Crypto Weekly 7/03/2022

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

HIDDEN GEMS

CRYPTO Economic Sanctions will they work?

ETH Testnet Years Ahead

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Page 26

BEGINNERS GUIDE

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WEEKLY $2 cryptoweeklymag.com March 2022 | Volume 17

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Ukraine Emergency Relief Page 04 Scam Avoidance Techniques Page 05 Metaverse Rural Page 08 Land Boom Wealthier Crypto Page 10 Investors The April BTC Update

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NFT War Bonds Page 16

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CONTENTS $2 cryptoweeklymag.com march 2022 | Volume 17

01

Testnet Upgrade for Ethereum - And It's Years Ahead of Schedule

02

What to do with Metaverse Real Estate

04

Emergency Relief Fund Established by Binance with $10 million Donated to Ukraine

05

Avoiding Potential Scams With Crypto Scammers

08

Investments in virtual land are booming as investors close multimillion-dollar deals

10

Crypto Investors Prove Wealthier than Traditional Investors

12

Exactly what is an IDO (Initial DEX Offering)?

14

Bitcoin Core could be updated again in April

16

NFTs Become Modern-Day War Bonds as the Crypto Community Rallies Around Ukrain

18

Policy Makers Raise Alarms & the Crypto Industry says it is Following Russian Sanctions

20

Video of th Week

22

CMC Coin is Uniquely Qualified for Real Use and Long-Term Growth

24

In light of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, some questions have been raised about crypto

26

Hidden Gems

28

Chinese Student Lost $548,000 After Clicking a Scam Link

30

Here's How Companies Plan to Use the Metaverse

CRYPTOWEEKLY CEO Nathan Hill

LETTER FROM

THE EDITOR

nathan@cryptoweeklymag.com Publisher: Colin Woolley Colin@cryptoweeklymag.com

Welcome to Crypto Weekly

H

Editor: Robert Stone Editor@cryptoweeklymag.com Editorial: Anthony Burton

ello and a warm welcome to the 17th issue of Crypto Weekly.

Crypto Weekly is the brainchild of the guys at CMC and I am Rob Stone, Editor, and I hope to bring you an informative read on everything crypto, every week of the year.

Editorial@cryptoweeklymag.com Director of Advertising and Corporate Relations: Philip Greenwood philip@cryptoweeklymag.com Design: Dilin Divan Web: Bill Trevor

Crypto Weekly Magazine is published by the Crypto Marketing Company 71-75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London, United Kingdom, WC2H 9JQ

When I entered the blockchain revolution back in 2011, amid the isolation of the North Nevada Range where I worked as a Buckaroo for the Spanish Ranch, it was out of necessity that I find a better way to make a living than from the back of a horse. I knew that the computer in the back of the chuckwagon we used to talk to the main ranch could take me somewhere and I also knew that I would not have to go somewhere else to do it if I didn't want to. It represented freedom of place. I was getting to be old and old cowboys don’t last so well. My back was getting to me from all that chopping wood and carrying water.

Here I am now all propped up in a comfy chair, a laptop in my lap, and a huge cup of coffee on the table beside me writing this letter to all of you. Now, I call this a way to make a living in style. Don`t have to put my body through all the stuff a hardworking man usually does to make a living. I love this job too, doing my part in the blockchain revolution that can only be called the inevitable future of world finance. I feel incredibly fortunate to be an active participant in changing the world for the better. This publication has given me the outlet to share ideas that people would have thought were crazy to have only a decade ago. Cryptocurrency is for action takers and people who believe in the future.

My colleagues and I are proud to serve all of you as curators of the best information we know how to dig up to give you what you need to keep abreast of the industry's most recent developments. We will explore how cryptocurrency and blockchain technology is solving some of the most significant issues of our time. We will discuss smart contracts, decentralization, IDOs, ICOs, and DeFi, along with the regulatory environments that rule them. We will cover the top crypto influencers in social media and teach you, as they say, how to DYODD "do your own due diligence." Every week we cover newsworthy moments happening in the space. We will talk about exchanges and platforms, and wallets. We will have a section to feature NFT's and another to cover undiscovered gems. Crypto Weekly will address all your questions. If you're new to crypto, we're here for you, no matter what level of understanding you have. Hold onto your hats and welcome to crypto. You are in for a wild ride!

So without further ado, it’s time to turn the page but please let us know your thoughts and if you would like to see something featured please do get in touch. editor@cryptoweeklymag.com

Follow Me

Stay Connected Robert Stone Editor

March 2022 | Volume 17

shaketheweb

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NEWS

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Crypto Weekly

Testnet Upgrade for Ethereum And It's Years Ahead of Schedule I

n an unexpected development yesterday, zkSync, a protocol that implements Ethereum scaling platforms, announced the release of its ZeroKnowledge rollup (zkEVM) compatibility with Ethereum Virtual Machines years ahead of schedule.

In addition to setting the rules for the chain from block to block, it is also where Ethereum wallets and contracts reside. As the first implementation of the Zero-Knowledge rollup that can run the full Ethereum environment, the new test network will provide a great insight into how well Zero-Knowledge can scale blockchains.

Ethereum's base layer has been scaled in two ways over the past few years, Optimistic and Zero-Knowledge. Both technologies have seen some adoption, with Arbitrum being the most notable Optimistic chain and DyDx utilizing ZK technology to enable leveraged trading.

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ZK rollups have traditionally offered a single type of application per chain as the Ethereum environment, which offers customizable smart contracts, is too computationally intensive.

Until now, trade-offs favored Optimism and Arbitrum; now, zkSync offers a fair playing field. Users who use Optimistic rollups can use applications from NFT marketplaces like OpenSea to lending protocols like Aave on the mainnet in one composable environment. With zkEVM, users would have a similar enduser experience, with lower transaction fees and nearly immediate finality, eliminating the need for the two-week withdrawal periods associated with Optimistic rollups.

The computing requirements of these methods are more significant, and nodes must solve zero-knowledge validity checks. Still, they can post network state to Ethereum for a fraction of the cost

of even Optimistic rollups. According to L2Fees.Info, transaction fees on Loopring and zkSync are 1/200th of what they are on the mainnet. Ethereum users pay over $90 per trade on a decentralized exchange, while Loopring and zkSync users pay between $0.45 and $0.68.

The scaling issues associated with Ethereum may be alleviated earlier than anticipated if zkEVM can offer fees similar to other ZK rollups. Scaling blockchains requires lower transaction fees, but only if the chain can host applications that drive user demand.

Ethereum native applications will port over Solidity-based contracts and provide a full range of services in a low-fee environment backed by Ethereum's security. As such, zkEVM will theoretically be able to host the industry's favorite applications without sacrificing liquidity, decentralization, or product offerings. 

March 2022 | Volume 17

2

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

What to do with

Metaverse Real Estate

F

or their virtual properties, many Metaverse landowners choose to buy and hold. Nevertheless, they lose out on the opportunity to earn additional income from the property. You can capture even more value if you rent out your land (or a structure you build there).

You can purchase Metaverse land and keep it until you want to sell it. Wouldn't it be great if you could also earn rental income while you wait for its growth?

There is a lot of information telling people to buy Metaverse real estate, but what happens once you own it?

Investing in the Metaverse may be a smart move for all kinds of real estate

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investors. However, if you don't plan to put that real estate to some use, you may have to wait a long time before it pays off.

As opposed to buying and holding your virtual real estate and waiting for a buyer, renting it could generate income right away. Many businesses are already looking for a way to get a foot in the door in their preferred Metaverse platform but may not be ready to invest fully.

