Payments

Boris Johnson’s brother steps down as Binance adviser amid concerns over the exchange: Report

Lord Johnson of Marylebone reportedly took up a role on the U.K. advisory board of one of Binance’s subsidiaries in September.

Jo Johnson, the brother of former United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has reportedly stepped down from his role as an adviser to Binance, according to a Telegraph report. 

According to the report, Jo Johnson had been advising Binance during the exchange’s efforts to expand into the United Kingdom. The former British prime minister’s brother, also known as Lord Johnson of Marylebone, reportedly took up a role on the U.K. advisory board of one of Binance’s subsidiaries, Bitfinity, in September. 

The Telegraph reported that he resigned last week after Binance’s proof of reserves raised red flags for some accounting and financial specialists amid a backdrop of negative sentiment impacting the exchange, which triggered a bank run shortly thereafter. 

In a statement issued on Dec. 19, Johnson shared: “I stepped down from the advisory board last week and have no role with it [or] any related entity.”

Bitfinity, the company Johnson was reportedly advising, was created by Binance in March 2022 and is “part of the Binance group,” as described in a filing with United States regulators in April. The company converts traditional currencies like the British pound and U.S. dollar into digital currency. 

Related: CryptoQuant verifies Binance’s reserves, reports no ‘FTX-like’ behavior

On Dec. 16, Cointelegraph reported that Binance’s proof of reserves had been removed from the Mazars Group’s website. Mazars, appointed as an official auditor for Binance’s proof-of-reserve updates, has entirely discontinued Mazars Veritas, a section dedicated to cryptocurrency exchange audits. 

According to a Dec. 19 press release, Binance.US will acquire assets of bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital for $1.022 billion. The deal is set to close by April 18, 2023. Binance has agreed to make a $10-million deposit in good faith and will reimburse Voyager for certain expenses up to a maximum of $15 million.

Only for foreign trade: Bank of Russia stands against free crypto investment

The Russian government doesn’t want to enable Bitcoin for regular Russian people, but rather exclusively for foreign trade entities.

Russia’s central bank is ready to consider allowing cryptocurrency use within the country, but only as part of a legal experiment, said governor Elvira Nabiullina.

“It’s possible to consider transactions through an authorized organization in the country as part of an experimental legal regime, but that would require a relevant law,” Nabiullina stated during a Bank of Russia press conference on Dec. 16.

The Bank of Russia’s primary objection to crypto has always been that it cannot be used as a payment instrument, Nabiullina emphasized. She added that the central bank is also concerned about investor protection because the crypto market is highly volatile.

While Russia formally does not prohibit its people from investing in crypto, the Bank of Russia believes that the mass adoption of crypto would inevitably lead to its use as a payment method, according to Bank of Russia deputy governor Alexey Zabotkin. He stated:

“If you allow free circulation of cryptocurrency as an investment tool within the country, then inevitably, with the expansion of its ownership, it will become more widely used as a means of payment. It will be impossible to prevent this.”

As such, if adopted, Russia’s experimental regime will be used in favor of cryptocurrency usage within Russia, but “only to support foreign trade,” Zabotkin stressed.

The latest news brings some clarity to why the Russian central bank has been so negative toward the adoption of crypto as an investment tool in the country.

Russia’s major crypto law, “On Digital Financial Assets,” officially prohibited the use of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) for payment purposes in 2020. The law did not ban Russians from investing in crypto, but local crypto exchanges have remained unregulated.

Related: Bank of Russia wants to ban miners from selling crypto to Russians

While not willing to allow Russians to use decentralized finance tools like Bitcoin locally, the Russian government itself doesn’t want to miss out on the benefits of decentralization on a global scale. In late November, President Vladimir Putin criticized the monopoly in global financial payment systems, calling for an independent, blockchain-based settlement network.

UK bank Starling bans crypto-related purchases and deposits citing high risk

Starling has banned its customers from purchasing cryptocurrencies with their bank cards or receiving transfers from crypto merchants.

Starling — a digital bank based in the United Kingdom — is the latest financial institution to ban crypto-related transfers and activities for its cardholders.

Starling customers will no longer be able to purchase cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) or receive incoming transfers from crypto exchanges or merchants.

The online bank announced the news in a statement to customers as well as on Twitter, citing the perceived high risks of crypto trading.

The bank also described cryptocurrencies as “high risk and heavily used for criminal purposes.”

