Tag Archives: use

Hacked Crypto Exchange BitMart Promises to Use Its Own Funds to Compensate Affected Users

Hacked Crypto Exchange BitMart Promises to Use Its Own Funds to Compensate Affected Users

Crypto trading platform BitMart said it would use its own funds to compensate users affected by a Dec. 4 hack of the platform — the cost of which it had estimated to be around $150 million, according to a series of updates posted to its website.

Blockchain security and data analytics company PeckShield, however, estimated the loss to be around $200 million.

“Total estimated loss: ~200M (~100M on @ethereum and ~96M on @BinanceChain ). (Previously we only counted the loss on @ethereum). And here is the list of affected assets/amounts on @BinanceChain,” the company tweeted.

Crypto Hack Headlines Bad for Business

Anndy Lian, chairman of BigONE Exchange and founding member of INFLUXO, told GOBankingRates that something reading like “crypto got hacked again” is never a good headline for the industry.

“I have seen many clickbait-like headlines going around to downplay cryptocurrency. The hack is a one-off situation and will act as a reminder to other exchanges to tighten their security and do regular checks for any possible exploits or vulnerabilities,” Lian said.

He added that Bitmart’s promise of paying back the affected projects and users “shows responsibilities and dedication to their clients and also sets a good example for the crypto space and the naysayers quoted in various news.”

“It is unfortunate for the hack to happen to Bitmart. I met Sheldon briefly last month when he was in town. We should all help each other and if any of the suspected transactions went into other exchanges, those who have the ability should stop and seize the culprits. This is the time we should all work together,” Lian added.

Lian’s sentiment was echoed by many in the crypto industry.

Crypto Industry Insiders Laud Bitmart Promise to Repay Affected Users

Michael Fasanello, director of training and regulatory affairs at Blockchain Intelligence Group, told GOBankingRates he was “actually impressed by that gesture of appreciation for their customers and owning the situation.”

Fasanello said that, to the best of his knowledge, this is the first instance wherein a hacked exchange has offered to make restitution to customers from the exchange’s own coffers.

“Until FDIC or a similar federal umbrella is in place, reimbursement of customers or recovery of stolen assets are the only appropriate options available to exchanges who are the victim of cyber-enabled financial crime such as hacks or ransomware attacks,” he said.

BitMart Vows to Move Forward, Make Good on Repayment Promise

BitMart said, on Dec. 4, that it had identified a large-scale security breach related to one of its ETH (Ethereum) hot wallets and one of its BSC (Binance Smart Chain) hot wallets.

“The affected ETH hot wallet and BSC hot wallet carry a small percentage of assets on BitMart and all of our other wallets are secure and unharmed. We are now conducting a thorough security review and we will post updates as we progress,” the company said at the time. “During this period, we will strive to maintain transparency and we appreciate your support. Thank you very much.”

In a subsequent post on Dec. 6, BitMart explained that the security breach was mainly caused by a stolen private key that compromised two hot wallets.

“BitMart will use our own funding to cover the incident and compensate affected users. We are also talking to multiple project teams to confirm the most reasonable solutions such as token swaps. No user assets will be harmed,” the Bitmart update claimed.

The company added that it was doing “its best” to retrieve security set-ups and their broader operation and needed time to make proper arrangements.

“The detailed timelines will be announced very soon. In addition, our CEO, Sheldon Xia, will conduct an AMA at 8PM EST Dec 6 on Telegram to share more info regarding the security breach, compensation arrangement, and how we plan to resume operation. We will strive to maintain transparency and your support to BitMart is highly appreciated,” the update read.

 

Original Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/finance/news/hacked-crypto-exchange-bitmart-promises-200038756.html

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j

Op-ed by Anndy Lian: The rise of the use of blockchain and crypto in Southeast Asia

Op-ed by Anndy Lian: The rise of the use of blockchain and crypto in Southeast Asia
By Anndy Lian – Oct 29, 2021 | 09:25 AM GMT+7

TheLEADER A recent Chainalysis report showing stellar growth in cryptocurrency adoption in Central and Southeast Asia (CSAO), making it the fourth-largest crypto market in the world, should come as no surprise.

