FBI and Europol disabled infrastructure of the ChipMixer platform. Bitcoins worth €44 million, servers and 7TB of data were confiscated

The FBI, Europol and law enforcement agencies of several European countries stopped the operation of the cryptocurrency mixing service ChipMixer. They also confiscated €44 million worth of Bitcoins, the EU police service said. German and U.S. authorities, supported by intelligence agencies in Belgium, Poland and Switzerland, have disabled platform infrastructure.

Four servers, 7TB of data and 1.9 thousand BTC (€44.2 million) were confiscated during the operation. The platform’s website is also no longer operational, and when you go to it, it is reported that the domain was seized by the FBI by order of a U.S. court.

Cryptomixers are blockchain services that increase the confidentiality of transactions by hiding the connection between the source and the recipient of the tokens.

According to Europol, ChipMixer, a service created in mid-2017 to anonymize BTC flows, offered complete anonymity to its customers. Law enforcement authorities speculate that the cryptomixer was involved in money laundering and allowed users to hide traces of crimes. Such as drug or weapons trafficking, ransomware attacks and fraud. The platform is believed to have laundered 152,000 BTC (about €2.73 billion).

Cryptomixing services are under close scrutiny by intelligence agencies. This is because they are often used by fraudsters, and many hackers send stolen digital assets to them after hacks to cover their tracks.

Our experts note that in August 2022, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash, the most famous cryptomixer. Which works on the Ethereum blockchain. For conducting money laundering operations through it by hackers from North Korea.

Also in August, alleged Tornado Cash developer Alexei Pertsev was arrested. He is still in custody awaiting trial. Cryptomixer itself was not shut down and continues to operate.

The decision to stop working with NFT on social networks was made by Meta. This was done in order to focus on other ways to support content creators and their audiences

Meta has decided to stop supporting NFT in its social networks Facebook and Instagram. This was announced by Stefan Kasriel, the head of commercial and financial technologies department of Meta.

NFT support was added to the social network Meta 6 months ago. At the end of August 2022, company announced the introduction of digital tokens in Facebook and Instagram. And since then, users have been able to upload tokens to both social networks. It was necessary to connect a cryptocurrency wallet to an account on either one. Meta used Polygon blockchain to integrate NFT.

According to Kasriel, the decision to stop supporting NFT was made to focus on other technologies. Which would allow content creators to monetize their content and communicate with their audiences.

The company’s priorities are now to create and implement payment tools on its platform, messenger and short video service Reels. According to Kasriel, Meta will also continue to develop its payment service, Meta Pay.

Interest in NFT from other major world companies grows

Our experts point out that at the same time, large global companies continue to register trademarks related to NFT. Auto giant Nissan filed four trademark applications March 7 for the Infiniti, Nismo and Nissan brands, according to Mike Condudis, a licensed attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Nissan’s new trademarks will be related to virtual apparel, automobiles and other NFTs. In addition, the document mentions the creation of a platform for issuing and trading digital tokens. As well as marketing services in the metaverse and the creation of specialized software for working with NFT.

More than 1 billion users of leading Chinese social network WeChat can now use its function of fast payments in digital national currency to pay for goods and services

Leading Chinese social network WeChat has added support for digital yuan (e-CNY) to its payment services. This was reported by local publication The Paper. The integration of WeChat’s e-CNY fast payment feature should help expand the use of this form of currency promoted by the Chinese authorities.

The WeChat app, created by tech giant Tencent Holdings first as a messenger but has evolved into a full-fledged social network. It has more than 1.2 billion monthly active users. Now they can pay for goods and services in digital Yuan in certain WeChat mini-applications through the WeChat Pay system. In the future, the social network will add more options for using e-CNY.

Right now, there is a limit of 2 thousand yuan ($289) per transaction and a daily limit of 5 thousand yuan ($720).

