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Breaking: New Binance Token Explosive Launch, Here’s How To Earn It

Stader Labs’ latest staking token, BNBx, just went live on the BNB Chain.

Stader Labs is a crypto company that builds staking products. Stader announced their new products last month, to maximize yield while maintaining liquidity.

BNB Chain is a blockchain launched by Binance with BNB as its native token.

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😎SHIB Army Says Ryoshi is Creator of New Coin Dejitaru Tsuka (TSUKA)

SHIB army is on the case. Some members of the Shiba Inu community closely followed a series of “cryptic messages” sent by Ryoshi, the creator of Shiba Inu. And they have come to the conclusion that the mysterious developer is behind a new cryptocurrency project.

The mysterious creator of Shiba Inu (SHIB), Ryoshi, is thought to have created the new cryptocurrency project called Dejitaru Tsuka (TSUKA).

The mysterious Shiba Inu founder completely disappeared from social media in May 2022. Ryoshi’s Twitter handle and Medium blogs connected to Shibu Inu were deleted, and he remains anonymous.

SHIB Army sees a Reemergence
And yet. It seems Ryoshi has popped up again. Some members of the Shiba Inu community carefully followed a series of ‘cryptic messages’ apparently sent by Ryoshi through the blockchain. Many of the SHIB army say that Ryoshi’s Shiba Inu language is the same as that used in Dejitaru Tsuka’s in the first Medium blog. And, the blog has the same picture as Ryoshi’s Twitter handle.

Members of the SHIB community said the messages indicated Ryoshi’s return to the crypto ecosystem.

In line with the language on the Medium blog, there were ‘on-chain messages’ with words such as “faith, belief, and patience.”
​​Solana wallets ‘compromised and abandoned’ as users warned of scam solutions.

Solana users have been urged to move their funds to cold storage and be alert to possible scams after a major exploit of thousands of wallets sees more than $8 million stolen.

The cryptocurrency ecosystem has been rocked by a widespread exploit targeting Solana wallets that have been ongoing since Wednesday. Phantom and Slope, two Solana-based wallet services, initially flagged the attack on their social media platforms, alongside a host of cryptocurrency influencers, blockchain analytic and security firms and victims of the hack as it continued to unfold.

A handful of commentators noted that attackers had gained access to user private keys, as transactions were signed on the chain legitimately. Ava Labs CEO and founder Emin Gun Sirer estimated that more than 7,000 wallets had been affected, a number cited by various other individuals and firms online.

As investigations begin to unpack the root cause that allowed an attacker to pillage thousands of wallets, affected users are being warned not to accept help from individuals online purporting to have solutions to the hack. Heidi Chakos, the host of the YouTube channel Crypto Tips, stressed that scammers would be looking to exploit the ongoing situation.

Solana Status has been providing updates since the exploit began and noted that 7,767 wallets had been affected at 5:00 am UTC on Wednesday. Several wallets were affected across mobile and browser extensions.

Solana stressed that users move funds to cold storage and create new seed phrases, while the owners of the 8,000 drained wallets were told that these should “be treated as compromised, and abandoned.”

A spokesperson from Solana told Cointelegraph that engineers from several ecosystems as well as audit and security firms were continuing to explore the root cause that saw affected wallets drained.

"This does not appear to be a bug with Solana core code, but in software used by several wallets popular among Solana users."

Users affected by the exploit are being asked to provide their compromised wallet addresses to the Solana Foundation to assist in the investigation.
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DeFi platform Oasis to block wallet addresses deemed at-risk

According to a new community Discord post on Thursday, decentralized finance platform Oasis. says that sanctioned addresses will no longer be able to access the application.

As a result of the change to the terms of service, wallets flagged as high risk are prohibited from using Oasis. to manage positions or withdraw funds. Instead, such category of users must interact directly with the relevant underlying protocol where funds are stored or find another service.

In explaining the decision, Oasis team member Gabriel said:

"We've recently needed to update the Terms of Service of the Oasis front-end to comply with the relevant laws and regulations. In line with the latest regulations, Oasis has an updated Terms of Service. Any sanctioned addresses will no longer be able to access Oasis functionality."

Raising a $6 million Series A in 2020, Oasis has grown to become a popular platform for DeFi borrowing and lending. The protocol has processed $4.6 billion worth of transactions in the past 30 days and manages $3.42 billion in deposits.
Ripple to Power Remittances Between Japan and Thailand via New Partnership

Crypto company Ripple announced the launch of a new joint project with SBI Remit to streamline Japan-Thailand money transfers. Under the project, SBI Remit, Japan's largest payment provider, will allow Thais living in Japan to instantly send money back home using RippleNet technology. Siam Commercial Bank will represent the Thai side in this venture.

