Courts have found a former Coinbase Global Inc product manager guilty of insider crypto trading in the first case of its kind, lawyers revealed.
Ishan Wahi pleaded guilty to two charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. This comes just after he initially pleaded not guilty in previous hearings.
Wahi shared confidential information Nikhil Wahi, his brother, and Sameer Ramani, a mutual friend of the two. The information contained confidential information about upcoming announcements of digital asset set to trade on Coinbase.
“I knew that Sameer Ramani and Nikhil Wahi would use that information to make trading decisions. It was wrong to misappropriate and disseminate Coinbase’s property,” Wahi said at the federal court hearing.
Authorities charged both Nikhail Wahi and Sameer Ramani with acquiring digital assets via Ethereum-backed wallets. The two suspects traded roughly 14 times using embargoed Coinbase announcements from June 2021 to April last year, reports showed.
In September, Nihil Wahi pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Authorities sentenced him to 10 months in jail in January.
Regarding Ishan Wahi, he faces a further sentencing hearing in US district courts in January. He is expected to serve from 36 to 47 months in prison as outlined in his plea deal, prosecutors said.
Coinbase and Cooperation
Coinbase is the world’s second-largest exchange by volumes and has cooperated with prosecutors on an internal probe. Authorities, including those in the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are determining whether the digital assets were securities.
Coinbase has remained compliant with global regulators amid the bear market in 2022. Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority ordered Coinbase to set up a German division due to alleged business organisation violations. The watchdog cited the German Banking Act and demanded Coinbase Germany to provide audit certificates for annual accounts when requested.
Hackers have hit CoW Swap with a major cyberattack, leading to 550 BNB in stolen funds.
Contract exploits from cybercriminals stole funds from the decentralised exchange (DEX) protocol. This triggered the platform’s maximal extractable value (MEV) searcher and posted the alerts on a Twitter thread.
Smart contract auditing firm BlockSec found that the exploit added a wallet address as a “solver” with a multisig. The address later attempted to approve DAI tokens to SwapGuard. The latter transferred DAI from the CoW Swap settlement contract to the subsequent addresses.
According to blockchain cybersecurity company PeckShied, hackers stole roughly 551 BNB totalling $181,600 to date. They later transferred the stolen money to the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash.
News of the theft sparked outcry from community members, who demanded users revoke the DEX’s approvals.
News of the cyberattacks comes at a time when criminals are set to continue 2022’s trends this year. A CertiK report found that last year was the worst for the crypto industry. Losses topped roughly $3.7 billion using hacks, platform exploits, and scams.
Cryptocurrency giant Binance has stepped up efforts to help people affected by the devastating earthquake in Turkey with airdropped BNB tokens.
The company’s charity division will donate $100 USD of its native token to users in regions hit by the natural disaster. Users can provide Proof of Address (POA) submissions before 6 February across ten cities. These include Şanlıurfa, Kahramanmaraş, Hatay, Gaziantep, Adana, Diyabakir and others.
According to figures, Binance’s donation scheme totals roughly $5 million USD, or 94 million Turkish Lira. The company has said POA measures were the most effective way to roll out the donation scheme, stating it is the best option for users.
Binance Charity also deployed its public donation address to allow users to donate to the Emergency Earthquake Appeal.
Binance chief executive Changpeng Zhao said in a statement,
“The recent earthquakes in Turkey have had a devastating impact on so many people and communities. We hope that our efforts will bring some relief to those affected. We are also calling on our industry peers to once again come together to offer support in these times of crisis.”
Binance Crypto Charity Efforts
The news comes as cryptocurrencies gain in popularity as people can access Web3 payment systems after natural disasters, war, and other incidences damage local infrastructure.
Users can access their decentralised finance (DeFi) and crypto wallets with low fees to donate, transfer, and monitor funds quickly and in real-time. Many of those affected by the Russo-Ukrainian war have leveraged cryptocurrencies to support relief efforts as the conflict continues.
The developments come after Binance Charity launched its Scholar Programme (BCSP) to back future Web3 workforces. The initiative aims to upskill enthusiasts in the space, develop cohorts, and finance ongoing cryptocurrency projects.
The company stated that “crypto literacy is the cornerstone of mass adoption,” adding education was a huge part of its operations.
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has suspended bank transfers in USD from Wednesday, it confirmed in reports.
Speaking to CoinDesk on Monday, a Binance spokesperson confirmed that it would take measures from 8 February. It added that just 0.001 percent of bank transfers are conducted in USD each month.
