The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) saw more sales last week from Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest, which sold 163,722 shares for $5.02 million at closing prices. The investment vehicle’s discount to its net asset value also shrank to its lowest level in over two years. Based on the closing share price of the relevant day, the
Events surrounding the cryptocurrency exchange Binance has generated a lot of discussion over the US government’s crackdown on cryptocurrency companies. Omid Malekan, a writer and adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, claims that the American Department of Justice’s strategy in this case is very different from conventional financial practises. Malekan posted on X (formerly Twitter):
A traditional bullish continuation setup could see the price of XRP rise by more than 20% in the upcoming weeks. After a significant increase, the price consolidates inside a parallel channel, forming the so-called bull flag pattern. It ends when the price climbs to the height of the prior upswing and breaks over the upper
After a $16 million hack in 2021, Indexed Finance, an Ethereum-based project, was able to successfully thwart two attempts at hijacking. The founders of the project will regain control of the decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO), with the intention of distributing the leftover money to the victims of the 2021 hack. Former core contributor Laurence Day
The proposal narrowly passed with 41.1% of votes in favour and 38.5% against, the highest voter turnout in the Cosmos ecosystem. The Cosmos Hub governing body has approved a plan to lower the maximum rate of inflation for its native token, ATOM, from about 14% to 10%. According to the proposal, Atom’s annualised staking yield
In order to ensure that it complies with local regulations, cryptocurrency exchange Zipmex has announced that it has suspended trading in Thailand. In an effort to comply with regulations, cryptocurrency exchange Zipmex has announced that it is taking immediate action and suspending all digital asset trading in Thailand. In accordance with regulatory requirements set forth
California Governor Gavin Newsom stressed in a recent report the need to get ready for the next generation of skills needed to succeed in the GenAI economy. Governor Gavin Newsom of California has emphasised the significance of learning new skills and familiarising oneself with cutting-edge technology in order to stay ahead of the curve in
Investment managers in the UK are moving away from traditional record-keeping systems by using blockchain technology to tokenize funds with regulatory support. The Investment Association stated in a recent research that the financial industry will become more transparent and efficient as a result of fund tokenization, which is the process of issuing tokenized units or
Arthur Hayes, a co-founder of BitMEX, is optimistic about Bitcoin. Hayes discussed his ideas about X. Hayes called US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen “Bad Gurl Yellen” in front of a graphic showing changes in net reverse repurchase agreement (RRP) and Treasury general account (TGA) balances. Hayes urged other Bitcoin supporters to remain focused in the
Data from blockchain analytics company DeBank shows that in the four days since its inception, the Web3 protocol Blast network has gained almost $400 million in total value locked (TVL). However, Polygon Labs developer relations engineer Jarrod Watts asserted in a social media discussion on November 23 that the new network’s centralization presents serious security
According to a Nigerian Police Force spokesman, politician Wilfred Bonse has been taken into custody for pilfering, converting cryptocurrency wallets, and illegally diverting funds away from Patricia Technologies. Wilfred Bonse, a politician, has been arrested by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for allegedly stealing over 200 million naira ($246,153) from Patricia Technologies’ cryptocurrency wallet. The
In response to a dilutive $39 million NFT minting that happened in June, the DAO had earlier suggested filing a lawsuit against Zagabond, the creator of Azuki. In the midst of dropping a planned lawsuit against Zagabond, the founder of the NFT collection, over a $39 million minting scandal, Azuki DAO, an unofficial community decentralised
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the former CEO of Binance, has refuted claims made by the U.S. Department of Justice that he poses a flight risk and might not return before his sentencing in the following year. In the wake of his guilty plea, former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has resisted attempts by the US government
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has approved Hong Kong investment company Victory Securities (8540) to provide cryptocurrency services to retail customers.Victory Securities said in a statement on Friday that it is the first authorized company to provide retail investors with cryptocurrency trading and advising services. It now works with crypto-native companies OSL Digital Securities and HashKey Exchange. In an indication that the cryptocurrency economy is moving eastward and that Asian countries provide more certainty for businesses than they may find abroad, like the U.S., Hong Kong earlier this year established a legislative framework allowing the offering of bitcoin services to civilian investors. Victory is an application on the SFC’s list of virtual asset trading companies.By press time, CoinDesk has not heard back from the SFC after contacting them for clarification.
