Ethereum’s well-known MEV bot JaredFromSubway was drained after an attacker used contracts that made its automated trading system grant token approvals, according to Blockaid.
Summary
Blockaid says attacker-controlled contracts tricked JaredFromSubway’s automated system into granting approvals later used for draining. Jared publicly claimed a $15 million loss, while Blockaid’s public estimate stood near $7.5 million. Crypto.news previously tied JaredFromSubway to Vitalik Buterin’s swap and heavy Ethereum gas use in 2023. The security firm said the incident was not a normal phishing case and not a direct bug in the victim contract.
“This is not a classic phishing attack and not a traditional smart-contract vulnerability in the victim contract,” Blockaid said.
The firm said the bot approved attacker-controlled contracts during routes that appeared to be profitable MEV trades.
Blockaid says approvals stayed open Blockaid said the attacker first tested routes where approvals were used at once, leaving no open allowance. Later, the attacker changed the route design so the bot gave approvals that were not spent or revoked.
One example cited by Blockaid involved an approval of about 92.16 WETH to an attacker helper contract. Etherscan data for the transaction showed jaredfromsubway.eth interacting with its MEV Bot 2 contract before the later sweep. The transaction record also showed ERC-20 movements tied to the same automated route.
Final sweep hit WETH, USDC and USDT The final transaction used the open approvals to pull WETH, USDC and USDT from the JaredFromSubway MEV bot contract through transferFrom. Etherscan showed transfers from “jaredfromsubway: MEV Bot 2” to the attacker wallet beginning with 0x3e37.
Blockaid put the drained amount at about $7.5 million. The JaredFromSubway account later claimed the loss was $15 million and offered a $1 million bounty for the full return of the funds. That difference has not been fully explained in the public posts reviewed.
How the attacker turned the bot’s logic against it The attack appears to have targeted the bot’s own trading workflow. MEV bots watch Ethereum activity and act on transactions that look profitable. In this case, attacker-controlled contracts made the route look useful enough for the bot to approve spending rights.
The attacker used 66 fake token contracts that copied the look and function of WETH, USDC and USDT. These contracts were paired with fake liquidity pools. The setup pushed the bot toward approvals that later became the path for the drain.
JaredFromSubway’s record is back in focus JaredFromSubway is one of Ethereum’s most watched sandwich bots. In a sandwich attack, a bot places trades before and after a user’s swap. This can give the user a worse price while the bot captures the spread.
As previously reported by crypto.news, JaredFromSubway targeted a small swap by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin in April, using about $1.14 million in WETH volume across SushiSwap and Uniswap V2. Crypto.news also reported in 2023 that the bot used 455 ETH in gas within 24 hours and accounted for about 7% of Ethereum gas use during that period.
The exploit now puts attention on token approvals used by automated systems. The case shows how a system built to act quickly on open market data can be steered into unsafe permissions when controls around approvals are weak. It also adds a new chapter to the wider debate over MEV, sandwich trades and user protection on Ethereum.
For now, the key public details remain split between Blockaid’s technical thread, the on-chain records and posts from the JaredFromSubway account. No recovery had been confirmed in the reviewed updates.
An attacker drained more than $7.5 million from the notorious Ethereum MEV bot jaredfromsubway.eth by exploiting its automated trading logic rather than a traditional contract bug or phishing scam.Over several weeks, the attacker lured the bot into approving malicious helper contracts via fake tokens and liquidity pools that mimicked assets like WETH, USDC and USDT, then used those open approvals to pull funds and route some through Tornado Cash.The incident underscores both the scale and risks of industrialized sandwich-bot activity—jaredfromsubway.eth has been responsible for roughly 70% of Ethereum sandwich attacks, which cost traders about $60 million a year—by showing how machine-speed, pattern-based systems can themselves be turned into victims.Jaredfromsubway.eth, one of Ethereum’s most infamous MEV bots, has been drained for more than $7.5 million after an attacker turned the bot’s own automated trading logic against it.
The bot is known for sandwich attacks, a form of maximal extractable value, or MEV, in which an automated trader spots a pending transaction, buys ahead of it, lets the victim trade at a worse price, then sells immediately after.
The result is a small hidden tax on users that can add up across thousands of trades.
Sandwich attackers aren’t typically a form of exploit but are looked upon in crypto circles as a type of predatory behavior, which skims value from users, leads to a spike in gas fees and doesn’t benefit either the network or the user.
Security firm Blockaid said Saturday’s incident was not a normal phishing attack and not a simple bug in the victim contract. The attacker instead targeted the bot’s decision-making system.
The setup was built over several weeks, where the attacker deployed dozens of fake token contracts and fake liquidity pools - a term for a pile of tokens locked on a decentralized exchange - that looked like profitable trades. Some mimicked familiar assets such as wrapped ether (WETH), and dollar-pegged stablecoins USDC and USDT.
That bait did what it was supposed to do. Jaredfromsubway.eth’s bot saw what looked like MEV opportunities and generated approvals for attacker-controlled helper contracts to spend tokens on its behalf. Those approvals were used immediately as part of the trade in earlier tests, but later, the attacker created routes where the approvals stayed open.
This left the attacker with standing permission to pull funds. And they used those open approvals to transfer WETH, USDC and USDT out of Jaredfromsubway.eth’s contracts, draining more than $7.5 million.
Some of the stolen funds were later sent to Tornado Cash, onchain data reveiwed by CoinDesk showed.
The irony was hard to miss, meanwhile.
Jaredfromsubway.eth has long been one of the most visible symbols of toxic MEV on Ethereum. Sandwich attacks cost Ethereum traders about $60 million a year, with 60,000 to 90,000 attacks per month between November 2024 and October 2025.
Roughly 70% of those attacks were associated with Jaredfromsubway.eth, who has been active since early 2023.
CoinDesk reported in May that the same bot had even sandwiched a small swap by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. It put up $1.14 million to frontrun Buterin's trade to make just $4 (after fees, the bot a few dollars money on this particular trade).
The trade was worth only a few dollars, and the loss was tiny, but it showed how industrialized the bot had become. It was scanning the mempool for nearly anything it could insert itself around.
While Saturday's incident does not make sandwich attacks less harmful, but it does show the risk of running systems that approve transactions at machine speed based on pattern recognition and profit signals.
Jaredfromsubway.eth spent years profiting from traders who did not see the bot coming. But on Saturday, the bot did not see the trade coming either.
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Leading US-based crypto exchange platform Coinbase is listing “the world’s lightest blockchain” after a two-week delay.
News of the listing sent Mina Protocol (MINA), a privacy-focused payments protocol clocking in at a size of just 22 kilobytes, surging from its 24-hour low of $3.04 to $3.48, a 14.5% increase.
[adinserter block="1"]
According to the crypto project’s website, MINA’s small size allows anyone to connect to the internet using their smartphone to validate the blockchain’s transactions. Mina protocol uses zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs to secure user data while executing smart contracts.
ZK proofs allow one party to prove to a validator that a specific statement is true without giving out any extra irrelevant information.
MINA was initially set to launch two weeks ago but was met with delays. News of the original launch sent the smart contract platform surging from $2.16 to $2.71, a 25.4% increase.
Coinbase says that the ability to buy and sell the lightweight blockchain was pushed back in order to ensure the launch would be successful.
“In order to have full confidence in a successful launch of MINA, we have made the decision to continue to delay the launch of trading.”
Yesterday, Coinbase announced that trading MINA would begin as long as proper liquidity conditions were met. Those conditions were met and MINA was officially launched for trading on the exchange today as a result.
Mina Protocol has since stabilized and is exchanging hands at $3.22 at time of writing.
Kurt Hemecker is COO of the Mina Foundation, building on the Mina Protocol to create a privacy and security layer for web3. Kurt is former Head of Business Operations at Facebook's Diem Association (formerly Libra).
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Why you should listen Using zero knowledge technology, Mina is creating the infrastructure for a secure, democratic future. Mina’s zkApps, smart contracts powered by zero knowledge, keep users in control of their privacy by validating and sharing proofs of their data, rather than the data itself. Think about getting a loan by simply sharing a proof of your personal ID and credit score, rather than the data itself. No risk of your personal information being hacked or sold. You are the only one owning your data, and it never leaves your device.
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Mina Protocol (MINA) is leading the altcoin rally today following its 88% mega rally in the last 24 hours.
MINA, Listed on Upbit Exchange, Experienced a Great Rise The cryptocurrency's price is currently hovering around $0.78 and is attempting to retest its year-to-date high of around $1.17.
MINA Daily Chart MINA's rise proves that while an altcoin can spark a rally based on Bitcoin's influence, the momentum can also be triggered by its own fundamentals and community trends at large.
MINA has outperformed major altcoins and with its current price action, it has gained up to 109% in this time frame, complementing the gains made in the last seven-day period.
MINA is designed to reduce computational requirements to run dApps more efficiently.
MINA is following in the footsteps of the zk-rollup trend to take advantage of this technology that many believe will reshape the future of the blockchain ecosystem.
MINA is facing an impressive embrace from different market participants, especially the stock exchanges.
As reported in July, the MINA/BTC trading pair was listed by Upbit and its price increased by 17% at that time.
Today, Upbit exchange announced that it has listed the MINA/KRW trading pair.
*This is not investment advice.
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October was a bullish month for the cryptocurrency market, filled with altcoin gainers. Bitcoin (BTC) and several other cryptocurrencies reached new yearly highs.
As Halloween ushers an end to October, BeInCrypto looks at 5 altcoins that made October frighteningly profitable. The five October altcoin gainers are:
Polymesh (POLYX) price increased by 205.13% Tellor (TRB) price increased by 95.60% Solana (SOL) price increased by 79.61% Injective (INJ) price increased by 71.45% MINA price increased by 62.92% POLYX Price Leads October Altcoin GainersThe POLYX price has increased quickly since October 13. The upward movement has been parabolic, leading to an all-time high price of $0.43 on October 30.
The increase caused a breakout from the $0.29 horizontal resistance area, which had been in place since April.
The all-time high was close to the 1.61 external Fib level of the most recent decrease. Once the price is at an all-time high, the Fib level often acts as the area for the top.
If POLYX breaks out above it, it can increase by 75% to the 2.61 external Fib level at $0.66.
POLYX/USDT Daily Chart. Source: TradingViewDespite this bullish prediction, failure to close above the $0.44 resistance can lead to a 25% drop to the $0.29 horizontal area, which is expected to provide support.
TRB Reaches Yearly HighThe TRB price has increased alongside a parabolic ascending support line since the beginning of September. The upward movement led to a new yearly high of $125 yesterday.
Currently, TRB trades slightly above the 0.618 Fib retracement level of the entire previous decrease at $105. Whether the price moves above it or gets rejected can determine if the future trend is bullish or bearish.
A successful close above this area can lead to a 50% increase to the next resistance at $165.
TRB/USDT Two-Day Chart. Source: TradingViewOn the other hand, a rejection and breakdown from the parabolic ascending support line will mean the upward movement is complete. In that case, a 40% drop to the closest support at $66 will be likely.
Solana Resumes Rapid AscentThe SOL price has increased alongside an ascending support trendline since the beginning of the year. More recently, it bounced above the line in September (green icon), accelerating its rate of increase.
