Author: Phil Stafford

Phil is a long-standing Australian journalist with specialised experience in business, finance, travel and popular culture.

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Australia Blockchain Crypto News

Australia’s Prized Kakadu Plum to be Traced Using Blockchain

The highly prized Kakadu plum, a rich natural source of vitamin C and an internationally recognised native Australian superfood, is at the centre of an Australian government grant of A$455,100 to design a blockchain-based Indigenous certification and accreditation system to improve its traceability.

The Northern Australia Aboriginal Kakadu Plum Alliance consortium is the official recipient of the grant, to be managed by the Mamabulanjin Aboriginal Corporation (MAC). The latter will deploy the funding to develop a Kakadu plum database using blockchain and iso-elemental technology.

Certification to Fight Fraud and Boost Consumer Confidence

In announcing the grant, Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia David Littleproud said that resultant certification will combat food and ingredient fraud in international markets and provide ongoing assurances to consumers.

This grant will not only verify provenance of the Kakadu plum, it has the potential to be adapted to other high-value supply chains. The Kakadu plum is starting to grab the attention of the cosmetics and nutraceutical sectors, both here and overseas. Improving traceability will assist the sector to continue growing, while protecting traditional and Indigenous knowledge.

David Littleproud, Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia

MAC CEO Neil Gower predicted the project would help make Indigenous producers more competitive internationally.

This is a fantastic opportunity, not just for the Northern Australia Aboriginal Kakadu Plum Alliance, but for Kakadu plum growers across Australia. We’re hopeful that this project could eventually be used by other Indigenous producers of Australian native foods, like macadamias, finger limes and lemon myrtle.

Neil Gower, CEO, Mamabulanjin Aboriginal Corporation

Blockchain Gains Traction Across Australian Industries

The adoption of blockchain technology is set to streamline a range of Australian industries. Last month, the construction industry was advised that distributed ledger technology, virtual design and onsite drones could keep track of a building’s structural state to avoid disasters such as the Miami apartment building collapse in June.

Also last month, Australian mining company Progressive Minerals announced it was implementing a new infrastructure powered by the Bitcoin SV (BSV) blockchain to enhance its operations through the use of NFTs and tokenisation.

And last year, the government joined with supply chain industry experts to recommend blockchain technology as a solution to widespread fraud in the food and wine industry, which costs Australian businesses over $1.7 billion every year.

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Bitcoin Crypto News Scams

Melbourne Film Festival to Show $234 Million Bitcoin Scammer Documentary

You can’t take it with you – or can you? When Canadian crypto scammer Gerald Cotten died from complications of Crohn’s disease in 2018, he took with him a fortune of up to $A234 million in bitcoin and other digital currencies.

The 30-year-old’s sudden death came as a shock in crypto circles but many believe he faked it in an elaborate “exit scam”. Buried with Cotten were the keys to the digital vault containing investors’ cash unwittingly sunk into his trading platform Quadriga CX.

Cotten’s death was kept secret for a month by the firm before it was finally announced – and it was only then discovered he had spent millions in investors’ money to fund his own exorbitant lifestyle.

Documentary “Dead Man Switch” Asks Whether Cotten Died For Real

What exactly happened to Cotten, and whether he is still alive somewhere sitting on a mountain of stolen crypto, is the subject of a new documentary, Dead Man’s Switch, to be screened at the Melbourne Film Festival in August (see trailer below).

The mystery of Cotten and Quadriga is also the topic of two podcasts, Exit Scam and A Death In Cryptoland.

There is widespread speculation Cotten’s death was staged and there have been calls for the exhumation of his body to prove conclusively that he actually died.

Cotten with Jennifer Robertson on their honeymoon in India. Source: en.wikialpha.org

His will was signed just two weeks before he and wife Jennifer Robertson travelled to India on their honeymoon. Cotten had appointed Robertson executor of his estate, bequeathing a $A9.7 million real estate empire, his yacht and his Cessna plane. He even left his two dogs an inheritance of $A108,000.

Robertson has not been accused of any wrongdoing and has denied any prior knowledge of her husband’s business dealings. In fact, in 2019 she returned $A9.7 million to Cotten’s company to repay users.

There’s only two people who really know what happened in India.

Sheona McDonald, director, Dead Man’s Switch

Cotten’s Long Line of Ponzi Schemes

Police believe Quadriga CX was another in a long line of Ponzi schemes where Cotten would use fake accounts to “buy” his customers bitcoin. He would then use the crypto to make personal investments on other digital exchanges, according to accounting firm Ernst & Young.

