Suit Alleges BitMEX Chiefs ‘Looted’ More Than $440M From Exchange After Finding Out About Probes

The suit seeks an order of attachment against the parent company of BitMEX.
Source: Coindesk
Original Post: Suit Alleges BitMEX Chiefs ‘Looted’ More Than 0M From Exchange After Finding Out About Probes

John McAfee Pumps Crypto From Prison, Denies Tax Fraud and Murder Charges

John McAfee Pumps Crypto From Prison, Denies Tax Fraud and Murder Charges

John McAfee has shared many details about his life in Spanish prison and chances of extradition to the U.S. He additionally claims to have regained control of his ghost cryptocurrency project.

Prison Life ‘Is an Adventure’

Former U.S. presidential candidate and antivirus software tycoon John McAfee is in Spanish prison awaiting his extradition trial after he was arrested in Spain.

McAfee has been tweeting regularly from prison. “You want to know what prison is like. It’s like a Motel 6 run by Hitler’s SS,” he tweeted, elaborating:

I am content in here. I have friends. The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine … Prison is an adventure to say the least.

“Spanish prisons are like the Hilton hotel compared to the abject surreality and dehumanization of American prisons,” he described in another tweet. “In Spanish prisons, you are treated as a human being instead of a number. I am treated well.” Admitting that he is “surrounded by murderers, muggers, and thieves,” the antivirus software tycoon maintained that it is “Not as bad as our government of course. But still.”

McAfee Denies Charges Against Him

The former presidential candidate insists that the U.S. government is after him for speaking the truth, particularly against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). “I once publicly called the SEC a festering pustule on the face of America, and the IRS – a legalized criminal gang aspiring to be the equivalent of Hitler’s SS. These are the two agencies accusing me of hideous crimes. I can only assume that they took offense at my remarks.” Nonetheless, he affirmed: “I would not exchange my life in prison for a life of freedom in which I could not speak the truth.”

Regarding the $23 million dollar judgment against him, McAffee claimed: “It was a civil suit not a criminal issue. I never even responded to the suit. It was simply a default judgment.” He declared:

I am charged with tax fraud – which is lying on your tax return. I have filed no returns for many years and have made no secret of it. If I have said nothing how could I have lied. My real crime is speaking publicly about the insanity rampant within our system of government.

Responding to a question from the media about whether the U.S. justice system is just, he said: “If extradited, I face 35 years in prison for multiple counts of refusing to file tax returns. Had I chosen armed robbery, I would’ve received 5 years maximum. You tell me if it’s just.”

Furthermore, McAfee tweeted on Friday: “I’m in prison for refusing to file tax returns, while government bureaucrats use your taxes for private planes, lavish parties and all other benefits of their power.” Commenting on the upcoming U.S. presidential election, he said, “If you think this election, whatever its results, will change this system, you will be sadly disappointed.”

McAfee Still Pumping His Ghost Cryptocurrency

Although charged by the SEC for pumping tokens, McAfee is still pumping his ghost cryptocurrency. He confirmed from prison that Ghost is the only crypto project he is involved with at present. Recalling that he abandoned the project in August due to a fallout with the management, he clarified:

I have returned to controlling the Ghost development. My feud with management has ended. With the announcement that we will soon release a private stable coin, will mark a new era in transacting crypto business. Transaction fees will be shared amongst all Ghost holders.

“When our private stablecoin is released, it will revolutionize crypto transactions. I have capable managers and communicate frequently from prison,” he claimed. “My work with Ghost revolves entirely around our development of the world’s first private stablecoin. Version one will be a wrapped DAI. Later we will have a new stable, private blockchain. Holders of Ghost will share all transaction fee profits for the stablecoin.”

He also commented on Paypal’s announcement to begin supporting cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, on its platform. “Paypal’s acceptance of cryptocurrency signals, I believe, a new wave of cryptocurrency acceptance worldwide. Governments around the world will have to get used to cryptocurrencies.” He further tweeted: “Paypal to take crypto. The IRS must be pissing itself.”

