12 Aug 2025, 16:12

BREAKING: Do Kwon pleads guilty of wire fraud — What’s next for LUNA and LUNC?

Do Kwon, a once-celebrated crypto entrepreneur whose company Terraform Labs collapsed in a $40 billion market fallout, has finally pleaded guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud in the United States. Per public information from the US District Court in the Southern District of New York, Kwon waived his right to trial on two of the nine criminal charges he faced and admitted guilt in Tuesday’s hearing. Each count carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years, with prosecutors indicating that if served consecutively, the combined penalty could reach up to 25 years. Kwon’s unshakable posture in court has finally bent under pressure. For over a year after being flown in from Montenegro, Kwon stood firm on his not-guilty plea to every charge, from securities fraud to market manipulation and money laundering. His lawyers geared up for a trial that prosecutors warned could stretch into early 2026, slowed by six terabytes of evidence and several encrypted devices still waiting to be cracked. Now, court records show that Kwon entered the guilty plea after discussions with prosecutors in recent weeks. Since August, there have been reports that both sides were considering a deal. While the agreement resolves only two counts in the US criminal case, it leaves other pending charges — including those in South Korea — untouched. The plea also does not affect the $4.5 billion civil penalty already imposed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission earlier this year. Is this end of the multi-year Terra case? Sentencing has not yet been scheduled, but legal analysts expect the court to set a date in the coming months. Victims of the Terra collapse — potentially more than one million worldwide — will have the opportunity to submit statements under the Justice for All Act of 2004. The Department of Justice in the United States has already launched a dedicated victim notification website to manage the unprecedented scale of the case. Prosecutors are also likely to press for substantial restitution orders, though the complexity of tracing and recovering investor losses across multiple jurisdictions could delay those proceedings. Meanwhile, South Korean authorities have said they still intend to pursue their own criminal case once US proceedings conclude. It is likely Kwon may be looking at more prison time abroad. Kwon bends under pressure For months, Kwon framed himself as a bystander to the Terra downfall, not the one who set it in motion. However, his legal defence lost ground when the prosecutor disclosed they were prepared to present testimony from former Terraform insiders and key financial records linking Kwon directly to deceptive practices that propped up TerraUSD before its crash. The 2022 collapse of TerraUSD, an algorithmic stablecoin designed to maintain a $1 peg through automated trading with its sister token LUNA, wiped out tens of billions in market value in a matter of days. The implosion set off a chain reaction in the cryptocurrency sector, which led to the implosion of several hedge funds and exchanges and contributing to one of the steepest downturns in crypto market history. Regulators in the US, South Korea, Singapore, and several European countries opened investigations as losses spread across borders. Many retail investors in Asia, Europe, and North America saw their life savings vanish. The SEC later accused Terraform Labs and Kwon of orchestrating a scheme that misled investors about the stability of TerraUSD and the company’s financial health. With Tuesday’s plea, the long-running legal battle takes a decisive turn, but for many victims, the question remains whether any recovery of losses is possible, or whether Kwon’s guilty admission will serve only as an acknowledgment of one of crypto’s most devastating failures. What will happen to LUNA and LUNC? While the Terra ecosystem has splintered, LUNC — now branded as Terra Luna Classic — runs entirely on community control. With Terraform Labs out of the picture after its collapse and bankruptcy, the chain survives through on-chain votes and volunteer developers. Burn campaigns chip away at its enormous supply, but without a unifying strategy or heavyweight backers, its future trajectory remains cloudy. LUNA, the token born from Terra’s 2022 fork into Terra 2.0, has its own identity crisis. It exists on a functioning proof-of-stake network, yet the leadership that once drove its growth is gone. Terraform Labs’ demise and Do Kwon’s legal downfall leave it in the hands of scattered contributors, each with ideas but no single vision, a blockchain alive in code, but searching for purpose. The post BREAKING: Do Kwon pleads guilty of wire fraud — What’s next for LUNA and LUNC? appeared first on Invezz

12 Aug 2025, 16:10

202,489,814,762 SHIB Stuns Coinbase as Shiba Inu Whale Turns Meme Coin Bear

Coinbase Shiba Inu whale stuns major US exchange with 202,489,814,762 SHIB transfer

12 Aug 2025, 16:06

Ethereum hits new multiyear high as Tom Lee's BitMine plans $20B ETH raise

Ether price action targets all-time highs amid excitement over BitMine's giant accumulation plan, shifting the focus away from rangebound Bitcoin.

