Crypto is being touted as a workaround for Russia after being excluded from SWIFT.
The international community moved to ban several Russian banks from the payment system in a bid to impose monetary restrictions.
Peer-to-peer networks bypass traditional intermediaries, leading to a gaping hole in this strategy. In response, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said exchanges should block all Russian users.
Fedorov’s outburst raises doubt on whether crypto is as censorship-resistant as proponents say it is.
The international community imposes SWIFT ban on Russia
SWIFT is a global messaging system set up in 1973 which facilitates international payments. Although the organization claims neutrality, it is still overseen by the G-10 central banks.
In pondering the knock-on effects of a Russian ban, some analysts conclude the action could be counterproductive in the long term.
The SCMP says the ban could increase the price of crude oil, adding to global inflationary pressure. The cost of oil has been spiking in recent weeks, with Brent Crude currently coming in at $102 per barrel.
Some say a price of $125 per barrel could spell disaster for the U.S economy, which is already on its knees with a four-decade-high inflation rate.
What’s more, the ban could also strengthen the Russia-China alliance via the use of China’s SWIFT equivalent, the yuan-based Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS).
Professor Scheherazade Rehman of George Washington University summarized the situation, saying it’s one thing to ban Iran from SWIFT, but banning the 12th largest economy will have unintended consequences, including the rise of crypto markets.
“Unintended consequences – slower growth, you know, less business for U.S. banks and European banks, allowance of other systems to be put into place which are not entirely desirable, like the crypto market.”
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister wants to ban all Russian crypto addresses
On the use of crypto to circumvent the SWIFT ban, the U.S Treasury said it isn’t too concerned.
A Treasury official said “laundering” crypto funds through wallets and exchanges is expensive and time-consuming. Also, publically open ledgers mean any such large-scale transfers are visible for all to see.
“We have never had more visibility of financial flows and money laundering than we do today in cryptocurrency…”
Not content with this, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called on major crypto exchanges to enforce an outright ban on all Russian addresses.
Binance responded by saying it would not “unilaterally freeze millions of innocent users’ accounts.” Adding that doing so would infringe upon the principles of cryptocurrency.
Nonetheless, with the weaponization of the monetary system in recent times, including the Canadian truckers dispute, it’s clear that major exchanges will comply if pushed.
This begs the question of whether crypto is as censorship-resistant as we are led to believe.
Some days make it difficult to find joy, even as crypto markets are rallying. Nevertheless, the losses made since the outbreak of the tragic war between Russia and Ukraine have largely recovered and markets are generally in the green on the daily.
As many times before, bitcoin leads the way by the share weight of the leading cryptocurrency by market cap. Bitcoin (BTC) is essentially back to the same levels as before the outbreak of the conflict, jumping over $39,000 for the first time since Wednesday last week. Trading at $39500 at press time, bitcoin is up 11.3% on the daily, but still down 2.9% on the week.
LUNA comes out as the winner
At the same time, ether (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is up 14.5% in the past 24 hours, trading at $2,700 at press time, though still down 5.5% on the week.
Meanwhile, of the top 10 cryptocurrencies, Terra’s LUNA token comes out as the big winner. LUNA is up 26.6% in the past 24 hours, and up 33.2% on the week, trading at press time above $67. LUNA has been pushed by a reliable tailwind no matter the time frame. The token is up a handsome 902% the last year.
By comparison, those who bought bitcoin a year ago are down 20.5%, while ethereans can celebrate a gain of 67.5% over the same time period.
Terra, the makers of the LUNA token, has seen some positive developments in recent times. Two months ago, major exchanges listed Terra’s UST stablecoin, which had a positive effect on the value of the LUNA token as it reached an all-time high over $100 at the end of December.
Terra raised $1 billion in funding, bitcoin UST reserve
Also, activity in the LUNA ecosystem is picking up steam. Total Value Locked (TVL) in the ecosystem amounts to $18.6 billion at press time, according to data from DeFi Llama. TVL reached an all-time-high on the 27th of December at just over $21 billion.
Just two days ago it was announced that Terra raised $1 billion in funding to create a bitcoin reserve for the UST stablecoin. This means bitcoin will constitute a share of the backing of the UST token. The LUNA token is now the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap with a total value of over $25.6 billion.
The two leading cryptocurrencies both reached their all-time highs on November 10 last year, reaching $69,044 and $4,878 respectively. Since then, bitcoin is down 42.6% and ether has lost 44.1%.
As the geopolitical developments are highly uncertain in the near future, readers should beware of high volatility in markets in the coming days and weeks.
Bitcoin (BTC/USD) remained pressured below the psychologically-important 40000 figure early in the Asian session as the pair sank to its lowest level since late January. Stops were elected below the 35982 and 35698 levels during the sharp depreciation, areas that represent the 76.4% and 78.6% retracements of the appreciating range from 32933.33 to 45855. Stops were also elected below the 35626 area, a major downside price objective related to selling pressure around the 52100 and 48574.70 levels. Major Stops were also elected below the 38670 and 37797 levels during the decline, representing the 76.4% and 78.6% retracements of the historical appreciating range from 29301.56 to 69000.
Buying pressure emerged after BTC/USD tested the 34165 area, a downside price objective related to selling pressure around the 47076 level. If BTC/USD extends its recent move downward, additional downside price objectives and areas of potential technical support include the 34190, 33724, 33208, 32894, 31639, 29514, 28625, 27721, 25839, and 25217 levels. If BTC/USD retraces higher, areas of technical resistance and potential selling pressure include the 35491, 36214, 36789, 37043, 38315, 38727, and 39276 levels. Traders are observing that the 50-bar MA (4-hourly) is bearishly indicating below the 100-bar MA (4-hourly) and below the 200-bar MA (4-hourly). Also, the 50-bar MA (hourly) is bearishly indicating below the 100-bar MA (hourly) and below the 200-bar MA (hourly).
