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The Seychelles Police Financial Crime Investigation Unit (FCIU) recently confirmed receiving a request for an investigation into several transactions linked to the transfer of 230,000 bitcoins. The cryptocurrency is said to be associated with pyramid scam Onecoin. Onecoin Loot in Dubai Besides investigating the transfer of the crypto assets, the probe is expected to examine transactions involving cash and property worth $10 billion. According to the Seychelles News Agency, the FCIU’s receipt of the request for an investigation follows the recent discovery of “up to $500 million of Onecoin loot in Dubai bank accounts.” This discovery prompted victims of the pyramid scheme to file claims against Onecoin in London, Dublin, and Brussels. Meanwhile, the same Seychelles News Agency report quotes Tania Potter, the FCIU’s head of legal affairs, explaining the steps the agency plans to take before making a decision. Potter explained: The unit has received quite a number of documents, as part of the complaint, some of which need to undergo a verification process to identify any links to Seychelles and upon completion, a decision on the next step will be taken. According to Potter, once this process is complete, the FCU will proceed to inform the Onecoin victims. Problems Encountered When Investigating Crypto Crimes In the same report, Potter is quoted outlining the difficulties law enforcement agencies often encounter when attempting to investigate crimes that are committed outside Seychelles by business organizations headquartered in the tiny island nation. “We see that the people who have been defrauded have invested on a platform or with an International Business Company. IBC has a registered agent in Seychelles, transactions however do not happen here so it is difficult for us to go after the person who has facilitated or committed the crime,” she said. What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

Centre, the consortium created by Circle and Coinbase around USD coin (USDC), has assembled a team of new executives to power its expansion overseas. The new team, comprising six new executives assembled by David Puth, CEO of Centre, will look to support new partners and add new alliances to keep the company growing in the future. One of the objectives of the new ensemble will be to create an interoperable global network of stablecoins. Centre Consortium Expands Team to Create Stablecoin Network Centre, the consortium behind the issuance of USD coin (USDC), reported it successfully hired six new members to expand its reach and create partnerships overseas to create a global, interoperable stablecoin network. David Puth, CEO of Centre, assembled this team in just nine months and expects to achieve connection with new partners and organize a new level of standards. Puth stated: We assembled this team to ensure we have the right balance of talent to allow us to drive significant growth while maintaining the highest standards of integrity, compliance and trust. The newly hired executives are John Shipman, chief commercial officer; Mark duBose, chief risk and compliance officer; Beth Zolkind, chief financial officer; Chad Richman, senior counsel; Jessica Gardner, business operations manager; and Kevin Mills, graduate project manager. All of them have extensive experience and have worked in firms like PwC, Circle, Fenwick & West, and SOM. Launchpad to Expansion The new team is considered a launchpad for the expansion of the company. Puth revealed that with the new hires, Centre aims to advance the idea of a global network of stablecoins, and that they are already doing it. He declared: We have been working on building up partners overseas with whom we can ultimately connect interoperable stablecoins built to Centre standards in other countries similar to USDC. He further revealed that Centre was already in talks with a couple of partners that were interested in launching two different stablecoins in the European region. USDC, the stablecoin issued by Centre, has experienced big growth this year, sitting at a market capitalization of $27.4 billion at time of writing, and one of its issuers, Circle, announced in July it will go public during the last quarter of this year. However, USDC is still dwarfed by USDT, the leading stablecoin in the market issued by Tether, which currently boasts a market capitalization of $66 billion, and is present on several chains, including Ethereum and Tron. There are other important contenders in the stablecoin arena, too. Binance usd, dai, and terra usd complete the top 5 stablecoins ranked by market capitalization today. What do you think of Centre’s hiring and expansion plans? Tell us in the comment section below. View the full article

On Tuesday, West Realm Shire Services Inc., the parent company of the crypto exchange FTX, announced that the firm has acquired the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulated digital currency futures and options exchange and clearinghouse Ledgerx. FTX Acquires Virtual Currency Futures and Options Exchange Ledgerx Ledgerx has been acquired by the cryptocurrency giant FTX, according to an announcement published on August 31. Ledgerx is a popular crypto derivatives platform that has seen “over 10 million crypto options and swap contracts” since 2017. Furthermore, Ledgerx claims the derivatives platform “pioneered the bitcoin mini contracts that enable granular trading.” The announcement from FTX on Tuesday details that the “financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.” The acquisition is pending at the moment and is expected to settle after customary closing conditions are satisfied. “This acquisition marks a significant milestone for our rapidly growing U.S. business and is a key part of our strategy to bring regulated crypto derivatives to our U.S. user base,” Brett Harrison, the president of FTX.US said during the announcement. Harrison added: We believe the integration of our technological capabilities, product portfolio and large balance sheet with Ledgerx will enhance our ability to provide innovative products to all U.S. cryptocurrency traders. We’re excited to take this step and work with U.S. regulators to ensure compliance with the existing derivatives licensing regime. The announcement says that now that the two entities are combined, the crypto exchange can meet the needs of “retail and institutional traders alike.” Moreover, FTX aims to build a strong relationship with U.S. regulators and emphasized that it would work “specifically with the CFTC.” Zach Dexter, the CEO and co-founder of Ledgerx believes that FTX will help forge a strong relationship with U.S. regulators. “U.S. crypto derivatives is an incredibly underserved market,” Dexter said. “It took time and resources for us to become a regulated entity under the existing frameworks. FTX.US has taken the view, which we share, that U.S. regulators are ready and willing to partner on innovative products, and it’s the responsibility of the industry as a whole to step up and work with agencies like the CFTC,” the Ledgerx CEO added. On Tuesday, the CEO of FTX Sam Bankman-Fried said on Twitter that “This is probably one of the most exciting announcements we’ve ever had.” What do you think about FTX acquiring the crypto derivatives platform Ledgerx? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

