Author: Sahil Poudel

Heritage Distilling and Five Other Companies Embracing Bitcoin

Gone are the days when Bitcoin was only for geeks. It now has a place in mainstream businesses. Heritage Distilling, a Washington-based craft spirits producer, has started accepting Bitcoin as a form of purchase for its goods online. Helmed by its own Cryptocurrency Committee, it will also go on to draft a Bitcoin Treasury Policy to exhibit its belief in crypto being the future of finance.

Israeli alternative protein producer Stakeholder Foods decided only recently to invest up to $1 million in Bitcoin, labeling the asset as ‘smart treasury’. Meanwhile, meat company Beck & Bulow is so keen on crypto that it not only accepts Bitcoin for payment, but even attempts to integrate the cryptocurrency into employees’ retirement plans.

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Chipotle has been the most innovative with Bitcoin to date, having accepted crypto via the third-party app Flexa and run several promotions, including offering Bitcoin prizes on National Burrito Day. Whole Foods allows its customers to pay for groceries in Bitcoin through third-party apps, though its parent, Amazon, may consider parking some Bitcoin in its treasury.

Finally, Starbucks has started taking Bitcoin through the SPEDN app from Flexa, giving more payment options to its customers.

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From distilleries to coffee shops, companies are finding increasingly creative ways of incorporating Bitcoin; a signal that its presence is growing in everyday life and corporate finance, crypto adoption is now officially in full swing.

70-Year-Old Woman Loses Crypto Fortune in LA Wildfire

It has also been one of those really sad twists of fate when a 70-year-old lady from Los Angeles lost her cryptocurrency savings to the ravaging Southern California Wildfires. This is according to the story given by the nephew on X, earlier known as Twitter, where, even though the lady’s Bitcoin wallet was intact, the private key necessary for gaining access to the wallet got lost during the fire.

She had been storing the private key to unlock them on paper, tucked away somewhere in her home-with no backup and no recovery method. Without it, her crypto-she is predominantly holding Bitcoin-was essentially gone forever.

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That loss is another, even more significant, spark for online conversations about cryptocurrency storage security and redundancy. These incidents have experts again encouraging people to consider options ranging from metal backups for private keys and multi-signature wallets to even newer, seedless wallet technologies that afford added layers of security.

The story painfully reminds us of how digital assets can become so vulnerable when natural disasters strike. With the fires still burning across areas such as Malibu and Pasadena, many more are likely to have sustained similar losses, both in their homes and their crypto investments.

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While technology brings great freedom to finances, this incident is a strong reminder of how important planning for the unexpected is.

Thailand Police Bust Bitcoin Mining Operation Stealing Millions in Power

Thailand’s police have raided a large-scale illegal Bitcoin mining facility in Chon Buri, seizing 996 rigs of computer miners and finding the operation siphoning millions of dollars’ worth of electricity. The joint operation by the Crime Suppression Division and Provincial Electricity Authority targeted a facility operated by JIT Co. on January 8.

Authorities said JIT Co tampered with power meters to run the mining rigs without detection, operating on stolen electricity at night and switching to legal power during the day. While the site had solar panels installed, they were not connected to the mining equipment. The stolen electricity is estimated to have cost the state over $2.88 million (hundreds of millions of baht).

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Mining Bitcoin in Thailand is notoriously expensive, with the cost to mine a single Bitcoin coming in at around $17,930 — 825 times the average monthly electricity bill for a Thai household.

Although the Bangkok Post identified JIT Co. as being linked to the operation, investigators have yet to name suspects, adding that arrest warrants are sought, sources said.

There have been various reports of crypto mining crimes across Southeast Asia. Malaysian authorities estimated the value of the electricity used by crypto mining companies to be about $723 million from 2018 until 2023 – equipment seized by the authorities there usually faces a crushing end.

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Meanwhile, Thailand is going another direction. The country tests crypto payments as a pilot in Phuket in hopes of luring back foreign tourists. Former PM Thaksin Shinawatra recently called on the government to open up to cryptocurrency if it wanted to be globally competitive.

$760 Million in Bitcoin Lost Forever in UK Landfill

A UK court has rejected a decade-long quest by a British man to recover a hard drive containing Bitcoin worth over $750 million, in which he asked to excavate a Newport landfill.

