CRYPTO WEEKLY 21/02/2022

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

HIDDEN GEMS

CRYPTO Russia Legalizes Bitcoin (VOW)

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BEGINNERS GUIDE

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WEEKLY $2 cryptoweeklymag.com February 2022 | Volume 15

Religion in the Metaverse Page 02

FUDDOXX INSIDER Page 05

401k`s and Crypto Page 08

The Metaverse and Crypto Page 12

Walmart`s Metaverse Moves Page 16

Tornado Cash Privacy Page 18

Metaverse Legal issues Page 22

The Digital Dollar Page 30

Zero Collateral DeFi Loans Page 32

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CONTENTS $2 cryptoweeklymag.com February 2022 | Volume 15

Religion in the Metaverse: Finding community and fellowship in VR ��������������������������������������������� 2 Crypto Scams How to spot one �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 5 There are now cryptos in 401(k)s. Should you invest in them? �������������������������������������������������������� 8 Speculation and reality, What's What with the Metaverse ��������������������������������������������������������������� 10 What Crypto Will do to the Metaverse and How ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������12 Walmart is Making Quiet Moves in the Metaverse ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������16 'Tornado Cash' Raises Money Laundering Concerns ����������������������������������������������������������������������������18 Video of the Week ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 20 The Metaverse Must Face These Legalities and Address Them �����������������������������������������������������22 34 million in Ethereum Raised in 5 Days in WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange's Bid for Freedom ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������24 North Korea Funds Weapons with Stolen Crypto, According to a Leaked UN Report �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������24 Hidden Gems ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������26 Beginners Guide �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������28 Technical Challenges of 'digital dollar' Solved! ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 30 Understanding Zero Collateral DeFi Loans and the Risks Involved ����������������������������������������������32

Readers get a chance to whitelist for the ambitious KAPEX project brought to you by Koda Cryptocurrency, Launch is expected next month (Feb 22) and public presale opens from 15th Feb. For more information visit https://KAPEX.me and join the conversation on telegram.

Referral code: CWEEKLY22 2 random applicants will be accepted to band A, and 10 band B. Other applicants guaranteed standard presale if before 15th Jan (up to maximum allocation).

1

EDITOR’S LETTER

Welcome to Crypto Weekly Welcome, this is the 15th issue of Crypto Weekly.

We at Crypto Weekly are all working madly to prepare for next month's Dubai Expo on the 16th of March. We will be publishing a printed edition of Crypto Weekly just for the expo in addition to our regular weekly magazine.

We have also scheduled our first regular quarterly bookazine of 150 pages to be printed on the 25th of this month to be distributed to a magazine shop near you in the U.S., Australia, and Great Britain.

Crypto Weekly will answer all of your questions. Whether you're new to crypto or have some experience, we're here to help. I hope you all have fun.

Now that we have reached the end, it is time to turn the page, but let us know your thoughts. If you would like to see something featured, please get in touch with me.

editor@cryptoweeklymag.com

Follow Me Robert Stone Editor

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shaketheweb

February 2022 | Volume 15

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Religion in the Metaverse: Finding community and fellowship in VR Religion and virtual reality

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R Church's lead pastor, D.J. Soto, preaches a sermon in his Fredericksburg, Va., home on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. Soto sings, preaches, and performs digital baptisms to a growing congregation of avatars in the metaverse.

A recent Sunday church service was missed by Garret Bernal and his family while under quarantine for COVID-19 exposure. Bernal, who is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints (Mormon church), said, "I could not have had such an immersive experience sitting in my seat." He put on a virtual reality headset and tried to imagine what it would be like to worship

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in the metaverse. Pastors guided him and others through computergenerated illustrations of scripture passages that looked like they were coming to life as they prayed in one of the many metaverse spaces that became popular during the Coronavirus pandemic. While floating over pastures, rocky cliffs, and rivers, he was able to commune spiritually through virtual reality, one of many evolving metaverses made popular during the Coronavirus outbreak. From meditations in fantasy worlds to traditional Christian worship services with virtual sacraments in hyperrealistic, churchlike settings, their devotees say the experience provides fellowship that is as genuine as in a

brick-and-mortar temple. Bernal's most crucial aspect of his short stay was his closer connection with God. The service was hosted by VR Church, founded in 2016 by D.J. Santiago, a former high school teacher and pastor of a nonvirtual church. VR Church describes itself as a spiritual community that exists entirely in the virtual world to celebrate God's love for mankind.

Soto had previously felt called to start new physical churches. However, after discovering the VR social platform AltspaceVR, he was made aware of the possibilities of connecting in virtual reality. Having heard that Facebook would invest billions in building out

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the metaverse last October, he set out to build an inclusive Christian church there.

During his first year, Soto often preached to just a few people, most atheists, and agnostics who preferred debating faith to listening to it. Approximately 200 people have joined his congregation since then.

He has ordained other ministers and baptized believers who couldn't leave their houses from his Virginia home due to illness. "The church of the future is the metaverse," Soto said recently. "This isn't anti-physical. I don't think physical gatherings need to disappear. However,

your metaverse campus will be the main focus of the church in 2030."

The founder of SacredVR, Jeremy Nickel, an ordained Unitarian Universalist who calls himself a VR evangelist, also saw the potential of VR to build communities and "get away from brick and mortar" when he founded the company in 2017.

Nickel began his secular meditations to include all comers following his study of alternative practices at the seminary and his time in Nepal with Tibetan Buddhists. The name put off some religiously unaffiliated community members, so he changed it to EvolVR,

and more people joined. The pandemic, however, boosted attendance from a few dozen to hundreds who now attend dharma talks and meditation sessions via their chosen avatars, sometimes meeting at a virtual Tibetan Buddhist temple perched high in the mountains or floating weightlessly above the ground.

Nickel explained that one of the reasons why the group has become so popular is you get the meditation you need and the community. Bill Willenbrock, who runs a Christian fellowship on the social platform VRChat, says virtual reality can enable people to share deeply personal issues more quickly. I have heard the number of times, 'I'm contemplating suicide. "Virtual reality" can be beneficial, said Willenbrock, an Eastern Orthodox chaplain who converted from Lutheranism.

He preached recently in a cavernous virtual cathedral lit by stained-glass windows. As avatars sat in the pews, a giant banana sat next to another man in a shirt and tie. There was also a mushroom, a fox, armored knights.

They then took turns explaining why they joined the virtual community.

People saw it as a complement to inperson gatherings, not a replacement for them.

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Bill Willenbrock, who runs a Christian fellowship on the social platform VRChat, says virtual reality can enable people to share deeply personal issues more quickly. I have heard the number of times, 'I'm contemplating suicide she wept, knowing she had found a home. Delp became drawn to the community because of its judgmentfree environment and emphasis on "God's love rather than fear." She began volunteering with small groups and eventually became a pastor.

For example, it is cold, wet, and not very pleasant outside here in Scotland. Still, I am sitting in a beautiful church with the heating on." Another, with a robotlike avatar and the username UncleTuskle, said, "as a person with social anxiety, I am more comfortable here than in a physical church."

