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NFT protocol JPEG’d alerted community members to malicious actors targeting holders of its token as phishing scammers continue to target crypto and DeFi operators.  The P2P non-fungible token (NFT) lending platform JPEG’d posted a notice on X following numerous complaints from users citing phishing campaigns and a booby trap revocation tool. These services are typically employed by web3 users to clear out access previously given to decentralized applications. Bad actors launched a number of malicious platforms mimicking genuine services per the update from JPEG’d. The goal is to secure transaction approval before draining NFTs and digital assets in the wallet.  It has come to our attention that scammers are targeting $JPEG holders claiming false approvals on phishing contracts and linking to a malicious revocation tool. The current name they go under is "Trojansec". Please do not interact with them or any contract that you are unsure… — JPEG'd (@JPE...

The Platypus team said on social media it had taken the ‘proactive measure’ to suspend all pools temporarily. Decentralized finance (defi) protocol Platypus Finance suffered yet another hack this year, as around $2 million was stolen from the project. According to a security firm PeckShield, the protocol has been exploited on the Avalanche blockchain as attackers discovered a vulnerability, allowing them to withdraw Wrapped Avax (WAVAX) and Staked Avax (SAVAX). As of press time, one of the hacker’s wallets is holding over $1.6 million worth of WAVAX and SAVAX. The total sum of the stolen funds is estimated to be over $2 million, according to PeckShield. You might also like: French police arrest two suspects over Platypus Finance hack The Platypus team has confirmed the incident, saying it has “temporarily” suspended all pools due to “suspicious activities in our protocol.” Although the nature of the hack remains unclear, reports sa...

Decentralized finance project Yield Protocol said all borrowing and lending operations would end by Dec. 31, 2023. Yield Protocol, which raised $10 million backed by Paradigm, Framework Ventures, and other venture capitalists, is the latest defi project to shutdown. In an X thread on Tuesday, Oct. 3, Yield Protocol said the decision was made due to the lack of “sustainable demand for fixed-rate borrowing” as well as the “increasingly challenging regulatory environment in the U.S., Europe, and the U.K.” The project emphasized it plans to support users until Dec. 31, 2023. After the deadline, the project will offer only limited support for withdrawals. We’ve made the tough decision to wind down the Yield Protocol. The March 2024 fixed rate series will not be launched. Only the December 2023 series remains active for borrowing and lending. All borrowing and lending will end by December 31st. https://t.co/oHnCGgeP13 — Yield Protocol (@yield) October 3, 2...

Circle’s CEO praised Avocado Multisig, a multi-chain wallet, calling it a USDC “gas tank.” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire lauded the launch, highlighting the wallet ’s unified USDC “gas tank,” allowing all signers to pool resources to cover transaction fees across supported blockchain networks. This feature simplifies the often complex issue of gas fee management in the defi ecosystem. Great example of a multi-sig direct custody wallet with a unified $USDC gas tank for all chain fees. Well done @Instadapp ! https://t.co/vCGwfEjLpG — Jeremy Allaire (@jerallaire) August 29, 2023 The announcement came on Aug. 29. The protocol launched its Avocado defi wallet in March. The new wallet can cater to many users, including individuals, teams, and institutions. Multi-signature wallet s, commonly known as multisig, require multiple private keys to access crypto assets or execute transactions. This feature enhances security by eliminating the risk of a ...

Several collapses in the past year have highlighted centralization problems, while fragmentation remains another hurdle in this nascent sector. True decentralization is something that many crypto projects strive for, but the result is often too complicated for everyday users to rely on. So, what’s the solution? The high-profile failures of big industry players — namely the cryptocurrency exchange FTX — exposed just how centralized the crypto space has become. Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried now faces a flurry of criminal charges amid allegations that his decision-making directly affected the exchange’s collapse. Challenges of true decentralization While true decentralization has been touted as crucial for unlocking this nascent market’s potential, some protocols that meet this requirement are simply too complicated to use. Poor interfaces and convoluted mechanisms mean customers are at a higher risk of making costly mistakes or even losing their funds altogether. It’s little wonder t...

The top 100 DeFi tokens didn’t see much change in price over the past week, with the majority posting minor weekly gains. Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly dose of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights — a newsletter crafted to bring you the most significant developments from the past week. The second quarter of 2023 saw over $208 million exploited and hacked from DeFi protocols, and with just $4.5 million of funds recovered, total losses to exploits were over $204 million. The DeFi ecosystem is an ever-growing industry with billions of dollars in daily trading volume. Still, it remains niche to a small population in the crypto industry and out of reach for some. For a thorough overview of DeFi, check out the new report from Cointelegraph Research titled: “Investing in DeFi: A Comprehensive Guide.” The DeFi lending protocol Maple Finance has decided to offer direct loans to some borrowers instead of relying solely on pool delegates to provide capital to fill the void...

