Do you remember the days when everyone had a landline at home? Those hardwired phones are now becoming relics of the past. The mobile phone reigns supreme in our pockets and palms, always ready to connect us to the world.
However, as technology evolves, so does the etiquette surrounding its use. A ringing phone during a Zoom call or family dinner is seen as a rude interruption, but a text is a gentle nudge — more polite and less intrusive.
That’s why texting is the new way of communicating. It’s not just a trend. It’s a sign of how we respect each other’s time and space in this busy world. We text before we call to make sure the other person is free and willing to chat. That’s how we keep in touch without being rude or annoying.
Here’s why texting is more often preferred over voicemails.(CyberGuy.com)
Why do people prefer texting over calling?
Texting has become the dominant mode of communication in the modern world, surpassing phone calls in popularity and convenience. But what are the underlying reasons behind this preference? Here are some of the sociological factors that influence people’s choice of texting over calling:
Respecting Boundaries: An unexpected call can feel like an unsolicited intrusion. A gentle text beforehand acts as a polite cue, ensuring the recipient is ready for a voice conversation.
The Element of Convenience: Texting provides leeway for dialogue at ease, allowing you to respond amidst your busy life, thus morphing communication into a less daunting task and more of a seamless exchange.
Privacy Concerns: In an era when public spaces double as personal cubicles, a ringing phone can morph into a source of distraction. Texting offers a discreet channel, keeping the communication noise to a murmur.
Digital Evolution: The textured digital landscape, enriched with read receipts and typing indicators, has nudged texting into a more engaging and informative mode of interaction.
Emergencies Aside: Emergencies break the mold where the immediacy of a phone call is both warranted and appreciated.
As we morph into this text-first mode, tackling unwanted calls has climbed up the priority ladder. The emergence of mobile solutions to filter out junk calls or add additional lines mirrors this growing necessity.
How can you combat unwanted calls
While texting may be your preferred way of communicating with your friends and family, you may still receive phone calls from unknown or unwanted numbers. Some of these calls may be legitimate, but many of them are spam calls or robocalls that are trying to sell you something or scam you. Here are some ways you can reduce or eliminate spam calls from your phone.
Registering with do-not-call registries: Shield against telemarketers by registering your number with the National Do Not Call Registry.
Utilizing built-in features: Modern smartphones are fortified with features to identify and block suspected spam calls.
Follow these rules to keep up your phone etiquette.(CyberGuy.com)
Installing third-party apps: These third-party apps can be like your knight in shining armor against spam calls.
Adding additional phone lines: Adding a free second phone number like Google Voice can create a buffer between personal and professional communications.
Reaching out to your phone carrier: Phone carriers also step into the fray to shield customers from the barrage of spam calls. Explore the features offered by carriers like Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to combat unwanted calls.
While unexpected phone calls can be annoying, the most annoying thing about cellphones is when people put their phones on speaker and share their calls with the world. This is a no-no anywhere there are other people within earshot.
The transition to text-before-call etiquette mirrors our digital evolution, creating a respectful prelude to voice communication. It is also a good idea to add mobile solutions like spam-blocking apps and additional phone line services in your battle against unwanted calls.
Are you embracing the text-before-call etiquette? Or are you old school and still call when you want to talk to someone? Does it annoy you that no one picks up the phone anymore? Let us know by writing us atCyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips & security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.
Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.
Trader swaps 131K stablecoins for $0 during USDR depeg
The USDR stablecoin depegged on Oct. 11 after users requested over 10 million stablecoins in redemptions. Despite being 100% backed, the majority of its assets were illiquid, tokenized real estate properties. This led to the coin’s depegging from the dollar and its decline to $0.53.
This surely represented a bad day for the USDR team and everyone holding the stablecoin, but one particular trader appears to have had a worse day than some. During the USDR depegging crisis, a trader appears to have swapped 131,350 USDR for exactly 0 USD Coin. That’s a complete loss of investment and a contender for “worst-case-scenario” when it comes to panic-selling.
One unlucky trader swapped 131K stablecoins for $0 during the recent USDR depeg. Caroline Ellison, the star witness in the Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried criminal trial, testified that the former FTX CEO tried to use identities linked to Thai sex workers to unfreeze funds before bribing Chinese officials for millions, as well as claiming he considered selling FTX equity to the crown prince of Saudi Arabia.
Due to the decoupling of the stablecoin USDR, this guy accidentally swapped 131,350 $USDR for 0 $USDC while panic selling $USDR.
Ellison testimony: SBF bribed Chinese officials for $150 million to unfreeze funds
Ellison, SBF’s former romantic partner and former CEO of Alameda Research, claimed in her courtroom testimony that SBF bribed Chinese officials for millions of dollars to unfreeze funds locked in local exchanges.
Ellison said there was $1 billion in funds locked up in China and that to access them, Alameda paid a $150 million bribe to Chinese government officials.
AUSA: How much was frozen in China? Ellison: $1 billion. Sam wanted to find ways to address it. AUSA: How were they unfrozen? Ellison: Alameda paid a bribe to Chinese government officials SBF: Objection, move to strike. Judge Kaplan: I will strike that
The funds, which belonged to Alameda Research, were frozen on the cryptocurrency exchanges Huobi and OKX following a 2021 money laundering probe opened by Chinese authorities.