A spokesperson for Starling told Cointelegraph that the bank has had restrictions of “varying degrees” on transactions related to cryptocurrency for some time. “We recently tightened restrictions on inbound and outbound transactions by card and bank transfer,” the representative stated, adding:

​​“The innovative technology, and thinking, behind cryptocurrencies have great potential advantages. However, right now, they are high risk and heavily used for criminal purposes and, as such, we no longer support them.”

The bank’s measures come amid the ongoing industry scandal involving FTX, one of the world’s biggest crypto exchanges that allegedly misappropriated user funds with its sister firm Alameda. According to FTX’s bankruptcy filing, the firm owes more than $3 billion to its 50 biggest creditors, while the total amount of creditors reportedly numbers over 1 million investors.

Some members of the crypto community believe that some restrictions on crypto activity by banks seem reasonable but a blanket ban is not the best solution.

“While it is understandable to block individual transactions that banks believe are outright fraud, banning legitimate transactions involving an entire industry is unacceptable,” SovrynBTC argued in a tweet on Thursday. The crypto enthusiast also asked why banks do not care about many other types of risky transactions by their customers, including trading stocks or gambling.

The latest restrictions are not the first time Starling has cracked down on crypto-related activity. The bank briefly halted payments to crypto exchanges in May 2021 over similar concerns, citing “high levels of suspected financial crime with payments to some cryptocurrency exchanges.” Starling subsequently resumed crypto exchange operations about a month later.

Related: The UK has a new name for stablecoins and a new bill to regulate crypto

The block comes a few weeks after Santander UK limited customer deposits to crypto exchanges to 1,000 British pounds ($1,196) per transaction, and a total limit of 3,000 pounds ($3,588) per month.

A number of other British banks reportedly banned crypto-related transactions completely. TSB bank banned its 5.4 million customers from buying Bitcoin in June last year. Other major lenders including Lloyds, NatWest and Virgin reportedly banned cryptocurrency purchases using credit cards in 2018.

Blockchain-based infrastructure forges the future for carbon markets, crypto and commodities

Rising from the ashes of old crypto exchanges, a new paradigm arises.

1GCX: Partnership Material

The environment is now a global priority, evidenced by the threat of increasing carbon dioxide emissions reaching 414.72 parts per million, a new record high in 2021, as reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate in the United States. With the impact of these emissions on climate change in mind, many countries have publicized their mission to lower their carbon emissions. For example, the United States has openly communicated its plan for environmental commodity measurement through the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

However, for many sectors, achieving absolute-zero carbon emissions is impossible; carbon offsetting becomes crucial to counteracting residual emissions. Under this model, organizations can compensate for residual emissions by investing in projects which absorb carbon. Carbon offsets then become a method for tracking the number of credits an individual or organization needs to be carbon neutral.

Consequently, the president and founder of 1GCX, Michael Wilson shares:

“Environmental commodities, a class of assets that exist as non-tangible energy credits, are now recognized as the most crucial value creators in the next 10–50 years.”

Consider that with the environment and carbon becoming a top priority for the world, the traditional way the world will view energy and, more importantly, value, is also likely to shift. As more countries begin operating on an energy-credit-first approach, a value denominated in U.S. dollars and debt that may never be repaid may no longer be sustainable.

Value, which is a construct of perception, may shift for countries to recognize non-tangible energy credits — more specifically, carbon credits to their balance sheets. Recognizing energy over dollars makes sense when you consider how significant U.S. debt is and how paying it off requires a budget surplus, which hasn’t occurred in the country since 2001.

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Unifying the carbon market

Currently, there is still no unified solution for the carbon market that allows participants to quickly and seamlessly capture the value of carbon commodities. Today, several private companies offer carbon offsets to companies or individuals, each representing investments of contributions to forestry or other projects with a negative carbon footprint.

Alternatively, buyers may purchase credits on a carbon exchange, but unfortunately, traditional finance (TradFi) has a poor reputation for being archaic and part of a suppressive system. High-quality carbon credits are scarce since verification methods vary, among other reasons.

For this reason, 1GCX believes that taking the best parts of TradFi and merging them with blockchain will prove to be the only solution that can support a global transition to this new value system.

