Author: CoinDesk

This week we delve into terraUSD’s winners, its losers and the rules of the whole twisted game.

"Crypto Crooks" is sponsored by Chainalysis.

TerraUSD and its so-called “ecosystem” were always a game – one only some investors realized they were playing. 

As we fall deeper into the death spiral, we look at the retail investors who were indisputable victims of Do Kwon’s scheme. Many of them lost life savings and even, ultimately, their lives, in the wave of suicides which followed the depeg. We also look at the more complicated role of financial professionals in propping up Do Kwon’s empire, many of whom got out of the racket millions of dollars richer than when they’d gone in. 

After this, two more episodes to come – plus a bonus fifth on the bombshell revelations of a new SEC investment suit against Do Kwon and Terraform labs.

Clips:

• Pomp & Mike Novogratz Bitcoin Fireside | Bitcoin 2022 Conference
• Kyle Davies clip, found by Cas Piancey

Episode transcripts are available at coindesk.com/podcasts/crypto-crooks. 

-

Chainalysis is the blockchain data platform. We provide data, software, services and research to government agencies, web3 companies, financial institutions and insurance and cybersecurity companies. Our data powers investigation, compliance and business intelligence software that has been used to solve some of the world’s most high-profile criminal cases. For more information, visit www.chainalysis.com.

-

“Crypto Crooks” is a CoinDesk Podcast Production. The executive producer is Jared Schwartz, with additional production by Eleanor Pahl, Nora Battelle, Jonas Huck, and Moon Beast. Fact-checking is by Amber Von Schassen, and sound design and music are by Altus Noumena. This show is written and voiced by David Z. Morris.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The most valuable crypto stories for Monday, March 6, 2023. 

Bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital has denied claims by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that its VGX token is a security, as it seeks court approval for a $1.02 billion buyout offer from Binance.US. Separately, an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice proposes Sam Bankman-Fried’s bail conditions should restrict his use of the internet, including the use of a non-internet-connected flip phone, in court filings late Friday.

See also:

Voyager Denies SEC Claims VGX Token Is a Security as Binance.US Decision Looms

Voyager Digital's Reward Program Lost $58M in 2022: Court Filing

Voyager Bankruptcy Judge Says He Is ‘Absolutely Shocked’ by SEC Objection to Binance.US Deal

Voyager Bankruptcy Judge Says He Is ‘Absolutely Shocked’ by SEC Objection to Binance.US Deal

Bankman-Fried Should Have Only Flip Phone, Website Whitelist, DOJ Says

-

This episode has been edited by Ryan Huntington. The senior producer is Michele Musso and the executive producer is Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Neon Beach.”

-

Are you building the next big thing in Web3? Apply to pitch your project live on stage at the CoinDesk Pitchfest Powered by Google Cloud at Consensus, the industry’s most influential event happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Apply by March 31 for a chance to be among the twelve finalists selected to pitch. Visit consensus.coindesk.com/pitchfest for more information.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

An indication that regulators are more constrained than they think. 

Today, NLW discusses recent Wall Street Journal articles about Tether using fraudulent bank accounts to access banking services and private chat threads from former Binance employees arguing that Binance and Binance.US were closely aligned.

-

“The Breakdown” is written, produced and narrated by Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Michele Musso and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsor today is “Foothill Blvd” by Sam Barsh. Image credit: Mutz Ishizawa/EyeEm/ Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. 

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.

Join the most important conversation in crypto and Web3 at Consensus 2023, happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Come and immerse yourself in all that Web3, crypto, blockchain and the metaverse have to offer. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass. Visit consensus.coindesk.com.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ty Haney, the founder of Outdoor Voices, joins Gen C to discuss community loyalty, rewards, Web3 and her new company, Try Your Best.

Ty Haney is a serial entrepreneur. She started Outdoor Voices while she was in her early 20s and built the company into an athletic apparel powerhouse through community and social media power. She is now the CEO of Try Your Best, a platform for brands and fans to connect and build Web3 rewards ecosystems. She also discusses Joggy, her alternative energy drink brand and how she is building the brand through tokenized community.

