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📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (04/09/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Gala Games Founders Biff Over $130M Theft, Corporate Waste Allegations ⚖️
Wright Thurston and Eric Schiermeyer, the two co-founders of the blockchain gaming platform Gala Games have reportedly had a falling out, with both filing separate lawsuits against each other.
Schiermeyer’s lawsuit accuses Thurston of stealing 8.6 billion GALA tokens and selling them for $130 million in early 2021, while also accusing Thurston of a pattern of founding companies that end up insolvent, bankrupt, or tied up in litigation.
Thurston’s lawsuit, on the other hand, accuses Schiermeyer of wasting “millions of dollars in company assets” and lending millions of Gala’s funds to himself for personal purchases, including the financing of a private jet.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/gala-games-founders-sue-court-token-theft-corporate-waste
2️⃣ FTX Wallet Activity Sparks Token Dump Fears as Bankruptcy Hearing Approaches 🥶
According to data from blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence, a wallet belonging to bankrupt crypto exchange FTX has moved $10 million worth of digital assets from the Solana network to Ethereum since August 31st. These transfers have sparked concerns among investors who speculate them to be the beginning of a series of token dumps amid the exchange’s bankruptcy proceedings.
https://www.theblock.co/post/248877/ftx-wallet-activity-sparks-token-dump-fears-as-bankruptcy-hearing-approaches
3️⃣ Matter Labs Co-Founder Proposes ‘Ethereum Supreme Court’ For On-Chain Disputes 🔎
Alex Gluchowski, the CEO and co-founder of Matter Labs, has proposed the idea for an “Ethereum Supreme Court”- a system resembling the offline world’s hierarchical court system to help serve as a final stop for parties to dispute smart contract issues.
Gluchowski stated,
“The most important function of such a system will be to protect protocols against political inference from the outside. It will serve as a great deterrence mechanism, and will elevate the role of Ethereum as a powerful network state.”
https://cointelegraph.com/news/matter-labs-founder-proposes-ethereum-supreme-court-on-chain-disputes
4️⃣ LSE Group Draws Up Plans for Blockchain-Based Digital Assets Business 🏦
According to a Financial Times report, the London Stock Exchange Group has drawn up plans to offer blockchain-based trading of traditional financial assets. LSE Group's Head of Capital Markets Murray Ross stated that the company has decided to take the plans forward after reaching an “inflection point” by examining the potential for bringing traditional markets to blockchain rails for nearly a year.
https://www.ft.com/content/ce177de8-2828-4fe2-827f-1c25dcbc99ff
5️⃣ China’s Digital Yuan Must Be Available in All Retail Scenarios, Says Central Bank Official 🇨🇳
Changchun Mu, the director of the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People’s Bank of China, has stated that the digital yuan (China’s CBDC) must be available in all retail payment scenarios. He has asked wallet providers such as WeChat, Alipay, commercial banks with their mobile banking apps and other payment apps including e-CNY operators, to remain wary of compliance requirements and obtain relevant financial licenses.
https://www.theblock.co/post/248914/chinas-digital-yuan-must-be-available-in-all-retail-scenarios-says-central-bank-official
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (03/09/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Vitalik Sells MakerDAO Stake After CEO Christensen Suggests Solana-Based Blockchain 📉
Earlier today, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin reportedly sold his entire remaining stake of 500 MakerDAO tokens for 353 ETH (~$580,000) on the CoW Protocol. Notably, the move comes shortly after MakerDAO co-founder and CEO Rune Christensen announced that he was considering using a fork of the Solana blockchain for MakerDAO’s standalone native blockchain that is planned to be implemented in the protocol’s Endgame upgrade.
https://www.theblock.co/post/248856/vitalik-sells-makerdao-stake-after-ceo-christensen-suggests-solana-based-blockchain
2️⃣ FTX Court Filing Reveals Former Alameda CEO’s $2.5M Yacht Purchase ⚖️
In a recent filing with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, FTX debtors disclosed a series of financial statements revealing transactions that benefited company executives shortly before the exchange’s collapse in November 2022. Specifically, several payments or property transfers directly benefiting senior company executives at FTX and Alameda Research were executed within one year preceding the collapse of FTX.
The list included over $900 million in transfers to Sam Bankman-Fried labeled simply as “Cash Payment,” $15.5 million in cash transfers, and a single $3.5 million transfer to ex-Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison. It also showed a $2.5 million payout to the American Yacht Group for ex-Alameda co-CEO Samuel Trabucco.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/ftx-yacht-former-alameda-ceo-sam-trabucco
3️⃣ Half of the People in Turkey Now Own Crypto: Report ❗️
According to a research survey conducted by KuCoin, crypto adoption is on the rise in Turkey, increasing from 40% to 52% of the Turkish population holding crypto over the last year and a half. Notably, Turkey is in the throes of high inflation.
