Alameda purchased 10% of the total STG supply from a Stargate Community sale in March 2022. Alameda promised to lock up the tokens until March 2025 but became embroiled in controversy for illegally borrowing user funds from its sister company, crypto exchange FTX, some months later. Source
Month: February 2023
AI Company Co-Founder Addresses Ethics of Tom Cruise ‘Deepfake’ Videos
That, however, may be a challenge, Graham said, because AI-generated content such as deepfakes could be crossing an ethical line. Deepfakes are a form of manipulated media that can make anyone appear to be doing or saying anything – for instance, Tom Cruise, who was depicted by a person digitally altered to resemble the actor in the TikTok videos. Source
Crypto Exchange Coinbase Adds New Wallet Security Feature To Protect Against Phishing and Scams
US-based cryptocurrency platform Coinbase is enhancing the safety of Coinbase Wallet as threats to users increase. The crypto exchange says it has added features to its wallet to help protect its users against scams such as phishing attacks and malicious airdrops. According to the crypto exchange, the Coinbase Wallet will now offer more clarity to users when they are interacting with smart contracts or decentralized applications (DApps) to ensure they are well aware of every action they take, from coin swaps to non-fungible token (NFT) minting. “Transaction previews: To give…
Banking Startup LevelField Aims to Become First FDIC-Insured Institution to Offer Crypto Services
Although LevelField may become the first FDIC-insured bank to offer crypto services, that does not mean the bank will necessarily offer a safer way to invest in volatile digital assets. FDIC insurance protects bank depositors against losses of up to $250,000 in case of a bank failure, but cryptocurrencies are an asset class that remains uninsured by the FDIC. Source
Bitcoin Blasts Through $23.5K as Powell Speaks Following Fed Rate Hike
The U.S. central bank earlier Wednesday lifted its benchmark interest rate 25 basis points. Original
Federal Reserve Raises Benchmark Interest Rate by 0.25%, Disinflationary Process ‘Early,’ Says Powell – Economics Bitcoin News
The U.S. Federal Reserve raised its benchmark federal funds rate by 0.25% on Wednesday after markets priced in near 100% certainty the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) would codify the quarter-point increase. The FOMC statement further detailed that ongoing rate increases are anticipated to bring inflation down to the target range of 2%. FOMC Outlines Expectations for Future Rate Hikes The central bank of the United States raised the federal funds rate on Wednesday, increasing it by 0.25% to the current range of 4.5% to 4.75%. The FOMC detailed in…
US Treasury lists BTC, ETH addresses tied to Russian sanctions evasion group
The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the United States Department of the Treasury has added two cryptocurrency wallets allegedly connected to a Russian sanctions evasion network as part of its list of Specially Designated Nationals. In a Feb. 1 announcement, OFAC said it had added one Bitcoin (BTC) address and one Ether (ETH) address to its list of sanctioned entities as part of a move to “methodically and intensively target sanctions evasion efforts around the globe.” Treasury said it would impose “full blocking sanctions” on 22 individuals, including Jonatan Zimenkov,…
What is Solend and how does it work
Solend is a decentralized lending and borrowing protocol built on Solana. It is lauded for expanding the methods available for Solana users to boost financial gains. Filling a large gap in the Solana ecosystem, Solend drew a staggering $100 million in deposits in just over a month post-launch. Related: DeFi lending and borrowing, explained Solend rode the high scalability of the Solana blockchain, which had built its reputation for being fast and with low transaction fees. The arrival of Solana meant users could use their capital efficiently by lending and…
Coinbase NFT Pauses New Collection Drops, Denies Shuttering Marketplace
Coinbase’s NFT drops feature allowed creators to release collections directly on the marketplace, rather than serving as a secondary marketplace such as leading NFT platform OpenSea. According to data from Dune Analytics, Coinbase NFT’s all-time trading volume is 4,454 ETH, nearly $7 million. In the month of January alone, OpenSea raked in a 306,645 ETH trading volume, about $483 million. Source
Decentralized Social Media Project Nostr’s Damus Gets Listed on Apple App Store, Shout-Out From Jack Dorsey
Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, who last year donated roughly 14 BTC (worth $245,000 at the time) to fund Nostr’s development, hailed the debut of Damus on Apple’s App Store as a “milestone for open protocols,” in a tweet posted late Tuesday. As of press time, the tweet had been viewed 2.1 million times. Source