Ellison testified that Bankman-Fried ordered her and other FTX employees to delete all related messages sent via the encrypted messaging app Signal.
However, before bribing Chinese officials, Ellison said they attempted to hire a local lawyer in China who could help with negotiations with the government.
After attempts with lawyers were unsuccessful, Ellison claimed that Bankman-Fried attempted to use wallets of “other people’s accounts” to unsuccessfully access the funds. This included what turned out to be Thai sex workers.
DeFi not yet a “meaningful risk” to stability — EU market regulator
(DeFi is not yet a meaningful risk to financial stability — but does need monitoring, says the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).
In an Oct. 11 report, the regulator laid out the benefits and risks of DeFi but ultimately concluded it’s not currently a threat due to its small size and lack of correlation with other financial markets.
“Crypto-assets markets, including DeFi, do not represent meaningful risks to financial stability at this point, mainly because of their relatively small size and limited contagion channels between crypto and traditional financial markets.”
The ESMA said the crypto market is about the same size as the European Union’s 12th-largest bank or just over 3% of the total assets held by EU banks.
The regulator claimed the crypto market blow-up in 2022, which saw multiple crypto firms and projects collapse, had “no meaningful impact on traditional markets.”
Despite investor DeFi exposure being small due to its “highly speculative nature,” there are still risks to investor protection, which ESMA warned may turn into systemic risks if DeFi gains traction or becomes more connected with traditional markets.
SBF considered selling FTX equity to Saudi crown prince, says Caroline Ellison
This testimony came during day six of the SBF’s criminal trial on Oct. 11. Ellison reportedly testified that she and the defendant discussed methods by which the two could hedge their investments in 2022. According to Ellison, the potential investment by Mohammed bin Salman was one of the notes mentioned in one of their online journals titled “Things Sam is Freaking Out About.”
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
Aaron Rodgers’ appearances on “The Pat McAfee Show” are reportedly fetching him seven figures.
“Aaron has made over $1,000,000 with us, for sure,” McAfee, whose radio show recently switched to ESPN from FanDuel, told the New York Post.
McAfee reportedly cuts into his deal with ESPN to pay guests. He received a five-year, $85 million deal to move his successful show to ESPN, according to the outlet.
Injured Aaron Rodgers of the New York Jets prior to a game against the Kansas City Chiefs at MetLife Stadium Oct. 1, 2023, in East Rutherford, N.J.(Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
Rodgers’ appearances on the show are among the most popular, according to McAfee’s YouTube channel.
The live show, in which Rodgers talked about his darkness retreat, falling out with the Green Bay Packers and his intentions to play for the Jets in 2023, is the most viewed livestream.
Pat McAfee attends the Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s “Quarterback” at the Tudum Theater July 11, 2023, in Hollywood.(JC Olivera/Getty Images)
He’s also explained why he didn’t get a coronavirus vaccine and most recently took a jab at Travis Kelce after the Kansas City Chiefs tight end appeared in a Pfizer commercial.
A rep for Rodgers didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The New York Post noted what McAfee was doing isn’t a new concept. New York Yankees managers Joe Girardi and Aaron Boone reportedly earned around $250,000 for radio and podcast spots. Eli Manning reportedly earned about $125,000 for a radio appearance when he played for the New York Giants.
Aaron Rodgers of the New York Jets warms up before a game against the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium Sept. 11, 2023, in East Rutherford, N.J.(Elsa/Getty Images)
As the world’s focus remains fixed on the escalating Israel-Hamas war, a digital battlefield emerges in the shadows. Behind the scenes of this traditional warfare, hackers have launched disruptive cyberattacks in support of both sides.
War hackers are silent and dangerously disruptive. The reality is stark: If hacker groups can target critical infrastructure in Israel, similar attacks could potentially be directed toward other nations, including the United States.
The Israel-Hamas conflict has taken a concerning twist with the involvement of several hacker groups. Following the major attack initiated by Hamas, which led to mass casualties, the firing of thousands of rockets and Israel’s retaliatory declaration of war, hacktivist groups have intensified their cyberefforts. While some of these might be state-sponsored operations, the majority are independent entities taking sides in the conflict.
Shortly after the war’s onset, various hacking groups made their move. Anonymous Sudan, for instance, quickly targeted Israel’s emergency warning systems and even major media outlets like the Jerusalem Post, a significant English-language daily newspaper in the region. Meanwhile, the pro-Hamas group, Cyber Av3ngers, set their sights on pivotal infrastructures like Israel’s power grid organization, Noga, and the Israel Electric Corp.
Of course, amidst the chaos, it’s hard to separate fact from fiction. While many of these attacks have employed distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) strategies, some claims by these hacktivist groups might be inflated. Notably, allegations from Iran-linked hackers about targeting Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system seem exaggerated.
