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Bitfinex Hacker Ilya Lichtenstein Breaks Silence Adressing 120,000 Bitcoin Heist
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4 days agoon
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adminBitfinex hacker, Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded guilty last year to the 2016 theft of 120,000 Bitcoin from the exchange, has made his first public statement since his arrest in 2022.
In a five-minute video posted to X, Lichtenstein fully accepted responsibility for the hack, saying he had acted alone. The statement contradicted speculation, amplified in a Netflix documentary series, that his father might have been behind it.
Bitfinex Hacker Breaks Silence
Ilya Lichtenstein, the self-proclaimed Bitfinex hacker and mastermind behind the 2016 theft of 120,000 Bitcoin, spoke for the first time publicly since his arrest in 2022.
In a Tuesday video, Lichtenstein once again emphasized that he was the sole culprit behind the crime. He also dismissed Netflix documentary suggestions that his father was involved or that he had ties to a Russian spy agency.
I have something to say#FreeRazzlekhan pic.twitter.com/9HIvOxcbgr
— Ilya Lichtenstein (@unrealdutch) December 19, 2024
Lichtenstein also said he was sorry and described what he would do after serving his time in prison. “After I get out of prison, I plan to work in the cybersecurity industry,” he said, emphasizing that he now truly understands cyber threats and is committed to combating them. His five-year sentence includes the time already served since his 2022 arrest while the case was pending.
He stated:
“My dad is no hacker, he doesn’t even know how to use Instagram. I offer my sincerest apologies to Bitfinex for all the stress that I have caused them. I knew what I was doing was wrong and I did it anyway because I didn’t care … I look back at the person I was then, and I hate myself. I hate myself.”
He addressed the restitution process of the funds stolen from the exchange. Bitfinex hacker added that over the past three years, he has worked to account for and return all plea-required assets. He also said that he will continue doing this.
A hearing on restitution will be in February that will determine if the money got back to Bitfinex or directly to its users.
Exchange hacks are nothing new. Recently, the Indian crypto exchange WazirX received a severe blow when the Delhi High Court ordered a fresh investigation into the matter. The court trashed the status report filed by the Delhi police regarding the WazirX hack case and asked for a fresh inquiry. Furthermore, only a few days ago, there were reports that Gate exchange suffered a hack attack, and that the users should withdraw their funds.
“Razzlekhan” Morgan Admits Role in Laundering Stolen Bitcoin
Bitfinex hacker’s wife, Heather Morgan, aka “Razzlekhan,” pleaded guilty as well. Charges were of money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors said Morgan learned about Bitfinex hack years later and that Lichtenstein asked her to help launder these Bitcoins.
Morgan, who gained notoriety for her bizarre rap videos, last month got 18 months in prison over the scheme. Recently, she had been peddling her own videos on Cameo for $125 apiece. She could report to prison as early as next month. The Bitcoin, which had a value of $70 million in 2016, is now worth around $12 billion.
The Netflix documentary on the case said that a large portion of the stolen money was still unaccounted for. However, Lichtenstein disagreed with the claim, stating that all money had been accounted for.
Teuta Franjkovic
Teuta is a seasoned writer and editor with over 15 years of expertise in macroeconomics, technology, and the crypto and blockchain sectors.
She began her career in 2005 as a lifestyle writer for *Cosmopolitan* before transitioning to business and economic reporting for renowned outlets like *Forbes* and *Bloomberg*.
Inspired by thought leaders like Don and Alex Tapscott and Laura Shin, Teuta embraced blockchain’s potential, viewing cryptocurrency as one of humanity’s most transformative innovations.
Since 2014, she has specialized in fintech, focusing on crypto, blockchain, NFTs, and Web3. Known for her strong collaboration and communication skills, Teuta also holds dual MAs in Political Science and Law.
Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
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Tron’s Justin Sun Offloads 50% ETH Holdings, Ethereum Price Crash Imminent?
Published
26 minutes agoon
December 23, 2024By
adminTron founder Justin Sun has been heavily offloading his ETH holdings with Ethereum price crashing 17% following the rejection at $4,000. Over the past 7 days, Sun has offloaded another 50% of his holdings worth $143 million. Market analysts predict that ETH price could further take a dip below $3,000 once again before resuming upside momentum.
Tron’s Justin Sun on ETH Selling Spree
Justin Sun is on a massive Ethereum selling spree since the coin resumed its upward journey after Donald Trump’s election win. This continued even until last week, when Tron founder offloaded $143 million worth of ETH causing Ethereum price to tank over 15% amid the crypto market crash.
