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Wikileaks Gathers $37M in BTC Since 2010 – Over $400K Sent After Julian Assange’s Arrest

26/02/2020 by Idelto Editor

The world was shocked when Wikileaks cofounder Julian Assange was arrested in April after being cooped up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since 2012. Following his arrest, the original Wikileaks bitcoin address saw significant support as $32,000 worth of BTC poured into the wallet in two days. Since 2010, Wikileaks’ address saw 4,043 BTC donated or around $37 million at today’s exchange rates. Moreover, Wikileaks has gathered over $400,000 in BTC donations since Julian Assange was taken into custody last spring.

Also Read: Tradeblock Estimates Post-Halving Mining Cost of $12,500 per BTC

Wikileaks Gathers Over $400K in Bitcoin Donations Since Julian Assange Was Taken Into Custody

Years ago, the U.S. government started an investigation on Wikileaks cofounder Julian Assange for computer-related crimes allegedly committed in 2012. However, Assange requested asylum at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London and Ecuador’s government allowed him to stay until 2019. A U.S. indictment charges Assange with conspiracy to commit computer intrusion during the Chelsea Manning investigation. Manning accessed classified government intelligence and it was subsequently published on Wikileaks. On April 11, 2019, the Ecuadorian Embassy in London was raided and he was charged with failing to show up to court. Assange also faces extradition to the U.S., but he remains in prison awaiting trial, which started on Monday. Assange is also accused of using the Ecuadorian Embassy to meet with Russian leaders and international hackers.

Immediately after Assange was arrested, BTC donations started pouring in and the Wikileaks donation wallet saw roughly $20K in BTC on April 11th alone. The following day, donations continued and that Friday Wikileaks accrued $32,000 worth of BTC donations. Wikileaks has recently started a new address and has asked people not to donate to the older address. The old address obtained approximately 4,043 BTC ($37 million) before the nonprofit organization shared a new address. The new Wikileaks BTC address has 6.76 BTC ($63K) on February 25 and people can also donate bitcoin cash (BCH), litecoin (LTC), ethereum (ETH), monero (XMR), and zcash (ZEC). Since the arrest last April, Wikileaks obtained over $400,000 worth of BTC including the 6.76 BTC donated during the course of last week.

The First Financial Blockade Against Wikileaks

Wikileaks has always been supported by the general public and cryptocurrency advocates have rallied for the website and Assange as well. Donations pay for “Wikileaks projects, staff, servers, and protective infrastructure.” In 2010, Wikileaks and Assange contemplated using bitcoin for donations after the U.S. government, Senator McCain, Senator Lieberman, Visa, Mastercard, Paypal, Amex, and Moneybookers created a financial blockade against the organization. In 2017, Assange tweeted that the 2010 financial blockade invoked “[Wikileaks] to invest in Bitcoin” and the nonprofit generated a “50,000% return” from those donations.

But when it was first announced in 2010, Satoshi Nakamoto and a few other bitcoiners were not too keen on Wikileaks using bitcoin for donations at that time. When someone said that the Bitcoin community should “bring it on” with Wikileaks, Nakamoto wholeheartedly disagreed. “No, don’t ‘bring it on.’ The project needs to grow gradually so the software can be strengthened along the way. I make this appeal to WikiLeaks not to try to use Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a small beta community in its infancy. You would not stand to get more than pocket change, and the heat you would bring would likely destroy us at this stage.” Nakamoto stated five days later on December 11, 2010:

It would have been nice to get this attention in any other context. WikiLeaks has kicked the hornet’s nest, and the swarm is headed towards us.

Proof-of-Life, the Banking Blockade 2.0, and ‘Bitcoin Is the Real Occupy Wall Street’

Satoshi’s words didn’t stop Assange and Wikileaks from using bitcoin and a number of people believe that Wikileaks and the creation of the Silk Road marketplace helped propel bitcoin to new heights. The crypto donations strengthened Wikileaks as well, and in December 2017, the nonprofit suffered a second financial blockade. Assange told his Twitter followers a few times that month about the situation. He called it a “banking blockade 2.0” and Assange said U.S. intelligence was making it difficult for Wikileaks donors.

Assange suggested people should send cryptocurrencies instead and Wikileaks started accepting digital assets like zcash, monero, and litecoin. The Wikileaks founder has always supported bitcoin and a year before the banking blockade 2.0, people were concerned that Assange wasn’t alive because they hadn’t heard from him in a while. At the time, the Wikileaks editor-in-chief read the BTC blockchain hash of block 447506 during a recorded video. A number of people believe that the hash was read during the video to prove Assange was alive.