On August 31, the Atlanta-based cryptocurrency payments services provider Bitpay announced that the Bitpay wallet has integrated the decentralized exchange (dex) aggregator 1inch Network. Bitpay wallet users can utilize 1inch protocol to swap ether or the myriad of ERC20 tokens. The Bitpay Wallet Supports 1inch Decentralized finance (defi) has grown exponentially according to statistics as defillama.com data shows there’s $157 billion total value locked (TVL) across all defi supporting blockchains. Metrics from Dune Analytics indicate that, as far as Ethereum network defi user growth is concerned, there are 3.2 million unique addresses. Bitpay is now allowing Bitpay wallet users to take part in some of the defi market action by supporting the dex aggregation protocol 1inch. The 1inch dex aggregator basically scans the myriad of dex platforms like Uniswap, Sushiswap, and others in order to find the lowest prices for crypto traders. The 1inch defi protocol has its own native governance token and it is also leveraged for staking as well. On Tuesday, the world’s largest crypto payment provider Bitpay revealed the company has partnered with 1inch and the protocol is now available to Bitpay wallet users. The integration means users accessing the Bitpay wallet can utilize the 1inch dex aggregation functionality without leaving the wallet. Bitpay CEO: ‘We Wanted to Offer Users a Safe, Secure Way to Interact’ With Defi Apps Bitpay’s CEO and co-founder Stephen Pair explained on Tuesday that defi protocols and decentralized applications (dapps) are popular among Bitpay’s user base. “We wanted to offer users a safe, secure way to interact with them,” Pair stressed in a statement. “The Bitpay wallet app lets our power users spend, store and manage crypto and support for the 1inch dex aggregator enables users the ability to get the best crypto swap rates quickly,” Pair added. The Bitpay wallet support follows 1inch announcing the protocol would be utilizing the Ethereum scaling solution “optimistic rollups” via the Optimism Gateway. Sergej Kunz, the 1inch Network co-founder believes partnering with Bitpay will bring more defi accessibility to global users all around the world. “As defi services gradually progress towards mass adoption, it is important to offer access to the 1inch dex aggregation to as many users as possible,” Kunz remarked during the announcement. What do you think about Bitpay adding 1inch Network support to the Bitpay wallet so users can access defi? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. The Dvision Network team is hosting an augmented reality metaverse conference to commemorate the first anniversary of the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) ecosystem next month. The celebration will start on the 2nd and end on the 7th of September, lasting six days with an action-packed agenda that should last around 4-5 hours per day. Dubbed the “Binance Smart Chain 1st Anniversary in Dvision Metaversarve”, the event will count with 30 notable projects in the GameFi and NFT space built on the BSC ecosystem, including StepHero, Alpaca Finance, MyDefiPet, Cryptoblades, Bunny Park and and many others, that are disclosed in their event page. The metaverse event will be conducted in the special Binance Hall built inside of the Dvision World. The BSC anniversary is expected to offer various activities, in-game events and airdrops sponsored by participating projects. Attendees will be able to participate in-game quizzes, get their groove on during the dancing event at the conference hall, and chase randomly spawned characters in order to be rewarded by unique NFT items and partner tokens. Last but not least, the “Digging the Earth” event will allow anyone to shovel certain areas during the event to earn partner rewards. Overall, it is expected to be a highly rewarding anniversary celebration both for partnering projects and attending members. Conference Features The Dvision Network has made great strides in its metaverse technology, which will be on full display during the Binance Smart Chain 1st Anniversary in Dvision Metaverse. The Conference Features will range from charring functions to NPC and payment options, showcasing how advanced virtual events can be, especially in post-pandemic times. The chatting function will allow the users to interact through their avatars, allowing for virtual networking and information to flow from businesses to users seamlessly. An organized Information communication function will also be available along with PDF File Uploads, which will enhance the information flow. Builders in the conference will upload video materials that can be accessed through the user’s avatar. This feature will give some flair and entertainment to the event, which will support 4k image quality. There will also be Video Conferences available where top global companies will meet. No Metaverse is complete without an NPC. The Binance birthday event will feature AI-based product services, which will provide efficient customer service for all attendees. Individual booths will also have their exciting quests, which can be undertaken by any attendee that is up to the task. About the Binance Smart Chain The Binance Smart Chain launched roughly one year ago to provide an affordable and efficient solution for the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and Non-Fungible Token (NFT) industry. Since then, the smart contract ecosystem has garnered extreme success and has adopted multiple DeFi and NFT projects. The Binance Smart Chain is an EVM-based smart contract ecosystem created to respond to Ethereum’s growing congestion and steep gas prices. It provides faster transaction times and cheaper gas costs using the $BNB token. BSC uses Proof of Staked Authority(PoSA) which combines aspects of Proof of Authority (PoA) and Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS). There are twenty-one validators who take turns to produce blocks and, in return, receive $BNB transaction fees as a reward. About Dvision Network Built on the BSC, The Dvision Network is a blockchain-based metaverse, a place where anyone can create their avatars and participate in a virtual ecosystem where anything is possible, including games, events, and fairs. The “Binance Smart Chain 1st Anniversary in Dvision Metaversarve” is just the latest in a long line of successful virtual events. Users can also create their own NFTs without prior development knowledge or experience, providing them with a decentralized exchange where they can be sold and bought directly, creating a revenue stream for creators. The DVI utility token is powered by the platform, trading on major centralized and decentralized exchanges. 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

China’s Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) will promote a national alliance chain to introduce smart contracts and blockchain-based services to digitize the securities and futures market. The announcement was made at the China Securities Industry Alliance Chain and OTC Alliance Chain Special Work Symposium in Beijing. Jiang Dongxing, deputy director of the Science and Technology Regulatory Bureau of the CSRC, stated this digitization is key for the future of the industry. China Aims to Digitize Financial Markets Using Blockchain The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is interested in digitizing much of the securities and futures markets using alternatives such as blockchain and smart contracts, according to discussions that happened during the China Securities Industry Alliance Chain and OTC Alliance Chain Special Work Symposium recently held in Beijing. Jiang Dongxing, deputy director of the Science and Technology Regulatory Bureau of the CSRC, made some important remarks on the subject. Dongxing stated that the most important task at hand was to study how to advance the digital transformation of the securities and futures industry and find a way to achieve that digital transformation. Dongxing also stressed that the appeal of blockchain consisted in establishing a trust mechanism in the network environment, and that it will be the key information infrastructure for the securities and futures industry in the digital space after the proposed digitization. The 14th Five Year Plan China has established blockchain as part of the 14th “Five-Year Plan” for the country. These are roadmaps developed by the Communist Party to shape the key focus of the economy in the next five years. Blockchain, along with artificial intelligence and big data, is mentioned in the latest plan. In spite of these proclamations, the country has taken a hard stance on cryptocurrencies, which are an application of blockchain technology in the monetary field. This has come to be known as the “blockchain, not bitcoin” policy. In fact, the Chinese government has moved to forbid cryptocurrency mining from several provinces of the country, including Sichuan and Yunnan. This caused a global drop in the amount of work securing the Bitcoin blockchain and a subsequent decrease in the difficulty of mining. In the same vein, The People’s Bank of China conducted a series of crackdowns on illegal cryptocurrency trading activities in August and shut down 11 companies that were allegedly conducting illegal virtual currency transactions. What do you think about using blockchain to digitize the securities market? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