What’s Next for McAfee

The U.S. government wants him extradited from Spain, which McAfee says he is 100% certain will not happen because the Spanish “courts will see the clear resentment of the American government toward my public condemnations of their increasing corruption. They also understand how simple it is for a corrupt system to manufacture evidence that can prove anything against anyone who is a public enemy. They will decline my extradition,” he wrote. As such, he said he will not need a lawyer in the U.S., emphasizing that “There is zero chance that Spain will extradite me.”

McAfee revealed that when he is released, he will do “The same as before,” which is to “continue speaking against the cancer that has invaded every organ of the U.S. government bureaucracy.” He added that he is not sorry for what he has done. “I have followed my heart and stood up for my beliefs. I will never regret that,” he said.

On the subject of him allegedly being wanted for murder in Belize, McAfee insisted:

This is false. I was not charged with murder nor was I a suspect. The Belizean authorities will confirm this. I was a person of interest like all of the murdered man’s neighbors. I chose not to be questioned. I was already at war with the Belizean government.

McAfee posted his prison address on Friday after he said many people have asked for it. “Letters only. No packages. No money, drugs or weapons please. Everything is opened,” he warned. Finally, the cybersecurity tycoon said he would not reveal where he had been hiding: “I will not say. I may need to hide again someday.”

What do you think about John McAfee’s story? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post John McAfee Pumps Crypto From Prison, Denies Tax Fraud and Murder Charges appeared first on Bitcoin News.


Source: Bitcoin.com
Original Post: John McAfee Pumps Crypto From Prison, Denies Tax Fraud and Murder Charges

Top Analyst Says Three Coins Have Upside Potential As DeFi Movement Transitions to Bitcoin Bull Run

A popular crypto analyst says three coins that caught fire in the DeFi craze and retraced during Bitcoin’s big rally may have hit a bottom.

The pseudonymous trader known in the industry as Flood points to Aave (AAVE), Thorchain (RUNE) and Solana (SOL) as a trio of assets that appear to have upside potential.

The trader tells Luke Martin on The Coinist Podcast that he felt he was a bit late to the most recent Bitcoin price action, which he thinks is representative of the market overall.

“I didn’t have as much Bitcoin exposure as I would’ve liked on this move up, and I think that’s a representation of the market as a whole.

A lot of people got caught up in stables, got suckered into these attractive protocols that seemed to have sustainable inflation rates and return on parking equity in there, and then they get slapped in the face by Bitcoin. Luckily, the way I’ve constructed my personal portfolio is that I always have a certain allocation of Bitcoin so I don’t get burned too bad on these moves up.” 

The degree of risk in DeFi projects will increase as innovation in the space increases, says Flood.

“My current view on DeFi is [that] I’m not technical enough to understand if Ethereum layer two scaling is possible, and when you look at a lot of these protocols that have actual infrastructure, that stuff is being built [on] and is very useful, for example Synthetix and Aave especially… These kinds of permissionless protocols that have usable infrastructure are good for now but you can see there is a lot of danger with innovation in terms of this flash-lending type stuff and the potential for arb from platform to platform…

As you can see with Harvest and with these other protocols where it’s kind of a protocol inside of a protocol, utilizing another protocol, and then it’s like an aggregate. When something breaks in the market, then that can have residual effects into stuff that you wouldn’t necessarily think had any correlation or any risk.”

Flood also notes that institutional investors are solely focused on Bitcoin.

“Big firms are not going to be like, ‘What’s our DeFi play? What’s our $50 million market cap play?’ They’re going to say… ‘What’s our Bitcoin play?’

I think that’s something that I think people don’t realize. [The] people who are looking at crypto in general, the first thing they always look at is Bitcoin. It’s the flagship. It’s the prototype.

It’s what has expanded and stood the test of time – what the most infrastructure is built around, and people say, ‘Oh, it’s Boomer tech, oh it can’t really be utilized, it’s this and that,’ but at the end of the day it’s hard money, and firms and people that are looking at Bitcoin right now are pretty price agnostic because they’re looking at the success that MicroStrategy and a couple of other firms have had with buying Bitcoin and what that has done for them.”

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Aleksandar Karanov

The post Top Analyst Says Three Coins Have Upside Potential As DeFi Movement Transitions to Bitcoin Bull Run appeared first on The Daily Hodl.


