IceCoin

2023-05-22 15:12:16 JUST IN: Huobi Global ordered to halt operations in Malaysia

Huobi Global has been ordered to close its operations in Malaysia following an enforcement action from the country’s securities regulator.

The SCM noted that its decision was driven by concerns about Huobi’s ‘compliance with local regulatory requirements’. Having failed to obtain SCM registration, the regulator has also directed Malaysian investors to stop trading on the platform, withdraw funds and close accounts. Open / Comment

2023-05-21 15:04:19 Enough Ethereum (ETH) to Perform 51% Attack on Bitcoin Is in Queue

Ethereum's prowess is making waves yet again, with a staggering 2 million Ether (ETH) reportedly standing in line to fortify the Ethereum network, a quantity that equates to approximately $3.6 billion. This startling figure has led to some intriguing speculations: This sum of Ethereum is substantial enough to theoretically execute a 51% attack on the Bitcoin network.

First, it is crucial to underscore that an attack of this nature using Ethereum on Bitcoin is not technically feasible. These are two different blockchains with different consensus mechanisms, hence, Ethereum cannot directly influence Bitcoin's operations. However, the monetary value represented by the Ethereum quantity in question is substantial enough to acquire the necessary Bitcoin to orchestrate such an attack.

2M ETH is queueing to secure Ethereum

that's $3.6B, enough to 51% attack Bitcoin

— ultra sound money (ultrasoundmoney) May 20, 2023
For context, a 51% attack occurs when a single entity gains control of more than half of a blockchain network's mining power or hash rate. This control could potentially enable the attacker to manipulate transactions and double-spend coins, undermining the trust and reliability of the network. Bitcoin, as a proof-of-work blockchain, is technically vulnerable to such an attack.

Yet, transitioning this theoretical possibility into reality would not be as straightforward as it sounds. Purchasing a significant volume of Bitcoin to gain majority control would likely incite a colossal surge in Bitcoin's price due to heightened demand. This sharp price escalation would require even more resources, complicating the feasibility of the attack. Open / Comment

2023-02-25 15:05:29 Ethereum will launch a testnet Holli

The Holli test network will be launched by core Ethereum developers. It is needed to solve the issue with the supply of test tokens in other networks.

Developer Tim Beiko of the Ethereum Foundation talked about the Holli testnet. The new testnet will launch as an answer to the difficulties of other testnets. Their problems are related to the acquisition of ETH test tokens. The most affected is the Goerli testnet.

Goerli is a critical testnet. It is a native multi-client network and is used by validators. Less than its GoETH test tokens Beiko calls "less reliable." GoETH distribution is concentrated in a few validator organizations. They distribute small amounts of GoETH through faucets to users. Users need to be verified on Twitter. This is detrimental to privacy and takes time.

Another major testnet is Sepolia. It allows all validators to mint SepETH. But first, validators must get permission to participate.

Holli will allow anyone who has deployed contracts on the core or testnet Ethereum networks to participate. Open / Comment

2023-02-24 17:46:02 Binance has launched an airdrop tracking portal

What happened? Cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced the launch of a section on its website called Airdrop Portal. The tool provides an overview of free cryptocurrency giveaways supported by the platform. The page provides information about current, pending and already completed giveaways. It will be updated regularly.

What information is presented on the site? At the moment, the Airdrop Portal page has information about 15 giveaways. The ongoing ones include only the LUNA token airdrop, an asset resulting from the Terra blockchain fork that crashed in May 2022. It is held among asset holders of the old Terra Classic network - LUNC and USTC - until April 2027.

The FLR token distribution from Flare, an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-based Level 1 (L1) blockchain with smart contract support, is among those completed. It was held among XRP holders in January 2023, with FLR plummeting 49% at the end.

In January, Binance Pay partnered with B2B micropayment platform DT One to launch a mobile recharge feature for cryptocurrencies. In the same month, Binance launched Self-Trade Prevention (STP), which prevents manipulation for spot trading. It automatically blocks the execution of trades where both parties are the same trader. Open / Comment

2023-02-23 18:48:16 BSC cryptocurrency price soars 818% in a week

Market analysts noted that the new mem-coin BabyFloki (BSC) was leading among this class of virtual currencies, in terms of value growth in recent times. Its quotations jumped by 51.3% over the last 24 hours and reached $0.0000002457. In total, the value of the digital currency soared by 818% in the last 7 days.

Numerous Twitter users discussed this situation. Despite the fact that dozens of new mem-tokens are "introduced" into the crypto-ecosystem every day, very few of them find support from investors and traders. Viewers did not initially understand what was the trigger for the apparent rise in BSC quotes. They noted that the official Twitter account showed no major advances in protocol development or promises of any major developments.

Nevertheless, according to the traders' assurances, the developers of BabyFloki actively engaged with the community. They have done so through a series of targeted "Ask Me Anything" (AMA) events, sponsored press releases in the media, and exciting contests on social networks.

Users pointed out that this approach carries serious risks because the project has no future. According to them, unlike competitors - Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB) and others - the creators of BSC did not promise any real benefit to the community.

