roadrunner

The date of the launch of the Salvadoran bitcoin bonds, the instrument that would serve to build the announced Salvadoran Bitcoin City, is still unknown. Announced to be released earlier this year, the launch has been affected by the current war in Ukraine, and the deceleration of global markets. According to Treasury Minister Alejandro Zelaya, El Salvador is still waiting for favorable market conditions. Salvadoran Bitcoin Bonds Launch Date Unknown The government is reconsidering the launch date of its Salvadoran bitcoin bonds, whose funds are to be used to finance the construction of the Bitcoin City, a city that would feature a 0% income tax and be carbon-neutral due to the geothermal energy powering its operations. Alejandro Zelaya, El Salvador’s minister of treasury, explained that the market conditions and the war in Europe had affected the conditions to issue these bonds. In an interview on local TV, Zelaya stated: We are waiting for the right moment and the president says when… It depends on how the market is. The Salvadoran bitcoin bonds were expected to be launched during the first three months of the year, using the technology provided by Blockstream and its Liquid network. The country had advanced regulations for the issuance of these debt instruments since January. However, the announced issuance period passed, and the bonds were not issued. Zelaya also claimed there are other reasons affecting the issuance of the Salvadoran bitcoin bonds, like the sudden fall of the cryptocurrency market. This fall in the price of BTC could be making investors wary of putting money into these instruments. The minister referred to the launch back in March, stating conditions were not right for the issuance of the bonds at that time, and hinted at a possible future issuance in the months of May or June, mentioning September as the latest potential date for launch. Local Opinions on Bitcoin Bonds However, local economists have other opinions when it comes to the reasons why these bonds have not been issued. Tatiana Marroquin, a Salvadoran economist, stated to local media that there were contradictions in the government preventing the issuance of the bond to be completed. On the bitcoin price argument, she explained: Technically the price argument is not valid, if the price is low right now, people are hopeful that it will go up, take out a bitcoin bond that is worth 30 right now and that will be worth 60 at some point because it would be the biggest incentive for the investors. What do you think about the delay in the issuance of the Salvadoran bitcoin bonds? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

Known only as blocmates on Twitter, Grant is a crypto content creator that “your dad could understand,” and he specializes in DeFi which often has the most difficult kinds of crypto products to wrap your head around. He recently joined the Bitcoin.com News Podcast to talk about the market: Among the many interesting topics discussed this episode are the problems with the current DeFi ecosystem and some possible solutions, how to find good projects and what are the red flags to watch out for, can NFTs serve as a gateway to DeFi or not, and advice for newcomers how to get educated about DeFi. Grant also talked about how he transitioned from being a research scientist to a crypto researcher as blocmates came about and the challenges of breaking out as a content creator. The Bitcoin.com News podcast features interviews with the most interesting leaders, founders and investors in the world of Cryptocurrency, Decentralized Finance (DeFi), NFTs and the Metaverse. Follow us on iTunes, Spotify and Google Play. This is a sponsored podcast. Learn how to reach our audience here. Read disclaimer below. View the full article

A hacking group linked to the Anonymous collective has allegedly hit the popular Russian payment processor Qiwi. Network Battalion 65 announced on social media it had managed to gain access to the platform’s databases — a claim the company has denied. Anonymous Affiliate Hacks Russian Payment System Qiwi Hackers from Network Battalion 65 (NB65), a group linked to the decentralized hacktivist collective Anonymous, revealed in a recent tweet they had hacked Qiwi, which is a major provider of payment and financial services in the Russian Federation and other countries in the post-Soviet space. A message posted by the @xxNB65 Twitter account notes that the group, which includes the Qiwi payment system, Qiwi Bank, the Contact money transfer system, and other platforms, also offers the most widely used payment app in Russia — that being the main reason why it was targeted. The alleged perpetrators of the attack say they have encrypted Qiwi’s networks with a ransomware kit. NB65 also claims it has the credit card data of around 12.5 million of the company’s clients, as well as about 30 million payment records. “We will release 1 million records each day after your 3 day contract period has expired. You should probably reach out to us soon if you want your business to survive,” the hackers have warned, adding that if there’s someone to blame for the situation, that’s Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moscow launched a military assault on neighboring Ukraine in late February and Anonymous vowed to disrupt Russia’s internet space in response to the invasion. The group has since targeted the websites of the Kremlin, the State Duma, and the Defense Ministry, attacked Russian TV channels, and released millions of emails. In March, the collective said it had published 28GB of Bank of Russia documents. The authors of the NB65 tweet remark that Qiwi said in a recent press release the sanctions aimed at Russia’s financial system had not affected its business. Following the news of the Anonymous attack, Qiwi was quoted by Tass as stating that its payment services are operating normally and insisting its customers’ personal information was safe. Do you expect to see more hacking attempts targeting Russian payment platforms? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

Bentley University, the private university located in Waltham, Massachusetts, has revealed it now accepts digital currencies for tuition payments. Bentley University’s president explained that the school has been “at the forefront in preparing business leaders” and further remarked that the faculty is “proud to embrace” the same technology its students are learning about today. Bentley University Partners With Coinbase to Accept 3 Digital Currencies According to an announcement stemming from Bentley’s newsroom, the school of accounting and finance has partnered with Coinbase in order to give students and their families the ability to pay tuition with crypto. Bentley will accept three crypto assets including bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and usd coin (USDC). Bentley president E. LaBrent Chrite explained that the school founded 105 years ago is embracing a technology that may shift the traditional financial landscape entirely. “Bentley University is at the forefront in preparing business leaders with the skills and knowledge to succeed in the changing world economy,” the university president said in a statement. “We’re proud to embrace this technology that our students are learning about, which will soon transform the global business landscape they’re about to enter.” Bentley Scholar Says Students ‘Have a Real Interest in Knowing More About Blockchain’ Universities all around the world accept cryptocurrencies including the University of Cumbria in Carlisle, England, the Financial Business School in Paris, France, and the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Business School in Spain. Moreover, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland accepts crypto. In addition to Bentley University in Massachusetts, in the United States King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, accepts bitcoin as well, and the University of Pennsylvania accepts cryptocurrencies. Furthermore, the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) accepts crypto asset payments. The Bentley announcement further highlighted a student named Alex Kim who launched the Bentley Blockchain Association. “Students have a real interest in knowing more about blockchain, decentralized finance, and cryptocurrency investments,” said Kim in the press statement. “These technologies are influencing the industries where they will be working,” the Bentley student added. What do you think about the finance school Bentley University accepting cryptocurrency payments? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