According to Ripple's press release, thanks to the implementation, more than 47,000 Thais in Japan will be able to freely send yen to Thailand using ATMs, and in one second they will be available for withdrawal in Thai baht there. In comparison, such a transaction previously required the involvement of a special agent and was mostly done only through cash.
Kimchi Premium Trading Total Could Be Almost Twice as High as First Thought, Says Regulator

The sum total of illegal kimchi premium trading conducted via South Korean banks could be as high as USD 6.5 billion, regulators claim – and authorities in the nation say they are now investigating “all” domestic commercial banks over the matter.

As previously reported, banks have landed in hot water over kimchi premium trading after it emerged that individual and corporate customers – including a number of alleged domestic shell companies – had used South Korean financial institutions to shuttle money in and out of the country to fund massive kimchi premium arbitrage efforts.

In recent years, crypto fever has seen huge spikes in domestic demand for tokens such as bitcoin (BTC). This, in turn, has created a “kimchi premium,” whereby coins trade for massively inflated prices in South Korea (compared to the global average). This has led some traders to buy tokens from over-the-counter (OTC) vendors in China, Japan, and elsewhere in East Asia. The South Korean traders then dumped these coins on domestic platforms, reaping massive profits (over 30% in some instances).

Regulators argue that these profits were then distributed to various shell companies, which then sent the money to USD accounts in overseas financial institutions. Some bought expensive assets, such as precious metals, from overseas – using South Korean banks to do so.

Initially, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said that only two banks may have violated its overseas remittances regulations, namely Woori Bank and Shinhan Bank.

The FSS requires banks to carefully monitor overseas remittance requests and, in the past year or so, has reportedly “repeatedly” warned all South Korean banks to be vigilant about possible kimchi premium-related remittances.

Last month, the FSS stated that it believed that some USD 3.37 billion may have been remitted overseas by various traders using domestic banks. Banks have since launched internal audits, many of which have turned up suspicious-looking transactions.

The FSS, Asia Time reported, has responded by revising its approximation to around USD 6.5 billion – almost double its initial estimate. It also stated that “all banks” are now under investigation. Upon the completion of banks’ internal investigations, the FSS is likely to follow up with its own “on-site” probes.

The FSS was quoted as stating that punitive actions against banks were “inevitable,” and added that it was taking the matter “extremely seriously.”

Late last week, one of the alleged shell companies thought to have been at the center of a large number of the suspicious transactions in question was raided by prosecutors.

The firm, described as a very small “trading” company, is based in Daegu, in the south of the country, and reportedly “sent large sums of money overseas” to “import gold bars and semiconductor chips.”

Some USD 5 billion worth of transactions appear to be linked to the firm, YTN reported, and prosecutors say they have so far “confirmed” that the company spent over USD 305 million of the funds it received from crypto sales on chips and gold imports.

Prosecutors arrested three individuals they claim are linked to the company on suspicion of violating the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act.

The prosecution indicated that the firm or individuals with ties to it used Japan-based OTC vendors to make their initial purchases.
Thai SEC Cautions Investors About Risks of DeFi Transactions
Legal

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (Thai SEC) has asked crypto investors in the country to be careful with DeFi transactions, terming them risky.

The watchdog argued that local regulators have no control over the up-and-coming industry.

Popular but Not Full-Proof
In a statement on Wednesday, the financial and capital markets watchdog said DeFi serviÿces have become popular, especially deposit taking and lending services. But these services are risky as the mechanism to control operations that enforce terms in smart contracts may be absent in DeFi platforms.

“Therefore investors are advised to study any DeFi programme before joining… as deposit taking and lending services are not regulated by the financial and capital market regulators in Thailand,” media reports quoted from Thai SCE’s statement.

Further enumerating the risks, the watchdog noted that overleveraged collateral and lackaccurateoper information about terms, conditions, and functionalitcould can leave the investors exposed to exploitation. DeFi platforms lure investors into transactions showing high returns, but there are hidden risks, including the possibility of the rug-pull, it added.

