Autor Cointelegraph By Joseph Hall

The business of a Bitcoin standard: Profit, people and passion for good food

The business of a Bitcoin standard: Profit, people and passion for good food

Uverejnil používateľ | jún 7, 2022 |

The Canadian restaurant franchise Tahini’s serves Middle East-inspired food with a Bitcoin-inspired twist. Since August 2020, when the price of Bitcoin (BTC) was under $20,000, the group has operated on a Bitcoin standard, with any profits it makes swept into BTC.The Tahini’s Twitter account has since argued that Bitcoin is the “most Islamic” thing Muslims can do with their wealth, and the group educates its customers on sound money. It has even become a niche bear market meme, with Michael Saylor famously saying he might apply to work night shifts at Tahini’s during January’s price correction:May apply for night shift at @TheRealTahinis to stack more sats. #NewProfilePic pic.twitter.com/ZrirLojvrq— Michael Saylor⚡️ (@saylor) January 23, 2022Cointelegraph spoke with Ali Hamam, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Tahini’s, to understand the whys, hows and unintended consequences of operating under a Bitcoin standard. Hamam was the driving force of the Bitcoin adoption in the Middle Eastern chain.Hamam (top left) and the Bitcoin ATMs in Tahini’s franchises. Source: TwitterHamam first learned of Bitcoin in 2016 or 2017 but discarded the innovation as a Ponzi scheme, or “rat poison,” as he was dissuaded by its negative press. It took the COVID-19 pandemic and its real-world consequences for Hamam’s Bitcoin lightbulb moment to take place.“In March of 2020, we got hit with the lockdowns and the fear. Our sales at the restaurants dropped like 70% in a week. And yet, there was more money flowing around with our employees, our fellow Canadians. Everybody just had more money.”Inspired by the writings of Robert Breedlove — a Bitcoin influencer and entrepreneur — sound money in the form of BTC dawned on him. Hamam said that he and his company needed to find a better way to store value. “Money is going to be worthless,” he said.“It sort of clicked for me that this is a once-in-a-multigeneration type of breakthrough and invention. The idea of absolute fixed money is something that we’ve never seen in history.”Hamam was hooked. He went all in, devouring Bitcoin-focused books, podcasts and, in some cases, not sleeping as he educated himself and fell deeper down the rabbit hole. “It grew into a way of life where it’s like, okay, this is something that I should be integrating with every single aspect of my life, from my kids’ education funds to my business.”Armed with freshly acquired knowledge, Hamam met with his business partners at Tahini’s to pitch the idea of running the business on a Bitcoin standard. The argument behind having the “Bitcoin standard” — a term popularized by Saifedean Ammous, author of the eponymous book, The Bitcoin Standard — is that not Bitcoin is not just a better reserve currency than the U.S. dollar, it’s actually a superior currency. The author of “The Bitcoin Standard,” Saifedean Ammous (left), dines with Hamam. Source: TwitterConsequently, the business should carve out a route with profits in Bitcoin in mind. For Tahini’s, that means keeping a working capital of roughly six months of expenses on hand. According to Haman:“Anything beyond that number is considered treasury, and we sweep into Bitcoin. So, some months we will buy a little bit more aggressively — when the price is down — and then the months after that, we will slow down a little bit. But we kind of have depending on how much the company makes.”To the doubters, Hamam said, “We always try to manage it in a way where we never have to sell any Bitcoin. That’s the key part.” Hamam claimed that while he has gifted BTC to family and friends, he’s never sold it.Tahini’s is working to put in place the infrastructure required to accept Bitcoin as payment, but the process is challenging — not due to regulation or payment processors but because the franchise wants to hold the Bitcoin it accepts. “Even if you’re going to accept Bitcoin, work it out in a way where you never have to sell it,” Hamam explained.Today we met at Tahinis #HamOnt with @shakepay and @Innocente_Brew and an amazing group of bitcoiners from all over Canada. We all have one mission. To make #Bitcoin the Standard pic.twitter.com/nLhGlHojzd— Tahinis Restaurants (@TheRealTahinis) June 2, 2022

