Genfer Initiative

• An issue on the popular NFT marketplace Magic Eden allowed imposter NFTs to be added to high-priced collections like Y00ts and ABC.
• Magic Eden acknowledged the issue and asked users to hard refresh their browsers.
• Y00ts, a higher-priced collection on Magic Eden created by DeGods, was impacted by the issue, with a handful of fake Y00ts sold to unsuspecting buyers.

On Wednesday, an issue on the popular NFT marketplace Magic Eden allowed imposter NFTs to be added to high-priced collections like Y00ts and ABC. This issue caused concern among many users of the platform, with Magic Eden acknowledging the issue on Twitter and asking users to hard refresh their browsers.

Y00ts, a higher-priced collection on Magic Eden created by DeGods, was particularly impacted by the issue, with a handful of fake Y00ts sold to unsuspecting buyers. The issue was so severe that the team at DeGods publicly warned users to not buy the fake items and stated that “every single collection is fake on Magiceden, a massive exploit is happening ongoing.”

In response to the issue, Magic Eden issued a statement saying that they had fixed the two issues; fake NFTs being listed on collection pages, and transactions of fake NFTs on the activity tab. They also said that they would be refunding any users who had purchased one of the fake NFTs.

This is not the first time that Magic Eden has had to deal with a security issue. In September 2020, the platform was the target of a phishing attack which saw users’ funds stolen. However, Magic Eden was quick to act on the issue and refunded those affected.

The team at Magic Eden have since said that they are working hard to ensure the security of their platform and will continue to monitor the situation. It is unclear whether any of the fake NFTs are still circulating, but the team at DeGods have said that they will be monitoring the situation and taking action if necessary.

In the wake of the issue, it is important for users to remain vigilant when buying and selling NFTs. It is always best to double-check the credentials of any NFTs before committing to a purchase.

• Sovereign digital identities are the key to secure access to Web3 platforms.
• Identity theft is a growing concern, with external threats from hackers and organized crime rising.
• With Web3 looking to digitize our lives even further, having control and security with our digital identities has never been more important.

In today’s world, digital services are becoming increasingly common in our everyday lives. As a result, there is a growing concern over security and access when it comes to these services. To combat this, the industry is beginning to implement sovereign digital identities to act as both a gateway and shield for Web3 platforms.

Sovereign digital identities are a type of identity that is owned and controlled by the individual. They can provide individuals with control over how their personal data is accessed, shared, and used. Additionally, they can act as a wallet address, a reputational tool, and more. By having a sovereign digital identity, individuals can be sure that their data is secure from external threats.

This is especially important in the current climate, where identity theft is becoming more and more of a problem. According to PwC’s „Global Economic Crime and Fraud Survey 2022,“ 46% of respondents have suffered some form of fraud in the past 24 months. To combat this, digital identities need to be treated with the same level of security as physical documents.

The implementation of sovereign digital identities is one of the first steps to ensure that individuals have control over their online identities. As Web3 looks to digitize our lives even further, it is essential that individuals are able to protect their data and have control over who has access to it. With the right security measures in place, individuals can be sure that their data is safe and secure.

Sandy Carter, senior vice president and channel chief of Unstoppable Domains, states that such identities are available now and are not just a concept for the future. By implementing such measures, individuals can be sure that their data is secure and that they have control over who has access to it.

In conclusion, sovereign digital identities are essential for protecting individuals and their data from external threats. With the right security measures in place, individuals can be sure that their data is safe and secure. As Web3 looks to digitize our lives even further, having control and security with our digital identities has never been more important.

• Bitcoin prices have been largely frozen near the levels they have held for the past two weeks.
• CoinDesk recently revisited some of its best stories from the past year, including the implosion of crypto exchange giant FTX.
• CoinDesk TV offers insightful interviews with crypto industry leaders and analysis, and First Mover is a daily newsletter offering a context for the latest moves in crypto markets.

The crypto market has been in a state of hibernation over the past two weeks, with Bitcoin (BTC) prices remaining largely frozen near levels they have held for much of the period. However, despite the winter chill, there is still plenty to keep traders and investors busy.

CoinDesk recently revisited some of its most impactful stories from the past year. In November, a CoinDesk story led to the implosion of crypto exchange giant FTX. Following the story, Chief Insights Columnist David Z. Morris zeroed in on the seriousness of CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s offenses. Subsequently, the U.S. Department of Justice charged Bankman-Fried with wire fraud and other alleged crimes. Following his release on bail, he is currently confined to his parents‘ California home, except to exercise, and must wear a tracking device.

CoinDesk TV offers insightful interviews with crypto industry leaders and analysis. This includes technical analysis of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies, as well as in-depth interviews with experts. Additionally, CoinDesk’s First Mover newsletter provides context for the latest moves in crypto markets.

