The Bank of Jamaica revealed the name of its upcoming central bank digital currency (CBDC) after a design competition, only to receive backlash from the local crypto community. The central bank of Jamaica announced on Twitter that it had chosen the name "Jam-Dex" along with the tagline and logo for its upcoming CBDC, scheduled for late 2022. While the project is promising, its name could be easily confused with a decentralized exchange (DEX), and its logo is "terrible," according to the community response. The name Jam-Dex is said to be taken from Jamaican Digital Exchange, with the slogan "no cash, …

Interoperability between separate blockchain networks has become a major theme in the cryptocurrency market over the past year, but several major exploits — such as the $321 million Wormhole exploit — have highlighted the difficulties in achieving cross-chain transfers in a secure manner. One protocol that has been gaining traction in February thanks to its alternative approach to achieving cross-chain interoperability is Komodo, an open, composable multichain platform that is home to the AtomicDEX wallet and non-custodial decentralized exchange. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $0.446 on Feb. 20, the price of …

Just between July 2020 and June 2021, ransomware activity soared by a whopping 1,070%, according to a recent Fortinet report, with other researchers confirming the proliferation of this mode of extortion. Mimicking the prevalent business model of the legitimate tech world, ransomware-as-a-service portals popped up in the darker corners of the web, institutionalizing the shadow industry and slashing the skill ceiling for wannabe-criminals. The trend should be ringing a warning bell through the crypto ecosystem, particularly since ransomware attackers do have a knack for payments in crypto. That said, the industry that was once a Wild Wild West is now …

Part of what makes trading cryptocurrency so complex is the sheer number of blockchains and exchanges at play. For example, users who want to transfer a Binance (BNB) token that exists on Binance Smart Chain (BEP-20) may have to go through several steps to achieve their end result of LUNA tokens on the Terra network. Especially when considering new users, this process may require significant time searching and comparing decentralized finance (DeFi) tools. Even advanced users must consider how they will track wrapped tokens blockchain fees and learn the ropes of multiple UIs. In fact, a quick look on Twitter …

Airdrops, going 'multi-chain' and massive multi-million dollar developer incentives were some of the key marketing and rebrand tactics blockchain projects used in 2021. This trend appears set to continue in 2022 and Gnosis (GNO) appears to be jumping on the bandwagon. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that since hitting a low of $219 on Jan. 24, the price of GNO has put on a gain of 57% to hit a daily high of $351 on Feb. 14 as the Gnosis chain begins to make its mark in the decentralized finance sector. Three reasons for the bullish reversal …

Trading perpetual futures contracts in decentralized apps is a crypto sub-sector ripe for growth, especially as discussions of regulation, taxation and mandatory KYC at centralized exchanges continue to take place. One DEX platform that has begun to gain traction is Injective (INJ), an interoperable layer-one protocol designed to facilitate the creation of cross-chain Web3 decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $3.91 on Feb. 3, the price of INJ has rallied 157.8% to a daily high of $10.08 on Feb. 11 amidst a 1,756% spike in its 24-hour trading …

Decentralized finance (DeFi) has had a rough go so far in 2022, and data from Messari shows the top ten-ranked DeFi assets currently down between 10% to 50% since the start of the year. A positive is, the situation may change soon as funds have began to flow back into the DeFi ecosystem following a month of declines as data shows institutional and retail funds returning to crypto markets. Data from Defi Llama shows that the total value locked in all of DeFi platforms has climbed to $211.1 billion on Feb. 11, up from a low of $185.14 billion on …

Centralized exchanges continue to be among the most used tools for investors to buy, sell and exchange cryptocurrencies, a reality often likened to the level of security and monitoring the third party can provide to the end-user. Consider that thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars can be lost without a centralized exchange if the investor forgets their key. While many see the benefits of centralized exchanges, the concept is misleading when compared to the decentralized assets that investors use in their transactions. Along with centralization has come several hacks, fraud, market manipulation and artificially inflated trading volume. For …

The market appears to be finding its feet and as the smoke clears, its easier to see which projects are fundamentally flawed and which are returning to their previous trading range where they were before the recent three-week downturn. Trader Joe is one of the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols that continued to push out new developments during the market-wide correction.. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $0.658 on Jan. 24, the price of JOE rebounded 147% to a daily high of $1.63 on Feb. 1 before entering a new consolidation range. Three …

On Jan. 26, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission proposed amendments to Rule 3b-16 under the Exchange Act that lacks any mention of digital assets or decentralized finance, which could adversely affect platforms that facilitate crypto transactions. Some cryptocurrency advocates — including SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce — believe that the commission’s extended definition of an exchange could thrust an entire class of crypto entities under the regulator’s jurisdiction, subjecting them to additional registration and reporting burdens. How real is the threat? The proposed change The amendments proposed by the regulator dramatically expand the definition of what an exchange is …

It seems crypto winter is upon us and during times like these, projects that continue to forge ahead by focusing on development and expansion are often rewarded by traders who are looking to set up long positions where strong fundamentals trump the absence of short-term gains. One project that has weathered the storm in the crypto markets to establish a new all-time high is Telos (TLOS), a blockchain network created with the EOSIO software that aims to bring speed and scalability to smart contracts for decentralized finance (DeFi), nonfungible tokens (NFTs), gaming and social media. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro …

Nonfungible tokens (NFT) continue to be one of the hottest sectors of the cryptocurrency market in 2022 despite the overall multi-month weakness seen in Bitcoin (BTC) and other large-cap crypto assets. One project that has benefited from the persistent bullishness in the NFT space is ImmutableX (IMX), a layer-two scaling solution for NFTs on the Ethereum network designed to offer near-instant transactions and zero gas fees for minting and trading Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that after hitting a low of $1.99 on Jan. 24, the price of IMX gained 116% to hit a daily high of …