According to Paul Raushenbush, senior advisor for public affairs and innovation at Interfaith Youth Core, and host of a VR talk show with religious leaders who use the technology, virtual reality

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can help people meet without judging their physical abilities or appearance.

Ruushenbush appreciates how the platform uses whatever technological opportunities are available to bring people together. Alina Delp can attest to the fact that they are changing lives.

While she has traveled across the country and skydived for years, she has mostly been confined to her Olympia, Washington, home since 2010 due to a rare neurovascular condition. When she attended her first VR Church service,

"I was granted life. It's the difference between endless hours of sleep and television versus my ability to be productive," she said. In 2018, Soto baptized her in a virtual ceremony in which her family and friends cheered her on as she was submerged in a purple robot avatar pool. Even though many VR advocates believe such sacraments should only be performed in physical space, it felt like a true blessing to Delp.

"Jesus baptized me. Jesus changed me," she said. "The water, or lack thereof ... doesn't have the power to change me." 

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FUDDOXX

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Crypto Scams How to spot one

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n the current Defi Crypto world we live in, is there any two words put together more than Crypto and Scam? The digital world is one most are struggling to come to terms with and when it comes to digital finance it sends shivers down the spines of the average person. What has caused digital currency to have such a stigma? Well, it is all the stories that circulate around from the people

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who have had money stolen through online crypto scams. It is these stories that need to be analysed to be able to see how the scams were carried out and how the investor could have avoided becoming the next victim of a scam.

There are so many different variations of a scam in Defi Crypto. The most common is a Rug Pull. However, this is not the only way to get an investor to

hand over their hard-earned money. As the use of social media is a massive part of any crypto project the new wave of scammers run riot in here, from a simple false Telegram Group posing as one you may currently be active in to pretending to be a member of the Development team. I personally have been caught out by a scam Telegram Group posing as a group I was in and offering a deal

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FUDDOXX Crypto Weekly

FOMO (fear of missing out), for this is one of the greatest tricks that is used to lure people to put their money in to a token that is a scam.

We all want to make money and we all want it now, however, by taking a deep breath and doing your homework you will give yourself every opportunity to not only make money with informed decisions but be able to keep your money from being stolen from underneath your nose. If there is an opportunity to run the contract address through a scanning tool you should always do so, there are plenty of tools online now designed to help you not get scammed and they are free to use, why wouldn’t you.?

to good and convincing to pass up. By the time you have realised what has happened you and the others that fell for it have had your money stolen. Not by them going in to your Crypto wallets but by you sending the tokens to the scammers. In this way they can then sell the tokens and there is nothing you can do to recoup them. Then we have one of my favourites where someone will make a near replica of a team members identity and DM you asking if you can help them out with some funds, this might seem flawed but if you have had interactions with them before why would you suspect any ill doings.?

Keep this in mind that in the social media space it is widely known that no Developer will DM you first, so remember this rule and it should hold you in good stead in your use of socials to interact with a token and the project behind it. So how do you spot a scam?

Research is key alongside patience: these two things can help you make more informed decisions while making your next crypto investment. If there is a project you are interested in, then does the said project have a website with full disclosure and a roadmap outlining

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their plans for the token’s future? Is the website well- constructed, and will it also show you how serious the project is? Do they have a big socials following like Telegram, Discord, and Twitter? if they don’t this really is a sign that cannot be ignored as without socials they are really not promoting themselves across multiple platforms which could leave a trail of breadcrumbs to the scammer.

If they do have socials how is the Development team interacting with the members? Are they communicating on a regular basis or is the chat just full of pictures of rocket ships ready to go to the moon? if this is the case another sure sign there should be alarm bells ringing.

Does the project have their team Doxxed (giving up personal information of who you are), or is the project verified through a third party to ensure that there is no hidden malicious coding that could be put in place to cause a rug pull or any other fraudulent behaviour designed to take your money? When it comes to the lengths that scammers will go it has no end. However, the one thing that can be avoided to stop you from falling for the next scam is avoiding self

Then you have one of the most conniving schemes I think going around Dusting.

This involves some serious technical skill to produce an address that is sent to any wallet on the blockchain and will appear in your wallet with a certain amount of tokens and they will be worth a fortune. How is this hurting anyone well the moment you go to sell those tokens the contract will have access to your wallet and begin draining any real tokens you have in your wallet and you won’t even know it’s happening leaving you with a balance of zero.

So if any random coins appear in your wallet worth $10m just delete them and forget about it and you will be safe. So by taking your time and researching any projects you are willing to invest in you should be able to invest with a strong level of confidence that you will not be scammed however you can always have a third party (Fuddoxx) take a look at the contract for you to make sure it is all above board and strengthen your Defi Crypto survival rate…

Fuddoxx will do a thorough research on a project. Once such a project has been doxxed, both developers and investors have a high level of security that business is conducted in a trustful way. Fuddoxx operates fully transparent, respecting privacy and confidentiality where needed. On its website a comprehensive overview of all doxxed projects is shown, enabling potential investors to make informed decisions. 

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There are now cryptos in 401(k)s.

Should you invest in them?

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ome workers will soon be able to invest in cryptocurrency through their 401(k) plans. ForUsAll Inc. has partnered with a cryptocurrency exchange so that employees can invest up to 5% of their 401(k) contributions in Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, and other cryptocurrencies.

401(k) plans and IRAs do not offer crypto investments at this time. According to the 2021 Trends in Investing Survey published by the Journal of Financial Planning and the Financial Planning Association, financial advisers may be ready to embrace cryptocurrency.

Initially, only 1.4% of advisers indicated

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they were using or recommending cryptocurrencies to their clients in the 2018 survey. The percentage fell to below 1% in 2019 and 2020, but has risen to 14% of advisers who use or recommend cryptocurrencies in 2021.

Almost a quarter (26%) of advisers anticipate increasing their use or recommendation of cryptocurrencies.

Four out of every five said clients had inquired about investing in cryptocurrencies in the last six months, up from 17% in 2020. According to Tyrone Ross, CEO of Onramp Invest, a crypto asset platform, "we've reached an inflection point in the wealth management space. Now, advisers

are faced with clients who demand knowledge, access, and advice from them about crypto assets."

According to USA TODAY, celebrities, billionaires, and athletes can't get enough of the crypto craze. Should you join in? That depends on your tolerance for extreme volatility. The following is what financial experts have to say:

How do cryptos work?

Cryptocurrencies are digital money that can be created and exchanged through a decentralized computer network. The transactions are secured and verified through coding.

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Originally launched in 2009, Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency today.

It acts as a public ledger for transactions, using blockchain technology, serving as a replacement for government money.

Traders usually use the currency for speculation instead of payment. The VAA central authority does not regulate Bitcoinfidence since a central authority does not regulate it.