Justin Sun, founder of Tron, a smart contract-enabled cryptocurrency, announced he purchased an NFT avatar for $10.5 million. The NFT, dubbed ‘Joker’ due to its appearance, is part of a Tron-native NFT series called Tpunks, that seeks to emulate the style and success of the known Cryptopunks series, but on the Tron blockchain. Justin Sun Purchases NFT for $10.5 Million Justin Sun, the founder of the smart contracts-enabled Tron blockchain, announced today the purchase of an NFT avatar for $10.5 million dollars worth of tron. The NFT purchased, identified as #3442 but called “Joker,” ostensibly due to its resemblance to the popular Batman villain, is part of the Tpunks series. Tpunks is a collection of NFTs that seeks to recreate the art style of another very successful line of NFTs, on Ethereum, the Cryptopunks. The series features 10,000 avatars, of which there are some with rare traits, which make them especially desired by collectors. The project is picking up steam and has climbed to fourth place rank in collectible dapps at time of writing, according to DappRadar. Prices of rare NFTs on the platform have also spiked, with some offers reaching more than $800K. This isn’t Justin Sun’s first foray into the NFT market. Sun was an active bidder on Christie’s sale of Beeple’s “Everydays: the First 5,000 Days” NFT. Sun made a bid of $60 million to acquire the asset, but according to his statements, he was outbid by $250K by an unknown buyer at the last minute. NFT Craze Non Fungible Tokens, or NFTs, have caused quite the excited commotion in the cryptocurrency space. Justin Sun is not the first to dive in. Several famous influencers, actors, and even rappers have gotten into the space to take advantage of this new kind of media. Even Jay-Z, the famous musician, partnered with Sotheby’s in June to auction an NFT inspired by his “Reasonable Doubt” album, called “Heir to the Throne.” The musician also changed his Twitter profile picture to display a Cryptopunk, something that made some of his followers believe he had purchased one. Several other projects have sold millions of dollars in NFTs. The main project, Cryptopunks, surpassed $1 billion in sales last week, being the third NFT-based project to reach that number after Axie Infinity and Opensea. NFT fever even reaches into institutional markets. Visa, the multinational payments giant, purchased a CryptoPunk (#7610) to add to its collection on August 23, calling NFTs a “new era” of collecting. What do you think about Justin Sun’s Tpunk purchase? Tell us in the comment section below. View the full article

The Biden administration is reportedly pushing to include global crypto data sharing rules in the $3.5 trillion budget package. The Treasury wants crypto businesses to report information on foreign account holders “so that the U.S. can share information with global trading partners.” Treasury Wants to Impose More Crypto Rules The U.S. Treasury is reportedly pushing to include more rules for tax compliance on cryptocurrency transactions in the upcoming $3.5 trillion budget plan. The Biden administration is hoping to add the requirements for crypto businesses to report information on foreign account holders “so that the U.S. can share information with global trading partners,” Roll Call reported Monday, citing an administration official who wasn’t authorized to speak for the record. According to the Treasury’s Greenbook, “The global nature of the crypto market offers opportunities for U.S. taxpayers to conceal assets and taxable income by using offshore crypto exchanges and wallet providers. U.S. taxpayers also attempt to avoid U.S. tax reporting by creating entities through which they can act. To combat the potential for crypto assets to be used for tax evasion, third party information reporting is critical to help identify taxpayers and bolster voluntary tax compliance.” However, in order to get access to that information, U.S. officials need the ability to provide the same data to other countries on their own citizens with U.S. accounts. This is part of the “tax information exchange agreements,” the publication conveyed. This effort to impose more rules on crypto transactions followed the extensive lobbying to limit the definition of a broker in the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill which the Senate recently passed. Following backlash from lawmakers and the crypto community, an official with the Treasury Department assured that even without an amendment, non-brokers, such as miners and software developers, will not be targeted. What do you think about the Treasury’s global crypto data-sharing proposal? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Former U.S. President Donald Trump says cryptocurrencies are “potentially a disaster waiting to happen.” In addition, he said that they “may be fake.” His comments followed another when he said bitcoin “seemed like a scam.” Trump Is Still No Fan of Bitcoin or Crypto Donald Trump talked about cryptocurrency in an interview with Fox Business Tuesday. Responding to a question about whether he has dabbled in bitcoin or cryptos, Trump promptly said: “I don’t. I like the currency of the United States.” He elaborated: I think the others are potentially a disaster waiting to happen. “I feel that it [cryptocurrency] hurts the United States currency,” he continued. “I think we should strengthen, we should be invested in our currency, not in [cryptocurrencies].” He further exclaimed, “They [cryptocurrencies] may be fake, who knows what they are.” Referring to crypto, the former president admitted, “They are certainly something that people don’t know much about.” He reiterated: No. I have not been a big fan. Trump has always been a critic of bitcoin and crypto. In June, he said bitcoin “seemed like a scam.” He added, “I don’t like it because it’s another currency competing against the dollar … I want the dollar to be the currency of the world.” In 2019, while still president of the U.S., Trump tweeted: “I am not a fan of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air. Unregulated crypto assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity.” What do you think about Trump’s comments on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has named the fintech firm Bitt Inc. as a technical partner for its digital currency project, the e-naira. As a technical partner, Bitt is expected to use its “technological competence and implementation experience” to help the CBN successfully launch the central bank digital currency (CBDC). E-Naira Draft Guidelines The CBN’s unveiling of the Barbados-based firm as its partner comes shortly after reports suggested that the central bank had released draft guidelines for the e-naira. In justifying the selection of Bitt, Osita Nwanisobi, the CBN’s director of communications, touted the fintech’s “tested and proven digital currency experience.” These claims by Nwanisobi appear to be supported by a statement on Bitt’s website that suggests the fintech firm had signed a contract to conduct a CBDC pilot for the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB). The contract was signed in 2019 and in April of 2021, ECCB finally launched its digital currency. E-Naira and the Financial Inclusion Cause As previously reported by Bitcoin.com News, the CBN has set October 1, 2021, as the launch date for its CBDC. The central bank insists this digital currency will deepen financial inclusion, and enable cheaper, faster remittance inflows. The apex bank says it expects the e-naira to enhance cross-border trade as well as the effectiveness of its monetary policies. The launch of the e-naira by the CBN — if successful — will mark the final culmination of a plan that was set in motion nearly four years ago. The launch will also be seen as an important victory for both the CBN and its anti-bitcoin governor, Godwin Emefiele. Still, with just a few weeks left before the launch, CBN must cross its fingers that it has done adequate preparation to ensure the e-naira is a success. What are your thoughts on the CBN’s choice of a technical partner? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

The tax authority of Slovenia has put forward a proposal to change the crypto taxation rules in the country, local media reported. The amendments aim to introduce a 10% tax rate for transactions involving the spending or converting of cryptocurrencies into fiat money. Tax Office Wants to Simplify Crypto Taxation in Slovenia The Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia (FURS) has proposed changes to the taxation regime applicable to cryptocurrencies. The authority wants to impose a 10% tax for the crypto amounts spent on goods and services or converted into cash. Quoted in a report by the STA news agency, FURS clarified: We would like to emphasize that it is not profit which would be taxed but rather the amount a Slovenian tax resident receives on their bank account on turning the virtual currency into cash or when buying a thing. The Slovenian tax office intends to implement the new taxation scheme through the adoption of legislative changes. FURS claims it would significantly simplify the way cryptocurrency-related income is taxed in the EU member state. If the amendments are introduced, the financial administration elaborated that it would no longer have to examine numerous transactions made by a taxpayer between the purchase and sale of the digital currency as well as the various cryptos they have bought and sold or converted. Under current regulations in Slovenia, the taxable income from operations with virtual currencies depends on the circumstances in each case, the report notes. Individuals, for instance, are obliged to pay capital gains tax on profits from the sale of cryptocurrency if these have been made as part of a business activity. The FURS currently has to check thousands of transactions in some cases. The authority insists the increasingly digitalized world needs simpler taxation solutions. However, even under the new rules, a crypto investor would still have to prove any losses incurred which would again require verification of multiple transactions. Slovenia is known as a leader in crypto adoption in Europe. According to a report from last year, over 1,000 locations in the country, such as cafés, restaurants, hotels, hair salons, and sports facilities, accept various cryptocurrencies for payment. Do you think Slovenia will adopt the new tax regime? Share your opinion on the proposed changes in the comments section below. View the full article

