Crypto Guides, Knowledge & Insights

Bitcoin Could Reach $100,000 by The End of 2021: Fundstrat’s Tom Lee

Tom Lee expects that the decreasing impact of COVID-19 would stimulate bitcoin, and its dollar value would reach $100,000 by the end of 2021　　Thomas Lee – a Managing Partner at Fundstrat Global Advisors – believes that bitcoin and the market itself will skyrocket once the delta variant of COVID-19 passes its peak. He expects to see the primary cryptocurrency trading at around $100,000 by the end of this year.　　 COVID-19‘s Decline Would Lead to BTC’s Rally　　In a recent interview for CNBC, the American investor Tom Lee opined that not only bitcoin but the entire financial industry would recover and head towards new heights when the coronavirus infections start dwindling. Fundstrats founder went even further, predicting that the primary digital asset would reach a price of $100,000 at the end of 2021:　　“A hundred thousand into year-end is pretty reasonable.”　　According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), COVID-19 cases in the USA will peak this week, which means that soon they will start decreasing. Furthermore, the health research center does not expect a renewed wave of cases in September or October:　　“While the hysteria around the continued surge in delta variant infection continues to grow, the IHME (Institute for Health Metrics,

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Korbit Reopens Offline Customer Service Center in Seoul’s Busy Gangnam

Trading volumes may have dipped recently at crypto exchanges in South Korea and regulatory issues continue to plague the industry, but some trading platforms are staying positive – and the nations first-ever exchange has taken the bullish step of reopening its flagship bricks-and-mortar customer service center.　　Korbit opened its customer center in April 2018, but closed it in January of the following year as the crypto winter began to bite. The center is located on Teheran Street in Seouls affluent, highly commercial Gangnam District.　　While coronavirus pandemic-mitigating social distancing and hygiene restrictions remain in place, Korbit announced, per EDaily, that customers can now use the centers “counseling services” to get in-person advice on how to use the exchange, make trades and learn how to “deal with financial losses” with specialists.　　However, crypto-keen customers will not be able to simply walk in off the street – customers will need to plan their visits in advance, making reservations via a portal operated by the search engine and internet giant Naver.　　The decision follows similar bricks-and-mortar service center reopenings from fellow members of the South Korean “big four” trading platforms.　　Bithumb and Coinone, both of whom had closed their walk-in centers due to low trading volumes, lack of

2021-08-11Deep Dive

The $600M PolyNetwork Hack: What Exactly Happened and What Investors Should Be Aware of

PolyNetwork was exploited in maybe the biggest hack in the short history of DeFi. Lets have a closer look at how it actually happened, and what investors should verify before investing in DeFi projects and protocols.　　PolyNetwork, an interoperability protocol enabling atomic-cross chain transactions between multiple major blockchains, was just exploited to steal $600 million worth of investors crypto on Polygon, Binance Smart chain, and Ethereum.　　What Exactly Happened？　　As reported by CryptoPotato earlier today, PolyNetwork announced that they had been attacked at 8:38 am EST. They immediately listed the addresses to which the anonymous hacker had transferred their funds on the ETH, BSC, and Polygon networks, and called upon miners of the affected exchanges to blacklist them.　　The ETH, BSC, and Polygon addresses involved show volumes of $266.5M, $252M, and $85M worth of crypto assets, respectively.　　These include WBTC, WETH, RenBTC, DAI, UNI, SHIB, and FEI. This totals to over $600M worth of crypto having been stolen, easily making this the largest DeFi hack to date.　　In dollar value terms, this DeFi hack is comparable to the Mt. Gox and BitFinex exchange hacks, which resulted in $500M and $750M of stolen funds at the time of the hacks.　　It was soon discovered that the hackers initial

