In what could be one of the biggest data breaches in history, a hacker who claims to have stolen the personal details of 1 billion Chinese citizens from a Shanghai police database is offering to sell the information for a mere 10 bitcoin – worth about US$200,000.
The anonymous hacker, identified only as “ChinaDan”, posted the following message on hacker site Breach Forums last week:
“In 2022, the Shanghai National Police (SHGA) database was leaked. This database contains many TB [terabytes] of data and information on billions of Chinese citizens. [These include] several billion case records including names, addresses, birthplaces, national ID numbers, mobile numbers, [plus] all crime/case details.”
‘CZ’ Corroborates Intelligence Threat
In a July 4 tweet, Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao said the exchange had stepped up its user-verification processes after Binance’s threat intelligence detected the sale of records belonging to “one billion residents of an Asian country” on the dark web:
Our threat intelligence detected 1 billion resident records for sell in the dark web, including name, address, national id, mobile, police and medical records from one asian country. Likely due to a bug in an Elastic Search deployment by a gov agency. This has impact on …
CZ blamed the leak on “a bug in an Elastic search deployment by a [government] agency”, without specifically mentioning the Shanghai police case.
Implications for Greater Crypto Industry
Kenny Li, co-founder of Web3 privacy project Manta Network – in which Binance Labs is an investor – warned the breach might have widespread implications for the crypto industry:
The stolen data could be used to exploit users and do things like [launch] phishing attacks to steal keys or [gain] unauthorised access to applications like centralised exchanges.
Kenny Li, co-founder, Manta Network
The Shanghai Police data hack claim comes as China has vowed to tighten protection of online user data privacy, instructing its tech giants to ensure safer storage after multiple public complaints about mismanagement and misuse.
China has recorded a number of data leak incidents in recent years. In 2016, sensitive information about powerful Chinese individuals, including Alibaba founder Jack Ma, was posted on Twitter.
Crypto lending platforms are increasingly under the microscope and the latest evidence of “tragic contagion” is Singapore-based crypto lending firm Vauld, who just became the latest to suspend all withdrawals, trading and deposits on its platform.
In a prepared statement, Vauld’s co-founder and CEO Darshan Bathija outlined the reasons for the decision to suspend services:
This is due to a combination of circumstances such as the volatile market conditions, the financial difficulties of our key business partners inevitably affecting us, and the current market climate which has led to a significant amount of customer withdrawals in excess of $197.7m since 12 June 2022 when the decline of the cryptocurrency market was triggered by the collapse of Terraform Labs’ UST stablecoin, Celsius network pausing withdrawals, and Three Arrows Capital defaulting on their loans.
Darshan Bathija, co-founder and CEO, Vauld
Just weeks ago, the firm announced cuts to its staff complement, suggesting it may have foreseen pain on the horizon:
We've taken the painful decision to reduce Vauld's headcount by about 30%
Tellingly, within a matter of days, a suite of other crypto businesses followed suit including BlockFi, Crypto.com, Coinbase and, most recently, Banxa.
Advisory Firm to Assist with Corporate Restructure
Vauld, which raised US$25 million last year, has now enlisted an advisory firm to assist with its corporate restructure, claiming that management is “fully committed” to achieving the best outcome for all stakeholders.
In the interim, the company has made the “difficult decision” to suspend all services and has committed to providing an update to its customers in due course. Many influencers have been called out for promoting Vauld, while others appeared to take a more sanguine approach:
Blaming influencers when you lose money based on their video advise is like blaming celebs who endorse deodorants for not attracting women!!
Given the recent market downturn coupled with the drama at Terra, Celsius, BlockFi and Three Arrows, it’s no surprise to see depositors flee for safety. As the ‘Oracle of Omaha’, Warren Buffett, once opined:
It’s only when the tide goes out that you learn who’s been swimming naked.
Let’s take a closer look at today’s altcoins showing breakout signals. We’ll explain what the coin is, then dive into the trading charts and provide some analysis to help you decide.
1. Ripple (XRP)
Ripple XRP is the currency that runs on a digital payment platform called RippleNet, on top of a distributed ledger database called XRP Ledger. While RippleNet is run by a company called Ripple, the XRP Ledger is open-source and not based on a blockchain, but rather the aforementioned distributed ledger database.
XRP Price Analysis
At the time of writing, XRP is ranked the 7th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.3249. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
XRP printed some gains during Q1 and Q2 after moving sideways for the past few weeks. The price is in a downtrend, with the 9, 18 and 40 EMAs providing resistance on each attempt to rally.
