Your Weekly Crypto Updates #11 ??

?? Criminal Platform Shut Down by US DoJ

The US Department of Justice has announced that it has dealt a “significant blow” to the crypto crime landscape after arresting a Russian national alleged to have founded a major criminal online platform.

Cryptocurrency?exchange Bitzlato processed more than $700 million dollars worth of illicit funds, according to the DOJ, advertising its services to users who were “known to be crooks”.

?? NFT Contest in Nike's Web3 Venue .Swoosh

Nike's latest excursion into the world of NFT sneakers , jerseys and other virtual apparel for metaverse avatars is a design contest aimed at expanding its .Swoosh community.

The blockchain-based site — pronounced "Dot Swoosh" — is aimed?at the crossroads? of the surprisingly large universe of serious sneaker collectors and virtual reality gamers.

Launched in November as a place to discuss, display and eventually design sneakers and other NFT wearables, Nike on Wednesday unveiled a new creative collaboration zone, .Swoosh Studio.

?? Crypto Will Play a Major Role in UAE's Global Trade Going Forward

The entire globe witnessed the inclination of the?Middle East?towards cryptocurrency throughout 2022. Now the trend is seemingly persisting through 2023 as well. Recently, UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade , Thani bin Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi hinted at the inclusion of cryptocurrency in the nation’s trade partnerships and policies in 2023.

Appearing at the 2023 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Al-Zeyoudi?stressed?the importance of global governance in relation to cryptocurrencies and firms.

The foreign trade minister further claims that when the UAE creates its regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, the focus would be on making the Gulf nation crypto-friendly with standard security. Al-Zeyoudi further said,

“We started attracting some of the companies to the country with the aim that we’ll build together the right governance and legal system, which are needed. “

?? US Banks Team Up to Launch a Digital Wallet

Several banks are reportedly working on a digital wallet that links with debit and credit cards in a bid to compete with 苹果 Pay and? PayPal .

According to?The Wall Street Journal , the digital wallet would be operated by Early Warning Services, a joint venture from several banks that also runs Zelle. The major banks involved include?Wells Fargo,?JPMorgan Chase?and?Bank of America, according to the report.

The new wallet would initially be launched with? Visa ?and? 萬事達卡 ?already on board, according to the report.

?? Crypto Market Capitalization Up 30%

The total crypto market capitalization soared by 29.4% in two weeks , although Bitcoin's?price stabilized near $21,000 on Jan. 19.

As a result, it became increasingly difficult to justify that the five-month-long bearish trend still prevails after the $930 billion total crypto channel top has been breached. Still, the psychological $1 trillion resistance remains strong.

The move possibly reflects investors becoming more optimistic about risk assets after weaker-than-expected inflation metrics signalled that U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate hiking strategy should ease throughout 2023.

?? Gemini to Fire 10% of Its Staff

Crypto platform Gemini has cut approximately 10% of its workforce, per co-founders and twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.?In a post announcing the news , the duo attributed the layoffs to “turbulent market conditions that are likely to persist for some time.”

All employees will be provided with a separation package and healthcare benefits. The company closed its physical offices, the co-founders wrote, “so that these conversations will be held remotely to protect the privacy of each impacted individual. Our highest priority throughout will be to treat everyone affected with compassion and respect.”

The drawback comes as the crypto market at large feels in flux. Other major crypto companies have also been slowing hiring in response to a downturn in prices — Coinbase, Gemini’s close competitor, announced plans last month to reverse its prior headcount growth projections, and Latin American crypto exchange Bitso let go of 80 employees last week.

?? Biden Administration to Establish Cryptocurrency Legal Framework

The Biden Administration released an extensive statement announcing their intention to establish a cryptocurrency legal framework in the coming months.

The post published through the White House noted the administration’s development of “the first-ever framework for developing digital assets ” while addressing its risks.

The statement notes that the administration “spent the past year identifying the risks of cryptocurrencies and acting to mitigate them using the authorities that the Executive Branch has.”

?? Crypto Stocks Surge in Recent Market Upturn

Cryptocurrencies weren’t the only segment to see a major price pump, but hard-hit crypto-related stocks enjoyed even greater gains.

Coinbase’s stock has seen a 70% rise from its all-time lows, while Microstrategy jumped 74% from its December doldrums.

