Autor Cointelegraph By Brian Newar

Israeli authorities seize Hamas linked crypto accounts

Israeli authorities seize Hamas linked crypto accounts

Uverejnil používateľ | mar 1, 2022 |

A set of 30 crypto wallets from 12 exchange accounts that have been linked to the terrorist group Hamas based in the Gaza Strip were seized on Monday by Israeli authorities.Crypto exchange al-Mutahadun held the wallets where 12 accounts were allegedly being used by Hamas leaders to fund terrorist efforts against Israel. The Times of Israel reported that Israel’s Defense Ministry said on Feb. 28 that al-Mutahadun has helped Hamas’s military wing “by transferring funds amounting to tens of millions of dollars a year.”The exact value of the seizures and specifically what crypto assets seized is not yet clear, however, Israeli officials believe Hamas uses “tens of millions of dollars” in crypto funds to fund its military. Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said in a Feb. 28 statement “We continue to expand our tools to cope with terrorism and the companies supplying it with the economic oxygen pipeline.”Law enforcement agencies and banks around the world such as BNY Mellon have been increasingly tracking crypto transactions to pinpoint and drop the hammer on financial criminals. Blockchain transaction tracking firm Chainalysis has determined that only a small portion of crypto funds are used in criminal activity, however.Hamas has been accepting crypto donations since 2019 when economic sanctions began severely constricting its ability to fight against Israel. The seizure of wallets was conducted with help from Israel’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF). The NBCTF conducted a similar seizure of Hamas crypto funds last July when it confiscated wallets containing Tether (USDT), Ether (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE), XRP, Binance Coin (BNB), Zcash (ZEC), Litecoin (LTC), and other assets.Crypto tracking firm Cyphertrace confirmed that the funds seized in July were used by al Qassam Brigades, a part of Hamas’s military.Crypto-based philanthropy is by no means limited to funding terrorism. In the first two months of 2022, supporters of the Freedom Convoy in Canada and Ukraine’s resistance force against Russia have raised millions in crypto donations. Related: US Treasury Dept lists digital currencies as part of effort to sanction Russia’s governmentLast month, crypto exchange Binance suspended services and marketing to Israelis upon request from the Capital Market, Insurance, and Savings Authority. The suspension is likely to be in effect as long as the Authority reviews the status of Binance’s license to do business in the country.

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South Korea to invest $187M in national Metaverse project

South Korea to invest $187M in national Metaverse project

Uverejnil používateľ | feb 28, 2022 |

South Korea’s Ministry of ICT, Science, and Future Planning pledged 223.7 billion KRW ($186.7 million) to create a broad Metaverse ecosystem to support the growth of digital content and corporate growth within the country.The Ministry wrote in an official statement on Feb. 27 that funds will be spent on completing four main objectives in creating what appears to be an all-encompassing Metaverse ecosystem titled the Expanded Virtual World. The government agency intends on using its Metaverse as a platform for expanding the virtual industrial growth of cities, education, and media.Content creators will enjoy support on multiple fronts to attract the right talent to help build the platform. The Ministry said that it will host community-oriented creative activities, a Metaverse developer contest, and a hackathon.CEO of Hashed Simon Kim pointed out that the new Metaverse platform has a particular focus on boosting commercial expansion by providing financial support for participants. He told Cointelegraph today that he doesn’t think there is a problem with the government providing funding because “the private sector is actively investing in the metaverse market.” He continued:“It is the regulatory issue that the government should pay more attention to. In Korea, publishing of NFT games is prohibited, and token issuance is also prohibited.”Hashed is a South Korean crypto ecosystem venture capital and incubator. It has invested in Metaverse projects such as Decentraland and The Sandbox.Head of Communication and Policy Department at the Ministry Park Yungyu stated in the announcement that this initiative to build a Metaverse platform is part of the broader ‘Digital New Deal’ in South Korea. The Digital New Deal is a set of policies designed to foster the growth of digital technologies according to Park who added:“It is important to create a world-class Metaverse ecosystem as the starting point to intensively foster a new hyper-connected industry.”The Ministry also expects its Metaverse to have a global reach since there will be seamless access to South Korean companies over time. It plans on providing support for corporate growth by offering financial support and technological development.Related: Monster Energy files NFT and metaverse trademark applicationsSeoul’s municipal government has also been exploring its options regarding a public Metaverse space since last year. Last November, tentative plans for a “Metaverse 120 Center” were announced.

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Non-zero BTC addresses hit all-time high of 40 million

Non-zero BTC addresses hit all-time high of 40 million

Uverejnil používateľ | feb 28, 2022 |

On-chain statistics through February have suggested positive sentiment for Bitcoin as addresses with a non-zero balance of BTC reached an all-time high.Additionally, those wallets with a positive BTC balance are increasingly hodling their coins. The amount of BTC circulating supply last moved between three and five years ago reached a four-year high of just over 2.8 million coins, according to data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode. #Bitcoin $BTC Number of Non-Zero Addresses just reached an ATH of 40,276,163Previous ATH of 40,275,801 was observed on 05 February 2022View metric:https://t.co/VtoChZbLsa pic.twitter.com/hTnHlN9GeU— glassnode alerts (@glassnodealerts) February 27, 2022The number of addresses with a non-zero balance was on a steep increase through 2019 and 2020 until the middle of 2021, when growth appeared to have plateaued at about 35 million addresses. However, growth in this metric has spiked since the beginning of 2022, leading to a new ATH of 40,276,163 according to Glassnode.The sudden spike in BTC supply that was last active three to five years ago coincides with the peak of the last extended bull market at the beginning of 2018.Among the addresses with a non-zero balance, Glassnode reported that 817,445 of them have at least one whole BTC, a 10-month high on Feb. 28.Supply-side dynamics in Bitcoin have provided several metrics of note this past month. FSInsight reported on Feb. 9 that 75% of the BTC circulating supply was illiquid because it had not moved for an extended period of time. The financial research firm’s report described the situation as a “powder keg” that is ready to blow as soon as a moderate amount of BTC is bought on the market.Related: Bitcoin fails to beat resistance as $40K stays out of reach into weekly closePolitical turbulence in Canada and Ukraine in February has also shed more light on Bitcoin’s ability to remain censor-proof. Some Canadians have adopted Bitcoin to protect their funds from being frozen, while the Ukrainian government is now accepting BTC donations as tensions escalate in the region.BTC is currently trading at $37,827, down around 45% from the Nov. 10, ATH of $69,000 according to CoinGecko.