However, bulls are showing some interest at the 80% retracement, near $0.3210. If this level breaks, a move into possible support – just below the lows near $0.2932 – seems likely.
If the price does rally through the swing high at $0.3755 – perhaps triggered by a sudden surge in Bitcoin – bulls might find some resistance at the 61.8% retracement level near $0.4050.
Overlapping swing highs and lows near $0.4426 may provide the next target, where bears immediately forced the price down in late December.
More bullish market conditions could shift targets up near the midpoint of Q1’s consolidation, near $0.5032, where higher timeframes show an inefficiently traded zone.
2. The Sandbox (SAND)
The Sandbox SAND is a blockchain-based virtual world allowing users to create, build, buy and sell digital assets in the form of a game. By combining the powers of decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the Sandbox creates a decentralised platform for a thriving gaming community. The Sandbox employs the powers of blockchain technology by introducing the SAND utility token, which facilitates transactions on the platform.
SAND Price Analysis
At the time of writing, SAND is ranked the 34th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$1.19. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
SAND‘s impressive gains during Q1 halted at $3.10 before retracing 85% of the move. This price action created several areas of possible higher-timeframe resistance in the process.
The price found resistance on its last swing upward near $1.27 – an area that could provide resistance again. If this swing high breaks, the price might find resistance near $1.40. If this area does provide resistance, it would suggest the formation of a higher-timeframe consolidation.
The fast move up left little higher-timeframe support. However, a vast zone between $0.9890 and $0.9146 has provided support before and could give support again on a retest. This zone is between the 71.8%-to-88.6% retracement levels of 2021 Q4’s parabolic move.
Continuation downward through this level, especially if the overall market remains bearish, could retrace most of Q2’s move to the next higher-timeframe support near $0.8645.
3. Tron (TRX)
Tron TRX is a blockchain-based operating system that aims to ensure this technology is suitable for daily use. Whereas Bitcoin can handle up to six transactions per second, and Ethereum up to 25, TRON claims that its network has a capacity for 2,000 TPS. This project is best described as a decentralised platform focused on content sharing and entertainment, and to this end, one of its biggest acquisitions was the file-sharing service BitTorrent in 2018. Overall, TRON has divided its goals into six phases. These include delivering simple distributed file sharing and driving content creation through financial rewards.
TRX Price Analysis
At the time of writing, TRX is ranked the 13th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.06821. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
TRX accompanied the rest of the market during the Q2 drop, falling nearly 54% from mid-May until it found a low last week.
Price action formed a weekly support level near $0.06254, which has so far held up the price. The most recent swing low inside this range, near $0.06049, may be the target for any future stop runs. After this low, the swing low near $0.05689 and the gap beginning near $0.05126 mark possible higher-timeframe support.
The price is currently battling with significant higher-timeframe resistance levels, with the closest probable resistance resting near $0.08492, just over the previous monthly open. A sweep of the relatively equal highs above this resistance might find sellers near $0.09235 but could reach as high as $0.1093.
These coins have high liquidity on Binance Exchange, so that could help with trading on AUD/USDT/BTC pairs. And if you’re looking at buying and HODLing cryptos, then Swyftx Exchange is an easy-to-use popular choice in Australia.
Black Mountain Energy, a US-owned resource company headquartered in Australia, has received a “non-binding” letter of intent from Highwire Energy Partners regarding collaboration for potential entry into the bitcoin mining industry.
The proposed location for the crypto mining project is a fracking site in the Kimberly region of northwest Western Australia; however, despite BME’s charter of “responsibly developed and environmentally conscious natural gas supply”, environmentalists claim the project will not benefit from emission reductions.
BME is exploring project Valhalla in the Kimberley region of northwest Western Australia.
Flared Methane to be Diverted to Crypto Servers
Highwire Energy Partners will likely work with BME to divert flared methane gas from well-testing to power mobile cryptocurrency servers. This well-testing, and eventual project roll-out, is taking place at BME’s Valhalla Project fracking site in the Kimberley’s Canning Basin.
Rhett Bennett, BME’s chief executive officer, has stated that the process would likely aid in a reduction in emissions by avoiding flaring off the excess gas, allegedly reducing CO2-equivalent emissions by around 63 percent.
Flaring natural gas certainly is not [Environment, Social and Governance]-friendly … so the ability to utilise that gas for power and ultimately create a product, in this form, is a much better solution.
