Bloomberg Crypto

You might not have heard of Twitch, but it’s one of the most popular places on the internet. Millions of people every day use the app to watch their favorite live streams do everything from play videogames to solving math problems in real-time. Videogames are still the biggest category of live streams people tune into on Twitch, and the biggest games - like Grand Theft Auto and Fortnite - still do...

Ethereum's 'Merge' is expected to happen this week. What does that mean for you? In this episode Bloomberg Senior Editor Dave Liedtka talks with reporters David Pan and Olga Kharif during a recent Twitter Spaces event about the possible outcomes of the highly-anticipated software upgrade. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been one year since El Salvador adopted Bitcoin as legal tender. In September 2021, the Central American nation forged its own path as the first in the world to make the crypto currency an official part of their economy. According to tweets and statements from President Nayib Bukele the government has bought more than 2,000 BTC so far.  So what’s the problem? Well, many of those purchases wer...

Put a whole bunch of crypto transactions into a blender and lock them up in black box - what do you get? Something metaphorically similar to the experience of using a decentralized app called Tornado Cash. The currency mixer app allows users to move cryptocurrency around anonymously. But federal regulators say cyber criminals used the service for money laundering purposes. Tornado Cash was recentl...

As crypto prices hover well below their all-time highs, the companies that mine Bitcoin are starting to show signs of financial strain. Second quarter earnings reports show that some of the largest U.S. publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies have over $1 billion in losses. Companies such as Core Scientific Inc. and Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. have each reported net losses of more than $100 mi...

When we talk about the “crypto winter," we don’t only mean the months-long decline in prices of different coins and tokens. We’re also referring to organizational failures, crypto CEOs losing their jobs, and of course: bankruptcy filings. In July, two major crypto players, Voyager and Celsius, both declared bankruptcy. These filings have opened something of a pandora’s box surrounding the interpre...

Singapore was an early proponent of crypto regulation, attempting to establish itself as a hub for global digital asset companies long before similar pronouncements by countries like the UK.  For a time, it worked. And then 2022 happened, a year of high-profile crypto company failures and market meltdowns. Several of the biggest casualties of the chill of this crypto winter operated out of Singapo...

By some estimates, major crypto hacks in 2022 have cost the crypto industry nearly $2 billion in stolen tokens. That’s *just* this year. And those headline numbers typically don’t take account of smaller exploits that target individual consumer accounts, for example. So the real number is even bigger.  Crypto holders and the leaders of those organizations appear to be focusing on security. How sho...

Crypto companies have spent more than $2 billion on sports advertising around the world . The NBA, Major League Baseball, Premiere League, Formula 1…. even the Drone Racing League has a crypto sponsor. But in a market downturn, how long will these big investments in sports sponsorships last? And can they persevere through this crypto winter? In this episode, Crypto senior editor Anna Irrera is joi...

BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager , teamed up with the crypto exchange Coinbase in a move that both Wall St and crypto types are watching closely. According to BlackRock, the partnership will help clients better manage and trade their Bitcoin. The deal comes at an interesting time for Coinbase, as it faces over $1 billion loss for the second quarter of 2022 and intense regulatory scruti...

Tether, a stablecoin that trades under the ticker USDT, is the third-largest digital token by market value. It’s also one of the most actively traded tokens in the entire ecosystem and comes with two promises: each Tether has a stable value of $1 and each of those tokens is backed by a “real” dollar, or similarly liquid and reliable financial asset, like a bond issued by the US government. Those p...

It’s the phrase on everyone’s lips: The Merge. It would be the Ethereum blockchain’s most ambitious software upgrade ever. After years of delays, it represents a fundamental overhaul of how the blockchain works, and would - if all goes according to plan -  shift away from the energy-intensive approach known as “proof of work”.  So, what does the Merge mean for users? What are the risks associated...

