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Showing posts from October 6, 2021

Smartbch Poolside Puffers NFT Collection Sells Out in 3 Days — 100% of Proceeds Goes to Orphanage in Vietnam

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have been extremely popular in recent times as a great number of collections have been dropped and billions of dollars worth of NFTs have been exchanged. Just recently, a collection of NFTs stemming from the Smartbch protocol called “Poolside Puffers” was introduced to the Bitcoin Cash community. The entire collection of 2,100 Puffers sold out in less than three days and all proceeds are being donated to an orphanage in Vietnam. Meet Poolside Puffers — 2,100 Unique Generative Art Collectibles Built With Smartbch The Smartbch protocol has been gathering traction as people are minting a myriad of tokens, leveraging decentralized exchange (dex) platforms like Misty Lake ( lake.mistswap.fi ) and Benswap , as well as discussing new Smartbch ideas across a variety of forums. While blockchain NFT collections like Cryptopunks, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and others have been all the rage lately, a Smartbch-minted NFT collection sold out in three days this week. The NFT...

FTX customer seeks help after mistaken deposit allegedly results in $1M in fees

DeFi blog Rekt claims that FTX failed to adhere to its own terms and conditions by imposing the fee. A crypto hodler is outraged after allegedly copping a $954,135 fee from centralized exchange FTX. The trader claims the fee was charged over a mistaken deposit they believe was the exchange’s fault. On Oct. 6, the Rekt Blog published screenshots of correspondence that suggest the problems began when the customer deposited around $6.3 million in USDP, the stablecoin token for DeFi borrowing platform Unit Protocol, in late September. Unfortunately, the Paxos stablecoin has also rebranded to USDP and the exchange changed the PAX ticker to USDP in late August. So the user apparently deposited $6.3 million of unsupported USDP tokens into the exchange’s address for the Paxos stablecoin. This is a customer service announcement. Will FTX please comply with their own terms and conditions? An unhappy @ftx_app user came to us for help after they were overcharged ~$954,135 in fees. I...

Rocket Pool delays launch after vulnerability discovered by rival

Staking provider Lido was also found to be vulnerable to the bug that has delayed the launch of the Eth2 staking service Rocket Pool. Eth2 staking provider Rocket Pool has postponed its launch after a possible exploit was identified in the protocol’s code. On Oct. 6, Rocket Pool announced the postponement while the team implements a fix for the bug. Rocket Pool tweeted that “relatively minimal” changes are required to patch the vulnerability and that a new launch date will be announced soon. 1/ Yesterday our bug bounty program helped discover an exploit that also affected other staking providers, as a result we are postponing launch to implement a fix. We would like to extend our warmest thanks to @tsudmi for raising the exploit. — Rocket Pool (@Rocket_Pool) October 5, 2021 Rocket Pool was alerted to the vulnerability by Dmitri Tsumak, the founder of rival staking provider StakeWise.. After Rocket Pool confirmed the bug was valid, the two teams notified another Eth2 staking ...

Senator pressures OCC nominee over missing Marxism thesis from Moscow Uni

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more radical choice for any regulatory spot in our federal government,” said Senator Pat Toomey. Pat Toomey, a Republican member of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, is attempting to pressure the nominee to head the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) into handing over her 1989 university honors thesis about Karl Marx. The Biden administration formally nominated Kazakh-born attorney Saule Omarova — who has been characterized by critics as both anti-bank and anti-crypto — to head the financial regulator on Sept. 29. In vague echoes of McCarthyism, Toomey believes the thesis may show that Omarova has sympathies toward Marxist views. While Omarova has lived in the US since 1991 and previously served as an advisor to George W. Bush, she previously attended Moscow State University during 1988 and 1989 on The Lenin Personal Academic Scholarship. In an open letter to Omarova published on Oct. 5, Toomey claimed that she had deleted reference...

DeFi Yield Protocol Partners With KyberDMM to Boost DYP Token Liquidity on Avalanche

Leading yield farming platform DeFi Yield Protocol (DYP) has collaborated with KyberDMM to boost DYP token liquidity on Avalanche blockchain. As part of the partnership, $300,000 worth of DYP and KNC tokens have been made available as liquidity mining rewards. A major milestone for DYP The collaboration between DYP and KyberDMM represents a major milestone for the DYP as it continues to make inroads within the DeFi ecosystem. The two protocols have agreed to run joint liquidity mining campaigns to increase the number and liquidity of key token pools and incentivize liquidity providers with attractive yields. KyberDMM is an innovative and capital-efficient DEX protocol that enhances liquidity with amplified pools and optimizes returns for liquidity providers with dynamic fees. As a result, DYP holders can maximize the use of their capital on KyberDMM DEX and access amplified liquidity pools and dynamic fees within a secure platform. Liquidity providers can add any amount of liquidi...

