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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 WeekPro-centralization Russian president grants citizenship to Edward Snowden: ReportEdward Snowden has reportedly received Russian citizenship via a decision from the country’s president, Vladimir Putin. Snowden has been a permanent resident in Russia since 2013 after he exposed secrets relating to the United States National Security Agency. However, Snowden favors less government involvement than Putin’s approach to leadership. Snowden has offered comment on crypto multiple times and helped build crypto asset Zcash.Breaking: Interpol ‘Red Notice’ issued for Do Kwon — South Korea prosecutorsGlobal criminal police organization Interpol has put out an alert known as a Red Notice in order to help locate and arrest Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, wherever he may be. Terra’s ecosystem fell apart earlier in 2022. Charges were brought against Kwon in South Korea for his involvement in the Terra project. Kwon has tweeted that he is not hiding. He was thought to be in Singapore, although Reuters reporting has indicated a possible change in location. Authorities in South Korea have also taken steps to freeze funds reportedly associated with Kwon.FTX US wins auction for Voyager Digital’s assetsThe auction to acquire Voyager Digital assets ended this week when crypto exchange FTX US emerged as the winner, edging out competing bids from CrossTower and Binance. The U.S. exchange paid around $1.4 billion for Voyayer’s assets, which is roughly the same as the lender’s remaining assets. The deal is pending approval from a U.S. bankruptcy court. Wave Financial also participated in the bidding and has since debated the outcome. Judge orders SEC to turn Hinman documents over to Ripple Labs after months of disputeU.S. District Court Judge Analisa Torres ruled that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must provide information about comments from a former government official that could impact Ripple’s fight against the securities regulator. In a 2018 speech, former SEC Corporation Finance Division Director William Hinman noted that Bitcoin and Ether did not classify as securities. The ruling from Torres means the SEC must not hold back documents related to that speech. The battle between Ripple and the SEC began in 2020, with the commission calling XRP a security.Pantera plans to raise $1.25B for second blockchain fund: ReportAfter launching its first blockchain fund in 2021, crypto-centric hedge fund Pantera Capital is reportedly looking to raise a whopping $1.25 billion for a second fund targeting digital asset projects. “We want to provide liquidity for people that are kind of giving up because we’re still very bullish for the next 10 or 20 years,” Pantera CEO Dan Morehead told Bloomberg.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $19,777, Ether (ETH) at $1,356 and XRP at $0.47. The total market cap is at $954.03 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Quant (QNT) at 37.76%, Terra Classic (LUNC) at 21.41% and Helium (HNT) at 20.93%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Chiliz (CHZ) at -9.29%, Lido DAO (LDO) at -6.82% and Cronos (CRO) at -6.31%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“The most important thing is that [the Ethereum Merge] was executed flawlessly. Everything that was supposed to happen did happen. And none of the things that people were worried about did happen.”Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder of Starkware“I think the world is just waking up to reality and Ethereum just went way off into fantasyland at the exact wrong time.”Cory Klippsten, CEO of Swan Bitcoin“In DeFi, you can’t get away with letting one borrower be half of a lending pool because people see that and they question the risk management there.”Sid Powell, CEO and co-founder of Maple Finance“In our genres that we’re hitting, there might be roughly 500 million people that we can bring in that literally won’t know that they’re playing a crypto game.”Kieran Warwick, co-founder of Illuvium“People need to be able to interact with apps and services and content and transactions without knowing that they’re using crypto.”Jeremy Allaire, CEO of Circle“SMS 2FA is better than nothing, but it is the most vulnerable form of 2FA currently in use.”Jesse Leclere, security expert for CertiK“I’m writing code in my living room. […] I’m making zero effort to hide.” Do Kwon, co-founder of TerraPrediction of the Week Bitcoin price due ‘big dump’ after passing $20K, warns traderBitcoin largely remained below $20,000 this week, though the asset successfully broke above that level several times, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index. After zipping past $20,000 on Sept. 30, Bitcoin fell right back down below the level, seeming to line up with the timing of a recent speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Pseudonymous Twitter user “Il Capo of Crypto” predicted the price action in a Sept. 30 tweet: “Pump to 20000-20500 before Putin’s speech. Then big dump.”FUD of the Week California files order against Nexo interest account, says it’s 8th state to take actionCrypto lending platform Nexo has been ordered by California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) to halt the operation of its Earn Interest Product. The agency asserted that the product does not fall in line with regulatory approval requirements. Nexo essentially froze the product for U.S. customers earlier in 2022, although not fully, according to the DFPI. Nexo reportedly faces similar action from New York, Vermont and five other state regulators. Nexo explained to Cointelegraph that it has been working with regulatory authorities in the U.S.MEV bot earns $1M but loses everything to a hacker an hour laterA Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) bot capitalized on an arbitrage opportunity on decentralized exchange Uniswap V2, tallying about $1 million worth of Ether in profits in a single day. The fanfare was short-lived, however, as the bot’s apparently questionable code left it vulnerable to exploitation, with a hacker apprehending the funds on the same day.SEC alleges fintech and ‘market maker’ firms manipulated crypto market in token schemeHydrogen Technology Corporation and market maker Moonwalkers Trading Limited face action from the SEC for alleged market manipulation. In 2018, Hydro tokens were dispersed via multiple avenues, including an airdrop. Hydrogen and Moonwalkers then allegedly collaborated to make it seem like the asset was significantly active on the market and subsequently dumped Hydro tokens for profit.Best Cointelegraph Features5 years of the ‘Top 10 Cryptos’ experiment and the lessons learned“Index investing can be boring, but it saves you from the worst possible outcomes.”Throw your Bored Apes in the trashFrom carrying medical data to streamlining royalty payments, nonfungible tokens serve a variety of important technological purposes. Bored Apes are a demeaning distraction.Tax on income you never earned? It’s possible after Ethereum’s MergeIRS rules weren’t ready for the Ethereum upgrade. It’s unlikely to become the fiasco that taxpayers experienced when Bitcoin forked in 2017, but there are measures they can take to prepare for whatever the IRS decides.The best of blockchain, every TuesdaySubscribe for thoughtful explorations and leisurely reads from Magazine. By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

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 WeekKraken’s Jesse Powell will step down as CEO, stay on as board chairAfter more than a decade heading up crypto exchange Kraken as CEO, Jesse Powell has decided to pass the torch to the company’s chief operating officer, Dave Ripley. Powell is not done with Kraken, however. He will become chair of the board for the organization. “It’s just gotten to be more draining on me, less fun,” Powell said, as quoted in by Bloomberg. Ripley joined Kraken as chief operating officer in 2016.South Korean ministry recommends enactment of special Metaverse lawsIn line with other advances South Korea has taken to embrace the digital world, the country wants to create new laws regarding the Metaverse, according to plans from the Ministry of Science and ICT. The ministry wants proper laws in place for the Metaverse, but thinks it’s unwise to form-fit current regulations to new technology. Previous news saw South Korea invest $200 million toward metaverse development in the country. New York judge orders Tether to document USDT backingA New York court has ordered that Tether provide proof that its USDT stablecoin is fully backed. The decision is part of a case involving iFinex, Tether’s parent company, which originated in 2019. The case against iFinex alleges that it used the unbacked USDT for crypto market manipulation. Two other U.S. authorities have requested proof of backing on previous occasions, with iFinex reportedly providing sufficient documentation.SEC lawsuit claims jurisdiction because ETH nodes are ‘clustered’ in the USAs part of a case against crypto YouTuber Ian Balina, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently claimed certain jurisdictional rights based on the high number of Ethereum nodes reportedly residing in the U.S. Although crypto is borderless by nature, the SEC, in this case, is trying to claim that transactions occurred within U.S. boundaries, which could bring certain laws into relevance. The claim is part of a broader case against Balina in which the commission alleges a failure of proper registration for a token sale he facilitated.China accounts for 84% of all blockchain patent applications, but there’s a catchInformation from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology detailed that 84% of the globe’s blockchain patent applications come from the country. President Xi Jinping stimulated patent activity when, in 2019, he expressed the need for China to focus on blockchain technology. China has only greenlit 19% of submitted blockchain patents, however. Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $18,800, Ether (ETH) at $1,296 and XRP at $0.47. The total market cap is at $923.34 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are XRP (XRP) at 40.98%, Chiliz (CHZ) at 31.63% and Algorand (ALGO) at 29.76%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Ravencoin (RVN) at -23.49%, Toncoin (TON) at -22.90% and Terra Classic (LUNC) at -16.59%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Regulation is always a concern, but BTC is regulated.”Jamie Coutts, crypto market analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence“How does a DAO really own the IP [intellectual property] of the protocol it is supposed to govern?”David Kappos, partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP“The government in India definitely doesn’t want crypto anymore. […] The government is outright saying, ‘We like blockchain but we don’t like cryptocurrency,’ but it’s kind of ridiculous.”Anshul Rustaggi, CEO and founder of Totality Corp“Sharding is indeed one of the most effective and universal ways to solve the so-called ‘scalability trilemma.’”Martin Hiesboeck, head of research for Uphold“The concern is that if the Fed tightens too much, the U.S. economy may actually go into a severe recession.”CK Zheng, former global head of valuation risk for Credit Suisse“Cryptocurrencies are volatile, but no middlemen are taking a hefty commission or scrutinizing your transactions.”Alan Austin, managing director for the Litecoin Foundation“There’s an outside chance we find a way to get to consensus on a stablecoin bill this year.”Warren Davidson, U.S. congressman“People are getting more cautious in the space and are not sure how to interact with Tornado Cash, we’ve seen deposits into services providing similar activity go down at least temporarily, because people are measuring like, ’What does this mean for me?’”Jacob Illum, chief scientist at Chainalysis“I’m a major skeptic on crypto tokens, which you call currency, like Bitcoin. They are decentralized Ponzi schemes.”Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorganPrediction of the Week This Bitcoin long-term holder metric is nearing the BTC price ‘bottom zone’Bitcoin largely traded between $18,000 and $20,000 this week, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index. The number of Bitcoin long-term holders (LTHs) in the red currently lines up with previous bear market bottoms, suggesting that the digital asset may be in the process of bottoming out. Of Bitcoin’s long-term hodlers, about 30% sat in losses as of Sept. 22. Bitcoin’s 2020 and 2018 bottoms occurred when the percentage of LTHs in the red hit around 35% and 32%, respectively. A drop to between $10,000 and $14,000 could cause the LTH loss percentage to line up with previous bear markets.FUD of the Week $160M stolen from crypto market maker WintermuteDecentralized finance operations under United Kingdom-based company Wintermute suffered an attack that cost the firm roughly $160 million. Wintermute CEO Evgeny Gaevoy noted the company has enough funds to withstand the loss without affecting customers. Gaevoy expressed willingness to classify the event as a white-hat hack — but only if the violator comes forward. Later reporting showed the attack was not a smart contract exploit as originally thought, but instead a private key issue, according to blockchain security firm CertiK.BTC mining firm Compute North files for bankruptcyFiling for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas, Bitcoin mining hosting company Compute North is one of the latest crypto bear market casualties. However, the price of energy also weighed on the firm. The company reportedly has between $100 million and $500 million worth of assets, although its debts total roughly $500 million. Compute North partners Marathon Digital and Compass Mining should not see negative effects from the bankruptcy filing, according to comments from both companies, but additional updates may follow.Draft US stablecoin bill would ban new algo stablecoins for 2 yearsBloomberg got its hands on a draft of a U.S. government bill that reportedly aims to prohibit new algorithmic stablecoin creation for two years. The text seemingly seeks to enforce a ban on new stablecoins that derive their pegs from other associated digital assets from the same creator, where redemptions can occur for a fixed price. Stablecoins currently fitting the bill’s description would have two years to alter their models. Best Cointelegraph FeaturesSaving the planet could be blockchain’s killer app“Putting Paris Agreement carbon markets on Ethereum and connecting the national carbon accounts of the world, is blockchain’s killer app.”Toss in your job and make $300K working for a DAO? Here’s how“The collaboration-maxi nature was a welcome breath of fresh air.”The market isn’t surging anytime soon — so get used to dark timesGlobal economic conditions suggest that markets — including the cryptocurrency market — have further downside ahead. Don’t bank on a surge to new all-time highs in the months ahead.“When you’ve been in crypto long enough, everything is a chart.”The best of blockchain, every TuesdaySubscribe for thoughtful explorations and leisurely reads from Magazine. By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

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 WeekBreaking: Historic day for crypto as Ethereum Merge to proof-of-stake occursEthereum’s highly anticipated conversion to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus algorithm, dubbed “the Merge,” took place at 6:42:42 am UTC on Sept. 15. The move is a key part of an overarching multi-year transition for the Ethereum blockchain. “It starts a chain reaction of changes,” Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder and president of StarkWare, told Cointelegraph regarding the Merge. The Merge will reportedly help the Ethereum blockchain reduce its energy consumption by around 99%. During a viewing party before the network’s shift from proof-of-work (PoW) to PoS, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said: “[It] has obviously been a dream for the Ethereum ecosystem since pretty much the beginning. We started the proof-of-stake research with that blog post on Slosher back in January 2014.”One party known as ETHW Core disagrees with the transition, however, aiming to maintain a PoW version of Ethereum via a fork in the 24 hours following the Merge. Multiple crypto exchanges plan on listing the forked chain’s related asset, ETHPoW (ETHW).Abra announces plans for US bank supporting digital assetsDigital asset trading platform Abra announced that it was establishing two financial institutions: a United States bank and an international crypto business. Aimed to open in 2023, the U.S. state-chartered bank will operate under the name Abra Bank and will be compatible with digital assets in a format similar to money at traditional banks, or so it appears. Stationed beyond U.S. borders, a branch known as Abra International is also in the plans. The firm is looking to check all the appropriate boxes for Abra Bank and Abra International in terms of regulation.  Norwegian central bank uses Ethereum to build national digital currencyNorway’s central bank, Norges Bank, is using the Ethereum blockchain’s structure to construct its central bank digital currency (CBDC). The bank is still in the early stages of building its CBDC, but has unveiled the open-source code for the asset’s testnet via a sandbox. Many countries have expressed interest in or have started working on a CBDC, though the asset does not necessarily need to be built on the blockchain. The Bahamas and Nigeria already have live CBDCs.SEC to address growing crypto issuer filings with specialized officesDuring the remainder of 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will add a pair of new offices, one of which will aid in its crypto regulatory pursuits. The Office of Crypto Assets, housed under the Division of Corporation Finance’s Disclosure Review Program, will evaluate digital asset filings. Such crypto issuer filings have increased, likely given the SEC’s increasing activity in crypto industry overwatch. This week, the U.S. government also unveiled a crypto regulatory framework covering numerous topics, with nine government departments involved in the framework’s creation.Possession of Bitcoin still legal in China despite the ban, lawyer saysChina’s regulatory regime for cryptocurrency remains unclear. “To date, possession of crypto in China has not been banned,” Lesperance & Associates founder David Lesperance told Cointelegraph. In fact, crypto holders in the country are protected by law on matters related to theft, misappropriation or breach of a loan agreement. “It does not make the commercial trading of this type of property legal, as the government has specifically banned crypto exchanges in China,” he added.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $19,462, Ether (ETH) at $1,425 and XRP at $0.33. The total market cap is at $949.92 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Celsius (CEL) at 12.12%, Compound (COMP) at 10.97% and Kyber Network Crystal v2 (KNC) at 4.31%.The top three altcoin losers of the week are Terra (LUNA) at -49.07%, TerraClassicUSD (USTC) at -29.01% and Terra Classic (LUNC) at -26.47%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“I think the market, not only crypto markets but the stock market, is clinging to a hope that someday the Federal Reserve will magically say, ‘Well, I think this will be the last or the two last rate hikes.’”Marcel Pechman, markets analyst and Cointelegraph contributor“Music NFTs are an anti-genre. We’re seeing a lot more diversity and creative freedom in NFTs — as if artists are finally free to create for the sake of creating and not to fit the algorithms.”Adrien Stern, co-founder and CEO of Reveel Technology“DeFi insurance is a sleeping giant. With less than 1% of all crypto covered and less than 3% of DeFi, there’s a huge market opportunity still to be realized.”Dan Thomson, chief marketing officer for InsurAce“If enough people get behind a fork for whatever reason, we feel the free market will decide on what should live and what should not.”Bradley Duke, co-CEO of ETC Group“It will be a significant mark of success when the first [Ethereum] block is produced by proof-of-stake. But this is like completing the launch of a rocket — we still have the rest of the journey ahead of us, which will pose its challenges.”Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder and president of StarkWare“Web3 seeks to safeguard the legitimate claims of individuals to have full control of their data and put privacy at the forefront of their online lives.”Úrsula O’Kuinghttons, director of communications and partnerships at the Web3 FoundationPrediction of the Week Bitcoin price threatens $19.6K as Ray Dalio predicts 30% stocks crashBitcoin got all the way up above $22,000 this week but subsequently fell back below the $20,000 mark in the days following, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index.Billionaire investor and hedge fund manager Ray Dalio expects traditional markets to face downward pressure due to surging inflation and rising interest rates. Crypto assets have traded in tandem with traditional markets as of late.