Here are the top crypto news of the day curated by CoinChapter.com.
Hong Kong Approves Bitcoin, Ether ETF
Hong Kong has become the second market to approve spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). The region followed the historic decision by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to approve 11 spot BTC ETFs earlier this year. Although the US has approved Bitcoin ETFs, the country has yet to greenlight an Ethereum ETF. According to some analysts, the US could approve a spot ETH ETF later this year.
Solana Launches Update To Fix Network Congestion
Solana developers have released a new software update, v1.17.31. This update will help tackle the persistent network congestion issues that have plagued the blockchain recently.
The release contains enhancements aimed at alleviating the ongoing congestion on the Solana network. A surge in memecoin activity and high user demand has exacerbated this congestion. Transactional volumes on the network reached as much as $4 billion in March, an increase from the typical daily figures of under $500 million in 2023.
Validators will need to continuously upgrade their nodes to the newer releases to maintain the network’s stability and performance.
PAXG Uptrend Amid Israel-Iran Conflict
Prices for PAX Gold (PAXG), a gold-backed digital asset created by Paxos, surged over the weekend as heightened geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran drove increased demand for safe-haven assets.
PAXG reached as high as $2,923 on Saturday, representing a premium of over 20% to the yellow metal’s per-ounce price of $2,342.90 at Friday’s New York close. As of writing, PAXG continues to trade at a notable premium, priced at $2,354.
PAXG, with a market capitalization of over $446 million, is the second-largest tokenized gold coin globally, trailing only Tether Gold (XAUT) with a market capitalization of $581.9 million. However, the weekend surge in PAXG prices did not spill over into XAUT and other gold-backed tokens.
Binance Executives Tracked To Kenya
The Nigerian government has located Nadeem Anjarwalla, a high-ranking executive of Binance. He had previously escaped custody in Nigeria. According to the report, Anjarwalla’s whereabouts were traced to Kenya.
The report states that there are intensified discussions between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), the Nigeria Police Force, and the Kenyan Police Service, all aimed at expediting Anjarwalla’s extradition to Nigeria to face the charges against him.
IRS Investigation Expects Crypto Tax Evaders
As the April 15 tax filing deadline approaches, the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is preparing for a significant increase in crypto-related tax fraud and evasion cases. IRS has become more aggressive and capable of dealing with crypto-related tax crimes.
Title 26 of the US tax code refers to citizens who willfully evade paying taxes by lying or obfuscating their reporting documents. Crypto had previously been used mainly in financial crimes such as fraud, scams, and money laundering. However, the IRS has recently observed a drastic uptick in “pure crypto tax crimes,” and the agency expects even more in the near future.
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