15 Jan 2025

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Stay ahead of the curve with The Coinomist’s breaking news coverage. From major market shifts to regulatory updates and industry-defining announcements, we deliver the critical information you need, fast and accurate. Be the first to know about the stories shaping the world of cryptocurrency, business, investing, and Web3.

Crypto Hacker Duo Pleads Guilty to $3.5 Billion Bitfinex Hack

Crypto Hacker Duo Pleads Guilty to $3.5 Billion Bitfinex Hack

Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, a husband and wife duo of crypto hackers, have pleaded guilty to federal money laundering conspiracy charges related to the 2016 hack of the cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex. Their guilty plea comes after a year and a half since their arrest and charges in February 2022 and seven years after the initial hack. According to the government’s allegations, Lichtenstein hacked into Bitfinex and stole 119,754 bitcoins, which were valued at $72 million at the time and are now worth approximately $3.5 billion, for his personal benefit.

04 Aug 2023
Elon Musk Seeks Partners to Create FinHub

Elon Musk Seeks Partners to Create FinHub

X (Twitter) is actively seeking a financial-data giant to collaborate on building a trading hub within its app. The request for plans emphasizes the importance of real-time information, particularly in the realm of investing. The company aims to offer financial content, real-time stock data, and other related features to enhance user experience. Reminding that Elon Musk envisions the platform as a Western super-app akin to WeChat in China, Gojek in Indonesia, Grab in Singapore, and Gozem in Africa. Such super-apps integrate various consumer services like food delivery, ride-hailing, payments, investing, and identity authentication into a single app, providing a comprehensive user experience.

04 Aug 2023
Joe Biden Joins the ‘Laser Eyes’ Club

Joe Biden Joins the ‘Laser Eyes’ Club

US President caused a buzz in the crypto world with a recent Twitter post featuring him sporting laser eyes. This sparked discussions about a potential connection to Bitcoin, as red ‘laser eyes’ are a popular modification used by crypto enthusiasts in their profile pictures. What do you think? Is Joe Biden a secret crypto enthusiast?

04 Aug 2023
Coinbase to Seek Dismissal of SEC Lawsuit Today

Coinbase to Seek Dismissal of SEC Lawsuit Today

During its second-quarter 2023 earnings call on August 3, Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, expressed confidence that the exchange would win the court case, stating, “We do think we can win. We expect to win.” In terms of their financial performance: Coinbase reported a net loss of $97 million on $708 million in revenue for the second quarter of 2023. Trading volume fell by 37%, and operating expenses were down nearly 50% year over year, partly due to a 30% reduction in headcount.

04 Aug 2023
FTX Seeks Voluntary Dissolution of its Dubai Subsidiary

FTX Seeks Voluntary Dissolution of its Dubai Subsidiary

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX is making a court appeal to have FTX Dubai removed from bankruptcy proceedings, asserting that this division had not been in active operation before the official declaration of insolvency was lodged. The legal plea also indicates that the division possesses assets totalling about $4.5 million, spread across multiple accounts. Notably, a substantial portion of these funds is held as collateral for the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority of Dubai.

03 Aug 2023
Are whales gearing up to manipulate the market again?

Are whales gearing up to manipulate the market again?

The data analysis company, Santiment, has detected a notable surge in transactions (exceeding $10 million) within certain renowned altcoins, including AAVE, APE, COMP and others. The majority of these have seen a price decline, with AAVE being the exception, as its value increased by 1.14%. This shift was discernible not only against the dollar but also when compared to Bitcoin.

03 Aug 2023
Nvidia Perfusion: A Fresh Approach to AI Image Generation

Nvidia Perfusion: A Fresh Approach to AI Image Generation

The scientists at Nvidia have pioneered a new technique that converts textual content into imagery, helping to tackle the data storage predicaments that arise during the formation of novel models. Currently, the specifics of a single concept occupy roughly 100 KB. This efficiency stems from the fact that the approach doesn’t reengineer the entire model; instead, it adjusts select “internal representations”, bypassing the need to retrain the model entirely.

03 Aug 2023
Elizabeth Warren remains undeterred

Elizabeth Warren remains undeterred

Representing Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate, she’s forcefully advocating for immediate steps to plug the gaps in cryptocurrency tax provisions, gaps that are believed to be worth roughly $50 billion. Warren’s argument rests on the Infrastructure Investment Act, which is set to take effect on January 1, 2024. Still, disappointingly, no preliminary guidance has been put forth by the Department of Treasury on this concern.

03 Aug 2023
The origin story of MetaMask may be headed to court!

The origin story of MetaMask may be headed to court!