The next month, SOL broke out from the $28 horizontal area. This was a crucial area since it had been in place since November 2022.
Today, SOL reached a new yearly high of $37. If the price continues upwards, it can increase by another 46% and reach the next resistance at $47.
SOL/USDT Weekly Chart. Source: TradingViewDespite this bullish SOL price prediction, failure to sustain the increase can cause a 25% drop to the $28 area, validating it as support.
Injective Increases by 50% in One WeekThe INJ price increased by 50% last week, breaking out from the $9 horizontal resistance area. The price reached a new yearly high of $14.50 today. This was the highest price since November 2021.
Currently, INJ trades inside the $13.50 horizontal resistance area. This is the final resistance before the all-time high region.
So, if INJ breaks out, it can double in price and reach the all-time high of $27.
INJ/USDT Weekly Chart. Source: TradingViewDespite this bullish prediction, a rejection from the $13.50 horizontal resistance area can trigger a 35% drop to validate the $9 support area again.
MINA Concludes October Altcoin GainersThe MINA price has increased swiftly since its $0.36 low on October 11. On October 24 alone, the price increased by 110%, leading to a high of $0.98.
However, the upward movement could not be sustained. Rather, MINA created a long upper wick (red icon) and fell below the $0.88 horizontal resistance area.
Now, MINA trades just above the $0.58 horizontal support area. Whether it bounces or breaks down can determine the future trend’s direction.
MINA/USDT Daily Chart. Source: TradingViewA bounce can lead to a 40% increase to the next resistance at $0.88. On the other hand, a breakdown can cause a 40% drop to $0.37.
For BeInCrypto’s latest crypto market analysis, click here.
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In the whirlwind landscape of cryptocurrency, the Mina Protocol has taken center stage with an extraordinary 47% surge in its native token, MINA, within the past week.
Currently riding high at $1.40, a level not witnessed since May 2022, MINA’s impressive rally has ignited contemplation among investors: Can it breach the elusive $2 mark in the immediate future?
MINA price action today. Source: Coingecko Mina’s Surge: CEO Appointment And Swiss Relocation This surge in MINA’s value is not a mere coincidence; it’s the result of a convergence of significant developments that have unfolded in recent weeks.
December 19 marked a pivotal moment when the Mina Foundation announced the appointment of Kurt Hemecker as the new CEO, a distinguished business development specialist in the FinTech space.
Simultaneously, the foundation strategically relocated its operations to Geneva, Switzerland, amplifying the positive sentiment surrounding MINA due to anticipated regulatory benefits and enhanced networking opportunities within the cryptocurrency community.
MINAUSD currently trading at $1.260 territory. Chart: TradingView.com Another driving force behind MINA’s remarkable surge is the introduction of the Paima ZK layer. A collaborative effort involving Paima Studios, Mina, ZekoLabs, and Class Lambda, this layer represents a groundbreaking leap in blockchain gaming technology.
It can deploy Zero-Knowledge (ZK) proofs to any Layer 1 (L1) ecosystem, supporting both EVM and non-EVM codebases. The layer’s innovative capacity to enable dynamic scaling of on-chain games, akin to the traditional “world select” in web2 games, adds a novel dimension to MINA’s utility.
The Mina Foundation Board appoints Kurt Hemecker (@khem) as CEO to champion adoption of @MinaProtocol’s ZK tech.
Kurt, previously COO, brings two decades of business development experience from major players including @DiemAssociation and @PayPal.
1/3https://t.co/W1old4fmxJ
— Mina Foundation 🪶 (@MinaFoundation) December 19, 2023
MINA Faces Resistance At Recent Highs Despite the positive momentum, MINA encounters initial resistance at its recent peak of $1.48, with additional overhead resistance noted between $1.5817 and $1.6337.
While the broader trend remains upward, cautious optimism is warranted as short-term oscillators hint at early signs of peaking momentum, prompting vigilance among traders and investors alike.
Meanwhile, Sebastien Guillemot, the principal developer at Cardano, alluded to significant advancements for the blockchain in 2024 in a recent X post.
With Ethereum sentiments being in the dumps right now, I’d just like to say working with Arbitrum (@arbitrum) has been a great experience 👍
Expect more projects that combine Arbitrum with @cardano and @MinaProtocol in the 2024 👍
— Sebastien Guillemot (@SebastienGllmt) December 26, 2023
Guillemot’s expressed enthusiasm about collaborating with Arbitrum suggests a potential fusion of Cardano with Arbitrum and Mina Protocol.
Paima Studios, under Guillemot’s leadership, has already contributed to the progression of Layer-2 solutions, releasing a solution for Cardano’s on-chain gaming this year.
The alignment with Arbitrum and Mina Protocol points toward a paradigm shift in the blockchain landscape, promising further innovation and seamless integration.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) moved higher, with the cryptocurrency prices trading past the key $43,000 level on Tuesday.
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) also recorded gains, trading above the key $2,300 mark this morning.
Pendle (CRYPTO: PENDLE) was the top gainer over the prior 24 hours, while Manta Network (CRYPTO: MANTA) turned out to be the biggest loser.
At the time of writing, the global crypto market cap rose to $1.67 trillion, recording a 24-hour gain of 2.5%. BTC was trading higher by 2.9% at $43,475 while ETH rose by around 1.9% to $2,315 on Tuesday.
Here are the top ten crypto gainers and losers over the past 24 hours:
Spearheaded by the innovative collaboration of zero-knowledge proofs and the Mina Protocol, ‘httpz’ ushers in an era of secured, verifiable online interactions. Will Cove, the Head of Community at Mina Foundation, shared insights into the dwindling trust across the web and presented ‘httpz’ as the beacon of reliability in the digital realm.
2/4 httpz uses zero-knowledge proofs to let you verify data & information directly, without trusting any third party. It builds on the legacy of HTTPS, adding a "proof layer" on top.
This lets you verify the source & validity of data or computation, without trusting any…
— Everstake (@everstake_pool) April 11, 2024 Zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) emerge as the heralds of a new internet age, proposing a solution to the crisis of confidence plaguing the online world. ZKPs aim to reinstate trust in the veracity of data without revealing underlying details, mirroring the role of encryption in securing data transmission. This technology aspires to realign the internet with its decentralised roots, prioritising protocols over platforms.
‘Httpz’ represents a transformative vision for the internet, enabling users to independently create, share, and validate information proofs without relying on intermediaries. Building on the legacy of HTTPS, ‘httpz’ introduces a proof layer enhancing data verification and source authenticity, fostering direct trust in information over the platforms that host it.
How ‘httpz’ Works At the heart of ‘httpz’ lies a proof layer powered by local proof generation through zero-knowledge applications (zkApps) and consolidation via the Mina blockchain. zkApps facilitate the creation of proofs for any standardised dataset or computation, promoting data validity without disclosure. These proofs, either stored on a device or validated on the Mina blockchain, offer a comprehensive ‘proof of everything’, ensuring data integrity in a public and accessible manner.
The Mina Protocol is uniquely positioned to host the ‘httpz’ proof layer, primarily due to its capability to handle billions of succinct proofs daily through recursion. This efficiency simplifies user interaction with proofs, focusing on their validity rather than their creation process. Mina’s adaptability ensures it remains at the forefront of secure and fair digital verifications, serving as a universal API for ‘httpz’.
AUTHOR
Kester is an experienced freelance content writer. His focus is primarily on blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. One might even refer to him as a "blockchain enthusiast." He has been following advancements in the crypto and blockchain area for several years, researching and writing his insights in the media. In addition to being a skilled content writer, Mushumir is also knowledgeable in SEO and digital marketing. He aspires to succeed as a content creator in the digital realm, dealing with customers in the finance and tech industries to generate traffic through engaging taglines and content. Mushumir enjoys traveling, reading, and playing cricket when he is not writing. He now works as a news and article writer for BlockchainReporter.
While the market is saturated with thousands of crypto assets, we’ve highlighted a list of tokens under $1 with strong potential for growth.
Investors who missed out on the last bull run hope to participate in this ongoing bull market. Recall that the last bull run in 2021 brought a lot of crypto assets, including Solana (SOL) and Shiba Inu (SHIB), into the limelight, with their prices skyrocketing to unprecedented levels.
As the peak of the bull market edges close, investors are looking for affordable crypto assets with the potential to register significant price growth.
Top 5 Altcoins Under $1 That said, we’ve compiled a list of 5 promising under $1 altcoins that could record massive growth as the bull market progresses. This list is compiled for informational purposes and should not be taken as investment advice.
ClinTex (CTI) The ClinTex (CTI) project is unique in the crypto space. Its blockchain was established specifically for clinical trials and transforming the medicine development industry.
CTI is currently trading at $0.046, with a 24-hour trading volume of $406,198. Data from CoinMarketCap shows that it is the 1,275th biggest crypto asset, with a valuation of $3.78 million.
Like most altcoins, CTI attracted the attention of many investors in 2021 when its price surged to an all-time high (ATH) of $0.39. The token is currently trading on multiple exchanges, such as KuCoin, Gate.io, and Latoken.
Decentraland (MANA) Another altcoin under $1 with strong growth potential is Decentraland (MANA). MANA rallied to an all-time high of $5.39 in 2021 and is currently trading at a discount of $0.50.
The token demonstrated its prowess for significant growth last month when its price surged to around $0.8. However, MANA’s price has plummeted amid the widespread volatility in the broader market. Despite the plunge, top analysts expect MANA to perform exceedingly well in the peak of the bull run.
At press time, the token’s 24-hour trading volume stood at $155.34 million, while its market cap is currently around $938.55 million, ranking it as the 94th-biggest crypto. You can trade MANA on Binance, Kraken, Bybit, OKX, and Crypto.com.
Jasmy (JASMY) Ranked as the 92nd largest crypto by market cap, Jasmy (JASMY) is among the altcoins expected to record significant growth in the peak of the bull run. JASMY is down 20.4% over the past 24 hours to $0.019, being one of the most impacted in the current downturn.
Despite its massive plunge, JASMY has soared 198% year-to-date (YTD). At press time, JASMY is down 99.61% from its peak price of $4.99, registered on February 16, 2021.
The token has a market cap of $953.61 million, with a daily volume worth $220.01 million. JASMY trades across top exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, KuCoin, and HTX.
Mina Protocol (MINA) Mina Protocol is the fourth coin on our list of top 5 sub-$1 crypto assets with strong growth potential. At the time of writing this line, MINA is trading at $0.81, down 20.5% over the past 24 hours.
The decline in price stems from the bloodbath witnessed across the broader market over the past day. Nonetheless, MINA is still expected to record tremendous growth during the bull market’s peak.
The token has already demonstrated its growth potential when it surged to an all-time high of $9.09 in June 2021. You can trade MINA on Binance, MEXC, DigiFinex, OKX, and BingX.
Beam (BEAM) The last token on the list of top 5 sub-$1 assets with good potential for enormous growth is Beam (BEAM). At the time of writing, BEAM is changing hands at $0.026, with a 24-hour trade volume of $59.34 million. The token currently has a market cap of $1.4 billion and is ranked as the 68th largest cryptocurrency.