This is where your role as a landlord in the Metaverse comes in. You can still hold onto your land and wait for it to appreciate (or hope that the next Snoop Dogg will move next door!), but letting it lie fallow hinders it from achieving its full potential as an investment.

Decide what you want to rent.

You already know what you're planning to rent out, whether it's empty land, a structure, or a billboard space if you planned your Metaverse land purchase carefully.

Maybe you didn't get that far before jumping on a piece of land you thought was a great deal and that you were willing to take a chance on.

You have the opportunity to shine. Make your land valuable before renting it. While raw land is an excellent option, offering the land with structure might make more sense if you have land in a prime location. It's generally your responsibility to construct and maintain billboards.

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Many businesses are already looking for a way to get a foot in the door in their preferred Metaverse platform but may not be ready to invest fully.

Find a renter Finding a renter for your land can be challenging if you're going it alone. A Metaverse real estate agent may be able to assist you in properly valuing your property and locating renters who are interested in renting your virtual property.

Depending on the platform you are using, there may also be sites to list rentals, such as Decentraland's property listing site, Double. They also provide added conveniences, such as the ability to complete a transaction within the platform, that can be used in

conjunction with traditional methods of finding tenants.

Signs on your land are essential, so don't overlook them. Your Metaverse property can be advertised as "For Rent" so that renters can apply online or complete the rental process.

Execute the rental agreement.

Most Metaverse rentals are rented for a few days or weeks rather than year after year. Having this in mind is extremely important when setting up a rental contract for your virtual real estate since competing contracts will offer daily and

weekly rates. Since virtual real estate rental platforms are still in their infancy, you may want to build your contract around the standard lease. Still, smart contracts on the Ethereum network are also popular choices if you're going to be ahead of the pack.

You can specify the length of time for the contract, the amount of rent due, and the due date with a smart contract.

Upon execution of the contract, it runs automatically and collects rent without your intervention. Tenants who do not pay their rent on time can be evicted using several Metaverse landlording tools.

Now it's time to use the Metaverse real estate you just bought!

A Metaverse property owner who waits for their property to appreciate misses out on the opportunity to make money from their property. Find a Metaverse renter, so you don't have to leave your money on the table.

There is nothing more rewarding than putting your property to work for you while you have it, whether it is a wellknown business, a budding entrepreneur looking for a place to set up shop, or just someone who needs to advertise on a billboard. 

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March 2022 | Volume 17

4

NEWS Crypto Weekly

Emergency Relief Fund Established by Binance with $10 million Donated to Ukraine T

he international community has continued to support Ukraine after Russia's invasion. Even cryptocurrency makers were not idle. Experts from every sector began to worry about worse cases following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Cybersecurity experts, for example, began speculating about the possibility of a global cyberwar. Binance, among the world's largest crypto exchanges by volume, has donated $10 million to Ukraine.

There is also an emergency fund set up to assist the country. CEO CZ wrote on Twitter, "Our goal is to provide support on the ground. NGOs and U.N. agencies are receiving US $10 million as part of our humanitarian response to the crisis in Russia and Ukraine. People matter to us."

Support for Ukraine from the crypto industry Binance has launched the Ukraine Emergency Fund, raising $6 million.

The Ukrainian Relief Fund was set up to help those affected by recent natural disasters and violence in the country.

Following the Russian war crisis, FTX's founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, donated 25 dollars worth of cryptocurrency to each user in Ukraine.

Yet another rival, FTX.US, does not offer as many crypto options as you will find on regular F.X. platforms around the world.

The Bahamas' FTX cryptocurrency exchange provides advanced trading options, such as margin trading and futures trading. U.S. residents cannot access them because U.S. laws prevent them from operating within their own country. To help fund this cause, Chain. com CEO Deepak Thapliyal donated 100 ETH (approximately $278,000). In a comment to BuzzFeed News, Deepak Thapliyal said, "I felt compelled to help when I discovered the Ukrainian government had requested donations in the form of crypto. In order to help those in need, I hope the local government will use Bitcoin donations as soon as possible since they are borderless and near-instant." Ethereum inventor and founder, Vitalik Buterin, expressed his support for Ukraine. Recently, he tweeted "Victory for Ukraine."

Donations To Ukraine Ukraine is a leader in blockchain innovation. As a result of the nation's embrace of cryptocurrencies, it is one of the only countries where Bitcoin and other digital currencies can be traded legally without fear of taxation.

This, combined with the nation's low currency exchange rates and the fact that skilled engineers are developing security protocols, will allow the country to be among the first to develop modern technology.

The official Twitter account of Ukraine, just days after Russia occupied it, asked for cryptocurrency donations. Ukraine's Vice Prime Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, sincerely appealed for assistance. Mr. Fedorov called on the public to support the nation. There is increasing evidence that Russia has invaded Ukraine to install a puppet government. Russian troops have already entered Kyiv, posing a threat to the democratically elected government. Citizens might be deprived of more freedom than ever before. 

Crypto Weekly is also sponsoring a Donation drive for Ukraine Thank you to those of you who are willing to support the people of Ukraine. Here's to making a difference! #AltcoinsMakeaDifference Please send donations to these official and verified addresses: Please send BSC donations to: 0xD6C66FD8f1Bb9fab8Ab5Dbbf9F91939CEB5343FE Please send ETH donations to: 0x3116f6581f54Df700EA792dA508bdDD644Fdb48E

March 2022 | Volume 17

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Avoiding Potential Scams

With Crypto Scammers I

n a project involving cryptocurrencies, this warning rings true, and it comes from developers and admins in chats like Telegram, and it should be taken very seriously. "I will not DM first!"

In light of the elaborate scams being committed in crypto investments, we must take measures to prevent inviting scammers into our circle of trust. One

way to avoid this is to never respond to a developer unless they announce it first in the main chat.

Now, why is a developer reaching out to you necessarily a bad thing? In most cases, it's not, but when the developer is a scammer posing as a developer, it opens you up to all sorts of financial threats. I have personally seen this act

occur where a simple plight for help in the main chat of a Telegram group resulted in an admin member reaching out to offer some assistance. In most everyday situations, you would welcome the help, but when they are not a team member, and their sole purpose in life is to steal your money, you can only imagine the result if you do not keep your wits about you.

A well-planned scammer will always start by letting you know who they are, "this is the active admin," "how may I help you?" Now you will be feeling a sense of relief that someone is willing to help you out in your time of need.

Still, it is at this point you really should be asking why they have contacted me personally and not tried to help in the main chat. If you make the rash decision to take up a conversation with the socalled admin, you need to start to watch out for key signs that they are trying to steal from you, and the first is if they

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settled in as the market was shifting quite quickly then. He needed to hurry to maximize his results. Still, in the end, this is what can cause you to lose focus, when in fact, this is the time to be more aware and alert while we are amongst these scammers that are always looking for their next victim.

A well-planned scammer will always start by letting you know who they are, "this is the active admin," "how may I help you?"

begin to talk to you about your wallet, and its validation.

There should be absolutely no need for any validation of any sort if you are using Pancake Swap or Uniswap. For example, these Dex do not need anything more than your wallet to be connected, which you can take care of. It clearly shows if you are connected or not. If you are using a Cex, then if you are in your private wallet and are connected, once again, no need for any so-called validation. Then we move on to the most critical rule everyone should know, "you never give out your seed phrase!" Now, if you are not familiar with what a seed phrase is, then I suggest you take some time to do some research to find out how crucial it is to your investments and being able to keep them safe.

