Top Stories This Week<\/strong><\/h2>\nFTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried arrested, set to be extradited to US<\/strong><\/h3>\nSam Bankman-Fried was taken into custody<\/a> by the Royal Bahamas Police Force and is likely to stay there until February, after his application for bail was denied in Bahamian court. A second application for bail<\/a> has been reportedly filed by SBF in the Supreme Court of the Bahamas. His arrest came after the United States government officially filed criminal charges against him<\/a> \u2014 including eight counts of fraud. If convicted, Bankman-Fried could face 115 years in jail, but legal commentators have told Cointelegraph<\/a> there is a \u201clot to play out\u201d in the case. The domino effect resulting from FTX\u2019s meltdown has also impacted the professional lives of Bankman-Fried\u2019s parents<\/a>, resulting in their courses at Stanford Law School being canceled. In other recent developments regarding FTX, a class-action lawsuit against Silvergate Bank<\/a> was filed in California, aiming to hold the bank accountable for its alleged roles in placing FTX user deposits into the bank accounts of Alameda Research.<\/p>\nBinance \u2018put FTX out of business\u2019 \u2014 Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nVenture capital investor Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/a> claimed at a U.S. Senate committee hearing that Binance and FTX \u201cwere at war with each other, and one put the other out of business intentionally.\u201d The hearing was part of a larger investigation by lawmakers into FTX\u2019s collapse, in which Binance had a significant role, O\u2019Leary claimed. Recent days have seen Binance beset by fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD), resulting in a drop in the exchange\u2019s liquidity<\/a>. Crypto analytics firm Nansen reports that Binance had net withdrawals of more than $3.6 billion from Dec. 7 to Dec. 13.<\/p>\n\nRead also<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\nBlockchain and the world\u2019s growing plastic problem<\/p>\n
<\/a>\n <\/div>\n
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\n Features<\/span><\/p>\nExoduses and Ex-Communications: Blowing Off Steemit with Andrew Levine<\/p>\n
<\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/strong>Rep. Tom Emmer mulls bringing back bill aimed at reducing crypto red tape<\/strong><\/h3>\nUnited States lawmakers are under pressure<\/a> to enact crypto regulations in light of the collapse of FTX, and Congressman Tom Emmer believes that this is \u201cprobably a good time\u201d to re-introduce a bipartisan bill that would lift requirements for certain crypto businesses and projects to register as Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). The bill, titled the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, aims to remove some hurdles and requirements for \u201cblockchain developers and service providers,\u201d such as miners, multi-signature service providers and decentralized finance platforms.<\/p>\nNo more proof-of-reserve checks? Auditors quietly drop crypto projects from portfolios<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nTwo of the most prominent auditors<\/a> have suddenly stopped offering crypto auditing services. At a critical moment for the crypto industry, Mazars Group removed Binance\u2019s proof-of-reserve audits<\/a> from its website just days after confirming the crypto exchange controlled 575,742 Bitcoin. The decision affected other crypto exchanges using Mazars\u2019 services, such as Crypto.com and KuCoin. Later, Mazars explained the pause was due to \u201cconcerns regarding the way these reports are understood by the public.\u201d Accounting firm Armanino has also ended its crypto auditing services. Armanino has worked with several crypto trading platforms like OKX, Gate.io and the embattled FTX exchange.<\/p>\nMetaMask to allow users to purchase and transfer Ethereum via PayPal<\/strong><\/h3>\nIn another move into the crypto space<\/a>, PayPal teamed up with MetaMask parent company ConsenSys to allow the purchase and transfer of Ether (ETH) through its platform. By logging into the MetaMask app, users will be able to access their PayPal account and complete transactions. <\/strong>Initially, only selected PayPal users in the United States will be able to test the service. Other traditional payments companies are seeking to integrate crypto into their services. In October, Western Union also filed three trademarks<\/a> for managing digital wallets and exchanging digital assets.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Arthur-Hayes-1024x682.png\")
<\/figure>\nWinners and Losers<\/strong><\/h2>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/WL-dec-11-01-1024x826.jpg\")
<\/figure>\nAt the end of the week, Bitcoin (<\/strong>BTC<\/strong><\/a>)<\/strong> is at $16,826<\/strong>, Ether (<\/strong>ETH<\/strong><\/a>)<\/strong> at $1,194<\/strong> and XRP<\/strong><\/a> at $0.35<\/strong>. The total market cap is at $817.82 <\/strong>billion, according<\/a> to CoinMarketCap.<\/p>\nAmong the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Toncoin (TON) <\/strong>at 30.36%, Bitcoin SV (BSV) <\/strong>at 10.11%, and OKB (OKB) <\/strong>at 9.77%.<\/p>\nThe top three altcoin losers of the week are Neutrino USD (USDN) <\/strong>at -33.77%, Trust Wallet Token (TWT) <\/strong>at -27.43%, and Chain (XCN) <\/strong>at -23.42%.
