Elon Musk
Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin’s dirty secret: Elon Musk’s change of heart is a warning to cryptocurrencies to clean up their carbon footprint

- May 18, 2021 4 MIN READ

Over the weekend, Tesla chief executive Elon Musk suggested his company could sell off its Bitcoin holdings, sending the cryptocurrency plummeting. It followed Musk’s announcement earlier this month that his company would no longer accept Bitcoin in payment for its electric cars, due to the fossil fuels needed to create the digital currency. Bitcoin is… Read more »

Cryptocurrency

Reinventure’s bet on Coinbase returns $546 million, boosting Westpac’s bottom line by $288m

- April 28, 2021 2 MIN READ

January 2015 was an interesting time for bitcoin and Westpac’s fintech venture capital fund, Reinventure. Simon Cant and Danny Gilligan, co-founded the VC with Westpac the year before. Bitcoin kicked off the year at around US$300, before crashing to $170 within a fortnight. The cryptocurrency would climb to $465 before the year was out and… Read more »

Topic

A leading Australian investor says Bitcoin is just a collectible like gold, art or wine

- March 11, 2021 < 1 MIN READ

Crypto currencies are finally being taken seriously by institutional investors, with the likes of BlackRock recently announcing that it had begun investing in Bitcoin. The original crypto might have crossed the US$55,000 level again this week, but Roger Montgomery, Chairman and CIO at Montgomery Investments says he still needs more convincing and is yet to hear a… Read more »

Cryptocurrency

Iran had a massive crackdown on Bitcoin mining, seizing 45,000 machines, after the country was hit by blackouts

- January 19, 2021 < 1 MIN READ

Iranian police confiscated more 45,000 bitcoin mining machines, chewing up around 95 megawatts per hour (MWh) of electricity, because the miners were using cheaper, subsidised power illegally, according to local media agency Tasnim News. To put that in perspective, that’s around half the capacity of South Australia’s Tesla “big battery” plant (aka Hornsdale). Iranian authorities… Read more »

Cryptocurrency

Yes, a guy has nearly lost $340 million worth of Bitcoin after forgetting his password, but he’s a small part of a $200 billion problem

- January 15, 2021 2 MIN READ

If you’re feeling a bit sad about your fortunes at the moment, spare a thought for San Francisco-based computer programmer Stefan Thomas, who, around a decade ago, made this video and took 7,002 Bitcoins as payment for the job. The New York Times has the sad tale of German-born Thomas – a former CTO at blockchain… Read more »

Topic

Fintech Cointree now lets you pay bills with cryptocurrency

- May 31, 2019 < 1 MIN READ

Digital currency exchange Cointree has launched the ability to pay everyday bills using cryptocurrency after signing a deal with AI bill payment platform Gobbill. The deal allows Australians to pay bills via BPAY using more than 100-plus supported coins. Founded in Melbourne in 2013, Cointree has more than 60,000 members and processed in excess of… Read more »

Advice

This startup lets you send a box of shit to people you hate using bitcoin so you don’t get caught

- November 27, 2014 3 MIN READ

A life coach, or somebody of a similar non-profession, once said ‘never hold a grudge’. But, in case you do hate someone, shit delivery startup Shit Express is here to accommodate. At first glance, what’s impressive about Shit Express is its succinct tagline: “Send a piece of shit in a box to someone”. In a short sentence, the startup has summed up its entire business.

Advice

Australian startup fast selling its Bitcoin mining hardware

- November 15, 2013 4 MIN READ

At the start of the month, Australian startup Payonix Technologies launched the sales of the first high-performance, easy-to-use Bitcoin mining hardware. The company’s in-house designed ONIX Series ASIC mining rigs have been pre-sold out – a strong indicator that cryptocurrency is well on its way to becoming mainstream.