@34848adf75 said in Where to start:

Da radę kupić dwie pizze za te UDS, które od dwóch dni jeszcze mi nie mogą trafić na konto, po napisaniu już kilkunastu komentarzy?

do you hold uds? 2 UDS is around 4$ in some countries you can buy pizza with it, dont know about europe

OFAC’s sanctions include 21 cryptocurrency addresses across Ethereum and Tron, highlighting North Korea’s increasingly multi-chain approach to moving illicit funds. Chainalysis noted that these designations reflect the growing sophistication of IT worker schemes, which rely on fraudulently obtained employment and crypto transfers to generate revenue.

Crypto businesses are being urged to remain vigilant. Chainalysis recommends monitoring counterparties against updated sanctions lists, watching for patterns consistent with IT worker fraud, and detecting unusual transactions to prevent exposure to these multi-chain operations.

The sanctioned networks operate across North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, and Spain, generating revenue to fund Pyongyang’s weapons program. Fraudulent tech workers often target a variety of industries, including blockchain companies, using stolen identities and fabricated personas to secure employment globally.

Reports show these schemes are sophisticated and growing. Some IT workers have been known to introduce malware into company networks to extract sensitive information. Companies are advised to carefully screen employees and business partners against OFAC sanctions and monitor for unusual payment activity to mitigate risks.

The US Treasury has sanctioned six individuals and two entities linked to an IT worker fraud scheme orchestrated by North Korea, which frequently targets the crypto industry. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) named Amnokgang Technology Development Company, a DPRK firm managing overseas IT workers, and Nguyen Quang Viet, CEO of a Vietnam-based company accused of laundering $2.5 million in cryptocurrency.

Other sanctioned individuals include Do Phi Khanh, Hoang Van Nguyen, Yun Song Guk, Hoang Minh Quang, and York Louis Celestino Herrera. All US assets connected to the named parties are now frozen, and they are barred from conducting financial transactions or engaging in business with the US under civil and criminal penalties.

From the outset, QuTwo has focused on commercial impact, launching design partnerships with enterprise clients valued in the tens of millions. Beyond Zalando, the company has started a joint quantum AI research initiative with Finnish financial services provider OP Pohjola, signaling a broad potential customer base.

These partnerships allow QuTwo to co-develop solutions with clients while learning enterprise expectations and positioning itself for early adoption once quantum computing matures. Sarlin emphasizes that QuTwo is both commercially minded and technically ambitious, blending current AI capabilities with future quantum potential to serve real-world business needs.

QuTwo is building QuTwo OS, an orchestration layer designed to help enterprises transition from classical to quantum computing while leveraging hybrid approaches today. The company aims to address AI efficiency challenges without betting on when quantum computers will become mainstream. This approach also includes “quantum-inspired” computing, which simulates quantum behavior on classical hardware, providing immediate practical applications.

The startup has assembled a strong team from both AI and quantum backgrounds, including IQM cofounder Kuan Yen Tan, board member Antti Vasara, and former Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark. With over 30 scientists on board, QuTwo’s vision is clear: it’s an AI company building tools that will eventually push workloads into the quantum realm.

Bitcoin 2-month futures annualized premium (basis rate). Source: Laevitas.ch

Bitcoin’s derivatives market shows muted activity despite bearish funding rates. Perpetual futures annualized funding fell to -7%, meaning short-sellers are paying to maintain positions. While this signals growing conviction from bears, institutional inflows suggest buyers remain active, limiting the likelihood of a major price crash.

Economic indicators provide additional context. US jobless claims slightly exceeded expectations, and indices like the Nasdaq 100 and Russell 2000 remain near all-time highs. These factors suggest that Bitcoin’s sluggishness is not entirely due to worsening macro conditions but may reflect broader market hesitancy amid global uncertainty.

Bitcoin perpetual futures annualized funding rate. Source: Laevitas.ch

Bitcoin (BTC) failed to surpass the $71,000 mark on Thursday, partly due to declines in the US stock market. Funding rates for Bitcoin perpetual futures dropped deeper into negative territory, indicating strong conviction from bears, while steady institutional buying helped prevent a sharper sell-off. Traders are cautious, with some forecasting a potential retest of $66,000.