Tres Finance co-founder Tal Zackon warned businesses to not use explorers when tracking their finances. Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocol Tres Finance warned the community about a scam that involves fake token s designed to mimic legitimate transactions. In an interview, Tres Finance co-founder Tal Zackon and the company’s technical lead Idan David shared the details of a scam using fraudulent transactions that imitate legitimate ones. According to the duo, the scammers attempt to lure unsuspecting users to copy the wrong wallet address and send their transactions there. David further explained that scammers often identify and target wallets with large amounts of stablecoins like Tether (USDT) or USD Coin (USDC). Once the scammers locked into their targets, they create similar-looking wallet addresses and create token s that imitate the legitimate ones. David explained: “So, they're creating a new token that has the same symbol as the original token, and they can create ficti...

According to developers, the fundraising goal of the initial DEX offering was reached in less than one minute. Just hours after the initial DEX offering (IDO) for Cetus began on May 8, its hard cap target of 800,000 Sui (SUI) tokens has already been surpassed, with over 6 million SUI committed worth approximately $6.85 million at the time of publication. Developers claimed that the IDO reached its initial goal in less than 30 seconds after the sale went live.  Cetus is a DEX and liquidity protocol built on Sui and Aptos. The IDO, which is scheduled to take place from May 8-10, is still ongoing despite the initial target being reached. During the IDO, 20 million Cetus tokens (CETUS) are up for grabs out of a total supply of 1 billion CETUS. Users can commit SUI in exchange for CETUS at an exchange rate of 1 SUI to 25 CETUS. The rules and token metrics of the public sale, along with the price of SUI, would place the Cetus DEX at an initial valuation of $45.8 million.  The IDO has a har...

CertiK has contacted law enforcement in the U.S. and U.K. to find the pseudonymous operators. Smart contract auditor CertiK claims to have blocked $160,000 from Merlin, a zk-Sync-based decentralized exchange (DEX) which has been the center of a rogue insider "rugpull" that lost users $1.8 million last week. CertiK shared the news of its successful $160,000 freeze of the stolen funds in an update to its 257,700 Twitter followers on May 5. “We have successfully frozen $160K of the stolen funds with the help of partners,” CertiK said, adding that they’re continuing to monitor the movement of the stolen funds: We have successfully frozen $160K of the stolen funds with the help of partners. We will continue to monitor the movement of all stolen funds in an attempt to freeze and recover the remaining amount. — CertiK (@CertiK) May 4, 2023 The firm explained that they tried to “collaborate” with Merlin to recover the funds stolen from the April 25 " rugpull " but the e...

Explore a brief history of digital banking, tracing its evolution from early automation to the integration of new technologies, such as IoT and blockchain. Digital banking, also known as online banking or e-banking, refers to the delivery of financial services through digital channels such as the internet, mobile devices and automated teller machines (ATMs). Digital banking has become increasingly popular in recent years, but its origins can be traced back several decades. Here’s a brief history of digital banking. Early automation (1960s to 1980s) The first forms of digital banking can be traced back to the 1960s, when banks began using mainframe computers to automate various banking functions such as check processing and customer account management. In the 1980s, banks started offering dial-up services that allowed customers to access their accounts through their home computers. In the 1960s, Bank of America introduced the first ATM, which allowed customers to withdraw cash from the...

THORChain has once again halted its network, taking action as a precautionary measure while verifying reports on a potential network vulnerability. Cross-chain liquidity protocol THORChain has paused its network due to new claims of a potential network vulnerability. THORChain took to Twitter on March 28 to announce that it has halted all trading amid reports on a potential vulnerability with a THORChain dependency that may affect the network. The decision was taken as a precautionary measure while the reports are verified, THORChain said. The announcement came shortly after social media reports indicated that THORChain’s liquidity platform Nine Realms and the dedicated security team THORSec received “credible reports ” of a potential vulnerability affecting THORChain. The THORChain network has report edly been subsequently halted globally. **THORChain Globally Halted**@ninerealms_cap and THORSec have received credible reports of a potential vulnerability affecting @THORChain. Out ...

Price slippage occurs in both centralized and decentralized exchanges, but what are the causes and risks associated with it? Price slippage is a constant risk in trading on centralized exchanges (CEXs) and decentralized exchanges (DEXs) alike. It occurs when a trader’s order is executed at a different price than the one intended. It can happen due to high volatility, low liquidity or delays in order execution, resulting in a noticeable difference between the expected and actual transaction price. The DeFi ecosystem prioritizes decentralization and transparency, so the price slippage problem is more prominent than on centralized platforms. Price slippage on CEXs and DEXs On CEXs, price slippage is caused by factors such as low liquidity, high volatility and order book depth. CEXs are platforms that connect buyers and sellers of digital assets, with order books being a key element. An order book is a record of all buy and sell orders placed by traders for a particular cryptocurrency. It...

Discover the countries leading blockchain adoption with innovative solutions, supportive regulations and more. Countries lead blockchain adoption for various reasons, including recognizing its potential to transform multiple sectors of the economy, promoting innovation and economic growth, and creating a favorable regulatory environment to attract blockchain businesses. Types of blockchain communities that lead blockchain adoption Blockchain communities refer to groups of individuals, organizations and companies involved in developing and using blockchain technology. These communities form to share knowledge, collaborate on projects and advance the adoption of blockchain technology. There are different types of blockchain communities, including: Developer communities: These groups of blockchain developers work together to create protocols, programs, smart contracts and other blockchain-based projects. Industry communities: Communities developed around specific industries or sectors, ...