This is largest increase in Bitcoin mining complexity since May 2021. Cryptocurrency mining complexity rises as computing power grows

On Oct. 10, the Bitcoin mining difficulty increased 13.55%. This was the biggest increase since May 2021, when complexity jumped 21.5%. Usually the figure increases or decreases within 10% every two weeks. The previous record was set on September 14, when the complexity reached 32.05T (difficulty target).

Explanation
Network complexity determines amount of computing power required to find a new block in the bitcoin blockchain. This parameter changes every 2016 blocks, or about once every two weeks. This is necessary to maintain block time of about 10 minutes.

According to BTC.com, complexity is now 35.61 T at 259.52 EH/s, which has also become a high figure. This increase in numbers suggests that the number of miners is increasing and the competition among them is growing.

At the same time, given the current price of Bitcoin, the profitability of mining is close to zero. According to our experts, at a price of $20,000 per Bitcoin, profitability of mining companies is already close to the cost of production (about $15,000-17,000). And in some cases it goes into negative values.

In October, there will be several high-profile events. Which can affect both price of individual coins and market as a whole. Crypto-Upvotes experts review

Launch of Lambda main network

Lambda (LAMB) – provides data storage capabilities for decentralized applications. Also, this project provides shared data storage services across multiple blockchains with management features. In addition, the site provides data privacy protection. As well as proof of ownership and distributed intelligent computing. Thanks to Sharding technology, the project provides high network speed. Which increases as the blockchain expands. On 10 October it is planned to launch main network of this project. And there will also be launched a cross-network bridge with Ethereum network. Which will open up access for validators and the ability to stack LAMB tokens. For early holders there will be an Airdrop on October 10 and October 15.

Conflux hardfork

The Conflux network update will begin in mid-October. Most of the changes will be available on October 25. It will also add the ability to change rewards without a hardfork and improve validator node performance.

This project was created as a competitor to Ethereum and was supported by Chinese government agencies. Project funding involved the leadership of Shanghai. As well as large private investors, including Sequoia China, Huobi Group, Shunwei Capital and Rong360.

Telos network update

Telos was launched in 2018 and is a fork of EOSIO blockchain. In 2022, the four largest forks of EOSIO (EOS, WAX, TELOS and Ultra) formed a coalition to switch to a common code base. This resulted in the Antilope hardfork.

Telos is unrivaled in versatility. With its EVM, Telos can be home to a huge number of decentralized applications. Telos is the only network that supports smart contracts on EOSIO and Ethereum.

Its compatibility with Solidity, Vyper and EOSIO C++ means that migration will be more accessible than ever. No other network offers as much compatibility as Telos. Telos is compatible with a record 95% of applications.

The move to new software is another step towards independence from block.one, developer of EOSIO. Owners of validation nodes (nodes) on the core network need to upgrade their software to the Leap 3.1. release (previous name Mandel 3.1) by October 26.

Hydra hardfork

HydraChain project runs on Proof of Stake algorithm and was created as a solution for real business. Project features are 100% burning of all transaction fees, fixed transaction fees. As well as smart contracts, compatible with virtual machine Ethereum. Minimum stacking return of 20% per year. Anyone can become a full-fledged node in a few clicks and bid on Hydra to maintain their network. Stackers get a high economic stream through blockchain rewards.

Update will occur after block number 477,300 is found.  The number of processed transactions per second will increase to 2 thousand. And it will be possible to delegate stacking. Users need to update their software by October 27.

Conclusions

Important updates and changes to these old crypto projects can increase this token’s price. They can also significantly affect the whole cryptocurrency market. Therefore, we recommend to keep an eye on these important changes of these projects

Hackers stole over $544 million worth of cryptocurrency from Binance network. But did not manage to withdraw most of it, Crypto-Upvotes expert

Blockchain BNB Chain returned to work after the BSC Token Hub bridge was hacked. Hackers managed to steal over $544 million worth of cryptocurrency. However, they were able to withdraw only $100 million. After that, the work of network was temporarily suspended.