BEAM has soared over 54% since the beginning of this year. However, it is down 39.6% from its ATH of $0.044, registered last month. At the moment, BEAM is trading on Binance, Bitget, Bybit, and Gate.io.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
In a strategic move to bolster its ecosystem, Mina Protocol has partnered with Celestia to incorporate a first-of-its-kind modular decentralized data availability (DA) solution. This collaboration is spearheaded by Geometry Research and supported technically by o1Labs.
It marks a significant advancement in the Mina ecosystem, introducing more robust data availability options that are crucial for the development of zkApps—applications that utilize zero-knowledge proofs to ensure privacy and security while maintaining the integrity of the underlying data.
The integration is timely as blockchain technology faces increasing challenges around data availability, a critical aspect for ensuring transparency and security in decentralized networks. Data availability solutions are essential in addressing issues related to scalability and trust, particularly as blockchains grow in size and complexity. By ensuring that all necessary data in a blockchain block is readily accessible and verifiable, Mina Protocol strengthens its infrastructure, making it more resilient against attacks or data manipulation.
Redefining Scalability and Security Mina Protocol’s integration with Celestia’s modular DA layer is a transformative development for the blockchain sector. It specifically enhances how data is handled, offering a scalable solution that does not compromise on security.
The modular approach allows different layers of the blockchain to operate independently yet cohesively, providing a flexible and efficient framework that supports the rapid development of decentralized applications.
This integration addresses the core challenge of scalability by enabling Mina Protocol to manage larger volumes of transactions efficiently. Celestia’s DA solution ensures that even as the ecosystem scales, data remains transparent and tamper-proof. This is particularly crucial for applications that require a high degree of trust and integrity, such as financial services and identity verification platforms.
Strategic Implications for Development and Adoption The collaboration between Mina Protocol and Celestia is not just a technical upgrade; it’s a strategic enhancement that positions Mina as a pioneer in the space of zero-knowledge applications. With Mina’s architecture, which compresses data into succinct zero-knowledge proofs, the integration allows for even greater scalability and accessibility.
This makes Mina’s blockchain not only more secure but also more user-friendly, as participants can verify transactions and blockchain states even on low-power devices.
Furthermore, the integration is set to accelerate the development of new applications on Mina’s platform. With easier zkApp programmability on the horizon, thanks to an upcoming mainnet upgrade, developers will find a more conducive environment for creating innovative applications. This upgrade is expected to significantly boost developer activity and increase the number of zk-oriented products in the market.
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Mysterious crypto writer with expertise in blockchain, offering deep insights that captivate and intrigue readers. With a unique ability to uncover hidden insights and trends, Samuel delivers in-depth analysis and thought-provoking content that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. His writing style is engaging and informative, blending technical knowledge with a sense of intrigue, making complex crypto topics accessible to both newcomers and seasoned industry professionals. Samuel’s work continues to capture the attention of the crypto community, solidifying his reputation as a trusted voice in the space.
Digital assets custody and collateral management provider Copper now offers custody and staking support for Mina Protocol.
Copper.co announced its support for Mina Protocol (MINA) on Aug. 21, noting that support for the zero-knowledge blockchain platform’s native token expands digital asset options for institutional investors.
The integration will allow eligible clients to participate in the Mina Protocol ecosystem through Copper’s infrastructure.
Targeting institutional investors Founded in 2018, Copper is a platform that seeks to offer institutional investors access and exposure to the digital assets market. The platform provided an MPC wallet and launched its off-exchange settlement solution, ClearLoop, in 2020.
ClearLoop allows users to manage digital asset collateral and settle trades across major crypto exchanges without moving assets off Copper’s wallet.
According to the London-based company, adding MINA staking allows for increased adoption of ZK technology.
“The addition of Copper’s custody solution gives professional and institutional entities more options to diversify their crypto participation with MINA. We hope that it will also raise awareness of institutional use cases for ZK technology, such as zk-KYC credentials that help address compliance without sacrificing user privacy,”
Kurt Hemecker, chief executive officer of Mina Foundation
Copper co-founder and chief executive Dmitry Tokarev commented that crypto and blockchain are at a “pivotal moment for institutional adoption.”
Tokarev added that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of Ethereum ETFs in May and launch of trading in July has accelerated interest. As a result, the ecosystem is seeing increased demand for reliable tools through which institutional investors can gain exposure to cryptocurrencies.
Copper’s recent partnerships Copper recently partnered with Hedera (HBAR) to expand institutional access to the proof-of-stake network’s native token. The integration allows investors to leverage Copper Connect and Hedera protocols such as SaucerSwap to participate in the HBAR and Hedera Token Service utility.
Copper expanded its custody and staking service to Internet Computer (ICP) in July.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of SBUX either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
In the rapidly evolving crypto market, the robust activity plays a significant role. As per Phoenix Group, based on GitHub’s 12-month data concerning most active crypto assets, Internet Computer, Mina Protocol, and Sushi are dominating the others. The on-chain analytics provider took to social media to share the list of top active projects over the year.
Internet Computer Emerges as 1st Most Active Crypto Project During Past 12 Months Phoenix Group’s list of most active cryptocurrency projects during the recent twelve months includes Internet Computer ($ICP) at the 1st position. The project saw a staggering 7,071 commits and more than 100 contributors during this period. Subsequently, Mina Protocol ($MINA) is the top 2nd project with up to 4,274 commits. In addition to this, saw above 100 contributors in the meantime.
Following that, Sushi ($SUSHI) stands in the 3rd place with its commits reaching 3,207 in terms of number. Additionally, witnessed twenty-seven contributors cumulatively. Apart from that, Bitcoin ($BTC) has secured the 4th position with nearly 3,068 commits in total, with up to 99 contributors. The next project in this respect is Chainlink ($LINK) with almost 3,034 commits as well as 100+ contributors.
Along with that, Cosmos ($ATOM) is the 6th most active crypto project. Hence, it has effectively recorded 2,370 commits and 100+ contributors. It is followed by Rubic ($RBC) which has obtained 2,279 commits and 20 contributors to secure the 7th spot in the list.
eCash Bottoms List with 1,666 Commits and 100+ Contributors Phoenix Group’s list of most active crypto projects in line with GitHub’s 12-month data includes Storj ($STORJ) on the 8th rank. The project has gained 1,788 commits and 100+ contributors. After that, PancakeSwap ($CAKE) occupies the 9th position with 1,717 commits and 100+ contributors. eCash ($XEC) comes last in the list with its commits reaching 1,666 mark while it witnessed 100+ contributors.
AUTHOR
Umair Younas is a cryptocurrency-related content writer linked with this work since 2019. Here, at Blockchainreporter, he serves as a news and article writer. He is a crypto, blockchain, NFTs, DeFi, and FinTech enthusiast. He has strong command over writing authentic reviews about brokers and exchanges and he has collaborated with our education team to write educational content as well. He has a dream to raise awareness among people about digital currencies. His works are well-researched and brimmed with information hence they provide fresh insights. Stay tuned to his posts if you want to stay up-to-date with the crypto-verse.
OlympusDAO has been hit hard by the recent market selloff and is quickly approaching its all-time low of $163 set over the summer.
OlympusDAO Enters Freefall Investors are fleeing OlympusDAO.
The decentralized reserve currency protocol is down over 87% from its all-time high achieved in April last year amid a selloff across the market. OlympusDAO’s downward trajectory has accelerated over the last week, shedding 43.5% of its value. The OHM token is down 24.9% in the last 24 hours, currently trading at $183. It’s about 12% away from its all-time low of $163 set during the May 2021 market crash.
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OHM/USD chart. Source: CoinGecko OlympusDAO was the first crypto project to utilize a circular tokenomic structure to draw in liquidity. Thanks to OlympusDAO’s clever tokenomic mechanism, investors can earn outsized yields for bonding assets and staking the OHM token. This so-called liquidity “flywheel” has proven effective while the market impulse is bullish and has inspired many fork projects such as Wonderland Money. The OlympusDAO frenzy hit a peak in late 2021 as various digital assets soared to new highs, and by November it had hit a $4 billion market cap.
However, as the May crash and more recent price action have shown, OlympusDAO appears to suffer more than other projects when the market declines. OlympusDAO’s design has attracted criticism from many crypto enthusiasts who liken the project to a Ponzi scheme. This is because Olympus and other such projects need new money to enter the protocol to prop up the incentives for existing investors.
Other protocols that use a similar tokenomic structure to OlympusDAO have also been hit hard. Wonderland has also experienced similar losses, trading down 34.6% over the past week. On Ethereum, the OlympusDAO-backed fork Redacted Cartel is also bleeding despite almost tripling in value since its launch mid-December. The protocol’s BTRFLY token dropped approximately 34% during the recent dip, but has since partially recovered.
Since the start of the year, the crypto market has been hard hit after a weak end to 2021. Bitcoin briefly dipped below $40,000 Monday and is down 10% on the week but appears to have found support at current levels. Ethereum has fared worse, seeing a weekly decline of 17%. The second-biggest crypto asset also appears to have stabilized after testing support at $3,000. The latest dip follows the Federal Reserve’s Jan. 5 confirmation that it would hike interest rates, which also shook crypto and stocks.
However, while most crypto assets are following Bitcoin and Ethereum’s downward trajectory, there are some exceptions. NEAR Protocol, a sharded Layer 1 network, has bounced back from temporary weakness, gaining 17% in the past 24 hours. Elsewhere, the privacy-focused Oasis Protocol has also shown strength, rising 16.5% in the same period. Whether these assets will continue to decouple from the wider market remains to be seen.
Disclosure: At the time of writing this feature, the author owned ETH, NEAR, and several other cryptocurrencies.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Timothy Craig. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Shark tank star and billionaire Mark Cuban is revealing his crypto portfolio, which includes several non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and altcoins built on Ethereum (ETH).
According to ETH search engine EtherScan, Cuban’s top altcoin holdings include data exchange platform Ocean Protocol (OCEAN), cross-chain smart contract protocol Rarible (RARI), the governance token of the Olympus DAO (gOHM), and music streaming blockchain Audius (AUDIO).
[adinserter block="1"]
The business magnate has also made a portion of his crypto wallet public and is showing off his NFT collection on the social crypto collectible platform Lazy.
Cuban’s collection includes NFTs built on ETH-competitors Solana (SOL) and Polygon (MATIC), as well as ETH itself.
In a recent interview with comedian Jon Stewart, Cuban reveals that 80% of his most-recent non-Shark Tank investments have been into crypto assets as he believes newer generations are very likely to incorporate cryptocurrencies into their business models.
“The investments I’m making now are not in traditional businesses, 80% of the investments I make not in Shark Tank are in and around cryptocurrencies.”
Cuban then tells Stewart that he’s less of a speculative investor and believes decentralized cryptocurrencies will have legitimate use cases in the business world moving forward.
“Put aside all the speculation you read about with Bitcoin and Dogecoin, all that. Set that aside, that’s just the gamesmanship that’s played with stocks and everything.
A decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) basically says that there is no central organization. It’s all decentralized and trustless. What we mean by trustless is there’s not a management group or board of directors or a CEO making decisions…
And so everybody who owns a token in that application then has an equal, not always equal, but typically equal vote to set the direction of the hull, of the network. That is changing decision-making and that is where I look to invest.”