Not that the whole experience was bad enough to lose all his money in the blink of an eye, he was told by the scammer that the problem would be fixed, so he then thanked the scammer for his help only to receive a thumbs-up emoji. After discovering all his tokens were gone, he reached out for an explanation to only receive silence.

balance of zero. He lost around $20k in a few minutes, highlighting how quickly these fraudulent people are once they have the keys to access your vital information. Now I know there will be people reading this and thinking how stupid that guy was to hand over his phrase. Still, in the heat of the moment and a lack of knowledge, this person was not thinking straight and just wanted to resolve a problem that, in the end, turned out to be nothing more than the network lagging. It's also safe to say that FOMO (fear of missing out) had also

We all work hard to build our portfolios, and to have them ripped from underneath our noses cuts even more deeply, even more so than if you had made a bad trade or the market dives. It's an elaborate scam that is quite effective to the untrained eye, made even more challenging to spot when they use the same logos and names as the legitimate team. So my advice would be to ask your questions in the main chat and wait for a response from someone in the main chat. Do not wait for someone from the team to reach out to you for "I WILL NOT DM FIRST." 

The seed phrase should never be brought up in any conversation with anyone. There is just no need for that to be mentioned at all unless you have ulterior motives. Unfortunately, for my friend and his lack of knowledge and language breakdown, he was convinced, relatively easy, to hand over his seed phrase in the hope that his new 'knight in shining armor' would help fix a simple problem. But there was to be no help, only for him to become a victim of a scam.

Within seconds of this person receiving the seed phrase, his entire wallet was drained of all his tokens, leaving him a

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March 2022 | Volume 17

8

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Investments in virtual land are booming as investors close multimillion-dollar deals It was only a matter of time before digital assets in existing Metaverses began commanding seven-figure prices.

Millions of dollars spent on a single digital property were laughable a few years ago. Not anymore. Virtual properties are still available for purchase by corporate and individual investors. Several asset management companies and investors have spent millions of dollars buying land they won't touch over the last few months! Nothing indicates that the trend will be slowing.

Buying virtual land with real money.

In 2021, $500 million worth of virtual land was sold. Sales increased tenfold between January 2021 and January 2022.

This is just the beginning, according to

March 2022 | Volume 17

Brand Essence. According to a report, the Metaverse market value is expected to reach $209 billion in 2022. By 2027, that number should rise to just over $700 billion. The growth rate should be 23 percent. A number of companies have spent millions of dollars on virtual land in the last three months. Tokens. com purchased land in Decentraland's fashion district for $2.5 million in midNovember 2021, making it one of the largest virtual land purchases ever.

A few weeks later, Republic Realm, a Metaverse developer, paid $4.28 million for 792 parcels of land (roughly 1,200 city blocks) in Sandbox. Together with Atari's giant game developer, Republic Realm intends to develop Fantasy Islands, a high-end real estate project complete with a fully-occupied shopping mall.

This company plans to build 100 islands for $300,000 each, which will generate about $30 million in sales. A 96 square meter plot of land on any Metaverse platform costs $11,000 despite the fact that the same piece of virtual land was available for approximately $1,000 in March of 2021.

Why is the virtual land business booming?

On the 28th of October, 2021, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook's parent company would be renamed, Meta.

Under the new brand, the giant would operate all of its apps and technologies.

Additionally, the company will invest $150 million in immersive learning to help creators learn how to create the Metaverse. This virtual world allows

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Crypto Weekly

people to interact just as they would in the real world but with greater flexibility.

We're currently witnessing a lot of hype in the virtual world as a result of this announcement. Due to companies such as Facebook showing interest in the Metaverse, investors can't help but get into the game while there is still enough land to go around. The increasing popularity of virtual land is also due to NFT's popularity, security and transparency, blockchain technology, and the development of Metaverses.

These digital spaces have also benefited from celebrity partnerships with Metaverses. In a section of Sandbox, Snoop Dogg has built a virtual mansion.

An NFT collector bought Snoop Dogg's plot for $450,000 late last year. These deals are also causing FOMO, which is driving the virtual land price spike.

Is there enough virtual land to go around in the Metaverse?

As Facebook changed its name to Meta, the current demand for virtual land increased by the limited amount of land on different Metaverse platforms. There will only ever be a limited number of lands in two of the biggest and most popular Metaverses, Sandbox and Decentraland. Only 166,464 Lands will ever be available in Sandbox. Price increases are likely to follow a decrease

in the number of pieces available. Those who don't purchase quickly will likely miss out. The number of available plots of land in Decentraland is limited to 90,601.

MetaDojo presented a project in January to help early Metaverse startups find financially and technically feasible solutions for starting businesses.

Despite their apparent large number, approximately 123,840 Sandbox plots are available for sale, of which 23,000 have been sold. Not all of these numbers are available. Sandbox will retain about 26% of its public land for special events (10%) and reward its players, partners, and creators (16%). These are more accessible options for regular investors

Tokens.com purchased land in Decentraland's fashion district for $2.5 million in midNovember 2021, making it one of the largest virtual land purchases ever. if you're interested in investing in virtual land.

They provide ready-made premises and infrastructure that can accelerate the growth of businesses in the Metaverse.

Holding such tokens offers investors an investment incentive, as well as new opportunities, such as Play-to-Earn and creator economies.

What the Future Holds.

Metaverse investments and developments are a good indicator of where experts expect the market to go.

Even though investing in virtual land is risky, recent trends point to even faster growth in the next few years.

The number of companies investing in virtual reality, such as Facebook, Google, and Apple, will increase the demand for these virtual spaces. The top investment and development platforms are Sandbox, Decentraland, and Somnium Space. Though each is tailored to a specific protocol and functions in a particular way, the goal is convergent — to build a social network based on 3D digital worlds. 

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March 2022 | Volume 17

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FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Crypto Investors Prove Wealthier than Traditional Investors We should consider how vast wealth created in cryptocurrencies filters through the rest of the economy.

Millions of dollars have been spent on Super Bowl ads by cryptocurrency companies. It's harder to estimate how much cryptocurrency investors spent on game day. Several trillions of dollars have been created in cryptocurrencies, which now have a value of nearly $2 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap. Although that pales in comparison to other asset classes, it has risen rapidly.

According to FactSet, the crypto market value rose nearly $1.5 trillion last year, compared with nearly $9 trillion for the S&P 500. In some key ways, crypto wealth may be harder to spend than gains from

March 2022 | Volume 17

stock or house price increases, making its impact on the overall economy harder to predict. We need to start thinking about how that wealth filters through the rest of the economy. Now, some crypto wealth might be making its way into daily spending. Cryptocurrency is currently only accepted directly by a few merchants, but companies like Coinbase Global COIN -6.90% and PayPal Holdings PYPL -1.41% make it possible to pay with it using conventional methods.

The funds come from crypto holdings and can be used to fund cards or digital wallets. Visa's crypto-linked debit cards processed about $6 billion in payments

between October 2020 and the end of 2021. Although that sounds significant, it is still just a drop in the ocean at the moment. Visa debited over $1 trillion last year.

While the SEC hasn't taken action against big crypto exchanges, it has threatened to sue companies that offer crypto loans. As described by Dion Rabouin, this particular component of the crypto market has received such a strong reaction.

It's like selling crypto for tax purposes when you spend crypto in the United

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States. Additionally, it may be anathema to long-term believers who believe prices will ultimately rise greatly. You may recall the cautionary tale of the man who paid 10,000 Bitcoins for two Papa John's pizzas in 2010; those coins are now worth over $400 million.

