BITCOIN has plummeted after Iran announced a temporary ban on mining due to the strain it is causing on the nation's electricity grid.
Around 4 per cent of mining now takes place in Iran after China's new crackdown saw miners flock to nations where energy is cheaper.
Iranian officials have regularly blamed unlicensed cryptocurrency miners for using vast amounts of electricity – with Iranian president Rouhani banning all activity until September 22.
Meanwhile, the founder of dogecoin thanked Elon Musk for tweeting his stance around the popular meme-based currency.
Musk tweeted that “no one reports” to him due to the decentralised nature of the technology – after he briefly changed his bio to "CEO of Twitter".
The Tesla founder said in a post yesterday: "Please note Dogecoin has no formal organization & no one reports to me, so my ability to take action is limited", to which doge CEO Bill Markus replied "Tbhank you for saying this."
Read our cryptocurrency live blog below for the very latest updates…
- [email protected]
‘THROW MY LIFE AWAY’
The programmer even created his own code to trawl through the physical hard drive to look for his Bitcoin keys – but the process left him as a “wits’ end”. However, there is a sliver of hope – but the process is uncertain and very expensive.
“You would have to take the USB stick apart and then remove the chip itself layer by layer using a scanning electron microscope. This would allow you to read out the individual flash memory cells,” he said.
“But that’s incredibly time-consuming: you need a laboratory and experts, and everything costs a lot of money. And the result is very uncertain.”
Thomas is managing to come to terms with his loss – saying after a few weeks he realised he didn’t have to “throw his life away”.
“It must go on. So I went back to doing what I really wanted. And what had always motivated me was to write software that helps people,” he said.
“I threw myself back into programming. When I had a permanent job again, I bought new Bitcoins. I still have them today.”
- [email protected]
HOW VALUE OF BITCOIN HAS CHANGED?
- 2020: Started at $5,000 before ending the year around $28,000
- 2021 January: Bitcoin around $36,000
- February: Bitcoin around $50,000
- March: Bitcoin around $60,000
- April: Bitcoin soaring above $62,000
- May: Bitcoin tumbles to $39,790
IRAN TEMPORARILY BANS CRYPTOCURRENCY MINING AFTER BLACKOUTS
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday announced a four-month ban on all cryptocurrency mining, a day after his energy minister apologised for unplanned power cuts in major cities.
Iranian officials have regularly blamed unlicensed cryptocurrency miners for using vast amounts of electricity.
“Cryptocurrency activities and mining cryptocurrencies must be stopped” until September 22, Rouhani said in televised remarks.
Power cuts in the peak summer months are not uncommon in Iran, but Tehran and several other major cities were hit by unplanned blackouts late last week, sparking complaints from consumers and businesses.
Iran started rolling blackouts from Sunday to reduce the pressure on the national grid.
Rouhani said “illegal” miners who usually have access to subsidised electricity consume between six and seven times more power than those with permits.
- [email protected]
WHY IS THE CRYPTOCURRENCY MARKET GOING DOWN?
The cryptocurrency market has slumped further today after crashing last week following months of major gains.
The price of big-hitter coins like Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have plummeted by up to 12% at the time of writing.
It marks a disastrous week overall for the cryptocurrency market, after news broke that Bitcoin's value nearly halved in value within the space of six weeks after reaching a record high of $64,000 in April.
The digital currency fell to its lowest level since January after Beijing said it will block crypto exchanges and initial coin offerings.
Bitcoin is currently trading at $38,101 at the time of writing, down 5.6% in 24 hours.
- [email protected]
U.S. WRITER HORRIFIED AS SHE DISCOVERS SHE’S SPENT A BITCOIN FORTUNE ON DRUGS
An author was horrified to find out she spent nearly £500,000 worth of Bitcoin buying drugs on dark web.
Bitcoin continues to fluctuate in price as the volatile cryptocurrency last week plunged to just 50% of its record high – hitting lows of just £21,000.
Ms Tolentino, 32, a staff writer for New Yorker and a published author, revealed her own Bitcoin horror story when appearing on the Reply All tech podcast in 2018.