For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph\u2019s market analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n\nRead also<\/p>\n
\n\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\nCrypto innovators of color restricted by the rules aimed to protect them<\/p>\n
<\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\nE For Estonia: How Digital Natives are Creating the Blueprint for a Blockchain Nation<\/p>\n
<\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Most Memorable Quotations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\u201cBinance is a massive unregulated global monopoly now, and they put FTX out of business.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/strong><\/a>, venture capital investor<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\u201cI supposed it made sense. The kid was young, the principles were revolutionary, the ideas were golden. [\u2026] Who was I to challenge that?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Danielle Cloud<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, former FTX employee<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\u201cOur experience to date of [crypto] platforms, whether FTX or others, is that they are deliberately evasive, they are a method by which money laundering happens in size.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/strong><\/strong>Ashley Alder<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, appointed chair of the United Kingdom\u2019s Financial Conduct Authority<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\u201cJust as we are protective of our physical assets, we need to make sure that people protect their digital assets and personal information within the metaverse.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/strong>Andrew Newman<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, chief technology officer and co-founder of ReasonLabs<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\u201cLooking forward, pretty much everyone who could go bankrupt has gone bankrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
<\/strong>Arthur Hayes<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/strong>, former CEO of BitMEX<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\nPrediction of the Week\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\nBitcoin dips under $17K as \u2018craziest rumors\u2019 over Binance sink BTC price<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nBitcoin fell below $17,000 as traders remained wary<\/a> over Binance\u2019s FUD triggering overly bearish BTC price action. On Bitstamp, BTC\/USD reached multi-day lows of $16,928 on Dec. 16, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView data. The pair retraced its entire run to one-month highs courtesy of the latest macroeconomic data and policy update from the United States.<\/p>\n\u201cInteresting to see everyone suddenly so bearish on BTC as if it\u2019s solely acting so weak. SPX is doing exactly the same, maybe even weaker,\u201d noted Micha\u00ebl van de Poppe, founder and CEO of trading firm Eight, questioning whether the Binance FUD really had a role to play in the markets.<\/p>\n
FUD of the Week\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Danielle-Cloud-1024x682.png\")
<\/figure>\n<\/h3>\n<\/strong>Microsoft bans cryptocurrency mining on cloud services<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nMicrosoft has quietly banned crypto mining<\/a> from its online services to increase the stability of its cloud services and better protect customers from risks like cyber fraud, attacks and unauthorized access to resources, according to a report. The new restrictions were introduced on Microsoft\u2019s universal license terms, citing that \u201cmining cryptocurrency is prohibited without prior Microsoft approval.\u201d With this move, Microsoft joins other cloud computing providers, including Google, who also prohibit customers from mining cryptocurrency without prior written consent.<\/p>\n\u2018Third-party incident\u2019 impacted Gemini with 5.7 million emails leaked<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nGemini appears to have suffered a data breach<\/a> from a third-party vendor. Hackers gained access to 5,701,649 lines of information related to Gemini customers\u2019 email addresses and partial phone numbers, per documents obtained by Cointelegraph. According to Gemini, the breach was caused by a third-party vendor, but it also warned of ongoing phishing campaigns. The leaked database did not contain any sensitive personal information such as names, addresses and other Know Your Customer information.<\/p>\nSEC sues Atlas Trading for $100M stock manipulation scheme<\/strong><\/h3>\nThe United States Securities and Exchange Commission<\/a> (SEC) filed a claim against eight individuals associated with the Discord-based forum Atlas Trading for alleged stock manipulation. The SEC reported that bloggers made at least $100 million by acquiring substantial positions in securities, recommending them to their followers, and then selling their shares to capitalize on the demand they generated by their \u201cdeceptive promotions.\u201d Cryptocurrencies and other digital assets were not mentioned in the complaint.<\/p>\nBest Cointelegraph Features<\/strong><\/h2>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Kevin-OLeary-1024x682.png\")