Rhett Bennett, CEO, Black Mountain Energy
BME’s current negotiations involve the use of 5 terajoules of gas per day, which can supply up to 25 megawatts of power for the crypto servers. This translates into approximately A$100,000 worth of Bitcoin daily, providing BME uses the best available mining equipment.
However, anti-fracking organisations are retaliating against the plan, suggesting that bitcoin miners should have to use a renewable energy source rather than environmentally damaging fracked gas. As noted by Dr David Glance, director of the University of Western Australia’s Centre for Software Practice, mining operation computers established in hot and remote areas require more energy to cool.
From an environmental perspective, it makes absolutely no difference whatsoever if they burn the gas or they use it to mine cryptocurrency … It will still produce carbon dioxide.
Dr David Glance, UWA Centre for Software Practice
As it stands, the Valhalla project is yet to receive approval from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which does not expect to have a report finalised until early 2023.
Other Energy Giants Mining Crypto
Black Mountain Energy is not the first company to utilise natural resources for crypto mining. In March, ExxonMobil diverted some of its unused natural gas to power mining operations in North Dakota, US. This was managed via a partnership with solutions specialist Crusoe Energy Systems, which converted the gas into mobile generators that then powered the mining operations.
Meanwhile, back in Australia, Canadian oil and gas miner Bengal Energy has commenced an assessment of the profitability of mining bitcoin from stranded gas assets in the Australian outback. The project has already led to the reassembly of previously out-of-operation gas wells in South Australia’s Cooper Basin.
In less than a decade, Brisbane IT specialist Joe Bridge turned a small-time household crypto mining hobby into an A$1.2 million profit that enabled him to buy a house outright along with two motorcycles and a pair of boats.
Bridge, now 38, was a law student living at home in 2013 when he installed mining software on three computers and used 10 graphics cards to generate Litecoin and Dogecoin.
Traded $LTC and $DOGE for ‘More Than a Dozen’ BTC
Although the power bills at his parents’ house in Paddington, in Brisbane’s inner west, ramped up to over A$600 per month, Bridge mined enough $LTC and $DOGE to trade it for “more than a dozen” bitcoins. He held on to the BTC until 2017 when the price began to spike, then invested some of his stash on motorbikes and boats.
Joe Bridge at his Clontarf home with one of his motorcycles. Source: ABC News / Alex Papp
By the time bitcoin hit its all-time high in November 2021, Bridge was able to cash out A$880,000 for a house at seaside Clontarf in Brisbane’s northeast, and still had enough left over to pay a $290,000 capital gains tax bill.
Cautionary Advice for Would-Be Investors
No longer active as a crypto investor, Bridge has cautionary advice for anyone thinking of buying the current dip in bitcoin’s price. “I think it’s a dangerous time to be getting into it,” he told ABC News last week. “I would imagine it’s possible [to still make money], though. [But] would I recommend it? No. I’m not currently participating.”
I do think there will be a shake-out and the speculative bubble that surrounds [cryptocurrency] will disappear. Perhaps from the ashes of that, something with real utility to humanity may arise, but there’s a lot of debate about what product that is. I don’t think it’s bitcoin.
Joe Bridge, IT consultant in financial software, former crypto investor
Crypto market cap since November 2021. Source: CoinMarketCap
Historically, the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) was the primary vehicle for US institutional exposure to bitcoin. As jurisdictions including Australia and Canada approved spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) resisted. Once again, it has rejected appeals to approve a bitcoin ETF, and this time it is getting sued:
Our team has filed a Petition for Review with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. This document officially initiates a lawsuit contesting the SEC’s decision.
As news broke that the SEC had rejected its application to convert GBTC into an ETF, Grayscale moved swiftly to file a petition for review with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box, chief executive Michael Sonnenshein commented that Grayscale was “of course very disappointed, but as an organisation [we] were ready”. He added that the firm “almost immediately” filed a petition for review as it “vehemently disagreed with the decision”.
When asked for the basis for Grayscale’s legal challenge, Sonnenshein responded:
The SEC is acting arbitrary and capricious by continuing to approve Bitcoin futures based ETFs while continuing to deny spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Michael Sonnensheim, CEO, Grayscale
Nonetheless, Grayscale has said that it remains “committed” to converting the GBTC into an ETF, adding that:
Through the ETF application review process, we believe American investors overwhelmingly voiced a desire to see GBTC convert to a spot Bitcoin ETF, which would unlock billions of dollars of investor capital while bringing the world’s largest Bitcoin fund further into the US regulatory perimeter. We will continue to leverage the full resources of the firm to advocate for our investors and the equitable regulatory treatment of Bitcoin investment vehicles.
