The mainstream adoption of crypto and crypto-based services continues, as more companies are bridging traditional financial (TradFi) solutions with decentralized financial (DeFi). In an announcement on Feb. 22, a new pilot program launched between Binance and Ingenico payment solutions now allows in-store crypto payments via Binance Pay. Currently, the initial test of this offering is only available on Ingenico AXIUM payment terminals in France. According to the announcement, more than 50 cryptocurrencies will be accepted with this program. Initially, merchants will be paid in cryptocurrency. However, a crypto-to-fiat solution in which merchants are paid in fiat is set to pilot …

According to a medium post on Feb. 20, the Interchain Foundation (ICF), a non-profit organization behind the creation of the Cosmos (ATOM) interblockchain communications (IBC) ecosystem, has committed to spending approximately $40 million in 2023 to develop its core infrastructure and applications. As a part of the Interchain Stack, which is utilized by around 50 blockchains, these include the Tendermint Core (and now CometBFT), Cosmos SDK, Cosmos Hub, and the IBC protocol. "Throughout the year, we envisage engaging other teams to deliver smaller, tightly defined tasks within each area of work. Such contracts will be to supplement the work of …

Play-to-earn blockchain gaming experienced a downturn over the last year as gamers prioritized improving the gameplay experience. However, according to a new report from DappRadar, in the first month of 2023, gamers made up nearly half (48%) of all blockchain activity. January also saw the market caps for top gaming tokens increase by 122% on average, with Gala (GALA), the digital utility token of the Gala Games ecosystem, surging by 218%. According to the report, the rise in interest in these gaming tokens comes as industry buzz hits mainstream audiences. For example, Gala Games made headlines after it acquired a …

Prospective users of an Arbitrum-based decentralized finance (DeFi) project have been left out of pocket following a $2 million exploit. Web3 security firm CertiK flagged the incident on Feb. 21, following an announcement from the Hope Finance Twitter account notifying users that they had been scammed. #CommunityAlert @hope_fin have announced the community has been scammed for ~$2m making this the largest #exitscam on Arbitrum in 2023. $1.86m was transferred to @TornadoCash. Hope_fin have posted steps for user's to withdraw their staked LPhttps://t.co/hJbFXiKujt — CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) February 21, 2023 Details of the project are difficult to come by. The platform’s …

Blockchain security firm Peckshield has raised the alarm after finding dozens of tokens purporting to be related to artificial intelligence (AI) powered chatbot ChatGPT. In a Feb. 20 post, the firm revealed at least three "BingChatGPT" tokens appear to be part of honeypot schemes — a smart contract that tricks a user into sending Ethereum (ETH), which the attacker then traps and retrieves. According to Peckshield, at least two of the tokens identified have already lost nearly 100% of their value, while a third is at a 65% loss — in what is often referred to as a “pump and …

Shark Tank investor and venture capitalist Kevin O’Leary has urged crypto exchanges to “get on board with regulation” if they want to “stay out of the way” of Gary Gensler and the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). In a Feb. 20 interview with TraderTV Live, O’Leary said that U.S. lawmakers are “fatigued” over crypto collapses and that they’re only going to get more ruthless if companies continue to not comply: “You got to get on board with regulation, you got to stay out of the way of Gensler at the SEC and other regulators. Those hombres [men] in Washington …

The CEO of Composable Finance has vigorously refuted allegations of legal improprieties at his decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure platform, which was being aired by the firm's former CTO Karel Kubat. In a Feb. 20 Twitter post, Composable Finance's now-former CTO Karel Kubat announced he had stepped down from the firm. He also leveled a number of accusations aimed at his former company and its CEO. In Kubat’s post, the CTO said that he is resigning because the firm has not provided financial statements to him or the community and because he has no overview of the company’s financial health. He …

The DeFi space, a vibrant branch of the blockchain industry, continues to grow and develop despite the bearish conditions experienced in 2022. Revolutionary DEXs are transforming the crypto trading scene, and decentralized solutions are increasingly finding application in the traditional economic space. However, the DeFi ecosystem still faces various challenges due to its early stages of development. These include liquidity inefficiency, security concerns and regulatory uncertainties. To address these challenges, the key lies in creating trading platforms that offer deep liquidity pools, enabling trades to be executed efficiently and promptly. Better access to liquidity and public goods with Crescent The …

The use of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry has the potential to revolutionize the way medical records are managed, medical research is conducted and patient care is delivered. Here are nine promising use cases for blockchain in healthcare. Medical record management Medical records can be safely stored and managed using blockchain, improving accessibility for patients and healthcare professionals. Patients’ ability to control access to their medical records enhances security and privacy. One example is MedRec, a blockchain-based system for managing medical information created by MIT researchers. MIT Professor Andrew Lippman says the goal of the MedRec project is to …

The crypto community is continually looking for ways to bridge the gap between traditional finance (TradFi) and fiat currencies with decentralized financial (DeFi) tools. Crypto onramp platforms are a primary way users are able to cross between these two financial ecosystems. However, a new report from Cointelegraph Research and Onramper, a crypto-based financial services provider, revealed that 50% of fiat-crypto transactions fail, even after KYC completion. Moreover, due to difficulties in the transaction process, transaction abandonment during the purchase flow can be as high as 90%. The survey looked at 9 of the largest fiat-crypto onramps including Coinify, Moonpay, Transak …

Decentralized finance yield platform Stablegains has been sued in a Californian court for allegedly misleading investors and failing to comply with securities laws. On Feb. 18, plaintiffs Alec and Artin Ohanian filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the central district of California. In it they alleged that Stablegains, a DeFi platform launched in August 2021, diverted all of its customer funds to the Anchor Protocol without their knowledge or consent. Anchor Protocol offered yields of up to 20% on the Terraform Labs algorithmic stablecoin, Terra USD (UST). “As an early supporter of and investor in TFL [Terraform …

The network effect is a phenomenon where the value of a product or service increases as more people use it. As the user base grows, there are more opportunities for interactions, which can lead to increased benefits and positive outcomes for each user. The network effect is a powerful driver of growth and adoption for many technologies and platforms, including social media, messaging apps and marketplaces. The network effect and cryptocurrencies The network effect is also a central concept in the world of cryptocurrency. In general, it means that a cryptocurrency’s value rises as more people use it. This is …