Stock portfolios can be sold without a sale if the wealthy get low-interest loans secured by their investments in the form of "buy, borrow, die" maneuvers. Securing loans via crypto is also becoming a trend. Crypto-backed lending is offered by several firms and DeFi applications. Bitcoin can be used as collateral for home loans through Milo Credit, for example.

Some crypto-entrepreneurs are making their presence known in the high-end real estate market by owning crypto or starting crypto businesses. Anyone attempting to get a mortgage that is eligible for Freddie Mac's guarantee might struggle with their crypto wealth.

The mortgage giant announced last year that income paid in crypto could not be counted against mortgage qualifications.

As for cryptocurrency assets, they can't be used in the same way as stock dividends as a source of income or repayment. Furthermore, even if you borrowed dollars against your crypto, those obligations would have to be factored into your debt-to-income ratio. Loans secured by salable noncrypto assets, on the other hand, do not need to be included.

The conversion of cryptocurrency into fiat currency can be done at will. In the fourth quarter, about 12% of first-time home buyers surveyed by brokerage Redfin said selling crypto investments helped with down payments. In a thirdquarter 2019 survey, fewer than 5% of respondents said the same.

In response to rising mortgage rates, Rick Palacios Jr., director of research at John Burns Real Estate Consulting, predicts that more lenders may consider crypto as part of a borrower's assets. “By accounting for a portion of a crypto portfolio just like a 401(k) retirement account, it might be possible to expand the pool of people that can be underwritten without going further into the risk range,” he says.

There is also a possibility of recycling some crypto wealth within the digital ecosystem. Some investors in the asset class may not be eager to convert their money into fiat currency. It is possible that they will take out loans against their existing holdings to buy coins or spend crypto on nonfungible tokens, or NFTs. If they cash out their earnings, people selling or minting NFTs might consider this a traditional source of income.

At least $44 billion worth of cryptocurrency was sent to contracts related to NFT marketplaces and collections in 2021, according to Chainalysis. Despite its popularity, that's still a fraction of the crypto wealth that has grown in recent years.A person

who has gained significant wealth in the digital realm may also spend more today simply because they feel richer or expect to be able to use crypto more readily in the future. Additionally, many investors are likely to be investing more discretionary funds in crypto. Their traditional retirement savings might have a greater propensity to be spent or leveraged than the gains from their investments.

Whether or not you think it is really money, we are now talking about real money. Crypto is starting to matter even to people who have never bought a cent of digital tokens. Investors and economic observers should be watching as closely as they do a splashy TV commercial. 

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March 2022 | Volume 17

12

BEGINNERS GUIDE Crypto Weekly

Exactly what is an IDO (Initial DEX Offering)?

The use of DEXs (Decentralized Exchanges) allows for the exchange of cryptocurrency tokens in an IDO. Liquidity pools (LP) play a critical role in IDOs by providing liquidity following the sale. IDO users can lock funds in exchange for new tokens when a token generation event occurs. With the new token, some of the funds raised are added to the LP, which is later returned to the project. IDOs allow projects to easily and inexpensively distribute their tokens.

A portion of the funds raised is used to create a liquidity pool for the project's token. The remaining funds go to the project team. Tokens will be available for trading after the token generating event. Liquidity is typically locked for a certain period of time.

The tokens are transferred to the user at the token generating event, and the LP opens for trading.

What are some pros of an IDO? 1.

Post-sale liquidity provided immediately. IDOs will lock up some of the funds raised in liquidity pools to create a liquid market post-sale. By doing so, slippage and volatility are minimized.

2.

No registration is required. No personal details are required to

A

n IDO's structure depends on the DEX that runs it, but there are a few common approaches: Following a vetting process, a project is accepted to run an IDO on a DEX. Tokens are offered at a fixed price, and users lock their funds in exchange for the tokens. Once tokens are generated, they will be transferred to investors.

In most cases, there is a whitelist of investors. You may need to complete marketing tasks or provide your wallet address to join the list.

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Tips to keep yourself safe when participating in an IDO. If you want to keep yourself as safe as possible when investing in an IDO, here are some easy, practical tips: • Make sure you signup using the correct link. Scammers create fake IDO subscription pages to capitalize on the event's excitement and hype. If you transfer it to a scam page, your crypto will be permanently lost.

participate in the sale, and only a wallet and funds are needed. This makes the sale (potentially) accessible to everyone.

• Make use of a trusted DEX Launchpad. IDOs can be launched on many trustworthy DEXs, like PancakeSwap. Using a trusted launchpad gives you the best chance of receiving your tokens after the sale.

3.

Projects can be funded quickly and affordably through IDOs. In most cases, launching a token through a DEX is easier and cheaper than using a centralized exchange.

4.

Many IDOs enact anti-whale measures, which prevent large numbers of tokens from being purchased by a single investor.

What are some cons of an IDO? 1. Lots of potential for scams. Because there is so much demand for IDOs, scam artists can set up seemingly realistic-looking projects quickly and with little effort.

2.

Price jumps at the launch of the IDO. As soon as the first person buys a token, its price rises. As the demand increases, so does the price. The value of a token increases before many investors have the opportunity to purchase it at the initial price.

3. Potential for price manipulation. IDOs are also susceptible to pump and dump schemes. Some traders may use a trading bot to stockpile tokens at a low cost at the start and sell them after the price has risen enough for them to make a significant profit.

• DYOR. Does it come from a well-known and trusted company? How will the funds raised be invested? Has a product already been developed? The answers to questions like these can help you avoid being scammed.

• Review the IDO terms and conditions. In some cases, the tokens can take a while to arrive or be locked for a set time period. There are practically no limits to what can be done depending on the tokenomics of the project, and you should understand them thoroughly.

Like any investment, you might make, only invest what you can afford to lose. Cryptocurrency launches, like IDOs, are notorious for their volatility. While you may be tempted to buy more than you can afford, try to keep a level head. Even having conducted a lot of research, there is still a chance that you could fall victim to a scam or rug pull. 

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

March 2022 | Volume 17

14

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Bitcoin Core could be updated again in April S

ince it was launched in 2009, Bitcoin has undergone numerous upgrades and changes. The Taproot upgrade was the most recently implemented and significant upgrade on its network in the past four years. Now, yet again, there are speculations that Bitcoin Core might see its next major release around April as the first RC version (v23) is released on Github.

Update on Bitcoin Core Apart from the Github announcement, little is known about the upcoming major release. Colin Wu pointed out recently that Bitcoin Core might release its next major version in April. According to some users on Twitter, the upgrade will mainly improve transaction privacy

and allow recurring payments without third parties. All other implementations follow Bitcoin Core's guidance since it is the Bitcoin source code's reference implementation.

Bitcoin Core 22.0, the 22nd version of the update, replaced version 0.21.0 in September 2021. In November 2021, Bitcoin Core 22.0 was the first major release to support the Taproot protocol upgrade. As CTO at Blockstream Bitcoin development studio, Gregory Maxwell proposed Taproot in 2018.

As a result of the Taproot upgrade, multiple signatures and transactions are grouped, making the BTC network easier to verify. While the BTC network rarely undergoes drastic changes, it

shows that the network is still evolving, even if progress is steady.

Bitcoin Price Still Range Bound With the speculations around a new BTC update scheduled for the next month, if the same happens, a decent price rebound could be expected by traders.

However, at press time, BTC traded at $40,182, noting a 5.08% daily drop in price.

The difficulty of mining Bitcoin decreased by -1.49% in a recent article as the price of the crypto consolidated.