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Olympus is the first on-chain acceleration platform. Olympus will transition into a DAO. The DFINITY Foundation (DFINITY), a Swiss not-for-profit research and development organization and major contributor to the Internet Computer Blockchain (ICP), today announced the launch of the Olympus Acceleration Platform, web3’s first decentralized, on-chain global acceleration platform. Olympus supports the development and adoption of web3 technology across multiple ecosystems. The acceleration platform is a first of its kind platform and will be used by teams around the world to organize and launch their own accelerator programs.
Initial operations of Olympus will be funded by a $15M grant from DFINITY and the ICP Asia Alliance, which aims to cultivate a dynamic Web3 and AI ecosystem in Asia. There will be new allocation of funds in future with the launch of proposed EU, MENA, Africa and America alliances, cementing ICP’s global reach.
By the end of 2024 the platform will transition into a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). To ensure platform sustainability and independence from grants, future cohorts will be funded by a native token generation event (TGE), followed by fundraising from the community.This will also ensure all stakeholders benefit from the success of the platform as token holders.
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Designed for a new cycle of web3 product launches, Olympus provides a consolidated platform for open and sustainable project acceleration by providing access to grants, crowdfunding, VC investments, and referrals all in one place and on-chain. The platform operates as an ecosystem pipeline, channeling and curating the best projects from 40+ countries around the world. Projects can apply to join a distributed network of startup accelerators, raise funds, access talent, and interact across communities and ecosystems, while investors on the platform can increase their visibility and gain early access to fully transparent, globally vetted deals.
The Olympus Acceleration platform promotes decentralization, innovation and entrepreneurship, we’re all looking forward to witnessing the growth of the next generation of projects on the Internet Computer and other ecosystems through Olympus. By creating a web3-based global platform for everyone, we’re able to bring together top talent, projects, investors, and mentors to create a credible and trustless marketplace offering equal opportunity and access to all qualified projects. Traditional accelerator programs are permissioned and operate as silos, many are also not sustainable and rely on grants. Olympus is a new model, that’s why I am especially excited to get involved as a mentor and share my experience with the next generation of founders.
Dominic Williams, Founder and Chief Scientist of the DFINITY Foundation, commented. Unlike existing accelerator programs which are siloed and require permission to interact, Olympus uses an Open Stake model where projects, mentors, and investors can interact freely, enabling permissionless ecosystem inclusivity and unlimited integrations. Utilizing multi-chain infrastructure, projects can also unlock capital and users at scale through early crowdfunding. Olympus will also enable on-chain verification of key project growth metrics, with further verification provided by the platform’s trustless perpetual rating loop enabling community members, investors, mentors, and users to rate projects and provide testimonials. Such multi-chain infrastructure and on-chain verification are uniquely powered by the technologies of Internet Computer Protocol.
The launch of the platform is anchored by a number of partners and supporters, including Web3Labs, a blockchain incubation accelerator and investment firm based in Hong Kong committed to discovering, investing in, and nurturing the best projects and innovative teams in web3. DFINITY and Web3Labs recently announced a strategic partnership to foster and promote blockchain innovation across Asia with Web3Labs joining the ICP Asia Alliance founded last year. The first batch of multiple web3 startup accelerator programs is expected to be operated by ICP Hubs as well as partners like Web3Labs through the platform.
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Also joining the platform are venture capital investors who will become Mentors in the accelerator cohorts and gain access to deal flows. These investors have also led investment at VC funds including Fenbushi Capital, Fundamental Labs, Softbank Vision Fund, NewTribe Capital, Cypher Capital, Bitcoin Frontier Fund, Summer Ventures, L2IV, Dext Force Ventures, Leadblock Partners, viaBTC Capital, Cipholio Ventures, Chiron Group, 3X Capital, Plutus.VC, and others.
Founders and developers wishing to participate in Olympus can submit their projects to the platform here.
The DFINITY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization of leading cryptographers, computer scientists and experts in distributed computing. The DFINITY Foundation boasts the largest R&D operations in the blockchain industry with many employees coming from IBM Research and Google. The DFINITY Foundation employees have published papers 1600+ and 250+ patents. The Foundation is headquartered in Zurich, with a research center also in San Francisco. With a mission to shift cloud computing into a fully decentralized state, the Foundation leveraged its experience to create the Internet Computer and currently operates as a major contributor to the network.
[PRESS RELEASE – Singapore, singapore, July 4th, 2024]
Piggycel, a IoT-based blockchain RWA project, has secured investment from the global mainnet Internet Computer (ICP) and joined the ICP Olympus accelerator program.
Piggycell is a blockchain RWA platform that users can expereince IoT based Charge To Earn (C2E) while charing their bateries. It is a decentralized platform linked to the No. 1 power bank sharing service in Korea, Piggycell, which has over 3 million users.
The ICP Olympus program, announced in April 2024, is an accelerator program for the global 24th ranked (on Coinmarketcap data as of June 23, 2024) L1 mainnet operated by the DFINITY Foundation in Switzerland. It is a program that supports promising projects to grow into high-quality large projects in the ICP ecosystem by participating as investors and mentors, including Fenbushi Capital, Softbank Vision Fund, and Cypher Capital.
Jake Park, CEO of ICP HUB Korea, said, “Through this investment in Piggycell and approval for participation in ICP Olympus, we will fully support the Piggycell project to grow into a global top project and showcase the technology and stability of ICP through Piggycell.”
The Piggycell C2E platform is planning its closed beta test (CBT) and officially launch this year.
About Piggycell
The Piggycell project is a pioneering initiative aimed at driving real-world applications and mass adoption of blockchain technology. By creating a digital twin of the assets from the already successful Web2 project Piggycell in a virtual world through blockchain, it seeks to imbue existing assets with new functionalities and philosophies, thereby generating higher value and achieving true blockchain innovation.
About the author
Chainwire is a specialized crypto newswire service providing high-impact distribution for the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry.
FTX customer Nikolas Gierczyk accuses Olympus Peak of underpaying him after buying his FTX bankruptcy claim worth $1.59 million, alleging the hedge fund owes him much more in additional recovery.
According to a Bloomberg report on Oct. 11, Californian Nikolas Gierczyk is suing hedge fund Olympus Peak for not honoring his right to additional recovery.
He claims that the hedge fund owes him much more than $1 million from their deal, as creditors stand to gain around 129% to 146% from the FTX bankruptcy payout plan.
Gierczyk stated that he and Olympus Peak settled on a purchase agreement when the hedge fund bought the bankruptcy claim at a “substantial 42% discount,” as he was promised any excess distribution from the bankruptcy.
“However, Olympus Peak made clear that they would not be fulfilling their end of the bargain,” Gierczyk’s lawyers wrote in a complaint filed to the federal court in Manhattan on Oct. 10.
Olympus Peak is a hedge fund based in Greenwich, Connecticut. It has not responded to Bloomberg’s request for comment at the time of writing.
On Oct. 7, a Delaware bankruptcy judge approved FTX’s reorganization plan nearly two years after the crypto exchange’s collapse in November 2022.
According to a statement, the crypto exchange company claims it has amassed between $14.7 billion and $16.5 billion worth in property distribution. An amount that surpasses FTX’s previous estimation of what it owes creditors, which is around $11.2 billion.
“Looking ahead, we are poised to return 100% of bankruptcy claim amounts plus interest for non-governmental creditors through what will be the largest and most complex bankruptcy estate asset distribution in history,” said John Ray, who took over as FTX CEO after the company filed for bankruptcy.
According to the plan approved by Delaware bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey, 98% of FTX’s creditors will gain 118% of their claim as of November 2022, when the exchange filed for bankruptcy protection. This large payout is made possible due to the bullish nature of the crypto market in the past two years.
OORT’s decentralized AI Layer1 blockchain, Olympus Protocol, has officially integrated Circle-issued stablecoin, USDC. By doing so, Olympus bridges DeAI with real-world utility.
Olympus Protocol becomes the first decentralized AI-based ecosystem to integrate the USDC (USDC) stablecoin, opening the door for real-world use cases and establishing a practical and functional infrastructure with ample liquidity and financial stability for evolving DeAI projects.
By integrating USDC into the Olympus ecosystem, businesses will be able to process AI-driven transactions securely and efficiently using the Circle-issued stablecoin. Moreover, AI companies that use the Olympus Protocol for storage and compute power can make USDC transactions. Thus, developers can use USDC to pay for decentralized cloud computing services via Olympus.
While there have been other Layer 1 chains before Olympus which have USDC integrated into their ecosystems, Olympus Protocol’s specialization in the DeAI sector offers unique access to the emerging AI sector that is making its way through the decentralized crypto space.
Since 2024, many traders have started relying on AI Agents in trading as more AI-based technology has made innovative strides in the decentralized finance spaces. At press time, AI tokens have accumulated a market cap of more than $22 billion, according to CoinGecko.
Through USDC, Developers will be able to unlock a stable and liquid infrastructure for projects in multiple sectors, including DeFi, Enterprise AI, Data Monetization, AI-powered Identity and Reputation Systems, and more.
This is because Olympus Protocol’s environment offers a myriad of projects and dApps with unique functionalities for AI development. These projects encompass data collection and labeling, data storage, and computing. By merging the stability of USDC with DeAI, Olympus Protocol gears up to drive exponential growth and cutting-edge advancements in the sector.
Not only that, the USDC stablecoin could also facilitate AI-powered trading, lending, and staking projects built on Olympus.
Powered by the Olympus Protocol, OORT offers trustless infrastructure built on AI for enterprises and individuals. Some of their products include OORT Storage, OORT DataHub (for B2C and B2B), as well as the upcoming OORT Compute.
Previously, OORT raised $10 million from several major investors including Taisu Venture, Red Beard Venture, Sanctor Capital, and has received grants from Microsoft and Google.
Monkey Tilt is offering an exclusive slots promotion that targets players who sign up through the promotion. The deal is simple on the surface and more nuanced in practice. New players who register here will receive 50 free spins that are automatically credited and restricted to Gate Of Olympus 1000. In this article, we will break down how the offer works, what to expect while playing, and whether it is worth your time.
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This article is not intended as financial advice. Educational purposes only.
AUTHOR
Max delves deep into the cryptocurrency realm, with a passion for altcoins and NFTs. Convinced of crypto's transformative potential, he envisions a decentralized financial future. Max's background in the financial sector grants him unique insights into global monetary systems. In his leisure, Max embraces the thrill of adventures and is an avid sports enthusiast, finding balance and rejuvenation away from work.
Foreword In an exclusive interview session, we sat with Daniel Bara, the Director of the Olympus Association. The discussion covered different aspects related to Olympus’ treasury-backed design; like its automated crisis-response mechanisms and how $OHM is navigating the recent market correction with comparatively lower drawdowns.
While talking to blockchainreporter.net, Daniel Bara explained the structural differences between Olympus and conventional crypto blue chips. He highlighted the protocol’s on-chain reserves, countercyclical tools like the Yield Repurchase Facility and Cooler Loans, and most significantly the role of premium compression in absorbing volatility without triggering panic selling.
