Web3 on Fire: Sam Bankman...Jailed?

Good morning, anon.

You are reading the very first edition of "Web3 on Fire" - Ambire Wallet's weekly Web3 digest! Every week the Ambire team will be curating the most interesting developments in the space and writing about it in a light and easy-to-read format for your weekend morning coffee ☕️

There will be a little something of it all - the CT drama, the hacks, the numbers and analytics, the 📈 charts and prices. Make sure to stick around and continue the convo on our community servers.

This week has been full of news in the cryptocurrency space, with various developments and announcements, "Sam's jail time" being probably the hottest among them.

Let's get down to the details:

SBF’s arrest 🚓

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of crypto exchange FTX, was arrested in The Bahamas on Monday. He is accused of several charges including money laundering and fraud. Bankman-Fried will remain in custody until a formal extradition hearing is held, at which point the U.S. will present its evidence for why Bankman-Fried should be extradited to the United States.

Prime Minister Philip Davis of The Bahamas has strongly condemned Bankman-Fried and has called for accountability. He also stressed that both countries have a vested interest in making sure justice is served and laws are followed.

A few days later, SBF was denied bail and reportedly sent to Fox Hill, known for its five-star gourmet meals, an optional spa day for all inmates and a special VIP wing for those with higher status... JK. Considered one of the worst prisons in the world, it holds a reputation for its lack of hygiene, high risk of contracting diseases, rodent infestations and cases of violence.

The crypto space has been buzzing with reactions to this news. However, the crypto community is united in that they hope justice is served and the truth of what really happened will be revealed.

Naturally, this spawned a lot of memes and jokes, as well. Crypto Twitter has been abuzz with posts about Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX and the infamous Fox Hill Prison:

Canadian crypto traders: no more wild rides 🥀

Canada. The home of maple syrup, hockey, and now... insane regulations for crypto exchanges?

The newly-announced regulations by the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) mean that crypto exchanges must segregate user funds from operational cash and stop offering leverage to margin traders. That's right - no more high-risk, high-reward trades.

Crypto trading platforms must also hold Canada-based users’ assets with an “appropriate” qualified custodian, whether they're regulated in Canada, the US or any other similar jurisdiction. Margin trading restrictions have been implemented in other countries too, like Singapore, and it looks like Canada has followed suit with its own set of rules.

But that's not all. CSA regulators have warned crypto exchanges not to facilitate any cryptocurrency that may be considered a security - which could include stablecoins. It's unclear exactly when these new provisions will take effect, but one thing is for sure: Canadian crypto traders can expect some changes to the way they conduct their trades in the near future.

Canadian authorities sure know how to keep their users "safe", including being safe from any potential crypto profits. What a great way to encourage the growth of blockchain technology! Oh, Canada.

Mysterious message sparks speculation amongst members of the SHIB community

Something big is coming? Well that's at least what the Shiba Inu community is speculating after developer Shytoshi Kusama updated his status on Twitter with a cryptic message. His update included the words "On the 1st day…my true love gave to me…" and he changed his location to "Close."

This has led many people to believe that the release of Shibarium, a Layer 2 solution for the meme cryptocurrency, could be imminent.

This Layer 2 solution was initially proposed by Ryoshi, the anonymous founder of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency back in May 2021. If it is released, Shibarium could revolutionize the meme cryptocurrency by significantly lowering fees and speeding up transactions. This could be a major breakthrough for Shiba Inu.

The status message could also hint at the potential release day which appears to be Jan. 1, 2023. If this is the case, then Shiba Inu enthusiasts have something big to look forward to in 2022. The Unification Foundation, the entity that is developing this Layer 2 solution, had previously announced that they were expecting to start public beta testing in the third quarter of 2022.

So far there has been no official statement from the Foundation nor any other news regarding its development progress which has led many members of the Shiba Inu community to ask questions about it.

Overall, it looks like something big may be brewing and the Shiba Inu community is eagerly waiting to see what the future holds for this meme cryptocurrency. Only time will tell if Ryoshi's vision of a Layer 2 solution will come true in 2023 or if his mysterious message was simply a case of false hope.

$3 billion outflow from Binance: what's behind this massive exodus? 💸

Nansen, the crypto analytics portal, is reporting that the great cryptocurrency exchange Binance saw a massive outflow of funds in the last 24 hours. Yes, you read that right - $1.6 billion, just withdrawn! And if that wasn't bad enough, it gets worse: Nansen reports that over the last seven days there's been an almost-$3 billion outflow.

That's even worse than when investors fled centralized platforms during the FTX collapse just over a month ago. At that time, Binance saw a staggering $2.3 billion outflow in a week. We guess it's true what they say - when the going gets tough, the crypto investors get going.

But before everyone starts panicking, let us put things into perspective. The spike in outflows was probably triggered by a Reuters article about the U.S. prosecutor's office considering charging Binance and its executives with money laundering and sanctions violations. CZ said it best: it's just FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt).

It's also worth noting that Jump Trading and Wintermute Trading, two of the world's largest crypto market makers, may have played a role in this outflow. Nansen reveals that Jump Trading withdrew $146 million from Binance, while Wintermute transferred almost $150 million to the exchange from Coinbase.

Ultimately, all we can do is sit back and watch. The crypto market moves fast, and Binance is no stranger to massive outflows of funds. Hopefully this latest FUD campaign does not turn into a long-term trend for the exchange.

Research: Crypto adoption is hindered by lack of education and training resources in Web3 finance 👩‍🏫

Many chief financial officers in Web3 don't have the expertise in crypto and DeFi necessary to ensure a smooth transition, according to research from Request Finance.

Many of these CFOs are using outside resources for training and education to assist close this gap. Two-thirds of Web3's chief financial officers, according to Request Finance, have at least three years of experience working in the finance or accounting fields.

However, this knowledge is not always applicable to the realm of cryptocurrencies and blockchains. As a result, 63% of respondents mentioned that they knew too little about blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, DeFi, and other relevant subjects.

A whopping 99% of respondents to the survey claimed that when they switched from traditional finance to crypto jobs, they had no formal on-boarding procedures. According to executives cited in the study, they depended on "years of nail-biting trial and error" and self-teaching to get the skills required for this new field.

It’s clear that the lack of resources and the rapidly changing landscape of Web3 finance can be a challenge for CFOs transitioning from traditional to crypto roles. To overcome these obstacles, more executives should utilize external training resources to gain the knowledge they need to stay ahead in this ever-evolving space.

The fun page: our weekly meme collection

That's all for now, frens.

We won't stay in the bear market forever, and soon enough we'll be back to making those sweet crypto gains again. Until then, please stay safe - try not to get too upset even if you're in the red and remember that there's always a silver lining. Until next week!

Yours,The 🔥 Team

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