Youth Fashion Retail Chain Pacsun Now Accepts 11 Cryptocurrencies

On October 5, the youth fashion and retail brand Pacsun announced the company is now accepting cryptocurrencies via Bitpay’s payment services. Pacsun says the company has a youthful audience that is “very tech-oriented” and the firm has seen an “increasing desire towards cryptocurrency.” Pacific Sunwear of California Goes Crypto The American retail clothing brand, Pacific Sunwear of California, LLC, otherwise known as Pacsun, is now supporting crypto-asset acceptance. Founded in 1982, Pacsun has roughly 400 stores in all 50 states and in Puerto Rico. The company has partnered with the crypto payments firm Bitpay and disclosed it will accept 11 different crypto assets including bitcoin ( BTC ), bitcoin cash ( BCH ), ethereum ( ETH ), wrapped bitcoin (WBTC), dogecoin (DOGE), and litecoin ( LTC ). Five different stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar will also be accepted by Pacsun. “With digital sales doubling since last year, we understand the continued importance of creating an exc...

MakerDAO founder's plans to address climate change and pivot back to ETH

Rune Christensen believes MakerDAO’s collateral should be mobilized to capital into sustainable investments. MakerDAO founder Rune Christensen has published an essay outlining measures that could be taken to make the protocol a vehicle for addressing climate change. In a lengthy Oct. 5 post published to the MakerDAO governance forum, Christensen asserts that MakerDAO should strive to ensure that all of its collateral comprises “sustainable and climate-aligned assets that consider the long-term impacts of financial activity on the environment.” Christensen asserts that the protocol’s collateral should be invested into sustainable real-world assets (RWAs) through senior credit positions in projects that build “solar farms, wind turbines, batteries, recharging stations and other cost-efficient renewable energy solutions, as well as their supply chains, sustainable resource extraction and recycling.” He further stated: “Today we already have everything we need to begin scaling o...

Price spike: Are whales front-running the approval of a Bitcoin futures ETF?

Bloomberg senior analyst Eric Balchunas says there is a 75% chance that the SEC will approve a Bitcoin futures ETF this month. A surge in Bitcoin prices today may be in response to increased speculation that an exchange-traded product could finally be approved in the coming weeks. BTC prices are up 7% over the past 24 hours and have surged a whopping 32% over the past week according to CoinGecko. This bullish price action for BTC only, may be a form of front-running by big bag holders in anticipation of a futures ETF approval by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. On Oct. 7, Bloomberg senior analyst Eric Balchunas responded to an exclamation from founder and partner at Morgan Creek Digital, Anthony Pompliano , stating “things are going to get insane” if an ETF is approved in Q4. Balchunas reaffirmed he was 75% certain approval was imminent. “While we [are] confident Bitcoin futures ETFs will be approved very soon (like within two weeks) we [are] less confident they will ...

Riot Blockchain tripled production this year and is hoarding $194M in Bitcoin

Public mining firm Riot Blockchain has more than tripled its year-to-date Bitcoin production. U.S.-based publicly listed mining firm Riot Blockchain has revealed that its year-to-date Bitcoin production has more than tripled compared to 2020. According to a Oct. 6 announcement , Riot has mined 2,457 BTC (roughly $135 million) during 2021 so far — a 246% increase compared to the same period of the previous year. Production for September has more than quadrupled year-over-year, with Riot mining generating 406 Bitcoin last month compared to 91 BTC for September 2020. As of Sept. 30, 2021, Riot was in possession of 3,534 Bitcoin ($194.4 million). The firm says that it mined every Bitcoin it owns. Riot claims it now boasts a deployed fleet of roughly 25,646 miners representing a total hash rate capacity of 2.6 exahashes per second (EH/s). Riot expects to have deployed an additional 2,000 Bitmain Antminer S19Js by early November, forecasting a total hashing power of 2.8 EH/s once the ne...