According to a recently published study by Merchant Machine, mobile wallets are predicted to have 4.4 billion users by 2024. Merchant Machine’s findings show the global pandemic propelled the popularity of digital wallets and researchers expect the numbers to grow from 44.50% of the population in 2020 to 51.70% by 2024. Half the World’s Population Will Leverage Mobile Wallets in 2 Years, Study Says The use of mobile wallets has grown a great deal since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and a study published by Merchant Machine predicts growth will continue. The researchers note that since 2015, the total revenue generated by mobile wallet applications has tripled, and by 2022, it’s expected to be around $1,639.5 trillion. “The safety, security, and convenience of digital wallets, as well as the popularity of smartphones and general digitalisation of society, were among the main reasons for the popularity of this method,” Merchant Machine’s study details. Furthermore, the research explains the top mobile payment platforms in 2022. The top mobile wallet used worldwide today is Alipay with 650 million users and the second most popular is Wechat with 550 million users in 2022. Alipay and Wechat were followed by Apple Pay (507M), Google Pay (421M), and Paypal (377M). While credit cards, debit cards, bank transfers, and cash on delivery all dropped in use, buy now, pay later schemes increased alongside mobile wallet popularity. “Besides mobile wallets, the only method of payment that will see an increase in popularity among consumers is buy now, pay later schemes such as Klarna or Clearpay,” the study notes. “These methods are particularly popular among Millennials and Generation Z users due to the possibility of splitting the cost into monthly installments.” China Takes the Top Position in Terms of Adoption, Gartner Expects 20% of Enterprises to Use Digital Currencies by 2024 In terms of mobile wallet adoption, China ranked the highest percentage of digital or tap-to-pay contactless payments. China was followed by Denmark, India, South Korea, Sweden, the United States, and Canada. “The common usage of contactless payments in China is down to society utilising tech solutions in every aspect of their life,” the researchers explain. Merchant Machine’s researchers do not expect the growth to stop and by 2024, estimates expect 4.4 billion or roughly half of the global population will be using mobile wallet applications. The study’s findings are aligned with Gartner’s research that estimates 20% of enterprises or large corporate entities will use digital currencies for payments by 2024. What do you think about the expected growth of mobile wallet use by 2024? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. Singapore, May 3, 2022 – NFTs have disrupted the gaming industry with their unique benefits. It has been gaining popularity as many have welcomed the advent of play-to-earn (P2E) for considerable rewards, with also disquiet over the unwelcome intrusion of commerce into the escapist world of gaming. Web3 games are supposed to consist of two things people crave — entertainment and the possibility of making money, with the scales not tipping to either end. Shaking work-to-earn off from play-to-earn space is undoubtedly an urgent mission for all builders. Launched in 2022, ArchLoot intends to provide an ideal practice of blending playability and sustainability with profitability in the new era of GameFi 2.0. Using the lessons learned from play-to-earn development, the game has been balanced and enhanced, keeping the core elements of what made the P2E model attractive, while incorporating interactive NFT technology that could not be implemented in any other games before. Bridge UGC with NFTs ArchLoot is an adventurous RPG. User-generated content, in this case, users’ design of in-game avatars, is the heart of the game. Gamers can customize and battle with their very own monster. Over hundreds of mix-matchable parts (all NFTs), including torso, head, upper limb, lower limb, and accessories, make for endless customization options. The assembling happens in a particular “evolve” builder in the game. Here you can stretch, scale, and place these parts anywhere, and edit the color schemes anytime. Assembling the Monster It is worth mentioning that all NFT parts have different abilities, and collectible rare ones will particularly feature special attributes. Enhancing, strengthening, or recombining siloed parts is highly potential to unleash unexpected skills and buff. The top-equipped monsters that contain 10 parts are completely shifted around other creatures, and they should be expected on every team. Diverse gameplay, including PVE, PVP, and Clan Wars, blend an evolving challenging paradigm with P2E. In a creation-friendly community, gamers will be spearheading their gameplay preferences, including self-defined maps, cosmetics, and much more. New Technology Born for GameFi Limited by the flexibility of technology, user-initiated change is a long-held problem in current NFT games. When the metadata of an NFT exists in a “once written, immutable for life” manner, its value is actually pushed up by the interdiction between in-game content and the underlying data registry. Here comes ArchLoot. The game provides a land of creative freedom that allows instant user modification of in-game NFTs. Using EIP-4985 and BEP-129 protocols, every piece of metadata, particularly performance and attributes, will be logged on-chain when it goes into the marketplace, which records and protects the efforts of the gamer. More fundamentally, the new technology allows the creation of metadata in the form of numbers, which provides the possibility for NFTs to interact across different ecosystems and enriches the experience to a broader scope. With the aim of building a robust and sustainable ecosystem, ArchLoot has now finished the game development and internal testing, marching to the next phase of blind box sale and open beta testing. An editable, evolvable, and interoperable NFTgameplay is the inaugural exploration. Join ArchLoot now and be part of it. About ArchLoot Launched in 2022, ArchLoot is a UGC-P2E game. It provides the first interactive gameplay in the industry, which fully enables on-chain implementation of upgradeable characters/props NFTs and unleashes its potential for playability and user-generated content robustness. The game intends to build an ecosystem, including a great game and a creative community, that truly achieves a balance between playability, accessibility, and profitability. Gathering talents from the world’s leading gaming publisher, blockchain projects, and financial elites, the team is currently operating across continents and is instrumental in achieving long-term success. Official website: archloot.com News contact: contact@archloot.com This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

The crypto industry is lobbying U.S. lawmakers against two bills aimed at preventing Russian oligarchs from using cryptocurrency to avoid sanctions. The U.S. and many other countries placed sanctions on them after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. Bills Preventing Wealthy Russians From Using Crypto to Avoid Sanctions The Blockchain Association has been lobbying U.S. lawmakers against two bills designed to prevent Russian oligarchs from using cryptocurrency to evade sanctions imposed on them after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, CNBC reported last week. The first is a House bill titled “Russian Digital Asset Sanctions Compliance Act of 2022.” The other is a Senate bill sponsored by crypto skeptic Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) titled “Digital Asset Sanctions Compliance Enhancement Act of 2022.” The bills give the Biden administration the authority to prohibit U.S. crypto exchanges from processing payments from Russia. They would also allow U.S. authorities to sanction foreign exchanges process transactions by sanctioned Russian people or companies. The organization represents more than 70 crypto platforms, including AAVE, Anchorage Digital, Ava Labs, Bitdeer, Blockchain Capital, Blockfi, Brevan Howard, Chainalysis, Circle, Crypto.com, Digital Currency Group, Dragonfly Capital, Etoro, Grayscale, Kraken, Ripple, Silvergate, Solana, Terra, Voyager, and Wicklow Capital. The group is trying to convince lawmakers that cryptocurrency is not being used by wealthy Russians to avoid sanctions. Curtis Kincaid, a spokesperson for Blockchain Association, explained that the organization is trying to convince lawmakers to “separate fact from fiction on the inability of Russia to transfer large sums of money via crypto transactions in order to evade sanctions,” the publication conveyed. Lawyer Jake Chervinsky, policy head at the association, commented: These bills don’t target Russian oligarchs, who aren’t using (& can’t use) crypto to evade sanctions. They target upstanding US crypto companies for no apparent reason except Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s crusade against a technology she doesn’t understand. While some lawmakers are worried about the use of crypto to circumvent sanctions, many experts have said that crypto is not an effective tool for sanctions evasion. A U.S. Treasury official said in March: “We don’t see that crypto could be used in a large-scale way to evade sanctions.” What do you think about the legislation aimed at preventing Russian oligarchs from using crypto to evade sanctions? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

