Three criminals beat their victim until they extracted the funds stored in his wallets. Cases of physical violence are increasing to strip users of their holdings in cryptocurrencies.

Castlenine, the developer of financial institution for holders Dux Reserve, revealed that three criminals attacked him in his home. He complained on Twitter that they could have stolen his computer or his laptop, but they were after his bitcoins.

During the assault, he tried to dissuade the three attackers by claiming that he did not own Bitcoin. However, the criminals soon found his hardware wallets stored in a drawer of his desk. Castlenine wrote that that was his “number one mistake”, referring to his carelessness not to safeguard his physical devices better.

The Thieves Use Violence until Getting the Bitcoin

Determined not to hand over his hard-earned savings, Castlenine disabled his Coldcard using the Brick Me tool. He did it by entering the wrong code, precisely while he was facing coercion, but nothing worked. He explained that the criminals did not like it at all and became more aggressive.

He decided to move forward in his attempt to deceive his attackers, so he gave them the Bitcoin stored at a “decoy” address. However, his new plan did not work either as they insisted that he give them his main wallet. “They told me to stop playing around and give them my real wallet, so I opened my second decoy wallet. I hoped that they would take the bait, but they still did not believe me,” he confessed.

Already demoralized after such violence, he decided to give them all the savings in his main Bitcoin wallet. “I only had a few sats left on my ColdCard but the rest are gone,” he said.

Not a Bitcoin Genius but a Naïve Young Man

His body was able to rest from the violence and intimidation, but he had to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder. He still has a hard time processing what happened as he “developed an unhealthy paranoia”. He explained that he did not trust anyone, including his partner or best friend.

He says that his mind is still looking for an explanation as to why he became the victim of strangers. He does not recall telling anyone about his savings in Bitcoin, not even the people closest to him. He also stated that he had removed the trace of his transactions while he stayed online.

Castlenine suspects that criminals noticed that he worked on various Canadian exchanges. “They may have thought that I was a Bitcoin genius when I was just a naïve young man,” he argues.

A Firm Belief in the First Cryptocurrency

Despite everything, he keeps close to Bitcoin as he continues to believe firmly in the pioneering cryptocurrency. For that reason, he is now dedicated to helping others who have also decided to achieve their financial sovereignty. In this sense, Castlenine is developing the Dux Reserve platform, a key manager for hardware Bitcoin wallets.

The developer says that he has spent many hours reflecting on more optimal ways to secure his bitcoins and help others do so. However, he has found that this depends on each person’s needs. It is also clear to him that “the greatest danger to our Bitcoin is ourselves.”

By Alexander Salazar

People’s Interest in Bitcoin soars as the Turkish lira falls to a 4-month low against the US dollar. The dismissal of the governor of the Central Bank could lead to the fall of the Turkish lira.

A few days ago, the pioneering cryptocurrency was trading up to 50% above its average value on P2P platforms in Turkey. The lira (TRY), Turkey’s national fiat currency, dropped by 10% after the removal of Naci Agbal, governor of the country’s Central Bank.

The above-mentioned situation led Bitcoin to trade above USD 60,000 and even up to USD 100,000 (equivalent to around TRY 700,000). That was its value on Turkish trading market LocalBitcoins, while it remained below USD 57,000 in the rest of the world.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey, fired Naci Agbal, who had taken office in November 2020. Many people consider that he could have been the key to combat an inflation rate above 15% in the nation. His dismissal created a stir among local and foreign investors who praised the monetary policy of the Central Bank.

After a sharp drop in share prices tripped the circuit breakers, negotiations on the Istanbul stock exchange stopped. The USD dollar traded at TRY 7.18 per unit, representing a 10% drop, according to data from TradingView.

Concerns that the Central Bank’s governor might apply controls to curb the high rate of inflation in part led the lira to drop. The number of Bitcoin-related Google searches in Turkey indicates that the interest in Bitcoin gained momentum, increasing five times in a matter of hours.

Some people might want to take advantage of the moment of despair of users in the middle of a panic attack. There was a premium in the price of Bitcoin recorded in some of the announcements of the P2P market in Turkey. It seems to be that Bitcoin trading at prices above the average occurred in alternative offline markets.

Bitcoin Is a Store-of-Value against Inflation

The value of the Turkish lira has decreased by more than 50% in the last three years. Consequently, a growing number of citizens are turning their attention to Bitcoin for its limited and deflationary issuance. Something similar has happened in Venezuela and Argentina, which had the highest inflation rate in 2020. They were also prominent in their level of adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Analysts have also studied Bitcoin as a store-of-value asset against inflation. In this sense, data from Coin Metrics has indicated that there is no uncertainty in the monetary policy of Bitcoin. “One inherent property of Bitcoin is its predictable supply”, which it highlights amid the monetary policy that central banks control. These institutions deal with aspects that include the printing of money and the control of interest rates.

The pioneering cryptocurrency has even strengthened its position against gold as a store-of-value asset. Bitcoin has displaced the precious metal, whose price has fallen by more than 13.5% until now this year. During the same period, the price of Bitcoin has grown by more than 81%.