According to a report, the value of annual dollar remittances by Nigerians working abroad has surged to $34 billion, a figure that easily surpasses the previous record-high of $25 billion. Still, a large portion of the funds doesn’t seem to be entering domestic forex markets. Target Attained Two Years Ahead of Schedule The increase, which has been attributed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s “naira for dollar” incentive scheme, once again highlights the growing importance of diaspora remittances to Africa’s most populated country. As Biodun Adedipe, an economist with Adedipe Associates Limited is quoted explaining, the CBN’s incentive scheme may well be the reason why the target of $34 billion in annual diaspora remittances was reached two years ahead of schedule. However, despite this surge in remittance inflows, Nigeria continues to grapple with shortages of foreign exchange. Such forex shortages, in turn, contribute to the naira’s continued depreciation as well as the resultant rise in inflation. Dollars Sent Remain Outside Nigerian Forex Market In attempting to explain why Nigeria is not fully benefiting from the rising remittances, Adedipe points to the fact that a lot of the dollars sent do not find their way to the foreign exchange market in Nigeria. Adedipe explained: For example, someone wants to send money to his or her family here in Nigeria, this person, let’s say has $10,000 in the US, and wants to give the naira equivalent to his family member here in Nigeria, ordinarily the way it works in other country is that $10,000 will come into the forex market within Nigeria, and becomes a boost to supply here. However, this is not happening because “the reality is that in Nigeria’s situation, the dollar doesn’t leave where it is,” Adedipe explains. “The person that provides the naira equivalent here would rather keep the dollar equivalent outside there, so it doesn’t come into the FX market in Nigeria.” According to Adedipe, Nigerian authorities now need to find ways that “make it more attractive for those foreign currencies generated by migrant Nigerian workers to be remitted home.” What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

Cream finance, a defi borrowing and lending protocol, has been the victim of a hack that erased more than $29 million from its vaults. The attacker took advantage of a loophole in the implementation for adding the amp token to the protocol. This is the second time the platform has been involved in a hack. The first breach happened in February, when Cream lost $37.5 million. Cream Protocol Suffers Hack Cream protocol, a defi lending-borrowing platform present on four different chains (Ethereum, BSC, Polygon, and Fantom), suffered a hack Monday that resulted in the loss of $29 million in several cryptocurrencies. The attacker took advantage of a bug caused by the introduction of the amp token into the protocol. According to Peckshield, a blockchain security and data analytics company, the hack was perpetrated in just one transaction, taking advantage of a reentrancy bug present in the code of the amp currency. This allowed the hacker to re-borrow assets during the transfer before updating the first borrow. The exploit was repeated 17 times and allowed the hacker to get ahold of 418,311,571 amp (worth $25.1 million) and 1,308.09 ethereum (worth $4.15 million). The platform had been audited by Trails Of Bits, a cybersecurity research and consulting firm, prior to the inclusion of the amp token. Cream declared it stopped the exploit by pausing supply and borrow on amp. The protocol also informed users that no other markets were affected, and that it was expecting to offer a post mortem report at a later date. Not the First Time This is not the first time Cream has suffered a hacking incident. Less than six months ago, the platform was also affected by a hack that allowed the attacker to withdraw $37.5 million. The hack, using an unreleased version of a contract of Alpha Finance, another defi protocol, exploited a rounding miscalculation in the code and a whitelisting function. After taking control of the funds, the attacker took them to Tornado.cash, a protocol that allows private transactions in Ethereum. Luckily, no user funds were affected during this first hack. However, it shows that the defi environment is very complex and that even a small change in protocol (like adding a currency or whitelisting another platform) can have a big impact on security in the future. What do you think about defi-related hacks? Tell us in the comments section below. View the full article

The British auction house Christie’s has been immersed in the non-fungible token (NFT) art and collectibles industry for quite some time. Christie’s has auctioned blockchain-backed items like Block 21 of “Portraits of a Mind,” Cryptopunks, and Beeple’s NFT that sold for more than $69 million. On October 1, Christie’s plans to sell a set of old 2017-issued Curio Cards and the set will also include a secret rare card. Leading Auction House Christie’s Is Auctioning a Set of NFT Curio Cards The non-fungible token (NFT) space has swelled quite a bit and the auction house Christie’s has been involved for a while now. The popular British auction house first dipped its toes into the NFT world in September 2020 when the firm showcased Block 21 of “Portraits of a Mind.” Ever since then, the company has continued to auction NFTs of all colors, shapes, and sizes. Now the company will auction a unique set of NFT collectibles called Curio Cards, which is one of the oldest Ethereum NFT collectibles produced back in 2017. Curio Cards is unique series of 30 NFT cards. The set includes 17b, a secret rare card. Bitcoin.com News reported on Curio Cards on June 4, 2017, when our newsdesk interviewed the project’s creator Thomas Hunt, otherwise known as the personality called ‘Mad Bitcoins.’ Hunt predicted that NFTs would be a big deal back then and at the time, Hunt told our newsdesk the collectibles would feature certain crypto artists. He kept the artists a secret when Bitcoin.com News interviewed him but later it was revealed Curio Cards featured seven artists, including Luis Buenaventura, Phneep, Cryptograffiti, and Marisol Vengas. Bitcoin.com News recently reported on Curio Cards again in 2021, when the collectibles, alongside Rare Pepe (Counterparty-issued) NFTs, saw fresh demand this year. Now Christie’s will be selling a full set of Curio Cards as the firm’s auction calendar indicates the sale will happen in New York City on October 1, 2021. On August 30, the leading auction house tweeted about the upcoming Curio Cards sale. Christie’s wrote: As part of our Post-War to Present sale on 1 October in NYC, we’re proud to present a full set of Curio Cards, which are 30 Non-Fungible Tokens considered to be some of the oldest artworks on the Ethereum blockchain. Curio Cards Wrapper Market Data on Opensea Shows $75.2 Million in Volume Traded At present, the opensea.io Curio Cards wrapper market shows there are 3,700 Curio owners and the collection has seen 22,900 ether ($75.2 million) in volume traded. Curio Cards sales on Opensea. Similar to those selling Rare Pepe Counterparty-issued NFTs with the help of container software and a step-by-step guide to adding XCP NFTs, Curio Cards need to be wrapped to be compatible with Opensea. The cards also have a Curio Wrapper Tool and the Curio Docs explain the process in detail. “A 1% artist royalty fee on Opensea sales was voted in by the community on 3/31/21. 100% of this royalty is split equally between the original artists,” the Opensea Curio Cards market description notes. Christie’s auction of Beeple’s “Everydays: The First 5000 Days” NFT holds the record for the most expensive NFT ever sold in history. The auction house also sold a set of nine original Cryptopunks for $16.9 million as well. On September 17, Christie’s will host the first NFT art sale in Asia when it auctions Cryptopunks, Meebits, and Bored Ape NFTs. People please save some ETH for the @MyCurioCards at C’s damn!! — Noah Davis (@NonFungibleNoah) August 25, 2021 In addition to Christie’s, the auction house Sotheby’s has also stepped into the world of non-fungible token collectible auctions. Sotheby’s first revealed its NFT entry in mid-March 2021, when the auction house partnered with a popular digital artist dubbed “Pak.” Sotheby’s auctioned a Cryptopunk for close to $12 million and sold world wide web inventor Timothy John Berners-Lee’s NFT source code with an error for $5.4 million What do you think about Christie’s selling a full set of Curio Cards? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

