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    Lower growth in China not affecting commodity prices ‘that much,’ Brazil’s Campos Neto says

    BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazilian central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto said on Tuesday that the slower growth seen in China is not affecting commodity prices “that much.”Speaking at an event hosted by the Julius Baer Group (OTC:JBAXY) in Sao Paulo, he reiterated that the central bank was on the last leg of its fight against inflation, adding it is important to persevere so that it does not begin to climb again. More

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    CleanSpark Issues August 2023 Bitcoin Mining Update

    “August was another banner month for CleanSpark as the 50MW expansion in Washington saw its first full month at maximum operational hashrate, delivering some of our highest daily production ever,” said CleanSpark CEO Zach Bradford. “What’s more, we have carefully managed power to achieve substantially high levels of uptime in August, despite historically high levels of rain and very hot weather. That operational prowess has resulted in what we expect is among the best monthly bitcoin production rates of publicly traded miners in North America.”August Bitcoin Mining Update (unaudited)The Company sold 43 bitcoins in August 2023 at an average of approximately $28,200 per BTC. Sales of BTC equated to proceeds of approximately $1.2 million. August daily BTC mined averaged 21.26 and reached a high of 22.11.Operational updatesSandersville. Construction is underway at the Company’s newest expansion in Sandersville, GA. Concrete has been poured for Building 1, and construction on subsequent buildings begins this week. Materials are arriving on site daily and all ten data centers are expected to be completed later this year. Once finished, the site will be home to 230MW of the most efficient bitcoin mining machines available, making it one of the largest bitcoin mining data centers in the southeastern United States. The expansion itself is 150MW and is expected to house 45,000 miners.Concurrently, the Municipal Energy Authority of Georgia (MEAG) has been constructing a 200MW substation and related infrastructure that will power the Sandersville expansion. The utility has informed the Company that it expects to complete the substation in 2023, but the related power-line project that connects to the substation is expected to push into early 2024, after which time miners will be promptly energized to achieve CleanSpark’s target of 16 EH/s of operational hashrate.Additional commentary about the Sandersville expansion, including recent photos, are available here and here.Fall Investor Conference Schedule3rd Annual Needham Virtual Crypto Conference, September 7, 2023H.C. Wainwright 25th Annual Global Investment Conference (New York), September 11 – 13, 2023AIM Summit (Dubai), October 30 – 31, 202326th Annual Needham Growth Conference (New York), January 16 – 19, 2024About CleanSpark CleanSpark (Nasdaq: CLSK) is America’s Bitcoin Miner™. We own and operate data centers that primarily run on low-carbon power. Our infrastructure responsibly supports Bitcoin, the world’s most important digital commodity and an essential tool for financial independence and inclusion. We cultivate trust and transparency among our employees and the communities we operate in. Visit our website at www.cleanspark.com.Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding expectations of realizing the benefits of 9.3 EH/s of operating hashrate, achievement and timing of reaching our target guidance of 16 EH/s, the expansion and timing of such expansion of the bitcoin mining facilities in Sandersville, Georgia, and the resulting anticipated benefits to CleanSpark (including as to anticipated additions to CleanSpark’s hashrate and the timing thereof). We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release may be forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “targets,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “predicts,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our future results of operations and financial position, industry and business trends, business strategy, expansion plans, market growth and our objectives for future operations.The forward-looking statements in this press release are only predictions. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: the anticipated timing of the expansions; the risk that the electrical power available to our facilities does not increase as expected; the success of its digital currency mining activities; the volatile and unpredictable cycles in the emerging and evolving industries in which we operate; increasing difficulty rates for bitcoin mining; bitcoin halving; new or additional governmental regulation; the anticipated delivery dates of new miners; the ability to successfully deploy new miners; the dependency on utility rate structures and government incentive programs; dependency on third-party power providers for expansion efforts; the expectations of future revenue growth may not be realized; and other risks described in the Company’s prior press releases and in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent filings with the SEC. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon information available to us as of the date of this press release, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain and investors are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.You should read this press release with the understanding that our actual future results, performance and achievements may be materially different from what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Except as required by applicable law, we do not plan to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, whether as a result of any new information, future events or otherwise.Investor Relations Contact Matt [email protected] Media Contacts Isaac [email protected] ConsultingNishant [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cleanspark-releases-august-2023-bitcoin-mining-update-301917232.htmlSOURCE CleanSpark, Inc. More

