Connect with us

business

Scandal-Rocked Energy Firm Enron Relaunches—With a Potential Crypto Twist

Published

on



Enron—yes, that Enron—announced on Monday that it has relaunched to “solv[e] the global energy crisis” with the aid of decentralized technology, some 23 years after the firm collapsed in what was then the greatest corporate fraud scandal in American history.

“With a bold new vision, Enron will leverage cutting-edge technology, human ingenuity, and the spirit of adaptation to address the critical challenges of energy sustainability, accessibility, and affordability,” the newly reformed company said in a statement today. 

Enron has not yet offered much in the way of specifics regarding what exactly it plans to achieve, and how—but the firm says “permissionless innovation” will be a cornerstone of its approach, and that it plans to play a key role in the advancement of “decentralized technology.”

An Enron spokesperson declined comment when asked how exactly crypto might be well-suited to accomplishing the company’s new goals, and whether it has plans to work with any specific blockchains. 

The most tangible information provided by the company today alluded to its plans to invest in renewable energy infrastructure, energy storage, and advanced power distribution systems. 

Enron once ranked among America’s largest energy companies, until a 2001 scandal revealed the company to have hid billions of dollars in debt through systemic fraudulent accounting practices. Enron’s ensuing multi-billion bankruptcy—plus the criminal charges levied against many members of its leadership—made the company’s name synonymous with corporate fraud. 

Now, that name is being dusted off for the first time in decades, to achieve as-of-yet murky plans in the intersection of energy and crypto.

Enron did acknowledge the elephant in the room on Monday, asserting that “ethical business practices” will be a key feature of its reincarnation. The company also plans to demonstrate a “renewed commitment to integrity” and “forgiveness.”

As far removed as Enron might seem from the world of crypto, the company’s undoing did resurface in late 2022, when industry leaders compared it to the then-unfolding collapse of FTX. 

The bankruptcies of both now-infamous firms were overseen by the same executive, John J. Ray III, who said at the time that FTX’s misdeeds were—even compared to Enron’s—“unprecedented.”

Maybe that’s an alluring prospect for Enron’s new leaders, then: crypto’s the one industry that’s already, somehow, seen worse.

Edited by Andrew Hayward

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.



Source link

business

Strategy Buys More Bitcoin as Tariff Exemptions Send Tech Stocks Soaring

Published

on



Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, acquired around 3,450 Bitcoin worth $286 million last week, the company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Unveiling a Bitcoin purchase for the third straight Monday, the Tysons, Virginia-based firm now owns 531,644 Bitcoin worth $45.2 billion, based on the asset’s current price.Strategy paid an average price of $82,600 per Bitcoin last week, it added.

Strategy, which has shifted its focus from software development to become a Bitcoin treasury, said it meanwhile sold one million Class A common shares through an at-the-money offering program unveiled in October. Under the initiative, Strategy said it can still issue an additional $2 billion worth of common shares, alongside swaths of preferred perpetual stock.

Strategy’s shares rose 4% on Monday to around $312, as the tech-heavy Nasdaq surged 1.5%, adding on to last week’s recovery after the White House said smartphones and computers would be exempt from sweeping levies, including 125% taxes on Chinese goods, per Nasdaq.

Monday’s price action represents a dramatic turnaround after investors navigated outsized uncertainty last week, including a disclosure from Strategy that it may ultimately need to sell Bitcoin to meet its financial obligations. Amid tariff-linked concerns, Strategy’s shares fell as low as $236, or around 32% below their opening on Monday.

“No Tariffs on Orange Dots,” Strategy co-founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor said on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday, referring to the way Bitcoin buys look on Saylor Tracker.

The price of Bitcoin was recently changing hands around $85 on Monday, showing a roughly 8.3% increase of the past week, according to CoinGecko. Over the past month, it’s virtually flat.

Strategy has become the world’s largest corporate holder of Bitcoin since it began accumulating the asset in 2020. Over time, as it has embraced its role as a Bitcoin treasury firm, Strategy has issued billions of dollars in debt to buy more Bitcoin than it could otherwise.