By Alexander Salazar

The American company is setting important growth objectives for the years to come. The merger between Greenidge and Support.com could become effective by the second half of 2021.

American company Greenidge, which is dedicated to generating electricity and mining Bitcoin (BTC), will merge with Support.com (SPRT). They seek to list on Nasdaq and become the first company of this kind, with a power plant, on the stock market.

They could close the merger by the third quarter of 2021, according to news service Business Wire. While shareholders and option holders of Support.com would have 8% of the shares, those of Greenidge would have the remaining 92%. The transaction includes the payment of 5% of the Greenidge shares to Support.com investors to take control of the operational services and shares.

The management of Greenidge, belonging to Greenidge Generation Holdings Inc., shows an ambitious policy along with this announcement. They expect to exceed USD 50 million in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) and triple it by late 2022.

Increase of Hash Rate for Bitcoin

The firm also plans to raise its hash rate for Bitcoin, from 1.1 EH/s to 2.6 EH/s, for next year. This value places it on a par with other mining companies in the region, such as Canada’s Bitfarms. At the moment, the Bitcoin network has a total hash rate above 160 EH/s.

Besides, Greenidge expects to increase its mining capacity, from 19 megawatts to 500 megawatts, by 2025. By replicating their mining farms at other power generating stations, they would be able to achieve this goal.

Producing Its Energy from Gas at a Low Cost

Given that Greenidge has its electricity supply; it is in a privileged position. It can produce energy from natural gas, which allows it to operate at low costs and avoid dependence on external suppliers. Greenidge is one of the lowest-cost natural gas companies in the United States at the current time.

Translating these figures into Bitcoin, the company has managed to mine 1,186 BTC at USD 2,869 per unit between February 2020 and February 2021. This number is very low compared to an average of USD 5,000 required for mining 1 BTC in mid-July 2020.

The Partnership with Support.com

The operators that Support.com hires are operators that work from home to provide customer service and technical support to companies and institutions.

They say that they will not change how they have been operating for more than 20 years. Support.com CEO Lance Rosenzweig will continue to be in charge of the services area. Meanwhile, Greenidge CEO Jeff Kirt will become the leader of the newly merged company.

Rosenzweig considers that this merger “will allow Greenidge to have more capital to finance its projects”. He says that their partnership will help them find new growth opportunities. Also, he believes that their shareholders can participate in what might become a competitive Bitcoin mining company.

This is not the first time that a Bitcoin-related company has sought to list on the stock market. In late January, cryptocurrency Coinbase confirmed that it would go public through a direct listing. In the case of Greenidge, they want to merge to optimize their operations.

By Alexander Salazar

Some media support a narrative that says that Venezuela is a “crypto-donation.” but is it? Venezuelans speak; they tell what the primary means of payment and savings are.

More and more Venezuelans join the vast diaspora, trying to find better ground and better opportunities to live in dignity. Some migrants even have seven years or more without going to Venezuela.

Some migrants have already forgotten how to use the bill denominated in bolivars. Many Venezuelan citizens forget more and more as the days pass. These people begin to adapt to new places, people, and economies and understand less the value of money and how people survive in a nation with such extreme hyperinflation.

From the remittances they send, beneficiaries receive a more significant amount of bolivars for the same amount of dollars each month. Still, at the same time, such an amount ends up being equivalent to much fewer products when they go to the supermarket.

Currencies in Venezuela Are Almost Impossible to Digest and Understand, Even for Those Who Live in the Country

Forty dollars sent on March 8, 2021, representing 70 million sovereign bolivars (BsS). For March 2020, the same amount was 2.4 million BsS and one year before 136,400 BsS. Incomprehensible when it comes to “sovereign bolívares,” a product of the monetary reconversion of 2018 that removed five zeros from the “bolívar Fuerte.”It’s almost impossible to digest and understand, even for those who live in the country!

A clear example of what all these reconversions mean: 1 dollar today is worth around 1,800,000 sovereign bolivars, 180,000,000,000 bolivars of 2008 ¡180 billion bolivars that serve, perhaps, to buy a single product.

The Dollar Became the Basis for Calculating Prices

Since the end of 2018, and with more strength in recent months, the US currency became more worthy and valuable. On January 1, 2021, President Nicolás Maduro made a statement on which he said that savings accounts in foreign currency are receiving complete acceptance and authorization. People will gain the ability to pay at the price of the money in bolivars.

Now everything, from a car to ice cream or meat, has its price in dollars. And not only in established shops but also in the informal market: peddlers, with their tablecloths on the street, also sell in US currency.

However, aside from the increase of the dollar’s presence in Venezuela, spokespersons and media have abounded who argue that it is the country most soaked in crypto in all of Latin America.

Some currencies like Localbitcoins show a relevant transaction movement even more extensive than many Latin American countries.

This activity seems to limit its expansion to a small group. It could not serve as a practice enough to make a significant amount from a population that never received education about cryptocurrencies. This market is still small but is growing fast.