12 Aug 2025, 16:05

Analyst Says XRP Is Lining Up for 2,000% Price Explosion. Here’s What Was Discovered

A recent market analysis by STEPH IS CRYPTO has sparked excitement among XRP investors after drawing striking parallels between Ethereum’s explosive rally in 2017 and XRP’s current price structure. According to Steph, XRP’s chart pattern is mirroring Ethereum’s setup just before a 20x rally, suggesting the cryptocurrency could be positioned for a potential 2,000% price surge. Chart Comparison: Ethereum vs. XRP In the side-by-side charts shared on X, Ethereum’s 2016–2018 price action shows a prolonged consolidation phase within a rectangular range, followed by a decisive breakout that led to its historic run from under $15 to over $1,400. Steph points out that XRP’s 2024–2026 chart is exhibiting a nearly identical formation, with price consolidating between roughly $1.70 and $3.60 before recently breaking above the upper boundary. #XRP IS NOW WHERE ETH WAS IN 2017 RIGHT BEFORE A 20X EXPLOSION! pic.twitter.com/vePViclR2O — STEPH IS CRYPTO (@Steph_iscrypto) August 11, 2025 The “breakout point” highlighted in the chart signals a potential shift from accumulation to expansion, a phase where prices historically accelerate as market participants pile in. If XRP follows Ethereum’s trajectory from 2017, the resulting move could be parabolic. Current Price Action and Market Context As of report time, XRP is trading at $3.17, maintaining a strong position among the top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. Trading volumes remain in the multi-billion-dollar range daily, reflecting deep liquidity and sustained investor interest. However, technical resistance remains at the $3.40–$3.60 zone , a region that could act as a short-term hurdle before any extended rally. Breaking through this level with strong volume could confirm the bullish continuation pattern Steph’s analysis suggests. We are on twitter, follow us to connect with us :- @TimesTabloid1 — TimesTabloid (@TimesTabloid1) July 15, 2023 Fundamental Tailwinds A significant catalyst behind the renewed optimism for XRP is the resolution of its long-running legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In late June 2025, Ripple announced it would drop its counter-appeal, and the SEC is widely expected to follow suit, effectively removing a major regulatory cloud that has hung over XRP for years. This anticipated legal clarity is likely to enhance institutional confidence in XRP, potentially attracting new inflows from funds, payment providers, and corporate treasuries seeking blockchain-based settlement solutions. Caution and Considerations While the Ethereum comparison offers an appealing narrative, it is not a guarantee of performance. Replicating a 20x rally would require sustained bullish momentum, increased institutional participation, favorable macroeconomic conditions, and continued adoption of XRP in cross-border payment systems. Traders and investors should remain mindful of market volatility and global regulatory developments. Steph’s analysis presents a compelling case for XRP’s bullish potential, combining technical precision with improving fundamentals. Whether XRP can truly follow Ethereum’s 2017 path remains to be seen, but the alignment of technical breakout signals and a strengthening fundamental backdrop has put the asset firmly in the spotlight for the months ahead. Disclaimer : This content is meant to inform and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author’s personal opinions and do not represent Times Tabloid’s opinion. Readers are urged to do in-depth research before making any investment decisions. Any action taken by the reader is strictly at their own risk. Times Tabloid is not responsible for any financial losses. Follow us on Twitter , Facebook , Telegram , and Google News The post Analyst Says XRP Is Lining Up for 2,000% Price Explosion. Here’s What Was Discovered appeared first on Times Tabloid .

