Why Is It So Hard To Buy Cryptocurrency In New York State?

Our editors independently research and recommend the best products and services. You can learn more about our independent review process and partners in our advertiser disclosure. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. To put it lightly, the feasibility of Adams actually getting paid in Bitcoin seems dicey. The New York and Miami mayors technically will have to take their paycheck in dollars and then buy bitcoin at the day’s market rate, using digital platforms like the Cash app or Coinbase. Adams could even just walk a few steps from City Hall and use a bitcoin ATM on 12 John Street. Likewise, Fred Thiel, CEO of bitcoin mining company Marathon Digital, does not accept his $500,000 executive compensation in any cryptocurrency, nor does the company’s chairman and former CEO, Merrick Okamoto, who made $368,715 last year. A company spokesman confirmed those details with CBS MoneyWatch on Thursday.

And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free. Gemini Pay is a simple, secure, and private way to spend bitcoin, ether, and other cryptocurrencies for purchases at retail stores across the United States. City payroll options seem to preclude Adams from sending crypto into workers’ wallets after he’s sworn in on Jan. 1, but he has called for a committee to study virtual currencies. Adams, who wants to turn New York City into a cryptocurrency hub, has expressed his desire to receive his first paychecks as mayor in Bitcoin and to potentially make crypto checks an option for all municipal workers.
Those with high balances in Crypto.com’s proprietary stablecoin can reap discounts on trading fees and enhanced benefits, like 8% back on debit card spending. At the same time, Mesidor said, Adams has to be careful to foster crypto innovation that includes marginalized New Yorkers, especially the Black and Latino communities who came out in force for him in the mayoral election. Those communities, she said, will want to see new jobs come out of an expanded cryptocurrency industry in the city, and not just a gold rush for wealthy, white-collar workers. The best use for cryptocurrency in New York City, according to Mesidor, would not be through such bold moves, but rather by using blockchain technology to make city government more efficient.

Citycoins, A Crypto Project That Lets People Invest In Their City With A Native Token, Is Now Coming To New York

We’re building an inclusive financial system that makes Bitcoin a universal option for billions of people worldwide. Bitcoin is a resource for human progress, and NYDIG is the gateway. Greenidge is applying to the state to renew air emissions permits, and opponents see an opportunity for the state to curb the company’s expansion. Greenidge Generation is applying to state regulators for air permit renewals, and opponents see an opportunity to curb the company’s expansion. The bans have since been lifted, but some lawmakers want to make New York one of the first states to prohibit certain types of Bitcoin mining. In June, the State Senate approved a bill that would have imposed a statewide moratorium on some fossil-fuel-powered mining; the legislation died in the Assembly.

The platforms use the interest from those loans to pay high rates to investors who deposit money. These can be over 10 times the rates you’ll find with traditional savings accounts, but the products carry much more risk. Since the U.S. regulates both exchanges, the signup processes are similar. But, Coinbase lets users buy crypto or deposit fiat funds through various avenues, such as PayPal, credit card, or ACH. In some cases, investors can earn rewards for holding onto crypto, like 2% APY for DAI. These U.S.-based exchanges operate under strict regulatory standards and meet or exceed industry guidelines.
Torsten Hartmann has been an editor in the CaptainAltcoin team since August 2017. He gained professional experience as a PR for a local political party before moving to journalism. Since 2017, he has pivoted his career towards blockchain technology, with principal interest in applications of blockchain technology in politics, business and society. Like all US residents, Kucoin does not allow New York residents to go through KYC on their platform. That does not mean that New York users cannot use the platform. It just means they are limited to withdrawing only 2 Bitcoins per day. All in all, Bitcoin regulations in New York have come a long way in the past few years.

App Privacy

Powell on Wednesday reiterated concerns that stablecoins need more regulation, though he said he was not so much concerned with cryptocurrency’s potential to cause instability to the broader financial system. NBA players Kevin Durant and James Harden are pictured at the New York Stock Exchange in 2015. Durant and his company recently announced a partnership with Coinbase, the first cryptocurrency exchange to go public. But despite requiring companies that engage in many aspects of Bitcoin activity, including trading the currency, to obtain a license, New York places no restrictions on mining. The plant opening northeast of Niagara Falls this month, in Somerset, N.Y., is part of a $550 million project by Terawulf, a Bitcoin mining company. The project also includes a proposed 150-megawatt data center at a former coal plant on Lake Cayuga in the Finger Lakes.
Since a large Bitcoin mining plant can use more electricity than most cities in the state, environmentalists warn that crypto mining will leave other areas dependent on fossil fuel power. Bitcoin mining companies often require only basic building or planning permits from local governments, many of them faded industrial towns eager for any new business-tax revenue they can generate. A bitcoin mining operation is opening northeast of Niagara Falls this month on the site of the last working coal plant in New York State. A business that is chartered under the New York Banking Law can engage in Virtual Currency Business Activity without a BitLicense if it has received the Superintendent’s approval to do so. Further information about limited purpose trust companies can be found here. Cointelegraph Magazine is a new publication that goes beyond the daily news and delves much more deeply into the stories, trends, and personalities that inspire cryptocurrency and blockchain conversations around the world. Several investment firms active in the crypto space are based in NYC, including New York Digital Investment Group, Galaxy Digital, Grayscale Investments, Union Square Ventures and Digital Currency Group. The most populous city in the United States, NYC is home to an estimated 8.8 million people, with an additional 1 million people traveling to the city every day for work (pre-pandemic). Although not all alt coins are offered, I live in NY and have bought alt coins, legally, on exchanges. You may be fine with paying a premium for a simple interface when you’re still learning the ropes, but higher fees eat into your eventual returns.