Interview Section How is the treasury-backed design of Olympus primarily distinct from conventional crypto “blue chips” in the case of a market crash? Most crypto assets, including what people call blue chips, have no structural floor. Since the correction began on January 27, Bitcoin has fallen 25 percent and Ethereum has fallen 35 percent. Some crypto assets address this with pegs, but a peg is a target maintained by mechanisms, and we have seen targets break under stress. A floor is different: liquid reserves that exist regardless of market conditions.
Olympus made a deliberate design choice to back every OHM token with liquid reserves in the treasury, currently around $11.55 per token. Over that same period, OHM’s price fell 18 percent, but the reserves behind each token barely moved. The price changed because market sentiment changed. The value underneath barely did. That creates a fundamentally different risk profile than any asset where the price is the only measure of value.
As Olympus emphasizes automation to prevent human bias, could you specify its role in particular scenarios of human failure? The standard response during a crash is real-time human judgment. Protocols call emergency governance votes, adjust parameters on the fly, pause systems, or rely on multisig holders to make real-time decisions under pressure. That’s human bias in action, not because the people are bad at their jobs, but because fear spreads faster than conviction and the decisions get made when judgment is at its worst.
Olympus was built to remove that dependency. During the January correction, with billions being liquidated across DeFi, the protocol required zero manual interventions. No emergency proposals, no parameter changes, no team overrides.
The Yield Repurchase Facility kept buying automatically and actually tripled its rate because lower prices meant each dollar of yield purchased more OHM. Cooler Loans kept honoring every position without a single liquidation. The system didn’t need someone to make the right call under pressure, because the right behavior was already encoded into how it works.
When $OHM plunged half as much as $ETH during the downtrend, which mechanism backed that resilience, Cooler Loans, YRF, or premium compression? OHM declined 18% against Ethereum’s 35% over the correction, so roughly half the drawdown. All three mechanisms contributed to the resilience, and the important thing is that they work as layers, not as alternatives. Cooler Loans broke the cascade that normally amplifies crashes. Most DeFi lending is pro-cyclical: prices fall, collateral ratios break, liquidations trigger forced selling, and the drawdown deepens.
Cooler has no price-based liquidation triggers, so there was no forced selling into weakness, which is the single most important thing during a correction. The Yield Repurchase Facility provided countercyclical buying pressure, tripling its buyback rate as prices fell, because the treasury yield purchases more OHM at lower prices. And premium compression acted as the shock absorber, allowing the market to reprice confidence without touching the underlying value.
During the sharpest week of the selloff, the backing moved just 0.3 percent while the price moved over 15 percent, meaning nearly all of the drawdown was the market adjusting its premium, not the intrinsic value eroding. Additionally, Convertible Deposits created additional countercyclical demand, with new capital flowing into the treasury at six times normal volume as participants locked in lower conversion prices. Each mechanism has a different job, and they all ran simultaneously without any coordination needed.
Can you elaborate on how premium compression effectively absorbed up to 98% of the total downside effect without leading to any panic selling? OHM’s market price reflects two things: the reserve value underneath each token, and the premium the market assigns for what the protocol is building on top of those reserves. On January 28, OHM was trading at $20.89 against reserves of $11.63, a premium of roughly 80 percent. By February 3, the price had fallen to $17.70, but the reserves had only moved to $11.59. The reserves declined by four cents.
The price declined by $3.19. That means 98 percent of the price decline was the premium compressing from roughly 80 percent to 53 percent, not the reserves themselves losing value. The reason this didn’t trigger panic is that holders could see exactly what was happening. The treasury is transparent and on-chain, and the mechanisms were still running.
Cooler Loans meant anyone who wanted liquidity could access it without selling at market prices. There was no information gap, no uncertainty about whether the floor was real, and no forced selling to accelerate the decline. When holders can see that the intrinsic value is intact and they have options, the psychology shifts from panic to patience
Question 05. With Cooler Loans having seen zero liquidations throughout a major crash, how crucial was the role of the backing-based LTV mechanism in preventing any cascading failures? It was central to everything. The standard DeFi lending loop works like this: market price falls, the oracle updates, the collateral ratio breaks a threshold, and the liquidation engine triggers a forced sale. That forced sale pushes the price down further, which triggers more liquidations, and the cascade feeds on itself. This is how billions in leveraged positions unwound across DeFi during the October crash and January downturn.
Cooler Loans was specifically designed to break that loop. The loan terms are based on backing value, not market price, and since the backing barely moved during the downturn, borrowers’ positions remained healthy throughout. Without price-based liquidation triggers or external oracle dependencies, there are no margin calls.
Borrowers accept fixed terms and give up some upside optionality in exchange for certainty, and that certainty is what prevented the cascade. Across more than $121 million in loans outstanding, zero liquidations is the direct result of designing around backing value rather than market price.
Do you believe in the ultimate supremacy of autonomous treasury mechanisms over DAO governance? Not supremacy. They do fundamentally different things, and the crash demonstrated exactly why you want both. Autonomous mechanisms handle execution: the YRF buying OHM, Cooler Loans maintaining positions, RBS managing liquidity depth (when active). These need to run continuously, without the distortion that comes from making decisions under duress.
No governance vote can move fast enough to respond to a market crash, and even if it could, the decisions would be colored by fear. That’s where automation is essential. But governance handles evolution, deciding what parameters the mechanisms should operate with, what new products to develop, and how the treasury should be deployed over time. The DAO sets the rules; the mechanisms enforce them without discretion.
The January downturn was a clean demonstration. The mechanisms ran exactly as designed with zero human intervention, while governance stayed focused on longer-horizon decisions without being pulled into crisis management. You want your monetary policy automated and your strategic direction governed. Trying to do both with the same process is how systems fail under stress.
While increasing Convertible Deposits indicate participation of ‘smart money,’ how is it significant for $OHM? Convertible Deposits let users deposit stablecoins and lock in a future conversion price for OHM. During peak volatility last week, new deposits flowed in at nearly six times normal volume. As prices fell, the auction mechanism automatically adjusted strike prices downward, from $22.99 to $19.71, a 14 percent reduction from pre-event levels. Some depositors looped their positions, borrowing against existing deposits to acquire additional strikes at the lower prices.
This kind of countercyclical conviction has shown up at institutional scale as well, with an eight-figure institutional allocation entering during the October correction. What this does structurally for OHM is create demand when the broader market is selling.
Deposits add capital to the treasury and establish buying pressure at lower prices, which strengthens the backing over time. When the people who understand the system best are deploying capital into it during drawdowns, that tells you something about the underlying economics, not just sentiment.
Moving forward, is Olympus endeavoring to provide a volatility-resistant DeFi base layer or something resembling a decentralized reserve asset? Both, and they reinforce each other. The reserve asset function comes from the treasury-backed design, the programmatic monetary policy, and the stability mechanisms that held up during the crash. Those properties are what make OHM useful as a foundation for other things to be built on. Cooler Loans is lending infrastructure built on top of that reserve value. Convertible Deposits are a capital formation mechanism.
Protocol Owned Liquidity means the protocol controls its own liquidity rather than depending on external providers who leave during downturns. The base layer works because the reserve asset is sound, and the reserve asset becomes more valuable as more infrastructure is built on top of it.
The more OHM is used as a base layer, the more demand it generates, the larger the treasury grows, and the stronger the backing becomes. A reserve asset that nobody builds on is a curiosity. A base layer without sound reserve properties doesn’t survive its first real test. Olympus has been stress-tested through multiple major corrections now, with every mechanism performing as designed, and that track record is what makes both functions credible.
If we sum up the whole conversation, Bara framed Olympus as an organized system designed to withstand stress without relying on emergency governance or reactive decision-making. Olympus is set to position $OHM as both a volatility-resistant DeFi base layer and a decentralized reserve asset.
And to transform this idea into reality, Olympus platform is merging automated monetary mechanisms, DAO-led strategic evolution, and treasury-backed reserves. The recent downturn, he argued, served as a live stress test, with each mechanism functioning as designed and reinforcing the protocol’s long-term structural thesis.
PANews reported on April 30th that, according to The Block, Gemini's Olympus has obtained a Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) license from the US CFTC. This license allows Gemini to provide proprietary clearing, settlement, risk management, and escrow services for its Titan platform's prediction markets, futures, options, and perpetual contracts, reducing reliance on third-party clearing and lowering costs. Gemini obtained a Designated Contract Market (DCM) license last year and is working towards a "full CFTC license stack" including DCM, DCO, and potentially a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). Currently, only a handful of crypto companies hold both DCM and DCO licenses; competitors Kraken and Coinbase primarily expand their licenses through acquisitions of already licensed institutions.
Gemini’s Olympus unit won CFTC clearing license enabling in-house derivatives infrastructure for futures, options, perpetuals, and prediction markets.
Summary
License enables in-house clearing for futures, options, perpetual contracts and prediction markets Gemini received Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) license from CFTC on April 30, 2026 Approval follows December 2025 Designated Contract Market (DCM) license for Gemini Titan subsidiary Gemini announced April 30 that its affiliate Gemini Olympus received a Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, positioning the exchange as one of few crypto-native platforms with complete regulatory infrastructure to operate derivatives clearing in the United States. The license allows Olympus to act as a clearinghouse for regulated derivatives trading, including prediction markets.
“Today marks a major milestone in Gemini’s marketplace expansion,” said Cameron Winklevoss, Gemini’s President. “In addition to our crypto spot marketplace, Gemini now has a full-stack, end-to-end marketplace for predictions as well as futures, options, and more.”
Regulatory Roadmap Complete The DCO approval follows the CFTC‘s December 2025 designation of Gemini Titan as a Designated Contract Market, which enabled the launch of its predictions marketplace the same month. Gemini Titan will explore expanding its derivatives offering for U.S. customers to include crypto futures, options, and perpetual contracts.
According to The Block, Gemini is pursuing a futures commission merchant (FCM) license from the CFTC and working to obtain all derivatives-related licenses from the regulator. The company said it now has end-to-end trading infrastructure spanning spot crypto, prediction markets, futures and options.
Winklevoss described the DCO license as “a major building block for our super app, where users will be able to fulfill their existing and future financial needs all in one place”.
Gemini’s affiliate Gemini Olympus secured a CFTC Derivatives Clearing Organization license, giving the exchange full in-house control over clearing and settlement as it builds toward prediction markets and crypto perpetuals.
Posted May 1, 2026 at 5:59 am EST.
Gemini’s affiliate Gemini Olympus, LLC received a Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on April 29, the company announced Thursday. Gemini shares (GEMI) jumped roughly 8% on the news.
The license allows Olympus to act as a central counterparty for regulated derivatives — managing clearing, settlement, margining, and collateral in-house rather than routing trades through outside firms like QC Clearing LLC, which Gemini had previously relied on. Cameron Winklevoss called it “a major milestone in our marketplace expansion” and a building block for Gemini’s financial services super app.
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The DCO approval follows the December 2025 Designated Contract Market (DCM) license granted to affiliate Gemini Titan, which enabled the launch of Gemini’s prediction marketplace. With both licenses in place, Gemini now controls the full trade lifecycle — from listing to settlement — inside a single regulated structure. The company said Gemini Titan will explore expanding into crypto futures, options, and perpetual contracts for U.S. customers. A futures commission merchant (FCM) license is the remaining piece of the full CFTC stack, and The Block reported that Gemini is actively pursuing it.
