Author: Lauren Claxton

Lauren is currently a freelance writer with experience in finance writing. She has a growing interest in the metaverse and all things NFTs and expects to graduate in 2022 with bachelors degrees in creative writing and public relations.

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Cardano Crypto News

Cardano Vasil Hard Fork Upgrade is Delayed Again, ‘More Testing Needed’

Input Output Global (IOG), the lab behind the Cardano blockchain, released a YouTube update this week informing followers that its Vasil hard fork upgrade has been delayed yet again.

According to the update, more testing is required to ensure “inevitable issues” are ironed out:

Input Output July YouTube update.

All Users Need to be ‘Ready to Progress’

Cardano’s (ADA) long-awaited Vasil hard fork has been delayed by several more weeks, amid some significant price volatility (including a 7.7 percent gain on July 29).

Kevin Hammond, IOG’s technical manager, says the hard fork had to be postponed one more time to ensure that all parties, including exchanges and API developers, were fully ready for the transition to take place.

https://iohk.io/en/team/kevin-hammond

All users have to be ready to progress through the hard fork to make sure the process is smooth, both for them and end users of the Cardano blockchain.

Kevin Hammond, technical manager, IOG

The upgrade, entitled Vasil, is designed to increase Cardano’s scaling capabilities and is set to be the largest upgrade to the Cardano blockchain since the Alonzo hard fork. Put simply, this hard fork is a backward-incompatible change to the software used to validate and produce new blocks.

The upgrade is expected to be game-changing, offering improved speed and scalability, making it more appropriate for DApps and smart contracts. This is not the first delay Vasil has seen, with the project originally scheduled for release in late June:

The network’s DApp development community has the final decision on the Cardano testnet upgrade, meaning that developers must ensure the testing is void of critical issues before the hard fork can be implemented. A release date is yet to be announced.

Previous Cardano Delay

IOG originally postponed the Vasil upgrade by one month due to alleged bugs “that needed eliminating”, requiring further testing. At the time, Nigel Hemsley, head of delivery and projects at IOG, stated his project was “very close” to completion and a June 20 deployment. However, a minimum of seven non-severe bugs required attention before this could go ahead.

Categories
Crypto News Facebook Metaverse

US Regulator Sues Meta to Prevent it from Owning the Entire Metaverse

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has shared a media release indicating its intentions to sue Meta and block its acquisition of Within, a VR fitness app maker.

The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, comes off the back of rising concerns over Meta’s plans for metaverse expansion:

Meta Marches Toward a Monopoly

The purchase of Within may not be so significant on its own; however, the FTC has concerns it could be Meta’s first step towards holding a monopoly over the metaverse:

In its media release, the FTC stated that it sought to block the purchase and alleges that Meta is attempting to stifle VR fitness competition from independent studios. The commission’s final vote was 3-2 in favour of blocking the deal.

With Meta already owning ‘Beat Saber’, which many deem a fitness app, there is concern that the purchase of Within could stifle competitive innovation. However, Nikhil Shanbhag, Meta’s vice president and associate general counsel, has challenged this notion.

https://theorg.com/org/meta/org-chart/nikhil-shanbhag

The idea that this acquisition would lead to anticompetitive outcomes in a dynamic space with as much entry and growth as online and connected fitness is simply not credible.

Nikhil Shanbhag, Meta vice president/associate general counsel

The FTC’s plans to prevent the purchase of Within are not the only new information to come to light this week. Meta’s latest earnings report for Q2 revealed that the tech giant’s Facebook Reality Labs (FRL) division recorded a loss of US$2.81 billion, only a slight improvement on its Q1 loss of US$2.96 billion.

Meta is seemingly not fazed by these figures. Instead, the company is focusing on establishing its metaverse sector for what it hopes will be a successful 2030s decade.

Other Metaverse Developments

Of late, there have been multiple developments regarding the metaverse and its adoption. In April, Meta announced plans to open a physical metaverse-themed store in the San Francisco Bay area. Plans for the store include wall-to-wall curved LED screens to display what users would see when using virtual reality (VR) headsets. Its overall purpose is to provide demos and show the public how VR and metaverse tech work.

