The second week of May has been exciting for the blockchain and cryptocurrency world. Perhaps the biggest news is that Binance announced on Tuesday it was hacked to the tune of 7,000 Bitcoin (BTC) worth $40.7 million. The major exchange said attackers performed a large scale security breach to steal BTC, user API keys, two-factor authentication codes, and other data. Chief executive Changpeng Zhao tweeted that the attack only affected Binance's hot wallet and the exchange will conduct a thorough security review and strengthen internal cybersecurity protocols. Binance added it will compensate affected users with its Secure Asset Fund for Users and cover their losses.
Here is the rest of the week in review:
ConsenSys CEO Joseph Lubin gave a keynote address in Brooklyn on Saturday, to conclude the 2019 Ethereal Summit. In his speech, Lubin pretended it was the year 2047. He predicted a second term for US President Donald Trump, a state of radical division and hate crimes, and the breakup of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) into a news media firm and a decentralized social platform. He proclaimed that in the future, "Liberal democracy was on its death bed." He also predicted that decentralized journalism startups like Civil helped revive the news industry. Despite the bleak forecasts, Lubin closed out his speech by saying that a decentralized era of journalism and ethics arose that changed the world for the better.
A new report by Ernst & Young says that QuadrigaCX owes creditors $160 million but only owns $21 million in assets. The report from the audit firm and court-appointed monitor and trustee discloses that the defunct Canadian exchange has three affiliated entities: Quadriga Fintech Solutions, Whiteside Capital Corporation, and 0984750 B.C. The question is where the money owed to Quadriga's creditors is. It is unclear if EY is making progress on finding the exchange's lost funds. Regardless of whether the Quadriga estate is included in the asset calculation, the exchange is short some $130 million owed to its customers who became creditors.
Crypto prices soared convincingly to above $207 billion this week, despite the bad news from Binance. For the majors, BTC, Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ethereum (ETH), and Litecoin (LTC) led the gains, while Binance Coin (BNB) and Stellar (XLM) slipped in the red. In the top 100, the biggest losers are Newton (NEW), down a massive 31%, Cosmos (ATOM), down 23%, and Nexus (NXS), down 18%. The biggest gainers are Bitcore (BTX), up a whopping 75%, ABBC coin (ABBC), up 47%, and Particl (PART), up 39%. Next week, traders will be watching the Consensus 2019 gathering in New York.
The author owns a small amount of BTC and LTC.