Author: Max Bauer
The Telegram founder and CEO was arrested Aug. 24 near Paris and has since been indicted on six charges related to illicit activity on the app. He has been banned from leaving France and must check in at a Paris police station twice a week. He, published a new message on Telegram. Here is the full message: Thanks everyone for your support and love! Last month I got interviewed by police for 4 days after arriving in Paris. I was told I may be personally responsible for other people’s illegal use of Telegram, because the French authorities didn’t receive responses…
Orlando Bravo, founder of private equity firm Thoma Bravo, is permanently out of the crypto market following his firm’s disastrous investment in the now-bankrupt FTX exchange. Bravo, who once called FTX the “most cutting-edge, sophisticated cryptocurrency exchange in the world,” now says that he and his firm are permanently out of crypto. The downfall of FTX, which spiraled into bankruptcy in late 2022 amidst accusations of massive fraud and conspiracy, has left a lasting impact on Bravo’s investment philosophy. “Once you make a mistake and once you get burned on something, our philosophy and my philosophy is you never touch…
Coinbase CFO Alesia Haas sparked attention by suggesting that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign was accepting cryptocurrency donations through Coinbase Commerce, a platform for digital payments. Speaking at Citi’s 2024 Global TMT Conference on September 4, Haas noted that Harris had a significant opportunity to attract voters by endorsing pro-crypto legislation in her bid for the 2024 presidential election. This statement led to speculation that the campaign was directly accepting crypto donations. However, a Harris campaign spokesperson clarified that while the campaign itself is not accepting cryptocurrency contributions, they are being funneled through the Super PAC Future Forward. This political…
Binance has unveiled its latest financial product, Fixed Rate Loans, providing users a new avenue for stablecoin borrowing and lending with the added benefit of predictable rates. This innovative service offers fixed-term loans with a custom APR that remains unchanged for the entire loan duration, creating a transparent and user-friendly experience. This new feature aims to foster a stable financial environment by allowing users to personalize their interest rates and providing predictable costs and returns, particularly for stablecoins. The platform effectively connects the needs of suppliers and borrowers. Fixed Rate Loans are over-collateralized, supporting multiple assets as collateral to reduce…
Anhui police have successfully dismantled a criminal network that exploited cryptocurrency trading platforms to launder tens of millions of yuan (equivalent to millions of US dollars), according to the China Police Network. The Wuhe County Public Security Bureau cracked down on the gang, apprehending three suspects involved in the illicit operation. The gang capitalized on the public’s limited understanding of cryptocurrency investment. They disguised their illegal money laundering activities as legitimate investment speculation on virtual currency trading platforms. The massive scale of their operation, involving tens of millions of yuan, posed a serious threat to financial stability and social security.…
The Ethereum Foundation research team is set to engage with the community in a Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) session later today. The event will commence at 13:00 London time and will be the 12th official AMA hosted by the team. The AMA provides an opportunity for Ethereum enthusiasts and community members to directly interact with researchers and pose questions on a wide array of topics. This is the first AMA since January, preceding the Cancun upgrade, making it a highly anticipated event. Questions are already open on the relevant Reddit page, with over 80 inquiries already posted at the…
Grass, the decentralized network for web scraping, has launched its airdrop inspection page on September 5th. The page currently reveals allocations for Closed Alpha and Epochs 1-7, with the ongoing Bonus Epoch and To Be Announced allocations yet to be included. The total supply of GRASS tokens will be 1 billion, with 10% earmarked for the first airdrop. The specific breakdown is: This announcement follows Grass’s successful completion of a $3.5 million seed round in December 2023, led by Polychain Capital and Tribe Capital. The funding round saw participation from several other investors, bringing Grass’s total funding to $4.5 million.…
Coinbase’s Chief Financial Officer, Alesia Haas, claimed on Wednesday that U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is using the company’s Commerce platform to accept cryptocurrency donations. The statement was made during a discussion with Citigroup’s director of payments, Peter Christiansen, at Citi’s 2024 Global TMT Conference in New York, as revealed in a recording reviewed by Fortune. This announcement comes on the heels of an August report suggesting that Coinbase was in talks with the Harris campaign. However, Harris’s team has not yet responded to requests for comment, leaving the extent of this collaboration unclear. Historically, the…
Japan’s three largest banks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Mizuho Financial Group, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, are collaborating on a groundbreaking framework for instant international payments. This innovative system will leverage blockchain technology on top of the existing SWIFT payment infrastructure, aiming for commercial use as early as next year. Trials are set to commence this fall, involving more than 10 other Japanese and international lenders. The primary focus will be on facilitating business transactions such as trade settlements, with the possibility of extending the service to consumers in the future. Currently, international payments via the SWIFT system often involve…
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has taken action against Uniswap Labs, a New York-based company, for offering illegal digital asset derivatives trading. The CFTC has ordered Uniswap Labs to pay a $175,000 civil monetary penalty and to cease and desist from violating the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA). This enforcement action is part of the CFTC’s ongoing efforts to regulate the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, particularly regarding digital asset platforms. Director of Enforcement Ian McGinley emphasized the CFTC’s commitment to enforcing the CEA as digital asset platforms and DeFi ecosystems evolve. Uniswap Labs developed and deployed a blockchain-based protocol…