Author: Steven Sahiounie

Estonia has reportedly urged similar measures to be taken against the sanctioned country’s LNG exports The EU should lower the $60-a-barrel price cap on Russian oil by half and impose similar measures against the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, Bloomberg quotes Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu as saying on Monday. According to the media outlet, Reinsalu insisted that the current $60-a-barrel limit is “far too high” and should be lowered to $30-a-barrel as “Russia gets billions from that business.” The price cap on Russian seaborne oil exports of $60 per barrel was introduced by the EU on December 5. It bans Western…

The Russian president says Moscow will cooperate with its partners to develop a safe system for international settlements The US and other Western currencies will inevitably lose their leading position in global cross-border transactions, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday. Delivering his annual address to the Federal Assembly, the head of state said that Moscow would cooperate with its allies to build a secure system of international settlements that are not dependent on the dollar or the euro. According to Putin, the current policies of Western states are causing the US dollar and the euro to lose their universality…

The German government will do most of the work this year to prepare its power market for greater reliance on renewable supplies by the end of the decade, Economy Minister Robert Habeck announced on Monday. Habeck aims to overhaul the 550-terawatt hours a year (TWh) market amid rising demand as the EU’s largest economy moves away from fossil fuels under its climate commitments. “We will do most of the necessary work in 2023,” the minister told a consultation meeting on power market reform, noting that the goal is to generate 80% of electricity from wind and the sun by 2030. According…

The country will export 55 to 60 million tons of grain in 2022-2023, the president said Russia collected a record grain crop last year with exports expected to reach volumes previously believed to be unrealistic, President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday. Russian farmers have harvested more than 150 million tons of grain including over 100 million tons of wheat, the head of state said during his annual address to the Federal Assembly. “By the end of the agricultural year, that is, by June 30, 2023, we will be able to bring the total volume of grain exports to 55-60 million…

Investing domestically will help preserve wealth and aid the economy, according to the president Russian businesspeople should invest more in their own country in order to support the economy and preserve their own wealth, according to President Vladimir Putin. During his address to the Federal Assembly on Tuesday, Putin urged entrepreneurs who are currently faced with the “predatory behavior of the West” as a result of sanctions to not cling to the past and attempt to sue someone abroad. It is pointless to “run around with outstretched hands and humiliate yourself,” the president said, noting that he had warned them about such risks earlier.…

Hackers and cybercriminals have been targeting crypto investors with two new malware threats that scout the internet for unwary investors to steal their funds. According to a recent report by anti-malware software Malwarebytes, two new cybersecurity threats, which include recently discovered MortalKombat ransomware and a GO variant of the Laplas Clipper malware, have been deployed in campaigns aimed at stealing cryptocurrency from victims. The new phishing attack’s victims are predominantly located in the United States, with a smaller percentage of victims in the United Kingdom, Turkey, and the Philippines. The company’s threat intelligence research team, Cisco Talos, said they observed the criminal…

The Securities and Exchange Commission voted 4-1 on Wednesday to propose sweeping changes to federal regulations that would expand custody rules to include assets like crypto and require companies to gain or maintain registration in order to hold those customer assets. The proposed amendments to federal custody rules would “expand the scope” to include any client assets under the custody of an investment advisor. Current federal regulations only include assets like funds or securities, and require investment advisors, like Fidelity or Merrill Lynch, to hold those assets with a federal- or state-chartered bank, with a few highly specific exceptions. It would be…

To dismiss crypto because of its volatility will strengthen it “in terms of how it’s safeguarded,” the star of “The Matrix” argued. “The Matrix” star Keanu Reeves has become something of a crypto fan, calling cryptocurrencies “amazing tools for exchanges and distribution of resources.” In a recent interview with Wired to promote his new film “John Wick 4,” Reeves said, “I think the principle, the ideas behind an independent currency, are amazing,” adding that, “To pooh-pooh crypto, or the volatility of cryptocurrency, it’s only going to make it better in terms of how it’s safeguarded.” The 1999 film “The Matrix,” in which…

Crypto companies spent a record $21.55 million in 2022 on Washington lobbying, with major cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase leading the list. Last year’s spending was more than double the crypto industry’s lobbying outlay of $8.29 million for 2021, according to an analysis of disclosures by OpenSecrets, which rounded up disclosures from more than 50 industry players. The report revealed that Coinbase spent the most on lobbying, shelling out around $3.4 million in 2022. Blockchain Association, Crypto.com, Binance Holdings, and Ripple rank next in terms of their lobbying spending, each shelling out around $1.9 million, $1.2 million, $1.1 million, and $1 million, respectively. It…

Bitcoin, the world’s most valuable and well-known cryptocurrency, has once again seen a significant spike in price, surpassing the $24,000 mark for the first time in its history. This recent surge in Bitcoin’s value has caught the attention of investors and traders worldwide, and many are now wondering where the next target for BTC might be. The SEC’s Crypto Asset Examination Radar Is Heating Up: What To Expect In 2023 The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding investors and ensuring compliance with federal securities laws and regulations. In its list of examination priorities released on February…