The inevitable publicity bump that comes from jumping on the “Bitcoin accepted here” bandwagon is attractive, Hamam said, but “If you’re selling your Bitcoin immediately after you receive it, then you don’t really get Bitcoin, in my opinion.” Hamam mentioned the Strike Lightning Network integration as an attractive proposition, as it would eliminate the high fees charged by Mastercard, but it’s still “pretty early” to explore payment options when the priority is growing the business. Ultimately, in a developed economy like Canada with comparably high levels of trust in institutions, Bitcoin is primarily a savings tool. Equally, Tahini’s is not currently exploring paying salaries in BTC, as the franchise does not want to force the cryptocurrency onto its staff. But that hasn’t stopped Hamam from persuading Canada’s Conservative leadership candidate, Pierre Poilievre, from buying shawarma with Bitcoin on the Lightning Network after Hamam “orange-pilled the heck out of him.” It was the first Bitcoin transaction made at Tahini’s, performed by an increasingly pro-Bitcoin politician. Conservative leadership candidate @PierrePoilievre buys chicken shawarma from @TheRealTahinis using bitcoin Lightning Network. Transaction cost was one satoshi, which the consumer covers. This was the first bitcoin purchase at Tahini’s. pic.twitter.com/T5hVlY4fy0— Andrew Lawton (@AndrewLawton) March 28, 2022

On a personal level, Hamam and the more devout Bitcoiners among the management team raise questions such as: “Have you heard about Bitcoin?” “Did you know you can buy a fraction of a Bitcoin?” And even “Maybe you should think about putting a few dollars into a Bitcoin retirement plan.” Inevitably, the orange-pilling is far more successful when the price is on a tear. If the price is dropping, it’s a bit more challenging. When China cracked down on crypto, for example, some of Hamam’s management team “freaked out a little bit.” Indeed, the 300% gains Cointelegraph reported earlier this year have begun to melt away. Hamam said that his conviction was enough to steer the ship and settle his colleagues’ nerves. Running a restaurant on a Bitcoin standard comes with a side of zealotry. While Hamam sings the premier cryptocurrency’s praises, there’s also a community of passionate BTC aficionados who back Tahini’s investment decision and continue to offer support:“The amount of love that I have for the Bitcoin community is — I can’t even describe it. People that have never even tried our food.”Related: KPMG in Canada adds BTC and ETH to its treasuryHowever, Hamam said that the Bitcoin community has not directly impacted sales, as it’s still a tiny, albeit vocal, community worldwide. Nonetheless, the business kept its head above water during the 2021 market turmoil and plans to expand to over 25 franchises in 2022. Hamam is resolute in his decision to put the profits into Bitcoin — even in the face of a tumultuous economic backdrop: “You’re still going to gain the same benefits anyone else would gain, or Michael Saylor would gain, or Elon Musk would gain.”The company has “aligned itself with the mission of Bitcoin” while, of course, serving “great food” to anyone. More and more companies could follow their lead and operate on a Bitcoin standard, while Hamam joked there might be a Middle Eastern dish that riffs on the cryptocurrency hitting franchises soon.

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Cybersecurity firm supports Bitcoin ‘mission,’ converts balance sheet to BTC

