market

Singapore Based Crypto Exchange Bybit Expands to Argentina

25/06/2022 by Idelto Editor

Bybit, a Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange, has announced it will be expanding its operations to Argentina. The exchange wants to offer Argentinian citizens another platform on which to transact, given the popularity that the cryptocurrency industry is enjoying in the country. The exchange will also have a dedicated team to support Argentinian operations.

Bybit Lands in Argentina

The growth of the cryptocurrency industry in Argentina has not gone unnoticed by international companies. Bybit, a Singapore-based, top-ten crypto exchange by volume traded, has announced that it will expand its trading operations to support Argentinian customers directly.

To better achieve this goal, the company will dedicate a team to attend to applicable requirements and support its upcoming Argentinian customers, allowing them to transact, purchase, and sell cryptocurrencies on Bybit’s platform. Also, the platform will be available in Spanish, the native language of the country.

Regarding this development, the exchange declared:

Taking into account the level of penetration and the rapid growth in the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Argentina, Bybit has made this decision, which is due to the importance of the Argentinian market in the Latin American region.

Due to all of this, Bybit considers it is the right time to expand its operations to the country, given that there is an opportunity for onboarding users still new to the cryptocurrency movement.

Argentinian Crypto Appeal

In recent years, Argentinians have been getting closer and closer to crypto, with this phenomenon starting after the government established limits to the number of dollars citizens could exchange, establishing a foreign currency exchange control, similar to the one established by the Venezuelan government before that. Inflation numbers have also influenced the interest in this new, alternative financial system.

The exchange is betting that this newfound interest in crypto, due to national and international market conditions, will power the demand of Argentinian users in the near future for new applications. About this, Gonzalo Lema, director of Bybit operations for Argentina, stated:

Although macroeconomic conditions have become a factor in increasing the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Argentina, as the customer base grows, interest in other potential uses of these assets will increase, such as the possibility of receiving remittances or even paying for goods and services with them.

The company will offer all of its available services and investment instruments in Argentina, and an APY of 22% on Dai deposits, to Argentinians registering before July 11.

What do you think about the new expansion plans that Bybit has for Argentinian markets? Tell us in the comments section below.

Alleged Hydra Administrator Refuses to Provide Access to His Crypto Wallet, Report Claims

01/06/2022 by Idelto Editor

A Moscow court has ordered the seizure of the crypto wallet of one of the alleged administrators of darknet market Hydra. Media reports reveal, however, that the man — who was arrested in Russia in mid-April — is refusing to share access to his presumed crypto stash with Russian law enforcement.

Investigators Fail to Obtain Hydra Market Operator’s Cryptocurrency

The Russian judiciary wants to confiscate what it believes to be a record amount of cryptocurrency from a drug dealer’s crypto wallet, the business daily Kommersant reported this week, quoting a post on the Telegram news channel Mash.

The crypto stash belongs to an alleged co-founder and administrator of arguably the largest online marketplace on the dark web, Hydra, which was shut down by Germany not long ago.

Dmitry Olegovich Pavlov, a 30-year-old businessman from Cherepovets, was detained last month on a warrant from the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow and accused of production, sale, and distribution of drugs under Russia’s Criminal Code.

His arrest came shortly after the U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges against a Russian resident with the same names for conspiracy to distribute narcotics and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

According to the report, Pavlov’s wallet was seized with a court order and investigators think it stores hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency. Whether the state will be able to obtain the coins, however, is another question.

The owner refuses to give Russian authorities access to his wallet and the exact amount of digital currency stored there is yet to be established. Aside from the crypto wallet, Pavlov has been otherwise cooperative and police already have his phones and computers, Kommersant revealed.

Dmitry Pavlov is the first Hydra operator detained in the history of the Russian-language marketplace, the newspaper noted. The platform had been active since at least 2015 and had around 17 million customers before it was busted in early April when German law enforcement seized its server infrastructure and took down the darknet market’s website with support from U.S. agencies.

