Today in Crypto: Sequoia, Binance Among Investors Helping Musk Buy Twitter; FinTech Bitlocus to Launch Crypto-friendly Visa Debit Card; Argentina’s Central Bank Nixes Crypto Offerings

Binance has committed $500 million, alongside another $800 million from Sequoia Capital, to help fund the $44 billion takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk, CoinDesk reported Thursday (May 5).

That comes as $7.1 billion overall has been committed by 19 different parties, and Fidelity also put aside $316 million. Musk agreed to buy Twitter at the end of April and said he wants the platform to focus on being a place for free speech.

According to an updated Schedule 13D filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Binance was among the equity investors for the deal. A 13D is a form that has to be submitted when an entity buys more than 5% of a company’s equity.

Meanwhile, global emerging FinTech Bitlocus, which provides a gateway for fiat users to interact with decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, announced Thursday that it will be partnering with Striga on a crypto-enabled debit card.

This card will let users use their crypto funds to buy goods and services, the same way as they spend traditional currency. According to a press release, the Bitlocus cards will let users spend their crypto on point of sale (POS) devices, get cash out of ATMs or buy things online.

Bitlocus CEO Andrius Normantas said the card would be a “natural addition” to the portfolio, with digital currencies gaining popularity and the company wanting its clients “to benefit from this shift as much as possible.”

Finally, the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA) has discouraged the use of crypto assets in a report published Thursday.

The report said entities may “not carry out or facilitate” clients to operate through crypto. The measure is looking at cutting the risks associated with digital assets, including high volatility and the possibility of money laundering or other crimes.

The BCRA reportedly wants to focus on activities of financial entities that are aimed at “financing investment, production, marketing, consumption of goods and services required by both domestic demand and export.” In that way, the digital assets might be too unpredictable as they’re not always established in the country or familiar with the regulations.