| |
| These are our top stories today: - Austrian banking giant Raiffeisen Bank’s plans to start offering crypto trading services in January 2024.
- Prosecutors say former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao should be arraigned in the U.S.
- The director of the sci-fi series "Conquest" is investing in Dogecoin through Netflix’s budget.
Enjoy your reading! Doğa
p/dogayurduneri | |
| 1 | | Prosecutors have asked a federal court to arraign Binance's co-founder Changpeng Zhao in the U.S. until his sentencing hearing next February. In a court filing, prosecutors said Zhao may not return to the U.S. if he is allowed to leave. More: - The filing came shortly after Zhao pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering requirements and U.S. sanctions by allowing terrorist groups to make crypto transactions on Binance.
- As part of the plea deal, Zhao was ordered to pay a $50M penalty and not to engage in Binance's management for three years.
- He was later released on a $175M bond and allowed to return to his home in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which does not have a direct extradition treaty with the U.S.
- Prosecutors have now urged the court to revert that decision.
Zoom Out: - Zhao currently faces up to 10 years in prison, though he is expected to get no more than 18 months under the settlement agreement.
- Binance agreed to pay a $4.3B fine to settle charges of money laundering, unlicensed money-transmitting business operations, and sanction violations ― one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history.
|     | |
| 2 | | 
What the numbers say: The total hash rate on the Bitcoin blockchain network recently reached a new all-time high, hitting 497,435,830.316. The figure refers to the amount of computing power used by the network per second to process transactions and create new coins. It is generally used to measure how secure and healthy the network is. When the hash rate increases, mining difficulty surges, making Bitcoin (BTC) mining harder and more time-consuming. However, the higher hash rate is also an indicator of a stronger network since it would be more difficult for attackers to take control of over 50% of the network as it would require more computing power, energy, and cost. Relevance: The all-time high came as miners try to secure more powerful machines ahead of a halving event next year. The internal supply and issuance process, expected to happen in April or May next year, will decrease the total amount of Bitcoins that can be mined daily by half. It will be the fourth halving since the network launched in 2008. The procedure is also anticipated to trigger a price increase in Bitcoin since it would reduce the total amount of tokens in circulation. Brands that should care: The halving event is expected to force crypto mining companies such as Marathon Digital, Riot Platforms, Canaan, and Hive Blockchain, to increase the computing power of their facilities, equipping them with more efficient machines. | | | |
| A message from our sponsor, AIPRM. |  | | There’s a NEW, comprehensive GPT directory - here’s how to get it Want access to the most useful GPT directory, ready to use with crowdsourced prompts? With entire GPTs customized for specific use cases? Then you need AIPRM, a Chrome extension that integrates directly into ChatGPT. Folks at big businesses like Adobe, Microsoft, AT&T, Disney and Intel use AIPRM to quickly complete tasks. Get The Extension 
| |
|
| 3 | | Austrian banking giant Raiffeisen Bank plans to start offering crypto trading services to retail customers by the end of January 2024 in partnership with crypto exchange Bitpanda. Initially, the service will only be available in Vienna, where nearly a quarter of Austria's population lives. More: - Raiffeisen signed a letter of intent to offer crypto services through Bitpanda in April.
- Raiffeisen's head of innovation, Curt Chadha, said customers will be able to access Bitpanda through the bank's app using their mobile devices.
- The system will be similar to account-to-account bank transfers and carry the same security measures, Chadha said.
- Raiffeisen has $215B of assets under management (AUM) and caters to 17.8 million customers across Europe.
Zoom Out: - A unit of Spanish banking giant Banco Santander also recently started offering trading and investment services for Bitcoin and Ether to wealthy clients in Switzerland.
- Many other banks, including HSBC, Standard Chartered, BNY Mellion, Deutsche Bank, DZ Bank, and Société Générale, have launched crypto-related services in recent years.
| | | |
| 4 | | South Korea's central bank plans to test a digital currency (CBDC) with 100,000 citizens in Q4 2024. The three-month test will start in September or October 2024. More: - Participants will be able to use the CBDC only to purchase goods. Other use cases like storing, exchanging, and transferring will not be permitted.
- The test will be jointly operated by the Bank of Korea (BOK), the Financial Services Commission (FSC), and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
- It aims to help regulators evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a potential CBDC.
Zoom Out: - The test will also include private banks and financial institutions, the bank said last month.
