Musk Fires Twitter Executives, Research Sparks Blockchain Energy Debate, CFTC Brass Shares Crypto Concerns: Hodler’s Digest, 23-29 October

Coming every Saturday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every important news that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more – a week on Cointelegraph in one link.

Top stories this week

The top of Twitter was gutted as Elon Musk’s takeover begins

Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter was finalized this week, after which he reportedly fired three top executives: CEO Parag Agrawal, head of legal and policy Vijaya Gadde and chief financial officer Ned Segal. Musk reportedly claims the three were dishonest about spamming Twitter accounts — an issue that almost caused Musk to walk away from the Twitter deal. On a more positive note, Musk said he has big plans for Twitter, including ensuring free speech on the platform. Twitter also commanded other headlines this week when Binance invested $500 million in the platform and the New York Stock Exchange delisted the now-private company.

Kazakhstan to build central bank’s digital currency on BNB Chain

Binance’s BNB chain will host Kazakhstan’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), according to Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. CBDCs have made headlines in recent years as regions around the world have taken different steps towards the new form of money. The digital token, a product of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, will operate on the BNB Chain. Binance has made regulatory progress in Kazakhstan – a country that has shown interest in crypto.

Report: The vast majority of blockchain energy studies ‘lack scientific rigor’

Much of the information floating around about blockchain carbon emissions lacks validity at multiple levels, according to a preprint produced by researchers from several universities. In short, the preprint says that a number of studies on blockchain energy consumption use incomplete data, lack clarity in electricity costs and have made assumptions based on, among other things, old data. Blockchains and their energy needs have been a topic of much debate.

Aussie federal budget confirms BTC will not be treated as foreign currency

Australia will not make Bitcoin legal tender, according to the country’s latest federal budget. The document detailing the budget indicated that Bitcoin will be taxed in the same category as other crypto assets and not as a foreign currency, despite El Salvador’s move to make BTC legal tender. El Salvador classified Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021. The Central African Republic also classifies Bitcoin as currency. Since 2014, Australia’s tax authorities have classified crypto generally as a type of investment rather than a form of currency, according to comments from Koinly tax chief Danny Talwar.

Equifax, known for major data breach, is building a Web3 KYC solution

Equifax is working with blockchain firm Oasis Labs on a decentralized identity product that could improve Know Your Customer practices. Hosted on Oasis’ platform and working with application programming interface (API) keys from Equifax, the solution will essentially allow individuals to provide identity verification without revealing sensitive information, with the information maintaining a trace on the organization’s blockchain. However, technical specifications of the solution were not disclosed. Equifax’s reputation is overshadowed by a significant global data breach it suffered in 2017.

Winners and losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $20,485Ether (ETH) on $1536 and XRP on $0.46. The total market value is at $994.97 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin winners of the week are Klaytn (CLAY) at 77.92%, Dogecoin (DOGE) of 46.52% and TerraClassicUSD (USTC) of 18.72%.

The top three altcoin losers of the week are Chain (XCN) at -23.33%, Maker (MKR) of -13.67% and Casper (CSPR) of -9.28%.

For more info on crypto prices, be sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Most memorable quotes

“Blockchain is not only a technological change, but also one that enables socio-political change.

Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands

“The UK government has a policy vision for the UK to become an international hub for cryptocurrency and digital assets.

Lisa Cameron, Member of the British Parliament

“Traditional assets are driven by economic growth, Fed policy, inflation. Crypto is driven by the technology itself, millennial adoption.

Mark Yusko, CEO and founder of Morgan Creek Capital Management

“I believe that the IMF is an implacable enemy of crypto.

David Tawilco-founder and president of ProChain Capital

“When [China] love crypto, the bull market is coming back. It will be a slow process, but the red shoots will sprout.

Arthur Hayesformer CEO of BitMEX

“Knowledge gives confidence and self-esteem.

Flori Marquezco-founder and CEO of BlockFi

Prediction of the week

Analyst puts Bitcoin price at $30K next month with breakout due

Early in the week, Bitcoin traded sideways between $19,000 and $20,000 with relatively little price swings. On October 25, the asset started to move towards $21,000, finding resistance at the October 26 level before retreating towards $20,000 on October 27, according to Cointelegraph’s BTC Price Index.

On October 25, Eight CEO Michaël van de Poppe predicted a possible short-term rise up to $30,000 for BTC. “Within 2-3 weeks #Bitcoin will break out significantly,” he tweeted, adding: “My assessment is upside. My guess is probably $30K.”

FUD of the week

CFTC Commissioner Compares Risk of Crypto Contagion to 2008 Financial Crisis

The head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Christy Goldsmith Romero, recently called for additional powers from the United States government to ensure that crypto problems do not affect mainstream finance. Romero drew parallels between the 2008 financial crisis and the current atmosphere, citing Terra’s fall as a contagion risk for mainstream markets. She noted that the crypto sector could negatively impact mainstream finance due to increasing crossover activity between the two worlds.

3Commas issues security warning as FTX deletes API keys after hack

After investigations, crypto exchange FTX and digital asset trading bot service 3Commas found the cause of suspicious DMG cryptocurrency trading on FTX. Hackers phished victims out of FTX API keys via fake websites that looked like 3Commas, resulting in unauthorized trades for DMG asset pairs on FTX. Other methods, including malware, can also be faulty.

Bithumb’s ex-chairman could face eight years in prison for an alleged fraud of 70 million dollars

Bithumb’s ex-chairman Lee Jung-hoon is facing fraud charges in South Korea for allegedly defrauding potential Bithumb buyer Kim Byung-gun of $70 million. Jung-hoon allegedly received $70 million from Byung-gun as an advance payment for the purchase of the Bithumb exchange. However, the deal was conditional on Bithumb listing cryptoasset BXA, which reportedly never happened. If found guilty on December 20, Jung-hoon could face eight years in prison.

Best Cointelegraph Features

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Ethereum at the center of the centralization debate that the SEC claims

Ethereum’s move to PoS was celebrated as an important upgrade. A month after the move, however, concerns about centralization are growing.

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Cointelegraph Magazine writers and reporters contributed to this article.