Investors Financial News

Crypto assets have taken the world by storm in recent years, with Bitcoin leading the charge. Its meteoric rise in value has attracted the attention of both seasoned investors and newcomers alike. To make an informed decision, consider these five crucial factors before embarking on a Bitcoin investment journey.1. Investment vs Trading The easiest thing to do once you enter the crypto market is to trade and gamble away your funds. Focus on a long-term investment horizon. Embrace a patient, forward-thinking approach, and resist the temptation of chasing short-term gains.2. Volatility

investors. But for a small group of corporate turnaround specialists, crypto's implosion has become a financial bonanza.Lawyers, accountants, consultants, cryptocurrency analysts and other professionals have racked up more than $700 million in fees since last year from the bankruptcies of five major crypto firms, including the digital currency exchange FTX, according to a New York Times analysis of court records. That sum is likely to grow significantly as the cases unfold over the coming months. Large fees are common in corporate bankruptcies, which require complex and time-intensive legal work to untangle. But in the crypto world, the mounting fees have sparked widespread outrage because many of the people owed money are amateur traders who lost their personal savings, rather than corporations with the ability to weather a financial crisis. Every dollar in fees is deducted from the pool of funds that will be returned to creditors at the end of the bankruptcies. The fees are «exorbitant and ridiculous,» said Daniel Frishberg, a 19-year-old investor who lost about $3,000 when the crypto company Celsius Network filed for bankruptcy last year. «At every hearing, they have an army of people there, and most of them don't need to be there. You don't need 20 people taking notes.»

regulatory framework for VDAs is imperative. This framework should strike a balance between fostering innovation and ensuring investor protection. India has the potential to lead the way in the global Web3 revolution. With a perfect blend of homegrown dynamic startups and investors who passionately embrace the potential of blockchain technology, India holds the key to unlocking immense possibilities. However, as with any emerging industry, it requires support from the government in the form of robust regulation. Denying banking and UPI services to compliant Indian exchanges is not only unjustified but also counterproductive to the nation's policy objectives of protecting Indian VDA users and maintaining oversight in the ecosystem. It is important to note that most of the Indian exchanges are compliant and employ robust measures, such as maintaining a KYC database and utilizing software that ensures secure and transparent trades. As these start-ups are invested in long-term business engagement, the interests of the investors are central. Therefore, it is crucial to grant UPI access to VDA exchanges that are registered in India and comply with Indian laws, such as the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Income Tax Act.

Last week, venture capital and investment firms invested $201.4 million in crypto projects, with metaverse startup Futureverse and RISC Zero receiving the largest fundraises.

investors have adopted a cautious «wait and watch» stance as they anticipate the recovery of their beleaguered portfolios, created during crypto's most significant bull run in 2021, even as the crypto market shows signs of revival in the first half of 2023, driven predominantly by a resurgent Bitcoin. Bitcoin has jumped more than 80% in 2023, and the overall crypto market is now touching $1.19 trillion. «Most Indian crypto investors bought digital assets when the market was on a tear, and when in 2022 the market corrected sharply, their portfolios shrank substantially. Now they are just waiting to recover their initial investments. The 30% crypto tax has really dampened the enthusiasm of Indian crypto investors, further adding to their apprehension regarding the recovery prospects of their portfolios,» said Vishal Gupta, a Noida-based crypto investor. Chahal Verma, a Gurugram-based crypto investor said 2023 has proven to be an interesting year for the crypto markets, particularly Bitcoin, despite regulatory hurdles.

Bitcoin's price has surged past the psychologically significant $30,000 mark for the first time since June 2022, providing a sense of relief to Indian crypto investors who have faced significant losses due to market volatility and several high-profile failures such as that of the Terra ecosystem and the collapse of FTX over the past year. The leading digital currency has surged 6.29% in the past 24 hours to reach $30,160 as of 2300 IST on Coinmarketcap. While it has risen by 72.62% in the last 90 days, it remains down by 23.82% year to date. Bitcoin's price spent several weeks consolidating around the $28,000 mark before recently breaking through, continuing its bull run that began at the start of the New Year. «It's a big positive for serious Indian crypto investors who are in it for the long haul,» said Vishal Gupta, a Noida-based crypto investor and influencer.

US banks, already hesitant to work with crypto customers, are now even warier of providing services to the industry after a string of regional-lender collapses and amid heightened scrutiny by regulators. The closure of crypto-friendly Silvergate Capital Corp. and seizure of Signature Bank has left crypto firms struggling to find new banks for depository and payment services. While there's no blanket ban on serving crypto clients, financial firms are imposing lengthy application procedures, turning away smaller companies and some retail platforms, and in some cases shutting the door on crypto businesses altogether, according to industry participants, investors and bank executives. Cross River Bank, for example, received requests from more than 100 new clients not all of whom were crypto companies seeking a safe harbor for their deposits within days of SVB Financial Group's Silicon Valley Bank and Signature collapsing, according to a person with direct knowledge of the bank's business. The closely held company turned down almost all those requests, the person said. The bank is «only considering companies with existing relationships with Cross River that are blue-chip customers and integral to the fintech ecosystem,» said Eden Hoffman, a spokesperson for the Fort Lee, New Jersey-based lender. Among the few crypto companies that have won over the bank is stablecoin issuer Circle Internet Financial., which expanded a partnership with Cross River, announced after Silicon Valley Bank failed.

