Bitcoin Hits $40K Mark, Triggering Bullish Market Sentiment

Bitcoin surged to $40,000 for the first time in over 18 months, signalling a major breakout and reinstating bullish sentiments in the crypto market.

Bitcoin's recent rise has been fueled by industry-wide anticipation of spot Bitcoin ETFs, which trade Bitcoin at its real-time price, widely expected to be approved in the coming months. 

The surge was part of a broader rise in the crypto market, with various assets gaining momentum. Tokens such as Ethereum (ETH) moved past $2,200 and meme-crowd favourite Dogecoin also pushed higher. 

Indian Crypto Industry Compliance: 28 Service Providers Register with Anti-Money Laundering Unit including Giottus

India's crypto space shows signs of regulatory compliance, with 28 crypto service providers registering with the country's anti-money laundering (AML) unit. 

This move aligns with regulatory efforts to ensure compliance with financial laws and enhance transparency within the burgeoning Indian crypto sector. 

The registration aims to bolster anti-money laundering measures and foster a more regulated environment for crypto-related activities in the country.

In March 2023, the Finance Ministry suggested that crypto businesses will have to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the country's anti-money laundering unit, and comply with other processes under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

While major platforms such as Giottus, CoinDCX, WaxirX and CoinSwitch have all registered with the FIU, global exchanges such as Binance have not yet registered.

Standard Chartered to Offer Digital Yuan Services in China

Major global bank Standard Chartered announced plans to provide Chinese digital yuan services to its customers. This initiative marks a significant stride in the integration of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) into the traditional banking sector. 

Offering digital yuan services demonstrates the bank's proactive approach to embracing emerging financial technologies and catering to evolving customer preferences.

Despite being a UK-based bank, Standard Chartered has deep roots in the Chinese market for over a century and also actively participated in the digital yuan business pilot.

UNDP Partners with Algorand for Blockchain Academy

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) collaborates with blockchain platform Algorand to establish a Blockchain Academy. 

The academy will serve the UNDP’s 22,000 staff members across 170 countries, educating them about distributed ledger technology and blockchain, including how it could be used for financial inclusion, supply chain transparency, real-world asset tokenization and digital identity applications.

The partnership seeks to empower global communities by providing educational resources and fostering a better understanding of blockchain's potential in various sectors.

Brazilian Senate Proposes Tax Rule Change for Crypto Foreign Exchange

Brazil's Senate has introduced a tax rule change that could impact crypto transactions involving foreign exchange. Brazilians may soon be required to pay up to 15% tax on income derived from crypto assets held on exchanges outside the country after new income tax rules were approved by the Federal Senate of Brazil.

Under the bill, any Brazilian who earns more than 6,000 Brazilian reals ($1,200) on exchanges based outside Brazil would be subject to the tax. The change makes those funds taxable at the same rate as funds held domestically.

That’s all for this edition of our crypto newsletter. Stay tuned for more exciting news and updates from the world of blockchain and crypto!