Don’t miss the top 5 crypto events of 2023! Our article covers the most significant happenings in the industry, from major partnerships to regulatory changes.
2022 was indeed a tough year in crypto because, despite the promising progress that has been made in 2021, many setbacks happened in 2022, including FTX, LUNA, and Celsius’s collapse. Legends have it many crypto CEOs haven’t left the underground bunkers they are hiding. 2023 has started on a good note because investors have learned their lessons by DYOR before investing in a project rather than based on a recommendation from their love partners when drunk.
Here are the top events that happened in the year’s first week.
UK national crime agency is launching a crypto unit
The UK’s National Crime Agency plans to create a unit to investigate crypto crimes. The team will be made up of five officers whose sole aim will be to tackle crypto crimes like hacks, theft, and fraud. The move is part of an effort to curb crypto crimes in the country. The UK will likely work with other countries’ crime agencies to ensure that sophisticated fraud is properly investigated. The UK National Crime Agency seized over $33 million of crypto assets in 2022. The move is a step in the right direction because hackers stole millions of dollars from crypto companies, especially DeFi protocols. You will likely save the UK’s NCAA some stress by protecting your private keys more than your private parts.
Italy announces capital gain tax on crypto
Rich crypto bros planning to move to Italy might have to reconsider because Italy has just announced a capital gain tax on crypto, which means a percentage of the money you make as a crypto investor in Italy will be paid to the government. The Italian parliament announced that crypto traders in Italy would pay a 26% rate if they exceed 2,000 per tax period. According to the new rule, losses from crypto investments can be deducted from profits for future tax purposes. Italy is yet to set up a proper crypto structure, and this move is one of the ways regulators are moving to make up for the deficiency. Expect more countries to set up tax structures as crypto becomes more popular in 2023.
Bitcoin hits 18,000 for the first time since FTX fiasco
Many crypto bros got fuel for their Lamborghinis because Bitcoin hit $18,000 for the first time since November. Bitcoin has been trading between $16,000-$17,000 since November, and many investors have described Bitcoin as a stable coin because the price has been hovering around the same spot before the breakthrough. Ethereum pumped on the first week of January, the first significant price movement since the Ethereum merge last year. However, the news isn’t the same for the world’s biggest meme coin, which lost more than 8% in dollar value in the first week of January. The price of Bitcoin is expected to skyrocket this year as more people move their funds to self-custody wallets.
Coinbase pays $50 million fine to New York regulators
Coinbase offered more new developments in the first week of 2023 after a massive layoff throughout the previous year. The company will now have to pay a $50 million fine to the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) for violating Anti Money laundering laws. The regulators discovered that the company had collected customer funds without proper background checks. The settlement will also require the company to invest $50 million in the next two years to help its compliance program. The Coinbase team will have to work hard to gain users’ trust following the collapse of FTX in 2022. Remember that US states became cleaner; many people who were laid off by Coinbase went back to their cleaning jobs.
Regulators in the Bahamas are holding $3.5 billion in customers fund
If your funds are stuck in FTX, here is some good news for you in 2022: The Securities Commission of The Bahamas has moved $3.5 billion from FTX digital markets to its digital wallets. The regulators hold the funds until the Supreme court orders them to deliver the money to customers, Liquidators, or creditors. There will likely be more movement of funds to self-custody exchanges and an increase in the usage of decentralized exchanges in 2023. Sam Fried will prefer to get the funds to purchase more gaming chips.
2023 has started well, and investors have learned their lessons on investing in long-term projects. Regulators and security agencies are working round the clock to create a safer environment for people gliding their portfolios toward digital assets. More countries will follow Italy’s lead by creating a proper digital asset structure.