Price activity is nearest the 50-bar MA (4-hourly) at 39709.13 and the 50-bar MA (Hourly) at 37575.08.
Technical Support is expected around 31639.47/ 29514.02/ 27271.02 with Stops expected below.
Technical Resistance is expected around 46600.89/ 47726.76/ 49019.35 with Stops expected above.
On 4-Hourly chart, SlowK is Bearishly below SlowD while MACD is Bearishly below MACDAverage.
On 60-minute chart, SlowK is Bullishly above SlowD while MACD is Bearishly below MACDAverage.
Disclaimer: This trading analysis is provided by a third party, and for informational purposes only. It does not reflect the views of Crypto Daily, nor is it intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, or financial advice.
NGC Ventures, a crypto-focused investment firm, has announced a partnership with Seedify, a blockchain gaming incubator and launchpad. This strategic investment will drive Seedify’s expansion within the blockchain gaming arena and the wider metaverse.
As a first-mover in the space, Seedify is a platform for IGOs (Initial Game Offerings) and effectively facilitates these launches with detailed verification processes for the participants and allocated tier systems to take part in private and seed rounds.
Some notable IGOs executed include strategy-based land building metaverse, Cryptoblades Kingdoms, play-to-earn NFT space game, SIDUS, real-time multiplayer PVP arena NFT game, Cryowar, and metaverse VR experience, Bloktopia. Interested participants are given the exclusive opportunity to participate in these IGOs and buy in-game tokens prior to launch.
“We are thrilled to support a next-gen gaming launchpad like Seedify that has the potential to truly revolutionize the e-gaming space and bring a new level of value to gamers and developers.” – Roger Lim, NGC Venture’s Founding Partner
Besides the investment, NGC Ventures will be working closely with the Seedify team in building out its strategic pipeline — supporting the incubation and growth of new gaming projects for optimal impact.
“Blockchain has transformed the gaming industry for developers and users alike, offering a new world in which we can virtually exist, earn and meaningfully engage. At Seedify, we are vested in the growth of the blockchain gaming industry with our commitment to bringing quality projects center stage and our partnership with NGC will propel us further — enabling a new play-to-earn era.” – Levent Cem Aydan, Seedify’s Founder & CEO
Seedify envisions three main pillars of offerings to be built out: Seedify Game Studios, Seedify Game NFT Launchpad, and the Seedify Utility NFT Set. All pillars have the overarching goal of creating unique offerings, both in design and utility, that serves as a gateway for many innovative things to come in the blockchain gaming ecosystem.
To date, NGC Ventures has been a key contributor to many forefront projects in the metaverse, such as BigTime Studios, Republic Realm, Terra Virtua, VRJam, and Boson Protocol with the intention to grow strong networks and long-term value in the digital asset realm through early-stage investments.
AstroPay, a Latin American-based payment & e-wallet solution, announced it has integrated crypto with a new buy and sell option on its app and web app. The AstroPay wallet supports Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Cardano, and can be acquired in local currencies available in each country or USD.
Further, the service allows users to trade supported cryptocurrencies with no purchase, trading, transfer, or maintenance fees. With the addition, AstroPay aims to expand its business to a wider range of users. The option is now available in selected emerging markets with plans to roll it out further.
Mikael Lijtenstein, CEO at AstroPay
“With this offering, we want to serve younger users who are more inclined to trade cryptocurrencies as they are digital natives. AstroPay has been operating with cryptocurrencies for over two years and we decided that now is the right time to offer our users the option to trade these digital assets.” – Mikael Lijtenstein, Astropay CEO
AstroPay is an easy-to-use payment solution and e-wallet with support for more than 200 payment methods globally, and can be seamlessly added to an operator’s website. It is one of the biggest payment providers in Latin America and Asia and rapidly developing in Africa. The company has offices in the UK and Latin America, with over 5 million users and 500 merchants.
Nodle a decentralized IoT (Internet of Things) network on Polkadot providing secure, low-cost connectivity and data liquidity to connect billions of IoT devices, today announced its new partnership with OnFinality, a blockchain infrastructure service that provides both an enhanced, scalable API service and a node management platform for the Nodle Chain.
“We are very excited to be working with OnFinality to better manage our node infrastructure. OnFinality will allow us to move away from our existing setup and towards something that is simpler, more automated, and cost-efficient.” – Eliott Teissonniere, Chief Blockchain Officer at Nodle
The OnFinality integration will allow users to:
Employ OnFinality’s API service to query a set of RPC and Websocket endpoints for the Nodle Chain. Users will also have access to over 20 additional networks and parachains over Polkadot and Kusama.
Spin up a full, archive or validator node for the Nodle Chain in just a few clicks without having to manage their own infrastructure.
“OnFinality is enjoying our relationship with the team at Nodle. They’ve been an excellent and highly technical team to work with, and we’ll continue to scale our service to help them achieve their goal of connecting the world faster.” – James Bayly, Head of Business Development at OnFinality
OnFinality’s mission is to support all blockchain organizations in the world by providing the critical infrastructure so they can focus on their core businesses. By leveraging OnFinality’s infrastructure expertise, Nodle’s development team can focus on building an efficient and secure IoT wireless network.
“OnFinality’s Substrate-focused operations platform helps accelerate the launch and monitoring of production networks. A very welcome offering in the rapidly moving world of blockchain engineering.” – Nicholas Young, Blockchain Operations, Nodle
Thursday saw a renewed decline for Bitcoin as the leading cryptocurrency plunged to $40,090. A bounce followed, leading to a tight trading range between $40,300 and $40,900.
Currently, Bitcoin is trading at $40,800, down 5% in the last 24-hours. However, fears are this sell-off could be the start of more downside to come.
Bitcoin price analysis
Bitcoin experienced a 9% swing to the downside yesterday, having posted a daily high of $44,200 in the early hours (GMT). The knock-on effect saw a loss of $154 billion from the total crypto market cap.
