Due to US President Joe Biden’s most recent budget proposal and the failure of “crypto-bank” Silvergate, Bitcoin briefly fell below $20,000 before bouncing back to hover just above. A potential hindrance for the cryptocurrency industry is the liquidation of Silvergate and a proposed 30% tax on electricity costs. News Sorce

Different central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) have been connected to current fiat payment systems in a pilot test by SWIFT. The testing revealed that Swift’s test interlinking solution can satisfy central and commercial banks’ requirements for CBDC interoperability, ensuring CBDCs can be used successfully in cross-border transactions. Over 110 central banks are currently looking into the use cases of CBDCs, and the OMFIF Digital Monetary Institute anticipates that 24% of central banks will develop a CBDC solution within the next two years. News Sorce