Binance CEO published a link to a post on Reddit, which describes the details of the incident. In particular, it is claimed that according to initial estimates, hackers managed to take from $100 million to $110 million from BNB Chain network, while with the support of partners managed to freeze $7 million worth of cryptocurrency.

Hackers have $543 million worth of cryptocurrency at their address, $432 million of which remain in BNB Chain and cannot be withdrawn. At the same time, these funds are not the users’ cryptocurrency. Changpeng Zhao explained that hackers managed to create additional BNB tokens using a vulnerability.

Later, the BNB Chain team presented a code update. After it was activated by the network’s validators, the hackers’ accounts were blocked and asset transfers between BNB Beacon Chain and BNB Smart Chain were frozen.

BNB Chain will decide fate of blocked crypto-assets by voting

As decided by blockchain team, a vote will be held. As a result, it will decide such issues as freezing the funds in the hacker’s account. And using a mechanism to automatically burn BNB tokens to cover the remainder of stolen funds.

At the same time, the issue of introducing a reward of $1 million for “white hackers” will be put to vote. Who will be able to detect bugs in the system in future. Also, community will decide whether to announce reward for catching hackers in form of 10% of recovered funds.

BSC validator voting functionality will be turned on in the next few days after a BNB Beacon Chain update. Also, the team noted that a new management mechanism will be implemented in a BNB network to protect against possible future attacks.

Hugo Boss will release 1,000 animated tokens from the series “Take Your Emotions” will be presented in early November

Fashion house Hugo Boss announced a partnership with Imaginary Ones, a Web3 company. With this partnership, the first NFT-collection in the brand’s history will be released. Presentation is planned for early November.

A collection called Embrace Your Emotion or EYE will consist of 1,001 animated 3D objects. With this project, Hugo Boss encourages users to embrace their emotions with courage. And regardless of whether they are bad or good, says this project description.

Also Hugo Boss will release special 5 NFTs will be animated characters. These characters will represent joy, sadness, fear, anger and love. Another character will combine all qualities of these five characters. And he will be auctioned for charity on the occasion of World Mental Health Day (October 10).

Of the remaining 1,000 tokens, 500 will be available to buyers of exclusive merchandise t-shirts. Another 500 will be available to NFT holders from other Imaginary Ones projects and contest participants. Our experts have noticed that these contests will be held on Web-3-company social networks starting Oct. 4.

McDonald’s is conducting an experiment with сryptocurrency in a European city with a population of 63,000 people. It is also possible to pay with stabelcoin USDT

McDonald’s restaurant in Swiss Lugano began to accept cryptocurrency as payment. Bitcoin Magazine published a video of ordering in this restaurant on its Twitter. McDonald’s accepts Bitcoin and stabelcoin USDT from Tether.

In March 2022, the city of Lugano recognized Bitcoin, USDT and LVGA token as a means of payment. The city also signed a memorandum of understanding with Tether. In that memorandum, the company created two funds – $106 million to support crypto startups and $3 million for local stores and businesses.

Local residents can pay taxes with cryptocurrency. It is assumed that in the future they will also be able to pay in digital assets for parking tickets, utility bills and university tuition. Our experts note that already now more than 200 stores and businesses will accept cryptocurrency for products and services.

Kim Kardashian agrees to pay fine for failing to disclose income from EthereumMAX ads

The Securities and Exchange Commission fined TV star Kim Kardashian $1.26 million. For promoting the cryptocurrency EthereumMax (EMAX) on social networks. Superstar did not disclose the income she received for this promotion, according to a press release from SEC.

Our experts found out that Kardashian did not disclose that she was paid $250,000 by posting a post on her Instagram account about EMAX tokens. Kardashian post contained a link to EthereumMax website with instructions for potential investors to buy their tokens.

“Ms. Kardashian case serves as a reminder to celebrities and others. That the law requires disclosure to the public of when and how much they are paid to facilitate an investment in securities,” said SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.

Kim Kardashian violated a provision of federal securities laws prohibiting advertising. Without admitting or denying the SEC charges, Kardashian agreed to pay $1.26 million. Included in her indictment is compensation for advertising revenue she received of about $260,000. And interest and a fine of $1 million. Kardashian also agreed not to promote cryptocurrencies for three years.

