In what seems to be a first for both real estate and cryptocurrency, a Florida property was recently auctioned off as an NFT (non-fungible token).

The four-bedroom property in Gulfport sold for $653,163 in ETH, and the victorious bidder now has the NFT, indicating ownership on-chain. 50 people signed up for the auction however only 2 actively participated in the bid during the sale.

The deal was hosted and completed by Propy, a blockchain real estate business. "This is only the first sale in our pipeline, and we're seeing a lot of demand," Propy CEO Natalia Karayaneva said in a statement.

According to Karayaneva, the home's property rights were minted as an NFT, which reduces closure time. The property will be owned by the NFT holder through a LLC (Limited Liability Company) that stores the crypto asset.

Propy previously sold TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington's Ukrainian studio apartment for around $113,176 in ETH in 2021.

Antonio Velardo Comments on the Timelines of the Blockchain: Where It Was and Where Its Going

The blockchain is commonly known as the foundation of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, but its specifics and how it works are not nearly as ubiquitous. Antonio Velardo is an expert on this subject, and he delves a little deeper into how it all works and what the past and current timelines can tell us about its future.

Why did the blockchain garner its response when it first came out?

 Velardo says that the blockchain has solved many problems that people have struggled with for years. It was exceptionally secure, which everyone could get behind after the countless financial hacks and data loss we were seeing. And it was accessible, which gave us a glimpse into a future where you might not have to pay a $.35 charge for a $.50 transaction.

Did people rail against it at all?

 Yes and no. Of course, plenty of people would dismiss anything about cryptocurrency as nothing more than "fake money", which is an exciting phrase considering that nothing has financial value unless humans bestow that value.

Yet Antonio Velardo comments that it was a little surprising how much even the skeptics of crypto were won over by the many (many) benefits of the blockchain. It was just too practical to ignore (even when people wanted to) in many ways.

What are some of the current applications of the blockchain? 

This question drives to the heart of what the blockchain is. Antonio Velardo says that you can use it in just about every industry.

Construction workers can use the public ledger to track complex projects. Families can use it to trace their lineage. Medical practices can improve privacy without compromising patient care. So while it may have been initially developed for finance, it can be derived for a practically limitless array of applications.

What about regulation? 

Well, thats the million-dollar question. How different countries eventually regulate the blockchain will ultimately determine where it heads. Its not being regulated right now, but theres no reason to assume that it will always be this way.

The point of cryptocurrency was to get the public to police the system, not the government. Of course, best-laid plans don't always go the way that inventors want them to in the real world. This in no way detracts from the promise of the blockchain. More becomes an issue to watch like a hawk for anyone who wants to predict the following stages.

Antonio Velardo Talks Blockchain of the Future

Where do you see the blockchain going? Antonio Velardo explains that he doesnt know the blockchain is slowing down despite the potential roadblocks. Exactly what it will look like in the future depends on everything from everyday citizens to CEOs to government officials. There's no denying, though, that the blockchain can offer us a very different perspective of what money can be. In addition, it can offer us an entirely new solution to how we store data as a whole.

Yves La Rose, the EOS Network Foundation's (ENF) founder and "community-elected CEO," disclosed that preparations are being made for a legal "war" against EOS founders Block.one in a new chapter of the EOS community against creators conflict.

As per La Rose, they are considering legal action "to claim $4.1 billion in damages." Presently, the EOS leader stated that a Canadian law firm is assisting them in determining what legal action they may take against the original EOS creators.

Immense dissatisfaction

According to the Foundation, many members of the EOS community are extremely unsatisfied with Block.one. Block.one has apparently not lived up to its word about previous pledges, and as a result, both the community as well as individual EOS users have suffered greatly.

In 2021, the Foundation revealed that it had entered into discussions with Block.one in order to remedy the situation. Both parties engaged in conversations in an attempt to reach a fair resolution to the difficulties, however, Block.one reportedly withdrew from the talks. Due to this, the EOS block producers decided to freeze the vesting for future EOS token revenues for Block.one.

From bad to worse

Block.one staged an ICO (Initial Coin Offering) of EOS tokens a few years ago in 2018, selling 900 million tokens for over $4 billion, making it the largest ICO held at the time. Additionally, Block.one was fined $24 million by the SEC in 2019 for selling $4 billion in unregistered tokens. Surprisingly, the inventors got to retain the remainder of the sum with no commitments to the community. Having said all that, many people have nonetheless been dissatisfied with the company's subsequent path as of late.

