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  • How Salvadorans Will Use Bitcoin To Pay For Their Bills: Bitrefill Launches Payment Service

    How Salvadorans Will Use Bitcoin To Pay For Their Bills: Bitrefill Launches Payment Service

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    Bitrefill, the startup that offers Bitcoin-funded prepaid cards for different services worldwide, launched a new bill-payment service that allows Salvadorans to pay for multiple basic needs using Bitcoin. The company made the announcement during the three-day conference Adopting Bitcoin carried in El Salvador, which brought together “the Bitcoin and Lightning community”.

    Bitcoin has been a legal tender in El Salvador since September 7th, but many businesses were not sticking to the requirement of accomodating the digital coin as a payment method into their operations, Bitrefill’s CEO noted. Some have even stated they rather lose sales. Bitrefill aims to offer a solution for businesses so they can easily adapt to using Bitcoin and ease their current worries.

    Related Reading | There Are More People Using Bitcoin Wallets Than Bank Accounts, Says El Salvador President

    Bitrefill’s bill-payment method will allow Salvadorians to pay for 150 different services using Bitcoin, including internet, water, insurance, loans, taxes, mortgage, social security services, university expenses, and others. They also allowed payments overseas. 12 services are available at the moment on the website, and they will be adding the rest over the next few weeks.

    The platform will be using Bitcoins Lightning Network and on-chain transactions, which allows low fees. “El Salvador can now live entire on Bitcoin”, stated the company.

    The feature is offered in alliance with Puntoexpress, a local payment platform. The payment process was simplified for the users so they only need to provide an email address to redeem a voucher code and receipt.

    El Salvador, A Bitcoin Land

    Bitrefill reported they have processed 187,000 purchases in El Salvador during 2021, and 88% come from the country’s capital, San Salvador. There was a peak of 20,000 payments in September when the ‘Bitcoin law’ went into effect.

    The majority of Salvadorians reportedly use the Chivo digital wallet, an app created by the government, as the preferred payment method for Bitrefill purchases.

    Bitrefill’s CEO, Sergej Kotliar, stated that they now have headquarters established in El Salvador, a manager in the country, and they are hiring for all roles to cover the company’s needs. He shared his strategy is to be directly involved in the country by being present and maintaining contact with people who provide him with different approaches and information that the company can use to design other services.

    The CEO thinks El Salvador could become an example model that other countries could follow. The company also stated in a tweet:

    The most important part is that the 80% of unbanked people can now pay for almost everything online, products, services, bills, from the comfort of their home (or their relatives in the USA).

    El Salvador’s adoption of Bitcoin has been a bumpy road. However, the Chivo Wallet surpasses 2.2 million users a few weeks after its launch, gaining around 8,500 new users per hour and reaching 3 million later on. The citizens received $30 each as an incentive for downloading the app, but some reported to Reuters they had problems using it and making withdrawals.

    The government remains optimistic, although challenges lay ahead. We are yet to see if innovation and good strategies can help close the gap between the government’s vision and the tension around Salvadorians.

    Related Reading | El Salvador Calls Another Bitcoin Dip With $25 Million Purchase

    Bitcoin
    Bitcoin trading at $60,714 in the daily chart | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

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  • Voyager Token (VGX) is launching on Coinbase

    Voyager Token (VGX) is launching on Coinbase

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    Starting today, Voyager Token (VGX) is available on Coinbase.com and in the Coinbase Android and iOS apps. Coinbase customers can now trade, send, receive, or store VGX in most Coinbase-supported regions, with certain exceptions indicated in each asset page here. Trading for these assets is also supported on Coinbase Pro.

    Voyager Token (VGX) is an Ethereum token that’s used to reward and incentivize use of the Voyager centralized exchange. On Voyager, VGX holders can earn staking rewards, receive cashback on trades, and more.

    One of the most common requests we hear from customers is to be able to buy and sell more cryptocurrencies on Coinbase. We announced a process for listing assets, designed in part to accelerate the addition of more cryptocurrencies. We are also investing in new tools to help people understand and explore cryptocurrencies. We launched informational asset pages (see VGX), as well as a new section of the Coinbase website to answer common questions about crypto.