The approval puts Gemini in a small group of crypto-native firms holding both a DCM and a DCO. Bitnomial holds the same combination, and Kraken’s parent company Payward agreed earlier this month to acquire it — the first firm to hold the full CFTC stack, including an FCM.
The timing matters. As Unchained reported this week, Polymarket is seeking CFTC approval to reopen its main exchange to U.S. traders. Hyperliquid is testing HIP-4, a zero-fee prediction market product. And Kalshi is expanding into perpetual futures under the name Timeless. The prediction market sector saw trading volume surge more than 300% in 2025 to $63.5 billion.
Gemini has been pivoting hard toward the U.S. to compete in that market.
Earlier this year, it announced “Gemini 2.0,” exiting the UK, EU, and Australia and cutting roughly 25% of international staff. The company went public via Nasdaq IPO in September 2025, with shares popping 14% on debut before falling roughly 90% from that high, weighed down by nearly $600 million in 2025 losses and investor scrutiny over its transition away from spot crypto. Thursday’s approval was one of the first meaningful catalysts since the IPO.
In brief The Sandbox is rolling out its Season 7 content package featuring more user-created games and token rewards for players. With accessibility a key focus, players will be able to play some games directly from their web browser. The game is focused on adding and retaining players amid a difficult period in the crypto gaming industry. Crypto gaming ecosystem and metaverse platform The Sandbox is lowering the barriers to entry in its Season 7 rollout, enabling users to join select games directly from their browser without requiring downloads, installations, or an account.
The new season launch will also feature at least 20 creator-built experiences alongside a mix of those from established IP from partners, including Atari, “Black Mirror,” musician Steve Aoki, "The Terminator," and the Bruce Lee estate.
“Accessibility is definitely at the core of the launch of the season,” The Sandbox and Animoca Brands CEO Robby Yung told Decrypt.
“One of the challenges that we've had since the very earliest days is that we wanted to make this a user-generated content (UGC) platform for everybody,” he added. “But I think we have been held back in the past, honestly, by the kind of technical infrastructure that we put in place that we built it with.”
The team behind The Sandbox, which was acquired by Animoca Brands in 2018, has learned a lot in the last seven years. According to Yung, who took over the CEO role last August, the game is “kind of an old product” by blockchain standards. Since launch, the team recognized that “simple things”—like requiring big file downloads—can dissuade players from jumping in and playing.
A screenshot from The Sandbox Season 7. Image: The Sandbox"It's much easier if people can jump into a browser right away and engage in the experience quickly,” Yung said. “One of the things we're really pleased about is the browser-level ability to just jump right into The Sandbox. I think it is going to make a big difference, especially for people who are new to the experience.”
And while the developers will be watching lots of different metrics to evaluate the season, Yung said that retention—or the ability to bring people back to the game—will be of key importance.
"It's really about creating engagement that leads to retention as the north star metric,” he said.
With retention, Yung said that hopefully revenues should follow and create the potential for impact on token price as well—though he reiterated that all else is secondary to the game’s retention rate.
The price of SAND is down approximately 78% over the last year, per CoinGecko, amid a tough stretch in crypto gaming marked by investment broadly drying up across the industry. Many blockchain-based games shut down in 2025 and into early 2026 due to factors including a lack of funding and low player retention rates.
Players in The Sandbox ecosystem that keep coming back will have the opportunity to earn rewards in Season 7 as well, which is highlighted by a prize pool of more than 650,000 SAND or around $52,000 worth based on the ecosystem token’s current price.
A screenshot from The Sandbox Season 7. Image: The Sandbox“We're really excited,” said Yung of the Season 7 launch. “I think this is going to be the best season yet as far as content goes. And I think most importantly, it's all about the creators at the end of the day. Having more than 50% of the content coming from creators now, I think, is an overdue milestone for us.”
The ecosystem’s growing embrace of user-generated content mirrors that of other successful gaming platforms like Minecraft and Roblox. While The Sandbox has leaned on prominent brands and IP to drive interest across all of its seasons, the goal is ultimately for developers of all sorts to come in and create an ever-evolving array of experiences.
“We want to be a place where it's not just us making content that people enjoy and have fun with. It's also a place where any third-party, any player or professional developer, can come and create cool stuff and engage audiences—and do so in a way that benefits them,” he said.
“It's exactly what big platforms like Roblox are doing every day. But we want to do so in a way that's true to our Web3 values,” Yung added. “That basically means that there are low take rates, low transaction costs, and low infrastructure costs—so the benefit goes back to the creators and the IP holders.”
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The Sandbox opens pre-registration for NEXT mobile playtest built on Unreal Engine
18 March 2026
Following introduction of browser-based access in Season 7, The Sandbox opens pre-registration for playtesting NEXT, new mobile battle royale game
18 March 2026 – The Sandbox, an immersive gaming platform and subsidiary of Animoca Brands, today opened pre-registration for the playtest of NEXT, its first dedicated mobile battle royale game. NEXT is built on Unreal Engine, a significant technical shift for The Sandbox, which has historically run on Unity. Register for free at sandbox.game/next.
NEXT is a mobile battle royale game in which players carry over their identity, progression, and assets from The Sandbox game platform. NEXT provides players with a fast-paced, replayable PvP experience that connects intense and skill-demanding gameplay with the broader player-driven ecosystem of The Sandbox, where player avatars extend beyond a single match.
Players of NEXT are dropped into the Desert, an open-terrain environment built around sightlines and long-range combat, or the City, a vertical, close-quarters map that rewards adaptability. Matches support solo play or multiplayer groups of up to 20 players per instance.
NEXT will serve as a new entry point into The Sandbox, where playing, collecting, and expressing identity all converge. The mobile launch represents a major step for one of web3’s most established entertainment brands, with more than 400 brand and IP partners spanning gaming, music, fashion and culture, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Snoop Dogg and Lacoste.
Season 7 of The Sandbox, which is currently ongoing, introduced three browser-based games as a frictionless entry point to The Sandbox ecosystem. Now, with the NEXT playtest, The Sandbox is taking steps to integrate additional experiences via mobile.
“Like our recent launch of WebGL games, NEXT is part of our plan to increase the reach of The Sandbox so players can discover, play and come back more often, whether they’re on desktop or on their phone,” said Robby Yung, CEO of The Sandbox. “The goal is to meet people where they spend their time. A native mobile experience in addition to the desktop version makes that possible in a way browser access alone can’t.”
Registration for NEXT playtest is now open until 25 March 2026 at 2 p.m. (UTC), with limited spots assigned on a first-come first-served basis. The playtest begins on 26 March, with additional features rolling out as NEXT evolves. Register now at sandbox.game/next.
For more information about The Sandbox and the NEXT mobile app playtest, visit sandbox.game/blog and follow The Sandbox on X, Discord, and Instagram for regular updates.
###
About The Sandbox
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is an immersive metaverse platform in which users play, create, and monetize unique experiences alongside their favorite brands, IPs, and celebrities across gaming, entertainment, music, art, and more. The Sandbox leverages web3 technologies to fully enable end-user creation and creator economies, disrupting existing platforms by providing both Players and Creators with true ownership of their assets, creations, and rewards as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Over 400 partners have joined The Sandbox, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Paris Hilton, Attack on Titan, Snoop Dogg, Lacoste, Steve Aoki, The Smurfs, and many more. For more information, please visit www.sandbox.game and follow the regular updates on X, Medium, and Discord.
About Animoca Brands
Animoca Brands Corporation Limited (ACN: 122 921 813) is a global digital assets leader building and investing in impactful technologies and ecosystems to reimagine future economies. It has received broad industry and market recognition including Fortune Crypto 40, Top 50 Blockchain Game Companies 2025, Financial Times’ High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific, and Deloitte Tech Fast. Animoca Brands is recognized for building digital asset platforms such as the Moca Network, Open Campus, Anichess, and The Sandbox, as well as institutional-grade platforms; providing digital asset services to help Web3 companies launch and grow; and investing in frontier Web3 technology, with a portfolio of over 600 companies and digital assets. For more information visit www.animocabrands.com or follow on X, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and TikTok.
The Sandbox opens pre-registration for playtesting The Sandbox NEXT, new mobile game
LOS ANGELES, March 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Sandbox, an immersive gaming platform and subsidiary of Animoca Brands, today opened pre-registration for the playtest of The Sandbox NEXT, marking for the franchise a going back to its roots after 40 million historical downloads on mobile. The Sandbox NEXT is built by Unreal Engine, a significant technical shift for The Sandbox, which has historically run on Unity. Register for free at sandbox.game/next.
The Sandbox NEXT offers a multiplayer extraction and survival mobile gameplay in which players carry over their identity, progression, and all the voxel assets from The Sandbox game platform, including UGC and branded ones. The Sandbox NEXT provides players with a fast-paced, replayable PvP experience that connects intense and skill-demanding gameplay with the broader player-driven ecosystem of The Sandbox, where player avatars from over 56 collections of branded Avatars (Snoop Dogg, Attack on Titan, Smiley, Steve Aoki, Paris Hilton, Smurf, etc) extend beyond a single match.
Players of The Sandbox NEXT are dropped into the Desert, an open-terrain environment built around sightlines and long-range combat, or the City, a vertical, close-quarters map that rewards adaptability. Matches support solo play or multiplayer groups of up to 20 players per instance.
The Sandbox NEXT will serve as a new entry point into The Sandbox, where playing, collecting, and expressing identity all converge. The mobile launch represents a major step for one of web3’s most established entertainment brands, with more than 400 brand and IP partners spanning gaming, music, fashion and culture, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Snoop Dogg and Lacoste.
Season 7 of The Sandbox, which is currently ongoing, introduced three browser-based games as a frictionless entry point to The Sandbox ecosystem. Now, with The Sandbox NEXT playtest, The Sandbox is taking steps to integrate additional experiences via mobile.
“Like our recent launch of WebGL games, The Sandbox NEXT is part of our plan to increase the reach of The Sandbox so players can discover, play and come back more often, whether they’re on desktop or on their phone,” said Robby Yung, CEO of The Sandbox. “The goal is to meet people where they spend their time. A native mobile experience in addition to the desktop version makes that possible in a way browser access alone can’t.”
Registration for The Sandbox NEXT playtest is now open until 25 March 2026 at 2 p.m. (UTC), with limited spots assigned on a first-come first-served basis. The playtest begins on 26 March, with additional features rolling out as The Sandbox NEXT evolves. Register now at sandbox.game/next.
For more information about The Sandbox NEXT mobile app playtest, visit sandbox.game/blog and follow The Sandbox on X, Discord, and Instagram for regular updates.
About The Sandbox
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is an immersive metaverse platform in which users play, create, and monetize unique experiences alongside their favorite brands, IPs, and celebrities across gaming, entertainment, music, art, and more. The Sandbox leverages web3 technologies to fully enable end-user creation and creator economies, disrupting existing platforms by providing both Players and Creators with true ownership of their assets, creations, and rewards as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Over 400 partners have joined The Sandbox, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Paris Hilton, Attack on Titan, Snoop Dogg, Lacoste, Steve Aoki, The Smurfs, and many more. For more information, please visit www.sandbox.game and follow the regular updates on X, Medium, and Discord.