Michael Wilson goes on to share:

“Freedom begins and ends with the decision to be responsible for yourself and your world, specifically the environment around you. Trade, economics, and currency are at the very core of our civilization. If freedom is to be ideal, then the only path forward is one of liberty and responsibility. Cryptocurrency is bringing money, value, systems, and philosophy to the forefront of people’s minds. We are at a precipice, a new age is upon us, and the choice is one of consciousness, which is the way we will go.”

A commodity-first approach

1GCX is addressing these concerns head-on. The exchange represents a green technology that can bring the benefits of new markets to market valuations in cryptocurrency by highlighting its most promising projects. The resulting two-way bridge for carbon offset trading becomes part of a broad, holistic market that can facilitate adoption, education and connection across the crypto industry.

Unlike others in the space, 1GCX incorporated a market-making, commodities-first approach to redesign its financial markets. Moreover, the incorporation of the pairing and cross-application of crypto, commodities and carbon credits differentiate this platform from other exchanges. For users, this means a new user experience for trading on the platform, with access to live markets in carbon and energy. Therefore, 1GCX will become an ecosystem starting with a marketplace for everyday people to access one of the most well-kept secrets in global finance — carbon commodities, also known as Natural Asset Capital.

Looking at the rest of the ecosystem, users will come face-to-face with transformative offerings centered around tokenized bonds, called black bonds, and new payment systems that integrate crypto with crypto-commodity pairings.

Since May 11, 2022, 1GCX has continued to offer trading pairs with Bitcoin (BTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), Ether (ETH), USD Coin (USDC) and Tether (USDT), and some less common trading pairs against not just the U.S. dollar, but also the Canadian dollar, the euro and the British pound, in addition to other well-known digital assets and physical commodities. Built on the best fundamentals from TradFi, the platform’s exchange has resolved to add new cryptocurrency assets every week. It also shares roadmap plans for creating the first digitized carbon assets from a variety of offset verifiers around the world. These assets are said to be available for trade as early as Q4 2022.

Unlike today’s private exchanges, 1GCX will offer smooth and fast settlements, complete with low fees. For new users, this means having access to one of the most accessible platforms to use, even if they have never used a traditional exchange before.

R.A Wilson, the chief technical officer of 1GCX, reiterates the company’s mission:

“Our economic principles of open and transparent markets begin with increasing the flow of capital and accounting for unavoidable emissions through the use of free market solutions such as carbon offsets in a way that benefits everyone.”

Material is provided in partnership with 1GCX

Disclaimer. Cointelegraph does not endorse any content or product on this page. While we aim at providing you with all important information that we could obtain, readers should do their own research before taking any actions related to the company and carry full responsibility for their decisions, nor can this article be considered as investment advice.

House on a hill: Top countries to buy real estate with crypto

More countries are beginning to allow real estate purchases using crypto, here are some of the top destinations.

The mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies has brought immense potential to the fintech industry, and some of the capabilities have spilled over into the real estate market. Subsequently, the real estate sector is evolving to accommodate a new crop of investors who prefer making payments using crypto.

The trend of investing in real estate with crypto gained momentum in 2021 following a market explosion that saw Bitcoin (BTC) breach the $60,000 mark. Today, numerous jurisdictions have amended their real estate laws to allow property purchases using crypto due to their transformative impact.

Alexander Tkachenko, CEO and Founder of the VNX liquidity mining platform, told Cointelegraph that the full capabilities of crypto in real estate remain untapped.

“There is still a huge demand for alternative financial and payment instruments around the world,” he said while adding that favorable regulations would go a long way in creating a more enabling environment for both industries:

“Development of regulation that will create clear rules for industry players and protect investors.”

Scott Scherer, CEO of Owners Unity — a company that allows homeowners to derive passive income from their assets through a decentralized finance (DeFi) model — echoed Tkachenko, telling Cointelegraph, “Investors and governments have come to accept the fact that crypto is here for the long term.” 

He added that investors are increasingly using cryptocurrencies to transact due to the efficiency of crypto networks as compared to conventional banks.

Anastasia Kor, the chief marketing officer and board member of the innovative MetaFi ecosystem, Choise.com, told Cointelegraph that novel blockchain concepts such as real estate tokenization also appeal to global investors:

“The projection that tokenization will help to make real estate more liquid is not far from the truth. Tokenization will position the luxury properties that are confined to a region and make them global and accessible to interested buyers and investors around the world.”

So, which countries currently support real estate purchases with crypto?

