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6 Questions for Annabelle Huang of Amber Group

We ask the buidlers in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector for their thoughts on the industry… and throw in a few random zingers to keep them on their toes!This week, our 6 Questions go to Annabelle Huang, the managing partner at Amber Group, a global leading digital asset platform.Prior to Amber Group, I served as the Asia lead at AirSwap, a decentralized trading platform that enables peer-to-peer trading on the Ethereum blockchain. Before transitioning into digital assets, I advised private equity funds, U.S. corporates and hedge funds on structured solutions and risk management as an FX structurer at Deutsche Bank and Nomura in New York. My background in traditional financial markets, coupled with my experience in institutions and macro markets, has given me a unique vantage point in developing the product strategy and solutions delivered through Amber Group. 1 — What’s a problem you think blockchain has a chance to solve, but it hasn’t been attempted yet?The gender divide is a key social challenge that blockchain technology can potentially address. I believe blockchain technology has the potential to unlock investment opportunities for women, and I am honored to be in this industry to help build awareness among women and other marginalized communities about the utility of crypto and blockchain technology in their financial journey.The industry is also moving at such a rapid pace and the possibility for innovations are limitless — what more can we do to financially empower women? And how else can we smash the glass ceiling for women who are building a career at the intersection of finance and tech? I strongly believe these are questions which we must tackle together, as an industry.2 — What will happen to Bitcoin and Ether over the next 10 years?Bitcoin and Ether are not going anywhere. If anything, they are going to gain in popularity as crypto goes mainstream. The price and value will continue to fluctuate as in any given financial market, but as the size of the communities that support them grows and regulations become clear, Bitcoin and Ether are likely to drive innovation and become a mainstay in the industry and beyond.3 — Do you subscribe to the idea of Bitcoin as a means of payment, a store-of-value, both… or neither?Both! I believe Bitcoin works just like any other currency, and holds its own stored value. We are seeing its widespread adoption these days, with the millions of transactions online and ever-increasing interest in crypto exchanges and digital asset platforms. This is testament to Bitcoin’s utility — it is not only used for trading, instead doubling as a means of payment for goods, services, art and more. 4 — Which two superpowers would you most want to have, and how would you combine them for good… or evil?I would opt for either teleportation or mind-reading. In my line of work, it’s always so busy, so the former would be helpful to help me go places quickly! 5 — Other than the present day, in what time and in which country would you like to have lived?Throughout my life, I’ve been very fortunate to have lived in a few beautiful places. I grew up in China and got the opportunity to study abroad in Pittsburgh and Paris. I also count myself lucky to have been able to work in beautiful, cosmopolitan cities such as New York, Hong Kong and now, Singapore. In another life, I would be having tea in a quaint cafe in London. 6 — Thinking of a favorite poem or musical lyric, what is it, and why does it speak to you?My favorite quote is from Le Petit Prince: “All grown-ups were once children… but only few of them remember it.” This quote is my go-to reminder to always stay curious and to approach each day with fresh eyes and a day-one mentality.A wish for the young, ambitious blockchain community:On behalf of Amber Group, we would like the young, ambitious blockchain community to continue becoming catalysts of innovation, and deliver new blockchain applications that transform industries while upholding the decentralized spirit of DeFi. We are excited to see innovations that advance our global economy without forgetting the spirit of opportunity and community when creating a better world for everyone.