Grayscale press release
‘Poked the Wrong Nest’
In a rare display of unity between Bitcoiners and the crypto community, both sides agreed that pushback was needed against the SEC’s decision, with on-chain analyst Will Clemente saying:
This Grayscale lawsuit against the SEC is the first time I’ve seen unity on this app in a long time lol
Tellingly, during Grayscale’s 240-day review, a record-breaking 11,400 submissions were received with over 99 percent demonstrating support for the conversion.
Even though a final decision is only likely to be reached within the next 12 months, it appears as if the SEC may well have poked the wrong nest. Bitcoiners, in particular, have a tendency to make their voices heard.
Let’s take a closer look at today’s altcoins showing breakout signals. We’ll explain what the coin is, then dive into the trading charts and provide some analysis to help you decide.
1. Alpha Finance (ALPHA)
Alpha Finance Lab ALPHA is a cross-chain DeFi platform that looks to bring Alpha to users across a variety of different blockchains, including Binance Smart Chain (BSC) and Ethereum. The platform aims to produce an ecosystem of DeFi products that address unmet needs in the industry while remaining simple to use and access. ALPHA is the native utility token of the platform. Token holders can earn a share of network fees by staking ALPHA tokens to cover any default loans. Other use cases for the token include liquidity mining and governance voting.
ALPHA Price Analysis
At the time of writing, ALPHA is ranked the 349th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.1157. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
ALPHA dropped almost 87% from its April high by June 18, then saw a small rally. In the last week, the price has retraced before beginning consolidation near the 9 EMA.
The high of June 18’s swing low candle has given support near $0.1095. This level, just under the July monthly open, could continue to provide support.
The closest resistance is likely above June 26’s swing high, near $0.1232. This area showed inefficient trading before late June’s revisit.
A rally to this level could reach higher, to $0.1380. Relative equal highs provide an attractive target to bulls aiming for bears’ stops. This area also contains the 40 EMA, shows inefficient trading on the daily and weekly charts, and aligns with May’s consolidation lows.
A more sustained rally might reach higher to $0.1816. This is a significant swing high that started early June’s breakdown. The price is less likely to reach this high while market conditions remain bearish.
Since the larger market is bearish, traders should expect lower prices in the longer term. The weekly chart shows inefficient trading from $0.0960 to $0.0556. This general area may provide support for a longer-term bottom.
Inside this region, $0.0822 to $0.0800 shows inefficient trading on the daily chart. This level may be a sensitive bearish target, even if it doesn’t form a long-term bottom.
2. Groestlcoin (GRS)
Groestlcoin GRS is mined using the Groestl algorithm. Groestl was chosen as one of the five finalists of the NIST hash function competition. It uses the same S-box as AES in a custom construction. The cryptocurrency operates as open source software on a peer-to-peer model (transactions take place directly between the payer and payee). This means that no trusted intermediary, such a bank or PayPal, is required to verify the details of the sender and receiver. Rather, the transactions are verified by nodes (the network of computers/users spread globally) and recorded in an open ledger.
GRS Price Analysis
At the time of writing, GRS is ranked the 502nd cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.3456. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
GRS fell 66% from its April high before forming a range of fast, wild price moves.
An area near $0.3220 has provided support during three retests and could provide support again. Bulls may want to be cautious since many retests of a level increase the chance it will break.
Still, this level marks the swing low that began July 1’s massive rally. A bounce could happen after the price takes bulls’ stops under this low.
A drop lower could tag a level near $0.2698. This level overlaps with swing highs at the top of the 2020-2021 bull run’s consolidation range.
Below, $0.2267 is also within striking range and could provide some support. This area, deeper in the old consolidation range, is the last point of significant accumulation before December 2020’s explosive rally.
Above, $0.4452 has provided resistance and could provide resistance again. Bears rejected bulls at this level on July 1, which overlaps with the June monthly open.
If the price breaks through this level, $0.5456 might be the next resistance. Moving to this level would run bears’ stops above relative equal swing highs.
This level also shows inefficient trading on the monthly chart. It’s also near the final consolidation’s low before May 5’s sudden price collapse. Still, the market has shown no signs that a significant bullish reversal will come soon.
3. REI Network (REI)
REI Network was developed to better adapt to the development trend of the blockchain, and to achieve a lightweight, Ethereum-compatible, higher-performance, and no-fee blockchain framework. It is a new EVM-compatible public chain compared to GXChain 2.0, is development-friendly, lightweight and free, and thus can fully support the development of various types of on-chain dApps such as DeFi, GameFi, and Metaverse.