Thailand

Thailand was among the first Asian countries to legalize cryptocurrency use. The nation presently allows real estate buyers to make payments using crypto. Investors who wish to use this mode of payment are required to seek the services of local accredited real estate agencies that accept virtual currencies.

While the nation had previously banned cryptocurrency trades, the ban was lifted in February 2014. Today the trading of major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, XRP (XRP), Ether (ETH) and Stellar (XLM) is allowed in accordance with rules stipulated by the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

It is worth noting that while individuals are allowed to deal in cryptocurrencies, regulated financial institutions operating in the country, including banks, are not. Consequently, buyers looking to buy property in Thailand using crypto are expected to make use of alternative money transfer systems for transaction settlement.

United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates is a top business destination and is emerging as a major crypto hub, with many international crypto organizations setting up shop in the country to capitalize on the budding status. The nation’s cryptocurrency market has grown multi-fold over the past two years and is projected to grow ten-fold over the next couple of years, all conditions remaining constant.

For a long time now, the nation has been a paragon of exemplary architectural marvels which have put the country on the map as a leading Middle East/North Africa real estate powerhouse. Some of the nation’s radical structures have been developed through government-led initiatives aimed at stimulating interest in the local property market.

Recent: Election tally: Does blockchain beat the ballot box?

The convergence of the crypto and real estate sectors has prompted the establishment to allow the synergy of the two industries in an effort to open up the real estate sector to global investors and accelerate the development of its non-oil economy.

Presently, crypto users in the UAE can purchase houses, villas, apartments, and buildings using digital currencies through authorized agencies.

On the regulatory front, the central bank has yet to designate cryptocurrencies as legal tender, so there are a few limitations such as the lack of crypto service provision by banks. However, crypto transactions among individuals and some regulated real estate agencies are allowed.

Turkey

Cryptocurrency usage is high in Turkey, with over eight million Turkish citizens owning digital currencies. Adoption is spurred by myriad factors including runaway inflation, which has led to the devaluation of the Turkish lira. The national currency has lost over 50% of its value against the United States dollar over the past two years.

With more people using cryptocurrency to transact, real estate agencies in the country are beginning to accept crypto payments.

Investors can acquire property in the transcontinental country through regulated real estate agencies. People who invest at least $250,000 in fiat or the equivalent in crypto in property buys also stand to acquire direct citizenship if they so desire through the Turkish golden visa program.

Portugal

Portugal is one of the most crypto-friendly nations in the European Union. As such, it comes as no surprise that the government has made it possible for investors to buy real estate property using cryptocurrencies. In previous years, buying real estate with crypto was allowed, but the money had to be converted into fiat for a property transfer to be finalized. This changed in April when new pertinent laws were introduced.

The latest statutes allow notaries to ratify real estate deals involving crypto. Additionally, digital currencies don’t have to be converted into fiat for property ownership transfers to be valid. The new rule categorizes these types of trades as barter deals.

Montenegro

Montenegro is one of the most financially liberal nations in the Balkans, and when it comes to crypto, the nation has no special requirements for cryptocurrency deals, including crypto real estate purchases. Notably, the country has, in recent years, been making conscious efforts to become a major crypto center due to the potential macroeconomic benefits.

In April, it awarded Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin citizenship as part of a campaign to woo crypto investors into the country.

Real estate investors looking to buy property in Montenegro using cryptocurrencies face few problems so long as the deal is sanctioned by a certified notary.

Georgia

Georgia has a lot to offer to investors and has many laws that are aimed at encouraging foreign investment. Investors who wish to put their money in the country, for example, pay zero taxes on capital gains including on returns from crypto investments. There are also no currency transaction limits. 

While it is possible to buy real estate using cryptocurrencies in Georgia, it is important to note that cryptocurrencies are unregulated in the country, so the final purchase figures entered in the property register must be in fiat.

Property purchases using crypto can only be carried out through select licensed real estate agencies that offer this service.

Canada

Over 2.5 million Canadians own crypto, according to Finder’s Crypto Adoption October 2022 report. This dynamic has led to more real estate firms in the country accepting cryptocurrency payments.

For investors looking to buy property in Canada using cryptocurrency, authorized real estate companies that accept cryptocurrency payments to help to ensure compliance.

Recent: Is DOGE really worth the hype even after Musk’s Twitter buyout?