Blockchain analytics firm Spot On Chain reported that Justin Sun redeemed 39,999 ETH (valued at $143 million) from liquid staking platforms Lido Finance and EtherFi. He subsequently deposited the entire amount into HTX.
Since November 10, as Ethereum price has trended upward, Sun has deposited a total of 108,919 ETH (worth $400 million) to HTX at an average price of $3,674. Notably, many of these deposits occurred near local price peaks.
Spot On Chain also revealed that Justin Sun currently has 42,904 ETH (valued at $139 million) in the process of unstaking from Lido Finance. The Tron founder might potentially send this funds to HTX later.
Ethereum Price Drop Below $3,000 Coming?
With Ethereum price losing its crucial support of $3,500, the market sentiment for the world’s largest altcoin has turned bearish. Last week, crypto market analysts turned bearish on Ethereum expecting the ETH price to drop $2,800 on selloff by whales.
Popular market analyst IncomeSharks stated that it was a “low-volume weekend,” for Ethereum following a volatile week for stocks. The analysts added that it won’t be the right time to sell.
The On-Balance Volume (OBV) indicator, a tool used to gauge buying and selling pressure, remains steady, oscillating within a channel. Recent Ethereum buyers are still in profit, providing some support for the market. However, the below chart shows that there’s still scope for Ethereum to take a dip to $3,000.
Prominent crypto analyst “I am Crypto Wolf” also highlighted a bullish outlook with a potential inverse head-and-shoulders (iHS) pattern. According to the analyst, Ethereum price chart is currently forming the “right shoulder” of the iHS continuation pattern.
This setup could provide the momentum needed to surpass the $4,000 resistance and aim for a $10,000 target by May. A breakout is anticipated by the end of January, though a retest of the $3,000 level remains a possibility before the rally takes off, he noted.
Bhushan Akolkar
Bhushan is a FinTech enthusiast with a keen understanding of financial markets. His interest in economics and finance has led him to focus on emerging Blockchain technology and cryptocurrency markets. He is committed to continuous learning and stays motivated by sharing the knowledge he acquires. In his free time, Bhushan enjoys reading thriller fiction novels and occasionally explores his culinary skills.
Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
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CryptoQuant Hails Binance Reserve Amid High Leverage Trading
Published
7 hours agoon
December 23, 2024By
adminCrypto analytics platform CryptoQuant has conducted a deep dive research into Binance and other centralized exchanges to uncover how susceptible they are to liquidity risks. With the crypto ecosystem trading at a very high premium, exchanges require high liquidity to meet growing demands. Of its findings, CryptoQuant singles out Binance and OKX as platforms to watch out for.
What Makes Binance Stand Out from Centralized Exchanges?
According to CryptoQuant, it analyzed the leverage levels of top centralized exchanges. It conducted this exercise to evaluate their liquidity, default risk and how crypto reserves backs trading activity. The analysis also employs leverage ratio calculation to estimate trader’s exposures.
Based on this, the analytics firm singled out Binance as an exchange with robust reserves. The trading platform maintains this reserve despite the significant growth in open interest this year. This is signficant, considering how Binance Futures list new tokens to fuel this expansion including Solana’s Fartcoin.
“Its reserves in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT comfortably exceed its open interest. Binance also reported the lowest and most stable leverage ratio among major exchanges, with a ratio of 12.8 in December 2023, rising slightly to 13.5 in December 2024,” the CryptoQaunt report reads.
As pointed out, this stability and the 2.6x expansion in Bitcoin open interest on the platform from $4.45 billion to $11.64 billion implies that the exchange can handle unexpected liquidations.
Centralized Exchange Leverage Risk on the Midst of the Upcoming Bull Run
We assess the leverage levels of various crypto exchanges to evaluate their liquidity, default risk, and the extent to which their perpetual futures trading activity is backed by their crypto reserves.
Our… pic.twitter.com/NAadJSAlVT
— CryptoQuant.com (@cryptoquant_com) December 21, 2024
As the report hinted, smaller exchanges like OKX also maintain low leverage ratios.
Centralized Exchanges and Avoiding the FTX Saga
In addition to the Binance spotlight, CryptoQuant also mentioned Gate io, Bybit, and Deribit. However, the report noted that these trading platforms have the highest leverage ratios in the market pegged at 106, 86, and 32, respectively. Notably, this figures show open interests for Bitcoin and Ethereum is higher than the existing reserves available on these centralized exchanges.
The analysis concluded by flagging the impact of high leverage trading, one of the major causes of the FTX Derivatives Exchange collapse. This report serves as an eye opener that can help traders manage risk per platforms they trade on.
