A recent analysis of more than a million tweets showed a list of countries that love and hate the metaverse, with Vietnam showing the most love for the concept and Ireland topping the opposite side of the spectrum. Crypto data website CoinKickoff analyzed 1.6 million tweets from different parts of the world to determine which countries are in favor of the metaverse concept and which countries oppose it. The results showed that Vietnam topped the in-favor list, with 56.8% of the metaverse tweets coming from the Southeast-Asian country being positive. East-Asian countries were generally positive toward the concept. Apart from …

Gabriel Makhlouf, the governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, reportedly supports legislation which would ban advertising crypto projects to young people. According to a Jan. 25 report from Bloomberg, Makhlouf said before the Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach there was an “uncomfortable” level of crypto advertisements targeting young adults. The central bank governor reportedly referred to many cryptocurrencies as “unbacked” assets and suggested lawmakers “find a way” of banning related ads. Makhlouf cited the implementation of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets, or MiCA, framework as one of the central bank’s milestones for 2023. …

Crypto exchange Coinbase was granted permission by the Central Bank of Ireland to act as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP), according to an announcement on Dec. 21. The company's operations in the country will be overseen by Cormac Dinan, a former employee of Crypto.com, Deloitte and Citigroup. Under the VASP registration, Coinbase Ireland will be subject to the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act 2010. Two Coinbase entities are covered by the VASP registration: Coinbase Europe Limited and Coinbase Custody International Limited. The first provides crypto trading services to European customers, while Coinbase Custody International provides crypto …

$4.5 trillion asset management firm Fidelity Investments is reportedly set to hire another 100 people to bolster the firm's growing digital assets division — a stark contrast to the recent squeezing out of crypto-talent. A Fidelity representative told Bloomberg on Oct. 22 that the firm has begun a new round of hiring which will bring the Fidelity Digital Asset’s headcount to around 500 by the end of the first quarter of 2023. A search on Fidelity’s job board currently shows 74 live results for digital asset-related positions, which cover areas relating to blockchain technology, business analysis, customer service, finance and …

The number of crypto investors in Ireland has decreased slightly in the past year, or so it appears according to recent data from Finder.com. The report revealed that cryptocurrency adoption in the island nation has dropped by approximately 16.6% within the last year. Of the surveyed adult Irish internet users, 10% own cryptocurrency, as opposed to 12% in 2021. Finder’s crypto specialist James Edwards commented that such a small decrease is actually a positive shock given the state of the bear market. “We saw huge drops in the price of Bitcoin at the start of May and June and while …

Donations made to political parties using cryptocurrencies will be banned in Ireland under new political integrity laws drafted due to concerns around foreign interference in politics. Amendments proposed by Minister Darragh O’Brien also cover rules around foreign donations, misinformation, and other transparency requirements for political parties, citing fears of Russian interference in Ireland’s elections. Speaking with the Independent on Monday, O’Brien said that the laws will further protect Ireland’s democratic system “given the escalating threat of cyber warfare targeting free countries,” and a newly established Electoral Commission will oversee compliance with the laws. It is unclear what percentage or monetary …

The Central Bank of Ireland issued a warning to consumers about the risks around crypto investments in addition to “misleading” advertisements, including those pushed by influencers on social media. In a Tuesday notice, Ireland’s central bank said the warning was part of a campaign organized by the European Supervisory Authorities, made up of the European Securities and Markets Authority, the European Banking Authority, and the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority. The Central Bank of Ireland said that cryptocurrencies were “highly risky and speculative” for retail investors and warned people to be mindful of “the risks of misleading advertisements, particularly …

Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has received an electronic money license from the Central Bank of Ireland. It was the 18th organization to receive the license, and the first since October 2020. Gemini joined such license holders as Coinbase, Stripe, Square and Meta. The e-money license, which Gemini applied for in early 2020 and received March 14, will allow it to issue electronic money, provide electronic payment services and handle electronic payments for third parties. It will also enable the company to passport those services to European Economic Area countries, which are European Union members, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Gemini already provides …

The Central Bank of Ireland has stated that it is unlikely to approve investment funds for retail crypto investors because they lack the know-how to navigate the high-risk asset class. The February 2022 report Securities Markets Risk Outlook Report: A Changing Landscape described crypto assets as a new product offering in securities markets that is complex and a “potential threat to investor protection.” Although the bank fielded many queries last year about Alternative Investment Funds (AIF) regarding crypto, it is now not expected to approve an AIF for retail crypto investors. The bank feels that such investments “may be suitable …

Under pressure from regulators around the world, major exchange Binance is looking to establish headquarters in Ireland. Until now, it has operated globally for years under what its CEO, Changpeng Zhao, has described as a “decentralized” structure. A Wednesday report from Irish media outlet Independent noted that Binance had established three subsidiaries in the country on Sept. 27 — Binance (APAC) Holdings, Binance (Services) Holdings and Binance Technologies — with Zhao listed as the director for each. In an interview with Reuters published on Thursday, Zhao stated that Binance is currently “in the process of establishing a few headquarters in …

Global payments provider PayPal is in the process of recruiting for several cryptocurrency-related positions at its Ireland offices, further highlighting the company’s ambitions in the rapidly growing digital asset market. The Dublin-based Irish Independent reported Sunday that PayPal is looking to fill various crypto-focused roles in compliance, Anti-Money Laundering and business development for its Dublin and Dundalk offices. Related: PayPal set to launch crypto trading in the UK and may embrace DeFi PayPal launched a dedicated crypto and blockchain business unit earlier this year to support its foray into cryptocurrencies, which initially began in October 2020 by allowing customers in …

Ireland’s central bank director general for financial conduct is the latest official to point out issues of Bitcoin (BTC) and the cryptocurrency industry following a major market sell-off. The growing popularity of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin is “of great concern,” the Central Bank of Ireland’s Derville Rowland warned recently. “Crypto assets are quite a speculative, unregulated investment,” and investors should be “really aware they could lose the whole of that investment.” Rowland stated after crypto markets shed nearly $1 trillion in a matter of days in one of the biggest historic crypto sell-offs. Rowland’s perspective on crypto is set to contribute …