News Updates August 03, 2022
1. Bitcoin Price Prediction – BTC Price Estimated to Reach $ 26,602 By Aug 08, 2022
* of contents
BTC price is expected to rise by 13.79% in the next 5 days according to our Bitcoin price prediction
* What has been going on with Bitcoin in the last 30 days
* Bitcoin technical analysis for today - Aug 03, 2022
Bearish sentiment for Bitcoin
Crypto market is currently experiencing Fear
Bitcoin moving averages & oscillators
* The bottom line about this Bitcoin prediction
The Relative Strength Index (RSI 14) is a widely used indicator that helps inform investors whether an asset is currently overbought or oversold. The RSI 14 for Bitcoin is at 54.00, suggesting that BTC is currently neutral.
The 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA 50) takes into account the closing price of Bitcoin over the last 50 days. Currently, Bitcoin is trading below the SMA 50 trendline, which is a bearish signal.
Meanwhile, the 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA 200) is a long-term trendline that’s calculated by taking an average of the BTC closing price for the last 200 days. BTC is now trading above the SMA 200, signaling that the market is currently bullish.
*The bottom line about this Bitcoin prediction*
After considering the above factors, we can conclude that the current forecast for Bitcoin price prediction is Bearish. BTC would have to increase by 13.79% to hit our $ 26,602 target within the next five days. Moving forward, it will be important to monitor the BTC market sentiment, the key support and resistance levels, and other metrics. However, we have to keep in mind that the cryptocurrency markets are unpredictable, and even the largest crypto assets display a lot of price volatility. For long-term Bitcoin price predictions.
2. This is Why the Crypto Market is at Risk Of Massive Liquidation Soon!
As tensions between the United States and China rise, the cryptocurrency market is once again under pressure ahead of a Wednesday visit to Taiwan by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. In addition, the $300 million Forsage pyramid scheme and the $200 million Nomad hack have put considerable pressure on the market, forcing prices to drop.
Due to a recent update to smart contracts, hackers were able to steal money from the Nomad token bridge for close to $200 million. Additionally, the Forsage pyramid scheme, which garnered more than $300 million from individual investors, was handled by 11 people who were accused by the SEC.
Both recent occurrences are exerting pressure on the cryptocurrency market. As market volatility has increased, traders have started to withdraw money from the market or take positions in short sales.
A “series of countermeasures, including military ones,” the Chinese government is preparing, according to the tabloid newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party. Due to anticipated conflicts and escalation, traders have begun to withdraw money from the market or take positions in short sales as volatility has increased.
*Tensions brew among the countries*
Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi has meetings scheduled with leaders in South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Japan. Singaporean authorities stressed the value of stable U.S.-China relations for regional peace and security during his visit there on Monday.
The United States and China are becoming more tense as a result of Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. If Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan, China’s military has been told “not to sit quietly by.” In reaction, the US and Taiwan have deployed their armed forces close to the Taiwanese border and straits.
Capital markets are declining as a result of escalating tensions; because of their correlation, this includes both the stock market and the cryptocurrency market. On the previous day, the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies fell by 3% while investor confidence declined.
3. Bitcoin (BTC) Attempts to Breakout From Short-Term Bullish Pattern
Bitcoin (BTC) is currently making its third attempt at breaking out from a short-term descending wedge in order to resume its upward movement.
Bitcoin has been falling since reaching a high of $24,669 on July 30. The downward movement has thus far been contained inside a descending wedge. The descending wedge is normally considered a bullish pattern, meaning that it leads to breakouts the majority of the time.
On Aug. 2, the price rebounded at the 0.5 Fib retracement support level at $22,650 and moved upwards, also coinciding with a horizontal support area. BTC is now making an attempt at breaking out above the descending resistance line
If BTC breaks out from the wedge, the closest resistance area would likely be reached at $23,650. This target is the 0.5 Fib retracement resistance level.
