Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

According to the court-appointed examiner, Celsius was bankrupt from the beginning.

The defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network supposedly defrauded customers ever since it was founded as a general populace company in the United States, which is what it purportedly did in order to avoid regulatory oversight in the United Kingdom, according to a study by a court-appointed assessor for its bankruptcy process.　　In accordance with the insolvency report by the U.S. examiner, which was published in a Twitter thread by Frances Coppola, a speaker and author on economics, finance, and monetary policy, on February 1, Celsius U.S. “on a stand-alone basis has been insolvent since inception.”　　The study also revealed that Celsius U.S. was established in August 2021, following the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the United Kingdoms rejection of Celsius Network U.K. instructed it to stop offering to retail customers in the nation without a permit.　　Complex Connections　　The inspector also brought up the two companies intercompany accounting, which Coppola described as “convoluted to say the least, and contains odd ”loans“ and stock transfers somewhat akin to those found in the Celsius-AMV (Equities First) arrangement.”　　The analyst outlined how Celsius U.S. was developed as a workaround for the U.K. She continued that she didnt believe “they ever had the faintest intention of forming a

2023-02-06Deep Dive

Through a stake in the GOPAX Exchange, Binance re-enters the South Korean cryptocurrency market.

The biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, Binance, is accustomed to frequently making news for its latest acquisitions. The news of today is no exception, as Binance is preparing to re-enter the South Korean cryptocurrency market as a result of its ownership of the troubled GOPAX exchange. Due to annoying challenges including poor usage and volume from South Korean users, Binance discontinued its operations in South Korea in 2021. But Binance has just made a comeback in the East Asian nation thanks to its stake in GOPAX.　　Will Binance Help GOPAX？　　After insolvent cryptocurrency lending company Genesis declined to pay GOFI users last November, the GOPAX exchange had significant money troubles. A yield-generating product called GOFI is provided by GOPAX in conjunction with a partnership with Genesis. Principal and interest payments for the Defi service, GOFI, could ultimately no longer be withdrawn by the cryptocurrency exchange located in South Korea.　　According to reports, the suspension came about as a result of the partner, Genesis Global Capital, stopping purchases and starting new loans at its lending arm, Genesis Global Trading. Just one week after the FTX catastrophe, Genesis announced the termination of the GOFI withdrawals, claiming unusual withdrawal demands. One of the top ten

2023-02-06Deep Dive

Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange, deposits $8.5 million to an address in Alameda.

The FTX crash had a significant impact on the cryptocurrency market, and as a result, most cryptocurrencies and crypto companies fell in value. At this time, Bitcoin and other large-cap cryptocurrencies were yanked back, falling as low as $15,000. The investigation is still ongoing, and the founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, maintains his innocence.　　One of the blockchain security firms, PeckShield Alert, has now issued a warning about detecting money transactions into an Alameda linked wallet in light of the most recent changes. According to a tweet from the business, Alameda Research has transferred close to $13 million to an unidentified wallet. A stock exchange called Alameda Research is connected to a defunct FTX exchange.　　It has been questioned how the two companies relationships are related in light of the transfers from Bitfinex to Alamedas consolidation address. A sequence of transactions from three addresses, among them one from cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex to Alameda Researchs consolidation wallet, have been revealed by blockchain security company PeckShield.　　It has been questioned how the two companies relationships are related in light of the transfers from Bitfinex to Alamedas consolidation address. A sequence of transactions from three addresses, among them one from cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex to Alameda Researchs consolidation wallet,

2023-02-06Deep Dive

Takashi Murakami to Release Collection of 13 NFTs Linked to Physical Hublot Watches