Source: Daily HODL
Original Post: Top Analyst Says Three Coins Have Upside Potential As DeFi Movement Transitions to Bitcoin Bull Run

Sleepy Swiss town launches Tezos-backed Coronavirus aid program

The town of Wetzikon will be using blockchain tech for targeted local business aid


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: Sleepy Swiss town launches Tezos-backed Coronavirus aid program

MicroStrategy's bottom line gets beefier on Bitcoin moves: Bad crypto news of the week

Check out this week’s Bad Crypto podcast.


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: MicroStrategy's bottom line gets beefier on Bitcoin moves: Bad crypto news of the week

US Banks May Seek to Partner With or Buy Crypto Custodians, OCC’s Brooks Says

The OCC's July ruling that allowed banks to provide custody spurred the newfound interest, Brooks said.
Source: Coindesk
Original Post: US Banks May Seek to Partner With or Buy Crypto Custodians, OCC’s Brooks Says

$1.1 Billion Crypto Ponzi: Masterminds of Wotoken Head to Prison in China

$1.1 Billion Crypto Ponzi: Masterminds of Wotoken Head to Prison in China

A Chinese court has confirmed the sentencing of the masterminds behind the 7.7 billion yuan Chinese Ponzi scheme Wotoken, which had over 715,000 investors.

Wotoken Scammers Sentenced to Prison

The Intermediate People’s Court of Yancheng city, Jiangsu province, denied an appeal by four convicts involved in the billion-dollar Ponzi scheme Wotoken on Tuesday, several local media reported.

The court upheld the original sentences for Gao Yudong, Li Qibing, Wang Xiaoying, and Tian Bo who were dissatisfied with their original sentencing and filed an appeal. They believe they had minor roles in the scheme. The four were sentenced to prison for eight years and six months, seven years, seven years, and two years and six months respectively, IT Times reported. They were also fined two million yuan, 1.5 million yuan, 1.5 million yuan, and one million yuan respectively.

In addition, two other defendants were sentenced for their roles in the Wotoken scam. Li Guomin was sentenced to three years in prison and fined 100,000 yuan while Tang Xiaohua was sentenced to six months imprisonment with one-year probation, the publication added. In May, 12 people allegedly behind the Wotoken Ponzi scheme were tried, including the six defendants mentioned above.

Chinese law enforcement has seized 425 million yuan ($64 million) of illegal proceeds from the Wotoken scheme, which were turned over to the state treasury. The illegal proceeds belonging to the four who appealed will also be recovered and turned over to the state treasury, the publication conveyed.

The scheme involves a number of cryptocurrencies, collectively worth about 7.7 billion yuan ($1.15 billion), according to blockchain data. They included 46,050 BTC, 286 million USDT, 2 million ETH, 292,590 LTC, 56,900 BCH, and 6,841,797 EOS.

The Wotoken (WOR) platform attracted 715,249 registered users between July 2018 and October 2019. The scheme has 501 MLM layers.

At least one person behind the Wotoken Ponzi scheme was also a key member of a larger Chinese Ponzi scheme called Plustoken, according to an investigative reporter. The Plustoken Ponzi swindled about $6 billion from more than 715,000 investors. Chinese police took down the scheme in July, arrested 109 people involved, and charged six members with fraud.

What do you think about the Wotoken Ponzi scheme? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post $1.1 Billion Crypto Ponzi: Masterminds of Wotoken Head to Prison in China appeared first on Bitcoin News.


Source: Bitcoin.com
Original Post: .1 Billion Crypto Ponzi: Masterminds of Wotoken Head to Prison in China

Bitcoin reaches $14K for the first time since January 2018 — what’s next?

The price of Bitcoin is on the verge of having its highest monthly close ever but bulls must still break through $14K for a shot at a new all-time high.


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: Bitcoin reaches K for the first time since January 2018 — what’s next?

0x charts path towards cross-chain asset exchange and liquidity aggregation

The interoperability protocol seeks to expand beyond Ethereum and create cross-chain functionality


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: 0x charts path towards cross-chain asset exchange and liquidity aggregation

What industry leaders would wish for Bitcoin’s white paper 12th anniversary

Experts in the blockchain and crypto industry make their wishes for Bitcoin’s 12th birthday


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: What industry leaders would wish for Bitcoin’s white paper 12th anniversary

Coinbase CEO Plugs Crypto Platform Giving Away 1,000,000 Tokens in the Name of Science

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong is placing the spotlight on a new crypto platform that’s distributing tokens in exchange for research contributions.