A week before the banking blockade 2.0, Assange tweeted that “Bitcoin is the real Occupy Wall Street.” Crypto enthusiasts have been awfully kind to Assange over the years, donating more than $37 million worth of BTC since 2010, and over $400K in BTC donations since he was taken into custody last April. The website Assange created has given the world an inside look at how governments worldwide have committed crimes against humanity. Wikileaks has a treasure trove of logged data that explores controversial subjects like Guantanamo Bay, the Afghan War, the Iraq War, and shady government dealings. There’s a reason why governments want people like Assange and Edward Snowden silenced. However, Assange knew early on that governments cannot stop censorship-resistant money.

What do you think about the $37 million worth of BTC donations given to Wikileaks since 2010 and over $400K in BTC donations since he was taken into custody last April? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation, endorsement, or sponsorship of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Wikileaks, Wiki Commons, Pixabay, Fair Use, and Twitter.

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Ireland Seizes Bitcoin Stash Worth $56M in Criminal Forfeiture Ruling

20/02/2020 by Idelto Editor

Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) seized 6,000 BTC from a Dublin resident who was accused of growing cannabis on property located in the Wicklow Mountain region. The police found around €450,000 of marijuana plants but the €52 million ($56.1M) of BTC was the biggest single-value asset seizure by the CAB since 1996.

Also read: US Government Auctioning off Bitcoins Worth $37 Million in 2 Weeks

**This article has been updated at 3:28 p.m. ET. An earlier version of this article stated that the 6,000 BTC had to be held for a seven-year period. This article has been updated to reflect a regional report that highlights Collins’ consent to the seizure removed the need for the CAB to wait for seven years.**

Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau Seizes 6,000 BTC Worth $56M

Three years ago during a Garda Síochána (police) inquiry, a man named Clifton Collins got caught driving his 4×4 with a small stash of cannabis. Collins lived in Crumlin and the police found that he had around €450,000 ($486k) worth of marijuana growing at a property in Corr na Móna in Co Galway. The officers also found the 49-year-old had a stash of around 6,000 BTC ($56.1M) and the police believe Collins invested his drug money into the crypto. Because the asset was so large in value, the police called in the CAB and they took over the remainder of the investigation. Regional reports in Ireland note that the seizure was the largest single-value asset ever taken by the CAB in 24 years.

Ireland Seizes Bitcoin Stash Worth $56M in Criminal Forfeiture Ruling — During a Garda Síochána (police) inquiry about a large marijuana grow, police arrested Clifton Collins who had €450,000 ($486k) worth of cannabis growing on a property in the Wicklow Mountain region. Collins also held 6,000 BTC, which was then handed over to the CAB.

It took a while to get the ball rolling but by July 2019, prosecutors allowed the CAB to secure a temporary forfeiture order on the bitcoins under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The Irish Statutes Book details that law enforcement officials can take possession of the specified property if they were used directly or indirectly with the proceeds of crime. Collins went before the High Court and Justice Alex Owens ruled that the BTC was in fact proceeds of crime. The forfeited assets Owens said did fall under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Collins and his legal team did not object to the CAB’s appropriation of the funds and under the legislation.

A Significant Sum of Circulating Bitcoins Have Been Auctioned by Governments

In nearly every crypto seizure throughout countries in Europe or in the U.S., law enforcement have auctioned the digital currencies quickly. The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) has auctioned thousands of bitcoins since 2014 and the agency just sold 4,040 BTC on February 18. In September 2019, the U.K.’s Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) auctioned roughly $300,000 worth of cryptos confiscated from illegal proceeds. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Treasury have disclosed that officers have seized over 22 different cryptocurrencies throughout numerous investigations. In 2018, there were rumors floating around that Bulgaria’s government was hoarding 213,000 BTC from a criminal case. Headlines reported that the country held the second-largest amount of BTC in the world. However, local reports from Bulgaria reported that the information was false and the Bulgarian government had auctioned off the entire haul.

Bulgaria’s finance minister, Vladislav Goranov, explained the sale did indeed take place. Goranov revealed that the BTC lots were auctioned to “several sovereign wealth funds and Asian investors.” He also noted that crypto experts from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) helped ensure the transactions were secure. Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau’s 6,000 BTC haul will likely be the longest holding period for a government agency that has seized crypto from criminal investigations.

In the last few years, CAB has dealt with a small number of crypto seizures but nothing as large as Collins’ stash.