SWIFT system will unite almost all blockchains. And it will give traditional financial institutions access to various cryptocurrencies on one platfor, Crypto-Upvotes expert review

Interbank messaging system SWIFT and decentralized oracle network Chainlink announced that they are working together on a proof-of-concept (PoC) blockchain project. This project will allow traditional financial companies to conduct transactions on a platform that supports virtually all blockchains. Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov and SWIFT Chief Strategy Officer Jonathan Ehrenfeld Sole announced it at the SmartCon 2022 conference in New York.

SWIFT is the most widely used platform for traditional cross-border transactions, connecting more than 11,000 banks worldwide. Now it can take up to several days for a payment to go through this network. And moving to blockchain should significantly reduce that time.

Project PoC will use Chainlink CCIP (Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol) to send SWIF messages across different blockchains. This will accelerate the adoption of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in traditional finance, Nazarov said.

SEC accused the Hydrogen platform of illegally distributing securities. Including through Airdrop

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ruled that Airdrop (the free distribution of tokens) are illegal means of distributing securities. The charges against Hydrogen Technology Corporation indicate this. As well as its former CEO Michael Ross Kane and Moonwalkers CEO Tyler Ostern.

An SEC lawsuit says that in 2018, New York-based Hydrogen, which had ceased operations at this point, created a Hydro token. And then publicly distributed it via airdrop. These were rewards to individuals for promoting their token, rewards to employees, and in the form of direct sales on cryptoplatforms. Likewise, the SEC alleges that Hydrogen hired South African firm Moonwalkers after distributing its token. This was done to create the false appearance of market activity regarding Hydro token. As a result of this manipulation, Hydrogen made a profit of more than $2 million.

“Companies cannot avoid applying securities laws by arranging unregistered offers and sales of their securities as rewards, compensation or other similar methods,” said SEC Deputy Director of the Division of Enforcement Carolyn M. Welshahans.

Our experts also noted that SEC has requested injunctions against defendants for participation in certain types of activities. And including the distribution of securities.

Perhaps now we are seeing the first judicial precedent that will allow a complete ban on any Airdrop

Scammer was offered a reward of 1% of the stolen money from arbitrage bot mev-bot. For return of the remaining amount within 24 hours.

Hacking of arbitrage mev-bot led to the loss of 1.1 K ETH (about $1.45 million). It was reported on Twitter by PeckShield, a cybersecurity company. Analysis of this transaction showed that cybercriminals used a code vulnerability to substitute an arbitrary address for the funds transfer.

Mev-bots (also called flash bots) search for transactions suitable for arbitrage trading. The use of such programs makes it possible to profit from price differences on different exchanges.

Funds stolen in an attack on a bot called 0xbad belonged to many of its users. PeckShield reports that the community has announced that it is willing to consider the hack as the work of a “white hacker.” If the stolen funds are returned by the end of the day on Sept. 28. It has also been offered to fence 1% of the stolen money. Otherwise, an investigation will be initiated.

Our experts note that usually, if a hacker is recognized as a “white hacker”. Affected companies leave him as a reward of 10% of the funds stolen by him. But in this situation they offered only 1%.

Christies platform will conduct full auctions. Which will include post-sale transactions, on Ethereum blockchain

Auction house has launched its own NFT-marketplace called Christies 3.0. The platform will run on the Ethereum network. Auctions will be conducted entirely using blockchain technology, according to their website.

Previously, one of oldest auction houses has already repeatedly conducted sales of NFT-artworks. Throughout 2021, it sold nearly $150 million worth of NFT at its auctions. Payments for digital works of art were made in Ethereum. And the trading house received commissions in traditional ways, in fiat currencies.

Our experts noticed to participate in auctions on Christies  3.0 platform. A new user will need to connect an existing cryptocurrency wallet. Of cryptocurrencies auction site accepts only Ethereum for payment. Taxes will also be accrued in ETH.

Remind that in March 2021, an electronic picture of a modern artist Beeple. And NFT token attached to it was sold at Christie’s auction for a record $69.35 million. Artwork of artist became the first lot in history of Christie’s auction house, which was sold for cryptocurrency.