August 19, 2023

Welcome to the Global Crypto News hub! Articles by Killerwhale go over the news you may have missed that involves crypto, but had a real world effect. Sit back, relax, and enjoy! News is gathered throughout the week and posted every Saturday!

A stroke of madness or genius? Over the past few days, an anon known under the ENS “nd4.eth” has particularly stood out, burning more than $8.3 million worth of tokens and NFTs by sending them to null addresses. As a result, the assets sent are generally lost forever in crypto limbo, since no one is theoretically in a position to recover them. The mysterious investor has already burned 2,500 ETH worth $4.6 million in July.

About a week later, nd4.eth was at it again, but this time burning  approximately 122 ETH ($225,000) worth of NFTs, based on current prices. Precisely, the mysterious individual decided to burn two NFTs from the famous collection Bored Ape Yacht Club (#289 and #71), as well as, three Mutant Ape Yacht Club NFTs (#3573, #1826 and #1368), and Crypto Punk #5237.

The cryptosphere is concerned about the lack of understanding of these burns as these activities' motivations are still unknown, and nd4.eth hasn't publicly commented on them or offered any justification.

Additionally, nd4.eth recently burned through  $3,59 million worth of GMX and GNS tokens which have been in his wallet for almost a month.

The mystery remains unsolved, in fact, no one really understands why this address decided to offload a few million despite research by members of the crypto community. With such a large quantity disappearing into thin air, everyone is asking questions, which has given rise to several theories including emotional malaise. With good cause, observers have noticed references to wallets with evocative pseudonyms, such as “nothingness123.eth” or “enditall.eth”. Fueling this theory, we can also observe that at least 2 NFTs were sent to nd4.eth, urging him to phone a support line and informing him that his family needed him.

Others theorize that this action is an attempt to criticize the way the crypto sector is evolving but nothing is certain. The real reasons behind these burns still remain unknown, and are certainly different from the theories proposed by the community.

However, it is certain that some malicious actors have taken advantage of the situation to try to make a profit. A simple search for "nd4.eth" on Twitter reveals many messages asking users to provide their address, supposedly to make them eligible for a hypothetical airdrop. However, it is important to be very careful about these types of tweets, as they are often phishing attempts that aim to steal funds from unsuspecting investors.

Source: ArkhamIntel, theblock.co

Security flaws, insufficient risk controls, and ineffective manual processes such as avoiding liquidation and MEV slippages are just a few of the main obstacles that the DeFi ecosystem is struggling to overcome. As a matter of fact, according to Peckshield,  $480M were lost in 1H2023 due to security hacks. These difficulties have damaged user confidence and continue to be a significant barrier when it comes to attracting new users.

LeverFi tries to remedy all this with its collaboration with the GAFAM Microsoft, by launching Morpheus, an AI-backed portfolio management assistant in order to tackle the challenges facing the DeFi industry by helping the users navigate through the highly complex and fragmented landscape which DeFi is. Some features are “live on-chain monitoring through intuitive machine learning that detects and responds to market anomalies.” LeverFi compares its new toy to a means to escape the matrix by mitigating risks and avoiding common pitfalls, meanwhile empowering users to make informed decisions and “discover the true benefits and potential that they can achieve with DeFi.”

Users will be able to navigate DeFi with a lot more confidence and oversight thanks to Morpheus' two fundamental AI engines, one for protocols and one for user wallets. The user engine monitors portfolio positions and responds to market circumstances to assist limit loss situations, while the protocol engine checks, tracks, and responds to security vulnerabilities and protocol risks so as to reduce users' risk of exposure to potential threats.

Aside from Morpheus, LeverFi and Microsoft are jointly working on innovative asset tokenization, real-world assets, and on- and off-chain settlements. LeverFi has already achieved significant progress in these areas, notably in Hong Kong, and plans to continue driving innovations in the DeFi ecosystem.

The two partners are committed to enabling people with innovative, creative solutions and decentralizing DeFi access throughout the world by increasing the scope of their partnership.

This launch represents a significant milestone in the DeFi industry. Microsoft's expertise in artificial intelligence and its commitment to driving technological advancements make it an ideal partner for LeverFi, which has already achieved significant progress in the DeFi space. By combining their expertise, Microsoft and LeverFi are well-positioned to solidify their position as leading forces in the DeFi ecosystem and pave the way for a future where AI-enabled solutions overcome DeFi challenges and provide users with the most secure, efficient, and user-friendly DeFi experience possible.

Source: LeverFi Medium Article

The Drug Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency have made 312 arrests in a massive drug raid targeting crypto-powered drug trafficking.

According to the authorities, suspects have been charged for breaking Korea's Narcotics Control Act. The individuals were alleged to have purchased or sold narcotics using dark web platforms, according to the police.  To enable contact, these criminals adopted "non-domestic" messaging applications like Telegram, as well as crypto assets like Bitcoin (BTC) or other alt-coins.

The suspects are alleged to have smuggled narcotics into Korea from outside or purchased them from South Korean traffickers.

Officers stated that the suspected sellers were active between December 2020 and March 2023.

Some people were charged with cultivating marijuana at home and selling it to others, including their “neighbors”, while only one of the six alleged major sellers had a prior drug conviction, according to the police.

Buyers paid upfront in cryptocurrency and traffickers left drugs using “dead drop” methods in public places for buyers to pick it up as soon as sellers let them know where to find the drugs through Telegram.

Although  the problem of crypto-powered drug crime keeps rising, South Korean police have recently made significant investments in blockchain analytics tools, which they believe can assist them in identifying crypto-powered drug trade networks. As a matter of fact, last year, the National Police Agency's drugs task unit pursued 533 individuals for using Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to purchase or sell drugs.

Furthermore, the South Korean Police have identified dark web monitoring, virtual asset analysis, and DDoS attacks as “three central tasks of the cyber-terrorism investigation” that must be addressed immediately.

Source: https://news.kbs.co.kr/