WAO ART

A British IT engineer, James Howells, is suing Newport council for access to a landfill where he believes his discarded hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoin, worth around $524 million, is buried. The hard drive was mistakenly thrown away in August 2013 when Bitcoin was valued at approximately $130.

Grayscale is reviewing 35 altcoins for potential future investment products. The firm manages over $20B in digital assets, and its selections serve as a guide for investors. The altcoins are categorized into Currencies, Smart Contract Platforms, Financials, Consumer & Culture, and Utilities & Services.

South Africa's Revenue Service (SARS) is intensifying crypto tax enforcement, requiring traders to declare digital assets on tax returns. A partnership with the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) aims to enhance compliance and gather data from local crypto exchanges.

Telegram plans to establish an office in Kazakhstan to enhance compliance with local regulations amid ongoing scrutiny. The Kazakhstan Ministry of Digital Development announced the agreement, aiming to improve content control and user protection on the platform.

The Central Bank of Brazil is accepting applications for its digital currency pilot project, Drex, from Oct. 14 to Nov. 29. Thirteen complex use cases have already been approved, including government loans, agribusiness assets, and carbon credits.

Bitcoin Google searches are nearing a four-year low, hitting their lowest point of 2024 between October 13-19. Despite the drop in searches, Bitcoin's price briefly surged to $66,000, up from $27,000 last October. Google has removed price charts for Bitcoin and several other cryptocurrencies.

Australia will introduce its first spot Ether Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF), IETH, by Monochrome Asset Management on October 14, 2024. The ETF is structured as a "bare trust," allowing investors to hold Ethereum directly without triggering capital gains tax, making it attractive for existing Ethereum holders.