Crypto mining stocks fared even better, with Bitfarm and Marathon Digital recording spectacular 140 and 120% gains, respectively, already this year.

?? Major Online Bank Expands Crypto Trading

German online bank, N26 , has announced the expansion of the list of countries where its customers may trade cryptocurrencies.

From now on, users in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Portugal and Ireland can buy, sell and trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and many others. Last year, N26 began?its crypto trading service for its customers in Austria.

?? EU Imposes ‘Prohibitive’ Requirements on Banks’ Crypto Holdings

European lawmakers voted on Tuesday and decided to make banks holding cryptocurrencies follow more stringent measures. The Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee has reportedly tightened the capital requirement to hold digital assets.

According to Markus Ferber, a member of the European parliament, banks will have to hold a euro of their own capital for every euro they hold in cryptocurrency.

The regulator further stressed that crypto assets are “high-risk investments.” Explicitly elaborating on why such a measure was the need of the hour, Ferber said, “Such prohibitive capital requirements will help prevent instability in the crypto world from spilling over into the financial system.”

?? The Return of the $90M Blockchain Bandit

Eight years ago, a prolific thief dubbed the "Bitcoin Bandit " began robbing crypto owners using a fairly simple tactic: Guessing weak passwords and seeing if they unlocked the private keys needed to transfer cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether.

Using a technique called "ethercombing," the thief plundered some 10,000 wallets between 2015 and 2016, accumulating 51,000 ETH and 470 BTC — currently worth about $90 million — in a single wallet. And then nothing. The Bitcoin Bandit's rich wallet lay dormant until last week.

Between Jan. 16 and 21, blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis said that wallet woke up, and its ill-gotten gains started moving out.

The impetus, Chainalysis suspects, is related to "the recent jump in crypto asset prices," with Ether up more than 33% so far this year and Bitcoin almost 39%.

?? Saudi Arabia’s Central Bank Researches on CBDC

Saudi Arabia’s central bank (SAMA) has stated that it will continue to monitor the developments in the central bank digital currency (CBDC) space over the coming months through several experiments .

The banking regulator disclosed in a?press release ?that it will focus on exploring the potential of a wholesale CBDC offering to rejuvenate the local payments ecosystem. SAMA noted that the early stages of the experiments would involve reviewing the legal implications of a potential launch and a brief foray into the technical aspects.

“During this phase of the project, SAMA seeks to explore the CBDC’s economic impact, market readiness, and potential robust and fast applications of a CBDC-based payment solution,” the bank said.

?? Spanish Airline Explores Crypto Payments

Vueling, one of the Spanish budget airlines that have?grown ?after the Covid-19 travel restrictions ended, is taking its first steps to accept crypto as payment for its services. The company?announced ?on Jan. 14 that it was examining the usage of blockchain and NFT technology in order to allow customers to acquire plane tickets with crypto.

For this task, Vueling has partnered with Criptan, a national exchange that has already registered with the Bank of Spain, to serve as a payments company, processing and completing customers’ orders using crypto.

Vueling states this move will turn it into the first low-cost airline to accept crypto as a means of payment in Europe. On this, Jesus Monzo, Vueling’s alliances and distribution manager, stated: "This agreement places us at the forefront of new technologies and innovation, further reinforcing our commitment to our customers and offering the best and most advanced tools and solutions on our website."

Sam Bankman-Fried - The Disastrous Collapse of FTX ??

?? SBF Lists Washington, DC House for $3.28 million

The?New York Post ?reported that FTX co-founder?Sam Bankman-Fried?had listed his $3.28 million Washington D.C. house for sale.

The luxurious townhome is connected to the former CEO of the bankrupt crypto exchange platform and has been listed following the government seizure of nearly $700 million in assets.

The listed house is a four-bedroom, five-bathroom estate in a long list of properties owned by Bankman-Fried. Court filings from Friday disclosed the $700 million seizure by Federal authorities, with the 4,100-square-foot property likely acting as a chance to recoup some of those lost assets.

?? FTT Spikes Following Possible Exchange Restart?

The?token?(FTT) issued by the bankrupt FTX crypto exchange has jumped?32% ?in a day after its new CEO, John J. Ray III, reiterated that he’s mulling over the idea of restarting the struggling exchange formerly helmed by Sam Bankman-Fried.