CoinDesk’s Market Index (CMI) currently stands at 792.84, down 7.9%, while BTC prices are at $16,700, down 1.3%. Ethereum (ETH) prices are at $1,211, down 1.3%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 closed at 3,829.25, down 15.6%, and gold is currently at $1,821, up 25.2%. Treasury yields are at 10 Years 3.86%, up 0.1%. BTC/ETH prices per CoinDesk indices and gold is COMEX spot price.

In conclusion, although the crypto market has been largely frozen, CoinDesk still provides plenty of insights and analysis to keep traders busy. CoinDesk’s Market Index, BTC prices, ETH prices, S&P 500, gold, and Treasury yields are all important indicators of the current state of the market. With CoinDesk’s help, traders can stay up-to-date with the latest news, interviews, and analysis.

• The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is increasing its scrutiny of audits of cryptocurrency companies, warning investors not to place too much confidence in proof-of-reserve reports.
• The SEC is warning both investors and audit firms that if it finds troublesome „fact patterns,“ the watchdog will consider a referral to the division of enforcement.
• This development is significant as questions have been swirling regarding Binance, which released a report of its proof of reserves but withdrew it two days later when the auditing firm it had hired, Mazars, announced it was no longer working with crypto firms.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is taking a closer look at the audits of cryptocurrency companies, aiming to warn investors who may be placing too much trust in proof-of-reserve reports. In a recent Wall Street Journal report, Paul Munter, the SEC’s acting chief accountant, said that investors „should not place too much confidence in the mere fact a company says it’s got a proof-of-reserves from an audit firm.“ He added that having such a report „is not enough information for an investor to assess whether the company has sufficient assets to cover its liabilities.“

The increased scrutiny from the SEC comes in the wake of the collapse of FTX, which caused a ripple effect as nine crypto exchanges across the world announced they would publish transparency reports or Merkle tree proof of reserves to reassure investors. A Merkle tree is a cryptographic data structure that allows users to verify the stability of their holdings on exchanges, while still maintaining privacy.

The SEC has made it clear that if it finds any troubling „fact patterns,“ it will consider referring the case to the division of enforcement. This development is particularly significant as questions have been raised regarding Binance, the largest crypto exchange by trading volume. Binance had released a report of its proof of reserves but withdrew it two days later when the auditing firm it had hired, Mazars, announced it was no longer working with crypto firms.

Binance has reportedly been searching for another audit firm to work with, but the Big Four (Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC) are unwilling to conduct a proof of reserves for a private crypto company. The SEC’s increased scrutiny of cryptocurrency companies is a reminder to investors that when it comes to investing, caution and due diligence is key. A proof-of-reserve report is not a guarantee of a company’s financial health, and the SEC is making it clear that investors should be aware of this.

• Craig Wright, a computer scientist from Australia, has been attempting to prove in court for many years that he is the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto.
• After six years of controversy and legal battles, Wright has suggested on Twitter that he will no longer seek validation of his claims and will instead focus on his family.
• A judge recently declared that Wright had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that he was Satoshi.

Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist, has been embroiled in controversy for many years as he attempts to prove that he is the creator of the world’s most famous digital asset – Bitcoin.

Wright first caused a stir in 2016 when he claimed – albeit with questionable evidence – that he was Bitcoin’s pseudonymous inventor, Satoshi Nakamoto. He has since gone to court multiple times in an effort to prove his claim, filing various lawsuits which accused people who have called him a fraud. Wright even succeeded in having the Bitcoin white paper removed from bitcoin.org due to copyright infringement.

However, after a long and drawn out battle, it seems like Wright is finally ready to put his Satoshi court crusade to rest. On Wednesday, he tweeted a message indicating that he would no longer seek validation from anyone outside of his family. He wrote that he had grown angry and frustrated over the years as he sought approval from others, but that he now no longer cares what people think.

This decision follows a series of blows to Wright’s Satoshi claim, which he has yet to back up with concrete proof in the eyes of courts and much of the public. Just before Wright’s tweets, a judge unequivocally stated that Wright had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that he was Satoshi.

It remains to be seen whether Wright will still attempt to prove his claim that he is Satoshi in the future, or whether he will focus on his family and other endeavors. Whatever the case, the saga of Craig Wright and his quest to prove that he is Satoshi Nakamoto is one that is sure to live on in the memories of the Bitcoin community for many years to come.

• Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, has a large sum of Bitcoin stored with U.S.-based crypto asset manager Valkyrie Investments.
• Valkyrie has built investment products for Justin tokens such as Tron’s TRX and BitTorrent’s BTT and has promoted Tron using the blockchain network’s own marketing materials.
• Sun is also said to be one of Valkyrie’s biggest shareholders, and was featured on Wall Street with someone wearing a Tron logo during Valkyrie’s bell-ringing at Nasdaq in September.

Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, has a large sum of Bitcoin stored with U.S.-based crypto asset manager Valkyrie Investments. According to a private financial document that CoinDesk reviewed, at one point in August, Sun had more than $580 million of BTC stashed with the manager, which accounted for over 90% of money at Valkyrie’s largest division, Valkyrie Digital Assets LLC.

Sun’s involvement with Valkyrie has been beneficial to his empire in various ways. To begin with, Valkyrie has built investment products for Justin tokens such as Tron’s TRX and BitTorrent’s BTT, which many other crypto asset managers avoid. Moreover, Valkyrie has been promoting Tron using the blockchain network’s own marketing materials, thus increasing its exposure and reach.

Not only that, but Sun is also said to be one of Valkyrie’s biggest shareholders. Furthermore, he was featured on Wall Street with someone wearing a Tron logo during Valkyrie’s bell-ringing at Nasdaq in September. This further demonstrates the strong relationship between Sun and Valkyrie, and the centralization of the crypto industry, which is rife with whales carrying outsize clout, in spite of its decentralized ideals.

Overall, it is clear that Sun and Valkyrie have a close relationship, one which has had a positive impact on Sun’s empire. Although this kind of centralization raises some questions, it is hard to deny the success that Sun and Valkyrie have had together.

• Aave, the popular decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol on Ethereum, is implementing a “proof of reserve” system on Avalanche.
• This system will protect bridged assets on Avalanche, providing an extra layer of security.
• The DAO behind Aave approved Chainlink’s Proof of Reserve smart contract with a 99% vote in favor.

Aave, the popular decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol on Ethereum, is taking steps to shore up customer confidence in the wake of FTX. To do this, the protocol will be implementing a “proof of reserve” system on Avalanche, a DeFi twist on the centralized exchanges. This system will protect bridged assets on Avalanche, providing an extra layer of security.

The decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) behind Aave approved Chainlink’s Proof of Reserve smart contract by a vote of over 99% in favor. This smart contract will be specifically covering Aave versions (v)2 and v3 on the Avalanche blockchain. Bridged assets are DeFi’s way of moving value between blockchains that don’t normally communicate with each other. The asset gets locked in a smart contract on its home chain; then, a clone is issued on the target network. Aave v3 on Avalanche has bridged versions of DAI, USDT and USDC, among other tokens.

Unfortunately, the setup of bridged assets creates many security vulnerabilities, and hackers have repeatedly exploited token bridges. This year, Web3 game Axie Infinity’s Ronin network and cross-chain protocol Nomad faced exploits totaling over $800 million due to breaches on their token-bridges. To remedy this, Web3 studio Bored Ghost Developing proposed that Aave use ChainLink PoR’s aggregator smart contract to protect tokens on the original net. This proposal was approved by the DAO behind Aave, giving customers of the protocol an extra layer of security.

Ernesto Boado, the former chief technology officer at Aave and co-founder at Bored Ghost Developing, said, “The focus is more on automatically detecting and acting whenever any symptom of security issues on a bridge appears. We think that obviously, transparency goes first, in this case, our development goes a step further.”

Aave’s implementation of the “proof of reserve” system on Avalanche is a crucial step in the DeFi space. It will help mitigate attacks on bridged assets, providing an extra layer of security for customers of the protocol. The DAO behind Aave approved Chainlink’s Proof of Reserve smart contract with a 99% vote in favor, demonstrating the community’s commitment to the security and reliability of their protocol.

• Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was released on a $250 million bond after appearing in U.S. Federal Court in New York.
• The bond was secured by equity in his parents‘ Palo Alto, California home, and includes a long list of requirements for Bankman-Fried to remain free while he faces charges.
• He must secure the signatures of at least two additional individuals with „considerable means“ who are not family members.

Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of crypto giant FTX, appeared in a U.S. federal court in New York on Thursday to face charges of fraud, money laundering and campaign finance violations. After appearing in court, Bankman-Fried was released on an unprecedented $250 million personal recognizance bond.

The bond was secured by equity in Bankman-Fried’s parents‘ Palo Alto, California home, and includes a long list of requirements for the former FTX CEO to remain free while he faces charges. He is not allowed to make financial transactions for more than $1,000, cannot open new lines of credit, must stay in the house except to exercise, and must go through substance-abuse and mental-health treatment.

The sky-high bail amount is meant to reflect the gravity of Bankman-Fried’s alleged crimes and deter him from jumping bail. However, Bankman-Fried and his parents were not required to put up the full amount of the bond. It is sufficient to secure a bond with assets amounting to 10% of the total bond amount.