The digital yuan, also known as e-CNY, is being tested in at least 26 Chinese provinces and cities. There are 5.6 million stores and businesses from the service sector taking part. As of the end of December 2022, e-CNY’s digital national currency payment volume was 13.61 billion yuan ($2 billion).

Our experts note that in December 2022, Alipay, Alibaba’s payment system, announced that it would begin accepting digital CNY. This system processes transactions between sellers and buyers on AliExpress. As well as on Taobao, Shanghai Bus, Youbao platforms and supermarket chains Tmall and Hema.

You will only be able to buy NFTs through your Amazon account with a bank card. Crypto-Upvotes expert review

The Amazon NFT Marketplace will launch on April 24, according to TheBigWhale. At first, a service called Amazon Digital Marketplace will be open only to U.S. users. But in future, customers from other countries, including Europe, will have access to it.

At launch, the site will feature 15 NFT collections. It will only be possible to buy NFTs through an Amazon account with a bank card. This method of payment was chosen to make it convenient for customers to use the service in the traditional way. At the same time not tying cryptocurrencies like Metamask to it.

To host a marketplace, Amazon chose a private blockchain platform that is not compatible with Ethereum. Therefore, developers who want their NFTs to be available on the new platform will have to use blockchain bridges (tools to transfer tokens between different networks).

Our experts note that Amazon is preparing to launch its own NFT-platform, it was reported in early January. At the time, it was known that US online retailer was considering launching blockchain games. Participants in such games will be able to receive digital tokens, and it plans to hold at least one NFT airdrop.

Cryptocurrency platforms providing liquid staking services came in second place in DeFi sector by volume of funds sent to them

Staking platforms came in second in terms of funds in the DeFi sector, overtaking lending services. According to DeFi platform Llama, the volume of total blocked value (TVL). Liquid staking platforms exceeded $14 billion, while TVL in cryptocurrency lending protocols is about $13.7 billion.

Liquid staking, allows users to earn from Ethereum stacking without having to make a mandatory deposit of 32 ETH. Users can send any amount of ETH or other Proof-of-Stake cryptocurrency coins to staking. Users will receive tokenized versions of their assets in return. For example, in form of stETH token in a 1:1 ratio. The latter can be used in parallel to generate additional income in DeFi-protocols. At the same time, you will not lose earnings from staking assets in the liquid staking service.

Decentralized exchanges (DEX) lead in terms of funds on DeFi-platforms. TVL on them is $19.3 billion. However, this category includes 716 services. While the staking services whose data is collected by the analytics platform are 71.

Over the last month, TVL of just one stacking protocol Lido increased by $1 billion to $9.3 billion, while this figure for leading DEX is almost twice as low: Curve has $4.9 billion, Uniswap has $4.1 billion, and Pancakeswap has $2.5 billion.

On February 25, the Lido team noted that it recorded the largest daily inflow of funds amounting to more than 150,000 ETH (about $245 million). According to crypto analyst Lookonchain, these funds were contributed by Tron blockchain founder and Huobi exchange chief Justin Sun.

On February 27, cryptoprotocol specialists from 0xScope noted that Sun continues to contribute funds to stake on Lido. Additionally, he sent another 88,000 ETH (about $144 million) there.

Reasons for growth

Our experts point out that the influx of funds into liquid staking protocols is caused by the fact that the Ethereum network is scheduled to start updating Shanghai in April 2023. Which will allow to withdraw previously blocked funds in ETH from staking. After it was revealed in January that developers had decided to focus on this particular upgrade feature, staking platform token rates soared by dozens percent and continue to rise.

Also, the growth in popularity of DeFi-protocols from this category was promoted by rumors about the possible ban on staking in USA. There has been no official confirmation of this yet. But the major U.S. exchange Kraken in early February closed stakng for U.S. customers at the request of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Payments in USDC stablecoins can be made not only in the Web3 space. But also in real merchant services that accept Mastercard cards for online payment

Mastercard Payment System and its Web3 protocol Immersve will allow users to make cryptocurrency payments in physical and digital worlds. Including decentralized services and metaverse, Cointelegraph reported. Settlements will take place in USD Coin Stablecoins (USDC), which are converted to fiat currency for transactions in a Mastercard system.