About Animoca Brands
Animoca Brands Corporation Limited (ACN: 122 921 813) is a global digital assets leader building and investing in impactful technologies and ecosystems to reimagine future economies. It has received broad industry and market recognition including Fortune Crypto 40, Top 50 Blockchain Game Companies 2025, Financial Times’ High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific, and Deloitte Tech Fast. Animoca Brands is recognized for building digital asset platforms such as the Moca Network, Open Campus, Anichess, and The Sandbox, as well as institutional-grade platforms; providing digital asset services to help Web3 companies launch and grow; and investing in frontier Web3 technology, with a portfolio of over 600 companies and digital assets. For more information visit www.animocabrands.com or follow on X, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and TikTok.
PANews reported on April 15th that, according to SoSoValue data, the crypto market experienced overall volatility and divergence, with most sectors declining. The GameFi sector fell 5.02% in the last 24 hours, with The Sandbox (SAND) and Axie Infinity (AXS) falling 2.41% and 1.94% respectively. Only the CeFi and Meme sectors remained relatively resilient, rising 0.40% and 0.23% respectively. Within the CeFi sector, Gate (GT) rose 2.52%, and Binance Coin (BNB) rose 0.66%. In the Meme sector, Binance Life continued its significant upward trend, surging 66.27%.
In addition, Bitcoin (BTC) rose 0.40% to $74,000, having briefly broken through $76,000 during the session; Ethereum (ETH) pulled back 1.28%, having broken through the $2,400 mark during the session.
In other sectors, the PayFi sector fell 0.30% in the last 24 hours, while SafePal (SFP) rose 1.60%; the Layer 1 sector fell 0.53%, but TRON (TRX) rose 0.96%; the DeFi sector fell 0.68%, while Genius (GENIUS), which was newly launched yesterday, rose 24.72%; the Layer 2 sector fell 1.90%, and Mantle (MNT) fell 3.45%.
Jefferies: Samsung is likely to follow SK Hynix’s example to list in the US via ADRs.
Jeff Kim, Head of Research at Jefferies, said Samsung is likely to follow SK Hynix in listing on the U.S. market via American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which will boost the share price of the South Korean chipmaker whose valuation lags behind Micron. "Chip stocks are at a turning point. ADRs will serve as an important catalyst to drive their valuations," he added.
7 minutes ago
UBS and TD Cowen sharply raise Arm’s target price, betting on a revaluation of Arm’s AI data center CPU value.
Arm’s stock price pulled back this week alongside the high-valuation AI sector, though some Wall Street analysts say the correction does not alter the company’s long-term standing in AI data centers. UBS sharply raised Arm’s price target from $260 to $470, retaining its Buy rating; TD Cowen lifted its target from $265 to $475, also keeping a Buy recommendation. Both firms share the view that as agentic AI evolves, CPUs could gain greater importance in data center architectures, rather than GPUs continuing to monopolize the investment narrative. TD Cowen believes that over the long term, CPUs could hold a more strategic position in certain AI workloads. UBS, meanwhile, emphasizes that the real debate in the market centers on the revenue potential of Arm’s self-developed or independent CPU business. The bank projects Arm’s CPU-related revenue could reach around $14 billion by 2030, though the company itself has stated this business will not have a material impact on its finances until fiscal 2028. Arm’s strengths lie in low latency and energy efficiency—metrics that major cloud providers are increasingly prioritizing as they expand AI infrastructure. Even with its stock pulling back from recent highs in the short term, analysts still view Arm as one of the key beneficiaries of the server CPU upgrade cycle.
7 minutes ago
Crypto whale who profited over $23.77 million from BAT ICO liquidates 27,586 ETH
According to monitoring by Yu Jing, a whale that earned $23.77 million from participating in the BAT ICO sold 15,000 ETH (valued at roughly $24.29 million) two hours ago. The whale has now fully liquidated all 27,586 ETH it received from selling 35 million BAT on-chain over the past day and a half, converting the proceeds into 44.836 million USDS at an average selling price of $1,625.
7 minutes ago
Sources: Iraqi officials once considered withdrawing from OPEC, but current plans are to remain a member and pursue a higher quota.
A senior Iraqi oil ministry official said that if OPEC quotas are not significantly increased, Iraq will be forced to consider all available options. Sources said Iraqi officials had considered withdrawing from OPEC, but the current plan is to remain a member and push for higher quotas. (Jinshi)
7 minutes ago
Kepler Cheuvreux raises ASML’s European share price target from €1,460 to €1,830.
Kepler Cheuvreux has raised the target price for ASML’s European shares from €1,460 to €1,830.
7 minutes ago
Stifel: U.S. economy in "overheated expansion" as AI investment cycle outweighs consumer pressure
U.S. large diversified financial services holding company Stifel has raised its year-end S&P 500 target and rolled out a stock allocation framework for a "high-growth, high-inflation" environment. The firm lifted its year-end S&P 500 target to 7,800 points, noting the U.S. economy is entering a "running hot" state—where economic growth is strengthening alongside mounting inflationary pressure. Stifel’s models show U.S. growth momentum is picking up while inflation momentum is clearly overheating, a trend that will reshape the market’s leading sector structure in the second half of the year. Instead of traditional consumer sectors, Stifel’s top picks are investment-led cyclical industries, including banks, transportation, materials, energy, semiconductors, software and equipment. The firm adds that fixed-asset investment in AI remains on the rise: large tech firms including Amazon, Microsoft, Meta and Google are projected to combine for roughly $725 billion in total capital expenditures in 2026, some $100 billion higher than prior estimates. This means the AI investment chain is likely to continue outperforming the consumption chain squeezed by inflation. Stifel advises investors to reduce exposure to discretionary consumer, consumer staples, communication services and some financial services sectors, as these areas see weaker earnings revisions. Conversely, the firm favors cyclical value stocks and hedges with defensive value sectors such as insurance, autos, energy and banks.
PANews reported on May 21 that, according to The Block, the wife of Sebastien Borget, co-founder and COO of The Sandbox, was recently the victim of an attempted kidnapping at her home in Villenoy, Seine-et-Marne, France. The report, citing French media, stated that a suspect posing as a deliveryman rang the doorbell to lure her in, after which five hooded accomplices broke into the yard and attempted to force her into a vehicle. Neighbors intervened, and the suspects fled. Police subsequently intercepted a ride-hailing vehicle and arrested two teenage suspects, recovering a toy handgun, restraints, and a hood at the scene. Preliminary investigations suggest the incident is related to cryptocurrency; France has recorded over 100 kidnapping or attempted kidnapping incidents related to crypto assets since 2023.
A failed kidnapping attempt targeted the wife of The Sandbox’s chief operating officer at their home in France, marking yet another violent incident in what has become a deeply unsettling trend across the country’s crypto community.
The attempt was unsuccessful. But the fact that it happened at all sends a clear signal: if you’re connected to crypto wealth in France, you and your family are potential targets.
A pattern that’s impossible to ignore This wasn’t a random crime. The attack fits neatly into a wave of kidnapping attempts that have targeted individuals and families linked to cryptocurrency in France, with a particular concentration around the Paris area.
What makes this trend especially chilling is the targeting methodology. Attackers aren’t going after the executives directly. They’re going after spouses, children, and other family members, people who likely have no involvement in crypto operations but serve as leverage against those who do.
Think of it as the criminal world’s version of a phishing attack. You don’t need to breach the most fortified target when a softer one gets you the same result.
French authorities have been investigating multiple similar cases, treating them as organized crime operations rather than isolated incidents. The sophistication suggests these aren’t opportunistic street criminals. These are planned operations with surveillance, coordination, and a clear understanding of who holds crypto wealth and where they live.
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The Sandbox, for context, is one of the most prominent metaverse and gaming platforms in Web3. Its native token, SAND, powers a virtual world where users can build, own, and monetize digital experiences. The platform has partnered with major brands and entertainment companies, making its leadership team publicly visible figures in the crypto space, exactly the kind of visibility that apparently draws unwanted attention.
Why France has become ground zero France’s relationship with crypto is complicated. The country has positioned itself as one of Europe’s more welcoming jurisdictions for digital asset companies, attracting talent and capital. Paris has become a genuine hub for blockchain startups and established crypto firms alike.
But that concentration of crypto wealth in a relatively small geographic area has created an unintended consequence. It’s essentially painted a target on an entire community.
Here’s the thing about crypto wealth: it’s simultaneously public and private in the worst possible combination. Blockchain transactions are visible on-chain, making it possible to estimate holdings. Yet the assets themselves can be transferred quickly and pseudonymously, which makes them attractive to criminals who want to extract ransom without the friction of traditional banking systems.
In English: criminals can roughly figure out who’s rich from public blockchain data, and they know that crypto can be sent anywhere in the world in minutes without a bank freezing the transaction. That’s a dangerous combination when paired with physical violence.
The French authorities’ decision to treat these cases as organized crime reflects the scale of the problem. These aren’t copycat crimes inspired by headlines. They appear to be coordinated campaigns by criminal networks that have identified crypto-linked families as high-value, relatively accessible targets.
What this means for the crypto industry The security conversation in crypto has always centered on digital threats. Hacks, exploits, rug pulls, phishing scams. The industry has built an entire infrastructure around protecting private keys and smart contracts.
Physical security has been an afterthought for most people in the space. That calculus is changing rapidly, at least for anyone with meaningful public exposure.
The trend of targeting family members rather than executives directly creates a particularly difficult security problem. A CEO can hire personal bodyguards, vary their routine, and maintain operational security. Extending that same level of protection to every family member, at all times, is exponentially harder and more expensive.
Some crypto executives have responded to these threats by relocating entirely, leaving France or other high-risk areas for jurisdictions where they’re less likely to be targeted. Others have invested heavily in private security. Neither solution is ideal, and both represent a real cost of doing business in crypto that doesn’t get discussed in pitch decks or tokenomics papers.
For investors in projects like The Sandbox, the direct financial impact of an incident like this is likely minimal. SAND’s price isn’t going to move because of a failed kidnapping attempt. But the broader trend matters. If France’s crypto hub becomes synonymous with physical danger, talent will leave. And talent migration has real consequences for the projects and ecosystems built there.
The uncomfortable reality is that crypto’s transparency, one of its most celebrated features, has become a liability in the physical world. On-chain wealth is legible to anyone who knows where to look, and criminal organizations have clearly learned to look. Until the industry develops better norms around personal security, or until law enforcement catches up to the organized networks behind these attacks, the people building Web3 and their families will remain targets.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
In brief Six suspects allegedly targeted the wife of Sébastien Borget, co-founder and COO of The Sandbox, at their home in Villenoy, Seine-et-Marne, this week. Two teenagers were arrested in connection with the incident, while four other suspects remain at large. The incident adds to France's surge in crypto-targeted violence, with 135 kidnapping attempts recorded since 2023. The wife of Sébastien Borget, co-founder of metaverse gaming platform The Sandbox, was targeted in a kidnapping attempt at their French home this week, according to reports in local media.