Cryptocurrency prices are determined by supply and demand. Since many cryptocurrencies are designed to maintain a high level of scarcity, the rate at which they can be exchanged for another currency can fluctuate widely.

Cryptocurrencies do not represent a currency supported by governments, nor are they company shares. Experts

don't know what determines their underlying value.

What drove the crypto-mania in 2021?

Several factors are driving the crypto craze in prices. Experts say that with the stock market at record highs, interest rates at historic lows, and real estate prices rising, investors are looking for more ways to diversify their portfolios and generate returns. Some of the wealthiest clients of Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have access to Bitcoin funds.

The debut of Coinbase as a publiclytraded company in April attracted both day traders and new amateur

investors. The exchange was founded as a more straightforward way to trade digital coins. It helped spur a rally in cryptocurrencies, pushing virtual tokens like Dogecoin, Bitcoin, and Ether to record highs in the spring. After reaching an all-time high in April, Bitcoin has lost roughly 40% of its value in just two months. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, "meme coins" such as Dogecoin have gained in popularity as more people work online. "These same factors also fueled meme stocks" like GameStop.

The price of Dogecoin rose earlier this year following enthusiasm from a group on Reddit called r/SatoshiStreetBets, which aims to boost the price of cryptocurrencies. WitDogecoin has been riding a similar Reddit wave to stocks like GameStop and AMC, thanks to a series of tweets by Elon Musk. With over 56 million followers on Twitter, Musk has driven traders into a frenzy by mentioning Dogecoin on occasion. 

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Speculation and reality, What's What with the Metaverse T

hose who use the Metaverse can do anything they do in real life in the virtual world. People transact, create, socialize, and play through hardware, programming languages, smart contract platforms, and a base hardware layer. As emerging digital-physical realities, economies, and communities, metaverses transcend fiction into reality.

the Metaverse is heavily influenced by Decentraland and The Sandbox. ENS is an Ethereum (ETH)-based naming system that drives identity software, essential for verification, security, accessibility, and avatars. The number of ENS registrations increased by around 18%, from 5,158 in December 2020 to 109,280 in December 2021, illustrating its growing popularity.

Among the key characteristics of the Metaverse are its ownership, decentralization, interoperability, opensource nature, and virtual nature, which are also central to Web 3 and the digital revolution. Several key players have been able to improve infrastructure across the Metaverse "stack" so that the Metaverse can become a more personal, continuous, and immersive experience.

OpenSea, one of the NFT trading platforms, heavily influences metaverse marketplaces. Ethereum NFT platforms OpenSea and Rarible have a combined number of approximately 80,5 million NFTs and USD 10,3 billion in sales volume, with OpenSea controlling 99% of the minted NFTs and 97% of the total sales revenue. OpenSea dominates the ETH NFT trading market, but Rarible has been around for over two years. The market for ETH NFT alone has grown year-over-year (YoY) by about 31,027%

With more than 200,000 items alone on OpenSea, the virtual world hosting

to USD 3.1bn in December 2021. Across the entire NFT market, daily transactions increased by 3,192% YoY to just under 520,000 transactions per day. Out of USD 121bn in gaming industry revenue in 2021, the top five GameFi organizations incurred a total of USD 90m in sales volume, with 161,000 users aiming to satisfy 3.2bn gamers worldwide.

A centralized service provider controls the application, technology, information, media, and content ecosystem.

There are, however, challenges with interoperability, costs, and walled gardens. Clear, concise regulations and technological advancements are needed.

The masses can only be onboarded with confidence in businesses and a shift in consumer behavior.

Open source blockchain models of "Know Your Customer" (KYC) could be developed, lowering costs and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of verifying identities and activities. Hardware costs should decrease as technology advances, and oracles, sidechains, application-layer adapters, and blockchain-agnostic smart contracts must reduce gas fees and improve security, decentralization, throughput, and convenience.

Despite the current hype surrounding Metaverses, advancements and policy changes will take time. Investors and consumers may realize that this hype doesn't live up to its hype this year, which may lead to Metaverse fatigue. 

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What Crypto Will do to the Metaverse and How T

here is a misconception that the metaverse will be a bunch of interconnected virtual spaces - the Internet but accessed through virtual reality. It is mostly correct, but the metaverse also has a fundamental, slightly cryptic element that will make it stand out from today's Internet: blockchains.

When Web 1 launched, it was an information superhighway of connected computers and servers that you could search, explore, and inhabit, usually via a centralized company's platform - for example, AOL, Yahoo, Microsoft, and Google. As the turn of the century approached, Web 2 began to be characterized by social networking sites, blogging, and monetizing user data by centralized gatekeepers of "free" social

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media platforms, including Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. TikTok. Metaverses will be built on Web 3.

Through blockchain-enabled decentralized applications, users will own crypto assets and data. Having studied social media and media technology, we can explain how the metaverse will function. What is blockchain? Is it decentralized? What are crypto assets?

Getting your hands on bits Typically, a blockchain is a decentralized public database that permanently records transactions. Bitcoin is one of the most well-known blockchainbased cryptocurrencies. When you buy Bitcoin, the transaction is recorded on

the Bitcoin blockchain, which means the record is distributed across thousands of computers worldwide every time you buy Bitcoin. It is complicated to fool or control this decentralized recording system. In contrast to traditional banking books, public blockchains, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, are also transparent - all transactions are visible to everyone on the Internet.

Currency, securities, and artwork that can be owned are crypto assets. Like Bitcoin, Ethereum is a blockchain, but Ethereum can also be programmed through smart contracts, essentially software routines that run automatically based on predetermined conditions.

Smart contracts on the blockchain can, for example, identify the owner of a digital object, such as a piece of music

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or art, so no one else can claim it - even if they save copies.

Artwork and music are nonfungible tokens (NFTs). Nonfungible items, such as nonfungible currency, cannot be replaced, while fungible items, such as fungible currency, can be exchanged for fungible currency. There will be an exhibition of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) in Miami Beach in November 2021, featuring these images.

I paid USD 999,000 instead - the other can easily refer to the public record in the distributed ledger. NFTs will not only be owned in the real world. They will also be owned in the virtual world.

Moreover, the metaverse isn't being

built by any group or company.

There will be different virtual worlds constructed by different groups, which will eventually become interoperable forming the metaverse. People will want to take their stuff with them when they

You can create a smart contract if you wish to sell your piece of digital art for USD 1m in the Ethereum blockchain token, Ether. When I click "agree," the artwork and Ether automatically transfer ownership between us. The artwork is not held in escrow by a third party.

What is the relationship between blockchain crypto assets and the metaverse? They are all connected!

Blockchains facilitate the ownership of digital assets in the metaverse. As a result, if either of us disputes this transaction - for example, if you say that

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move from Decentraland's virtual world to Microsoft's. If both virtual worlds are interoperable, blockchain will authenticate your ownership of digital goods. In essence, you will be able to access your crypto stuff as long as you can access your crypto wallet.