<\/figure>\n<\/strong>Should crypto projects ever negotiate with hackers? Probably<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\nSome security experts think negotiating<\/a> is a smart way to get back most of the stolen funds, while others argue you should never give in to extortion.<\/p>\n<\/strong>Can Bitcoin survive a Carrington Event knocking out the grid?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Sam Bankman-Fried was taken into custody<\/a> by the Royal Bahamas Police Force and is likely to stay there until February, after his application for bail was denied in Bahamian court. A second application for bail<\/a> has been reportedly filed by SBF in the Supreme Court of the Bahamas. His arrest came after the United States government officially filed criminal charges against him<\/a> \u2014 including eight counts of fraud. If convicted, Bankman-Fried could face 115 years in jail, but legal commentators have told Cointelegraph<\/a> there is a \u201clot to play out\u201d in the case. The domino effect resulting from FTX\u2019s meltdown has also impacted the professional lives of Bankman-Fried\u2019s parents<\/a>, resulting in their courses at Stanford Law School being canceled. In other recent developments regarding FTX, a class-action lawsuit against Silvergate Bank<\/a> was filed in California, aiming to hold the bank accountable for its alleged roles in placing FTX user deposits into the bank accounts of Alameda Research.<\/p>\n Venture capital investor Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/a> claimed at a U.S. Senate committee hearing that Binance and FTX \u201cwere at war with each other, and one put the other out of business intentionally.\u201d The hearing was part of a larger investigation by lawmakers into FTX\u2019s collapse, in which Binance had a significant role, O\u2019Leary claimed. Recent days have seen Binance beset by fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD), resulting in a drop in the exchange\u2019s liquidity<\/a>. Crypto analytics firm Nansen reports that Binance had net withdrawals of more than $3.6 billion from Dec. 7 to Dec. 13.<\/p>\n Read also<\/p>\n Blockchain and the world\u2019s growing plastic problem<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n Exoduses and Ex-Communications: Blowing Off Steemit with Andrew Levine<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n United States lawmakers are under pressure<\/a> to enact crypto regulations in light of the collapse of FTX, and Congressman Tom Emmer believes that this is \u201cprobably a good time\u201d to re-introduce a bipartisan bill that would lift requirements for certain crypto businesses and projects to register as Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs). The bill, titled the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, aims to remove some hurdles and requirements for \u201cblockchain developers and service providers,\u201d such as miners, multi-signature service providers and decentralized finance platforms.<\/p>\n Two of the most prominent auditors<\/a> have suddenly stopped offering crypto auditing services. At a critical moment for the crypto industry, Mazars Group removed Binance\u2019s proof-of-reserve audits<\/a> from its website just days after confirming the crypto exchange controlled 575,742 Bitcoin. The decision affected other crypto exchanges using Mazars\u2019 services, such as Crypto.com and KuCoin. Later, Mazars explained the pause was due to \u201cconcerns regarding the way these reports are understood by the public.\u201d Accounting firm Armanino has also ended its crypto auditing services. Armanino has worked with several crypto trading platforms like OKX, Gate.io and the embattled FTX exchange.<\/p>\n In another move into the crypto space<\/a>, PayPal teamed up with MetaMask parent company ConsenSys to allow the purchase and transfer of Ether (ETH) through its platform. By logging into the MetaMask app, users will be able to access their PayPal account and complete transactions. <\/strong>Initially, only selected PayPal users in the United States will be able to test the service. Other traditional payments companies are seeking to integrate crypto into their services. In October, Western Union also filed three trademarks<\/a> for managing digital wallets and exchanging digital assets.<\/p>\n At the end of the week, Bitcoin (<\/strong>BTC<\/strong><\/a>)<\/strong> is at $16,826<\/strong>, Ether (<\/strong>ETH<\/strong><\/a>)<\/strong> at $1,194<\/strong> and XRP<\/strong><\/a> at $0.35<\/strong>. The total market cap is at $817.82 <\/strong>billion, according<\/a> to CoinMarketCap.<\/p>\n Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Toncoin (TON) <\/strong>at 30.36%, Bitcoin SV (BSV) <\/strong>at 10.11%, and OKB (OKB) <\/strong>at 9.77%.<\/p>\n The top three altcoin losers of the week are Neutrino USD (USDN) <\/strong>at -33.77%, Trust Wallet Token (TWT) <\/strong>at -27.43%, and Chain (XCN) <\/strong>at -23.42%. Read also<\/p>\n Crypto innovators of color restricted by the rules aimed to protect them<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n E For Estonia: How Digital Natives are Creating the Blueprint for a Blockchain Nation<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cBinance is a massive unregulated global monopoly now, and they put FTX out of business.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n <\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/strong><\/a>, venture capital investor<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI supposed it made sense. The kid was young, the principles were revolutionary, the ideas were golden. [\u2026] Who was I to challenge that?