Tag: crypto

Bitcoin and Ethereum trade sideways while ApeCoin goes bullish on Gucci announcement

The crypto markets opened fairly flat across the board today, adding 1.3% to bring total market capitalisation up to US$1.08tn.

Bitcoin edged slightly over the US$23,000 line, while Ethereum stayed close to US$1,650.

Ethereum scaling solution Optimism continued its strong rally with a 25% rise, while Binance’s US$49bn BNB coin was also among the biggest risers, adding 6.7%.

Following Bored Ape Yacht Club’s partnership announcement with Gucci, the NFT project’s native token ApeCoin enjoyed a 10% rally to bring its market capitalisation up to US$2.3bn.

Crypto.com’s US$3.7bn CRO token fell nearly 4% while privacy coin Monero and the Qtum network token were also among the biggest losers on Thursday morning.

Among the biggest gainers in the decentralised finance (DeFi) space were 1inch Network with 7.7%, Uniswap with 6.2% and staking platform Lido DAO with 11.5%.

However, total value locked across the wider DeFi space did suffer a 2% drop to US$88.4bn.

In the news

Another day, another crypto hack, this time directed at the China-based ZB centralised exchange, which labels itself “the world’s most secure digital asset exchange”.

Approximately US$4.8mln was purportedly stolen, according to blockchain security company Peckshied.

ZB has temporarily paused deposits and withdrawal “while we resolve the issue”.

MicroStrategy shares surged nearly 13% following former Chief executive Michael Saylor’s decision to step down from the position to focus on the company’s Bitcoin strategy as executive chairman.

Under Bitcoin evangelist Saylor, MicroStrategy became the largest corporate Bitcoin holder in the world, a decision which has proved polarising in the current bear market.

The Digital Commodities Consumer Protection Act bill introduced into the US House of Representatives on Wednesday by senators Debbie Stabenow and John Boozman has been met with approval within the crypto community.

If passed, the bill would enlarge the role of the Commodity

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Gucci’s Crypto Payment Options Set to Explode in U.S.

Gucci began accepting cryptocurrency in a few U.S. stores in May, and now it’s going all-in on the blockchain-based payments.

As BitPay — the Italian luxury house’s chosen crypto payments platform — announced new support for two more coins on Tuesday, ApeCoin and Euro Coin, Gucci stepped up as the first major brand to accept one of these options through the platform.

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With the addition of ApeCoin, its clientele will have a dozen or so options to pay for goods with tokenized digital money, rounding out a lineup that includes Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and 5 USD-pegged stablecoins (GUSD, USDC, USDP, DAI and BUSD).

The Italian luxury brand dipped its toe in crypto with just five stores initially, but saw fit to expand support. Today, more than two-thirds of Gucci’s U.S.-based stores accept the alternative payments, representing 70 percent of its full, directly operated network in this market. The remaining ones won’t be left out of the loop for long, though: The company plans to make those locations crypto-ready by this week, amounting to full support across its own U.S. retail operation.

According to Stephen Pair, BitPay’s chief executive officer, the platform was simply responding to demand. “We added ApeCoin and Euro Coin because customers of our luxury merchant partners asked for it,” he said in a statement.

ApeCoin is a token of the well-hyped Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection, a subsidiary of Yuga Labs. Bored Ape Yacht Club is much sought-after by celebrities and other well-heeled individuals, and ApeCoin will be the main token used across the Ape ecosystem, Web3 games, experiences and communities. ApeCoin holders can shop with BitPay merchants — which include premium brands and retailers, as well as popular services like UberEats and DoorDash — turn

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Gucci and TAG Heuer Are Now Accepting ApeCoin at Boutiques Across the US

Gucci is going bananas for ApeCoin.

The Italian fashion house will now accept Bored Ape Yacht Club’s token ApeCoin (APE) for all in-store purchases in select boutiques across the US, according to a tweet shared on Tuesday. Gucci actually started accepting a range of cryptocurrencies back in May, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, but it is the first luxury brand to embrace ApeCoin as a form of payment.

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It seems it won’t be the last, though. Following Gucci’s tweet, TAG Heuer tweeted it too was welcoming the ape. Not only has the Swiss watchmaker integrated Bored Ape’s NFTs into the design of its Calibre E4, but it will also now allow clients in the US to buy watches using APE.

The payments are made possible through partnerships with BitPay. It’s a payment processor that enables businesses to accept cryptocurrency as payment. “We added ApeCoin and Euro Coin because customers of our luxury merchant partners asked for it,” BitPay CEO Stephen Pair said in a statement. “They asked, and we delivered.”

Quite the Web3 pioneer, Gucci has already launched Gucci Town in the Metaverse and worked with SuperRare on an NFT collection. It’s not alone, however. Tiffany & Co., Balenciaga, Lamborghini and Rémy Martin are all using NFTs in various projects. Avenue Foch even sold the world’s most expensive bottle of Champagne with an NFT attached to it. More restaurants and wineries are accepting cryptocurrencies. You can even buy a penthouse or a yacht with bitcoin.

Gucci is the first major brand to accept ApeCoin as payment. - Credit: NurPhoto / GettyImages

Gucci is the first major brand to accept ApeCoin as payment. – Credit: NurPhoto / GettyImages

NurPhoto / GettyImages

Despite the hype of crypto, it seems most people may not actually be using it. A report from the Federal Reserve released in May stated that

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