2021-08-11Deep Dive

3 Types of Stablecoins Defined by Harvard Business Review

Christian Catalini, a Diem Association chief economist and co-creator, and Jai Massari, Diems counsel, covered the three main concepts of stablecoins segment for Harvard Business Review.　　No stablecoins without regulation　　The authors of the article are sure that the U.S. watchdogs and lawmakers have stated that strengthening cryptocurrency regulations is a matter of “when,” not “if.” This fact reflects the growing confidence in stablecoins leading role in the future economy.　　The mainstream adoption of stablecoins can bring multiple benefits for institutions and individuals, in particular — for those who remain unbanked in 2021.　　All in all, this is good for both stablecoins and their holders. The authors stress that the absence of regulatory rules will ruin the value and the operability of the stablecoins of all sorts:　　But without robust legal and economic frameworks, theres a real risk stablecoins would be anything but stable　　All the stablecoins are divided into three categories by their design, economic model, use-cases, and underlying assets: true stabecoins, deposit stablecoins, and CBDCs.　　A bumpy road to CBDC　　True stablecoins, the authors add, actually represent “narrow banks” as their peg to some fiat currency is guaranteed by certain financial entities. True stablecoins are a transparent (yet expensive) type of stablecoins.　　Deposit stablecoins are a tokenized

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Poloniex Mencapai Penyelesaian Status Tidak Berdaftar $10 Juta Dengan SEC

Pengambilan Utama　　SEC telah membebankan pertukaran crypto Poloniex kerana mengendalikan pertukaran aset digital dalam talian yang tidak berdaftar.　　Poloniex didakwa memudahkan perdagangan sekuriti aset digital tanpa mendaftar dengan SEC.　　Poloniex tidak mengakui atau menolak sebarang kesalahan, tetapi telah bersetuju untuk membayar caj penyelesaian $ 10 juta.　　Suruhanjaya Sekuriti dan Bursa telah membebankan pertukaran crypto Poloniex kerana mengendalikan “pertukaran aset digital dalam talian yang tidak berdaftar” dan memudahkan perdagangan aset digital yang dianggapnya sekuriti di platformnya.　　Poloniex menyelesaikan caj dengan SEC　　Poloniex akan membayar $10 juta untuk menyelesaikan caj dengan Suruhanjaya Sekuriti dan Bursa, demikian diumumkan Isnin.　　Tuduhan tersebut berkaitan dengan tempoh antara Jul 2017 dan November 2019, ketika firma tersebut menjalankan pertukaran sebelum menjual platform tersebut kepada konsortium Asia para pelabur yang tidak dikenali. SEC mendakwa bahawa dalam tempoh “Poloniex mengendalikan platform perdagangan berasaskan web yang memudahkan pembelian dan penjualan aset digital, termasuk aset digital yang merupakan kontrak pelaburan dan oleh itu sekuriti.”　　Pertukaran tersebut didakwa melanggar undang-undang sekuriti, khususnya, Bahagian 5 Akta Pertukaran, kerana tidak mendaftar sebagai pertukaran sekuriti nasional. Mengulas kes itu, Ketua Unit Siber Bahagian Penguatkuasaan SEC Kristina Littman berkata:　　“Poloniex memilih peningkatan keuntungan daripada pematuhan dengan undang-undang sekuriti persekutuan dengan memasukkan sekuriti aset digital pada pertukarannya yang tidak berdaftar. Poloniex berusaha untuk memintas peraturan peraturan

2021-08-11Deep Dive

BitMEX Pays $100 Million to Resolve CFTC and FinCEN Charges

Cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX has forked out $100 million to reach a resolution with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, according to its Tuesday announcement.　　CEO Alexander Höptner says that hes glad to leave the exchanges legal woes in the past:　　Today marks an important day in our companys history, and we are very glad to put this behind us. As crypto matures and enters a new era, we too have evolved into the largest crypto derivatives platform with a fully verified user base. Comprehensive user verification, robust compliance, and anti-money laundering capabilities are not only hallmarks of our business – they are drivers of our long-term success.　　The company has highlighted its multiple compliance milestones, which include its mandatory ID verification program and its collaboration with blockchain sleuth Chainalysis.　　The exchange has also added that its seeking to become licensed in several jurisdictions.　　Earlier today, BitMEX also announced that it had partnered with famed football club AC Milan to have its logo on players kit sleeves.　　Former BitMEX executives will face trial next year　　BitMEX, which emerged as the dominant force in crypto during the 2018 bear market, ended up on the receiving end of a crippling CFTC lawsuit back in

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Is Indian Govt. Planning to ‘Eliminate’ Use Of Crypto?