What do you think about Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau’s (CAB) recent seizure of 6,000 BTC? Let us know what you think about this topic in the comments section below.

Image credits: Shutterstock, Fair Use, Wiki Commons, and Pixabay.

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Regulatory Roundup: Trump’s Cryptocurrency Proposals, IRS Changes Rule, China Quarantines Cash

18/02/2020 by Idelto Editor

In this roundup, we cover numerous cryptocurrency regulatory developments in the U.S., including President Trump’s crypto proposals, testimonies by the Federal Reserve chairman and the Treasury secretary, a crypto-friendly SEC proposal, and the IRS changing a crypto tax rule. We also cover China quarantining yuan bills, its central bank filing 84 digital currency patents, 40 German banks wanting to offer crypto services, several blockchain initiatives by the Indian government and more.

Also read: Regulatory Roundup – New US Crypto Tax Bill, Central Banks Join Forces on Digital Currencies

Trump’s Budget, Fed Chair’s Testimony, SEC Proposal

It has been a busy week for the U.S. government trying to regulate the crypto space. Perceiving cryptocurrency as a threat, President Donald Trump proposed a few measures to increase oversight of the industry in his new budget. He wants to return the Secret Service to the Treasury “to create new efficiencies in the investigation” of crimes, including those involving cryptocurrencies. He also proposed a budget of $127 million for the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) “to combat emerging virtual currency and cybercrime threats.”

Also last week, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testified before the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testified before the Senate Finance Committee. After answering questions about a digital dollar, Powell said “The idea of having a ledger where you know everybody’s payments is not something that would be, you know, particularly attractive in the United States context. It’s not a problem for China.” Mnuchin revealed that the Treasury will soon release new crypto regulations to increase transparency. Independently, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, Neel Kashkari, called bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies “a giant garbage dumpster.”

While the Department of Justice (DOJ) is criminalizing onchain privacy starting with mixers, the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence is seeking researchers to determine how cryptocurrency could undermine the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. The director is the head of the Intelligence Community comprising 17 agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the National Security Agency (NSA). In addition, the U.S. is auctioning over 4,040 seized bitcoins, currently worth approximately $40 million.

In the financial sector, token projects may see a sign of relief from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as crypto-friendly Commissioner Hester Peirce has unveiled her “Token Safe Harbor Proposal.” It is designed to give token projects a three-year grace period before deciding whether they involve the offering of a security. Meanwhile, the pro-crypto presidential candidate Andrew Yang has dropped out of the race to become the president of the United States.

IRS Backtracks on In-Game Tokens

Soon after the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) started accepting tax filings this year, it modified the text of a page on its website which details the tax treatment of cryptocurrency. The agency announced on Feb. 14: “The IRS recognizes that the language on our page potentially caused concern for some taxpayers. We have changed the language in order to lessen any confusion.”

The topic of confusion is in-game currencies. Previously, the IRS listed “bitcoin, ether, Roblox, and v-bucks” as examples of a convertible virtual currency. However, it quietly removed everything except bitcoin last week. The tax authority clarified:

Transacting in virtual currencies as part of a game that do not leave the game environment (virtual currencies that are not convertible) would not require a taxpayer to indicate this on their tax return.

China Quarantines Banknotes

China is currently combating the coronavirus which has killed more than 1,500 people and infected more than 66,000 people in the country. The government is now scrubbing and quarantining banknotes to stop the spread of the deadly virus by touching the bills. The central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), explained that banks use ultraviolet light or high temperatures to disinfect yuan bills. They are then sealed and stored for seven to 14 days, depending on the severity of the outbreak in a particular area, before being recirculated.

As for the impending launch of a central bank digital currency, the PBOC has reportedly filed 84 patents relating to its digital yuan. “Virtually all of these patent applications relate to integrating a system of digital currency into the existing banking infrastructure,” patent attorney Marc Kaufman commented.

German Banks Declare Intent to Offer Crypto services

More than 40 financial institutions in Germany have reportedly declared to the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) that they are interested in offering cryptocurrency custody services under the new German law. The law implementing the amendment to the Fourth EU Money Laundering Directive entered into force on Jan. 1.

The regulator told news.Bitcoin.com that financial services companies as of that date must submit their intent to apply for a license by March 31 and complete a license application by Nov. 30. The length of time it takes for an applicant to be granted a license depends on the individual case.

Furthermore, German banks are still struggling to cope with the negative interest rate policy maintained by the European Central Bank (ECB). At least 41 banks in the country are now charging their customers negative interest rates and the number is rising.

