Cryptocurrency

Schwartz, renowned for his contributions to cryptography and as one of the original architects of XRP Ledger, along with Arthur Britto and Jed McCaleb, responded to questions about his purported identity as Nakamoto with a firm denial. He clarified that while he possessed the requisite skill set, he only became aware of Bitcoin in 2011, well after its inception, stating that he wished he had discovered it earlier.His assertion stemmed from his admission that his introduction to Bitcoin occurred relatively late, and he also emphasized his unfamiliarity with the Qt interface, a crucial aspect of the early Bitcoin code, which further distanced him from any association with Nakamoto.Following the conference, Schwartz took to social media to expand on his stance, indicating humorously that the only skill he lacked in order to be Nakamoto was familiarity with Qt. However, he noted that Nik Bougalis, Ripple’s former director of engineering, had the requisite knowledge, sparking speculation.Schwartz’s statement, that it is “not True, but plausible” regarding any potential association with Satoshi Nakamoto, has reignited discussions within the cryptocurrency community. Despite his clear denials, his acknowledgment of his capabilities has reopened debates about the true identity of Bitcoin’s creator.This article was originally published on U.Today More

(Reuters) – A coin called TON has leapt in value in recent months, with investors betting its integration with messenger service Telegram could bring the cryptocurrency to the app’s estimated 900 million users.Telegram endorsed TON in September last year, saying the blockchain and associated token would be its “official Web3 infrastructure”. Earlier this month, TON said that Tether tokens could also be issued on its blockchain, allowing Telegram users to send the stablecoin to each other within the app. The TON token has surged, reaching as high as $7.63 on April 11, compared with around $2.21 a year earlier, according to CoinGecko data.With $18.3 billion in circulation, it’s the 10th biggest cryptocurrency, coming after memecoin Dogecoin.The prospect of a “super app” or “everything app”, uniting payments and shopping with social media or messaging services, has long been a holy grail for investors, who look to China’s WeChat for inspiration. In the crypto world, it’s sometimes called “SocialFi”, short for social finance.Such ideas drove Elon Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter, now X. Binance, which helped fund the buyout, said it would explore how crypto could be used on the platform. Britain’s Revolut, meanwhile, has approached it from the other direction, starting with a finance app then adding social functions on top.While the appeal of TON is part of broader interest in super apps, it has also been helped by an overall revival in altcoins, said Thomas Puech, CEO of digital asset hedge fund Indigo.”TON did outperform a lot of its peers as many people are buying into the project as interest in alts returned and thanks to the backing of Telegram,” he said, adding that Indigo had traded the TON token.TON, short for “The Open Network”, has a crypto wallet product within Telegram with more than 6 million monthly users.LIBRA FAILUREEfforts to bring crypto payments into social media have not so far succeeded on a wide scale. Facebook (NASDAQ:META), now Meta, wound down its “Libra” cryptocurrency project after fierce opposition from regulators globally, who were concerned that it could harm financial stability and erode control over monetary policy. “The recent foray into crypto payments through Telegram introduces a new use case for the app, but its acceptance and adoption are still in the nascent stages,” said PitchBook senior analyst Robert Le, who said there has been an increase in venture capital interest in SocialFi.”The main challenge is shifting user perceptions in non-Asian markets, where messaging apps are predominantly seen purely for communication rather than as multi-functional platforms.”Such integrations present “regulatory, technical and security challenges”, said Ram Gopal, a professor at Warwick Business School.”Regulators may be concerned about how these platforms comply with existing financial regulations,” he said.”Ensuring users are protected from scams, fraud, and potential losses due to cryptocurrency volatility would be a critical concern for regulators,” he added.HISTORY OF TONTelegram Messenger created TON’s blockchain in 2018 and raised $1.7 billion by selling the associated cryptocurrency. But the project was hit by charges from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which said the token sale violated federal securities laws.As part of a 2020 settlement with the SEC, Telegram agreed to stop developing TON. It neither admitted to nor denied the SEC’s allegations.A group of unrelated developers then continued to work on the project, picking up where Telegram left off, according to a history on TON’s website.TON says it is decentralised, based on an open-source codebase, with no single controlling authority. There’s a non-profit foundation behind it, registered in Zug in Switzerland. A spokesperson for TON said that Telegram and TON were distinctly separate entities.The TON Foundation’s president is Steve Yun, the body’s website says. Andrew Rogozov, former CEO of Russian social media site VK, is a founding member of the foundation, according to his LinkedIn profile. He appeared on stage with Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov and Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino at a conference in Dubai where the partnership to issue the stablecoin on the TON blockchain was announced.(This April 30 story has been corrected to fix the spelling of Indigo’s CEO in paragraph 7) More