KuCoin stated,
"Per our findings in Turkey and other previous country reports, for Turkey, the growing number and percentage of crypto investors indicate an increasing interest and acceptance of crypto as a hedge against inflation, especially with the Turkish lira losing over 50% of its value against the US dollar."
https://decrypt.co/154724/republic-of-turkey-crypto-adoption-half-kucoin
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Could BRICS challenge the US led world order?
That’s what all the headlines were saying leading up to the recent BRICS summit. After it happened, the headlines made it sound like it was insignificant. After all, there was no BRICS currency!
This could not be further from the truth. The recent BRICS summit was significant for many reasons, and it requires context to understand. When you put things into perspective, you start to see that BRICS could challenge the US and its allies.
You also start to see that the BRICS could leverage cryptocurrency to challenge the US dollar rather than create their own currency. If and when this happens depends on the markets, specifically the commodity market.
This is a video you cannot miss!
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (01/09/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Aerodrome Fanatics Deposit $150M to Base Blockchain on First Day 📈
Aerodrome, a fork of Velodrome developed in collaboration with Base developers, reportedly attracted over $150 million in TVL just a day after going live. Notably, the deposits which are likely driven by the liquidity mining incentives offered by the platform, bumped Base Blockchain’s DeFi ecosystem by 80% in terms of locked value. Aerodrome has stated that it seeks to act as a “business development protocol” for the Base ecosystem, supporting projects as they launch, onboarding new projects and tokens, and generating liquidity for the ecosystem.
https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2023/08/31/aerodrome-fanatics-deposit-150m-to-base-blockchain-on-first-day
2️⃣ Swift Says Interoperability Experiment with Chainlink’s CCIP Was Successful 🤩
According to a recent press release, the Interbank messaging system Swift has successfully used Web3 services platform Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) to transfer tokenised value across multiple private and public blockchains in recent experiments.
Tom Zschach, the chief innovation officer at Swift stated,
"For tokenisation to reach its potential, institutions will need to be able to seamlessly connect with the whole financial ecosystem. Our experiments have demonstrated clearly that existing secure and trusted Swift infrastructure can provide that central point of connectivity, removing a huge hurdle in the development of tokenisation and unlocking its potential."
https://www.theblock.co/post/248293/swift-chainlink-ccip
3️⃣ PancakeSwap Expands to Coinbase-Incubated Base Network 🚀
PancakeSwap, the leading DEX on the BNB Chain, has reportedly launched on the Coinbase-incubated Ethereum layer-2 network Base. This makes Base the latest addition to PancakeSwap’s ongoing multi-chain expansion. The team behind the project has stated that they wish to leverage Coinbase's ecosystem, which reportedly “brings the power of mainstream crypto adoption” and helps in building a “more inclusive DeFi landscape.”
https://decrypt.co/154426/pancakeswap-expands-coinbase-incubated-base-network
4️⃣ OKX Plans to Enter India, Hire Local Employees for Web3 Exploration 🇮🇳
According to a CoinDesk report, crypto exchange OKX is planning to enter India and recruit local employees to explore potential Web3 applications. OKX chief marketing officer Haider Rafique stated that the company plans to scale up its wallet services “exponentially” by tapping into India’s developer community. He also revealed that there are currently 200,000 OKX Wallet users in India, which equates to barely 5% of India’s Web3 users.
On the country’s treatment of crypto, Rafique stated,
"You have to kind of separate Web3 from CeFi and I think regulators are starting to do that too. They're more concerned about venues that have fiat on-ramps, which we do but we don't offer it in India. Once India comes up with a regulatory framework for crypto then we would like to be the front runners."
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/09/01/okx-planning-web3-foray-into-india-chief-marketing-officer-says/
5️⃣ 'Altcoins' Central to Hong Kong Crypto Firm HashKey’s First Liquid Fund 💰
According to a Reuters report, digital assets financial services firm HashKey Capital's Hong Kong-regulated fund will invest less than half of the fund in bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH), and place more emphasis on its altcoin portfolio. The fund, which opened for business Friday, has reportedly attracted several high-net-worth individuals and investment firms serving rich Asian families as clients.
https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/altcoins-central-hong-kong-crypto-firm-hashkeys-first-liquid-fund-2023-08-31/
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Making sense of the crypto market isn’t easy. It requires lots of data, and lots of analysis. Thankfully, there are a few companies in crypto that periodically publish incredibly comprehensive reports.
One of these is Messari, and their recent ‘State of Crypto’ report breaks down everything that’s been going on with the 30 largest cryptocurrencies (besides Bitcoin). As you can imagine, a lot has happened.
That’s why we decided to not only summarise Messari’s report but also give you additional context and analysis that will help you understand where some of these altcoins are headed in the near term.
Enjoy!