- South Korea completed the testing functions of its CBDC, such as issuance and distribution, in December 2021.
| | | |
| A message from our sponsor, NativePath. |  | | Report: 89% of Americans suffer from ‘burnout.’ A new report shows a shocking majority of Americans suffer from a form of burnout, including cognitive weariness, emotional exhaustion, lack of interest, motivation or energy, and lack of effort at work. The #1 reason for burnout reported?... Excessive workload. But breakthrough research from Harvard Medical School shows it could have more to do with gut health, especially if you experience this burnout after a meal. A 2021 study found one food increases the risk of cognitive decline by 44 percent – posing negative effects on memory, language, problem-solving and other thinking abilities. And another brain disrupting food, often touted for having health-supportive properties, can cause shrinkage in the brain and disrupt neuron communication, leading to memory issues.
If you notice brain burnout, make sure you’re not eating any of these 5 foods regularly. Read More | |
|
| 5 | | Seychelles-based crypto exchange HTX, formerly known as Huobi, lost $13.6M following a cyber attack targeting the HTX Eco Chain (HECO) bridge. The attack caused the cross-chain bridge solution to lose $86.6M through the breach of three of its hot wallets. More: - The lost tokens include 1,240 Ether (ETH), 7.3 million Tether (USDT), 1.78 million USD Coin (USDC), and 62,200 Chainlink (LINK).
- In response, the exchange temporarily suspended all deposit and withdrawal services, which have now restarted.
- HTX adviser Justin Sun said the exchange will fully compensate for the losses.
Zoom Out: - In September, HTX was hacked for nearly $8M of ETH in another hot wallet exploit.
- At the time, the exchange managed to claw back the stolen funds, issuing a 250 ETH white hat reward for the hacker.
| | | |
| 6 | | The director of the Netflix sci-fi series "Conquest," Carl Erik Rinsch, took $4M from the show's budget and invested the money in Dogecoin (DOGE), according to a The New York Times report. Netflix originally allocated a $55M budget for the show, though it has yet to receive any episodes. More: - According to the report, the streaming giant gave Rinsch $44M as an initial budget in March 2020 and pledged to provide the remaining $11M on the condition that he finished the show.
- Rinsch used $10.5M to make investments in pharmaceutical companies and the S&P 500, and lost nearly $6M in a few weeks.
- He later bought Dogecoin with the $4M left in the U.S.-based crypto exchange Kraken and sold the coins for $27M in May 2021.
- Rinsch then spent millions on five Rolls Royce, a Ferrari, high-end furniture, designer clothing, and a luxury watch but claims that he used his own money for the purchases.
- He also recently filed a confidential arbitration proceeding against Netflix, accusing the streamer of breach of contract and demanding $14M in damages.
| | | |
| 7 | | Quick Hits: - Raising capital? Fundingstack gives you fundraising super powers. Access a DB of 200k investors + CRM, pitch hosting, investor updates and more. Sign up here to get priority access.*
- A U.S. appeals court has denied a request for the release of FTX former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, who is in jail awaiting sentencing after being found guilty of fraud.
- Crypto startup Keyp has suspended the development of its Game Boy digital wallet project only six months after launching.
- Crypto banking firm BCB Group's CEO Oliver von Landsberg-Sadie has stepped down to pursue new opportunities.
- Experience exciting new stories of innovation from prominent brands like LEGO, Ben and Jerry's, Delta, and VMware on Season 2 of Adobe's The Power of Teamwork podcast.*
* This is a sponsored post. | | | |
| Upcoming Events | | NOV
25 | | AI in Financial Services with Saroop Bharwani | | | | | | | NOV
25 | | The Future of Fractional Work with David Berkowitz | | | | | | * This is a sponsored event | | | |
Term of the Day Request for Proposal: A request for proposal (RFP) is a project announcement by an organization indicating that bids for contractors to complete the project are sought. Question of the Week What perks would convince you to return to the office? Join the conversation |
 | Staff Writer | | Doga is a tech and science editor who has been writing news for nearly 10 years. She worked for leading tech platforms and mainstrem media channels as an editor and presenter throughout his career. Then, she carried her know-how to more than one platform. She is a part-time cat lover and binge-watcher, and also fond of science, space, and emerging tech. She always has a story to tell. She is a bit addict to the laughter and -unfortunately- the '90s culture. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
| |
 | Tackle all your educational, strategic, and tactical needs with AIPRM. | |
|
| |
|
| |
Comments
Post a Comment