A panel of crypto industry experts has predicted that the price of ether will reach $5,783 this year, before rising to $11,764 by 2025 and $23,372 by 2030. Most of the experts on the panel are bullish on ether, with 61% saying now is the time to buy and a further 32% saying you should hodl. Industry Experts Share Ether Forecasts Price comparison portal Finder updated its price predictions for ether (ETH) with its latest quarterly survey last week. The company measures expert predictions for the future price of ether using weekly and quarterly surveys. The latest quarterly survey, conducted in April, “asks a panel of 36 industry experts for their thoughts on how ethereum will perform over the next decade,” Finder described. The expert panel expects ETH to be worth $5,783 by the end of 2022. At the time of writing, ETH is trading at $2,816, down 3.6% over the last seven days and almost 18.3% over the past 30 days. Citing the expert panel’s predictions, Finder detailed: Ethereum will jump from its current price of US$2,810 to US$5,783 by the end of 2022 … the price is expected to continue to rise going forward, hitting $11,764 by 2025 and $23,372 by 2030. “Compared to the results of the previous survey conducted in late 2021, our panel is now far more bearish on Ethereum long-term future, which may have a lot to do with its dip in value between now and the previous survey,” the company noted. “In January 2022 the panel had given an average prediction of $6,500 for the end of this year, 12% higher than their new prediction of $5,783.” Keegan Francis, Finder’s global cryptocurrency editor, commented: Ethereum is at a very uncertain place in its journey at the moment. It is currently losing Defi [decentralized finance] market share to its competitors. “Until Ethereum upgrades its systems and fulfills its promises to scale, I do not have long-term confidence in the network. That being said, I still think people will buy the token out of hype/promise/potential,” he added. Joseph Raczynski, technologist and futurist at Thomson Reuters, opined: “The Merge, an upgrade to Ethereum, should happen this summer. This could have an explosive effect on the token. People have been waiting for this for years. It should be far more secure, 99% more energy-efficient, and deflationary. If that isn’t the trifecta of potential, as a leading blockchain, I don’t know what would be.” Moreover, when asked about whether now is time to buy, hold, or sell ether, 61% said it is the time to buy and a further 32% said you should hodl. Just 6% said now is the time to sell. The experts on the panel include the COO of Okcoin, the co-founder of Coinmama, the CEO of Btblock, head economist of Consensys, the CEO of Delta Investment Tracker, the head of funds of Digitalx Asset Management, the founder of Origin Protocol, the CEO of Coinjar, a senior lecturer at the University of Canberra, an associate professor at Nottingham Trent University, and a director at the University of East London. What do you think about this ETH price prediction? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. Zug, Switzerland – 2nd May 2022. UniX Gaming is delighted to announce that they are now officially listed on MEXC, a top 20 exchange, following the announcement of their Final Round launchpad. This is the second CEX on which UniX has been listed, with several more planned for later this year. UniX token holders will be able to deposit their tokens in the MEXC wallet, and trading will begin at 2 p.m. UTC on May 2nd. MEXC users will be able to deposit, withdraw, and trade UniX tokens, providing token holders with a highly liquid exchange. “This is the second centralised exchange listing we’ve had this year, and we are so excited to announce more over the next several months. It has been a great year for us so far with our ‘Final Round’ launchpad in partnership with DAO Maker and SL2 Capital having just been announced. We are extremely grateful for our community’s support so far, and we’re excited to share more soon,” stated Mirko Basil Doelger, the co-founder and CEO of Unix Gaming. MEXC is a well-known cryptocurrency exchange that is often regarded as a good starting point for beginner crypto investors. MEXC is one of the top 20 exchanges in the world, allowing the UniX token to be seen by millions of people, enhancing adoption and long-term value. Sign up to MEXC here for a 10% discount on trading fees. About MEXC Global Established in April 2018, MEXC Global is a digital asset trading platform with more than 7 million users, which offers users one-stop services, including spot, margin, leveraged ETFs, derivatives trading and staking services. The core members of the team come from international enterprises and financial companies and have experience in blockchain and financial industries. About UniX Gaming As one of the early adopters in the P2E space, UniX launched in June 2021 with a different approach to gaming by combining the fun of gaming to help people in developing countries. Through their use of emerging play-to-earn models, UniX provides scholarships to players from less developed countries, as well as through their upcoming play-to-earn game. UniX’s scholarships have created the biggest gaming community, or guild, worldwide with more than 190,000 members since June 2021. For more information, visit UniX Gaming: Website | Medium | Discord | Telegram | Twitter Media Contact: Dina Mattar Founder & CEO DVerse dina@d-verse.io This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