Cybersecurity firm supports Bitcoin ‘mission,’ converts balance sheet to BTC

Uverejnil používateľ | jún 7, 2022 |

Another business jumps aboard the Bitcoin bandwagon. Octagon Networks, a global cybersecurity network company with over 20 employees announced on June 6 that it had “finished the process of converting its liquid assets and entire balance sheet into Bitcoin (BTC).” The group will also “start accepting Bitcoin payments for all of our services, with a 50% discount when paid in Bitcoin.” Today, Octagon Networks becomes the first cybersecurity company to convert it’s entire balance sheet into #Bitcoin. We will also start accepting payments in Bitcoin, and offering a discount to encourage the use of Bitcoin. Read More: https://t.co/32mcdlUEGu— Octagon Networks (@OctagonNetworks) June 5, 2022Cointelegraph spoke to the Ethiopian cofounders of Octagon Networks, who preferred to remain anonymous. They explained that adopting Bitcoin was driven by a belief in Bitcoin and volition to support the network:“We are large proponents and believers in Bitcoin. We believe in a truly decentralized form of money that can be transferred at the speed of light.”They added that the “$25,000 area” could be the bottom of the bear market, while qualifying that the Bitcoin they have accumulated “doesn’t affect our operating costs as everyone who works here is a sole believer in the mission of Bitcoin.”The team stressed that — contrary to a commonly held belief that adopting Bitcoin is an attack on fiat currency — the group is proud of its Ethiopian roots and continues to use local currencies as well as Bitcoin:“People are interpreting this as an attack on USD or ETB [Ethiopian birr]. It is neither. We use both daily for our day-to-day lives, our decision about Bitcoin is simply because we believe in the secure distributed network Bitcoin has created.”Nonetheless, while the volatility of Bitcoin is too much for those in the western world to stomach, Octagon Networks explained that some of its employees choose Bitcoin as their preferred currency. Across Africa, several currencies — especially the CFA franc, a currency in use across 14 African nations — have lost purchasing power while leaving governments powerless. Related: Why the rise of a Bitcoin standard could deter war-makingMoreover, Octagon Networks told Cointelegraph that within the cybersecurity industry, Bitcoin is well-respected. Over the past decade, Bitcoin has not been hacked, while the hash rate (effectively a network security metric) continues to reach new highs:“From a cyber security perspective, it makes sense to bet on Bitcoin than anything else.”Popular Bitcoin Maximalists such as Cory Klippsten, founder of Swan Bitcoin, were quick to celebrate another company upgrading its business practices to a Bitcoin standard.Let’s go Octagon Networks! https://t.co/gjT5wggQBw— Cory Klippsten (@coryklippsten) June 5, 2022

The term “Bitcoin standard” refers to an individual, business or company adopting Bitcoin in a way that puts Bitcoin first. El Salvador, for example, was the first country to adopt a Bitcoin standard.

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‘Bitcoin-thematic’ ETF lists on Italian stock exchange Borsa Italiana

‘Bitcoin-thematic’ ETF lists on Italian stock exchange Borsa Italiana

Uverejnil používateľ | jún 7, 2022 |

The Italian Stock Exchange, Borsa Italiana, this morning listed a “Bitcoin (BTC)-thematic” exchange-traded fund (ETF) by Melanion Capital, bringing Bitcoin exposure to Italian institutions and retirement plans. Cyril Sabbagh, managing director at Melanion Capital told Cointelegraph, “the Melanion BTC Equities Universe UCITS ETF is an equity ETF around stocks in the crypto ecosystem.” Sabbagh explained that the ETF would be “accessible to as many people as possible.”“The Italian Stock Exchange (Borsa Italiana) has not accepted any ‘spot ETFs’ but welcomes our thematic ETF!”Following the successful launch of a Bitcoin-thematic ETF in October 2021 on Euronext Paris, a Pan-European stock exchange, Melanion Capital targeted Italy for its ETF. Sabbagh explains:“In Europe spot ETFs (exchange traded funds) are ETNs (exchange traded notes) or ETCs (exchange traded certificates) and as such carry counterparty risk and are not UCITS (the highest regulatory standard for a fund in Europe).”The Bitcoin ETF also allows savers to gain exposure to Bitcoin in their retirement plans due to the UCTIS specification: “Today, investors are frustrated that they cannot integrate a crypto allocation into their traditional investment envelopes. Indeed, investors will be able to integrate our ETF into their securities accounts, life insurance policies and even their retirement savings plans (this is already the case in France).”Nicolas Bertrand, advisor and ambassador of the Global Blockchain Business Council, and a former board member of Borsa Italiana, told Cointelegraph that “Italian investors and traders showed early interest in trading Bitcoin and other digital assets.”Related: Bitcoin investment giant Grayscale debuts ETF in EuropeDespite sluggish price action and calls for a sub $20,000 Bitcoin, Bertrand highlights the interest in digital assets:“From my position of adviser of a number of crypto exposed businesses and my direct contact to investors, I can confirm that there is a significant level of interest and that a number of firms are getting ready to embrace digital assets.”Plus in Italy, Bertrand shares that investor appetite for Bitcoin is robust, particularly prior to 2021, “Italy was in the top 10 globally in terms of volume of activity on Bitcoin and a number of trading venues have emerged offering direct access to these markets.”Across the road from the Borsa Italiana, the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, will soon open an office, while th European Central Bank shared that cryptocurrency ownership in European households is thriving. 