According to the blockchain analytics firm, the region saw a 2 per cent growth in global market share between July 2020 and June 2021. Which may on face value does not sound significant, but this growth made CSAO the fourth-largest cryptocurrency market in the world, with over $572.5 billion in value sent during the year. This number represents 14 per cent of total global cryptocurrency transactions – and a growth rate of 706 per cent for the region for the year July 2020 to June 2021.

This rosy regional picture of Southeast Asian crypto development had a reality check when on September 24th, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) announced that all cryptocurrency transactions in China are illegal.

“Virtual currency-related business activities are illegal financial activities,” the PBoC confirmed, warning it “seriously endangers the safety of people’s assets”. Is this a sign that crypto innovation in Southeast Asia is stalled, or are there good reasons for optimism despite the China ban?

“We will see an increasing exodus of Chinese crypto entrepreneurs, and I believe it will lead to a diffusion of crypto technology in Southeast Asia and accelerate the rise of Southeast Asia as a hotbed of crypto innovation,” said Singapore-based Lily Z. King, writing in Forkast.

King suggested an upside to all the FUD caused by the ban, which will drive a significant decentralization of crypto power from China to other markets, particularly Southeast Asia.

“As the economy of Southeast Asia has been heavily impacted by the Covid-19 crisis, the new inflow of crypto capital and technology might bring a much-needed boost for their digital economy. Taking the long-term perspective, this diffusion is good for the builder-type among Chinese crypto entrepreneurs and is good for the crypto movement globally,” she concluded.

If that thesis is correct, what existing trends in crypto/blockchain are likely to simply accelerate, rather than jump-starting new innovation?

In the Chainalysis report, which to note looks wider than Southeast Asia to include central Asia and Oceania, there has been a marked growth in decentralized finance (DeFi) activity. From May 2020, DeFi activity (as a share of all transaction volume) skyrockets, reaching above 50 per cent by February. This activity is primarily driven by Uniswap, Instadapp, and dydx, with significant activity on Compound, Curve, AAVE, and 1inch.

But behind these insights what can we see in regional user and business adoption that can help understand the possible impacts of the China ban?

The island-state of Singapore is widely regarded as a leading force for crypto and blockchain adoption. According to a Hacker Noon article, there are 634 companies incorporated in Singapore related to crypto, with a total value of $8.3 billion according to CoinMarketCap.

Despite this existing activity, in late 2020, a new multi-million-dollar program was launched to strengthen Singapore’s blockchain ecosystem. One of the program leaders, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), said the need for such support was due to the lack of large-scale successful use cases outside the fintech sector which was hampering mainstream adoption.

“Its nascence means end-user companies have a lack of codified business models on how to work together using blockchain’s trusted environment. The industry is showing signs of silo-ed, specialized, blockchain solutions rather than interoperable network blockchains,” said IMDA.

The IMDA also noted that support for startups seeking like-minded partners was lacking. While the Singapore Blockchain Ecosystem Report 2020, published at the end of last year, found that the coronavirus pandemic had accelerated the application of blockchain technology, used to verify health credentials.

A key driver for crypto businesses setting up shop in Singapore, independent of the latest China ban, is the regulatory clarity provided by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). And indeed, Singapore is already home to many Chinese crypto companies, including Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange founded in China.

“Singapore provides the regulatory clarity with various regulations for different kinds of crypto activities (payment tokens, securities, custody, crypto fund management, etc.). Naturally, that would be attractive for any crypto companies, whether from China or elsewhere, to consider setting up shop in Singapore,” said Chia Hock Lai, co-chairman of Blockchain Association Singapore.

Consider the demographics of the region’s top six economies (Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam) with a combined population of around 580 million, of which half are aged below 35.

In terms of grassroots adoption of crypto, as opposed to business adoption in Southeast Asia, Vietnam not only tops the rankings for the region but for the world when calculated in terms of the transaction volumes for peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms.