The spokesperson said: “We are temporarily suspending USD bank transfers as of February 8th. Affected customers are being notified directly.”
The spokesperson continued,
“In the interim, all other methods of buying and selling crypto remain unaffected, including bank transfer using one of the other fiat currencies supported by Binance (including euros), buying and selling crypto via credit card, debit card, Google Pay and Apple Pay and via our Binance P2P marketplace.”
Despite this, the measures will enter force on its global platform, but not the firm’s Binance.US subsidy.
A second spokesperson said: “[Binance.US] is not affected by this suspension. Unless you see an official message from http://Binance.US, our customers will not be affected.”
Interpol, the global organisation tasked with international policing, has begun exploring how to police the Metaverse, reports reveal.
Citing Interpol secretary general Jurgen Stock, the BBC reported that the agency aimed to monitor and regulate criminality on the spatial communications platform.
He noted how “sophisticated and professional” cybercriminals could leverage emerging technologies.
Stock continued: “We need to sufficiently respond to that. Sometimes lawmakers, police, and our societies are running a little bit behind. We have seen if we are doing it too late, it already impacts trust in the tools we are using, and therefore the metaverse. In similar platforms that already exist, criminals are using it.”
He concluded that his organisation faced challenges with educating the public on metaverse cybercrime. The organisation aims to tackle cryptocurrency crimes with its outreach.
The comments come after Interpol opened a metaverse portal in October last year at its 90th General Assembly. The new virtual space aimed to inform visitors of Interpol’s operations, metaverse ambitions, and upskill employees on security protocols.
Details of the ongoing bankruptcy cases of FTX have surfaced, revealing details of the crisis in a recent court testimony.
John Ray, the acting chief executive of the now-defunct crypto exchange, testified on Monday at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. During the hearing, he stated that he and others working at the firm had “carefully” conducted investigations on FTX’s operations.
The latter began to resist a measure to appoint an independent examiner to the company’s bankruptcy case, Ray claimed. He cited “inadvertent errors” that could lead to the loss of “hundreds of millions of dollars of value” for the pushback.
Ray continued that, after taking control of FTX in November last year, he could not find “a single list of anything” linked to the firm’s bank accounts, insurance, and income statements.
The lack of data triggered a “massive scramble for information,” he said.
Amid the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition, he noted several attempts to steal digital assets, sparking security protocols from experts and liquidators.
He explained: “Your normal first-day petition is chaotic as sometimes can be — this was something that I have never experienced. Those hacks went on virtually all night long […] It was really 48 hours of what I can only describe as pure hell.”
Additionally, he asserted he did not have connections with former FTX executives, including the top three: Alameda Research chief executive Caroline Ellison, ex-CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, and FTX co-founder Gary Wang. He also had no ties to Bankman-Fried’s parents or other affiliates before taking over the firm.
No one “that was in a control position” with the ex-chief executive could direct the exchange’s actions while under new management.
New Examiner under Examination
The news comes after the Office of the US Trustee claimed the case required an independent examiner capable of releasing a public transparency report on the company’s bankruptcy activities.
US Trustee Office representative Juliet Sarkessian urged courts should appoint an examiner for the public’s interest. Despite this, court judges did not rule to select an independent examiner.
Lawyers were instead directed to confirm a “consensual resolution” on the case.
The developments follow ongoing proceedings to resolve FTX’s asset management crisis and unveil events that unfolded prior to and during the company’s collapse. Bankman-Fried currently faces eight counts related to the misappropriation of funds, wire fraud, and defrauding investors, among others.
The United Kingdom has recently entered the top spot for the world’s crypto hub for fintech firms and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). A recent survey analysed factors such as ATMs, taxes, job prospects, and platforms for developing the market, leading to the findings.
The Recap survey comes as Whitehall aims to push central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), evidencing London’s readiness to adopt a working cryptocurrency strategy.
In its list, London rose to first place for 2023, with Dubai, New York City, and Singapore taking second, third, and fourth place, respectively.
The list includes 50 global crypto capitals and analysed each location’s crypto-focused activities, including events and conferences, job prospects, number of crypto ATMs, firms, and others.
Additional factors included quality of life, capital gains tax rates, research and development (R&D), and others. London provided the largest number of crypto-focused employment in the world.