Some property brokers also provide crypto-to-fiat conversion services to smooth out the process, as property sales in the official registry have to be in Canadian dollars.

Crypto users who wish to buy property using digital coins should consult tax advisers before beginning the purchase process in order to avoid tax complications, as Canadian regulations take capital gains taxes on cryptocurrencies seriously.

Cryptocurrencies have the capacity to open up the real estate market, which is notoriously illiquid. Allowing crypto real estate buys not only diversifies payment avenues but also makes it easier for international investors who dabble in crypto to acquire real estate assets across the world.

Subway accepts Bitcoin, so users can get a sandwich on the Lightning Network

The largest franchise in the world, Subway, is testing out the Lightning Network layer-2 Bitcoin payments solution and receiving encouraging results in Berlin, Germany.

No, it’s not Groundhog Day. Subway is accepting Bitcoin (BTC), again — but this time it’s using the fast, nearly free Bitcoin Lightning Network.

The world’s largest franchise by number of restaurants is trialing Bitcoin payments at three Subways in Germany’s capital, Berlin. Subway first experimented with Bitcoin almost 13 years ago in Moscow, Russia. 

Over the past few months, Daniel Hinze, the Berlin Subway franchise owner, recorded over 120 Bitcoin transactions. In an interview with Cointelegraph, Hinze explained his desire “to help Bitcoin become money.”

“Five years ago, I started to deal with cryptocurrencies; and in the last two years, I have dealt very intensively with the topic of Bitcoin. With that in mind, I’ve decided that [Bitcoin] could be the better money system.”

Bitcoin is not a popular means of exchange in Europe, despite the efforts of merchants, retailers and even Lightning-enabled conferences. Hinze has encouraged Bitcoin payments by offering a 10% discount on all footlongs, meatball marinaras and sucookies paid for with BTC.

To kick off the campaign, Hinze offered a 50% discount on all Bitcoin payments for one week:

“Around the week, there was, of course, extremely high demand. Our three restaurants were frequently visited by people who liked to pay with Bitcoin.”

German-speaking social media was buoyed by Subway buys as the hashtag #usingBitcoin took over. Hinze partnered with Lipa, a Swiss-based Bitcoin company, to enable an easy-to-use point-of-sale solution.

Bastien Feder, CEO of Lipa, told Cointelegraph that its mission is to make Bitcoin “basically irresistible to use because Bitcoin is currency.” Lipa kitted out the Subways with merchant devices that allow customers to quickly scan a Lightning-enabled QR code that allows for fast, frictionless, low-cost payments.

Lipa charges merchants 1% for the service, as opposed to Visa or Mastercard payment rails, which charge double or more. Feder explained:

“It’s 2.5% to 4% depending on the contract from the merchant. If it’s a business card, there’s 0.5% on top of that. […] And if it’s a foreign business credit card, you pay up to 7%, and you don’t know until the end of the month.”

The experience of paying over the LN differs greatly from when Subway franchises first accepted Bitcoin payments in 2014. Before the arrival of the LN, customers would have to wait for around for several minutes.

Miners would mint the next block on the blockchain, with the transaction confirmed by Bitcoin nodes around the world. The process was inconvenient for retail payments due to the wait time as well as the sometimes high fees. With the LN, customers enjoy faster settlement times than Visa or Mastercard and lower fees thanks to a peer-to-peer network of payments.

Nonetheless, due to the fact that Bitcoin has for most of its history been a speculative vehicle — sparing a few use cases for purchasing — encouraging Bitcoiners to spend BTC can be a challenge.

Nonetheless, retail examples are popping up, such as in Berlin or San Salvador. Nicolas Burtey, CEO of Galoy Money, told Cointelegraph that the adoption of Bitcoin in El Salvador was the tipping point for the Lightning Network. He joked that the Bitcoin Law “should have actually been called the Lightning Law!”

Related: McDonald’s, pizza and coffee paid in Bitcoin: The Plan B for crypto payments

Lipa and Hinze expect a steady increase in demand for Bitcoin payments. Feder told Cointelegraph that it’s due in large part because of the ”exponentially rising Bitcoin community in Germany, in Switzerland, basically all over the world.”

Indeed, the LN is enabling communities keen to trade, from Senegal to Guatemala and Switzerland. Hinze told Cointelegraph that for the moment, the Subway restaurant only accepts the world’s most recognizable currency, as he and his business partners “firmly believe in Bitcoin.”