This week also saw new initiatives from Sandbox creator Animoca Brands, which has announced an alliance with several prominent Web3 companies to develop a new decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO). The DAO will prioritise users’ asset ownership capabilities and return autonomy to the owners of digital assets.

Categories
Crypto Exchange Crypto News Kraken

Kraken Under Fire for Alleged Iran Sanctions Violations

The New York Times reports that the Kraken exchange is under investigation by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for allegedly violating economic sanctions against Iran:

Kraken Allows Iranian Users Access

According to the NYT report, Treasury has outlined its suspicions that Kraken permits Iranian users to access its services, thereby violating US federal sanctions:

It is alleged that five people, either associated with the company or possessing knowledge of the inquiry, came forward to share information with the newspaper. These sources requested anonymity for their own safety but discussed how Kraken allegedly allows customers from both Iran and other sanctioned countries to use its exchange despite the illegalities.

Marco Santori, Kraken’s chief legal officer, stated that his company would not comment on regulator discussions, other than saying:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/marco-santori-7ab37b28/overlay/photo/

Kraken has robust compliance measures in place and continues to grow its compliance team to match its business growth. Kraken closely monitors compliance with sanctions laws and, as a general matter, reports to regulators even potential issues.

Marco Santori, chief legal officer, Kraken

However, it is known that Kraken’s CEO and co-founder, Jesse Powell, has in the past stated his willingness to challenge what he deems to be “unfair regulations”. International sanctions are one such regulation.

While there is no current timeline for enforcement action, it is understood that Kraken will receive a fine.

OpenSea and Economic Sanctions

The debate surrounding crypto operations in various countries has kicked into gear this year, with leading NFT marketplace OpenSea at the centre of controversy. On March 5, both OpenSea and MetaMask users from Iran and Venezuela were blocked from making Ethereum transactions.

Both platforms cited compliance issues behind the blockage; however, it was confirmed soon after that Ethereum’s Infura cut off users to separatist areas in Ukraine, and Venezuelan users were accidentally cut off. However, the block was intentional for Iranian users.

Three days later, on March 8, OpenSea updated its list of banned countries to align with the US sanctions list, blocking North Korea, Syria and Russia, along with Iran. The decision reignited the conversation on decentralisation and sparked outrage from NFT collectors.

Categories
Australia Blockchain Crypto News Regulation

Blockchain Australia CEO Departs Without a Replacement

Steve Vallas, the CEO of Blockchain Australia, has announced via a LinkedIn post that he will step down from his position, leaving the company without an immediate replacement.

Vallas will officially depart Blockchain Australia on July 29, after originally declaring he would step down as CEO in a LinkedIn announcement posted three months ago.

In both his resignation posts, Vallas recognised his board (past and present), making special mentions of those who had played key roles during his time at Blockchain Australia. He also shared some kind words regarding the mission of his company and the industry:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stevevallas_the-best-endings-are-new-beginnings-after-activity-6924474300515201024-Mywl/

The future of the blockchain industry is extraordinarily bright and it’s been a privilege to play a part in this development.

Steve Vallas, original resignation announcement

Vallas’s initial resignation post stated that the “formal search for a new CEO [would] begin shortly”. However, Blockchain Australia has yet to find a suitable replacement for Vallas, leaving the position vacant on his exit.

Blockchain Australia was not Vallas’s only duty. He remains deputy chair of the National Blockchain Roadmap Steering Committee, as well as vice chair of the ASEAN (the Association of South-East Asian Nations) Blockchain Consortium. He also holds a position on the ASIC Digital Finance Advisory Panel, advising on financial and regulatory technology matters.

Blockchain Australia Operations

Blockchain Australia has taken multiple influential steps toward improving the sector over the past two years. In February 2021, the organisation terminated the membership of Gold Coast-based cryptocurrency Qoin. The reasoning behind this was outlined in a Notice of Member Disciplinary Resolution, which stated that Qoin had been targeting retail merchants across Australia.

