Category: Blockchain

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Blockchain Crypto News Polkadot

Polkadot’s Parachains Finally Launch, What’s Next?

Five parachains have been awarded slots to be the first to build upon the Polkadot mainnet. The winning projects will lease their parachain slots over the next 96 weeks (almost two years) and will focus on various niches in cryptocurrency, including decentralised finance (DeFi), crypto investments and loans, and smart contracting.

In total, nearly 99 million DOT (worth approximately US$2.4 billion) was deposited by the five top projects. The winning parachains from Polkadot’s first round of auctions are, in order: Acala, Moonbeam, Astar, Parallel Finance, and Clover. 

Parachains Like a ‘Blockchain on Steroids’

Creator and co-founder Gavin Wood has long had a vision for an interconnected blockchain framework, and Polkadot was purposely built with parachains in mind. In 2016, the Polkadot Whitepaper outlined the network’s core features and told of its sharded multichain design. Built to be a network for cross-chain interoperability, Polkadot offers scalability for other chains to build on while sharing the security of the entire network. Click here to read more about Polkadot’s parachains.

Polkadot core developer Shawn Tabrizi breaks down parachains as being “like a blockchain on steroids” via Polkadot’s official Twitter page:

100 Parachain Slots to Launch on Polkadot

Over the next few months, Polkadot will allocate 100 parachain slots to various blockchain projects, although not all will go through an auction process. The next batch of auctions begins on December 23 and will see six more winning projects be awarded slots to launch on the Polkadot main network on March 11, 2022.

Recently DOT reached a new all-time high of US$54.98 after last month’s news of the impending launch of Polkadot’s parachain auctions. DOT is currently ranked #10 on CoinGecko. Across the board, the market has dipped in the past few weeks and $DOT is currently at US$24.50.

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Blockchain Cardano Crypto News Crypto Staking Metaverse NFTs Solana

5 Interesting Solana NFT Projects Launching Soon

Earlier in the week, Crypto News Australia published a guide on the five most interesting NFT projects launching on the Cardano blockchain this month. Follow this article for the low down on the five most interesting projects set for launch on the Solana (SOL) blockchain this month.

SolGame

SolGame allows NFTs to be traded new or on the secondhand market.

SolGame, a win-to-earn platform and Squid Game crypto fan project, is powered by a collection of 3,333 unique NFTs. Players can collect HD NFTs and generate passive income by holding specific NFTs. The project includes ultra-rare, animated drops, and cross-platform gaming. The concept allows users to mint new or trade SolGame NFTs on the secondhand market to make up their team, and participate in the daily competition for a chance to win.

Aurory Project

Encounter NPCs and Nefties in the Aurory game universe.

Aurory ($AURY) is a P2E (play-to-earn) desktop game in which players are invited to explore a rich and diverse universe. Players can travel across two different areas and biomes, called “Antik” and “Cryptos”, where they will meet an array of “NPCs” and “Nefties”, magical creatures which can be caught or traded. $AURY token can be earned via PvE and PvP game modes and through staking, while also tradable through a traditional DEX on Aurory’s in-game marketplace.

StarLaunch

StarLaunch is the first insured IDO launchpad and incubator for SOL projects.

StarLaunch, an Initial DEX Offering (IDO) launchpad for the SOL blockchain, is set for imminent launch. The project is an incubator for blockchain projects built atop SOL, which aims to connect projects with a community of backers. StarLaunch is the first insured IDO launchpad and incubator for SOL projects, with a stated goal of connecting its “community of backers with trusted and thoroughly vetted Solana blockchain projects”.

SolCaps

Customisable SolCaps.

SolCaps is a collection of 1,616 unique and randomly created NFTs and as a project aims to gather different users from different blockchains through fashion, specifically caps with crypto designs. The project is adamant that the community making it possible must have a voice and a vote on the future of SolCaps. This means that the project will donate to NGOs and the community will decide the best cause to help.

The SolCaps NFTs will be available for minting at a price determined through a vote by the community via the project’s Discord. Each item has a unique design based on different cryptocurrencies and will be available for users to use for a profile picture on Twitter or Discord, for example.

Dessert Girls

Aime, one of the Dessert Girls available for purchase.

Consisting of 2,222 algorithmically generated NFTs, Dessert Girls is a first-generation collection with a future breeding feature that will live in the Sweet Metaverse. Owning a Dessert Girl NFT will be the starting point, with players able to buy a Dessert Boy to make a couple. Each NFT will have visible physical traits but also character traits. After minting, the project will add ‘trait-extras’, allowing for customisation on the second market.