Killnet and Anonymous Sudan, both associated with Russia, are notorious for their disruptive capabilities. Previously, they’ve targeted tech giants like Microsoft, X (previously Twitter) and Telegram with massive DDoS attacks.
Microsoft’s recent Digital Defense Report has shed light on a new player: Storm-1133. This Gaza-based threat group has been linked to cyberattacks that target Israeli organizations in the defense, energy and telecommunications sectors. Microsoft’s assessment suggests that this group is working in tandem with the interests of Hamas.
Amid the cyber onslaught that’s targeting Israeli systems, pro-Israel groups aren’t sitting idle. ThreatSec, a pro-Israel group, is rumored to have struck Gaza’s ISPs (internet service providers). Compromising an ISP can be disruptive, affecting vast numbers of users and potentially hindering communication and services. Meanwhile, some hacktivists from India are reportedly targeting Palestinian government websites. Such attacks can disrupt official operations and convey political or ideological messages.
Why you need antivirus protection now more than ever
If hackers can target Israel, one of the most technologically advanced nations in the world, then it can happen to the U.S. and its citizens as well. That is why we all need to be on our guard for cyberattacks. How do you do this? By installing antivirus protection on all your devices. Having good antivirus software on your devices will alert you of any malware in your system, warn you against clicking on any malicious links in phishing emails, and ultimately protect you from being hacked.
It’s clear that the Israel-Hamas conflict has evolved into a multi-faceted war with digital battles being waged alongside the physical ones. As these hacker groups demonstrate their capabilities by disrupting key infrastructure, it’s a sobering reminder of the vulnerabilities that exist even in the most advanced nations.
These hacker groups are showing just how easily they can mess with major systems, and honestly, it’s kind of alarming. Battles today aren’t just about who’s got the bigger army; it’s also about who’s got the better hackers. And that impacts everyone, everywhere.
How do you think the cyberattacks in the Israel-Hamas war affect global security and stability? Let us know by writing us atCyberguy.com/Contact.
For more of my tech tips & security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading toCyberguy.com/Newsletter.
Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.
China opened an industrial park dedicated to developing the digital yuan ecosystem on Oct. 11, according to Chinese press reports. This is the first such park dedicated to the central bank digital currency (CBDC), which is also referred to as the e-CNY.
The industrial park is located in the Luohu district of Shenzhen adjacent to Hong Kong. It is opening with nine residents. According to reports, the district government has announced ten “initiatives to boost the development” of the digital yuan ecosystem that involve payment solutions, smart contracts, hard wallets and digital yuan promotion.
Incentives are being offered to residents that include up to three years’ free rent. Commercial banks can receive up to 20 million yuan ($2.7 million) for settling there, startups are eligible for up to 50 million yuan ($6.9 million). Total government support is set at 100 million yuan ($13.7 million). Loans at advantageous rates are also being offered.
Among the first residents of the park were Hengbao, Wuhan Tianyu Information and Lakala Payment. Hengbao and Tianyu produce payment cards, among other things. Lakala is a payments processor and Visa partner.
The Shenzhen Digital RMB Industrial Park officially launched operations on Wednesday, according to a press briefing held in the southern Chinese metropolis of Shenzhen https://t.co/Pi3Z6bjUvppic.twitter.com/SehYDnhoUu
Wuhan Tianyu Information executive deputy director Zeng Zhaoxiang told China Daily:
“We hope to achieve synergistic effects in the industrial chain and jointly promote the development of the park.”
China has taken many measures to promote the usage of the digital yuan, which is officially in the pilot stage. Twenty-six cities are participating in the pilot, and the CBDC is accepted by 5.6 million merchants – a number that is likely to grow steadily thanks to government encouragement and technological development.
The digital yuan app recently added an option for tourists to use Visa and Mastercard to add to their wallets. Nonetheless, with 261 million digital yuan wallets created as of 2022, adoption is considered sluggish.
The U.S. road cycling national championships will be moving from Tennessee to West Virginia for the next five years in part to help what should be a competitive American team better mimic the courses it will face at the Paris Olympics.
USA Cycling has held its nationals in Knoxville the past seven years, but it will take place in Charleston, West Virginia, beginning May 15, 2024. The winners of the elite men’s and women’s time trial events automatically qualify for the Paris Games, which begin July 26, 2024, while the road race could also help decide who makes the Olympic team.
The U.S. has had competitive and often dominant track cycling and BMX programs over the past few Olympic cycles, but it has largely struggled on the road. That started to change this past season, though, when Chloe Dygert won the time trial world title and Sepp Kuss won the Spanish Vuelta for the first Grand Tour win by an American rider in the past 10 years.
Dygert swept the time trial and road race national titles this past summer, allowing her to wear the stars-and-stripes jersey in both of the disciplines until May. Brandon McNulty won the men’s time trial and Quinn Simmons won the road race.
Cointelegraph reporters are on the ground in New York for the trial of former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried. As the saga unfolds, check below for the latest updates.