MoneyGram launches USDC settlement using the Stellar blockchain

The partnership will enable MoneyGram customers to fund and withdraw from their accounts using the USDC stablecoin at physical branches. Financial services company, MoneyGram International, has partnered with the Stellar Development Foundation to enable consumers to send money using Circle’s popular stablecoin, USD Coin (USDC) and convert directly to and from fiat. Per a 6 Oct. announcement , MoneyGram has integrated support allowing crypto wallets connected to the Stellar Network to access its global retail platform. Working alongside Circle, MoneyGram will also enable “near-instant backend settlement”, account funding, and local fiat withdrawals using the USDC stable token. United Texas Bank will act as the settlement bank to complete the process within the regulatory framework. "As crypto and digital currencies rise in prominence, we're especially optimistic about the potential of stablecoins as a method to streamline cross-border payments.” said Alex Holmes, MoneyGram...

New Zealand's Easy Crypto raises $11.75M, eyes stock market float

According to Easy Crypto, the $11.75 million in series A funding round may be the largest sum of investment raised in New Zealand for a local start-up. New Zealand-based crypto exchange Easy Crypto has raised $11.75 million (NZD $17 million) in Series A funding, as the firm eyes a potential initial public offering (IPO) in the future. The round was led by venture capital fund Nuance Connected Capital. According to an Oct.6 announcement from Easy Crypto, the NZD 17 million figure “seemed to have set a new record in New Zealand” for the largest Series A funding from a local firm. The funding round marks a significant milestone for the firm. Co-founder and CEO Janine Grainger ha expressed how difficult it had been to garner investment in the early stages the company due to working in the “fringe” crypto sector. The funds will be used to accelerate growth via product and tech development, investment in talent, and expanding to new markets in Indonesia and the Philippines to service t...

US Launches National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team to Prosecute ‘Criminal Misuses of Cryptocurrency’

The U.S. has launched the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, an initiative of the Department of Justice (DOJ), to tackle and prosecute “criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, particularly crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money laundering.” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said, “The point is to protect consumers.” DOJ’s New Crypto Enforcement Initiative U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced the creation of a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) during a virtual speech at the Aspen Cyber Summit Wednesday. The aim of the initiative is “ to tackle complex investigations and prosecutions of criminal misuses of cryptocurrency, particularly crimes committed by virtual currency exchanges, mixing and tumbling services, and money laundering infrastructure actors,” the Department of Justice subsequently detailed. “The team will also assist in tracing and recovery of assets lost to fraud and extortion, includ...

AMC CEO Says ‘Huge News’ for Dogecoin Fans as the Movie Theater Chain Begins Accepting Crypto Payments for Gift Cards

The CEO of the world’s largest movie exhibition company, AMC Entertainment, has announced “huge news” for dogecoin fans. While his company works on accepting cryptocurrencies, he said that customers can now “buy AMC Theatres digital gift cards … with dogecoin and other cryptocurrency.” AMC Accepts Cryptocurrencies for Gift Cards After announcing that AMC will “figure out how to” accept dogecoin by year-end alongside four other cryptocurrencies, CEO Adam Aron tweeted Tuesday that he had “huge news” for dogecoin fans. AMC Entertainment Holdings is the largest movie exhibition company in the U.S., Europe, and the world. As of March 31, AMC owned or operated approximately 950 theaters and 10,500 screens globally. The executive wrote: “Huge news dogecoin fans! As we work to accept online crypto payments, now you can buy AMC Theatres digital gift cards (up to $200 per day) with dogecoin and other cryptocurrency using a Bitpay Wallet. Accepted on our website, mobile app, and in theatres...

Pro traders cut their EOS longs, but retail FOMO and $50K+ BTC could tip the scale

On paper, EOS has great fundamentals, but derivatives markets suggest traders don’t feel the same about the altcoin’s price potential. EOS (EOS) began a descending trend 53 days ago and despite the recent 27% weekly gain, the altcoin is not showing any signs of a reversal. As a result, investors are questioning whether the former top-5 cryptocurrency has what it takes to turn around after Daniel Larimer , CTO of the development company behind EOS, resigned in late 2020. EOS price at Bitfinex in USD. Source: TradingView The emergence of competing proof-of-stake smart contract platforms like Solana (SOL), Polkadot (DOT) and Avalanche (AVAX) possibly weighed on this 2017-era project. One potentially bullish catalyst could be the fact that Block.one, the company responsible for the EOS token launch, owns over 160,000 Bitcoin ( BTC ), according to data compiled by BitcoinTreasuries.net. EOS might not be the preferred smart contract network of the day, but a handful of working fi...