The Sweet Metaverse will make use of $SWEET coin, which will hold utility in the metaverse as a currency. The coin will be distributed to Dessert Girls holders at the start of 2022.

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Blockchain Crypto News NFTs

‘Seussibles’ NFT Collection Launches with the Grinch, Cat in the Hat and More

Well-loved children’s entertainment brand Seuss Enterprises has teamed up with NFT company Dapper Labs and digital collectibles startup Tibles to launch a collection of NFTs based on characters from the famous Dr. Seuss books.

These digital collectibles, or Seussibles, are built on the new Flow blockchain and are available for fans to purchase with either crypto or credit card through the Seussibles app on the Apple app store, and on the Seussibles.com website.

Iconic Dr. Seuss characters such as the Cat in the Hat, the Grinch and the Lorax are available as NFT sets, starting at US$4.99. There are more than 600 collectibles based on popular Dr. Seuss titles including Green Eggs and Ham, Fox in Socks, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, Horton Hears a Who!, Hop on Pop and Mr Brown Can Moo! Can You?

Digital collectibles from the Seussibles series.

NFTs Launched on the Flow Blockchain

Flow, a new blockchain built for the next generation of apps, games, and the digital assets that power them, was designed as a foundation for internet-scale protocols and applications that also require exceptional user experience.

Conceived by the team behind CryptoKitties, the platform was developed and stress-tested with top global partners and is now open for anyone to contribute to and benefit from.

A bonus is that its buying setup is simple even for non-crypto-savvy NFT collectors to deal with. As the Flow website puts it:

Apple in-app purchases make buying Seussibles absolutely seamless. [There is] no complicated wallet setup. [There are] no transaction fees. On seussibles.com you’ll be able to buy your Seussibles with your credit card or cryptocurrency.

onflow.org

Even a child could manage it, which is probably the idea.

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Blockchain Markets NFTs Tezos

Rarible Integrates with Tezos to Launch Own NFT Collection

Expansive non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Rarible has announced its intention to integrate the Tezos proof-of-stake blockchain to help with reducing the gas costs of minting, buying and selling NFTs, along with supporting secondary sales of other live Tezos projects.

The Cross-Chain Future of NFTs

On December 15, Tezos became the third blockchain to be supported by the Rarible multichain marketplace, joining the ranks of Flow and Ethereum. The marketplace is still in the process of onboarding many more chains in order to expand the collections their users can access. According to Rarible CEO and co-founder Alexei Falin, integrations with Solana and Polygon are up next.

Rarible firmly believes that the future of NFTs is cross-chain, and that interoperability is the key to a streamlined, successful NFT ecosystem. We have seen many alternative blockchains gain traction in the NFT space for their unique offerings, specifically Tezos for its low costs and energy-efficient minting process through proof-of-stake validation.

Rarible CEO Alexei Falin

Partnership About More Than Just Reduced Gas Fees

The partnership brings more than reduced gas fees to the table. To celebrate the partnership, Rarible will host an exclusive Tezos community drop titled ‘Blazing Futures’. Curated by Diane Drubay, it will offer 10 interpretations of the future of art, society and crypto.

Also coming to Rarible thanks to the Tezos blockchain is its latest offering Digits, in partnership with French gaming studio Ubisoft. The latter has just launched Ubisoft Quartz, a platform for players to acquire Digits, the first NFTs playable in AAA games, starting with Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Breakpoint.

Digits are released as part of limited editions, each representing a host of in-game items. However, the gaming community isn’t as excited about Digits as the NFT community might be. Rarible will immediately support secondary sales for Digits, meaning that players that missed the drop can still acquire those playable NFTs.

Phase Two of the Integration

Phase one, which is already live, enables you to mint, buy and sell NFTs as part of the Rarible collection and trade the Ubisoft Digits NFTs.

Phase two, to be released shortly, will introduce additional features, namely the ability to mint your own collection via custom contracts and add royalties to imported collections such as Tezzards, Gemz and other exciting projects that have emerged on Tezos over the past couple of months.

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Blockchain Crypto News Ethereum Fantasy Sports Gaming NFTs Tokens

Formula 1 Hits the Blockchain With ‘DeltaTime’ NFT Fantasy F1 Game

As the NFT boom continues, Formula One (F1) has cemented itself in the race to the blockchain as it launched its own non-fungible token (NFT) fantasy game, “DeltaTime”.  F1 DeltaTime is built atop Ethereum and is based around the collection and trading of unique Formula One cars, drivers and components.

