Crypto Weekly Digest: Stolen crypto recovered, Superbowl, and Binance
As BTC teeters along the $40k margins, crypto continues to creep its way into the world of the everyman: the Superbowl, car manufacturers and financial news conglomerates. Last week also saw mysterious identities revealed across crime and the NFT sector.
Crypto ads make debut at Superbowl
For the first time in the history of the Superbowl, crypto companies will be advertising in the commercial breaks between quarters of the game, taking full advantage of the viewership drawn to the biggest US sporting event of the year. Coinbase is leading the charge with their commercial airing towards the end of the first quarter, featuring a screen-saver style QR code moving across the screen. The QR codes allows viewers who don’t already have an account with Coinbase to claim $15 worth of Bitcoin (approx. 0.00036 of a full BTC).
US Feds seize $3.6 billion linked to 2016 crypto hack
The United States Justice Department announced last week that it had seized $3.6 billion worth of allegedly stolen Bitcoin linked to the 2016 hack of Bitfinex. Authorities detained New York couple Ilya Lichtenstein, 34, and his wife, Heather Morgan, 31, who appeared in federal court on the day of their arrest. The pair are accused of attempting to launder the proceeds of 119,754 Bitcoin stolen from the platform Bitfinex with authorities alleging the transactions send the stolen funds to Lichtenstein’s digital wallet.
Binance invests $200 mil in Forbes
Forbes announced a $200 million investment from leading blockchain and cryptocurrency provider Binance. According to the announcement, the investment will help Forbes merge as a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company in the first quarter of this year. This investment will make Binance one of the top two largest owners of the publication, which will now be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Alfa Romeo embeds NFT technology into its new car
Luxury Italian car dealer, Alfa Romeo, has revealed it will be using NFTs to track and store vehicle data and maintenance records on the blockchain for its new Tonale SUV. The 2023 Tonale is a plug-in electric hybrid that will have embedded NFT technology that will generate a certificate that can be used to assure the car has been properly maintained, with a positive impact on its residual value.
Remaining two BAYC members step forward
Last week, a Buzzfeed investigation exposed two of the four the previously anonymous Bored Ape Yacht Club creators. A few days later, the remaining two creators stepped into the public eye voluntarily revealing their web2 and web3 identities.