Transfers can be made at actual merchant services that accept online payment cards issued by Mastercard. Users will be able to access services using their cryptocurrencies. Online payments will be made after confirming the transaction with private keys.

Payments will be made without third-party mediation. Mastercard and Immersve will use decentralized protocols for payments.

Moreover, DeFi-projects and cryptocurrencies will be able to integrate with API interfaces. As well as Immersve smart contracts for transactions wherever Master card is accepted.

Our experts note that payment systems are increasingly interested in cryptocurrency transactions. Earlier this month, for example, Visa conducted a trial run of stablecoin payments in SWIFT. Rival Master card is currently working to incorporate into its system the ability to convert cryptocurrencies into fiat money and back.

Hive Blockchain reported financial results for the last three months of 2022. It said it received 51.6% less profit from cryptocurrency mining in that period than it did a year earlier

The Ethereum blockchain’s transition to the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) algorithm was one of the reasons for a $90 million loss at major miner Hive Blockchain for the fourth quarter of 2022. The company released its financial results for the last three months of last year. In doing so, it noted that in addition to September’s Ethereum update, the losses were also contributed to the decline in the price of digital assets. As well as on mining equipment at the end of last year.

Our experts note that this report shows that the miner generated $14.1 million in cryptocurrency mining revenue during that period, down 51.6 percent from a year earlier. And the gross profit earned by Hive from mining in the fourth quarter of last year was $3.6 million, down 77% from $15.9 million in the previous quarter.

According to Miner, the average mining cost per Bitcoin in the last three months of 2022 was $13,600. While the average Bitcoin price during that time was $18k. This increased BTC production costs by 37% over the previous quarter. The company revalued its mining equipment, which also led to a $38.8 million loss on Hive’s balance sheet.

Additional reasons for losses

In addition to the “Merger” and the strong decline in cryptocurrency prices from the end of 2021. Hive’s revenue was also driven by a significant increase in global Bitcoin hashrate and an annual increase in mining complexity of 60%, to nearly 40T.

At the same time, the company noted that it mined 787 BTC during this period. And this is 13% more than in the same period of 2021, when 697 Bitcoins were mined. According to the Hive team, this reflects continued growth in its operating hashrate.

Hive also reported that the fleet of GPUs formerly used to mine Ethereum is not currently idle. And it’s generating an average annual revenue of more than $1 million by being busy with computational workloads unrelated to mining digital assets.

NFTs will allow their owners access to subscriptions GQ and opportunities to participate in fashion publication events. Crypto-Upvotes expert review

GQ men’s fashion magazine has announced its first NFT collection. The name of this collection is GQ3 Issue 001: Change Is Good.

The collection will consist of 1,661 NFTs. Artists Chuck Anderson, REO, Kelsey Niziolek and Serwa Attafua worked on the collection for four months. The price of each item in the collection is set at ETH 0.1957 (about $330). The price is set to honor the 1957 founding year of the magazine. The collection is scheduled to launch on March 8.

Buying NFT will give you access to a subscription to the magazine, a gift box from GQ, exclusive merchandise and participation in various magazine events and parties. Additionally, NFT owners will also get access to a special Discord channel and priority access to future issues of NFT.

Also our experts note that in mid-January another popular magazine, National Geographic. Launched sales of its first NFT collection called GM: Daybreak Around the World. The publication released the number of NFTs equal to the year the magazine was founded – 1888.

Attack of American regulators on BUSD and what consequences will face Binance from impossibility to issue its own stablecoin. Review by Crypto-Upvotes experts

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has informed Paxos Trust that it plans to sue it for violating investor protection laws. According to the regulator, Binance USD (BUSD), the third most capitalized stablecoin, is the third-largest. This digital asset, which Paxos issues, is an unregistered security. It is not yet known whether the SEC notice specifically relates to the issuance of BUSD, its listing on exchanges, or both.