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    German finance minister: 2024 budget just a first step in fiscal normalization

    BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany’s budget for 2024 is one of the first steps in its return to sustainable finances, made necessary by higher borrowing costs and greater financial burdens in the years to come, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said on Tuesday.Europe’s biggest economic power is aiming to curb spending that surged in response to COVID-19 and a run-up in energy prices triggered by the Ukraine war. Lindner plans to comply with Germany’s debt brake that constitutionally limits structural budget deficit to 0.35% of economic output. The brake was suspended between 2020 and 2022 to help deal with the crises and restored this year. “We need to recognise our new fiscal realities,” he said while presenting the draft for the 2024 budget and financial plans through 2027 to parliament. “We need to refocus,” he told parliament’s lower house, the Bundestag. The draft budget plans net new debt of 16.6 billion euros ($17.82 billion) for 2024, with spending of 445.7 billion euros, down from 476.3 billion estimated for 2023.”The issue is the return to the debt brake or, more precisely, to sustainable public finances in the long term.”Lindner said the clearest signal change in fiscal policy was necessary was the increase in interest rates. Germany expects to pay 37 billion euros in interest on its debt next year, which Lindner said was a tenfold increase compared to the year 2021 and an amount twice as high as the budget of the Ministry of Education and Research.”The message is therefore clear: we simply cannot afford to run up new debts without limit; they would be impossible to finance,” Lindner said. ‘AN ICEBERG COMING’He warned budget negotiations would get tougher in 2028 and beyond, when Berlin will face additional burdens, such as repayment of pandemic-era debts and European Union funds, it did not have to account for in the 2024-2027 medium-term financial plan.”Behind the horizon line, not yet visible to us, there is an iceberg coming,” he said. “We have to change course now, because the iceberg will not change course.”The finance ministry forecasts a budget gap of around 5 billion euros per year between 2025 and 2027, but later the repayments of pandemic debts to the tune of 12 billion euros per year will add to that. In 2031 the repayments of Germany’s Economic Stabilisation Fund will also come due.In addition, the German government has committed to the 2% NATO spending target. This will be achieved until 2027 with the help of the 100 billion euro special fund for the modernisation of the German armed forces. In 2027, however, the fund will probably be completely exhausted, Lindner said. “From 2028 onwards, considerable funds will therefore be needed in the core budget to comply with the goal. We are talking about a double-digit billion euro amount,” Lindner said.Some economists say the debt brake hinders investment but Lindner said it was not the case.”The debt brake is not a brake on investment, but it does force us to set priorities,” Lindner said. The budgetary plan targets 54.2 billion euros in investments in 2024, up from 38 billion euros in 2019, before the crisis started, and rising to 57.2 billion in 2027. The Bundestag is meeting to discuss the budget and financial planning this week and has until Dec. 1 to decide on the entire federal budget. Between now and then, the draft budget is likely to change significantly, in part to take into account the new tax estimate due in October and updated economic forecasts.($1 = 0.9315 euros) More

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    Cronos Labs begins recruitment phase for $100M accelerator program

    In an announcement sent to Cointelegraph, Cronos Labs highlighted that the accelerator’s goal is to nurture startups that have the potential to “shape the future of Web3.” Furthermore, Cronos is looking for projects that focus on creating practical use cases that can push the adoption of decentralized applications (DApps) that can attract genuine users rather than bots. Continue Reading on Coin Telegraph More

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    Ethereum exchange deposits surge while staked ETH hits ATH

