The biggest news in the cryptoverse for Dec. 15 includes BlockFi, Viltalik, XRP, Greenridge, Ukraine war and more in this CryptoSlate Wrapped Daily.
CryptoSlate Top Stories
BlockFi confirms move to allow BlockFi Wallet users access to funds
BlockFi released a statement on Dec. 20 confirming a motion filed in relation to BlockFi wallet users accessing funds.
The company is most well known for its yield-bearing service, BlockFi Interest Accounts; however, a core product within the BlockFi ecosystem was a custodial crypto wallet. The wallet was not subject to lending services; thus, BlockFi argued that ” it is our belief that clients unambiguously own these assets.”
A date for the hearing is set for Jan. 9 for U.S. customers and Jan. 13 for international customers.
Further information can be found on the BlockFi blog.
Greenidge signs $74 million debt restructuring deal as bankruptcy fears emerge
Bitcoin (BTC) miner Greenidge Generation has entered into a $74 million debt restructuring agreement with crypto lender NYDIG, according to a Dec. 20 SEC filing.
The restructuring — which is expected to improve Greenidge’s future liquidity and balance sheet — is based on a non-binding term sheet that was entered into on Dec. 19.
In exchange for a substantial number of its miners, transfer credits and coupons that have accrued to Greenidge under its non-fixed price purchase contracts with Bitmain Technologies.
The filing also noted that the Greenidge board of directors was also considering the possibility of a voluntary bankruptcy filing.
Greenidge stock has declined by 99.21%. It is currently trading at $0.31 after an almost 15% drop on Dec. 20.
McCormack trial Judge – Craig Wright was ‘dishonest,’ alludes to victory for McCormack
The final trial between computer scientist Craig Steven Wright (CSW) and crypto podcaster Peter McCormack took place in London on Dec. 20 and ended, indicating a potential victory for McCormack.
The judge’s final decision is said to be published on Dec. 21. However, the judge said that CSW had been dishonest with his claims to be Satoshi, which is why McCormack should be held responsible for paying the £1 fee decided on earlier.
Reporting from BitMex Research who attended the trial stated that the judge gave an initial view that “since CSW was dishonest, CSW should pay any costs currently being decided on.”
Further, BitMex Research further paraphrased the judge’s statement documenting that, “Peter said CWS was a fraud. I found CSW was dishonest. That is therefore relevant.”
Vitalik Buterin says XRP is ‘completely centralized,’ Ripple CTO reacts
Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin in a Dec. 19 interview with Bankless, said Ripple’s XRP “was still completely centralized.”
According to Buterin, for a project to be a part of the crypto space, it needs to use cryptography and have “some kind of chain data structure somewhere.”
He added that XRP hasn’t apologized for writing to the U.S. government that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum were Chinese-controlled assets.
“XRP has not apologized for claiming that Bitcoin and Ethereum are Chinese-controlled.”
Available information also shows that Ripple controls only 4 of the over 130 validators running XRPL.
Critics also tend to point out that Ripple holds most of the XRP token. However, its recent report stated that the firm’s XRP holdings have declined below 50% of its total supply. The firm added that each validator on its network “gets one vote regardless of how much XRP they own.”
Research Highlight
Research: Russia’s Ukraine invasion led to Bitcoin’s highest sell-off in the past 2 years
The last two years have been very eventful for the crypto space. The industry witnessed astronomic crypto adoption, and Bitcoin (BTC) traded at an all-time high of over $69,000.
However, despite this remarkable growth, the industry has witnessed some adverse events that have shaken investors’ confidence.
Long-term holders who sold in 2021 did for profit, while those who sold in 2022 did because of fear.
Biggest Gainers (24h)
- Lisk (LSK) +24.85%
- LUKSO (LYXe) +22.51%
- Secret (SCRT) +13.96%
Biggest Losers (24h)
- Voyager Token (VGX)-9.73%
- Chain (XCN) -6.64%
- BinaryX (BNX) -5.06%
Source: https://cryptoslate.com/blockfi-wallet-may-reopen-vitalik-calls-xrp-centralized-judge-state-craig-wright-is-dishonest-cryptoslate-wrapped-daily/