81 years ago on August 31, 1939, the company Marvel Comics was introduced to the world for the first time and people were presented with a whole universe of superheroes. In celebration of Marvel’s birthday and the firm’s collaboration with Veve Digital Collectibles, “Marvel Month” will conclude with special edition Captain America non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles. A Lineup of Captain America Statue NFTs At the end of June, the wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, Marvel Entertainment, announced the company was dipping its toes into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). During the first week of August, Marvel revealed “Marvel Month” and launched Spider-Man NFTs. The collectible sets included the “Common – Spider-Man,” “Uncommon – Spider-Man,” “Rare – Spider-Man,” “Ultra-Rare – Spider-Man,” and the “Secret-Rare – Spider-Man.” Marvel’s comic book competitor DC Comics has also dropped a lineup of NFTs via the Veve Digital Collectibles application. The conclusion of “Marvel Month” ends on Tuesday, August 31, and the culmination of the month of Marvel NFTs will end with Captain America. The NFT drop will honor Captain America’s 80th anniversary when he appeared in his debut comic back in 1941. On Tuesday, the Veve app will start the Captain America NFT launch at 8 a.m. (PT). Marvel’s legendary first Avenger NFTs will include: Captain America — The First Avenger – Always a soldier at heart, Captain America stands proud and tall as the first Avenger in premium digital format ($40.00). Captain America — Charging Into Battle – Ready for action, Captain America runs into battle, armed with his original tri-shield ($50.00). Captain America — The Punch – Experience one of the most iconic moments in comic book history in this homage to Steve Rogers’ legendary punch from the cover of Captain America Comics #1 ($100.00). Captain America — Animated- Witness – Captain America in animated action as he prepares for battle ($250.00). Captain America — Ultimate Animated – This ultra-premium animated collectible contains VFX and SFX of Captain America using his tri-shield as both an offensive and defensive weapon ($400.00). The Amazing Spider-Man #1 NFT Marvel is also launching a “fully-readable digital comic” NFT “The Amazing Spider-Man #1,” which will be dropped on Tuesday as well but at 11 a.m. (PT). The comic is well known and one of the most valuable comic books on the planet. Quality Comix says a Mint condition version of Spider-Man’s first comic has 3x in value during the last decade and a “perfect condition CGC NM+ 9.6 copy to sell for over $300,000.” The Marvel NFTs are powered by Orbis Blockchain Technologies Limited and the Veve Digital Collectibles platform. The Veve app is available via iOS or Android smartphones and the application allows users to hunt and trade NFT collectibles. The Veve application has competitors like the firm like the purpose-built NFT platform Wax.io, which has partnered with firms like Atari, Topps, Funko, Capcom, Street Fighter, Bratz, Robotech, and more. What do you think about Marvel’s NFT drop on the Veve app? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Venture capitalist Bill Gurley has taken a personal position in ether because he “was swayed by the arguments of the ethereum crowd.” He explained that it is “the smarter way to play if you’re going to have crypto exposure.” Bill Gurley Prefers Ethereum to Bitcoin Bill Gurley, a general partner at Benchmark, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm in San Francisco, California, shared his view on cryptocurrency in an interview with Bloomberg last week. He began by admitting that he is late getting into crypto because he was focusing on direct listings and did not spend much time on the subject until April this year when he dedicated quite a bit of time to reading about cryptocurrencies. Gurley shared: I have to say I was swayed by the arguments of the ethereum crowd. And so, I’ve taken a personal position. Without specifying how much he invested in ETH, the venture capitalist emphasized that the investment was personal and not for his firm. “I’m swayed by the ethereum crowd,” he reiterated. “The party that’s involved seems to be way more pragmatic. They seem to be open to changes and are basically making several changes which I think will bring down fees and will be very beneficial. The developer community is clearly in the ethereum camp.” The venture capitalist opined: I think there’s a ESG [Environmental, Social, and Governance] benefit once they move to proof-of-stake versus bitcoin. It seems to me to be the smarter way to play if you’re going to have crypto exposure. Gurley clarified that he’s not a maximalist and he’s not arguing that everyone must have crypto exposure. He also commented on the trading platform Robinhood which recently said that more than half of its revenue came from cryptocurrency and 62% of its crypto revenue came from dogecoin (DOGE). The venture capitalist said this is not a sound business model, adding that he sees Robinhood as more of a casino than an investment platform. What do you think about Bill Gurley’s comments on bitcoin and ethereum? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson, famed for making a fortune betting against the U.S. housing market, says that cryptocurrencies are a bubble that will prove to be “worthless.” While he sees unlimited downside to crypto, he will not short bitcoin, however. “Even though I could be right over the long term, in the short term, I’d be wiped out,” he explained. Famous Investor John Paulson Predicts Crypto Will Be Worthless John Paulson, the president and portfolio manager of U.S. investment firm Paulson & Co., is an American billionaire hedge fund manager who became world-famous in 2007 by shorting the U.S. housing market. He foresaw the subprime mortgage crisis and bet against mortgage-backed securities by investing in credit default swaps. Paulson shared his views on cryptocurrency and bitcoin on Bloomberg TV Monday in an interview with Carlyle Group founder David Rubenstein. Responding to the question of whether he is a believer in cryptocurrency, Paulson affirmed: “No, I’m not.” He elaborated: “I would say that cryptocurrencies are a bubble. I would describe them as a limited supply of nothing. So to the extent there’s more demand than the limited supply, the price would go up. But to the extent the demand falls, then the price would go down. There’s no intrinsic value to any of the cryptocurrencies except that there’s a limited amount.” The billionaire hedge fund manager added: Cryptocurrencies, regardless of where they’re trading today, will eventually prove to be worthless. Once the exuberance wears off, or liquidity dries up, they will go to zero. I wouldn’t recommend anyone invest in cryptocurrencies. Paulson was further asked “why not put a big short of some type on cryptocurrencies” since he believes that they will become worthless. He explained: “The reason we shorted subprime in size was because it was asymmetrical — shorting a bond at par that has a limited duration that trades at a 1% spread of Treasuries. So you can’t lose more than the spread in the duration.” He continued: In crypto, there’s unlimited downside. So even though I could be right over the long term, in the short term, I’d be wiped out. In the case of bitcoin, it went from $5,000 to $45,000. It’s just too volatile to short. What do you think about John Paulson’s comments on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies? Let us know in the comments section below. View the full article

