now usable for tap payments, allowing for everyday purchases with the Solana-based memecoin. This development was highlighted with the notion of using $Trump to pay for items at fast-food chains, such as McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD), with a tweet suggesting the ease of saying, “I’ll pay with TRUMP,” at the checkout.This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C. More