Australia Has 312 Registered Crypto Exchanges

The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), the country’s financial intelligence agency and anti-money laundering regulator, has confirmed to news.Bitcoin.com that it has registered and enrolled 312 digital currency exchange providers.

“Since April 2018, AUSTRAC has regulated digital currency exchange providers to minimize the risk of criminals using them for money laundering, terrorism financing and cybercrime,” a spokesperson for the regulator said.

Indian Government Dives Deep Into Blockchain While All Await Supreme Court Verdict on RBI Ban

The government of India has been ramping up its efforts to integrate blockchain technology into its existing infrastructures. Last week, the country’s Chief Election Commissioner revealed that the Election Commission is working on a blockchain system for voting.

Earlier this month, the government’s premier policy think tank, Niti Aayog, released a report identifying key blockchain use cases in India. It followed a report entitled National Strategy on Blockchain, compiled by the National Institute for Smart Government as directed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). It calls for the central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), to issue a digital rupee. Moreover, the Telangana state government has launched a blockchain accelerator in partnership with Tech Mahindra and IBC Media.

While the Indian government has not made a decision on whether to regulate or ban cryptocurrencies in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently awarded a young entrepreneur for her work on a cryptocurrency app. Additionally, the supreme court has yet to announce its verdict on whether to lift the banking restriction imposed on crypto businesses by the RBI. The court wrapped up hearing the arguments against the ban several weeks ago and has reserved judgment on the case.

Switzerland to Lower User-Verification Threshold

The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has published a proposal for a follow-up crypto regulation. It proposed amending the client identification threshold values in its Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance from CHF 5,000 ($5,092) to CHF 1,000 for crypto exchange transactions. FINMA says it’s “acknowledging the heightened money-laundering risks in this area.” The regulator is holding a consultation on this follow-up regulation until April 9.

What do you think of the crypto regulatory developments covered in this roundup? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the Financial Times.

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84 PBOC Digital Currency Patents Show the Extent of China’s Digital Yuan

16/02/2020 by Idelto Editor

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has reportedly filed 84 patents relating to its plans to launch a digital currency. The patents reveal the central bank’s plans which include integrating digital currency wallets into existing retail bank accounts. The potential for the Chinese central bank digital currency to achieve scale from the get-go has put several other central banks worldwide on high alert.

Also read: Trump Views Crypto a Threat, Proposes Countermeasures in New Budget

PBOC’s 84 Digital Currency Patents

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has filed 84 patents relating to its plans to launch a digital yuan, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. The publication claims to have seen and verified all of them, which include:

Proposals related to the issuance and supply of a central bank digital currency, a system for interbank settlements that uses the currency, and the integration of digital currency wallets into existing retail bank accounts.

Several of the patents “indicate that China may plan to algorithmically adjust the supply of a central bank digital currency based on certain triggers, such as loan interest rates,” the news outlet detailed. Some patents “outline mechanisms to allow customers to make deposits with their existing banks and then exchange that for digital currency … Other patents are focused on building digital currency chip cards or digital currency wallets that banking consumers could potentially use, which would be linked directly to their bank accounts.” The patents were uncovered by the Chamber of Digital Commerce.

Patent attorney Marc Kaufman, a partner at Rimon Law who worked with the chamber on the project, commented:

Virtually all of these patent applications relate to integrating a system of digital currency into the existing banking infrastructure.

The majority of the patents are attributed to the PBOC’s Digital Currency Research Institute, with some attributed to state-owned corporations or government subsidiaries. The institute was set up at the end of 2016 to study the possibility of issuing a sovereign digital currency when commercial tradeable cryptocurrencies started gaining traction, the South China Morning Post described. The director of the institute, Mu Changchun, previously said that the digital yuan was almost ready. In December, the official Shanghai Securities News reported Mu explaining that this new currency is not for speculation and would not need the backing of a basket of currencies, emphasizing that it is different from bitcoin and stablecoins.

Global Responses to Digital Yuan

China’s claim to be close to launching its central bank digital currency (CBDC) has put other countries on high alert. In the U.S., Representative Bill Foster pointed out during a House of Representatives’ Committee on Financial Services hearing on Tuesday that besides Facebook’s Libra project, China is the only one in a position to launch its own digital currency and immediately achieve scale. However, both the chairman of the Federal Reserve and the Secretary of the Treasury believe that the U.S. does not need a digital dollar yet.

