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Showing posts from January 9, 2021

MLB Team Washington Nationals Partners With Terra Blockchain Community, Ballpark Plans to Accept UST

On February 9, the American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals, announced the team has partnered with Terra, the open-source blockchain platform and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The Washington Nationals detail that the team is a “leading innovator” and is “consistently introducing new technologies to enhance the fan experience.” Washington Nationals Ink Long-Term Deal With Terra Major League Baseball (MLB) team the Washington Nationals has partnered with the blockchain platform and DAO Terra, according to an announcement published by the team on Wednesday. The deal with Terra follows a slew of sports-related deals with crypto firms, but the MLB team will be the first to partner with an open-source blockchain project. In addition to the partnership, the algorithmic stablecoin UST that’s issued on the Terra blockchain will be “accepted as a payment method at Nationals Park as early as next season.” “The Nationals continue t...
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Russian Oil Giant Provides Excess Gas to Operations Powering Bitcoin Mining Devices

The firm Gazpromneft, an oil subsidiary of the Russian natural gas and global energy company Gazprom, is giving bitcoin mining operations the chance to power operations by using excess gas for electricity. The Russian firm has allowed a small mining operation to benefit from the excess gas by mining bitcoin on-site at the oil field. According to multiple reports , the Russian oil drilling subsidiary Gazpromneft is giving bitcoin miners the ability to utilize excess gas from oil drilling to mine the leading cryptocurrency. A small mining operation called Vekus was the first to leverage Gazpromneft’s excess gas just like mining operations in North America such as Greenidge Generation , Crusoe Energy Systems, EZ Blockchain , and Upstream Data. The regional publication Forklog said that Vekus installed a container filled with 150 Antminers and during the test pilot the group used “49,500 cubic meters of associated gas and produced 1.8 BTC .” The CFO of Vekus, Yuri Kudryashov, commented...
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This Bitcoin Ransomware Rakes in $150 Million in BTC

A new report by two cybersecurity firms has revealed that one ransomware family is particularly successful, raking in over $150 million in bitcoin. The ransom payments “sometimes amount to millions of dollars and typically run in the hundreds of thousands range.” Ransomware Makes $150 Million in Bitcoin The Ryuk ransomware family has raked in $150 million in bitcoin, according to a joint report by cybersecurity firms Advanced Intel and Hyas. “The Ryuk family of ransomware has been particularly successful in economic terms as well as having a disruptive impact on many industries around the world,” the report authors described, adding: Our research involved tracing payments involving 61 deposit addresses attributed to Ryuk ransomware. The Ryuk criminals send a majority of their bitcoin to exchanges through an intermediary to cash out. The ransomware family Ryuk was first discovered in the wild in August 2018. Its targets tend to be high-profile organizations, including hospitals a...
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Proposal seeks to overhaul Aave’s $375 million Safety Module

Big changes are coming to DeFi’s second-largest protocol and its $375 million insurance pool In a largely celebratory community call devoted in part to commemorating lending protocol Aave’s January 8th “Aaveversary” — a full year of Aave on Ethereum mainnet — there was also a look into Aave’s possible future: a proposal from Delphi Digital seeking to fundamentally alter Aave’s Safety Module and create a new insurance product offering.  Currently, $aave governance token holders can stake their tokens in the Safety Module, a pool of liquidity designed to help insure the protocol against a “shortfall event” such as a smart contract exploit. Stakers risk up to 30% of funds they lock in the Module, but earn a yield in return (currently 4.66%). The Safety Module pool has attracted nearly $375 million in deposits , comfortably the largest decentralized insurance fund of its type. However, according to Jose Maria Macedo and Jonathan Erlich, a partner and an analyst respectively at Del...
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Economist Discusses What Would Happen if the Masses Ditch Fiat Currencies for Bitcoin

American economist Brian Wesbury has shared his thoughts on what would happen if the masses were to ditch fiat currencies and adopt bitcoin instead. He discussed whether the government would allow it to happen and how bitcoin can become a true currency. Economist Brian Wesbury Answers Question About the Masses Ditching Fiat Currencies for Bitcoin Brian Wesbury is an economist with a focus on macroeconomics and economic forecasting. He is currently the chief economist at First Trust Advisors, a financial services firm headquartered in Wheaton, Illinois. He was asked on Fox Business News last week about what would happen “if the masses were to ditch fiat currency,” whether it will “trigger a financial collapse,” and “could bitcoin ever replace the dollar?” Wesbury began by acknowledging: A lot of people who are buying bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies believe that they are going to replace the dollar. He explained: “if they were to replace the dollar, if you take all the of the ...
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Top crypto mergers and acquisitions of 2020