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (30/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Bitcoin Surges After Grayscale Wins Appeal Against SEC 🙌
The price of Bitcoin rose significantly yesterday after the United States Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit sided with Grayscale over the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the crypto firm's quest to launch a Bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Specifically, Judge Neomi Rao ordered Grayscale’s petition for review be granted and the SEC’s order to deny the GBTC listing application be vacated. Judge Rao described the denial of Grayscale’s proposal as “arbitrary and capricious” due to the SEC’s failure to explain its different treatment of similar products. However, the order does not guarantee the eventual listing of a Grayscale spot Bitcoin ETF.
https://decrypt.co/154118/bitcoin-surges-after-grayscale-wins-appeal-against-sec
2️⃣ Crypto Bank SEBA Obtains Approval-In-Principle in Hong Kong for Crypto-Related Services 🤩
The Hong Kong subsidiary of Switzerland-based crypto-friendly SEBA Bank has reportedly received an approval-in-principle from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission as the crypto-native bank looks to expand its international presence. The approval is the first step in acquiring a full license that would allow it to deal in securities, including crypto-related products such as over-the-counter derivatives and structured products.
CEO Franz Bergmueller stated,
"Complementing Seba Group’s established licenses in Switzerland (FINMA) and Abu Dhabi (FSRA), the Hong Kong AIP significantly extends our global regulatory footprint. Seba Group aligns itself with the Hong Kong government and its financial regulators in facilitating an environment that supports the responsible growth of the digital assets industry."
https://www.theblock.co/post/247818/crypto-bank-seba-obtains-approval-in-principle-in-hong-kong
3️⃣ Tether Leaning on Bahamas-Based Britannia as US Banks Cut Crypto Ties ❗️
According to a Bloomberg report, stablecoin issuer Tether has added Britannia Bank & Trust, a private bank based in the Bahamas to process dollar transfers on its platform. Tether has reportedly instructed clients to send money to Britannia’s bank account over the last few months.
Noting that Tether hasn’t publicly disclosed the full extent of its banking relationships, Patrick Tan, the general counsel for ChainArgos stated,
“The secrecy surrounding Tether’s banking relationships continues to be a major impediment for developing the cryptocurrency industry, deterring regulatory approvals on other matters, and discouraging traditional asset managers with little tolerance for regulatory risk from more active participation in the space.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-29/tether-usdt-adds-bahamas-based-britannia-bank-trust-as-banking-partner
4️⃣ Robinhood and Jump Trading No Longer Have Crypto Partnership 🔎
According to a CoinDesk report, Robinhood and Jump Trading have ended their years-long crypto partnership. Notably, Robinhood’s no-fee crypto business depends on market-making firms such as Jump Trading to keep its billions of dollars in volume trading smoothly. However, citing on-chain data, the report suggested that the partnership may have ended in July. Some reports speculate that this might likely be due to the regulatory uncertainty in the U.S.
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/08/29/robinhood-and-jump-trading-no-longer-have-crypto-partnership-source
5️⃣ Binance Launches Crypto-To-Bank Account Payment Product in Latin America 🚀
Crypto exchange Binance has announced the launch of ‘Send Cash’- a new crypto-to-bank account payment solution that will allow for the transfer of crypto from Binance Pay in Latin American countries. Specifically, the platform will first be available in Colombia, Honduras, Guatemala, Argentina, Costa Rica, Paraguay, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Mexico.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/binance-crypto-bank-account-payments-latin-america
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (29/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Crypto Giant Binance Considers Russia Exit 🧐
According to a Wall Street Journal report, crypto exchange Binance is considering a withdrawal of its services from Russia, “including a full exit.” The move comes as a result of sanctions from countries including the United States. Notably, Binance just recently removed certain sanctioned Russian financial institutions from available payment options on its peer-to-peer platform.
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-today-dow-jones-08-28-2023/card/crypto-giant-binance-considers-russia-exit-lz69D5N6RzLEtlcyKYYT
2️⃣ DCG Reaches Agreement with Genesis Creditors to Deliver Recoveries of Up To 90% 🤝
According to recent court filings, Digital Currency Group (DCG)- the parent company of bankrupt trading firm Genesis Global Holdco- has reached an in-principle deal with Genesis creditors to resolve the claims brought up in Genesis' bankruptcy.
According to the filing, Genesis currently holds liabilities including the payment of about $630 million in unsecured loans due in May 2023 and a $1.1 billion unsecured promissory note due in 2032. Under the in-principle deal, DCG plans to take up new debt facilities and a repayment agreement. This could result in the recovery of 70%-90% in USD equivalent for unsecured creditors and 65%-90% recovery on an in-kind basis depending on the denomination of the digital asset.
https://www.theblock.co/post/247809/dcg-genesis-recoveries
3️⃣ Solana-Based Automation Startup Clockwork to Shut Down ❌
Nick Garfield, the founder of the Multicoin Capital-backed Solana-based automation tooling startup Clockwork, has announced that the team is planning to turn off key infrastructure for the protocol on October 31st due to the project’s “limited commercial upside.” This will see the project turn off its nodes on devnet and mainnet.