The biggest top 100 losers over the last 24-hours are Rally, down 14.6%, then Terra losing 9.5%, closely followed by Kadena, also trading down 9.5%.
Analysis from MMBTtrader on the market leader, Bitcoin, concludes, as things stand, if major support at $39,000 – $40,000 holds, the market remains bullish.
Drilling down further, MMBTtrader noted $46,000 was a strong resistance level, with February 10 seeing a rejection at this level.
This latest downtrend takes the market just above a bearish zone (pictured as a black oval in the chart below.) Should Bitcoin enter this zone, MMBTtrader expects further downside, with $35,300 being the next level of support.
“As we can see on the chart too 46K$ is major resistance for the price and only after a valid breakout to the upside we can expect more pump here also 39K-40K is major support here and if this support remains valid market remains bullish.”
What’s behind this?
According to The Motley Fool, this sell-off is attributed to the uncertainty of pending, more onerous U.S regulations.
“The White House appears ready to push for regulation on the cryptocurrency industry and that uncertainty alone is spooking investors.”
The latest reports on this matter state President Biden will issue an executive order next week calling U.S government agencies to formulate a national strategy in respect of regulating cryptocurrencies.
This would also involve studying central bank digital currencies, including a technical evaluation on the practical implementation of a digital dollar.
The Motley Fool article concludes by saying although the market has reacted pessimistically, long-term, a national framework is a positive development that will bring clear guidelines on conducting crypto business.
However, at the same time, it’s unclear whether the current administration is pro-crypto. Based on recent dealings, it’s assumed not.
“Companies and investors have been trying to get Congress and regulators to write favorable rules for years, but they’ve been fighting an uphill battle so far.“
The worst-case scenario would be a national framework that hampers digital currencies, taking away any benefits of investing in them.
The decentralized financial instruments (DeFi) space is developing at a rapid pace, and new tools for working with DeFi tokens and trading platforms keep on emerging. PancakeSwap, with its native cryptocurrency, CAKE, is one of the fastest-growing DeFi projects. Today, we discuss the market sentiments concerning this new project and its token and take a closer look at the trading prospects of this digital asset.
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Overview: How Does It Work?
PancakeSwap is a non-custodial Binance Smart Chain (BSC) platform for crypto exchange and profitable farming using BEP-20 tokens. The project has its CAKE token and is analogous to Uniswap and SushiSwap. However, unlike these Ethereum-based exchanges, PancakeSwap has faster transactions and lower fees than Ethereum.
The PancakeSwap network was launched on September 20, 2020, by unknown developers with the support of Binance. In February 2021, PancakeSwap became one of the largest exchanges in the DeFi segment in terms of trading volume.
The PancakeSwap platform, to some extent, solves the problem of cryptocurrency liquidity in the DeFi segment. Most projects in the DeFi segment do not offer comprehensive services, while PancakeSwap supports all possible segment solutions. The platform is positioned as a decentralized exchange with cryptocurrency markets that are created by the network’s participants. These markets provide decentralized liquidity through profitable farming and commission payments to depositors.
The PancakeSwap digital system uses a decentralized management method through the CAKE token holders. Proposals for tokenomics or changes in the protocol’s operation are made collectively through a public vote. This approach creates a healthy decentralized environment where every CAKE holder is a community member.
Below, you can find a video review of the PancakeSwap network and its native token, CAKE.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyCthN3KyjM
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Technical Analysis
When discussing future trading opportunities of digital assets, it is essential to pay attention to market sentiments. Below, we share common crypto enthusiasts’ opinions about the future trading opportunities of CAKE. All the data is provided by the cryptocurrency analytical source TradingView
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Predictions for 2022 by Experts
Experts seem to have different opinions on the future of the PancakeSwap (CAKE) price. The CAKE technical analysis from TradingView currently gives the token a “Sell” signal within a month and predicts that we may see its price drop in the near future.
Considering the fact that the current market sentiment for CAKE is rather bearish, crypto analysts do not think that its price will change significantly in 2022 — it is likely that we will see a drop in PancakeSwap’s price in the next few months.
WalletInvestor
Following WalletInvestor’s predictions, the CAKE price might not change significantly in 2022. It might reach only the $13.3 level. According to the price forecast, the token may experience gradual growth. Thus, in 2024, the future price of one PancakeSwap token might equal $25.52. In 2025, the digital asset might be worth $45.67.
Government Capital
The crypto experts from the Government Capital source believe that by 2023, the PancakeSwap cryptocurrency’s exchange rate could gradually decrease after the upward trend in 2022. By the middle of 2023, the digital asset’s price may touch a level of $30.
TradingBeasts
The TradingBeasts source supposes that CAKE’s price might equal $33 by the end of 2022. In 2023, the price might slightly go up to $40. By 2025, the PancakeSwap token’s price may touch the level of $77.
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction at the Beginning of 2022
PancakeSwap (CAKE) January 2022
According to the forecast and technical analysis of PancakeSwap (CAKE), in January 2022, the token’s price could cross the average level of $11.28. Also, the PancakeSwap digital asset can reach a maximum price level of $14.16 in January 2022. However, the market is very volatile, as of January 10, the CAKE token is trading at $10.56.
PancakeSwap (CAKE) February 2022
The CAKE exchange rate is forecasted to be $13.73 at the beginning of February 2022. The crypto’s average trading rate for the month may be $14.33, while the maximum cost is expected at the level of $14.87 per coin, and the minimum may be $13.22.
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction 2022
According to the forecasted price and technical analysis of the native token of the PancakeSwap network, in 2022, CAKE’s exchange rate may cross the average price level of $19.60. The expected minimum value of the asset’s price might be $18.67 by the end of the year. Moreover, CAKE may reach the all-time high (ATH) level of $22.29.