Per police sources cited in Le Journal de Dimanche, one individual approached the Borget residence in Villenoy, Seine-et-Marne disguised as a deliveryman and carrying a cardboard box. When Borget’s wife opened the gate, five accomplices rushed into the courtyard and attempted to drag her into a Citroën C3, only abandoning the kidnap attempt when neighbors intervened.
Two teenagers were arrested in connection with the alleged kidnapping attempt, identified as Mateo V., born in 2010, and Walid H., born in 2009, both from Pantin in Seine-Saint-Denis.
Authorities allegedly discovered the pair carrying a fake handgun, zip-tie restraints, and balaclavas at the time of their arrest. Four others suspected of participating in the incident remain at large.
In a tweet, Borget said he was "truly touched" by the messages of support he had received in the wake of the incident, adding, "Thank you for the outpouring of love, thoughtful messages, and deeply caring words for my family."
💙 Thank you for the outpouring of love, thoughtful messages, and deeply caring words for my family. We’re truly touched by your kindness and support.
— Sebastien 🏞 (@borgetsebastien) May 21, 2026
France and crypto kidnappingsFrance has emerged as an epicenter of so-called “wrench attacks,” in which crypto owners are threatened with kidnapping and physical violence in order to force them to give access to their wallets. Per JDD, the National Directorate of the Judicial Police has recorded 41 crypto-linked kidnapping attempts since the start of the year.
To date, there have been 135 total crypto-related kidnapping incidents in France documented since 2023—representing nearly 80% of all European cases. The surge has prompted urgent government intervention, with 88 charged across 12 active judicial investigations, and heightened security concerns among blockchain executives.
Last month, Jonathan Riss, Blockchain Intelligence Analyst at CertiK, told Decrypt that France "ranks among the top three countries worldwide for personal data breaches," citing a leak at national ID agency ANTS that exposed the personal data of 12 million citizens.
The latest kidnap attempt follows several high-profile crypto-targeted crimes in the country, including the kidnapping and mutilation of Ledger co-founder David Balland, a home invasion attempt targeting Binance France’s CEO, and the abduction of a magistrate and her mother for a crypto ransom.
French officials have scrambled to address the crisis. During Paris Blockchain Week 2026, Minister Delegate Jean-Didier Berger unveiled preventive measures including a dedicated prevention platform, while select French cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their families have been assigned enhanced security.
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Near Paris, the wife of Sebastien Borget, co-founder of the popular blockchain-based metaverse platform The Sandbox, narrowly escaped an attempted kidnapping reportedly linked to cryptocurrency. The dramatic incident unfolded at the couple’s residence in the Seine-et-Marne area, raising fresh concerns over the personal security risks facing prominent figures in the crypto industry.
Masked assailants ambush the homeAccording to French media reports, the attack occurred around 8:30 PM on Tuesday evening. A man posing as a delivery courier approached the house and convinced someone to open the door. As soon as the door opened, multiple masked intruders forced their way inside, grabbed Borget’s wife, and tried to force her into a waiting Citroën C3 car parked outside the property.
Neighbors, alerted by the woman’s screams, intervened immediately, prompting the attackers to flee the scene. Police confirmed that the victim was unharmed in the ordeal.
Police responded promptly and detained two suspects soon after the incident. However, authorities believe six individuals were involved and are still searching for the remaining four. Investigators suspect the victim may have been targeted specifically because of her husband’s high profile and visibility in the cryptocurrency sector.
What is The Sandbox?Mini Glossary: The Sandbox is a leading metaverse platform built on the Ethereum blockchain, allowing users to interact with virtual land and digital assets such as NFTs.
France has seen a marked increase in crimes tied to cryptocurrency in recent months. Across many cities and countries, reports have surfaced of physical assaults and robberies targeting well-known figures in the digital assets world.
Initial police evaluations suggest the primary motive was Borget’s strong public standing in the crypto space. Crypto assets, with their anonymous and rapid transactions, are often exploited in cases of physical assault and extortion.
Companies tighten security after high-profile attacksA series of physical attacks targeting crypto insiders has sparked urgent debate across the industry. Blockchain analytics firm Specter recently revealed that a user connected to Kraken and Coinbase exchanges lost roughly $6.7 million in digital assets following a violent assault. The stolen funds included Bitcoin, Ethereum, and cbBTC tokens, with some assets funneled through the privacy-focused Tornado Cash protocol.
Mini Glossary: Tornado Cash is a mixer protocol on the Ethereum network that anonymizes digital asset transactions, a feature often misused in unlawful activity.
In response to this surge in attacks, major crypto companies have dramatically increased their investment in security. According to Bloomberg, some exchanges now spend millions of dollars to protect senior executives and their families, in addition to boosting safety measures for employees.
Leading exchanges such as Coinbase and Gemini have announced efforts to expand their private security teams and roll out advanced safety protocols for personnel in especially exposed positions.
Since crypto can be quickly and irreversibly transferred, digital asset holders are increasingly vulnerable to physical attacks, prompting law enforcement to seek new strategies to address this emerging risk.
A pattern appears to be emerging in France, with recent cases involving violence, robbery, and attempted abductions showing a common thread: the victims are often individuals with considerable holdings or management of digital assets.
Police continue their search for the remaining suspects involved in the kidnapping attempt targeting Borget’s wife, as security concerns escalate for the crypto elite in France and beyond.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that cryptocurrencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should conduct their own research.
According to law enforcement disclosures in France, organized criminal groups executed a targeted kidnapping attempt against the wife of Sebastien Borget, the prominent co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of decentralized metaverse gaming ecosystem The Sandbox. The calculated assault occurred at the couple’s family residence in Villenoy, located within the Seine-et-Marne region, where an operative disguised as a commercial delivery worker managed to breach the perimeter security. Upon opening the residential gate, five hooded accomplices ambushed the executive’s spouse, using physical force in a coordinated attempt to drag her into a waiting getaway vehicle. The operation was ultimately thwarted by the rapid intervention of nearby residents who responded to the victim’s cries, compelling the criminal cell to scatter and abandon the scene.
Minors Recruited as Disposable Proxies to Navigate Advanced Forensic Tracking Interceptions This alarming security breach has exposed a sophisticated, highly decentralized tactical shift in how regional syndicates execute physical cryptocurrency extortion. Following the failed abduction, regional units from the Meaux Anti-Crime Brigade in France successfully intercepted a ride-hailing vehicle, detaining two suspects who were found in possession of a tactical bag containing a replica handgun, zip-tie restraints, and balaclavas. Strikingly, judicial police records revealed that the apprehended individuals were minors born in 2009 and 2010, hailing from the Seine-Saint-Denis district. Intelligence agencies report that digital syndicates are increasingly leveraging encrypted messaging applications to recruit highly disposable, underage operatives, insulating the core organizers from direct exposure. These young proxies are paid nominal sums to carry out high-risk physical field operations, presenting a severe structural challenge to traditional counter-terrorism and judicial enforcement protocols across the continent, as the criminal masterminds remain completely anonymous behind decentralized communication layers.
Sovereign Enforcement Demands Mount as Western Europe Combats Distressed Wrench Attacks The targeting of a high-profile metaverse executive’s family marks a terrifying escalation in what sovereign authorities are now classifying as an organized national security crisis. Statistical registries compiled by the National Directorate of the Judicial Police reveal that France has become the definitive regional epicenter for crypto-related physical violence, logging forty-one distinct kidnapping or abduction attempts since the commencement of this calendar year alone. This staggering volume represents nearly eighty percent of all documented digital asset extortion cases across the entire European continent. The rapid multiplication of these violent operations—frequently labeled as wrench attacks due to the use of physical duress to force instantaneous blockchain ledger transfers—has driven intense pressure onto state regulators to implement emergency protection architectures. In response, administrative delegations have fast-tracked specialized prevention platforms and elite surveillance task forces, warning public Web3 figures to immediately minimize their online overexposure to safeguard their immediate families from hostile, data-driven physical targeting.
About the Author: Karthik Subramanian
Karthik Subramanian is a founder, writer, and technology consultant with nine years in the crypto ecosystem. He covers token economics, L1/L2 infrastructure, DeFi protocols, wallets/custody, and the bridge between crypto and forex—broker technology, liquidity, and macro drivers. Karthik’s writing focuses on clear, practical frameworks that help professionals evaluate new products and on-chain innovation alongside FX market realities.
In brief Six suspects allegedly targeted the wife of Sébastien Borget, co-founder and COO of The Sandbox, at their home in Villenoy, Seine-et-Marne, this week. Two teenagers were arrested in connection with the incident, while four other suspects remain at large. The incident adds to France's surge in crypto-targeted violence, with 135 kidnapping attempts recorded since 2023. The wife of Sébastien Borget, co-founder of metaverse gaming platform The Sandbox, was targeted in a kidnapping attempt at their French home this week, according to reports in local media.
Per police sources cited in Le Journal de Dimanche, one individual approached the Borget residence in Villenoy, Seine-et-Marne disguised as a deliveryman and carrying a cardboard box. When Borget’s wife opened the gate, five accomplices rushed into the courtyard and attempted to drag her into a Citroën C3, only abandoning the kidnap attempt when neighbors intervened.
Two teenagers were arrested in connection with the alleged kidnapping attempt, identified as Mateo V., born in 2010, and Walid H., born in 2009, both from Pantin in Seine-Saint-Denis.
Authorities allegedly discovered the pair carrying a fake handgun, zip-tie restraints, and balaclavas at the time of their arrest. Four others suspected of participating in the incident remain at large.
In a tweet, Borget said he was "truly touched" by the messages of support he had received in the wake of the incident, adding, "Thank you for the outpouring of love, thoughtful messages, and deeply caring words for my family."
💙 Thank you for the outpouring of love, thoughtful messages, and deeply caring words for my family. We’re truly touched by your kindness and support.
— Sebastien 🏞 (@borgetsebastien) May 21, 2026
France and crypto kidnappingsFrance has emerged as an epicenter of so-called “wrench attacks,” in which crypto owners are threatened with kidnapping and physical violence in order to force them to give access to their wallets. Per JDD, the National Directorate of the Judicial Police has recorded 41 crypto-linked kidnapping attempts since the start of the year.
To date, there have been 135 total crypto-related kidnapping incidents in France documented since 2023—representing nearly 80% of all European cases. The surge has prompted urgent government intervention, with 88 charged across 12 active judicial investigations, and heightened security concerns among blockchain executives.
Last month, Jonathan Riss, Blockchain Intelligence Analyst at CertiK, told Decrypt that France "ranks among the top three countries worldwide for personal data breaches," citing a leak at national ID agency ANTS that exposed the personal data of 12 million citizens.
The latest kidnap attempt follows several high-profile crypto-targeted crimes in the country, including the kidnapping and mutilation of Ledger co-founder David Balland, a home invasion attempt targeting Binance France’s CEO, and the abduction of a magistrate and her mother for a crypto ransom.
French officials have scrambled to address the crisis. During Paris Blockchain Week 2026, Minister Delegate Jean-Didier Berger unveiled preventive measures including a dedicated prevention platform, while select French cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their families have been assigned enhanced security.
Daily Debrief NewsletterStart every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