Garfield has stated that he is yet to decide between fully shutting down and returning VC money or pivoting the company in a new direction. He also encouraged Clockwork’s users to fork its open-source code and build their own versions of the project, even once the team pulls support.
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/08/28/solana-based-automation-startup-clockwork-to-shut-down
4️⃣ Binance Says It ‘Continues to Serve’ Belgian Users Via Poland Entity 🔎
Crypto exchange giant Binance is reportedly using its Poland unit to continue serving its customers in Belgium after Belgium’s Financial Services and Markets Authority ordered Binance to halt virtual currency services in the country back in June. Belgian users must accept Binance Poland's Terms of Use and resubmit know-your-customer documentation as a part of Polish regulatory requirements to keep using the Binance platform. Belgian customers who do not do so will be put into “withdrawals-only” mode.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/binance-continues-serving-belgian-users-shifts-poland-entity
5️⃣ SEC Charges Podcaster in First Unregistered Securities Sales Claim Against NFT Offering ⚖️
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reportedly charged Impact Theory, a Los Angeles-based media and entertainment company, with conducting unregistered securities sales. Specifically, the charges relate to the $30 million raised by the entity via the sale of NFTs between October and December 2021. Impact Theory is co-founded by Tom Bilyeu and produces entertainment and educational content, including several podcasts.
The SEC stated,
“[The company] encouraged potential investors to view the purchase of a Founders Key as an investment into the business, stating that investors would profit from their purchases if Impact Theory was successful in its efforts. The order finds that the NFTs offered and sold to investors were investment contracts and therefore securities."
https://cointelegraph.com/news/sec-charges-podcaster-first-unregistered-securities-sales-claim-against-nft-offering
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Time for another weekly crypto review. During times like these, crypto’s price action can be deceiving. It gives the impression that nothing is going on, when this couldn’t be further from the truth. Now is the time to pay attention.
For example, did you see the news that Vitalik sent around 1 million dollars of ETH to Coinbase? Did you know that sending crypto to an exchange signals an intention to sell? Better yet, did you know that past sales of ETH by insiders happen around local tops?
More importantly, did you see the news that the European Union’s online censorship laws have come into force? Do you know what kind of powers this law gives to the EU? If not, don’t fret. We’re here to break it all down just for you!
Enjoy!
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (27/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ JPMorgan Sees ‘Limited Downside’ for Crypto Near Term 🔎
According to a research report by JPMorgan Chase & Co., analysis of open interest in Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s BTC futures shows that the recent selloff in crypto markets is likely in its end phase as long-position liquidations are “largely behind us.” A decline in open interest typically indicates a price trend is losing strength.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-25/jpmorgan-jpm-predicts-limited-downside-for-bitcoin-btc-crypto
2️⃣ FTX Suspends User Accounts Amid Kroll Cyber Breach Concerns ❗️
According to a recent announcement, bankrupt crypto exchange FTX has temporarily suspended accounts of impacted users accessing its claims portal following the recent Kroll cybersecurity breach. The exchange stated the move is a proactive measure to prevent future incidents or additional harm following the recent hack. FTX also clarified that all claim data submitted through the Kroll customer claims portal remains secure and valid.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/ftx-suspends-user-accounts-amid-kroll-cyber-breach-concerns
3️⃣ Tether CTO Stays Silent on Bitcoin Mining Locations 🤔
In a recently published tweet, Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino addressed rumours about where Tether is mining Bitcoin after images of large industrial containers with a photoshopped Tether Energy logo began circulating online. Notably, the image was first shared by Ardoino himself. Ardoino clarified that the photo shows a control room at one of Tether’s Bitcoin mining sites in South America that it is currently completing and will soon begin operations at.
With regards to the photoshopped logo, Ardoino stated,
“We thought that the photo would have been shared on newspapers so the team wanted to brand it. Moreover, putting gigantic Tether logos would not be great from physical privacy of the site point of view. The site is progressing well, everyone in the team is super excited and working around the clock to start operations in the next few weeks.”
https://cointelegraph.com/news/tether-cto-paolo-ardoino-bitcoin-mining-locations
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
There is a new stablecoin provider in town, and it's from a CeFi giant that is trying to take over crypto payments. The news that PayPal was entering the stablecoin market with their PyUSD was met with mixed emotions.
Some think that it could lead to greater retail adoption given the reach of the payment provider. Others are concerned that it's habit of "de-banking" certain accounts could be done much more efficiently with a stablecoin.