Wikipedia has decided to stop accepting cryptocurrency donations after eight years of doing so. The decision is based on the request by the Wikimedia community citing “issues of environmental sustainability” as a key reason. Wikipedia Discontinues Accepting Bitcoin, Crypto Donations Wikimedia Foundation has announced its decision to “discontinue direct acceptance of cryptocurrency as a means of donating.” The foundation began accepting bitcoin in July 2014. “The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia and our other free knowledge projects,” its website details. Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia with over 200K volunteer contributors, according to the foundation. The organization posted an update on its Wikipedia page on May 1, stating: We began our direct acceptance of cryptocurrency in 2014 based on requests from our volunteers and donor communities. We are making this decision based on recent feedback from those same communities. “Specifically, we will be closing our Bitpay account, which will remove our ability to directly accept cryptocurrency as a method of donating,” the update continues. Molly White, a Wikipedia editor, explained Sunday that the decision came out of a three-month-long discussion which she started on Jan. 10. The discussion wrapped up on April 12. “400 users participated in total, though some were single-purpose accounts created just for the discussion (mostly to try to sway the RfC [Request for Comments] against making this request),” she noted. The Wikimedia community’s request for comments page explains that common arguments in support of stopping accepting crypto donations include “issues of environmental sustainability, that accepting cryptocurrencies constitutes implicit endorsement of the issues surrounding cryptocurrencies, and community issues with the risk to the movement’s reputation for accepting cryptocurrencies.” On the other hand, common arguments in opposition of stopping accepting crypto donations include ”the existence of less energy-intensive cryptocurrencies (proof-of-stake), that cryptocurrencies provide safer ways to donate and engage in finance for people in oppressive countries, and that fiat currencies also have issues with environmental sustainability.” According to the results: Excluding new accounts and unregistered users, the tally is 232 to 94, or 71.17% in support of the proposal … Thus, the Wikimedia community requests that the Wikimedia Foundation stop accepting cryptocurrency donations. What do you think about Wikipedia discontinuing accepting crypto donations? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Shaun Maguire, a crypto partner of Sequoia Capital, one of the venture capital firms most active when it comes to investments in the cryptocurrency space, issued its opinion on the future of many VCs investing in crypto. To him, many of the companies that are now experimenting with crypto investments will “pull back” due to market conditions and a misunderstanding of crypto as an investment. Sequoia Partner Not Optimistic About VCs Entering Crypto Shaun Maguire, a cryptocurrency partner in Sequoia Capital, one of the most active VC firms in the crypto sector, is not very optimistic about the future of other venture capital companies in the area. Maguire, who specializes in companies in the tech and crypto sectors that are either in seed or early investing stages, stated in a recent podcast that other firms that are now entering the crypto space are going to “pull back” on these investments when the markets get less frothy. However, he stated that Sequoia will not fall in this category due to the way in which these investments are made in the firm. According to Maguire, the company has “permanent intentions” when it comes to its investments in the sector. Maguire explained: Sequoia is very deliberate with everything we do and we spend huge amounts of time debating every strategy change, everything, we debate every seed investment to sometimes excruciating detail, but it helps us make really good decisions and make decisions as a team rather than as individuals. The firm, which has already invested in several companies in the sector like Polygon, launched a $500- $600 million fund in February to invest in “liquid” crypto assets as a complement to its other investments to “participate more actively in protocols” and “better support token-only projects.” Misunderstanding Crypto This abandonment of crypto investments will also be caused by other elements. According to Maguire, there is a fundamental misunderstanding of what crypto and Web3 might offer as new technologies, with some investors touting decentralization as a ”silver bullet.” Maguire declared: Decentralization is not a silver bullet that just solves all problems and is better for everything. You know for the vast majority of compute, you want it to be centralized. The influx that blockchain-based companies have gotten from venture capital funds has been massive, being fueled by the interest that the market has developed by NFTs, Web3, and metaverse as trends this year. Just in Q1, $30 billion were invested in fintech and crypto startups by VC companies. What do you think about Sean Maguire’s take on the future of some VC investments in crypto? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

Transient is thrilled to present to users Splash, a decentralised hub for prediction pools covering all possible outcomes across a huge range of industries and opportunities—featuring in the first version: Crypto, Esports and Sports—all powered by Transient’s ecosystem of smart contracts. Splash comes to disrupt the prediction markets bringing the decentralisation and fun to the users side. Let’s be clear: Splash is not a regular bookmaker taking advantage of high-prices to make a margin for profit. From its beginning Transient believes in empowering the community as a cornerstone. On Splash all the information needed is in front of you, check contracts, transactions, prize pools and more. Your destiny is in your hands, you decide what’s the most fair and fun way to make some crypto by using your wisdom and predicting results; or create a pool and the more entries the better. Every entry increases the overall pool and your chance to take home some well-deserved TSCT. Always with the Transient standards UI and UX just to make it even more simple and beautiful for you to join. Let’s breakdown how Splash is presented on three major platforms for you to enjoy: Splash Crypto – LIVE NOW Replacing ‘CryptoPool’, Splash for Crypto is Transient’s platform of price predictions for your favourite projects and their tokens. Join your friends and the crypto community to test your abilities and earn some TSCT in the massive pools available. Predict the price of cryptocurrencies on quick pools, weekly and monthly candle closes or even guess if its a bull or a bear market. Via coinmarketcap and another Chainlink integration, Splash Crypto takes the price prediction market to a new level. Dive into the Splash pools to get some TSCT prizes and climb the Leaderboard. Can you reach the top? Splash Esports – COMING MAY 2022 Splash for Esports is your Web3 hub of prediction pools for thousands of professional tournaments and matches across your favourite titles, like DOTA2, CS:GO and League of Legends. On Splash Esports you can actually watch the live stream of the match while challenging your friends in a private pool or defying the whole world to make some TSCT, how awesome is it? Using Transient’s native token you can create your own pools or join someone featuring thousands of outcomes available across every stat on each game. Thinking about going head-to-head with that sitting duck friend? Go for it using the PvP feature. With an oracle integration with Chainlink and a data provider like Gamescorekeeper, Splash Esports is the perfect combination to seize the fun of the Esports World. Splash Sports – COMING JUNE 2022 Splash for Sports is your Web3 home of prediction pools for thousands of professional tournaments and matches across your favourite sports. Do you think you know Football and have already picked the World Cup champion or have an inside tip for that next MMA fight? Create a pool to compete with a friend or open it up to the community to make that prize pool sing. You can also find that miraculous opportunity in the pools created by the community and take your shot at the prize. Test your knowledge across the most famous leagues, teams and players to predict the outcomes and achieve glory. You think you know the crypto market, the next Dota2 Internationals winner or who is going to take home the World Cup? All of these Big Events will be featured. Splash is all about fun, you don’t want to miss the incredible features in an astonishing experience through all of these options. We are waiting for you to join us. Get your TSCT and prepare to have fun & earn, and don’t forget to keep an eye on our socials to know more about Splash by Transient, an exciting CEX listing in the month of May and an updated roadmap which includes some big ticket items to give the best multi chain swap experience out there. Find us: Jump into Splash | More about Transient This is a sponsored post. Learn how to reach our audience here. Read disclaimer below. View the full article