Spellfire Completes Seed Funding Round – Terranova, x21, Autonomy Capital Among Top Investors Onboard

Spellfire , a legendary card-based NFT game powered by Ethereum and incorporating some unique features, has successfully completed its seed funding round. Terranova, x21 and Autonomy Capital have led 360,000 USD investment into the project, with more investors eyeing spellfire’s incoming private round. Spellfire has some unique features which make it stand out among its peers in the industry. NFTs acquired are digital and physical, making it the first NFT based game that allows owners to touch their NFTs. Special NFTs have an “Augmented Reality” feature allowing the owners to interact with their NFTs using gestures. NFTs will be upgradable. Players can create their own NFTs with unique characteristics. Spellfire includes a P2E mechanic which allows owners to generate revenue from their NFTs and from playing the game, with 200,000,000 tokens being distributed through in-game rewards: Tournaments, Special collections, Achievements, and 90 percent of NFT generated profits goin...

Janet Yellen Defends Tax Compliance Agenda — 3 State Treasurers Promise Not to Comply

The 78th United States secretary of the treasury, Janet Yellen, is very concerned about tax evasion, according to statements she made during an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that aired on October 5. Yellen claims there’s an “enormous tax gap” and she insists financial information concerning where income derives from can get “hidden.” Janet Yellen Says ‘Collection of Information Is Routine’ The U.S. secretary of the treasury wants lawmakers to push Biden’s “American Families Plan Tax Compliance Agenda” in order to solve the issue. The proposed legislation, if passed, would require banks to report all inflows and outflows of at least $600 to the IRS. In mid-September, Bitcoin.com News reported on Janet Yellen and IRS commissioner Charles Rettig asking lawmakers to pass the “American Families Plan Tax Compliance Agenda.” The proposed legislation aims to get all financial institutions to report deposits and withdrawals of $600 or more to the American tax agency, regardless of tax...

3 reasons why Terra (LUNA) price hit a new all-time high

The successful launch of the long-awaited Columbus-5 upgrade is just one of the factors in LUNA’s ascension to a new record high. Protocol upgrades are one of the biggest drivers of momentum because they show developers' dedication to fixing bugs, incorporating user requests and adding new features that make the protocol competitive and shore up the token's value. One project that has seen its token price rally to a new all-time high following the launch of a highly anticipated upgrade is Terra (LUNA), a blockchain protocol that uses fiat-pegged stablecoins like TerrUSD (UST) to create a global payments system. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $23.81 on Sept. 21, the price of LUNA surged 108% to establish a new record high at $49.55 on Oct. 4 as its 24-hour trading volume spiked to $2.5 billion. LUNA/USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView Three reasons for the price breakout in LUNA include the launch of its Columbu...

Chainalysis acquires cybercrime investigative firm Excygent in fight against ransomware attacks

“Following the flow of ransomware payments on the blockchain is instrumental for law enforcement to understand and dismantle ransomware operations,” said Chainalysis CEO Michael Gronager. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis has purchased cybercrime investigative company Excygent for an undisclosed amount, hinting the two will continue to work together to help “dismantle ransomware operations.” In an Oct. 5 announcement, Chainalysis CEO Michael Gronager said the firm had collaborated with Excygent on projects including seizing cryptocurrency connected to the now defunct darknet market Silk Road, shutting down a major child abuse website, and disrupting campaigns related to the financing of terrorism. Gronager said staff from Excygent would join the firm’s Investigations and Special Programs team to support investigations on cryptocurrency used in cybercrimes. “Following the flow of ransomware payments on the blockchain is instrumental for law enforcement to understand and dismant...

AMC Theaters' acceptance of Dogecoin follows viral community appeal

Over the past week, social memecoin DOGE has risen 25% above the previous psychological price threshold of $0.25. Following an overwhelming positive response to a Twitter poll on Sept. 21, CEO of AMC Theater, Adam Aron announced Wednesday that the chain would officially accept Dogecoin payments for digital gift cards via BitPay Wallet. The Dogecoin community — notoriously passionate for adoption initiatives — tweeted in droves to advocate for the asset's integration within the theater's payment options. Following the successful endeavor, users can now purchase up to $200 worth of digital gift cards per day. These cards can then be redeemed by theater goers in cinemas across the United States. Aron was pleasantly surprised by the mass attention, reporting over 6 million views and 140,000 votes on his post, including distinguished Doge fanatics Elon Musk and Mark Cuban. He also claimed that the viral tweet was his “most retweeted, most replied, most liked tweet ever.” I si...