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Crypto prices continue to tank, lawsuit takes aim at Binance.US, and Celsius moves $320M worth of digital assets: Hodler’s Digest, June 12-18

Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link.Top Stories This WeekBinance ends support for anonymous Litecoin transactionsBinance has decided to ban Litecoin (LTC) transactions sent through the most recent MimbleWimble (MWEB) upgrade from its exchange, noting that such transactions would now result in the loss of the related LTC. Binance isn’t delisting LTC entirely, unlike other exchanges that have decided to remove the cryptocurrency. Among its changes, the latest Litecoin MWEB update ushered in privacy features. Binance’s decision to end support for these transactions comes as global crypto regulation remains an ever-present focal point in the industry.Ethereum difficulty bomb delayed but network adoption still growingThe difficulty bomb, a key piece of the puzzle in Ethereum’s move to proof-of-stake (PoS), has been delayed. Put simply, the difficulty bomb makes mining on Ethereum’s current proof-of-work (PoW) chain undesireable in order to push everyone over to the PoS chain. Anticipated to occur in August, the move to PoS is has been dubbed The Merge by Ethereum. Ethereum developers recently concluded a successful testnet merge, which simulated how the real Ethereum PoS chain would play out.72 of the top 100 coins have fallen 90% or more: Here are the holdoutsThis week was a tough one for the crypto industry as prices across the board fell in dramatic fashion. Falling below the $1 trillion mark, the crypto industry’s total market cap posted a 24% decline. From their all-time high prices, 72 of the largest 100 crypto assets by market cap have dropped over 90%. During this bear market, even market leaders Bitcoin and Ether have posted 70.3% and 78% losses, respectively, from their all-time highs.Three Arrows Capital has failed to meet margin calls: ReportPlunging crypto prices and large exposure to the Terra ecosystem debacle have placed significant pressure on Three Arrows Capital (3AC). The Singapore-based hedge fund and venture capital firm reportedly failed to meet margin calls from its lenders. 3AC has reportedly faced more than $400 million in liquidations during the most recent bout of market turmoil and is now considering a bailout, among other options. Celsius exodus: $320M in crypto sent to FTX, user withdrawals pauseRecent moves by Celsius have fueled speculation in the crypto community as to whether the digital asset lending and staking platform is dealing with its rumored liquidity crisis. In addition to temporarily closing user withdrawals, Celsius has moved hundreds of millions of dollars worth of digital assets around different platforms, such as FTX, with no explanation given. A subsequent report stated that Celsius is recruiting legal consultation.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $20,535, Ether (ETH) at $1,079 and XRP at $0.31. The total market cap is at $892 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are OKB (OKB) at 2.43%, Neutrino USD (USDN) at 0.94% and Helium (HNT) at 0.65%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Nexo (NEXO) at -44.59%, Flow (FLOW) at -38.22% and Monero (XMR) at -36.20%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“The current situation is good for Bitcoin in the long term, cleansing the market from leverage, scams and dishonest institutions.”Josef Tětek, Bitcoin analyst and brand ambassador at Trezor“Executives often don’t agree on very much, but our research shows they overwhelmingly agree on one thing: 95 percent of them believe the metaverse will have a positive impact on their industry.”Lareina Yee, senior partner at McKinsey & Company“We recognize that hurt feelings are inevitable in a global organization that is optimizing for team outcomes above individual sentiment.”Kraken“Having been in this industry professionally for eight years, I’m tired of talking about regulations, particularly in the United States.”Meltem Demirors, chief strategy officer for CoinShares“What is happening with Celsius will have serious repercussions for the industry. It’s a not-insignificant player, and its apparent failure will have ripple effects.”Mahin Gupta, founder of Liminal“All too often, people hear that you work in crypto, and they have a preconceived idea of what that looks like.”Alex Wilson, co-founder of The Giving BlockPrediction of the Week Bitcoin traders expect a ‘long consolidation’ phase now that BTC trades below $21KBitcoin’s price took a steep dive this week, falling from $28,000 to below $21,000, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index. The cryptocurrency continued its freefall over the weekend, plunging below $19,000.Among the folks analyzing Bitcoin’s price action was Twitter personality Rekt Capital. “If #BTC continues to hold the orange 200-week MA as support and the black 200-week EMA figures as resistance… $BTC could form an Accumulation Range here, just like in 2018,” the analyst tweeted on June 15. “This would enable multi-month consolidation to even as far as December 2022.”FUD of the Week Binance.US faces class-action