“I estimate that a rise in rates from where they are to about 4.5 percent will produce about a 20 percent negative impact on equity prices (on average, though greater for longer duration assets and less for shorter duration ones) based on the present value discount effect and about a 10 percent negative impact from declining incomes,” Dalio said in a Sept. 13 blog post.FUD of the Week Thai SEC intends to ban crypto lending in the countryThailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission wants to forbid “digital asset business operators” from providing crypto lending and staking services to customers, according to a Sept. 15 announcement from the government agency. The announcement requests feedback from the public on a potential ban, with Oct. 17 as the deadline to weigh in on the issue.South Korea issues arrest warrant for Terra Founder Do KwonAuthorities in South Korea are reportedly on the lookout for six people, including Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, although Kwon and the others are in Singapore presently. The six individuals are reportedly the subject of an arrest warrant put out by a Seoul court. Kwon allegedly broke capital markets law in South Korea, according to the prosecutor. Terraform Labs heads up the Luna crypto project, which suffered a dramatic demise earlier in 2022. Further news saw prosecutors seeking to revoke passports for the six, who were all involved in the Luna crypto project. Additionally, prosecutors are seeking an international warrant for the arrest of the six.Stone Ridge board approved plan for ‘liquidation and dissolution’ of its Bitcoin fundStone Ridge’s Bitcoin Strategy Fund will close up shop after Oct. 3, with liquidation expected around Oct. 21. On Sept. 9, the Stone Ridge Trust board of trustees voted in favor of the fund’s termination, according to a U.S. SEC filing this week. The fund, in part, uses futures products to give investors exposure to Bitcoin.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesEthereum is eating the world — ‘You only need one internet’“Is there a need for more than one internet? And we know the answer is ‘Hell no.’”Guide to real-life crypto OGs you’d meet at a party (Part 2)“I think OGs are hard core believers who went all-in when nobody else was paying attention to the space.”Boom and bust: How are Defi protocols handling the bear market?A look at how DeFi protocols have fared during the recent bear market and the importance of continuing to build during market downturns.The best of blockchain, every TuesdaySubscribe for thoughtful explorations and leisurely reads from Magazine. By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

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 WeekUS Fed vice chair Michael Barr favors hard line on crypto, OCC acting head no friendlierGlobal crypto regulation remains a prevalent topic looming over the sector. Recent comments from United States Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr and Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu favored a lean toward more government overwatch. Barr expressed a desire for stablecoin regulation as well as crypto-related banking regulations. Hsu’s comments included looking at the industry cautiously.GameStop doubles down on crypto amid a new partnership with FTX USGameStop is teaming up with crypto exchange FTX US in a promotional partnership. So far, 2022 has seen GameStop pursuing increasing involvement in the crypto space, evident in its NFT marketplace launch and its new gaming division devoted to Web3. GameStop has a long-term vision for crypto involvement, according to CEO Matt Furlong during a Q2 fiscal year earnings call.Binance: No plans to auto-convert Tether, though that ‘may change’This week, Binance revealed plans to phase out three stablecoins on its trading platform: USD Coin (USDC), TrueUSD (TUSD) and USDP Stablecoin (USDP). The three assets, as well as associated spot trading pairs, will no longer be tradable on the exchange. In addition, Binance plans to terminate other services related to USDC on its platform, such as staking.The transition is essentially an effort to centralize liquidity into the exchange’s own stablecoin, Binance USD (BUSD), based on an explanation tweeted by CEO Changpeng Zhao. The exchange will convert users’ remaining holdings of USDC, TUSD and USDP into BUSD over a span of 24 hours, commencing on Sept. 29. A conversion of Tether (USDT) to BUSD, however, was not included in Binance’s plans, though that could change, according to a Binance spokesperson.Bank of Russia agrees to legalize crypto for cross-border payments: ReportRussia’s central bank is expected to allow cross-border crypto payments to and from the country, but digital asset payments inside its borders will remain banned. The country banned crypto as a payment vehicle via previous legislation. According to Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexey Moiseev, the government’s new approach to crypto is a response to changing circumstances globally following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine earlier this year.A statement to media outlet RIA Novosti from the Bank of Russia explained: “It is important to emphasize that we are not talking about the legalization of cryptocurrency as a means of payment on the territory of our country.” A day later, news came in regarding Russia reportedly looking to cooperate with so-called “friendly” countries to set up a stablecoin platform for cross-border payments.UK economic secretary commits to make country a crypto hub under new PMDevelopments in the United Kingdom this week appeared positive for crypto adoption in the country. Among several comments about crypto, Economic Secretary to the Treasury Richard Fuller said: “We want to become the country of choice for those looking to create, innovate and build in the crypto space.” The U.K. now has a new prime minister in Liz Truss, who expressed in 2018 that crypto’s potential should not be stifled in the country.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $21,293, Ether (ETH) at $1,715 and XRP at $0.34. The total market cap is at $1.04 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Terra (LUNA) at 218.74%, Terra Classic (LUNC) at 76.92% and Ravencoin (RVN) at 65.43%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Nexo (NEXO) at -11.74%, 1inch Network (1INCH) at -8.75% and UNUS SED LEO (LEO) at -6.35%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Biggest reason I’m bullish on Bitcoin is because the world is not in good shape right now and Bitcoin is going to fix that.”Prince Philip Karageorgevitch, hereditary prince of Serbia and Yugoslavia“Until they actually fix the supply side of certain things, like energy especially, but commodities broadly and logistics infrastructure, until that is improved, it’s hard to have a more persistent fix to the inflationary problem.”Lyn Alden, independent macro analyst“You can’t walk into a Starbucks in America and pay with Swiss francs or pounds. Yet, both of these are real money. Context matters.”Rockwell Shah, co-founder of Invisible College“There will always be GPUs mining some GPU optimized chains, but I doubt we will return to the levels of revenue seen in ETH proof-of-work at its peak ever again.”Andy Long, CEO of White Rock“Ether’s price could decouple from other cryptocurrencies following The Merge, as its staking rewards will make it similar to an instrument like a bond or commodity with a carry premium.”Chainalysis report“I want to send a clear, strong message to everyone in the crypto world — anyone offering to hand you free money is lying. It simply doesn’t exist.”FatManTerra, pseudonymous Twitter crypto influencerPrediction of the Week Bitcoin analyst who called 2018 bottom warns ‘bad winter’ may see $10K BTCPseudonymous crypto market analyst Filbfilb sees Bitcoin possibly dropping down to $10,000 inside of 2022. Macro global factors and mainstream market correlation could potentially impact Bitcoin’s price trajectory, according to comments made by the analyst during an interview. Among a slew of insights, Filbfilb noted the current crypto bear market has some similarities to previous bear markets, but also includes differences. The analyst showed notable accuracy in calling Bitcoin’s bottom during its last bear market in 2018.FUD of the Week Bitcoiner sentenced to federal prison warns users involved in OTC tradingMark Alexander Hopkins, aka Rizzn on Twitter, claims he’s facing a prison sentence of 6-to-15 months. The crime? Allegedly failing to secure proper regulatory licensing for his crypto business of peer-to-peer (P2P) Bitcoin trading. Hopkins’ home was raided by U.S. authorities in 2019. Hopkins, also known as “Doctor Bitcoin,” claims to have registered with the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network but complications arose as some of his P2P Bitcoin dealings were tied to a client involved in money laundering. Authorities claim Hopkins did not conduct due diligence on his customers, although he asserts otherwise.Which countries are the worst for crypto taxation? New study lists top fiveCrypto taxes vary globally. Coincub, a digital asset analytics provider, recently published a study naming the five least favorable regions for paying crypto taxes. Belgium took the cake for the country with the worst crypto tax laws, requiring citizens to pay as much as 50% in some cases, with 33% levied on crypto capital gains. Following Belgium on the worst crypto tax jurisdiction list: Iceland, Israel, the Philippines and Japan.Vermont’s financial regulator alleges Celsius and its CEO made ‘false and misleading claims’Bankrupt crypto platform Celsius faces allegations from the ​​Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR). The authority claims Celsius and its CEO Alex Mashinsky knew about the project’s financial issues, but proceeded to mislead the public into thinking everything was fine. The allegations also cite market manipulation of the project’s CEL asset. “By increasing its Net Position in CEL by hundreds of millions of dollars, Celsius increased and propped up the market price of CEL, thereby artificially inflating the company’s CEL holdings on its balance sheet and financial statements,” Ethan McLaughlin, assistant general counsel for the DFR, said.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesPowers On… Insider trading with crypto is targeted — Finally! Part 1“It took a few years, but government crackdowns on ‘insider trading’ involving digital assets have finally arrived. It’s about time!”Insiders’ guide to real-life crypto OGs: Part 1“Just like everything else in life, there’s ebb and flow to our fortunes and life circumstances.”What will drive crypto’s likely 2024 bull run?Easing monetary policies, the decline of inflation, the change in Bitcoin’s mining difficulty, and growing confidence in DeFi are factors that point to a renewed surge for crypto prices.

