The Crypt0l0g1st publication #002
The Crypt0l0g1st is a curated weekly newsletter regarding Blockchain, web3, defi, gamefi, crypto investments and other.
The Crypt0l0g1st is here to stay! A weekly newsletter to inform you about the main facts of Crypto, BlockchainTechnology , Privacy & Other . The Crypt0l0g1st is 100% independent and does not take any money in the form of sponsorship from anyone, in this way we believe we can make unbiased communication on all events and ensure maximum information. Our commitment is to become the complete and engaging news source every week. Are you ready to go ? Let's go !
Near announces USN stablecoin
On April 26, it was announced that the US dollar stablecoin NEAR on the L1 blockchain was launched on the main network .
Users will be able to issue (mint) USNs on "wallet.near.org" using the NEAR virtual currency from the 26th. It will also be possible to exchange USDT / USN on the NEAR-based DeFi platform: "Ref Finance".
USN is similar to the unsecured stablecoin "TerraUSD (UST)" created on the LUNA blockchain . USN also uses algorithms to keep prices constant by issuing and blocking NEAR and USN respectively, NEAR adjusts the amount of supply and maintains the price. An independent team called Decentral Bank , organized as DAO , is leading USN's stablecoin effort and is working in collaboration with Proximity Labs, which contributes to DAO.
Decentral Bank also operates a "self-regulating reserve" that sponsors USN price maintenance. The self-regulating reserves hold NEAR (lock, etc.) and Stablecoin USDT, at this time the size of the total reserves seems uncertain.
European Central Bank head calls for global cooperation to strengthen cryptocurrency regulations
Fabio Panetta, managing director of the European Central Bank (ECB), gave a lecture on cryptocurrencies (virtual currency) at Columbia University on the 25th. He criticized the current rise of the cryptocurrency market, comparing it to the archetypal Western U.S. era filled with "greed and lawlessness."
Cryptocurrencies are a "new dream of a digital gold rush," a combination of growing distrust of banks and technological innovation amid the global financial crisis, Panetta said.
During the archetypal Old West, new banking laws in some U.S. states loosened banking requirements, leading to the emergence of so-called "wild banks," which issue their own bills backed by "suspicious activity." He noted the history in which many of them went bankrupt and lost confidence in banks.
"The size of the cryptocurrency market now exceeds the subprime lending market ($1.3 trillion) that triggered the global financial crisis," Panetta said.
He said that cryptocurrencies should only be used within a clear regulatory framework to avoid repeating the same mistakes because their dynamics and size are so similar.
He also stated that "speculative assets that could cause serious damage to society" require globally coordinated regulatory measures.
https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/key/date/2022/html/ecb.sp220425~6436006db0.en.html
OFAC BANS THREE ETHEREUM ADDRESSES
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Control (OFAC) has added three Ethereum addresses to its SDN list that are believed to be associated with the Lazarus Group cybercrime syndicate.
The addition of addresses comes after U.S. authorities accused North Korean hacker group Lazarus of being behind the $620 million heist of Axie Infinity.
Soon after reports of the hacking of Axie Infinity, the U.S. government claimed that the cybercriminal group Lazarus was also involved in the Ronin. Bridge attack, which resulted in the theft of more than 173,000 ETH. In addition, the well-known ETH mixer Tornado Cash reportedly blocked all OFAC-sanctioned addresses on the mixer's wallets.
In its statement published on Twitter on April 22? The U.S. Treasury Department said blocking access to funds at designated addresses would deprive sanctions-evading North Korea of a vital source of income.
And this is where it gets really interesting. If the U.S. Treasury Department isn't lying and blocking them really prevents North Korean hackers from using honestly stolen Ether’s, then let me know how they did it?
Good question ... do your research !
https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financial-sanctions/recent-actions/20220422
Chainalysis: Crypto Gains Skyrocket Worldwide — Investors' Profit Grew 5x to $163 Billion in 2021
Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis published a blog post last week titled “2021 Cryptocurrency Gains by Country: Ethereum Leads as Gains Skyrocket Around the World.”
The firm explained that its estimates are based on a combination of web traffic data and its transaction data, including “on-chain, macro-level flows of all crypto assets” it tracks.
Noting that “2021 was another strong year for cryptocurrency,” the firm wrote that for all cryptocurrencies it tracks.
Central African Republic legalizes the use of cryptocurrencies
The National Assembly of the Central African Republic approved a bill to legalize the use of cryptocurrencies (virtual currency) on the 21st, according to media reports.
