Staff Picks - November 2021
Slovenia Launches Public Consultations on Crypto Taxation Law
Authorities in Slovenia have prepared new legislation tailored to determine how crypto holdings and transactions are taxed in the country. The proposal, aimed at clarifying the matter, has been submitted for public consultations this week, local media reports revealed.
Coinbase Acquires AI Customer Support Startup Agara
Under the deal, Agara’s mostly India-based staff will join Coinbase’s operations.
How a BSC Project Used Netflix's Squid Game to Scam Investors
The hyped Binance Smart Chain project inspired by Squid Game has been abandoned after its team sold off the token supply.
Mastercard is preparing its infrastructure for the deployment of CBDCs
The world's third-largest consumer payment processor remains bullish on the adoption of CBDCs.
Bitcoin white paper turns 13 years old: The journey so far
The Bitcoin white paper only has nine pages, yet it contained enough to change the world. Here's how it came to be 13 years ago.
NFTs and play-to-earn are future of gaming industry, says EA boss
Major video game publisher Electronic Arts sees NFTs and blockchain-based games as the future of the industry.
Incoming NY mayor wants crypto taught in schools
Incoming New York Mayor Eric Adams believes schools should be preparing students to navigate the world of cryptocurrency and digital assets.
Crypto Exchange Kraken Set to List Shiba Inu Tomorrow — SHIB Investors Expect Price to Pump
Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has indicated that the shiba inu (SHIB) cryptocurrency will be listed on its platform on Tuesday. The dogecoin rival has gained much popularity recently, rising 97% in the past seven days and 825.5% in the last 30 days.
Inside the War Room: How Indexed Finance Traced Its $16M Hacker
An inside look into the war room and the events that led to the doxing of the hacker that drained Indexed Finance of $16 million last month.
China Reports First CBDC Money Laundering Case
Suspects used digital yuan wallets to launder the funds, officials say.
Ripple Launching Liquidity Hub Despite SEC Lawsuit Over XRP
Amid an ongoing lawsuit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over XRP, Ripple is launching a new product, Liquidity Hub, which aims to be “a one-stop shop for enterprises to source any tokenized asset.” The product “will allow customers to seamlessly access crypto assets from a variety of global venues, including market makers, exchanges, OTC desks and in the future decentralized venues,” the company detailed.
DEXs growing faster than CEXs but Binance still sees 171M visitors in a month
According to Chainalysis data, the number of DEX’s doubled between Q1 2019 and Q3 2021, while the number of CEX’s stayed around the same.
Taproot, Bitcoin’s Long-Anticipated Upgrade, Has Activated
Taproot gives developers an expanded toolbox to work with as they continue to ideate, iterate and build on Bitcoin.
Dutch Authorities Seize Cryptocurrency Worth Over 25 Million Euros
Dutch authorities have seized more than 25 million euros in cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin and ether, from dozens of suspects in criminal cases. “Cryptocurrencies are widely used as a means of payment for various types of crime,” said the Netherlands’ Public Prosecution Service.
Most Gaming Studios Adopting Crypto, NFTs: Study
An industry-first survey commissioned by Stratis revealed that 58% of game studios are already using blockchain technology.
Ripple Proposes Its Vision for Cryptocurrency Regulation
The company has put forward a set of proposed guidelines for regulating the cryptocurrency industry.
A Pirate Bay Clone for NFTs Has Hit the Web
Ethereum and Solana NFTs have been scraped and put in a single torrent file.
DOJ Selling Cryptocurrency Seized From Bitconnect Worth $56 Million
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is selling cryptocurrency worth $56 million that was seized from the “number one promoter” of Bitconnect, the largest crypto fraud scheme ever charged criminally. Investors were fraudulently induced to invest over $2 billion. The Bitconnect promoter faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
IRS Expects to Seize Billions of Dollars in Cryptocurrency Next Year — More Than $3.5 Billion in Crypto Seized This Year
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has revealed that $3.5 billion in crypto was seized during the fiscal year 2021. This represents 93% of all funds seized by its criminal investigation unit during the same time period. The agency expects to seize billions of dollars more in cryptocurrency next year.
Square Releases White Paper Detailing Protocol for a Decentralized Bitcoin Exchange
The white paper from Square’s new TBD division describes a protocol for exchanging digital and other assets in a way that’s more accessible to everyone.
Obscure token spikes 900% due to name likeness with new COVID variant
Crypto speculators fuel a rally for the Omicron token following the WHO’s naming of the latest COVID-19 variant.
Hackers Are Attacking Cloud Accounts to Mine Cryptocurrencies, Google Says
Hacked accounts were also used to find new targets and host malware and phishing scams.
El Salvador Buys 100 More Bitcoins Amid Crypto Sell-Offs and New Covid-19 Variant Scare
As reports of a new Covid-19 strain spread, tanking the price of many cryptocurrencies, El Salvador bought the dip. The country has added 100 more bitcoins to its treasury despite a recent warning by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), bringing the total number of bitcoins purchased to 1,220.
Adidas Partners With Coinbase, Obtains Sandbox Land
The footwear and clothing company is becoming increasingly interested in crypto.
Ethereum Has Burned More Than a Million ETH Over the Last 3 Months
111 days ago, the Ethereum network implemented the London hard fork upgrade which added a mechanism (EIP-1559) that changed Ethereum’s fee rate to a new scheme that makes the crypto asset ether deflationary. Since then 1 million ether has been burned or the equivalent of around $3.8 billion worth of ethereum using today’s exchange rates.