Kalam Crypto #36: Google invests $1.5b in crypto, Stablecoins back ETH Merge

"Quality is not an act, it is a habit." Aristotle

Ahlan wa sahlan, and welcome to the 36th edition of CoinMENA's weekly newsletter, Kalam Crypto. Every week we will bring you the latest news and developments from the exciting world of cryptocurrencies. This week, Google invests heavily in crypto, stablecoins back ETH PoS merge, and ETH giveaway from CoinMENA. All that and more, so let's dive into this week's letter, and talk crypto:

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Lightning Round ⚡️

Stablecoins support ETH Merge: USDC and USDT announce they will fully and solely support the Ethereum PoS chain post-merge.

Canada sets a limit on crypto buying: You can buy as much BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH as you want, but any other crypto has a limit of $30 thousand net per year.

Celsius down big: As of July 29, Celsius reported owing a total of $6.7 billion of token liabilities against just $3.8 billion in assets. Ouch.

UK Inflation reaches 10.1%: A 40-year high. Brits join the 2+ billion people living under double-digit inflation worldwide.

Global News 🌍

Google invested $1.5 billion into blockchain technology: A study carried out by crypto intelligence platform, BlockData, revealed that Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is the largest public company participant in blockchain funding, investing a total of $1.5 billion into the sector between September 2021 and June 2022.  

BlockData: Most active investors in blockchain companies by the top 100 public companies

(September 2021 - June 2022)

Buenos Aires will run Ethereum validator nodes:  Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina,  announced they will run Ethereum validator nodes in 2023. The city aims to be a driving force behind blockchain and crypto adoption. Argentina has one of the highest crypto adoption rates in the world and is currently experiencing over 70% inflation. Unsurprisingly, Argentines are turning towards cryptocurrencies, specifically stablecoins, bitcoin, and Ethereum to escape the devaluation of their fiat currency.

Did you know 🤔

🟠The 750,000th block on the Bitcoin blockchain was mined on Thursday. This means the bitcoin blockchain has had 750,000 blocks since its creation in 2009.

CoinMENA News 🗞

$5,000 ETH Giveaway EXTENDED: We have extended our giveaway until the end of the month. Place at least one trade (buy/sell) for 25 USD or above before 31 August 2022, Wednesday, at 11 PM Bahrain/KSA time, and 20 of you can each earn $250 ETH!

Tweet of the week 🐥

Quiz Corner ✅ 

Last week’s question: Which is the second country in the world to make bitcoin legal tender? 

Answer: Central African Republic

This week’s question: Which of the following is not true after all 21 million bitcoins have been mined?

• Miners will continue earning mining fees

• No new bitcoins will be mined

• Bitcoin transactions will continue to be pooled into blocks and processed

See the answer in next week’s newsletter.