Department of Justice Cracks Down on DeFi Heists

In recent news, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has taken a hard stance against DeFi hackers and thieves. As the crypto crime wave surges, particularly with state-sponsored hacking from North Korea making headlines, the DOJ is turning its focused gaze on decentralized finance (DeFi). Eun Young Choi, the director of the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, emphasized the increasing frequency of thefts, specifically pinpointing the vulnerabilities of chain bridges. According to Choi,

“This is a pretty significant issue for us.”

Celsius Escapes from the Staking Sinkhole

Celsius, the beleaguered crypto lender currently serving bankruptcy vibes, has leaped on the chance to transfer a staggering $781 million in staked Ether (stETH) from the Lido staking platform. With Ether withdrawals now open for business, it’s clear that Celsius is not about to sit and sulk over its financial mess. They executed a hefty withdrawal and even threw in a test transfer of 0.1 stETH shortly after. Always good to kick the tires before taking a trip to the bank, right?

Bancor DAO’s Legal Tangles

In a twist of fate that could only happen in the wild world of DeFi, the Bancor DAO is facing a class-action lawsuit over its promises related to impermanent loss protection (ILP). Investors claim they were misled by the hype surrounding Bancor’s offerings, alleging that the products were essentially unregistered securities. The lawsuit argues that the operators were aware of the deficits while launching new products, festooned with eye-catching promises of unreal returns.

Coinbase Cloud and Chainlink Unite

In a marriage made in decentralized heaven, Coinbase Cloud has joined forces with Chainlink to enhance smart contract reliability. This collaboration aims to beef up data provision for multiple blockchain protocols, leveraging Coinbase’s infrastructure as a new node operator in the Chainlink network. Together, they aim to fortify the decentralized Web3 ecosystem—because, let’s face it, who doesn’t want a more reliable internet at this point?

The Bearish DeFi Market Update

As the week concluded, DeFi’s total value has dipped beneath the $50 billion mark, following five prior weeks of bullish price action. Most of the top 100 DeFi tokens have found themselves in the red, reminding everyone that even in a dynamic space like crypto, things can flip faster than your relatives at Thanksgiving dinner.

In Conclusion

As we wrap up this week’s whirlwind of DeFi developments, it’s clear that the industry is anything but predictable. Join us next week as we continue to navigate the occasional chaos of decentralized finance with humor and context. Keep your wallets close and your guard higher!