REI Price Analysis
At the time of writing, REI is ranked the 445th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.03521. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
REI had a sharp 89% drop over nine days, beginning on May 4. So far, the price has respected this drop’s low.
Under the July open, $0.03171 provided support during a retest on June 30 and could provide support again.
This level is near the high of mid-June’s consolidation range, and a significant swing low’s candle body formed on May 12. Anticipation for next week’s hard fork could help the price hold this level as support.
The recent swing high suggests resistance near $0.03825. The 40 EMA is entering this level, and daily candle bodies show that bulls rejected bears in this area on June 23.
If the bulls break through this level, the next significant resistance may be near $0.04784. This level provided resistance during late May and early June’s trading. It’s also near the midpoint of bearish rejections on May 19 and June 23.
A much more significant rally could reach as high as $0.10218 – unlikely, unless the overall market turns more bullish. This area shows inefficient trading on higher-timeframe charts. It is near April’s consolidation lows that preceded the last significant breakdown.
The charts show very little below the current price to suggest possible support. A swing low near $0.02000, where May’s drop ended, could provide support again.
Below this swing low, no historical price action indicates support. The current range’s 25% extensions could hint at $0.00750 to $0.00500 as an area of possible interest to bulls.
These coins have high liquidity on Binance Exchange, so that could help with trading on AUD/USDT/BTC pairs. And if you’re looking at buying and HODLing cryptos, then Swyftx Exchange is an easy-to-use popular choice in Australia.
Let’s take a closer look at today’s altcoins showing breakout signals. We’ll explain what the coin is, then dive into the trading charts and provide some analysis to help you decide.
1. Gala (GALA)
GALA aims to take the gaming industry in a different direction by giving players back control over their games. Gala Games’ mission is to make “blockchain games you’ll actually want to play”. The project wants to change how players can spend hundreds of dollars on in-game assets and countless hours playing the game, all of which could be taken away from them with the click of a button. It plans to reintroduce creative thinking by giving players control of the games and in-game assets with the help of blockchain technology.
GALA Price Analysis
At the time of writing, GALA is ranked the 84th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.05267. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
After setting a low last week, GALA turned into a recovery trend to make the new monthly highs.
The following 80% plummet found support near $0.05039, sweeping under the 40 EMA into the 60.8% retracement level before bouncing to resistance beginning at $0.06320.
This area could continue to provide resistance, possibly causing a retracement to the 9 EMA and 18 EMA near $0.06912, where aggressive bulls might begin bidding. The level near $0.07534, which has confluence with the 40 EMA, may see more interest from bulls loading up for an attempt on probable resistance beginning near $0.08685.
However, if Bitcoin continues its sideways trend, much lower prices could be seen. The old support near $0.04620 could provide at least a short-term bounce. If this level fails, the old highs near $0.03935 might also give support and see the start of a new bullish cycle after retesting these support levels.
2. Elrond (EGLD)
Elrond EGLD is a blockchain protocol that seeks to offer extremely fast transaction speeds by using sharding. The project describes itself as a technology ecosystem for the new internet, which includes fintech, decentralised finance, and the Internet of Things. Its smart contracts execution platform is reportedly capable of 15,000 transactions per second, six-second latency, and a $0.001 transaction cost. The blockchain has a native token known as eGold, or EGLD, used for paying network fees, staking, and rewarding validators.
EGLD Price Analysis
At the time of writing, EGLD is ranked the 43rd cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$50.33. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
EGLD‘s 65% rally during Q1 reversed with many other coins in Q2, retracing nearly 45%.
Just above the current price and near the June monthly open, $70.68 could provide resistance before a downward move. This level has confluence with the 18 EMA.
Bears might consider $75.94 as a higher probability resistance to hunt shorts for a longer swing downward. However, higher-timeframe charts suggest that the price could reach $87.45 at the top of an inefficiently traded area before any future bearish breakdowns.
Resistance might also rest near $90.45, above the recent monthly open. However, the price is less likely to reach this level unless the overall market starts a bullish swing.
The price is finding support between $49.44 and $40.586. This zone might continue to hold, while overlapping higher-timeframe levels from $38.44 to $35.81 could provide the most substantial support inside this area.