Takashi Murakami, a Japanese artist, has collaborated with Swiss luxury timepiece Hublot to create a new range of real-world watches tied to non-fungible tokens (NFTs).　　The new collection, Hublot and Murakamis fourth artistic collaboration, includes 13 distinct NFTs inspired by Japanese video games and 1970s television episodes. Furthermore, the NFTs are based on the Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami All Black watch, which was released in January 2021.　　The NFTs are linked to 13 real watches that will be unveiled in April at the Watches s distinctive smiling flower logo.　　Twelve of the thirteen clocks will be available exclusively to collectors who acquired one of the 324 Murakami and Hublot NFTs produced in April 2022.　　The Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Black Ceramic Rainbow watch, which was unveiled at an event in New York on Thursday, includes a spinning flower decorated with rubies, sapphires, amethysts, tsavorites, and topaz.　　The 12 NFTs are available for resale on OpenSea until April 2024. If a collector purchases all 12 NFTs, they will be eligible for the coveted Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Black Ceramic Rainbow watch. If no collector obtains all 12 NFTs, the watch will be auctioned off by Hublot to generate funds for charity.　　Murakami has been associated with NFTs

2023-02-05Deep Dive

Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) and Misinformation in the Cryptocurrency Market

Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a common feeling in the cryptocurrency market, and it is often fueled by misinformation. The combination of these two factors can lead to risky and irrational decisions, causing significant financial losses for individuals who invest without thoroughly researching the underlying assets.　　Misinformation in the cryptocurrency market is prevalent due to the lack of regulation, allowing anyone to spread false information without consequence. The crypto space is often influenced by influencers, who are paid or have a vested interest in promoting a particular token. They spread false information and exaggerate the potential returns of their favored assets, creating a sense of urgency and leading to FOMO among investors.　　Investors who are caught in the grip of FOMO may make impulsive decisions, such as investing in assets without fully understanding their risks. This can lead to significant losses, especially when the assets value crashes due to the spreading of false information.　　In addition to individual investors, FOMO and misinformation can also cause market instability. When investors become overly excited and start buying up assets at an accelerated rate, this can artificially inflate the price and cause a bubble. When the bubble bursts, it can lead to significant market crashes

2023-02-03Deep Dive

Bittrex, a cryptocurrency exchange, terminates 83 workers

83 people have been let go by American cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex, out of a total workforce of about 284, according to Washington State employment statistics. According to a Bittrex spokesperson, the companys “most departments” will be affected by the cutbacks, and all affected employees will continue receiving redundancy payment in addition to 60 days of ongoing pay.　　The Seattle-based exchange is recently listed 32 on CoinGeckos list of the top cryptocurrency exchanges and has an implied vol of about $19,846,416.　　Late last year, Bittrex made the news for obtaining some of the highest fines ever levied on a U.S. cryptocurrency exchange. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the Treasury claimed that the interaction had helped facilitate crypto transfers totaling more than $263 million for individuals from the Crimea region of Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria between March 2014 and December 2017.　　Bittrex has also been laid off.　　But the most recent information aligns Bittrex with a number of other cryptocurrency exchanges. This year, just about all of the most well-known exchanges around the world, including Huobi, Coinbase, and Crypto.com, have announced layoffs. Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the CEO of Binance, similarly forewarned colleagues in December of

2023-02-03Deep Dive

Logan Paul faces class-action lawsuit over failed CryptoZoo NFT project

According to a Feb. 2 court filing, a class action complaint was launched against YouTube star Logan Paul and his colleagues over the failed cryptocurrency project CryptoZoo.　　Don Holland, a Texas citizen, brought the claim, alleging that the defendants committed a “rug pull.” According to Holland, CryptoZoo was pushed using Pauls web venues, enticing thousands of individuals to buy the product.　　Danielle Strobel, Jeff Levin, Ebbie Ibanez, Jake Greenbaum, and Ophir Bentov were among Pauls associates named in the lawsuit.　　The lawsuit alleges CryptoZoo never existed　　Holland stated that he realized his money was most likely gone after Logan Paul announced another NFT project and began ignoring CryptoZoo. “CryptoZoo was never published as claimed, and the value of the Zoo Tokens and CryptoZoo NFTs plunged,” he continued.　　According to the filing, the defendants took advantage of the digital currency market for Zoo Tokens.　　“As part of Defendants NFT scheme, Defendants marketed CZ NFTs to purchasers by falsely claiming that in exchange for transferring cryptocurrency to purchase the CZ NFT, purchasers would later receive benefits such as rewards, exclusive access to other cryptocurrency assets, and support from an online ecosystem to use and market CZ NFTs.”　　The complaint demands restitution from Paul and his collaborators, who promoted and

2023-02-03Deep Dive

Bitzlato, a closed cryptocurrency exchange, claims it will reopen.