    According to Glassnode, the value recently reached a one-month high, clocking in at 2,145.This indicator, which measures the flow of ETH into exchanges, typically raises concerns among investors. An increase in exchange deposits often signals bearish sentiment, implying a potential surge in selling pressure. Investors seem eager to send their ETH holdings to exchanges, possibly anticipating a downward trend in the market.Moreover, a historical perspective adds depth to this concern. The last time the hourly chart recorded over 2,000 ETH deposits was in June, coinciding with ETH’s surge above $1,900. Subsequently, ETH experienced weeks of consolidation on the back of the spike in exchange deposits. On the other side of the spectrum, the second metric paints a more optimistic picture. Glassnode reports that the total value of the Ethereum 2.0 Deposit Contract has soared to an all-time high of 28,595,373 ETH. This figure represents a substantial 23.8% of the total circulating ETH supply. The metric signifies the amount of ETH staked by investors and locked in the Ethereum 2.0 deposit contract.Intriguingly, while the Shanghai upgrade in April allowed investors to withdraw their ETH tokens from the deposit contract, deposits continued to increase. This steady uptick suggests growing confidence and has persisted until now.What makes this metric particularly bullish is its potential to reduce selling pressure and contribute to a deflationary trend. As more ETH gets staked and locked in the deposit contract, fewer tokens remain in circulation, which can drive up the token’s value.ETH price – Sep. 5 | Source: Trading ViewMeanwhile, ETH has continued to shed off its value since hitting the $1,745 high on Aug. 31. Despite the consistent drop. The asset has defended the psychological support at $1,600 firmly, hedging against declines below the threshold. ETH is trading for $1,628 at the time of writing.This article was originally published on Crypto.news More

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    Cryptoverse: Venture capital still haunted by crypto chaos

    (Reuters) – For venture capitalists, the scars of bitcoin’s disastrous 2022 run deep. While breezy bitcoin has bounced back, leaping by about 55% this year, investments in crypto startups have dropped for the fifth straight quarter. VC crypto bets totaled just under $2.3 billion in April-July this year, the lowest quarterly level for over three years, according to data firm PitchBook. In the first half of 2023, investments were down by almost three-quarters from a year ago to $5 billion. “The lofty exuberant valuation days are gone,” said Tal Elyashiv, founder and managing partner of SPiCE VC, adding that valuations place on crypto companies had fallen closer in line with their actual performance. Crypto investors remain haunted by the chaos that descended on the sector last year when the implosion of the FTX exchange and other major firms, including hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, sent shockwaves through the industry.U.S. regulatory scrutiny has also tightened on the industry. “The biggest change from the height of the market is more time to do deeper diligence,” said Cameron Peake, partner at Restive Ventures. “There’s not necessarily anything new that is happening, except that funds are actually doing diligence now. Deals are no longer closing in mere days.”The number of deals that were sealed by the halfway mark of 2023 was 814, down by more than half of 1,862 from the same period in 2022, PitchBook data showed.”Almost every company in the space tightened up in the aftermath of the carnage of 2022. Those that are raising capital now are probably doing it because they have to,” said Adam Reeds, CEO of Toronto-based crypto finance company Ledn.”I wouldn’t be surprised if in the near term that changes from ‘have to have’ raises to ‘nice to have’ raises.”If bitcoin prices are any indication, the investment slump may be short-lived.VC crypto investments have correlated with crypto asset prices with a lag of roughly three to six months, according to PitchBook, and if current trends continue, VC investment would rise during the second half of 2023.Bitcoin, which fell 65% last year, jumped over 90% in the first six months of 2023 bitcoin and is now up about 55% year-to-date, at $25,881. Still, it is trading at a third of its 2021 peak of $69,000.METAVERSE? NFTs?There has also been a shift in the type of VC investment targets, according to the PitchBook data.A year ago, the focus was on companies tied to speculative non-fungible tokens, as well as metaverse and Web3 projects that sought to build a future – but still unrealized – iteration of the internet with crypto at its core. Now, though, crypto bets have shifted towards firms that provide the platform or support the underlying technology of blockchain or cryptocurrencies. Infrastructure firms such as crypto exchanges, wallets and other fintechs attracted the most investments in 2023 at $325 million, followed by blockchain networks at $220 million and Web3 companies at $274.6 million, according to PitchBook.In the second quarter, the only two funding rounds over $100 million were scored by LayerZero, a platform that connects two blockchains, and digital identity platform WorldCoin. “Institutional investors are looking for things that are more durable,” said Alyse Killeen, founder and managing partner of bitcoin-focused venture firm Stillmark.”We’re seeing less appetite for risk and more appetite for sustaining technology.” More