The broader macroeconomic environment is also weighing on BTC. Rising gold prices and higher US government bond yields make alternative stores of value more attractive, reducing Bitcoin’s appeal. Meanwhile, geopolitical tensions, including fears of a prolonged conflict in Iran, add further uncertainty to global markets.

In response to the swap disaster, CoW DAO pledged to refund any protocol fees associated with the transaction, while Aave plans to contact the user to return $600,000 in fees it collected. Kulechov highlighted that the situation offers lessons for the broader DeFi ecosystem about adding guardrails to protect users.

The event also reignites discussions about MEV bot activity, which can exploit large pending transactions for profit. While DeFi remains permissionless and open, incidents like this show the importance of improved UX and risk management to prevent similar losses in the future.

Automated market makers like SushiSwap adjust pricing based on pool size and incoming transactions, generating slippage warnings for large trades. Aave founder Stani Kulechov confirmed the user ignored clear warnings about “extraordinary slippage” and proceeded with the swap on a mobile device.

CoW DAO also emphasized that no DEX or aggregator could have executed the order at a reasonable price, noting that the user explicitly opted in despite being aware of the near-total loss. The incident underscores that DeFi interfaces still face challenges in protecting users from high-risk trades.

A crypto user suffered massive losses during a swap on the decentralized finance protocol Aave, losing nearly all of a $50.4 million USDT trade. The wallet attempted to convert the funds into AAVE tokens via CoW Protocol and SushiSwap but received only 327 AAVE, worth roughly $36,000—paying about $154,000 per token compared to the market price of $114.

Adding to the loss, a Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) bot performed a “sandwich attack,” front-running the transaction. The bot flash-borrowed $29 million in wrapped Ether to inflate the AAVE price ahead of the swap and sold the tokens for nearly $10 million profit. The incident highlights risks in executing unusually large trades on DeFi platforms.

Wintermute reported that Bitcoin has failed to deliver the typical two-times price return needed to offset halving-driven revenue cuts, leaving miners’ gross margins at levels that previously marked bear market floors. Transaction fees have not filled the gap, and energy expenses continue to strain profitability.

This cycle’s margin squeeze, however, is being framed as a “healthy shakeup” that could make the mining industry more efficient. By exploring AI operations, adopting active treasury management, or putting BTC to work, miners may emerge stronger and better prepared for the next market cycle.

Wintermute highlighted that Bitcoin miners collectively hold close to 1% of the total BTC supply, a “legacy of the HODL era.” However, much of this treasury potential remains untapped. Active balance sheet management—through derivatives, covered calls, cash-secured puts, or lending protocols—could allow miners to generate additional revenue from their holdings.

The firm emphasized that miners who treat BTC as a working asset, rather than a passive reserve, could gain a structural edge ahead of the next halving. Traditional mining revenues have been squeezed by lower gross margins, episodic transaction fees, and rising energy costs, making yield generation an increasingly critical lever for survival.

Many Bitcoin miners are struggling to turn a profit in the current market cycle, prompting discussions about pivoting into artificial intelligence hosting or leveraging their BTC holdings to generate yields. Market maker Wintermute noted that miners have spent years building large-scale power infrastructure in low-cost energy markets—assets that the AI industry urgently needs and cannot easily replicate.

While the AI pivot is appealing, Wintermute cautioned it’s a “drastic and capital-intensive step.” Companies like MARA Holdings are already exploring this path, with plans to sell some BTC to fund AI operations. The move reflects a broader trend as miners rethink traditional operations in a structurally rigid business model.

instead of taking screenshots you should have sold it

that would be hard, they need another musk tweet

all i want is him to go up, thats all i care

also means if both sectors drop together it’s gonna be painful lol

combining the Magnificent Seven with crypto in one futures product is kinda wild ngl

Coinbase trying to build an exchange for everything sounds ambitious but also kinda inevitable