Daily crypto news alerts for 29th December, 2020
🗞TTM Bank Launches Global Cryptocurrency Card
Estonian financial company TTM Bank has issued a prepaid cryptocurrency card that can be used to pay wherever Visa cards are accepted. Residents of Russia can also get a TTM Bank cryptocard and use it.
The TTM Bank cryptocurrency prepaid card supports four cryptoassets: BTC, ETH, USDT, and TRX. You can pay with the card both at physical retail outlets and online. When depositing, cryptocurrencies credited to the card account are converted into euros at the internal rate of TTM Bank. Holders of TTM Bank crypto cards have the ability to withdraw fiat money from Visa-enabled ATMs anywhere in the world.
Users can design a stylish plastic card made in elegant black, or its virtual equivalent.
"The main advantage of cryptocurrencies is that assets belong only to their owner. And we, in turn, have created a card that allows its holder not only to fully control their own funds, but also serves as a link between the digital market and the classical financial system. TTM card The Bank is replenished with cryptocurrency, which, when deposited, is instantly converted into euros, after which the card can be used to pay in any stores, restaurants, hotels, and also be used for online purchases.The TTM Bank card is not a crypto wallet for storing cryptocurrencies, but a convenient and reliable tool for daily expenses, a product that cryptocurrency owners were so lacking, "says Vladislav Utushkin to Co-Founder TTM Bank.
More than 40,000 people have already used TTM Bank cards. The TTM Bank prepaid card is the only cryptocurrency card available for registration and use in Russia.
The card is a product of the virtual bank TTM Bank (the organization does not have a banking license) - this is the trade name of the company btc2wire registered in Estonia. Distribution, delivery and maintenance of card accounts is handled by the company's partner, financial services operator UAB Walletto, registered in Lithuania and a member of the Visa payment network. Funds deposited in fiat currency are kept with a licensed bank.
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🗞Israel Tax Service urges citizens to report their digital assets
The Israel Internal Revenue Service (ITA) sent out letters to cryptocurrency investors and traders demanding disclosure of information about their digital assets and income from cryptocurrency transactions.
According to local media reports, the ITA has begun to pressure the digital currency market in Israel by launching rigorous tax audits. In addition to the notifications sent to the owners of digital wallets, the agency sent inquiries to local and international cryptocurrency exchanges in order to obtain information about citizens trading in cryptoassets.
Using the common EU standard for the automatic exchange of tax and financial information (CRS), the Israel Tax Administration obtains information on funds and accounts held in Europe. In addition, the ITA receives additional information under the Foreign Account Tax Reporting Act (FATCA), under which the IRS transfers data to Israel.
In Israel, the tax on realized digital asset value gains for individuals is 25%. Such high tax rates can hinder the development of the cryptocurrency industry in the country. Therefore, earlier, the Israeli government expressed its readiness to use alternative solutions for calculating taxes on income from cryptocurrencies.
A few months ago, members of the Israeli parliament introduced a bill that abolishes the 25% capital gains tax on some crypto assets and proposes to treat them as currencies. Such close attention of the tax authorities may be associated with the growth of bitcoin, which is trying to take the next "round figure" - $30,000, and pulls up the entire altcoin market.
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🗞Coinbase becomes the largest exchange to stop XRP trading
Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has announced that it will soon stop trading XRP on its platform for users in all regions it serves.
According to a Coinbase blog post, the XRP markets were put into "limit order-only" mode on December 28, and the company will close them entirely on January 19. However, customers will still be able to access their wallets. They will also be able to receive Spark tokens due to XRP holders as part of the airdrop. XRP support for storage services Coinbase Custody and Coinbase Wallet will continue.
“We will continue to monitor XRP developments from a legal perspective and will notify customers when we have more information,” Coinbase writes.
A number of firms have stopped working with XRP after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit last week against XRP issuer Ripple and its management, accusing them of selling $1.3 billion in unlisted securities.
Coinbase is by far the largest exchange to discontinue XRP trading. It is estimated to account for about 8.5% of global XRP trading volume. Earlier, Bitstamp announced its intention to restrict the access of American clients to XRP.
Coinbase is part of the Crypto Rating Council group, which specializes in evaluating cryptocurrency assets in terms of their likelihood of recognition as securities. In August 2019, the organization gave XRP 4 points, thus recognizing that in many ways its characteristics are similar to securities. Several other Crypto Rating Council members such as OkCoin and CrossTower have already announced XRP delisting.
“Cryptocurrency exchanges are not registered with the SEC. This is their personal choice, since registration is fraught with difficulties and increased costs. Thus, it is in their best interest not to offer trading in securities. This is to protect them, not to protect customers, ”said analyst Alex Kruger.
Against the backdrop of this news, the XRP rate over the past 24 hours fell by 13% to $0.25. The fall for the week is 55%.
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🗞Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings backs Ripple
XRP is not a security under Japanese law, SBI Holdings said. The fall in the price of the token against the background of the SEC's lawsuit against Ripple "had almost no negative effect" on the business of a Japanese financial conglomerate - a partner of a fintech startup.
XRP is a 'cryptocurrency asset' under the Fund Settlement Act. The token does not fall under the definition of a "security" under the law on financial instruments and exchanges, "the statement said.
SBI Holdings noted that the SEC lawsuit will not affect XRP's status in Japan, and the payment application based on Ripple technology will continue to work as intended, regardless of whether it uses this token.
"SBI Holdings will continue to actively support Ripple's activities in Japan and overseas," the company said.
Ripple and SBI Holdings partnered in 2016 to form the SBI Ripple Asia joint venture. In October this year, a fintech startup backed up the collaboration with an undisclosed amount of investment.
Previously, B2C2 suspended XRP token trading for US clients. Two weeks earlier, SBI Holdings took over this institutional-focused OTC platform.
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🗞21Shares management company excludes Ripple token from its ETP
The Swiss company 21Shares, which manages $250 million in assets, has withdrawn Ripple's XRP token from Exchange Traded Products (ETP).
The asset was excluded from Crypto Basket Index ETP and Bitwise Select 10 ETP. The withdrawal of the token from AXRP led to the closure of the instrument as the product only included XRP.
21Shares has removed XRP from its products in order not to be in the legal framework of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In addition, CEO Hani Rashwan told The Block that the company is committed to avoiding potentially illiquid tokens.
“The risk is high on both sides, especially in light of the delisting of XRP from major OTC exchanges such as Jump Trading and Galaxy Digital,” commented Hani Rashwan.
The exclusion of the Ripple token from investment instruments is associated with a claim against the company by the SEC. The regulator claims that the company has raised billions of dollars through unregistered securities sales.
As a reminder, following the SEC lawsuit, several exchanges dropped their support for XRP, including Bitstamp, OSL, CrossTower and Beaxy. Asset management company Bitwise also dropped the XRP of its cryptocurrency index fund last week.
Despite recent events, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expressed confidence that the company will continue to develop despite the consequences of litigation with the American regulator.