As Chainalysis reported, for their 2021 global report, many residents use P2P cryptocurrency exchanges as their primary on-ramp into cryptocurrency, often because they don’t have access to centralized exchanges. Another reason given for the high uptake in Vietnam is the interest in gambling, which as its illegal gives a boost to demand for such activities through crypto-assets.

Southeast Asia also has a sizable unbanked population, primarily found in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Of the estimated 1.7 billion unbanked people today, 290 million live in the region. This is another contributing factor behind the high P2P uptake, certainly, it’s why Facebook’s crypto wallet Novi is predicted to have a high uptake in the region.

In the Philippines for example, 71 per cent of adults do not have a bank account, according to a 2019 report by the country’s central bank. And unlike the US where younger users have failed to drive Facebook adoption, in the Philippines, almost 33 per cent of the users are aged 18 to 24. This user profile is supported by figures from Metamask, with Filipinos making up a fifth of its ten million active monthly users – driven by the success of the NFT-based game Axie Infinity which allows people to earn by playing.

“The largest swath of gamers on the platform come from the island nation – a little more than 40 per cent – according to the powerhouse behind Axie Infinity, a Vietnamese startup called Sky Mavis,” according to Business Insider.

“The biggest driver for crypto over the next few years is not going to be DeFi, it’s not going to be opening up centralized exchanges. It’s going to be GameFi,” Lu said in a recent Forkast report.

“GameFi is going to drive the crypto adoption in Southeast Asia and South Asia…blockchain games and a play-to-earn sector is what is going to take the adoption of non-crypto users and [turn] them into crypto users once they realize that they can earn more money or supplement their earnings with the game where they can play for two hours, three hours. It’s pretty crazy,” Lu confirmed.

The rich diversity of crypto adoption, whether successful crypto-based businesses or grassroots play-to-earn gamers, shows that there is great potential in Southeast Asia.

While Singapore in many ways is leading the way, the need as identified by the IMDA for interoperable network blockchains underlines that there has to be coordinated action from all stakeholders, to make Singapore the world’s leading user of decentralized technology, faced with the concerted efforts of the Chinese state to be the dominant blockchain power.

Whether it’s better serving the needs of the unbanked, or leading the way in the use of blockchain to spur medical research, the opportunities for innovation are there for the taking.

 

Original Source: https://e.theleader.vn/the-rise-of-the-use-of-blockchain-and-crypto-in-southeast-asia-1635393795663.htm

 

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j

Mid-Day Mumbai News: How reflective tokens and real-world use cases can work together

Mid-Day Mumbai News: How reflective tokens and real-world use cases can work together

Mumbai`s homegrown newspaper – Mid-Day is a 41-year-old brand. Thank you for listening to my inputs.

The media outlet has quoted my points on how reflective tokens and real-world use cases can work together. Taking Dogecola as an example. The Cola sold will be used as a form of funds to support its crypto pricing. The added-on elements such as GameFI and NFT would create a better bond and interaction between the brand and the consumers.

The combination may not be rocket science but they are certainly making traditional companies think about how tokenization would work for their business.

_____________________________________________________________

Why DogeCola Is the Reflective Token To Watch

Following news that the ‘king’ of meme coins Dogecoin has relaunched its foundation with plans to become a serious global cryptocurrency, is DogeCola ‘on trend’ as a  meme coin worth taking seriously? Meme coins are tokens backed by crypto influencers and investors have rapidly increased in popularity. CoinMarketCap estimated there were more than 5,000 meme coins available to investors by late June. Created as a joke meme back in 2013 Dogecoin started the trend, rising to prominence after Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted about the novel token in April 2019, replying to a tweet saying “Dogecoin might be my fav cryptocurrency. It’s pretty cool.”

While meme coins are a type of cryptocurrency, a key difference between the likes of Dogecoin and currencies like Bitcoin, comes down to utility. Namely that most meme coins, serve no real-world purpose. Even more reason why DogeCola, which is both a reflective token and a soft drink brand, has such potential to grow the meme coin market more sustainably in the future. In just the past week the cola-branded meme token, has delivered on its promise of distributing 1,000 sample cans of the fizzy drink to its token holders. And as its doubling-down on its listing on BigONE exchange with a staking activity, it’s certainly appears worth a closer look.

