🇧🇷BCR #74: "Bitcoin King" Released from Prison, Reappears on TikTok
Crypto transaction volume slumps in November 2022; Giant Steps fund to shut its doors
Ola pessoal!
Welcome to 🇧🇷Brazil Crypto Report for the week of January 2-6, 2023. I hope everyone’s new year is off to a great start.
I’d also like to send a huge hello to the 60 or so new subscribers who signed up in the last few days. Definitely appreciate the interest and I encourage you to share this content with others whom you reckon might find it valuable and informative.
Also, this week’s edition is a bit abbreviated as I’m quite pressed for time at the moment, so apologies if the material isn’t up to its usual standard!
As always, I appreciate you reading and I hope you have a great week.
-AWS
“Bitcoin King” released from prison, joins TikTok, disappears
Brazil’s “Bitcoin King” Claudio Oliveira was released from a Paraná prison on January 2nd after spending less than two years behind bars. The release was confirmed by a person with access to the prison’s internal systems, though according to the official federal justice system of Paraná he technically remains imprisoned, according to Portal do Bitcoin.
Two days after his release, he appeared in several TikTok showing off his luxury style in videos and photos with his apparent girlfriend Suellen Borges.
By January 5th, Oliveira and Borges had both deleted their accounts following the Portal do Bitcoin article highlighting the posts following Oliveira’s release. While Oliveira himself had not posted on the social media site, Borges posted several videos and photos of the two together while making romantic comments in the captions.
In the description of one of the videos, Borges wrote:
“Since you appeared I have completely lost the pose of a bandit, if I ever had it 😂 you awaken the best in me, thank you for existing my love ♥️ #euamovocê♥️ @yosef_clo”
Oliveira was imprisoned for operating the Grupo Bitcoin Banco pyramid scheme, which allegedly embezzled R$1.5 billion (US$287 million) from investors. He was arrested on June 5, 2020 in what was dubbed Operation Daemon, and sentenced to eight years in prison in April 2022.
November registers Brazil’s lowest reported crypto trading volume for 2022
Brazilian traders and entities reported the lowest volume of cryptocurrency trades for 2022 during the month of November, per new data released by the Receita Federal on January 3. In all, R$11.3 billion (US$2.2 billion), worth of crypto trades were declared - falling short of March when traders declared R$11.7 billion.
November obviously saw the implosion of the FTX exchange and Sam Bankman Fried’s empire.
A majority of the declarations were made by brokerages with national headquarters, who reported a total of R$8.8 billion for the month. R$1.8 billion was declared by individuals who purchased or sold cryptocurrencies peer-to-peer without going through an exchange, while roughly R$600 million was declared by entities and individuals using overseas exchanges.
Portal do Bitcoin notes that FTX likely had a downward impact on Brazilian crypto trading reporting as many traders who previously reported may have lost their holdings with the FTX collapse.
However, the number of CNPJs (individual companies) making declarations for the month was 45,486 - the highest number since the statistic began being tracked in October 2020 and the fourth consecutive record setting month.
The total number of unique CPFs (individual people) reporting was 1.16 million, down from 1.2 million in October and 1.5 million in September. The total number of reported transactions for the month also checked in at 1.2 million, up nearly 120 percent year-over-year.
Giant Steps Capital to close its crypto fund post-FTX
The Brazilian asset manager is closing its Giant Satoshi cryptocurrency fund, which was heretofore promoted as the “first fund in Brazil that seeks to perform above bitcoin”.
As reported by Portal do Bitcoin and InfoMoney, in an email sent to customers, the firm said it will close the fund on January 25 due to mistrust in the cryptocurrency market stemming from the FTX collapse. The fund had the equivalent of 16 bitcoins on the exchange, according to CVM data, but maintains that it was able to withdraw those before the implosion:
“From the sale of all FTX assets, we moved the entirety of the fund's assets to our main custodian and kept 100% of the fund's portfolio purchased in Bitcoin while we defined the next steps.”
The next step was ultimately a decision to permanently shut down the fund
“The recent events involving the FTX reveal a huge institutional insecurity that still permeates the cryptocurrency ecosystem as a whole, with consequences still unknown.”
🗞Brazil Crypto News Rundown
📈 Markets
Rodrigo Monteiro of the ABCripto argued that the prognosis for the Brazilian crypto market in 2023 is perhaps brighter than for other markets globally. The combination of the recently approved regulatory framework and limited damage from the FTX collapse provide Brazil with room to grow. He told Exame:
“As the Brazilian market is still gaining traction and is small, the FTX effect did not reach here, on the contrary, there was a greater increase in investors, which we relate to the approval of the [crypto regulation law]".
BV Bank announced a purchase of a 3.85% stake in Méliuz - which sells cryptocurrencies through its app. The deal includes an MoU for the acquisition and control of Bankly - the banking as a service platform of Acesso Soluções de Pagamento, which Méliuz purchased in 2021. (BlockNews)
Brazil has the second-highest adoption rate of decentralized finance globally, according to a new survey by the exchange Huobi. Brazil comprises roughly 5 percent of total global DeFi adoption, following the United States which checks in at 32 percent. (Exame)
The new rules issued by the CVM allowing Brazilian investment funds to hold cryptocurrencies are ultimately bullish for bitcoin, argue several experts interviewed by CoinTelegraph Brasil.
