**General News:**
• The Kremlin has responded to U.S. security proposals that were hand-delivered to Moscow on Wednesday, saying it believes Russian views have not been taken into account.
• McDonald’s reported quarterly earnings and revenue missed analysts‘ expectations on Thursday. The company credited menu price hikes, its growing loyalty program, and promotional menu items like the McRib for the market’s strong performance.
• Lowe’s will soon test a new offering: A Petco shop inside its stores where customers can buy dog food and cat litter, even visit with a vet, while shopping for paint and other supplies for home projects.
• SoftBank’s share price fell 9% Thursday as investors cashed out of their positions in Asian technology stocks. The collapse coincided with a disappointing day of trading for SoftBank’s biggest investment, Alibaba, which saw its share price slide by more than 7% on the Hong Kong stock market.
• Tesla reported fourth-quarter results that came in stronger than expected on Wednesday. Shares fell as much as 5% in extended trading on Wednesday after the automaker warned supply chain issues could persist throughout 2022 but later rebounded into slightly positive territory.
**Cryptocurrency News:**
• Cryptocurrency custody firm Fireblocks has raised a $550 million funding round, valuing the technology provider at over $8 billion.
• Shares of Coinbase has fallen around 45% after earnings alongside a similar-sized fall in crypto market cap, due to expectations of higher interest rates and the selloff in „longer duration, high growthvnop9elated assets.
• The slight recovery in the crypto markets this week all but retracted as major cryptocurrencies dipped up to 7% in the past 24 hours amid a hawkish U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) outlook to cut back on inflation.
• MoonPay, the crypto unicorn fuelling NFT mania, is now offering a service that will allow punters to buy digital art and collectibles with cash.
• MicroStrategy Chief Financial Officer Phong Le says the firm will continue to purchase bitcoin despite recent downturns.
• Valkyrie has filed for an ETF that will invest most of its net assets in companies focused on bitcoin mining.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin is not totally on board with the Central Bank of Russia’s recent call to ban cryptocurrency in the country.
• The sudden birth of HeritageDAO was the response of the crypto industry to the unfortunate news that two National Treasures in South Korea are coming out to an auction as a desperate measure of one art museum to survive this pandemic. A highly controversial practice anywhere in the world, this is the first time and potentially the only time in South Korea to see National treasures out in an Auction.
• The House of Representatives will examine the outlook for stablecoin regulation early next month.
• A bitcoin seller has been sentenced to one year and one day in jail for defrauding customers, according to a notice by the U.S. Department of Justice. The man took money from customers but did not provide them with the agreed-upon bitcoin.
• The main utility company in Irkutsk is looking to collect almost $800,000 from owners of crypto farms that have allegedly caused a spike in electricity consumption in the Russian region. The supplier accuses the miners of burning cheap household electricity in what is, in fact, a business activity.