Bitcoin might be registering tepid moves as of late but that doesn't mean investors have become less anxious about the largest cryptocurrency's prospect for further declines. The put-to-call ratio on the coin hit a 12-month high at 0.72, meaning that many traders are loading up on hedges in the event it embarks on another leg lower and its losses deepen. The ratio hit a high of 0.96 April last year before prices plunged roughly 50% the following month, according to option Skew data compiled by Babel Finance. It «signals cynicism in the markets with rising bearish sentiment,» said Josh Olszewicz, head of research at Valkyrie Investments. «Given the macro situation globally, and the near uniform risk-off trade currently dominating most asset classes, traders have followed suit with their Bitcoin strategies.»

Disclaimer: The text below is an advertorial article that was not written by Cryptonews.com journalists.

Disclaimer: The text below is an advertorial article that was not written by Cryptonews.com journalists.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies plunged again on Monday as investors sold risky assets due to the deepening Ukraine crisis. The global cryptocurrency market capitalisation stood at $1.77 trillion, as per Coingecko.

Investors are bracing for more gyrations in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, as worries over a hawkish Federal Reserve threaten to squelch risk appetite across markets. The volatility traditionally associated with cryptocurrencies has been on full display in recent weeks. Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, is up by around 33% since Jan. 24 and recently traded at $43,850, rebounding from a tumble that cut its price in half from November's record high. Its main rival, ether, is up around 45% since Jan. 24 at around $3,200, following a nearly 56% nosedive from its record high of $4,868, also in November. While proponents of cryptocurrencies once touted their lack of correlation to other assets, bitcoin and its peers saw huge gains over the last two years, rallying along with stocks as the Fed and other central banks pumped unprecedented levels of stimulus into the global economy. Bitcoin is up 1,039% since March 2020 and ether has risen 2,940%, though the rallies in both cryptocurrencies have been interrupted by numerous-stomach churning selloffs.

CrossTower announced the launch of personalised Over the Counter (OTC) services for Indian high-net-worth individuals (HNI) and institutional investors. With the launch of its new feature, CrossTower aims to enable HNIs and institutional investors to trade in crypto assets, providing deep liquidity 24x7 across multiple crypto-assets, ensuring the best prices for them. CrossTower observed that 70 per cent of its platform's trade volume is accounted for by institutional investors and large-volume traders in India.

crypto platforms jumped 30-50% on budget day Tuesday, when the finance minister announced a proposal to tax digital assets. While crypto investors and exchanges looked for the fine print in the proposal, some viewed the announcement as an indirect way to endorse crypto trade in India. Industry executives said the budget announcement resulted in pent-up interest among risk-averse investors as well as companies who earlier feared the digital assets would be outlawed in India.

income tax on digital assets, that would include cryptocurrencies and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), this is set to spark a sell off from Indian investors, say industry trackers. The finance minister on Tuesday introduced a 30% income tax on returns from digital currencies. This would mean that investors will have to cough up 30% tax on the returns they make from trading or investing in cryptocurrencies. Experts say that the 30% tax would also not be allowed to be set off against any other losses or expenses. This is only going to increase the tax burden for cryptocurrency investors, who will have to shell out a third of their returns towards taxes.

bank to open its doors to the crypto community. After almost eight months of payment freeze by most high-street banks that continue to shun crypto investors and bourses, Kotak Bank will do business with WazirX, one of the country's largest crypto exchanges.

crypto trader, spent Tuesday night desperately trying to sell a part of his cryptocurrency portfolio, but the trades wouldn't go through. He couldn't even buy some more coins because the wallet wouldn't add money.

Cryptocurrency exchanges have seen a spurt in trading volumes in the past two weeks as new investors joined the crypto wave and mature investors hedged their bets in a volatile market, even as the Indian government appeared to be moving toward bringing in regulation for the new asset class. Top exchanges saw a 50-150% month-on-month surge in trading volumes in November, driven by new sign-ups and diversification strategies of mature investors as volatility went up.

investors who invest or trade frequently in cryptocurrencies are rushing to their advisors to figure out the tax implications of their investments, even as the government looks to introduce a legal framework around cryptocurrencies. Investors want to know the income tax implications on their returns, which can range anywhere up to 30%, say tax experts, given the regulatory vacuum around cryptocurrencies.