Telegram users can now send and receive toncoin directly within the application’s chats, according to a tweet by The Open Network (TON) Foundation. In addition to the toncoin support, users can also purchase bitcoin via the software’s bot system. TON Foundation Reveals Telegram Toncoin Support, Users Can Purchase Bitcoin via Bot The ability to send and receive cryptocurrency using Telegram is now possible using the TON Foundation’s toncoin. Sending digital currencies via third-party applications tethered to Telegram was possible before. However, this is the first time toncoin will be available since Telegram settled with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June 2020. The SEC filed a case against Telegram in October 2019 over the toncoin project. On Twitter, the TON Foundation said: “You can now send toncoin directly within Telegram chats. It’s a new way to send Toncoin without transaction fees to any Telegram user. With this service, you’ll no longer need to enter long wallet addresses and wait for confirmations.” While users can send and receive toncoin, they can also purchase BTC using the wallet bot system. Telegram dropped the TON project in August 2020, but in April the community raised $1 billion to further the project’s goals. The TON Foundation has moved into the arena of decentralized finance (defi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as well. Just recently, the foundation announced the launch of Disintar.io, a TON-based NFT marketplace. “On Disintar.io, users can buy, sell, and list NFTs without having any technical knowledge,” the TON Foundation explained. Toncoin saw an all-time high (ATH) on November 12, 2021, six months ago reaching $5.29 per unit. Since then toncoin’s USD value has slid 64.8% lower than the ATH. Today, toncoin is exchanging hands for $1.86 per unit and has seen around $2,746,626 in daily trade volume. What do you think about toncoin being integrated into Telegram so users can send and receive the crypto asset? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Digital currency markets have been tumultuous during the past month as bitcoin shed 15.43% and ethereum dropped 17.49% against the U.S. dollar. Moreover, crypto spot volumes are down 18.95% lower than the month prior, and both futures and options volumes were down in April as well. Lower than average trade volumes typically suggest overall interest has declined, and investors may be waiting on the sidelines for lower prices. April’s Crypto Market Spot Volumes Slip Close to 19% Lower Than Last Month The crypto economy ended the month of April in the red, as most digital assets suffered losses during the last few weeks. At the time of writing, all ten of the top crypto assets are down significantly as they lost between 10.39% to 31.43% during the trailing 30 days. Metrics further indicate that April’s cryptocurrency exchange volumes dropped 18.95% lower than in March. As of May 1, 2022, bitcoin lost 15.43%, ethereum dropped 17.49%, BNB slipped by 10.39%, solana slid 31.43%, and XRP lost 25.27% over the last 30 days. Trailing 30 day data indicates that terra is under 27.66%, cardano dropped 31.39%, but dogecoin only shed 3.46% this past month. Statistics show that during the month of March, $739.4 billion in trade volume was recorded, in terms of overall crypto spot market volume. April’s spot volume, according to the Block’s Legitimate Index and Crypto Compare metrics, came in at $599.22 billion. 30 Day Crypto Derivatives Volume Slide, Dex Volumes Slip, NFT Sales Increased by 64% The same can be said for crypto derivatives markets as data indicates April saw $1.06 trillion in bitcoin futures volume, while $1.32 trillion was recorded in March. April’s statistics, in terms of bitcoin futures open interest, are lower during the past 30 days as well. Today, there is $14.58 billion in futures open interest, and a month ago there was $16.59 billion in bitcoin futures open interest. Bitcoin options volume from Deribit, CME, Okex, Bit.com, Ledgerx, FTX, and Huobi was lower in April than the month prior. In March, there was $20.77 billion in bitcoin options volume, while April’s bitcoin options volume saw $15.81 billion. Furthermore, the recent defi report covered by Bitcoin.com News indicates that April’s decentralized exchange (dex) trade volumes were 21% less than in March. In March dex trade volume was $117 billion, while April’s dex trade volume recorded $92.18 billion. Non-fungible token (NFT) sales, on the other hand, saw a 39.25% increase during the last seven days, which bumped NFT sales over the last month up 64.44%. Moonbirds was the top-selling NFT collection this past month with $492 million in global sales. What do you think about the crypto market action during the last 30 days? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The revenues accrued by the Ethereum network rose by 46% from $1.6 billion to $2.4 billion during the first quarter of 2022. Contributing to the growth in the network’s revenues were non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace sales, which rose by more than 19,000% during the period under review. ETH Inflation Rate Drops to 0.51% Ethereum’s revenues rose by 46% from $1.6 billion to $2.4 billion during the first quarter of 2022, a new report by Bankless has said. According to the report, about 87% or $2.1 billion of this revenue was removed from the ETH’s circulating supply through the burning mechanism. The token burning mechanism was made possible by the network’s EIP-1559 upgrade that was carried out in August 2021. As a consequence of this token burning process, the ETH network’s inflation rate — a metric that measures the net change in the supply of ethereum tokens — dropped from 1.10% to 0.51% during Q1. In terms of the average of daily active addresses, the report states that these rose from 507,662 to 529,018. On the other hand, the number of staked ETH grew from 5.2 million to 10.9 million, a 111% increase. Concerning this metric, the report said: This represents the number of ETH staked on the Beacon Chain ahead of Ethereum’s transition from utilizing a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism to proof-of-stake (PoS). Approximately 9.2% of the total ETH supply is staked in anticipation of ‘The Merge.’ NFT Volumes Surge Meanwhile, the Bankless report revealed that non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace volumes rose by an astronomical 19,290% from about $606.3 million to $116.4 billion. Only the trading volumes of the “two largest generalized NFT marketplaces” namely Opensea and Looksrare. During the period under review, there “were 226,176 unique wallets to either buy or sell an NFT.” With respect to the number of wallet addresses which held an ERC721 token — the token standard used to issue NFTs — the report said these rose 306% from 981,315 to 3.98 million. In terms of the floor price of Cryptopunks — a metric that tracks the lowest price at which the uniquely generated character is sold — the report revealed that this rose by 513% from 17.42 ETH to 106.87 ETH. Concerning the floor price of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), the report said: “While it launched in Q2 2021, the floor price of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), the most expensive profile-picture NFT collection by this metric, ended the quarter at 108.93 ETH which was worth ~$351,000 based on prices at the time.” What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us what you think about the subject in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. NFTs are not a temporary trend. NFTs are here to stay. Although analysts are still in the process of realizing the full potential that the technology behind ‘Non-fungible tokens’ offers, much is already clear. Beyond being used to certify the authenticity of artwork, the applicability of NFT technology extends to many other fields and harbors some natural synergies with the next generation of gaming. Battle Borgz is on top of this trend. Battle Borgz are developing a unique NFT-based PvP and PvE battle game built on the Cardano ecosystem, promising gamers an experience that not only rewards enthusiasts with countless hours of engaging gameplay but also an opportunity to earn some passive income on the side. Traditionally, the relationship between the gamers and the developers has been one-sided – customers enjoy the experience while developers monetize their playtime. Battle Borgz is different. By drawing on the blockchain and NFT technology which has enabled the development of play-to-earn projects, Battle Borgz has created a unique and rewarding gaming experience. After randomly minting their unique cyborg NFTs, gamers can battle against other players in a variety of ranked game modes against other players or NPCs – all while earning $BORGZ simply through gameplay. Because it puts its players first, Battle Borgz is able to make sure that everyone involved benefits from their playtime through enjoyable experience and opportunities to earn some passive income from their newly minted NFT assets. Battle Borgz Website | Twitter | Discord Public sale on KICK.IO Battle Borgz priority IDO round will kick off on May 2nd, 17:00 GMT. Many early project backers have already sent inquiries our way, so be sure to participate early! IDO Details Ticker: BORGZ KYC: No Payment options: ADA Priority Public Sale (24 hours before) Price: 0.0000007 ADA Start: May 2nd (17:00 GMT) End: May 3rd (17:00 GMT) Available supply: 20,000,000,000 Requirement to participate: 10,000 KICK staked in a locked pool Requirement to endorse: 10,000 KICK staked in a locked pool Public Sale Price: 0.0000008 ADA Start: May 3rd (17:00 GMT) End: May 9th (17:00 GMT) Available supply: 50,000,000,000 Requirement to endorse: 10,000 KICK staked in a locked pool About KICK.IO KICK.IO is a Cardano-based fundraising platform and project accelerator, designed to provide transparent, efficient, and fully decentralized crowdfunding services. KICK.IO is set to mature into a cornerstone of the new Cardano-dominated DeFi landscape, becoming the place where Cardano’s extensive community can come together to fund projects characterized by the immense potential for future success. Our next-generation decentralized launchpad will be built according to the best DeFi industry practices, ensuring real-time settlement, top-notch security, interoperability, true decentralization, zero counterparty risk, while also being fully scalable to meet the needs of institutional investors. Unlike our competitors, we offer full support of Cardano native tokens and a suite of advanced DeFi tools that upcoming projects need to thrive and prosper. Twitter | Telegram | Medium | Website This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release. View the full article