She contacted the show as she remembered buying around £50 ($80) worth of Bitcoin in 2012 while exploring the Dark Web – but wasn’t sure what had happened to her stash after changing laptops.
- [email protected]
CRYPTO TEMPURA
A tech writer has revealed how she blew Bitcoin now worth almost £300,000 on a Sushi dinner for strangers.
Kashmir Hill revealed she spent 10 of the crypto coins at a restaurant Sake Zone in San Francisco while doing a piece for Forbes in 2013.
And some seven years later she revealed restaurant owner Yung Chen still has hold of much of her Bitcoin, using the fortune in part to retire.
Ms Hill revealed her experience in December in a piece of the New York Times, saying she thought it was "silly" that Bitcoin could become a store of value like gold.
She was taking part in a challenge to live for a week on Bitcoin – and decided to offer her final few coins for a gathering of crypto fans from Reddit to have a slap up meal at Sake Zone.
- [email protected]
I LOST BITCOIN WORTH £300MILLION WHEN MY MUM THREW OUT BROKEN LAPTOP, CLAIMS ‘TRADER’
A BITCOIN trader claims he lost crypto now worth £300million when his mum threw out his broken laptop.
The anonymous poster on the /r/bitcoin subreddit declared the Bitcoin “ruined his life” as the revelation of his lost fortune hit home.
The Sun Online has been looking at some cautionary tales from the world of crypto – and one such story was told by this Redditor.
He claimed he purchased 10,000 Bitcoin in early 2010 as a punt, spending around £50 ($80) after being convinced by his college roommates, storing the keys on his laptop after transferring them from a USB.
As he graduated and started to get on with his life – he eventually forgot about the coins.
Read more here.
- [email protected]
WHAT ARE BITCOIN REJOIN AND SUPERSPLIT?
Bitcoin Rejoin and Bitcoin SuperSplit are the latest platforms to pop up in the “wild west” of cryptocurrency trading.
But experts are warning they should be “avoided like the plague” due to their extremely high risks – even bigger than cryptocurrencies.
Despite the names, neither platforms actually trade in Bitcoin – instead they trade in Bitcoin contracts for differences. We explain more about this below.
Both sites also make wild and “financially dangerous” claims about returns, according to experts, and should be avoided.
Anyone looking to invest in cryptocurrencies and decentralised finance tokens should know it is very risky, and you should only invest what you can afford to lose.
- [email protected]
HOW MUCH IS SAFEMOON WORTH AND WILL THE PRICE GO UP?
The value of SafeMoon is currently sitting at $0.000004939 – and it’s up by 23% over 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
In comparison, it hit its peak on April 20 when it reached $0.000014.
SafeMoon recorded a 99% rise in one day last month after Bitcoin had its biggest single drop for months.
The latter has since dived further after Tesla boss Elon Musk withdrew his support for the currency and China announced a further crackdown.
Mr Musk had previously said his car firm had bought $1.5billion of Bitcoin and said his business would accept them as payment for its cars.
- [email protected]
CRYPTO TRADER
Jealous bondage-obsessed Bitcoin trader jailed after he ‘went crazy’ and strangled air stewardess girlfriend to death in bathtub
- [email protected]
HOW VALUE OF BITCOIN HAS CHANGED?
- 2020: Started at $5,000 before ending the year around $28,000
- 2021 January: Bitcoin around $36,000
- February: Bitcoin around $50,000
- March: Bitcoin around $60,000
- April: Bitcoin soaring above $62,000
- May: Bitcoin tumbles to $39,790
HOW MUCH IS SAFEMOON WORTH AND WILL THE PRICE GO UP?
The value of SafeMoon is currently sitting at $0.000004939 – and it’s up by 23% over 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
In comparison, it hit its peak on April 20 when it reached $0.000014.
SafeMoon recorded a 99% rise in one day last month after Bitcoin had its biggest single drop for months.
The latter has since dived further after Tesla boss Elon Musk withdrew his support for the currency and China announced a further crackdown.
