Telegram founder suggests ‘NFT-like smart contracts’ to auction usernames

Pavel Durov, the founder of encrypted messaging application Telegram, has floated the idea of a marketplace that could utilize “NFT-like smart contracts” to auction highly-sought after usernames. Durov made the suggestion after the “success” of domain name auctions by The Open Network (TON), a layer-1 blockchain originally designed by the Telegram team. The blockchain project…

Bitcoin addresses in loss hit 1-month high as BTC price retests $21K

Bitcoin (BTC) hodlers are feeling the squeeze this week as repeated tests of lower levels spark increasing losses. Data from on-chain analytics firm Glassnode shows more wallets are in the red as of Aug. 23 than at any time in the past month. Over 17.5 million wallets in the red BTC/USD has seen five trips…

Frictionless staking addressing lock-in periods and rewards payout is here

Bitcoin (BTC) first drew attention to the proof-of-work (PoW) consensus algorithm, a process that demonstrated users could maintain a secure, decentralized blockchain if only at the expense of large amounts of energy. As history would have it, Bitcoin grew in popularity and faced trouble scaling to accommodate the sheer number of transactions needed. Recognizing the…

Bitcoin mining to cost less than 0.5% of global energy if BTC hits $2M: Arcane

Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s most-valued cryptocurrencyhas the potential to be a significant energy consumer in the future, but only if it reaches several million dollars, according to new estimates by Arcane Research. Crypto research and analytics firm Arcane Research on Monday released a report estimating the development in Bitcoin’s energy usage toward 2040. Authored by…

Certain regulatory clarity could be ‘hugely detrimental’ for crypto, says former CFPB director

Kathy Kraninger, former director of the United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, said while many in crypto have complained about the lack of regulatory clarity in the country, the legal gray area has afforded the industry opportunities. Speaking to Cointelegraph, Kraninger said Congressional action on dividing the roles of different regulatory agencies —…