BlackRock’s Robert Mitchnick: Bitcoin Is “Overwhelmingly” The Number One Priority For Clients

In a fireside chat today at the Bitcoin Investor Day by Reflexivity Research, Robert Mitchnick, the Head of Digital Assets at BlackRock, shared insights into the asset manager’s approach to Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies and the future of the crypto market. Mitchnick emphasized that Bitcoin remains, overwhelmingly, the top priority for BlackRock’s clients, with minimal interest in other cryptocurrencies. He highlighted that the crypto community desires a broader range of crypto products from BlackRock, but the company’s focus remains on Bitcoin. 🚨NEW: @BlackRock’s Head of Digital Assets Robert Mitchnick addresses how the asset…

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Bitcoin and Grain: a tale of two custodies

FTX’s collapse demonstrated the wisdom of segregating the activities of market making on the one hand (Alameda) from those of running an exchange (FTX) and a custodian (FTX again) on the other. However, the question of whether to segregate the activities of operating an exchange and a custodian is more nuanced. Large banks often run their trading businesses and their custody businesses in the same legal entity, using information walls to control for conflicts of interest and ensuring that their own assets are segregated from those of their clients. This…

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The Bitcoin Company Launches Instant Cross-Border Payment API For Mexico and Brazil

The Bitcoin Company has unveiled its new Remittances API, allowing individuals and financial institutions to send instant payments to any bank account in Mexico and Brazil in under 1 second, according to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine. This API marks the company’s expansion into international remittances, with plans to extend services to the USA, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Africa soon. We’re excited to launch our new Remittances API powering instant, cross-border payments for any app 🚀 One easy integration to send Mexican Pesos 🇲🇽 or Brazilian Real 🇧🇷…

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$150K: Standard Chartered Bank Raises Bitcoin Price Forecast for 2024

Global banking giant Standard Chartered has upped its bitcoin price prediction for the end of 2024 to $150,000, a significant increase from its previous forecast of $100,000. In a new report, Standard Chartered analysts cited strong inflows into recently launched spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. as a primary driver of their bullish outlook. The bank believes these “sticky” institutional flows will continue propelling Bitcoin’s price. Standard Chartered has emerged as one of the more Bitcoin-friendly legacy banks, with an active research team covering Bitcoin. Previously, the bank’s analysts had…

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The Dos and Don’ts of Bitcoin Self-Custody

Bitcoin is a completely decentralized system, there is no ability to reverse payments, and there is no customer support line where you can call for help if you mess something up. When you take self-custody of your own Bitcoin, you and only you are responsible for the safety of your funds. Self-custody also means that no one can freeze your funds, and no one can stop you from making a payment you want to make. It’s a double-edged sword: there are huge benefits to self-custody, but it also comes with…

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Stratum Reference Implementation Launches SRI 1.0.0 To Enhance Bitcoin Mining

The Stratum Reference Implementation (SRI) team has unveiled SRI 1.0.0, a new milestone in their journey to decentralize and optimize bitcoin mining, according to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine. This latest release is now available for immediate testing and seamless integration. Some key highlights of SRI 1.0.0 include: Miners can connect to SV2 pools without upgrading existing SV1 firmware through Translation Proxy or directly using an SV2 firmware device like BraiinsOS. Miners have the flexibility to run their bitcoin nodes, construct templates, and declare them to the SV2 Pool. The…

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Bitcoin’s Surge to All Time High: What It Means for Your Investment Future

Bitcoin, the first and most popular cryptocurrency, has been making headlines with its recent surge to a new all-time high of over $72,000. This remarkable price increase has sparked renewed interest in Bitcoin as an investment opportunity, leaving many wondering what this means for their financial future. Investors may see this surge as a validation of Bitcoin’s potential as a long-term store of value and may allocate more of their portfolio to cryptocurrencies. However, the rapid rise in price may also raise concerns about potential volatility and the sustainability of…

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From Wall Street to Main Street: Are Bitcoin ETFs Signaling a New Era in Crypto?

Bitcoin and the rest of crypto went through a brutal cycle in the last two years. Dubbed “crypto winter,” the unforgiving market crushed the hopes of many traders, startup founders, and investors. Marked by scandals, regulatory uncertainty, and lots of FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt in crypto parlance), crypto winter brought down some of the industry’s most significant projects and companies. However, the US SEC’s successive approvals of eleven spot BTC ETF applications on January 10, 2024, changed all perspectives, turning many bullish. It’s not just institutions that are optimistic…

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Announcing: Pitch Day at Bitcoin 2024 – Discovering the Next Class of Bitcoin Startups

Pitch Day at The Bitcoin Conference is back! Bitcoin Magazine and The Bitcoin Conference are looking for the next wave of Bitcoin startups to compete in the ultimate Bitcoin pitch competition. Taking place in Nashville July 25-27 at Bitcoin 2024, the world’s largest Bitcoin conference, founders will present their vision on Bitcoin’s biggest stage to panels of judges across 6 categories: Layer 2 + Scaling Technology Mining + Energy Investing (Alpha) Open Source Ordinals Locals Only (Nashville-based startups) Pitch Day at the Bitcoin Conference has highlighted elite Bitcoin startups across…

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KYC, Bitcoin, and the failed hopes of AML policies: Tracking funds on-chain

The cornerstone of the modern approach to money laundering is to prevent illicit funds from entering the financial system. The rationale is understandable: if criminals won’t be able to use their money, they will have to eventually stop whatever they are doing and go get a 9 to 5 job. However, after 20 years of ever tighter (and ever more expensive) AML regulations, the levels of organized crime, tax evasion, or drug use do not show any signs of decrease. At the same time, the basic right to privacy is…

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