Oct. 12: Ellison’s testimony continues with further focus on relationship with Sam Bankman-Fried
Caroline Ellison alleges #SBF utilized Thai sex worker IDs in a bid to unfreeze $1B in Alameda funds before resorting to bribery. pic.twitter.com/COPHbaECz6
The cross-examination of Caroline Ellison started in the Southern District Court of New York on October 12, with the former CEO of Alameda Research discussing the decision-making process between Alameda and FTX, as well as how her romantic relationship with Sam Banlman-Fried played a role in the events leading up to the exchange’s collapse.
The defense counsel first explored the capital lent to Alameda by crypto lenders Genesis and Voyager. According to Ellison’s testimony, funds borrowed by Alameda could be legally used for a range of purposes, including trading activities and covering the company’s operating expenses. Her remarks were used by the defense to show that Alameda’s lenders knew the capital was being used for undefined purposes.
She also reported that communication with Bankman-Fried deteriorated after their last breakup in April 2022, as she avoided meeting with the former partner one-on-one and preferred to communicate via Signal or group meetings instead. The communication challenges along the way with Ellison’s concerns about FTX venture investments made her consider resigning as CEO of Alameda in early 2022.
In response to questions from Bankman-Fried’s defense attorney, Ellison acknowledged having held at least 20 meetings with prosecutors since December 2022 as part of her cooperation agreement, including a review of her answers on Oct 9, one day prior to her testifying as a witness in the case. In December, before an agreement was in place with the U.S. government, she acknowledged the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) searched her house.
During the bear market, Ellison also created financial forecasts of how much money would be needed to hedge Alameda against market downturns, according to her testimony. She discovered that Alameda would have to sell billions of dollars in assets to have an appropriate hedge.
Additionally, Ellison discussed Alameda’s Northern Dimension bank account, which FTX used while it had difficulty opening its own. Later on, around the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, FTX was able to get its account and began redirecting users’ funds. However, legacy customers still sent funds to Northern Dimension’s account. As evidence, the defense pointed to one of her meetings with prosecutors in December 2022, in which she suggested that Bankman-Fried was unaware that FTX customers’ funds were still being sent to Alameda.
Oct. 11: Caroline Ellison details the final months of FTX
On her second day of testimony at the trial of Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried trial on Oct. 11, Caroline Ellison provided more information about the months leading up to the FTX debacle in November 2022. Lenders required Alameda Research to repay millions in loans in mid-June following the market downturn in May, according to Ellison. “I was very stressed out,” she said.
Genesis Capital was one of these lenders, recalling $500 million in loans, according to screenshots taken from conversations between Ellison, Bankman-Fried and Genesis employees via Telegram.
At the time, Alameda had over $13 billion of debt on its credit line with FTX, while its open-term loans exceeded $1.3 billion. As per Ellison’s testimony, Bankman-Fried instructed her to devise “alternative ways” to disclose Alameda’s financial information to lenders, specifically Genesis.
According to Ellison, Genesis could recall all loans to Alameda if it were aware of Alameda’s true financial status, as well as damage its reputation. “I didn’t want Genesis to know that,” she stated about Alameda’s multibillion-dollar liability toward FTX.
As per prosecutors’ evidence, Ellison worked on at least seven alternative spreadsheets for Genesis. A spreadsheet sent by Alameda to Genesis in June listed $10.3 billion in total liabilities, whereas the actual amount was approximately $15 billion at the time.
Bankman-Fried’s plans to survive the storm included raising capital from Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. According to evidence presented in court, Ellison made a list of “things Sam is freaking out about” months before the exchange collapsed.
The list featured raising capital from “the MBS,” borrowing more capital from BlockFi, which had already lent Alameda over $660 million, as well as “getting regulators to crack down on Binance,” in an effort by Bankman-Fried to expand FTX’s market share, Ellison said.
She also mentioned a $150 million bribe that FTX allegedly paid to a Chinese official in 2021 to release funds frozen there as part of an investigation into money laundering. The alleged bribe is not included in the trial.
Oct. 10: Gary Wang is cross-examined, star witness Ellison enters
The fourth day of the trial began with Gary Wang concluding his testimony. He was cross-examined by one of SBF’s lawyers, Christian Everdell.
During the cross-examination, Wang was asked about Bankman-Fried’s intention to shut down Alameda, to which Wang responded that SBF thought there was a “30% chance” it should be shut down. He also said he wasn’t sure whether the tweet by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao or leaked financials caused the FTX bank run.
After Wang was dismissed by Judge Lewis Kaplan, Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda and an ex-girlfriend of Bankman-Fried, was called to the witness stand.
In the opening questions, Ellison was asked why she was guilty of the crimes for which she was accused and responded that “Alameda took several billions of dollars from FTX customers and used it for investments.”
She reportedly placed the entire blame for the misuse of FTX user funds on Bankman-Fried. Ellison claimed he “set up the systems” that allowed Alameda to take $14 billion from the exchange.
Ellison also revealed personal information about her relationship with the defendant, including his aspirations to be U.S. president and that he considered paying former U.S. President Donald Trump not to run for reelection.
Additionally, she testified on the firm buying back FTX Tokens (FTT) from Binance or else “Binance would cause trouble,” along with using loans from Genesis in 2021 as a funding source.
