Feb 2022 Crypto Industry Updates

Content will be sorted chronologically with latest at the bottom.

• $320M stolen in Wormhole hack
  • $320 million worth of cryptocurrency (120,000 Wrapped Ether tokens) has been stolen after a hack targeting Wormhole, a protocol that connects the Solana and Ethereum
  • project has promised to pay the hacker $10 million if they return the funds.
• Big Four Auditor KPMG Canada Adds Bitcoin, Ether to Its Corporate Treasury
  • this is the first time it has directly invested in digital assets
  • carbon offsets are also being purchased to ensure the transaction is net zero and in line with its environmental, social and governance commitments.
  • the company added that the experience means it can “guide clients and prospective clients through the process of cryptoasset treasury allocation.”
  • The coins were purchased on Gemini, a digital asset exchange
• Binance is taking a $200 million stake in Forbes
  • Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, is making a $200 million strategic investment in Forbes, the 104-year-old magazine and digital publisher.
  • The funds will help Forbes execute on its plan to merge with a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC
  • Binance will replace half of the $400 million in commitments from institutional investors announced earlier, making it one of the top two biggest owners of Forbes after its listing
• Crypto.com announced as official title partner of the Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix
  • nine-year deal announced, with the race to be officially called the Formula 1® Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix
  • Formula 1® Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix logos will feature on the podium and winners’ trophies
• US marks largest single seizure Of Bitcoin in DOJ’s history, with 94,000 BTC worth around $3.6 billion seized
  • Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife Heather Morgan were arrested on charges of being answerable for the 2016 hack on Bitfinex
  • The couple is accused of attempting to launder more than 119,000 BTC of stolen funds from the exchange.
• Hacker Helps Coinbase Fix Security Bug and Avert Potential Losses
  • A lone hacker has helped leading US crypto exchange Coinbase resolve a security flaw and sidestep potential losses.
  • white hat hacker who goes by the pseudonym Tree of Alpha submitted an urgent HackerOne report.
    • HackerOne is a bug-bounty platform used by many big companies and entities
  • Bug was fixed a day later. The trading platform’s new Advanced Trading feature, which gives traders access to metrics and real-time market data, was temporarily shut down during this time.
  • Coinbase CEO and billionaire Brian Armstrong thanked the programmer for patching up the exploit and avoiding a potential meltdown.

    • “Tree of Alpha, you’re awesome – a big thank you for working with our team. Love how the crypto community helps each other out!”

• Hong Kong’s first metaverse-themed exchange-traded fund (ETF), the CSOP Metaverse Concept ETF, is scheduled to be listed on Feb. 21 on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong
  • ETF will invest at least 70% of its net asset value in securities companies that are listed on the New York Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq, or traded on U.S. OTC markets, and are directly or indirectly involved with the metaverse business.
  • Top 10 holdings are Meta, Roblox, Nvidia, Unity, Apple, Snap, AMD, Qualcomm, Sony and Tencent
• Terra stablecoins gain $1 billion Bitcoin backing
  • Terra stablecoins will be backed by $1 billion worth of Bitcoin raised from institutional investors including Jump Crypto and Three Arrows Capital.
• Singapore saw 13x jump in crypto investments in 2021
  • crypto-related investments in 2021 were worth $1.48 billion, up from $110 million in 2020, according to KPMG’s Pulse of Fintech report.
  • the crypto-related investments made up a third of total fintech investment in Singapore.
  • majority of cryptocurrency and blockchain investments last year were focused on software and underlying infrastructure rather than services.
  • KPMG forecasts that Singapore’s crypto investment will remain strong this year.
• NFTs not suitable for retail investors, consumers should exercise ‘extreme caution’: Tharman

  • “For NFTs in particular, their perceived uniqueness, combined with speculative demand, has served to inflate prices. This potentially puts investors at risk of outsized losses should speculative fervour abate,” said Mr Tharman, who is chairman of the MAS.

  • “Should an NFT have the characteristics of a capital markets product under the Securities and Futures Act (SFA), it will be subject to MAS’ regulatory requirements,” said Mr Tharman.

  • MAS does not currently regulate NFTs given the nature of their underlying assets