Do you expect Russian authorities to eventually gain access to Dmitry Pavlov’s crypto wallet? Tell us in the comments section below.

Germany Shuts Down Hydra Market, Seizes Servers and Bitcoin

05/04/2022 by Idelto Editor

Law enforcement agencies in Germany have targeted Hydra, a leading darknet market (DNM). As part of an operation conducted with U.S. support, the German police were able to establish control over the servers of the Russian-language platform in the country and take down its website.

Investigators Hit Hydra in Germany, Confiscate Millions in Crypto

Hydra Market, one of the largest marketplaces on the darknet, has been shut down by German authorities which seized its server infrastructure. According to an announcement by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), law enforcement agents also confiscated bitcoin worth around €23 million ($25 million). The following message appeared on Hydra’s website on Tuesday:

BKA carried out the raid together with the Central Office for Combating Cybercrime (ZIT) at the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Frankfurt which is leading the investigation against Hydra’s unidentified operators and administrators. They are wanted for running illegal online platforms facilitating the trade of drugs and money laundering.

The German police noted that Hydra had been active since at least 2015 before the seizures which came after extensive investigations by the BKA and ZIT. They started in August last year and were conducted with the participation of several U.S. agencies.

The darknet marketplace, which was accessible via the Tor network, was targeting Russian speakers. It had around 17 million customers and over 19,000 registered sellers, the press release detailed. Besides banned substances, these also offered stolen data, forged documents and digital services.

Hydra became a major darknet market after overtaking another Russian platform, DNM Ramp. According to the data compiled by the blockchain forensics company Chainalysis, the region of Eastern Europe sends more digital currency to darknet marketplaces than any other region.

Washington has been alleging Moscow’s involvement with malicious cyber actors like DNMs, ransomware groups and other crypto-related crime. In September, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the Russia-based crypto broker Suex which is believed to have received more than $20 million from darknet markets like Hydra.

German law enforcement officials think that Hydra was likely the darknet market with the highest turnover globally. BKA and ZIT have estimated that its sales reached at least €1.23 billion in 2020 alone. They also noted that the investigations were hampered by the platform’s own ‘Bitcoin Bank Mixer’ service.

Do you think other darknet markets will be targeted after Hydra? Let us know in the comments section below.

Crypto Businessman Disappears as ‘First Greek Cryptocurrency’ Collapses

24/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

The man who was at the helm of the company behind what’s become known as Greece’s first cryptocurrency has allegedly caused the coin’s price to sink as he disappeared this month. The executive was off the radar for about two weeks before finally telling the press he will soon return, rejecting accusations he has crashed the market of the crypto.

Hellenic Coin Plummets Amid Crypto Investors’ Worries About Whereabouts of Coin’s Creator

Vangelis Tsapas, someone with various business interests and a sponsor of a basketball team in Greece, upset investors in a cryptocurrency he created when he suddenly vanished earlier in November. The price of Hellenic Coin (HNC) plunged as he became unavailable – from over $1.20 on Nov. 8, to under $0.34 at the time of writing. That’s after reaching its all-time high of $4.84 on June 14, 2021.

Speculations emerged that Tsapas had sold his HNC stash causing the slump, an accusation he has denied. Before his recent resignation, the entrepreneur was the CEO of HNC Revolution, the company managing the coin which was launched by a group of blockchain developers and finance experts in 2015 as the “first Greek cryptocurrency,” the business news portal Newmoney.gr recalls. It was conceived both as an investment vehicle and a payment instrument aimed at facilitating digital transactions for the Greek tourism industry and has since been bought by people from around the world.

While raising concerns among HNC Coin holders, his disappearance alarmed players and other staff at Ionikos Nikaias B.C. too, as he has been supporting the club financially. Tsapas, who is involved in catering and shipping as well, has also reportedly angered Qatar’s prime minister as his company hired to manage Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani’s superyacht, Al Mirqab, failed to pay its crew their wages.