James Howells, an IT worker who became a Bitcoin millionaire on paper, accidentally threw it away during one of his office clean-ups in 2013. It was worth a couple of thousand dollars at the time. Fast-forward to today, and that same drive boasts an eye-watering $760 million in value of digital gold, now buried beneath tons of waste.

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Howells suggested a hazardous, $12.3 million excavation plan; he promised that 10% of the funds recovered would be given to the local council and community. However, due to considerable ecological hazards-the possible digging up of the landfill, ecological damage, and breach of laws on the environment-the Newport Council refused to permit the excavation.

Undeterred and frustrated, Howells took the matter to court, requesting either access to the landfill or $608 million in damages. The council said it was right because the hard drive, upon being thrown away, became its property. The court, emphasizing environmental concerns and the rules of ownership for a landfill, sided with them.

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But even then, that did not deter Howells, and he is considering creative options of tokenizing the lost Bitcoin into some new cryptocurrency. The treasure hunt isn’t over just yet for him.

Bitcoin Freedom Act: A Step Toward Payment Flexibility in Oklahoma

Oklahoma State Senator Dusty Deevers has filed the “Bitcoin Freedom Act” in order to make the nascent technology applicable to everyday life. The would-be law, SB 325, if enacted would allow workers in Oklahoma to get paid in Bitcoin and permit businesses to take Bitcoin for payment by customers. Participation would be completely voluntary, making it meet any definitions of free-market principles.

This is a growing trend in the U.S., as states consider the potential of decentralized currencies such as Bitcoin. The bill could mean a way to greater financial flexibility and a signal of Oklahoma’s readiness to adopt modern forms of paying for goods and services.

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Adding a twist to the crypto conversation, the recent victory of Donald Trump brought a whole new angle into discussion. Though Trump personally has been a vocal critic of Bitcoin, his last year campaign proved very open toward innovative financial technologies. This may affect federal policies related to cryptocurrency and probably speed up mainstream Bitcoin adoption once Trump assumes office in 2025.

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As Oklahoma’s state legislature heads into its next session this coming February 2025, the nation will be watching. Should it pass, the Bitcoin Freedom Act could set a national model on how states balance innovation with regulation, further advancing the role of cryptocurrency in the evolving financial landscape.

Mark Cuban Chooses Bitcoin Over Gold as an Economic Hedge

Billionaire entrepreneur and owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban once again has come up with a strong endorsement for Bitcoin. While speaking of its value, he confidently stated, “I think it (BTC) has more value,” and made it crystal clear he’d choose Bitcoin over gold during an economic crisis.

That created a new, emergent view: Bitcoin as “digital gold,” or, differently said, the renewed version of this very old metal. Unlike gold-traditional refuge during turbulent times-Bitcoin boasts some extraordinary advantages: it is portable and divisible, and it can be transmitted across borders without storage and physical movement.

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Cuban’s optimism about Bitcoin is not new, though. During the year 2024, he expressed and doubled down on his support for both Bitcoin and Ethereum and strongly and very firmly made other investors aware and warned them off meme coins he called “a game of musical chairs.”

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With more investors looking for alternatives to traditional assets, Cuban’s endorsement points to a way where Bitcoin can reshape the future of finance. Because of its decentralized nature and growing adoption, Bitcoin is rapidly emerging as a cornerstone of a digital and resilient economy.

Thailand Pilots Crypto Payments for Tourists in Phuket

The new bold idea being tried by Thailand: letting tourists pay with cryptocurrency while in Phuket. Led by Deputy Prime Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, this initiative is being taken to make the life of travelers a bit easier while trying to keep the country ahead in this competitive game.

This program is designed such that it still has to follow current Thai law, so no new regulations are required. Tourists will verify their identities through local crypto exchanges, and a system will automatically convert Bitcoin into Thai baht for merchants. “We won’t do anything illegal,” Pichai reassured this while doing a seminar which was organized by the Marketing Association of Thailand.

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Phuket is an ideal place for this experiment because it is a popular tourist destination. It already has a sizeable population of foreign nationals, including refugees from the Russia-Ukraine war. According to Pichai, Bitcoin might be used for large transactions, such as buying real estate, to make things easier for them.