The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has since ordered Paxos to cease issuing new BUSD tokens altogether. In listing the consequences of stopping the issuance of BUSD, Changpeng Zhao, head of the Binance exchange, admitted. That capitalization of this asset will continue to decline and investors will start to switch to other stablecoins.

Risks to other stablecoins are high

News about banning issue of stablecoin Binance USD (BUSD) had a negative impact on the market. But not as much as from the collapsed FTX exchange. The SEC is investigating the Binance exchange. So Paxos is also in target of the regulator and the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).

The regulator considers BUSD to be an unregistered security. But with that logic, other stablecoins, USDT and USDC, would also be at risk. Most likely, someone wants to get control of Binance. And creating problems not only for the leading exchange, but also for the whole industry. The risks to other Stablecoins are high.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said he will continue to support BUSD for the foreseeable future. The company predicts that customers will switch to other stablecoins. Therefore, the platform will make changes accordingly.

U.S. regulators declare war on stabelcoins

There are no frontiers for U.S. regulators. All it takes is one American citizen using some platform or protocol. For US regulators to consider these protocols as belonging to their jurisdiction. Attack on stablecoin issuers was expected, the SEC has been saying for years that these companies are not transparent enough. And they don’t comply with U.S. banking laws, don’t have the necessary reserves and so on. If SEC attacked a BUSD issuer, it would be wise to get ready for attacks on other stablecoins, especially USDT and USDC. Given USDT’s majority share of stablecoin market. An attack on them is fraught with a serious crisis in cryptocurrency market and subsequent collapse of all coins without exception.

Our experts note that U.S. regulators have openly declared war on at least Binance itself. In a broader sense, this is a continuation of the fight against stablecoins as an element of opposition to the classical financial system on behalf of the Web 3.0 sphere.

This is a global and extremely important event. It should be taken carefully, and you should read the contents of the documents published by the NYDFS regulator about the ban on continuing to issue BUSD. In fact, it means banning BUSD, but it may be followed by a series of lawsuits.

Our experts are sure that Binance was ready for that. And its management will find a legal and reasonable way out of this situation. Further wide usage of BUSD is out of the question. Perhaps, there will be some alternative or solution. The other major exchanges that issue stablecoins should be prepared for an attack and take some action. In fact, war has been declared on all of them.

Dubai bans coins that interfere with transaction tracking, such as Monero and Zcash. Crypto-Upbotes expert review

Dubai (one of the UAE emirates) has banned the issuance and transactions of anonymous cryptocurrencies. The restriction was imposed by a new set of rules on virtual assets and related activities published by the emirate’s regulator, The Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

Authorities in various countries have a negative attitude towards anonymous cryptocurrencies and take various measures to restrict their use. Because with the emergence of such coins, the number of fraudulent attacks and financial fraud with cryptocurrencies has increased significantly. Attackers often use these tokens to hide the movement of stolen funds.

A set of rules adopted by the Dubai regulator bans cryptocurrencies that “enhance anonymity,” such as Monero, Dash and Zcash. According to the document, this is a type of virtual asset that prevents transactions from being tracked or records of ownership through public blockchains, and for which the VASP (cryptoservice provider) has no technology or mechanisms to track them or determine ownership of them.

The issuance of anonymity-enhancing cryptocurrencies and all activities related to them are prohibited in the emirate, the new law says.

The new rules also establish mandatory licensing for cryptocurrency companies operating in this region. They detail the procedure for issuing, storing and exchanging cryptocurrencies, cybersecurity standards, and requirements for various activities related to digital assets.

Our experts note that after the introduction of compulsory licensing of cryptocurrency-related activities in Dubai. The regulator has already received hundreds of new license applications. To cope with the flood of applications, VARA plans to quadruple its staff over the next few months.