What does the launch of this stablecoin really mean?
Well, it's covered in our latest video! Enjoy.
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (26/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Rogue Pepecoin Team Members Blamed For $16M PEPE MultiSig Withdrawal 🔎
According to a community announcement from the official Pepecoin account, three rogue ex-team members were behind the recent $16 million withdrawal from the PEPE project’s multisig wallet.
The post, written by one of the anonymous founding members, reads
“The multi-sig was set up to require 3/4 signers present for an approval. Yesterday these 3 ex-team members came back behind my back, logged onto the multi-sig, stole 16 Trillion/ 60% of the 26 trillion multi-sig tokens, and sent them to exchanges to sell. They then removed themselves from the multisig in an attempt to absolve any association to $PEPE, deleting all of their social accounts and leaving me behind nothing but a message stating ‘the multisig has been updated, you are now in full control.’ I am shocked at what took place and would like to apologise for all of the fear and uncertainty and any losses the actions of these bad actors have caused members of our community. The CEX-wallet tokens were never meant to be sold on the market or for the team to profit from.”
https://cointelegraph.com/news/rogue-pepecoin-team-members-blamed-for-pepe-multsig-withdrawal
2️⃣ Treasury, IRS Release Proposed Crypto Tax Reporting Rules 🧐
Yesterday, the U.S. Treasury Department published a 300-page proposed rule book that would require brokers and exchanges to report certain sales on crypto. The rules reportedly aim to close the tax gap and bring digital asset reporting into line with reporting on other types of assets.
The Treasury Department also unveiled a new custom tax form – the 1099-DA – that would “help taxpayers determine if they owe taxes, and […] avoid having to make complicated calculations or pay digital asset tax preparation services in order to file their tax returns.” Notably, the proposed rules come as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in 2021 that sought to increase reporting made by brokers on customers’ crypto activity.
https://www.theblock.co/post/247478/treasury-irs-release-proposed-crypto-tax-reporting-rules
3️⃣ Binance Drops Sanctioned Russian Banks from Peer-to-Peer Service ❌
Crypto exchange Binance has reportedly cut ties with five sanctioned Russian banks that were listed on the exchange’s peer-to-peer service to let users transfer funds in roubles. Binance had earlier received criticism for using the codewords “yellow” and “green” to represent the sanctioned Russian banks in its payment options from its peer-to-peer (P2P) service. The exchange stated that the delisting was due to a regular update of its system to comply with local and global regulatory standards and sanctions rules. It also stated that it seeks to address and remediate any “gaps” pointed out by users as soon as possible.
https://www.wsj.com/finance/currencies/binance-drops-sanctioned-russian-banks-from-peer-to-peer-service-fef93a1d
4️⃣ Tokenisation Could Improve Bond Market Efficiency, Hong Kong Regulator Says 🏦
In a recently published 24-page report, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) detailed the findings of its Project Evergreen study, which analysed the market impact of bond tokenisation. The concluding sentiment of the report was that tokenisation provides improvement for the bond market by enhancing efficiency, liquidity and transparency. Notably, the findings follow a successful $100 million tokenised green bond issuance in February by the central bank in collaboration with the local government.
https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2023/08/25/tokenization-could-improve-bond-market-efficiency-hong-kong-regulator-says
5️⃣ The DEA Accidentally Sent $50,000 Of Seized Cryptocurrency to A Scammer ❗️
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (25/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ FTX and BlockFi Hit by Third-Party Data Breach, Exposing User Data 🥶
According to reports, customer data of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and lender BlockFi have been compromised due to a hack affecting Kroll, a third-party agent responsible for managing creditor claims for bankrupt companies. While crypto account passwords and other sensitive data weren’t leaked, customers were warned to be on the lookout for scammers impersonating parties in the bankruptcy.
https://decrypt.co/153719/ftx-blockfi-hit-third-party-data-breach-exposing-user-data
2️⃣ Colombian Peso Stablecoin Goes Live on Polygon, Aiming for $10B Remittances Market 🚀
Stablecoin issuer Num Finance has reportedly launched a Colombian peso-pegged stablecoin on the Polygon network. The stablecoin, named nCOP, is over-collateralised by reserve assets and will enable companies to make real-time settlements and cash management more efficient without foreign exchange risk.
Num Finance CEO Agustín Liserra stated,
“In Colombia, there exists a unique opportunity to ‘tokenise’ remittances and offer them a yield in nCOP, based on regulated financial products. Currently, Colombia is one of the main recipients of remittances in Latin America.”