Links mentioned from the podcast: 

• Gaming Engine Unity Taps MetaMask, Immutable X and Solana for Web3 Developer Tools
• Decentralized Twitter Spin-Off Bluesky Now on App Store in Beta
• Walmart Files NFT and Crypto Trademarks for Sam’s Club
• TYB Website
• TYB’s Twitter

Follow us on Twitter:

• Sam Ewen
• Avery Akkineni
• CoinDesk
• Vayner3

From our sponsor:

Are you building the next big thing in Web3? Apply to pitch your project live on stage at the CoinDesk Pitchfest Powered by Google Cloud at Consensus, the industry’s most influential event happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Apply by March 31 for a chance to be among the twelve finalists selected to pitch. Visit consensus.coindesk.com/pitchfest for more information.

-

"Gen C" features hosts Sam Ewen and Avery Akkineni, with editing by Jonas Huck. Executive produced by Jared Schwartz and produced by Adrian Blust, Uyen Truong and Eleanor Pahl. Our theme music is "1882” by omgkirby x Channel Tres with editing by Doc Blust. Artwork by Nicole Marie Rincon.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Both East Asia and Europe are luring crypto projects away from the hostile United States.

On this “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads:

The Future of Crypto Markets Will Be Driven by Developments in the East - Noelle Acheson

Keep Crypto in America - Emily Parker 

-

“The Breakdown” is written, produced and narrated by Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Michele Musso and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsor today is “Foothill Blvd” by Sam Barsh. Image credit: Nataliia Nesterenko/ Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. 

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.

Join the most important conversation in crypto and Web3 at Consensus 2023, happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Come and immerse yourself in all that Web3, crypto, blockchain and the metaverse have to offer. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass. Visit consensus.coindesk.com.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A roundup of the week’s most valuable crypto stories for Saturday, March 4, 2023. 

Missed any episodes of “The Hash” this week? Today’s recap episode will get you caught up.

“Hash Headlines” rounds up this week’s headline stories, including:

• Goerli Ether Surged Over the Weekend
• Metaverse Token Gamium Surges
• Tensions Go Public Between Aptos and Sui Blockchains
• Senators Reportedly Claim Binance Is a 'Hotbed of Illegal Financial Activity';

Links to the headlines:  

Start of the End? Testnet Goerli Ether Spikes to $1.60 as Traders Jump on Opportunity Meant for Developers

Metaverse Token Gamium Surges 340% After Meta and Telefonica Partnership Announcement

Disinvitation From Denver Crypto Conference Reveals Tensions Between Aptos, Sui Blockchains

Binance a 'Hotbed of Illegal Financial Activity,' U.S. Senators Claim

-

This episode has been edited by Michele Musso. Our executive producer is Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Neon Beach.”

Are you building the next big thing in Web3? Apply to pitch your project live on stage at the CoinDesk Pitchfest Powered by Google Cloud at Consensus, the industry’s most influential event happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Apply by March 31 for a chance to be among the twelve finalists selected to pitch. Visit consensus.coindesk.com/pitchfest for more information.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week's “Weekly Recap,” NLW looks at the latest from the FTX bankruptcy estate and stirrings that Democrats in Congress aren't fond of SEC Chair Gary Gensler's regulatory methods.

-

“The Breakdown” is written, produced and narrated by Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Michele Musso and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsor today is “Foothill Blvd” by Sam Barsh. Image credit: Hermann Mueller/ Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. 

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.

Join the most important conversation in crypto and Web3 at Consensus 2023, happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Come and immerse yourself in all that Web3, crypto, blockchain and the metaverse have to offer. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass. Visit consensus.coindesk.com.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

SEC lawyers' objections to a deal involving Binance.US were pointed out by the judge in the Voyager Digital bankruptcy case.

