Author: James Wilson

Crypto payments network Mesh has closed $82 million in a funding round led by venture capital firm Paradigm. Mesh said in a press release that it raised $82 million in its Series B funding round. Venture capital firm Paradigm led the financing round, which attracted the participation of Consensys, QuantumLight Capital and Yolo Investments, and brought the decentralized platform’s total raise to $120 million.  The funding will go into expanding the payment network’s solution across the globe, with stablecoin adoption a major part of the company’s goal. Simply, Mesh plans to bring crypto payments and stablecoin settlements to any merchant,…

The United States and Ukraine have agreed on a proposal for an immediate 30-day ceasefire. This news is pending Russia’s acceptance, according to a joint statement following high-level talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Kyiv expressed its readiness to accept the truce, which could be extended by mutual agreement, provided Russia implements it concurrently.  “Ukraine expressed readiness to accept the US proposal to enact an immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire, which can be extended by mutual agreement of the parties, and which is subject to acceptance and concurrent implementation by the Russian Federation,” the note read.  In return, the U.S. committed to…

Randy Guynn, a prominent U.S. banking attorney, has called for stablecoins to be subject to bank-level regulations. Speaking before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee, Guynn argued that stablecoins should offer the same level of safety as insured bank deposits and central bank money.  Guynn emphasized that any stablecoin regulation should require issuers to maintain liquidity reserves and capital buffers comparable to those of banks. “If a payment stablecoin issuer has a properly calibrated reserve of liquid assets, capital buffer, and no material amount of other liabilities, payment stablecoins should be as safe as insured bank deposits and central bank…

On Mar. 9, 2025, it was revealed that Mark Carney will replace Justin Trudeau as the Liberal Party’s leader and Prime Minister of Canada. Is this a victory for the Canadian crypto community? Who is Mark Carney For five years, Carney served as a Governor of the Bank of Canada. On top of this, for seven years, he was the Bank of England Governor. Carney was the first non-British person to occupy this position. He has a solid background in the financial and tech sectors. Carney holds degrees from Harvard and Oxford. He spent over a decade working for Goldman…

Circle has introduced an upgrade of its cross-chain transfer protocol, enabling the settlement of USDC transactions within seconds. Developers can now tap into the new version of the cross-chain transfer protocol for USDC (USDC) transfers that will settle in seconds, Circle said in an announcement.  Circle achieves the enhanced CCTP v2 through two key features: Fast Transfer and Hooks. The new fast transfer feature will reduce USDC settlement times from as high as 15 minutes on Ethereum (ETH) and layer-2 networks to just seconds. CCTP v2 will offer this capability regardless of the transaction’s source blockchain. Apart from faster-than-finality settlement,…

Hong Kong-based Ming Shing Group Holdings Limited has purchased 333 Bitcoin for approximately $27 million, marking a shift into digital assets for the construction company.  The acquisition was made through its subsidiary, Lead Benefit  Limited, at an average price of $81,555 per BTC on February 28, 2025. Ming Shing, which primarily provides wet trades work services — including plastering, tiling, and masonry — sees Bitcoin (BTC) as a liquid reserve asset.  The firm stated that it intends to use idle funds to capitalize on Bitcoin’s potential appreciation while maintaining flexibility to liquidate holdings for operational needs. Other Bitcoin reserves This…

1,200+ web3 startups, billions in investment, yet zero regulatory clarity — how long can India’s blockchain industry survive without clear rules? India’s web3 boom A few years ago, India’s blockchain scene was a playground for retail traders testing the waters with crypto assets. Today, it’s a different story. The India Web3 Landscape Report 2024, published by Hashed Emergent, unpacks key shifts in startup funding, enterprise adoption, developer activity, and regulatory trends, offering a clearer view of how the industry has matured. One standout insight is India’s unrivaled position in crypto adoption. For the second year in a row, the country…

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only. XRP drops 19% this week, down 33% from January highs, as $23.61m in longs liquidate. XRP has plummeted 19% this week and is down 33% from its January high, although it has managed to hold above the crucial $2 level so far. While XRP is not alone,  the broader crypto market is experiencing significant losses; data shows that the bears are firmly in control, with $23.61 million in XRP long positions liquidated on Sunday alone. This XRP price analysis…

Miners have no choice but to sell more Bitcoin during the current downturn, adding to the selling pressure from the recent disappointment that the government won’t buy new Bitcoin for the reserve, plus macroeconomic uncertainty due to tariffs. According to CryptoQuant analyst IT Tech, the price of Bitcoin (BTC) is struggling to bounce back from its current lows due to (among other things) selling pressure from miners. The analyst pointed out that as BTC’s price dropped to $77,700, there was a significant increase in the number of miners moving their BTC to exchanges. Source: CryptoQuant Miners are forced sellers, which…

President Donald Trump spooked Bitcoin and other markets after announcing a tariff increase on Canadian steel and aluminum from 25% to 50%, citing Ontario’s 25% tariff on U.S. electricity.  According to Trump’s Truth Social post, the new tariffs will take effect on March 12. Trump also called on Canada to remove up to 390% dairy tariffs and warned of higher tariffs on Canadian cars by April 2. In his statement, President Trump criticized Canada’s longstanding tariffs on U.S. dairy products, which range from 250% to 390%, labeling them as “outrageous.” He further threatened to declare a national emergency concerning electricity to…