As per Forklog, which paraphrased a YouTube interview in Russian offered by the co-founder of Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato, that had been accused of laundering money and had their systems apprehended in a massive global operation earlier this month, the team intends to revive operating and enable partial redemptions of user finances.　　The systems hot wallet, which at the time held about 35% of user investments across all cryptocurrencies, was taken by police, according to Anton Shkurenko, whose co-founder Anatoly Legkodymov and a few other Bitzlato execs were also detained in the law enforcement procedure.　　Shkurenko, however, stated he was able to say with certainty that the exchange would restore at an unknown time:　　“we will allow 50% of user funds in bitcoin held in Bitzlato wallets to be withdrawn on the same day we launch. For other cryptocurrencies, the launch will be gradual.”　　The hitherto unknown exchange was accused of laundering more than $700 million in assets linked to Russian cybercriminals in mid-January. Legkodymov, a Russian national and the largest shareholder of Bitzlato, was detained in Miami after having lived in China. According to the police department of the European Union, Europol, Bitzlato exchanged more than $1 billion in assets associated with

2023-02-03Deep Dive

The five environmentally friendly cryptocurrencies for 2023

Some cryptocurrencies, compared to Bitcoin, are naturally more energy-efficient. Why？ Since the “Proof of Work” scheme used by Bitcoin necessitates a large amount of computation (and consequently processor capabilities) to create a single token. Rather than relying on mining, block lattice-based cryptocurrencies use a system named “Proof of Storage” or “Proof of Stake,” which uses much less energy. 　　Nevertheless, including among currencies using “Proof of Work,” several necessitate more energy than many others. This is mainly due to the fact that all these coins use ASIC-resistant algorithms that use a significant amount of energy than is reasonable given the proportion of the cryptocurrency industry they account for. An excellent illustration of this is RavenCoin, which according to each calculation accounts for 4.32% of the top 20 cryptocurrencies combined rated power but has a market capitalization of just 0.06%. Its interesting that Bitcoin utilizes a mining method that does support ASIC-based machines, which consume a lot less energy than traditional graphics cards (GPUs).　　The surprising ecological cost of Bitcoin has received a great deal of press recently, and while steps are now being taken to reduce the cryptocurrencys carbon footprint, some venture capitalists are abandoning it in best interest of greener investments.

2023-02-03Deep Dive

Despite a $1.3B paper loss, MicroStrategy claims it has no intention to cease trading bitcoin.

MicroStrategy, a software analytics company, reported a paper loss on its Bitcoin assets of over a billion dollars in 2022, but the business insists it has no intentions to cease trading the virtual currency. On February 2, MicroStrategy disclosed its Q4 and year-end financial results for 2022, revealing that the reported nonperforming assets on its BTC holdings, net of profits on sale, were close to $1.3 billion for the entire 2022 financial year.　　Despite the apparent deficits, MicroStrategys CFO, Andrew Kang, stated during the companys earnings call on February 2:　　“We may consider pursuing additional transactions that may take advantage of the volatility in Bitcoin prices, or other market dislocations that are consistent with our long-term Bitcoin strategy.”　　The success of Bitcoin represents the most significant comparison, according to MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor, who stated this during the conference call. The company monitors its stock performance against “a variety of other benchmarks.”　　Saylor said that MicroStrategy had “been able to outperform Bitcoin as an index” over the course of the period when the company was initially disclosed that it was purchasing Bitcoin in August 2020.　　Michael Saylor, a co-founder of MicroStrategy, stated on the conference that the business evaluates its stock performance against “a variety

2023-02-03Deep Dive

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