Thai SEC’s warning comes in the wake of crypto exchange Zipmex halting withdrawals for its local customers on July 21. Zipmex’s decision stemmed from liquidity problems arising out of its $53-million exposure to troubled lending platforms Babel Finance and Celsius Network.
Stablecoin Issuers Have Accumulated A Significant Share Of The US Treasury Market
Finance

Various stablecoin issuers collectively held $80 bln in short-term US government debt as of May 2022, according to a study by investment bank JPMorgan released on August 16.

Tether, Circle and other stablecoin companies accounted for 2% of the entire US Treasury bill market, with a larger share of Treasury bills than Warren BUFFETT'S Berkshire Hathaway. According to the data, stablecoin issuers also outperformed offshore money market funds (MMFs) and primary market MMFs in terms of their share of investment in Treasury bills.

Treasury bills are debt instruments commonly used by companies as a cash equivalent on corporate balance sheets. Tether and Circle — the issuers of the world’s largest asset-backed stablecoins, Tether and USD Coin (USDC) — have pledged to buy U.S. Treasury bills while cutting their reliance on commercial paper earlier this year.
Second Biggest Brazilian Bank Bradesco Not Interested in Crypto, Alleges It Is Still 'Very Small'

Bradesco, one of the biggest banks in Brazil, has stated it does not have plans to enter the cryptocurrency market in the near future. In an interview, Bradesco CEO Octavio de Lazari Junior stated that the company was currently not interested in launching crypto services to its customers, considering the cryptocurrency market will be “very small.”

Bradesco Won’t Offer Cryptocurrency Services In Near Future
While many neobanks and traditional private banks are launching crypto investment services as part of their portfolio to keep customers using their services, others are still on the sidelines. Bradesco, the second biggest bank in Brazil and Latam in terms of assets, with more than 70 million customers, is still not interested in the cryptocurrency market.

Bradesco CEO Octavio de Lazari Junior issued his take on cryptocurrency and how he believes these investments will evolve in the country. For de Lazari Junior, The cryptocurrency market is still too small, with dangerous characteristics for the investors interested in putting funds in it. About this, he stated:

Cryptocurrencies are investments that are not tangible and are riskier, with people knowing about the risk they are taking and may want. For me, it will be a very small market.
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Is It Time To Begin Talking Seriously About Bitcoin Tail Emissions?

It’s almost a truism that Bitcoin (BTC)’s major selling point is its hard supply cap, limiting its total possible circulation to BTC 21 million. However, contrary to this received wisdom, there seems to be a growing chorus of people who worry that a hard cap isn’t without its problems, and that Bitcoin will run into difficulties when its block rewards become too small (and later stop completely).

A recent surge in discussion about this issue was incited by developer Peter Todd, who in July published a paper titled, “Surprisingly, Tail Emission Is Not Inflationary.” Basically, Todd noted that “no proof-of-work (PoW) currency has ever operated solely on transaction fees,” and that the lack of rewards may make block production unstable in the future.

Given how well respected Peter Todd is within cryptocurrency circles, many other serious commentators have taken his arguments as the launchpad for an exploration of whether Bitcoin’s monetary policy needs to be modified in the not-too-distant future. And there does seem to be support for the introduction of so-called tail emissions, even if this support isn’t unanimous.

Mixed support for Bitcoin tail emissions
It’s not too hard to find industry figures who’d support the introduction of tail emissions, which in practice means that block rewards would continue indefinitely. In other words, Bitcoin’s famed hard cap of 21 million would effectively be abolished, although it’s likely that any perpetual reward would be small.

“I have been very vocal for two years already, about needing tail emissions at some point in time in Bitcoin. These tail emissions will only be necessary after four or five halvings, so in about 15-20 years,” says Dr. Julian Hosp, the CEO and founder of Cake DeFi.

Hosp argues that most Bitcoin hardliners either don't understand the need for tail emissions, or are burying their heads in the sand in order to maintain the simple -- and attractive -- narrative of the supply cap.
​​Iranian Government Approves 'Comprehensive and Detailed' Crypto Regulations

The government of Iran has finalized a set of cryptocurrency regulations. A “comprehensive and detailed” law ratified by the administration provides a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency, including their authorized usage and crypto mining, a government official reportedly said.

Iran Finalizes Crypto Regulations
The Iranian government has evaluated all issues relating to cryptocurrencies and approved a set of cryptocurrency regulations, Reza Fatemi-Amin, the minister of Industry, Mines, and Trade, told reporters at the conclusion of an automotive industry event in Tehran Sunday.

