Tag: DeFi

Cosmos-Based Defi Protocol Nolus Raises 2.5M to Build the First Cross-Chain Defi Lease

by Blockchain News

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George Town, BVI, May 2nd, 2023, Chainwire

The Nolus DeFi Lease provides up to 150% financing on the initial investment with a lowered margin call risk and access to the underlying leveraged assets.

Nolus, an interoperable application on Cosmos, has secured $2.5 million in pre-seed and seed funding to tackle inefficiencies in DeFi money markets. 

The recently concluded $20 million valuation seed funding is backed by Dorahacks, Everstake, Cogitent Ventures, Token Metrics Ventures, and Autonomy Capital, among others, and will allow Nolus to fully complete the technological backbone and further expand the platform both within and outside the Cosmos ecosystem. The Advisory Board members Zaki Manian, Strangelove, and Shane Molidor will ensure Nolus solidify its cross-chain presence.

The novel DeFi Lease solution by Nolus unlocks the full potential of crypto money markets by reducing the industry’s steep over-collateralization requirements, resulting in significantly improved capital efficiency and much more favorable lending options for users. The Nolus DeFi Lease provides up to 150% financing on the initial investment with a lowered margin call risk and access to the underlying leveraged assets through whitelisted yield-bearing strategies. With the added support of liquid staking derivatives, the Nolus protocol will create a cornerstone use case for LSDs for the Cosmos ecosystem in the form of self-repaying loans.

About Nolus

Nolus defines a money market between lenders looking to earn yield on deposited stablecoins and borrowers looking to amplify holdings with more assets than their current equity at lower risk and retained ownership.

The Protocol utilizes a semi-permissioned PoS blockchain built using the Cosmos SDK and a WASM smart contract engine that executes in an isolated sandbox model focused on interoperability, security and performance. Interoperability itself is at the core of Nolus’ offering as the Protocol utilizes IBC and Interchain Accounts to tap into a diverse set of liquidity hubs without creating fragmentation across chains.

After months of testing, Nolus will open its public mainnet in May.

Website | Twitter | Discord

Contact

Marketing and Communications
Nolus Protocol
comms@nolus.io

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zkLink Announces First “Dunkirk Test” to Establish New DeFi Safety Standard

by Blockchain News

Singapore, Singapore, May 3rd, 2023, Chainwire

zkLink, a multi-chain trading middleware utilizing zero-knowledge proofs, announces the first “Dunkirk Test”, a new DeFi safety standard, on May 11-13. During this event, zkLink will shut down its servers for 72 hours, inviting users to try the emergency asset recovery feature, and earn rewards for taking part in the test.

“The Dunkirk Test is like a fire drill for crypto users. We will simulate a sudden shutdown of the zkLink infrastructure, so that users can learn how to recover their assets,” said Vince Yang, co-founder of zkLink. “We believe the ‘Dunkirk Test’ could set a new benchmark for safety in the crypto industry. It is unacceptable that billions of dollars are lost each year due to custody fraud or cross-chain bridge exploits, so we encourage other DeFi protocols to conduct the same test to prove self-custody of user’s funds.”

The Dunkirk shutdown period begins on May 11 at 12pm Singapore time, during which users can go to a recovery node and withdraw their assets back to their wallets.

One of zkLink’s ecosystem dApps, ZKEX.com, will also take part in the shutdown test.

To participate in the Dunkirk event, users should first join the campaign on Galxe.com, then trade on the ZKEX.com testnet using free test tokens until May 10, the day before the shutdown.

“The ZKEX team is building what we hope is the safest omni-chain DEX in the industry. So to prove it, we’re joining zkLink in shutting down access to our trading platform to demonstrate users won’t experience another CeFi-like loss with us,” said Balal Khan, co-founder of ZKEX. “Think of this as a fake rug pull with a happy ending, giving peace of mind that crypto traders have ownership and control of their assets at all times, even if zkLink is down, or ZKEX.com disappears.”

In addition to fourteen partners hosting recovery nodes, zkLink’s open-source asset recovery app has been released on Github, enabling anyone to download and run a private recovery node for fund withdrawal.

The mainnet launch of zkLink is planned for summer 2023, soon after the Dunkirk test.

For more information about the Dunkirk asset recovery test, visit zk.link/dunkirk

About zkLink

zkLink is a multi-chain trading infrastructure secured with zk-SNARKS, empowering the next generation of decentralized trading products such as order book DEX, NFT marketplaces, among others.