Meanwhile, the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), the Bank of Canada, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, the Sveriges Riksbank, and the Swiss National Bank formed a group last month to assess potential cases of central bank digital currencies. According to reports, they will meet in mid-April in Washington on the sidelines of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) conference to discuss this issue. Bank of Japan board member Takako Masai told a news conference in Nara on Feb. 6:

In Japan, we don’t have any plans now to issue central bank digital currencies … But we need to make an effort so we’re ready to respond, in case public demand for central bank digital currencies rises dramatically.

To help central bankers decide whether to issue a central bank digital currency, the World Economic Forum published a toolkit for policymakers last month. It aims to provide high-level guidance and information on different types of CBDCs — such as retail, wholesale, and cross-border — and alternatives in private money for large, small, emerging and developed countries.

In the same month, the BIS released the outcome of a survey it conducted of 66 central banks’ digital currency efforts. The results show that 40% of central banks have progressed from conceptual research to experiments, or proofs-of-concept, and another 10% have developed pilot projects. However, only a few from small and medium-sized economies have progressed to intensive development and have firm intentions to issue a digital currency soon. “Central banks currently not looking at CBDCs are typically from smaller jurisdictions and/or report that they face more pressing priorities,” the survey finds.

What do you think of the PBOC filing 84 patents relating to a central bank digital currency? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

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US Worried Crypto Could Undermine Dollar as World Reserve Currency, Hiring Researchers to Prepare Response

16/02/2020 by Idelto Editor

The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence has admitted that cryptocurrency could undermine the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency. The head of the U.S. Intelligence Community is seeking researchers to detail the impact of that status loss on the U.S., its economy, and national security.

Also read: Fed Chair Powell Reveals US Response to China’s Digital Yuan, Libra, Public Payments Ledger

Crypto Could Undermine USD as the World’s Reserve Currency

The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence has posted a research opportunity entitled “Evaluating the Impact of U.S. Dollar Losing Its Status as World Reserve Currency.”

“There are many advantages for U.S. national security to have the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency. Any international transaction settled in US dollars gives the U.S. jurisdiction over financial crimes associated with those transactions,” the office stated in its posting. “In addition, the U.S. is able to effectively level sanctions against or designate entities that violate international laws or treaties, or that have the potential to cause financial instability in global markets.”

However, “there are many threats to the U.S. dollar maintaining its status as the world reserve currency,” the Office of the Director of National Intelligence explained. “Countries such as China and India have large growing economies that could compete with U.S. economic growth,” its post describes, adding:

Many cryptocurrency enthusiasts predict that either a global cryptocurrency or a national digital currency could undermine the U.S. dollar … The U.S. should prepare for scenarios that threaten to undermine the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency and determine how those scenarios could be overcome, protecting our status in the global economy.

Referring to the above threats, the post notes that “If either of these scenarios or others come to pass, the U.S. would lose both its status in the world and its global authorities.” The posting further asserts: “The U.S. should prepare to identify potential ‘black swan’ events that could revolutionize the financial playing field in ways we do not yet understand – presenting strategic surprise — and understand root causes and driving factors that are particularly sensitive to certain global or technical events.”

Who Can Apply and Scope of Research

The research opportunity above is a U.S. Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program through the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Technology.

The Intelligence Community is a coalition of 17 agencies and organizations, including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the National Security Agency (NSA). The Director of National Intelligence, acting as the head of the Intelligence Community, oversees and directs the implementation of the National Intelligence Program and acts as the principal advisor to the president, the National Security Council, and the Homeland Security Council.

US Worried Crypto Could Undermine Dollar as World Reserve Currency, Hiring Researchers to Combat Threat — The U.S. Intelligence Community comprising 17 agencies, with the Director of National Intelligence as the head of the community.

Two positions are listed in the research opportunity posting: postdoc and research advisor. Postdoc applicants must be U.S. citizens and either recent Ph.D. graduates or doctoral students who will soon complete their degrees. Research advisor applicants must be an employee of an accredited U.S. university, college or U.S. government laboratory but are not required to be U.S. citizens. The application deadline is Feb. 28.

“This project should leverage all available information as well as recent breakthroughs in applied statistics, artificial intelligence, and deep learning to determine the most likely scenario(s) for how the U.S. dollar loses its status as the world reserve currency, why that scenario(s) is most likely, and in what timeframe this scenario(s) could unfold,” the Office of the Director of National Intelligence clarified, elaborating:

It should also detail the impact of that status loss on the U.S., its economy, and national security.

What do you think of the U.S. researching how crypto could undermine the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

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