Month
Minimum Price
Average Price
Maximum Price
January 2022
$9.77
$11.28
$14.16
February 2022
$13.22
$14.33
$14.87
March 2022
$13.78
$14.72
$15.48
April 2022
$15.32
$14.66
$16.66
May 2022
$14.98
$16.76
$17.12
June 2022
$15.89
$16.12
$16.77
July 2022
$16.54
$17.14
$17.33
August 2022
$16.81
$17.57
$18.78
September 2022
$16.98
$18.23
$19.87
October 2022
$17.45
$19.63
$20.44
November 2022
$17.88
$19.85
$21.77
December 2022
$18.67
$19.60
$22.29
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction 2023
It is expected that CAKE’s price may cross the average price level of $29.79 in 2023. The projected minimum value of the token’s trading price could be $27.11 by the end of that year. In addition, CAKE might reach a maximum price level of $32.17.
Month
Minimum Price
Average Price
Maximum Price
January 2023
$19.13
$20.45
$20.65
February 2023
$19.88
$20.76
$21.43
March 2023
$21.12
$21.87
$22.17
April 2023
$20.97
$22.23
$22.67
May 2023
$21.44
$22.79
$23.45
June 2023
$21.96
$22.96
$24.15
July 2023
$22.55
$24.79
$26.15
August 2023
$23.18
$24.77
$26.88
September 2023
$23.89
$26.03
$27.34
October 2023
$23.99
$26.69
$28.93
November 2023
$25.77
$27.55
$29.98
December 2023
$27.11
$29.79
$32.17
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction 2024
The prognosis for 2024 indicates that the price of CAKE might be above $28 at the beginning of the year. This forecast is rather optimistic. However, everything can change drastically due to the crypto market’s volatility.
Month
Minimum Price
Average Price
Maximum Price
January 2024
$26.78
$27.72
$28.98
February 2024
$28.21
$28.29
$29.77
March 2024
$28.89
$29.88
$30.78
April 2024
$30.11
$31.27
$32.08
May 2024
$30.87
$32.17
$33.66
June 2024
$32.67
$33.61
$34.95
July 2024
$33.89
$35.19
$36.30
August 2024
$34.13
$36.31
$38.03
September 2024
$35.12
$37.72
$40.44
October 2024
$37.12
$39.19
$41.67
November 2024
$38.67
$39.79
$42.44
December 2024
$40.33
$42.31
$44.43
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction 2025
CAKE might resume the trade at $39.33 at the beginning of January 2025. Its price might reach new heights in case the asset manages to grab the attention of investors in the future. By the end of 2025, the altcoin might be trading at an average price of $55.62.
Month
Minimum Price
Average Price
Maximum Price
January 2025
$39.33
$44.37
$45.77
February 2025
$41.59
$44.55
$46.19
March 2025
$42.50
$46.57
$48.99
April 2025
$43.87
$46.77
$50.27
May 2025
$44.22
$48.87
$52.62
June 2025
$45.18
$52.83
$55.01
July 2025
$46.16
$49.81
$56.97
August 2025
$47.24
$50.30
$59.46
September 2025
$50.26
$51.33
$61.51
October 2025
$51.31
$52.37
$64.12
November 2025
$51.86
$54.51
$67.26
December 2025
$52.77
$55.62
$70.43
PancakeSwap (CAKE) Price Prediction 2030
As we remember, the cryptocurrency market is extremely volatile. Making crypto price predictions so far in the future is very risky, so it is hard to make a reliable CAKE price prediction for 2030. If things continue to go well for CAKE, then the token has a chance to rise up to $400 by the end of 2030.
Month
Minimum Price
Average Price
Maximum Price
January 2030
$227.34
$245.82
$259.10
February 2030
$235.21
$261.92
$269.84
March 2030
$237.18
$259.31
$278.84
April 2030
$248.71
$267.42
$283.65
May 2030
$266.07
$286.77
$302.57
June 2030
$277.24
$289.38
$317.04
July 2030
$289.58
$311.28
$329.86
August 2030
$291.19
$309.32
$348.92
September 2030
$304.03
$319.74
$363.33
October 2030
$327.06
$351.19
$369.24
November 2030
$337.93
$356.07
$378.41
December 2030
$344.71
$376.85
$413.97
Why Is the Price of PancakeSwap (CAKE) Rising?
The price of PancakeSwap (CAKE) is strongly influenced by the magnitude of recognition from individuals and exchanges. Thus, it might cause positive growth in the coming years. However, the price of CAKE may be affected by the general price movement of Bitcoin.
Is PancakeSwap a Good Investment?
Please keep in mind that the cryptocurrency market is incredibly unpredictable, and absolutely anything can happen. Crypto price forecasts should be regarded as general guidelines on the future of a particular cryptocurrency. Please remember to do your own research (DYOR) before investing. As of now, CAKE might be seen as a good investment.
Where Can I Buy PancakeSwap (CAKE)?
If you plan to buy some PancakeSwap (CAKE), an instant crypto exchange Changelly is the perfect option. Our platform allows purchasing CAKE with a bank card swiftly and safely. In case of any questions, do not hesitate to contact our Support Center!
Will CAKE Reach $100?
CAKE’s price is unlikely to hit $100 any time soon or at all. However, it is still possible due to the high volatility of the crypto market.
Can You Mine CAKE?
PancakeSwap farms are the initial pools of liquidity that allow you to earn CAKE. To farm the asset, you need to activate the Binance Smart Chain wallet. Detailed information is provided on the official website of the project.
What Is PancakeSwap (CAKE) Used for?
The main function of CAKE is to provide liquidity to the exchange. Providers receive a CAKE token from each new block of liquidity pools. This is possible due to unlimited emission. However, the developers are gradually reducing the CAKE block reward and adjusting emissions.
Can You Use PancakeSwap in the US?
Yes, you can! The US residents can now access PancakeSwap and use all its functions to earn profit.
Disclaimer: Please note that the contents of this article are not financial or investing advice. The information provided in this article is the author’s opinion only and should not be considered as offering trading or investing recommendations. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information. The cryptocurrency market suffers from high volatility and occasional arbitrary movements. Any investor, trader, or regular crypto users should research multiple viewpoints and be familiar with all local regulations before committing to an investment.