By connecting various L1 blockchains and L2 networks, zkLink’s unified, multi-purpose ZK-Rollup middleware enables developers and traders to leverage aggregated assets and liquidity from different chains and offer a seamless multi-chain trading experience, contributing to a more accessible and efficient DeFi ecosystem for all.

About the ‘Dunkirk Test’

Inspired by the historic evacuation from the beaches of Dunkirk, the zkLink Dunkirk Test serves two critical purposes: boosting user confidence in zkLink system security and promoting the adoption of the Dunkirk Test as an industry standard for absolute fund security.

In this first test, the zkLink protocol will shut down for three days, allowing users to recover their assets from either a hosted or self-hosted recovery node. Asset balances will be rebuilt from all connected blockchains, and withdrawn back to users’ wallets, giving peace of mind that user funds are truly self-custodial.

A number of partners have committed to run recovery nodes for users during the Dunkirk shutdown period, namely Alliance DAO, Ascensive Assets, BitEye, Bware Labs, CyberConnect, Kepler-428 DAO, Meria, Morningstar Ventures, Republic Crypto, Secure3, Smrti Labs, TokenInsight, Unipass, and Verilog.

To stay updated and learn more about zkLink, follow zkLink on:

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Contact

zkLink Marketing Team
zklinkteam@zklink.org
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UK Considers New DeFi Tax Regime

by Blockchain News

The UK government is seeking to make changes to the tax treatment of lending and borrowing on decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. HM Revenue and Customs has launched a consultation that will run until June 22, 2023, asking for input from investors, professionals, and firms engaged in DeFi activities, as well as representative bodies and think tanks, on a proposed new DeFi tax regime.

Under the proposed changes, crypto used in DeFi transactions would not be treated as a disposal for tax purposes. This means that Capital Gains Tax (CGT), which is typically triggered when an asset is disposed of, would not apply. Instead, a taxable event would occur when cryptocurrencies are disposed of in a non-DeFi transaction.

The consultation states that a transaction must meet certain criteria to be considered a DeFi transaction. Specifically, it should involve the initial transfer of crypto assets from a lender to a borrower, or through a smart contract, with the borrower being obligated to return the tokens. Additionally, the lender should have the right to withdraw the same amount of tokens that were initially lent or staked.

The proposed changes could have a significant impact on the DeFi ecosystem in the UK. As it stands, many DeFi protocols require users to pay transaction fees, which can be subject to taxes. However, if the proposed changes are implemented, these fees could potentially be exempt from taxation, creating a more favorable environment for DeFi activities in the UK.

The consultation is part of the UK government’s wider efforts to regulate the cryptocurrency industry and ensure that it is operating in a safe and secure manner. With the increasing popularity of DeFi protocols, it is crucial that governments and regulators keep pace with these developments to ensure that they can effectively regulate this rapidly evolving sector.

Overall, the proposed changes to the tax treatment of DeFi transactions in the UK could have a significant impact on the industry. If implemented, they could make the country a more attractive destination for DeFi activities and provide a more favorable regulatory environment for individuals and entities engaged in these activities. It remains to be seen how the consultation process will unfold, but it is clear that the UK government is taking steps to ensure that it can effectively regulate the cryptocurrency industry and support the growth of this innovative sector.

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US Treasury to Increase DeFi Regulation

by Blockchain News

The decentralized finance (DeFi) sector has been booming in recent years, with a plethora of new projects and services popping up every day. However, with its rapid growth comes increased scrutiny from regulators, and the United States Treasury recently conducted a risk assessment of the sector to identify potential risks and areas where it may be lacking in compliance.

According to Assistant Treasury Secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crime Elizabeth Rosenberg, the report found that DeFi was lacking in several ways, particularly in terms of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) compliance. She stated that the lack of compliance had allowed scammers, money launderers, and North Korean hackers to benefit from the sector, which is a major concern for the Treasury.

Rosenberg spoke about the report’s findings at a recent event hosted by the Atlantic Council think tank, and she warned that the sector should be prepared for increased regulation in the future. The report was part of the Treasury’s response to U.S. President Joe Biden’s executive order on the responsible development of digital assets, which calls for increased oversight and regulation of the crypto industry.

One of the report’s key findings was that DeFi was not always as decentralized as it claimed to be. Many of the services and persons associated with DeFi services were found to be subject to AML/CFT obligations, meaning they were liable to comply with the Bank Secrecy Act. The report concluded that all DeFi services must comply with the Act, which is a major step towards increased regulation of the sector.

While some in the DeFi community may be concerned about the potential for increased regulation, others see it as a necessary step to ensure the sector’s long-term success. With more oversight and compliance measures in place, investors and users can be assured that they are participating in a safe and secure ecosystem that is less vulnerable to fraud and illicit activities.