lawsuit over LUNA and UST saleA California lawsuit against Binance’s U.S. branch, Binance.US, has surfaced in the wake of the Terra ecosystem collapse. Among its claims, the suit alleges that LUNC (formerly LUNA) and its UST stablecoin are unregistered securities and that Binance.US does not have proper regulatory registration.Iowa regulator orders BlockFi to pay $943K over alleged unregistered securities offeringRelated to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) action against BlockFi reported in February, the firm has now been slapped with a fine of roughly $943,000 by the Iowa Insurance Division. The state regulatory body claims that BlockFi did not have proper registration, in addition to offering and selling unregistered securities. A cease and desist order relating to “making any untrue statement of material facts regarding securities” also accompanied the fine. Elon Musk gets hit with ‘ridiculous’ $258B Dogecoin lawsuitA class-action lawsuit aims to squeeze $258 billion out of Elon Musk and two companies he heads, Tesla and SpaceX. The suit points a finger at Musk for allegedly harnessing his status to profit on Dogecoin, which the suit considers to be a pyramid scheme. Multiple digital asset industry figures have bashed the suit. Best Cointelegraph FeaturesWhat can other algorithmic stablecoins learn from Terra’s crash?The main problem that led to the fall of Terra was that its reserves appeared to be overcollateralized, but in reality, they weren’t.How to survive in a bear market? Tips for beginnersBear markets represent the most dreaded period in any investment cycle, but there are a few ways to stay ahead and weather the storm.Central authorities have demonized privacy — Crypto projects must fight backDespite being a core tenant for many crypto projects, privacy has been demonized by those in power, including lawmakers, regulators, banks and academics.

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6 Questions for Alex Wilson of The Giving Block

We ask the buidlers in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector for their thoughts on the industry… and throw in a few random zingers to keep them on their toes!This week, our 6 Questions go to Alex Wilson, co-founder of The Giving Block — a crypto donation solution that provides an ecosystem for nonprofits and charities to fundraise Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Alex is a co-founder of The Giving Block, a Shift4 company. The Giving Block is a leading crypto philanthropy platform that makes accepting and fundraising cryptocurrencies easy for nonprofits and empowers donors to give crypto to their favorite causes. Alex oversees The Giving Block’s growth in several areas, including technological innovation, crypto and financial partnerships, and institutional giving. Alex’s background is in management consulting, where he worked with Fortune 500 companies to develop strategies for emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain and cryptocurrency. As he went down the cryptocurrency rabbit hole, he and co-founder Pat Duffy discovered a need for nonprofits to tap into the growing crypto donor demographic. Alex graduated from Wake Forest University School of Business with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business and Enterprise Management specializing in International Business.1 — What has been the toughest challenge you’ve faced in our industry so far?The biggest challenge is educating those we speak with about the benefits of the industry. I believe that cryptocurrency is one of the greatest forces of good on the planet, but there are many people we speak with who have misconceptions about crypto — from its impact on the environment to the quasi anonymity behind it. 2 — When you tell people you’re in the blockchain industry, how do they react?I’ve found that most people are really receptive to what we are doing at The Giving Block. All too often, people hear that you work in crypto, and they have a preconceived idea of what that looks like. Then I go on to tell them what it is that we do and that we’ve raised over $100 million in cryptocurrencies for nonprofits, and their reaction softens. I think our use case is much more tangible to people than many others, which makes it easier than most to understand and relate to.3 — Have you ever bought a nonfungible token? What was it — and if not, what do you think will be your first?Yes, but only ones that benefit charities. The first I bought were from Nifty Gateway as part of a COVID relief campaign called COVID Heroes.4 — Which two superpowers would you most want to have, and how would you combine them for good… or evil?If I had to choose two superpowers, they would probably be teleportation and flying — that way I can have more face-to-face time with the nonprofits we work with without having to wait in TSA lines.5 — Tell us about a hidden talent — and give us a link to prove it!I’m bilingual — I grew up speaking both English and German equally.6 — What talent do you lack, and wish you had? How would you use it if you had it?I’ve always wished that I could speak a third language. I think speaking fluent Spanish would be a really helpful talent to have.