*Current support*
The six-hour chart shows that BTC has been trading above an ascending support line since June 19, most recently rebounding from it on July 26 (green icon). This led to the aforementioned $24,669 high on July 30.
Initially, Bitcoin appeared to have broken out above the $23,750 area but has since fallen below it, rendering it just a deviation.
*BTC wave count analysis*
The most likely wave count suggests that Bitcoin has begun wave three of a five-wave upward move (yellow). Since wave three is usually the largest out of the five waves, a significant increase is expected if the count is correct.
4. Dubai-based Crypto Exchange Becomes Safe Haven for Russian Traders
Dubai-based exchange Coinsfera is attracting traders from countries under sanctions, including Russia and Iran, Bloomberg reported.
Coinsfera is a crypto over-the-counter (OTC) desk which allows its users to make large trades under the public markets’ radar and turn them into cash in Dubai. The process takes minutes and only requires an identity document and a couple of questions compared to other crypto exchanges that use the KYC process.
*Neutral trading ground in Dubai*
Since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February, many Russians have fled to the UAE, which remained neutral and hasn’t imposed any sanctions on the country or individuals, while most crypto trading platforms like Binance and Coinbase have blocked or restricted the accounts associated with Russia. Meanwhile, Russian users have been using Coinsfera for “sizable transactions,” according to Bloomberg’s sources.
The exchange, with offices in Dubai, Istanbul, London, and Kosovo, was launched in 2015 and has attracted users from countries sanctioned by the West long before the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
Coinsfera describes itself as a “cashpoint” where customers “are not constrained by trade restrictions.”
Any quantity of money may be obtained with ease, at the lowest possible cost, and in the shortest period feasible. Users may easily sell or buy bitcoin in Dubai with a valid ID from any nation,” the company’s official announcement said, raising concerns about the nature of activities these transactions might be sponsoring.
A UAE government official insisted that the country was working tirelessly to “combat the cross-border threats of illicit activity in the crypto industry and uphold the integrity of the financial system” when asked about the ramifications of such transactions.
5. South African Professor Accuses Central Bank Official of Spreading Misinformation That Damages Crypto Industry
A South African professor, Steven Boykey Sidley, has branded as “balderdash” claims by the South African central bank deputy governor that “90% of cryptocurrency transactions” are illicit. The professor also accused the senior central bank official of spreading inaccurate information that “does immeasurable damage to an important new industry.”
Only 0.15% of Crypto Transactions Are Tied to Illicit Activity
A South African university professor and author, Steven Boykey Sidley, has slammed Kuben Naidoo, the country’s central bank deputy governor, for claiming that “90% of cryptocurrency transactions” are illicit. Describing Naidoo’s claims as “balderdash,” Sidley insisted the “real stats are continuously assembled and reported by numerous data analytics companies” and prove that only a tiny fraction of crypto transactions are tied to illicit activities.
In an opinion piece published by the Daily Maverick, Sidley accuses the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) deputy governor of spreading “misinformation that ends up in news headlines and does immeasurable damage to an important new industry.” To support this theory, Sidley points to the data provided by Chainalysis which suggests that only 0.15% of crypto transactions are tied to illicit activity.
For Sidley, who is also a co-author of the book titled “Beyond Bitcoin: Decentralised Finance and the End of Banks,” this figure is much lower when compared with illicit transactions that involve fiat currency.
“Furthermore, the number of transactions tied to illicit transactions in the real world of rands and dollars, where we live, is 5%. That’s 50 times higher than crypto (and those are the only ones we know about),” Sidley is quoted explaining.
According to the professor, because blockchain transactions are public, it is impossible to commit a crime that goes unnoticed. Sidley added that this level of transparency makes “tracking the proceeds of crypto crime” much easier.