He explained that the government has ratified a “comprehensive and detailed” law that defines cryptocurrency regulations, including the use of fuel and electricity for crypto mining and the authorized uses of cryptocurrencies, Tasnim news agency conveyed.

The minister added that under an agreement between his ministry and the central bank of Iran, cryptocurrency can be used to pay for imports. He additionally noted that local business owners can import cars using cryptocurrencies instead of the U.S. dollar or euro.

The use of cryptocurrency to pay for imports is seen as a way to circumvent U.S. sanctions imposed on the Iranian finance and banking sector, allowing Iran to trade with countries similarly embargoed by U.S. sanctions, including Russia.
​​Eurozone hits record inflation of 9.1% amid gas and energy crisis.

Eurozone inflation is up from 8.9% in July as the continent faces skyrocketing energy, gas and food prices due to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.

August marks the ninth consecutive month of rising inflation for the Eurozone at 9.1%. In July, the official inflation numbers landed at 8.9%. The Eurozone consists of 19 countries, including Germany, France and Belgium.

This comes as the European Union (EU) faces a massive energy and gas crisis, largely as a result of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Current prices for daily necessities such as food, gas and electricity have soared across the continent.

Over the last month, energy prices made up the largest price push, up by an annual rate of 38.3%, While food, alcohol and tobacco all rose by an annual rate of over 10%.

Former EU member the United Kingdom also hit a 40-year-high inflation rate of 10.1% in July, as reported by the Organization of National Statistics (ONS).

Eurozone countries Estonia and the Netherlands both experienced noticeable inflation spikes of 2% up from July.

Florian Glatz, an EU-based lawyer specializing in blockchain technology, co-founder of the German Blockchain Association and member of the EU Crypto Initative, told Cointelegraph:

“Europe is facing historic challenges, with inflation eroding away the economic security of middle and lower income households.”
Moreover, Glatz believes the crypto industry has been warning global governments that current monetary and economic systems “don‘t hold up to the challenges” at hand.

Among those who have already adopted crypto, it's often seen as a hedge against inflation. Though, for this to work, the crypto community must continue to push for mass adoption and proper implementation.

Glatz says the EU needs to become relevant in the digital economy to present a better value proposition for the financial future of its people.

“We need a new deal for EU citizens that is powered by financial inclusion, opportunities in new digital markets and the desire to make Web3 the long-awaited Digital Revolution made in Europe.”
​​Two US States Washington and Pennsylvania To Tax NFTs

Washington and Pennsylvania Lead the Way in NFT Taxation.

Digital assets are notoriously difficult to tax due to the lack of transparency around who owns and trades them. This is especially true for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which are unique digital assets that can’t be interchangeably exchanged like traditional cryptocurrencies.

Recently, two states have taken steps to change this by becoming the first in the US to explicitly list NFTs as digital assets subject to sales and use taxes. Pennsylvania and Washington’s actions signal a growing understanding of the tax implications of NFTs, as well as a willingness to adapt existing tax laws to this new asset class.

Pennsylvania’s Department of Revenue was the first to act, adding NFTs to its “taxability matrix” in June without providing any accompanying guidance. Washington followed suit in July, publishing an interim statement that proposed a schema for determining the “sourcing” of NFTs (or where, for tax purposes, related transactions physically take place).

The present ecosystem around NFTs is not clear regarding the identities of buyers and sellers, down to where they are located. Additionally, the way NFTs are currently being used – often as unique digital collectibles rather than for utility purposes – means that there is no easy way to value them for tax purposes.
Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Role in $100M Crypto Investment Ponzi Scheme

A Florida man pleaded guilty on Thursday for his role in a global crypto Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of approximately $100 million, according to the Department of Justice.

Joshua David Nicholas, 28, was the “head trader” for EmpiresX, which was launched in late 2020 and was advertised to hopeful investors as a legitimate cryptocurrency trading and investment platform.

Nicholas and EmpiresX’s founders, Emerson Sousa Pires and Flavio Mendes Goncalves, both 33, promised investors that their proprietary artificial intelligence-powered “trading bot” guaranteed returns of up to 1% a day.

However, the bot did not exist, and Nicholas’ manual trading “resulted in significant losses,” according to the SEC, which filed civil fraud charges against the group in June. Customers were instead paid with money fed into the scam by later investors. The rest of the money was used to “lease a Lamborghini, shop at Tiffany & Co., make a payment on a second home, and more,” the SEC said.
​​US court gives Voyager green light to pay bonuses to key employees.