ProShares said that investors will be able to buy shares of ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF starting Tuesday. Before launching the fund, the company said the ETF had net assets of$20 million and that shares would begin trading at $40. You’re buying a share of an exchange-traded fund, which is a fund that tracks another asset. In this case, the ETF is actually tracking a futures contract — an agreement to buy or sell an asset in the future at a specific price — and the asset is Bitcoin. Though the regulatory environment for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency remains murky, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of ProShares’ ETF shines some light on how it’s thinking.
Some municipalities, including Plattsburgh and Massena, two early Bitcoin-mining destinations near the Canadian border, have resorted to moratoriums on the practice. The area — with its cheap hydroelectric power and abundance of shuttered power plants and old factories — was ripe for Bitcoin mining. The abandoned infrastructure, often with existing connections to the power grid, can readily be converted for Bitcoin mining. In just a few years, a swath of northern and western New York has become one of the biggest Bitcoin producers in the country. The prospectors in this digital gold rush need lots of cheap electricity to run thousands of energy-guzzling computer rigs. “The launching of a Bitcoin ETF is only the latest chapter in an ongoing broad acceptance of the new economic opportunities this technology will provide,” said Dr. Smith. Aside from ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, other Bitcoin-related ETF applications, such as Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund, are currently under review. Merely providing advice on buying or selling Virtual Currency does not require a BitLicense.

TradeStation Crypto charges 0.3% or lower on crypto trades, and unlike many other brokerages enables users to transfer crypto to a personal wallet. This is the traditional “set it and forget it” advice that many traditional long-term investors follow. If you can’t get on board, and the extreme dips continue to cause you worry, then you might have too much riding on your cryptocurrency investments. Bitcoin jumped back above $49,000 and Ethereum increased to above $4,000 Wednesday afternoon, improving on where both started the day. Read more about Dragonchain to Bitcoin here. Bitcoin and Ethereum have seen big ups and downs in the weeks since they each set new all-time highs last month.

Although BlockFi and Coinbase are good options for beginners, there are distinct use cases. BlockFi provides a complete, all-in-one financial services platform, offering loans and financial advice. Many BlockFi users transfer crypto from other platforms to their BlockFi accounts to take advantage of interest-bearing accounts. Therefore, BlockFi is better for users wanting to hold onto their crypto instead of regularly buying or selling.

In any case, this gave us a backdoor way of investing but with the instant liquidity of a listed ETF,” said Gocke, who is based in Swarthmore. However, their fund is buying shares in the underlying software building block to cryptocurrencies, known as blockchain. Fidelity Investments filed with regulators plans to launch an exchange-traded fund that tracks the price of Bitcoin called the Wise Origin Bitcoin Trust, with Fidelity Digital Assets serving as custodian. Shares would track an index of prices from varied Bitcoin markets. But the cost is higher as banks and investment firms offer with high fees. Others just let you open an account with an email address,” he said. The more background the exchange requires, the safer your account will be. Bittrex Global is a separate platform from Bittrex US based in Seattle. Bittrex Global operates outside the US and has no US customers. For Mom-and-Pop investors, it’s getting easier to buy cryptocurrency as part of a traditional stock-and-bond portfolio.
In 2017, the shuttered coal plant on Seneca Lake was converted into a natural gas-burning plant by Greenidge, which was owned at the time by Atlas Holdings, a private equity firm with $6 billion in holdings. Greenidge now promotes itself as the first publicly traded company with a bitcoin mine integrated as a part of a power plant. The plant has a 106-megawatt capacity, allowing it to generate enough electricity to power around 85,000 homes. In addition, cryptocurrencies must be approved by the state before they can be listed or used in New York. I use Coinbase Pro and am waiting on verification for Kraken. Imo Coinbase Pro works fine for buys though they don’t have a huge coin selection.

Anything from a celebrity tweet to new federal regulation can send prices spiraling. If you watch sports at all, you have probably been deluged with commercials of Matt Damon telling you, the couchbound fan, that if you don’t man up and buy some crypto, you’re a coward with no sense of destiny. (Think I’m being uncharitable? Just watch the ad.) Crypto is being sold, rather misleadingly, as a fun and futuristic get-rich-quick opportunity with almost no downside. Two days later, Mayor-elect Adams proudly proclaimed on Twitter that he would accept his first three paychecks in Bitcoin.