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/08/24/colombian-peso-stablecoin-goes-live-on-polygon-aiming-for-10b-remittances-market
3️⃣ Mastercard, Visa Step Back from Binance Card Partnerships 💳
According to a Bloomberg report, global payments giant Mastercard is ending its cryptocurrency card partnership with crypto exchange Binance in Argentina, Brazil, Bahrain and Colombia starting Sept. 22. Notably, the report states that the move might be due to the increased regulatory scrutiny faced by Binance, in recent times. As of July, payment processor firm Visa has also reportedly stopped issuing new co-branded cards with Binance in Europe. The report also states that the decision to end the program will not impact any of Mastercard’s other crypto card programs.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-24/mastercard-to-end-its-binance-co-branded-card-partnership
4️⃣ Ledn Opens Crypto-Native Path to Cayman Islands 'Golden Visa’ 🏝
Cayman Islands based Bitcoin banking firm Ledn has reportedly partnered with crypto real estate broker Parallel to launch a lending product that allows investors to finance and acquire Cayman Islands properties by using their BTC as collateral. Ledn claims the initiative helps crypto natives to secure a "Golden Visa" and permanent residency in the British Overseas Territory without having to sell their cryptocurrency or exchange it for fiat. The loans start with a 50% loan-to-value ratio at an annual interest rate of 12.9%.
Ledn CEO Adam Reeds stated,
"As both companies are regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) as Virtual Asset Service Providers, this partnership is a testament to the framework that the regulator has put in place to encourage the responsible development of the crypto industry in the Cayman Islands."
https://www.theblock.co/post/247251/ledn-parallel-crypto-native-cayman-islands-golden-visa
5️⃣ Base, Optimism Unveil Shared Governance and Revenue-Sharing Framework ❗️
Developers behind the Base and Optimism networks have jointly announced a revenue-sharing and governance-sharing agreement. The agreements will see Base pay either 2.5% of its revenue or 15% of its profits to the Optimism Collective. The agreements are part of Coinbase’s efforts to transition its Base blockchain towards full decentralisation in collaboration with the Optimism Collective and OP Labs. While Coinbase has not provided a specific timeline for this transition, it published a list of “principles of neutrality” that it will follow to prevent Base from becoming centralised.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/base-optimism-unveil-shared-governance-revenue-sharing-framework
🚨Rally Report🚨
ROCKET POOL
The price of RPL has rallied by 16% in the past 24 hours.
WHY?!
🔎 According to a recent tweet by on-chain analysis platform Lookonchain, a whale using a safe multisig wallet might be behind the recent RPL price pump.
💰 The safe multi-sig wallet spent a total of 450 $ETH ($735K) to buy 32,820 $RPL at $22.4 in the past 12 hours.
If you want to buy or trade RPL, we have an exclusive trading fee discount of up to 60% on Kucoin 👇
https://www.coinbureau.com/deals/trading/kucoin/
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Do you remember the infamous Infrastructure Bill that was passed in 2021?
To refresh your memory, it contained a problematic provision that expanded the definition of broker in such a way that it could apply to miners, validators, and dApps.
Well, the Treasury department (which was behind the provision) recently released its proposal for its finalised crypto tax rules. Lo and behold, it states that DeFi protocols and even crypto wallets could have to collect KYC for tax purposes in the US.
The good news is that the Treasury is taking comments on the proposed rules until the fall. The bad news is that its blatantly anti-crypto stance suggests it’s not looking for comments from the crypto industry. This could be very bad, and not just for the US.
Watch to find out why.
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (02/09/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ MakerDAO Should Use Solana’s Code to Build Its New Blockchain, Co-Founder Says 🚀
In a recently submitted proposal, MakerDAO co-founder Rune Christensen suggested that “NewChain”- the platform’s future native standalone blockchain should be built using the codebase that underpins the Solana blockchain. Notably, “NewChain,” is part of the fifth and final phase of the MakerDAO “Endgame” upgrade which is designed to create a series of independent subDAOs that live within the larger ecosystem. Christensen stated that the codebase’s “technical quality,” its “resilience by having gone through the FTX blowup” and already functioning examples make Solana “the most promising codebase to explore further.”
https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2023/09/01/makerdao-should-use-solanas-code-to-build-its-new-blockchain-co-founder-says
2️⃣ China Court Declares Virtual Assets Legal Properties Protected By Law 🇨🇳
The People’s Courts of the People’s Republic of China has published a new report titled “Identification of the Property Attributes of Virtual Currency and Disposal of Property Involved in the Case.”
The report addresses the legality of virtual assets and analyses the criminal law attributes of virtual assets. Notably, the court acknowledged in its report that virtual assets under the current legal policy framework have economic attributes and thus can be classified as property.
The report also added suggestions to deal with crimes involving virtual assets and noted that since the money and property involved in the case cannot be confiscated, it should be based on the unification of criminal and civil law.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/china-court-declares-virtual-assets-as-legal-properties-protected-by-law-report
3️⃣ Ripple Says Court Should Deny SEC Request for Appeal ⚖️
In a new filing made yesterday, lawyers representing Ripple Labs have argued that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) hasn't made enough of a case to warrant an appeals court intervention in its ongoing legal fight with the company.