Meanwhile, FTX is at the tail end of its bankruptcy proceedings. As Coingape reported earlier, FTX has set January 3 as the date to commence creditor repayment.
Godfrey Benjamin
Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalists who relish writing about the real life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive general acceptance and worldwide integration of the emerging technology. His desires to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain based media and sites. Benjamin Godfrey is a lover of sports and agriculture.
Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
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Ripple Transfers 90M Coins, What’s Happening?
Published
16 hours agoon
December 22, 2024By
adminXRP has regained its footing above the $2 support level, fueled by significant whale activity. In only 30 minutes, 90 tokens, worth approximately $202,5 million, were transferred to unknown wallets.
Ripple has emerged as one of the top post-election performers, quadrupling in value since November 5. This impressive rally, alongside gains in other cryptocurrencies, has spotlighted digital assets and fueled speculation about their potential trajectory heading into 2025.
XRP Whales Make Massive Moves, Sparking Price Speculation
XRP has regained its footing above the $2 support level, fueled by significant whale activity. In only 30 minutes, 90 tokens, worth approximately $202,5 million, were transferred to unknown wallets.
The unusually large withdrawals, flagged by Whale Alert, have sparked heightened interest among investors and increased speculation about the token’s future price movement.
🚨 🚨 🚨 🚨 40,000,000 #XRP (89,678,944 USD) transferred from #Ripple to unknown wallethttps://t.co/YmHOFWz1q9
— Whale Alert (@whale_alert) December 21, 2024
Whale Alert reveals that the recent XRP transfers consisted of two significant transactions. The largest involved 50 million tokens, valued at approximately $112.5 million, moved to a newly created wallet. The second transaction saw 40 million tokens worth $90 million sent to a recently activated address.
🚨 🚨 🚨 🚨 🚨 50,000,000 #XRP (111,697,462 USD) transferred from #Ripple to unknown wallethttps://t.co/nWwkUGOhWA
— Whale Alert (@whale_alert) December 21, 2024
The destination wallets are not linked to any known cryptocurrency exchanges, leading investors to speculate that high-net-worth individuals or institutional investors may be accumulating Ripple. This has fueled expectations of further price movement. Also, recently, renowned hedge fund manager Scott Melker has revealed that former President Donald Trump is actively accumulating XRP and HBAR tokens.
Crypto analysts think that large transfers to exchanges from unknown wallets are often a bullish indicator. This is a signal that the whales-the major holders-are moving their holdings to cold storage, which typically reflects a long strategy, rather than short-term selling. This can set up a positive outlook for the cryptocurrency’s price. However, the reversal situation results usually with reversal outcome so it’s interesting the price is still on the rise.
This development comes as a US appeals court announces the filing deadlines for the opening and reply briefs by Ripple and its CEO, Brad Garlinghouse.
Holding Steady at Key Support, Awaiting Next Move
XRP and the broader cryptocurrency market have remained relatively flat in recent days, with the token holding critical support levels that could spark a renewed uptrend. At the time of writing, XRP was trading at $2.25, reflecting a slight 0.35% rise over the past 24 hours.
If the bulls stay in control, Ripple may continue its upside, having key resistances between $3.62 and $4.30. A break above such a range could send prices towards $5.73. At 46, though, the RSI rests, showing that sellers have still managed to be at the helm and cap upside momentum. Increased buying pressure will, thus, be critical for resuming the uptrend.
The Awesome Oscillator supports a bullish divergence with the histogram bars turning positive, yet still remaining in negative territory. This indeed would hint at a possible reversal, though additional buying pressure needs to be generated to confirm the uptrend.
The critical support level that traders should watch is at $2.20. A drop below this might set off panic and send prices lower.
In spite of this uncertainty and the possible bearishness of it all, this token is still attracting a great deal of interest from institutional investors-a fact that points to its long-term potential.
Teuta Franjkovic
Teuta is a seasoned writer and editor with over 15 years of expertise in macroeconomics, technology, and the crypto and blockchain sectors.
She began her career in 2005 as a lifestyle writer for *Cosmopolitan* before transitioning to business and economic reporting for renowned outlets like *Forbes* and *Bloomberg*.
Inspired by thought leaders like Don and Alex Tapscott and Laura Shin, Teuta embraced blockchain’s potential, viewing cryptocurrency as one of humanity’s most transformative innovations.
Since 2014, she has specialized in fintech, focusing on crypto, blockchain, NFTs, and Web3. Known for her strong collaboration and communication skills, Teuta also holds dual MAs in Political Science and Law.
Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.
Source link
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