#crypto

In a lawsuit filed in San Francisco, crypto influencer Joel Dietz claims that Consensys stole his idea for a browser-based crypto wallet similar to MetaMask. Dietz alleges that he created the intellectual property that eventually became MetaMask under a project called Vapor in late 2014. He hired a person named Davis in 2015 to help with coding Vapor, but Dietz accuses Davis of betraying him and collaborating with Consensys instead. Consensys denies Dietz’s claims, stating that he falsely marketed himself as the founder of MetaMask to deceive investors.

Ivan Soto-Wright, CEO of MoonPay, and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, ended up entangled in a minor scandal. It turns out that in late 2022, the MoonPay chief funnelled $500,000 into Suarez's electoral campaign via a Political Action Committee, or PAC. The twist is, Soto-Wright made the transfer from the account of another company under his belt - PassionForest. Now, that's also the name of a Chinese floral business, which led to some legal headwinds. When it was revealed that there were no ties between PassionForest and the Chinese venture, the controversy cooled down. Meanwhile, Miami's mayor, Francis Suarez, also quashed any whispers of potential Chinese backing. On a side note, Suarez is an avid crypto enthusiast who accepts his mayoral paycheck in Bitcoin.

Raoul Pal, once at the helm of Goldman Sachs, envisions a steep rise in the global count of cryptocurrency users. He drew parallels between the initial decade of digital assets and internet evolution, leading to the conclusion that the tally of cryptocurrency enthusiasts could hit the 1.2 billion mark by the end of 2025. His projections suggest this number could catapult to a staggering 5.1 billion by 2030. The key drivers in achieving such an extensive digital asset adoption, he believes, will be Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and NFTs.

A Twitter debate has erupted, speculating that Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) might be involved with the BALD memcoin rugpull. Blockchain analysts delved into the developer’s on-chain history and discovered a connection between the wallet address deploying the BALD token and ETH funding from wallets linked to FTX and Alameda Research. An anonymous DeFi commentator suggested that this link might indicate SBF’s attempt to recover some losses. Data editors found that the same wallet address had made numerous transfers (400) to blacklisted USDT addresses and appeared to have strong connections with Alameda Research.

But officials are concerned about potential negative impacts on consumers, according to Semafor media. The fear is that an indictment could trigger a run on the exchange, leading to consumer losses and causing panic in the crypto markets, similar to what happened with FTX, which eventually went bankrupt. As a result, prosecutors are exploring alternative options such as fines and deferred or non-prosecution agreements.

Ukraine's Security Service has successfully dismantled a significant underground network that was carrying out unauthorized financial transfers between Russia and Ukraine, making use of banned Russian payment systems and digital currencies. Active in four regions, these secretive hubs were handling over $1 million each month. Platforms like Yumoney, Webmoney, and various cryptocurrencies were employed to change Russian rubles into digital currencies and subsequently into Ukrainian hryvnia. The primary customer base was made up of hackers and companies participating in under-the-table transactions with Russia.

The SEC has filed a lawsuit against famous internet marketer Richard Schueler, also known as Richard Heart, along with his crypto projects Hex, PulseChain, and PulseX. They allege that Schueler conducted three unregistered securities offerings starting in 2019, raising more than $1 billion from investors. Furthermore, the SEC accused Heart of defrauding his investors by misusing their funds for personal expenses and goods.