BTC Could Hit $10K, 'Stay Away from North Korea,' Akon City: Hodler's Digest, Jan. 13-19

Hodler's Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week.

For a time on Friday, Bitcoin hit $9,000 - with analysts claiming there are multiple signs that a "Bullish transformation" is underway.

This weekend also saw the BTC network's mean hash rate hit new all-time highs, meaning it's never been harder to mine new coins.

Although BTC fell from highs of almost $9,200 on Sunday to hover at about $8,600, analysts believe it is ready to push above the resistance to hit $10,000.

Research: Binance and Huobi received over 52% of total $2.8 billion illicit BTC in 2019Sticking with the Bitcoin theme, let's look at some worrying new research that suggests just two exchanges - Binance and Huobi - together received 52% of illicit Bitcoin transfers worth $2.8 billion in 2019.

According to Chainalysis, the crypto was moved from 300,000 individual accounts associated with criminal activity - and 75% of the illicit BTC was sent to just 810 accounts.

United Nations: Stay away from North Korean crypto conferenceThe public is being warned not to attend North Korea's upcoming cryptocurrency conference, with experts warning it could violate sanctions.

Singer Akon says world's first "Crypto city" is set for Senegal in 2025Akon says he had finalized an agreement to launch a "Crypto city" in West Africa.

"Be cautious if considering an investment in an IEO. Claims of new technologies and financial products, such as those associated with digital asset offerings, and claims that IEOs are vetted by trading platforms, can be used improperly to entice investors with the false promise of high returns in a new investment space."

The regulatory body says: "Be cautious if considering an investment in an IEO. Claims of new technologies and financial products, such as those associated with digital asset offerings, and claims that IEOs are vetted by trading platforms, can be used improperly to entice investors with the false promise of high returns in a new investment space." The SEC said that alarm bells should ring if IEO organizers fail to address federal securities laws or mislead investors, adding: "There is no such thing as an SEC-approved IEO.".