Despite the continued crypto winter, NFTs are still bringing some heat for high end products. Non fungible tokens have become increasingly popular with many luxury brands, and remain a powerful draw for some consumers. High-end retailers Gucci and Tiffany are the latest to jump into the fray with new NFT offerings. Kering SA’s Gucci says it will accept ApeCoin as legal tender in select US stores....

The day-to-day pulse of crypto can be unrelenting. And no two days are alike. To help distill the latest developments in the world of digital assets, stacy-marie is joined by two Bloomberg senior editors Anna Irrera and Philip Lagerkranser, for the latest edition of Friday in the Editor’s Room. In today's episode, the team tackles everything from why editors still need to be reporters to the Great...

Some of the biggest and brashest figures in crypto have faced staggering losses in this current downmarket. Multiple crypto companies have filed for bankruptcy, and more than one high-flying crypto CEO has found themselves out of a job.  Case in point: Michael Saylor, the co-founder and former CEO of a software services firm called MicroStrategy. But software isn’t what made the company a househol...

We’ve talked a lot about Bitcoin on the Bloomberg Crypto podcast - the world’s oldest, largest, and most popular cryptocurrency. But in this episode, we’re going to talk about the number two token - Ether, and about the blockchain it’s built on. Ether’s market value is still about half that of Bitcoin’s. But a recent surge - a whopping 50 percent since mid-June -  has some Ether fans hoping it’ll...

London’s convenient time zone, bustling city atmosphere, and impressive set of financial regulations have made it a top destination for banks and financial services companies to operate over the years. But the newness of crypto means there’s an international gap in the market for legal standards on digital assets. The Law Commission of England and Wales is an independent regulatory body that advis...

Multiple pieces of proposed crypto legislation are making their way through the U.S. political machine right now. And earlier this year, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets. It directs relevant federal agencies to figure out or define their position on crypto, and identify ways to both protect consumer rights and the rights of investo...

The fear of missing out, or FOMO, can be a driving force for some casual crypto investors. That feeling is often augmented by watching friends and family members make money from digital assets. There’s some evidence that personal relationships are key in driving new money into crypto. That’s great for everyone when the investment is doing well, but what happens when the markets shift and they star...

Solana is one of the newer blockchains in crypto, and for a while was positioned by its fans as a challenger to the dominance of rival Ethereum. Solana’s developers say their blockchain is a faster and cheaper alternative to existing tech. But some users criticize the blockchain for what they call excessive outages, downtime and outright hacks. Still, interest in Solana is high. Now there’s a real...

For years, many crypto investors have been consumed by a single, persistent question as they’ve watched the prices of coins rise and fall, especially as of late: Wen Lambo?  Bloomberg reporter Hannah Miller & Crypto VC Peter Saddington join this episode to discuss all your burning questions about one of the most visible status-symbols of crypto.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa...

The latest alleged hacks by some North Koreans entail plagiarized resumes placed on job sites and theft of proprietary intelligence. How did North Korea get so good at tricking crypto employers? And what does all of this mean for the security of crypto companies? Bloomberg reporter Jeff Stone joins this episode to explain.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In late spring of 2021, China banned all bitcoin mining as part of an ongoing crackdown on crypto in the country.  In response, many Chinese miners packed their bags, and headed to the Lone Star state of Texas. Texas offered a relaxed approach to regulation, a unique power grid, and attractive energy prices - all things that seemed ideal for miners looking for a new home. Until 2022.  The situatio...

The crypto universe can be complex, and it can be unpredictable. But the job of crypto editors and reporters is to track every development, and translate the most interesting and important of them into stories. Bloomberg Crypto Senior editors Dave Liedtka and Anna Irrera join for another edition of “Friday in the Editor’s Room”. They look at the highs and lows of this week in crypto, discuss the b...

Nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, leapt into pop culture prominence in 2021, but they’ve been around since at least 2014. Despite current market conditions, new tokens and collections are still being launched daily, including by luxury brands like Gucci and Prada. Tiffany’s, the iconic retailer, even announced a jewelry partnership with CryptoPunks, selling pendants based on those NFTs for around $50,0...