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BitMEX founders plead guilty to Bank Secrecy Act violations

BitMEX founders plead guilty to Bank Secrecy Act violations

Uverejnil používateľ | feb 25, 2022 |

The founders of crypto exchange BitMEX have pled guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act after a lengthy litigation process with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).American Arthur Hayes and British Hong Konger Benjamin Delo admitted to “willfully failing to establish, implement, and maintain an anti-money laundering (AML) program” at their crypto derivatives and futures exchange, BitMEX. BitMEX is a Seychelles-based crypto trading platform that offers crypto futures, derivatives, and margin trading up to 100x. The exchange once offered its services without any know-your-customer (KYC) or AML verification procedures to Americans. The DOJ’s Feb. 24 announcement on the case states that such a lack of regulatory compliance essentially caused BitMEX to become a “money-laundering platform.”Both Hayes and Delo made their guilty pleas ahead of the March trial date, and have agreed to pay $10 million in criminal fines each.HAYES, 36, of Miami, Florida, and DELO, 38, of the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, pled guilty to one count each of violating the Bank Secrecy Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison – DOJ— db (@tier10k) February 24, 2022The attorney for the DOJ Damian Williams said that operating a crypto business in the U.S. carries “the obligation for those businesses to do their part to help in driving out crime and corruption.” He continued that BitMEX operated as “a platform in the shadows of financial markets” and that:“Arthur Hayes and Benjamin Delo built a company designed to flout those obligations; they willfully failed to implement and maintain even basic anti-money laundering policies.”Adding more fuel to the DOJ’s case was the insinuation that Hayes had bribed the Seychelles local government when BitMEX completed its move there in 2020. He allegedly bragged that the bribery cost him just a coconut.Although the BitMEX base of operations was in the United States from about 2015 to 2020, Hayes and Delo insisted that no Americans were using the platform. The DOJ proved that claim was not factual. By January 2021, the exchange reported it had verified 100% of its users with a KYC-AML procedure.Related: BitMEX execs reveal EU expansion with German bank acquisitionSince fully vetting all of its users, BitMEX’s share of Bitcoin futures open interest (OI) has diminished into relative insignificance. In February 2021, there was only about $3.5 billion in OI, almost a third of which came from BitMEX. However, there is now $15.18 billion in OI according to data from CoinGlass, of which only $482 million, or 3%, comes from BitMEX.

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BitsCrunch raises $3.6M in funding for NFT analytics tools

BitsCrunch raises $3.6M in funding for NFT analytics tools

Uverejnil používateľ | feb 25, 2022 |

Crypto and nonfungible token (NFT) ecosystem analytics firm BitsCrunch has secured $3.6 million in a funding round led by Animoca Brands, Coinbase Ventures, Crypto.com Capital, and others.BitsCrunch uses AI-based analytical tools to determine the fair price of NFTs, identify wash trading warnings, and determine whether an NFT is a copy or forgery of the genuine asset. The company is based in Germany and India.The firm believes that investors in the continually growing space need better access to data that will protect them from fakes and getting fooled by ingenuine trading volume. We are excited to announce that we have completed an oversubscribed private token round of $3.6M USD, led by @animocabrands & with participation from @coinbase @cryptocom @polygonstudios & a few others. A detailed thread pic.twitter.com/a5La2z5jym— bitsCrunch | #SecureYourNFTs (@bitsCrunch) February 24, 2022BitsCrunch CEO Vijay Pravin Maharajan told Cointelegraph on Feb. 25 that his company currently supports NFTs on Ethereum (ETH), Polygon (MATIC), and Avalanche (AVAX), but that he plans to use funds “to expand the team that can focus on securing many prominent blockchains like Solana (SOL), Polkadot (DOT), Algorand (ALGO), and others.” The firm stated in a Feb. 24 tweet that it hopes the new additions will make the “whole ecosystem more trustworthy & secure for the community.”Animoca Brands, the round’s leading investor, has been one of the most prolific VC firms investing in the NFT space. Last month it was valued at $5 billion due to the level of profit in its investment portfolio, which includes Axie Infinity, The Sandbox, and many other NFT-based projects.Animoca co-founder Yat Siu stated in a Feb. 25 announcement that BitsCrunch is in a good position to assist investors in making informed investment decisions. He added that it can “contribute meaningfully to the safety and security of the emerging open metaverse.”The amount of funds raised for NFT projects just over the past 30 days suggests that demand remains high for development in the field. Crypto fundraising tracker Airtable shows at least 27 other NFT projects have raised a collective $251 million since Jan. 25. Related: Monster Energy files NFT and metaverse trademark applicationsAlthough the all-time leading NFT marketplace, OpenSea, has suffered from reduced trading volume interest in the asset class has not faded. Much of the trading volume for the most popular asset other than ETH on Ethereum appears to have shifted from OpenSea over to the LooksRare marketplace because of its lower fees and greater returns for investors.

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