Tag Archives: social

The Canadian rapper Aubrey Drake Graham, popular among music fans as Drake, made a major $1.26 million bet worth of bitcoin on the Super Bowl match between the Los Angeles Rams (LA Rams) and the Cincinnati Bengals. He seems to have good prediction skills since he profited $300,000 after the referee’s final whistle. Drake’s Bitcoin Bets The Super Bowl’s match traditionally garners the attention of millions of Americans each year. Last night’s game was watched by over 90...

At this point, it’s becoming pretty evident that non-fungible tokens are causing a massive stir. With this, however, there’s also no shortage of fascinating stories of random people turning a few thousand dollars into millions. Or, in this case – the story of someone who refused to be turned into an “instant millionaire” by turning down a $1.2 million offer on an NFT that he paid less than $17K for back in May 2021. The Story of Golden Ape #1726 For those of you who haven’t...

Despite the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and economic turmoil throughout the world, Bitcoin’s network continues to get more robust. Following a recent spike, its hashrate reached yet another all-time high. It goes without saying that there’s a lot of economic turmoil and geopolitical uncertainty as international tension surrounding the relationship between Ukraine and Russia intensifies. Meanwhile, market participants are eagerly anticipating hinted rate hikes as...

The world of cryptocurrencies, especially in its earlier years, had a reputation of being the playing ground of hackers and various malicious entities. And while this has changed to a huge degree in the past few years and the field received massive recognition and regulatory clarity, the ghosts of its past remain. One of the most infamous Bitcoin hacks took place back in 2016 when someone stole roughly 120,000 BTC from one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges – Bitfinex....

Crypto mergers and acquisitions (M&A) soared from $1.1 billion in value in 2020 to $55 billion, representing a massive surge of 4,846%, according to a report by PwC. The average size of an M&A increased threefold, from $52.7 million to $179.7 million. The report notes that a few mega-billion SPAC were behind this substantial jump. Crypto M&A Deals. Source: PwCMoreover, 2021 saw the activity shift back to the Americas. The region increased its shares of the total...

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has reportedly taken down four major illegal Dark Web sites, which have made over $260 million in cryptocurrency proceeds from the sale of stolen credit cards. Those platforms are Ferum Shop, Trump’s Dumps, Sky-Fraud forum, and UAS Store. The Latest Seizures Known as “carding” websites, these illicit platforms offer stolen credit cards, and buyers can purchase them with premium gift cards, luxury goods, or (as in this case)...

Chainalysis has identified more than $602 million worth of ransomware payments in 2021. But the firm is confident that the figure is still an “underestimate” and that the true total for the year is likely to be much higher. 2021 Ransomeware Payouts A report from the blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis showed that at least $602 million worth of ransom payouts were identified in 2021. But the figures could be higher considering the fact that ransomware revenue in the first...

Bitcoin started out as a technological experiment more than a decade ago. Since then, the global financial markets have undergone a tremendous shift. At the center of the digital currency revolution is blockchain technology which gave rise to the first-ever smart contract platform, Ethereum. Over the past years, the Ethereum network has become a significant driver offering users the ability to interact in a truly decentralized manner. Decentralized exchanges or DEXs are part...

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) said a potential CBDC could positively impact the local financial system. Nonetheless, the institution introduced a discussion paper to find out what the general public thinks on the matter. Seeking Society’s Opinion According to the CBK, launching a central bank digital currency could flatten the multi-layered correspondent banking structure and enhance cross-border payments. The latter will become more efficient and less costly, the...

El Salvadorean President Nayib Bukele’s ambitious Bitcoin Law has met staunch opposition. However, Bitcoin bull Max Keiser believes the grand experiment could help El Salvador become the equivalent of a city of London in Central America. El Salvador and Bitcoin In conversation with Diario El Salvador, Keiser said El Salvador could become a Bitcoin ‘hub’ for Central and Latin America. He noted that London was one of the three largest financial centers in the world before...