Overall, the US Treasury’s risk assessment of DeFi has highlighted the need for increased compliance and regulation in the sector. As the DeFi industry continues to grow and evolve, it will be important for all participants to ensure they are following the necessary AML/CFT guidelines and complying with applicable laws and regulations. By doing so, they can help to create a more secure and sustainable future for the sector.

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1inch Joins Ethereum’s zkSync Era for Faster DeFi Transactions

by Blockchain News

Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol 1inch has recently made an important move to join Ethereum’s scaling solution, the zkSync Era. By deploying its aggregation and limit order protocols on zkSync, 1inch aims to tap into faster and cheaper transactions that the layer-2 scaling solution offers.

The integration of 1inch on zkSync is expected to improve the protocol’s performance and enable users to perform more DeFi transactions with greater efficiency. With the soaring demand for DeFi solutions, 1inch seeks to ensure that its users can continue to enjoy seamless and uninterrupted services while also reducing transaction fees.

1inch is just the latest Ethereum-based platform to join the zkSync Era. Other notable DeFi protocols that have already deployed on the zero-knowledge proof (zk-proof) based scaling platform include Uniswap, SushiSwap, Maker, and Curve Finance.

The adoption of zkSync by a growing number of DeFi protocols underscores the importance of layer-2 scaling solutions in addressing the scalability issues faced by the Ethereum network. As a result of its growing popularity, zkSync has emerged as one of the most promising scaling solutions for Ethereum, offering faster and more cost-effective transactions than the Ethereum mainnet.

For those unfamiliar with zkSync, it is a scaling solution based on zk-proof technology that allows Ethereum to process transactions off-chain while still maintaining the same level of security and decentralization as the mainnet. With zkSync, users can perform transactions at a fraction of the cost and at a much faster speed than what is currently possible on the Ethereum mainnet.

By deploying on zkSync, 1inch is positioning itself to better serve its users and tap into the full potential of DeFi. With faster and cheaper transactions, 1inch aims to provide its users with a seamless and efficient experience, while also attracting more users to the platform.

In conclusion, the integration of 1inch on Ethereum’s zkSync Era represents a major milestone for the DeFi ecosystem. With the growing adoption of layer-2 scaling solutions, the future of DeFi looks promising, as more users are expected to flock to these platforms, further driving innovation and growth in the DeFi space.

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Cryptocurrency Soars in Q1 2023

by Blockchain News

The cryptocurrency market has started off 2023 with a bang, as shown in CoinGecko’s Q1 2023 Crypto Industry Report. The report highlights the surge in market capitalization of Bitcoin (BTC) and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, making them the key takeaways of the first quarter.

BTC emerged as the best-performing asset of Q1 2023, with gains of 72.4%, outperforming other assets such as the NASDAQ index and Gold, which marked gains of 15.7% and 8.4%, respectively. The report notes that all major asset classes, except crude oil, saw gains through the first quarter of the year. Crude oil dropped by 6.1%, which was attributed to United States inflation data that cited a reduction in oil demand and the ill effects of the U.S. banking crisis.

The overall cryptocurrency market capitalization reached $1.2 trillion at the end of Q1, with a gain of $406 billion from the market cap of $829 billion at the end of 2022. The DeFi space was another standout performer, rising by $29.6 billion in value through the first quarter. Liquid staking governance tokens saw a 210% increase in market cap since the start of 2023, making it the third-largest category in the DeFi sector.

Ethereum’s Shapella upgrade played a major role in driving the increase of capital flows into liquid staking pools. The upgrade finally unlocked ETH staking reward withdrawals, which helped the network gain more attention.

While Bitcoin and DeFi have been major movers thus far this year, the top 15 stablecoins saw their market cap drop by $6.2 billion. CoinGecko attributes this 4.5% drop in market cap to the shutdown of Binance USD by Paxos and the momentary depeg of USD Coin (USDC) during the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March 2023.

Tether (USDT) strengthened its position as the largest stablecoin by market cap in 2023, adding $13.6 billion since the start of the year, while USDC and BUSD recorded market cap losses of 26.9% and 54.5%, respectively.

Nonfungible token (NFT) trading volume has also surged again in 2023, marking a 68% rise from Q4 2022 to $4.5 billion during the first quarter of 2023. NFT marketplace newcomer Blur accounted for the majority of NFT trading volume since its launch in October 2022, accounting for 71.8% of the NFT market share in March 2023.