The native token of ChainFlip, a cross-chain swapping platform, increased in value by over 100% on its first day of trade.With multiple exchanges listing it, including as Bybit, Crypto.com, Kucoin, and Gate.io, the currency saw a 150% increase, reaching a high of $5.94.CoinMarketCap reports that since its introduction, trading activity has reached $79 million across all venues. Based on the Ethereum blockchain and Uniswap’s V3 concept, ChainFlip was created using the Rust programming language.With the goal of increasing trading efficiency and lowering slippage, it bills itself as a “JIT (Just In Time) automated market maker.”When big orders are processed, a lack of liquidity may result in slippage, which is the difference between the price a trader expects to pay and the price they actually pay. In August, ChainFlip sold 4.5 million tokens for $1.83 each. At $2.50, they began trading on Friday.There is no need to bridge or wrap assets while using ChainFlip and other cross-chain swapping platforms.Rather, after a trade is done on a conventional centralized crypto exchange, the market makers instantly buy an asset.The bought assets are then sent by ChainFlip validators to the wallet address that the trader initially supplied. Decentralised liquidity protocol THORChain praised the protocol, stating on X that it will collaborate with ChainFlip to “dethrone the centralized gatekeepers of today.”Lead by Framework Ventures, ChainFlip raised $6 million in a 2021 funding round.
A Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request filed in New York by several prominent news outlets has been met with initial support from Tether and Bitfinex. In response to CoinDesk’s FOIL request earlier this year, the USDT stablecoin issuer and cryptocurrency exchange assured Cointelegraph that they would provide information transparently.Additionally, the corporations said that the method was inconsistent with their business standards and that they would not be publicly disclosing documentation. “It’s essential to clarify that transparency does not mean a wholesale release of all our documents.” Tether and Bitfinex have decided not to file an appeal against the FOIL request that was submitted by journalists Ada Hui, Shane Shifflett, and Zeke Faux, who they claim are engaging in “certain behaviors.”Faux’s previous investigations on Tether and Bitfinex, according to the firms, have “extended beyond the boundaries of professional journalism.”In addition, they allege that journalists from The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, whose publications are taking part in the current FOIL request, have been “one-sided and inaccurate.” The statement emphasizes that both businesses “adhere to ethical reporting standards and respect data privacy boundaries,” and that they are dedicated to transparency and will continue to be accessible for interaction with the media and government agencies.Noting that their attempts at transparency do not “equate to unrestricted public disclosure of all documents,” Tether and Bitfinex also demanded “responsible document review” prior to any information being made public. The deal that Tether and Bitfinex reached with the New York Attorney General (NYAG) in February 2021 is the subject of the current FOIL request.The arrangement, which was first revealed by CNBC, called for paying a $18.5 million fine in order to resolve a lawsuit that had been pending for two years over the purported misappropriation of $850 million in customer and company assets.As part of the settlement, Tether and Bitfinex agreed to provide the NYAG with quarterly transparency reports for a period of two years.Following the completion of these duties, CoinDesk filed a FOIL request in New York, requesting the public release of Tether’s first quarter submission papers that it had provided in accordance with the settlement agreement. Tether stated in June 2023 that it had rejected the FOIL request in order to stop “sensitive commercial information” from being used and “confidential customer data” from being made public because it was concerned that “malicious actors” might take advantage of it.