“Alameda took several billions of dollars from FTX customers and used it for investments,” said Ellison, according to reports. “I sent balance sheets that made Alameda look less risky than it was.”
Ellison admitted to not feeling qualified for the CEO role at Alameda, though she was encouraged by SBF, and said she took a $3.5 million loan from the firm “for a gambling company people at FTX wanted to put in my name” and for political contributions.
Oct. 6 Gary Wang’s testimony continues admits to “special privileges” given to FTX on Alameda
The trial continued for the fourth day on Friday, Oct. 6, with a shorter session ending at 2:00 pm Eastern Time because jurors opted not to take a lunch break.
Wang, the former chief technology officer of FTX, continued to testify after a brief stint the previous afternoon. On this day, Wang testified that the back-end code and the database for FTX.com kept track of many coins a user had and the availability of a feature called “allow negative.”
According to Inner City Press, the prosecutor asked Wang what would happen if that feature was checked to which Wang said, “Then you are allowed to go beyond. “
He then said that Alameda’s account was allowed this special privilege and could, therefore, “trade more than it had in its account. They had a large line of credit. And it could trade faster than others.”
“It withdrew more than it had in its account, like $8 billion in fiat and crypto,” Wang said. When asked where the money came from, he said, “from FTX customers.”
According to Wang’s testimony, he overheard Bankman-Fried saying Alameda could withdraw up to $50–$100 million from FTX. He said that after a 2020 database query, he saw Alameda’s balance was negative to an amount greater than the revenue of FTX itself.
Wang pleaded guilty to four charges in December 2022, one of which was wire fraud. Like Ellison, Wang has agreed to cooperate with officials via a plea deal that could see him avoid up to 50 years in prison.
Oct. 5: Wang details relationship between FTX and Alameda Research
In over four hours of testimony, Wang provided in-depth details about the relationship between the companies and how the crypto empire ended up with an $8 billion hole in customer assets.
According to Wang, a few months after FTX’s inception, in 2019, Alameda received special privileges from FTX. Prosecutors used screenshots of FTX’s database and code available on GitHub to show that Alameda was allowed to have an unlimited negative balance at FTX, a special line of credit of $65 billion in 2022 and an exemption from the liquidation engine.
The commingling of funds and problems between companies evolved over time. In 2020, Bankman-Fried instructed Wang that Alameda’s negative balance should not exceed FTX’s revenue — a rule that changed over the years, according to Wang’s testimony. In late 2021, for example, Alameda’s liability to FTX stood at $3 billion, up from $300 million in 2020.
“I trusted his judgment,” Wang said when asked why he agreed to Alameda’s privileges.
However, these alleged privileges were part of Alameda’s role as a primary market maker for FTX, the defense argued later during Wang’s testimony. The defense counsel also noted that other market makers had similar privileges at FTX, and being able to go negative was a key feature of any market maker.
Another point emphasized by prosecutors was the MobileCoin exploit in 2021. Bankman-Fried allegedly told Wang and Ellison to add the multimillion-dollar deficit to Alameda’s balance sheet instead of keeping it on FTX to hide the loss from FTX investors.
Months before FTX’s collapse, Bankman-Fried, Wang and former engineering director Nishad Singh discussed shutting down Alameda and replacing its role with other market makers. The company’s liabilities, however, were too high at the time, sitting at $14 billion. Alameda remained in operation until November 2022.
Wang’s testimony will continue on Oct. 10, the same day Ellison’s will be heard.
Oct. 5: Yedidia cross-examination, witness testimonies in focus
A liability of $8 billion from Alameda to FTX was at the center of prosecutors’ cross-examination of Adam Yedidia on Oct. 5. Yedidia is a close friend of Bankman-Fried and was a developer at FTX. He was also one of ten people to live in Bankman-Fried’s $35 million luxury resort in the Bahamas.
According to Yedidia’s testimony, since early 2021, FTX used an Alameda account labeled North Dimension to deposit users’ funds while facing difficulties opening its own bank account. Funds would be considered Alameda’s liability toward FTX, which reached $8 billion in June 2022.
While Yedidia was aware of the funds sent to Alameda’s account, he didn’t see it as a concern when he first heard about it in 2021. However, after learning about the liability amount in 2022, he voiced his concerns to Bankman-Fried during a tennis game. According to Yedidia, Bankman-Fried said the debt should be settled between the companies within six months to three years.
Scenes from outside Bankman-Fried’s trial location in New York. Source: Ana Paula Pereira/Cointelegraph
“I trusted Sam, Caroline, and others in Alameda to handle the situation,” he said, answering questions from prosecutors. Upon learning that Alameda was not only holding the funds but using them to pay its debtors, Yedidia resigned in November 2022.
While prosecutors used the case to illustrate how the companies were commingling funds, Bankman-Fried’s defense counsel sought to share a broader picture of FTX and Alameda’s relationship with the jury.
The defense highlighted that FTX was growing fast, with its leadership working over 10 hours a day during the 2021 bull market, including Bankman-Fried, who oversaw several parts of the company at the time.