Bybit, one of the world’s top three crypto exchanges by volume, today announced that Bybit Web3 joins forces with UCO Network (UCO) and Blockchain for Good (BGA) to co-host the “Blocks for Good” bi-weekly series on X Spaces. This exciting initiative delves into the critical intersection between blockchain technology and sustainability.”Blocks for Good” features insightful roundtable discussions with industry experts, thought leaders, and changemakers. The upcoming episode on Sunday, May 12th, tackles the theme “Blockchain & Sustainability: Collaboration in Web3: Challenges and Solutions!”About BybitBybit is one of the world’s top three crypto exchanges by trading volume with 25 million users. Established in 2018, it offers a professional platform where crypto investors and traders can find an ultra-fast matching engine, 24/7 customer service, and multilingual community support. Bybit is a proud partner of Formula One’s reigning Constructors’ and Drivers’ champions: the Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Red Bull Racing team.For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press.For media inquiries, please contact: media@bybit.comFor more information, please users can visit: https://www.bybit.comFor updates, please users can follow: Bybit’s Communities and Social MediaContactHead of PRTony AuBybittony.au@bybit.comThis article was originally published on Chainwire More

According to the top market analyst, Bitcoin network fundamentals can sustain a market cap three times the current size. At the moment, Bitcoin is changing hands for $62,636.62, down by 1.89% in 24 hours. At this market price, the market capitalization of Bitcoin comes in at $1,232,860,805,283.From Ki Young Ju’s estimate, the Bitcoin network will remain resilient at a peak capitalization of $3,698,582,400,000. According to the analyst, this valuation will amount to a price target of $265,000. Young Ju believes the network fundamentals at this time are better than in November 2021, when Bitcoin blew past the $69,000 all-time high (ATH).This time around, there are various spot Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) backing the asset. This product effectively opens Bitcoin up to the general traditional financial ecosystem. The projection of Bitcoin’s adoption is already taking center stage, with Susquehanna International Group (SIG) reportedly holding over $1 billion in various spot BTC ETF shares.SIG joins the likes of Morgan Stanley and BNP Paribas (OTC:BNPQY), both of which have upped the ante regarding Bitcoin ETFs lately.While the convenient forecast on the resilience of the Bitcoin network is for a $265,000 price mark, higher valuations of $1 million are projected by proponents like Samson Mow. Per Bitcoin’s design, the Market Cap and Hashrate ratio, as projected in the chart presented by Ki Young Ju, may keep expanding as the individual metrics grow.For now, however, industry watchers are anticipating a rebound in Bitcoin’s price to the $70,000 mark.This article was originally published on U.Today More

