TL;DR: Welcome to In Case You Missed It (ICYMI), a daily crypto news update. An emergency stimulus package was presented by US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin. Binance invests $50 million in India. Google Pay adds support for the Coinbase card. Tether prints 160 million USDT in 24 hours. IRS defers tax deadline by 90 days, and Bitmain warns about fake ASIC vendors.

Stimulus Package Announced by US Treasury Secretary

Steven Mnuchin, US Treasury Secretary, announced an emergency stimulus package that would contemplate delivering more than $800 billion to companies, businesses, and directly to citizens. Mnuchin presented the proposal to some senators behind closed doors, and according to Politico. A senior officer stated they contemplated raising the package to $1 trillion.

Binance Invests $50 Million in India

Binance launched a $50 million investment fund in India called “Blockchain for India.” It’s intended to foster the development and growth of the ecosystem in the country. WazirX, an exchange acquired by Binance last year, will be tasked with investing in several crypto-related endeavors, such as “fiat-to-digital assets gateway solutions, trading platforms, payment, and remittance solutions, digital asset wallets, stablecoins, DeFi platforms, decentralized applications (dApps) and more.”

Google Pay Adds Support for Coinbase Card

Google Pay users now can add their Coinbase Visa cards to the service and pay using crypto within the platform, Coinbase announced yesterday. Coinbase is now the first exchange allowing users to issue mobile payments with their cryptocurrency balances. While the service will be available in only 14 European countries, including the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Belgium, Finland, France, and Italy at launch, Coinbase stated they are working to expand this lineup to other European countries later this year.

Tether Prints 160 Million USDT in 24 Hours

Tether, the stablecoin company, minted 160 million USDT in just 24 hours, according to statements from CTO Paolo Ardoino. The whole stash of Tether was printed in three different phases: 50 million were issued on the TRON blockchain on Monday, and then 50 million more were printed yesterday. Another 60 million were issued on the Ethereum blockchain yesterday, adding up to $160 million USDT. Traders often use these instruments to protect from sudden drops like the one the market experienced last week.

IRS Extends Tax Deadline by 90 Days

The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) extended the deadline to file taxes for 90 days, allowing contributors to defer payments up to a certain amount, depending on the class of taxpayer. Individuals will be able to defer up to $1 million, and companies will be able to defer up to $10 million worth of interest and penalty-free, according to a statement from Steven Mnuchin, Treasury Secretary. Still, Mnuchin called for taxpayers to get their tax refunds fast, especially if they’re in need of cash. The deadline extension only applies to federal taxes.

Bitmain Warns About Fake Antminer S19 Vendors

Please be warned of online websites trying to SCAM users to purchase the #AntminerS19 series. Only purchase directly from https://t.co/2ftncwFOl2 or contact the Antminer sales team. pic.twitter.com/MGAKlXilwS — Antminer_main (@Antminer_main) March 17, 2020

Bitmain, the biggest cryptocurrency mining manufacturer, warned against unauthorized vendors using their brand name to scam people online. The company reported via Twitter there are several websites advertising sales of their new line of Antminers S19 online. The only ones authorized to sell these ASICs, whose date of launch is still TBD, is indeed Bitmain directly through its store page.

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