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US SEC investigates Binance’s ICO, metaverse crypto assets up 400% YoY, and STEPN faces DDoS attacks: Hodler’s Digest, June 5-11

Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link.Top Stories This WeekAnonymous hacker served with restraining order via NFTIn what’s perhaps an industry first, an anonymous defendant in an exchange-hacking legal case has received a temporary restraining order via NFT. The defendant is part of legal proceedings surrounding the January 2022 LCX exchange hack. Two legal firms served the “service token” NFT to the defendant as a restraining order, with the event touted as the first official NFT usage in the legal world. FTX will not freeze hiring amid layoffs at other crypto firms, CEO statesAs the crypto bear market presses on, some industry players have chosen to reevaluate staff numbers, but not FTX. The derivatives exchange will continue to add personnel, according to CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. In contrast, recent weeks have seen Gemini decrease its employee headcount and Coinbase curb new staff pickups. The last major crypto bear market in 2018 was worse in terms of employee cuts, however.Lummis-Gillibrand bill establishes SEC-CFTC balance of power over crypto marketsA new bill from U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis, subject to appropriate approvals, aims to regulate the crypto industry on a number of levels under the shared watch of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission. “Understanding that most digital assets are much more similar to commodities than securities, the bill gives the CFTC clear authority over applicable digital asset spot markets,” a government statement detailed. However, later comments from the two senators seem to contradict this view, with Lummis and Gillibrand seeing altcoins largely as securities.Metaverse tokens up 400% year on year despite altcoin bloodbathAlthough the overall crypto market has floundered in terms of price action, assets related to the Metaverse are up about 400% on average compared to May 2021, according to a Kraken Intelligence report. Despite the year-on-year gains, metaverse assets are down significantly in price over the last 30 days (as of Kraken’s May report). All crypto-asset sectors that Kraken evaluated showed a decline in price in the last 30 and 90 days. Over the course of 2022 thus far, NFT and blockchain-powered metaverse games have seen continued participation.PayPal enables transfer of digital currencies to external walletsIn the latter half of 2020, PayPal’s platform welcomed crypto buying and selling, but the experience was restricted to the platform. Now, PayPal has made the move to allow the transfer of certain crypto assets to and from its platform, typically pending one-time verification of identity. Armed with a New York BitLicense, PayPal has opened the feature to certain customers but aims to broaden the availability in the weeks ahead.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $29,066, Ether (ETH) at $1,682 and XRP at $0.38. The total market cap is at $1.18 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Helium (HNT) at 35.12%, Chainlink (LINK) at 22.63% and UNUS SED LEO (LEO) at 12.29%. The top three altcoin losers of the week are Elrond (EGLD) at -25.25%, Waves (WAVES) at -25.02% and Convex Finance (CVX) at -24.90%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“I thought [Anchor Protocol] was going to collapse from the beginning (I designed it), but it collapsed 100%.”Mr. B, Anchor Protocol developer“The idea of absolute fixed money is something that we’ve never seen in history.”Ali Hamam, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Tahini’s“The approach is very simple: We aren’t going to ignore [the crypto] market. We want to extract the maximum profit from the innovative potential these technologies give us.”Galymzhan Pirmatov, chairman of the Kazakhstan National Bank“For wealth management firms, digital assets are a US$54bn revenue opportunity— that most are ignoring.”Accenture“[Myself and my wife] believe that kids should learn things that will be needed in the future, rather than what we think is needed now.”Marcin, father of Amelia (creator of Ami’s Cats NFT collection)“What’s incredible about crypto is that it has the potential to decentralize power and give rise to economies that are struggling.”Nikki Farb, venture partner at HeadlinePrediction of the Week Bitcoin will finish 2022 ‘flat, possibly up’ says analyst as Saylor bets on $1M BTCBitcoin’s price traded mostly sideways this week, largely between $29,000 and $32,000, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index.A