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‘CBDCs are the natural evolution,’ says HyperLedger director Barbosa

‘CBDCs are the natural evolution,’ says HyperLedger director Barbosa

Uverejnil používateľ | jún 6, 2022 |

For Daniela Barbosa — general manager of blockchain, healthcare and identity at the Linux Foundation and executive director of Hyperledger — digital currencies and cryptocurrencies have made it among the big banks at the World Economic Forum in Davos. In an interview with Cointelegraph shot against the backdrop of the Swiss Alps, Barbosa explained that in the few years she has attended the WEF, the presence of cryptocurrency companies has steadily grown. What’s more, we should not be afraid of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).“CBDCs are [a]natural evolution of digital dollars and digital currencies.”While the WEF saw calls from some bankers for a CBDC rollout to slow down, Barbosa explained that a CBDC could be with us in this decade. Hyperledger’s work overlaps that of CBDCs, particularly in light of a partnership with the Digital Dollar Project. The nonprofit organization seeks to further the research into a U.S. CBDC. The key to CBDC implementation, however, is in succeeding with “privacy-preserving methods.”An advocate for digital identity, privacy and “having control of your data,” Barbosa also shared the story of how she got into Bitcoin while living in San Francisco and working for Dow Jones in the mid-2010s.“I did go to a [Bitcoin] meetup once and I was older than everybody else and also female—and I thought, maybe this is not for me?”Fortunately, Barbosa kept abreast of Bitcoin and the market when time allowed before joining HyperLedger, an enterprise blockchain solutions-based company, in 2016. Related: UN agency head sees ‘massive opportunities’ in crypto: WEF 2022While blockchains can sometimes be touted as a catch-all solution, Barbosa explained that sometimes blockchains are not the ideal situation and “should not be used.” Many blockchain use cases in 2016 and 2017, for example, wanted the “media to pay attention.” In 2022, a blockchain works when:“You want to use a distributed ledger when you have multi parties that are working together—you don’t want to have to create another middle layer than helps disintermediate all the assets going around.”HyperLedger now covers everything from pharmaceuticals to finance while its blockchain solutions tackle climate change. 

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A life after crime: What happens to crypto seized in criminal investigations?

A life after crime: What happens to crypto seized in criminal investigations?