Quadriga CX founder Gerald Cotten. Source: davidgerard.co.uk

The irony is that Cotton, as an early crypto believer, would have got rich without the need to scam others. He is believed to have made $A125 million in crypto from his own accounts and put them into high-risk financial bets – many of which crashed, costing him more money than Quadriga ever actually made.

Bankruptcy trustees have recovered $A37 million from Quadriga and another $A13 million in assets from Cotten’s estate, but the rest remains under digital lock and key.

Just this week, Crypto News broke the story of how Australian crypto influencer Alex Saunders went to ground after investors alleged they’d been scammed into funding his claimed stablecoin project.

Forewarned is forearmed: Crypto News is also your trusted source for information on all the latest scams going around in the space in 2021.

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Crypto News Ethereum NFTs

Coca-Cola Drops Its First NFT Collection in Charity Auction

The world’s most recognisable beverage brand is set to release a collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to mark International Friendship Day and raise money for Special Olympics International.

Peer-to-peer marketplace OpenSea is holding a three-day auction for Coca-Cola-branded NFTs from July 30. The collections, created in partnership with digital designer Tafi, were “inspired by video-game loot boxes” and contain “hidden surprises” available only to those who purchase the artwork.

The so-named “Friendship Boxes” include a classic Coca-Cola esky, a wearable bubble jacket that can be used in the Ethereum-based VR world Decentraland, and a friendship card.

That Familiar Fizz of Effervescence

An added feature is a “sound visualiser” that plays audio of a bottle opening, a beverage being poured over ice, and the accompanying familiar fizz of effervescence common to carbonated beverages.

Coke enthusiasts can place their bids in Ether through OpenSea until August 2.

Each NFT was created to celebrate elements that are core to the brand, reinterpreted for a virtual world in new and exciting ways. We are excited to share our first NFTs with the metaverse.

Global Coca-Cola trademark president Selman Careaga

Coca-Cola says it will donate auction proceeds to Special Olympics International, a sports organisation dedicated to ending discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities.

In May, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin donated US$60 million in ETH after dumping his huge stash of three dog-theme coins. Buterin dispersed the resulting funds to various non-profit organisations, donating the dog-themed tokens and even some of the ETH he made in the sale.

Coke Bottlers Cotton On to Crypto

Though the company is not renowned for its involvement in the crypto and blockchain space, some of Coca-Cola’s bottling partners use decentralised ledger technology for supply chain management.

The 129-year-old Atlanta-based beverage behemoth retains an interest in the potential of blockchain technology, however. In September 2020, its Australasian arm Coca-Cola Amatil partnered with Centrapay to allow Australians and New Zealanders to buy Coke from vending machines using bitcoin and other cryptos.

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Crypto News NFTs Tokens

Van Gogh, Da Vinci and Monet Paintings to be Tokenised for Auction

Binance’s NFT marketplace is collaborating with the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to create tokenised collectibles based on the works of renowned artists including Leonardo da Vinci, Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh.

Binance announced on July 27 that it will make and distribute non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in concert with the museum by the end of August. The auction will be accessible to all Binance users.

Among the iconic works in the NFT collection are da Vinci’s Madonna Litta, fellow Italian artist Giorgione’s Judith, Dutch master van Gogh’s Lilac Bush, Composition VI by Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky and French impressionist Monet’s A Corner of the Garden at Montgeron.

Two NFT Copies for Each Artwork

The Hermitage announced that each artwork will have two NFT copies. The first will be retained by the museum, while the second will be auctioned off. All proceeds from auction sales will be transferred to the State Hermitage Museum.

According to Mikhail Piotrovsky, general director of the Hermitage, tokenising these masterpieces will “revolutionise” access to the museum’s collections.

New technologies, in particular blockchain, have opened a new chapter in the development of the art market, led by the ownership and the guarantee of this ownership.

Mikhail Piotrovsky, general director, State Hermitage Museum

Another Step Towards Digitalisation

Helen Hai, head of Binance NFT, says the project highlights the value of blockchain technology and NFTs as the world moves toward digitalisation.

Recognition of blockchain technology and NFTs by one of the largest museums in the world is another step towards global digitalisation … Together, we are making history.