Today on “The Breakdown,” NLW discusses Silvergate, a scathing open letter from three U.S. senators to Binance and whether courts can stop an overreaching Securities and Exchange Commission.

-

“The Breakdown” is written, produced and narrated by Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Michele Musso and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsor today is “Foothill Blvd” by Sam Barsh. Image credit: Malte Mueller/ Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk. 

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.

Join the most important conversation in crypto and Web3 at Consensus 2023, happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Come and immerse yourself in all that Web3, crypto, blockchain and the metaverse have to offer. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass. Visit consensus.coindesk.com.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The most valuable crypto stories for Friday, March 3, 2023. 

"The Hash" team discusses the crypto market reaction to a growing group of crypto firms ending its relationship with Silvergate. Plus, ConsenSys, a top software firm working on the Ethereum blockchain, is rolling out a zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM) public testnet on March 28, intensifying the race among top crypto firms to be first to go fully live with the fast-emerging technology.

See also:

ConsenSys, Developer of Ethereum Software, Says zkEVM Public Testnet to Go Live March 28

Was Silvergate on Borrowed Time as Regulators Backed Banks Away From Crypto?

Crypto Bank Silvergate Downgraded by JPMorgan, Canaccord Amid Doubts of Firm’s Solvency

MicroStrategy Says It Doesn’t Have Any Assets Custodied With Silvergate

-

This episode has been edited by Ryan Huntington. The senior producer is Michele Musso and the executive producer is Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Neon Beach.”

-

Are you building the next big thing in Web3? Apply to pitch your project live on stage at the CoinDesk Pitchfest Powered by Google Cloud at Consensus, the industry’s most influential event happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Apply by March 31 for a chance to be among the twelve finalists selected to pitch. Visit consensus.coindesk.com/pitchfest for more information.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What is the purpose of staking? And what is the motivation? 

On this episode of “Money Reimagined,” Michael Casey and Sheila Warren will be exploring the ever-evolving world of staking with CoinDesk Ethereum protocol reporter Margaux Nijkerk. 

Some are calling it the Shanghai upgrade. Others say that technically, it’s the Capella upgrade. Still, others are merging the two and calling this the Shapella upgrade. 

Whatever you call it, this week’s “Money Reimagined” episode is tackling one of the more important changes to Ethereum’s core code since last year’s successful Merge to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism. The key part of is the 32 staked ether each validator was required to lock up before and after the Merge to bootstrap the system is now being unlocked. 

This might sound like a nerdy topic. But thanks largely to the excellent, clear explanations of Margaux Nijkerk, the episode makes it clear that everyone should care about this as the upgrade opens up some important questions that go to the heart of crypto’s core principles:

• How to democratize blockchain systems so all users, not just the whales and corporate entities, have a stake (literally) in their governance and validation mechanisms 

• Whether the Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent crackdown on Kraken’s staking-as-a-service offering in the U.S. will make it easier or harder for individuals to participate 

• What all this means for arguably the most important principle of all: the goal of decentralization, the idea that a cabal of big players can’t ever collude to censor transactions 

You’ll also hear a discussion of what unlocking such a large amount of ether might mean for the token’s price, get some education on how blockchain developer communities coordinate such upgrades and are invited to contemplate what all this means for the future of crypto. 

See Also:

ConsenSys, Developer of Ethereum Software, Says zkEVM Public Testnet to Go Live March 28

Shanghai + Capella = 'Shapella': How Ethereum Devs Now Refer to Upcoming Upgrade

-

Michele Musso produced and edited this episode with announcements by Adam B. Levine and our executive producer, Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Shepard.”

-

Are you building the next big thing in Web3? Apply to pitch your project live on stage at the CoinDesk Pitchfest Powered by Google Cloud at Consensus, the industry’s most influential event happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Apply by March 31 for a chance to be among the twelve finalists selected to pitch. Visit consensus.coindesk.com/pitchfest for more information.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.