historically bullish figure in the crypto space, Fundstrat co-founder Thomas Lee spoke about Bitcoin’s price with less exuberance, seeing the potential for sideways action to close out 2022, although he left the door open for it going “possibly up.”Meanwhile, the ever-bullish CEO of MicroStrategy, Michael Saylor, ultimately sees BTC in terms of an all-or-nothing outcome — $0 or $1 million per coin. He, however, thinks BTC has already counted out $0 as an outcome, leaving his $1 million expectation on the table.FUD of the Week Lithuania aims to tighten crypto regulation and ban anonymous accountsAdditional government-approved crypto regulatory requirements could come into play in Lithuania, pending parliamentary action. Among other details, the requirements include banning anonymous crypto accounts. The rationale behind this move is to decrease money laundering and prevent Russian elites from evading sanctions. The start of 2023 would see the brunt of the new rules come into play.Blockchain-based move-to-earn app STEPN under DDoS attacks after upgradeSTEPN, a crypto project game rewarding users for physical activity, recently added a mechanism called STEPN’s Model for Anti-Cheating (SMAC) to its platform. The upgrade aims to cut down on cheating in the game. A number of difficulties ensued after the upgrade, however, including denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. The project aimed to correct its servers within a specific timeframe, although the self-imposed deadline passed with no updates announced.Bad day for Binance with SEC investigation and Reuters exposéBinance is the subject of an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The probe questions if the exchange’s 2017 initial coin offering of its BNB asset was in line with regulatory standards. An article from Reuters additionally claimed that a significant amount of funds tied to nefarious activities filtered through Binance’s platform between 2017 and 2021. A spokesperson from Binance denied the article’s allegations. Binance also refuted the claims in a detailed blog post.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesThailand’s crypto islands: Working in paradise, Part 1Increasing numbers of crypto digital nomads are heading to live and work on tropical islands such as Thailand’s Koh Pha-ngan. Maybe you should join them.A life after crime: What happens to crypto seized in criminal investigations?Like with any kind of property, law enforcement has the right to sell your coins and spend the money.Crypto 401(k): Sound financial planning or gambling with the future?Cryptocurrencies may be coming to Americans’ retirement plans. Some see it as a sound financial strategy, while others remain skeptical.

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6 Questions for Nikki Farb of Headline

We ask the buidlers in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector for their thoughts on the industry… and throw in a few random zingers to keep them on their toes!This week, our 6 Questions go to Nikki Farb — an active investor and advisor to technology companies who is currently a venture partner at Headline, a venture capital firm. I invest in consumer tech (with a real love for marketplaces) and Web3. I’ve invested in Consensys (MetaMask), AfterParty, Fractal, Aloft, Wander, MarketerHire, SudShare and a few others I can’t share just yet. Before investing, I co-founded Darby — a video shopping app that connected creators and their fans. It was such a journey. We built Darby up to 50,000 creators making videos for 5 million viewers. Working with the team at Darby was one of my greatest privileges. We were acquired by Grove Collective.Prior to Darby, I was at Goldman Sachs in the Investment Banking Group. I learned quite a bit. Especially because I was an English teacher right out of college.1 —  What has been the toughest challenge you’ve faced in our industry so far?There are two challenges that come to mind. The first is that it’s a noisy industry. It’s challenging to face the tough questions: What is the fundamental reason that this industry is thriving? What’s a novel use case of the tech? Finding the signal through the noise is the most important thing you can do as an investor, since it impacts how you use both your time and money. I have that answer now; without it, you run the risk of losing a lot of money. The second is the pitfall of rallying around a negative message. One of the quickest ways to succeed in this space as a female investor is to scream that it’s a boy’s club. That sort of negativity thrives on social media, where lots of crypto conversations take place. If I wanted to be self-serving, I