Mr Musk had previously said his car firm had bought $1.5billion of Bitcoin and said his business would accept them as payment for its cars.
ADS FOR CRYPTOCURRENCY PLATFORM LUNO BANNED
Poster ads for cryptocurrency platform Luno have been banned for failing to mention the risk of Bitcoin investments and taking advantage of consumers’ inexperience in the sector.
The posters, seen across the London Underground and on London buses in February, featured a cartoon image of a Bitcoin with text stating: “If you’re seeing Bitcoin on the Underground, it’s time to buy.”
Three people complained that the ad failed to illustrate the risk of the investment and one complained that it took advantage of consumers’ inexperience or credulity.
Luno Money told the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that the ads would not appear again and that future ads would feature an appropriate risk warning.
Advertising rules stipulate that ads for investments must be clear that the value of investments, unless guaranteed, could go down as well as up.
The ASA said it understood that initial capital invested in Bitcoin was subject to price fluctuations which could result in both losses and gains in value.
HOW MUCH IS SAFEMOON WORTH AND WILL THE PRICE GO UP?
The value of SafeMoon is currently sitting at $0.000004939 – and it’s up by 23% over 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
In comparison, it hit its peak on April 20 when it reached $0.000014.
SafeMoon recorded a 99% rise in one day last month after Bitcoin had its biggest single drop for months.
The latter has since dived further after Tesla boss Elon Musk withdrew his support for the currency and China announced a further crackdown.
Mr Musk had previously said his car firm had bought $1.5billion of Bitcoin and said his business would accept them as payment for its cars.
COINING IT IN
- [email protected]
WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF INVESTING IN BITCOIN?
Investing and making a purchase in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin is risky .
Their value is highly volatile and City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority has warned investors should be prepared to lose all their money.
Investing in cryptocurrencies is not a guaranteed way to make money.
You should also think carefully about making purchases with a cryptocurrency.
For example, Bitcoin has had wild price fluctuations in recent months and the price can change on an almost hourly basis.
The price of a Bitcoin was at $64,536 in April, according to Coindesk, but has since dropped to $38,713.
These price swings are risky for a business as you could sell an item for a Bitcoin at one price and the value may drop soon after, leaving you with less money from a sale
- [email protected]
INNER MONGOLIAN AUTHORITIES STEP UP CAMPAIGN AGAINST BITCOIN
China’s northern region of Inner Mongolia escalated a campaign against cryptocurrency mining on Tuesday, publishing draft rules to root out the business, days after Beijing vowed to crack down on bitcoin mining and trading.
The Inner Mongolia Development and Reform Commission said in the proposed rules that telecommunications companies and internet firms which are engaged in cryptomining will see their business licenses revoked by regulators.
It also said that authorities would introduce tougher energy-saving requirements for industrial parks, data centers and power plants that provide sites or electricity for miners.
Inner Mongolia had already announced in March that it would end all cryptocurrency mining projects as part of efforts to meet energy efficiency targets. The measures come amid China’s renewed efforts to curb speculative cryptocurrency trading.
On Saturday, a State Council committee led by Chinese Vice Premier Liu He vowed to crack down on bitcoin mining and trading. Last week, three industry bodies banned financial and payment services to virtual currency trading, triggering a market sell-off.
- [email protected]
WHAT ARE BITCOIN REJOIN AND SUPERSPLIT?
Bitcoin Rejoin and Bitcoin SuperSplit are the latest platforms to pop up in the “wild west” of cryptocurrency trading.
But experts are warning they should be "avoided like the plague" due to their extremely high risks – even bigger than cryptocurrencies.
Despite the names, neither platforms actually trade in Bitcoin – instead they trade in Bitcoin contracts for differences. We explain more about this below.
Both sites also make wild and "financially dangerous" claims about returns, according to experts, and should be avoided.
Anyone looking to invest in cryptocurrencies and decentralised finance tokens should know it is very risky, and you should only invest what you can afford to lose.
- [email protected]
HOW VALUE OF BITCOIN HAS CHANGED?
