Limits Withdrawals in Europe 🇪🇺, Death of Shiba Inu 🐕, Coinbase Debt Discount: 3% off 🎁
Daily Crypto, Blockchain & Web3 Update 2023-08-22
CRYPTOCURRENCY
Mysterious Bitcoin wallet becomes 3rd largest BTC holder in 3 months (3 min read)
A mysterious Bitcoin wallet has surged up the ranks to become the third-largest holder of Bitcoin in the world in just over three months, with the timing sparking some wild theories about its owner.
Dwindling optimism for Bitcoin ETF approval to blame as weekly crypto outflows hit $55M (3 min read)
Digital asset investment products saw $55 million in outflows for the week of Sept. 13, according to a report from CoinShares.
Optimism surrounding what was previously thought to be the impending approval of a spot-based Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) has begun to give way as $42 million worth of the week’s outflows came from BTC alone.
Binance limits withdrawals in Europe, cites payment processor issues (2 min read)
Customers of the Binance cryptocurrency exchange are allegedly facing troubles with fiat withdrawals in Europe due to issues related to Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) transfers.
In a since-deleted customer service message, Binance said that the failed withdrawals were caused by temporarily suspended euro transactions through SEPA.
SEC–Ripple lawsuit cost XRP 3 years of adoption: Lawyer (3 min read)
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit against Ripple filed in December 2020 has deprived the XRP token of nearly three years of adoption in the U.S., said pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton in a recent post on X (formerly Twitter).
BUSINESS
ZK-proof Web3 infrastructure developer gets backing from Binance Labs (4 min read)
Zero-knowledge proof technology continues to garner interest and investment as Binance Labs becomes the latest firm to invest in ZK-proof-powered infrastructure developed by Delphinus Lab.
Nomura, CoinShares, Ledger joint venture Komainu wins Dubai crypto license (2 min read)
Komainu, a joint venture between Nomura and crypto firms CoinShares and Ledger, has received a full operating license from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA).
QUICK LINKS
Crypto users react to death of Shiba Inu behind viral memes (2 min read)
Cheems Balltze, the dog behind viral images of a Shiba Inu enjoying cheeseburgers, died in his sleep on Aug. 18 amid a battle with cancer.
The 12-year-old dog had appeared in memes with Dogecoin’s own inspiration, the Shiba Inu named Kabosu, including “Swole Doge vs. Cheems.”
FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried pleads not guilty to fraud charges: Report (1 min read)
Sam Bankman Fried, the former CEO and co-founder of FTX crypto exchange, has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud and money laundering in a new indictment.
Crypto amplified financial risks in emerging markets: BIS papers (3 min read)
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin have failed to reduce but rather have “amplified financial risks” in less developed economies, according to a new study published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
South Korean city to seize crypto from thousands of tax evaders: Report (2 min read)
The South Korean city of Cheongju, the capital of North Chungcheong province, has said it intends to begin confiscating cryptocurrency from local tax delinquents.
The city authorities of Cheongju are looking to seize cryptocurrency from anyone who owes at least $750 in crypto taxes to the government.
Terra.money website frozen to prevent more phishing scams (1 min read)
Layer-1 blockchain Terra has temporarily shut down its website in order to protect users from ongoing phishing scams on the platform.
“The terra(dot) money domains have successfully been frozen to prevent further user phishing scams, but a full resolution is still underway,” Terra officially announced on X (formerly Twitter) on Aug. 22.
Scientists reverse-engineered the Luna flash crash using particle physics (3 min read)
Just eight days after Terra co-founder Do Kwon told American-Canadian chess star Alexandra Botez that 95% of cryptocurrencies would fail, adding that there was “entertainment in watching companies die,” the Luna flash crash occurred.
Friend.tech denies report that database of over 100K users was leaked (4 min read)
The team behind the viral decentralized social media platform Friend.tech has refuted a report that claimed that the personal information of more than 100,000 of its users was leaked.
Crypto miner Hive Digital CEO sees AI working in unison with blockchain (5 min read)
Crypto mining firm Hive Blockchain sent a signal to the tech industry when it dropped “blockchain” from its namesake in July, opting to call itself Hive Digital Technologies and reflect its artificial intelligence foray.
Coinbase sees lukewarm demand for debt buyback, raises offer (2 min read)
Crypto exchange Coinbase has raised the offer on its $150 million debt buyback program after lukewarm demand. The United States-based crypto exchange has increased its offer for discounted debt by 3%.
YouTube releases ‘principles’ for working with music industry on AI tech (2 min read)
YouTube released its “principles” for working with players in the music industry on artificial intelligence (AI) technology on Aug. 21.
YouTube CEO Neal Mohan outlined in a blog post that now is a critical time to “boldly embrace this technology with a continued commitment to responsibility.”
AI unlikely to destroy jobs, but cost to certain workers may be ‘brutal’, UN study (3 min read)
Generative AI is more likely to complement existing jobs than take over them entirely, though certain roles, such as clerical work, could see more of their tasks automated than others.
Thailand threatens Facebook over crypto scams and other fraudulent ads (2 min read)
Thailand is planning to seek a court-issued shutdown order against Facebook unless it takes steps to deal with alleged investment and crypto scam ads on its platform.
Germany proposes screening Chinese investment in AI and related sectors: Report (3 min read)
The vice chancellor of Germany has reportedly proposed tightening the screening process for foreign direct investment from China, according to reports from local media outlets.