Crypto Flipsider News – August 2nd – Saudi Aramco, USDT, Binance, Altcoins’ Monthly Records, CryptoPunks’ NFTs
- Saudi Aramco (SE:) denies rumors of entering mining.
- USDT is losing its stablecoin market share as USDC steps on its toes.
- Binance strengthens its KYC Policies.
- Altcoins’ Monthly Records: , Polygon, Filecoin.
- CryptoPunks’ NFTs lost to Discord scam bot.
Saudi Aramco Denies Rumors of Entering Bitcoin Mining
Oil mining giant Saudi Aramco has denied the rumors that it allegedly plans to enter Bitcoin mining.The rumours spread after a Brazilian Bitcoin miner referred to ongoing negotiations with Aramco. The company claims the reports are “completely false and inaccurate.”
The State-owned Saudi Arabian oil company is the world’s largest oil producer and 3rd biggest firm. The company produces vast amounts of flared gas, a byproduct of oil production.
This gas could potentially be turned into energy to mine Bitcoins.
Russia’s Gazprom (MCX:) Neft, a branch of the state-owned Gazprom energy corporation, has been using excess gas to power BTC mining since January 2021. ExxonMobil’s CEO, Jim Cramer, stated that the company may use flared gas to mine Bitcoins 5 month ago.
Flipsider:
- Bitcoin mining happens to have become yet another revenue stream for oil giants. The concept is especially valuable, given that demand for is currently unstable due to the pandemic and China’s ever growing industrial needs. The country is the second biggest world’s oil consumer after all.
USDT is Losing its Stablecoin Market Share as USDC Steps on Its Toes
Tether has been the primary stablecoin since its launch. Until the beginning of 2018, it remained the only stablecoin to be widely used, obtaining almost 100% of the market share.
According to data from the Block, the asset’s share has reached a historic low of 57.39%. Tether’s main competitors are USD Coin (USDC), Binance USD (BUSD), and Dai, whose shares are 24.41%, 10.83%, 4.99% respectively.
The coin’s decline may have been influenced by the recent legal scuffle and Circle’s announcement to go public via a SPAC deal, the company that issues Tether’s main competitor, USDC.
Flipsider:
- Stablecoins are undergoing a great shift. They face the equal pressure of governmental regulation and user demands to be fully backed. It’s a similar situation to Binance, a whale cannot be eaten by piranhas, but can certainly be badly damaged if no defensive measures are taken.
Binance Strengthens its KYC Policies
Binance has made KYC changes to its verification rules. For those who are unaware, KYC is the abbreviation for “Know Your Customer,” a client verification tool used by companies which require identity checks.
As a result, after August 4th, users with only basic account verification will be unable to withdraw more than 0.06 BTC per day. In order to increase the daily withdrawal limit to as much as 100 BTC, users will have to complete the full identity verification process.
The change was made to patch a loophole used by hackers to launder money.
Flipsider:
- On one hand this move may frighten away those users who care about maintaining their privacy, but on the other hand, in light of the multiple attacks and warnings from state governments, the move is justified.
Altcoins’ Monthly Records: Ethereum, Polygon, Filecoin
- Ethereum reached a new all-time-high in terms of transaction volume and average transaction fee. Miners obtained 505,300 ETH, which is 6.63% higher than in previous months.
- The number of Polygon addresses has doubled. The number increased from 15 million to more than 35 million.
- Hong Kong based company Imperium Group Global Holdings Limited, has purchased 12,000 Filecoins.
Flipsider:
- Yeah, Mila Kunis probably had to use the Polygon network in her toon “Stoner Cats” in order to avoid the surge of gas fees after its successful launch. On the other hand, Vitalik starred in the animation, so there was no way to use any other blockchain than Ethereum’s original one.
CryptoPunks’ NFTs Lost to Discord Scam Bot
An NFT holder lost $385,000 worth of CryptoPunks NFTs to a scam bot in Discord. The victim fell after the Discord scam bot offered the ability to win CryptoPunks’ NFT avatars.
The bot then linked to a fake Metamask wallet, claimed that it’s security was compromised and asked for seed phrase to restore access. The scammers emptied the victim’s Metamask and soon after sold 5 CryptoPunks NFTs for $385,000.
CryptoPunks is a highly valued project in the NFT space. A rare example of CryptoPunks work is currently selling for $90.5 million.
Flipsider:
- A new fancy space does not guarantee protection from the same old scam methods. Critical thinking does though. While we are sorry for this user’s loss, the case might serve as a good reminder for others: never ever share your seed phrase with anyone!
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