Here’s a digest of some most notable events in crypto world during the past week.
Ethereum Investor Proves Diamond Hands Win Big, Earning $131.7M in 2 Years!
Blockchain analytics website Lookonchain has revealed the token address of a long-standing Ethereum investor known as a diamond hand who never lets go of their assets even in the most turbulent times. This term is used for investors who refrain from selling even in the face of the market retreat.
According to Lookonchain, this investor bought 96,639 ETH through the Coinbase platform from September 3 to September 4, 2022, when ETH was priced at about $1567/tok. The total transaction was pegged at about $151.42 million worth of ETH. This raises concerns about the resting consequences of panic selling in a very volatile marketplace.
Africa’s Growing Role in the Crypto Space
While AML/CFT compliance costs rise due to increased regulatory clarity, other emerging economies within Africa have the potential to be crucial digital asset markets. Ben Caselin, the Chief Marketing Officer of VALR, a Johannesburg-based cryptocurrency exchange, noted this.
Caselin underlines the potential of the African subcontinent for adopting digital assets as an alternative currency in many of its emerging economies.
South Africa’s virtual currency economy is expected to generate revenues of 246 million US dollars by 2024. According to research by Statista, the market’s total revenue by 2028 is expected to expand from USD 206.2 million in 2020 to USD 332.9 million, with a CAGR of 7.86%.
Bank of Canada Shelves Retail CBDC Plans Amid Strategic Priority Shift
According to an official announcement by the Bank of Canada, the country shifted its focus from developing a BOC, and Canadian Chapters also announced no plans to pursue a wholesale CBDC on this announcement. The BOC announced its research work in the area of CBDCs will continue as they highlighted the need for customer engagement.
After thoroughly examining CBDCs, the Bank of Canada is changing its focus from this issue to more pressing matters. In the past, BOC said there are no plans for adopting a retail CBDC and made clear that such a measure is only a ‘contingency plan’ that may have no use. However, such a shift of priorities is common as the central bank’s potential expansion in its tasks looms large.
Musk Complies with Brazilian Court: X Accounts Suspended
Classic misinformation campaigning on social media platform X has resulted in several account suspensions lately, partly because of the country’s highest court orders that the platform is trying to comply with.
The media reports suggest that X started sanctioning the said accounts on September 18th under the orders of Justice Alexander de Moraes. Also, as part of the restrictions, X’s lawyers stated that new management would soon be appointed for the company in Brazil.
According to Brazilian law, social media companies should appoint a legal representative domiciled in the country where the business activity is being carried out.
Allan dos Santos, a US-based digital influencer, and journalist Paulo Figueiredo were among the suspended accounts, and others affiliated with these two individuals. More accounts were also deleted per the court’s ruling to include the 9 other accounts.
Tether’s Influence Raises Red Flags
Tether’s share of the stablecoin segment has increased, and now ZT is more than 75%. Tether has raised collective concerns about the company’s risks to the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
The Tether company has raised concern for its investors even where it would not have raised such concerns in normal circumstances. The issuer of Tether and any other stablecoins amounting to 118 billion dollars has not provided for independent third-party auditing for Tether. This is raising fears in investors’ minds, especially following the events surrounding the bankruptcy of FTX, that this particular stablecoin issuer may collapse under the weight they cannot sustain.
Investors remain skeptical of Tether, the biggest stablecoin USD₮ issuer. Cyber Capital’s founder Justin Bons added fuel to these worries by portraying Tether as a more significant risk than FTX.
Similarly, the CFTC has also paralyzed and penalized Tether for lying about how much it was fully backed by USDT reserves in 2021, a consequence that cost Tether $41 million. In light of this latest news, there appears to be irrefutable evidence suggesting that Tether’s dominance in the stablecoin market has increased by 20% over the past two years to over 75% of the sector’s market share.
Telegram Bot Banana Gun Users Lose Over $1.9 Million in Massive Drain
As a brutish drain of nearly $2 million was sustained in Ninja and such bots, Telegram-based cryptocurrency trading bot Banana Gun users have incurred huge losses.
No less than 11 attackers have been able to access Banana Gun, which enables trading for its users on blockchains such as Ethereum Solana and Base. Hackers have claimed to have drained $1.9 million from the on-chain trading bot, which affected users through Hakan Unal, a senior security operation center lead at security firm Cyvers.
This development happened only two months after another hacking incident. WazirX, an Indian crypto exchange, is said to have lost over 230 million US dollars, disappointingly the second largest crypto hack of 2024.
SEC’s Enforcement Offensive Approach Lambasted by Lawmakers from the US within the Crypto Industry
During one of the Congress hearings regarding digital assets, Wyoming lawmaker Liz Cheney gave the chair to French Hill, Republican and Representative for Arkansas. This time Hill decided to attack Gary Gensler and the Commission. As an example of incorporating politics into crypto policy Hill pointed out Gensler, who always ‘inserts politics’ into the regulation processes of crypto firms and created a ‘situation of confusion and uncertainty’ for the markets.
In the hearing on September 18th, the event day, Hill’s exposition earned remarks of a disproportionate application of regulatory oversight by the SEC about digital assets. Hill’s quotation needs an inner citation. In response to Hill’s outraged comments, the subcommittee’s ranking member, Democrat Stephen Lynch, noted that the SEC is not politicized.
Lynch noted that the upcoming 2024 congressional elections will witness huge cash flows from the crypto sector for or against congressional candidates. He argued that these financial gymnastics are related to the industry’s organized resistance to actions taken by the legislature to regulate it.
Michelle Bond Pleads Not Guilty to Campaign Finance Violations Amid Legal Turmoil
Ryan Salame’s spouse, Michelle Bond, made a not-guilty plea on four counts of venture campaign finance violations on October 17 during a pretrial arraignment in the District Court of Southern New York using the shame appearing judgment.
Bond is charged with several offenses, including conspiracy to solicit and facilitate illegal campaign donations, requesting and receiving excessive campaign contributions, accepting unlawful corporate donations, and making them through a conduit. She was released on a one million dollar bond after a hearing on August 22 but is still subject to conditions, including a travel ban outside the continental US.
The reasons given why Bond deserves her candidacy discredit her as aspiring to run for the Republican seat in the House of Representatives in 2022. According to the allegations, Salame helped transfer 400,000 US dollars from FTX for her campaign expenses. Besides, Bond allegedly made false statements to the FEC and a congressional hearing about the source of the funds received.
