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Cybersecurity firm Mandiant has “graduated” a new group of hackers who finance state goals and their own existence with the help of crypto laundering.
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Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, reportedly informed officials in Montenegro that he had received opulent treatment during the months that he was on the run for committing an alleged crypto fraud — that literally shook the entire crypto market and resulted in the loss of at least $40 billion. Do Kwon Received VIP Treatment During an interview on Tuesday in his office in the capital city of Podgorica, Interior Minister Filip Adzic stated that Do Kwon and his associate expressed a great deal of surprise and conveyed to officials that they were accustomed to receiving VIP treatment in other parts of the world. Read More: CFTC Chair Declares War On Binance, Calls It “Ongoing Fraud” Since 2019 According to the minister, Do Kwon and Han Chang-joon, the chief financial officer of the company, were unlawfully in the country as they were not registered upon entry anywhere in Montenegro. The minister also noted that the two individuals had spent some time in a neighboring country prior to that. The minister, however, did not specify which country the individuals had been in. Kwon’s Unknown Whereabouts Speculations about the location of Kwon were persistent since September when South Korean authorities issued an arrest warrant for him based on allegations of violating capital-markets law. Prior to his arrest last week, Adzic confirmed that his ministry had received information suggesting that Kwon and his companion might be present in the country. Kwon was being sought by South Korean authorities in Serbia last month. On Thursday, the two were detained as they attempted to board a flight to Dubai using forged credentials as travel documents. Do Kwon is currently being detained in Montenegro under a routine medical quarantine till April 3 to rule out the possibility of a COVID-19 infection. Also Read: Ethereum’s Next Big Upgrade “Shapella” Coming This April; ETH Price Poised To Rally? The post Terra Founder Do Kwon Says He’s Surprised By His Arrest As He Got VIP Treatment Elsewhere appeared first on CoinGape.
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<p class="MsoNormal">Tech giant Apple is finally introducing Apple Pay Later, its buy now, pay later (BNPL) product to the US markets, six months later than its earlier announced <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/fintech/payments/apple-pay-later-will-it-make-or-break-bnpl/" target="_blank" rel="follow">September 2022 launch date</a>. However, the product will only become available to all eligible users “in the coming months,” Apple announced on Tuesday.</p><p class="MsoNormal">The technology company in a press statement said it will invite select users to access the pre-released version of the product starting Tuesday. The new product has been designed to enable users to split their purchases into four payments, spread over six weeks with no interest and no fees, the firm added.</p><p class="MsoNormal text-align-justify">Apple Taps Mastercard and Goldman Sachs </p><p class="MsoNormal">Apple is launching Apple Pay Later, which is built into the Apple Wallet, in partnership with Mastercard and Goldman Sachs. According to the company, while Mastercard powers the instalment function, Goldman Sachs issues the payment credential used to complete Apple Pay Later purchases.</p><p class="MsoNormal">The new product complements <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/fintech/payments/apple-pay-later-will-it-make-or-break-bnpl/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Apple Pay</a>, the company’s mobile payment service which was introduced in 2014 and allows users to make payments physically, in iOS applications and on the web. Estimates put the number of Apple Pay users across the globe <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/fintech/payments/apple-pay-later-will-it-make-or-break-bnpl/" target="_blank" rel="follow">at over 500 million</a> as of 2020.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Apple Pay Later was designed with our users’ financial health in mind, so it has no fees and no interest, and can be used and managed within Wallet, making it easier for consumers to make informed and responsible borrowing decisions,” explained Jennifer Bailey, Vice President of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.</p><p class="MsoNormal">The new BNPL product is being offered by Apple Financing LLC, a subsidiary of the giant technology firm that handles credit assessment and lending. </p><p class="MsoNormal">“Apple Financing plans to report Apple Pay Later loans to U.S. credit bureaus starting this fall, so they are reflected in users’ overall financial profiles and can help promote responsible lending for both the lender and the borrower,'' Apple further explained.</p> This article was written by Solomon Oladipupo at www.financemagnates.com.
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BTC options and derivatives markets seem unfazed by the CFTC’s recent action against Binance, but is that a good or a bad sign?