Moreover, La Rose described EOS as 'a failure' a few months ago. He stated that it is a bad financial and time investment, citing the market capitalization and the drop in value. He also claimed that the community had lost important developers and had switched its focus away from blockchain development and toward asset management instead.

Ultimately, time will tell what shall become of the whole situation and to what extent the damages will be paid for.

The United States government has recovered around $3.6 billion in Bitcoin (BTC) stolen during a 2016 breach of the Bitfinex currency exchange, the biggest financial seizure ever, and detained two individuals, according to the country's Department of Justice (DOJ).

Heather Morgan and her husband, Ilya Lichtenstein, were detained recently and are set to appear in federal court in Manhattan soon. The two reportedly planned to launder a whopping 119,754 BTC that had been stolen after a hacker accessed Bitfinex's computer systems.

Crypto is not a safe space for criminals

"These arrests, together with the Departments biggest financial seizure to date, demonstrate that the cryptocurrency space is not a safe haven for any criminal or fraudulent entity," said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. The defendants had reportedly laundered stolen funds via a maze of cryptocurrency transactions in a fruitless attempt to retain digital anonymity, which is one of the main selling points of the crypto sector.

Bitfinex is the exchange associated with Tether (USDT), the worlds largest stablecoin. According to the Justice Department, the virtual currency haul was believed to be worth $71 million at the time of the attack. Now though, the total value of stolen BTC is currently at $4.5 billion.

Method of attack and future consequences

The duo was using advanced methods, including the use of fictitious identities to establish online accounts, complex software to automate transactions, a laundering strategy which enables many transactions to occur in a short period of time, and depositing the stolen money into accounts at a various digital currency exchanges as well as darknet markets, before finally withdrawing the funds.

Moreover, to conceal their transactions, Lichtenstein and Morgan used AlphaBay Marketplace, which had been shut down back in 2017. Some of the funds were withdrawn using BTC ATMs, whereas another portion of it was used to purchase NFTs and gold. The couple had even bought a Walmart gift card with the stolen funds.

For the money laundering charges, Lichtenstein and Morgan face a maximum of 20 years in prison. Furthermore, they risk an additional penalty of up to 5 years in jail for conspiracy to defraud the United States of America. The government is hopeful that this will set a precedent for the future and will actively discourage individuals and entities from taking advantage of the supposed anonymous nature of the crypto space.

The world's biggest asset manager, BlackRock, has announced its intentions of planning to provide cryptocurrency trading capabilities to its investor clientele. As such, clients will be permitted to borrow from BlackRock by offering cryptocurrency assets as collateral.

The New York-based firm, which manages more than $10 trillion in assets for institutions, intends to join the cryptocurrency industry with 'client assistance trading and later with their own respective credit facility', according to the company's website.

BlackRock's clients, which also include public pension schemes, endowments, and independant wealth funds, shall be able to trade cryptocurrencies using Aladdin, the asset manager's integrated investment management platform.

The official launch date of the new service is currently unknown.
 

Russia has decided to accept cryptocurrenices as an officially recognized form of currency within the country.

The government released a document earlier this week outlining the fundamentals for cryptocurrency regulation, and the central bank is also reportedly on board despite previously advocating for a blanket ban on crypto mining and trading.

As per the document, Russians control over 12 million cryptocurrency accounts and almost 2 trillion Rubles ($26.7 billion) in cryptocurrencies. According to the report, the nation is currently ranked third globally for BTC mining.

After much debate, the local government and the central bank have now agreed to develop legislation and alter current regulations to legally recognise cryptocurrencies as a legitimate kind of currency. More updates are expected as the situation develops.
 

Antonio Velardo on Getting His Masters Degree in Digital Currency

Antonio Velardo is a blockchain expert and a passionate promoter of cryptocurrency. He's made a name for himself by tracking the trends of this emerging field and how it's changing finance as we know it. Given his background, it would be easy to assume that he has a degree in computer science or software engineering.

On the contrary, his upper level education was in civil engineering and mass communication. It's only recently that he began pursuing his master's in digital currency. He discusses what it's like to be on the formal side of education and how it's helping him understand the real opportunities ahead.

Legitimizing an Industry

Many people might be surprised to learn that digital currency is an acceptable choice for a degree. This is because plenty still views crypto or digital money as little more than a phase. Yet Antonio Velardo says that the sheer fact that legitimate schools offer the option is a sign that it's a profession with staying power.

