CoinTalk

I’ve been collecting AliExpress coins for a while and want to know how to use my coins on AliExpress when shopping. I live in Europe and often buy tech gadgets and clothes from AliExpress. I heard that you can use your coins to get discounts or even pay for items, but I’m not sure how it works in 2025.

Can someone explain how to use your coins on AliExpress and if there are any restrictions? Also, is it possible to use my coins on AliExpress directly or do I need to convert them somehow? Any tips for beginners would be appreciated!

Bitcoin is testing the 61 % Fibonacci ‘golden level’ — does this signal a true bullish reversal is underway, or is it just a technical setup that could fail under macro pressure?

I am a 40-year-old Singaporean businesswoman organizing an international long-haul trip and curious about Emirates premium economy on the Emirates A380.

Just what is Emirates premium economy, and how much will I pay to reserve or upgrade to such seats? How much is the fare, and how do I upgrade from economy?.

I travel frequently on business and prefer comfort at not the cost of business class. Are there Emirates A380 seat map premium economy seats that I should be looking at? And do Singapore's rules or payment in SGD affect booking on Emirates' website? I would greatly appreciate a simple guide to make my next flight more comfortable.

I’m in the U.S. and just bought my first house, and I keep hearing about the importance of “having a will.” I’m not rich, but I do want to make sure my house and will money go to the right people if something happens to me. What exactly is a house will, and why do people say you need one? I’m also curious about the reasons to make a will—especially if you’re younger or don’t have a lot of assets yet. Anyone else here thinking about this or already set up their will?

If you’re running a business or side hustle in the U.S. or anywhere else, knowing how to accept payment online is a game-changer. Whether you’re selling products, services, or digital goods, making it easy for customers to pay you securely and quickly is key to growing your sales. But with so many options out there, what’s the best way to take payments online? Let’s break it down.

What Does It Mean to Accept Payments Online?

Simply put, to accept online payments means you can receive money from customers through digital methods—like credit cards, bank transfers, or even cryptocurrencies—without needing cash or checks. This convenience opens your business to a global market and speeds up cash flow.

Ways to Accept Payments Online

Here are the main methods your business can use to accept online payments:

1. Online Credit Card Processing

This is the most common method for businesses with online stores or those that take orders ahead of time. Platforms like Stripe, Square, and Helcim make it easy to accept credit cards online. While there are fees for processing transactions, this method is popular for retail shops, restaurants, and service providers.

2. Online Invoicing

If you work on projects or sell goods to other businesses, online invoicing might be your best bet. You can send invoices with payment buttons through your accounting software or payment processor. Customers can pay with credit cards or other methods, but keep in mind invoices don’t require immediate payment, so funds might take longer to arrive.

3. ACH Transfers

For larger, one-time payments, ACH (Automated Clearing House) transfers are a cost-effective option. These bank transfers usually have lower fees than credit card transactions, making them attractive for businesses handling big payments.

Step 1: Choose the Right Merchant Account Type

To accept credit card payments online, you’ll need a merchant account where customer payments are held before reaching your bank. There are two main types:

• Individual Merchant AccountTailored to your business, this option offers more customization and stability but requires a detailed application process.
• Payment Service Provider (Aggregator)These providers pool multiple businesses under one account, allowing you to start accepting payments quickly with almost instant approval. However, this can lead to occasional account freezes due to shared risk.

Step 2: Understand Payment Processing Costs

Payment processors charge fees for handling transactions. Here are common pricing models:

• Interchange-PlusYou pay the card network’s interchange fee plus a small markup. This model can save you money if you have low-rate cards or high volume.
• Flat-RateYou pay a fixed percentage per transaction, making costs predictable but sometimes higher.
• Subscription-BasedA monthly fee plus low transaction fees, ideal for businesses processing many payments.

Always read the fine print to avoid surprises.

Step 3: Select a Payment Gateway

A payment gateway is where customers enter their payment info securely on your website. Some processors like Stripe and Square include a gateway; others may charge extra. Choose a gateway that integrates well with your website or e-commerce platform.

Step 4: Make It Easy for Customers to Pay

Think about how your customers shop:

• Online Shopping CartsPerfect for e-commerce sites, allowing customers to add items and check out quickly.
• Payment Links and QR CodesGreat for pop-up shops or social media sales. You can send customers a link or code to pay instantly.
• Online InvoicesBest for project-based work or B2B sales, letting customers pay at their convenience.