The defense counsel also pointed out that Yedidia had been under several inquiries from prosecutors under an immunity order, meaning cooperation with prosecutors would protect him from facing any charges regarding his role at FTX.
Also, according to Bankman-Fried’s defense, FTX’s difficulties opening a bank account and its reliance on Alameda’s North Dimension to deposit funds were well known. Yedidia’s cross-examination will resume this afternoon in the federal courtroom in lower Manhattan.
Two witnesses testified during the second part of the Bankman-Fried trial on Oct. 5: Matthew Huang, co-founder of Paradigm and Wang, co-founder of FTX and Alameda Research.
Paradigm invested a total of $278 million in FTX in two funding rounds between 2021 and 2022. According to Huang, the venture capital firm was not aware of the commingling of funds between FTX and Alameda, nor of the privileges that Alameda had with the crypto exchange.
Such privileges included Alameda’s exemption from FTX’s liquidation engine (a tool that closes positions at risk of liquidation). With the exemption, Alameda was able to leverage its position and maintain a negative balance with FTX.
The Paradigm co-founder also acknowledged that the firm did not conduct deeper due diligence on FTX, instead relying on information provided by Bankman-Fried.
Another concern for Paradigm was FTX not having a board of directors. According to Huang, Bankman-Fried was “very resistant” to the idea of having investors on FTX’s board of directors but promised to build one and appoint experienced executives to serve on it.
During his brief testimony, Wang acknowledged that he, along with Bankman-fried and Ellison, had committed wire fraud, securities fraud and commodities fraud.
Wang also noted that Alameda had special privileges with FTX, such as the ability to withdraw unlimited funds from the exchange, as well as a line of credit of $65 billion. To illustrate these privileges, Wang pointed out that any other market maker would have a credit line in the millions, while Alameda had a credit line in the billions.
A loan of approximately $200 million to $300 million from Alameda was also mentioned by Wang, allegedly as part of the purchase of other crypto firms. However, the loans were never credited to his account. His testimony will continue on Oct. 6.
Oct. 4: DOJ and Bankman-Fried’s defense state their arguments
The first hours of SBF’s trial have offered a glimpse of the arguments the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the former FTX CEO’s defense will bring to court in the coming weeks.
After a jury selection in the morning, both parties gave opening statements to the 12-person jury present in the court.
The DOJ took a tough stance against Bankman-Fried in its first statement, portraying the FTX founder as someone who deliberately lied to investors to enrich himself and expand his crypto empire.
According to the DOJ, Bankman-Fried lied to FTX customers and investors, using Alameda as a key partner to “steal customers’ funds,” a phrase that was frequently used during the opening statements.
A sign outside Bankman-Fried’s trial location in New York. Source: Ana Paula Pereira/Cointelegraph
As per the trial preview, the DOJ will focus its arguments on allegations that Bankman-Fried misled customers, investors and lenders regarding the safety of their funds while using Alameda to steal their money and influence politicians in Washington.
The defense, meanwhile, brought arguments about Bankman-Fried being a young entrepreneur who made business decisions that “didn’t work out.” The defense denied the existence of secret transactions between Alameda and FTX or a backdoor used to steal customer funds. According to the previous arguments presented, all transactions were legitimate or made in good faith by Bankman-Fried during the crypto market downturn and the subsequent collapse of FTX in November 2022.
The defense also highlighted the role of Binance in the bank run that led to FTX’s collapse. Testimonies will continue throughout the day.
According to the defense, Bankman-Fried assumed FTX was allowed to loan funds to Alameda as part of a business relationship with the market maker, and there was no secret door for transactions between the companies.
Prosecutors also noted that Ellison, Wang and Singh would offer the jury insider details about Bankman-Fried’s role in FTX’s operations and alleged crimes. However, the defense pointed out that as part of the cooperation agreement with the government, they were supposed to give testimony against Bankman-Fried, raising doubts about their credibility.
The defense also downplayed the accusations against the nature of the relationship between FTX and Alameda, arguing that FTX margin traders were aware of the risks associated with transactions.
“There was no theft,” the defense claimed. “It’s not a crime to be the CEO of a company that files for bankruptcy.”
In the second half of the first day of the trial, the jury heard from two witnesses: Mark Julliard, a French trader and former client of FTX, and Adam Yedidia, a friend of Sam Bankman-Fried and former employee at Alameda Research and FTX.
In his testimony, Julliard said he had four Bitcoin (BTC) held at FTX at the time of the exchange’s collapse, worth nearly $100,000. He admitted that FTX and Bankman-Fried’s marketing efforts, as well as the notable venture capital companies backing FTX, gave him the confidence to use the exchange for crypto trading. He assumed that venture capital firms had done due diligence on FTX and its leadership.
During the questioning, prosecutors emphasized that the trader used FTX exclusively for spot trading and was unaware that the exchange used client funds for crypto trading with Alameda Research.
Questions for Yedidia were focused on his educational background at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he first met Bankman-Fried and had two professional experiences with the FTX founder. Yedidia worked at Alameda briefly in 2017 as a trader and then returned to work for FTX in 2021 as a developer. He was among 10 people living in the Bahamas on FTX’s $30 million real estate.