ResearchHub, run by a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), is a platform designed to foster collaboration in scientific research the same that way that GitHub has done for software engineering.

In July, the platform launched ResearchCoin (RSC), a token awarded to users whenever they receive an upvote on a post or contribution.

Armstrong highlights the start-up to his 362,000 Twitter followers.

The token grants users voting rights in the ResearchHub DAO and can also be used to improve the visibility of content and provide funds to scientific research on ResearchHub, according to Patrick Joyce, the platform’s chief scientific officer.

Joyce says the platform plans to distribute 1 million RSC each week on a proportional basis to ResearchHub contributors.

“Awards are distributed pro-rata by the number of upvotes each weekly contributor receives from the community for their contributions during that week. If you get at least one upvote during the week, you will be eligible to receive a portion of the 1M RSC that is distributed each week, in addition to the regular ‘1 RSC per upvote’ reward mechanism.”

Joyce adds that he does not anticipate that rate of rewards to continue for long. The amount will likely be halved periodically until the rewards diminish to the point of redundancy. The first set of RSC rewards will be measured and given out on November, 8th 2020.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Tithi Luadthong

The post Coinbase CEO Plugs Crypto Platform Giving Away 1,000,000 Tokens in the Name of Science appeared first on The Daily Hodl.


Source: Daily HODL
Original Post: Coinbase CEO Plugs Crypto Platform Giving Away 1,000,000 Tokens in the Name of Science

Ripple Sent Payments Giant MoneyGram $9,300,000 in XRP in Q3 2020 – Here’s Why

New financial filings show Ripple sent money transfer giant MoneyGram millions of dollars worth of XRP in the third quarter of this year.

MoneyGram received $9.3 million in Q3 from the San Francisco-based payments startup in “market development fees.” MoneyGram also says it witnessed a net benefit of $8.9 after $400,000 in “transaction and trading expenses.”

The market development fees are sent in XRP, which MoneyGram says it immediately converts into cash.

The remittance firm first categorized the Ripple market development fees as revenue, but – after a consultation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – it now uses the fees to offset expenses, according to a MoneyGram press release.

In an SEC filing, MoneyGram explained why it receives compensation in the form of XRP from Ripple.

“The Company is compensated by Ripple in XRP for developing and bringing liquidity to foreign exchange markets, facilitated by the ODL platform, and providing a reliable level of foreign exchange trading activity. We refer to this compensation as market development fees.”

In the second quarter of this year, the payments titan reported that it received $15.1 million worth of XRP in market development fees with a net benefit of $8.8 million after $6.3 million in expenses related to transactions and trading.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any loses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/gonin

The post Ripple Sent Payments Giant MoneyGram $9,300,000 in XRP in Q3 2020 – Here’s Why appeared first on The Daily Hodl.


Source: Daily HODL
Original Post: Ripple Sent Payments Giant MoneyGram ,300,000 in XRP in Q3 2020 – Here’s Why

Former Google lawyer joins spate of high-profile attorneys entering crypto

Coinbase leads a growing list of crypto companies attracting top-tier legal talent


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: Former Google lawyer joins spate of high-profile attorneys entering crypto

The crypto compliance lie: Sacrificing privacy does not make us safer

The lightchain-vs.-darkchain dichotomy is counterproductive, and a healthy graychain will produce more valuable crypto assets like Bitcoin.


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: The crypto compliance lie: Sacrificing privacy does not make us safer

Ryan Phillippe Shaded Ellen DeGeneres And I’m Here For All Of It

Ryan Phillippe Shaded Ellen DeGeneres And I’m Here For All Of It CCN - Capital & Celeb News -

Ryan Phillippe is one of the first A-listers to directly shade Ellen DeGeneres since her scandal broke. We have no choice but to stan a king.