Make sure you have your wallet with you Why do you think you'll keep crypto in your wallet? You'll want to carry cryptocurrencies. In addition to your crypto wallet, you can also store your avatar, avatar clothing, avatar animations, virtual decorations, and weapons, which are available only in the metaverse.

Avatars are cartoon-like animations populated by people in the metaverse, such as this portrayal of El Salvador President Nayib Bukele.

In the future, what will people do with their crypto wallets? They'll shop, for starters. It will be possible to purchase traditional digital goods such as music, movies, games, and apps, just as you do now on the web. Furthermore, you'll be able to purchase physical-world items in the metaverse, and you'll be able to view and feel 3D models of what you

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are shopping for, which could help you make better decisions.

Additionally, just as you can carry your ID in a leather wallet, crypto wallets will be linked to real-world identities to facilitate transactions that require legal confirmation, such as buying a real-world home or car. Access to agerestricted areas of the metaverse will also be controlled with ID-associated wallets. You won't have to remember login information for every website and virtual world you visit since your ID is linked to your wallet. Your wallet will take care of everything.

Spreading misinformation can damage the reputation of toxic trolls. Eventually, future wallets that are linked to reputation scores may also allow you to broadcast and interact with people outside your social network. Your influence may also decrease. If people are to behave well in the metaverse, platform developers need to prioritize these systems.

Big business Finally, if the metaverse is money, companies will certainly want to participate. People can work, play, and congregate on platforms provided by

companies like Meta. While there is no metaverse yet, people and businesses are grabbing virtual land in a land rush.

Despite blockchain's decentralized nature, companies will still have many revenue-generating opportunities, perhaps even more than today's economies.

Coca-Cola, Adidas, and Nike are among the major brands involved with the NFT. You might one day gain ownership of a linked NFT in the metaverse when you buy an item from a company. You might purchase the crypto version of the outfit your avatar can wear to the virtual Ariana Grande concert if you buy that coveted name-brand outfit to wear to the realworld dance club. The NFT version of the outfit can also be sold for someone else's avatar to wear, just like you could sell the physical outfit secondhand. There are many ways in which metaverse business models overlap with the physical world.

As augmented reality technologies gain traction, these examples will become more complex as they merge aspects of the metaverse with the physical world.

Despite the fact that the metaverse does not yet exist, technological foundations like blockchains and cryptoassets are steadily developing, preparing the stage for a seemingly ubiquitous virtual existence. 

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Walmart is Making Quiet Moves in the Metaverse Walmart is entrenching itself in the metaverse by developing its own cryptocurrency and collection of NFTs.

W

almart is reportedly considering creating its own cryptocurrency and a collection of non-fungible tokens, or NFTs. Last month, a big-box retailer filed several trademarks indicating its intent to make and sell virtual goods, such as electronics, home decor, toys, sporting goods, and personal care products. The retailer said in a separate

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Last month, the big-box retailer filed several new trademarks showing its plans to make and sell virtual goods.

filing that users would be able to use virtual currencies and nrfts. Walmart filed the applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Dec. 30.

Seven separate applications have been submitted. Walmart said it is "continually exploring how emerging technologies

Walmart said it would offer nonfungible tokens as well as a virtual currency.

may shape future shopping experiences."

It declined to comment about the specific trademark filings. "We test new ideas all the time," Walmart said. "Some ideas become real products or services.

Others are tested, iterated, and learned from." An attorney, Josh Gerben, said there are a lot of trademark filings.

"They are filled with a lot of language,

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which shows that a lot of planning is going on behind the scenes about how they will deal with crypto, how they will deal with the metaverse, and how they will promote the virtual world that is either coming or is already here."

According to Gerben, businesses have been rushing to figure out how they will integrate into a virtual world ever since Facebook announced its name would change to Meta, indicating its ambition beyond social media. In early November, Nike filed a slew of trademark applications that hint at plans to sell virtual-branded sneakers and apparel. The following month, Nike announced it was teaming up with Roblox to create an online world called Nikeland. In December, the company purchased the virtual sneaker company RTFKT (pronounced "artifact") for an undisclosed sum.

Suddenly, everyone is saying, 'This is becoming a very real situation and we need to protect our IP,'" Gerben said.

NFTs of Gap's iconic logo sweatshirts have also been introduced. It said its NFTs will have tiers ranging between $8.30 and $415, and come with a physical hoodie. Recently, Under Armour's and Adidas' NFT debuts were both sold out.

OpenSea's NFT marketplace now sells them for sky-high prices.

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According to Gerben, apparel retailers Urban Outfitters, Ralph Lauren, and Abercrombie & Fitch have also filed trademarks recently indicating their intent to open a virtual store. According to CB Insights, retailers and brands may make such ventures for several reasons, including the potential for bringing in new revenue streams.

Through the launch of NFTs, businesses can tokenize physical products and services to reduce online transaction costs, the company said. According to CB Insights, NFTs can serve as an authentication method for luxury brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton.

Retailers will develop their own ecosystems around the blockchain as consumers become more familiar with the metaverse and items stored on it, according to Gerben. Several retailers are still reeling from being late to e-commerce, so they don't want to miss out on the metaverse, according to Frank Chaparro, director of cryptoinformation services firm The Block.

"I think it's a win-win for any retailer," said Chaparro. "There isn't much reputation damage in just trying something out like giving some customers a NFT in a sweepstake, for instance, even if it turns out to be a fad." 

"They are filled with a lot of language, which shows that a lot of planning is going on behind the scenes about how they will deal with crypto, how they will deal with the metaverse, and how they will promote the virtual world that is either coming or is already here."

Josh Gerben An attorney

February 2022 | Volume 15

18

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

'Tornado Cash' Raises Money Laundering Concerns C

rypto.com decided to freeze withdrawals following a "security incident" that caused cryptocurrency prices to be routed by risk aversion.

In an announcement, the Singaporebased exchange said hackers had stolen at least $15 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) tokens and potentially as much as $33 million and promised to reimburse those affected. Crypto.com faulted some accounts for not using two-factor authentication during the breach but did not provide many other details.

Information security specialists and

amateur blockchain investigators on Twitter were already tracing the hacked funds. Almost half pointed to a noncustodial Decentralized Finance (DeFi) mixing service called Tornado Cash.

But the trail ends there. One of the few legal cryptocurrency mixing protocols that can obfuscate transaction histories is Tornado Cash (TORN), itself an intelligent contract token.

crypto ecosystem, they provide a way for criminals to launder money without being explicitly classified as money laundering. As a result, crypto proceeds are being washed in a way that alarms investors and law enforcement - already battling an increase in illicit activities in the sector amid a debate over how to regulate a booming digital coin movement.

Although hackers use blockchain mixing services, they are not necessarily illegal.

While mixers are part of the growing

In December, cryptocurrency washed from Bitmart, a cryptocurrency exchange, using Tornado Cash. Tornado Cash is based on zero-knowledge proof, says Victor Fang, CEO, and Founder of blockchain analytics firm Anchain AI. "This is advanced cryptography, MIT's Turing-awarded work, the highest award in computer science," said Fang, who chuckled in awe of the technology behind the protocol.