In a bid to further secure its network from bad actors, smart contract-enabled blockchain, Cardano has revealed that it is doubling the bug bounty for whoever discovers and reports any vulnerability on the network to its team of developers.
Cardano doubles bug bounty rewards
According to available information, the Charles Hoskinson-led project’s bug bounty program has a four-level reward system for bugs found on either the Cardano wallet or the Cardano Node.
Previously, any low-risk vulnerability found on the Cardano wallet attracted a $300 reward, which has now been increased to $600. Medium vulnerabilities will now attract a reward of $2,000, while high-risk vulnerabilities will get $6,000.
Lastly, a white-hat hacker who spots a critical vulnerability will be rewarded with as much as $7,500. Critical vulnerability attracts the highest reward because bugs need to be attended to immediately.
On the other hand, vulnerabilities or bugs discovered on Cardano nodes attract a higher reward. Low vulnerability bugs would attract a reward of $800; medium vulnerability bugs would get $4,000. High vulnerabilities will get $10,000, while critical vulnerabilities will get rewarded with $20,000.
It should be noted that the Cardano Foundation stated that the increased bounty rewards would last for only six weeks, starting from February 14 till March 25, 2022.
Notably, the foundation has received 11 reports within the last three months and has paid out $2,300 in rewards to two hackers whose discoveries were genuine.
White-hat hackers and the crypto ecosystem
There is no doubt that the crypto industry is a constantly growing and dynamic ecosystem that needs the help of white-hat hackers to help projects in the system defend against vulnerabilities and hacks.
A white-hat hacker, in simple terms, is an ethical security hacker who looks for loopholes or vulnerabilities that bad actors can take advantage of in a project.
Due to the nature of the industry, white-hat hackers have increasingly become popular because of the unique role they play in the space.
Recently, Tree of Alpha, a popular white-hat hacker on Twitter, called the attention of Coinbase to a vulnerability that would have allowed bad actors to send the exchange order book to arbitrary prices.
Anyone here can get me a direct line with someone at @coinbase , preferably management or dev team, possibly @brian_armstrong himself?
I'm submitting a hacker1 report but I'm afraid this can't wait. Can't say more either, this is potentially market-nuking.
Aside from him, the Poly Network hacker is sometimes referred to as a white-hat hacker because he returned the funds he had initially taken from the network and worked with the network to plug its vulnerabilities.
Another white-hat hacker that has made the news in recent times is a Paradigm security researcher who has been working with Wormhole to unravel how it was exploited for $320 million.
Many people became interested in the NFT market, whether it’s in-game items or works of art. Among them are collectors who saw a new era of digital art in NFTs and investors who could not miss a market growing by thousands of percent a year. Where do they buy these tokens, and what are the right steps? Let’s figure it out.
What Is the NFT Marketplace?
NFT, or non-fungible token, is a unique token (digital asset) that contains some digital content. It can be artwork, Internet memes, game cards, songs, video clip, photos…well, anything. So, the NFT marketplace is a digital platform where these NFT items can be bought and sold.
Such platforms operate based on blockchain, for example, Ethereum, Solana, etc. Depending on which blockchain the marketplace is based on, the NFTs will be presented in the appropriate standard, e.g., ERC-721 for Ethereum.
Generally, tokens are an entry in a register within a blockchain. A distinctive feature of most tokens is the principle of fungibility. It means that any Ethereum token is equal to another one. But this is not the case with non-fungible tokens.
The principle of non-fungible tokens is built on the uniqueness of each. The similar landscapes of Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir cannot be called the same artwork. As well as the songs of Rihanna and Beyonce, although they are definitely songs, are not at all the same.
Each of the NFTs is unique and exists in a single copy. It also cannot be divided. All information about its author, buyer, and all operations is stored in the blockchain. In other words, an NFT is a digital certificate attached to a unique object (digital file), be it a song, a painting, or even a simple GIF file.
What Do You Need to Pay Attention to When Choosing an NFT Marketplace?
Since there is a great variety of NFT marketplaces for every taste, you need to consider some features and characteristics before entering one.
Pay attention to the lots that are for sale on the marketplace. You may be interested in real works of art by contemporary artists or just in comic art or musical works of celebs. In other words, NFT marketplaces have varying degrees of the items’ rarity.
Check the daily turnover of the marketplace. If it is large, then it indicates high liquidity, as is the case with any crypto exchanges.
Find out what blockchain the marketplace is running on and what coins it accepts to pay for NFT art. Ethereum is the most widespread, but we advise you to double-check, so you can create an appropriate wallet and get the right crypto in advance. Check out the most reliable Ethereum wallets.
In fact, everything really depends only on which NFT you are interested in. Some marketplaces, for example, Axie Infinity, only offer creatures from their game in the form of NFT. Other sites sell memes (for example, a GIF of Nyan cat). The choice is yours. And now, let’s explore the NFT marketplaces with the highest liquidity.
OpenSea is the largest peer-to-peer NFT marketplace. It sells in-game items, collectibles, cards, as well as artworks, music, videos, memes, and more. In other words, the platform offers a wide range of NFT items, so you can find whatever you want. To sign up for the platform, connect your MetaMask wallet. You can also use other options like Coinbase wallet, Formatic, and more.
This NFT project is very easy-to-use. If you want to buy an item, just choose it, put a bet, and wait until it’s accepted. Then, you will be automatically charged.
Besides purchasing items, you can also upload your own masterpiece by clicking the “Create” button. Just connect your wallet and wait for the precious buyer.
Axie Marketplace
Based on the ETH blockchain.
Axie Marketplace is the second-largest NFT marketplace of the decentralized game, Axie Infinity. The platform allows you to buy and sell in-game creatures. You can also create, breed, and sell new pets on the marketplace. To learn more about the Axie Infinity game, read our article on GameFi.
