Developers of one of the earliest Android-based mobile browsers are working to bring online communication to the next level by introducing it to Web3. Sending Labs, a new startup focused on decentralized communications protocol, has secured $12.5M in seed funding to launch the Web3 communications stack. The new platform takes on the mission of building accessible and secure infrastructures for Web3 communication for developers and the community, applying end-to-end decentralization of core of its products. With the new offering, Sending Labs aims to enable privacy-preserving communications and guarantee ownership and transfer of digital assets within community chats. The seed funding …

The Financial Stability Board (FSB), the financial regulator funded by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), is pushing international regulations for decentralized finance (DeFi). The FSB on Feb. 16 issued a report on the financial stability risks of DeFi, highlighting major vulnerabilities, transmission channels and the evolution of DeFi. Despite providing many “novel” services, DeFi “does not differ substantially” from traditional finance (TradFi) in its functions, the authority said in the report. By trying to replicate some functions of TradFi, DeFi increases potential vulnerabilities due to the use of novel technologies, the high degree of ecosystem interlinkages and the lack …

The alleged exploiter of the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Mango Markets, Avraham Eisenberg, is seeking to keep his share of crypto gained from his so-called “highly profitable trading strategy.” On Feb. 15 attorneys for Eisenberg filed an opposition in a New York District Court to a lawsuit from Mango that asked for $47 million in damages plus interest starting from the time of Eisenberg’s October 2022 attack that drained around $117 million from the protocol. The lawyers argued that Eisenberg shouldn’t need to pay back any more funds to the DeFi platform due to a settlement agreement he reached with …

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has started ramping up its crackdown on the crypto industry and recent enforcement actions had a negative impact on crypto prices last week and at the start of this week. The SEC is focusing on stablecoin issuers. The most recent SEC stablecoin crackdown was on Feb. 13 through the issuance of a Wells Notice to Paxos Trust Company, the issuer of Binance USD (BUSD). While Paxos denies that BUSD is a security, which would place it outside the SEC’s jurisdiction, some lawyers say the answer is not so simple, which creates fear …

Angel investors and venture capitalists are two types of private investors who provide funding for early-stage and growth-stage companies. However, there are some key differences between them that we will cover in this article. Who are angel investors? High-net-worth individuals who invest in companies at an early stage in exchange for equity in the business are known as angel investors. They frequently invest their own funds and take a more active approach to investment, offering advice and mentoring to the businesses they support. The well-known angel investors in the crypto world include: Roger Ver — He is known as “Bitcoin …

Cryptocurrency exchanges Binance and Huobi have again frozen accounts linked to the $100 million Harmony Horizon bridge attack on Jun. 24, 2022. Around $1.4 million worth of crypto frozen by the trading platforms came from accounts linked to the notorious Lazarus Group operating out of North Korea. The investigation was carried out by blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, according to a report shared by the firm on Feb. 14. However, the firm didn’t state what coins or tokens were frozen. Exchanges @binance and @HuobiGlobal today froze accounts containing $1.4 million stolen by North Korea’s Lazarus Group. This was made possible thanks …

The long-awaited scaling upgrade from Ethereum layer-2 solution provider Polygon (MATIC) has been announced, with the Beta launch of its zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) mainnet slated for Mar. 27. In a Feb. 14 blog post, Polygon said after three and a half months of "battle testing," the system will be ready for the mainnet next month. Roses are red Violets are blue Poems are hard Mainnet Beta is here ON MARCH 27, Polygon #zkEVM launches the future of Ethereum scaling https://t.co/OqSOYTn8Uv pic.twitter.com/kpXavea3ff — Polygon (@0xPolygon) February 14, 2023 It's been touted as “seamless scaling for Ethereum," and was launched …

The crypto industry will “probably” start using euro, yen, or Singapore dollar based stablecoins in the future, reducing its reliance on US dollar based stablecoins, according to a Feb. 14 statement on Twitter Spaces by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, also known as “CZ.” CZ gave the statement in answer to a question about the crypto industry using gold as a standard of value instead of the US Dollar. CZ agreed that it “makes sense” to use gold. However, “most people’s costs are still in fiat currencies.” For this reason, most people calculate their investment returns in dollars, which is why …

For readers looking for unique, meaningful gifts for their valentine this Valentine’s Day, consider giving a cryptocurrency-related gift. Here are nine options: A cryptocurrency gift card Give your significant other the gift of choice by giving them a cryptocurrency gift card. They can use it to buy food or any digital asset they want, whether that’s Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) or a stablecoin like USD Coin (USDC). Virtual real estate Readers can buy virtual real estate in the metaverse, such as in Decentraland or The Sandbox, as a unique, romantic gift. Their significant other can build and customize their own …

Censorship resistance is the foundation of crypto, so for many cryptocurrency purists, the Nov. 23 announcement by ConsenSys, the New York-based company behind the leading Ethereum browser wallet, informing its 20 million MetaMask users that their IP and wallet addresses would be collected was simply a gross violation of the crypto spirit. In the weeks that followed, ConsenSys first reacted by saying the data collected would only be retained for seven days and then that it had updated the MetaMask features to allow users to opt out of Infura. However, the question remains: Have they done enough to establish crypto …

Cyber criminals used a variety of novel ways to carry out hacks and exploits in 2022, with over $2.8 billion of cryptocurrency stolen last year. According to a report from CoinGecko using data sourced from DeFiYield’s REKT Database, nearly half of the total crypto stolen in 2022 was fleeced using diverse methods. This includes bypassing verification processes, market manipulation, ‘crowd looting’ as well as smart contract and bridge exploits. The biggest hack of 2022 was carried out through an access control hack. Sky Mavis, the developer behind popular game Axie Infinity, saw its Ronin bridge hacked in March 2022, leading …

What is the future of DeFi and Web3 In both cases, the success of DeFi and Web3 will depend on the continued development of blockchain technology and the willingness of individuals and organizations to adopt these new models. The future is uncertain, but the potential for a positive impact is significant. For DeFi, there is a growing trend toward more innovation in the space, with the introduction of new financial products and services that have the potential to disrupt traditional finance. This includes decentralized exchanges, yield farming and stablecoins. There is also an increasing focus on user adoption and accessibility, …