Regardless of what happens with individual brands, like Bitcoin or Ethereum, FinTech takes over much of the financial world. The blockchain is revolutionizing the speed of transactions and their security. It's no wonder that schools offering the degree are branding it as a way for professionals to stay ahead of the curve, particularly as it's beginning to deepen its bend.

Antonio Velardo on Combining Two Worlds

Those who want a career in FinTech are essentially a cross-section of people. Antonio Velardo is interested in the juxtaposition of finance and technology and how each field can be used to strengthen the other. People want to settle debts without having to worry about their identity being stolen. They want to avoid $.75 fees for $2 charges. With the current legacy systems in place, that's just not possible.

The master's degree that Velardo is pursuing is teaching people how we can accomplish these goals and why it's so important to keep up with these changing needs. The pandemic has put more payments online than ever before, a fact that has brought more criminals to the table to capitalize on all the money changing hands. Without viable solutions to payments, the situation will only spiral out of control.

Antonio Velardo explains the real advantage of structured education is studying and understanding the progression to predict the changes. His instructors can't tell him exactly what will happen, but they will present both sides of the story.

Trying to go it alone, which many people are attempting right now (either on the job or otherwise), makes it more likely that an important piece will slip through the cracks. For Velardo, each class reinforces that he made the right decision. Cryptocurrency and digital currency offer advantages that traditional banks can't, and this has set the industry on a course that is unlikely to be stopped or rerouted for any reason.

As the DeFi industry continues to gain momentum, Ferrari has now stated that it is seriously considering entering the world of NFTs, the metaverse, and blockchain technology.

During the company's Q4 2021 earnings call, Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna told investors that the manufacturer is eager to implement these new technologies and have the company become more involved in the near future.

To that end, Ferrari recently announced a partnership with Swiss blockchain company Velas Network, which would see the start-up issue special digital collectibles and support Ferrari's racing squad.

Benedetto therefore insisted that Ferrari was investigating ways to embrace new blockchain-enabled technologies since they will undoubtedly play a critical part in the company's future.

Lastly, he went on to say that the corporation has hence created a new department in its retail arm dedicated to studying and potentially implementing new digital technologies.

Aftermath Islands launches adult playground for entertainment, gaming, parties and more.

TORONTO, ON and BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS / ACCESSWIRE / February 3, 2022 / Oasis Digital Studios Limited ("Oasis"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc. (CSE:LQID)(OTCQB:LQAVF)(FRA:4T51) ("Liquid Avatar Technologies" or the "Company"), a global blockchain and fintech solutions company, focused on Digital Identity, integrated Avatars and the Metaverse, is pleased to announce that its controlled subsidiary, Aftermath Islands Metaverse Limited ("Aftermath Islands") together with seasoned, industry, and entertainment executive Howard Lefkowitz, who led Vegas.com from its rise from $360,000 in annual sales to over $400 million annually over a 10-year period, have launched Vegas Island, a premium destination in the Aftermath Islands Metaverse, an age restricted virtual island that will allow participants to buy virtual themed land, interact, and experience entertainment, gaming and High Roller experiences. Given the premium nature of the island and the planned programs, a limited amount of virtual land is available for sale to the public, starting at USD $100 per 1000 m2 and ranging in price to USD $5,200 for a mega 100 plot parcel.

Vegas Island will use age verification technologies and verifiable credentials available from the Liquid Avatar mobile wallet to confirm access without providing any personally identifiable information or personal data. Liquid Avatar Technologies' digital identity solution will be used throughout Aftermath Islands providing credentials for key access to Estate Islands, private islands, restricted events and venues, and will be available to other Metaverse properties to reduce identity fraud and bad actors. Participants will be able to use their Liquid Avatar mobile wallet to also opt-in to permission-based loyalty, engagement, and other brand programs to receive online and offline incentives.

From comedians, to lounge acts, live performances, magicians, adult-theme reviews and more, Vegas Island is planning to create an entertainment, gaming, limited housing, and playable areas, to bring the spirit of Las Vegas to Aftermath Islands.