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 WeekDC Attorney General sues Michael Saylor and MicroStrategy for tax evasionMicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor faces charges of evading United States income taxes he allegedly incurred while living in Washington, DC. The office of the region’s attorney general, Karl Racine, has sued Saylor and MicroStrategy on claims that the firm helped Saylor evade over $25 million in DC income tax. The charges, stemming in part from an amendment to DC’s False Claims Act encouraging whistleblowers to report tax evasion, mean Saylor could see $75 million in penalties.Crypto.com backs out of $495M sponsorship deal with UEFA Champions League: ReportCrypto.com has decided not to go through with a $495 million sponsorship agreement in response to possible regulatory issues. The sponsorship deal with the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) would have seen Crypto.com advertised in the UEFA Champions League for five seasons. The crypto exchange was reportedly in sponsorship talks after the Champions League removed Gazprom, an energy company owned by the Russian state, as a sponsor. Crypto.com already has several high-profile advertising efforts under its belt, such as a commercial starring American actor Matt Damon.Indonesia plans to set up its crypto bourse by the end of 2022Indonesia could have a crypto bourse, also known as a crypto exchange, constructed by its government before 2023 arrives. Initially unveiled in late 2021, the crypto bourse’s completion has taken longer than expected, but the government aims to get things right instead of rushing a launch. “We will make sure that every requirement, procedure and the necessary steps have been taken,” Jerry Sambuaga, Indonesia’s deputy trade minister, told DealStreetAsia.Tether requests Roche Freedman to be booted from class actionTether and Bitfinex are still locked in a lawsuit that began in 2019 alleging that the USDT stablecoin was used to manipulate the cryptocurrency market. The legal team for Tether and Bitfinex is seeking that the plaintiff‘s legal counsel, the law firm Roche Freedman, be let go from the case due to the firm’s involvement with Kyle Roche — the subject of a recent CryptoLeaks video claiming he misused privileged information to “harm” Ava Labs competitors in exchange for AVAX tokens. Kyle Roche recently moved to dismiss himself from multiple legal cases, including the one involving defendant Bitfinex and Tether. However, the defendant still wants the Roche Freedman firm out of the lawsuit completely, in addition to requesting that their private information be destroyed or returned by Roche Freedman.Central African Republic court says new $60,000 citizenship-by-crypto-investment program is unconstitutionalIn July, the Central African Republic (CAR) launched its Sango hub — a new crypto-focused initiative aimed at expanding the adoption of Bitcoin and creating a special economic zone in the Metaverse. The initiative also included the creation of a Bitcoin-backed digital asset called Sango that also allowed foreign nationals to purchase citizenship in the country for $60,000 in crypto, with an equivalent amount of Sango tokens held in collateral for five years. The CAR’s Constitutional Court deemed the efforts unconstitutional, however, noting that citizenship does not have a price tag.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $20,369, Ether (ETH) at $1,636 and XRP at $0.33. The total market cap is at $1.00 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Celsius (CEL) at 36.41%, eCash (XEC) at 20.70% and Lido DAO (LDO) at 18.05%. The top three altcoin losers of the week are Helium (HNT) at -24.47%, Avalanche (AVAX) at -10.41% and Arweave (AR) at -9.92%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Building new things is not for the faint hearted.”Neil Dundon, founder of CryptoRecruit“Ethereum is about permissionless innovation, free enterprise, property rights, globalization.”Ryan Berckmans, member of the Ethereum community“We eventually came round to the idea at Coinbase that we’re going to have to be agnostic to every chain and token that is coming out. We can’t sit here in our ivory tower only focused on one asset.”Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase“I feel that [crypto] cannot be partisan.”Tom Emmer, member of the U.S. House of Representatives“Most of crypto is still junk, actually. I mean, with the exception of, I would say, a few dozen tokens, everything else that has been mentioned is either noise or, frankly, it’s just gonna go away.”Umar Farooq, head of Onyx, JPMorgan’s digital assets unit “Cryptocurrencies have taken a life of their own outside of the distributed ledger — and this is the source of the crypto world’s problems.”Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of SingaporePrediction of the Week Bitcoin squeeze to $23K still open as crypto market cap holds key supportFor most of this week, Bitcoin could not decide whether it wanted to stay above or below $20,000, trading north and south of the level numerous times, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index.In a Friday tweet, pseudonymous Twitter user “il Capo Of Crypto” noted that a possible short squeeze could occur if BTC rose above the $20,700-to-$20,800 price zone. Pending a break of this level, Bitcoin could then hit between $22,500 and $23,000. On the flip side, dropping below $19,500 would likely take the squeeze off the table, especially if the asset continued to drop below $19,000.FUD of the Week FBI issues alert over cybercriminal exploits targeting DeFiThis week, a public service announcement from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) cautioned the public over a proliferation of decentralized finance (DeFi) exploits, stating that those interested in DeFi should be careful. The agency also noted that DeFi platforms should conduct code audits to check for weaknesses. Dwarfing totals from 2020 and 2021 combined, nefarious actors have pilfered more than $1.6 billion via DeFi exploits so far in 2022 per data from CertiK, a blockchain security company.  Accomplice of ‘Cryptoqueen’ Ruja Ignatova faces extradition to US: ReportBritish citizen Christopher Hamilton, alleged accomplice of Ruja Ignatova, could see extradition to the U.S. thanks to a ruling from a judge in the United Kingdom. However, the move still requires approval from a U.K. government executive authority. Hamilton allegedly had a hand in the $4 billion OneCoin Ponzi scheme connected to Ruja Ignatova, aka the “Cryptoqueen.” In June, the FBI added Ignatova to the list of its ten most sought-after fugitives. Charges against Hamilton include laundering $105 million in connection to the Ponzi scheme. Sneaky fake Google Translate app installs crypto miner on 112,000 PCsThe crypto and technology sectors are often riddled with tech traps and scams. One particular effort, ongoing since 2019, is particularly tricky. A certain type of malware named “Nitrokod” sits hidden within counterfeit computer apps and starts mining Monero (XMR), but only after a few days have passed. The malware lies within convincing versions of fake apps, such as a Google Translate app that boasts numerous positive reviews online. An official Google Translate desktop app does not even exist, however, but this malware-infused app has become a top search result. Nitrokod malware has affected over 100,000 devices spanning almost a dozen countries. Best Cointelegraph FeaturesBillions are spent marketing crypto to sports fans — Is it worth it?“Without explicit use cases tied to the massive dollars paid for sports marketing sponsorships, the branding only leads to logo exposure.”Get ready for the feds to start indicting NFT tradersSecurities and Exchange Commission regulators should move to protect investors from traders who distort the NFT market with manipulative trades — and they probably will soon.Why interoperability is the key to blockchain technology’s mass adoptionInteroperability enables blockchain networks and protocols to communicate with each other, making it easier for everyday users to engage with blockchain technology.