The cryptocurrency market is still relatively new and volatile, but the Q1 2023 report shows that it is gaining momentum and acceptance from investors. Despite some drops in stablecoin market cap and the decline in crude oil, the overall cryptocurrency market has been performing exceptionally well. This growth could lead to more mainstream adoption and could open doors for new developments and opportunities in the future.

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Shapella Upgrade, Privacy Concerns, Hacks, and Financial Inclusion

by Blockchain News

The DeFi space had a busy week with several significant developments. The highly anticipated Shapella upgrade on Ethereum’s mainnet was successfully completed, allowing validators to withdraw their staked Ether after three years. However, only 253 validators have signed up to fully exit their staked Ether position, with analytics firm Glassnode predicting that less than 1% of the staked ETH will be withdrawn.

In addition to the Shapella upgrade, an Ethereum researcher revealed that staking Ether could become a privacy concern. The researcher found that staking Ether shows a user’s IP address information, which could lead to privacy issues. This discovery raised concerns within the cryptocurrency community.

A DeFi hack also occurred during the week, where a hacker exploited an old Yearn.finance contract and minted 1 quadrillion Yearn Tether (yUSDT). The hacker then swapped the yUSDT to other stablecoins, allowing them to take hold of $11.6 million worth of stablecoins.

However, the week also had positive news regarding financial inclusion in Africa. Fonbnk, a Web3 on-ramp that allows Africans to obtain cryptocurrency assets by exchanging their airtime credits, partnered with Tanda, a merchant network platform in East Africa, to launch an airtime trading marketplace across Tanda’s network of agents. This partnership aims to increase liquidity and earning opportunities for African micro-entrepreneurs.

Finally, the top 100 DeFi tokens had a bullish week, thanks to a late surge in the crypto market after Ethereum’s much-awaited upgrade. Most DeFi tokens traded in the green along with the rest of the market.

In conclusion, the DeFi space had a busy week with several significant developments, including the successful Shapella upgrade, privacy concerns related to staking, a major DeFi hack, and a partnership to increase financial inclusion in Africa. The top 100 DeFi tokens had a bullish week, and Glassnode predicted only a small percentage of staked ETH would be withdrawn.

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DeFi Hackers Mint $11.6M in Stablecoins

by Blockchain News

A recent hack in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space allowed an attacker to mint over 1 quadrillion Yearn Tether (yUSDT) from a mere $10,000, according to blockchain security firm PeckShield. The attacker then exchanged the yUSDT for other stablecoins, taking hold of $11.6 million in the process. The stablecoins included 61,000 Pax Dollar (USDP), 1.5 million TrueUSD (TUSD), 1.79 million Binance USD (BUSD), 1.2 million Tether (USDT), 2.58 million USD Coin (USDC), and 3 million Dai (DAI).

PeckShield reported that the hacker has already transferred 1,000 Ether (ETH) to Tornado Cash, a sanctioned cryptocurrency mixer. The blockchain security firm also informed DeFi protocols Aave and Yearn.finance of the situation.

Yearn.finance released a statement after conducting an initial investigation, stating that the issue was limited to iearn, an outdated contract before vaults v1 and v2. The DeFi protocol assured its users that its current contracts and protocols are not affected by the exploit.

Similarly, Aave also confirmed that it is aware of the transaction. The liquidity protocol clarified that the hack did not impact Aave v1, v2 or v3.

While hacks still plague the DeFi space in 2023, the amount of money lost to these incidents has decreased compared with previous years. According to a quarterly report by blockchain security firm CertiK, over $320 million were lost to hacks in the first quarter of 2023. Although this amount is still substantial, it is much lower compared to the first quarter of 2022 when $1.3 billion was lost, and the fourth quarter of 2022 when $950 million was lost to hacks.

Despite the decrease in the amount lost to DeFi hacks, these incidents still serve as a reminder of the importance of security measures in the space. PeckShield’s quick detection of the recent hack and Aave and Yearn.finance’s prompt action in addressing the issue demonstrate that the DeFi space is continuously improving its security measures.

As the DeFi space grows, it is likely that there will be more attempts to exploit vulnerabilities in the system. However, with increased awareness and investment in security measures, the space can continue to thrive and offer innovative solutions to traditional finance.

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PancakeSwap Launches V3 with Lower Fees and Enhanced Capital Efficiency

by Blockchain News

Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol PancakeSwap has launched version 3 of its automated market maker platform on BNB Chain and Ethereum, with the upgrade encompassing performance improvements and lower fees.

PancakeSwap is a popular DeFi platform that enables users to trade cryptocurrencies without intermediaries. It operates as an automated market maker (AMM), meaning that it relies on a smart contract to determine the price of tokens based on the ratio of supply and demand.