Ukrainian president returns virtual asset bill to parliament for revision

Volodymyr Zelensky did not object to the bill's fundamental principles, but opposed the idea of creating a new watchdog agency. Volodymyr Zelensky, president of Ukraine, has delayed the signing of the bill that would establish the nation’s regulatory framework around digital assets. The draft law, entitled “On virtual assets,” secured parliamentary approval on Sept. 8 . However, according to an Oct. 5 statement issued by the presidential office, Zelensky remitted the legislation back to the parliament alongside a number of proposed improvements. As per the statement, the president’s major objection to the legislation in its current shape is the costliness of establishing a new regulatory body for digital asset oversight: According to the legislation, regulation of the virtual assets market is to be carried out by various state bodies depending on the type of such assets, particularly by creating a new executive body. The creation of a new body, as provided by this law, will re...

US Senator Warren introduces bill to study crypto's role in ransomware

The Ransom Disclosure Act aims to help the Department of Homeland Security gather critical data on ransom payments in cryptocurrency and fiat. As cryptocurrency adoption continues apace in the United States, lawmakers want to better understand how it's used — for both legal and illegal purposes. The Ransom Disclosure Act, introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren and Congresswoman Deborah Ross, would require victims of ransomware attacks to disclose information about ransom payments to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The bill, introduced Oct. 5, aims to gather critical data on fiat and cryptocurrency payments and protect investors from cybercrimes. In an ongoing effort to curb illicit financial activities in the U.S., Sen. Warren’s legislation aims to develop “a fuller picture” of ransomware attacks: “My bill with Congresswoman Ross would set disclosure requirements when ransoms are paid and allow us to learn how much money cybercriminals are siphoning from American...

Indian crypto exchange CoinSwitch Kuber raises $260M

Valued at $1.9 billion, CoinSwitch Kuber has become the largest crypto company in India, CEO Ashish Singhal said. Major Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinSwitch Kuber is joining the unicorn club by raising $260 million in a Series C funding round. According to an official announcement on Oct. 6, the new funding has propelled CoinSwitch Kuber to the “very top” of Indian unicorns as the firm became “India’s most valued crypto company” at $1.91 billion. The funding round was led by Coinbase’s venture capital arm Coinbase Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz. Previous investors like Sequoia, Paradigm, Ribbit and Tiger Global have also participated in the round. Using the new funds, CoinSwitch Kuber plans to onboard 50 million Indians on the platform and introduce new services like lending and staking. The exchange also expects to launch an institutional-grade product as well as support more diverse investment options. Other planned initiatives include an innovation fund a crypto educati...

AMC Theatres debuts crypto payments for e-gift card purchases

The major American theater chain wants to let customers buy movie tickets with crypto by 2022. American cinema giant AMC Theatres is steadily approaching its goal of accepting cryptocurrency payments by year-end, now debuting crypto purchases for electronic gift cards. AMC customers can now buy digital gift cards with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin ( BTC ) directly through the AMC website, mobile app and theatres, CEO Adam Aron announced on Oct. 5. The new payment option was enabled through major crypto payment processor BitPay, allowing consumers to purchase e-cards of up to $200, Aron noted. The CEO paid special attention to Dogecoin ( DOGE ) among the digital assets accepted for AMC e-card purchases. Aron hinted in September that AMC will include DOGE in the list of cryptocurrencies accepted for tickets by the end of 2021. Aron had conducted a poll of 140,000 people on Twitter, asking the community whether AMC should accept DOGE payments for tickets. “It’s clear that you ...

Central Bank of Uruguay Describes Roadmap to Crypto Asset Regulation

The Central Bank of Uruguay has issued a statement describing a roadmap for the regulation of cryptocurrency assets in the near future. The institution stated it has established a group to examine the best way possible to regulate these assets, considering the realities of the crypto industry. Also, some modifications to current laws could be made to prepare for the upcoming regulation towards the end of the year. Central Bank of Uruguay Hints at Crypto Regulation The Central Bank of Uruguay has issued a statement about virtual assets where it roughly describes the roadmap the institution will follow in the process of regulating cryptocurrencies. The bank has already created a study group to examine how the crypto world functions, and taking this into account, it created a conceptual idea of how this market could soon be regulated. The institution also announced that during Q4 2021 it will be involved in talks with industry actors in the country with the objective of perfecting th...