Anchain reports that Tornado Cash processed over $10 billion worth of crypto transactions last year, with an

February 2022 | Volume 15

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

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Crypto Weekly

The "blank check"

increasing number of criminal cases involving the protocol handled by Fang's firm. According to him, "Privacy is not a crime, but criminals actively seek out privacy solutions. What we've seen so far is only the tip of the iceberg, the beginning of future developments."

Loot worth billions is being laundered.

Digital coins are notoriously difficult to track, especially when money laundering. It is estimated that around 2-5% of global growth (roughly $2 trillion) is laundered in fiat currencies, but the figure is not regularly updated.

With crypto's market capitalization topping $1.7 trillion, experts say crime is a shrinking portion of those flows.

According to a Chainalysis report released Wednesday, the amount of blockchain-based loot being laundered is still $8.6 billion.

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At 0.15% of all sector transactions, crypto-based crime is still relatively low, reaching a record high of $14 billion.

Chainalysis tracked crypto money laundering for the past year, but funds from mixed services were not counted as illicit, says Chainalysis' research director Kim Grauer. The amount of laundered funds increased by 30% in 2021 compared to the previous year, indicating money sent from a crypto wallet marked as illicit. Funds were then transferred to another platform for trading, gambling, DFS, mixing, or other purposes.

It is only through "decades-long and hard-won investigations" into specific financial firms that Grauer has been able to track illicit flows. According to some, it could be made more accessible by using digital ledgers. Grauer said that there is no comparable data set to measure criminal activity in fiat currencies, so the cryptocurrency cannot be more effective at fighting crime. According to Chainalysis data, mixing services are still the destination of illicit crypto funds. Grauer has found that customers' funds sent from mixers can be a red flag in his conversations with compliance officers since mixing services send a lot of money to firms.

On January 24, 2022, the cryptocurrency Ethereum is shown next to a stock chart and a U.S. dollar. While algorithmic tools provide precise data, curbing crypto laundering requires coordination between law enforcement and private companies, which must be improved in the eyes of regulators. As a result of DeFi's boom, illicit wallet use has increased from 2% in 2020 to 17% over the past year, showing the sector's high theft rate. Stealing hot money continues to be a top priority for crypto exchanges, which received 47% of all illicit funds tracked over the last year because of scams. Criminals use cryptocurrency on- and off-ramps to convert their loot into less traceable cash, so blocking, or at least monitoring, these exit points is one way to stop illicit cryptoflows.

Regulators are seeking to bolster their surveillance and reach these critical junctures increasingly.

The U.S. Congress is considering legislation that would give the Treasury broad authority to prohibit or freeze digital assets, especially if they relate to foreign banking institutions, transactions, or if "one or more types of accounts are of primary money laundering concern." In a broader debate about crypto regulation, some market players see the provision as a "blank check" for regulators to muzzle the benefits of crypto. Although they both have U.S. subsidiaries, FTX and Binance, two of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, qualify as foreign banking institutions. Some argue that they may run afoul of Treasury's interpretation of that statute.

Law and Forensics attorney David Cass, a former crypto and stablecoin researcher at the Federal Reserve, says regulations are necessary for cryptocurrency to gain traction. Law and Forensics' cofounder Daniel Garrie believes Tornado Cash and other crypto mixers could have an impact on how regulators facilitate cooperation. "If you interact with them, then you cannot participate in the U.S. banking system," Garrie said. "But there are caveats." 

February 2022 | Volume 15

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Crypto Weekly

of the

week

NFT

Bitcoin Price Predictions 2022 (Media Compilations) Ryan Matta The rise of Bitcoin. Bitcoin started in 2009. Experts have Bitcoin price predictions of over $1,000,000 when we see Bitcoin rapid adoption take place. I have created real of the Media clips to help showcase how the Media try to manipulate the narratives of Bitcoin. I hope you enjoy the show.

February 2022 | Volume 15

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

agromatic

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22

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

The Metaverse Must Face These Legalities and Address Them A

new buzzword in technology seems to be "metaverse." Cyberspace is one way to describe the metaverse. As with the internet, it's a world - or reality beyond our physical world on Earth.

A version of ourselves can be immersed in a metaverse using augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), which people now and in the future will be able to access via tools such as virtual reality goggles. My first reaction is to be very excited, but I am inclined to ask: who or what governs the metaverse? My opinion is that several key areas of law are still a bit hazy at this point. Cryptocurrency and NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are the most common forms of payment in the metaverse. An NFT is a unique digital asset, such as an image, a piece of music, a video, a 3D object, or any other type of

February 2022 | Volume 15

creative work. In some cases, NFT sales are equivalent to millions of pounds.

Take care not to be misled. Seek advice from experts These types of transactions raise a number of interesting legal questions, even though it's difficult to determine whether they represent a trend or an innovative form of capital investment.

If you purchase a piece of art, property law states that you have dual ownership.

The first is ownership of the artwork.

Secondly, depending on the terms of the sale, the buyer may or may not own the intellectual property of the artwork.

How is ownership defined when it comes to a transaction involving digital art?

The Reed Smith law firm has stated that

metaverse ownership is nothing more than a form of licensing or provision of services. The buyer, for example, may not be able to sell the item without the permission of the valid owner. The true owner remains in these situations.

As a result, virtual real estate has also become an NFT, with individuals and companies spending considerable sums to own "property" in the metaverse.

Can land laws be applied to virtual properties? Is real-world legislation applicable to trespassers on private land in the metaverse? Does virtual property qualify for mortgages? Is real-world law applicable to trespassers on personal property in the metaverse?

It may also be possible for the metaverse to host a dark web marketplace like

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Crypto Weekly

In some instances, users may interact via their avatars to represent a violation of the law if it took place between people in the real world. Such an incident may result from a breach of tort law (covering civil claims such as negligence or nuisance) or criminal law (involving crimes such as assault, murder, burglary, or rape).

Silk Road, which deals in illegal drugs, weapons, and allegedly, "murder for hire."

Can laws be put in place in the metaverse to prevent this from happening? A global regulatory authority overseeing the metaverse would be ideal but would be challenging to implement.

The metaverse may also have legal ramifications relating to data and data protection. Our data will be exposed to new categories for processing in the metaverse. In the metaverse, an avatar could display facial expressions, gestures, and other types of reactions during interactions.

Metaverse data protection laws may include the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act. To ensure that user rights are protected, it may be necessary

to revise the processes for informed consent around data processing due to the novel nature of the metaverse.

There will be new types of personal data exposed due to interactions in the metaverse. Furthermore, given the "noboundaries" nature of the metaverse, while we may assume the GDPR will apply, the clauses dealing with data transfer and processing outside the EU may need clarification. When processing personal data, the GDPR is based on the location of the subject, not their home country or citizenship. Is it possible to determine the location based on the individual operating the avatar, or should we examine the avatar since the avatar's data will be processed? If the avatar is located in the metaverse, how can we determine what jurisdiction it belongs to?