*Attempting to Regulate a New Asset Class With Old Laws Will Not Work*
Meanwhile, Sidley also offered his thoughts on the SARB’s intention to regulate cryptocurrency as a financial asset. As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, the SARB expects to have a crypto regulatory framework in place by the end of 2023. According to Sidley, such a regulatory framework removes the uncertainty that currently afflicts the entire industry and allows institutions like banks to get into “this asset and service space.”
While such a regulatory framework is expected to create some level of certainty, Sidley argued it will expose an even bigger problem that awaits the industry — the regulation of cryptocurrency with laws passed more than a century ago. He said:
Sidley insisted that these entirely new asset classes need to be “defined properly before the whole field can be rationally regulated.”
6. Brazil Might Approve Its Cryptocurrency Law This Week
This week, the Chamber of Deputies in Brazil might approve a cryptocurrency bill introduced earlier this year. According to the leader of the Federal Government in the Chamber, Ricardo Barros, the bill is set to be discussed, but there are still no reports on a possible vote as the Chamber is set to also discuss other time-sensitive bills.
*Cryptocurrency Bill on Agenda to Be Discussed This Week*
Brazil is getting closer to regulating cryptocurrency assets and virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The cryptocurrency bill, identified with the number 4.401/2021, is set to be addressed this week, alongside other time-sensitive bills. The report was made by the leader of the Federal Government in the Deputy Chamber of Congress, Ricardo Barros, who stated that the bill can be voted on this week.
However, Brazil is in pre-election mode, with the presidential ballot set to happen on October 2. As such, the congress might not discuss delicate matters to avoid swaying the electorate towards one side or another. However, if the cryptocurrency bill is finally voted and approved, it would have to be remitted to president Jair Bolsonaro for its final sanction. The Deputy Chamber is also set to discuss other significant laws this week, including a remote work bill.
*Cryptocurrency Regulation Background in Brazil*
According to local media, the cryptocurrency bill might be presented this weekend to be reviewed by the Deputy Chamber. This project has had a somewhat complicated history in Brazilian institutions. The current bill is the result of the combination of two different projects as part of the work of its proponents, who wanted to approve a crypto-centric law this year.
The project was approved by the Brazilian Senate in April and seeks to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges by creating a single regulator to deal with the issue. In the same way, the project legalizes cryptocurrency mining, and establishes tax exemption rules for mining institutions that present green projects using 100% renewable energy for the establishment of mining farms.
In earlier interviews, the deputies behind this cryptocurrency bill project have stated that one of the biggest motivations behind the law is to punish cryptocurrency scams in the country. For this purpose, the project also defines a new kind of crypto-related crime and establishes harsh penalties for individuals and companies involved in this kind of crime.
7. Tax Agency Vows to Go Hard After Koreans Using Crypto to Evade Levies
South Korea’s tax administration has pledged to take strict measures against tax evasion through virtual assets and platforms. While the Korean government is yet to start taxing capital gains resulting from crypto investment and trading, authorities in Seoul claim cryptocurrencies have been actively used for money laundering.
*Korean Citizens Accused of Investing in Crypto Assets to Dodge Taxes*
The National Tax Service (NTS) of South Korea intends to take severe actions against tax evasion practices relying on virtual assets, such as cryptocurrencies, and platforms operating with them, the Korea Herald informed its readers, quoting a representative of the agency.
A growing number of Korean people are reportedly seeking to evade taxes by investing in crypto assets after moving their wealth to tax havens like some countries in the Caribbean Basin and Southeast Asia, the official said on Monday.
During the authority’s policy briefing before the strategy and finance committee at the National Assembly, the Korean parliament, the official elaborated that this kind of new tax evasion is hampering justice in the market as well as fairness in taxation.
Although the NTS is yet to implement taxation for gains from the trading of cryptocurrencies, these assets have been actively used for money laundering, he emphasized. The official citied different cases involving such behavior on the part of tax payers. In one of them, the owner of a hospital in Seoul owed 2.7 billion won ($2 million) in income tax.