Get Your REVVs Up

The latest news from the F1 DeltaTime world is that it has now also introduced NFT staking. Consisting of two main play experiences, Collection and Competitive Racing Games, FI DeltaTime – with its native token REVV – utilises the Ethereum blockchain and runs off the ERC-20 standard. NFTs are available for purchase on OpenSea for relatively reasonable prices.

However, NFTs of some of the more famous characters in the racing world such as leading F1 driver Lewis Hamilton will run to about 8.99 ETH (approximately US$36,400). NFTs can also be purchased using the REVV token.

Lewis Hamilton NFT available for a cool US$36,400. Source: OpenSea

The Collectibles Game centres on trading rare virtual items including Cars, Drivers, Components and Trinkets, which adds gamification to the collection of NFTs, adding layers such as achievements and leaderboards.

Race Your Own NFT Car

Like traditional racing games, the “Racing Game” allows players to take their collectibles – cars, drivers trinkets and components – and manage them into a race-ready Grand Prix entrant. The game is presented to the player or the owner of the NFT as a 2.5D perspective overlooking a selected track and allowing players in command of their racing vehicle to control the car’s acceleration and braking.

For a handy tutorial on how to start racing, watch this YouTube video:

Stake Your Car for Rewards

Ending the year on a high note, F1 DeltaTime has announced a new pool of 1.5 million REVV available to be earned by players via staking. The game has also announced the SHRD token, a new P2E (play-to-earn) token now earnable in F1 Delta Time. Staking takes place for 28 days from December 9.

Staking in this instance refers to owners sending their car NFTs to a staking smart contract for a given period, where they will passively earn REVV from the token pool. While in staking, the NFT cannot be used in any of the gameplay modes.

Once staked, the NFTs cannot be unstaked or restaked for a 24-hour cooling off period. Earning is determined based on every 24-hour period a car remains staked. Owners can claim their staking rewards after the entire staking period has ended.

Fantasy Games on the Rise Amid an NFT Boom

There are no signs of a slowdown as the world of NFTs continues to throw up innovative and interesting projects, among which fantasy NFTs games remain one of the most popular.

Amid the rise of blockchain-based fantasy NFT games and fantasy football games, Sorare has been one of the biggest on the front, raising US$680 million in a historic Series B funding round in an effort to expand its game.

To learn more about the most interesting NFT projects set to launch, from P2E to metaverse, Crypto News Australia has published a helpful guide.

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Blockchain Crypto News Crypto Wallets Gaming Hackers Scams

96 Private Keys Stolen From Vulcan Forged Crypto Gaming Platform in $140 Million Theft

A hacker who exploited Polygon gaming platform and NFT marketplace Vulcan Forged was able to steal a total of over 4.5 million of the $PYR native token, valued at US$140 million at the time of the December 14 attack. A total of 96 users’ wallets were accessed by the hacker via private keys.

‘Darkest Day in our History’

CEO Jamie Thomson described the situation as “the darkest day in the Vulcan Forged history” in this video posted on the company’s Twitter account:

The hacker was able to attack the Vulcan Forged servers, gaining access to the vending credentials of the semi-custodial wallets and then extracting the private keys of the game’s users. To prevent any repeat of the exploit, Thomson says the platform will in future be using nothing other than decentralised wallets “so we never have to encounter this problem again”.

Full Refunds and a Heartfelt Apology

Refunds have been made to every wallet that had the game’s native $PYR tokens stolen, and Vulcan Forged will also be reimbursing the loss of any Matic and Eth tokens stolen from users. Ending with a sincere apology to the community, Thomson said: “obviously sorry doesn’t cut it, but we are sorry”.

It has been a disappointing outcome for the Vulcan Forged team, not to mention players and investors. $PYR dropped in value by over 30 percent in the 24 hours post the hack.

In a similar incident last month, the bZx DeFi protocol had funds drained from its Binance Smart Chain (BSC) and Polygon contracts after one of the developers had his private key stolen in a phishing attack.

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Australia Blockchain Crypto News Crypto.com Melbourne

Victoria Emerging Blockchain Leader as Crypto.com Sets Up New Melbourne Offices

According to a media release from the Victoria State Government, Crypto.com, one of the world’s fastest growing cryptocurrency platforms, has chosen Melbourne for its Australian headquarters.