would say that and build up my platform, but I don’t believe it and it’s not the path I want to choose. If you say the message enough times, it could become a truth, and then we later hurt ourselves by being excluded from one of the most important technological innovations and the fastest way to even economic outcomes. If you fall into a negative message, it only hurts outsiders, not the insiders. We, as part of this industry, get to choose how this phenomenon plays out. Why would we choose to call it a boy’s club? 2 — Do you subscribe to the idea of Bitcoin as a means of payment, a store of value, both… or neither?For Bitcoin — as a store of value. While there was a battle four or five years ago on what it would become, it has played out to be a store of value, and I think that’s the right outcome. I do see some other cryptocurrencies like Ether and Solana as a means of payment. 3 — Do you think governments will try to kill crypto?What a spicy question! I think yes because crypto degrades governments’ power, and anyone that has power is susceptible to wanting to reclaim it — though not everyone will pursue that path. So, I think it’s inevitable that some governments somewhere will try to kill crypto. As for which government and how far they take it — who knows? That’s a movie, right there. I think some will embrace it wholeheartedly and try to make it fly, especially those with volatile currencies. But for now, it’s way too early to assume. What’s incredible about crypto is that it has the potential to decentralize power and give rise to economies that are struggling. There’s good and evil in it, just like with any other technological innovation. It will all depend on how people use it, and I want to steer in that direction, which is why I choose to invest in the space. 4 — What were you like in high school?Confused, but I made it through! I graduated high school in three years because my mom made a deal with me that if I graduated early, I could be an actress for my fourth year instead of going to school. I was also kicked out of two schools in my freshman year because I wasn’t very well behaved, so I ultimately ended up at night school, where I later realized I wanted to change my behavior. I made another deal with my mom that if I got a 4.0 GPA in my sophomore year, I didn’t have to go to school on Mondays, and I did it.I loved rap and hiphop culture, and I was also very into punk music (my roots are in Orange County). I was happy with my social scene and the amount of friends I had. My little sister went everywhere with me. She’s three years younger and my partner in crime.I had about 30 jobs in high school because if I didn’t like something, I would just quit. The only job I’ve ever been fired from is Denny’s, and my favorite job was being the perfume spray girl in Bloomingdale’s. I came from a wealthy family but they later lost all of their money. In high school, I still wanted to live the life I grew up in, so I definitely had a hustler mentality and made my way. I probably skated the line of criminal behavior a few times.5 — Thinking of a favorite poem or musical lyric, what is it, and why does it speak to you?There are two that come to mind. The first is a saying that “only boring people get bored.” It’s my philosophy for life. I truly believe that most people get to be the captain of their own ship, so if you’re bored, go fix it. The second is really any line from the movie The Royal Tenenbaums — two of my personal favorites are: “Did you say you were on mescaline?” “I did indeed. Very much so,” and “I’ve had a rough year, dad.”It’s such an honest, humble and creative movie. I’ve watched it 100 times and always seem to find something new. The pursuit of individuality, creative risk — all of the characters take creative risks — and building personality is something I am attracted to. 6 — What is the book that influenced you the most and why?I would say Pride and Prejudice. My grandmother actually gave me an original copy of the book. It’s one of the first novels I ever read in high school. I was a very avid reader as a kid, and this is one of the most grown-up pieces I can remember reading at that age. To me, it was about the power of womanhood and the unique traits we have, and how much power that gives us in the world. Those traits are also different from the ones men have. It helped me realize that I was a different human from my dad or other guys, but how that could be powerful. I used to read it every year. I also loved how they’re all sisters and that dynamic. A wish for the young, ambitious blockchain community:If I share my wish, it may not come true!

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