According to France's state-run international broadcasting service "RFI," the bill on cryptocurrency regulation presented by Justin Gourna Zacko, Minister of Digital Economy, was unanimously approved, making it the first country in Africa to officially approve the use of digital currencies.
The purpose of the bill is to create an enabling environment for the financial sector, as well as establish a legal framework for the management of cryptocurrencies and their institutions. Zacko points out that individual transfers between the Central African Republic and other countries are "extremely difficult" due to the complexity of the management system through the central bank.
What was The Ceremony & Who is John Dobbertin?
What was #Zcash's mysterious ceremony? And who was the world famous person who secretly participated pseudonymously in it as #JohnDobbertin? In our exclusive interview, we reveal John Dobbertin's identity, talk through what happened during #TheCeremony, and learn why Zcash's new Halo technology makes "trusted setups" like The Ceremony obsolete.
It has been revealed that former U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) employee Edward Snowden collaborated with the cryptocurrency network (ZEC) to operate.
In March 2022, Monero was the most used blockchain privacy tool
In March 2022, Monero was the most used blockchain privacy tool. Zcash and Samurai carried out ~99% less private transactions than Monero.
Justin Ehrenhofer 🎂🏳️🌈 @JEhrenhofer
April 27th 2022
6 Retweets23 Likes
Response to Ronin hacking incident
Ronin's operator, Sky Mavis, stated:
Added Ronin network validation nodes - At the time of the incident, there were only 9 validation nodes on the Ronin network. Currently, the number of validator nodes has been increased to 11, with 3 more to be added soon. Sky Mavis plans to have 21 validation nodes within three months, with the goal of eventually creating 100 validation nodes.
Implements Strict Internal Procedures - Sky Mavis focuses on the security of all employees, including increasing training to combat external threats and using dedicated devices to reduce risk.
Bug Bounty Issued - Sky Mavis offers up to $1 million in rewards for reporting security vulnerabilities. Learn more about the bug bounty program here .
ISO27001 and other security-related certifications - Sky Mavis will go through various certification processes.
The Ronin Network Bridge is currently undergoing a redesign and will resume when ready. Sky Mavis aims to complete the following steps and implement the bridge upgrade by the end of April this year, but a confirmed timeline has yet to be revealed.
BlackRock Launches Blockchain-Focused ETF
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, is launching a blockchain-linked exchange-traded fund (ETF) called the iShares blockchain and tech ETF, which invests in companies involved in the “development, innovation, and utilization of blockchain and crypto technologies.”
The ETF does not own cryptocurrencies or digital assets directly, and instead tracks several international companies involved in the crypto industry. The ETF is comprised of 41 separate holdings, with U.S.-based crypto exchange Coinbase making up 11.45% of the fund.
Large Bitcoin miners Marathon Digital Holdings and Riot Blockchain also represent 11.19% and 10.41% of the fund, respectively. The fund currently has over 9% of its assets in a U.S. dollar cash position.
US Coinbase quotes STEPN shares
Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S., announced on the 28th that it will run new shares.
The new targets will be GMT and GST and transactions are expected to begin after 9 a.m. (PT time) on the 28th.
Currency pairs are offered as GMT-USD, GMT-USDT, GST-USD, GST-USDT.
STEPN is a SOL blockchain-based distributed gaming app that "Move to Earn". GMT is the governance token of STEPN and GST is used as the in-app currency.
Currently, exchanges such as Binance, FTX, KuCoin, Bitrue, PancakeSwap, and Serum DEX manage GMT and GST.
Telegram: now you can send TON in virtual currency
The Open Network, a decentralized blockchain project, announced on 26th that it can send cryptocurrencies (virtual currency) Toncoin (TON) between users on the popular privacy conversation app "Telegram" chat.
https://ton.org/
The new bot feature "@Wallet" will be available for all Telegram users. You can send Toncoin (TON) easily and for free by simply tapping on your username without the need for a wallet address peculiar to the virtual currency. You can also use your credit card to buy Bitcoin (BTC) on your bot and exchange it for TON.
Panama approves bill to legalize the use of cryptocurrencies
On the 28th, Panama's Latin American Congress unanimously passed a bill (40-0) to legalize the use of cryptocurrencies (virtual currency)
The bill itself allows for the commercial (settlement) use of virtual currencies and tokenization (STO) of precious metals.
El Salvador was the first to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, but unlike El Salvador's bitcoin law, Panamanian law gives retailers the right to choose whether to accept cryptocurrency payments.
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