In Yedidia’s testimony, prosecutors used former FTX ads as evidence that the company was always positioning itself as a safe, trusted and easy way to invest in cryptocurrency, including marketing campaigns with NFL player Tom Brady and comedian Larry David. The trial will resume Oct. 5.
Oct. 3: SBF trial begins
Bankman-Fried’s trial will take place in a Manhattan federal court. Source: Ana Paula Pereira/Cointelegraph
The trial of Bankman-Fried began on Oct. 3 with jury selection. Bankman-Fried is charged with seven counts of conspiracy and fraud in connection with the collapse of FTX, the cryptocurrency exchange he co-founded. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The case is being heard by Judge Lewis Kaplan, who has presided over a long list of other high-profile cases, including ones involving detainees at Guantanamo Bay, the Gambino crime family, Prince Andrew and Donald Trump.
Bankman-Fried was ordered to be jailed on Aug. 11 after Kaplan found that his sharing of former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison’s personal papers amounted to witness intimidation. Alameda Research was a trading house also founded by Bankman-Fried. Previously, he had been under house arrest in his parents’ home in Stanford, California, on a $250-million bond.
December: SBF arrested
Bankman-Fried was arrested in the United States on his arrival from the Bahamas on Dec. 21, 2022. He had been arrested in the Bahamas on Dec. 12 after the U.S. government formally notified the country of charges the U.S. was filing against him. He declared his intention to fight extradition from the Caribbean nation but changed his mind after a week in Bahaman jail and consented to extradition.
Meanwhile, FTX co-founder Gary Wang and Alameda Research CEO (and reportedly sometime SBF girlfriend) Ellison agreed to plead guilty in the burgeoning case.
November: FTX collapses
Bankman-Fried’s troubles began when reports emerged on Nov. 2 that Alameda Research had a large holding of FTX Token (FTT), FTX’s utility token. That revelation led to questions about the relationship between the two entities. On Nov. 6, Changpeng Zhao, CEO of rival exchange Binance, announced that his exchange would liquidate its FTT holdings, which were estimated to be worth $2.1 billion. Zhao turned down an offer tweeted by Ellison to buy Binance’s FTT.
A run began on FTX. Bankman-Fried gave reassurances on Twitter (now X) that the exchange’s “assets are fine” and accused “a competitor” of spreading rumors. By Nov. 8, the price of FTT had fallen from $22 to $15.40.
It’s only been one week since SBF’s notorious “FTX is fine. Assets are fine.” pic.twitter.com/zKoILqquHF
Also on Nov. 8, Bankman-Fried announced on Twitter that he had come to an agreement with Zhao “on a strategic transaction.” He wrote, “Our teams are working on clearing out the withdrawal backlog as is. This will clear out liquidity crunches; all assets will be covered 1:1.”
On Nov. 9, Zhao announced that Binance would not pursue the acquisition of FTX after due diligence and more reports of mishandled funds. The price of Bitcoin (BTC) plummeted to $15,600. The FTX and Alameda Research websites went dark for a few hours. When the FTX website came back, it bore a warning against making deposits and was unable to process withdrawals.
On Nov. 10, Bankman-Fried posted a 22-part Twitter thread that began with “I’m sorry.” It was the first of a long string of public statements he made about the exchange’s fall. The following day, the entire staff of Alameda Research quit, and FTX, FTX US and Alameda Research filed for bankruptcy in the United States. Bankman-Fried resigned as FTX CEO and was replaced by John J. Ray III, who was best known for his role in the Enron bankruptcy.
As the crypto winter set in, Bankman-Fried spoke of FTX and Alameda Research’s “responsibility to seriously consider stepping in, even if it is at a loss to ourselves, to stem contagion.” The companies made a bid for Voyager Digital that was rebuffed.
Bankman-Fried, Ellison and other alumni of Jane Street Capital founded Alameda Research in 2017. Bankman-Fried went on to found FTX with Wang in 2019. Zhao was an early investor in the exchange.
This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.
Bitcoin (BTC) failed to hit $100,000 during the 2021 bull market because defunct exchange FTX kept selling BTC, analysis claims.
In an X post on Oct. 12, Joe Burnett, senior product marketing manager at Bitcoin financial services firm Unchained, joined voices arguing that FTX executives suppressed BTC price strength.
FTX testimony reveals mass BTC selling
As the trial of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, known as SBF, continues, new testimony paints a picture of market manipulation.
This week, Caroline Ellison, former CEO of affiliated firm Alameda Research, reportedly told the court that Bankman-Fried asked her to sell BTC should spot price breach $20,000. This was done using FTX customer funds, which neither had the right to deploy.
AUSA: What are these? Ellison: Notes from a conversation with Sam. I wrote, keep selling BTC if its over $20K. AUSA: You wrote, FTX may raise. What does that mean? Ellison: Raise capital by selling equity, to get more money. To investors like MSB, the Saudi Prince
Reacting, Burnett suggested that due to the scale of the operations involved, the entire Bitcoin bull run could have been adversely affected.