DeFi insurance refers to both blockchain-based replacements of traditional insurance policies and insurance that covers blockchain-related activity. Decentralized finance (DeFi) has gained enormous popularity in recent years, providing users with an alternative to established financial institutions. With DeFi, users may transact in a decentralized, trustless financial environment and lend, borrow, and invest. There are risks,
On November 22, the attacker who made off with $50 million received a message from the decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO) running the KyberSwap decentralised exchange (DEX) saying, “We want to negotiate. The attack was directed at the liquidity pools (LPs) of KyberSwap. Prior to the attack, the DEX had a total value locked (TVL) of
The cryptocurrency market and the exchange will benefit from Binance’s settlement with the US government, JPMorgan (JPM) stated in a recent research report. The exchange’s agreement “would see significant reduction of a potential systemic risk emanating from a hypothetical Binance collapse,” the report stated, with implications for the larger market. Additionally, according to analysts led
According to a statement on the judiciary’s website, a court in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, has authorised the extradition of Terra founder Do Kwon to either South Korea or the US. Kwon was detained in the nation in March after being discovered in the airport of Podgorica in possession of forged documents. According to
The resignation of Changpeng Zhao (CZ), the CEO of Binance, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, has caused a startling turn of events in the cryptocurrency industry. BlackRock’s involvement in this development has given the storyline another level of intrigue, shocking and speculating the cryptocurrency community. Changpeng Zhao (CZ) resigned and the
On November 23, Alchemy Pay, a crypto-fiat payment gateway based in Singapore, revealed that it has acquired a money services license in the state of Iowa, marking a significant step towards further expansion into the US market. Any organization or individual doing currency exchange or money transmission business in Iowa is required to possess the license, according local state legislation.The business obtained its money transmitter license (MTL) in Arkansas in September.The business claims to have finished applying for MTL licenses in several US states and to expect a response in the upcoming months.Speaking to Cointelegraph about the development, Robert McCracken, the ecosystem lead for Alchemy Pay, stated that Alchemy is concentrated on adhering to the currency regulatory framework in the U.S. cryptocurrency market. “We believe that a well-structured regulatory environment is essential for the sustainable growth and development of any industry, and that includes the fiat-crypto payment industry.” According to McCracken, the cryptocurrency payment market has “immense potential” and may emerge as a “leading sector in the future.”With payment options including Visa, Mastercard, regional mobile wallets, and local transfers, Alchemy Pay is already operational in 173 countries.As operations continue to grow, the Alchemy Pay executive stated that the company will be aggressively pursuing licenses and upholding regulatory standards.This route was described by McCracken as “more challenging but ultimately correct.” “[…] building core competitiveness and upholding the highest standards of compliance are essential for the long-term success of the crypto payment industry.” Alchemy Pay has stated that it is presently preparing applications for licenses in Hong Kong and the UK.At the moment, American officials are still considering a complete set of rules that would cover the entire industry.
On-chain data gathered by CryptoQuant indicates that Bitcoin (BTC) is moving from Binance to Coinbase.According to a recent note from the research firm, Coinbase has seen a rise in reserves of approximately 12,000 BTC, while Binance has seen a reduction of 5,000 BTC. “The decrease in Bitcoin reserves on Binance appears to be due to retail outflows,” Bradley Park, a Web 3 analyst at CryptoQuant wrote to CoinDesk in a note. “The market is still nervous about the recent legal implications against Binance,” Greta Yuan, head of research at Hong Kong-based digital-asset platform VDX said in a
Despite the doubts of many cryptocurrency investors, Blast, a layer-2 blockchain that is slated to launch in March, has amassed more than $225 million in staked ether, stETH, and stablecoins since Monday.Blast, which is billed as the first layer-2 network with native staking, intends to eventually produce yield by staking Ethereum (ETH) and using real-world assets (RWAs).Developed on top of layer-1 blockchains like Ethereum, layer 2 networks aim to reduce transaction costs and increase transaction speed. Leading the protocol is the anonymous @PacmanBlur, a co-founder of the well-known NFT marketplace Blur.A portion of the network’s appeal can be ascribed to its supporters, which include well-known cryptocurrency fund Paradigm and a group of investors known as “eGirl Capital,” among others.One important note is that until the Blast bridge goes active in February, staked assets cannot be withdrawn.Users can redeem an airdrop slated for May by using their “Blast points,” which they get in the interim.By referring other users via special referral links, users can earn extra Blast points.Consequently, as of Thursday, Blast is invite-only and requires a code from an active user to access. According to Etherscan, Blast is currently the seventh-largest ether holder, having staked the majority of the $225 million that it has received on Lido, a liquid staking protocol.But the cryptocurrency community has taken issue with the concept of restaking on Lido in exchange for giving away obscure Blast points. “Blast is actually insane,” one crypto trader wrote on X. “Use points to attract TVL to a chain that doesn’t exist, convert the deposited ETH into stETH on a 5-person multisig of anon devs,” referring to total value locked, or the overall value of assets deposited in the protocol. According to some analysts, Blast points resemble a pyramid scheme in that early users can increase their point total based on how many new users they refer.According to technical papers, users receive an extra 16% points for each user they invite to bring in more participants, and an additional 8% for each additional person the second level brings in. Another topic of dispute is whether additional layer-2 networks are necessary in the congested decentralized finance (DeFi) area.DeFiLlama claims that there are currently 232 blockchains overall, many of which share users and services.Out of all of them, Ethereum is the biggest, holding 55% of the locked value, followed by BSC at 6% and Tron at 17%. Although it’s important to note that Blast’s $225 million total value locked is quickly nearing that of Coinbase’s Base, which has $284 million, cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase (COIN) and Kraken have lately emerged with their own layer-2 networks.Despite the uncertainty surrounding Blast points, investors are still willing to invest in the platform, even if the Blast blockchain will not be operational for a further four months.