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 WeekFed to issue long-awaited guidelines for granting master accounts to crypto banksCrypto’s continued journey into the mainstream has come with various levels of regulatory action across the globe. This week brought clarity in terms of expectations for crypto-focused banks seeking accounts with the United States Federal Reserve. A framework released by the Federal Reserve Board details expectations for such applicant banks, including the level of due diligence to be provided based on each applicant’s risk level. Giving crypto-focused banks access to the Fed’s so-called “master accounts” has been a slow process, but it suggests that regulators are gradually integrating digital assets into mainstream finance.BlockFi tops the Inc. 5000 list with almost 250,000% revenue growth in three yearsCentralized finance player BlockFi topped Inc. magazine’s 2022 list of U.S. companies showing the highest revenue growth over the past three years. Although the list showcases 5,000 companies posting revenue growth, making it into consideration for the list requires paying a small fee and submitting an application. Be that as it may, BlockFi has tallied a 245,616% increase in revenue — substantially higher than the company holding second place on the list.Ethereum Foundation clarifies that the upcoming Merge upgrade will not reduce gas feesEthereum’s highly anticipated Merge, which involves a shift to proof-of-stake from the current proof-of-work consensus mechanism, should arrive before 2022 is over — possibly in September, according to expectations. The move is a significant piece of the puzzle regarding Ethereum’s forward progression. Although the Merge means lessened energy required for running the Ethereum blockchain, that does not mean the network’s gas fees will fall, according to the Ethereum Foundation.“Gas fees are a product of network demand relative to the network’s capacity,” the foundation specified this week. “The Merge deprecates the use of proof-of-work, transitioning to proof-of-stake for consensus, but does not significantly change any parameters that directly influence network capacity or throughput.”UK hits double-digit inflation for the first time in 40 yearsInflation currently affects billions of people across the globe. The United Kingdom, specifically, has now entered double-digit territory for inflation, according to the latest consumer price index (CPI) reading. July’s CPI came in at 10.1% year-over-year, up from 9.4% in June and the highest since February 1982. A sharp rise in the price of gas, food and other goods contributed to the high inflation print.BitGo to sue Galaxy Digital for $100M over dropped acquisitionDigital asset custody firm BitGo intends to pursue legal action against crypto firm Galaxy Digital to the tune of more than $100 million. Galaxy canceled its move to acquire BitGo, stating that BitGo missed its deadline to provide certain financial documents. Legal representation for BitGo alleged that Galaxy is obligated to pay $100 million as a termination cost or an equivalent or greater amount in damages, while a Galaxy spokesperson stated the company’s choice to cancel the deal was within its contractual rights based on BitGo’s missed deadline.FTX US among 5 companies to receive cease and desist letters from FDICThe U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has issued cease and desist letters to five companies, including FTX US, for allegedly making false representations about deposit insurance related to digital assets. The government agency claims FTX US and four other companies involved in crypto-related publications misrepresented the FDIC’s deposit insurance protection by claiming that it also applies to certain digital asset products. The FDIC has asked the companies to “take immediate corrective action to address these false or misleading statements.”Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $21,394, Ether (ETH) at $1,700 and XRP at $0.33. The total market cap is at $1.02 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Chiliz (CHZ) at 26.90%, UNUS SED LEO (LEO) at 12.13% and Shiba Inu (SHIB) at 8.01%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Convex Finance (CVX) at -26.39%, Oasis Network (ROSE) at -25.56% and THORChain (RUNE) at -24.77%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Achieving a balance requires law enforcement to give up on unrealistic assumptions about unfettered access to everyone’s data on a silver platter.”Ahmed Ghappour, general counsel at Nym Technologies“As soon as you start to say to energy companies, ‘Oh, you can do this with your power, but not this,’ then they’ll start to tell you which networks you can mine, or you can mine this coin but not that coin.”Andy Long, CEO of White Rock“Right now, staking on the Beacon Chain carries the risk that the Merge doesn’t happen. But once it does, participation in staking is more accessible and has less technical risk.”Lex Sokolin, head economist at ConsenSys“Predicting a stock crash is a lot like predicting an earthquake. You know one will happen every so often but you can never tell exactly when or how severe it will be.”Mati Greenspan, CEO and founder of Quantum Economics“Those involved in illicit activity would be wise to steer clear of blockchain-related assets and stick to the tried and tested dollar. The United States dollar is still the most utilized and preferred currency for money laundering.”Durgham Mushtaha, business development manager for Coinfirm“While consumers tend to attribute high importance to privacy in surveys, they tend to give away their data for free, or in exchange for very small rewards in practice.”European Central Bank Working Paper SeriesPrediction of the Week Bitcoin price dives pre-FOMC amid warning $17.6K low was not the bottomBitcoin’s price took a downward turn on Friday as the crypto market continues wading through a macro bearish backdrop. The asset fell below $22,000 mere days after briefly crossing the $25,000 mark, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC price index.In a Wednesday tweet, Crypto Academy founder Justin Bennett compared S&P 500 chart activity to what was seen in 2008. “This is mind-blowing,” Bennett said, adding:“The S&P 500 is mimicking the 2008 crash. Even the timing since the ATH [all-time high] is nearly identical. The bottom is NOT in for stocks or crypto.”FUD of the Week Network and token freeze after Acala exploit raises questionsAnother stablecoin depeg occurred this week — this time, the result of a hacker exploiting a bug connected to decentralized finance solution Acala. The aUSD stablecoin, which aims to keep value on par with the U.S. dollar, plummeted to $0.01 after the hacker created 1.2 billion aUSD tokens using no collateral. Acala’s team turned on maintenance mode, which paused the function of several activities, including freezing the illegitimately created assets.Study: Insider trading occurs in 10% to 25% of cryptocurrency listingsA draft of a study from the University of Technology Sydney dove into the topic of insider trading — trading based on non-public information. Evaluating specific Coinbase asset listings between Sept. 25, 2018, and May 1, 2022, the university estimated that between 10% and 25% of crypto listings are tainted by insider trading. The conclusion was reached, in part, by comparing data to past examples of insider trading on the stock market as a baseline. Definitive determination of foul play, however, is often difficult to prove.2017 ICOs aren’t over yet: SEC files suit against Dragonchain and its founderThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is still apparently sorting out crypto-related issues from 2017. Dragonchain and multiple related parties face action from the SEC, as per a complaint filed by the government agency and publicized on Tuesday. The commission faults Dragonchain and certain parties for using an initial coin offering and presale to accumulate $16.5 million without registering with the SEC.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesCourt filings reveal Celsius will run out of money by OctoberCelsius Network has been heading down a slippery slope since it filed for bankruptcy in July.Optimism fading? Regulatory discussion on stablecoins postponed until fallWhile there is no shortage of legislative initiatives to regulate stablecoins, the idea of a U.S. CBDC remains problematic.Another depeg: Acala trace report reveals 3B aUSD erroneously mintedAs the dust settles on another decentralized finance exploit, Acala continues to trace erroneously minted tokens after a misconfiguration in a newly launched liquidity pool.

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 WeekElon Musk: US ’past peak inflation’ after Tesla sells 90% of BitcoinWith Tesla now having sold 90% of its Bitcoin holdings during the bear market, Elon Musk says the U.S. economy is “past peak inflation” and predicts that only a “mild to moderate” recession could be incoming. “We sort of have some insight into where prices are headed over time, and the interesting thing that we’re seeing now is that most of our commodities, most of the things that go into a Tesla — not all, more than half the prices — are trending down in six months from now,” Musk said at Tesla’s 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.Coming sooner: ETH devs move up the date for MergeThe long-awaited Merge looks to be ahead of schedule, with Ethereum core developers Tim Beiko and Terence Tsao agreeing on a developer call Thursday to tentatively set the date of the Merge for Sept. 15. The previously estimated date from Beiko was Sept. 19, and suggested that the final preparation work is going smoothly after the final Goerli testnet merge went off without a hitch this week.Coinbase posts $1.1B loss in Q2 on ‘fast and furious’ crypto downturnMajor crypto exchange Coinbase posted a whopping Q2 loss of $1.1 billion, citing a “fast and furious” crypto downturn during the quarter. The firm noted that Q2 was a “tough quarter” as trading volume and transaction revenue fell 30% and 35%, respectively. It marks the second consecutive quarter of loss for the company this year. “The current downturn came fast and furious, and we are seeing customer behavior mirror that of past down markets,” the firm wrote in a shareholder letter posted on Tuesday. Decentralized apps on Polygon hit 37,000, rocketing 400% this yearThe number of DApps on Ethereum scaling platform Polygon topped 37,000 this week, marking a 400% increase since the start of 2022. The project provided a breakdown of DApp projects built on Polygon, which notably showed that “74% of teams integrated exclusively on Polygon, while 26% deployed on both Polygon and Ethereum.” Polygon also stated that its ecosystem has now seen more than “142 million unique user addresses and $5 billion in assets secured,” with around 1.6 billion transactions processed on the network to date.Anonymous user sends ETH from Tornado Cash to prominent figures following sanctionsOne day after the U.S. Treasury sanctioned crypto mixer Tornado Cash over its alleged role in money laundering operations, intervals of 0.1 Ether transactions began being sent from the smart contract to prominent figures such as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and American television host Jimmy Fallon. The move appears to be a critique or satirical commentary on the U.S. government’s current policy of also sanctioning addresses that interacted with Tornado Cash.