You might use a mix depending on your business.

Accepting payments online is easier than you think and can unlock new growth for your business. Ready to get started?

For years, the promise of Bitcoin DeFi has been a paradox. We've watched the explosive, innovative growth of decentralized finance on chains like Ethereum, building a sprawling ecosystem of lending, borrowing, and trading—all while the king of crypto, Bitcoin, sat largely dormant in its cold storage. Its immense value was a fortress, but one with very few gates. The barriers were monumental: how do you securely bring a non-custodial asset into a trustless financial system without creating catastrophic risk?

The answer, until now, has been a patchwork of complex, often clunky solutions that limited both institutional participation and the scale of capital that could be deployed. But a seismic shift is underway. The recent approval of regulated, licensed custody solutions for tokenized Bitcoin is not just another product launch; it's the master key that could unlock the fortress.

I see this as the missing link we've been waiting for. This isn't about creating another wrapped Bitcoin on an obscure chain. This is about bridging the trillion-dollar world of institutional Bitcoin with the permissionless innovation of DeFi, all under the watchful eye of regulators.

We're talking about pension funds, asset managers, and corporations being able to use their Bitcoin as productive, yield-generating collateral in a way that meets their compliance standards.

The potential is staggering—an estimated $11.5 billion of currently idle Bitcoin capital could flood into DeFi protocols, supercharging liquidity and legitimizing the entire space in the eyes of traditional finance.

But is this the glorious fusion of TradFi and DeFi we've been promised, or are we simply building a new, more sophisticated trap? Are we inviting the very regulators who once scorned us to now govern our most foundational asset, potentially centralizing the decentralized?

And when this much capital enters the arena, does it not also paint a target on Bitcoin's back for the next systemic black swan event?

The news headline might seem mundane and corporate at first glance: a venture-capital-backed company acquires a smaller one. This happens in traditional finance every day. But in the world of crypto, this isn't just a business transaction; it's a signal, a sign that we are entering a new, and perhaps more brutal, phase of this industry's evolution.

When the VC-backed firms start swallowing up the smaller players, it tells us something profound about who has the power and who is struggling to survive. This is the beginning of the great consolidation  era, where innovative, independent startups get absorbed into larger, better-funded empires.

I see this as a double-edged sword. On one hand, proponents will argue that this is maturation. It’s the sign of a healthy market where strong companies are rewarded and good assets find stable homes. But I see a darker side. This is the beginning of the end of the innovative wild west  that made crypto exciting in the first place. It's the moment it stops being a field for small teams with big ideas and starts becoming the exclusive playground of big VCs and their portfolio conglomerates.

This isn't just one company buying another; it's a centralized worldview consuming a decentralized one. So are we truly witnessing the natural, professional evolution of our industry? Or are we watching the start of the crypto Hunger Games, where eventually everyone will be forced to bend the knee to a handful of dominant, all-controlling players?

The number is staggering: $518 million. In a single day, over half a billion dollars of net new money poured into the US spot Bitcoin ETFs. For many in crypto, this is the news they have been waiting years for. It's the ultimate validation, the  wall of institutional money we were always promised finally arriving.

It represents a victory, the moment traditional finance could no longer ignore Bitcoin and was forced to join in. This is supposed to be the moment the price goes mainstream, the moment our parents can finally buy in, the moment the asset class truly  matures.

I can't shake a more unsettling feeling. This doesn't feel like adoption; it feels like a corporate capture. This isn't Wall Street joining the revolution; it's Wall Street taming a wild animal, putting it in a cage, and then selling tickets to the zoo.

Let's be clear about what these ETFs are: they are a financial abstraction layer. You are not buying Bitcoin. You are buying a share in a fund that buys Bitcoin. It's the ultimate  not your keys, not your coins,  packaged and sold by the very gatekeepers the technology was designed to circumvent.

They've taken a decentralized, peer-to-peer monetary network and turned it into another ticker symbol on a spreadsheet, another product on which they can charge a management fee. So are we really witnessing the moment Bitcoin finally goes mainstream? Or are we watching the slow, corporate capture of a revolution, turning it into just another tool for the very system it was designed to replace?