Cryptocurrencies enjoyed another good week as the market picked up the bullish momentum that started two weeks ago. The general market saw a significant value increase as cryptocurrencies shared in the bullish spoils. Legal battles continued as Ripple continued its long walk to freedom from the SEC's bullying and Shiba once again took cryptocurrencies into the Philippines and Mexico. Let’s get into the details.
SHIBA INU one step closer to global acceptance
Shiba Inu recorded an increase in user base as the memecoin registered its presence in the Philippines and Mexico. Shiba's penetration of the Philippines and Mexico was made possible through its launch on the crypto exchange Coin.ph. Coin.ph is approved in the Philippines with over 16 million users; this gives Shiba access to a user base of over 16 million crypto lovers.
Shiba was slated to launch on Coin.ph on July 13, 2022, however, due to technical challenges, the launch was postponed. Users of the platform continue to anticipate Shiba's inclusion on the platform and the memecoin’s popularity increases.
Regarding Mexico, Shiba found support in Utel University who announced that it would accept tuition fees in 34 cryptocurrencies, including Shiba. Utel University, combined with Bitso, a cryptocurrency exchange that facilitates the use of Shiba for fee payment, provided the entry point of Shiba into the Mexican economy.
SEC vs Ripple battle continues, Ripple accuses SEC of bullying
As the legal battle between the US SEC and Ripple continues, Ripple's General Counsel has condemned the SEC's arbitrary abuse of power. The counsel claims the SEC filed unproven allegations against crypto companies and masqueraded its allegations as regulations. In response to the behavior of the SEC, the counsel called for a more precise classification and regulation of cryptocurrencies to eliminate legal grey areas, which gives government authorities the room to interpret legal issues arbitrarily.
Ripple's counsel stated that SEC had not provided legal clarity concerning the regulations of cryptocurrencies. Instead, it bullies the crypto market, threatening to file enforcement cases that could hurt the crypto community and generally erode the enthusiasm for digital financial innovations in the United States.
Vitalik Buterin draws attention to Ethereum Classic
Ethereum will not be the sole beneficiary of its scheduled transition from PoW to PoS. As the merge draws near, Ethereum Classic seems to be reaping benefits from imminent approach of its rival's transition. A statement credited to Ethereum’s co-founded Buterin endorsed Ethereum Classic as an acceptable PoW alternative to Ethereum.
The market's response to the news increased the price of ETC by more than 20% in about 48 hours. The statement came amidst remarks that Ethereum's transition will leave ETHs PoW miners hanging. Buterin's statement is, therefore, a pointer to an alternative that could absorb PoW miners as Ethereum’s final merge inches closer.
Dogopedia — new weapon against FUD
Dogecoin goes to war against FUD. To tackle the fear, uncertainty and doubt spread around the memecoin, Dogecoin has launched Dogepedia, which would provide accurate information related to the Dogecoin ecosystem. The information platform will also include Frequently Asked Questions, answers, guides, and other relevant information on the memecoin. The platform will also allow Dogecoin lovers to publish articles in support of the Doge community.
Solana plans to open IRL retail store and Web3 "embassy" in New York
Solana joins the growing number of Crypto companies and brands bringing cryptocurrencies into mainstream culture as the crypto giant is set to launch Solana Spaces, a Solana-themed store in New York City.
The store will provide educational services to teach people what Solana is about and how it works and set users up with their first on-chain transaction. Solana Space unofficially opened its doors for services this week to a group of 30 visitors to preview the store.
Even though the store is not officially open, it is making considerable waves on social media, and Solana supporters are eager to show their support for the Ninth largest cryptocurrency on the market.
Bitcoin Rally: real bullish momentum or a bubble about to pop?
Bitcoin opened this week at $23,068.088 and fell to $20,674.017 before it began a solid bullish move to the upside. Price decisively broke a 4Hr trend line at the $22.797 levels and rallied up to 24,456.610 before it was rejected. The apex coin continues to show strong bullish momentum although there seem to be a strong rejection to further upside movements as BTC currently trades at the $23,940.
Bitcoin traders and holders, however, view present movements of the coin with caution as significant holders of the currency continue to offload their holdings in expectation of further downward trends.
Tron DAO launches new grant program to strengthen the ecosystem
The crypto community is thrilled to receive news from TRON DAO as it launches its Developer, Community Ambassador, and Influence Grant Programs. The program is designed to support developers on the TRON network. With a quarterly giveaway of $30,000, the TRON DAO aims to increase the pace of innovation and development within its ecosystem.
The program will only support established projects with Proof-of-Concept, e.g., Github Repository or Provable Suggestions to improve the TRON blockchain and its ecosystem sustained history of consistent development efforts, genuine support for TRON DAO, and its community objectives, and a solid understanding of the TRON ecosystem.
Tron also launched a program that incentivizes developers to discover system vulnerabilities within the TRON network. The Bug Bounty program aims to make the network safer and reward those who set that in motion by identifying weaknesses. Rewards for participants will be based on the identified Bug's complexity and its replacability.
Lastly, through its Influencer Grant program, TRON will support Tron eco-educators. This program aims to support the dissemination of credible and valuable information about the TRON ecosystem. The program will provide a quarterly grant of $45000, and Influencers working with TRON-DAO-related projects are eligible to apply.
The influencer grant will only consider users with established Social Media Channels with crypto-relevant content, sustained history of consistent quality content creation, genuine support for TRON DAO and its community objectives, and a solid understanding of the TRON ecosystem.
UK national crime agency seizes $33 million in cryptocurrency
One of the arguments against cryptocurrencies is that they provide a haven for criminal activities and money laundering. While crypto lovers argue against this stand, pointing to the fact that traditional finance supports an enormous volume of financial crimes and laundering compared to crypto, the reality is that cryptocurrencies and the blockchain are yet overcome the challenges posed by criminal elements.
In a blemishing release, the British NCA claims to be in possession of cryptocurrencies worth approximately $33 million. The news came this week as part of the highlights of the NCA's annual report for 2021-22. The report revealed that between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, the NCA seized property worth £59.79 million, out of which £26.894 ($32.75) were in cryptocurrencies.
The British body in charge of pursuing, monitoring, and arresting crimes, which constitutes significant threats in the UK, stated that criminal exploitation of the blockchain and cryptocurrency technology to harm the UK economy is rising. They further added that the lack of regulatory focus on the technology makes crypto attractive to criminal elements.
