Weekly News

1. Nigeria Receives its First Bitcoin ATM

Nigerian residents who have desired to make use of a bitcoin ATM can finally do so, as the country has now received its first bitcoin ATM.
Although Nigeria has one of the highest bitcoin trading volumes in Africa, it will be the 8th country in Africa to set up a bitcoin Atm.
Lagos, the commercial hub of Nigeria, is the first location in Nigeria to have the first Bitcoin ATM. Blockstale BTM which is an emerging bitcoin start-up based in Lagos carried out this project. The start-up also stated their intention to install 30 more bitcoin ATMs in other parts of the nation.
Nigeria with a population of over 160 million people does not currently have any active cryptocurrency regulation, despite the volume of trading activity in the country, as well as the number of international crypto exchanges that have opened subsidiaries in the nation.

Evaluation: Good

Source: Cointelegraph

2. Binance Acquires Coinmarketcap

In an unprecedented development, Binance has announced its acquisition of Coinmarketcap, a top site for cryptocurrency data tools and analysis. Although the exchange did not disclose the amount for which it acquired Coinmarketcap, the Ceo - Changpeng “CZ” Zhao stated that the discussions started several months ago, and a verbal agreement had been reached. He also stated that the company will allow Coinmarketcap to run independently of Binance exchange operations.
This acquisition by Binance will further strengthen its position in the cryptocurrency industry, and validate their expansion plans across borders.

Evaluation: Good

Source: Coindesk

3. Microsoft Files Patent for a New Cryptocurrency

Despite the setbacks encountered by Facebook to launch their own cryptocurrency, Microsoft has announced that they have filed a patent for a new cryptocurrency. Though this announcement from the Tech giant may sound surprising to some people, what is even more astonishing is the proposed POW concept is designed to mine coins based on activities of the human body, instead of sophisticated mining rigs.
At the time of the announcement, Microsoft has not yet clarified if this cryptocurrency will be built on any of the existing blockchains, or if they will create their own framework.

Evaluation: Good

Source: bitcoinexchangeguide

4. Bitcoin Outperforms Stocks in First Quater

Bitcoin’s performance in the first quarter of the year has been impressive, despite the spiralling effect of the global pandemic on the stock markets. When compared to previous years, the first quarter of the year usually records lesser transaction volume in bitcoin, as opposed to trading volume in subsequent quarters.
However, the performance of bitcoin this year might have shocked some industry observers. This is because while the stock market with more solid fundamental and strong institutional investors is struggling to stay on its feet in most countries, Bitcoin’s trading activity increased exponentially, with people signing up for new trading accounts in several exchanges.

Evaluation: Good

Source: bitcoinist

5. OKCoin Announces Launch of a Crypto Exchange in Japan

While businesses in other financial sectors may be declining in this period of the COVID-19 pandemic, the cryptocurrency industry seems to be gaining more grounds and proving its worth. This is evidenced by the announcement from OKCoin, stating the launch of a new crypto exchange in Japan
The registration process for acquiring the exchange license began sometime in 2019 and was finally granted to the OK Group on March 30th, 2020. According to the local Finance bureau, OKCoin will be the first international exchange to finish the official necessity for procuring a crypto trade permit. OKCoin Japan is an auxiliary of the OK Group, which currently has business operations in China, the United States, Europe, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Japan is one of the countries in the world with a lengthy crypto license application procedure.

Evaluation: Good

Source: Bitcoinist