Helen Hai, head, Binance NFT

Last month, Hobart’s Museum of Art & Philosophy launched Australia’s first NFT gallery in the Tasmanian capital. Just weeks later, multimedia artist Dave Court became the first in his field to stage a physical NFT exhibition in his home state of South Australia, and one of the first in the southern hemisphere.

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Australia Crypto News Data

Uber Under Investigation for Leaking 1.2 Million Australians’ Private Data

Australia’s data regulator has found that US multinational tech company Uber compromised the privacy of 1.2 million of its customers as a result of a 2016 global data breach.

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) adjudged that Uber violated several principles that form part of the Privacy Act 1988, the country’s federal privacy legislation.

On July 23, the OAIC released a report about its investigation of Uber’s highly controversial 2016 breach that it kept under wraps for more than a year.

The OAIC says that the company’s transgressions include failing to:

  • take reasonable steps to protect personal information against unauthorised access
  • delete or de-identify data that is no longer needed
  • take steps to comply with Australian Privacy Principles (APPs)

Uber, whose services include ride-sharing, food delivery, couriers, freight transportation and electric bicycle/scooter rentals, will be required to create an information security program that identifies data risks. It also must conduct regular testing and monitoring, appoint a coordinator for its information security program, and create an incident response plan that complies with specified APPs.

Approximately 1.2 million Australian accounts were affected in the 2016 breach. Of these, some 960,000 were used only as rider accounts and the remaining 240,000-odd accounts were driver accounts (or both driver and rider accounts).

US$100,000 in Bitcoin Paid to Hackers in 2016 Data Breach

In 2019, two US hackers pleaded guilty in connection with a global extortion campaign tied to the theft of data on about 57 million Uber customers and drivers, which took place from October 2016 to January 2017.

The hackers admitted to using the stolen data to extort bitcoin ransom payments from Uber in exchange for permanent deletion of the records. Uber paid the hackers US$100,000 in bitcoin in an attempt to muzzle the issue and did not reveal the breach until November 2017.

Uber Has Three Months to Engage Third Party Data Experts

Uber has been given three months to prepare the following policies, programs and plans to comply with specified APPs:

  • a data retention and destruction policy
  • an information security program
  • an incident response plan

Within another two months, Uber must engage an independent third party (or third parties) to prepare a written report that specifies whether its amended policies and programs have been prepared in accordance with OAIC directions.

In April this year, Ledger and Shopify were hit with a class-action lawsuit over a 2020 data breach. And almost a year ago, Crypto News reported that Australia was subject to almost three significant data breaches every day, with leading cybersecurity and blockchain experts fingering China as the source.

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Australia Bitcoin Crypto News Ethereum Scams

Influential Aussie Crypto Personality Remains Silent on Alleged Scam

A Twitter storm has erupted with Australian cryptocurrency influencer Alex Saunders at its centre, other investors alleging they’ve been “scammed” to help fund a possibly fictitious stablecoin project.

After leveraging the funds, believed to run to “eight figures”, with American derivatives exchange FTX, Saunders is said to have “lost the lot”.

“It’s clear a lot of people have been scammed,” tweeted victim Ben Armstrong, aka @Bitboy_Crypto. “I’ve been holding this back but now I think it’s necessary for people to know the truth.”

Alex asked me for a 5 bitcoin [BTC] loan back in early March [the BTC price reached its peak for that month at $9,160.39 on March 7]. I gave it to him as a friend. Big mistake.

Ben Armstrong, aka Bitboy_Crypto

Another Twitter user, Richard Heart (@R.Heart), recounted a similar tale of woe, his involving 50 bitcoin (worth approximately A$2.5 million). “Alex begged me for a 50 BTC loan,” Heart tweeted, “then tried to sell me a ‘pre-allocation’ in a token. Then tried to sell me on just giving him money to talk.”

Recently, they were doing a live stream discussing Heart’s crypto project, called HEX, and Heart cut Saunders off the call abruptly after the latter claimed to have “exposed $HEX as a fraud“.

“This Is Now Over Eight Figures of Fraud”

Saunders, who has been curiously silent on social media for some weeks despite his previously high public profile, is the founder and CEO of crypto media channel Nugget’s News. He describes himself in his Twitter profile as “a post-GFC investor in Bitcoin and Ethereum”, and claims to have been involved in “crypto, finance and economics education since 2012”.