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Danielle Cloud<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, former FTX employee<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cOur experience to date of [crypto] platforms, whether FTX or others, is that they are deliberately evasive, they are a method by which money laundering happens in size.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n <\/strong><\/strong>Ashley Alder<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, appointed chair of the United Kingdom\u2019s Financial Conduct Authority<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cJust as we are protective of our physical assets, we need to make sure that people protect their digital assets and personal information within the metaverse.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n <\/strong>Andrew Newman<\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>, chief technology officer and co-founder of ReasonLabs<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cLooking forward, pretty much everyone who could go bankrupt has gone bankrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n <\/strong>Arthur Hayes<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/strong>, former CEO of BitMEX<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n Bitcoin fell below $17,000 as traders remained wary<\/a> over Binance\u2019s FUD triggering overly bearish BTC price action. On Bitstamp, BTC\/USD reached multi-day lows of $16,928 on Dec. 16, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView data. The pair retraced its entire run to one-month highs courtesy of the latest macroeconomic data and policy update from the United States.<\/p>\n \u201cInteresting to see everyone suddenly so bearish on BTC as if it\u2019s solely acting so weak. SPX is doing exactly the same, maybe even weaker,\u201d noted Micha\u00ebl van de Poppe, founder and CEO of trading firm Eight, questioning whether the Binance FUD really had a role to play in the markets.<\/p>\n Microsoft has quietly banned crypto mining<\/a> from its online services to increase the stability of its cloud services and better protect customers from risks like cyber fraud, attacks and unauthorized access to resources, according to a report. The new restrictions were introduced on Microsoft\u2019s universal license terms, citing that \u201cmining cryptocurrency is prohibited without prior Microsoft approval.\u201d With this move, Microsoft joins other cloud computing providers, including Google, who also prohibit customers from mining cryptocurrency without prior written consent.<\/p>\n Gemini appears to have suffered a data breach<\/a> from a third-party vendor. Hackers gained access to 5,701,649 lines of information related to Gemini customers\u2019 email addresses and partial phone numbers, per documents obtained by Cointelegraph. According to Gemini, the breach was caused by a third-party vendor, but it also warned of ongoing phishing campaigns. The leaked database did not contain any sensitive personal information such as names, addresses and other Know Your Customer information.<\/p>\n The United States Securities and Exchange Commission<\/a> (SEC) filed a claim against eight individuals associated with the Discord-based forum Atlas Trading for alleged stock manipulation. The SEC reported that bloggers made at least $100 million by acquiring substantial positions in securities, recommending them to their followers, and then selling their shares to capitalize on the demand they generated by their \u201cdeceptive promotions.\u201d Cryptocurrencies and other digital assets were not mentioned in the complaint.<\/p>\n Some security experts think negotiating<\/a> is a smart way to get back most of the stolen funds, while others argue you should never give in to extortion.<\/p>\nBinance \u2018put FTX out of business\u2019 \u2014 Kevin O\u2019Leary<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\n<\/strong>Rep. Tom Emmer mulls bringing back bill aimed at reducing crypto red tape<\/strong><\/h3>\n
No more proof-of-reserve checks? Auditors quietly drop crypto projects from portfolios<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
MetaMask to allow users to purchase and transfer Ethereum via PayPal<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/figure>\nWinners and Losers<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/figure>\n
For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph\u2019s market analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\n
\n Features<\/span><\/p>\nMost Memorable Quotations<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
Prediction of the Week\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Bitcoin dips under $17K as \u2018craziest rumors\u2019 over Binance sink BTC price<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
FUD of the Week\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/figure>\n<\/h3>\n
<\/strong>Microsoft bans cryptocurrency mining on cloud services<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
\u2018Third-party incident\u2019 impacted Gemini with 5.7 million emails leaked<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
SEC sues Atlas Trading for $100M stock manipulation scheme<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Best Cointelegraph Features<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/figure>\n<\/strong>Should crypto projects ever negotiate with hackers? Probably<\/strong><\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/strong>Can Bitcoin survive a Carrington Event knocking out the grid?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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