Ryan Phillippe Shaded Ellen DeGeneres And I’m Here For All Of It CCN - Capital & Celeb News -


Source: CCN.com
Original Post: Ryan Phillippe Shaded Ellen DeGeneres And I’m Here For All Of It

Crypto Is Less Scary Than Halloween

The great Twitter hack of 2020 highlighted the scariest thing about crypto: being tricked by scams. Here is how to avoid being a victim.
Source: Coindesk
Original Post: Crypto Is Less Scary Than Halloween

Happy birthday dear Bitcoin: Crypto’s first white paper turns 12

An assessment of Satoshi Nakamoto’s Oct. 31, 2008 paper that “set in motion a revolution in finance.”


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: Happy birthday dear Bitcoin: Crypto’s first white paper turns 12

Did Satoshi choose to publish Bitcoin's whitepaper on Halloween as another Easter egg?

For all we don't know about Satoshi, we can tell he loved a touch of theatricality


Source: Cointelegraph.com
Original Post: Did Satoshi choose to publish Bitcoin's whitepaper on Halloween as another Easter egg?

OCC’s Brian Brooks Against Government Issued Digital Dollar – Supports Regulation of Privately Issued Stablecoins

OCC's Brian Brooks Is Against the Government Issuing Digital Dollar, Supports Regulation of Privately Issued Stablecoins Instead

The acting director of the U.S. Office Comptroller of Currency (OCC) Brian Brooks says the creation of the U.S. digital dollar is a terrible one because the government is not good at building things. Instead, Brooks believes tech companies, which already possess the know-how, to be in a better position to issue stable digital currencies. He says the U.S. government needs to focus on doing what it does best-regulation.

Growing Stablecoin Supply

The acting comptroller of currency’s comments come as reports suggest the US is currently working on a digital dollar. However, the U.S. digital dollar can only be issued in four years’ time.

Speaking in an interview, Brooks, who uses analogies to support his stance on stablecoins, believes the United States can only flourish when the government allows the private sector to innovate. Expounding on this belief, Brooks says U.S. government regulatory agencies should instead be concerned with the protection of investors.

To support his theory, Brooks points to the phenomenal growth of stablecoins in the past few months. He says:

If you look at the growth of the major stablecoin, the USDT, you see it has been doubling in market capitalisation every 60 days for the past four, five to six months. This kind of growth is astounding.

Therefore, instead of competing with private innovators, Brooks advises the US government to focus on “putting audit and consumer disclosure rules so that the market can have confidence that the money is there.”

The Envisioned Role for Central Banks

Still, Brooks makes it clear that allowing private companies to be the issuers of stablecoins does not diminish the effectiveness of the monetary policy since any such tokens issuance is backed by dollars that are in circulation.

“Just like Circle and Coinbase have issued a stablecoin and not the Federal Reserve…. still that stablecoin is issued with the promise that it is redeemable for a dollar.” All dollars in circulation are issued by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Brooks also clarifies that stablecoins issued by private tech companies cannot be more than the circulating supply because “you cannot sell the stablecoin unless someone gives you the dollar.”

When asked about the role of commercial banks in this setup, Brooks says he envisions the financial institutions “being nodes on these blockchains or themselves be issuers of stablecoins at some point.” This will be in addition to banks acting as depositories.

Contradictions

Meanwhile, the OCC acting chief appears to contradict the US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as he laments how the U.S. has been slow to embrace digital currencies. Powell recently said that the U.S. not very concerned about being the first to issue a central bank digital currency. Instead, he says prefers getting it right the first time.

However, pointing to the EU’s release of a stablecoin framework as well as China’s distribution of the e-RMB, Brooks asks:

The question is where is the U.S. in all this? It is not an answer to just say we are worried about AML.

Brooks explains that other countries are seeing “crypto and stablecoins in particular as a strategic advantage” and the U.S. “has not figured that out yet.”

Do you agree that the US government must not issue a digital dollar? Tell us what you think in the comments section below

The post OCC’s Brian Brooks Against Government Issued Digital Dollar – Supports Regulation of Privately Issued Stablecoins appeared first on Bitcoin News.


Source: Bitcoin.com
Original Post: OCC’s Brian Brooks Against Government Issued Digital Dollar – Supports Regulation of Privately Issued Stablecoins

China Should Take Part in Creating Global Regulatory Framework for Digital Currency, Xi Says

China's president said the nation should proactively participate in setting the international framework.
Source: Coindesk
Original Post: China Should Take Part in Creating Global Regulatory Framework for Digital Currency, Xi Says