“Alameda was insolvent even during the bull market. It appears they used (or ‘borrowed’) FTX customer bitcoin and other customer assets to buy ‘Sam coins’ (FTT, Solana, and Serum),” he wrote, referring to reports that Ellison’s firm had a negative value of $2.7 billion in 2021.
“Without this fake sell pressure, maybe bitcoin would have hit $100,000 in 2021.”
SBF versu S2F
In the event, BTC/USD still reached an all-time high of $69,000 in November that year, but at the time, predictions called for much larger numbers.
Among those was the then-popular Stock-to-Flow (S2F) Bitcoin price model, the creator of which, the anonymous entity known as PlanB, gave a BTC price target of up to $288,000 during the current halving cycle.
The “worst case scenario,” he continued, was $135,000 by December 2021.
Bitcoin is below $34K, triggered by Elon Musk’s energy FUD and China’s mining crack down.
There is also a more fundamental reason that we see weakness in June, and possibly July. My worst case scenario for 2021 (price/on-chain based): Aug>47K, Sep>43K, Oct>63K, Nov>98K, Dec>135K pic.twitter.com/hDONOVgxH1
Others disagree with Bankman-Fried’s motives. Responding to Ellison’s testimony, Blockstream CEO and co-founder Adam Back queried whether he genuinely sought to stifle market growth.
So that sounds to me more like SBF “need USD liquidity sell BTC, but don’t sell below $20k” and not “try to keep BTC under $20k. Ie below $20k is ridiculously cheap wait for higher. https://t.co/UKGQMGUKH2
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
Three men in Rhode Island could face charges in the death of 53-year-old Dale Mooney, a lifelong New England Patriots fan who died after being involved in an altercation at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, last month, police said Thursday.
The Foxborough Police Department announced in a press release that the three individuals, who have not been identified by law enforcement, could face assault and battery and disorderly conduct charges “in the coming weeks.”
A retro Pat Patriot helmet during a game between the New England Patriots and the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 17, 2023, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.(Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“The Foxborough Police Department has applied for criminal complaints alleging assault and battery and disorderly conduct against three Rhode Island men stemming from the September 17, 2023 altercation between fans at Gillette Stadium that ended with a New Hampshire man collapsing and later being pronounced dead at a local hospital.”
Several videos circulating online appeared to show Mooney involved in an altercation with Miami Dolphins fans. Police said Mooney was transported to Sturdy Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead just before midnight.
Days after Mooney’s death, the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office said that the preliminary autopsy report “did not suggest traumatic injury, but did identify a medical issue.”
Tua Tagovailoa, #1 of the Miami Dolphins, throws the football during the third quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Sept. 17, 2023 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.(Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)
Police said Thursday that Mooney’s official cause of death still remains “undetermined” pending further testing by the medical examiner’s office. The circumstances surrounding his death are still under investigation, law enforcement added.
The Foxborough Police Department said while the investigation is still ongoing, “the currently available evidence supported submitting applications for criminal complaint to Wrentham District Court.”
“Police Detectives were able to review numerous witness interviews and multiple angles of video capturing the incident as part of the investigation,” the press release noted.
A general view of Gillette Stadium before the game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots on Dec. 28, 2020 in Foxborough, Massachusetts.(Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images)
According to law enforcement, a probable-cause hearing will be scheduled “in the coming weeks,” which could result in charges and subsequently, the release of the individuals’ identities.
Stadium officials released a statement at the time of Mooney’s death. He was described as a “a lifelong Patriots fan and 30-year season ticket member.”
During yesterday’s real-estate-backed U.S. dollar stablecoin Real USD (USDR) crisis, a trader appears to have swapped 131,350 USDR for 0 USD Coin (USDC), resulting in a complete loss on investment.
According to the October 12 report by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, the swap occurred on the BNB Chain through decentralized exchange OpenOcean, at a time when USDR depegged from par value by nearly 50% due to a liquidity crunch. A maximal extractable value (MEV) bot subsequently picked up the discrepancy, netting a total of $107,002 in profits through an arbitrage trade.
During periods of poor liquidity, slippage on DEXs can reach as high as 100%. In September 2022, Cointelegraph reported that a trader attempted to sell $1.8 million in Compound USD (cUSDC) through Uniswap DEX V2 and only got $500 worth of assets in return. An MEV, too, in this incident, performed an arbitrage trade before its over $1 million in profits were hacked just hours later.
On October 11, USDR depegged after users requested over 10 million stablecoins in redemptions. Despite being 100% backed, less than 15% of its then $45 million in assets were backed by liquid project tokens TNGBL, with the remaining backed by illiquid tokenized real-estate assets.
As narrated by analyst Tom Wan, the tokenized assets were minted on the ERC-721 standard, which could not be fractionalized to create liquidity for investor redemptions. In addition, the underlying homes could not be immediately sold to meet investors’ withdrawal requests. Altogether, the Real USD Treasury could not meet the redemptions, leading to a collapse in investors’ confidence.
Why USDR depegged despite being fully backed: Using Illiquid asset backing liquid Asset
– USDR is 100% backed. 50% of them come from stablecoins and the remaining comes from Real-Estate
