Crypto Mountains

2023-09-30 18:01:26 Epic Games Trims Workforce by 16% Due to Unrealistic Metaverse Revenue Projections

Epic Games, the creator of Battle Royale Smash, Fortnite, is cutting off approximately 830 staff, or 16% of its workforce, as it looks to reduce its costs and create a viable financial ecosystem for the company.

On Thursday, CEO Tim Sweeney confirmed this in a memo later in a blog post. He attributed the cause to be due to overspending “ way more than they earn” and their unrealistic expectations from metaverse-inspired revenue.

“For a while now, we’ve been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators.”

Tim Sweeney stated that Epic, the Unreal Engine development platform, has been actively implementing cost-saving measures in areas such as marketing and events. However, he emphasized that despite these efforts, layoffs were deemed necessary to achieve financial stability. Open / Comment

2023-09-27 18:01:33 US Fed Reserve Banks State Stablecoins Could Inject Instability in Economy

The United States Federal Reserve Banks of Boston and New York have published a data-driven report that delves into the potential impact of stablecoins on the broader economic landscape. In the 49-page report titled "Runs and Flights to Safety: Are Stablecoins the New Money Market," stablecoins are likened to certain traditional finance vehicles, notably money market funds (MMFs).

The comprehensive report also highlighted that stablecoins and MMFs provide money-like assets to investors due to their stable nominal value by engaging in liquidity transformation. However, like conventional bank deposits, issuing continuous liquidity may render them vulnerable to runs.

The report also includes a case study of stablecoin runs, specifically focusing on incidents involving USDT and USDC in 2022 and 2023. It draws similarities and differences between these events and the runs experienced by money market funds in 2008 and 2020. As per the investigative research, stablecoins are vulnerable during downtrends in the broader cryptocurrency market or when unexpected issues arise. Open / Comment

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2023-09-24 19:00:00 6.8% of Nansen's Third-party Vendor Impacted By Cyber Attack

On-chain insights platform Nansen has revealed that a third-party vendor's system has been compromised. As a result, about 6.8% of the customers' data have been affected.

Providing more details, the blockchain analytics platform stated that the event occurred on September 20, but it declined to mention the vendor impacted by the security breach.

In a brief description, Nansen revealed that the affected vendor was an established company that secured customer data for Fortune companies.

The security breach led to the customer's data being compromised. According to the blockchain software firm, the cyber attack granted the intruders administrative rights to an account used to "provision customer access" to its platform.

Given this, their email addresses, the users' password hashes, and their blockchain wallet addresses were exposed on the internet. The affected customers have been duly informed of the security incident and instructed to change their passwords.

Despite not naming the impacted party publicly, Nansen has instructed the vendor to release a public statement momentarily. Open / Comment

2023-08-31 20:30:30 Web3 and the Financial Sector: Must-Knows for Business Leaders

Blockchain tech company Paxos published a blog post on Tuesday illustrating how Web3 can empower enterprises in the financial sector, and kickstart a “new era” of digital sovereignty.

“Web3” is a loose term for capturing the oncoming third generation of the internet, which combines the decentralization of the early internet with the utility and functionality of the modern age.

Blockchain is at the center of this transformation, creating a decentralized foundation for storing and exchanging both information and money.

By outsourcing such “essential infrastructure components” beyond a single entity, Paxos believes blockchain can help restore the rapidly “waning trust” in traditional institutions.

Security would also receive a boost, as decentralized business models would help defend against surging cybercrime and data misuse, again fostering digital trust.

Moreover, Web3 empowers consumers to take control of their personal data, rather than seeing it harvested and sold by centralized platforms. Consumers could therefore monetize their data individually, and create “more equitable digital ecosystem.” Paxos wrote:

“All of these benefits also happen to be the pillars of a sound financial system. These benefits will continue to become important as other industries utilize the technology to meet the demands of today’s—and tomorrow’s—consumers.” Open / Comment

2023-08-29 18:00:07 MetaTrace running everyday NFTs pre-listing giveaways!

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https://t.me/+nUEGr8gyxg5iZmNi Open / Comment

2023-08-29 16:00:05 ​1000 $HYDRA GIVEAWAY

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2023-08-28 18:01:44 US Treasury Department Proposes New Reporting Requirements for Digital Asset Brokers

The US Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Friday released new proposed regulations that would require the brokers of digital assets to report certain sales and exchanges in an effort to crack down on tax cheats, as well as to assist law-abiding taxpayers know how much they owe.

As per an announcement made on the Treasury Department’s website, “the proposed regulations would clarify and adjust the rules regarding the tax reporting of information by brokers, so that brokers for digital assets are subject to the same information reporting rules as brokers for securities and other financial instruments”.

According to the Treasury Department and IRS, under current tax laws, digital tax calculations are “difficult and costly to calculate”.

Under the administration’s new proposal, brokers will be required to provide a new Form 1099-DA, which it says will help taxpayers determine if they owe taxes, and would help taxpayers avoid having to make complicated calculations or pay digital asset tax preparation services in order to file their tax returns. Open / Comment

2023-08-25 17:30:00 Worldcoin Faces Global Regulatory Hurdles Amid Expansion

Recent developments around Worldcoin have reignited discussions on data privacy and the ethical implications of personal identification. The project's audacious goal to grant everyone on Earth a biometrically verified digital ID has captured attention globally—and not always in a good way.

With its rapid ascent, the platform faces significant challenges, as governments and experts scrutinize its methods and intentions.

Worldcoin launched on July 24 of this year, issuing its WLD cryptocurrency token. Initially given to beta program participants, Worldcoin offered an airdrop of 25 WLD (worth around $2.21 USD each at the time of launch) to people willing to undergo an iris scan.

The company states its mission is to create a global system where anyone can verify their humanity online. To achieve this, they introduced the World ID, a unique identifier generated through an iris scan.

This IrisCode acts as a one-time mark to ensure authenticity, and once issued, the ID is stored on the Worldcoin blockchain, ostensibly safeguarding user privacy. Simultaneously, the World App stores user credentials and doubles as a cryptocurrency wallet, facilitating transactions with WLD.

As of August 11, over 2.2 million people have registered on the platform. But this rapid expansion hasn't been without its share of controversy. Open / Comment

2023-08-22 18:31:20 Blockchain Capital Co-Founder Sues Hacker For Stealing $6.3 Million in a SIM-Swap Attack

Co-founder and managing partner at Blockchain Capital, Bart Stephens, has taken legal action against an unidentified hacker who allegedly stole $6.3 million worth of cryptocurrencies from his digital wallets, Forbes reported.

Stephens claims Jane Doe exploited a SIM-swap vulnerability, manipulating personal information sourced from the dark web to bypass security protocols with the cellular network provider.

This breach enabled the hacker to reset account passwords and ultimately gain control over the victim's digital assets.

The lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on August 16, alleges that the hacker orchestrated the attack in May by commandeering Stephens' cellular network account and subsequently transferring his private cell number to a new device.

Earlier this month, the fund's Twitter account was compromised in an unrelated security breach, used to promote a cryptocurrency token. Open / Comment