Victoria the ‘Blockchain Powerhouse’

The Singapore-based crypto giant says its choice will “enhance Victoria’s reputation as an emerging blockchain powerhouse” along with the rest of Australia making major strides in the crypto race. Just recently, Chainalysis opened a new office in Canberra in response to an increase in adoption of and demand for its products.

Melbourne was [also] recently selected as the host for the largest blockchain series [of meetings] in the world – The World Blockchain Summit 2022 – and is emerging as a location of choice for global companies operating in this space.

Victoria State Government media release

Crypto.com’s move comes after the Australian Treasury recently announced it would begin to implement crypto regulation, hopefully clearing the murky water crypto businesses currently try to work in.

Due to the nature of Crypto.com’s work and rapid expansion, the company requires a highly skilled workforce to build blockchain applications and services that can operate globally.

Victoria’s Tech Sector Attracts Crypto Companies

Victoria’s tech sector contributes more than A$38 billion to the state’s economy annually and supports more than 139,000 workers across 20,000 businesses.

The state Minister for Economic Development, Tim Pallas, announced that Crypto.com would set up its Australian headquarters to focus on collaboration with globally renowned Victorian universities to increase the company’s technical development capabilities.

Melbourne’s tech ecosystem is an ideal base for Crypto.com to continue to grow, develop innovative services and access world-class talent.

Karl Mohan, Asia-Pacific general manager, Crypto.com

As more crypto giants emerge, they will seek to establish themselves in places that provide regulatory, economic, and political stability. If Australia continues on this trajectory, it may well carve a space for itself as an industry leader.

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Blockchain CBDCs Crypto News Stellar

Ukraine Bank Launches CBDC Pilot Built on Stellar Lumens Blockchain

A recent announcement by the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) has revealed that the Stellar blockchain will be used to pilot an electronic version of the hryvnia, Ukraine’s national currency. In addition to September’s news of the country legalising cryptocurrencies, Ukraine appears to be gradually embracing the entire digital asset ecosystem.

Stellar Partners with Fintech Firm and Ukraine Bank

‍The CBDC pilot will be carried out by global fintech firm Bitt and one of Ukraine’s oldest banks, TASCOMBANK. The project will be overseen by the country’s central bank, with additional oversight from the Ministry of Digital Transformation.

As part of the project, an electronic hryvnia will be issued on the Stellar blockchain. One of the main tests will be use cases for “programmable payroll for public employees at Diia, an IT solutions enterprise, as well as for peer-to-peer payments and merchant payments”.

Oleksandr Bornyakov, deputy minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, noted:

This pilot project will serve as a technological basis for the issuance of electronic money, and is the next key step to advance innovation of payment and financial infrastructure in Ukraine.

Oleksandr Bornyakov, deputy minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine

Build It, Test It, and It Will Come

The stated objective of the project is to “pilot the issuance of electronic money on an open blockchain with asset-control capabilities for issuers”.

TASCOMBANK will build and test the regulated electronic hryvnia on Stellar, which will be deployed on Bitt’s digital currency management system. Part of Stellar’s appeal, according to Bitt CEO Brian Popelka, is its “many benefits, including greater flexibility that aligns with the electronic hryvnia’s specific needs”. Volodymyr Dubey, TASCOMBANK’s chairman of the board, was similarly optimistic about the project’s prospects, saying:

With the rapidly growing impact of virtual assets on our everyday life and economic landscape, it is essential to utilise the advantages of blockchain technology and new related products as a part of the bank’s long-term market strategy. Electronic currency paves the way to more sophisticated products in the virtual assets field that we are excited to explore.

Volodymyr Dubey, chairman of the board, TASCOMBANK

Stellar Making Strides

Earlier this year, the Stellar Foundation announced a partnership with Moneygram and USDC as part of its move into the global remittances space. Now, its ambitions have expanded into central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) with its CEO and executive director expressing great confidence that its blockchain is up to the task.

Stellar is an open network that was designed with asset issuance in mind, and is uniquely suited to assets like the electronic hryvnia. It offers issuers, like TASCOMBANK, a suite of controls that they can configure for their asset control needs while maintaining the interoperability and flexibility of an open ledger.

Denelle Dixon, CEO and executive director, Stellar Development Foundation

This regulated electronic hryvnia will be built under the current e-money legislation of Ukraine, and the payment services law governing the circulation of electronic money and future issuance of a digital currency is anticipated to take effect in 2022.