In addition, Bankman-Fried must also secure the signatures of at least two additional individuals with „considerable means,“ one of whom cannot be a family member. Whether Bankman-Fried has identified two additional signatories remains unclear, but he must do so in order to remain free.

The case in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York centers on accusations of fraud, money laundering and campaign-finance violations. Bankman-Fried was brought to the U.S. overnight by the Federal Bureau of Investigation after his extradition from the Bahamas cleared on Wednesday.

It remains to be seen how the case will proceed, and what the outcome will be for Bankman-Fried. However, for now, he is able to remain free with the unprecedented $250 million bond.

• Orthogonal Trading, a digital asset trading firm, has been placed under provisional liquidation by the British Virgin Islands courts after defaulting on $36 million of loans from M11 Credit-managed lending pools on decentralized finance protocol Maple Finance.
• M11 Credit and Maple had sought an “urgent ex parte application” to appoint a provisional liquidator for Orthogonal Trading in British Virgin Islands High Court, which was granted.
• Officials with the firm’s own lending unit, Orthogonal Credit, claimed they were kept out of the loop on the depth of Orthogonal Trading’s financial troubles.

The digital asset trading firm Orthogonal Trading has been placed under provisional liquidation by the British Virgin Islands courts, after defaulting on $36 million of loans from M11 Credit-managed lending pools on decentralized finance protocol Maple Finance. The news, tweeted Thursday by M11, came after Orthogonal Trading failed to meet a $10 million payment due earlier this month.

M11 Credit and Maple had sought an “urgent ex parte application” to appoint a provisional liquidator for Orthogonal Trading in British Virgin Islands High Court, which was granted. Orthogonal Trading had been a borrower and a lending pool manager on Maple, and had misrepresented its losses in the FTX collapse and operated while insolvent for weeks. Depositors in impacted lending pools are facing up to 80% losses.

Officials with the firm’s own lending unit, Orthogonal Credit, put forth their own Medium post claiming they were kept out of the loop on the depth of Orthogonal Trading’s financial troubles. The post stated that the borrower had made a “series of misrepresentations” to them and other lenders, and that the unit had been “unable to get any answers” about what had happened to their money.

M11 Credit has said that the firm was seeking fresh funding to cover all outstanding liabilities and had made good progress, but the money didn’t come through in time to meet the payment due. Maple has since booted Orthogonal Trading from the platform.

The insolvency of Orthogonal Trading highlights the risks associated with cryptocurrency lending without collateral. The lack of regulation makes it difficult to protect lenders from instances of default, and the risks may be magnified when dealing with unregulated firms. It is yet to be seen what the outcome of the insolvency proceedings will be, but it is clear that the incident is a cautionary tale for lenders.

• FTX’s collapse has left few winners, with the exception of the many law firms and consultants that will have to untangle the mess left by founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
• Court filings detail the fees charged by lawyers, tax advisors, restructuring specialists and the company’s new senior management.
• FTX’s New York-based law firm Sullivan & Cromwell charges as much as $2,165 an hour for work by partners and special counsel, while financial advisors Alvarez and Marsel charge an hourly rate of as much as $1,375.

The collapse of FTX crypto exchange has left few winners, with its founder Sam Bankman-Fried in FBI custody and his senior lieutenants cutting deals with prosecutors. As many as one million creditors are still waiting to get their money back, but one group is definitely set to gain – the many law firms and consultants that will have to untangle the mess left by Bankman-Fried.

Court filings issued on Wednesday detail the terms under which FTX’s partners will be reimbursed for their efforts. The filings show that FTX’s New York-based law firm Sullivan & Cromwell (S&C) charges as much as $2,165 an hour for work by partners and special counsel. S&C was appointed to lead the winding up of the company on November 9th, and received some $3.4 million from FTX in the three months prior to its collapse, most of which was paid on November 3rd. Meanwhile, financial advisors Alvarez and Marsel charge an hourly rate of as much as $1,375 and received $4 million in retainers prior to the bankruptcy.

The court filings also detail the fees charged by the company’s own new senior management, including John J. Ray III, who took over from Bankman-Fried as chief executive officer on November 11th. Ray, via his company Owl Hill, charges a similar hourly rate. Upon completion of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan he will get a further $3 million bonus. Fellow law firm Landis Rath and Cobb, has been hired to represent a representative committee of nine FTX creditors. The filings also reveal that West Realm Shires, the subsidiary of FTX that owned the U.S. business, paid a $12 million retainer at S&C before West Realm filed for bankruptcy on November 14th.

The law firms and consultants now have the arduous task of untangling the mess left by FTX’s collapse. Whether they will be successful in helping creditors get their money back, and whether the law firms will be able to recoup their own fees, remains to be seen.