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Showing posts from October 22, 2023

Does Block.one Eclipse Microstrategy in BTC Reserves? Deciphering the Bitcoin Treasury Lists

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This weekend, bitcoin enthusiasts discussed the latest update to bitcointreasuries.net, which offers a new visual of the various companies, countries and funds with bitcoin on their balance sheets. The site indicates that Microstrategy owns 158,245 BTC , while Block.one, the company behind the development of the EOS network, reportedly holds 164,000 BTC . Behind the Bitcoin Balance Sheets Recently, there’s been a buzz about the revamped bitcointreasuries.net, presenting a vivid depiction of every entity storing BTC on their financial ledgers. This fresh insight was introduced by Coinkite’s CEO and founder, Rodolfo Novak, the brain behind the bitcointreasuries.net platform. While many were captivated by the new visualization, several bitcoin enthusiasts spotlighted Block.one’s substantial reserves. Per bitcointreasuries.net, the company boasts a stash of 164,000 BTC . “[Block.one] ( EOS ) still owns more Bitcoin than Microstrategy, which is kinda insane,” Zack Voell wrote . ​​Wh

Hong Kong Regulators Restrict Retail Investor Access to ‘Complex’ Crypto Products

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The securities regulator and the central banking institution of Hong Kong have updated the region’s crypto policy in response to enquiries from the industry. In a circular on the virtual asset-related activities of intermediaries, the authorities introduced additional measures to protect retail investors, restricting their access to what they describe as “complex products.” Hong Kong Updates Regulations for Virtual Asset Service Providers in Light of Market Developments Hong Kong’s initial approach to regulating crypto assets, adopted five years ago, boiled down to limiting various activities in the market to professional investors only. Since then, however, the range of investment products offering exposure to virtual assets has expanded significantly and, for example, regulators allowed crypto trading platforms to serve retail investors. In the light of market developments and in response to an increasing number of enquiries from industry players who want to further expand retail

Lightning Network Developer Warns About Major Vulnerability, Abandons Security Tasks

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Antoine Riard, a Lightning Network (LN) developer, recently disclosed a major vulnerability affecting Bitcoin’s scaling layer. This vulnerability, which was addressed with a series of mitigations, involves a “new transaction-relay jamming attack” that can affect shared funds in channels. Riard abandoned LN-related work after testing the feasibility of these attacks in the open. Lightning Network Major Vulnerability Detected Antoine Riard, security researcher and developer of the Lightning Network (LN), Bitcoin’s L2 scaling solution, has recently revealed a new major vulnerability affecting funds available in channels. The vulnerability involves what Riard calls “ replacement cycling attacks ,” which manipulate the state of Hash Time Lock Contracts (HTLC), a fundamental part of the inner workings of the LN. The researcher introduced mitigations to this kind of attack on October 16, clarifying that he was not sure if these actions would stop malicious actors from taking advantage of

10 Decentralized Finance Protocols Rule Over 52% of the WBTC in Circulation

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Over the span of ten months, since mid-December 2022, the cryptocurrency known as wrapped bitcoin (WBTC) experienced a reduction of nearly 23,000 coins from its circulation. Today, WBTC has 79,839 distinct wallet holders. Notably, a hefty 73.76% of these tokens are concentrated within the top 100 holders. Aave and Compound Emerge as Leading Holders of Wrapped Bitcoin As of October 22, 2023, there are 79,839 individual wallets holding WBTC, a token pegged 1:1 with bitcoin ( BTC ). The circulating WBTC tokens number 163,006, valuing the project at $4.88 billion. From December 17, 2022, there’s been a 12.31% reduction in WBTC’s circulating supply, declining from 185,909 WBTC to the current 163,006 WBTC . The inception of the Wrapped Bitcoin project is credited to a collaboration between Bitgo, Kyber Network, and Ren (previously known as Republic Protocol). It made its debut on the Ethereum blockchain in late January 2019. Minting and redemption processes are facilitated through cust