Retail investors returned to the Bitcoin market despite the recent decline in the top coin. Thus, short- or mediumterm price pumps may occur as a result.

For now, however, with the recent rally cooling off, the larger market also saw a pullback as the total crypto market cap fell under the $1.8 trillion mark. 

March 2022 | Volume 17

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16

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

NFTs Become Modern-Day War Bonds as the Crypto Community Rallies Around Ukraine O

ver $22 million has been raised in crypto to help Ukrainians purchase weapons and supplies, including more than $3 million in NFTs. It was announced on February 26 that the Ukrainian government would begin accepting cryptocurrency donations.

The public responded during the sixth day of the Russia-Ukraine war

March 2022 | Volume 17

on Tuesday. Ukrainians were able to purchase everything from arms to medical supplies using more than $22 million raised in crypto, including more than $3 million raised through NFTs. Due to their relative liquidity and transparency, NFTs have become an essential tool for art communities seeking to support Ukrainian defense

and humanitarian efforts. Over the past week, several non-fungible token sales have taken place, with these tokens taking on the role of the war bond of the 21st century. "The Ukraine conflict has become the first crypto war in history," according to the Washington Post.

Like the recent calls around the sale of NFTs, an appeal to moral conscience would inspire the exhortation to buy

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Crypto Weekly

funds for the people of Ukraine. Allen believes his responses are responsible for capturing the essence of our times, pushing boundaries, and looking for deeper meaning. "Having lost my passport, I have now become a citizen of the metaverse."

Russia's UkraineDAO (an autonomous decentralized organization) was founded by the Russian artist and founder of Pussy Riot, Nadya Tolokonnikova. Come Back Alive, a crowdfunding organization that helps Ukrainian military members and their families, said it would distribute 100 percent of the funds it raised. Due to Patreon's rules, the group was removed several weeks ago.

UkrainianDAO's NFT was released with a PartyBid, a tool that lets people bid collectively and own fractional pieces of the artwork if they win.

these. However, it is not free of pitfalls like other wartime measures. Revenues are donated to a charity for Ukrainian civilians.

In a video, crypto-art pioneer Olive Allen, of Russian descent, burns her passport outside the Russian consulate in New York. The artist is selling the single clip as an NFT in order to raise

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"The organizers intended to avoid adding Pussy Riot's own work to this release," Tolokonnikova told Artnet News. "In a sense, it's like our solid conceptual statement. We all have different aesthetics, but what matters is what we unite to save lives, not what color we prefer. The Ukrainian flag unites us."

In addition to selling NFTs, RELI3F raised more than $1 million in ETH. 185 Ethereum (roughly $485,600) has been transferred to three wallets associated

with Come Back Alive and local Ukrainian media vetted by Kyiv Independent and a group of frontline workers. According to the group, the remaining ETH will be saved to support humanitarian efforts in future destabilization.

Aleksandra Artamonovskaja, a RELI3F team member from Ukraine now living in London, says DAOs played an essential role in mobilizing relief efforts.

She has said Web3 makes it possible to distribute money most effectively and as transparently as possible.

West-based artists have also joined forces with Ukrainians fighting off the invasion. With 100% of proceeds going to RELI3F and UkraineDAO, Shepard Fairey released one edition of his NFTbased work Diplomacy Over Violence.

There is also a moral dilemma in play when many in the crypto community support Ukraine.

NFTs and cryptocurrency may be used to help Ukraine with digital war bonds and fast-tracked payments, but rogue states can also use them to circumvent sanctions. In 2014, for instance, the crypto research agency Elliptic discovered that pro-Russian separatists in Crimea used crypto to avoid sanctions. According to Jesse Powell, the head of research at Elliptic, it may not be possible to track, much less freeze, the accounts of Russian clients. 

March 2022 | Volume 17

18

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Policy Makers Raise Alarms & the Crypto Industry says it is Following Russian Sanctions

E

ven though policymakers are concerned about Russia using crypto assets to evade U.S. sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, market leaders insist they haven't seen evidence of it and are fully compliant with U.S. measures.

The crypto community argues that digital assets present an unworkable alternative for the Russian government and oligarchs looking to end-run Western sanctions. According to them, the roughly $2 trillion cryptocurrency market is too small to meet Russia's financing needs. It is said that oligarchs cannot move significant amounts of their wealth undetected on the blockchain because authorities can monitor it. Blockchain is a transparent online ledger that serves as the basis of cryptocurrencies.

March 2022 | Volume 17

“Red herrings are such a waste of time!

Due to the massive sanctions we are seeing, crypto does not have enough depth to prevent the kinds of evasion we are trying to stop.” The officials aren't convinced. "I think it illustrates the need for a strong regulatory regime that permits appropriate activity but prevents inappropriate activity," said Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell during testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday. The executive director of the crypto think tank Coin Center, Jerry Brito, says, "If an oligarch moves $10 billion, it will be evident to people operating crypto's on- and off-ramps. There are laws on the books and all that." Powell said, “We also need a legal framework that will eliminate as much as possible the possibility that people will use unbacked cryptocurrencies as a way to evade the

law, finance terrorism, or hide their illgotten gains."

Powell replied to a question from Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), who asked Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen what the department is doing to ensure targeted Russians are not using cryptography to circumvent sanctions.

They wrote that the crypto industry needs to enforce sanctions compliance vigorously, given that digital assets, which bypass the traditional financial system, may be increasingly used for sanctions evasion.

In a Wall Street Journal article, Yellen said crypto is a "channel to watch" and that the Treasury Department could address the loopholes it presents in

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Crypto Weekly

sanctions. Anti-money laundering laws already apply to crypto participants.

In response to Russia's invasion of its neighbor, the United States sanctioned it. The sanctions are meant to cripple the country economically. The main points would include: C utting off the central bank of Russia and freezing its assets in the U.S. N aming certain Russian banks and corporations as sanctions targets.

C losing the U.S. airspace to Russian aircraft.

W orking with European allies to cut Russia's connection to SWIFT. F ocusing personally on the Russian President and his close colleagues.

There is uncertainty about who will benefit from the world's first crypto war. When it comes to collecting customer data and guarding against suspicious activity, cryptocurrency trading platforms like Coinbase and FTX say they are compliant with sanctions and already subject to the same rules as traditional financial institutions. The Association for Digital Asset Markets, an industry trade group, reported sanctions

compliance is taken "very seriously" by the industry. Bond cited blockchain analytics, trade surveillance, and geotagging the Internet as tools. "We are entering a time where utmost diligence will be required, and it is imperative that public-private information sharing continues."

Ukraine's deputy prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, called the move "sabotage." Kraken's statement said that "blocking access to digital assets of citizens of an entire country does not necessarily punish the actual culprits."

TripleA, a Singapore-based company that offers crypto payments, estimates that 12 percent of Russians own

cryptocurrency. The adoption rate is even higher in Ukraine, where more than 5.5 million people own digital assets or nearly 13 percent of the population.

Data from Kaiko, a Paris-based cryptoanalysis company, shows that Bitcoin and Tether, a so-called stablecoin whose price is tied to the dollar, have been in high demand in both countries since the conflict erupted. Over the past week, Bitcoin's price has risen by 18 percent.

The Ukrainian government has collected more than $42 million in crypto donations, which it has already converted into traditional currency to purchase supplies such as drones and bulletproof vests. In crypto advocates' view, that fundraising campaign is proof of crypto's ability to advance a cause that has united the world as a whole. As they hunt for gaps crypto may present in the new sanctions, they plan to use that evidence to emphasize that Washington policymakers should tread carefully in writing rules for the industry.