Avatars are attacking each other. Is assault and battery law applicable here?

Can avatars be held accountable for their actions? Assigning a legal persona to the avatar, allowing them to sue or be sued, would be complicated because we need to attribute a legal persona to them. Avatars would be challenging to prove injured, lost, or harmed.

Moreover, proving assault or battery would be much more difficult due to "actual bodily harm" requirement. In the metaverse, there will naturally not be any bodily harm.

The metaverse is already populated with sexual predators who conceal their identities behind avatars that are hard to track down in the real world. For instance, groping has been reported.

Users in the metaverse can feel when they are touched or groped by wearing a haptic vest. It is not necessary to touch someone to be harassed. In VR and gaming, for example, can existing laws adequately address who is responsible for ensuring the safety of users? What is the responsibility of the VR and gaming industry with regards to user safety, for example?

As long as unscrupulous users know this is a grey area, sexual harassment issues will make their way into the metaverse.

Their belief that they cannot be held accountable for events occurring in the metaverse might encourage them to act in such a reckless manner.

To return to the question of legal person as of avatars, is a legal persona necessary for making avatars accountable in the metaverse? Are there any standards and criteria that need to be in place to distinguish between a "legal" avatar and its true legal operator? All of these questions need to be resolved before the metaverse becomes mainstream. 

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

February 2022 | Volume 15

24

NEWS Crypto Weekly

34 million in Ethereum Raised in 5 Days in WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange's Bid for Freedom

W

ikiLeaks founder Julian Assange continues to receive unbridled support from the community, making him one of the most controversial cases of press freedom. Since Assange awaits extradition, the same community has raised over $39 million to defend him.

AssangeDAO Since he released several hundred thousand secret American documents in 2010, Julian Assange's supporters have achieved something quite historic in the WikiLeaks investigation of Assange.

In the last five days, AssangeDAO raised over $39.2 million in cryptocurrency.

It describes itself as a way to restore Assange's freedom. Assange's DAO, which currently has raised about 12,682 Ethereum, is raising capital to bid on the upcoming NFTs. In collaboration with Julian Assange and digital artist Pak, 'Censored' is a series of NFTs. The NFT collection includes a 1/1 dynamic NFT as well as an open edition dynamic NFT on display at the auction. In an effort to raise ETH for the purchase of the 1/1 dynamic NFT,

AssangeDAO will use manifold.xyz smart contracts to create the NFT. The NFT will be auctioned via Pak's website to raise awareness of the implications of Assange's case for free speech. "We aim to develop a dedicated community and network that can aid in Assange's liberation."

A record-breaking event By borrowing from Free RossDAO, the

DAO primarily aims to raise capital for the purchase of Assange NFTs. They called it the 'new age of cypherpunk activism'.

Since the money raised has made AssangeDAO the largest JuiceBox DAO in history, surpassing the previous record held by Constitution DAO of 11,613 ETH in less than 6 days, JuiceBox DAO has managed to achieve its goal in many ways. 

North Korea Funds Weapons with Stolen Crypto, According to a Leaked UN Report During the past year, Pyongyang developed its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and cultivated revenue through cyberattacks, according to the report. According to the report, North Korean hackers stole over 50 million dollars from at least three cryptocurrency exchanges between 2020 and mid-2021.

U

sing cryptocurrency stolen through cyberattacks, North Korea funds its weapons program. This is reported in a leaked United Nations report.

February 2022 | Volume 15

In a report released last month, monitoring groups cited security firm Chainalysis as saying that North Korea had extracted almost 400 million

dollars worth of digital assets just the previous year. According to the report, Pyongyang's missile tests have increased in the past few years.

On Friday, the United States and others said North Korea had carried out nine ballistic missile launches in January. It was the most significant number in a single month in the country's weapons program history. North Korea has been subject to UN sanctions since 2006 to target funding for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. 

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Income Island Phase 1.5 METAVERSE January 2022

FORGET THE ROCKET, DON’T MISS THE BOAT!

incomeisland

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Crypto Weekly

PROJECT 1

nigels.io

NIGELS (NIGELS)

NigelsBSC

NigelsforNigels

The Nigel token is dedicated to those who have been scammed, or had their rug pulled in the crypto world. The Nigel project was created by ten crypto-enthusiastic friends who were scammed by a scammer they all knew as Nigel. After the carnage, they got together and decided to launch their own legitimate project and name the token after the person who brought them together under those unfortunate circumstances. Although it started out as a joke, the goal of the retributive campaign became to show that dedicated, transparent developers behind a simple and straightforward project can outperform con artists.

Nigel's is a community-driven token that aims to make the crypto space safer due to efforts made as a collective. The BSC space has become ubiquitously known for its scams. The Nigel community believes that the best way to mitigate scams or frauds is to educate new and inexperienced users through

PROJECT 2

adacash.io

Plans for the Future Nigels is beginning its media content journey with Radio Nigel's flagship production. Wielding the tools of a digital generation, the initial entry is coming to the podcast space. The first series, Nigelcast, highlights up-and-coming crypto projects and provides an engaging and enlightening experience.

Nigels plans on building an entire ecosystem of content and media with a strong focus on crypto safety education. The team believes that the first line of defense from being a scam victim is to be armed with knowledge.

ADAcsh (ADAcash)

adacashtoken

ADACash is the step forward in yield-generating contracts on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC). A revolutionary new token that earns you ADA reflections just for holding. On each transaction 10% is distributed between all holders as CARDANO every 60 minutes dependant on volume.

You receive rewards distributed in ADA rather than token reflections and the contract employs a static reward system. This allows rewards to extend outside of simply holding the coin as would a reflection-based coin operate.

February 2022 | Volume 15

engaging content. They all plan to work towards this goal by creating crypto educational media and content and highlighting legitimate crypto projects.

adacashbsc

ADACash’s Tokenomics:

Token supply of 100,000,000,000,000 ADACash

15% Buy and Sale Tax* • • •

10% ADA is redistributed among holders 2% is used to increase the liquidity pool.

3% is allocated towards funding the marketing wallet.

NOTE: you must hold 200,000,000 or more ADACash tokens to be eligible for the ADA dividends.

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Crypto Weekly

XRise

PROJECT 3

xrisecoin.com

XriseCoin

XriseCoin

With volatility as the main antagonist of mass crypto adoption, XRise is bringing a smart contract that offers a substantial amount of certainty to investors. The goal being to minimize risk and loss that all too often, troubles the BSC space. XRise does this by controlling the max sell limit on every transaction, nurturing exponential growth.

Purchases carry no upper limit, and laddering out (safely taking profits) is welcomed. If you invest $1,000, and you have a 500% increase, ($5,000), your day 1 withdrawal would be set at your initial investment, plus 10% of your profit, ($1,000+$400). Let’s say day 2 realizes a 200% profit, putting your remaining $3600 from day 1, at $7200. Your day 2 withdrawal limit would be 10% of your total holdings, ($720). As the process continues, investments and holdings continually grow, while sells have a much lesser impact on the chart.