Your Crypto’s Protected

These trade like stocks on Wall Street exchanges such as Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange. The idea is that mayors use the funds in the treasury to spend on the city’s infrastructure. And those who invest are rewarded in Bitcoin or Stacks—the native cryptocurrency of the eponymous protocol used to build things on the Bitcoin blockchain. The New York State Department of Financial Services has granted the BitLicense to cryptocurrency trading app Robinhood as well as LibertyX, which allows users to buy bitcoin with debit cards at regular ATMs. First-time investors will find the mobile apps and the website easy to navigate. Instead of offering resources geared toward crypto learning, BlockFi offers advice about buying a car, paying crypto taxes, or understanding loan terms.

Mesidor referred to the state’s regulations as “hostile” to cryptocurrency trading. New York’s license is called a BitLicense, and currently only 29 companies have approval through the state to trade cryptocurrencies. This year, the state’s Department of Financial Services granted only three such approvals, according to its website. Robinhood is a popular stock market trading app, which introduced cryptocurrency trading in February 2018. The company is currently worth $5.6 billion with over 6 million users. “We’re delighted that Robinhood Crypto has been granted a virtual currency license and a money transmitter license in New York.

I like that Fred Wilson’s Union Square Ventures is a Coinbase investor. The U.S. needs more crypto regulation, Gensler said once again in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that published Sunday. Cryptocurrency fits into the “broad remit” of the SEC, Gensler said in the interview. “I’ve said publicly, ‘Come in, work with the SEC, get registered.’ It’s really important to get that investor protection.” The comments echo remarks Gensler made to the SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee earlier this month. Anyway, I doubt Sliwa’s economic program would have been any more inspiring or grounded in the concerns of everyday New Yorkers. A long, long time ago—Tuesday to be exact—I went to the polls to vote for a new mayor of New York City. What were my other choices, the dude with the despot-red beret who fought the poll workers in the very election he was trying to win while holding his cat? I like my politicians with a touch of crazy, but Curtis Sliwa’s wild-eyed vigilantism seemed a bridge too far. Wire money into your Swan account for purchases up to $ 10,000,000. Buy Bitcoin for your company, trust, non-profit, checkbook IRA, etc.

They also have a P2P marketplace that supports dozens of other more rare payment methods. Data-storage transactions that take place on the network reward users with a cryptocurrency called Filecoin, which is trading at roughly $38 per token, and encourage users to create more storage space in exchange for more coins. New York City computers are not being added to the network, and the city is not being charged to store its records on it. This may misfire for other Bittrex customers, regardless of their residence, says securities lawyer and Co-Founder of Arca, a blockchain- and crypto-focused investment advisor Philip Liu.

• This is due, in part, to its large knowledge base, including tips and tutorials.
• A long, long time ago—Tuesday to be exact—I went to the polls to vote for a new mayor of New York City.
• If you are looking for the most straightforward way to buy Bitcoin, then CashApp is a great choice.
• But the fact that he and another prominent mayor are talking about doing it shows a big shift in how leaders are thinking about the future of money.
• John Paul Farmer, the city’s chief technology officer, said that’s a draw for New York.

If you’re just getting started with buying cryptocurrency, look for an easy-to-use platform with thorough educational resources to help you understand this complex, rapidly developing commodity. Picking the best crypto exchange can be a complicated process. Can lower trading fees further with large Gate stablecoin holdings. As mentioned in its Best Overall writeup, Binance.US enables multiple order types, including limit, market and stop-limit, which should cover most crypto traders’ needs, as well as over-the-counter trading. Its confusing fee structure charges you more than it would to make the same purchase on the company’s less beginner-friendly Coinbase Pro platform, which is also free to use. In June 2020, the DFS announced a partnership with the State University of New York to create a start-up incubator for cryptocurrency businesses called SUNY Block, which would help fast-track the start-ups’ applications for BitLicences. More than a year later, the DFS is still “in discussions” with SUNY on starting the program, according to Sophia Kim, a DFS spokesperson, and no licenses have been granted through it. Researchers at Cambridge University have estimated that cryptocurrencies together use more energy in a year than the country of Argentina, mostly to run the computers that maintain the blockchain ledgers. Adams’ hype has excited crypto die-hards, who have come to rely on viral interest in cryptocurrencies to drive value in the various coins.

“We’re constantly exploring these, especially exchanges that can support different tokens” such as Bitcoin and Monero. To liquidate the holdings, National Philanthropic Trust trades on several exchanges, including Kraken, Coinbase, Circle Financial, and Genesis. The Boston-based investment giant Fidelity plans to launch a Bitcoin ETF as well. The cryptocurrency will be called NYCCoin and users will be able to mine it from Wednesday. CityCoins, a crypto project that lets people invest in their city with a native token, is now coming to New York. Mayor Suarez in October told The Washington Post that he hopes MiamiCoin will support his city enough that his residents would not have to pay taxes. New York City is about to get its own digital token in line with the vision of Mayor-Elect Eric Adams to transform the Big Apple into a cryptocurrency hub. It is launched by CityCoins, a nonprofit and open-source protocol that gives investors an avenue to support their cities.