- 2020: Started at $5,000 before ending the year around $28,000
- 2021 January: Bitcoin around $36,000
- February: Bitcoin around $50,000
- March: Bitcoin around $60,000
- April: Bitcoin soaring above $62,000
- May: Bitcoin tumbles to $39,790
‘THROW MY LIFE AWAY’
The programmer even created his own code to trawl through the physical hard drive to look for his Bitcoin keys – but the process left him as a “wits’ end”. However, there is a sliver of hope – but the process is uncertain and very expensive.
“You would have to take the USB stick apart and then remove the chip itself layer by layer using a scanning electron microscope. This would allow you to read out the individual flash memory cells,” he said.
“But that’s incredibly time-consuming: you need a laboratory and experts, and everything costs a lot of money. And the result is very uncertain.”
Thomas is managing to come to terms with his loss – saying after a few weeks he realised he didn’t have to “throw his life away”.
“It must go on. So I went back to doing what I really wanted. And what had always motivated me was to write software that helps people,” he said.
“I threw myself back into programming. When I had a permanent job again, I bought new Bitcoins. I still have them today.”
IRAN TEMPORARILY BANS CRYPTOCURRENCY MINING AFTER BLACKOUTS
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday announced a four-month ban on all cryptocurrency mining, a day after his energy minister apologised for unplanned power cuts in major cities.
Iranian officials have regularly blamed unlicensed cryptocurrency miners for using vast amounts of electricity.
“Cryptocurrency activities and mining cryptocurrencies must be stopped” until September 22, Rouhani said in televised remarks.
Power cuts in the peak summer months are not uncommon in Iran, but Tehran and several other major cities were hit by unplanned blackouts late last week, sparking complaints from consumers and businesses.
Iran started rolling blackouts from Sunday to reduce the pressure on the national grid.
Rouhani said “illegal” miners who usually have access to subsidised electricity consume between six and seven times more power than those with permits.
- [email protected]
BOOM AND CRUST
- [email protected]
HOW MUCH IS SAFEMOON WORTH AND WILL THE PRICE GO UP?
The value of SafeMoon is currently sitting at $0.000004939 – and it’s up by 23% over 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
In comparison, it hit its peak on April 20 when it reached $0.000014.
SafeMoon recorded a 99% rise in one day last month after Bitcoin had its biggest single drop for months.
The latter has since dived further after Tesla boss Elon Musk withdrew his support for the currency and China announced a further crackdown.
Mr Musk had previously said his car firm had bought $1.5billion of Bitcoin and said his business would accept them as payment for its cars.
- [email protected]
U.S. WRITER HORRIFIED AS SHE DISCOVERS SHE’S SPENT A BITCOIN FORTUNE ON DRUGS
An author was horrified to find out she spent nearly £500,000 worth of Bitcoin buying drugs on dark web.
Bitcoin continues to fluctuate in price as the volatile cryptocurrency last week plunged to just 50% of its record high – hitting lows of just £21,000.
Ms Tolentino, 32, a staff writer for New Yorker and a published author, revealed her own Bitcoin horror story when appearing on the Reply All tech podcast in 2018.
She contacted the show as she remembered buying around £50 ($80) worth of Bitcoin in 2012 while exploring the Dark Web – but wasn’t sure what had happened to her stash after changing laptops.
- [email protected]
I LOST BITCOIN WORTH £300MILLION WHEN MY MUM THREW OUT BROKEN LAPTOP, CLAIMS ‘TRADER’
A BITCOIN trader claims he lost crypto now worth £300million when his mum threw out his broken laptop.
The anonymous poster on the /r/bitcoin subreddit declared the Bitcoin “ruined his life” as the revelation of his lost fortune hit home.
The Sun Online has been looking at some cautionary tales from the world of crypto – and one such story was told by this Redditor.
He claimed he purchased 10,000 Bitcoin in early 2010 as a punt, spending around £50 ($80) after being convinced by his college roommates, storing the keys on his laptop after transferring them from a USB.
As he graduated and started to get on with his life – he eventually forgot about the coins.
Read more here.
Source: Read Full Article