Specifically, the filing stated that the SEC’s grounds for an appeal largely rested on “dissatisfaction” with the judge’s decision and pointed out that the “exceptional circumstances required for interlocutory appeal” were absent in the case. They called on the judge to deny any request for an appeal or stay.
https://www.theblock.co/post/248839/ripple-says-court-should-deny-sec-request-for-appeal
4️⃣ US, UK Intel Agencies Warn Against New Crypto Malware 🔎
U.S. and U.K. intelligence agencies have published a joint report warning users about a new malware called “Infamous Chisel,” which targets Android devices. The Infamous Chisel malware which is suspected to be of Russian origins is being used to target cryptocurrency wallet and exchange applications, among other data. The malware also targets the Android Keystore system that lets users store private keys, and every file in the directories is extracted.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/fbi-report-warns-against-infamous-chisel-new-malware-targeting-crypto-wallets
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (31/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Sensitive Data Leaked in Kroll Cybersecurity Breach: Report 🥶
According to a recent Twitter post, an allegedly ‘leaked’ Kroll Q&A summary published on Aug. 30 reveals that the recent data breach includes ‘sensitive’ data such as FTX users’ email addresses, mailing addresses, account numbers, unique bankruptcy identifiers, account balances, phone numbers and other claim details. Notably, this is contrary to the statement published by the FTX team which claims that the breach only involved ‘non-sensitive’ data.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/sensitive-data-leaked-in-kroll-cybersecurity-breach
2️⃣ Robinhood’s Crypto Wallet Adds Bitcoin and Dogecoin 🚀
According to a recent announcement, Robinhood Markets Inc. has added wallet support for BTC and DOGE. This means that all users of the Robinhood wallet spread across 140 countries can now send and receive BTC and DOGE. The company also stated that it has begun rolling out swap features for “select users” which will allow them to trade ether for over 200 different assets.
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/08/30/robinhoods-crypto-wallet-adds-bitcoin-and-dogecoin
3️⃣ Uniswap Lawsuit Dismissed: DeFi Crypto Exchange Not Liable for ‘Scam Tokens’ ⚖️
The United States District Court SDNY has reportedly dismissed a class-action lawsuit against Uniswap Labs and its CEO, foundation and venture capital backers. The lawsuit, which was filed by trader Nessa Risley last April on behalf of other Uniswap users, accused the Uniswap developers and investors of violating securities laws and allowing token issuers to scam investors.
Notably, Judge Katherine Polk Failla, who handed down the dismissal, is also hearing the Securities and Exchange Commission’s case against Coinbase. Judge Falia ruled that she found Uniswap’s ability to charge transaction fees, among other aspects, wasn’t convincing enough to find the exchange’s associates liable.
The ruling reads,
“The Court declines to stretch the federal securities laws to cover the conduct alleged and concludes that plaintiffs’ concerns are better addressed to Congress. These foundational contracts are distinctive from the token contracts unique to each pool and drafted by issuers. The contracts relevant to Plaintiffs’ claims are not these overarching codes provided by Defendants, but rather the pair or token contracts drafted by the issuers themselves.”
https://decrypt.co/154312/uniswap-lawsuit-dismissed-defi-crypto-exchange-not-liable-for-scam-tokens
4️⃣ Starkware Re-Enables Access to Funds Locked After Upgrade 🙌
StarkWare, the company behind the Starknet blockchain, has reportedly agreed to restore access to a number of users who were locked out of their StarkWare accounts after they failed to perform an "essential" account upgrade months ago. Notably, the account restoration comes after users began flooding X (formerly Twitter) with complaints that their wallets had been unfairly zeroed out after a tech upgrade.
https://www.theblock.co/post/248175/starkware-re-enables-access-to-funds-locked-after-upgrade
5️⃣ Binance to 'Gradually' End Support for BUSD Products ❗️
In an announcement made earlier today, crypto exchange Binance confirmed that it will "gradually" end support for its BUSD stablecoin by February 2024. It encouraged users to convert their BUSD into other available assets, including the newly listed First Digital USD (FDUSD) stablecoin launched by the Hong Kong-based trust company First Digital Group. It announced that BUSD to FDUSD trades and conversions are fee-free, and also delisted eight BUSD pairs yesterday.
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/08/31/binance-to-gradually-end-support-for-busd-products
🚨Rally Report🚨
STACKS
The price of STX has rallied by 16% in the past 24 hours.
WHY?!
🎉 Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that the SEC was wrong to reject an application by Grayscale to convert its Bitcoin Trust into a formal BTC spot ETF. The court said that the SEC “failed to adequately explain” its rejection of Grayscale’s ETF application.