The news comes after His Majesty’s Treasury published a white paper on its proposed framework for crypto regulation. It includes multiple reference points such as stablecoins, initial coin offerings (ICOs), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and others.
The nation has aimed to build itself as a major crypto hub, namely after Brexit, to boost its standing in emerging technologies. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak proposed plans while serving as the former Chancellor to advance the UK’s crypto ambitions.
Payment firm Visa aims to create a system for converting digital assets to fiat money, Cuy Sheffield, Visa head of crypto, said at a recent event.
At the StarkWare Sessions 2023, he said: “We’ve been testing how to actually accept settlement payments from issuers in USDC starting on Ethereum and paying out in USDC on Ethereum. So, these are large value settlement payments.”
In his fireside chat, he explained why Visa aimed to experiment with conversions between digital and fiat currencies.
He told audiences: “That’s been one of the areas where we want to build muscle memory. The same way that we can convert between dollars in euros on a cross-border transaction, we should be able to convert between digital tokenized dollars and traditional dollars.”
Explaining further, he added that the payment process would operate according to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT).
He added: “We set all over Swift, so we can’t move money as frequently as we’d like because there are a number of limitations that exist in those networks. And so, we’ve been experimenting, we publicly announced. We’ve been testing how to actually accept settlement payments [with stablecoins].”
The news comes after the payment enterprise published its white paper on its collaboration on blockchain technologies. According to it, the company aims to facilitate digital currency transactions by focusing on four services.
Visa will launch consumer payments tools, add crypto value-added services, facilitate new digital currency flows, and contribute to CBDC research and stakeholder engagement, it added.
In his talk, Sheffield restated his company’s aims for cryptocurrency,
“We’re thinking a lot about how to take some of the value that visa provides on existing bank rails, with existing forms of beyond in a rebuild that on top of blockchain rails, using stable boards. If we think there are huge opportunities in that area, it just kind of stays on emerging.”
The news also comes amid massive interest in stablecoin technologies. The United Kingdom recently launched plans to develop a digital pound to diversify payment options for citizens and investors.
Other nations have pushed to adopt cryptocurrencies, including Fiji, Tonga, Montenegro, the European Union, El Salvador, and many others. Japan also discussed this month how it could ease tax regulations to allow crypto investors to revitalise its national economy.
Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX has confirmed it will send “confidential letters” to politicians and recipients of donations from disgraced ex-FTX chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried. The letters will request mail recipients to return donated funds by the end of the month.
Debtors of the now-defunct cryptocurrency platform have said they “reserve the right” to enforce repayments of the money with legal action.
FTX Group said in its statement: “To the extent such payments are not returned voluntarily, the FTX Debtors reserve the right to commence actions before the Bankruptcy Court to require the return of such payments, with interest accruing from the date any action is commenced.”
The news comes amid a major scandal involving millions in estimated funds sent to political donation recipients. Following its collapse, FTX’s donor scheme triggered a probe from UK regulators in a bid to return the misappropriated funds.
Britain’s Charity Commission said on 2 February that it had launched investigations over FTX’s donations to the Effective Ventures Foundations. Stating it was a “serious incident,” the Commission added the money could cause additional knock-on effects to other investments.
In the United States, a White House spokesperson refused to respond to reporters on whether US president Joe Biden would return donations from Bankman-Fried. Associated Press reporter Zeke Miller found the President had received $5.2 million in campaign funds.
Bankman-Fried, former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison, and numerous other executives now face multiple counts of misappropriating funds, fraud, and others. The scandal sparked widespread public outcry and tightened regulations from global governmental watchdogs.
Bitcoin’s price rally of over 38 percent in January owes its successes to high US performance metrics earlier last month, A Matrixport research report said.
According to the document, Bitcoin led to positive returns in five out of the six years where its price rallied in the month of January. Subsequent gains in the respective years saw 245 percent gains.
2014 was the only year that evidenced a decline after a strong January and bull-market peak, it added.
Markus Thielen, Head of Research for Matrixport, authored the study. It added the bull market this year could receive backing from a forecasted bitcoin halving cycle in March of next year.
Bitcoin halving cycles indicate when cryptocurrencies entering the market drop by 50 percent each 10 minutes. This indicates a return to Bitcoin prices around $45,000 by the year’s end, it concluded.
The news comes after Bitcoin rallied to around $23,000 in January multiple times, indicating a return to bull markets. This follows a disappointing bear market in 2022, namely due to the collapse of FTX and subsequent crypto exchanges.