Initial investment-$1,000 Day 1 (with a 500% increase)-$5,000 Profit-$4000 Day 1 withdrawal limit (Initial investment+10% of profit)=$1400 Remaining balance-$3600 Day 2 (with a 200% increase)-$7200 Day 2 withdrawal limit (10%)-$720 Brought to you by the powerhouse team at FudDoxx, XRise will launch on the Binance Smart Chain on February 14th and are accepting presale allocations on their Telegram channel.

FudDoxx will pay out their staking rewards in XRise, adding holders, and continually growing a consistent upward trajectory to the XRise token.

r

PROJECT 4

FuddoxxToken

FudDoxx Token (FDOX)

FudDoxx

FudDoxx

Building on security, FudDoxx offers a wide range of services to benefit the entire crypto space. The team has compiled a list of projects that have passed their extensive verification process. FudDoxx offers doxxing services to bridge the gap between investors and developers. The doxxing info received by the team is securely stored for use in the event that a project scams, and is proven as far as possible, then that information would be released to the public and authorities. FudDoxx Audit service goes beyond the detailed analysis of solidity code. Not only tearing apart the smart contracts, but their risk assessment factors in the audited projects vision, team, maturity, funding, and community.

name a few. The simple navigation process streamlines buying and selling digital art.

The FudDoxx team has also incorporated a beautiful, userfriendly NFT marketplace in their ecosystem, (see for yourself, FudCoinNFT.com), where you will find everything from pixelated images, audio, video, and unique sports memorabilia NFT's, to

FudDoxx Token (FDOX) launched on Binance Smart Chain with a total supply of 100 trillion and has 328 holders at the time of writing. A 12% tax is attached to every transaction which breaks down to 7% LP, 3% marketing in BNB, and 2% native reflections.

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Fuddoxx doesn't stop there!

Swap platform: Complete (Swap.FudDoxx.com) Staking and Farming platform: In development ICO launchpad: In development

With so many avenues for continual success in crypto, FudDoxx truly covers every base with their comprehensive suite of revenue-generating, and security, features.

February 2022 | Volume 15

28

BEGINNERS GUIDE Crypto Weekly

When it comes to cryptocurrency, most investors start by opening an account on an established exchange. Your trading style will determine which exchange is best for you. There is a suitable option for everyone, whether you are a new investor or a seasoned crypto trader with many transactions under your belt. We'll examine four of the more popular platforms for cryptocurrency trading.

Binance Binance is among the largest cryptocurrency exchanges globally, offering more than 500 cryptocurrencies, and is available in more than 180 countries. The reason for Binance's popularity is that it enables crypto traders to transact with virtually any alternative coin available on the market. It is possible to start trading crypto for as little as $1 on Binance.

accepts credit and debit cards, but it doesn't accept dollars for cryptocurrency. Users can purchase and sell more than 60 cryptocurrencies on Binance.us, a regulated U.S. cryptocurrency exchange.

Binance allows new cryptocurrency traders a straightforward experience. Still, it might be best suited for crypto day traders - the low fees, charting tools, and mobile app makes cryptocurrency trading easy and fast. The list of features above makes it clear why Binance has grown into one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. Binance

Binance has come under global regulatory scrutiny due to questions regarding its legal ability to operate in certain countries despite its popularity. Despite this, Binance is a powerful trading platform that offers several powerful tools for users to choose from if they wish to invest their money in digital currencies.

Coinbase There are many crypto exchanges out there, but Coinbase is one of the most popular. Since 2012, crypto traders have been using Coinbase for trading, and the crypto exchange only got better with time. For beginners, Coinbase is among the best cryptocurrency exchanges. Buying, selling, and storing cryptocurrencies on its platform is easy. Coinbase is a great place to stay up to date on new crypto projects and alternative coins and stay informed about what's new in the world of digital assets.

New traders will find Coinbase an excellent place to begin due to its easy-to-use interface and straightforward onboarding

February 2022 | Volume 15

process. Coinbase Pro, with advanced charting tools and cryptocurrency trading tools, caters to more experienced traders.

On Coinbase, users have access to hundreds of digital currencies and altcoins. Coinbase has drawbacks, including a higher cost than other cryptocurrency exchanges and limited payment options. Traders should be aware of high trading fees tacked onto their trades, part of Coinbase's muddled fee structure.

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Crypto Weekly

Gemini The Winklevoss twins founded Gemini in 2014, which quickly became one of the most respected names in cryptocurrency.

Security and compliance are top priorities at Gemini, a regulated cryptocurrency exchange. Although Gemini's namesake cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin and Ethereum, today, the exchange allows users to trade many more cryptocurrencies.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insures Gemini as a fiduciary. Therefore, security is of the utmost importance for Gemini. Gemini regularly undergoes banking exams and cybersecurity audits in a market that faces regulatory challenges. Safety is another reason for the popularity of Gemini. Almost all of the cryptocurrency on the exchange

is held in cold storage, and cryptocurrency held online in Gemini's exchange wallet is insured.

Power users are encouraged to trade more frequently, while first-time buyers have to pay a higher fee due to a sliding scale of fees based on how frequently they trade. The site itself is straightforward, but the mobile app isn't as intuitive as some of the competitors' apps, and one of the disadvantages is the inability to pay with debit cards or credit cards. Nonetheless, Gemini is an excellent option for those most concerned about safety and security.

kraken Since its founding in 2011, Kraken has established itself as a trustworthy, secure cryptocurrency exchange.

Kraken's Pro site is where it shines, as it has many features geared towards experienced traders. Power users are attracted to advanced tools such as margin trading and crypto futures, while others are drawn to staking coins. Bringing together crypto investors and institutional clients, Kraken can be used by many individuals.

When it comes to security measures, Kraken has a proprietary custody system. The company says 95% of all Kraken deposits are held in offline, air-gapped cold storage across multiple

geographies. Assets are only transferred online when users trade them or withdraw them from the platform.

The fees on Kraken are competitive with other cryptocurrency exchanges. Kraken's fee structure is volume-based, so if you trade more, then the fee will be lower. While the maker-taker fee system is confusing at best, users who aren't actively trading during a 30-day period often find themselves forking over more significant fees than they'd see elsewhere. Additionally, Kraken has experienced technical problems during periods of high market volatility.

Wrapping it up Each of the four exchanges has its advantages and disadvantages. Coinbase is an excellent place for first-time buyers because of its easy-to-use interface, while more experienced traders might prefer Gemini or Kraken. All four exchanges are secure, with advanced security measures to protect users' funds. Traders need to know what they're paying for fees on each exchange since they vary from one exchange to another. The four exchanges differ slightly in terms of features, but they are still excellent choices for those looking to trade cryptocurrencies.

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

February 2022 | Volume 14

30

NEWS Crypto Weekly

Technical Challenges of 'digital dollar' Solved!