This week Blockchain.com CFO Macrina Kgil discussed how the company has surpassed $1 trillion in cryptocurrency transactions and the company may go public with an initial public offering (IPO) in 2023. The cryptocurrency firm is one of the oldest in the industry and Kgil explained that 76 million Blockchain.com wallets have been created since the company’s inception. $1 Trillion in Crypto Transactions Processed, 76 Million Wallets Created In March 2021, Bitcoin.com News reported on Blockchain.com raising $300 million and receiving a post-money valuation of around $5.2 billion. The company has been around for quite some time and when it was called “Blockchain.info” it was established by Ben Reeves way back in 2011. In 2013 it was led by Nicolas Cary and was considered the most popular bitcoin wallet at the time. In 2014, Blockchain.com was led by Peter Smith and he’s remained the company’s CEO ever since. Macrina Kgil, Blockchain.com’s chief financial officer, detailed this week that the company has jumped over $1 trillion in crypto transactions since the firm started. “We recently hit a major milestone at Blockchain.com, surpassing more than $1 trillion in crypto transacted on our platform. To put that number into context, we’ve handled nearly a third of all bitcoin network transactions since 2012,” Kgil said. The company’s CFO added: Our institutional market business is continuing to see exponential growth as more asset managers look to meet their clients’ demand to work with this new asset class. Blockchain.com Is Contemplating an Initial Public Offering, Firm Holds Bitcoin and Ethereum on Its Balance Sheet The Blockchain.com CFO also spoke with Fortune.com in an interview published on August 30 that explains the firm has also seen 76 million wallets created. Kgil believes that the cryptocurrency ecosystem will see continued growth and noted that crypto is not going anywhere. “At this point in time, a lot of people actually think crypto is here to stay,” Kgil stressed in her interview with Fortune.com. “It’s just [a matter of] how big and how fast it will grow within the overall economy,” she added. Furthermore, just like publicly-listed companies like Coinbase and Canaan, the Blockchain.com CFO mentioned that the company may see an initial public offering as soon as 2023. The interview says “possibly 18-months or more away” and the interview also highlights that Blockchain.com keeps crypto assets on its balance sheet. “The main pieces of crypto we hold are [bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH)… but we do also hold [altcoins], as a company, when we think it makes sense,” Kgil says. What do you think about Blockchain.com possibly going public by 2023 and the $1 trillion in crypto transactions recorded on the platform? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The Binance NFT Marketplace announced today that the non-fungible token (NFT) platform will launch a premium NFT collection backed by the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The NFT auction will begin on August 31 and run until September 7, 2021. The NFT auction will feature NFT artwork by the world-renowned artists’ Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Leonardo da Vinci. State Hermitage Museum and Binance Collaborate to Sell World-Renowned Art in NFT Form It seems that 2021 is the year of non-fungible token (NFT) collections, as NFT collectibles and artworks have sold for millions of dollars. So far, Beeple’s “Everydays: The First 5000 Days” NFT is the most expensive as the NFT ever sold, as it was purchased for $69.3 million. Another high-profile NFT sale is Cryptopunk #7523, which was acquired for $11.8 million in ethereum (ETH). Bitcoin.com News has been covering a myriad of NFT projects making millions like Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and the Weird Whales NFT collection. On August 30, the cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced that the company’s NFT market dubbed the “Binance NFT Marketplace” plans to feature non-fungible token collectibles from some of the world’s most famous artists. Binance NFT Marketplace has teamed up with the well-known State Hermitage Museum. The Saint Petersburg-based museum is the largest art museum on the planet, and it boasts some of the world’s finest masterpieces. Russia’s Empress Catherine the Great started the impressively sized art collection back in 1764. “Corner of the Garden at Montgeron” by Claude Monet. The State Hermitage Museum revealed the NFT collection and Binance NFT Marketplace collaboration on July 26, 2021. “The NFT collection consists of works such as the Madonna Litta (Leonardo da Vinci), Judith (Giorgione), Lilac Bush (Vincent van Gogh), Composition VI (Wassily Kandinsky), and Corner of the Garden at Montgeron (Claude Monet),” the State Hermitage Museum said in July. Furthermore, the art museum curators also added: Each digital copy is personally signed by Mikhail Piotrovsky, General Director of the State Hermitage. In doing so, he not only confirmed the authenticity of a limited series of works, but also created an independent work of art by applying his signature, the date and exact time of signing, thereby giving it absolute uniqueness, perpetuated in the blockchain. The place of signing – the Hermitage museum itself – is also saved in the metadata. “New technologies, in particular the blockchain, have opened up a new chapter in the development of the art market, led by ownership and the guarantee of that ownership. This is an important stage in the development of the relationship between a person and money, a person and a thing,” Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky, the general director of the Hermitage, said at the time. “Composition VI” by Wassily Kandinsky. Binance says when the auction starts, “there are a total of 5 NFTs for auction [and] each with a starting bid of 10,000 BUSD.” The Binance NFT Marketplace launched this past June and the platform leverages the Binance Smart Chain (BSC). Binance’s NFT platform has a lot of competition from platforms like Opensea, Crypto.com, and Rarible. Furthermore, the popular crypto exchange FTX is also developing an NFT marketplace, as it announced a partnership with the entertainment giant Dolphin in order to launch the market. What do you think about the Binance NFT Marketplace platform and the world’s largest art museum teaming up to launch NFTs by Leonardo da Vinci and others? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