Following this, Blockchain Australia began seeking “safe harbour” for crypto businesses as regulatory uncertainty ran rampant. The organisation petitioned for clarity regarding the regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies in Australia and, alongside industry-related partners, it recommended a set of regulations to the federal government with hopes of addressing these issues.

Categories
Crypto News DAO Metaverse

Sandbox Creator ‘Animoca Brands’ Launches DAO to Develop Metaverse Interoperability Standards

Animoca Brands has established an alliance with other prominent Web3 companies this week to create a new decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO) to prioritise users’ asset ownership capabilities.

The company behind smash hit metaverse game ‘The Sandbox’ has teamed up with a number of blockchain-based metaverse creators to establish the Open Metaverse Alliance for Web3 (OMA3). The DAO so far consists of popular names including Alien Worlds, Splinterlands, Dapper Labs, Upland, Star Atlas and, most notably, Decentraland. However, Animoca intends to invite many other creators on board.

Finer Detail Yet to be Revealed

The fine print of how this new DAO will operate, such as governance rules and voting power allocation, is yet to be revealed. However, it has been stated that OMA3’s main goals are to solve key challenges of the metaverse, such as the preservation of freedom of information owned by users:

We believe in a metaverse without restraining walls, where individual platforms are interconnected and fully interoperable … Users will immutably own these assets and transfer them to any OMA3 virtual worlds freely, without needing the platform’s permission.

OMA3 statement

This alliance would seem to be competition for the ‘Metaverse Standards Forum’ (MSF), which was announced earlier this week. Founded by big names in tech, such as Microsoft, Meta, Sony and Alibaba, all the companies in MSF are known for restricting user information usage and creating barriers when it comes to transfers.

OMA3 will set out to develop its infrastructure to ensure the metaverse operates as a unified system where digital assets and data are controlled by users, not platforms. Users of this infrastructure will own their assets and should be able to transfer them freely across the OMA3 world without requiring platform permission.

Animoca’s Recent Movements

‘Be Media’, an Australian digital marketing agency, sold a large stake of its company to Animoca Brands in April 2022. Animoca’s purchase is believed to be part of its incursion into Australia, as it hopes to induct more companies into Web3.

Categories
Crypto News Gaming NFTs

Minecraft Bans NFTs and Blockchain Integrations

Minecraft has announced it will be banning the use of NFTs and blockchain technology on its servers. The highly popular sandbox game also seeks to prevent the creation of NFT projects based on its assets.

Mojang, Minecraft’s creator, has justified the decision by stating that NFTs are not inclusive of its full community. The bans are being met with mixed feelings on social media:

Mojang Goes It Alone

Mojang, the developer behind the hit video game Minecraft, seems to have little interest in allowing its property to operate in conjunction with independent NFT projects.

Blockchain technology on independent game servers (operated by fans and creators) that utilise any aspect of Minecraft imagery to create NFT projects will be prohibited. The notice issued by Minecraft claims that the decision was made based on ensuring players would “have a safe and inclusive experience”.

The speculative pricing and investment mentality around NFTs takes the focus away from playing the game and encourages profiteering, which we think is inconsistent with the long-term joy and success of our players”

Mojang statement

However, NFT Worlds, a Web3 gaming project specifically focused on third-party blockchain and NFT Minecraft integrations, has made the bold statement that it won’t be leaving. The announcement has caused prices for the project’s NFTs to plummet by 70 percent, and its native token (WRLD) to also drop by 65 percent. Regardless, it seems the developers have no intention of leaving the community:

However, Mojang has not definitively ruled out blockchain tech for its future, stating that it plans to monitor the evolution of the space.

Initial NFT and Web3 Integration

Last year saw Minecraft introduce NFTs to the game, permitting players to collect in-game digital assets which then granted them access to special quests and other benefits. The NFTs were to be powered by a project called Enjin (ENJ), which allowed digital assets to be stored on the blockchain. Players were then required to scan a QR code which transferred the NFT automatically to their Enjin. The wallet could then be linked to the cross-platform gaming network MyMetaVerse.