Axies are not only collectibles. You can also use them in game activities like battling against monsters and earning tokens on your wins.
You might have heard about this one. CryptoPunk is a series of 10,000 randomly-generated characters looking like your profile picture in pixel aesthetics.
Initially, these characters were offered literally for nothing; in other words, they were free. But nowadays, the only way to get such a pic is to purchase it. Frankly speaking, it’s not affordable at all. The lowest price for one piece is about 100 ETH, and the most expensive one was sold for $530 million.
If you are rich enough to spend so much money on one NFT, here is a brief guide on how to do it. Just connect your MetaMask wallet to the platform, make a bid, and wait for the most trendy purchase.
NBA Top Shot
Based on the FLOW blockchain technology.
NBA Top Shot is a series of digital trading cards featuring iconic NBA videos. When a user purchases a set, it’s stored in the wallet. Users can watch it whenever they want or just resell it.
You may ask: what’s unique about this NFT project? Well, it’s super easy-to-use. Accessibility is its top priority. Users can sign up by connecting a Google account to the platform. Then verify your mobile number via SMS, and voilà ! You can connect your crypto wallet to pay with crypto or even a credit card to buy with fiat currencies.
Rarible
Based on the Ethereum blockchain network.
Similar to OpenSea, the Rarible NFT marketplace offers its customers various digital art and collectibles made by famous NFT artists.
As it was previously mentioned, you can also sign in using a variety of wallets, e.g., MetaMask, Coinbase wallet, MyEtherWallet, and more. Once you log in, you can use funds from your wallet to buy any item or even top up your crypto wallet using your bank card or account.
SuperRare
Based on the Ethereum blockchain.
SuperRare is an alternative to Rarible but with a minimalistic user interface. The platform’s developers cooperate with the artists and content creators closely. The so-called moderators check and approve artworks before they can be listed.
The signing up process is as easy as ABC: connect your MetaMask or Formatic wallet, create a username and password, and you are all set to place some bids.
KnownOrigin
Based on the Ethereum blockchain.
The KnownOrigin marketplace aims to provide curated and gallery-like experiences similar to SuperRare. Here, art is presented as usual: no crazy GIFs, strange photos, or acid pictures — all in all, aesthetics is in its understanding.
The platform is easy to use: connect your MetaMask wallet and bid for the NFT of your choice!
PancakeSwap
Based on Binance Smart Chain.
PancakeSwap is a decentralized exchange platform that offers some NFT collections. It represents about 26,000 pics of the characters: Pancake bunnies, squad, etc., looking like 3D or pixelated creatures.
To buy an NFT, you should connect your MetaMask or Trust wallet, make a bid, and enjoy your experience!
MakersPlace
Based on the Ethereum blockchain.
MakersPlace is a real boutique among the NFT marketplaces: the platform sells exclusive collections of digital fine art. It was hosted by celebrities like T-Pain and Shakira. Moreover, on MakersPlace, a well-known NFT artist Beeple dropped an art collection and set the price: only one dollar for a piece.
You can easily sign in via Google or Facebook (sorry, Metaverse). After the registration process, you are offered to select five artists to follow. Then you are ready to make a bet and purchase the NFT item with ETH or even your credit card. However, you’ll become a rightful owner only after the curator’s approval.
Binance NFT Marketplace
Based on Binance Smart Chain.
As you have already understood from the title, this is the NFT marketplace created by Binance. The company works towards exclusive offerings and partnerships with celebrities of all ranks.
It’s super easy-to-use since you don’t need to create an account if you already have a Binance one. The process of purchasing is simple: just bid on the item of your choice. You can pay for it using ETH, BNB, or BUSD, depending on which currency the author indicated.
BakerySwap
Based on Binance Smart Chain.
BakerySwap was one of the first marketplaces created on the Binance Smart Chain basis. This one is a small but very up-and-coming platform.
You can sign in by connecting your MetaMask wallet. Please, pay attention to the fact that you can buy NFTs only with BNB tokens here.
Solanart
Based on the Solana blockchain.
Solanart boomed after the Degenerate Ape Academy release. So, there is no wonder that it shows us hundreds of millions of dollars in trading volumes these days. Besides the Academy, the platform offers a limited selection of NFTs.
Create and connect a Solana wallet, like Solflare or Phantom, to sign in. To start the bidding process, you’ll need to top it up with some SOL tokens.
Foundation
Based on the Ethereum blockchain.
Having received the title of a creative playground for artists, Foundation is associated with really high-profile NFT sales. Here, Edward Snowden presented his first NFT collection, and a Nyan cat meme was sold.
Foundation is actually similar to any auction website. The registration process is quite common: you just need to connect your MetaMask wallet and place a bid.
Myth Market
Based on the WAX blockchain.
As a matter of fact, Myth Market is the father of five small NFT markets: GPK.Market, GoPepe.Market, Heroes.Market, KOGS.Market, and Shatner.Market. So, you need to enter a submarket to buy any NFT. The platform offers various trading cards, e.g., with William Shatner, a Canadian actor, or Pepe frog, a famous meme.
Since Myth Market is built on the WAX blockchain, the only way to buy these NFT cards is by connecting to the WAX wallet and paying in its tokens.
Nifty Gateway
Based on the Ethereum blockchain.
Nifty Gateway was acquired by the Gemini exchange platform in 2019. The marketplace became generally known in February 2021, when Beeple’s “Crossroad” was sold for a record $6.6 million at the time.
The platform is curated mindfully. It offers exquisite content, so Nifty Gateway can boast of such NFT authors as the Weeknd, Grimes, and Eminem.
The registration process is quite easy: your email address, name, username, and password are required. You can also link your profile to a Gemini exchange account. If you plan to sell NFTs on Nifty Gateway, you will be asked to verify your identity.
FAQ
Where is the best place to buy NFT?
The best place to buy NFT is whatever you find the most convenient and attractive for yourself. Each marketplace represents its artists and collectible items.
What is the largest NFT marketplace?