The Korea Times said on Thursday that South Korea will begin a pilot programme for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in the first quarter of 2019. The programme will involve 100,000 residents. According to the article, the Bank of Korea (BOK) and financial authorities Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and Financial Services Commission (FSC) will
Administrators of the decentralised exchange (DEX) KyberSwap are recommending users to take all of their money out as a precaution since the exploiter claims that talks will soon start. The DEX has been under attack for around $50 million. According to on-chain statistics, the attacker is mostly taking money in USDC, wETH, and ether. Additionally,
Retail customers will have access to cryptocurrency trading services by the end of January 2024, according to Raiffeisen Bank International in Austria. With the help of cryptocurrency exchange Bitpanda, which earlier this year signed a letter of intent with the bank, the 97-year-old bank will initially offer the service to its customers in Vienna, where
With the help of Block’s TBD, the African non-profit DevCareer is bringing Web3 technology to the continent by organising the first Web3 hackathon. With its tools, TBD hopes to make decentralised finance accessible to all developers. Participants in the DevCareer hackathon can investigate Web3 and create self-sufficient technologies. With an identity layer that goes beyond
The HECO Chain bridge saw the movement of more than $86.6 million in digital assets to dubious addresses, according to data provided by blockchain security firm PeckShield.According to the security company, there is a continuous exploit and the bridge is hacked. Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, responded to the event by declaring that HTX will reimburse users in full for any losses they may have suffered as a result of the attack.While they look into the situation, the company has also temporarily stopped accepting deposits and withdrawals.The executive stated that upon the conclusion of the probe, services will resume. At first, PeckShield released a notice highlighting a transaction in which 10,145 Ether—or around $19 million—were moved off the bridge.Subsequent transactions involved the transfer of digital assets to several addresses, including USD Coin, Chainlink, Shiba INU, and others. On December 21, 2020, HTX Eco Chain (HECO) was formally introduced to offer a cross-chain experience with reduced gas prices.The project was a combination of the BitTorrent bridge ecosystem and the Tron environment, which Sun had merged into HECO in 2022. The most recent breach of the HECO Chain is the second exploit involving a Sun-related project.On November 10, Poloniex, an exchange that Sun purchased in 2018, experienced a $100 million hack.Security experts speculate that a compromised private key may have caused the problem.
According to broker Bernstein’s research report published on Wednesday, Binance remains the world’s most popular cryptocurrency exchange, with $67 billion in customer funds under custody. Although minor outflows of less than $1 billion occurred after the news of the settlement with the US government broke, there was no significant public panic. “Binance’s reputation with retail non-U.S. customers has remained strong through the crisis,” analysts led by Gautam Chhugani wrote. Although Bernstein notes that Binance will continue to be a “material entity in non-U.S. markets,” it anticipates more competition from new exchanges in regulated jurisdictions like Singapore and Hong Kong as well as from listed rival Coinbase (COIN). According to Bernstein, the cryptocurrency exchange has enough money to pay the $4.3 billion fine and continue running its business profitably. “Binance’s complete exit from the U.S would mean continued dominance of onshore and incumbent exchanges in the U.S.,” the authors wrote pointing out that exchanges like Coinbase are already providing prime broking and custody services to asset managers that have submitted exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications. “In our view, this is the final straw before the establishment feels