One of the key features of PancakeSwap V3 is enhanced capital efficiency. In the previous version of the platform, liquidity from providers (LPs) was distributed uniformly along the price curve of trading pairs. This approach was considered inefficient because assets typically trade within certain price ranges. V3 allows liquidity providers to select a custom price range to provide liquidity, allowing specific control over capital investments to higher volume trading ranges.

Moreover, PancakeSwap V3 features four new trading fee tiers ranging from 0.01% to 1%, which is a change from V2’s standard 0.25%. Every token pair can have liquidity pools for each tier. PancakeSwap expects asset pairs to be drawn to tiers where incentives for LPs and traders align. This approach is an effort to balance between traders targeting the lowest fees while still incentivizing LPs. The higher percentage trading fee tiers cater to assets that have higher impermanent loss or lower liquidity. This mechanism intends to provide more fee revenue and incentive for LPs.

PancakeSwap caters to a broad DeFi user base, accounting for over $2.5 billion of total value locked and serving over 1.5 million unique users. The platform also revealed upcoming features that are still in development, including a trading rewards program incentivizing traders with exclusive benefits, while a position manager feature aims to improve user experience when depositing tokens as liquidity.

In other news, Arbitrum (ARB) has been in the spotlight in March, with its highly-anticipated airdrop consolidating around $3.3 million from over 1,400 addresses into two controlling wallets. Arbitrum is a layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum that aims to improve its scalability and lower its transaction fees. Its airdrop has generated significant interest from DeFi enthusiasts who are looking for new opportunities to earn rewards.

In summary, PancakeSwap V3 is a significant upgrade that aims to improve capital efficiency and lower trading fees. It also features four new trading fee tiers that cater to different types of assets and traders. With over 1.5 million unique users and more upcoming features in development, PancakeSwap is likely to remain a popular DeFi platform.

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Stablecoin Depeg Event Reveals Risks to DeFi and Traditional Finance

by Blockchain News

The recent depegging event of Circle’s USD coin (USDC) has shed light on the potential risks to both decentralized finance (DeFi) and traditional finance. Traditionally, regulators have expressed concerns that DeFi could pose risks to the traditional financial services sector. However, the recent failures of established financial institutions, such as Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, have shown that distress can also spread to the DeFi sector.

The depegging of stablecoins, such as USDC, BUSD, and DAI, has highlighted governance risks related to the custody of reserve assets. Stablecoin issuers’ reliance on a relatively small set of off-chain financial institutions limits their stability, and the reduction in the available pool of financial institution partners could make it even more difficult for fiat-backed stablecoins to maintain stable exchange rates.

The USDC depegging event caused the fiat-backed stablecoin to fall below $.90 following the announcement that Circle had up to $3.3 billion in exposure to Silicon Valley Bank, which had suffered a deposit run. Other smaller-circulation stablecoins also lost their pegs. Only USDT seemed to benefit from the turmoil, briefly exceeding $1, most likely because of investors shifting out of the depegged stablecoins.

While the depeg event was relatively short-lived, it has laid bare the risks associated with stablecoins. Moody’s anticipates that regulators could increase their scrutiny of stablecoins and require greater counterparty diversification. Last year, the Terra/LUNA collapse raised concerns about stablecoins’ reserves, leading regulators to recommend additional liquidity and transparency requirements. The EU cryptoasset regulation (MiCA) briefly touches on this, but leaves precise regulatory standards to be determined by European banking authorities.

As traditional finance and DeFi become more intertwined, the risk of systemic failure increases, emphasizing the need for effective regulation, transparency, and risk management. Regulators could potentially trigger additional regulatory requirements, notably on counterparty diversification, in light of the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failures.

In response to the shortcomings of stablecoins, there is growing interest in exploring alternative solutions, such as tokenized bank deposits. Tokenized bank deposits would allow users to hold digital tokens that represent ownership of underlying bank deposits, subject to the regulatory standards of banking. This would provide greater confidence in the underlying assets’ safety, although credit risks associated with traditional banking would still remain.

In conclusion, the depegging of stablecoins has brought to light the potential risks associated with both DeFi and traditional finance. The event has highlighted the need for effective regulation, transparency, and risk management, and has sparked interest in exploring alternative solutions to address the shortcomings of stablecoins.

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Bitcoin (BTC) $ 27,258.30 1.63%
Ethereum (ETH) $ 1,908.02 2.41%
Litecoin (LTC) $ 95.38 1.54%
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 114.92 1.22%