Approximately 25 days ago, the Ethereum blockchain implemented the London hard fork and a number of features were added to the ruleset. One of the most anticipated changes was EIP-1559 which makes the crypto asset ether deflationary by burning a fraction of coins. Since August 5, over $432 million worth of ether has been burned, and at the time of writing, 136,606 ether has been burned. Over $432 Million in Ethereum Burned The Ethereum (ETH) blockchain is the second most valuable crypto market in terms of market valuation. Out of the $2.14 trillion market capitalization of all the coins in the crypto economy, ethereum’s overall market valuation is $374 billion or 17.5% of the entire crypto economy. 25 days ago, ETH saw a successful London upgrade and ether has gained 29.7% this month. However, the Ethereum chain had a hiccup this past week when the chain split and ether gas fees doubled in value week-over-week. The EIP-1559 feature makes it so the network follows a different transaction pricing mechanism that introduces a base fee for every block found on the network. Essentially, the remainder of the fees are burned and people assume that over time, this will significantly reduce the overall supply of ethereum in circulation. At the time of writing, the Ethereum network has burned approximately 136,606 ether worth $432,200,652 using current ether exchange rates. $400 Million Can Buy a Sports Team, 2,000 Homes, 10 of the World’s Most Expensive Sports Cars To put the amount of ether burned into perspective, $400 million could purchase a whole sports team in the NBA or NFL, and a dozen NHL teams. $400 million could buy a trip to space and it can also purchase ten of the world’s most expensive automobiles. Just for kicks, a person with $400 million could purchase 2,000 medium-sized homes for $200K per house. In addition to the 135K ether burned since the upgrade, there are numerous Ethereum-compatible platforms like Opensea and Uniswap that are the ecosystem’s biggest ETH burners. The non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Opensea commands the most ethereum burned to date with 2.2 million ether transactions and 21,105 ether burned. Statistics from Dune Analytics indicate that “ether transfers” make up the second-largest burning entity with 10 million transfers but only 10,845 ETH burned. Opensea and ether transfers are followed by platforms like Uniswap V2, Tether, Axie Infinity, Uniswap V3, Metamask, and the stablecoin project USDC. The Opensea registry, 1inch, Sushiswap, and MEV bot have burned a significant amount of ether as well since August 5. What do you think about all the ethereum that has been burned so far? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The price of bitcoin has dipped a hair in value this past week, but the crypto asset is still up 14.4% over the course of the last month. Statistics show that Bitcoin’s hashrate has seen a resurgence and because bitcoin’s price has increased, mining profitability and hashrate has followed suit. Today’s top bitcoin mining rig is Microbt’s Whatsminer M30S++ (112 TH/s) but with higher bitcoin profits, older machines like Bitmain’s Antminer S9 have seen a revival as every S9 model is profitable today. New Generation Models Rake in $20 to $29 per Day The end of August is approaching and over the last month, bitcoin (BTC) prices have increased a great deal. Currently, BTC is over 14% higher in value than it was 30 days ago and this has elevated mining rig profitability. At the time of writing, there’s 124 exahash per second (EH/s) of SHA256 hashrate dedicated to the BTC chain. BTC’s hashrate has risen dramatically after sliding to a low of 69 EH/s on June 28, 2021. Today’s BTC prices mean that a great majority of mining rigs are showing profits even after subtracting the cost of electricity and dealing with today’s mining difficulty. Statistics via asicminervalue.com on Monday, August 30, 2021. As mentioned above, the 112 terahash per second (TH/s) model crafted by Microbt, the Whatsminer M30S++, is currently profiting by $28.77 with an electrical cost of around $0.12 per kilowatt hour (kWh). Most bitcoin miners today spend much less than $0.12 per kWh if they are located in regions with cheap power. The second most profitable mining machine today is Bitmain’s Antminer S19 Pro (110TH/s) as the mining rig can get up to $28.72 per day in profits using the same electrical cost rate. Microbt and Bitmain manufacture the most profitable bitcoin miners on the market today, and the firm Canaan’s products follow behind the two manufacturing giants. Old Miners Become Profitable Again Of course, new generation application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) models with the latest semiconductors can see daily profits mining BTC between $10 to $25 per day if they are using 100 TH/s units down to 50 TH/s units. If the $0.12 per kWh is cut in half to $0.06 then a great number of rigs can make close to double these rates. It also means older ASIC machines are profitable today as machines that process less than 50 terahash can pull in small fractions of daily BTC. For instance, the Innosilicon T2 Turbo with 25 TH/s can get around $3 per day using today’s BTC exchange rates and $0.12 per kWh. Bitmain S9 statistics via asicminervalue.com on Monday, August 30, 2021. The old GMO B2 miner that launched in 2018 with 24 TH/s can make around $2.69 per day in profits. At $0.12 per kWh, the Canaan Avalonminer 921 processes around 20 TH/s, and an owner of this rig can get $2.03 per day. Bitmain’s popular mining rig the S9 at one time was estimated to power around 70% of the BTC hashrate. Bitmain’s S9 models saw a resurrection in November 2020 and this month, all S9 models are once again profitable. In fact, they are more profitable than they were back in November 2020, when S9 models made between $0.10 to $0.59 per day in profits. On August 30, 2021, using today’s BTC exchange rate and electrical consumption of around $0.12 per kWh, S9 models between 11.5 TH/s to 16 TH/s can get around $0.74 to $1.85 per day. Of course, the 16-terahash Bitmain Antminer S9 SE is the most profitable S9 model. Other older mining models produced by companies like Bitfury, Bitfily, Ebang, Halong, and more, are seeing profits at today’s BTC prices. Bitcoin Cash (BCH) block statistics via Coin Dance on Monday, August 30, 2021. Moreover, one would think that the best SHA256 coin to mine is BTC but on Monday, SHA256 blockchains such as Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Bitcoinsv (BSV), and Ecash (XEC) are seeing higher mining profits. Coin Dance statistics show that it is currently 2.9% more profitable to mine bitcoin cash (BCH) today, and 11.3% more profitable to mine on the Bitcoinsv (BSV) blockchain. Ecash (formally BCHA or Bitcoin ABC) is 10.7% more profitable to mine than bitcoin (BTC) on Monday. What do you think about the resurgence of profitability with older bitcoin miners? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The governor of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), Lesetja Kganyago, has reiterated the central bank’s longstanding belief that cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are not currencies. According to Kganyago, crypto-assets, as he prefers to call them, are not currencies because they fail to meet the standard of what constitutes a currency. Crypto and the Currency Test In recent remarks to Mills Soko, a professor at a South African university, Kganyago asserts cryptocurrencies like bitcoin only partially meet one of the three key characteristics of a currency. Kganyago explained: One, it must be a generally accepted medium of exchange. Secondly, it must be accepted as a store of value. And thirdly, it must be a unit of account. A cryptocurrency is a store of value. It is a medium of exchange but is not generally accepted. It’s only accepted by those who are participating in it. However, despite adopting this stance toward cryptocurrencies, the SARB governor insists the central bank must still regulate these assets because “people go and invest in cryptos and when they lose money, they ask what government has done about it.” Blockchain Technology Useful Predictably, Kganyago, just like many of his peers, praises blockchain technology saying it “can be useful in many other respects.” The governor also reiterates that SARB, just like central banks around the world, is experimenting with blockchain technology. When asked if the SARB plans to regulate fintech firms in the same way banks are regulated, Kganyago argued that if the activities of such companies start to resemble those of regulated entities, the central bank will have no option but to regulate. He said: So, if you are a fintech firm, and you take deposits, we will regulate you like a deposit taker. If you are a fintech firm, and you do money transmission, we will regulate you like a payments provider. If you are a fintech firm, and you sell insurance policies, we will regulate you like an insurer. Still, Kganyago claims that the SARB understands “the value that the fintech firms bring to the financial sector.” According to him, it is for this reason that the central bank has “created an innovation hub at the Reserve Bank.” Do you agree with what Kganyago has said about cryptocurrencies? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article