Growing in fixed income products in Brazil will likely hinder bitcoin adoption in 2023, argued BityPreco head of communications Israel Buzaym. (Livecoins)
📱Adoption
Brazil’s Federal Council of Real Estate Brokers authorized the use of blockchain tech to record relevant trades and documentation. The new resolution states:
“…allows the encrypted registration of contracts and documents, with the security of blockchain technology, with the automatic binding of contractual amendments and sequential documents, which can be accessed at any time by those responsible for the registration, including obtaining certified copies.” (Portal do Bitcoin)
Liqi’s Daniel Coqueiri explains how tokenized receivables - a trend we’re bound to see more of in 2023 - function, in an op-ed for CoinTelegraph Brasil
Banco do Brasil opened 2,000 vacancies around the country for a clerk position that requires knowledge of bitcoin, blockchain and cryptocurrencies. (Portal do Bitcoin)
Aluguel Virtual, a startup that manages and tokenizes real estate assets, said it will invest R$18 million (US$3.4 million) into expanding in Brazil in the cities of Barueri, Santana do Parnaiba, São Paulo and Florianópolis. CEO Rafael Pimenta stated:
“We started in São Paulo with four neighborhoods and we are close to 60 cities that have adopted Aluguel Virtual as an extra source of income. With the launch of AV franchises in early 2023, we will reach 200 cities qualified to use this model.” (Exame)
Brazil’s Central Bank announced its first annual conference, at which it will discuss Digital Real, amongst other topics in mid-May.
The Central Bank also announced a workshop event to be held April 14 in Brasilia focusing on tokenization and cryptocurrencies called “The Tokenization of Finance: From Crypto Assets to Central Bank Digital Currencies”. It also issued a call for papers in the lead-up to the event, with submission deadline date of March 24. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
A report issued by Visa’s Latin America and Caribbean Innovation Center included cryptocurrencies, metaverse and Web3 among its five trends that will define the future of money over the next 5-7 years. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
Ribus received the CVM’s blessing to issue a real estate token on the Polygon network, two years after sending a legal opinion the securities regulator arguing that Rib is a utility token and not a security. The platform allows real estate service providers to receive payment in the token; the token is not backed by a basket of real estate assets. Daniel Carius, CVO at Ribus, stated:
“This decision makes Ribus official as the first tokenization company focused on the real estate sector in Brazil to obtain this opinion. This means a lot to us. With the endorsement of the entity, we do not need to be under its regulation. The opinion granted to Ribus brings an enormous benefit to the market, because it is the supervisory body having the legal understanding of the nature of the asset itself.” (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
The University of São Paulo is looking to hire a professor with knowledge of blockchain technology. (Livecoins)
Mercado Bitcoin CMO Robson Harada and ex-Foxbit risk director Natalia Garcia are teaming up to launch Kanna, a network that seeks to unite the hemp market with blockchain and cryptocurrencies. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
🎮 NFTs, Gaming and Metaverse
The government of the state of São Paulo is planning to launch a metaverse for cultural activities focused on adolescents and young adults aged 15 and 35. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
Russian technology giant Yandex announced the entrance of its gaming platform, Yandex Games, into Brazil with plans to expand its play-to-earn offering. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
Comedians from Porta dos Fundos mocked Neymar’s purchase of a Bored Ape NFT and launched their own “Klebinhos” coin in a YouTube video that received 723,000 views as of press time. (Portal do Bitcoin) (Livecoins)
🏛 Public Policy, Regulation and Enforcement
A proposal to tax digital transactions proposed by previous Finance Minister Paulo Guedes but rejected by deputies, senators and other members of the Bolsonaro government could be back in play in the Lula administration, as incoming Finance Minster Fernando Haddad has said he intends to implement a broad tax reform. (CoinTelegraph Brasil)
The incoming Lula administration may review the crypto regulation bill signed into law in late December, according to exiting Deputy Expedito Netto - who was the rapporteur for the bill last year in the Chamber of Deputies. He told Globo that the law has not been discussed by members of the transition team and that there is a reasonable chance that certain aspects could be revisited:
“It's going to start an argument all over again. There was no progress in the transition either within the Ministry of Science and Technology, or in the Economy, in any of the portfolios.” (Portal do Bitcoin)
Globo News published previously unpublished audio of “Pharaoh of Bitcoins” Glaidson Acácio dos Santos ordering the murder of Wesley Passano and Adeilson José da Costa. The two operated a bitcoin investing operation that competed with Glaidson’s GAS Consultoria. Glaidson allegedly hired Ricardo Rodrigues Gomez, known as the “Pilot”, to monitor the targets using a drone and hire a team of 15 gunmen. (Portal do Bitcoin)
Alleged cryptocurrency pyramid scheme Braiscompany failed to make payments to investors for the second consecutive month, citing “inconsistencies in the addresses of some wallets” in an email to customers. “Desperation, run away!” posted one customer on Reclame Aqui - a portal for consumers to report grievances and complaints, per Livecoins.
Further, comedian and actor Lucas Veloso put out a series of posts denouncing the company and accusing it of defaulting on a film project of his that it had committed to supporting:
“He [referring to Braiscompany founder Antonio Ais Neto] said that there was no legal consistency [the film project]. But it had already been approved by Ancine. We closed a deal that he would enter as a sponsor and partner. Neither [came] the sponsorship money, nor the society's money” (Portal do Bitcoin) (CriptoFacil)
Braiscompany founder shot back at Veloso accusing him of being “without character” and ungrateful, per Livecoins:
“This guy goes on social media to say that my company sucks that he knows things. Funny that he had an investment with me, his family. There is investment with me and he withdrew the capital with me in anger because I did not invest millions in an idea.”
Numerous Brazilian consumers have fallen victim to what appears to be a a bitcoin scam using the Nubank image, called Nu Trade, offering lofty a ROI. (Livecoins)
Olymp Trade, an exchange endorsed by Brazilian football icon Ronaldinho Gaucho, has received numerous complaints from customers recently reporting problems with withdrawals. (Livecoins)