In a lawsuit filed in San Francisco, crypto influencer Joel Dietz claims that Consensys stole his idea for a browser-based crypto wallet similar to MetaMask. Dietz alleges that he created the intellectual property that eventually became MetaMask under a project called Vapor in late 2014. He hired a person named Davis in 2015 to help with coding Vapor, but Dietz accuses Davis of betraying him and collaborating with Consensys instead. Consensys denies Dietz’s claims, stating that he falsely marketed himself as the founder of MetaMask to deceive investors.

03 Aug 2023
The U.S. Department of Justice is reportedly contemplating fraud

The U.S. Department of Justice is reportedly contemplating fraud

But officials are concerned about potential negative impacts on consumers, according to Semafor media. The fear is that an indictment could trigger a run on the exchange, leading to consumer losses and causing panic in the crypto markets, similar to what happened with FTX, which eventually went bankrupt. As a result, prosecutors are exploring alternative options such as fines and deferred or non-prosecution agreements.

03 Aug 2023
Crypto, Flowers, and Politics: Miami Mayor’s Scandal Unraveled

Crypto, Flowers, and Politics: Miami Mayor’s Scandal Unraveled

Ivan Soto-Wright, CEO of MoonPay, and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, ended up entangled in a minor scandal. It turns out that in late 2022, the MoonPay chief funnelled $500,000 into Suarez’s electoral campaign via a Political Action Committee, or PAC. The twist is, Soto-Wright made the transfer from the account of another company under his belt – PassionForest. Now, that’s also the name of a Chinese floral business, which led to some legal headwinds. When it was revealed that there were no ties between PassionForest and the Chinese venture, the controversy cooled down. Meanwhile, Miami’s mayor, Francis Suarez, also quashed any whispers of potential Chinese backing. On a side note, Suarez is an avid crypto enthusiast who accepts his mayoral paycheck in Bitcoin.

02 Aug 2023
Israel launches AI-driven news channel on TikTok

Israel launches AI-driven news channel on TikTok

Prominent Israeli journalists Miri Michaeli and Amit Segal have fashioned their own digital avatars for the ACT News channel on TikTok, thanks to artificial intelligence. While the artificial voices of Michaeli and Segal exhibit some deviation from their real-life vocal tones and there are minor lip-sync discrepancies, audiences readily accept the news as genuine. Initially focused on championing Israeli interests, the brains behind ACT News now plan to harness these AI-powered avatars to cover “uplifting events from around the world”.

02 Aug 2023
Jesse Powell Comments on the Potential FTX Reboot

Jesse Powell Comments on the Potential FTX Reboot

“FTX 2.0 would be worse than starting from scratch. No team, no tech, no licenses, no banking, tarnished brand. The trustee should just auction off the domain and trademark to the highest bidder. Anything beyond that is simply a fee extraction attack on delusional creditors,” — tweeted Kraken founder. Who would actually be interested in buying FTX?

02 Aug 2023
Kenya Suspends Worldcoin’s Activities

Kenya Suspends Worldcoin’s Activities

Kenya’s Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki announced the suspension of Worldcoin’s local activities in the country. Relevant agencies are conducting inquiries and investigations to determine the authenticity and legality of the activities, ensuring the absence of risks to Kenyans. The video shows people lining up to have their irises scanned, with the promise of receiving 25 free Worldcoin tokens ($56) in Kenya. We’ve previously detailed Sam Altman’s vision for the Worldcoin project in our article.

02 Aug 2023
Fitch Ratings Cuts the U.S. Credit Rating from AAA to AA+

Fitch Ratings Cuts the U.S. Credit Rating from AAA to AA+

The agency cited anticipated fiscal deterioration in the coming three years, an erosion of governance, and a growing general debt burden as the reasons for the downgrade. Previously, Fitch Ratings had already downgraded the U.S. rating to AA+ in 2011, after Washington successfully averted a default

02 Aug 2023
U.S. House Committee Puts Corporate Giants in the Hot Seat

U.S. House Committee Puts Corporate Giants in the Hot Seat

The U.S. congressional committee on China is conducting an investigation into BlackRock and MSCI, two major asset management and index provider firms. The committee alleges that these companies have been enabling investments into blacklisted Chinese companies, which is causing tensions in the already strained relations between the two countries. The House of Representatives’ claims that BlackRock and MSCI facilitated American capital flow into companies that have been found guilty of supporting China’s military advancements or engaging in human rights abuses.

02 Aug 2023
MicroStrategy Plans Stock Sale with Potential Bitcoin Purchase

MicroStrategy Plans Stock Sale with Potential Bitcoin Purchase

MicroStrategy intends to raise up to $750 million through a stock sale, stating it might use the proceeds to purchase additional BTC. Saylor’s company bought 467 BTC in July at an average price of $30,835, without any previous sales of Bitcoin. The company currently holds 152,800 BTC, valued at $4.53 billion.