Indian government addressed the issue of crypto assets today. It emphasized the aim to eliminate the use of crypto assets in funding illegitimate activities or as part of the payment system.　　In a letter, replying to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary stated that the government is investigating the blockchain system to boost Indias digital economy. The letter noted that cryptocurrency does not qualify as legal tender in the country. The government is actively working towards quashing illegal crypto rackets like money laundering and data breaches.　　“The government does not consider crypto-currencies legal tender or coin and will take all measures to eliminate the use of these crypto-assets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payment system,” said Pankaj Chaudhary.　　IMC report: ban private crypto assets　　A recent report by the High-Level Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC), constituted under the Chairmanship of Secretary (Economic Affairs) to study the issues related to virtual currencies and propose specific actions to be taken in this matter, suggested against private cryptocurrencies. It recommended that all private cryptocurrencies should be banned in the country, except any state-issued cryptocurrency.　　Furthermore, Pankaj Chaudhary confirmed that the government will take action referring to the IMC report. If the government

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Hackers steal $600m in major cryptocurrency heist

Blockchain site Poly Network said hackers had exploited a vulnerability in its system and taken thousands of digital tokens such as Ether.　　In a letter posted on Twitter, it urged the thieves to “establish communication and return the hacked assets”.　　In scale, the hack is on par with huge recent breaches at exchanges such as Coincheck and Mt Gox.　　In its letter Poly Network said: The amount of money you have hacked is one of the biggest in defi [decentralised finance] history.　　Law enforcement in any country will regard this as a major economic crime and you will be pursued.　　“The money you stole are [sic] from tens of thousands of crypto community members, hence the people.”　　We lost our life savings in a cryptocurrency scam　　EU plans to make Bitcoin transfers more traceable　　Poly Network said a preliminary investigation found a hacker exploited a “vulnerability between contract calls”.　　It urged various exchanges to block deposits of the coins, after millions of dollars in tokens were transferred to separate cryptocurrency wallets.　　About $267m of Ether currency has been taken, $252m of Binance coins and roughly $85 million in USDC tokens.　　Changpeng Zhao, chief executive of Binance, said his firm was aware of the hack, but added there was only so much

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Nigerians Continue To Dominate Crypto Adoption In Africa, But There’s A Big Problem To Combat

Nigeria, the most populous black nation, has seen significant growth in Bitcoin adoption. The African country, despite the censorship of cryptocurrency trading by the government, has been one of the leaders in Bitcoin peer-to-peer trading globally.　　According to data provided by UsefulTulips – an analysis tool developed by data scientist and independent analyst, Matt Ahlborg, that aggregates peer-to-peer trading data for Bitcoin – monthly Bitcoin peer-to-peer Bitcoin trades exceeded $40m in July.　　Ahlborg also highlighted that excluding other venues, Bitcoin peer-to-peer transaction volumes on Paxful and LocalBitcoins in Africa reached an all-time high of $20 million weekly, with Nigeria being the leader by a large margin, trading around 10% of the volume in the time frame.　　“Bitcoin is useful in places with high capital controls, high inflation, high bureaucracy, and low economic freedom,” he stated.　　Nigeria easily falls in this category of places. According to reports, inflation in Nigeria stood at around 17.93% in May, making Nigerians search for alternatives to their national currency, Naira.　　The high trading volume is also attributed to Nigerias largely young and “tech-savvy” population. Nigeria ranks 18th globally and 1st in Africa for countries with the lowest median age and with up to 50% of its population under 19 years

2021-08-11Deep Dive

Binance CEO on Largest DeFi Hack: Nothing is Risk Free

The cryptocurrency ecosystem witnessed the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) hack on the interoperable Poly Network today. The hack saw a total sum of about $610 million removed across the Binance Smart Chain (BSC), Ethereum, and Polygon Network. The hack, discovered when a transaction on O3 Protocol could not process a transaction worth $150 million, comes off as one of the largest breaches to a named protocol after CoinChecks $530 million breach.　　The unforeseen event has stirred a number of controversial conversations about the security assurances of DeFi projects, in contrast with their centralized counterparts. Weighing on this matter is Changpeng Zhao, Binances Chief Executive Officer, popular known on Twitter as CZ. According him, he noted that both CeFi and DeFi protocols are unique in themselves, and that both have different risk characteristics which users are supposed to be familiar with before using them.　　The seeming confusion might want to make some to consider the use of fiat and legacy banks for transactions. However, CZ said he does not think fiat are in anyway safer, highlighting its weaknesses, the Binance boss said fiat is fraught with inflation, high transaction fees, and the challenge of banks preventing users from accessing their own funds.　　How Can

2021-08-11Deep Dive

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