Many analysts assured that the next logical step will be a reversal of prices and then investors will be seriously hurt. As of 16:00 Moscow time on February 23, 2023, cryptocurrency transaction volumes exceeded the $1.04 million mark in the last 24 hours. Users drew a parallel with the cryptocurrency Bonk (BONK), which showed a rapid rise in value in the first days after the listing, after which the price fell by more than 80%, and many holders of the crypto-asset were at a loss. Open / Comment

2023-02-22 14:20:10 Paxos is in talks with the SEC about the Binance USD stablecoin

Paxos Trust, the issuer of the Binance Stablecoin, is still in a difficult situation due to the claims of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), demanding to register the token as a security. Paxos CEO Charles Cascarilla said he is in talks with the SEC and is ready to initiate legal action if necessary.

Stablecoins have gained recognition in the cryptocurrency market because they allow traders to get in and out of volatile cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. They also act as a hedge against inflation.

Stablecoin transactions do not require bank settlements, which drag out the process for days and result in missed trading opportunities.

Perhaps that's why the growing stablcoin industry is under regulatory scrutiny, and the New York Department of Financial Services has forced Paxos to stop issuing BUSD.

The New York financial regulator also found that Paxos failed to conduct regular risk assessments and due diligence on Binance and customers holding BUSD.

Although Paxos has agreed to suspend the issuance of new BUSD tokens, the organization will maintain the issued tokens for another year.

Earlier, the SEC said it intends to sue the firm for violating investor protection laws. Curiously, the agency has not prosecuted any major Stablecoin issuer before.

True, last fall the regulator heeded a report from the U.S. issuer of the popular USDC Circle stablocoin that BUSD reserves were opaque and may be incomplete. Open / Comment

2023-02-21 17:46:17 Kevin O'Leary: Crypto exchanges need to hurry up and bow to regulators

Kevin O'Leary said during an interview on YouTube channel TraderTV Live that "American financial regulators got tired" of watching the wave of bankruptcies of companies in the cryptocurrency industry. And are now much tougher on cryptocurrency firms. Therefore, any business in this sphere should be more cautious.

"You should work with regulators. You don't have to stand in the way of the SEC and other agencies. Those guys in Washington are pretty mean. The FTX collapse kicked the bear. He's awake and furious. Senators are really tired - they're tired of meeting every six months when the next big cryptocurrency firm collapses. They're tired of the industry not being regulated and everyone can issue their own completely useless tokens," said the venture capitalist.

Kevin O'Leary predicted that regulated companies will attract significantly more visible investment than their unregulated rivals. And in general, unregulated companies run the risk of being bankrupted through the actions of officials.

Kevin O'Leary previously said that most cryptocurrency assets have no intrinsic value and will soon collapse to zero. Open / Comment

2023-02-20 16:37:02 Main events of the crypto market for February 20, 2023

Experts from research firm CryptoCompare talked about the most important events from the cryptocurrency world as of February 20, 2023. They noted that the key ones were that a former FTX executive pleaded guilty, Jump Trading earned $1.28 billion in the Terra ecosystem, and NFT trading platform OpenSea temporarily cancelled commissions.

Former FTX exchange development chief Nishad Singh pleaded guilty before U.S. federal prosecutors. The entrepreneur is rumored to be willing to cut a deal with the law because law enforcement has legitimate grounds to charge him with fraud. Singh can provide meaningful information about FTX's financial activities.

It turns out that Jump Trading had previously recorded $1.28 billion in profits in the Terra ecosystem (LUNA) before the collapse of that project. Earlier, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Terraform Labs and its former CEO Do Kwon of "orchestrating securities fraud using algorithmic stackablecoin and other crypto-assets."

The firm was involved in creating the Terra interconnect bridge and raising $1 billion in capital to create the Luna Foundation Guard. Jump Crypto CEO Kanav Kariya served on the organization's board.

Representatives of OpenSea's non-exchangeable token marketplace (NFT) said that for a "limited time," the platform will reduce the commission for trading platform activities to 0%. This will apply to all collections without enforcing royalties on the network. The press service of the organization also released a blacklist of other services that did not provide full royalty payments to creators. The document mentions the notorious Blur platform. Open / Comment

2023-02-19 18:18:20 Bahrain hotels start accepting bitcoin payments

At the entrances to the hotel will be installed special terminals, which will allow those wishing to pay for services through the application from Binance.

The initiative Novotel Bahrain Al Dana Resort has received approval from the authorities represented by the Central Bank of Bahrain.

"We are keeping pace with the development of technology and have the desire to provide high-end services to customers. We are pleased to announce that we are the first hotel in the Kingdom of Bahrain and the region as a whole to use the latest developments in digital payments," boasted Amid Yazji, general manager of the hotel management company.

In fact, in the Arabian Peninsula, two hotels in the United Arab Emirates, W Dubai - The Palm and Palazzo Versace Dubai, are already embracing digital assets as payment for services provided.

As a reminder, Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange, started its operations in Bahrain at the end of last year. Open / Comment

2023-02-18 17:24:57 A clandestine mining farm was found near the police department in Ulyanovsk

It was only 150 meters from the garage with the mining equipment to the police station. The hum of the equipment was spreading throughout the neighborhood. The Federal Security Service and the security service of the UlGES Municipal Unitary Enterprise worked at the site, and it was they who established the fact of the theft of electricity.

Now investigators are trying to determine whether the profits from the mining of cryptocurrencies were used to finance terrorism. It is not yet known whether the owners of the ASIC-mainers were identified, but according to Renat Valiullov, acting head of the security service of MUE "UlHPP", the owner was not found when the garage was opened.

In early February, law enforcement authorities of the Irkutsk region discovered two mining farms at once in the local mental hospital. The equipment was installed above the wards with patients, which could have led to a fire. Open / Comment