Voyager Digital will pay $1.9 million in retention bonuses to key staff members to ensure the beleaguered cryptocurrency lender can continue operating through bankruptcy proceedings.

A New York bankruptcy court has given embattled cryptocurrency brokerage Voyager Digital the green light to pay retention bonuses to key staff members.

The firm filed a motion with the United States Bankruptcy Court on Aug. 2 seeking approval for its Key Employee Retention Plan (KERP) which entailed $1.9 million worth of payments to 38 key employees that have been identified as crucial to the exchange’s ongoing operation.

Creditors of the firm, which filed for bankruptcy in July 2022, had initially opposed Voyager’s KERP payments in a court filing on Aug. 19 claiming that payments to investors should be prioritized ahead of “well-compensated” employees.

According to court filings, an agreement was reached between Voyager and the committee of creditors to drop the opposition to the proposed KERP on certain conditions. Chief among these is the implementation of operational cost-cutting measures to save $4.6 million. The KERP payments are worth 22.5% of the eligible employees’ annual salaries.

Voyager maintains that the 38 employees are critical to business operations, performing “essential accounting, cash and digital asset management, IT infrastructure, legal and other critical functions for the Debtors.”

The court filing also addressed concerns raised by the U.S. Trustee's Office, which oversees the administration of bankruptcy cases and private trustees as a component of the Department of Justice.

The U.S. Trustees objected to the KERP proposal claiming that the list of employees set for retention pay-outs may have included “insiders” and that Voyager had not provided ample evidence to justify the proposed bonuses.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael Wiles ultimately approved the motion for the KERP payouts, agreeing with Voyagers’ legal team’s assertion that none of the beneficiaries of the bonuses were appointed, sit or report to the board of directors and do not have managerial control of the company.
​​Crypto Volatility Might Rise After The Major Key Events Ahead

The crypto market has been filled with so much volatility in the past months. Bitcoin price barely gained a 1% increase to the $20,373 mark; Ethereum and other altcoins prices are still in the dump. Crypto community members and experts predict a further slump come October.

Amidst the market highs and lows, the industry is set to record three significant events this week. Perhaps, the market will experience more volatility in the coming months, considering the happenings in the industry in the previous months.

Merge Might Affect The Crypto Market
This week comes the most intensive upgrade in Ethereum history, known as the merge. The merge is slated to take place around September 15.

During the merge, the Ethereum blockchain will transition from proof-of-work (POW) to proof-of-stake (POS). Ethereum mining rewards are approximately 13,000 ETH per day in the present POW system. After the merge, the staking rewards will become only 1,600 ETH per day approximately.

According to a blog post by the Ethereum Foundation on the official website, ETH issuance will drop by 90% after the merge. The burning of ETH will be at an average gas price of 19 gwei, and 1,600 ETH will be burned daily, reducing net ETH inflation to zero.

Countdown to the time of the merge upgrade is one, but the unavoidable fact is the increase in market volatility post-merge.
​​Starbucks announces new NFT experience for coffee members.

The nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, are minted on a proof-of-stake blockchain built by Polygon.

According to a new post on Monday, Starbucks says it will offer its U.S. members the ability to earn and buy digital collectible stamps in the form of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs. Dubbed "Starbucks Odyssey," each collectible digital stamp has its ownership verified on the blockchain and will include a point value based on its rarity. As more stamps are collected, members' points will increase, unlocking access to unique experiences.

The iconic coffee chain says that rewards range from receiving a virtual espresso martini-making class to accessing unique merchandise to exclusive events invites at Starbucks Reserve Roasteries and possibly trips to the Starbucks Hacienda Alsacia coffee farm in Costa Rica.

Members can earn NFTs by playing interactive coffee-themed games or taking on fun challenges on Starbucks Odyssey, which will be launched later this year. Users can also purchase the NFTs on the built-in marketplace without the need to connect their wallets or use any crypto.

All stamps will feature iconic Starbucks artwork co-created with Starbucks partners and outside artists. A portion of the proceeds from selling limited-edition stamps will be donated to support the creators' causes. The NFTs themselves are minted on a proof-of-stake blockchain created by Polygon. Regarding the development, Brady Brewer, vice president and chief marketing offic of Starbucks, said:

"We are entering the Web3 space differently than any other brand while deepening our members' connection to Starbucks. Our vision is to create a place where our digital community can come together over coffee, engage in immersive experiences, and celebrate the heritage and future of Starbucks."