3. ARPA Chain (ARPA)
ARPA is a blockchain-based layer 2 solution for privacy-preserving computation, enabled by Multi-Party Computation (MPC). Founded in April 2018, the goal of ARPA is to separate data utility from ownership and enable data renting. ARPA’s MPC protocol creates ways for multiple entities to collaboratively analyse data and extract data synergies while keeping each party’s data input private and secure. Developers can build privacy-preserving dApps on blockchains compatible with ARPA. Some immediate use cases include credit anti-fraud, secure data wallets, precision marketing, joint AI model training, and key management systems.
ARPA Price Analysis
At the time of writing, ARPA is ranked the 367th cryptocurrency globally and the current price is US$0.03729. Let’s take a look at the chart below for price analysis:
ARPA set a high near $0.08732 in April before retracing nearly 83% to find a low near $0.03157. The price consolidated around this level before the strong bullish impulse during the past several weeks.
Probable resistance near $0.04288 is slowing the bullish advance down. However, another leg might target the last swing high at $0.04351 and relatively equal highs at $0.04833. Resistance near $0.05472 could cap the move before the second swing high. Beyond these levels, little stands in the bulls’ way before reaching the swing high near $0.06148.
A retracement before a move higher might find support in the daily gap near $0.03574, just above the monthly open. Relatively equal lows near $0.03130 could also provide support. Run-on stops at $0.02944 and $0.02820 might find support in the gap beginning near $0.02687 or a high-timeframe level near $0.02477.
These coins have high liquidity on Binance Exchange, so that could help with trading on AUD/USDT/BTC pairs. And if you’re looking at buying and HODLing cryptos, then Swyftx Exchange is an easy-to-use popular choice in Australia.
MakerDAO, the governing body of the Maker Protocol, has launched a proposal in which members are voting to determine how to allocate US$500 million in treasury funds.
According to DAO members, they are seeking to de-risk by choosing between going 100 percent in US short-term treasuries or splitting a percentage into treasuries and longer term government bonds. At the time of writing, 100 percent into treasuries was the most voted decision.
Another proposal within the DAO is the collateral class for DAI, and so far 57 percent of voters have chosen a core crypto collateral between Ethereum (ETH) and Bitcoin (BTC):
Maker will reportedly control the funds provided by Monetalis, a European wholesale lender.
A Small Investment of $500M DAI
Sebastien Derivaux, a member of MakerDAO’s strategic finance core unit, said the US$500 million DAI investment was “expected to remain liquid and low volatility, [so] it is therefore not a significant risk for the DAI peg nor the solvency of MakerDAO”.
The crypto market’s ongoing turmoil has prompted Maker to carefully decide on how it will protect its community. While MKR, Maker’s utility token, buffed 50 percent after the Terra collapse, crypto lender Celsius – which is now on the brink of bankruptcy – borrowed 100 million DAI using ETH as collateral.
Celsius’s inability to repay borrowers has caused wider pain across the crypto market, causing it to shed more blood than it already has.
Ripple, the company behind the cryptocurrency XRP and the XRP Ledger (XRPL), has launched an innovation challenge to encourage the development of XRPL apps for central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
Entrants will need to either build a new solution or update an existing solution that uses CBDC tech and can be run on the XRP Ledger.
Submissions for the challenge will be accepted from June 27 until August 25, with the winners announced on September 8 set to share in US$47,000 in prizes.
Winners of the challenge will then be invited to the Ripple CBDC Innovate Winners Only Event, which has a prize pool of US$150,000.
Challenge to Cover Three Categories
The innovation challenge will accept entries in three categories each with their own separate judging criteria: interoperability, retail-facing, and financial inclusion:
The interoperability category encourages entrants to build a solution that enables an XRPL-based CBDC to bridge with other digital assets, such as other CBDCs, NFTs and stablecoins.
The retail-facing category requires entrants to build an interface to work with a CBDC in a “hip and fashionable way”, which is accessible enough for any human to interact with.
The financial inclusion category instructs entrants to build a solution that can “leverage the benefits of a CBDC” to bring banking services to underserved populations.
Ripple Looking to Secure Dominant CBDC Position
Ripple has been known primarily for its cross-border payment solutions and on-demand liquidity, but recently it has also been making a push into the CBDC space. In addition to this CBDC-focused innovation challenge, last year the government of the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan enlisted Ripple to pilot a CBDC running on the XRPL, and the Pacific island nation of Palau also partnered with Ripple to create an XRPL-based government-backed stablecoin.
In related news, earlier this year Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen joined forces with Greenpeace in a US$5 million campaign to encourage Bitcoin to abandon its proof-of-work consensus mechanism and transition to a more energy-efficient system such as proof-of-stake.