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A prosecutor investigating Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon for alleged passport forgery in Montenegro has indicated that he will not be extradited soon. The law enforcement official told South Korean media that Montenegrin authorities intend to indict Kwon within a month, ruling out the possibility of him being handed over to other countries within the detention period. Passport Forgery Investigation Takes Precedence Over Extradition Requests in Do Kwon’s Case It may take some time before an extradition process begins for Do Kwon, the South Korean Yonhap news agency reported, quoting the prosecutor working on the case of the Terraform Labs co-founder who was recently arrested in Montenegro. Judicial condemnation of crimes that have taken place in Montenegro’s jurisdiction is a priority for the authorities in the small Balkan nation, Haris Šabotić stated in an interview in the Montenegrin capital Podgorica on Monday. Šabotić is in charge of the local investigation against Kwon for alleged forging of documents. The chief executive of the company behind the failed stablecoin terrausd and cryptocurrency luna was detained on March 23 while trying to board a flight to Dubai using a fake Costa Rican passport. Kwon Do-Hyung, as is his full name in Korean, disappeared after departing for Singapore in April, 2022, right before the collapse of the two coins ust and terra. He then fled to Serbia, where he reportedly registered a new firm, before eventually ending up in neighboring Montenegro. The prosecutor noted that the allegations of counterfeiting are subject to an ongoing investigation, rejecting earlier media reports that Kwon has already been indicted. Following a 72-hour initial detention, a Montenegrin court extended the measure to 30 days. The goal is to indict Kwon within that period, Haris Šabotić further noted. “We don’t know how the situation will develop after the indictment, but what is clear is that there is no possibility that the detainee will be handed over for 30 days,” he added. South Korea, the United States, and Singapore are all trying to secure Kwon’s extradition. While Šabotić declined to discuss the matter in detail as it’s not up to the prosecution to decide on the requests, he emphasized that the fake passport case investigation will be prioritized, noting: We can move on to the next step only after the prosecution of this case is over. We are not interested in the issue of extradition. If convicted of forgery of official documents, Do Kwon may receive up to five years in prison, according to Montenegro’s law. “If we bring charges within 30 days, the court will decide,” Šabotić said in the interview that took place at the District Prosecutor’s Office in Podgorica. Kwon is currently held in the Spuž detention center near the Montenegrin capital. Do you think Montenegro will eventually extradite Do Kwon and if so, to where? Share your expectations in the comments section below.
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The stablecoin will be launched on the Noble network, making it available to all 50-plus Cosmos IBC blockchains.
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According to Michael Novogratz, the founder of Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., a financial services company in the crypto industry, the crypto markets seem to be exhibiting spectacular strength this year. He attributes this to the fact that sellers are feeling fatigued following the mass sell-offs witnessed in the past few months and the regulatory restrictions in China being relaxed. Furthermore, he notes that Hong Kong is becoming more receptive to the digital asset sector. Novogratz Sees Crypto Gaining Strength During a conference call for the company’s quarterly earnings on Tuesday, the Galaxy Digital CEO stated that financial banking crisis in the United States served as an “adrenaline shot” for the price of Bitcoin and provided the crypto community with “unbelievable resilience” towards the broader crypto sector. Read More: Ethereum’s Next Big Upgrade “Shapella” Coming This April; ETH Price Poised To Rally? While speaking about crypto’s substantial rise this year, Novogratz summarized them for two primary reasons. One of which includes the seller’s exhaustion, thereby lowering the sell-pressure and the growing number of activities coming from Asian countries. According to him, China’s move of removing the regulatory shackles hanging over the heads of their tech enterprises has benefitted largely to the crypto sector. Crypto To Outgrow Even More? Despite the fact that the trading of cryptocurrencies has been made illegal on the Chinese mainland, the city of Hong Kong revealed a strategy late last year to position itself as a hub for digital assets and Web3 enterprises. As reported earlier on CoinGape, Chinese banks have been directly reaching out to crypto businesses over the past few months, and regulators in Hong Kong are about to convene a meeting to assist crypto enterprises with banking. The 58-year-old business tycoon seemed pretty bullish on the overall crypto-space and was quoted as saying: It wouldn’t surprise me if we were substantially higher three months, six months, nine months from now. Earlier, he had forecast that the price of BTC may climb back up to $30,000 by the end of March. As things stand, Bitcoin’s price is currently exchanging hands at $27,257 which represents a gain of 0.51% in the past 24 hours. Also Read: CFTC Chair Declares War On Binance, Calls It “Ongoing Fraud” Since 2019 The post What Makes Michael Novogratz Super Bullish On Crypto Amid Regulatory Crackdowns? appeared first on CoinGape.
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It all started with FTX, FDIC head Martin Gruenberg said; he emphasized that the American banking system remains sound.
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