"We're inviting everyone to join the party and enjoy outrageous events and activities as Vegas Island is planning to be loaded with hip hotels, shows of all kinds from headliners to stage reviews, restaurants with power-up foods, and delivery of all imaginable items to your real-world front door. Virtually walk the famed Vegas Island Strip where you'll frolic in bars with real lounge acts, nightclubs, day-clubs, adult clubs with VIP rooms and be surrounded by beautiful avatars! Vegas Island is for everyone, of age, of course," said Howard Lefkowitz. "Vegas Island Stadium is expected to host e-sporting events, rodeos, and bands that fill real-life stadiums around the globe. Other planned events include world-class shopping for the virtual and actual worlds, live cams of actual lions, tigers, and pools (oh my), and of course condos, homes, and mansions too. Lest we forget the beach club on the ocean! Since Baby ALWAYS needs a new pair of shoes, there will be gaming! Vegas Island is expected to offer play-for-fun gaming or licensed, legal by age and jurisdiction gambling too! Plus, ways to earn and win free high-roller trips to Vegas and more. Come join us at the truly happiest damn place in the metaverse&hellipVegas Island."

Additional premium theme islands are planned for release. Aftermath Islands Metaverse is working with brands and agencies and welcomes the opportunity explore partnerships that will create new and interactive virtual experiences for players.

For information on Aftermath Islands and to receive updates from Oasis Digital Studios, please click here

If you would like to join our mailing list and receive updates from Liquid Avatar Technologies, please click here

About Howard Lefkowitz

Howard Lefkowitz has had a career as a change agent inside and outside organizations around the globe.

During his 25+ years as an executive for companies such as Vegas.com, EarthLink, Home Shopping Network, Row 44, and board positions encompassing the tech, media, and health care industries, Lefkowitz has been innovating, operating, changing, and building. By merging marketing, content, and product with new and legacy technologies, he finds new and profitable business.

Mr. Lefkowitz was CEO of VEGAS.com for ten years. He started with a 19-person team and a content-based Web site with $100,000 monthly, unique visitors and re-engineered it into the most visited city website in the world that received more than 2.5 million visitors each month and was supported by 400 employees. Lefkowitz established strong consumer branding while focused on multiple revenue streams. Lefkowitz also spearheaded development of mission-critical, back-of-house systems used by most Las Vegas hotels, including payment gateways for credit card processing, box office and show ticket operations, systems integration, product development, concierge desks and retail systems and operations. The company went from $360,000 per year in sales to nearly $400 MIL annually under his leadership and became a globally renowned brand.

These efforts have won numerous honors and awards, including the Odyssey Award for Best Domestic Marketing Campaign from The Travel Industry Association (TIA), more than 14 gold, silver, and bronze awards from the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) and Editor & Publisher's EPpy Award for Best Internet Shopping Service. Vegas.com was also a finalist for the Codie Award for Best Online Software Service by the Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA). Lefkowitz has 9 hospitality technology patents in the US, Canada, China, India, and other global jurisdictions.

A highly regarded leader and innovator, Lefkowitz has been featured in hundreds of magazines, newspapers, and television segments, including NBC Nightly News, ABC News, The Today Show, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Inc. Magazine, USA Today and many others. He has appeared as a public speaker at dozens of industry trade shows and universities, including the Haas Business School at University of California Berkley, San Diego State, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas among others.

Currently Mr. Lefkowitz is involved with a few promising startups in healthcare, blockchain and crypto currency, and ecommerce, including Liquid Avatar Technologies, Oasis Digital Studios and Aftermath Islands.

About Aftermath Islands Metaverse Limited - www.aftermathislands.com

Aftermath Islands Metaverse Limited is a Barbados corporation which is 50% owned and is controlled by Oasis Digital Studios Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc.

Aftermath Islands as first described in the initial whitepaper published in 2017 and then subsequently updated, was based on the premise of a water-world with islands that represented destinations in a global virtual game. Since then, the Aftermath Islands metaverse has evolved and now represents exciting themed based islands, communities, and estates where players can experience a wide range of adventures and opportunities.

In Aftermath Islands' virtual world, users can buy, develop, trade, and sell Virtual Land (VL), property and assets, like buildings, crafted items, transport, and other items all through NFTs, a non-fungible token that represents the ownership of virtual and other assets. Each plot or parcel of VL is unique and owners get to choose what content they want to publish on their VL. This can range from simple scenery and structures to an interactive game, store, warehouse, dwelling, facility, or destination. Users can purchase VL as well as all other goods and services in Aftermath Islands with CREDITS, the current code name for in-game currency, fiat and other authorized currencies, coins, and tokens.