The largest NFT marketplace by trading volume is OpenSea, based on Polygon and Ethereum blockchains. OpenSea’s monthly volume exceeds $2-3 billion. Axie Infinity marketplace and Solanart go right after it.
What is the most popular NFT?
NFT by Bored Ape Yacht Club
The most popular and expensive NFT collection that has ever been sold is Bored Ape Yacht Club. It is made of 10,000 assets. As part of the collection, the authors have created art with primates in different styles (and with different accessories). Tokens are built on the ERC-721 standard of the Ethereum network, so they are sold for ETH.
The most expensive was the Bored Ape #3749. It was sold on September 6, 2021, for 740 ETH (about $2.92 million as of the time of purchase).
Why there is no Bitcoin NFT marketplace?
Bitcoin blockchain does not provide users with smart contract technology. It is currently not possible to create non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Is NFT trading possible?
In some manner, NFT auctions are the places to trade NFTs. However, there are no full-fledged cryptocurrency exchanges to trade non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Disclaimer: Please note that the contents of this article are not financial or investing advice. The information provided in this article is the author’s opinion only and should not be considered as offering trading or investing recommendations. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information. The cryptocurrency market suffers from high volatility and occasional arbitrary movements. Any investor, trader, or regular crypto users should research multiple viewpoints and be familiar with all local regulations before committing to an investment.
Traditional finance is bringing all to bear on the small Central American country of El Salvador that had the temerity to step out of line and adopt Bitcoin alongside the US dollar as legal tender. Fitch Ratings has now downgraded the country from B- to CCC.
It can not be doubted that El Salvador caused consternation in traditional financial circles when it announced that it would be the first country in history to adopt bitcoin as legal tender. Poking a wasp’s nest with a stick might have received a similar reaction.
The International Monetary Fund has warned and warned again of what will become of the poor country and its citizens if president Bukele does not change course and annul such a drastic action.
Now the US credit ratings agency Fitch has weighed in and has lowered El Salvador’s long-term issuer default rating from B- to CCC. The agency cited “policy unpredictability” together with the “adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender” for its reasons for doing so.
El Salvador does have a lot of debt to pay, and particularly in the short term the agency is warning that the country will find it increasingly difficult to meet these payments.
However, the country’s president Nayib Bukele is counting on a Bitcoin rise in price to help his country out of its difficulties. Also, the issuance of a Bitcoin Bond that will pay investors 6.5% a year is due to launch on 15 March.
The bond issuance is initially looking like a successful project as it is already oversubscribed by around $500 million. The proceeds from the bond sales are going to be put into further big bets on Bitcoin, as $500 million will be put towards bitcoin mining by using the clean energy from El Salvador’s volcanoes.
A Bitcoin City is to be built at the foot of a volcano, while another $500 million will be spent on more purchases of bitcoin, which will add to the purchases that the country has already made.
The success of the Salvadoran president’s audacious plan is obviously based on the premise that the value of bitcoin will rise over the coming months and years, and given its history of massive gains, it could be expected that this might well happen.
If it does, then it probably sounds the death knell for the fiat monetary system as we know it. Obviously this may still take quite some time, but if another country or two were to follow suit, then things could get very interesting.
Knowing just how much is on the line here, it would be expected that governments, central banks, and world financial organisations might just have a couple of tricks up their sleeves still. World financial history will depend on how this all plays out.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Arweave is a decentralized cloud storage solution that aims to upend the traditional storage market using blockchain with the option of one-time payments plus added security benefits.
If it succeeds, Arweave could become a top chain in the Web 3.0 world. In this article, we’ll explain what Arweave aims to do. To find out more about the blockchain cloud storage and the project’s long-term potential, you can read this more advanced article here.
What is Arweave?
Arweave aims to create a system where a user can pay once to store their data forever. To do this, it has created the Storage Endowment to ensure permanent storage on the network. When a piece of data is written to the Arweave network, users pay an upfront fee and incur interest in the form of storage purchasing power.
Arweave has also developed a REST API to develop various file storage applications, thus creating its ecosystem.
What are Arweave’s Innovations?
Business Model
Whereas Filecoin’s business model is similar to traditional centralized cloud services, establishing a pay-as-you-go contract between users and storage providers, Arweave solves the problem of long-term data storage with a pay-once-store-forever business model.
Operational Network
Permaweb is the operational network for Arweave’s ecosystem of DApps. It provides developers with great flexibility and makes DApp development easier. Developers only need to use a standard API based on the stored consensus paradigm to develop, without any programming language limitation.
Community Incentive Model
Using Blockweave data structure, Arweave’s miners only need to store part of the historical blocks to start mining immediately, lowering the mining threshold.
The endowment pool incentivizes miners to store data for a long time and profit-sharing allows developers to share revenue.
Data Storage Integrity
Innovative integration of DApp front-end and smart contracts into one, front-end data and contract data as a whole.
The innovative new standard for Atomic NFT allows NFT minting and the actual content is stored as a whole on the chain.
Node Allocation
Arwearve has over 1200 nodes worldwide, with most located in China.
Arweave Nodes
Growth
The Arweave ecosystem grew to nearly 40 TB of data storage in 2021.
Arweave Size Chart
Arweave gateway data usage as a whole is rising month by month, with occasional large-scale data usage.
Arweave Data Usage
Deep Partnership with Solana
Solana generates up to 4 PB of data (or 4,096 TB) per year.
Arweave and Solana have partnered to launch SOLAR Bridge, officially available in 2021. SOLAR Bridge is tailored to enable Solana to store Arweave’s permanent network data, thus creating a decentralized, easily accessible, and publicly available storage solution that can handle tremendous scalability.
Arweave has a similar growth trend to the Solana token price by becoming the official Solana storage solution.
Footprint Analytics – Token Price YoY Growth Trend: AR vs. SOL vs. BTC
Token Performance
AR, Arweave’s token, started from $2.63 at the beginning of the year and grew to $5.38 at the end of 2021, a 21-fold price increase.