🚀 This has made investors bullish on BTC and other BTC-related cryptocurrencies like STX, BCH and BSV.
If you want to buy or trade STX, we have an exclusive $40K Bonus, a 20% trading fee discount & a $15k trading competition on Bitget! 👇
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🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Last week’s Jackson Hole symposium made the headlines, but it seems they all missed something important. For context, the symposium is basically a meeting of central bankers. All the focus was on Jerome, but there were others there too.
ECB president Christine Lagarde and BoJ governor Kazuo Ueda were also present, and what they said was in many ways more significant for the markets. The fact their comments were made behind closed doors might have something to do with the lack of coverage.
Thankfully, there’s enough information out there to get a sense of what they said, and it suggests that we could be in for a very interesting fall and winter period. Depending on how the cookie crumbles, our predictions this year will be just as accurate as the ones last year…
P.S. Enjoy the intro 🤠
📣📣 COIN BUREAU NEWSFLASH! – (28/08/23)
Here are some of today’s most important headlines:
1️⃣ Balancer Exploited in Nearly $900k After Vulnerability Warning 🥶
Yesterday, decentralised exchange Balancer confirmed that it lost over $900K after being hit by an exploit over the weekend. Notably, the exploit comes nearly a week after the team disclosed a critical vulnerability affecting some of its V2 pools.
The team stated,
“Balancer is aware of an exploit related to the vulnerability below (as reported on Aug. 22). Mitigation procedures have drastically reduced risks, but we are unable to pause affected pools.”
https://cointelegraph.com/news/balancer-exploited-900k-after-vulnerability-warning
2️⃣ OnlyFans Parent Company Reports Ether Holdings, Impairment Loss 📈
In an Aug. 24 financial filing made to the UK corporate registry, Fenix International- the UK-based parent company of content subscription giant OnlyFans revealed that it invested a portion of its working capital into Ether while reporting revenues of over $1 billion for the first time. The filing shows that it invested nearly $20 million into ETH. However, the company also reported a total impairment loss of $8.46 million.
The filing reads,
"During the year, the Group diversified part of its working capital into a cryptocurrency asset ('Ethereum' or 'ETH'). There are no limitations or restrictions on the Group’s ability to sell the cryptocurrency assets.”
https://www.theblock.co/post/247613/onlyfans-ethereum
3️⃣ Shiba Inu’s Highly Anticipated Shibarium Bridge is Now 'Fully Functional' ❗️
In an update posted earlier today, developers behind the Shibarium network announced that they had reopened the mainnet as well as fund withdrawals on the Shibarium bridge. They stated that withdrawals of SHIB, LEASH and wETH will take anywhere from 45 minutes to 3 hours to be processed, while BONE withdrawals could take up to 7 days. The team reportedly worked with Polygon blockchain developers to rectify any potential issues.
https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2023/08/28/shiba-inus-highly-anticipated-shibarium-bridge-is-now-fully-functional
4️⃣ Laos Drought Pulls the Plug on Crypto Mining Electricity Supply ⚡️
Électricité du Laos (EDL), the electricity distribution company owned by Laos, has announced that it will suspend electricity supply to crypto mining operations in the country. Notably, the move comes as a result of the drought experienced by the country in the first half of 2023. EDL is reportedly struggling to generate enough power as the extreme heat has resulted in a higher demand for electricity. Since hydropower plants generate 95% of the country’s power, this has placed significant stress on the power distribution capacity of the country amid the drought conditions.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/laos-halts-crypto-mining-electricity-amid-drought
🚨 New Video Alert!! 🚨
Some of you may have seen the news that PayPal is pausing BTC purchases in the UK until early 2024. This might not seem like a big deal, but it is. That’s because of the reason why PayPal made this decision.
It looks like the FATF’s so called ‘travel rule’ is to blame, and that’s a big problem. That’s because the travel rule is being rolled out all around the world, not just in the UK. This means more companies could follow suit in the UK and elsewhere.
That’s why we took it upon ourselves to go down yet another FATF rabbit hole and find out what’s going on and what comes next. Not surprisingly, it’s not looking good, but there does seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Enjoy!
According to a Forbes report, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) lost over $50,000 in crypto assets after being hit by an address poisoning scam earlier this year. The lost funds had earlier been seized during a three-year investigation into the use of digital currency for laundering suspected drug proceeds and were stored in a DEA-controlled Trezor hardware wallet at a secure facility.
Upon realising the mistake, the agency tried to contact USDT-issuer Tether to freeze the funds, but it was too late, and the money had already gone. Currently, the DEA in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation has discovered the stolen funds were converted and transferred to a new wallet which was funded by two Binance accounts linked to anonymous Gmail accounts. The agencies have contacted Google to assist with the investigation.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2023/08/24/dea-accidentally-sends-50000-in-drug-proceeds-to-crypto-scammer
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