Aftermath Islands is a shared virtual world, much like the Metaverse described by author Ernest Cline in his science-fiction novels Ready Player One and Ready Player Two. Expected to launch mid-2022, Aftermath Islands will allow users to connect and interact with each other, create content, craft, participate in activities and quests and play games. Aftermath Islands will have a virtual economy where users can engage in a myriad of in-world economic transactions as well as monetize the content, items, quests, and applications they build.

For more information about Aftermath Islands, please visit www.aftermathislands.com

About Oasis Digital Studios Limited - www.oasisdigitalstudios.com

Oasis Digital Studios Limited ("Oasis") brings together leading individuals and organizations in blockchain technology, computer graphics, augmented reality, entertainment, art, sports, gaming, music, media, comic book, memorabilia, and pop culture arenas to support the fast-paced and growing digital collectible and NFT marketplace. The Oasis business model is to create storytelling, experiential and collectible partnerships with artists, sports personalities, talent, brands, and commercial enterprises to create digital offerings and digital / physical product programs via digital collectibles and NFTs. Oasis uses multimedia, cinematics, animations, and other techniques to create unique products together with the latest Augmented Reality and virtual technologies to tell the Artist and Talent stories providing immersive experiences for Digital Collectibles and NFTs. The Oasis AR Enhanced NFT experience, powered by ImagineAR, will be available exclusively through the Liquid Avatar Mobile App, which features the ability for users to create digital icons that allow them to manage, control and create value from their biometrically verified digital identity, and is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store.

About Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc. - www.liquidavatartechnologies.com

Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc. focuses on the verification, management and monetization of Self Sovereign Identity, empowering users to control and benefit from the use of their online identity.

The Liquid Avatar Mobile App, available in the Apple App Store and Google Play is a verified Self Sovereign Identity platform that empowers users to create high quality digital icons representing their online personas. These icons allow users to manage and control their digital identity and Verifiable Access and Identity Credentials, and to use Liquid Avatars to share public and permission based private data when they want and with whom they want.

The Liquid Avatar Verifiable Credentials Ecosystem (LAVCE) has been developed to support all participants in a digital credential ecosystem, including the Holder, Issuer and Verifier, using state-of-the-art blockchain and open standards technologies initially as a node on the Indicio Network. The Company is a voting and steering committee member of the Trust over IP Foundation, founding and steering committee member of Cardea, a Linux Foundation Public Health project, member of the Good Health Pass collaborative, DIACC, the Covid Credentials Initiative ("CCI"), The Linux Foundation and a founding member of the Lumedic Exchange.

The Company has a suite of early-stage revenue generating programs that support the Liquid Avatar Mobile App program, including KABN KASH, a cash back and reward program that has over 500 leading online merchants and is working to release its own branded network payment card.

The Company's subsidiary, Oasis Digital Studios, is a creative and development agency that supports a wide range of artists, talent, and enterprises with Non-Fungible Token (NFT) solutions and has acquired 50% and control of the Aftermath Islands Metaverse program.

Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc. is publicly listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) under the symbol "LQID" (CSE:LQID).

The Company also trades in the United States, on the OTCQB under the symbol "LQAVF" and in Frankfurt under the symbol "4T51".

If you have not already joined our mailing list and would like to receive updates on Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc., please click here to join!

For more information, please visit www.liquidavatartechnologies.com

For further information, please contact: 

David Lucatch
Chief Executive Officer
647-725-7742 Ext. 701
ir@liquidavatar.com

US and Canadian Media Contact:

Nicole Rodrigues
NRPR Group
nicole@nrprgroup.com

The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

All websites referred to are expressly not incorporated by reference into this press release.

Forward-Looking Information and Statements

This press release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and may also contain statements that may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking information and forward-looking statements are not representative of historical facts or information or current condition, but instead represent only the Company's beliefs regarding future events, plans or objectives, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Company's control. Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved".

The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained herein include, but is not limited to, statements regarding the future launch of in-game activities, sales of digital and physical collectibles, Non-Fungible Tokens and other related products through Oasis Digital Studios and / or its clients, partners and other service providers, statements regarding the future capabilities of LAVCE or the operation of an Indicio Network Node, expected geographic expansion, the ability of the Company to generate revenues, roll out new programs and to successfully achieve business objectives, and expectations for other economic, business, and/or competitive factors.

By identifying such information and statements in this manner, the Company is alerting the reader that such information and statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such information and statements.

Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing, and the expectations contained in, the forward-looking information and statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and statements, and no assurance or guarantee can be given that such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information and statements. The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information and/or forward-looking statements that are contained or referenced herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE: Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has agreed to offer a refund to a Nashville couple who sued the IRS over taxes they paid on unclaimed and resold Tezos staking rewards.

The ruling might establish a precedent for future guidance on how to tax cryptocurrency earnings generated via staking. At the moment, Proof-of-Stake (PoS) staking incentives are regarded as income and must be taxed as soon as they are obtained. According to the latest developments, they should only be taxed when sold for USD.

Context and details

In May 2021, the Jarretts filed a complaint against the U.S government, claiming that the 8,876 Tezos (XTZ) tokens they produced in 2019 were not income and shouldn't have been taxed as such. The case also alleged that the government was doing something unique, namely tax creative activity rather than revenue.

"Taxing freshly made cakes, books, or tokens as income would therefore have far-reaching and damaging impacts on taxpayers and the United States economy," the couple argued. They further stated that this is not supported by the Internal Revenue Code, regulations, caselaw, or even the constitution itself. The IRS responded by declaring that it will honour the Jarretts request to repay the $3,793 they paid for their unclaimed rewards plus "statutory interest as required by law".

What's next?

Even today, there is currently no clear information or guidelines pertaining to taxing unclaimed staking rewards. The IRS asks taxpayers if they have "received, sold, traded, or otherwise disposed of any financial interest regarding digital currencies", but none of those characteristics appear to apply directly to the Jarretts unclaimed and resold awards.

Moreover, the couple reportedly intends to push the issue further in court in order to get longer-term protection and create a national precedent. American taxpayers are probably hoping that no legislative reaction to this court decision mirrors the United Kingdom regulators recent cryptocurrency staking instructions. There, crypto staking is frequently treated as a token sale, resulting in capital gains tax. Only time will tell what shall happen within the U.S as staking has become an exceedingly popular common method of earning crypto and extra income.

Solana (SOL) has suffered a major setback as a result of a recent $322 million breach on its Wormhole bridge. SOL fell during the uncertainty surrounding wETH's support for the bridge, although it has since recovered slightly.

Nonetheless, a sizable portion of investors and traders are growing increasingly wary about backing Solana due to an apparent lack of sufficient security safeguards, especially since this is not the first time that it has been hacked.

What happened?

As aforementioned, an attacker obtained $322 million in ETH by exploiting the bridge protocol Wormhole. Wormhole has estimated the worth of the assault at a whopping 120,000 ETH. According to various early reports, the funds stolen during the attack were initially worth 80,000 ETH. Later, it was revealed that the amount taken was a lot more than what was previously thought. The reason for the lower estimations was that they did not appear to account for stolen funds which were held on Solana as wrapped ETH (wETH).

Regardless, the sheer quantity stolen via the incident makes this one of the most significant DeFi attacks in recent memory. Other high-profile hacks include a $611 million attack on Poly Network in August of last year. Other notable attacks in 2021 also involved BadgerDAO and Cream Finance.

Next steps

As of now, Wormhole has not yet provided a full explanation of the hack as instead they have stated that the network is "offline for maintenance as it investigates a potential vulnerability". Additionally, Wormhole developers sought to get in touch with the attacker through a blockchain message. The team reportedly reached a "white hat deal", offering the culprit $10 million in exchange for revealing their exploit method and returning the stolen assets.

Meanwhile, Jump Crypto decided to replace the stolen funds, which is why they donated 120,000 ETH as their team believes that Wormhole is an integral part of a multichain future. Some investors were not impressed however as they primarily viewed this as little more than a bailout attempt which doesn't address the main issue at hand.

In early January, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin issued a warning about the inadequacies of cross-chain bridges, citing the security dangers inherent in such protocols. On a lighter note, Solana recently launched their new P2P (Peer To Peer) feature which enables their users to pay merchants directly and seamlessly.

Vitalik Buterin has revealed that he is helping with the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) transition of Dogecoin (DOGE). The PoS network is becoming increasingly popular among major cryptocurrencies, with a rising number actively switching to it.

According to the Ethereum founder, nearly every single major cryptocurrency today has a strategy to move to PoS. He recently stated that Dogecoin therefore intends to shift to a Proof-of-Stake network with community staking.

To that end, Buterin referred to a proposal made on Christmas Eve last year that described a method for implementing the DOGE strategy for a 'Community Staking' form of PoS. This would potentially allow more people to participate in administering the Dogecoin network.