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $23,840.93, Ether (ETH) at $1,882.20 and XRP at $0.37. The total market cap is at $1.13 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Celsius (CEL) at 93.85%, Ankr (ANKR) at 46.99% and Decred (DCR) at 26.34%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are ApeCoin (APE) at 9.03%, Curve DAO Token (CRV) at 5.01% and Kusama (KSM) at 4.53%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“A senior living community has almost no exposure to the crypto ecosystem unless their grandchildren tell them about it.” Owen Robertson, marketing associate at Dominant Strategies“The fact that I don’t have an alternative to Facebook is the reason why Facebook is a monopoly. But if it was on a blockchain, I could transmit data freely, there could become [different] Facebooks.” Yat Siu, co-founder of Animoca Brands“In the past six months or so, we’ve seen valuations on companies come down to a bit more realistic valuations, and it’s become a great time to begin allocating capital.” Gerard Berile, venture and investment principal at Wave Financial“Going forward, that mentality towards risk management while still being bullish over the long term is very important. […] You can be bullish on crypto, but you can still sell out of the market.” Jeffrey Gao, CEO of Cypherpunk Holdings “Scalability isn’t just like some boring thing where you just need like ‘cost numbers go down’ scalability, I think actually enables and unlocks entirely new classes of applications.” Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum“So I think institutional adoption is where it’s going, and the institutions are what is going to enable […] that killer app for consumers to really bring crypto and DeFi to the next level.”Boris Alergant, head of DeFi markets at Ripple LabsPrediction of the Week $29K Bitcoin is closer than you might expect, according to derivatives dataWith Bitcoin’s price continuing to battle $24,000 resistance, facing rejection on Aug. 10 but managing not to be knocked off the 52-day-long ascending channel, Cointelegraph market analyst Marcel Pechman suggested the price could eventually hit $29,000 by October. He pointed to a bullish chart formation with a support level of $22,500 that indicates the price could climb to just under $30,000. Pechman also noted that while BTC derivatives data show a lack of interest from leveraged longs, there is no indication of a surprise crash being priced into the market. FUD of the Week ASIC chair troubled by sheer amount of ‘risk-taking’ crypto investorsJoe Longo, the chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), has raised alarm bells over the number of Aussies that invested in “unregulated, volatile” crypto assets during the pandemic. As part of a media release on Thursday, Longo pointed to ASIC research from November 2021 that found that crypto was the second most common investment product, with 44% of those surveyed reporting holding it. Out of those investors, 25% indicated that crypto assets were the only investment class they were involved in.Cross-chain bridge RenBridge laundered $540M in hacking proceeds: EllipticAccording to a Wednesday report from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, crypto bridge RenBridge has facilitated the laundering of at least $540 million in hacking proceeds since 2020. According to the report, the laundering was conducted via a process known as chain hopping — converting one form of cryptocurrency into another and moving it across multiple blockchains.Tornado Cash co-founder reports being kicked off GitHub as industry reacts to sanctionsTornado Cash co-founder Roman Semenov claimed his account on developer platform GitHub was suspended on Monday. Semenov noted that, despite not being individually named as a Specially Designated National by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, he seemed to be facing repercussions relating to the Treasury’s allegations that Tornado Cash laundered more than $7 billion worth of crypto.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesHow to bake your own DAO at home — With just 5 ingredients!Decentralized autonomous organizations come in all sizes and flavors. Some can seem sweet, others turn sour. It can be fun and interesting to create one that suits your needs and satisfies your hunger for something new. Reinventing yourself in the Metaverse through digital identityMetaverse users can reinvent themselves with a digital identity built upon avatars and digital assets, but there are challenges to consider.How Bitcoin whales make a splash in markets and move pricesAre the whales selling in this bear market? A deep dive into their on-chain data.

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 WeekCrypto fundraising hits $30.3B in H1, outpacing all of 2021: ReportA report from crypto analytics firm Messari on Tuesday showed that the crypto sector has raised $30.3 billion in funding this year, already outpacing the total for all of 2021, which was $30.2 billion. The figure was achieved via 1,199 funding rounds in the first half of the year, with $10.3 billion, more than a third of the capital, going towards the centralized finance sector. Notably, the NFT gaming sector raised more than all of decentralized finance at $4 billion. DeFi, comparatively, raised just $1.8 billion. Michael Saylor will step down as MicroStrategy CEO but remain as executive chairBitcoin maxi Michael Saylor is set to step down as CEO of MicroStrategy on Aug. 8. With president Phong Le taking over as CEO, Saylor will assume his new role as executive chairman — a position that will focus almost entirely on building MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin reserves. “I believe that splitting the roles of Chairman and CEO will enable us to better pursue our two corporate strategies of acquiring and holding Bitcoin and growing our enterprise analytics software business,” he said.Facebook’s metaverse will ‘misfire,’ says Vitalik ButerinEthereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin thinks that any metaverse platform coming from Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta is going to “misfire.” Although Buterin singled out Meta, his comments were focused more broadly on the sector as a whole, with him stating that “we don’t really know the definition of ‘the metaverse’ yet, it’s far too early to know what people actually want.“ Voyager to return $270M in customer funds, says it received ‘better’ offers than FTXBankrupt crypto lending firm Voyager Digital has been cleared by a judge in New York to return $270 million worth of customer funds, as it works to make all its customers (in theory) whole again. The firm also stated that it received several “higher and better” buyout offers than the one submitted by Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research back in July.Meta enables Instagram NFT integration in over 100 countriesInstagram has rolled out NFT support across 100 countries in Africa, the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and the Americas. As part of the move, users can integrate wallets from Coinbase or Dapper Labs and post their NFTs based on Ethereum, Polygon or Flow. The move sent the price of the Flow blockchain’s native token, FLOW, surging on Thursday, as it pumped 54% to hit an intraday high of $2.83.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $23,276.79, Ether (ETH) at $1,708.47 and XRP at $0.37. The total market cap is at $1.09 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Flow (FLOW) at 44.86%, Filecoin (FIL) at 37.69% and Optimism (OP) at 25.60%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Qtum (QTUM) at 16.41%, Bitcoin Gold (BTG) at 14.30% and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) at 9.63%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Most people think a metaverse is a virtual place, similar to the movie Ready Player One. They’re wrong. The metaverse is not a place; it’s a moment in time.” Evan Luthra, a Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur“You saw decentralized markets, decentralized lending models, DeFi in general, not fall over. There was no contagion there. What you saw was poor balance sheet management from closed shop trade fee lenders.” Jonathon Miller, managing director at Kraken Australia“We don’t really know the definition of ‘the metaverse’ yet, it’s far too early to know what people actually want. So anything Facebook creates now will misfire.” Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum“You want to encourage people to have some faith in the future and make decisions that make the delay of gratification morally laudable and intelligent. Inflation hurts those people.” Jordan Peterson, clinical psychologist“Regardless of how those funds are stored — locked up in a smart contract or with a centralized custodian — that storage point becomes a target.” Chainalysis, blockchain analytics firm“Of the billions of people and numerous institutional investors on the planet, a large number will lack the technical wherewithal, workflows or interest in holding their own private keys.”Will Peck, head of digital assets at WisdomTreePrediction of the Week Metaverse market share to surpass $50 billion by 2026, says new reportTechnology research and advisory firm Technavio published a report on Metaverse market finance that estimates the sector to have a market share value of $50.37 billion by 2026. The firm estimated that the market will grow by 21% annually over the next four years, and the prediction doesn’t appear to be too far off the mark so far, as 2022’s growth is projected to hit 20.11%.FUD of the Week $2B in crypto stolen from cross-chain bridges this year: ChainalysisAccording to a report from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, cross-chain bridge hacking has resulted in $2 billion in losses across 13 different attacks in 2022 so far. Chainalysis suggested that bridges are often targets because they “feature a central storage point of funds that back the ‘bridged’ assets on the receiving blockchain,” which have become a point of target for hackers. Solana wallets ‘compromised and abandoned’ as users warned of scam solutionsSolana users have been urged to abandon their hot wallets and move their funds to cold storage this week after a significant exploit siphoned an estimated $8 million from roughly 8,000 compromised wallets. The hack was reportedly carried out via a security breach in Web3 wallet provider Slope’s network and also affected Phantom wallet users.Blockchain security firm warns of new MetaMask phishing campaignBlockchain security firm Halborn sent out a warning on Thursday regarding a new phishing campaign targeting MetaMask wallet users. The active phishing campaign uses authentic-looking emails with MetaMask branding that urge users to comply with Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations and verify their wallets, essentially tricking them into giving out their passphrases.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesCleaning up crypto: How much enforcement is too much?Many blockchain companies now believe that regulation is inevitable, but there’s a growing debate over where to draw the line between protecting users and strangling the lifeblood out of the industry — or forcing it outside the United States.NFT communities greenlight Web3 films: A decentralized future for fans and HollywoodThe film industry is one of the most centralized and traditional of them all. Just a handful of movie studios and streaming conglomerates control the lion’s share of the global film market.What Kazakhstan’s new tax regime means for the crypto mining industryNew amendments recently signed by the country’s president could bolster the energy grid refit while keeping overall prices relatively moderate.