Then, in March 2022, the game decided to make the move into Web3. ‘NFT Worlds’ was set to be the blockchain layer added to third-party Minecraft servers, alongside a Polygon-based overlay and an Ethereum sidechain offering gas-free transactions. The announcement drew an overwhelmingly positive reaction across social media at the time.

Categories
Australia Banking Crypto News

Westpac Makes its Tentative First Steps Towards Crypto

After remaining silent on the topic for most of this year, major Australian bank Westpac has indicated its intent to enter the blockchain and crypto space.

This comes as it shared a job post this week advertising the need for a “principal architect” for digital assets and crypto. The successful candidate would aid Westpac in transforming emerging cryptocurrency and digital asset trends into opportunities for the bank and its customers.

Westpac’s Roadmap for Digital Assets

More specifically, the principal duty of the position will involve the development and maintenance of a strategic technology roadmap for digital assets. David Walker, chief technology officer at Westpac, has spoken regarding speculation about its future in crypto:

https://www.itnews.com.au/news/westpacs-new-cto-looks-beyond-mobile-banking-531811

We have been exploring blockchain technologies for some time, recognising the benefits it could have not only for customers, but for streamlining parts of the wider financial system as well … Ensuring the safety and security of our customers remains a critical consideration with the use of this technology.

David Walker, chief technology officer, Westpac

If Westpac continues down this path, it will fall into line with other ‘Big Four’ Aussie banks that have already started catering to crypto.

Other Aussie Banks Banking on Crypto

Australia’s most productive bank when it comes to delving into the crypto industry has so far been the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA). However, CBA was forced to halt its crypto trading pilot in May amid market turmoil. Those who were trialling CBA’s upcoming in-app crypto trading facility were left with no word on when the app was likely to resume trading.

The goals of the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) are set to extend the usage of its cash-backed stablecoin, A$DC, over increased demand for access to it from its institutional customers. At the time (June 2022), ANZ was also looking to target additional use cases through a pilot program, thanks to aid from the federal government and regulators.

Categories
Crypto News Ethereum Hackers NFTs

Hackers Make Off with $400K in ETH in PREMINT Hack

PREMINT, an NFT registration platform, has notified users via Twitter that an unknown party had stolen US$400,000 in ETH via a malicious wallet connection:

Hackers Secure Premint Bag

In this year’s most recent hack, 320 NFTs were stolen from the PREMINT site. CertiK, a blockchain security firm, analysed the situation and found that malicious JavaScript code had been utilised in the hack. This code created a pop-up within the site which prompted users to verify their wallet ownership. Despite many taking to Twitter to issue a warning, the hackers had already duped six PREMINT customers in mere minutes:

The stolen NFTs included Bored Apes, Moonbirds, and Goblintowns. Once they were obtained, the hacker sent the funds to Tornado Cash to wipe the digital trail left by blockchain transactions.

PREMINT has thanked those of its customers who have helped minimise the impact of the hack and are accumulating data on all NFTs stolen.

Other 2022 Phishing Attacks

Phishing attacks seem to be increasing in frequency this year, with multiple sizeable thefts across the end of the first quarter. A total of 35 NFTs were stolen in early April, including a Mutant and Bored Ape. The attack was carried out via several hacked verified Twitter accounts with the total stolen value exceeding US$900,000.

A month later, 29 Moonbird tokens were stolen when a malicious link wired a scammer US$1.5 million worth of Moonbird NFTs from a Proof Collective member. At the time, the Collective was working on a full report in collaboration with the FBI.

Categories
Bitcoin Mining Crypto News JPMorgan

Bitcoin Mining Cost Sinks to $13,000 Amid Crypto Winter: Report

According to a global markets strategy PDF released by leading investment bank JPMorgan, the price of bitcoin (BTC) production has sunk to approximately US$13,000 from early June’s US$20,000.

This is reportedly the result of the bear market brought on by the crypto winter:

Bitcoin Miners: Crypto Winter Strikes Back

JPMorgan has found that the production cost to mine one Bitcoin has dropped from an estimated US$24,000 to a lowly $13,000, a 10-month low according to Bloomberg.

