The roughly five million residents of the Central African Republic, or CAR, will now reportedly be able to use Bitcoin in addition to the country's franc as legal tender. According to a Wednesday report from news outlet Agence France-Presse, Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadéra has signed a bill into law establishing a regulatory framework for the use of cryptocurrency in the country as well as adopting Bitcoin (BTC) as legal tender. Obed Namsio, the president’s chief of staff, said the move was aimed at making the CAR one of the “boldest and most visionary” in the world. #BREAKING Central …

On this week’s show, Cointelegraph’s resident experts reveal exactly what percentages of their portfolios are allocated to what coins and why. But first, market expert Marcel Pechman carefully examines the Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) markets. Are the current market conditions bullish or bearish? What is the outlook for the next few months? Pechman is here to break it down. Next up: the main event. Join Cointelegraph analysts Benton Yaun, Jordan Finneseth and Sam Bourgi as they reveal their crypto portfolios. We kick things off with Bourgi, whose top holdings are BTC with 67%, ETH with 20%. No surprise there …

“The Market Report” with Cointelegraph is live right now. On this week’s show, Cointelegraph’s resident experts discuss the worst mistakes you should avoid making in crypto. But first, market expert Marcel Pechman carefully examines the Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) markets. Are the current market conditions bullish or bearish? What is the outlook for the next few months? Pechman is here to break it down. Next up: the main event. Join Cointelegraph analysts Benton Yaun, Jordan Finneseth and Sam Bourgi as they talk about the worst crypto mistakes to avoid making in 2022. First up we have Bourgi, who thinks …

The president of the Central Bank of Brazil confirmed that the country’s sovereign digital currency pilot will go live this year, Cointelegraph Brazil reported. The confirmation about the central bank's digital currency came during an event on Monday, where Roberto Campos Neto, the president of the Central Bank of Brazil, noted that a pilot CBDC program could go live in the second half of this year. The value of the upcoming CBDC would be pegged against the national fiat payment system STR (Reserve Transfer System). Neto also confirmed that 'Digital Real' would have a fixed supply and only a certain …

Voyager Innovations, the firm behind the Philippines' top digital payments app Paymaya, has announced it has achieved unicorn status after a recent round of funding, surpassing a $1 billion valuation. Voyager Innovation announced Tuesday that the new $210 million capital boosted its valuation to $1.4 billion. The company highlighted that the new funds will be used to develop crypto offerings that it recently added to its flagship digital payments app PayMaya. According to the news release, the recent financing round was led by SIG Venture Capital. It included well-known firms such as KKR, First Pacific Co., Tencent Holdings Limited and …

South Africa has taken another step closer to implementing its central bank digital currency (CBDC) as the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) concludes a technical proof-of-concept for the project. The project, titled Project Khokha 2 (PK2), is the second phase of SARB’s Project Khokha (PK1), launched in 2018. It experimented with distributed ledger technology (DLT) for interbank payments' settlement, successfully replicating the banks’ “SAMOS” real-time gross settlement system. This second phase, PK2 was launched in February 2021 and tested DLT with clearing, trading and settlement within the proof-of-concept environment with industry participants Absa, FirstRand, JSE Limited, Nedbank and Standard Bank …

The European Commission is calling for financial services specialists to weigh in on the potential rollout of a digital euro. In a Tuesday notice, the European Commission’s Directorate‑General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union said it would be preparing an assessment of the central bank digital currency based on the expected impact on financial service providers, retail users, and chambers of commerce. The commission will consult with industry specialists on issues concerning the digital euro including international payments, privacy, the impact on the financial sector and financial stability, use cases alongside cash payments, and anti-money laundering and …

Zilliqa (ZIL) continues its supersonic bull run this week after reports that it will officially launch a so-called metaverse-as-a-service (MaaS) platform in April. ZIL rallied nearly 25% in one day to $0.22 a token by Wednesday, its best level since May 13, 2021. Its strong move came as a part of a rebound rally that started March 26 when it was trading for as low as $0.047. As a result, its net gains in the past six days came out to be more than 350%. Metaverse FOMO Traders started flocking to the Zilliqa market a day after it announced the …

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz introduced companion legislation into the U.S. Senate on Wednesday for Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer’s bill prohibiting the Federal Reserve from issuing central bank digital currency, or CBDC, directly to individuals, Emmer announced. Emmer introduced the House bill Jan. 18. Fellow Republican Cruz’ legislation could potentially speed up passage or rejection of the bill by allowing it to be considered in both chambers of Congress at the same time. Emmer, co-chair of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus, motivated his bill by concern a retail CBDC that forced consumers to open accounts with the Federal Reserve Bank could “be …

Fabio Panetta, executive board member of the European Central Bank, said focus groups exploring the potential rollout of a digital euro hinted the ability to use the digital currency at online and physical stores could be a key feature. In a written statement released Wednesday, Panetta broke down the findings of ECB focus groups on digital payment methods commissioned in September 2021, which suggested people were more likely to accept a digital euro accepted in physical and online stores and allowed easy person-to-person payments. According to Panetta, all merchants would need to accept a digital euro to see adoption trends …

“The Market Report” with Cointelegraph is live right now. On this week’s show, Cointelegraph’s resident experts discuss the best altcoins to buy for under $3. But first, market expert Marcel Pechman carefully examines the Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) markets. Are the current market conditions bullish or bearish? What is the outlook for the next few months? Pechman is here to break it down. Next up: the main event. Join Cointelegraph analysts Benton Yaun, Jordan Finneseth and Sam Bourgi as they discuss the best altcoins to buy for under $3. First up, we have Bourgi with his first pick of …

The Electronic Currency and Secure Hardware Act (ECASH Act), introduced today in the United States House of Representatives, could herald a new direction in government-sponsored digital currencies. The legislation calls for the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to develop and pilot an electronic version of the U.S. dollar that is easy to use for the economically marginalized or technically challenged. It would also “maximize” consumer protection and data privacy, according to its principal sponsor Representative Stephen Lynch, chair of the Fintech Task Force in the House Financial Services Committee. Interestingly, e-cash, as it’s called, would be issued by the U.S. …