Judge Postpones Sentencing in Bitcoin Exchange Case
A federal judge in the US heard testimonies from several women who were victims of an unlicensed bitcoin exchange operated by a man in New Hampshire. The judge postponed the sentencing hearing to allow attorneys to object to the prosecution’s request to include restitution as part of the sentence. The prosecution argued for a harsher sentence due to the vulnerability of the victims, many of whom were elderly. The defendant, Ian Freeman, a libertarian activist and radio show host, created a business that facilitated fraud targeting elderly women through romance scams.
DeFi Education Fund Fights Patent Infringement Lawsuit
The DeFi Education Fund, a Washington DC-based advocacy group, has filed a petition with the US Patent and Trademark Office, challenging a patent infringement lawsuit filed by True Return Systems LLC against decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) Compound Protocol and MakerDAO. The patent, issued in 2018, claims to invent a process for bringing off-chain data on-chain using oracles. The DeFi Education Fund argues that the technology described in the patent was not unique at the time it was granted and that prior art existed. The organization aims to demonstrate this to the USPTO and invalidate the patent.
DigiFT Launches Regulatory-Compliant Ethereum Staking Token
DigiFT, a decentralized exchange enrolled in the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s FinTech Regulatory Sandbox, has launched a regulatory-compliant Ethereum staking token called dETH0924. Accredited and institutional investors can earn up to 4% APR denominated in ETH by staking the token and supporting the Proof-of-Stake mechanism on the Ethereum blockchain. The token is backed by Lido Finance’s wstETH and can be subscribed to with fiat or stablecoins. The minimum investment amount is $5,000. Red Cedar, an affiliate of DigiFT, issues the dETH0924 token.
Binance Supports Earthquake-Affected Users in Morocco
Binance, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has pledged to give $3 million worth of BNB tokens to users affected by the September 8 earthquake in Morocco. The initiative aims to reach approximately 70,000 users in the Marrakesh-Safi Province, which suffered the most significant impact. Users who completed Proof of Address before September 9, 2023, will receive $100 in BNB each, while those who complete it between September 9 and September 30 will receive $25 in BNB. Active transacting users across Morocco who are not in the affected area will receive $10 in BNB.
Qredo Integrates Circle’s USDC Stablecoin
Crypto infrastructure provider Qredo has integrated Circle’s USDC stablecoin into its non-custodial wallet. The integration allows users to pay gas fees for multiple chains in USDC, mint and redeem USDC via Circle, and leverage the power of Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol through Qredo’s wallet. The integration also utilizes Etherspot’s Account Abstraction SDK and QSign’s dMPC cross-chain controls, providing users with streamlined operational costs and enhanced functionality.
Safe Integrates with zkSync Era for Enhanced User Experiences
Smart wallet infrastructure provider Safe has integrated with zkSync Era, a Layer-2 protocol that scales Ethereum using ZK technology. This integration enables developers to build decentralized applications (dapps) with seamless user experiences. Safe’s modular account abstraction stack enhances security and empowers developers and users to create new and improved experiences on the Ethereum blockchain.
Hot Take: Judge Delays Sentencing in Bitcoin Exchange Case
A federal judge has postponed the sentencing hearing in the case of an unlicensed bitcoin exchange operated by a New Hampshire man. The delay was to allow attorneys to object to including restitution as part of the sentence. The prosecution argues for a harsher sentence due to the vulnerability of the victims, many of whom were elderly. Meanwhile, the DeFi Education Fund is fighting against a patent infringement lawsuit filed by True Return Systems LLC. The organization claims that the patent was not unique at the time it was granted. In exchange news, DigiFT has launched a regulatory-compliant Ethereum staking token, and Binance is providing support to users affected by an earthquake in Morocco. Additionally, Qredo has integrated Circle’s USDC stablecoin, and Safe has integrated with zkSync Era for improved user experiences.
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