Samsung Group’s investment arm is reportedly set to list a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) on the Hong Kong Exchange during the first half of this year. The ETF will have a structure which is similar to that of BLOK, one of Amplify Holdings’s ETF products. Samsung Asset Management’s Stake in Amplify Holdings Samsung Asset Management Company (SAMC) is expected to list a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) on the Hong Kong Exchange during the first half of 2022, the parent company Samsung Group has said. The listing of an ETF, which tracks cryptocurrency and blockchain technology companies, will be a first for Asia one report has said. The ETF listing is expected to occur in the first half of 2022 comes a few weeks after SAMC reportedly acquired 20% of the stake in Amplify Holding Company, a U.S. ETF sponsor. As part of a $30 million acquisition agreement with Amplify Holding, Samsung Group’s investment arm will have exclusive rights to provide Amplify products in Asia. The U.S. ETF sponsor, which is famed for its ETF products such as BLOK, or Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF, is thought to invest “at least 80% of its net assets in equity securities of blockchain companies.” As per the report, the asset manager’s ETF will have a structure that is identical to that of BLOK. No Plans to List on Korean Stock Market Some of the blockchain companies where Amplify Holding has invested include Silvergate Capital, the graphics processing unit (GPU) producer Nvidia, Galaxy Digital Holdings and Coinbase. According to The Korea Economic Daily report, the asset manager is planning to brand the ETF under its name. The report also revealed that SAMC may not be listing the ETF of the South Korean stock market anytime soon due to the country’s cryptocurrency regulations. The report states, however, that the asset manager is considering listing some of Amplify’s other ETFs in the Korean as well as overseas markets. What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

Shark Tank star Mark Cuban has come up with a way to solve Twitter’s spam problem using the meme cryptocurrency dogecoin (DOGE). Tesla and Spacex CEO Elon Musk agrees that it is “not a bad idea.” Twitter recently accepted Musk’s buyout offer. Elon Musk Optimistic About Mark Cuban’s Dogecoin Idea Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been discussing on Twitter how to solve the platform’s spam bot problem. He has promised to solve the spam problem “or die trying.” Twitter agreed to sell the company to Musk for about $44 billion last week. One suggestion came from American billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban. He is a star in the business reality television series Shark Tank and the owner of the NBA team Dallas Mavericks. In a tweet early Sunday morning, Cuban suggested that everyone puts up one dogecoin (DOGE) for unlimited posts on Twitter. If anyone flags a post as spam and a human confirms that it is, that person gets the spammer’s DOGE. He further explained that spammers have to post 100 times more dogecoin. However, if the post is not spam, the flagger loses his dogecoin. At the time of writing, Cuban’s tweet has been liked more than 9K times. Dogecoin co-creator Billy Markus said, “I like this.” Musk replied, “Not a bad idea.” Many dogecoin supporters think that Cuban’s suggestion is a good idea, noting that it is very bullish for DOGE. However, some people are skeptical about its viability, with some questioning the requirement to start paying for what is currently a free service and forcing people to use the meme cryptocurrency as collateral to prevent spamming. Some people raised the issue of unscrupulous users gaming the system for profit. One Twitter user replied to Cuban: “Nah. You didn’t think this through. How do you deal with dishonest actors flagging spam that isn’t and humans confirming it is spam just to get the ‘spammers’ dog coin?” The Tesla boss has promised to make “significant improvements” to Twitter. He called crypto spam bots the “single most annoying problem on Twitter.” Prior to the social media giant accepting his buyout offer, he said if his Twitter bid succeeds, he “will defeat the spam bots or die trying.” Both Musk and Cuban have been pro-dogecoin. Musk is often called the Dogefather. In August last year, the two said that dogecoin is the “strongest” cryptocurrency for payments. Cuban’s NBA team, the Dallas Mavericks, accepts DOGE for merchandise and the Shark Tank star has also been encouraging people to get into crypto via dogecoin. What do you think about Mark Cuban’s idea to use dogecoin to fight spam on Twitter? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett says he won’t buy all the bitcoin in the world for $25. Meanwhile, his longtime business partner and right-hand man, Charlie Munger, says bitcoin is stupid and evil, noting that the cryptocurrency makes him look bad. Warren Buffett Explains Why He Won’t Buy Bitcoin Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger talked about bitcoin during Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholders meeting Saturday. Buffett is Berkshire’s CEO and chairman of the board. Munger, often known as his right-hand man, is the company’s vice chairman of the board. The Oracle of Omaha, famous for saying bitcoin is “probably rat poison squared,” explained in some detail why he would not buy BTC. He said: Whether it goes up or down in the next year, or five or 10 years, I don’t know. But the one thing I’m pretty sure of is that it doesn’t produce anything … It’s got a magic to it and people have attached magics to lots of things. Buffett gave some examples. He would pay $25 billion for a 1% interest in all the farmland in the United States. He would also pay $25 billion for a 1% interest in all the apartment houses in the country. “I would write you a check this afternoon,” he affirmed. However, when it comes to buying bitcoin, he detailed: Now if you told me you own all of the bitcoin in the world and you offered it to me for $25, I wouldn’t take it because what would I do with it? I’d have to sell it back to you one way or another. It isn’t going to do anything. Unlike bitcoin, “The apartments are going to produce rent and the farms are going to produce food,” he stressed. The Berkshire boss proceeded to discuss the U.S. dollar. “Assets, to have value, have to deliver something to somebody. And there’s only one currency that’s accepted. You can come up with all kinds of things — we can put up Berkshire coins … but in the end, this is money,” he added, holding up a $20 bill. “And there’s no reason in the world why the United States government … is going to let Berkshire money replace theirs.” Buffett, however, invests in bitcoin-friendly digital bank Nubank, which offers BTC investments. Charlie Munger Says Bitcoin Is Stupid, Evil, and Makes Him Look Foolish Munger also reiterated his harsh stance on bitcoin Saturday. The Berkshire vice chairman shared: In my life, I try and avoid things that are stupid and evil and make me look bad in comparison to somebody else — and bitcoin does all three. “In the first place, it’s stupid because it’s still likely to go to zero,” Munger continued. “It’s evil because it undermines the Federal Reserve system … and third, it makes us look foolish compared to the Communist leader in China. He was smart enough to ban bitcoin in China.” The Berkshire vice chairman also mentioned bitcoin in reply to a question about what single investment should one put money in as a safeguard against high inflation. He said: When you have your own retirement account, and your friendly adviser suggests you put all the money into bitcoin, just say ‘no.’ Munger has repeatedly slammed bitcoin. In February, he said that the government should ban the cryptocurrency, calling it a “venereal disease.” He has praised China several times in the past for banning cryptocurrency, stating that he wished crypto has never been invented. In May last year, he said that bitcoin was “disgusting and contrary to the interest of civilization.” What do you think about the comments by Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

