MicroStrategy to sell shares for Bitcoin; Binance denies WSJ report on trading volumes in China; KuCoin suspends Bitcoin and Litecoin mining pools
US-based software development company MicroStrategy continues to mobilize its assets for Bitcoin (BTC). The company reportedly has a plan to raise as much as $ 750 million through the sale of shares. MicroStrategy stated that it could buy BTC with a large part of the money it raised.
MicroStrategy applied with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 1. In the SEC filing, the company announced that it had entered into a sales agreement with three companies, Cowen and Company Canaccord Genuity and Berenberg Capital, for the sale of its Class A common stock.
MicroStrategy said that the proceeds from the anticipated sale may be used for various general corporate purposes, such as the acquisition of more Bitcoin and working capital.
MicroStrategy, founded by Michael Saylor, also announced its second quarter earnings reports. According to the report, the company currently holds 152,800 Bitcoin, worth $4.5 billion at current prices. The software development company also added 12,333 Bitcoins to its coffers in the second quarter and another 467 in July.
MicroStrategy shares have experienced an increase of nearly 200 percent since early 2023. According to Google Finance data, MSTR shares rose from $ 145.02 per share to $ 434.98 on January 3.
Binance denies WSJ report on trading volumes in China!
In a report published today, the Wall Street Journal claimed that the exchange continues to operate despite the crypto ban in China, and is even processing billions of dollars worth of transactions per month. The US-based news agency announced that Binance’s trading volumes in China are $90 billion.
A statement came from Binance on WSJ’s news. Regarding the allegations, the exchange said that it did not reach a transaction volume of $ 90 billion in China and did not carry out any activities in the country.
Binance representative denied WSJ’s allegations, saying that the platform is not accessible to Chinese citizens.
Binance denies allegations of activity in China
This isn’t the first time Binance has been accused of providing services in China, as the Wall Street Journal denied the report. Last March, Binance employees were rumored to have helped customers in China evade KYC checks.
However, Binance did not deny the KYC allegations at the time. Instead, the exchange announced that it was taking action against employees who may have violated its internal policies.
On the other hand, Binance has been in the crosshairs of regulators around the world for the last few months. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against the exchange and its CEO, triggering many other countries to take action.
Last month, the exchange withdrew its license application in Germany after receiving a rejection from the German side. In addition, the Belgian Government also asked the exchange to stop all services in the country.
KuCoin suspends Bitcoin and Litecoin mining pools
KuCoin’s Bitcoin and Litecoin mining pools will be suspended from August 15, 2023 until further notice.
The exchange stated that the decision is “in line with KuCoin’s evolving business strategy” but declined to provide further details. It is unclear whether the decision is related to the upcoming LTC halving. The following statements were made in the statement made by the exchange:
We recommend that users engaged in cryptocurrency mining switch BTC and LTC miners to alternative mining pools before August 15, 2023 16:00 (UTC) to ensure uninterrupted earnings during our temporary suspension.
The exchange also warned users to back up and store their relevant data before August 27.
Currently, Bitcoin and Litecoin mining pools on KuCoin have hash rates of 9.08 exahash per second (EH/s) and 3.90 terrahash per second (TH/s), respectively. Overall, the Bitcoin network has a hash rate of 349.19 EH/s, compared to 792.16 TH/s for the Litecoin network.
It was previously rumored that KuCoin would lay off 30% of its workforce. However, the exchange denied the allegations, stating that it has no plans for layoffs. CEO Johnny Lyu said that:
“First of all, KuCoin is running smoothly. Our latest report for the first half of 2023 shows strong growth in users and new listings, and our talented team is steadily expanding.”
