Digital payments firm Square is building a Bitcoin (BTC) hardware wallet, with CEO Jack Dorsey and hardware lead Jesse Dorogusker both confirming the plan on Twitter. The tech entrepreneur and Bitcoin proponent first teased the idea for a Square hardware wallet and custody service last month but revealed today that “we’re doing it.” We’re doing it #Bitcoin https://t.co/IwbKuBoXGv — jack (@jack) July 8, 2021 Dorogusker said on Twitter that Square wants to make Bitcoin custody more mainstream and outlined the pathway for the hardware wallet rollout: “We have a lot of questions and issues to reconcile and we’ll start with …

A casting call for a cable network series may offer crypto users at the end of their rope a way to access tokens locked away — or at least show viewers some of the options available to them. In a LinkedIn post from last month, casting director Jessica Jorgensen called on crypto users who have forgotten their passwords — and presumably their seed phrases — or lost their private keys to wallets with the clock ticking. The series offers consultations from cryptocurrency and cybersecurity experts to help users recover access to their funds. However, it seems participants must be prepared …

The number of addresses active on the Bitcoin network has crashed roughly 60% in the past six weeks from 1.3 million to roughly 500,000. The collapse in activity has seen Ethereum overtake Bitcoin by the number of active addresses, with the Ethereum network hosting roughly 200,000 more active wallets than Bitcoin on Friday. It is the third time in a month that Ethereum has overtaken Bitcoin by the metric, also happening on June 5, 2021, and June 6, 2021. The previous time Ethereum was in the lead was at the beginning of 2017. Twitter analyst Mr. Whale — known for …

According to a release issued on Friday, the inclusion of stablecoins is part of a broader integration with the Celo (CELO) network. Opera says the move will enable greater payment flexibility for millions of its users around the world. Celo’s stablecoins are tied to their respective fiat currency pegs with both cUSD and cEUR reportedly backed by a basket of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), held in the Celo Reserve. Commenting on the news, Cuautemoc Weber, head of crypto and vice president of business development and mobile at Opera, remarked that Celo’s “mobile-first approach” aligned with his company’s …

Major crypto wallet provider Blockchain.com is integrating with Unstoppable Domains to simplify sending crypto funds for its customers. Unstoppable Domains announced Thursday that it had integrated native support for Blockchain.com, enabling that latter's 32 million verified users to send funds with a username instead of a full-length crypto wallet address. The initiative aims to remove the risk of human error when sending funds, simplifying transactions between Blockchain.com users and more than 50 other wallets and exchanges supported by Unstoppable Domains, including Coinbase wallet, MyEtherWallet and others. The integration allows users to send cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) using …

The consequences of Ledger’s major data breach continue to be felt almost a year later. One contributor to the r/Ledgerwallet forum on Reddit, writing under the tag u/jjrand and self-identified as one of those affected by the breach, has posted images of what appears to be a fake Ledger Nano X wallet received in the mail. Wrapped in seemingly authentic packaging, the device nonetheless included several tell-tale signs that sparked the contributor’s suspicion. Most jarringly, the package came together with a poorly written letter claiming to be signed by Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier, telling its recipient: “For security purposes we …

Following a dramatic increase in its revenues in the first quarter, the cryptocurrency security and infrastructure company Ledger completed a new fundraising round led by 10T Holdings. Known for its Ledger Nano S and Nano X hardware wallets, Ledger announced the completion of a $380-million Series C fundraising round, which gave the company a valuation of $1.5 billion. Ledger’s Series B round investors Cathay Innovation, Draper Associates, Draper Dragon, Draper Esprit, DCG and Wicklow Capital attended the new fundraising. Tekne Capital, Uphold Ventures, Felix Capital, Inherent, Financiere Agache (Groupe Arnault) and iAngels Technologies were the new investors. Ledger CEO Pascal …

This is Part Three of a multipart series that aims to answer the following question: What is the “fundamental value” of Bitcoin? Part One is about the value of scarcity, Part Two — the market moves in bubbles, Part Three — the rate of adoption, and Part Four — the hash rate and the estimated price of Bitcoin. The rate of adoption If more and more people desire a certain good, and the same amount of units are in circulation, the price will obviously have a tendency to rise. It’s the supply-and-demand rule that governs any market in the world. …

At the bustling Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, Congressman Warren Davidson, alongside United States Senator Cynthia Lummis, sat down to field interview questions. The interview took a turn toward privacy, with Davidson responding with comments on crypto wallets. “At the end of the year, if you think about it, Secretary Mnuchin was talking about banning private wallets,” Davidson said, responding to a question about the possibility of over-regulation in crypto. “That’s a horrible approach,” he added. “If we don’t protect private wallets, someone is going to try to ban them.” As Davidson mentioned, December 2020 saw the U.S. Treasury suggest …

GCash, a major digital wallet in the Philippines, is reportedly considering introducing crypto trading services. GCash CEO and president Martha Sazon announced that the firm is looking at offering users the ability to buy, sell and store cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) on its platform. In a Monday interview with The Philippine Star, Sazon said that GCash is exploring cryptocurrency trading in order to keep up with financial innovation. “While we may be considered a disruptor now, it is important in this digital age that we should be mindful of all types of disruptions out there. It’s important to know what …

PayPal’s embrace of cryptocurrencies appears to be growing after the payments provider revealed that it will allow users to withdraw their digital assets to third-party wallets. The news, which was reported by Reuters Wednesday afternoon, comes just seven months after PayPal first enabled crypto purchases on its platform. At the time, the decision was heralded as a major milestone in mainstream recognition of digital assets. The Wednesday announcement means PayPal users will be able to send their cryptocurrencies to other wallets instead of just holding it on PayPal or selling it into fiat currency for withdrawal. However, neither Reuters nor …

Individuals have different choices when it comes to storing their cryptocurrencies. They can use a hosted wallet (sometimes called a custodial wallet), which involves an intermediary (a host) that usually receives, stores and transmits the assets on behalf of their clients. For example, a centralized crypto exchange can be a hosted wallet provider, with which an individual sets up an account/wallet. In such cases, the value stored belongs to the account holder, but the funds are controlled by the wallet provider/host (pursuant to the contractual arrangement and instructions from the client). Alternatively, cryptocurrencies can be stored in an unhosted wallet …