Despite the HNC Coin clearly starting to lose value after Mr. Tsapas stopped answering his phone, he has recently rejected allegations he has caused the drop by selling his coins. Speaking to the Proto Thema newspaper this week, the “phantom” businessman insisted he had actually given away the Hellenic crypto for free, blamed his close associates for the “noise” and announced he will soon return to his business obligations. Claiming media reports are were responsible for the plummeting price, he insisted his absence didn’t play any role and stated:

It’s falling, right, in which I, of course, have no involvement. Because I have never sold a single cryptocurrency. I do not have any, because I transferred everything last Friday for free, as I have the right, without taking a single euro.

Tsapas added he’s holding talks with a new management team to ensure the viability of the crypto. Meanwhile, HNC Coin’s current leadership has refuted him and informed the public that he is not heading the project anymore. A released statement emphasized that following the recent events, Tsapas is no longer the CEO and is not involved in decision-making regarding the cryptocurrency’s operation and development.

In the interview with Proto Thema, meant to “restore the truth,” Vangelis Tsapas cited “serious health reasons” for his temporary retreat out of Athens and public sight but he also said he took the step on advice from his lawyer. “By the way, I have not been called by a prosecutor for any reason,” Tsapas pointed out. The publication notes that Greek law enforcement authorities have been discreetly monitoring developments in the case.

What do you think will be the fate of Greece’s first cryptocurrency and its creator? Tell us in the comments section below.

Bitcoin Market Enters “Fear” Territory, Time To Buy The Dip?

19/11/2021 by Idelto Editor

As BTC/USD drifts below $60k, the market has begun getting fearful, indicating that a good buy opportunity might be arising.

Bitcoin has entered a correction after flying past previous highs at the beginning of November. BTC is currently trading at around $58,000 — nearly 16% below its all-time high price of $69,000 registered on November 10, according to the Clark Moody Bitcoin Dashboard.

*The current bitcoin price dip is a below-average percent drawdown for BTC this year. Source:* *UTXO Management*.

Whenever price dips, newcomers get nervous while long-timers enjoy buying the dip and stacking cheap sats. The difficulty of newcomers lies in the short-term vision of becoming a millionaire, usually propagated by some. At the same time, Bitcoiners can keep purchasing more BTC as the price drifts downwards. This dynamic is part of human nature, as one tends to sail according to the winds. However, generally, applying emotion in your investments can hurt your strategy, and the best strategy is to “play it cool.”

Armed with a foundational knowledge of Bitcoin and an experienced past of BTC’s ups and downs, Bitcoiners who have been part of the community for a while no longer get affected by the extreme fear that price dips inundate the market. They profit from it. Whenever bitcoin crashes, Bitcoiners are the first group to step up and meme “buy the dip” into reality because they know that, historically, the price trend has been upwards.

One tool to gauge market sentiment is the bitcoin Fear & Greed Index. When investors are too fearful, a good buying opportunity might occur, and the correction might be coming to an end. On the flip side, when investors are too greedy, a correction could be underway to halt the rally. A value of zero means “extreme fear,” while a value of 100 represents “extreme greed.”

*Historical data of the bitcoin Fear & Greed Index. Source:* *alternative.me*

The legitimacy and accuracy of this index and whether it can serve as a price prediction tool are certainly up to debate. However, the bitcoin Fear & Greed Index has highlighted some interesting correlations and can serve as an aid for investors to put their emotions aside and recognize opportunities.

At the time of writing, the index showcases a “fear” in market sentiment, with a score of 34, as bitcoin stays below $60,000. In the past, when things went south and sentiment plunged, the index reached single-digit marks, for instance, in March 2020 and in May 2021. Both periods saw a flash crash in price that effectively killed the hope of mainstream investors. However, Bitcoin didn’t die in both instances and hadn’t died in any other, a fact that reiterates the Bitcoiner motto of “buy the dip.”

That being said, there is no best time to purchase bitcoin. Those who wait for a dip can be left hanging while Bitcoin performs double-digit green months the same way those who instant buy can see the price crash in the short term. The heart of the matter is that, in the long run, it doesn’t matter when someone bought it but actually whether they did.