02 Aug 2023
Meta’s Ambitious Plan: Unique Chatbots on the Horizon

Meta’s Ambitious Plan: Unique Chatbots on the Horizon

Meta, previously recognized as Facebook, is working on crafting chatbots powered by artificial intelligence, each endowed with a unique personality. These bots will be capable of engaging in human-like conversations on a wide array of subjects or even emulate certain characters. The first iterations of these chatbots are slated for an official roll-out in September. Their primary role will be to assist in information retrieval or offer suggestions. Currently, the company has chosen not to offer any comments regarding this development.

01 Aug 2023
Chainflip Token Sale Coming Soon on CoinList

Chainflip Token Sale Coming Soon on CoinList

Chainflip serves as a decentralized conduit for transferring digital assets amongst any blockchains, thereby circumventing the necessity for wrapped tokens. Registrations are slated to continue up until the 28th of August, 2023.

01 Aug 2023
Ukrainian Security Service Strikes Down Illegal Crypto Exchanges

Ukrainian Security Service Strikes Down Illegal Crypto Exchanges

Ukraine’s Security Service has successfully dismantled a significant underground network that was carrying out unauthorized financial transfers between Russia and Ukraine, making use of banned Russian payment systems and digital currencies. Active in four regions, these secretive hubs were handling over $1 million each month. Platforms like Yumoney, Webmoney, and various cryptocurrencies were employed to change Russian rubles into digital currencies and subsequently into Ukrainian hryvnia. The primary customer base was made up of hackers and companies participating in under-the-table transactions with Russia.

01 Aug 2023
Ripple’s Triumph Won’t Benefit Kwon

Ripple’s Triumph Won’t Benefit Kwon

Terraform Labs was looking to the positive verdict in the “SEC versus Ripple” litigation as a precedent for its own safeguard against allegations from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Yet, Judge Jed Rakoff has dashed such hopes. The crux of the matter is a substantial divergence in the judge’s view concerning the Howey Test, which assesses whether an asset is a security. Terraform Labs’ token purchases were clearly carried out by users with profit expectations – a paramount criterion for securities. Therefore, it renders the precise method of purchase irrelevant. The dichotomy between the two judges’ decisions underscores the persisting uncertainty in the landscape of cryptocurrency regulations.

01 Aug 2023
Raoul Pal Foresees Widespread Crypto Adoption

Raoul Pal Foresees Widespread Crypto Adoption

Raoul Pal, once at the helm of Goldman Sachs, envisions a steep rise in the global count of cryptocurrency users. He drew parallels between the initial decade of digital assets and internet evolution, leading to the conclusion that the tally of cryptocurrency enthusiasts could hit the 1.2 billion mark by the end of 2025. His projections suggest this number could catapult to a staggering 5.1 billion by 2030. The key drivers in achieving such an extensive digital asset adoption, he believes, will be Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and NFTs.

01 Aug 2023
Is the Shiba Inu craze still going on?

Is the Shiba Inu craze still going on?

LunarCrush, the data analytics company, has reported that the most frequent search on their platform is now the SHIB token, overtaking Optimism (OP) and Worldcoin (WLD) which landed in the second and third spots respectively. Notably, this “meme token” has shown a surge in its overall social engagement by 20% and has held a strong social dominance of 4.8% in the past 24 hours.

01 Aug 2023
Justin Sun Acquires 5 Million CRV from Curve Founder

Justin Sun Acquires 5 Million CRV from Curve Founder

Justin Sun has purchased 5 million CRV from Curve founder Michael Egorov via OTC transactions at a price of $0.4. This move is set to marginally enhance Egorov’s position in FRAX. Along with Justin, seven other addresses conducted OTC transactions with Michael Egorov at $0.4 per CRV. Currently, CRV trades at $0.59. Hopefully, the Curve founder can avert the liquidation of his position; otherwise, it could have a negative impact on a large number of protocols in the ecosystem.

01 Aug 2023
Tether Rushes to the Rescue

Tether Rushes to the Rescue

A user fell victim to a ‘Zero Transfer Phishing’ scam, losing $20 million USDT. These malicious parties imitated a few characters in the wallet address to deceive the unsuspecting victim. Fortunately, Tether reacted swiftly and froze the assets in just 50 minutes.Always stay vigilant when copying wallet addresses from transaction records.Scammers create custom smart contracts to generate look-alike addresses and dupe potential victims. Correct Address: 0xa7B4BAC8f0f9692e56750aEFB5f6cB5516E90570 Phishing Address: 0xa7Bf48749D2E4aA29e3209879956b9bAa9E90570

01 Aug 2023

Opinion

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Investigation

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