Crypto giant Binance, too, is making big bets on Thailand, praising its friendly regulations as it pushes to make crypto mainstream. But the safety concerns linger. Just this month, a Russian man in Phuket was violently robbed of $20,000 in a crypto-related dispute-a face to the risks tied to digital assets.

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Still, the crypto scene keeps developing in Thailand. Even now, a small town already makes everyday purchases in Bitcoin Lightning in the province of Kalasin-a sure-fire indicator that the future of crypto is bright in Thailand.

Andrew Tate Launches BRUV Party with Bitcoin Agenda

Andrew Tate is proposing a new political party, “Britain Restoring Underlying Values (BRUV),” on the most extreme platform, including blockchain-based voting and the creation of a national Bitcoin reserve. Tate, who has been under house arrest in Romania, took to social media to announce the party and its manifesto, saying his Bitcoin policies would “future-proof Britain’s economy” and insulate it from foreign economic blackmail.



The BRUV manifesto also flaunts far-right controversial policies, including capping non-British residents to 10%, deploying the Royal Navy to block tough immigration, and a ban on LGBTQ+ content in schools. Others include replacing modern art with monuments of British heroes and live-streaming knife crime offenders in solitary confinement-policies that critics have described as unfeasible and bizarre.

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The manifesto, while full of bombastic claims, has been ridiculed for AI-generated visuals, spelling errors, and a lack of sourcing. Tate went so far as to take to social media to back Donald Trump’s suggestion that Greenland join the U.S., calling resistance “insanity.”.

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He is not listed with the UK Electoral Commission and questions have also been raised over how much Tate knows about British politics. The news comes amid personal attacks on the Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, from figures on the right – including Elon Musk, who recently made a series of groundless claims about him.

Altcoins Take a Hit as Bitcoin Drops 5%

The cryptocurrency market took a nosedive in the last 24 hours, with Bitcoin down 5.48% at 96,308.64 dollars. That drop also scrubbed 1.91 trillion dollars off of Bitcoin’s market cap, even as trading volume jumped 28% to 62.75 billion dollars as investors scrambled for position.

Altcoins bore the most damage of the sell-off. Recent high-flyer, Hyperliquid dropped 15.29% to 21.62, giving back much of its recent appreciation. Celestia declined 14.71% to $4.66, with Ethena falling 13.65% and dYdX 13.49%. Meme coin Bonk was not spared and lost 13.29% to $0.00002976.

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The sell-off triggered mass liquidations, that saw over 204,000 traders lose positions worth $626.85 mln. Naturally, the bulk of pain was taken out of long positions; $565.68 mln liquidated as opposed to just $61.22 mln shorts. $17.74 mln of ETHUSDT on Binance was the largest single liquidation.

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Analysts say over-leveraged trades and profit-taking are to blame for the slump, especially in altcoins that have recently surged, such as HYPE. The correction could create avenues for buying, but analysts say the volatility of the market is not yet over, so traders should manage their risks and be cautious.

Hackers Steal $840K from Orange Finance on Arbitrum

Orange Finance, one of the most utilized DeFi protocols on the Arbitrum blockchain, has been exploited for upwards of more than $840,000. The hacker attacked vulnerabilities in the smart contracts of the platform that compromised the admin address and then siphoned the funds.

According to the Cyvers Alerts, the stolen assets were immediately converted into ETH, which further complicates tracking or recovery. An investigation into the breach was taken up by the Orange Finance team, who have as of now kept under wraps full details of how it happened.

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As a precaution, users are called upon to revoke approvals granted to the platform and abstain from any direct interaction with their compromised contracts. Orange Finance later confirmed that indeed the attacked smart contract is no longer within their control while assuring users that efforts are being directed to secure the system against possible further damage.

The team has also contacted the hacker through Arbiscan and offered him a deal to return the money. They said they would treat the breach as a white-hat hack and would not press charges against the hacker if he cooperated within 24 hours.

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This is an indication that there are still risks in DeFi, and users must be very careful. Orange Finance promised to keep the community updated as they try to recover the stolen funds.

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