The government of Uzbekistan has moved to expand its crypto regulations through a decree signed by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev. The document provides definitions for terms like crypto assets, exchange, and mining, and determines the main regulatory body for the industry. Agency Under President Mirziyoyev to Oversee Crypto Market in Uzbekistan Uzbekistan’s head of state, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, has signed a new decree expanding the regulatory framework for the Central Asian nation’s crypto space. Its stated goal is to further develop digital technologies, create favorable conditions for entrepreneurship and improve the legislation in this sphere. The National Agency for Project Management under the president has been transformed into National Agency for Perspective Projects, Forklog reported, quoting the document. The NAPP will become the country’s main crypto watchdog. The regulatory body has been tasked to implement the state policy in the crypto economy and ensure investors’ rights are protected. It will also take charge of introducing blockchain technologies to the public sector and combatting money laundering, terrorist financing and weapons proliferation through cryptocurrencies. The decree defines crypto assets as property rights representing a collection of digital records in a distributed ledger that have value and owner. Starting from Jan. 1, 2023, Uzbekistan’s citizens and companies will be allowed to buy, sell and exchange cryptocurrencies through crypto service providers. The President’s order lists a number of entities that fall under this category, including digital asset exchanges, mining pools, crypto depositories, and crypto stores. They will be required to register as local businesses and obtain licenses or mining certificates from the government agency. Uzbekistan legalized crypto trading in 2018 but in late 2019 the government banned local residents from purchasing cryptocurrencies. They could only sell. In November, 2021, citizens were allowed to trade crypto assets for national currency on licensed domestic crypto exchanges while non-residents were permitted to exchange digital coins for foreign fiat. Decree Bans Unauthorized Mining, Minting of ‘Anonymous’ Cryptos Only registered firms will be able to mine cryptocurrency in Uzbekistan. Mining farms will pay a higher electricity tariff during peak hours of consumption. Unauthorized mining will be prohibited. The ban applies to the minting of what the decree calls “anonymous cryptocurrencies” as well and any transactions with them. Just as before, Uzbekistanis will not be permitted to use or accept cryptocurrencies as a means of payment for goods and services within the country. On the positive side though, crypto-related transactions of individuals and companies will not be subject to taxation, according to the document dated April 27, 2022. Tax breaks will also be provided to participants in a new regulatory sandbox that the NAPP will establish to pilot crypto projects. The entities involved in the trials will also be exempt from other obligations to the state budget, including customs payments other than the duties for imported hardware and software. What are your thoughts on Uzbekistan’s new crypto regulations? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

While Ethereum users participating in the Otherside metaverse land sale caused network fees to rise and created issues for the blockchain explorer Etherscan, it overshadowed Solana’s blockchain network outage. It seems a flood of inbound transactions on Saturday caused Solana’s mainnet to lose consensus for roughly seven hours. Solana’s Mainnet Loses Consensus for 7 Hours The Solana proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchain network suffered another outage after a significant amount of transactions flooded the network. Solana’s PoS network has had difficulties in the past, as block production stalled for hours in mid-September 2021. Solana’s network outage was confirmed on Twitter. “Block production on Solana Mainnet Beta has halted. Validator operators should prepare for a restart in mb-validators on Discord,” the Twitter account called Solana Status said. “Validator operators across the ecosystem are working to finalize restart instructions for Mainnet Beta.” The outage on Saturday follows the statements made by one of the project’s co-founders, Anatoly Yakovenko, who said Bitcoin’s consensus algorithm should change to PoS. “If [Bitcoin] eventually doesn’t switch to proof-of-stake nobody is going to use it,” the Solana co-founder explained in an interview. During the outage, Yakovenko’s recent Bitcoin PoS commentary was mocked and one individual wrote: “Eventually if Solana doesn’t have consistent uptime, nobody is going to use it.” After seven hours, Solana Status updated the public about the downtime and a network restart. “Validator operators successfully completed a cluster restart of Mainnet Beta at 3:00 AM UTC, following a roughly 7-hour outage after the network failed to reach consensus,” the Twitter account wrote. “Network operators and dapps will continue to restore client services over the next several hours.” Solana’s development team had to issue cluster restart instructions and published a document about how to start the process. During the first week of January 2022, Solana’s development team formally acknowledged that “high compute transactions” were “reducing network capacity.” Mainnet Beta Validators: Please follow the cluster restart instructions https://t.co/OSDKJZafeS — Solana Status (@SolanaStatus) May 1, 2022 While Solana has had issues with a flood of transactions and long-lasting outages, since January 3, 2009, Bitcoin (BTC) has a network uptime percentage rating of around 99.98734244113%. What do you think about Solana’s blockchain losing consensus for seven hours after being flooded by a large quantity of transactions? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

While the crypto economy shed billions this week, the total value locked (TVL) in decentralized finance protocols slipped under the $200 billion range to $196.6 billion. The TVL in defi lost roughly 3.16% during the last day, and the $592 billion in smart contract protocol tokens dropped in value by 3.5% over the last 24 hours. Defi TVL Slips Below $200 Billion, Numerous Protocols Shed Billions, Dex Trade Volume Dives The value locked in defi has slipped under the $200 billion mark for the first time since March 16, 2022. At the time of writing the total value locked (TVL) is roughly $196.6 billion, down 3.16% during the last 24 hours. All ten of the top defi protocols, except for Anchor, have seen significant 30-day TVL percentage declines. Curve Finance is down 11.74%, Lido has lost 13.73%, Makerdao shed 16.81%, and Convex Finance has lost 10.59% since last month. The biggest loser during the last 30 days is the Aave Protocol which lost 21.98% since last month. Curve Finance is the leading defi protocol as it dominates by 9.56% with today’s TVL of around $18.8 billion. The TVL held on Ethereum-based defi protocols still rules the roost today with 55.55% dominance or $109.21 billion today. Terra blockchain is the second largest in terms of defi TVL with 14.36% of the $196.6 billion. Terra’s TVL today equates to $28.23 billion and $16.48 billion resides in Anchor. Behind Ethereum and Terra, in terms of defi TVL size, includes blockchains such as BSC ($12.04B), Avalanche ($9.38B), and Solana ($6.09B). The top five defi protocols, in terms of defi TVL size, includes Curve, Lido, Anchor, Makerdao, and Convex Finance. Terra’s Anchor Protocol saw a 30 day TVL increase of around 4.15% last month. Aave version three (v3) saw a significant increase during the last 30 days despite the original shedding 21.98%. Aave v3 has a TVL today of around $1.38 billion, up 2,711% since last month. Statistics show that on Saturday, May 1, 2022, there’s 428 decentralized exchange (dex) platforms with a combined TVL of around ​​$61.44 billion. There’s also 142 defi lending protocols with $48.87 billion total value locked. Data further shows that dex trade volume dropped during the month of April. In March dex volume was around $117 billion and statistics show that April’s dex trade volume was only around $92.18 billion. What do you think about the value locked in defi slipping below the $200 billion range this week? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

