In an interview with Thai PBS World, Nirun Fuwattananukul, CEO of Gulf Binance, unveils his strategy to become a market leader within two years, adding that their partnership with one of the biggest telecom operators in Thailand could boost crypto adoption. To attract more investment to Thailand, Nirun suggests that the government provides special incentives for blockchain and includes cryptocurrency knowledge in curricula. By Franc Han Shih The post Crypto platform CEO says clearer tax policy could help incentivise investment in Thailand (video) first appeared on Thai PBS World : The latest ..read more

The soaring price of Bitcoin is making headlines around the globe following news that electric-car maker Tesla, one of the world’s largest auto firms by market valuation, has invested $1.5 billion in the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin has always generated excitement among youngsters of the internet generation, seen by many as a sure means to get rich quick. And frequent tweets about Bitcoin by global influencer Elon Musk, founder of Tesla and Space X, have undoubtedly attracted more inexperienced investors to this digital currency. In contrast, adults who save the traditional way by depositing money ..read more

San Salvador (AFP) – El Salvador on Tuesday becomes the first country in the world to accept bitcoin as legal tender, despite widespread domestic skepticism and international warnings of risks for consumers. President Nayib Bukele’s government claims the move will give many Salvadorans access to bank services for the first time and save some $400 million in fees on remittances sent home from abroad every year. “Tomorrow, for the first time in history, all the eyes of the world will be on El Salvador. #Bitcoin did this,” Bukele said on Twitter Monday. He started the ball rolling Monda ..read more

LONDON/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Bitcoin hit $60,000 for the first time in six months on Friday, nearing its record high, as traders grew confident that U.S. regulators would approve the launch of an exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on its futures contracts. Cryptocurrency investors have been waiting for approval of the first U.S. ETF for bitcoin, whose recent rally has been fuelled in part by anticipation of such a move, which is seen as speeding up the mainstream adoption of digital assets. Bitcoin, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, rose 4.5% to its ..read more

SAN SALVADOR (AP) — El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender Tuesday, but the rollout stumbled in its first hours and President Nayib Bukele said the digital wallet used for transactions was not functioning. For part of the morning, El Salvador’s president became tech support for a nation stepping into the world of cryptocurrency. Bukele marshaled his Twitter account — with more than 2.8 million followers — to walk users through what was happening. Bukele explained that the digital wallet Chivo had been disconnected while server capacity was increased. The presiden ..read more

New York (AFP) – Amazon on Monday denied a report that the e-commerce giant planned to begin accepting Bitcoin payments by the end of this year, but acknowledged an interest in cryptocurrency. City AM cited as unnamed insider as saying Amazon would start taking cryptocurrency, citing a recent job posting by the company for someone with digital currency and blockchain skills. Contacted by AFP, an Amazon spokesperson said information in the story was “fabricated,” but that the company does have its eyes on the cryptocurrency sector. “Not withstanding our interest in the space, the spec ..read more

Hong Kong (AFP) – Bitcoin broke back above $50,000 on Monday for the first time in three months as investors piled back into the cryptocurrency on bargain-buying. The unit climbed around two percent to $50,249.15, its highest since mid-May, when it began tumbling on a range of issues including China’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies and Tesla boss Elon Musk’s decision to stop accepting it on concerns about the environmental impact of mining. The electric car giant has since indicated its support for bitcoin, while several other high-profile investors including Twitter founder Jack Dorsey ha ..read more

Adoption matters most in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industries, while giant techs “of the caliber of Google, Amazon, and Apple” are expected to diversify their assets into cryptocurrency, said Bitkub.com or Bitkub Exchange CEO Atthakrit Chimplapibul in an exclusive interview with Thai PBS World earlier in July. Saying there are many factors that could affect cryptocurrencies in the short-term, the CEO of Thailand’s leading digital asset exchange platform, and one of the best performing Thai startups, said “in the long-run, what matters the most is adoption. Cryptocurrency is an asset cl ..read more

Proponents of cryptocurrency are celebrating after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reached a conclusion on how to regulate trading of the asset in Thailand. “Very glad to see this outcome. It seems to be a very highly anticipated decision, and a lot of members of the public have written to the SEC regarding this matter, so I’m very glad to see that we are not going to discriminate against people based on income. Digital assets or cryptocurrency in general is supposed to be about breaking barriers and providing possibilities. I’m glad we are going to still be able to do that,” said ..read more

As more people and businesses invest in digital currencies, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) faces the delicate task of trying to balance financial stability and investor protection on the one hand while promoting innovation in financial services on the other. Determined to push ahead, the BOT began piloting its own prototype digital currency scheme last year. What is money? A national currency, like the baht, has three functions in an economy: the medium of exchange, unit of account and store of value. Digital currencies, in contrast, fail to fully meet these three functions, largely because their ..read more