In this article we’ll therefore review how the ‘reflective’ token mechanism works to maintain price stability, the role the DogeCola soft drink brand plays in its growth, and what this could mean for the chances of success in such a fast-moving meme-market place.

 

Taking a look ‘under the hood’ of DogeCola

Auto-boost function: The auto-boost feature helps distinguishes DogeCola from the other standard meme tokens on the market. The DogeCola project’s developers added this feature to prevent the all too common ‘pump and dump’ associated with meme tokens. It was designed to make variable repurchasing and token burns based on the transaction volume every 24 hours. The goal is to keep the price of DogeCola high by burning tokens and reducing supply every time a sale is made with the tokens.

Reflection mechanism: The reflection mechanism means the tokens are self-generating and aim to discourage selling by promoting a ‘hold and earn’ use culture. By implementing a reflective mechanism in the token’s smart contract, all transactions involving tokens are ‘taxed’, and rewards are distributed evenly among holders. The DogeCola team does this to encourage the holding their tokens, and the commission on sales is much higher to prevent whales from dumping and driving the price down

Both the auto-boost and reflection mechanism are underpinned by a buy and sell fee structure: on buying 6% is set aside for the auto-boost function, with 2% going reflection to holders and 4% of marketing. While on sales, 7% is for auto-boost function, 7% for reflection to holders and again, 4% allocated to marketing.

Branded cola drink: The DogeCola team has begun the process of bringing their soft drink brand to the market as soon as possible. In a recent interview the DogeCola project’s lead developer, Chris, confirmed that the primary goal is to have the soft drinks readily available for purchase in stores, within the next three to six months. In the meantime, DogeCola token holders this week snapped up the first 1,000 samples. As Jason McLeod of the community-based #stopelon crypto initiative, commented on Twitter: “I definitely think this is the way crypto will go in the future. For me, it’s all about that link from crypto to ‘everyday’ people in the ‘real’ world.” The DogeCola team also plans to fight plastic pollution caused by corporations like Coca Cola, using a community-led vote to determine which eco-charities to support – enhancing their ‘disruptive’ branding in the process.

 

What the crypto experts think of DogeCola?

At the launch of DogeCola in July, Chris the lead dev and founder proclaimed: “If you like Coca Cola, if you like Dogecoin, then you will love DogeCola.”  While the meme coin has risen in price by 556.1% from listing on CoinGecko to its all-time high, with the current price 500% from the listing price, its already has some push back from within its 10K strong international Telegram community. “Please know that you are in a project with a team that many times literally does not sleep in 72 hours; please do not look at x minutes candles in DogeCola; try to be patient, intelligent, trust the process and stick to your guts and vision,” said @Freejo1 in response to such jitters.

Jason Suttie, CMO of Bumper, a new protocol designed to protect the value of your crypto says: “What I find most exciting about projects like DogeCola is the visibility it’s bringing to the crypto space from the general public. Everybody knows Cola, many non-crypto people have now heard about Dogecoin. DogeCola creates a connection between a physical and virtual object which starts to make crypto less scary for the uninitiated. It’s through clever projects like this that crypto will make big steps toward mass adoption.”

Chairman of BigONE, Anndy Lian, says he believes that DogeCola being based on a reflective token mechanism and with a real-world use has a clear advantage in the crypto marketplace: “We are excited to list DogeCola on the BigONE exchange because it’s ticked all the boxes – a smart reflective token mechanism, branded cola drink, a great development team with passionate community behind it.” Certainly, this is supported by news that the team has succeeded in reaching 20k token holders just a couple of days after their CoinMarketCap airdrop on August 27th. And with a DogeCola sponsored NSCAR driver due to be announced shortly to further promote growth, this reflective token is surely one to watch out for.

Source: https://www.mid-day.com/lifestyle/infotainment/article/why-dogecola-is-the-reflective-token-to-watch-23191206

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j