This article was originally published on U.Today More

In a world where decentralized finance (DeFi) operates with unprecedented speed, transactions are completed in nearly real-time, and transaction fees are significantly reduced from current rates. This vision is not merely aspirational; it is the future being constructed by SolanaVM.SolanaVM focuses specifically on bridging the gap between Ethereum, the current leader in DeFi, and Solana, a high-speed blockchain network. The total Value Locked on EVM is currently over 68,000,000,000, now imagine them being available on Solana.Ethereum has been the go-to platform for building DeFi applications. However, its popularity has created a bottleneck. The network struggles to keep up with demand, leading to slow transaction speed and gas fees that hit user wallets, which makes DeFi less accessible to everyday users – here where it comes the SolanaVM.SolanaVM acts as a bridge, allowing developers to seamlessly move their existing Ethereum applications to Solana. This unlocks the immense potential of Solana’s architecture, which boasts:SolanaVM isn’t just about speed and cost savings. It’s a win-win situation for both developers and users:SolanaVM is more than just a bridge – it’s a leap forward in DeFi technology. By leveraging the power of Solana, it holds the potential to transform interactions with applications in a decentralized environment. Updates on its progress are available on the official Twitter page.Those interested in joining the DeFi revolution can visit SolanaVM’s website at solanavm.xyz and be part of the futureAbout SolanaVM SolanaVM is a groundbreaking project founded by a team of dedicated developers passionate about the future of DeFi. Their vision is to bridge the gap between the established ecosystem of Ethereum and the power of Solana. By achieving this, SolanaVM aims to create a more efficient, accessible, and innovative landscape for DeFi.ContactMark WalshSolanaVMcontact@solanavm.xyzThis article was originally published on Chainwire More

ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigerian authorities on Wednesday denied allegations from Binance’s CEO of soliciting bribes, saying the claim was a “diversionary tactic” and an “act of blackmail” aimed at undermining ongoing criminal charges against the company.Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, and two of its executives face separate trials on charges of tax evasion and laundering more than $35 million, which the company is challenging.Tigran Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and Binance’s head of financial crime compliance, remains in custody while British-Kenyan Nadeem Anjarwalla has fled the country. CEO Richard Teng in a blog post accused unidentified Nigerian officials of demanding a $150 million cryptocurrency bribe to halt the investigations. In a statement on Wednesday, Nigeria’s Information Ministry spokesperson Rabiu Ibrahim said the claims “lack any iota of substance”. He accused Binance of attempting to undermine the country’s legal proceedings.”It is nothing but a diversionary tactic and an attempted act of blackmail by a company desperate to obfuscate the grievous criminal charges it is facing in Nigeria,” Ibrahim said.”The facts of this matter remain that Binance is being investigated in Nigeria for allowing its platform to be used for money laundering, terrorism financing, and foreign exchange manipulation through illegal trading,” he said.Nigerian authorities claim the bribery allegations are part of a wider campaign by Binance to discredit investigations against the company, citing similar legal troubles in the United States. Binance did not immediately comment, but in a statement on Tuesday accused Nigeria of setting a dangerous precedent after its executives were invited for talks and then detained as part of a crackdown on the crypto industry.Teng’s blog is the latest in a dispute that has already seen Binance close in Nigeria.Nigeria blamed Binance for its currency problems after cryptocurrency websites emerged as platforms of choice for trading the Nigerian naira as the country grappled with chronic dollar shortages.Binance said in early March it was stopping all transactions and trading in naira. More

With the plan awaiting approval from the bankruptcy court, speculation is rife about how the recovered funds will be utilized. Adam Back weighed in on the conversation, suggesting that a significant portion, if not all, of the $15 billion could flow back into the cryptocurrency market – particularly BTC.Back’s sentiment stems from a belief that disgruntled investors, angered by FTX’s sale of Bitcoin at a low price during its collapse, would eagerly reinvest their newfound assets into the cryptocurrency, driving up demand and potentially pushing the price even higher. BTC to USD by CoinMarketCapHe went further to suggest that while some may diversify into other coins, the majority would likely flock back to Bitcoin, viewing it as a safer and more reliable investment option.This prediction comes at a time when Bitcoin’s price has surged from $15,600 at the end of 2022 to a staggering $74,000 as a new all-time high this year, highlighting the resurgence and potential for gains on the cryptocurrency market.With the prospect of a multi-billion-dollar influx of funds, the community eagerly awaits the outcome of the FTX estate’s distribution plan and the impact it could have on the market.This article was originally published on U.Today More