Research is continuing by the US Federal Reserve into a "digital dollar," and a technical specification has been released. According to a new paper on the subject, researchers designed a system that can settle payments in under two seconds and can handle more than 1.7 million transactions per second without service interruptions.

The "Project Hamilton" research into a central bank digital currency (CBDC) was developed strictly to test the feasibility of a digital currency and not to give any recommendations as to whether the Fed should create one. The Digital Currency Initiative at MIT and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston developed it using the opensource research software OpenCBDC. The team said they aimed to solve the technical challenges of an CDBC while

February 2022 | Volume 15

making it flexible, depending on how policymakers decided to implement a digital currency. If it was ever adopted, it could allow people who lack bank accounts to gain financial services, while making cross-border payments easier and more secure. The work is still in the early stages, however, and issues like privacy and ease of exchange with foreign currencies still need to be studied.

The Federal of last year currencies.

China, have currencies.

Reserve announced in May that it would study digital Other nations, including already established digital

CBDCs are controlled by a central bank, which makes them more stable than cryptocurrencies, which can experience wild price swings over short periods

of time.The Fed published a study last month that outlined the pros and cons of a central bank currency. Congress and other policymakers determine whether the technology should be pursued, so the agency avoided taking a position.

Rather, it examined potential benefits and potential pitfalls. It said, on the one hand, that a digital currency could make financial services more accessible, but cautioned that it needs to protect privacy, guard against financial crimes and be resilient.

Researchers have also open-sourced the code for the platform to gain public feedback. "The decision whether or how to adopt a central bank payment system for the United States still faces many challenges," said MIT's Digital Currency Initiative director Neha Narula. 

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FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Understanding Zero Collateral DeFi Loans and the Risks Involved R

ecently, cryptocurrency has taken center stage in the global financial market, especially with the advancement of decentralized finance (DeFi) and crypto loans. Numerous independent financial platforms offer various types of crypto loan services today, which greatly benefit both borrowers and lenders.

In the DeFi ecosystem, flash loans have recently gained popularity as one of several loan services. Flash loans are uncollateralized loans with the

February 2022 | Volume 15

expectation that they will be repaid in full with interest as compensation.

Since flash loans must be used within a trading window, borrowers can benefit from arbitrage opportunities fast, unlike other types of loans. Within a short trading window, the borrowed funds from a flash loan can be used to purchase a crypto asset, sell it, and then pay back the loan along with interest.

How is that possible? Perhaps you're wondering. The whole lending and

returning process occurs in one transaction on the blockchain by using a host chain's smart contract. Hence, it is called a 'flash loan' since the borrower has to repay the loan before the transaction is complete.

When the lender defaults, the transaction is annulled as if nothing happened. Platforms like Aave have issued half a billion dollars in flash loans in the nine months since launching the function.

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Crypto Weekly

What is the purpose of flash loans?

Both lenders and borrowers benefit from the use of flash loans in some fundamental ways.

1

By taking advantage of arbitrage opportunities, you can boost your profits with flash loans. A stock, commodity, or currency can be bought in one market at a certain price while simultaneously being sold in another market at a higher price.

2

Using collateral swaps: A collateral swap lets you exchange one type of collateral for another for the security of a loan.

3

Reduction of transaction fees: In some cases, flash loans combine several transactions into a single transaction, thereby reducing transaction fees.

Security risks are associated with flash loans Due to their popularity in the DeFi ecosystem, flash loans have become a target for cyber attacks. Lenders traditionally face two types of risk: default risk and illiquidity risk; however, flash loans mitigate both risks because you can borrow any amount as long as it is repaid in a single automated transaction. Flash loans, however, pose an even greater risk.

Cyberthieves can use flash loan attacks to manipulate the market to gain an advantage by taking out loans through lending protocols. DeFi's rise to fame in 2020 has led to these types of attacks steadily making headlines since, and they appear to be becoming more prevalent in 2021, causing several Contd.

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

February 2022 | Volume 15

34

NEWS Crypto Weekly

hundred million dollars in losses to date. Over 70 DeFi exploits have resulted in around $1.5 billion being stolen.

The PancakeBunny website was hacked in May 2021. A hacker stole $45 million and crashed the price of BUNNY tokens 96%, from $220 to around $10 within a day.

There are some hack-proof systems bearing fruit...

DeFi platforms have made some notable improvements in security despite the increasing rate of flash loan hacks.

OpenZeppelin and other cryptocurrency cybersecurity firms like it use smart contract auditing capabilities to protect leading crypto organisations from flash loan

February 2022 | Volume 15

attacks. Nonetheless, there is a need for more developers to be active in the field of cryptocurrency and smart contract cybersecurity. OpenZeppelin has been helpful in numerous ways, despite its small size.

Flash loans have made an impression on the financial market that cannot be easily forgotten. In the emerging financial system, the concept of uncollateralised loans is without doubt a game changer. Ultimately, developers are now, more than ever, tasked to developing better smart contracts, and deploy more security tools into the DeFi systems in order to further mitigate and possibly eradicate flash loan attacks. 

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

Manifest Performance indicators, balance sheets and regulator guidelines are not the most appealing things to hear about in crypto, but it's necessary for us to operate correctly. Bouncing off of that, there is a certain appeal to a crypto that has its ducks in a row. Countless projects are removing general quality and value from their project and replacing it with marketing and high spirits. We are happy to get people pumped up about crypto, but it has to be done the correct way. For example, you want to tell people key things of what to look for when considering their vote of confidence in that particular crypto. Who is the team? Previous quality projects completed? Are they purely marketing? Is the use case frantically thought of or flimsy? Does the team have a vision of expansion in the future? Does the project rely on people's addiction?

Of course, this isn’t financial advice, but we feel you should have a checklist that you are checking off when you inspect a project. This can be as vast as you want it to be and ultimately can be tuned to your liking. This can be personal auditing procedures or standardized trading strategies. These steps take time to curate correctly and can benefit the user greatly. A simple checklist. Of course you can bend your own rules, but these rules protect you from overvalued and hollow projects. The goal of most of the projects we currently see is short term, under established and widely false. Crypto is fast, this doesn't mean you can forget the key factors of a trade and fundamentals of crypto. Never mistake a tax on a taxation token as a use case or utility.

All that brewing has ultimately led to the market's sour taste and low level mentality. The key to leveling the playing field is a short and sweet one, actually educating people on crypto. A lot of projects will detest what we have to say about them in a formal audit. We have decided to audit any project or firm that audits us, to help people better understand the process. As we pay for more intense auditing services, we can perform even deeper audits of these projects. Meaning, we will bring you the truth. This is going to make us naturally unpopular, we are crypto veterans, we will be alright. We buy the dip!

In summary, don't trust us, or anyone else until you know their tokenomics and team. This is the most basic level of understanding the project. Please make efforts to learn more about the cryptocurrency space overall. We will be in the telegram often to answer people's questions. We don't allow posting of other projects in the group, but if you bring your checklist to us, we can help refine that with you.

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