    Customers can sign up for a Coinbase account here to buy, sell, convert, send, receive, or store e Coinbase Android and iOS apps. Coinbase customers can now trade, send, receive, or store VGX today.

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    Please note: Coinbase Ventures may be an investor in the crypto projects mentioned here, and additionally, Coinbase may hold such tokens on its balance sheet for operational purposes. A list of Coinbase Ventures investments is available at https://ventures.coinbase.com/. Coinbase intends to maintain its investment in these entities for the foreseeable future and maintains internal policies that address the timing of permissible disposition of any related digital assets, if applicable. All assets, regardless of whether Coinbase Ventures holds an investor or Coinbase holds for operational purposes, are subject to the same strict review guidelines and review process.

    This website contains links to third-party websites or other content for information purposes only (“Third-Party Sites”). The Third-Party Sites are not under the control of Coinbase, Inc., and its affiliates (“Coinbase”), and Coinbase is not responsible for the content of any Third-Party Site, including without limitation any link contained in a Third-Party Site, or any changes or updates to a Third-Party Site. Coinbase is not responsible for webcasting or any other form of transmission received from any Third-Party Site. Coinbase is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement, approval or recommendation by Coinbase of the site or any association with its operators.

    Crypto is a new type of asset. Besides potential day to day or hour to hour volatility, each crypto asset has unique features. Make sure you research and understand individual assets before you transact.

    All images provided herein are by Coinbase.


    Voyager Token (VGX) is launching on Coinbase was originally published in The Coinbase Blog on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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  • Bitcoin price seesaws beneath $60K as anticipation builds for fresh BTC ‘short squeeze’

    Bitcoin price seesaws beneath $60K as anticipation builds for fresh BTC ‘short squeeze’

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    Bitcoin (BTC) chopped and changed on Nov. 18 but held a critical support level to preserve the chance of new all-time highs.

    BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

    $90,000 remains on the table

    Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed BTC/USD as it ranged between $59,000 and $60,000 Thursday, seeing $1,000 swings in minutes.

    With the pair’s overall range becoming ever narrower, talk turned to a potential “short squeeze” entering to push its spot price to new, higher levels.

    “Based on the Futures Market structure, the funding rate and OI momentum trends are forming a perfect setting for a ‘Short-Squeeze’ scenario,” one contributor to on-chain analytics firm CryptoQuant argued Wednesday.

    “Then the question is, what price range would act as a support level?”

    A similar event occurred at the end of September when Bitcoin suddenly surged into a week of almost unchecked gains, which topped out at $55,000.

    For popular trader Crypto Ed, the chances were there that the $58,400 lows of recent days may be a more definitive floor.

    “Maybe a bit early to post as the bottom might not be in yet, but I’m getting excited when checking next targets which don’t seem to be that far away!” he ventured Wednesday.

    “In case I’m right with bottom in already or around $57k, the target is more or less the same….. $90.000 and a little bit.”

    BTC/USD scenario. Source: Crypto Ed/Twitter

    Analyst warns of investor complacency

    Such price targets have become increasingly controversial as Bitcoin’s bull run stalls below $70,000, with less than two weeks left to hit PlanB’s “worst-case scenario” November close of $98,000.

    Related: Bitcoin holders who bought at $20K refuse to sell BTC at all-time highs — Latest data

    This week, PlanB reiterated the difference between that prediction and his stock-to-flow Bitcoin price models, with a failure to hit it leaving the latter intact.

    For the short term, however, some considered the market still unprepared to support a fresh BTC price run-up.

    Highlighting a lack of “fear” in sentiment, trader and analyst Rekt Capital was sober on the likelihood of a full-on trend reversal.

    “Doesn’t seem that BTC investors are fearful enough towards price for this retrace to be over just yet,” he warned.

    “It is Extreme Fear that precedes maximum financial opportunity, not neutrality.”

    The Crypto Fear & Greed Index stood at 54/100 Thursday — “neutral” territory — having reached local highs of 84/100 on Nov. 9.

    Crypto Fear & Greed Index. Source: Alternative.me