“In the fog of war right now, I think there are opportunities for sanctions evasion within crypto," said Adam Zarazinski, CEO of Inca Digital. This data firm works with both the crypto industry and government agencies. "We don't necessarily know what they are all yet." 

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March 2022 | Volume 17

20

Crypto Weekly

of the

week

NFT

Russia may evade the effects of economic sanctions by relying on cryptocurrency The West has levied harsh sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, but Russian leaders could be turning to cryptocurrency to avoid economic punishment. Michael Parker, head of the anti-money laundering and sanctions practice at Ferrari and Associates, joins CBS News to break down how Russia may proceed.

March 2022 | Volume 17

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

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22

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

CMC Coin is Uniquely Qualified for Real Use and Long-Term Growth CMC Coin (CMCC) is a token devised from the profound experience of the founders dealing with new, and launching, tokens over time, and have analyzed many crypto projects to determine the issues that many have.

CMC spent 12 months creating unique tokenomics that eliminates all of these issues. Dozens of coin projects were tackled, and problems were addressed one by one. The project will give investors a strong chance of growth encouraging them to hold for maximum returns and was developed with some core principles in mind. On top of the CMC

project, Crypto Magazine is going to be the first-ever magazine in history to hit the shelves in just a few short weeks and be made available on magazine racks at major retailers near you in the U.K., the U.S., and Australia.

3) To create a coin that encourages people to hold it for as long as possible in a way that no other token does.

CMCC Core Principles

5) To create a coin with a continuous marketing campaign with an ongoing daily increasing budget.

1) A doxed and transparent team of founders each bringing a unique set of skills to the table.

2) To create a coin with a real potential for continuous price growth.

4) To create a coin with an actual use case that can expand in the future.

6) To create a coin with many legitimate uses, such as a retail platform that will allow holders to spend their CMC Coin on one of 25,000 Amazon products, and an industry-leading Crypto Magazine that other projects can spend CMC Coin at a 45% discount from standard rates.

Developing Tokenomics as a Vehicle for CMCC to Achieve Its Goals CMC founders have deeply researched market trends and the reasons why prices will increase and decrease. Every aspect found was tackled individually, as has been briefly discussed. Below is a

March 2022 | Volume 17

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Crypto Weekly

3 – Marketing

more extensive illustration of what gives the CMC project the best chances of success, what negatively impacts other projects, and what has been done to create the most robust project possible.

1 - Market Manipulation Sometimes a very wealthy investor referred to as a "whale" in the crypto world decides to buy or sell many coins at once. A large market order can impact the supply and demand dynamics and change the price. CMC has implemented two safeguards to reduce the chances of a dump and benefit coin holders even more if whales decide to dump some of their coins. A maximum sell feature for orders of 50,000 coins each hour is implemented along with a fee of 20% to discourage people that want to sell for small profits.

2 – HODL Benefits Everyone knows that the more people who hold their coins, the chance of the coin price rising and pumping increases!

So, CMC has designed a project that TRULY offers a regular income for holders, and after all, why would anyone want to sell if they can earn a real income from holding their coins while watching the value of those coins grow.

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

Marketing is where the CMCC project comes into its own and has been one of the driving forces in its creation! The Crypto Marketing Company "CMC" owns the native coin CMCC! Who better to build a successful marketing campaign than a marketing company itself? A lot of crypto projects fail to understand the need for regular ongoing marketing and often only have an initial budget they spend very quickly, causing the coin to pump hard but then crash hard. CMC has included an initial marketing budget of 15% in CMC coins to get the CMCC project off to a flying start and ensure that it continues to grow. The marketing wallet will gain USDT rewards from reflections - the same as holders - at the rate of 4% per buy order and 5% per sell order. CMC can promote the project effectively without the need for continuous coin dumping.

4 – Founders and Devs Dumping Coins It is a major problem in the crypto sector that many developers and project founders dump their coins for maximum gains. Some might argue they get to decide when to sell their investments, and it remains an unavoidable concern when it harms other investors. A team of three founders and developers will be sharing a total of 18% token allocation.

To avoid any chance that one of them will dump their coins at once, they will be released slowly over 18 months, giving all future investors the confidence that the coins can't be dumped at once and crash the price.

the circulating supply. The contract will be coded to lock in liquidity for a period to ensure the project stands the test of time, making it "rug-proof."

6 – Use cases Many failed crypto projects have collapsed very quickly due to having no actual use for their currency. CMC has been secretly developing its own cryptocurrency payment platform. The intent is to launch a website CMC owns that will allow users to make purchases among 25,000 Amazon products and growing, available worldwide, and delivered directly to their door, by Amazon. Over the coming weeks and months, CMC will also integrate a few other cryptocurrencies and allow owners of other coins to purchase the same products, thus gaining even more awareness for the brand. The CMC group has also launched this magazine, "Crypto Weekly." It already has a weekly subscription base of over 125,000 crypto enthusiasts, making it the largest subscribed to weekly crypto magazine in the world. With such a high readership level, it will most certainly become an essential tool when other projects are looking to advertise themselves. With this in mind, and encouraging other crypto projects to buy CMC coins, CMC will be offering a massive 45% discount from standard advertising rates if they pay with CMC coins. It provides a strong reason for projects to purchase and use CMC for advertising space and banner ads, earning investors high reflections and more significant price increases over time. 

5 – Liquidity pool The liquidity is set against the circulating tokens that give the coin its value. There is always a fear of the liquidity pool being drained. In order to ensure a constant increase in liquidity, 50% of presale funds and 4% of all buy orders, and 5% of all sell orders will be deposited into the liquidity pool. Because of the large number of CMC staking coins locked up and the slow-release of founders' tokens, the liquidity pool will be strong against

March 2022 | Volume 17

24

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

In light of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, some questions have been raised about crypto

I

s it possible for Russia to avoid sanctions using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin?

During the war with Ukraine, that's been one of the big questions being asked. Because the blockchain is traceable and lacks liquidity, experts point out that Russians would have difficulty using cryptocurrency to avoid sanctions. Whether Bitcoin has taken up the status of "digital gold" has also been debated.

Russia faces some big challenges when it comes to using crypto to avoid sanctions.

During Russia's invasion of Ukraine and sanctions, as well as the subsequent

March 2022 | Volume 17

market turmoil, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, have been discussed, and it has prompted three big questions about how it is used and what the future looks like.

Can cryptos be used to avoid sanctions?

As a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a number of economic sanctions were imposed on the country in order to cut off its access to the global financial system. The United States has placed key Russian financial figures and institutions on a list that effectively prevents U.S. companies from doing business with them. In the meantime, the United States, European allies, and Canada have removed key Russian banks from an interbank messaging system called SWIFT, which limits their access

to global financial markets.

Russia's ruble has plummeted as a result of the sanctions.

A debate has erupted regarding whether cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, could be used by those on sanctions lists to circumvent the restrictions.

The reason for this is that Bitcoin, and other digital currencies, are often decentralized, which means they're not controlled or issued by a central authority. The traditional route of financial plumbing is bypassed when crypto is sent to other users.

TRM Labs has concluded that cryptocurrency cannot help Russia evade sanctions. Blockchain technology, the technology behind Bitcoin, acts as

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Crypto Weekly

Armstrong, every business in the U.S. must follow the law.

“The sanctions laws apply to all U.S. businesses and citizens, regardless of whether they deal in dollars, crypto, gold, real estate, or non-financial assets," Armstrong said. "It would be foolish to assume cryptocurrency businesses such as Coinbase will not comply with the law. We'll follow the law, of course.