The bank’s strategists, led by Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, have found that the recent plunge in BTC’s production costs resulted from the following combination of factors:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikolaos-panigirtzoglou-5012975/overlay/photo/

The decline in electricity use as proxied by the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, while the hash rate has been fluctuating in recent months with no clear downtrend.

Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, strategist, JPMorgan

Despite improved profitability suggesting that pressure for miners to sell their bitcoin holdings for liquidity purposes could lessen, the decrease in costs is typically seen as a negative for the overall bitcoin price:

Although opinions vary, data from MacroMicro suggests that the production cost remains steady at approximately US$17,700. MacroMicro justifies this by explaining that the lower the mining costs, the more miners will join. However, when mining costs are higher than miners’ revenue, numbers will logically fall.

Funding a Mining Operation

The cost of bitcoin mining depends on several variables, chief among which is electricity costs incurred by miners for their required machinery. Providing bitcoin’s price exceeds maintenance costs, a mining operation will be profitable. However, mining operations must also consider infrastructure, labour and hardware costs for the maintenance of mining farms, all of which can vary. This crypto winter is also taking place while energy prices soar globally.

Bitcoin miners aren’t alone in their struggles, however. Miners of all sorts are facing pressure created by the damaging plunge of bitcoin. Among those experiencing exponential lows this year-to-date: Marathon Digital Holdings is down 73 percent, Riot Blockchain Inc has dropped 73 percent, and Core Scientific Inc is down a whopping 83 percent. Worse yet, there’s scope for these figures to continue falling.

Luckily, there is hope when it comes to infrastructure, with the Bloomberg report suggesting mining costs can be reduced via the deployment of more energy-efficient mining rigs, such as those becoming available thanks to Intel and Bitmain.

Bitcoin Falls on Rough Times

July has been somewhat of a nightmare month for bitcoin as it fell under US$19,000 following the US’s highest inflation print in 40 years. Economists had initially predicted an 8.8 percent June year-on-year inflation rate; however, the reality was 9.1 percent, which meant an immediate dip in BTC’s price.

To add further stress, Bitcoin has also had to address the strain placed on diamond hands, namely those investors who normally refrain from selling an investment despite downturns or losses. Glassnode, an on-chain analytics firm, discovered that while the total unique Bitcoin count had exceeded 1 billion, diamond hands were selling at an average loss of 33 percent.

Categories
Crypto News CryptoPunks NFTs

Rare CryptoPunk NFT Defies Crypto Winter, Sells for 2,500 ETH

Reversing recent NFT market trends, CryptoPunk #4464 this week changed hands for a massive 2,500 ETH (approximately US$2.6 million). According to CryptoSlam, this marks the single-largest NFT sale of the past 30 days, in defiance of typical winter market lows:

CryptoPunk Does the Unexpected

Despite the malaise of the wider crypto market and commensurate NFT trading volumes, one rare CryptoPunk seems to have achieved the impossible. Punk #4464, an eye mask/durag-wearing, vaping pixelated character, has notched the fourth-ranked CryptoPunks NFT sale of all time, sharing that status with two other Apes. (It should be noted, however, that as ETH has a fluctuating price, the USD value of each sale fluctuates significantly.)

https://cryptopunks.app/cryptopunks/details/4464
Transaction history of CryptoPunk #4464.

The record CryptoPunk sale for both ETH and USD is #5822, an 8,000 ETH (US$23.7 million) alien that was sold in February.

So Why Is #4464’s Sale Impressive?

Only two months ago, there was consensus that CryptoPunks (and NFTs in general) had lost the public interest. The realisation came as CryptoPunk #273, a male punk with a cap and shades, sold on May 8 for just US$139,836. That figure was 87 percent lower than its initial purchase price of US$1.03 million, in October 2021.

With a total value loss of approximately US$890,000, an ongoing downward trend in the CryptoPunk market seemed inevitable. However, #4464 has defied the odds and is proof to the contrary.