On July 23, Twitter user @DeFi_Ted voiced what some of Saunders’ alleged victims were thinking:

Another Twitter user, JP (@JP_Technology), in a slightly more tongue-in-cheek tweet, suggested Saunders’ disappearance from the public sphere might be just the “tip of the iceberg”, hinting at a broader industry-wide issue.

Crypto News has tried to make contact with Saunders to get his comments, but he has thus far remained silent.

Ironically, Saunders has in the past been quick to blow the whistle on other scams affecting the crypto community. He reportedly lost thousands of dollars to a fake Uniswap mobile application hosted on the Google Play store last November.

And earlier this year, Saunders called Gold Coast-based retail-targeted cryptocurrency Qoin “a massive scam” and urged people to “get their money out before it collapses”. Qoin’s membership of Blockchain Australia was terminated amid the claims.

After a reported A$26 million lost in Australia crypto scams in 2020 alone, the crypto community is urged to stay vigilant and be aware of the current crypto scams going around.

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Bitcoin Mining Crypto News

Bitcoin Miner Fatally Electrocuted by Faulty Homemade Rig

A 26-year-old Thai bitcoin miner has died while trying to power up his computer to generate more cryptocurrency.

Danai Makmek was electrocuted on July 20 in a failed attempt to reactivate a faulty hard drive. It’s believed his homemade rig exploded and a concurrent power surge killed the crypto enthusiast.

The home bitcoin mining rig set up by Danai Makmek. Source: Viral Press/Australscope

The body of Makmek, shirtless and clad only in a pair of blue shorts, was found slumped over his computer by his older brother, Apiwat, on the morning of July 21.

Time Is Money But Impatience Can Cost a Life

Two days previously, Danai had asked Apiwat for help to fix his ailing rig, fearing he could lose valuable mining time. Apiwat said he would accompany Danai to a computer repair shop but the latter decided he couldn’t wait and tried to fix the problem himself.

Apiwat Makmek said his brother could not afford to miss a day’s mining, potentially worth thousands of dollars in bitcoin.

I warned him but he could not wait. I think he panicked and stayed up the whole night trying to fix it. The computer was modified to give it more power. I do not think it was safe …

Apiwat Makmek
Danai Makmek’s body is removed by Thai paramedics. Source: Viral Press/Australscope

Emergency services were called and unsuccessfully tried to revive Danai. Police Colonel Santi Shoosheud said there were no signs of forced entry into Danai’s room and that he had no suspicious injuries other than those directly related to his electrocution, which included third-degree burns.

Police Follow Hot Trail to Bitcoin Mining Operation

Two months ago, English police uncovered a bitcoin mining operation when their drone detected heat emanating from a warehouse in the West Midlands. Suspecting a cannabis farm, they were able to seize around 100 bitcoin mining devices running on stolen electricity. Fortunately, no one was electrocuted in this instance.

Meanwhile, a worldwide semiconductor shortage has been affecting crypto mining operations along with a host of related industries, specifically the production of computer components.

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Crypto News Cryptocurrencies Dogecoin Ethereum Sports

Surf Legend Kelly Slater Wants to Create His Own Crypto

Champion surfer and environmentalist Kelly Slater has expressed an ambition to add a personalised cryptocurrency brand to his list of 11 world titles.

The 49-year-old American has long observed the progress of Bitcoin and Ethereum and says the prospect of hitching a crypto asset to his latest green project is his next challenge after 40 years at the sporting forefront.

Slater has been focusing his attention on a wood recycling company and hopes to link a crypto coin to his environmental endeavours.

I’ve started reaching out to people in the crypto world who make these things. We’ll see if there’s something we can do that’s a positive one, and not a fly-by-night coin where people are just trying to make a quick buck overnight.

Kelly Slater

The Florida native says he has a basic understanding of blockchain and cryptocurrency, and their relationship to world economies.

I think it’s interesting to have a currency – a store of value – that isn’t controlled by a CEO or a government. It’s an exciting, rare time for people to do their investing themselves.

Dogecoin and Its Ilk “Need to Disappear”

Slater doesn’t want his crypto to be a meme currency like Dogecoin, which “literally has zero purpose for anyone”. In fact, he adds:  “Those all need to disappear.” A new technology, he says, “should have some kind of utility or protocol that makes a company or people’s lives better”.

The champion surfer would approve of Quebecois bitcoin mining company Bitfarms, which listed on NASDAQ last month and is committed to using green energy. More than 99 percent of the power it uses to run its operations comes from hydroelectric energy.