Because of this, we screen those who sign up for our services against global watchlists, and block transactions from IP addresses that might be associated with sanctioned individuals or entities, just like any other regulated financial service company."

a public ledger. Therefore, it is quite easy to track the movements of funds from one account to another. This makes avoiding sanctions difficult.

According to Vijay Ayyar, vice president of corporate growth and international at crypto exchange Luno, the biggest misconception about crypto is that it is untraceable and is primarily used for nefarious purposes.

As a result of the lack of liquidity, Russian oligarchs and companies are unable to move their funds. The liquidity in the crypto market is still a fraction of the global currency market, so it is hard to move large amounts of money using crypto.

It may also increase the alertness of cryptocurrency exchanges.

According to Charles Hayter, CEO of data firm CryptoCompare, exchanges with strong processes and codes of conduct will be doubly vigilant at this point for funds that come from shady sources.

In a thread on Thursday, Brian Armstrong, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange and wallet Coinbase, echoed many of these points. According to

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According to CryptoCompare, the number of transactions from ruble into Bitcoin and to Tether, a stablecoin tied to the U.S. dollar, has increased since Russia's attack on Ukraine. Hayter says crypto is only another means of preserving wealth as part of the "flight to the dollar by any means possible." "Some ordinary Russians are using crypto as a safety net now that their currency has collapsed," said Armstrong.

The Treasury Department was urged earlier this week by lawmakers including Senator Elizabeth Warren to make sure crypto companies comply with sanctions on Russia. The U.S. government official said, “It's unlikely that Russia will be able to evade sanctions using cryptocurrencies.”

intensified, Bitcoin saw a huge jump, taking it above $44,000 off its lows for the year, prompting speculation that its time as a safe haven asset has come.

Several experts disagreed. In a note on Thursday, BCB Group's head of trading and account management, Lux Thiagarajah, said that he disagreed with the notion that BTC is regaining its status as a safe-haven. Crypto has aggressively sold off since it became clear the Fed (U.S. Federal Reserve) would raise rates faster than expected, causing stocks to tank.

“Bitcoin provides a safe haven due to its de-correlation from equities and gold,” argues Luno's Ayyar. “Gold will continue to lose share to Bitcoin, but that narrative may take some time to come,” he added.

Is blockchain technology proving to be useful?

Proponents of cryptocurrencies often point to the underlying blockchain as a way to make transactions more traceable and efficient.

Unlike traditional financial transactions, there is no intermediary to move the money.

However, many cryptocurrencies still have high transaction fees and slow speeds. Payments aren't something they've been used for yet.

According to Reuters, Carol House, the Director of Cybersecurity for the National Security Council, said on Wednesday, “the scale at which the Russian state would have to circumvent all U.S. and partner financial sanctions would render cryptocurrency ineffective for the state.”

Ukraine began accepting cryptocurrency donations during the war to fund its military, among other purposes.

According to analytics firm Elliptic, Ukraine has raised over $50 million using cryptocurrencies. It might be challenging to accept donations using traditional banking methods due to the high cost of sending money overseas.

Furthermore, Ukraine might not receive donations for a long period of time.

Is Bitcoin finally becoming 'digital gold'?

For years, Bitcoin advocates have called the digital currency "digital gold." Bitcoin is a store of value and can serve as a safe haven during turbulent times. Recent years have disproved this theory since Bitcoin trading has been correlated with risk assets, particularly stocks. This week, as the war in Ukraine

Garrick Hileman, professor at the London School of Economics, says cryptocurrencies have a competitive advantage in this area. After the money is received, Hileman said you can track where it goes with the public ledger. “A few of the original value propositions of cryptocurrencies are becoming more viable,” he said. 

March 2022 | Volume 17

26

HIDDEN GEMS Crypto Weekly

PROJECT 1

military.finance

Military.Finance

Military.Finance announced its partnership with the Heart of a Lion Foundation in parallel with launching a new cryptocurrency some months ago now. It is the company's goal to provide financial assistance and support to the families of service members who have returned from war.

This is a fully decentralized, community-built project, first launched on BSC, and soon to be launching on Ethereum network with the sole purpose of helping veterans and charities. Veterans and veteran organizations can take part in receiving donations from Military.Finance. In its core, the project helps connect members of the armed forces and charitable organizations to cryptocurrencies. With Military.Finance, veterans can farm, lend, stake, and earn passive income. Military.Finance's project aims

PROJECT 2

adacash.io

to empower community members and reward them for helping those in need. As well, Military.Finance rewards those who buy and hold $MIL tokens. As well as achieving its mandate, the project will build trust and transparency. Military.Finance ($MIL) is expected to be a hot topic at the upcoming Crypto Expo in Dubai on March 16-17, to which Crypto Weekly Magazine is an official sponsor. Over 60 other speakers from over 30 countries will attend the conference, including Nathan Hill, co-owner of the CMC group, which owns Crypto Weekly. The event is expected to attract over 10,000 traders and investors, and Stumpf is keen to raise awareness of Military.Finance's goals: "The token empowers the public to make a significant impact on restoring the lives of veterans across the country. This is a project for those heroes, backed by heroes."

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.

March 2022 | Volume 17

Mil_Finance

Mil_Finance_NFT

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 AD7Cash tokens to be eligible for the ADA dividends.

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HIDDEN GEMS

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Crypto Weekly

PROJECT 3

fasttoken

Fasttoken

fasttoken_com

fasttoken_eng

FasTToken is a full-fledged blockchain ecosystem designed to deliver the benefits of the technology to all the industries that our partners operate in.

exchange, NFT marketplace, and ultimately, our unique blockchain solution, based on the Ethereum network, as well as supporting numerous decentralized applications.

We build scalable, unique solutions that will streamline business operations and open up the gates towards cryptocurrencies and decentralization.

Besides this, FTN is the official cryptocurrency of SoftConstruct, which means, 1 million active users and 700 partners all over the globe, want to be one of our partners or just a friend. Come and say "hi", we would love to tell you more about the future of our business, and how we are helping move the crypto revolution forward, with synergy as the catalyst.

Our product line includes the FasTToken cryptocurrency, cryptocurrency payments and terminals, cryptocurrency

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.

www.cryptoweeklymag.com

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.

March 2022 | Volume 17

28

NEWS Crypto Weekly

Chinese Student Lost $548,000 After Clicking a Scam Link

N

iq Chen, a senior at Shanghai's Tongji University, lost an NFT worth about $548,000 after falling for a phishing scam. The South China Morning Post reports Chen bought non-fungible tokens (NFT) and lost about half of his assets in a phishing scam. NFT #6914, "Gold Ape," was purchased by Pranksy, one of the world's most prolific NFT collectors, for an estimated $1.1 million, according to Coin Rivet.

Malicious email links can steal personal data and passwords when clicked on in phishing scams. Chen, who fell victim to a phishing scam by clicking on a link that stole his NFT, requested that it not be bought or sold; however, the NFT had already been sold by the scammer, who claims that no wrongdoing occurred.

March 2022 | Volume 17

The buyer refused to accept Chen's offer to buy the NFT back, saying it was a "good deal," says the Morning Post.

When Chen put "NFT" on a university survey, the NFT community in China became well known. Even though he lost a large amount of money through his NFT dealing, the student still wishes to pursue the profession.

Recently, OpenSea, the marketplace where the student bought the NFT, reported another incident in which 17 people fell for a phishing attack that stole about $1.7 million in NFTs. Collectively, the website's contract system was updated during the attack.

