Top stories
Celsius Independent Examiner Reveals Astonishing Facts
- Celsius’s finances were tracked across its various divisions in 15 separate Quickbooks files, just like FTX.
- Celsius failed to report $800 millions in losses as CFO flagged “possible illegal” behavior, all while CEO Alex Mashinsky cashed out more than $68 million
- Celsius misled its investors – and on occasion used new customer funds to pay for other customers’ withdrawals, the usual definition of a Ponzi scheme.
- Celsius sold customer-deposited Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) to fund its CEL purchases, two of its founders cashed out millions
Big Moves From Cypto Giant Binance
- In what can be called the escalation of hostilities, crypto giant Binance has terminated wallet services for Zanmai Labs, which operates the homegrown crypto exchange WazirX. Binance has directed Zanmai Labs to withdraw all funds held in Binance wallets for WazirX's operations.
- Binance Re-Enters South Korea With Investment in Crypto Exchange Gopax. Binance has acquired a stake in South Korea-based exchange Gopax, marking the crypto giant's return to the country.
- U.K. bank, Nationwide Building Society (NBS), is restricting card payments made by users to cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
Bankcruptcy, Shut Down and Layoffs...
- Emergent Fidelity Technologies, a firm co-founded by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and former executive Gary Wang, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late Friday.
- Crypto exchange Kraken has wound down operations in its Abu Dhabi office after less than a year in the UAE.
- Protocol Labs, the company behind decentralized file storage network Filecoin, is laying off 21% of its staff; Blockchain analytics company Chainalysis is cutting 45-50 jobs with a headcount remaining of around 900.
Global regulations
South African Retail Giant Accepts Bitcoin
Pick N Pay, a leading South African grocery retail giant, has started accepting Bitcoin and lightning payments at all its 1,628 outlets. Customers are expected to have a standard Bitcoin Lightning Wallet.
White House Publishes 'Roadmap' to Mitigate Crypto Risks
The roadmap calls for authorities to “ramp up enforcement where appropriate” and Congress “to step up its efforts” to regulate the crypto sector.
UK Treasury Publishes Crypto Framework Paper
The extensive 80-page document covers a broad range of topics, from the troubles of algorithmic stablecoins to nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and initial coin offerings (ICOs).
India Reveals IMF is Working With G-20 for Crypto Regulations
India's position on whether crypto is legal or not has been completely clear since it imposed stiff taxes in 2022 but didn't declare it as legal.
Hong Kong to Regulate Stablecoins With a Risk-Based Approach
The regulator’s decision stemmed from feedback received from a discussion paper released to the public on crypto-assets and stablecoins.
South Korea To Deploy Cryptocurrency Tracking System in 2023
The ‘Virtual Currency Tracking System’ will be used to monitor transaction history, extract information related to transactions and check the source of funds before and after remittance, according to local media outlet khgames.
Crypto weekly price action
Research and technology
Different Types of Zero-Knowledge Proofs
This article aims not to go in-depth from a technical, cryptographic perspective but more from an application level to expand on the differences between the major implementations of zero-knowledge proofs.
How to Build an NFT Minting Platform
Creating an NFT minting platform is a complex process that requires knowledge of smart contract development, blockchain technology, and web development. However, with the right tools and resources, it can be done.
Crypto Money Laundering Trends in 2022
Money laundering activity is highly concentrated to just a few services. Let’s look at some of the money laundering trends we saw in 2022.
Blockchain 2022 Review & What’s Next in 2023
We have selected the top 10 Blockchain events and developments of 2022, followed by our outlook for the key trends in 2023.
Fundraising and investment
Google Invests $300Mn in AI Start-Up Anthropic
Anthropic has developed an intelligent chatbot called Claude, rivalling OpenAI’s ChatGPT, though it has not yet been released publicly.
Bitcoin Miner TeraWulf Raises $32 Million
Following the deals, the company expects to achieve free cash flow. It will use the net proceeds to build out its facilities in New York and Pennsylvania and for other general purposes.
Fastex Raised $23.2 Million After Sale of Fasttoken
More than 100 game companies have already collaborated with Fastex, and FTN will be a key component in powering their GameFi offerings.
BlockJoy Secures Nearly $11 Million in Seed + Series A
The funding will be used to support the launch of BlockVisor, the company’s patented node management software, which is now open for beta sign-ups.
Blockchain Security Firm Sec3 Raises $10 Million in Seed Funding
Multicoin Capital led the round, with Sanctor Capital and Essence VC participating. Several angel investors, including Santiago Santos, a former ParaFi Capital partner, and Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana, also joined the round.
Viral Quotes
“A cryptocurrency is not a currency, not a commodity, and not a security. Instead, it’s a gambling contract with nearly 100% edge for the house”
— Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s business partner
“We are in a world in which money as we know it is in jeopardy. We are printing too much, and it's not just the United States, it is all the reserve currencies.”
— Ray Dalio, Billionaire investor
“Apple had a problem with crypto from day one. They thought it was a Ponzi scheme”
— Phillip Shoemaker, Ex-App Store Director
“People living in emerging markets with hyperinflation need a fall back option and an insurance policy. They need Bitcoin”
— Cathie Wood, Founder of ARKinvest
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