Ramp, builder of crypto payment rails, raises $70M

The company is building payment rails that could make crypto purchases as ubiquitous as PayPal transactions.

Crypto-focused fintech company Ramp has raised $70 million in venture capital, upping its pledge to continue building a unified payment experience for digital assets. 

The Series B investment round was co-led by venture firms Mubadala Capital and Korelya Capital, Ramp disclosed on Nov. 9. As reported by Cointelegraph, Ramp raised $53 million in a Series A funding round that closed in December 2021, bringing its total capital raise to roughly $123 million.

Ramp’s management said the new funds would go toward improving its product line, expanding into new locations and increasing the number of fiat currencies and payment methods offered.

Ramp’s primary customers are businesses and blockchain protocols that want to offer users a more streamlined experience when transacting with cryptocurrencies. Ramp provides a noncustodial, full-stack payment infrastructure that, when deployed, lets users buy crypto assets inside decentralized applications and websites. The company likens its services to PayPal and Stripe in that companies can use Ramp to offer users a “unified purchase experience” across e-commerce platforms.

Crypto payments infrastructure is considered vital to support the emergence of Web3, a broad umbrella term that describes some future iteration of the internet that encompasses the value of decentralization. Many within the blockchain community believe that unlocking the power of crypto payments is necessary to promote the mass adoption of the underlying technology.

Related: Web3 must bridge back into Web2 for real cash flows — Checkout.com VP

Venture capital continues to support projects building payment rails that connect crypto with the broader financial system. Although venture funding has declined in the second half of the year due to the bear market, 2022 has been a record year for funding deals.

Why banking uses at least 56 times more energy than Bitcoin

“Bitcoin uses 0.05% of world energy consumption. Banking uses 56 times more energy than Bitcoin,” Michel Khazzaka, a cybersecurity engineer and cryptographer, told Cointelegraph.

The next time Bitcoin (BTC) comes under fire for energy consumption, remember this statistic: the banking industry uses at least 56 times more energy. That’s according to cryptographer and founder of Valuechain, Michel Khazzaka: 

“I’m not saying it uses less or the same, just know it uses 56 times more than Bitcoin.”

The statistic, first shared by Michel Khazzaka in the summer, caused a stir in the Bitcoin and wider crypto community. He published his estimates in a Valuechain report, a company he founded to investigate the world of crypto payments.

In an exclusive Cointelegraph Crypto Story interview, Khazzaka talks viewers through the extensive research that led to striking conclusions. In short, Bitcoin might not be as bad for the environment as the mainstream media lead people to think.

Khazzaka, who describes Bitcoin as “money with a memory,” sought to refute the claim that Bitcoin is worse for the environment than fiat money. He spent four years toiling away, compiling data and crunching numbers. He built out a model, or estimate, to understand just how much energy the banking industry consumes.

Speaking from his home in Paris, Khazzaka told Cointelegraph that he looked at commute times, data centers, servers, and even ATMs for the calculations. He didn’t, however, take into account the energy put into “banks, buildings or ATMs; to manufacture to bring the metal, etc. Let’s compare the operations.” Khazzaka admits this oversight is intentional:

“That’s why all my numbers are underestimated for banking and extremely accurate for Bitcoin.”

For Bitcoin, Khazzaka concluded that it consumes 88.95 TWh per year, considerably less than the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance estimates. Nonetheless, Khazzaka admits that Bitcoin uses an “extraordinary amount of energy.” However, in return, users receive “an extraordinary amount of security for an extraordinarily important service.”

He compares Bitcoin to space travel, explaining that even if people don’t care about going to the moon, it’s a right, “even if it consumes more [energy] than a car.”

Related: Bitcoin mining to cost less than 0.5% of global energy if BTC hits $2M: Arcane

Finally, in a nod to the layer-2 Bitcoin Lightning Network, Khazzaka concludes that, as a payments network, it shows tremendous promise. It just needs to prove itself.

Why banking uses at least 56x more energy than Bitcoin

“Bitcoin uses 0.5% of world energy consumption. Banking uses 56 times more energy than Bitcoin,” Michel Khazzaka, a cybersecurity engineer and cryptographer, told Cointelegraph.