Amid the chaos that was 2020, crypto companies inked almost $700 million worth of mergers and acquisitions. The blockchain industry shrugged off the craziness of the 2020 pandemic, with many companies thriving in the “remote” working environments brought about by COVID-19. Almost $700 million in mergers and acquisitions took place in 2020 across 83 transactions. That’s the largest number ever and a sizeable increase from the previous record of 69 M&A transactions in 2018. The majority of activity last year was within the industry itself, consolidating the sector with minimal engagement from external companies. More than 90% of the $691 million reported was comprised of the top three acquisitions by Binance ($400 million), FTX ($150 million) and Coinbase ($90 million). Binance’s purchase of CoinMarketCap at the end of March 2020 for a reported $400 million equaled the largest blockchain acquisitions of all time, rivaled only by Circle’s purchase of Poloniex and NXMH’s purchase ...
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THORChain (RUNE) rallies 35% as the entire DeFi sector turns bullish

Successful cross-chain integrations, a thriving community and renewed interest in DeFi projects back THORChain’s current rally. In the past week, a large number of altcoins have broken from their sideways ranges to post double-digit gains and it appears that investors are interpreting the current trend as a new ‘altcoin season’.  As historical data shows, these altcoin breakouts typically occur after Bitcoin (BTC) enters a consolidation phase after a sharp rally similar to the one the maket has witnessed over the past three weeks. For many of the recent top movers, technical analysis traders are simply capitalizing on tokens that show bullish market structure or are on the verge of a breakout due to increased volumes, but there are also coins that are moving higher based off a number of fundamental factors. THORChain (RUNE) is one of the tokens which is being driven by more than investor FOMO and the digital asset was also one of the top moving altcoins in 2020. Strong fundam...
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Experts: Gold outflows are pushing Bitcoin higher

Gold's prospects seem to dim as Bitcoin's glitter According to multiple experts, one possible reason for Bitcoin’s remarkable recent price rise are massive investor outflows from another popular inflation hedge: gold.  Spot gold swooned over the past week, falling 4.62% to $1,857. The asset previously had been surging in unison with Bitcoin, which is up over 40% from $28,000 lows last week . In a Tweet on Friday, Charlie Morris, founder and CIO at ByteTree Asset Management, said that the pullback in gold might be attributable to investors moving to Bitcoin: With bond yields up and inflation expectations down today, #gold has taken a hit. This justifies a $50 sell off, but price is down $120. I'd attribute the excess to flows moving towards #Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/qsWBb8NaXA — Charlie Morris (@AtlasPulse) January 8, 2021 Likewise, earlier in the week, CNBC’s Mad Money host Jim Cramer said that the outflows from gold ETFs are “all going to crypto.” Tracking inflo...
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Bitcoin ‘Going Through the Roof’ Unlike Assets Controlled by Government, Says Former Fed Governor

Former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh is bullish on bitcoin. He sees all assets that are not controlled by the U.S. government “going through the roof,” unlike those the Fed purports to control. He has outlined three reasons why bitcoin makes sense to him. Why Former Fed Governor Is Bullish on Bitcoin Kevin Warsh was a Federal Reserve governor during and in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. He also served as the Fed’s representative to the G20. Warsh was asked about his view on bitcoin during an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday. He began by observing that “Every asset price that the U.S. government doesn’t control” and “the Federal Reserve doesn’t control” is skyrocketing. He mentioned bitcoin, which he said “is in some sense the anti-government price,” and gold, which he described as “the barbarous relic that has been around for 5,000 years.” The former Fed governor exclaimed: Those things are all going through the roof, whereas those assets which th...
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Sushiswap reveals ambitious 2021 roadmap

In a reveal that set cryptotwitter ablaze, Sushiswap lays the foundation for a strong 2021 After a wild, up-and-down 2020 that saw Sushiswap become the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) by liquidity at two different points, the decentralized finance (DeFi) platform has released a wildly ambitious project roadmap for 2021. Key forthcoming developments include multiple examples of some of the most complex and advanced functionalities in the DeFi space, including a cross-chain DEX that will be enabled by Rune and Moonbeam, an implementation on the Polkadot chain, and a fully decentralized governance structure by the end of 2021. The post also provided updates on previously-announced projects, including a v2 launch called Mirin and a mid-January target date for the launch of BentoBox, a forthcoming lending product. There were also hints at a possible forthcoming rebrand. Given the variety and number of products currently offered and in development, “Sushiswap will be moving to a ...
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Big Tech’s Freedom of Speech Purge Pushes People to Censorship-Resistant Blockchain Social Media

During the last few days, the world has watched the Big Tech and social media crackdown after the incident that took place at Capitol Hill a few days ago. During the last 48 hours, U.S. President Donald Trump, a great number of right-wing supporters, and literally anyone who speaks out against the U.S. government has been censored. The extreme Big Tech censorship has driven a great number of social media participants to search for censorship-resistant alternatives. Big Tech’s Purge In 2020 and into 2021, mainstream media alongside the help of Twitter, Google, Apple, Youtube, Amazon, and Facebook has managed to whitewash the corruption and scandalous acts caused by the U.S. bureaucracy. Following the large protest in Washington and the protestors who managed to enter the Capitol building; videos, pictures, and viral social media posts littered the internet capturing the day’s events. Then after it was all said and done, in a matter of mere hours, Big Tech and the social media giants ...
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Another $84M deposit begs the question: Why are Bitcoin whales in Korea selling?

