Much of the news this week focused on exchanges, early on in the week, eccentric crypto-advocate John McAfee announced he would stop promoting ICOs to his huge twitter-base due to SEC “threats.” South Korean exchange Bithumb suffered a $30m hack and Coinbase was accused of “stealing” customer funds, while many early crypto investors were relieved at the news that a Japanese Court has reclassified the infamous Mt Gox case meaning that investors can be compensated in Bitcoin.
Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Criticises Cryptocurrencies
The Basel-based Bank for International Settlements early in the week made headlines as their annual Economic Report was highly critical of crpytocurrencies, claiming that they “promise a lot, but they don’t always deliver.”
Outlining several areas where the bank sees cryptocurrencies falling short – the paper singled out the environmental cost of Proof of Work-based (PoW) blockchains, scalability problems, low transaction output and price volatility – factors it sees preventing crypto replacting fiat currencies.
John McAfee To Stop Promoting ICOs After “Threats” From SEC
John McAfee, the eccentric crypto-advocate and cyber-security pioneer, said on Monday that he will no longer be promoting ICOs due to “threats” from the SEC.
Tweeting to his 830,000 followers, the famous figure said he will completely rein in his frequent promotions and recommendations of ICOs, but claimed to be pursuing an alternative investment model that “the SEC cannot touch.”
While McAfee did not specify the precise nature of the “threats” against him, this latest move from one of the most prominent figures in the space will be seen by many as indicative of the direction in which the ICO market is heading.
Tron (TRX) Pumps Nearly 18% After Acquiring BitTorrent for $140 Million
Tron (TRX), a crypto project that’s set to build “Web 4.0,” has recently saw the price of its token surge on Tuesday after founder and CEO Justin Sun acquired peer-to-peer sharing pioneer BitTorrent for $140 million.
Surging nearly 18% in the 24 hours following the reports, the finalizing of the purchase comes after months of negotiation beginning in September of last year.
With the peer-to-peer platform boasting a 100 million-strong user base, the acquisition will be seen as an important step towards Tron’s stated goal of “decentralizing the internet.”
South Korean Crypto Exchange Bithumb Hacked: KRW 35 Billion ($31.5 Million) Stolen
Bithumb, the world’s six largest crypto exchange (by trading volume), became the latest hacking victim on Wednesday – with 35 billion South Korean Won ($31.5 million) stolen.
Launching an investigation in conjunction with the Korea Communications Commission, the National Police Agency and KISA (Korea Internet & Security Agency), the company confirmed that it was working to retrieve some of the lost funds and to prevent further incidents.
While the exchange did not disclose the nature of the attack nor which coins were stolen, it was keen to emphasise that it would fully compensate those affected.
Court Moves Mt Gox Case to Civil Rehabilitation, Creditors to Be Paid in BTC
In a significant announcement on Thursday the Tokyo District Court recategorized the infamous Mt Gox case from ‘criminal bankruptcy’ to ‘civil rehabilitation’ – meaning creditors will likely be paid in BTC, as opposed to fiat currency as per the BTC value at the time of the hack (roughly $500).
With creditors likely to be paid in mid-2019, the process is set to start early in the year and was widely hailed as a positive development for the industry as it attempts to redress the damage done by the notorious 2014 hack.
Coinbase Reportedly “Stealing” Customer Funds, According to Complaint Documents Filed to SEC
Leading cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase came under fire on Saturday as it was reported that users filed 134 pages of complaints to the SEC alleging that their funds were “stolen” by the exchange or they were locked out of their accounts.
With allegations that Coinbase has been “acting criminally” in dealing with customer complaints, the exchange has been accused of being unable to cope with the enormous activity on its platform – with the result that large numbers of customers are unsatisfied with the service.