Footprint Analytics – AR Token Price Peaked at $84.64 in 2021
Price of Storage
To be able to store files on Arweave, developers create a transaction to pay a certain number of AR tokens as a network fee (currently $0.01/MB) to store data forever. At the same time, the low-end package of Amazon S3 charges $0.000023/MB per month. It will take 40 years for each Arweave user to break even. That means Arweave users are paying a premium for permanent storage.
If the token price goes up, the cost of storage will be even higher, with even more time needed to break even.
Summary
Arweave, the Web 3.0 storage infrastructure, is a decentralized cloud storage solution that solves the problem of storing data in perpetuity over time. Its network and application architecture supports development and data storage as a whole, creating a native blockchain data solution.
What is Footprint Analytics?
Footprint Analytics is an all-in-one analysis platform to visualize blockchain data and discover insights. It cleans and integrates on-chain data so users of any experience level can quickly start researching tokens, projects and protocols. With over a thousand dashboard templates plus a drag-and-drop interface, anyone can build their own customized charts in minutes. Uncover blockchain data and invest smarter with Footprint.
Portugal has seen a significant increase in the number of foreign residents, with some estimates showing that the number has increased over 40% in the past decade alone.
And while the country’s mild climate, low cost of living, and growing expat community are all a plus, it’s Portugual’s 0% tax on cryptocurrencies that has made it so popular among foreigners.
Portugal calling
At a time when more and more governments have begun to crack down on crypto trading through strict regulation, Portugal has emerged as a utopia for crypto-savvy expats. But it’s not the sprawling surfer community and the year-long mild climate that makes Portugal an increasingly popular destination for the crypto community—it’s the country’s lenient tax law. Or, to be more specific—a lack of one.
Despite rumors and headlines, Portugal has no specific law that deals with taxing cryptocurrencies. Instead, the country uses three official court rulings as precedent to how the Portuguese Tax Authority sees cryptocurrencies and crypto-related activities.
In the official 2016 ruling, the Portuguese Tax Authority concluded that, as a general rule, residents shouldn’t be taxed on the gains they make from the sale of cryptocurrencies. In 2019, the Tax Authority confirmed the precedent from the E.U. Court of Justice, arguing that cryptocurrencies are exempt from value-added tax (VAT) despite being analogous to a “means of payment.”
The only time the sale of cryptocurrencies is actually taxed is if the cryptocurrencies were received as payment for providing goods or services in Portugal.
This has made the Iberian Country an attractive destination to those making a living from trading. Even the legendary “Bitcoin family” has made the leap and will be relocating to its southern part.
Didi Taihuttu, the patriarch of the family that traded their home and most of their possessions for Bitcoin, said that Portugal was too enticing a destination to ignore. Taihuttu also said that his siblings may also make the move to Portugal, joining the thousands of expats that have relocated there in the past couple of years.
“It’s full of expats. It’s just paradise,” said Wout Deley, a Belgian native that made a leap similar to the Taihuttus and sold his Gent home for cryptocurrencies. “Everyone has cryptocurrency here. Everyone knows bitcoin. Everyone has it.”
Deley told CNBC that traders in E.U. countries like Belgium face taxes of close to 40% on crypto trading and that establishing residency in Portugal is a “no brainer” for most. He added that he knows of at least three Bitcoin billionaires living in the southwestern city of Algarve, with another dozen people looking to move to the country in the coming months.
The Taihuttus are also looking to put down roots in Algarve after spending the past five years traveling to more than 40 countries. The family told CNBC that they were looking to build their own “crypto village” along Algarve’s southern coastline and that they’ve narrowed their options to three different plots of land—one as big as 250,000 acres.
All of that space will be used to host a big “decentralized community,” where each square meter of the land will be sold as an NFT. Governance will be left to a DAO, where owners of the NFTs representing the land would vote on how to maintain the community.
A reality check for Americans
And while Taihuttu’s decentralized crypto utopia might sound enchanting, there are still quite a bit of bureaucratic hoops to jump through before one can relocate to Portugal.
The country’s special tax regime for new residents, called the Non-Habitual Resident (NHR) tax regime, exempts individuals from paying taxes on foreign source income, capital gains, dividends, interests, and rental income. To benefit from the NHR, a person must remain in Portugal for more than 183 days in a given year or buy a property with the intention to live in it.
NHR makes Portugal especially attractive for crypto entrepreneurs that have their companies set up in different jurisdictions. An even better tax regime applies to Portuguese citizens that receive foreign income—Katie Ananina, the CEO of Plan B Passport, told CNBC that formally applying for residency offers more stability than the 10-year regime offered by the NHR.
Ananina said that the company has helped hundreds of people obtain a Portuguese passport, working in tandem with Portugal’s citizenship-by-investment program. A $100,000 or $150,000 donation to Portugal’s sustainable growth fund and a few thousand dollars for fees are all it takes to receive the country’s passport.
And while this is especially attractive to Canadians, Australians, and E.U. residents, those coming from the U.S. will have a hard time bypassing taxes.
U.S. citizens are required to pay income taxes to the U.S. government even if they receive the income abroad. This applies to taxes on cryptocurrency trading as well, said Jon Feldhammer, a partner at law firm Baker Botts and a former IRS senior litigator.
“If a taxpayer has a green card, is a U.S. citizen, or is a U.S. resident alien, the taxpayer owes the U.S. tax on any crypto gains they have, no matter where the crypto or the taxpayer is located,” he explained. “It also doesn’t matter if they are dual citizens—if they are U.S. citizens they owe U.S. tax on their worldwide income.”
U.S. citizens that want to expatriate are subject to what Feldhammer calls an “exit tax” and are required to pay a tax equal to what they would pay if they sold all of their property and assets the day before giving up their citizenship.
This has pushed many wealthy crypto ex-pats to relocate to Puerto Rico, where they can benefit from either very low or essentially zero percent tax on capital gains.