The man, who was residing in the Korean capital’s Gangnam district, insisted he was not earning anything. However, the tax service was able to establish that he had put 3.9 billion won (almost $3 million) into cryptocurrency. He was forced to fulfill his obligations to the state after the NTS seized his crypto account. Crypto has been allegedly used to evade inheritance and gift taxes as well.
NTS officials also admitted that the operators of online platforms are a prime target for the agency. The claim is that an increasing number of them are seeking to relocate their servers for electronic commerce abroad, to avoid taxation, including to tax havens.
South Korean authorities recently again postponed a 20% tax on crypto-related gains until 2025. The levy was supposed to come into force in January, next year, for capital gains exceeding 2.5 million won ($1,900). The government delays imposing the tax for a second time as the original plan was to introduce it in January 2022.
8. EU securities watchdog agrees breakthrough rules to regulate ‘Wild West’ crypto sector.
The European Union’s (EU) securities regulator has started preparations for heightened supervision of cryptocurrency transactions after the EU agreed on ground-breaking measures to oversee a sector that it referred to as the “Wild West,” according to a public tender document.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) will supervise the industry’s larger participants, while the national authorities in the bloc of 27 countries will be responsible for issuing licenses to companies dealing in crypto assets, Reuters reported on August 3.
On Tuesday, August 2, the watchdog issued a public procurement request to companies that provide trading data on cryptocurrency transactions. These transactions include spot trades and derivatives.
Monitoring to cover all major crypto exchanges and assets
Notably, the public procurement request excludes transactions from blockchain or distributed ledger technology, both of which are fundamental to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.
9. Solana wallets ‘compromised and abandoned’ as users warned of scam solutions
Solana users have been urged to move their funds to cold storage and be alert to possible scams after a major exploit of thousands of wallets sees more than $8 million stolen.
The cryptocurrency ecosystem has been rocked by a widespread exploit targeting Solana wallets that have been ongoing since Wednesday. Phantom and Slope, two Solana-based wallet services, initially flagged the attack on their social media platforms, alongside a host of cryptocurrency influencers, blockchain analytic and security firms and victims of the hack as it continued to unfold.
A handful of commentators noted that attackers had gained access to user private keys, as transactions were signed on the chain legitimately. Ava Labs CEO and founder Emin Gun Sirer estimated that more than 7,000 wallets had been affected, a number cited by various other individuals and firms online.
As investigations begin to unpack the root cause that allowed an attacker to pillage thousands of wallets, affected users are being warned not to accept help from individuals online purporting to have solutions to the hack. Heidi Chakos, the host of the YouTube channel Crypto Tips, stressed that scammers would be looking to exploit the ongoing situation.
10. Two Massive Cryptocurrency Wallets Also Hacked, What's Happening?
The industry already faced a worrying hack that mostly affected Solana and Ethereum users as their funds were stolen directly from their noncustodial mobile wallets, which means that millions of users could be in danger, and Trust (ironically named) and Phantom wallets are the new targets of hackers. Business analytics professor Adam Cochran has his own take on events. According to the expert, the attack could be the result of a compromised mobile library or badly stored private keys on certain apps. His initial hypothesis was based on the fact that almost no Ethereum users became victims of the hack, and the majority of users who lost their funds were Solana investors or traders.
Spoke with a user who was hacked on both Solana and Ethereum: -Used iOS -Wallets were TrustWallet and Slope -ERC20's were stolen to: 0xc611952D81E4ECbd17c8f963123DeC5D7BCe1c27 -ETH side was TrustWallet -Assets were taken at the same time
The main reason behind the imbalance is tied to the number of mobile wallet users on Ethereum, which is significantly lower compared to the number of mobile Solana users. Interestingly, most of the victims had been using iOS-based wallet applications. Users quickly came back to Cochran and reported that the problem also exists on Android-based wallets like Trust Wallet, which means that there is a possibility of cross contamination when the successfull attack on one type of asset opens up the possibility of an attack on another one.