Users have reported security issues involving phishing attacks due to the

simple interface of the marketplace.

The Verge reports that OpenSea has denied responsibility for the attacks and that they are unclear as to how they were carried out. Many NFT buyers have also experienced rug pulls, in which a team abandons a project with the investor's money. Users are urged to tread carefully following recent phishing attacks targeting NFTs and cryptocurrency since they have little chance of recovering their assets. 

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30

FEATURE Crypto Weekly

Here's How Companies Plan to Use the Metaverse W

hat does the future hold for businesses in the Metaverse, or is it just a buzzword of the moment?

Several companies announced their plans for Metaverses, cryptospheres, and NFTs at the beginning of the year.

According to JPMorgan Chase, a network of 3D virtual worlds is projected to generate some serious numbers. These announcements make one wonder what the business model behind them is, and if they aren't just smokescreens driven

by FOMO.

A fundamental paradigm shift has occurred.

A report predicts that the Metaverse will infiltrate every sector in some way in the coming years, with a market opportunity of over $1 trillion in revenues a year.

March 2022 | Volume 17

According to the report, Walmart and Adidas (ADDYY) are both entering this shared market.

Also in the report, significant retailers could build a global hub in the Metaverse to serve millions of customers rather than have stores in every city. JPMorgan Chase took its first steps into the Metaverse this week with the opening of its Onyx Lounge in Decentraland, a browser-based 3D virtual world.

JPMorgan believes that the existing virtual gaming landscape is similar to the existing global economy. "Given our assets, trading, and safekeeping capabilities, as well as our significant consumer footprint, Citi is wellpositioned to lead the Metaverse," said the report.

"It builds and scales new emerging technologies in order to modernize infrastructure and business models, including tokenization and digital identity, as well as looking for better ways to organize financial transactions and payments on the decentralized web." Interestingly, JPMorgan Chase is a legacy bank, a centralized organization.

Web3 and the Metaverse aim to eliminate intermediaries, thus making centralized entities obsolete. In spite of Bitcoin's popularity, Jamie Dimon, the CEO, doesn't believe in it.

In December, Walmart filed several new trademark applications showing that it intends to make and sell virtual goods such as electronics, home decorations, toys, sporting goods, and personal care products. Walmart also provides

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Crypto Weekly

Bitcoin, a non-fungible cryptocurrency.

McDonald's (MCD) may manage a virtual restaurant online offering home delivery.

There are a few skeptics who are skeptical about it all.

The "Father of PlayStation," Ken Kutaragi, a former Sony executive, told Bloomberg that he does not see much value in the Metaverse. "The Metaverse aims to make virtual things appear real, but I can't understand why I would want that," Kutaragi said. According to Justin Lacche, CEO of four minor league sports teams, a Web3 blockchain-backed application can represent a paradigm shift in some industries.

“Blockchains are actually powered by a decentralized technological system, so that any computer, whether it be yours, mine, the president's, or a student's computer halfway around the world, can verify the code, the transaction, the decision, decentralized via an encryption process,” he explained. Lacche said, “the system is truly decentralized rather than being controlled by a computer.”

“The American cycle we saw in the United States was professional sports leagues going bankrupt because of lack of alternative revenue streams when the governor of Oregon ordered a lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” Lacche explained.

Everyone Needs to Get Involved "A blockchain-based Metaverse or Web3, which is based on the blockchain, can

create athletes and facilitate meaningful competitions, thanks to advanced graphics. Since it is decentralized, it cannot be hacked. We can also have digital art called NFTs, which mimic the physical world."

Lacche said sports teams can choose between selling real-world items, such as t-shirts and posters, as well as NFTs, some of which sell for much more than real-world rookie cards.

Aaron Barbieri-Aghib, the co-founder of NFT marketplace Dime, said Web3 has been getting a lot of buzz recently, and it's not surprising. "Users will be free from having to depend on centralized companies and instead be able to control their data."

Barbieri-Aghib proclaimed that for Web3 to succeed, "everyone needs to be involved. No matter how cool Web3 sounds, if it isn't easy and intuitive to use, it will not be adopted," he said. "We sell NFTs that can be used in a game,"

said Pavel Bains, CEO of Bluzelle and executive producer of MixMob, a playto-earn game powered by the Solana blockchain. “We will run an in-game marketplace that generates revenue from in-game purchases. These are masks and MixBots."

Creativity leaps to new heights A $7 million funding round was recently secured by MixMob. In addition to DeFinance Capital, Ascensive Assets, Not3lau Capital, and IOSG led this round of financing. According to Bains, reaching out to a younger audience was key. He said that teaching finance through video games is more manageable than explaining the history of money.

The next paradigm business models might not be that different from today, according to Lou Leporace, marketing director for Zakeke, a software company specializing in 2D, 3D, and augmented reality content.

"Tens of thousands of developers use blockchain technology to create new tools and services." "This model is not much different from the one we currently use," he said. "During the last three months, NFT marketplaces paid nearly $1.5 billion in royalties to artists."

Looking back, dial-up access and other technological limitations caused the internet to be slow and limited in the mid-90s. Within three to five years, Leporace predicted, “people will see leaps in creativity as they experiment, learn, and adapt.” 

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March 2022 | Volume 17

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Crypto broker Suex Sanctioned for Laundering Millions of Illegal Funds by Russian Authorities The Treasury Department blacklisted Suex because of its money laundering activities. The company is also suspected of being involved in scams, ransomware attacks, darknet markets, and the notorious BTC-e exchange and facilitating cryptocurrency transactions for Russian oligarchs.

Suex, a Russian cryptocurrency exchange, has been added to OFAC's blacklist U.S. citizens will no longer be able to access the platform as a result of this move announced Tuesday. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has added Suex to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) list. OFAC has also publicly published a list of cryptocurrencies linked to Suex. Suex OTC s.r.o. is based in the Czech Republic and operates as a crypto broker. In the Russian Federation, the company operates mainly from its branches in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, the country's second-largest city. Suex may also maintain a presence in Russia, the surrounding region, and possibly the Middle East.

Suex ("Successful Exchange") offers users

March 2022 | Volume 17

conversions of their cryptocurrencies into cash and other assets at its physical locations, according to a report by blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis.

These services have attracted ransomware actors, scammers, and darknet market operators who have allegedly sent over $160 million in Bitcoin (BTC) to the over-the-counter (OTC) crypto broker.

Based on exchange rates at the time of transfer, Suex has received over $481 million in Bitcoin alone, among other cryptocurrencies including ether (ETH) and Tether (USDT).

Almost 13 million of that total came from ransomware operators such as Ryuk, Conti, and Maze. Chainalysis revealed that more than $24 million was sent by crypto scams such as the Finiko Ponzi scheme. More than $20 million came from darknet markets such as the

Russian Hydra Market, and another $20 million came from mixers.

OTC brokers also made more than $82 million from "high-risk" digital asset trading platforms. Investigations found that Suex received more than $50 million in cryptocurrency from addresses associated with the now defunct BTC-e.

Former administrators, associates, or users of the exchange likely sent the funds to the crypto broker despite the fact that the exchange was shut down four years ago for facilitating large-scale money laundering.

Someone moved over $30 million worth of Ether from a Wex wallet earlier this week. Last December, a French court sentenced Alexander Vinnik to five years in prison for money laundering. He was arrested in Greece in July 2017 as one of the alleged operators of BTC-e. Wex's manager, Dmitry Vasiliev, was recently arrested in Poland. 

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