Month: March 2023

Sberbank Executive Touts Blockchain for Russia

An official at Russia’s biggest bank, Sberbank, has proposed that the use of blockchain technology is the direction in which the nation should go in order to overcome the present settlement challenges it is facing. Alexander Vedyakhin, who serves as the first deputy chairman of Sberbank, is of the opinion that blockchain technology has developed considerably over the past few years and now provides new capabilities. These new capabilities may make it possible for Russia to develop payment systems that are more effective. At the conference, Vedyakhin stressed the significance…

Cointelegraph afterparty delivers a ‘packed house’ and other notable events

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In this episode of Decentralize with Cointelegraph, United States policy reporter Turner Wright and opinion editor Rudy Takala speak to listeners about their experiences at the ETHDenver conference from Feb. 24 to March 5. Wright arrived in time to interview industry experts, check out a “hacker house” and watch developers go through the BUIDLWeek. Takala talks about the highlights of ETHDenver and how it compared, in his opinion, to better-organized conferences. The topics discussed by Wright and Takala include the logistics of traveling between different venues at ETHDenver and other…

US lawmaker accuses FDIC of using banking instability to attack crypto

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Tom Emmer, Majority Whip of the United States House of Representatives, has reiterated concerns that the federal government is “weaponizing” concerns around the banking industry to go after crypto. In a March 15 letter, Emmer called on Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation chair Martin Gruenberg to answer questions as to whether the government corporation has specifically instructed banks not to provide services to crypto firms, or suggested doing so may be an “onerous” task. The Minnesota Representative cited claims from Signature Bank board member and former U.S. Representative Barney Frank, who…

Web3 Security Company Ironblocks Takes Aim at Spate of DeFi Hacks

The funding frenzy and competitive landscape speaks to the growth of the on-chain security landscape. While once only inhabited by tracing companies that retroactively follow the money, it’s now buzzing with smart contract auditors, economic risk analysis firms, white hats and monitoring platforms that seek to mitigate the damage. Source

Bitcoin BTC Dominance Reaches 9-Month High

Bitcoin’s dominance has also strengthened while stablecoin unrest has surfaced over the last few weeks, with the world’s second largest stablecoin USDC, depegging from the dollar following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. USDC has more recently regained its peg, but uncertainty about stablecoins’ path forward remains, particularly as regulators have increased their scrutiny of this asset. Source

Ethereum price reaches lowest level relative to Bitcoin in 5 months

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The previous six months should have been extremely beneficial to Ether’s (ETH) price, especially after the project’s most significant upgrade ever in September 2022. However, the reality was the opposite: between September 15, 2022, and March 15, 2023, Ether underperformed Bitcoin (BTC) by 10%. Ether/Bitcoin price on Bitfinex, 2-day. Source: TradingView The price ratio of 0.068 ETH/BTC had been holding since October 2022, a support that was broken on March 15. Whatever the reason for the underperformance, traders currently have little confidence in placing leverage bets, according to ETH futures…