Uverejnil používateľ | jún 5, 2022 |

Earlier this year, during during the annual Queen’s Speech in the United Kingdom, Prince Charles informed the Parliament about two bills. One of them — the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill — would expand the government’s powers to seize and recover crypto assets.Meanwhile, the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seized more than $3 billion worth of crypto in 2021. As digital currencies’ monetary stock grows and enforcers’ scrutiny over the maturing industry tightens, the amount of seized funds will inevitably increase.But where do these funds go, assuming they aren’t returned to the victims of scams and fraud? Are there auctions, like there are for forfeited property? Or are these coins destined to be stored on some kind of special wallet, which might end up as a perfect investment fund for law enforcement agencies? Cointelegraph tried to get some answers.The dark roots of civil forfeitureFor the newcomers in the room, cryptocurrency is money. In that sense, the destiny of seized crypto shouldn’t differ much from other confiscated money or property. Civil forfeiture, the forceful taking of assets from individuals or companies allegedly involved in illegal activity, is a rather controversial law enforcement practice. In the U.S., it first became common practice in the 1980s as a part of the war on drugs, and it has been the target of vocal critics ever since. In the U.S., any seized assets become the permanent property of the government if a prosecutor can prove that the assets are connected with criminal activity or if nobody demands their return. In some cases, the assets are returned to their owner as a part of a plea deal with the prosecution. Some estimate, however, that just 1% of seized assets are ever returned.How do law enforcement agencies use the money they don’t have to return? They spend it on whatever they want or need, such as exercise equipment, squad cars, jails and military hardware. In 2001, for example, the St. Louis County Police Department used $170,000 to buy a BEAR (Ballistic Engineered Armored Response) tactical vehicle. In 2011, it spent $400,000 on helicopter equipment. The Washington Post analyzed more than 43,000 forfeiture reports and reported that the seized money was spent on things as varying as an armored personnel carrier ($227,000), a Sheriff’s Award Banquet ($4,600) and even hiring a clown ($225) to “improve community relations.” Some states, like Missouri, legally oblige that seized funds be allocated to schools, but as the Pulitzer Center points out, law enforcement agencies keep almost all of the money using the federal Equitable Sharing Program loophole. In 2015, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder issued an order prohibiting federal agency forfeiture, but his successor under the administration of President Donald Trump, Jeff Sessions, repealed it, calling it “a key tool that helps law enforcement defund organized crime.”Seized coins’ destiny in the U.S., U.K. and EUWhile none of the experts who spoke to Cointelegraph could speak to the technical aspects of storing seized crypto assets, the rest of the procedure tends to be pretty much the same as with non-crypto assets.Recent: Pride in the Metaverse: Blockchain tech creates new opportunities for LGBTQ+ peopleDon Fort, a former chief of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division who heads the investigations department at law firm Kostelanetz & Fink, told Cointelegraph that the only principal distinction is the necessity to auction the digital assets off:“At the federal level, seized cryptocurrency goes to either the Department of Justice or Department of Treasury Forfeiture Fund. Once the crypto funds are auctioned off by one of the forfeiture funds, the funds can be used by the respective federal law enforcement agencies.”Fort explained that as with non-crypto funds, the agency requesting forfeited funds has to submit a specific plan or initiative to acclaim the money and spend it, and the plan must be approved by the Department of Justice before the funds can be allocated to the agency.A similar procedure regulates the allocation of seized crypto in the United Kingdom. The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 outlines how cryptocurrency proceeds of crime should be dealt with once seized. Tony Dhanjal, head of tax at Koinly, explained to Cointelegraph:“When it generally comes to confiscated assets — as opposed to cash — the Home Office gets 50%, and the other 50% is split between the Police, Crown Prosecution Services and the Courts. There is also leeway for some of the confiscated assets to be returned to the victims of crypto crime.”However, Dhanjal believes the legislation needs to be updated to deal specifically with crypto assets, as they are a “unique challenge for crime agencies as anything that has ever come before it.” The aforementioned announcement of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill didn’t include any specifics aside from the intention to “create powers to more quickly and easily seize and recover crypto assets,” but an update on the procedure of seized crypto allocation is surely something to be desired.As it often goes for regulatory policies, the European Union is more complicated. While there are systems of mutual assistance in criminal matters within the EU, criminal legislation falls within the authority of the member states, and there is no single agency to coordinate enforcement or seizure.Recent: Terra 2.0: A crypto project built on the ruins of $40 billion in investors’ moneyHence, there are various ways seized crypto is handled. Thibault Verbiest, a Paris-based partner at law firm Metalaw, cited several cases to Cointelegraph. In France, for example, the Agency for the Recovery and Management of Seized and Confiscated Assets (AGRASC) is responsible for managing seized property. Verbiest stated:“When, as a result of a judicial investigation, assets have been seized, they are, by decision of the public prosecutor, transferred to the AGRASC, which will decide, in accordance with Articles 41-5 and 99-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the fate of these assets; they will be sold at public auction or destroyed.”But it is not always possible to seize crypto assets. In 2021, 611 Bitcoin (BTC) was sold at a public auction by the AGRASC after it seized the cold storage devices used by prosecuted people, who had stored their encryption keys on a USB stick. As Verbiest explained:“This was made possible by the fact that the aforementioned articles allow seizures on the movable property, so the USB stick (and its content) could be seized. The case would have been different if the crypto funds had been stored on a third-party server via a delegated storage service, as the aforementioned texts do not allow seizures of intangible property.”With the practice of property forfeiture remaining highly controversial — with some even preferring to call it “highway robbery” — cryptocurrencies provide their owners at least a relative degree of protection. Still, technology aside, it’s in the area of policy where both coiners and no-coiners will have to fight against the long tradition of law enforcement overreach.

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