PRESS RELEASE. August 2021, leading Crypto service comparison site – Cryptowisser, compares the two cornerstones of cryptocurrency, Bitcoin and Ethereum. The latest analysis of the market focused on the pioneering cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ethereum. But, differing from the usual Bitcoin vs Ethereum analysis, the focus is on the benefits of both and how they work in synergy to give the industry the strong foundations it needs to grow. Bitcoin and Ethereum The article takes us on a brief journey back in time, highlighting the key stages of Bitcoins’ progression up until the release of Ethereum in 2015 and how that changed the landscape of the industry. The introduction of crypto-based businesses and ICOs was a turning point, which has led us to the rapidly-evolving market we see today. As well as exploring the history of the coins, the focus is on how Bitcoin and Ethereum work to support one another and act independently. From the Proof of Work and Proof of Stake consensus mechanisms to the functionality and potential of each currency, no stone is left unturned. Both protocols have their unique values and faults, which are highlighted and explained in some depth. Finally, there are some points which are underlined for each coin, with recommendations on how to benefit from a portfolio that supports both Bitcoin and Ethereum. There is a broad understanding of the cryptocurrency market and how it may evolve in the coming years, discussing the recent Ethereum updates and how the blockchain is moving to Ethereum 2.0. While the industry is still in its infancy, there is a lot to look forward to based on the explanations made in this article. Cryptowisser is a cryptocurrency services comparison site with the world’s largest, most frequently updated and most trusted lists of cryptocurrency exchanges, news, wallets, debit cards and merchants. With more than 1,000 reviews of the various exchanges, debit cards, wallets and merchants, they help you make all of your purchasing decisions and service choices in the crypto world. For more information please contact press@cryptowisser.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

On August 28, the Bitcoin Cash-based decentralized finance (defi) platform Detoken announced the project is closing its doors on September 4, 2021. The project’s founder, Semyon Germanovich, explained that the main reason for shutting the defi project down is because of the “changing regulatory outlook on cryptocurrency derivatives.” Defi Project Detoken to Shut Down Operations on September 4 In December 2020, Bitcoin.com News reported on the defi platform called Detoken, a project that allowed users to hedge or long their bitcoin cash (BCH) in a noncustodial fashion. At the same time, the firm at General Protocols launched the Anyhedge technology and the protocol was leveraged by the Detoken platform. Semyon Germanovich explained on Saturday that the Detoken platform was sunsetting the project over regulatory concerns. “I’m saddened to announce that Detoken will be closing its doors on the 4th September 2021,” Germanovich said. “There are several factors that influenced our decision to close the Detoken platform. The main reason is that it’s become increasingly apparent that Detoken’s business model cannot continue to work given the changing regulatory outlook on cryptocurrency derivatives.” Detoken’s founder added: I’ve always been a firm believer in financial freedom and privacy, but in order to continue operating Detoken in its current form we’d be forced to introduce know your customer identity checks sooner or later. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that all players in the industry will have to make the same hard decisions about changing their business model or introducing these difficult and friction-inducing checks. Bitcoin Cash Proponents Look to Smart Bitcoin Cash Chain The Bitcoin Cash community is now anticipating the benefits of the Smart Bitcoin Cash chain(Smartbch). BCH proponents believe Smartbch could unlock massive potential between the Ethereum (ETH)and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) networks. As time has progressed, the exchange Coinflex revealed that “Coinflex BCH (mainnet) to BCH (SEP20) bridge has been live for an entire week now – with zero issues,” in a blog post announcement. Coinflex added: We are happy to announce that locking on the BCH chain, releasing BCH (SEP20, the Smartbch format), and going from Smartbch to BCH have all been working smoothly. Bitcoin cash (BCH) markets have been up over 5% during the last 24 hours and BCH currently holds the 13th largest market capitalization out of 10,000+ crypto assets. BCH is up 24.4% during the last month and year-to-date, bitcoin cash has gained 149%. At the time of writing, bitcoin cash (BCH) has an overall market capitalization of around $12.5 billion. Bitcoin Cash Fans Bid Detoken Farewell On Reddit, subscribers on the subreddit forum r/btc were sad to see Detoken close its doors in a Reddit post added on Saturday. “This is the mail I just received from detoken. Despite this bad news, I still hope, new projects [will] use General Protocols,” one user wrote on the forum. The developer of the General Protocols project, who goes by the name “Emergent Reasons,” replied to the comment and said: “Thanks for the good wishes. We continue to work hard for BCH, p2p electronic cash.” He also left a link to a blog post called: “A peer-to-peer cash strategy for General Protocols” which can be read via the read.cash blogging platform. What do you think about Detoken having to close its doors over regulatory concerns toward crypto derivatives? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below. View the full article

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reportedly confirmed that its e-naira digital currency will have a legal tender and non-interest-bearing asset status. In addition, a limit on customer transactions and value-based transactions will be imposed. Five-Stage Launch According to a Nairametrics report, the new revelations concerning the e-naira’s design as well as the operational module are contained in a document that was recently sent to banks by the CBN. The same document also shares details about the duties assigned to each of the parties participating in the e-naira program. As explained in the report, the CBN itself will be responsible for the first part of the e-naira rollout. This will involve the issuing, distribution, redemption, as well destruction of the currency. In the second stage, which is called the Financial Institution Suite, “licensed financial institutions will be able to request currency or issue stablecoins.” They will also “manage digital currency across branches, KYC, identify and AML compliance capability.” The Nigerian government will become involved at the third stage where it will “process digital payments sent to and received from citizens and businesses.” At the fourth stage are merchants who are expected to provide “low-cost payment and business management software, POS, remote payment solutions, online capabilities, transaction analysis and reconciliation.” The last stage, which is also known as the Retail Consumer Suite, will focus on the digital currency’s architecture. ‘Speed Wallet’ Meanwhile, a separate report says the CBN is now on course to launch a wallet for its digital currency. According to the report, this wallet enables the CBN to meet its goal of launching the e-naira by October 1, 2021. However, this wallet will not compete with existing banks. Instead, the Cryptotvplus report says it will “serve as a means to transact value, pending when banks and other innovators can provide their own wallets.” The wallet, which is also known as the Speed Wallet, will have three tiers. The first tier is designated for Nigerians without bank accounts. However, access will only be gained upon the submission of “a passport photograph, name, place & date of birth, gender, address and phone number.” Tier-two wallet users on the other hand must “own an account with an existing bank.” Users at this level “can only send and receive $400 [N200,000] daily with a cumulative balance daily of $1,000. [N500,000.]” The minimum requirement for this level is a Bank Verification Number (BVN). The third tier allows transacting daily to the tune of $2,000 with a cumulative balance daily of $10,000. Having a BVN is the minimum requirement. How do you rate the e-naira’s chance of succeeding? Tell us what you think in the comments section below. View the full article