- The Bitcoin (BTC) price lost around 29%, but it\u2019s already on recovery<\/strong> [CoinMarketCap]. That was probably due to the recent political problems in Kazakhstan, the second-largest<\/a> country in Bitcoin mining during 2021. The miners are now migrating<\/a>, though. Meanwhile, the whole crypto market lost about 31%, but it\u2019s also on recovery now.
<\/li>- Most altcoins were affected by the bear market too<\/strong>, but not all of them<\/a>. Internet Computer (ICP), Chainlink (LINK), and DASH had important peaks in their prices. Meanwhile, from the top 100 in market capitalization [CoinMarketCap], only FTX Token (FTT \u2014a derivative platform) and BORA (an entertainment platform)<\/strong> ended up January with positive percentages. They rose by over 13% and 1%, respectively.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
![\"Chia-cryptocurrency-investment-savings\"](\"https:\/\/alfacash.blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/money-2724241_1280-1024x691.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n- The Decentralized Finance (DeFi<\/a>) apps are still driving billions. January ended up with over $80b in Total Value Locked (TVL) on DeFi.<\/strong> Maker, Curve Finance, Convex Finance, Aave, and Uniswap are the most popular apps [DeFi Pulse<\/a>].
<\/li>- Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs<\/a>) are still booming as well, with over $3.3 billion in sales during January<\/strong> [NonFungible<\/a>]. The most popular NFT projects per volume are Axie Infinity, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), CryptoPunks<\/a>, Art Blocks, and The Sandbox. Now, even China released<\/a> its own NFT marketplace \u2014under government control, though.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Regulations on crypto<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
- Some countries in Latin America are preparing their own crypto regulations.<\/strong> Several provinces<\/a> in Argentina (La Pampa, Entre R\u00edos, C\u00f3rdoba, and Tucum\u00e1n) are collecting taxes on cryptocurrency activities. Colombia wants to do the same nationwide. For its part, Peru released a new proposal<\/a> for general crypto regulations, including the control of crypto exchanges.
<\/li>- Spain has been very active in implementing several laws on crypto activities<\/strong>. The exchanges based on the country should pay taxes, and a new taxing model<\/a> would ask the investors to declare their cryptocurrencies in foreign lands. Although, the Court of Justice of the European Union deemed illegal<\/a> a previous and identical model. So, likely, this one won\u2019t stay either.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
![\"January-cryptocurrency-world-Spain\"](\"https:\/\/alfacash.blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/technology-2646431_1280-1024x682.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThe ads about cryptocurrencies (including services like exchanges or wallets<\/a>) will be regulated as well from February<\/a>. If they\u2019re addressed to at least 100,000 people, the companies involved should ask permission first and follow all the guidelines by the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV). They need to warn especially about cryptos being a risky investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Kosovo (Southeast Europe) banned Bitcoin mining inside its borders<\/strong> and seized over 200 machines and GPUs so far. The reason<\/a> behind this seems to be an energetic crisis. Meanwhile, Russia is considering a blanket ban<\/a> on cryptocurrencies, or, otherwise, that only the banks<\/a> could handle them. And Estonia denied<\/a> a crypto ban but cleared that DeFi operators and crypto exchanges will be regulated.
<\/li>- The United States is aiming for tighter crypto regulations in 2022<\/strong>, starting from February<\/a>. The White House is considering the risks involved, the U.S. Treasury wants a power to ban more transactions (including cryptos), the Government Accountability Office (GAO) asks for a better registry<\/a> on BTMs, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is trying to regulate DeFi platforms.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Hacks and scams<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
- According to DeFiYield<\/a>, at least 15 DeFi platforms were hacked or made exit scams in January<\/strong>. The ones who lost (or stole) the most funds were Multichain on ETH (hacked for over $2.7 million), Solfire on Solana<\/a> (exit scam for over $4 million), Arbix Finance on BSC (exit scam for $10 million), Lympo on ETH (hacked for over $18.5 million), and Qubit Finance on BSC (hacked for $80 million). <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- The United States is aiming for tighter crypto regulations in 2022<\/strong>, starting from February<\/a>. The White House is considering the risks involved, the U.S. Treasury wants a power to ban more transactions (including cryptos), the Government Accountability Office (GAO) asks for a better registry<\/a> on BTMs, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is trying to regulate DeFi platforms.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Spain has been very active in implementing several laws on crypto activities<\/strong>. The exchanges based on the country should pay taxes, and a new taxing model<\/a> would ask the investors to declare their cryptocurrencies in foreign lands. Although, the Court of Justice of the European Union deemed illegal<\/a> a previous and identical model. So, likely, this one won\u2019t stay either.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs<\/a>) are still booming as well, with over $3.3 billion in sales during January<\/strong> [NonFungible<\/a>]. The most popular NFT projects per volume are Axie Infinity, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), CryptoPunks<\/a>, Art Blocks, and The Sandbox. Now, even China released<\/a> its own NFT marketplace \u2014under government control, though.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Most altcoins were affected by the bear market too<\/strong>, but not all of them<\/a>. Internet Computer (ICP), Chainlink (LINK), and DASH had important peaks in their prices. Meanwhile, from the top 100 in market capitalization [CoinMarketCap], only FTX Token (FTT \u2014a derivative platform) and BORA (an entertainment platform)<\/strong> ended up January with positive percentages. They rose by over 13% and 1%, respectively.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n