On Saturday, the creators of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), Yuga Labs, revealed the Otherside metaverse virtual land sale which turned out to be one of the largest non-fungible token (NFT) mints to date. The Otherside metaverse virtual land sale raised close to $320 million by selling 55,000 parcels of Otherside land. Otherside Metaverse Sees $320 Million Raised, Ether Fees Spike, Etherscan Crashes The Otherside metaverse virtual land sale took place on Saturday, and a great deal of people purchased Ethereum-based NFTs dubbed “Otherdeeds.” Demand for the Otherside metaverse deeds propelled ethereum (ETH) fees upwards, causing the average ether gas fee to rise dramatically. When the sale finished, 55,000 Otherdeeds were sold and the project raised close to $320 million from the sale. The BAYC collection’s creators Yuga Labs wrote about the mint after it was completed and discussed some of the network issues that took place. “We know that the Otherdeed mint was unprecedented in its size as a high-demand NFT collection, and that would bring with it unique challenges,” the team wrote. “The hope was that those challenges would be assuaged via a rigorous gating mechanism in the form of an on-chain KYC, a max mint of 2 per KYC’d wallet, and a significant clearing price at 305 Apecoin.” However, the on-chain KYC did not curb demand and virtual land plots started selling immediately after at 9 p.m. (ET) on Saturday. Ethereum fees leveraged to mint the non-fungible tokens cost roughly $166.2 million or 60,234 ETH. Furthermore, the mint saw so much demand it crashed the blockchain explorer Etherscan. “This has been the largest NFT mint in history by several multiples, and yet the gas used during the mint shows that demand far exceeded anyone’s wildest expectations,” Yuga Labs said. “The scale of this mint was so large that Etherscan crashed.” The BAYC creators further added: We’re sorry for turning off the lights on Ethereum for a while. It seems abundantly clear that Apecoin will need to migrate to its own chain in order to properly scale. We’d like to encourage the DAO to start thinking in this direction. After explaining that Apecoin needs to leverage a different blockchain, Yuga Labs mentioned that the team was aware some users had failed transactions during the sale. “For those of you affected, we appreciate your willingness to build alongside us – know that we’ve got your back and will be refunding your gas,” Yuga Labs concluded. At the time of writing, secondary Otherside NFT sales have been live for over six hours now on Opensea’s NFT marketplace. The Otherdeed collection’s floor value today is 7.88 ether or $21,754 USD, at the time of writing. What do you think about the massive Otherside metaverse land sale that took place on Saturday evening? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Eurozone’s monetary authority, the Eurosystem, is looking to enlist financial companies willing to develop front-end solutions for the digital euro. The plan is to carry out a “prototyping exercise” this year to test transactions to the back-end developed by the regulator. Eurosystem to Select Front-End Providers for Digital Euro Project Within the ongoing investigation into the possible issuance of a digital euro currency, the Eurosystem intends to conduct an experiment which will, among other objectives, test end-to-end transactions with the central bank digital currency (CBDC), the European Central Bank (ECB) announced before the weekend. The authority, which consists of the ECB and the central banks of the eurozone members, is looking for parties interested in offering front-end prototypes for the trials. Transactions will start at their front-end prototype and will be processed through the interface into the back-end, both developed by the Eurosystem. Payment service providers, banks, and other relevant companies have been invited to participate as front-end providers of technical solutions designed to facilitate digital euro payments. The deadline for their applications is May 20. The prototyping exercise is scheduled to start in August and may continue until the first quarter of 2023. The goal is to gather a pool of front-end providers with which the Eurosystem will cooperate in the development of user-facing prototypes, the announcement detailed. The authority will invite potential participants to explain the use cases for their prototypes. A limited number of providers, up to five the Eurosystem said, will then be selected. They will sign contracts with the financial authorities of the eurozone and will be expected to organize the prototype development. Throughout the process, the providers will be able to share their feedback on the Eurosystem interface and back-end infrastructure, including by presenting specific data requirements to support a certain business model. The project to launch a digital version of the common European currency entered its investigation phase in October, last year. In February, news came out that the European Commission is planning to propose a bill laying down the legal foundation for the currency early next year. Fabio Panetta, a member of the Executive Board of the ECB, recently stated that the bank is focusing its efforts on the digital euro. Do you expect other initiatives to test the digital euro platform in the near future? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has said new regulations compelling operators of crowdfunding platforms to ensure their products are suitable for clients are set to replace existing rules which were first issued in 2017. Segregation of Client Money From Platform Operators The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has issued new guidelines which apply to operators of crowdfunding platforms for the first time since 2017, a statement from the central bank has said. The new regulations cover principles that govern the operations of a crowdfunding platform as well as the rules that apply to offers and disclosures made by a crowdfunding platform. The new regulations, which are covered under the Crowdfunding Platform Operators Module (Module CFP), also address the “segregation of client money from platform operators and other measures to ensure safe operation of the activity.” Further, the new regulations compel the platform operators “to ensure [the] suitability of the products” that are being offered to retail clients. In her remarks following the announcement, the CBB’s director of the regulatory policy unit, Shireen Al Sayed, hailed the central bank’s move to improve the provision of financial services. Al Sayed added: Due to the increased demand for introducing new financing products to serve SMEs and start-ups, the CBB has been keen to review the crowdfunding platform operator regulations to be in line with the economic recovery plan for the financial sector in terms of providing a conducive environment for crowdfunding platform operators. According to Al Sayed, the new regulations are easy to understand and come with minimum safeguards to ensure the crowdfunding platforms do not pose risks to the financial sector. Crowdfunding as an Alternative Financing Route Another CBB executive, Yasmeen Al-Sharaf, the director of Fintech and the innovation unit, is quoted suggesting that crowdfunding avails an alternative funding source for startups. “Fintech solutions have the potential to enhance capital flows to the economy commensurate with the growth and expansion plans of entrepreneurs through this new source of funding, thereby, helping to develop the businesses of these start-ups,” Al-Sharaf added. The CBB concludes its statement by asserting that crowdfunding is an innovative way now used by small and medium-sized enterprises, seed capital, and startup companies that want to get funding. What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article