Ray said Thursday that he is still trying to uncover and retrieve FTX assets and has tasked a group with exploring the possibility of restarting the international arm of the exchange, the?Wall Street Journal?reported .

?? IMF Warns of Crypto Contagion

The International Monetary Fund has once again published a warning about the global dangers of cryptocurrency. A blog posted on the IMF site explains how the recent crypto contagion from the FTX fallout underscores why regulators must act fast to reduce risks.

Stronger financial regulation, supervision, and the development of global standards are recommended to help address concerns about crypto.

?? FTX to Subpoena Sam Bankman-Fried, His Family and Top Lieutenants

Lawyers for FTX Trading Ltd. and the?bankruptcy case ‘s official creditors committee filed a motion that aims to question?Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) , his parents, his brother, and a few of the former CEO’s top lieutenants. The lawyers contend that specific insiders associated with Bankman-Fried’s dealings could provide much-needed insight into financial matters .

“Certain insiders are currently cooperating with the debtors to provide important information. But others are not, and thus authorization to issue subpoenas to those with the missing information is critical to the debtors’ and committee’s recovery efforts,” the joint motion details.

That's all for this week's?Your Weekly Crypto Updates???

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Crypto 101 with Tian Beng ??

?? What is Blockchain?

A blockchain is a digital ledger of transactions that is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems on the blockchain.

Each block in the chain contains a number of transactions, and every time a new transaction occurs on the blockchain, a record of that transaction is added to every participant's ledger. The decentralized database managed by multiple participants is known as a distributed ledger.

It is called "blockchain" because each transaction is grouped together in blocks, and each block is linked to the previous block, creating a chain. The use of a blockchain eliminates the need for a central authority to verify transactions, as the network collectively verifies and records them. This makes it a secure and transparent way to store and transfer information or digital assets.

?? How Does Blockchain Verify and Record Transactions?

In a blockchain network, transactions are verified by a group of users called "nodes." These nodes work together to validate new transactions and add them to the blockchain.

When a new transaction is made, it is broadcast to all nodes on the network. These nodes then use complex algorithms to confirm that the transaction is valid and not fraudulent. Once a transaction is validated, it is grouped with other transactions into a "block."

Each block also contains a unique code called a "hash," which is generated using the information in the block. This hash links the new block to the previous block in the chain, creating a permanent and unchangeable record of all transactions on the blockchain.

Once a block is added to the blockchain, it cannot be altered or deleted. This creates a secure and transparent record of all transactions on the blockchain, which is viewable by all participants in the network.

In summary, In a blockchain network, transactions are verified by a group of users called "nodes" using complex algorithms and then grouped with other transactions and added to the blockchain as a block, this block also contains a unique code called a "hash" which links it to the previous block, creating a permanent and unchangeable record of all transactions on the blockchain.

?? Why is Blockchain the Future of Tech?

Blockchain technology is often considered the future of tech for several reasons:

1. Decentralization: One of the key features of blockchain is that it is a decentralized system, meaning that it is not controlled by a single entity. This eliminates the need for intermediaries and makes it more difficult for any one person or organization to manipulate the data.
2. Security: Blockchain uses advanced cryptographic techniques to secure transactions, making it extremely difficult for hackers to tamper with the data. This makes it a very secure way to store and transfer sensitive information.
3. Transparency: Because transactions on the blockchain are recorded in a public ledger, they can be easily tracked and verified. This makes it a very transparent technology, making it possible to see the entire history of a particular asset, including all transactions and movements.
4. Immutability: Transactions recorded on blockchain are irreversible, once recorded on the chain, they cannot be altered. This ensures the integrity of data and helps in tracking back the origin of any digital asset.
5. Smart Contracts: Blockchain networks can also run smart contracts, which are self-executing contracts with the terms of the agreement written directly into the code. This allows for the automation of complex processes and makes it possible to create decentralized applications (dApps) that can be used for a wide range of purposes.
6. Interoperability: With the advent of blockchain technology, different blockchains can interact with each other, making it possible to share and transfer assets and information across different platforms.

All of these features make blockchain a powerful technology that has the potential to change the way we think about trust and security in the digital world. It is being used in a variety of industries, such as finance, supply chain management, gaming, real estate, and more.

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