12 Aug 2025, 16:05

Monero’s 51% Attack Problem: Inside Qubic’s Controversial Network Takeover

Monero, the leading privacy-focused cryptocurrency, is facing one of the most serious security challenges in its history. Qubic, a project led by IOTA co-founder Sergey Ivancheglo, says it now controls more than 51% of the network’s hashrate . In blockchains secured by proof-of-work algorithms, that's the same method used by Bitcoin, that level of control can allow an attacker to rewrite transaction history, block transactions or carry out double-spend attacks. In a blog post , Quibic described the takeover as an "experiment" that was a "strategic, and at times combative, application of game theory." Developers, miners and security experts are now debating whether the network’s decentralization is as robust as many believed. What is a 51% attack? In a proof-of-work blockchain , miners compete to add new blocks of transactions to the chain. If one group controls more than half of the total computing power, they can outpace every other participant. That level of control opens the door to a range of capabilities that can undermine confidence in the network. These include chain reorganizations, commonly abbreviated to "reorg," which involves replacing previously confirmed blocks with new ones. It also covers double spends, meaning sending the same token twice, Arguably the most impactful part of a 51% attack is censoring transactions —preventing some payments from being confirmed — which is particularly pertinent in the case of Monero given its focus on privacy These attacks are not theoretical. Ethereum Classic was hit several times in 2020 , costing millions. Bitcoin Gold faced similar incidents in 2018 and 2020. Smaller tokens like Verge have been targeted and destabilized. Why Monero is still at risk Monero uses the RandomX algorithm to discourage mining using application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), encouraging CPU mining instead. This design was meant to keep the network decentralized. That is why Qubic’s rapid rise is so significant. From less than 2% of Monero’s hashrate in May, it grew to more than 25% by late July, and now claims to have crossed the 51% threshold. Qubic runs a “useful proof-of-work” system that turns Monero mining rewards into USDT, then uses those funds to buy and burn its own QUBIC tokens. The mechanism is unusual, combining a mining strategy with a token supply sink. And it has steadily increased Qubic’s control over Monero’s hashpower. Ledger CTO Charles Guillemet said that "sustaining this attack is estimated to cost $75 million per day," before adding that while it is potentially lucrative, "it threatens to destroy confidence in the network almost overnight. Other miners are left with no incentive to continue." BitMEX research added : "Qubic say the end goal is to takeover all the block rewards of Monero, which essentially means full and sustained selfish mining. It is not clear whether they can actually achieve that. If this can be achieved, the value of the coin may fall." It did. Monero's XMR is currently trading at $252, down 6% over the past 24 hours to compound a 13.5% decline over the past seven days. What does this mean for Monero? In the blog post, Qubic said the takeover was not about breaking Monero, but about proving that economic incentives and a coordinated mining strategy can give a smaller protocol effective control over a much larger one. The experiment, Qubic says, was to test whether mining resources could be profitably diverted from a target network into another protocol’s economic loop. At its peak, Qubic claims its Monero mining was nearly three times more lucrative than traditional Monero mining. A restructuring of its reward system, approved by its community, boosted payouts to its validators and drew miners away from other Monero pools. Qubic’s first push for majority control was met with sustained distributed denial-of-service (DDOS) attacks that disrupted peripheral services for over a week but failed to take down its core network. Those DDOS attacks continued on Tuesday, Ivancheglo revealed on X, in what he decribes as "Monero Maxis returning the favor." Qubic claims it has so far stopped short of fully taking over consensus, citing concerns about the potential impact on XMR’s price. Are other blockchains vulnerable to attack? Bitcoin’s hashrate is so high that a 51% attack would be prohibitively expensive. But mid-tier proof-of-work coins are more vulnerable. The cost of gaining majority hashpower on Monero, Ethereum Classic or Bitcoin Gold is far lower. Privacy-focused coins face an added challenge. Their censorship-resistant nature means that if one party controls the network, it undermines the very privacy they are designed to protect.

12 Aug 2025, 16:03

Germany investor sentiment falls sharply on eu–us tariff deal

Investor sentiment toward Germany’s economy has weakened significantly after the EU and the US settled on a trade deal. According to the ZEW institute analysis, investor expectations fell to 34.7 in August, down from 52.7 last month and short of the 39.5 projected by Bloomberg-polled analysts. ZEW President Achim Wambach has attributed the drop in the investor expectations index to the 15% tariffs on German goods under the EU–US deal and the country’s weak second-quarter performance. Investor sentiment in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries has dropped significantly After two years of contraction, Trump’s new levies on German exports have dampened hopes of a swift recovery. Like most investors, Valentin Jansen, an analyst at Nord LB, shared a similar view, noting that the imposed rates would only hurt the country’s economy. He remarked, “The latest trade deal with the US clearly isn’t a lasting and viable solution in relations between Brussels and Washington.” He argued that although their negotiations had prevented a more serious immediate impact, the resulting trade measures and internal market challenges could strain Germany’s economy. According to Wambach, the chemical and pharmaceutical industries faced the steepest decline in investor prospects alongside mechanical engineering, metals, and automotive sectors. The outlook for the auto sector is particularly bleak, with manufacturers facing weak EV demand, plunging Chinese sales, and higher tariffs from Trump. Aside from the levies, the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, uncertainty over social-security sustainability, and divisive migration debates are adding pressure on the country’s economy. At the moment, the Bundesbank is estimating zero growth for Germany this year. June’s data also showed that factory orders fell for a second straight month and industrial production registered its largest drop in nearly a year. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approval is also slipping, with most now doubting his ability to steer the country through a crisis, exacerbating the risk of another year of economic contraction. US consumers are also facing the brunt of tariffs Germany is not the only country burdened by the levies. US tariffs have also started to affect American consumers, as companies slowly passed higher import costs on to consumers. According to Bloomberg, core CPI, excluding food and energy, increased 0.2% in July after gaining 0.3% in June. The U.S. dollar also weakened against the euro on Tuesday. Reports also show that CPI increased 2.7% in July year-on-year, matching the annual pace recorded in June. Nonetheless, Americans are seeing some relief in lower gasoline costs, which likely held the headline CPI to a 0.2% monthly gain. Yet US consumers have begun facing minor effects from higher tariffs in areas such as home goods and recreational products. Sluggish price gains for core services notwithstanding, most economists believe the impact of import duties will persist. In the meantime, the Federal Reserve has kept interest rates unchanged this year to evaluate how tariffs affect inflation while grappling with a slowdown in hiring trends. Meanwhile, companies are scrambling to protect budget-conscious consumers from higher costs due to tariffs. Economists expect Friday’s government figures to capture a solid increase in July retail sales, produced largely by auto-buying incentives and surges in online spending during Amazon’s Prime Day. Get seen where it counts. Advertise in Cryptopolitan Research and reach crypto’s sharpest investors and builders.