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Blockchain Crypto News NFTs

80 Million NFTs Have Now Been Minted on the WAX Blockchain’s AtomicHub

Amid a booming non-fungible token (NFT) market, few things still manage to amaze but the news that 80 million NFTs have been minted on the AtomicHub interface is one.

Almost 80 million NFTs minted, and over 44,000 sales transacted today. Source: AtomicHub

WAX, or Worldwide Asset eXchange blockchain, considered the most eco-friendly platform for NFTs, collectibles and video games, has witnessed significant trading volumes, with a market cap currently sitting at US$1.5 billion and the WAX token trading at US$0.43.

On the platform, users can play several decentralised games, build their DApps, as well as buy and sell NFTs using WAX in a fast, cost-efficient manner.

Starship Launches on WAX

The most recent decentralised game to launch on WAX is Starship, a play-2-earn (P2E) NFT game. The launch of Starship comes amid an also bustling GameFi market.

Partially funded by WAX Labs, AtomicHub is an interface for the NFT standard AtomicAssets, which focuses on usability along with Ram efficiency. One of the most significant features for users is that Ram costs are fully paid by the NFT creators (never the users), along with the powerful two-sided trade offers available on the interface. AtomicHub is split into an “Explorer”, which allows users to browse through all the AtomicAssets NFTs, and a “Marketplace” where users can buy and sell NFTs.

AtomicHub interface. Source: AtomicHub

The interface also offers a “trading section” which allows users to see the trade offers they have received or sent and to create new trade offers. Then there’s “NFT Creators”, which allows anyone to create their own NFTs without required coding knowledge. This facility has driven a massive influx of artists creating NFTs on WAX.

WAX Marketplace Dominated by NFT Game Trading Cards

The NFT market is a creative and innovative space, but among the 80 million NFTs already minted on WAX, game trading cards seem to be dominating across the board.

NFT Game trading cards dominate on WAX.

Although a very busy and serious contender in the crypto market at the moment, the NFT space continues to keep it fun and light. For example, AtomicHub is proud to host the “Avocado” NFT as part of the “Taco” collection. “Avocado” is advertised as a taco ingredient that can be traded for TACO tokens with the Taco mobile app. The NFT is currently for sale for 177.5 WAX, or approximately US$76.64.

If you’re an avocado aficionado, head over to AtomicHub.

Avocado NFT. Source: AtomicHub
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Blockchain Crypto News Ethereum Hackers Solana

Solana Reportedly Suffers DDOS Attack Casting Doubt on Proof-of-History

Solana has suffered a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack that jammed the network and led to huge delays, but managed to stay online through it all.

A DDoS attack is generally when an organised “botnet” (a large number of coordinated devices) take to a blockchain’s network at once in order to overload the system and choke traffic speeds to the point that it causes the network to fail and go offline.

As the new cool kid on the block, Solana is currently the fastest blockchain in the crypto space and has been hailed as the “Eth Killer”. Praised as the answer to Ethereum’s network congestion issues during times of high traffic, Solana offers much faster processing times and lower transaction fees.

Has Solana Sacrificed Network Security For Speed?

The DDoS attack has raised the question over whether Solana has sacrificed network security for speed. The issue of Solana’s proof-of-history consensus model not being sufficiently secure against attacks such as this one has opened up discussion online. Justin Bons, founder and CIO of crypto funds investment management company CyberCapital, breaks down the concerns over the security of the Solana blockchain in the Twitter post below. He says that due to the Solana network’s deterministic block creation mode, it is possible to predict and attack the next block producers in line.

In this week’s Grayscale Investments report, the world’s largest crypto fund management firm also voiced its concerns over the Solana blockchain’s consensus mechanism as a potential risk: “The Solana consensus mechanism uses a new blockchain technology that is not widely used, and may not function as intended. There may be flaws in the cryptography underlying the network, including flaws that affect the functionality of the Solana network or make the network vulnerable to attack.”

This is not the first time Solana has suffered a DDoS attack. In September the network suffered two attacks that stopped processing transactions and took Solana offline for a short time. The project’s developer has tweeted that these outages from attacks are all just “growing pains” and that he is still insanely bullish for Solana.

Many DApps have been integrating Solana into their projects, including the recent partnership with Brave browser announced on stage at Breakpoint 2021 (a crypto conference organised by Solana) in Portugal last month.

Solana Proof of History Explained

If you’re keen to get a sense of how Solana’s consensus mechanism works, be sure to check out this explanatory video below.