December 2019

The Biggest Crypto Winners and Losers of 2019

December 30, 2019 boss

Even though the cryptocurrency industry is not new to ups and downs, 2019 has turned out to be the year with the most surprising reveals. The long-lasting bear market of 2018 moved market analysts to call it the year of regulatory reckoning, leaving many jurisdictions uncertain about how to treat cryptocurrencies. However, 2019 also turned out to be the year of the comeback, as big tech giants like Facebook moved from banning crypto to embracing it. Escalating global events such as the trade war between the United States and China…

Poloniex Crypto Exchange Confirms Data Leak After Awkward Email

December 30, 2019 boss

Cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex has forced a password reset for all customers due to a leaked list of email addresses and passwords on Twitter. On Dec. 30, the exchange emailed its customers to inform them that a list of leaked email addresses and passwords could potentially be used to log in to Poloniex accounts. The exchange forced a password reset on any email addresses that have an account with the exchange. The email reads: “While almost all of the [leaked] email addresses listed do not belong to Poloniex accounts, we are…

Chinese Bitcoin Miners Pressured to Scale Down Due to Electricity Shortages

December 30, 2019 boss

Bitcoin (BTC) miners in the Chinese province of Sichuan are reportedly under pressurelocal authorities to scale down their operations due to electricity shortages. On Dec. 29, the Asia Times reported that during the dry season, which extends from October through April, the electricity supply drops drastically in Southwest China, which is why local authorities are tightening the screws on mining companies to scale down their operations. Bitcoin farms tolerated during wet seasons only Bitcoin mining companies are officially prohibited but are tolerated in the Sichuan province during the wet seasons…

COSO to Release Guidance on Blockchain for Businesses Aiming to Deploy Tech

December 30, 2019 boss

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) is planning to release guidance on blockchain for companies looking to deploy the technology. As The Wall Street Journal reported on Dec. 27, COSO — an initiative to fight corporate fraud — is working on guidance on blockchain to give a better understanding of the tech for businesses that aim to integrate it into their internal processes. COSO expects to release the guidance in the first quarter of 2020. To improve supply chains Specifically, the guidance targets executives in financial…

IOTA Fixes Issue After Freezing Mainnet Transactions for 24 Hours

December 30, 2019 boss

Users of IOTA, the 24th biggest cryptocurrency by market cap, were unable to confirm transactions for 24 hours due to a mainnet incident on Dec. 29. According to an official statement on the issue, the IOTA network experienced a mainnet incident that began at 2:50 AM UTC on Dec. 29, and was fully resolved by 2:50 AM UTC on Dec. 30. The incident was caused by an unusual set of transactions that may have been constructed as an attack As described in a Dec. 30 blog post by Iota Foundation,…

Katherine Wu on DeFi and the Inevitability of the Digital Yuan

December 30, 2019 boss

Katherine Wu was a founding team member at Messari before moving into a VC role at Notation Capital, but is perhaps best known in crypto for her epic annotations of key regulatory enforcement actions. In this end-of-year interview with The Breakdown, Katherine argues that decentralized finance is the narrative of 2019, but also that when it comes to 2020, the emergence of a Chinese digital yuan is likely to have a huge impact on the crypto space. Disclosure Read More The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet…

$1M Bond to Keep Alleged North Korea Sanctions Violater Griffith in Alabama for Now

December 30, 2019 boss

After having been denied bail on Dec. 26, Ethereum foundation researcher Virgil Griffith has now been released on a $1 million bond on the condition that he stay out of California. On Dec. 30, the Inner City Press reported that the 36-year-old Griffith has been released after a bail appeal hearing earlier today. The hearing took place in front of United States District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Vernon S. Broderick, who granted a $1 million bail and ordered Griffith released, on the condition that he…

Virgil Griffith to be Released on Bail to Alabama

December 30, 2019 boss

Virgil Griffith is slated to be released to his parents home in Alabama pending some pre-release conditions, after a ruling by the Hon. Vernon Broderick in in New York Monday. “Laws in this country are not suggestions,” Judge Broderick told the accused Ethereum Foundation developer as the hearing began, according to a tweet thread from Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press, who covered the hearing live from the courtroom. Griffith is now slated be released to his parent’s home in Alabama under a $1 million bond. Griffith is being…

Tron’s Justin Sun Announces New Acquisition for the BitTorrent Platform

December 30, 2019 boss

Justin Sun, the founder of Tron (TRX) cryptocurrency and the CEO of the BitTorrent platform has announced a new acquisition for the platform. On Sunday, December 29, Sun announced that he has a special announcement on January 1, 2020, for the BitTorrent family. New acquisition for $BTT and @BitTorrent in three days. Stay tuned and welcome new members to #BitTorrent family! #BTT — Justin Sun (@justinsuntron) December 29, 2019 Besides, Justin Sun has also mentioned that the new acquisition will majorly benefit the TRON (TRX) ecosystem. Tron had earlier acquired…

Tron’s Justin Sun Announces New Acquisition for the BitTorrent Platform

December 30, 2019 boss