The next time Bitcoin (BTC) comes under fire for energy consumption, remember this statistic: the banking industry uses at least 56 times more energy. That’s according to cryptographer and founder of Valuechain, Michel Khazzaka: 

“I’m not saying it uses less or the same, just know it uses 56 times more than Bitcoin.”

The statistic, first shared by Michel Khazzaka in the summer, caused a stir in the Bitcoin and wider crypto community. He published his estimates in a Valuechain report, a company he founded to investigate the world of crypto payments.

In an exclusive Cointelegraph Crypto Story interview, Khazzaka talks viewers through the extensive research that led to striking conclusions. In short, Bitcoin might not be as bad for the environment as the mainstream media lead people to think.

Khazzaka, who describes Bitcoin as “money with a memory,” sought to refute the claim that Bitcoin is worse for the environment than fiat money. He spent four years toiling away, compiling data and crunching numbers. He built out a model, or estimate, to understand just how much energy the banking industry consumes.

Speaking from his home in Paris, Khazzaka told Cointelegraph that he looked at commute times, data centers, servers, and even ATMs for the calculations. He didn’t, however, take into account the energy put into “banks, buildings or ATMs; to manufacture to bring the metal, etc. Let’s compare the operations.” Khazzaka admits this oversight is intentional:

“That’s why all my numbers are underestimated for banking and extremely accurate for Bitcoin.”

For Bitcoin, Khazzaka concluded that it consumes 88.95 TWh per year, considerably less than the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance estimates. Nonetheless, Khazzaka admits that Bitcoin uses an “extraordinary amount of energy.” However, in return, users receive “an extraordinary amount of security for an extraordinarily important service.”

He compares Bitcoin to space travel, explaining that even if people don’t care about going to the moon, it’s a right, “even if it consumes more [energy] than a car.”

Related: Bitcoin mining to cost less than 0.5% of global energy if BTC hits $2M: Arcane

Finally, in a nod to the layer-2 Bitcoin Lightning Network, Khazzaka concludes that, as a payments network, it shows tremendous promise. It just needs to prove itself.

Mastercard adds 7 blockchain startups to its crypto accelerator

The crypto gateway provider Fasset and Singapore’s Digital Treasures Center are among the startups entering the latest Mastercard Start Path program.

Global payments giant Mastercard continues supporting cryptocurrency and blockchain startups as part of its fintech accelerator, the Mastercard Start Path program.

Mastercard has chosen another seven industry startups for its Start Path program in order to promote the adoption of crypto and blockchain technology, the firm announced on Nov. 3.

The new cohort of startups includes the crypto gateway provider Fasset, Singapore’s crypto payments platform Digital Treasures Center and the Colombian stablecoin-focused firm Stable. Mastercard previously partnered with Fasset in July to jointly work on digital solutions to drive financial inclusion in Indonesia.

The latest Mastercard Start Path program also includes the Web3-focused social payments system provider Loot Bolt, Quadrata privacy startup, the blockchain-based media fintech project Take Back the Mic and the brand-oriented platform Uptop.

According to the announcement, the chosen companies will engage with bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3 as one of their main goals. “We’re welcoming a new cohort of startups to ease access to digital assets, build communities for creators and empower people to innovate for the future through Web3 technologies,” Mastercard added.

Launched in 2014, Mastercard Start Path is a six-month accelerator program that is designed to help startups in expanding and commercializing their products and services. Mastercard has supported more than 350 startups so far, with many of them achieving unicorn status, including firms such as banking provider Thought Machine, the Indian fintech startup Zeta and Razorpay.

In 2021, ​Mastercard launched a dedicated crypto division of Mastercard Start Path, dubbed Start Path Crypto. The crypto accelerator was established to support seed, Series A and Series B startups involved in crypto and blockchain development, offering a three-month support program.

Following the latest addition, the Start Path Crypto program has added a total of 25 crypto-related startups, including digital wallet Uphold, crypto storage firm GK8 and Emin Gün Sirer, CEO and founder of blockchain developer Ava Labs.

Related: Mastercard launches new crypto fraud protection tool

The latest news comes amid ​Mastercard continuing to strengthen its blockchain and crypto expertise. In mid-October, Mastercard launched a new program to allow banks to offer crypto trading capabilities and services to their customers in collaboration with Paxos. Previously, Mastercard collaborated with the Coinbase exchange to allow Coinbase NFT users to make purchases using Mastercard’s cards.