The Nasdaq-listed firm’s 531,600 Bitcoin tower over the next largest corporate holder, Bitcoin miner Marathon Digital, which is around 47,500 Bitcoin, according to Bitcoin Treasures. As of this writing, Strategy’s stash accounted for more than 2.5% of Bitcoin total supply.  

The Tokyo-based investment firm Metaplanet, which began buying Bitcoin last May, said on X on Monday that it had recently bought 319 Bitcoin worth $27 million. The company said in an update that it now holds 4,525 Bitcoin worth around $385 million.

Among publicly traded companies, MetaPlanet is currently the 10th largest Bitcoin holder, according to Bitcoin Treasuries

Edited by James Rubin

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.



Source link

Continue Reading

business

Japan’s Metaplanet Buys Another $26M in Bitcoin Amid Tariff Market Uncertainty

Published

on



Metaplanet, the Tokyo-listed firm dubbed “Asia’s MicroStrategy,” has boosted its Bitcoin holdings with a fresh 3.78 billion yen ($26.3 million) purchase amid growing tension over U.S. trade tariffs. 

The company said it acquired 319 BTC at an average price of 12,849,780 yen ($82,549) per coin, bringing its total holdings to 4,525 BTC. Metaplanet plans to boost its Bitcoin holdings by 470%, targeting a total of 10,000 BTC by year-end.

The timing of the purchase comes as digital assets falter under geopolitical pressure. Bitcoin dropped more than 2% on Sunday during Asia trading hours, sliding to $83,482 as investors digested conflicting signals from Washington over the direction of U.S. trade policy toward China.

Traditional markets remained resilient despite a flurry of comments from the Trump administration regarding new tariffs on Chinese electronics. Nasdaq 100 futures rose over 1% in early trading, while S&P 500 futures climbed 0.7%.

While smartphones and semiconductors were temporarily excluded from a proposed 10% “reciprocal” tariff, President Trump clarified late Sunday on Truth Social that the same products will remain subject to a separate 20% national security levy.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said further sector-specific tariffs are expected within the next two months.

By Monday, 1 a.m. ET, Bitcoin was up just 0.4% over the last 24 hours, trading at $84,990, according to CoinGecko. Ether was up 1.8% to $1,638 over the same period. The top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap have all posted slight gains or no change.

Metaplanet has leaned heavily into Bitcoin as its core treasury asset. Last month, the company appointed Eric Trump, son of the U.S. president, to its newly formed Strategic Advisory Board, citing his “business expertise and passion for Bitcoin.”

Metaplanet is positioning itself in the mold of Michael Saylor’s Strategy, whose aggressive Bitcoin accumulation strategy has influenced a growing number of publicly listed firms to follow suit.

At the same time, the Trump administration has launched two separate initiatives: a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, funded by seized BTC and held as a permanent national asset, and a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, which includes other confiscated crypto with potential for liquidation or strategic use.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.



Source link

Continue Reading

business

Scottish School Will Accept Bitcoin Payments, May Launch BTC Reserve

Published

on



A school in Scotland has said it will be the first in the UK to start accepting Bitcoin payments. 

Lomond School in the town of Helensburgh said that it made the choice to accept the cryptocurrency after a number of parents—both local and foreign—made the request, The Times reported.

The private boarding school has a number of international students. 

To “manage and mitigate risk,” the school said it would start accepting the biggest cryptocurrency in phases, and would convert digital coins received into pound sterling. It also said that it would ensure full compliance with UK financial regulations when accepting BTC.

The school added that it would also consider building a reserve of the cryptocurrency if its use case grows in the UK. “Assuming Bitcoin gains broader acceptance in the UK and worldwide, the school will look to build a Bitcoin asset reserve,” it said in a statement. 

Lomond School did not immediately respond to Decrypt’s questions.

The idea of a “Bitcoin asset reserve” echoes U.S. President Trump’s executive order signed last month authorizing the government to hold BTC and figure out ways to buy more of the asset. The U.S. government already holds around 200,000 BTC—worth $16.7 billion at today’s price—that was primarily seized or forfeited in criminal cases. 

A number of other countries are now considering holding Bitcoin—like they hold other assets in reserves—and businesses too have started buying up the asset. Strategy, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, currently holds over $44 billion worth of the asset.

Edited by Andrew Hayward

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement [ethereumads]

Trending

    wpChatIcon