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 Week‘Bullish rate hike’ — Why crypto spiked in the face of bad newsDespite the U.S. Federal Reserve announcing a 75-basis-point interest rate hike on Wednesday, the crypto markets pumped significantly on the same day with the momentum continuing through the week. Quantum Economics founder and CEO Mati Greenspan jokingly called it a “bullish rate hike” and stated that investors were clearly expecting far worse. Analysts such as Swyftx’s Pav Hundal suggested the recent rally may be due to an easing of inflationary pressures around gas and goods such as corn and wheat.Ethereum dev confirms Goerli merger date, the final update before the MergeOn Thursday, lead Ethereum developer Tim Beiko revealed that the final Goerli testnet merger ahead of Ethereum’s long-awaited Merge and switch to proof-of-stake will occur between Aug. 6-12. In what has been a long and much-delayed roadmap since late 2020, the Ethereum network is now in the final stages of completing its largest upgrade to date. The official Merge is slated for Sept. 19 but could be subject to further delays if there are issues with the Goerli testnet. Zuckerberg unfazed about $2.8B metaverse division loss in Q2Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated that he was unfazed by the company copping a $2.8 billion loss on its Metaverse division in Q2. He highlighted that the company’s Metaverse goals will take several years to roll out, but he sees a “massive opportunity” to make hundreds of billions of dollars, or even trillions, over time as the sector matures. “I’m confident that we’re going to be glad that we played an important role in building this,” he said.Cathie Wood sells Coinbase shares amid insider trading allegationsCathie Wood’s investment firm Ark Investment Management, which is one of the largest shareholders of Coinbase (COIN), reportedly dumped 1.4 million COIN shares on Tuesday. The shedding was done via three of Ark’s exchange-traded funds (ETF), and the sale was estimated to be worth around $75 million. The firm reportedly held nearly 9 million COIN shares in late June and has continually snapped up the stock since it opened at roughly $350 last April. Since then, the price has tanked heavily to sit just below $63, and Ark probably should have shorted it when Jim Cramer called it “cheap” at $248 last August.Tesla reports $64M profit from Bitcoin saleThe Elon Musk-led electric vehicle maker Tesla posted a respectable $64 million profit after selling 75% of its BTC holdings in Q2. The gains seem notable considering the company sold during the middle of a bear market; however, what’s more important and exciting is that Musk appears to be finally losing interest in crypto and we won’t need to hear from him anymore. The firm is said to still have 10,800 BTC on its books, which is worth around $255 million at the time of writing.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $23,559.86, Ether (ETH) at $1,674.34 and XRP at $0.36. The total market cap is at $1.08 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Optimism (OP) at 75.71%, Ethereum Classic (ETC) at 58.20% and Qtum (QTUM) at 41.89%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are Huobi Token (HT) at 9.10%, Kusama (KSM) at 8.98% and NEAR Protocol (NEAR) at 7.76%.For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“A lot of NFT projects are just speculation with no real tangible spine, no real true story. Having a football club to root for every week? That’s a spine that people attach themselves to.” Preston Johnson, co-owner of Crawley Town F.C. and co-founder of WAGMI United“Industry shouldn’t be allowed to write the rules that they want to play by.”Sherrod Brown, U.S. senator and chair of the Senate Banking Committee“We think it is more relevant for local projects to benefit the local economy, and not just take products to the United States to benefit traders there, for example.” Lou Yu, head of KuCoin Labs “Powell is particularly skilled at delivering bad news. Clearly investors were expecting worse.” Mati Greenspan, founder and CEO of Quantum Economics“The Metaverse is a massive opportunity for a number of reasons. I feel even more strongly now that developing these platforms will unlock hundreds of billions of dollars, if not trillions, over time.” Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta“I worry about things that are not directly related to blockchain and the Metaverse. I worry about climate change and about social fragmentation.” Neal Stephenson, author of Snow CrashPrediction of the Week GameFi industry to see $2.8 billion valuation in six yearsAbsolute Reports published a GameFi-focused report this week estimating that the play-to-earn NFT gaming industry will be worth $2.8 billion by 2028. For it to reach the target, GameFi would need a compound annual growth rate of 20.4% over six years, given that the sector was estimated to be worth $776.9 million last year. The reasons for this lofty target, however, are locked behind a paywall.FUD of the Week Solana-based stablecoin NIRV drops 85% following $3.5M exploitThe algorithmic stablecoin from Solana-based adaptive yield protocol Nirvana Finance, NIRV, de-pegged by 85% this week after the protocol was hacked for $3.49 million worth of USDT. The incident was cited as a flash loan attack which resulted in the funds being siphoned from Nirvana’s treasury. Its native token, ANA, also dropped 85% as a result of the hack.Phishing risks escalate as Celsius confirms client emails leakedOn Tuesday, beleaguered and bankrupt crypto lending firm Celsius emailed its customers, informing them that a list of their emails had been leaked by an employee of one of its business data management and messaging vendors, Customer.io. The firm has played down the incident, stating that it did not “present any high risks to [its] clients,” adding that they just wanted users to “be aware” — although Celsius also said similar things regarding users’ assets after pausing withdrawals several weeks ago.TikTok data policy debacle: Is user’s crypto at risk?Popular social media app TikTok is facing backlash over its far-reaching data collection policies that could extract large amounts of sensitive info from a user’s smartphone or computer. As such, crypto users are now worried about whether TikTok is capable of scraping critical data such as private wallet keys. “TikTok is not just another video app. That’s the sheep’s clothing. It harvests swaths of sensitive data that new reports show are being accessed in Beijing,” claimed U.S. Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesThe Merge is Ethereum’s chance to take over Bitcoin, researcher saysEthereum’s imminent transition to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism will transform its monetary policy, potentially making ETH more scarce than Bitcoin.Tokenomics not Ponzi-nomics: Influencing behavior, making moneyEconomics is the study of human behavior involving scarce resources — and the effects those behaviors have on those resources, explains Roderick McKinley.When worlds collide: Joining Web3 and crypto from Web2A friend of mine who is a seasoned Web2 tech executive joined a Web3 company in June. A switched-on operator, he asked to speak with all 16 staff before deciding to join the firm.

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 Week3AC founders reveal ties to Terra founder, blame overconfidence for collapseAfter five weeks of being AWOL, the founders of defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, resurfaced via an interview with Bloomberg. The duo admitted to operating the firm with overconfidence as a result of the multi-year bull market. They also noted that they were very close with Terra founder Do Kwon and, despite running a major hedge fund, were shocked that the project’s extremely risky algorithmic stablecoin went bust. Zhu and Davies said they overlooked several red flags as a result of the kinship.Mojang Studios bans Minecraft NFT integrationsMinecraft developers Mojang Studios banned nonfungible token (NFT) integrations in their wildly popular flagship game this week. The firm cited issues with NFTs being associated with price speculation, exclusion and rug pulls. “To ensure that Minecraft players have a safe and inclusive experience, blockchain technologies are not permitted to be integrated inside our client and server applications,” the firm announced. Crypto-skeptic gamers also called on Fornite developer Epic Games to follow suit, but the company said it “definitely won’t” institute a similar ban.SEC listing 9 tokens as securities in insider trading case ‘could have broad implications’ — CFTCThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has listed nine crypto assets as securities as part of the insider trading case against former Coinbase product manager Ishan Wahi. The SEC named Powerledger (POWR), Kromatika (KROM), DFX Finance (DFX), Amp (AMP), Rally (RLY), Rari Governance Token (RGT), DerivaDAO (DDX), LCX, and XYO. These were just nine of a total of 25 different assets that were allegedly used for insider trading.Experts reveal what Tesla’s $936M sell-off means for BitcoinFollowing the news that Tesla sold 75% of its Bitcoin in Q2 for roughly $936 million, experts have remained relatively unfazed. Markus Thielen, chief investment officer at digital asset manager IDEG, told Cointelegraph that Tesla likely sold off its BTC as it was “seen as a distraction from their core business.” Financial consultation site Finder’s share trading expert, Kylie Purcell, suggested that many firms have moved to “shore up capital in cash currencies” amid the current macroeconomic climate. Some Twitter users even called the move a “nothingburger,” implying that Tesla’s move may ultimately be insignificant.Amazon.eth ENS domain owner disregards 1M USDC buyout offer on OpenSeaOn Tuesday, the Amazon.eth ENS domain belonging to an anonymous OpenSea user fetched a bid of 1 million USD Coin. It has become a common practice for speculators to register ENS domains under the names of prominent entities in hopes of scoring a big payday. The bid went unanswered, however, and it is unclear why such a large sum of money was ignored. The next largest bid on the domain totaled just 6,300 USDC.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $23,478.96, Ether (ETH) at $1,598.64 and XRP at $0.36. The total market cap is at $1.06 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Ethereum Classic (ETC) at 71.03%, Bitcoin Gold (BTG) at 50.95% and Lido DAO (LDO) at 48.60%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are TerraClassicUSD (USTC) at 17.08%, Elrond (EGLD) at 5.05% and Internet Computer (ICP) at 1.85%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“All the Ethereum killers from back in the day didn’t succeed, and I don’t expect them to succeed at all.” Freddy Zwanzger, Ethereum ecosystem lead at Blockdaemon“Developers should be free to decide how to build their games, and you are free to decide whether to play them.” Tim Sweeney, Founder and CEO of Epic Games“Don’t try to fix fraudsters or Nazis or terrorists. They will remain. They existed before the internet and they’ll exist after.”Tomer Poran, vice president of business development at ActiveFence “Crypto revolutionized how people use the web, as we’ve seen Chrome extensions utilized. If we can prove this in mobile devices, that will be a game changer.” Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder of Solana “The Merge upgrade is like changing the engine on a plane mid-flight. We are overhauling everything from the consensus algorithm to the execution environment.” Vasily Shapovalov, co-founder of Lido “I would not be surprised if Tesla keeps nibbling in Bitcoin when Bitcoin stabilizes, otherwise they would have sold 100%.” Markus Thielen, chief investment officer at IDEGPrediction of the Week Bitcoin may hit $120K in 2023, says trader as BTC price gains 25% in a weekThe price of BTC could be heading to $120,000 next year, according to a Bitcoin trader who goes by TechDev on Twitter. They flagged the True Strength Index (TSI) for BTC as evidence, a metric that uses several base calculations to determine how overbought or oversold the asset is at a particular price. According to TechDev, the asset’s price decline since November has remained on trend, and if historical patterns repeat themselves, BTC could pump to a peak of between $80,000 and $120,000 next year. FUD of the Week Gemini cuts more staff as many crypto prices increase: ReportGemini, the crypto exchange owned by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, reportedly cut another 7% of its employees this week. The move came just two months after the firm laid off 10% of its employees as a result of the current bear market. The report came from TechCrunch, which cited a source close to the firm who noted that Gemini had 68 fewer employees on the company’s Slack channel this month.FBI issues public warning over fake crypto appsThis week, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a public warning over fake crypto apps. The FBI estimates that the apps have duped investors out of a whopping $42.7 million so far. Cybercriminals are said to have created the apps using the same logos and branding as legitimate crypto firms to scam investors. The FBI stated that 244 people had already fallen victim to these fake apps.Skybridge announces suspension of withdrawals from one of its crypto-exposed fundsTaking a cue from firms such as Celsius and Voyager, SkyBridge Capital has suspended withdrawals from its crypto-exposed Legion Strategies fund. Founder Anthony Scaramucci stated the decision was made to “temporarily suspend until we can raise capital inside the fund.” He stated that there was “definitely no fear of any liquidation whatsoever.”Best Cointelegraph FeaturesThe ‘godfather of crypto’ risked lifetime in jail, laying foundation for BitcoinWidely credited as the inventor of digital cash, David Chaum is sometimes known as the “father of online anonymity” or the “godfather of cryptocurrency,” whose work inspired the near-mythical group called the Cypherpunks from which Bitcoin emerged.Will intellectual property issues sidetrack NFT adoption?In posting NFT artwork on social media, a new owner could be breaking intellectual property laws. A “wave of litigation has already begun.”How blockchain technology is used to save the environmentIt’s hard to overestimate the role blockchain technology will play in achieving more sustainability and lessening the climate crisis.

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 WeekOpenSea lays off 20% of its staff, citing ‘crypto winter’Leading NFT marketplace OpenSea plans to lay off around 20% of its staff, with co-founder and CEO Devin Finzer citing “an unprecedented combination of crypto winter and broad macroeconomic instability” as the reasons behind the move. He also added, “The changes we’re making today put us in a position to maintain multiple years of runway under various crypto winter scenarios (5 years at the current volume), and give us high confidence that we will only have to go through this process once.”Celsius has filed for bankruptcyCelsius, the crypto lending platform that has had customer funds locked up for several weeks but previously claimed to be more trustworthy and safer than a bank, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday. According to an email received by Celsius customers, the company voluntarily filed petitions for Chapter 11 reorganization and used the same firm as Voyager Digital for its bankruptcy proceedings. It is unclear what will happen with users’ funds at this stage, given there may be a $1.2 billion hole in the firm’s balance sheet. Polygon selected to participate in Disney’s 2022 Accelerator ProgramEarlier this week, Disney invited Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution Polygon to participate in its prestigious 2022 accelerator program. Polygon was the only blockchain to receive an invite despite this year’s program being focused on augmented reality (AR), NFTs and AI. Disney offers participants mentorship from the Disney Accelerator team and guidance from the leadership of Disney itself.3AC co-founder returns to Twitter, blames liquidators for “baiting”Su Zhu, the co-founder of defunct and insolvent crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Captial (3AC), returned to Twitter on Tuesday after nearly a month of inactivity. In his first tweet upon returning, he cryptically suggested that liquidators baited the firm regarding StarkWare token warrants. Unsurprisingly, Zhu did not take any time to explain how he and his team ran the company into the ground, nor did he discuss the $650 million from Voyager Digital that it defaulted on.Voyager can’t guarantee all customers will receive their crypto under proposed recovery planSpeaking of the $650 million loan that 3AC defaulted on, Voyager Digital revealed this week that it can’t guarantee that it can return all its customers’ locked assets on the platform, as it is uncertain how much of the 3AC loan it will be able to reclaim. “The exact numbers will depend on what happens in the restructuring process and the recovery of 3AC assets,” the lending firm said.Winners and LosersAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $20,877.21, Ether (ETH) at $1,219.26 and XRP at $0.33. The total market cap is at $939.8 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Quant (QNT) at 66.94%, Lido DAO (LDO) at 63.32% and Aave (AAVE) at 34.44%.  The top three altcoin losers of the week are UNUS SED LEO (LEO) at 8.15%, Dogecoin (DOGE) at 8.74% and Basic Attention Token (BAT) at 7.71%. For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.Most Memorable Quotations“Deposits in banks aren’t even ‘customer assets’, let alone ‘assets under management’. They are unsecured loans to the bank. They are thus liabilities of the bank and fully at risk in bankruptcy.”Frances Coppola, economist and author of Coppola Comment blog “In the past, innovative firms would have been pleading for less regulation. Now they understand and appreciate that rules are there to help provide certainty.” Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority “This could be Mt. Gox 2.0. Court proceedings may drag out the process of Celsius customers receiving any of their deposits back well into the future.” Danny Talwar, head of tax at Koinly“Inside growing companies, there’s a danger that product and engineering teams start shipping great slide decks instead of great products.” Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase“Crypto winters are always the best time to drill down on these core concepts, do the work and build for the future.” Alex Tapscott, managing director at Ninepoint Digital Asset Group“I am confident that this latest judgment using NFT service has the potential to show the way to digital service over the blockchain, with all the benefits of immutability and authentication.”Demetri Bezaintes, associate at Giambrone & PartnersPrediction of the Week NFT market worth $231B by 2030? Report projects big growth for sectorGlobal research and consulting firm Verified Market Research (VMR) published a report this week that predicted that the NFT market’s total value could surge past $231 billion by 2030. The company estimated the global NFT market to be worth $11.3 billion as of 2021 in a 202-page deep dive into the sector. VMR predicted that the entire NFT market would expand at a compound annual growth rate of 33.7% over the next eight years.FUD of the Week ‘Nobody is holding them back’ — North Korean cyber-attack threat risesDuring an interview with CNN on Sunday, former CIA analyst Soo Kim suggested that the notion of generating foreign income via crypto cyber attacks has become a “way of life” for North Koreans due to several issues the current regime faces. “In light of the challenges that the regime is facing — food shortages, fewer countries willing to engage with North Korea, […] this is just going to be something that they will continue to use because nobody is holding them back, essentially,” she said. Tencent shuts down NFT platform as gov policy makes it impossible to thriveChinese technology giant Tencent shut down one of its two NFT marketplaces this week, with the firm citing a strong downturn in sales as a result of the regressive policies of the government. It’s been reported that sales have slowed down mainly because of a flawed government policy that prohibits buyers from selling their NFTs in private transactions after purchase, removing all speculative behavior and making the asset class not so lucrative.Sri Lanka central bank reiterates crypto warning following protestors seizing president’s residenceWith Sri Lanka facing economic and political turmoil, and the president’s house being overrun by protestors, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has oddly warned against using cryptocurrencies due to a lack of regulatory oversight and risks associated with the assets. Given that the warning comes amid Sri Lanka’s inflation rates reaching more than 54% in June, a lack of regulation in crypto is probably a non-issue for a local citizen.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesAfter Terra’s fall to Earth, get ready for the stablecoin eraDid May’s algorithmic stablecoin crashes kill the concept, or is there still a role for fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies? US crypto regulation bill aims to bring greater clarity to DAOsThe Responsible Financial Innovation Act proposes a comprehensive set of regulations for the digital assets sector, and one potentially impactful section is DAOs.Your crypto wallet is the key to your Web3 identityWeb2 identity has been all about linked email addresses and social media accounts. Now that Web3 is poised to move in, here’s why crypto wallets will be the new key to ID.