He’d also be happy to know that Ethereum 2.0 is greener and better for the environment – up to 99 percent more sustainable, according to some industry observers.

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Australia Crypto News NFTs

‘Crypto Mona Lisa’ Signed by Vitalik Buterin to be Auctioned on Aussie NFT Platform

CryptoMother, aka the ‘Crypto Mona Lisa’, a much sought-after 2017 painting signed by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, is to be auctioned on Australian non-fungible token platform NFT STARS on July 30.

The iconic painting by Russian artist Aleksandra Eliseeva, an oil on canvas measuring 100cm x 100cm, is part of a collection entitled “Art of Blockchain”, whose owner has decided to put it back on the market after rejecting several lucrative offers over the years. 

Seller to Cover Shipping Costs

The successful bidder will receive the original portrait together with its NFT, and the painting will be shipped by a specialist transportation company with costs covered by the seller.

CryptoMother has captured the imagination of digital art collectors over the past four years. In 2018, a US millionaire offered the current owner US$6 million for it but was declined “on ideological grounds”.

The painting is the centrepiece of the “Art of Blockchain” collection, consisting of five NFT artworks and their original oil paintings – the others are Miss Coin, CryptoFather, Ethereum, and Bitcoin. All five pieces in the collection will be auctioned on the same day.

Part of Proceeds to Go to Charity of Buyer’s Choosing

The current owner of the collection has stated that part of the auction proceeds will be donated to a charity organisation determined by the buyer.

NFT STARS expects to hit several records with its July 30 drops. While each piece is unique, the entire collection represents the core values and aspirations of the crypto community.

By way of perspective, in March popular digital artist Beeple bagged over US$60 million from the sales of his 5,000-day digital art collection. And last month, Hobart’s Museum of Art & Philosophy (MAP) launched Australia’s first NFT gallery in the Tasmanian capital. 

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Australia Crypto News Cryptocurrencies Economics Payments

Melbourne Buskers Prefer Donations in Crypto to Cash, RMIT Study Shows

As Covid has changed our relationship with cash and dramatically reduced foot traffic in CBDs around the globe, street performers have had to find different ways to earn a living.

Economists at Melbourne university RMIT have found that passers-by often donate more when paying via digital platforms such as apps, QR codes, PayPal and even bitcoin, compared to the traditional payment method of loose coins thrown into a hat or guitar case.

Using data from online platform The Busking Project, the RMIT study analysed individual payments to over 3,500 active buskers from 121 countries, including Australia, to identify performers who were more receptive to online donations.

Melbourne Is Australia’s Busking Capital

Melbourne proved to be Australia’s busking capital, with nearly a third of the country’s 263 active street performers based in its second-biggest city.

The study also found:

  • Circus performers received the biggest donations.
  • Musicians were most likely to receive donations but received smaller amounts than other types of artists.
  • The number of other onlookers influenced if and how much passers-by donated.
  • The artist’s location and social media profile also affected the level of donations.
  • Artists who joined the platform after the World Health Organization (WHO) announcement that Covid-19 was a pandemic in March 2020 were more likely to receive a donation, which ranged from A$1 to more than A$700 .

According to the study’s lead author, Dr Meg Elkins, street performers have a critical role to play as cities look to revitalise their CBDs in the wake of the pandemic.

Buskers performing in public for coin is a centuries-old practice but they have to move online as our society becomes increasingly cashless. We … wanted to uncover how they could use digital payment systems to increase their online earnings and create more sustainable careers.

Dr Meg Elkins, lead author, ‘Beyond the realm of cash: Street performers and payments in the online world‘, RMIT busker study

Artists Must Also Be Entrepreneurs

Elkins, a senior lecturer in the School of Economics, Finance and Marketing at RMIT University and a member of its Behavioural Business Lab, says that artists have to become more entrepreneurial to survive.

“In the future, we could see QR codes as part of street performance, which would simplify the payment process even further,” Elkins says. “More than 40 QR code trials are already under way across Europe, the US and Australia.

Digital platforms can potentially allow street performers to generate more generous donations beyond cash tips. They’re also a way for artists to interact with supporters and build that all-important fan base, which can ultimately help sustain a career.

Dr Meg Elkins

Last year, Crypto News Australia foreshadowed increasing demand for digital wallets and cryptocurrency as Australia evolves towards a cashless society. Also in 2020, we reported how the pandemic had effectively halved cash payments in Australia as consumers continued to shift towards digital and contactless payment options.