USFCX_US Foundry Exchange

 The FBI has issued a warning to cryptocurrency investors about the dangers posed by hackers stealing bitcoin from decentralized finance (DeFi) systems. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting DeFi platforms, specifically smart contracts, in order to steal cryptocurrencies. The agency has also seen criminals utilize "flash loans," which are secured by smart contracts on a blockchain and cannot transfer funds until specific conditions are satisfied. Crypto bridges, which enable users to transfer cryptocurrency from one blockchain to another, have exhibited high rates of security vulnerability. The vast majority of 2018's significant crypto thefts may be traced back to these vulnerabilities. More than half of the $1.9 billion stolen this year through DeFi protocols is thought to have been perpetrated by hackers with ties to North Korea.

Iran's government outlawed cryptocurrency trading at the start of 2019. The proliferation of thousands of crypto-mining facilities in Iran has had a significant impact on the country's overall power grid, which explains this phenomenon. Iran started using cryptocurrency to settle foreign trade in 2022 as the country looked for alternatives to the US dollar and international banking. Iran recently received its first official import order paying in cryptocurrency. Smart contracts are predicted to become more prevalent in international trade as countries such as Iran seek to circumvent sanctions.  

New information about the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) central bank digital currency (CBDC) implementation plan has been made public. The digital rupee's pilot program will begin in the 2022-2023 fiscal year, as originally scheduled, but it will only be available to wholesale enterprises at first. A source told Business Standard that the CBDC's layout prevents test subjects from maintaining their privacy.  

A Pudgy Penguins NFT sold for 400 ETH on Monday, which is the largest sale in terms of ETH so far. The collection's base price has nearly tripled in the past month. In September 2021, when one ether was worth about $3,505, a rare penguin with a mirrored characteristic and a green background sold for 225 WETH. CoinUnited, an OpenSea user, made the greatest sale ever but lost $159,995 owing to a fluctuation in the price of ETH.  

The e-naira app has been downloaded 840,000 times in the ten months after it was first made available by the Nigerian central bank. Based on this information, it appears that less than one million Nigerians have adopted the digital money. The CBN's goal, as stated by Governor Godwin Emefiele, is to make the CBDC available to all citizens of Nigeria.  

The Bank of China is the first institution to implement a novel application of China's central bank digital currency (CBDC) system. The e-CNY smart contracts function is used to automate the process of sending funding to after-school programs. Private schools often allow parents to put down a deposit for a set of sessions. The smart contract then automatically processes payment after each class, making refunds convenient. The Digital Research Institute, the Chengdu Longquanyi District Education Bureau, and the Chengdu Tianfutong Financial Services Co., Ltd. are collaborating on the project to bring the product to the city of Chengdu in China's Sichuan province first.  

The price of bitcoin dropped from $22,738 to below $21,12.34 at 4:00 p.m. ET last friday. The largest digital coin in circulation again topped the $25,000 mark for the first time since June. The price of ether dropped from $1,808 to $1,728 at the same time before slowly recovering. By 4 PM ET, it had dropped even more, to $1,683.90. It's possible that digital currencies are heading in the same direction as stocks. Long positions on Bitcoin perpetual futures markets may have been liquidated. Bitcoin and ether both lost value on Thursday, but ether has gained over 100% since mid-June as investors prepare for a major update to the ethereum network.  

The Bank of Russia plans to link all Russian banks and credit institutions to the digital ruble network by 2024. The offline mode for the digital Ruble is also expected to be implemented by the central bank by 2025. Russian presidential elections are scheduled to take place in March 2024, and Vladimir Putin is guaranteed the right to seek reelection under the country's constitution.  

Unionbank aims to introduce bitcoin exchange through its mobile application. The bank has already made a name for itself as a cryptocurrency-friendly financial institution. Unionbank will be the first large traditional lender to adopt an exchange for crypto assets. The institution has been approved as a bitcoin exchange bank by the Philippines' central bank.  

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and an industry group are collaborating on a new study. The study will look into potential applications for a digital currency issued by a central bank and it will test run for 1 year. Only a select group of participants will be granted access to a CBDC that represents a legitimate claim on the RBA. Anyone who is interested in helping create use cases for the CBDC are encouraged to apply. Australia has high hopes for the rollout of the CBDC. The RBA has so far carried out multiple tests of its CBDC under development. The CBDCs have also gained the attention of the central banks of other countries. Thai, Indonesian, and Bangladeshi governments have all announced CBDC progress in the past several weeks.  

A pilot study is underway for a retail digital currency from Thailand's central bank. The Bank of Thailand previously stated that it "don't use crypto for payments," and Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission has now prohibited the use of crypto as a form of payment. Private sector cooperation is needed for the pilot phase, which will look at how a retail CBDC actually works in the real world. Beginning in late 2022, the first phase of this project is projected to be completed by the middle of 2023.  

On the ever-changing cryptocurrency market, Shiba Inu (SHIB) is poised to generate quite a stir when it creates a storm in the market this 2022. SHIB has exceeded Avalanche (AVAX), a well-known altcoin, and is expected to soon surpass Dogecoin (DOGE). AVAX is now trading at US$23.83 and has a market cap of about US$6.57 billion, with a SHIB token price of US$0.00001197. Cryptocurrency investors will not be able to get their millions of dollars out of Shiba Inu (SHIB) anytime soon because of four significant efforts, including the SHIB Visa card. An independent peer-to-peer payment network will be provided by SHIB as a community project, according to the company. Coins such as Bitcoin and Avalanche have been outperformed by meme coins, which have stunned the global cryptocurrency market with their amazing success.  

In Japan, the central bank digital currency (CBDC) was abolished because the people preferred to use traditional money rather than digital currency. Internet banking, credit card use and e-money payment technologies are making it difficult for Japan to implement CBDC, according to a report. For now, the Bank of Japan has no plans to conduct CBDC testing again.  

  An official from China's central bank has stated that the CBDC should not be as anonymous as cash. Mu Changchun, the head of China's digital yuan project, addressed the 5th Digital China Construction Summit on Monday about China's CBDC initiative. Following worldwide Anti-Money Laundering (AML) standards, the PBoC has been working to ensure that only limited anonymity is possible. China's central bank governor, Yi Gang, remarked, "if it gives the same anonymity as cash, it will considerably assist criminal operations, such as money laundering." Concerns about user privacy have plagued CBDC projects around the world.