Read in the Digest:
- Axie Infinity’s Ronin suffers $625 million exploit in massive DeFi hack.
- MicroStrategy obtains $205 million loan to buy BTC while Terra purchases $135 million as Bitcoin approaches historic moment.
- MetaMask integrates Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) Pay support, allowing users to buy crypto with cards.
- OpenSea to list Solana’s NFT in April, Visa (NYSE:V) launches new NFT program.
Axie Infinity’s Ronin Suffers $625 Million Exploit in Massive DeFi Hack
Ronin, the network behind the popular NFT game, ‘Axie Infinity’, has suffered a $625 million exploit in one of the largest’ decentralized finance’ hacks to date.
Confirming the report via a blog post, Ronin stated that the attacker has stolen $625 million in wrapped Ether (173,600 ether) and USDC (25.5 million).
Ronin explained that an attacker “used hacked private keys to forge fake withdrawals” from the Ronin bridge across two transactions.
The Ronin sidechain requires five of its nine validators for withdrawals. However, the blog post states that “the attacker found a backdoor through our gas-free RPC (NYSE:RES) node, which they abused to get the signature for the Axie DAO validator.”
Flipsider:
- The native token of the Ronin network, RON, has undertaken a massive plunge since the news broke, dropping from $2.3 per coin down to $1.822 as of this writing.
The 24 hour price chart for Ronin (RON). Source: Tradingview
Why You Should Care
The Ronin hack has once again revealed the underlying vulnerabilities in DeFi bridge networks, reviving calls for security improvements in the DeFi space.
MicroStrategy Obtains $205 Million Loan to Buy BTC While Terra Purchases $135 Million as Bitcoin Approaches Historic Moment
Bitcoin’s biggest institutional investor, MicroStrategy, has obtained a $205 million loan in order to purchase yet more of the leading asset. The interest-only term loan was approved by Silvergate Bank through a subsidiary.
Microstrategy (NASDAQ:MSTR) revealed that the loan was secured by “certain bitcoin held in Macrostrategy’s collateral account.” In addition to buying bitcoin, MicroStrategy will use the loan to pay all fees, interest, and expenses related to the transaction.
Terra is another foundation that has been gulping up Bitcoin in recent times. On Monday, Terra announced the purchase of $135 million worth of Bitcoin, taking its total to over $1 billion since January. The news drove Terra (LUNA) to a new ATH of $109.66.
The seven day price chart for Terra (LUNA). Source: Tradingview
Bitcoin joins Terra in setting a new ATH, but in the total number of addresses holding the crypto. According to data from IntoTheBlocks, the number of non-zero Bitcoin addresses reached a new all-time high of 40.25 million on March 25th.
Flipsider:
- Some market analysts have warned that, due to the Fed’s policy tightening, the price of Bitcoin could suffer a nosedive down to $10k.
Why You Should Care
The increased backing received by Bitcoin and the rise in the number of addresses holding the asset have increased bullish sentiment towards the world’s largest crypto.
MetaMask Integrates Apple Pay Support, Allowing Users to Buy Crypto with Cards
Popular crypto wallet service MetaMask has announced the expansion of its services to include the Apple ecosystem. Following the integration, Apple Pay users can now buy crypto using their credit and debit cards.
On March 29th, MetaMask announced the release of mobile version 4.3.1. While the update comes with droves of changes, the inclusion of Apple Pay was the most significant. Apple processes transactions via ‘Wyre,’ since it does not support Crypto payments.
The current deposit limit for Apple Pay users using their Visa or Mastercards and the Wyre API is pegged at $400. A further update introduced MetaMask users to gasless transactions.
Flipsider:
- Due to its growing popularity, Cyber security firm ESET recently uncovered schemes to distribute fake MetaMask Wallets.
Why You Should Care
Following the update users can now buy crypto using debit or credit cards without needing to send ETH to the app in advance.
OpenSea to List Solana’s NFT in April, Visa Launches New NFT Program
After an extended wait, Solana NFTs could soon become available on the world’s largest NFT marketplace, OpenSea. The market leader has hinted that it will begin supporting non-fungible tokens from the Solana chain in April.
In a “wen Solana?” video released on March 29th, OpenSea teased the April addition, but withheld the exact date at which Solana NFTs will become available on the leading NFT marketplace.
To help creatives build their businesses with non-fungible tokens, Visa has launched a new program dubbed the ‘Visa Creator Program’. The initiative targets entrepreneurs working in the art, music, fashion, and film industries.
The one-year NFT immersion ‘Visa Creator Program’ will provide support for creators through technical and product mentorship, community building, access to thought leaders, exposure to Visa clients and partners, and a one-time stipend.
Flipsider:
- Despite their growing adoption and use cases, many experts still argue that many NFT projects will not stand the test of time due to their inflated prices.
Why You Should Care
Creatives are growing more interested in NFTs as they acknowledge their potential as an accelerator for the creator economy.
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