Bitcoin whales are depositing large amounts of Bitcoin into South Korean exchanges as BTC continues to rally. Bitcoin ( BTC ) whales in South Korea have been selling heavily across major exchanges throughout the past week. Data shows that multiple $100 million deposits to Bithumb have been spotted in the last three days alone. By volume, South Korea has a much smaller cryptocurrency exchange market compared to the United States. Yet, South Korea’s cryptocurrency exchanges have seen massive inflows that are comparable with other major markets. Large inflows into exchanges typically indicate selling pressure from whales because high-net-worth investors do not keep their holdings on exchanges. Hence, when capital flows into a trading platform, it shows an intent to sell. BTC/USDT 1-day candle chart (Binance). Source: TradingView.com Return of the "kimchi" premium After two $100 million deposits to Bithumb were spotted, Korbit saw a $90 million deposit on Jan. 9. Accord...
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Ripple’s CEO Addresses Key Allegations by US SEC — Legal Response Coming Soon

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has addressed some of the allegations made by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against his company. He focused on answering five questions on what he calls “unproven allegations” by the regulator. Garlinghouse Says There Is ‘Regulatory Chaos’ in the US In a Twitter thread on his official profile, Garlinghouse claimed that the blockchain company “tried” to settle with the U.S. SEC. He added that the firm will try again with the new administration but refused to go into specifics. In response to crypto exchanges listing XRP , Garlinghouse said that the company “has no control” over where the token is listed. “It’s open-source and decentralized,” claimed the Ripple executive. However, the CEO discussed in-depth the matter of when XRP will be relisted on exchanges that have delisted the token. Referencing the Digital Commodity Exchange Act ( DCEA ), he described: With [eight] different govt agencies, each with their own (and sometimes...
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As Biden preps $3T stimulus, Bitcoin could be set to erupt

Biden’s fiscal stimulus plan could send the BTC price rocketing higher. The incoming Biden administration’s plan to flood the U.S. economy with trillions of dollars could ignite the next leg of the Bitcoin ( BTC ) bull market, as more investors seek refuge from a crumbling United States dollar.  Axios, an Arlington-based news outlet, reported Thursday that Joe Biden has asked Congress to provide Americans with $2,000 in stimulus payments to help offset the economic devastation of Covid-19. The incoming president has also proposed a $3 trillion tax and infrastructure package as part of his “Build Back Better” program. Biden doubled down on his call for more direct relief to Americans following Friday’s disappointing jobs report showing a loss of 140,000 positions in December. He said: “Economic research confirms that with conditions like the crisis today, especially with such low interest rates, taking immediate action – even with deficit financing – is going to help the ec...
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Bitcoin turning 12: From the Genesis block to Wall Street adoption

The Bitcoin network as we know it today officially kicked off exactly 12 years ago when Satoshi Nakamoto released the first software client. Satoshi Nakamoto, the unknown Bitcoin creator , released the first client network on this day 12 years ago, officially kickstarting what is perhaps the greatest monetary revolution of the 21st century.  Six days prior, on Jan. 3, 2009, Satoshi mined the Genesis block, known as #0, coding it into the software. Unlike the subsequent blocks in the chain, the coin base reward from the Genesis block cannot be spent, as only publicly mined “coins” can be transferred. So, the first block, or #1, was mined on Jan. 9 , putting a true start to the network as it is known today. At the time, Satoshi announced the news to the cryptography mailing list with a download link to Bitcoin 0.1.0 on the open-source software database platform Sourceforge. Bitcoin 0.1.0 was only compatible with the Windows operating system. The first client version with Linux...
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XRP price must break this key resistance to regain bullish momentum

The price of XRP is showing bullish signs in the short term despite the ongoing SEC lawsuit against Ripple. XRP  holders are still struggling around the $0.30 area while the majority of the cryptocurrency markets are euphoric with Bitcoin ( BTC ) price surpassing $40,000. BTC price is currently over 100% higher than the previous all-time high in 2017, while XRP’s price is still down more than 90% from the all-time high in 2017. A lawsuit from the SEC against Ripple is certainly not bullish and is the primary reason for this overall weakness as this is prompting some exchanges to delist . However, the chart might give some potential bullish outlook for the short term period if XRP’s price breaks several crucial resistance levels. Resistance at $0.32-0.345 must break for more upsid XRP/USD 3-day chart. Source: TradingView The XRP chart shows a very odd price pattern, as XRP’s price flipped the $0.21 area for support beautifully in 2020. This support/resistance flip caused a ...
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