By: Jenson Nuñez

Belfort served two years in prison for fraud and also money laundering. His story approached the cinema with the movie “The Wolf of Wall Street.”

The consultant and former stockbroker Jordan Belfort, The Wolf of Wall Street, assured that bitcoin (BTC) would reach a whole new value that could even surpass USD 100,000. The expert changed his thoughts in 2017 when he confirmed that the cryptocurrency was about to suffer a collapse.

In an interview on March 21, Belfort acknowledged being wrong in his postures on bitcoin and other related matters. The former stockbroker assured that it was a “super bear”, that is, that he bet on the fall in its price.

 The Wolf of Wall Street said: “When bitcoin reached $ 19,000, I was on a TV show, and I told the audience that bitcoin was about to crash,” Belfort said. He still keeps the idea that he was right at the time because bitcoin was “hard to sell and easy to buy, a perfect scenario to carry on a manipulation.”

Another weakness that the consultant suggested was that regulators were going to reject cryptocurrency, as it was an easy way to launder money.

Thoughts about Bitcoin Would Be Regularizing

In 2021, “The Wolf of Wall Street” has changed his thoughts on bitcoin and believes that the crypto asset is more solid than ever. “Bitcoin now has a much bigger buyer base than ever,” he said on the matter.

Belfort also expressed his perspectives arguing that the bitcoin’s price has excellent opportunities to increase because its offering provides an advantage over other stocks. As Belfort said, “new investors will keep increasing the price” without new units issuing to let it down.

Jordan Belfort amassed enormous money due to the fraud scheme known as Pump and Dump, which targeted so-called penny stocks or stocks under a dollar. It consisted of inflating a particular share price through concerted purchases and promotion techniques among small investors (pump).

Once the rising stock reached a critical level, the scammers sold everything they had bought at a significant profit. The massive sale of this stock caused its price to plummet (dump).

As a result, Belfort pleaded guilty to stock fraud and money laundering in 1999. After spending two years in prison, he published his experience in the book called “The Wolf of Wall Street,” which would later become a directed film by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo Di Caprio.

The Prediction of the Increase in the Price of Bitcoin that Belfort Made is in Line with that of Other Experts and Market Analysts

Recently, Bobby Lee, founder and current CEO of the purse firm Ballet argued that by the end of this year, 2021 bitcoin could reach the price of USD 300,000 and, in a shorter term, predicted the breaking of the USD 100,000 barrier between June and September.

By: Jenson Nuñez

If Acer does not deliver the ransom, it will have to pay USD 100 million for its data. If the computer manufacturer had paid the ransom on March 17^th, it would have received a 20% discount.

In recent days, representatives of the REvil malware released images of private documents from Taiwanese computer manufacturer Acer. REvil hijacked the data through ransomware and they demanded a ransom of USD 50 million.

The data that REvil hijacked is related to financial calculations, bank balances, and bank communications from the company. Although REvil posted part of the hijacked files on its Dark Web site Happy Blog as evidence of its attack, the hack had occurred before.

Negotiations to Recover the Hijacked Data

Over a week ago, Acer and REvil representatives began negotiations to recover the data. The cybercriminals requested the factory to pay 214,151 XMR (Monero), equivalent to almost USD 50 million at the current price.

If Acer had paid before March 17^th, they would have received a discount of 20% on the ransom, according to the hackers. At the same time, they said that they would provide the company with a decryptor to recover the hijacked data. Besides, they promised to give them a vulnerability report and eliminate the files that they obtained through the ransomware attack.

Given that Acer did not pay on March 17^th, they now have until March 28^th to pay the USD 50 million that REvil had originally requested. If the firm does not meet the deadline, the amount of the ransom will double to 428,302 XMR, equivalent to almost USD 100 million. REvil explains this in the ransom message that it sent to Acer.

Reporting the Situation to the Relevant Authorities

The computer manufacturer has not yet clearly confirmed the ransomware attack. They limited themselves to saying that they had notified the relevant authorities of an abnormal situation. They added that they could not provide further information for the sake of their safety and because of an open investigation.

The representatives of Acer said that they routinely monitor their IT systems, and so they have a good defense against many cyber-attacks. They noted that these types of companies are constantly under attack. Apart from relevant law enforcement authorities, they also reported the abnormal situations to data protection authorities in several countries.

The Highest Ransom in this Area

The amount of money that REvil requested from Acer has been the highest in this area to date. Therefore, it exceeds the sum of USD 30 million that the cybercriminals had requested from retail company Dairy Farm last January.

REvil has attacked companies including the National Highway Administration Office in Argentina, hijacking 50 GB of their data. They also hacked 1TB of data from alcoholic beverage manufacturing company Brown-Forman.

Last year, this hacking group hijacked data files belonging to two large food distributors in a ransomware attack. Among those victims were Harvest Food Distributors, from California, and its parent company Sherwood Food Distributors, from Michigan.

By Alexander Salazar