Latam Insights: Bolivia Mulls Chinese Yuan for Trade Settlements, Steve Hanke Proposes 30-Day Solution for Venezuelan Inflation

Welcome to Latam Insights, a compendium of the most relevant crypto and economic development news from Latin America during the last week. In this issue, Bolivia mulls using the Chinese yuan in international trade settlements, inflation reaches 108.8% in Argentina, and…

Bitcoin Network Overwhelmed by 390,000 Unconfirmed Transactions and Surging Fees

In just under two weeks, the number of unconfirmed transactions on the Bitcoin network has skyrocketed from 134,000 to over 390,000, causing a bottleneck in the mempool. This surge in unconfirmed transactions has resulted in a staggering 343% increase in transaction…

Japan’s Inflation Surges to 3.5% as New BOJ Governor Takes the Helm

This week, the Statistics Bureau of Japan unveiled the latest core consumer price index (CPI) report for the country, revealing a surge to 3.5%. This figure comes as a surprise to analysts who had predicted a more modest 2.9% for the…

Gold Slides on Higher US Treasury Yields, Dollar

Prices of gold, and other precious metals, fell on Wednesday due to stronger U.S. yields and national currency. The decline comes on the backdrop of expectations of new interest rate increases next month amid persistent inflation in the United States and…

IMF Blog: Interest Rates to Fall to Pre-Pandemic Levels Once Inflation Is Tamed

When inflation in advanced economies is tamed, real interest rates are likely to drop to pre-pandemic levels, the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) blog post has said. According to the authors of the blog post, the transition to a “cleaner economy…

Core Inflation on Upward Trend, Further Rate Hikes Expected, ECB Execs Say

Amid underlying inflationary pressures, further interest rate increases may still be needed, members of the European Central Bank’s Governing Council have admitted. At the same time, the cycle with the highest hikes may soon be over, the officials indicated. End of…

Bitcoin Network Preps for Another Difficulty Spike as Hashrate Remains Strong and Miners Profit Amid Price Surge

Following the last two difficulty increases on the Bitcoin network, another rise in difficulty is expected to take place on March 24, 2023. Statistics show that Bitcoin’s hashrate has remained high despite the last two adjustments, and block times have been…

‘Next Round of Bailouts Is Here’ — Bitcoin and Precious Metals Soar Amid Speculation of Fed Policy Change

At around 7:30 a.m. ET, the price of bitcoin skyrocketed past the $27,000 range to a high of $27,025 per unit. Precious metals, or PMs, like gold and silver, also rose between 1.98% and 2.12% against the U.S. dollar over the…

Digital Assets Worth 2 Billion Rubles Issued in Russia in Less Than a Year

Digital financial assets (DFAs) for a total exceeding $26 million have been issued in Russia in the past year. This new market has been developing since it was regulated in 2021 and the country’s monetary authority started licensing issuers in the…

FBI Says Crypto Investment Fraud Rose 183% to $2.57 Billion in 2022

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says cryptocurrency investment fraud rose 183% from $907 million in 2021 to $2.57 billion in 2022, based on data from its Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The FBI also warned the public of “a spike…